Marked by Moments
Our lives are marked by moments.
First words. First steps. First bike ride. First day of school. First kiss. Graduation. Wedding day.
Some are big like those I just listed. Some are small, routine, and seemingly everyday…yet they have a profound impact.
Last week at Catalyst Conference, what started as a seemingly routine moment turned into a huge one that marked me and our family for life. You can watch the video here. Seriously…do it.
As a result of this moment, our family sponsored our first child through Compassion International. We told Jimmy’s story to our girls before we introduced them to our sponsored child, Bontu, a kindergarten-aged child in Ethiopia. Our girls couldn’t wait to write Bontu a letter and now we pray for her each night. They are being marked now and they know God is using them to make a difference in her life and family. And this is just the beginning.
We plan to highlight initiatives such as Compassion as well as adoption very soon at Awaken. Can’t wait to see how God will move as we do!
Seriously…who knew that $38 dollars per month could lead to a life and a moment like this? We serve an awesomely gracious, sovereign, and good God!
THIS Sunday @ Awaken :: BAPTISM TAILGATE
I know, I know, I know…blogging has been a little sparse lately. Okay, it’s been non-existent. Doesn’t mean I haven’t been writing and working on some stuff that is to come. But that’s not what this is about…
I am absolutely stoked about this Sunday at Awaken. We’ll have our first public baptism celebration and celebrate, we will!
We have at least 3 people who will be baptized on Sunday as a public declaration of their faith in Jesus and a symbol of the new life they have in Him. Immediately following the baptisms, we are going to turn the parking lot at Polo Road Elementary into a tailgate party like no other!
We’d love for you to join us at 10:30 am at Polo Road Elementary School for worship, baptism, and the tailgate party. Going to be epic!
Awaken Church Launches This Sunday!
Launch weekend is here! Can’t wait for Sunday! Here are 5 things you can pray for Sunday:
- Pray that Jesus will be lifted high in everything we do!
- Pray that as He is lifted high, that He will draw men, women, and children to Himself. Pray for people to surrender their lives to Jesus on Sunday!
- Pray for our serving teams to have the assurance that nothing they do for Jesus is in vain and that as a result, they will go over the top in their ministry areas on Sunday. Pray that God will honor them for their commitment to Him!
- Pray for things to go well in the adult worship experience and in our AwakenKids elementary experience. Pray for no technical glitches! Pray for Josh Davis and our band to lead worship with confident humility in the adult experience.
- Pray for me as I preach. I cannot put into words the weight of responsibility the Lord has given me to communicate His Word in such a way that the people He sends will fall head over heels in love with Jesus. I am humbled and honored. Pray for accuracy, clarity, and power – pray for the Holy Spirit to do His thing!
Our first series is simply called The Gospel. What better way to start than with the center of everything we are and everything we do! We’re going to spend most of the next 4 weeks in John 3.
Most people have heard of Jesus and most people have heard the Gospel…but has anything changed as a result? The reality is that when the Gospel takes root in our lives, everything changes – starting with us and extending to the world. God has been using His Gospel to change lives, cities, and nations for 2000 years and we’re praying we will see the same thing happen over the next 4 weeks as we launch Awaken Church.
Join us THIS Sunday at 10:30 am at Polo Road Elementary School. We’re ready for you!
If Jesus Is Not There
Hard to believe, but it’s launch week for Awaken Church! What started as a somewhat reluctant dream 2 years ago is now on the cusp of becoming a full-fledged reality! Depending on the day and the hour, I bounce back and forth from “over the top excitement” to “butterflies in my stomach nervous.”
I know Jesus is in this and I know this is His church…yet, I know He has called me to serve this church and this city as an under-shepherd. I want to do a good job…to honor Him by faithfully leading the people He sends to love Him, love people, and join with Him in bringing His Kingdom to earth.
