You just never know

Although I didn't watch her on Larry King, I read some of what Paris Hilton said in her interview.
First, although she didn't feel like she should have been incarcerated, she said that she believed that God had a reason for putting her there.
When asked how she spent her days, she said she meditated, read letters from fans, talked to other prisoners through the vents, wrote in her journal and read the Bible.
Have you ever noticed that God loves us so much that He will allow us to be put in situations where we have no place else to look but up.
I am not a Paris Hilton fan. in fact, she could be one of the most overrated people in the world, but I do pray that she would reach out to Christ. Not just in a jail cell, but now that she's out.
Are you going through some sort of difficulty? Turn to the One who gives comfort.

I miss my wife

I miss my wife. She is out of town at Children's camp, as a chaperone.
I definitely outkicked my coverage when I married my wife Liz. She is THE most godly person that I know. She loves Christ with every ounce of her being.
She is also on staff here at Foothills. I can honestly say (very unbiasedly I might add) that she is the best Children's Ministry Director anywhere---Period!
She is also the most patient person I know----she puts up with me (nuff said)
She is also very beautiful (On the outside, and on the inside).
But best of all she is my wife, and I love her.

A little crazy

I've been laying a little low lately when it comes to blogging. Mostly because my life has been very hectic for the last few days. I won't go into all the details, but they say sometimes in life you feel like the dog, and other times you feel like the fire hydrant. Right now it's the fire hydrant!
One thing for sure that helps me is to know that the Lord is still in control. He is at work behind the scenes and working things out.
I am very excited about is this weekends message, 'The Ticket Booth"
Make sure you bring your friends. Oh yeah, you may want to arrive a ilttle early because lately we have been having some big crowds (Isn't that cool---packed out in the middle of summer!)

Why?

There are a lot of things that make me want to ask, why?

A couple of weeks ago I decided to buy a new Bible, because my old one had seen better days. So I went to the bookstore and found a New Living Translation (N.L.T.), which has been my main preference for several years. Because it is the translation that I preach from, many people at Foothills have also purchased one to be able to follow me when I read. It seems that in the last year or so there has been an update done which basically means that there are 2 versions of the same version. Confusing huh?

My initial reaction is to ask, "why?" I mean why name it the New Living Translation? Why not name it the New New Living Translation? Or the New and Improved Living Translation or the Very New Living Translation? Come on Tyndale Publishing, help a brother out!

What do they expect me to do, say to everyone each time I get up to preach, "Now today I will be reading from the New New living Translation, not the Old New Living Translation.
Is it just me, or doesn't that make you ask, Why?

War, What is it good for?

I have been studying the book of 1 Kings, and today one of the things that jumped out at me was a statement that Solomon made about his father David in Chapter 5. He says that David was not able to build the Temple of the Lord because of the many wars waged againgst him.
As I thought about that statement I thought about the local church these days. If statistics are accurate, around 80% of churches are not growing. One of the reasons is that there is too much fighting going on inside the church to build it. There are a lot of Pastors out there that have a great vision from the Lord to reach the community and thus "build the church", but many congregations will wage war against the Pastor to prevent him from building it.
This comes in various forms, usually it has something to do with Change. Maybe the Pastor tries to change the music style, or read from a different translation of the Bible, or move the pulpit or sell the organ or cancel a dying sacred cow program, or change the structure to allow for more growth or add another staff...... whatever. The backlash from these things can be WAR against the Pastor.
Churches do not grow when there is internal turmoil. I have been in churches that when you enter the doors you can "feel" the disunity. It's nearly tangible. Generally a congregation that is in the "battle mode" will have very little laughter, joy and enthusiasm. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that when a guest walks in, they probably will feel that vibe and decide to never come back.
I am so thankful for Foothills Community Church! There is such a spirit of love and unity. The excitement and energy when you walk through the doors is tangible. People look forward to coming together to worship corporately. There are no wars raging, no internal battles. The result is growth!! God is building HIS Church and the gates of Helll cannot prevail against it!!

