Saturday, August 30, 2008

The Heart of EQUIP

The most frequently asked question we get is where will you be? Right now, we don't know. We haven't had the chance to talk to anyone on the westside to see what our options are and God hasn't given us a clear direction on that yet. We're open to whatever may come our way at this time.

God has created a wide variety of churches with unique styles, focuses, and visions to reach a wide variety of individuals. I've already shared our vision, so let's go a little deeper into the heart of EQUIP and talk about our values, the things that are important to us.

1. Called to keep the focus on God
Acts 4: 24, “When they heard this, they raised their voices together in prayer to God.”

Prayer will be a primary focus, keeping the first things always first. Our posture will be to worship, seek, and wait. Quality time will be made for this priority.

2. Called to make disciples
Mat. 28:19 “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you . . .”

Teaching disciples to become disciple makers. This process will be intentional and strategic. The goal is to make leaders who will make leaders. Discipleship will happen both in one-on-one relationships and in small groups.

3. Called to be together
Acts 2:42 “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”

Creating an atmosphere for growth, where people can thrive, and be equipped. A place where all are accepted, know they belong, heal, become equipped, and where they will be sent out. Diversities in the body will be celebrated.

Romans 12:10 “Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves.” Acts 4:32 “All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had.”

We will teach the body to be focused and committed to the world-wide church.

4. Called to “Health”
Acts 2:42-47 “. . . And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.”
Healthy church multiplication should be a natural, normal happening.
We desire to be a deep church where size is not the goal. By going deep with people and developing intimacy with God and with others in the body, they will want to share the good news with others, discipling them, and those disciples will in turn disciple others and multiplication will occur. With this multiplication, strong leaders will be developed and it is our goal that we will birth our first healthy daughter church, and continue to birth other churches and see these daughter churches birth other churches.

I'll probably start sharing other things and interspersing with EQUIP news as things happen. We covet your prayers for this little bud of a church about to bloom. Blessings on this beautiful Saturday.

Friday, August 29, 2008

EQUIP Continued-Our Advisory Board

I forgot to mention that when we told our daughter about the calling, she had a vision as well. It was of a multi-ethnic church and it was white on the inside too.

We received many confirmations as the months went on. On our prayer walks often two of us would hear the same thing from God. God sometimes would make a promise then it would be confirmed within a few days by another person. It just blew us away.

I would love to share the transformations that have happened from our prayer meetings, but for the sake of privacy, I can't. Suffice to say it's amazing to see people's countenance change, their faces brighten, as they turn from darkness into the light.

As we continued on our journey to figure out how all this would work, our board recommended we put together an advisory board for the new church. We started right away. We prayed about it and God gave us 3 names. They are all at or near the top of their missions agencies.

One of our board members is Bruce Beckhart. He is with Frontiers and he is responsible for Pastoral care. Frontiers is a missions agency with missionaries in every Muslim country. Whenever a pastor in one of these countries needs care of any kind, this man makes a phone call and sends someone right to them.

Another board member is Roger Thompkins. He is the founder and leader of an agency called MCN (Missionaries to Christian Nationals). They are dedicated to establishing indigenous churches among unreached people groups.

John Dupree is on our board as well. He is with The Harvest Group. John works with local churches to help them develop missions. He also coordinates conferences and help to bring Perspectives classes to local churches. If you want a good view of God's heart for the world, take a Perspectives class. It will change the way you think about missions.

The neat thing is that as we asked each one of these men to pray about whether or not they would accept the position of a temporary advisory board member, they all said yes! We had our first meeting in July and our next one will be in October. John lives in Escalon, Roger in Mariposa, and Bruce is Mesa, Arizona. Bruce will be teleconferenced in on the computer for our meetings. Our house is right in between John and Roger. What a blessing these men are to us. John and Roger both have church planing backgrounds, which is also our heart.

Thank you for continuing to read about the journey of our new church. It's wonderful to share good news. Blessings on this sunny Friday.

Thursday, August 28, 2008

EQUIP Continued

I was asked this week how I was able to get over my fear of the westside and start going over there. It's true there are some scary things on that part of town. Drug houses, murders, be-headings, gang activity.

The Bible says to live with your wife with understanding. Greg has done a great job of understanding why I do things or react to things the way I do. One of the things he learned about me is that I'm a planner and not very flexible when it comes to changing plans. Once my head is going in one direction, unless I can see the purpose of changing plans, I tend to take a while to change lanes. As he started working with this family, and as he told me things about the westside, I didn't have a desire to start going over there right away. We both knew I would have to change that, meet the family, and be comfortable on that side of town. He didn't push me, he just waited. I prayed and after about 4-6 months, I told him I was ready to go over there to meet the family.

Things are never as bad as you think they're going to be. Once I was over that hump, I felt comfortable on that side of town. Am I watchful? You bet. But I don't let fear keep me from what God has called us to do.

