Special Christmas Offering

If you have not given to Foothills Community Church's Christmas Offering yet, it's not too late. You might be wondering what this is. Let me take a  second to explain.

Each year FCC has a special Christmas offering which goes toward several important causes. One of the causes is a local effort called Christmas For Kids. Each year in Oconee County thousands of children would not be opening Christmas gifts if it were not for them. We have participated for the last 3-4 years.
Another place the money goes is toward the Golden Corner Food Pantry. Even before we began Project Reach, we have been involved helping feed the hungry. Since Project Reach however, we have become heavily involved n this great ministry.
Some of the Christmas Offering also goes toward helping families that attend FCC that are having tough times.
We received an incredible email thanking the church for being there for them this Christmas.

I will post portions of the letter, without the names:

.... We were just talking Saturday afternoon that this be first year that we
don't get to even buy a gift for anyone, especially the kids, and we were
missing the joy of buying the kids there gifts but, we were so thankful that
the church was going to give them something so they didn't have to have a
Christmas with no gifts at all.....   I told him I had never seen a church or

charity do it that way.  My husband just cried with me all over and said I guess

that is God's way of telling us not to give up and he is going to let us
experience a little of Christmas after all although it is the others that
are doing the giving.  

 

You and the church have no idea how much this has meant to us and how much
we are so thankful that we go to a church that people are so loving, pure
and true.  I told my husband last night it was amazing how bad I have felt
and had the most terrible day that I had yesterday trying to work and after
coming home and just sitting there at the dinner table about ready to cry.
Then suddenly the church calls us......   The thoughtfulness of the
people who give to the Christmas Fund and the church and all of you that
make this possible is the most important gift when people need it the most
no matter what the gift may be.  FCC is such a blessing to us.  We love all
of you so so much.  Please tell everyone  and all our church members that
made this possible that we send our upmost appreciation and thank you all
from the bottom of our hearts for everyone's thoughtfulness and their gift
of giving so that our kids can have a Christmas.

Thank you for making a difference in people's lives by giving toward the 

special Christmas Offering (Remember, this is above and beyond our normal 

regular giving) 

You can give online here.

Blown Away

I am blown away about what the Lord did yesterday at Foothills Community Church. It was one of my favorite days in our history.

We kicked things off with some great services in the morning. I'm not sure of the exact number, but we had a lot of people respond to the invitation to begin a relationship with Christ, and then each of our campuses had baptisms.  It was the first time that all 3 of our campuses had baptisms on the same day. The total number of people baptized during the morning services was 24!

Then at 6:00pm all 3 of our campuses came together for a huge worship night. It was one of the greatest worship services that I have ever seen!

I am not kidding, the level of excellence that our worship, and tech teams brought was world class.
There was a sense of anticipation in the room even before the first song was sung. People came hungry for more of God's presence. We closed off the back sections of the auditorium and had everyone squeeze in together toward the front. It changed the dynamics in the entire room.  (I implored everyone to bring the same intensity to worship on Sunday mornings, and to sit near the front)

Another thing that was noticeable was the amazing Christmas decorating that had been done by so many people pitching in. Our volunteers are amazing. Hundreds of hours were spent to make that a reality. Thanks to Kelly Ross and her team for putting us in the holiday spirit.

This Sunday we will begin our new Christmas series called, Empty. Invite, invite, invite. People will come to church with you, if you ask.... especially during the Christmas season.

We have made it even easier to invite your friends. You can use our electronic E-vite or promote it on Facebook or Twitter. Just go to this link and click on which way you want to promote the new series.

December 2nd

This Sunday (December 2nd) will be a day that you do not want to miss at Foothills Community Church.

On Sunday morning I will be doing a message called Brand New, that I am pumped about. Then after that we will celebrate baptism at all 3 of our campuses! To me, the days that we do baptisms are my favorites. I love watching people go public with their faith in Jesus.

The Bible teaches that every person who becomes a Christ-follower needs to be baptized. If you have not done it yet, this is your chance. This will be the last opportunity for 2012, so don't miss out.


Then at 6:00pm all 3 of our campuses will descend upon our Seneca campus for a huge night of worship. There will be worship leaders/ bands and singers from all 3 campuses leading us. We will also be observing communion that evening. This is going to be amazing!