One of the primary ways God has called and gifted me to lead is in preaching. From the first time I preached as a 17 year old high school senior, I knew that whatever I did in life had to include preaching God’s Word. Through the years and by God’s grace, I have been able to preach in some wonderful churches and at some wonderful events. But none of those remotely compares to the sense of responsibility I feel in preparing to preach week in and week out to the Awaken Church community.
I read a quote over the weekend that asked one of the most challenging questions I have ever heard or considered:
“The critical question for our generation – for every generation – is this: If you could have heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or any natural disasters, could you be satisified, with heaven, if Christ were not there?“ – John Piper, God is the Gospel, p. 15
I was stunned by Piper’s words. Not because they are wrong or heretical. But because the question reveals more of the depraved nature of my heart. Yes, you and I are more guilty than we realize of wanting Jesus’ stuff more than Jesus Himself. But the next line brought me to tears:
“And the question for Christian leaders is: Do we preach and teach and lead in such a way that people are prepared to hear that question and answer with a resounding ‘No’?…Can we really say that our people are being prepared for heaven where Christ himself, not his gifts, will be the supreme pleasure?” – Piper, p. 15
My chief responsibility as a preacher is to lead people to fall absolutely head over heels in love with Jesus to the point that He is their greatest pursuit and object of their highest affection. That He is their pursuit…not just His help, or His provision, or His grace, as good as they are. That He is their greatest affection…not just when things are going well or when things are falling apart, but all the time.
Of course, the greatest challenge for me as a pastor is for Jesus to be MY greatest pursuit and object of my highest affection. Then, it is to love, study, know, and preach His word in such a way that the people of Awaken Church are led to the same pursuit.
And so, this must be the aim of my preaching. In every sermon. In every series. If people are not led to deeply love Jesus…to taste and see that He is good…to savor and seek Him above all else…then what am I doing?
Awaken Church…know this is my deep commitment and greatest prayer for you…that you would love and pursue Jesus, not just His stuff, above all else. I commit to lead you there by my example and in the preaching of God’s Word each Sunday. Pray for me and know that I am praying for you.
Here’s the result…
“Nothing fits a person to be more useful on earth than to be more ready for heaven. This is true because readiness for heaven means taking pleasure in beholding the Lord Jesus, and beholding the glory of the Lord means being changed into his likeness. Nothing would bless this world more then more people who are more like Christ. For in likeness to Christ the world might see Christ.“ – Piper, p. 16
Amen.
MidWeek Update
We’re in the middle of another action-packed week as we get ready for the biggest weekend in Awaken Church’s brief history. Here’s the scoop on what’s happenin’…
- Had our last Sunday morning Launch Team meeting this past Sunday. I love this group of people! They truly “get it,” which gives me great joy and expectation as their pastor! They love Jesus, they love people, and they are hungry to see God move in our city. Cannot wait to see how God uses them as we move forward to full, public launch!
- Weathermen in Columbia do not know what they are talking about…ever! If they call for snow, wear shorts. If they call for rain, ditch the umbrella. Seriously.
- But, they couldn’t keep us down because our team rallied together on Sunday and passionately decided to re-schedule Movies in the Park for this Friday night, August 28. I am so proud of our team not just for deciding to do the event, but for the reasons why. Like I said earlier, they get it.
- We’re getting geared up for our 2nd Preview Service on Sunday morning! I cannot wait for Sunday to get here! The 1st Preview Service went so well and we have made a ton of improvements since then…can’t wait to see what happens! Pray that Jesus will be lifted high, that we’ll connect with lots of new people, and that they will want to come back and join the mission.
- A great team of AC’ers served Carolina students at Baptist Campus Ministry (BCM) last night. The BCM leaders called the food spread the best ever and Sam did an amazing job creating an Awaken-like environment for serving the food. Pipe and Drape works anywhere and everywhere!
- I woke up wide-eyed at 1:17 am on Tuesday morning and when I put my head back on my pillow at 4:48 am, I had sermon series/concepts laid out through Easter 2010…and a pretty good start on beyond that. Love it when God speaks! Now, time to DO WORK to get ready to preach all those bad boys. Can’t wait!