This summer there was a murder on the same street where we have our prayer meetings. We were actually there less than a week after it happened. I've been told it is the roughest street over there. God arranged for the young man's funeral service to be held at our church where I work. I was actually the one who made the decision to have it there, under unusual circumstances. I was home on my day off and the woman in the office who coordinates funerals was working that day to catch up on some things. The family called the office and she answered the phone. She gave them my home number and said I would have to make the decision. (Three things that normally wouldn't have happened.) I decided to let them have it there, not even knowing this was the young man murdered from the westside. God certainly arranged that one.

That's how God and Greg got me used to the westside. One baby step at a time. Blessings on this hot Thursday.

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

The Journey of EQUIP continues

I began writing about what was happening with this calling in September. I'm going to pull from what I called my Dream Journal, so I don't forget anything.

Shortly after God called us, God started giving Greg sermons. He enrolled in a preaching class at Global Bible Institute in Modesto and received an A in the class. As the other students preached to the class for their final from the perspective that the class was a congregation, Greg chose a different route. He decided to preach to them as future pastors and chose a topic to encourage and teach them. This showed a true pastor's heart to disciple those around him.

About mid-September I had a vision of our future church. I saw a cozy little church with brick or cement block walls painted white, many Hispanics of all ages and people talking with each other after service. The pews were also white. I saw a lady in her 60's, alone, and several young men in their late teens and early twenties, with white tank top undershirts and cargo jeans worn too low. I sensed a lady had started praying that God would send new pastors to her neighborhood. This grew and now there is a group of about 5 praying.

In December we went on our first prayer walk. It is continued here. God spoke to me using 7 pictures regarding the hearts of the people on the westside and how to minister to them.

Greg and I began having staff meetings where we dreamed, talked about what God was speaking to us regarding our call, and made plans. As Greg sought God as to what would be the next step, God told him to start with who he knew. He knew a family on the westside, whom he had been in ministry with 20 years ago. He reconnected with them, thinking he was to minister to his friend, who was now a father and grandfather, but a funny thing happened at that first meeting. His son came out, who was in his early 20's and was in a white supremacy gang and who's job it was to beat people up for not repaying loans, and the young man put his hand on Greg's shoulder and declared he was ready to re-dedicate his life to Christ. Greg led him in a re-dedication prayer, and so began our relationship with this family. A month later, Greg was able to shine a light on the man's drug use and need for help and the parents realized they needed to take a stand for their son. Greg facilitated his enrollment in Teen Challenge and he is currently there, doing well. We've been to Teen Challenge several times to visit him and Greg goes every 2 weeks discipling him in the areas of his greatest struggle.

Tomorrow I'll talk about how Greg and God were able to prepare me to go to the westside, something at this point I was fearful to do. Blessings on this hot, sunny Wednesday.

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

A Little History

If you didn't read yesterday's blog, please do, then this will make more sense.

In September 2007, God began leading me towards the realization that Greg was shaped for being a senior pastor. I always knew he was a great leader and great discipler, but the pieces all started falling together. Greg had never mentioned that he was called to be a senior pastor 20 years prior. He waited for God to reveal that to me, and when he did, Greg knew that it was time for his calling to finally be fulfilled.

We received many confirmations, like people calling him Pastor Greg all of a sudden. At the dinner table the weekend this was all happening, our daughter said in the middle of a conversation, "Well, you're a pastor . . ." We stopped chewing and looked up at each other, frozen in time. "What? What did I say? What's wrong?", Kristen said. "Oh, nothing." We were floored.

We went for a walk after dinner and I wept the entire time. I couldn't even hardly say two words on the whole mile. I kept thinking, "Me? A pastor's wife? Are you sure? I have no idea how to be a pastor's wife. What is expected of me? What do I do and not do? Are you sure? What an honor. I can't believe it. I knew there was more to my Christian walk. Thank you for calling us. Are you sure?" Over and over these emotions of honor and anxiety ran through my mind. For three weeks, I would just weep suddenly when I thought of the honor of being called. I felt I was having hormonal mood swings like I was pregnant or something. The swings were so evident that a close friend thought someone in my family had cancer. Over the course of those weeks, the reality set in and I approached it in my typical fashion. I looked for books on how to be a pastor's wife.

At the bookstore there weren't any books on the subject. I scanned the books and saw this book with red on it facing me. It was the only book like it. I kept going, looking for something that said wife on it, but my eyes returned to this red and white paperback. Three times I tried to move on, then, I thought, "Maybe God wants me to look at this for some reason." I picked it up and it was a book on planting churches. The thought hadn't crossed my mind before. I thought we would pastor in an existing church. I looked at who endorsed the book, the biography of the author, and bought it thinking, "Well, I know nothing abut this, but maybe it's an option. I could always learn about it and see if God leads us there. Better to be somewhat educated before you get there."

I read the book and everything clicked. I saw God's divine plan for multiplying His kingdom. I drank the book in and at night, I would read to Greg the things I highlighted. He agreed with just about everything. Most of the things I read, Greg had even already told me. One day while reading, I read through a sentence but before I could finish it, my eyes came back to one word. Just like in the bookstore, trying to get past a book, my eyes would return to this one word. The word was equip. It seemed as though God was trying to tell me that was the name of our church. I thought, "That's kind of a unique word for a church." I thought about Greg's and my passion for discipling people and seeing them grow in Christ and it fit. I told Greg and he wasn't too enthusiastic but prayed about it. He asked God, "God, I'm not so sure about this word. You've got to convince me this is what you want us to name the church."

