I'm sitting in Wisconsin, looking out over moonlit Lake Michigan thinking about how awesome God is. More than that, I'm thanking Him for allowing me to be part of this incredible mission that He's called the church to be on. Today I had the privilege of speaking at BridgeWay for the first time. Like always at BridgeWay, the band was smokin', the crowd was hoppin, and the Spirit was moving so hard the building was shaking! (That could have been the result of one of the aftershocks from the earthquake this week, but I like my theory better.) God through His Son Jesus Christ set people free this week from addictions and sins that had been deeply rooted in their lives. It was awesome to talk about "Jesus the Conquering Warrior" and deliver a message with truths that I am so passionate about. It does shed light on the idea that the scripture is like a double-edged sword, because wielding those truths (at least for me) give me great pause, because I know the life-change that can come from them when wielded correctly. The Holy Spirit made Himself known in incredible and increasing ways this week and like I said before, I was just priviledged to be a part of it.
You can download messages from BridgeWay at www.bridgewaycc.net.
My favorite part of blogging is when someone you work with is like "Hey, you should start a blog," then you start one and put them on your "Blog's that I Enjoy" list and they don't return the favor. Yeah, I'd say that's my favorite part.
Well, God answers prayer once again. When we came to Bridgeway, Brooke and I knew it was exactly what God wanted us to do, even though it meant I would take a pretty significant pay cut and she would be looking for a job cold. She began to search for jobs and Wednesday she was offered a position at Lutheran Social Services in Peoria and accepted. What's cool about this is it is exactly what she was doing in Ottawa, except that they take about a million times better care of their employees. She is working the same number of hours, has about 3 times as many vacation days as her old job, and the best part is the increase in salary from her old job is exactly the pay cut that I took in my salary to come to Bridgeway! God's a nut sometimes huh?
This is the bumper video for our next series called "The Real Jesus" starting April 20. It's going to be an incredible series so make sure you make it each week or download the podcasts from www.bridgewaycc.net.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPMNGWyHSOY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPMNGWyHSOY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbcLArwrtN8
If you get about 4 minutes, check out this video on YouTube. It's a song by a guy named Kees Kraayenoord called "God of the Moon and Stars." It's really powerful and convicting. Check it out!
If you get about 4 minutes, check out this video on YouTube. It's a song by a guy named Kees Kraayenoord called "God of the Moon and Stars." It's really powerful and convicting. Check it out!
I grew up in a Christian home with incredible Christian parents. They led lives of example for me that still influence me deeply today. I went to church all my life, accepted Christ at a young age and have lived faithfully for Him ever since, or so I thought.
As I grew in my faith, I quickly became very Pharisaical (Pharisee-like) in my beliefs and extremely quick to judge. Never verbally, but in my head (which is probably worse). I began to look at how much worse off everyone was than me, and how I could be thankful that I wasn't like them. The worst part was I was completely unaware of this part of my life.
Through personal study and prayer, God convicted me of this behavior and beliefs and changed my life. What was odd about it though, is that my beliefs didn't go right to where they should have, but went to a different place. There became a new belief that moved in that said basically, "what Christ did in my life through the cross wasn't as significant (as other people's lives) because I wasn't that bad to begin with." Now, putting that into type makes me very ashamed and uncomfortable, but it's part of my testimony. I would read about sin being slain through the cross and victory over addictions and death and think, "that's great for all those people who need that." Again, I was completely lacking awareness of who God is.
A couple years ago I heard a message from Mark Driscoll, pastor of Mars Hill Church in Seattle, and he was talking about Paul. Mark said that Paul's writings as he got older in life really focused on how bad of a person Paul (himself) was. Now this wasn't because Paul was backsliding (to go old-school on you), but because Paul was becoming more aware of how awesome God is and how truly terrible he was without God.