- Last, but not least, gotta drop a line for Catalyst Conference. Can’t wait to celebrate 10 years of leadership goodness on October 7-9 in Atlanta with the best speaker lineup ever. If you’re not registered yet, what the heck are you waiting on? Best prices are available NOW and the next deadline is TOMORROW, so get on your horse and call my main man Chad Johnson (not to be confused with Ochocinco) and get signed up. I’ll see you there!
Here’s to Wednesday!
Movies in the Park :: CANCELLED
After consulting with local meteorologists, the threat of rain and heavy storms is too severe to continue with Movies in the Park this evening. Out of consideration for the safety of attenders and volunteers and the protection of equipment, Movies in the Park is canceled for this evening. There is no make up date scheduled.
Awaken Church Preview Service :: THIS Sunday!
Hard to believe, but we’re about to have our first, official, public worship experience! It’s been 2 years in the making and to say I cannot wait for Sunday would be HUGE understatement!
I am so proud of our team for how hard they have worked over the last few months as we have built a strong foundation and engaged our community in a BIG way. God’s favor is all over this team and I am praying for big time fruit to come for the glory of God and the encouragement of His people!
I go back and forth between being excited out of my mind and wanting to throw my guts up! My biggest prayer for Sunday – that at least one person would surrender to Jesus. God has given me a word from Luke 15 that I will preach as a 2 part series over our 2 Preview Services. The title of the series is No Perfect People Allowed. This week, we’ll talk about God’s grace to cover your sin. At our next service, we’ll talk about God’s grace to free you from religion.
I am asking all of my blog readers, Twitter followers, and Facebook friends to pray for Awaken Church this weekend! Pray that Jesus will be lifted high and that He will draw men, women, and children to Himself, just as He promised He would. Would you leave a comment and let us know you’re praying?
We’ve done all we can do. Now it’s time to put feet to our faith, throw open the doors on Sunday, and watch God do His thing. Glory to God…LET’S DO THIS, AWAKEN CHURCH!
Friday Five
It’s Friday. Which means it’s time for the Friday Five…
- MOVIES IN THE PARK is tonight at North Springs Park! Gates open at 7:30 pm and the movie will begin at sunset…about 8:30 pm. Tonight’s movie = Kung Fu Panda…should be funny. Our big goal is to Give a Ton of Hope to Harvest Hope – we want to raise 2000 lbs. of food over the next two events. It’s all FREE, so bring the fam and enjoy a beautiful night!
- I’m all kinds of excited about our Prayer & Communion Service on Sunday with our Launch Team and others who are helping Awaken get started. It’s all for naught if we forget that it’s all about Jesus. We’ll remember and celebrate that on Sunday.
- Our first Preview Service is next Sunday, August 16! Just typing that pumps me up and makes me want to throw up all at the same time.
- The days and weeks ahead will require transitions in my leadership that will stretch me like no other season has to this point. People will have to be empowered to lead if this thing is going to fly and that responsibility falls on my shoulders. Praying for God’s grace as we move forward!
- I still cannot believe this is happening. Two years ago, Awaken Church was a pipe dream and now, it’s becoming reality. God is good! May He be honored and lifted high by Awaken Church and may thousands find life in Him as a result!
See you next week with full reports from the weekend and who knows what as we get ready for next Sunday. One thing I know…it’s going to be fun! Have a great weekend!
Weekend Rewind
A few highlights from an action-packed weekend…
- Our entire Launch Team meeting on Sunday was spent with every one training, planning, and brainstorming with their respective serving teams. It was awesome to see our Team Captains take leadership and to see every one taking ownership of their areas! I’m telling you…God has assembled a powerhouse of a team to start Awaken Church!