God did reveal His purpose for choosing the name EQUIP. It was an acronym for our vision. It stands for Everyone Qualified, Unified, Ignited in Purpose. We had our calling, we had our name, and we had our vision.

Tomorrow I'll continue to take you on our journey of what has transpired. Blessings on this beautiful Tuesday.

Monday, August 25, 2008

Our Joy is Full

First, an announcement to those of you who read this blog and are not part of our church. Last September God called Greg and I to plant a church on the westside of Turlock, CA. We've been working with our church board and yesterday it was announced we would be developing a launch team in the next few months and starting on this incredible adventure.

We want to thank our Senior Pastor and our board for their prayers and assistance in guiding us on this journey. We also want to express our appreciation for all of you who joyfully and tearfully came up to us yesterday and called us last night to express your joy and good wishes for our calling. This has meant so much to us. We feel truly loved and your expressions of promising to pray for us has meant everything to us. We love you all.

Over the next few blogs I will try and recapture all the cool things God has orchestrated in the last 10 months and give you encouragement of God's mighty power and timing. It is truly a beautiful story of God's faithfulness.

Blessings to you on this lovely Monday.

Sunday, August 24, 2008

Vandalized Again!

Well, for the third time in 4 years and the fourth time since I've lived here, we've been vandalized. I had a my 12 speed bike stolen in 1989 when we left the garage door up when we went to work one day. In January 2005 the magnetic signs for Greg's truck were stolen off it right in our driveway on a Saturday morning. Last year while we were away for our anniversary, someone broke into Mark's car and stole his stereo. Yesterday, someone stole both of Greg's license plates and the frame I bought him for Christmas that said Hazenberg Landscape Management. Apparently someone wants to start a landscaping business and has the same last name as us!

We called the police and did a report. I told Greg if we get a chance to go to court to press charges we should take it, but be willing to offer a bargain. The offenders have to work 2 full weeks straight with Greg doing his business in the hot sun. That way, they work for their offense, and he gets to put a little Jesus in them. It just might turn their life around.

So, Greg drives without plates for a few days until we can get to DMV. He has a note from the officer with the report number and his name so if he gets pulled over, they can find we're in process of getting them replaced. We'll also be cleared of any crimes that might be committed with our plates. (My main concern).

Well, off to take Kristen to church early for worship practice, then to pick up a friend's grandchildren for church. It's going to be a busy morning with transportation, etc. Blessings on this sunny Lord's day.

Saturday, August 23, 2008

Prayer Walk

We had our prayer walk this morning, and it was great. We had 2 new couples join us and we all headed off in different directions throughout the westside of Turlock. Some of the impressions we got were:

1. Things aren't always as they seem on the outside.

2. People are struggling to survive.

3. Given the proper balance of water, sun, pruning, soil turning, etc. plans will thrive and given the proper balance of care, people will too.

4. There have been failed attempts at revitalizing the westside in the past.

5. It reminded one person of where they grew up.

6. There's freedom in Christ. What does that mean?

7. There are businesses on the westside. People shouldn't have to travel as far as Stockton to find a job, they should be able to find one right there.

That's what I remember from our debriefing, though I think there were others. Today I've already taken out the rest of the backsplash and cleaned. Still need to reorganize and do lots of other things. I went to Tracy with Greg last night to see the beautiful 25000 square feet of sod he and his crew laid last week. Blessings to you on this gorgeous Saturday.

Friday, August 22, 2008

Hilllarious

Today we're getting our wiring done! I went grocery shopping today with a whole other mindset-what can I put in the microwave, toaster oven, or crockpot? Not having a stove or oven really changes things. Needless to say I bought lots of frozen stuff, but only after checking the sodium and fat contents. I can't believe how much fat and salt is in even the frozen food that is labeled Healthy or Lean!

Anyway, I decided to be unoriginal today. My friend Jason Hicks has a video posted for last Friday August 15th. Take a look and see if you don't cry laughing!

Blessings on this amazing Friday.

Thursday, August 21, 2008

Time to Re-Group

We've lived with half-organized chaos since Saturday when our living room became our pantry and our room addition became our kitchen. I'm surprised I've still been able to provide decent meals to my family in spite of not having a stove or oven. Greg hasn't even bar-b-qued once yet (but his time is coming!). As I've had almost a week to maneuver around boxes, cabinets, tables, and extension cords, I think it is time to re-arrange things to make them more easily accessible. If I hadn't tried to make things work this way first, I never would have known how I would prefer them. I don't dare think this will be the end-all location of everything for the next 3 weeks, but I know it will be an improvement.

It's kind of like our spiritual walk. We walk this way for a period of time, and we discover the areas that need improvement and we make adjustments to make things better. Sometimes we discover what changes need to be made ourselves, but sometimes we need others to point out our rough edges and the areas in our lives that aren't honoring to God.