This is a perfect opportunity to invite some friends. Believe me, they are going to love it!

A couple quick thoughts

* This past Sunday was great. I had the opportunity to preach for my friend Lee Boyd in Prestonsburg Kentucky at Destination Community Church. It reminded me a lot of the early days of Foothills Community Church. I got to meet a bunch of great people and I really enjoyed my time there.

* Back at Foothills Community Church, my friend Jeff Cranston from Low Country Community Church in Bluffton, SC came and delivered a powerful message about forgiveness. I have heard many comments about what a great message it was.

* It's hard to believe that Thanksgiving is this week. It's even harder to believe that Christmas is just around the corner.

* I'm looking forward to bringing the message this Sunday at FCC. Many of you will have out of town company for Thanksgiving. Plan to bring them to church with you this Sunday.

* Don't forget to mark your calendars for December 2nd. The whole day is going to be unbelievable. During our morning services I will be sharing a message called, Brand New. Then we will finish with baptisms at all 3 campuses. If you have never gone public with your faith, this is the time. It's not too late to sign-up. Then at 6:00pm we will be having a Worship night and communion service to celebrate. All 3 campuses will be joining together that night, and worship teams from all 3 campuses will be leading. It is going to be one of the greatest nights in our history!

* On December 9th we will begin our Christmas series called, Empty. You will be hearing a lot more about this very soon, but start thinking about who you can invite to come with you!

* We had a very nice article recently in the Seneca Journal about FCC's partnership with Habitat for Humanity, and our Project Reach initiatives. In case you didn't know we are currently building 2 homes with Habitat.

Sunday review

I'm still processing all that happened at Foothills Community Church today. I loved the services this morning, but I also loved our last Get In The Game class of 2012.

* All 3 campuses did Get In The game today. That's pretty exciting, because lots of people are getting connected at FCC. In fact, in 2012 we had by far the most people of any year that have gone through the class!

* The worship team, once again brought the heat. The theme of the day was Christ is The Cornerstone.

* It is important that we make Jesus the foundation of our lives, because the storms are coming. I feel sorry for people that don't have Him in their lives when they face tragedy and crisis.

* I have enjoyed the My Secret Life series. For the next 3 Sundays we will have some stand-alone messages and then on December 9th we'll begin our Christmas series.

* I loved taking a moment during our services to honor all of the people that have served in the military.

* I can't wait for December 2nd. The morning services are going to be outrageous as we celebrate baptism, and then at 6:00pm we will come back for a huge Worship night in Seneca. This will be the first event that all 3 of our campuses will come together!!

sunday reflections

I know I sound like a broken record, but Sunday was another amazing day at Foothills Community Church. Here are a few quick thoughts:

* Having an extra hour of sleep makes for a more energetic crowd!

* This was the first time some people have ever been on time to church.

* The worship team is at the top of their game. Holy cow, we are so blessed at ALL 3 of our campuses! All of the people that serve on those teams do an incredible job of making it easy for me to get up and preach.

* I dealt with a very serious topic, Spiritual posing. Many people are pretenders when it comes to their faith. It was awesome seeing many people admitting that and truly giving their lives to Jesus!

* As I look around the concourse, I am totally overwhelmed by all of the people that Volunteer at Foothills. Thank you to all of you. You are making a difference!

* We have a lot of people signed-up to attend this Sunday's Get In The Game class at all of our campuses. It's not too late to sign-up. You can do it now.

* I hope everyone exercised their rights as Americans and voted today.

* We have an incredible day planned for December 2nd. During the morning services we will be having the last baptisms of 2012 at all 3 campuses. This is a highlight for me. Then from 6:00pm until 7:30pm we will be having a Praise Night. Worship leaders from all 3 campuses will be at our Seneca campus for this blow-out event. We will also be observing The Lord's Supper together. You do not want to miss this!!!!

* Don't miss this Sunday as we wrap up our My Secret Life series. If you have ever felt like your life was out of control, you need to be there.... and bring some friends.

Happy Halloween

Here's a funny Halloween comedy routine from Jerry Seinfeld. This always makes me laugh.