- Speaking of powerhouse of a team, I officially announced a couple of new staff additions as well as Sam Frye’s official role going forward. Sam will serve as our Connections Pastor and oversee our serving teams, community outreach, and our follow-up processes for first time guests, new Christians, and baptism candidates. Josh Davis has joined our team as our Worship Leader. Josh will be our primary worship leader on Sundays, assemble, develop, and lead our musicians/bands, and participate in the creative process for Sunday services, among other things. And, I hired the best children’s ministry director in the world…Lara Beth, my wife, will serve as our AwakenKids Director! She will oversee our Sunday morning environments for Preschoolers and Elementary-aged kids as well as our overall process to partner with parents.
- Please note, that Sam, Josh, and Lara Beth are not receiving big fat salaries from Awaken. They are raising support, working other jobs, or volunteering.
- We bought a 26 ft. UHaul truck, 400 feet of pipe & drape, and a bunch of staging from our friends at Oak Leaf Church in Cartersville, GA. Michael and his team are killing it in the Atlanta suburbs and we’re thankful for them passing on some of their stuff to us at a great, great price!
- Going to get the above items was a bit of an adventure – Sam drove the truck back to Columbia in a downpour and it only took 5 hours. Only is a sarcastic term there… While Sam was trudging along back to Columbia, I went from Atlanta to Greenville, SC to pick up some children’s resources from our friends at Five Point Fellowship in Easley. Dean and his crew have been a huge blessing to Awaken! Sam and I got back to Columbia at the same time!
- Had the honor of being on Clear Channel radio’s Carolina Cares show that aired on Sunday morning. Got to talk about Awaken, Movies in the Park, Love Columbia, and much more during the 30 minute show. I pray that Jesus was honored and His kingdom advanced as a result.
- Last night, I used my iPhone to order interior signage from a company in Hong Kong! Technology is crazy!
- Going to be a crazy week this week as we gear up for the second Movies in the Park on Friday night, a special prayer/communion service with our Launch Team on Sunday, and look ahead to our first Preview Service next Sunday! Wow!
Thanks to all of you who are praying for us and cheering us on as we get closer to officially launching Awaken Church! This has been a crazy adventure, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything. God is all over this church and I can’t wait to see what He does over the next few weeks!
MidWeek Update
The last three weeks ago have been borderline surreal for me. What was a pipe dream almost 2 years ago is starting to happen! Everyday, the vision for Awaken Church comes alive a little bit more. Life is crazy right now, but it’s the best kind of crazy I know! Here’s a snippit of what’s going on…
- Movies in the Park last Friday night was a HUGE success! Over 700 people came out for a totally FREE event that cost us very, very little thanks to our numerous community sponsors. Together, we gave over 300 pounds of food to Harvest Hope Food Bank. Can’t wait to do it again next Friday!
- Our team was unbelievable! Many of them came straight from work to start setting up at 5:00pm and many did not leave until 11:00pm. The park director said it was by far the best event of its size he has ever been a part of! I love the team God has brought together to start Awaken!
- This week has been “Get Ready for Preview Services” week. We’re making equipment purchases, finalizing systems, organizing our serving teams, training leaders, training volunteers…and so much more. The wheels are most definitely spinning…
- Met with our Sunday morning Serving Team Captains last night – great group of visionary leaders! They’re ready to do this!
- We’re heading to Atlanta on Friday to pickup some equipment from our good friends at Oak Leaf Church. Love the way they help resource upcoming church plants – they’ve helped us meet some huge needs!
- We’re doing a communion & prayer service with our launch team on August 9, and two public preview services on August 16 and August 30. I am so ready to preach for these services!
- Got some staff announcements to make – will do announce them on Sunday to our team and on here Sunday night or Monday.
- And no, I have not forgotten to finish the series of posts I started a couple of weeks ago called Together for the Gospel. The last two posts will hit next week.
- Did you know we’re 36 days away from Gamecock Football?! YES!
My wife is awesome! I love my kids! I love my team! I love my life right now…Glory to God!
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