Monday meetings

Every Monday around here is meeting Monday. Sometimes it feels like "Death by meeting", but I honestly believe that one of the things that builds team, and challenges us to take it to the next level are our meetings. They are not always fun, they are probably too long, I probably talk too much, but I thoroughly enjoy hanging out with our staff-team. As our staff grows, I am trying to restructure our meetings, because not everybody needs to be at every meeting.
A typical Monday meeting generally contains evaluations from Sunday's services, time to hear the success stories of transformed lives, shoring up any areas that need attention, and a lot of laughter. Once a month as a staff, we study and discuss a book that stretches us. Right now we are going through "The Starbucks Experience."
One of my last meetings of the day is our Creative Team meeting. These are a lot of fun. Some days we laugh more than we work. People ask us all the time, how we plan for upcoming messages and series and the creative elements; Well, this is where that takes place. We spend a lot of time brainstorming and usually the ideas begin to flow. One of the keys to a great service is in the planning. (Some people may ask, "doesn't all the planning prevent the Holy Spirit from working? Actually, NO. I believe the Holy Spirit is at work in our advance planning. There is nothing spiritual about not having a clue what you are going to do until you show up on Sunday---actually, that's pretty stupid!) We discuss message ideas, songs, video ideas, etc. and then finalize who is responsible for certain items and pray that it all comes together!!
Of course I am simplifying it, but you get the idea!

What is a real man?

Ask that question to ten men, and you'll get ten different answers.
In 1 Kings 2, King David in his last moments of his life called his son Solomon to his bedside and shares with him what it means to be a real man. "Take courage and be a man. Observe the requirements of the lord your God, and follow all his ways. Keep the decrees, commands, regulations, and all laws written written in the Law of Moses so that you will be successful in all you do and wherever you go."
According to David, to be a real man---a successful man, follow God. It almost sounds too simple doesn't it? And yet that's what we need to do.
As we approach Father's Day this Sunday, let's model real manhood to our families.
And don't forget to be at church Sunday, because we're going to unwrap this principle a little more!

You can't please all the people all the time

On any given Sunday we probably have at least 30 1st time guests at Foothills. Some have just moved here from somewhere and are searching for a church. Some come because they are seeking answers to life. From time to time we have people who visit Foothills that come from another church in the area because they hear the buzz about Foothills in the community.
Some of the 1st time guests don't enjoy their experience, but most do.

One of the things that never ceases to amaze me are the people who come from another church that LOVE what we are doing for a while. Then something happens. After a while they will say things like, "I really love Foothills, but I really think it would be better if we had Sunday school, or Awanas, or a choir or a little less volume, or.... (you can fill in the blank), like my old church."
My first thought is, If you really liked your old church so much, why did you leave?
As Foothills has grown we are being more focused about the vision God has given us. We have made a strategic decision to try to do what we do better, and to not try to be everything for everybody.

The reason Chik-fil-a makes such good chicken sandwiches is because they know who they are. They won't sell you a taco, or pizza, or a burger. They made a decision to do what they do better than anyone else, make chicken sandwiches. My guess is that if they tried to offer everything for everyone----they wouldn't do any of it very well.
There is nothing wrong with Sunday school, Awanas, choirs or whatever, but in order to be who God has called us to be, we will stay a little more focused. Will some people leave because we don't have those things? Yeah, but that's OK ---but I believe more will stay because of that decision

I'm back!

We just got back from a week down visiting family in South Florida.
We celebrated my in-laws 50th wedding anniversary. It was kind of like a family reunion, which can be pretty wierd when you haven't seen people for 10 or 15 years and you can't even recognize them.
It is a long drive down there. We made record time coming back. We made it in 10 1/2 hours.
I heard that it was an incredible Sunday at Foothills! Scott Chatfield spoke in my absence and I hear he did a phenomenal job. Then Sunday afternoon we had a baptism party on Lake Keowee and baptized 44 more people!! (that's 156 baptisms already this year!!) I hate that I missed it, but it's good to know that things keep on rolling even when I'm out of town.
I need to finish unpacking, so I'll fill in some more details later.