That moment revolutionized my life. I repented right there for minimizing the work of God in my own life and have prayed every day for that awareness of how good God is and how I can't live without Him. That marked the first time in my life where I grasped the significance of the cross in my own life and have never looked back since. That moment brought on new meanings to the words "grace," "mercy," "love," "hope," and ultimately "joy" as I found what it was that God had for me all along.
As I grew in my faith, I quickly became very Pharisaical (Pharisee-like) in my beliefs and extremely quick to judge. Never verbally, but in my head (which is probably worse). I began to look at how much worse off everyone was than me, and how I could be thankful that I wasn't like them. The worst part was I was completely unaware of this part of my life.
Through personal study and prayer, God convicted me of this behavior and beliefs and changed my life. What was odd about it though, is that my beliefs didn't go right to where they should have, but went to a different place. There became a new belief that moved in that said basically, "what Christ did in my life through the cross wasn't as significant (as other people's lives) because I wasn't that bad to begin with." Now, putting that into type makes me very ashamed and uncomfortable, but it's part of my testimony. I would read about sin being slain through the cross and victory over addictions and death and think, "that's great for all those people who need that." Again, I was completely lacking awareness of who God is.
A couple years ago I heard a message from Mark Driscoll, pastor of Mars Hill Church in Seattle, and he was talking about Paul. Mark said that Paul's writings as he got older in life really focused on how bad of a person Paul (himself) was. Now this wasn't because Paul was backsliding (to go old-school on you), but because Paul was becoming more aware of how awesome God is and how truly terrible he was without God.
That moment revolutionized my life. I repented right there for minimizing the work of God in my own life and have prayed every day for that awareness of how good God is and how I can't live without Him. That marked the first time in my life where I grasped the significance of the cross in my own life and have never looked back since. That moment brought on new meanings to the words "grace," "mercy," "love," "hope," and ultimately "joy" as I found what it was that God had for me all along.
Recently, my life has undergone several big changes in a good way. I ended a wrestling match with God (I tapped out) to follow His call on my life into a different area of ministry. That meant I had to leave a job and church that I loved, sell our house, move an hour and a half south, buy a new house, accept a new position at an awesome church, while my wife resigned her job in Ottawa with no job lined up in our new town. This has been an incredible experience and God has proven Himself faithful over and over again.
This transition spurred after a year and a half of feeling God move in my life and change my calling from student ministry to an administrative role. When I would tell people what my new position was, several people would comment along the lines of "well, you're moving up, so that's good." This perception of student ministry really bothers me. I don't consider my move to be a move up, I consider it to be lateral at best.
All of those folks in the world that are student pastors do it because they are called to it and God is using them in that field. It is not an entry level position, it's not the easy job we'll give anyone, it's a calling, it's a ministry, and it deserves as much respect as any other ministry position out there.
In my tenure as student pastor, I had sleepless nights praying for students, parents that chewed me up and spit me out, and moments that God moved in ways that are indescribable. And I was only in student ministry for four years!
The shift in my calling was simply that, a shift. I don't consider it a move up, so please don't say that to me. To all of you in student ministry, I salute you, and want you to know that if you are ever looking for a supporter, look me up!
This transition spurred after a year and a half of feeling God move in my life and change my calling from student ministry to an administrative role. When I would tell people what my new position was, several people would comment along the lines of "well, you're moving up, so that's good." This perception of student ministry really bothers me. I don't consider my move to be a move up, I consider it to be lateral at best.
All of those folks in the world that are student pastors do it because they are called to it and God is using them in that field. It is not an entry level position, it's not the easy job we'll give anyone, it's a calling, it's a ministry, and it deserves as much respect as any other ministry position out there.
In my tenure as student pastor, I had sleepless nights praying for students, parents that chewed me up and spit me out, and moments that God moved in ways that are indescribable. And I was only in student ministry for four years!
The shift in my calling was simply that, a shift. I don't consider it a move up, so please don't say that to me. To all of you in student ministry, I salute you, and want you to know that if you are ever looking for a supporter, look me up!