Don't Forget

Here are 3 important things you don't want to forget:

1) TRUNK OR TREAT.   This Wednesday (Oct. 31st) from 6:00pm until 8:00pm  we will be having Trunk or Treat at the Seneca Walmart. If you have not signed-up to bring your car and hand out candy, just show up no later than 5:30pm at the back of Walmart.
This is a HUGE event. Last year we handed out candy to around 8,000 people! Every year because of this event, many people will show up at Foothills Community Church on a Sunday to worship with us.

2) Daylight Savings Time ends.   Don't forget to set your clocks back 1 hour this Saturday night. (I wasn't going to mention this, because it would have been the first-time some of you would have made it to church on time!)

3) Get In The Game.   Our next Get in the Game class is scheduled for Nov. 11th at all 3 of our campuses. If you've ever wondered about who we are and what we value and believe as a church, this is for you. You will also have the opportunity to meet some of our staff members, and enjoy a free lunch on the house. Sign-up today.

Sunday highlights

Sunday was one of my favorite days EVER at Foothills Community Church! If you missed it--- you really missed it.

* I felt like David Odom and the worship team took it to a new level... Wow! We are blessed to have such amazing worship leaders at all 3 campuses of FCC. They do such an incredible job of leading us, and they have developed their teams so well. I heard Kevin Robison knocked it out of the park in Toccoa as did Bill Swindle in Hartwell

* I absolutely love the My Secret Life series. Life-change is happening and many people are finding hope in Jesus Christ.

* This past Sunday I spoke about when our kids make bad choices. It was a transparent message about some of the things I have struggled with in my own role as a parent. Those are always tough messages to deliver, but I really believe that God did a great work relieving people over the guilt that they have been carrying regarding their prodigal children. If you weren't here and you want to watch the message:



* Our Toccoa and Hartwell campuses had some technical glitches, but it sounds like God did great things in spite of that.

* I'm so excited about Foothills Community Church's partnership with Habitat for Humanity. We are building 2 homes which will be starting in the next week or so. Lots of people have signed-up to help, but there's room for more. Contact our church office for more info.

* I can't wait for this Sunday. My message topic is going to hit home for a lot of people, and it is going to help them so much. Don't miss!

Post Sunday thoughts

Well, another Sunday is in the books. But this was no "ordinary" Sunday. It was the Grand Opening of our newest campus in Hartwell, GA. There is no way to describe how excited I am about our potential to reach more people for Jesus!

It has been a whirlwind preparing for the Grand Opening. There was all of the work on the facility to get it into shape for a service. There was a lot of training to get leaders ready for the big day. There was all the marketing, inviting, and getting the word out. And of course there was the planning and preparation for the actual service.

I am so thankful for every person that has helped in some way to make the dream a reality. Under the leadership of our campus Pastor Duane Hall it is official, we are one church in three locations!

I have heard that for the most part everything clicked and the service went quite well. You always are a little nervous about this kind of thing, but the Lord showed up and they had a great service.

They had 140 people show up for the service!! (which is exactly twice as many as we had when we launched Foothills Community Church in Seneca, SC back in 1998)

This week there will be a lot of follow-up, and some tweaks for next week's service. If you attended the Grand Opening, come back next Sunday and bring a few people with you.

On our other campuses great things are happening as well. On Saturday, our Toccoa, GA campus had a huge community party. Hundreds of people showed up to that. Most of the people attending were blown away that it was completely FREE.

On Sunday both the Toccoa and Seneca campuses also had awesome services. We started a new message series called, My Secret Life. This series is going to hit home with a lot of people. Next week the message is called, "My Kids Are Making Bad Choices" If you or someone you know has a "prodigal" son or daughter, get them to Foothills!!

Don't forget, our next Get In The Game Class will be on Nov. 11th at all 3 campuses. Sign-up today.

Big things coming up

This past Sunday was a great Sunday at Foothills Community Church all the way around. I am honored to serve such an awesome church. If you have not plugged in yet at FCC, I would encourage you to sign-up for our next Get In The Game class on Nov. 11th at all 3 of our campuses. This is a great opportunity to find out all about FCC.

This coming Sunday is going to be epic at Foothills Community Church. I will begin a brand new message series called, My Secret Life. I believe this will be one of the best series we have ever done. We are going to tackle some topics that are very sensitive, but very real.