We're seeing this very thing happen at our prayer meetings. A family is making a stand for doing things God's way and changes are happening. It's not easy, as one of their children (a young adult) has left the home. They said they haven't had this kind of peace in their home in a very long time. We anxiously anticipate the return of this prodigal son with a repentant heart. The parents needed to be challenged to live for God in every area of their lives. It's hard, but we're seeing transformation occur before our very eyes.

May the Holy Spirit and friends and family be able to speak into our lives to help us grow in Christ. Blessings his amazing Thursday.

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

One Step Closer



Last night we pulled out the last cabinet. Wahooo!! Our contractor and the electrician came over last night and cut the power to the kitchen. While they were doing that and working on some things outside, the electrician discovered that a nail had been put through a wire 20 years ago when the house was built. He said we were lucky the house didn't burn down. Was God protecting us or what?

We have a prayer meeting tonight and a prayer walk Saturday. Please be praying for them. We have seen God do awesome things at both of these events and are expecting great things again. It's so exciting to see God move in people's lives.

Our contractor and cabinet man are coming any minute, so I must be off. Blessings this beautiful Wednesday.

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Update

Well, Greg got home around 7:00 last night and after dinner and a trip to buy a gas can and some school supplies, we didn't do one thing on the kitchen. Maybe tonight! Our contractor came over and we decided on the stain for the cabinets. He'll be coming over today to start on the wall to move the kitchen window and the plumber will be called. It's neat to see the building phase after the tear down phase.

As I've been reading some of the Old Testament lately, I'm really seeing one of the characters of God very plainly. Patience. All those kings who did all those sinful, idol worshipping things, and yet God continued to send prophets like Jeremiah to warn the people to turn from their evil ways and follow Him. Over and over and over again he sent warnings. We have a patient God but we should never put weight on that characteristic and be lazy about our walk. He can also be an angry God, full of wrath, in order to correct His children and have them turn back to Him.

I was also thinking, if we're made in the image of God, why aren't we more patient? I know that's not one of my stronger characteristics. I guess it's because we're in process. Some people are more patient than others, some people are more giving than others, some people are more faithful than others, disciplined, etc., but we're all in a process of getting better at all the good characteristics, and for that I'm thankful God is patient with me as I strive for the goal.

Patience is a virtue, it's a fruit of the spirit, and it's something to be worked at. One of the ways God strengthens me in this area is by giving me situations in my life where I have to practice patience. So far I've learned if I submit to the situation, it goes much smoother. You really have to die to it and get to the point that God is in control and it really doesn't matter what else is going on. The sooner you can relinquish your control of the situation, the sooner you learn the lesson and God moves you on to the next thing. I wish I could say this has been my favorite life lesson, but I truly can't. I guess I'm still working on it.

Blessings and patience this beautiful Tuesday.

Monday, August 18, 2008

Getting Closer on our Ammiversary

Greg, Kristen, and I took out our upper cabinets, a lower cabinet, and the sink yesterday. I got to do some electrical work yesterday, which Greg said I did well at. Everything is pretty well organized too. We have a fridge and a microwave and tonight we'll add the toaster oven.







We stopped around 3:00 yesterday, cleaned up, and headed off to our special spot, Black Angus, for our 4th engagement anniversary. It was fabulous. We spent the evening watching the olympics, reading, and getting some office work done. It was a great day.

Blessings on this cool, comfortable Monday.

Sunday, August 17, 2008

And the Walls Came Tumbling Down Again!

Yesterday was so much fun! Mark and I chiseled out the counter top tile in the kitchen. Greg and Kristen demolished the walls of our bay window and next to the fridge. Greg took out a cabinet to do that. Yes, Kristen really did use the sledge hammer, got it stuck in the wall, and took the wall down, and she really did use the sawzall.

Today we pull out the rest of the cabinets and hopefully the linoleum. Early next week, the appliances. How fun! Enjoy the pictures!





















Friday, August 15, 2008

A Busy Day

Not much time to blog today. Kristen and I have haircuts, then off to Junior year orientation for her. Drum lessons at 1:30, (which Mark may do for me). I have to pack up the kitchen today. Last night it hit me. We won't have any room in the garage for our appliances. We renting a Ford F-250 for a job Greg is doing and since it has a lot of supplies in it, we park it in the garage. Along with all our appliances and a California King sized mattress, there's no room for anything else! I guess we'll have to put everything in the addition?

So, time to get ready. Blessings on this hot, beautiful Friday!

Thursday, August 14, 2008

A Perfect Score!

Today marks my 300th post. What does that mean? Absolutely nothing. My brother has scored a couple of 300 games in bowling, however. Moving on.

We had a wonderful evening last night and saw God orchestrate some very cool connections with people. We have a prayer meeting each week and the couple who's home we go to don't have a ride to our church. Sometimes we take them, but it was time for them to reach out into their own community. There is a lady from our church who lives down the street from them so during the prayer meeting we decided to just walk down to her house. She was mowing her front lawn, which was perfect! She had already said a few months ago she would be happy to drive them to church. Last night we introduced them and it's going to happen.

