Being Remolded

I'm having one of those times where God is stacking things together in my life to do something really big in me.

He's been orchestrating events lately to bring pressure on me as a leader and as a man, and I have this real feeling that He's trying to break through a stronghold in my life.

Everything I read right now, everything Katie and I talk about, circumstances going on around me, teaching I'm exposed to, conversations of people I've never met before, and the needs of the church are all bearing right on a particular area of my life that God wants to shine a light on and clean out something I've walked with since I was a kid.

It's really hard to feel the weight of change that is needed, but the pain of staying the same would be worse.

Right now, I'm meditating on

2 Corinthians 9:8 and 2 Corinthians 12:9

All prayers are welcomed!

State of the Church, September 30, 2008

Talking points from my report to the Elders last night.

Basically, my message was that God has done something AWESOME in each area of C4 or we’re poised to make significant progress just around the corner.

To God be the Glory!

C1 Gold Rush / House of Blues Success

311 people (100 kids!)

284 people (82 kids)

Great Response to series

C2 11 Connect Groups

111 People Connected (More than ever before!)

Discover this Sunday

C3 Greeters, Guest Services, full

Need to Fill Jobs in CM, FIT, SM needs a guy D-Team leader

Pray for Discover to produce some of these

Tracy, Donevan – specific people I think are next

C4 3 salvations this series

Probably need to schedule a baptism after Discover

Blues - Most successful felt-need series

Using Money series as a felt need series in Heroes

Ideas: “Fireproof” series in Feb.

“You Asked For It” series

C5 Gearing Up for 2009 Planning

Financial Planning for 2009

David registered CP Coaching Network at MLC

Perhaps the Lord will act on our behalf

Love this quote from Mark Batterson:

Here's one of my favorite phrases in Scripture. I Samuel 14:6 says, "Perhaps the Lord will act in our behalf." I love that modus operandi. But I honestly think many if not most Christians take the opposite approach. Perhaps the Lord WON'T act in our behalf. We let fear dictate our decisions. We have a better-safe-than-sorry mentality. We live as if the purpose of life is to arrive safely at death.

Maybe it's time for a paradigm shift. When did we start believing that God wants to take us to safe places to do easy things? Here's a thought: the will of God is not an insurance plan. It's a daring plan.

I think we've made a false assumption that the will of God gets easier as we grow spiritually. Some dimensions do get easier with the consistent practice of spiritual disciplines. But I also think God will give us more difficult, dangerous, and daring things to do!

I love this phrase. It's so hopeful. It's so optimistic. And it's the key to living with holy anticipation. Perhaps the Lord will act in our behalf. May God give us the spirit of Jonathan!