Also, Don't forget that THIS SUNDAY October 14th will be the Grand Opening of our new FCC Hartwell campus. To say I'm pumped would be the understatement of the year. If you live in or around Hartwell, Georgia or know anyone that does make sure to invite them. Our staff has been praying overtime about this big day. Please join us.

Don't Quit!

In addition to what my blog normally is, I am going to do some posts on my fitness journey.

One of the things that most of us struggle with is perseverance. Most of us start well, but finish poorly (if we finish at all). This is true in almost every area of our lives.

As a Pastor I see this way too often when it comes to people making spiritual commitments. I think in our hearts we really do want to fulfill those commitments, but we get tired, or things come up and we get distracted, or maybe we don't see the results quick enough.

In Galatians, the Apostle Paul exhorts to stick with it by saying, "Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up."

This lack of perseverance is also seen in the physical arena of our life. How many times have you started a diet and given up within a week? Or how many people have bought the latest and greatest home gym only to end up using it to hang up their clothes on? 

Several years ago my wife and I did the Body for Life program. We stuck with the program for the entire 12 weeks and we had very good results. But after the 12 weeks I kind of modified the program to allow me to eat a little differently and work out a little less. Before I knew it I was back to my old ways. It wasn't an overnight thing, it was a gradual process.

Here's what I've discovered. when we are going on diets or working out only for the aesthetics of our bodies, our likelihood of quitting goes up exponentially. But when we are doing these things for our health and the way we feel rather than the way we look, the likelihood of success goes up exponentially.

Now, it isn't wrong to care about how your body looks. You should.  I love having 6 pack abs and low body fat. I like the looks of that, but what keeps me focused and willing to get out of bed at 5:00am is my overall health. 

I do not want to be someone who has all sorts of medical issues that could have been prevented by health, fitness and nutrition. As a Christian I really believe that my body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, and I do not want my lack of care for my body to restrict what God wants to do in me and through me. Don't get me wrong, the spiritual aspect of our lives is the most important thing, BUT I function better spiritually when I am functioning properly physically!

As you know I am a huge fan of P90X. I love the program. Quite frankly it's not for everyone. It's hard. It's very hard. But there are many other programs available that may fit you better. You may not even want to do a program. I get that, but let me tell you why I find it helpful to me. When I press play, I immediately feel like I am being pushed by a personal trainer. Everything is timed and there is no wasted time. You move from one thing to the next. 

I have been in enough gyms to know that most of the time when I finished with a set I had a tendency to take too much time before starting my next set. I would be in the gym for an hour and a half and hardly feel like I've worked-out. I can do my P90X from start to finish in less than an hour and I am whipped. It's awesome!

Even with things like P90X most people don't persevere. For those that do, there is change. For those that don't, there is regret.

I firmly believe that the only way to persevere with any type of fitness and nutrition is to make it a lifestyle. It isn't something you DO, it is something you ARE!

sunday review

I had a lot of fun yesterday at Foothills Community Church. It was pretty much an all-day event, but it was so worthwhile.

* Our morning services were solid. The band was on it, the people were singing out. Well done worship team.

* My message was what I called a "kick in the rear end" message. It was a challenge to quit procrastinating about doing what the Lord commands us to do. Sometimes we all need those type of messages to bring us back to center.

* We had quite a few people respond to the salvation invitation. I'm not sure exactly, but probably around 8-10 people.

* We had a ton of first-time guests. I love that our people love their church enough to invite their friends!

* I am so thankful for all of our volunteers at Foothills. We couldn't do it without you!

* Yesterday afternoon we held our Party In The Pasture which is a huge blow-out to celebrate baptisms. But this is no ordinary party. We had a petting zoo, inflatables, a car show, lots of food, a live band (Stone Echo), and of course, baptisms.

* A couple of people have asked why we invited Stone Echo to a church event. For those that don't know, Stone Echo is a local classic rock band, that is awesome by the way. First of all, music is not necessarily a good thing or a bad thing. It is a neutral thing. If you think about it, music is just a compilation of words and notes.  A certain genre doesn't mean it's bad, nor do certain instruments. Secondly most of the band members are also church members. They love Jesus and they love Foothills. Thirdly they were extra careful to play songs that would be appropriate in our setting. But the best part about having them play was that many unchurched people from the community came yesterday because they are fans of Stone Echo. And in addition to a concert, they witnessed something very moving and powerful. They saw 31 people baptized as an outward expression of their faith in Jesus Christ. And for that reason alone it was totally worth it!! Think about that for a minute. Many of those people were not in Church yesterday, but they were inspired by what they saw at Party In The Pasture! I am praying that many of those people will be joining us for worship some Sunday. And when they come, I can promise you they will hear the Gospel.