I've been praying for all the children of this couple in different areas of their lives. Their youngest has fallen away because of a spiritual hurt. I've been praying that he would come back and start going to church again. Last night was the first time that he and his fiance actually came out into the kitchen and living room and talked with us. They allowed us to pray for them. His friend sat down by himself during our meeting and shared he decided to come back to the Lord. He just wasn't happy without Him. I know that this young man will be a great influence to the son and his fiance to get them back on track. We prayed for him as well. It was a great meeting. The two other children and their spouses weren't able to make it, and I think God planned it to give us the time and freedom we needed to minister to these other young people and visit the neighbor. God is so good!

Blessings on this beautiful Thursday!

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Prayer

I'm finding myself craving prayer lately. I've almost always enjoyed it and looked forward to spending time with God, but it seems to be a craving lately.

Usually Greg resets the alarm clock when he gets up, (today at 4:15 am!) and I'm up by about 5:50. This gives me 10 minutes to put on my exercise clothes and contacts, exercise for 30 minutes, 30 minutes to shower and get ready, 30 minutes of quiet time, 20 minutes for breakfast/blogging, and 15 minutes to finish getting ready for work. However this morning, I messed up the alarm clock somehow and overslept by 20 minutes, which killed my exercise time but gave me a few more minutes with God, which I love.

Sometimes I think God draws us to himself for our own good and sometimes I think He does it for His pleasure. I feel like right now He's upping the ante on me. I'm happy to be stretched.

Spend time with Him, thankfully expressing His goodness and seeking His will in all that you do. My He bless you this beautiful Wednesday!

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Too Much Heat

Yesterday Mark (our almost 19 year old son) came home from working in our landscaping maintenance business around 4:30. He had started at 6:15 in the morning. He was so exhausted. His skin was red, he was talking a little slow, moving slow, and I honestly don't know how he made it home from Tracy pulling a trailer with the big mower on it on the freeway. He had a couple of ooops with the truck and my car yesterday. No damage to the vehicles, thakfully. When he got everything put away and came in, he looked like he really needed a cool shower. He decided he needed food, so I got dinner ready and he ate a little. He said he wanted to throw up, take a shower, and sleep all at the same time. All that and he had a huge headache. That's when I knew he had a mild case of heat stroke.

He had a moderate amount of water during the day, but I could tell he probably didn't put enough sun screen on. I put down some towels on his bed and he fell asleep for about 3 hours. Then he got up and had some pancakes and took a shower and really went to bed. He's doing much better today and has an easier and shorter route.

This reminds me of how if we don't prepare ourselves properly before we go into battle, we can get pretty beat up. Before a soldier goes out on the field, he dons a uniform with all kinds of protection, weapons, etc. But I think it's just as much a mental and spiritual game as well. We need to be prepared on the outside, but the inside preparation is at least of equal importance.

How do we prepare for our battles? Reading God's Holy Word and letting is sink deep into our hearts is one way. Knowing God personally, relying on Him, trusting Him, and seeking Him is another. Going through the trials of life and having the wisdom of experience is another. Having people pray for us and having a support system in place are foundational. Soldiers never go out solo. Prepare yourself for battle daily, you never know when you'll find yourself in a war. Blessings this lovely Tuesday.

Monday, August 11, 2008

Risk, Failure, and Success

Here's a blip from Wide Awake by Erwin McManus I read this weekend. It talks about the parable of the talents. May it encourage you.

"If you are maximizing your capacity, you're on the way to living your life to the fullest. To do this, you must not only take responsibility but also risk. Why did the third servant bury his bag of gold? He was afraid of his master; he feared he would lose his gold and then be punished.

This is where many of us have been misled or at lest have misunderstood. We're absolutely afraid of God. We think if we risk and then fail, then God is going to punish us. We are paralyzed by the fear of failure because we misunderstand the character of God. Life doesn't have a fail safe. Failure is real and can be very painful. God, though, isn't looking at failure but faithfulness. He's not waiting for you to fail so he can punish you or succeed so he can pillage you. He wants to celebrate your life.

If you're living in a way that honors God and taking great risks in pursuing great dreams, and you fail in the attempt, do you really think God is going to slap you around for that? Of course not. God is going to celebrate your effort. God does not measure success the way we do. We look at winning as the measure of success, while God looks at whether we lived. To those who are faithful to what they have been given, to those who use well what has been entrusted to them, even more will be given."

I hope that take a lot of pressure off those of you who fear taking risks because of the consequences of failure. At my previous job as a computer programmer, failure was pretty much a daily occurrence. You write code, it doesn't work, and you have to figure out what you did wrong and then you make it work. It was a continuous cycle of stressful learning, but you learned from every failure and moved forward and got better and better. I guess that's why failure doesn't bother me that much. If I mess up, I confess it and move on. I know God forgives me. There's freedom and security in that.

May this day bring you security, freedom, and lots of opportunities to risk! Blessings on the start of your new week.

Sunday, August 10, 2008

Off Kilter

We decided to go to second service today. We almost never miss first service, but since our daughter didn't have youth group and our son had to be there for worship way before first service, we decided to sleep in a little, do our grocery shopping with hardly anyone in the store and while it was cool, and take our time this morning. I can see why many people prefer second service. But for me, I feel off kilter. Kind of like when you sit in a different seat in church. Your perspective changes and you feel like you're in a whole new room with new people.

Isn't it funny how we get ourselves so comfortable with the familiar, that we're uncomfortable with the new? Who knows how many new people we'll meet by going at a different time? How many people we'll get to talk to that we know, but don't get to chat with on the first service schedule.

As I continue reading Wide Awake by Erwin McManus, I hear how much he enjoys life. It's like his eyes and taste buds and hands are super sensitive to every stimulus that comes his way. He's been all over the world, speaking, visiting, enjoying life with his family. Everything is an adventure with him. He truly is living his life Wide Awake.

I know for me, I have to force myself into new situations most of the time. As a single mom for 13 years, I had to do what I had to do. Usually with a big gulp and a step forward I experienced many new things as a single parent. It seems so much easier to take those steps and experience new things with a spouse by my side. Someone to share those times with, someone to hold my hand and lead me on, someone to protect me and care for me if something goes wrong. I really appreciate the blessing God gave me in him. I wonder if it is the same for married women who have always been married? Are they more adventurous because they've always had a partner? Less adventurous? That would be an interesting study.

As I get ready to go to church, I wonder what new experiences and conversations I'll have today? With the sun directly overhead when I exit, instead of in the morning sky, I anticipate my morning adventure. Blessings on this beautiful Lord's day.

Saturday, August 9, 2008

Differences

Greg and I met with an old friend of his this morning. It was an unexpected conversation. We expected one type of conversation and we had another. It was good to realign our expectations and impressions and learn of this man's heart and beliefs.

We agreed with many of the things that he shared with us. But there were a few areas that we didn't. I admired Greg in how he handled the situation. I know that some people may have taken the opportunity to try and adjust the other person's thinking, to 'prove them wrong', make their position known, and create a disharmonious atmosphere. Instead, Greg shared his heart and experience of uniting people of different belief systems and backgrounds, understanding that for believers, we are all of the same church, even though we disagree. It was a great demonstration of striving for unity in the church.

Lots of things to do today. I spent most of yesterday working with Mark on changing his major from music to history. He wants to be a history teacher. He's also thinking about teaching English, perhaps as a second language in another country, but for now it's just History. He bought a paperback book last night that's about 3" thick and covers the history of all the major civilizations of the world. Looks interesting.

The kitchen will most likely be demolished next weekend. The cabinets should be ready for installation the following week. We designed our office area and had the contractor and cabinet guy over to discuss it. I love the honesty of our contractor. I told him what I was thinking and asked his opinion and he said it would be horrible. Okay, redesign time! He was right. We'll probably do his original plan. That's why it's so important to have a great contractor! We absolutely love him.

Have a blessed Saturday. The weather is beautiful. I think it's car washing day.

Friday, August 8, 2008

Lost Boy

Last Sunday night I sat my family down to watch Lost Boy. It's a 1 hour documentary of Greg Laurie's life. I really liked Greg when I got to hear him speak at a Harvest Crusade Luncheon last summer. I got to hear a little of his testimony at the Crusade and wanted to hear more.

It starts by telling you of his family's background, moving to California to farm. He had a tumultuous childhood, a little similar to mine but much more severe. Then it takes you to high school and when he accepted Christ. It shows him under the pastorship of Chuck Smith of Calvary Chapel and how he started in ministry. There's great footage of the 60's and great music. Then you see his beautiful wife and learn how they got together, then the Harvest Crusades. It's a great, great, story. You can preview it and order it here.

On a sad note, Greg's son Christopher passed away in a car accident July 24th. Please pray for Greg and his family and Christopher's family. You can read Greg's blog and see related video here.

Thursday, August 7, 2008

Plan and Execute

Sounds military, doesn't it? But we got our military structure from God, didn't we? We also got our Judicial system from God, just look at the old testament. The strategy of planning and executing also applies to our individual lives, right here in the 21st century. Here's an excerpt from Wide Awake by Erwin McManus.

"If you're going to create the life of your dreams, eventually you have to stop thinking about it, dreaming about it, imagining it, hoping, scheming, planning, or even praying, and you have to actually do something. You have to act. You have to execute. You have to step into the real world and bring the change that you can only see through the eyes of faith."

"Do whatever you must to be prepared for the future you desire. This requires not only foresight but also discipline.

If you begin to capture a picture of the life you dream of but do not prepare for the challenges you will face to make them reality, you will not see it happen. Your future will haunt you like a restless ghost of the dreams whose death you caused through neglect. I see this all the time: people who have huge dreams but are unwilling to pay the price to see them through."

I think Erwin is speaking mainly of those folks in the entertainment industry. They come to L.A (where Erwin is located) and want to be movie stars or singers or dancers or actors on stage. He gets a lot of those in his church. But those of us in the Central Valley can have big dreams too, and that's all they ever end up being. Please don't confuse a dream with a call. I believe dreams are sometimes planted in our hearts by God, giving us a passion for something that we want to pursue. Sometimes, however, they're of the flesh. Something we want for ourselves, like becoming a millionaire. We have to seek God to see what His will is for our lives. He usually reveals a passion, then gives a call to go do something with it. A passion is what drives us. It gives us energy to pursue something when our flesh says, "I'm exhausted!" It encourages us to pick ourselves up when we've been knocked down.

What is your passion? If you could do anything for God and knew you couldn't fail and you had all the money, resources, time, and freedom to pursue it, what would it be? I'd love to read your comments on this. Blessings on this warm, sunny Thursday.

Wednesday, August 6, 2008

Hoarding

I was skimming through my most recent reading of Wide Awake by Erwin McManus and found I had highlighted a single sentence on a page. Normally it's a paragraph, but this sentence really stood out to me.

"To waste what God has put in you is a dishonor to God and a disservice to humanity."

Wow. You can look at that as wasting or throwing away, or you can look at it as hoarding. When God gives you a gift, fills you with experiences, places ideas and wisdom and knowledge and direction into your brain and you don't give it away to help others, you're hoarding. I think wasting is more like getting rid of it. But if we don't use it, it's still there, we just choose not to share it. It's a selfish kind of behavior. It's an attitude of "It's mine, all mine, and I'm not sharing. I'm not going to let you see it. I'm not going to talk about it or show it to you. And you certainly can't be blessed by it!"

God didn't create us to hoard. He created us to give. We're told to give away our faith, our possessions, our hospitality, our experiences. I've talked about spiritual gluttony before. It's when you take in and don't exercise it back out by giving it to others.

In Erwin's quote, he says we are dishonoring God and being a disservice to humanity. Strong words, but so true. How much better would humanity be if everyone shared what they had? I would bet there would be no homeless, no hungry, no emotionally starved. What do you have to give away?

Blessings on this perfect Wednesday.

Tuesday, August 5, 2008

Let's Have an Argument

Last night Greg and I went into the backyard to talk about the landscaping that will hopefully take place in the fall. He's drawn it out for me, shown it to me 3-D in his landscaping program, but I still have trouble visualizing it. I think it's the dimensions and my spatially-challenged brain. I could be talking to someone in my office about a particular part of the church and pointing in the direction I'm sure that area is in, but because I have no windows in my office, I am way wrong about 99% of the time.

So Greg graciously agreed to put the dogs in the garage so we could have some peace as we discussed where he wanted the concrete and where I wanted the fencing. We had different ideas. Don't misunderstand, we never argue. We do have differences of opinions, but our voices never raise in anger. He's competitive, and I love to debate, so we thoroughly enjoy a good disagreement. As we both explained ourselves over and over, and the benefits of why we should each have our own way, in the middle of the conversation he said, "Let's have an argument."

Something changed in me instantly. I immediately thought of the neighbors. Could they be listening? We weren't yelling. We weren't angry, but it was a rapid-fire conversation. There were no insults, no name-calling. But it all of a sudden made me take it down a notch. Isn't it funny how one sentence can change your perspective?

The same is true with God's Word. Many times people have told me that as they were reading God's Word, one sentence changed their perspective, their heart, their attitude. "For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart." Hebrews 4:12. This verse popped into my head a few days ago. I wish I could remember why, but hey, I'm over 40. I'm fortunate I remembered my conversation with Greg last night!

Blessings this beautiful Tuesday.

Monday, August 4, 2008

Who Are You Becoming?

I've always said that hindsight is 20/20. It's easy to see what God has placed in your life when you get to the end of a season and it all makes sense. The problem is that we rarely see things clearly as they happen. We usually grumble and complain when God allows us to go through difficult circumstances. When we emerge on the other side stronger, however, then it all becomes crystal clear.

Here's an excerpt from Wide Awake by Erwin McManus I read this weekend.

"For some of us, the challenge is not being distracted by our circumstances or overwhelmed by the opportunities. For some of us, the real challenge of focus is that we get lost in uncertainty. What we need to develop is not simply concentration or convergence, but clarity. In this case, the question isn't what should I be doing? but who am I becoming? Self-awareness is one of the most critical characteristics of personal effectiveness and productivity. Do you know who you are? You cannot focus if your lens isn't clear."

Do we know who we are becoming? I think it's a plus for me to be so introspective and deep thinking most of the time. I'm constantly evaluating things in me and in others. Have you spent much time thinking deeply about yourself, or are you just going with the flow, reacting to circumstances around you? It's good to stop and just think for awhile. Think about where you want to be, the kind of life you want to live, and see how well prepared you are to live that life. What experiences or education do you still need to be more prepared to live that life? I've often told adults who are considering going back to college, "The next four years are going to tick away at the same rate, whether you're earning your degree or not. Wouldn't it be nice to finish the next four years with that degree, than empty handed?"

Here's a little more from Erwin.

"When we talk about the will of God, you know what most of us are expecting to find? We're looking for a yellow brick road or a clearly paved one-way street. We want a straight line from point A (where we are) to point B (where we are supposed to get). We often think of God's will more as a tightrope than a compass. We want one path, clearly lit and marked so we know exactly where to go. We don't think of ourselves like little mice smelling for the cheese while God shows us the way through the maze. We act as if the spiritual journey is lie God leaving little breadcrumbs, and we are Hansel and Gretel. Through the woods we can find our way home. But somewhere along the way all the ravens ate the breadcrumbs and we're lost in the forest, asking "God , where do I go?" The dilemma is that God doesn't draw you a map, doesn't give you chalk lines, doesn't leave you bread crumbs. He builds your character. As you develop your character, you have an internal compass that guides your way and begins to give you the clarity to see the life of your dreams. It is here that the hero within you is awakened, and you discover you are the seer. While others may be lost in the fog of ambiguity, you see your pat clearly for you know exactly who you are and why you are on this journey. The future is not waiting for you, it is waiting within you."

Building character. We usually never see it happening, but if you look back over your life thus far, you can see all the ways you've matured over time and how God has brought you to where you are. Hopefully none of us have to repeat our life lessons but learn the first time as we go through situations and move ahead. Blessings on this beautiful Monday.

Sunday, August 3, 2008

Focus

As I continued to read in Wide Awake by Erwin McManus on Friday, I read a couple of paragraphs that might be of help to some of you. I don't know if you struggle with this, but if so, I hope this helps.

Do you ever struggle with feeling overwhelmed by responsibilities and opportunities? This alone can cause you to lose your focus. It's easy to lose sight of where you're headed and why you're going there when there is so much need and opportunity. If you don't lock into the life God has called you to live, you will find yourself pulled and torn by everyone else's desire and expectation for your life.

What happens to many of us is that everyone else has a plan for our lives, and we end up losing our lives trying to live theirs. Everyone else has something you should be doing. Believe me, if you don't have a purpose for your life, there are plenty of people who will be happy to give you theirs. If you do not develop the ability to say no to many important things, you're going to lose the big yes of your life.

Even Jesus has limitations. This is pretty unusual, when you consider the fact that he was God. I don't know if you've noticed, but there were a lot of important things Jesus didn't get done while he walked among us. He didn't end wars. I wish he had, but he didn't. He didn't bring an end to violence. Would have been great, but it didn't happen. Jesus did not end the condition of human suffering. It would have been an important thing, a good thing, but he didn't do it. He didn't stop the rapid spread of devastating diseases. It would have been a good thing to do, but he didn't do that. Strangely enough, though healing was important, he didn't heal everyone, and though feeding people was important, he didn't feed everyone.

What sometimes is hard for us to accept is that Jesus Christ, when he came into the world, didn't come to do everything in that moment. He came to do the most important things. He came to do what no one else could do on our behalf. Jesus came into this world and offered his life as a sacrifice for us so that through his death on the cross, we enter into relationship with God himself. While there were many good things to do, from the mind of God, this was the most essential thing to do when he came into history. Why?

Well, to begin with, he's coming back to take care of all the other problems later. In the meantime, what god has done is put the welfare and future of humanity in our hands. This is what God did at the beginning, back in the garden of Eden. This time, though, he re-creates us so that our lives might be a gift to humanity. We are God's strategy for creating a better world. We all have a part to play. For some, that part is bigger than for others. Yet all of us are critical and essential.

So, my question for you today is, what is your part? Seek God, and He will answer you. Blessings on this fabulous Lord's Day.

Saturday, August 2, 2008

Uuuugggghhhhh!

I wish I had taken pictures. We got up at 6:00 this morning and started moving concrete at 6:30. Greg hurt his back yesterday working and we only had Mark for just under 2 hours to help this morning, so Kristen and I did the majority of loading the pickup and trailer with concrete mow strip and other chunks. Mark filled the 3 yd. dumpster yesterday with stucco. Then Greg, Kristen, and I drove to the river and properly disposed of it all. It's a little scary looking over the 100 foot drop to the river on dirt in the back of a wood-floored trailer, sloping down towards the river and holding a 25 lb. piece of concrete and you hurl it (and hopefully not yourself) into the river below. A shower never felt so good!

When Greg gets back from his last job, he will see if he's up to tearing out the kitchen wall. There isn't much room in the dumpster for the wall, but he can make anything fit anywhere. Anyone want some windows?

So that's why I'm late blogging today. Now it's time for more quiet time, then when the laundry is done, hopefully a nap. Blessings this hot Saturday.

Friday, August 1, 2008

Acting in Obedience

Yesterday I blogged about obeying Christ and the blessings that follow. Yesterday at work I got to see obedience in action.

I received a call from one of our ministry leaders who said that I had been on his heart and wanted to know if he could pray for me about anything or if there was anything he could do for me. I told him everything was going great and really appreciated his call. How great would it be if everyone in the body of Christ responded to the promptings of the Holy Spirit this way? What if we all sent a note, made a call, made a visit when someone was on our heart? What a great support system that would be. I encourage you today to be sensitive to His promptings too.

We had a good night last night. Greg visited a couple of friends who were admitted to the hospital on Tuesday and we both went to visit to visit them last night. Both are doing well and we had a wonderful time sharing and praying with them.

Today we get our locks installed on the new addition. We demo the kitchen wall tomorrow!!! Next week, the whole kitchen comes out. Yikes! I think I've said that before. The good news is that we can probably plug in all our appliances in the garage and still cook. My sink? It just might be the bathtub.

Blessings on this fabulous Friday!