* Yes, I said that we baptized 31 more people yesterday!

* Thanks to everyone for coming to the party. We estimate 1,200-1,500 people partied with us!

* All in all it was a long, exhausting, wonderful day! Thanks to all the volunteers that went the extra mile to serve at the Party In The Pasture.

A couple of quick thoughts

This past Sunday was historic for Foothills Community Church. It was our first Sunday as one church in three locations!

* Our new Hartwell campus met together for their soft opening. Basically the soft opening is designed to work out the kinks before the Grand Opening.

* They had 84 people show up, which is fantastic. In fact that's more than FCC Seneca Campus Grand Opening back in 1998! That's with no advertising, or hoopla. There's no telling how many people are going to show up for the Grand Opening.

* Hartwell's Grand Opening is scheduled for October 14th at 10:30am. Their address is 1541 Anderson Hwy. Suite D Hartwell, GA. It is located in the former Walmart building next to the Tractor Supply.

* October 14th is also an all-campus huge day because we will be kicking off a new series that is going to be incredible. It will be called, My Secret Life. We are asking all of our people to invite, invite, invite for that day!

* This Sunday at our Seneca campus we will be having Party In The Pasture. This is a party for the whole community so invite your friends. There will be all kinds of stuff to do, but the highlight will be baptisms.

* Our Toccoa campus continues to rock and roll. They have some serious "mo" happening right now.

a few quick thoughts

It's been a busy week so I'm just getting around to blogging. This past Sunday a good friend of mine, Bill Giovanetti from the Neighborhood Church in Redding, California spoke at Foothills Community Church. I have heard a lot of positive comments about Bill's message, and I agree (I watched it online), it was great.

While Bill was preaching here, I got a chance to preach at another good friend, Doug Walker's  church in Dallas, Texas. I had a great time. It was pretty much non-stop. I preached 1 time on Saturday evening and 4 times on Sunday. Sunday evening we did a interview-type event where I answered questions from the audience. All in all I had a wonderful time.

This weekend will be a historic one at Foothills Community Church because we will have our first-ever service at our new Hartwell, Georgia campus. This will be a soft-opening, so it will be kind of a dry run for the big Grand Opening on October 14th. But nonetheless we are now officially 1 church in 3 locations!.

A few other things:

* We are gearing up for our Party In The Pasture which is set for September 30th. This is a huge community-wide party with games and inflatables for the kids, live music, food, a car show, and most importantly, Baptism! You Don't want to miss this. Don't forget to bring some friends.

* Our Toccoa campus continues to have record or near record crowds every weekend!

* I am very excited to share this week's message called, Keeping The Main Thing The Main Thing.

* I am going bow hunting tomorrow. Love this time of year! Hoping for some fresh venison.

* I apparently have a case of tendonitis in my left arm. I've had it for a couple of months, but in the last couple of weeks it has been acting up. I continue to do my P90X, but back and bicep days are being replaced with other exercises.

sunday review

We had a very solid day at Foothills this past Sunday. I am loving the Be The Church series. It is so cool to see people "get it" when it comes to their responsibility to not just go to church, but to be the church.

* We focused on Acts 2:41-47 for the second week in a row. The thing that you see in the church back then is that everyone did whatever it took to meet the needs of one another. There were no spectators. Everyone was involved.

* It was sort of preaching to the choir, because we have such a high percentage of our congregation that are serving in some area of ministry. I know there were a many that had not served before that took a step to sign-up to begin serving!!

* Every time I share the story of the little kid that threw up in the salad bar, people want to know which restaurant it was. Trust me, you don't want to know.

* Our Toccoa campus was right at another record attendance. Love it!

* On Saturday we had 34 people show up at our new Hartwell, GA campus to paint the facility! What was really cool was that there were people from Seneca, Toccoa, and Hartwell serving side by side. They got completely through painting the lobby and worship center, and got quite a bit done on the kids area. So proud of all of you that sacrificed your Saturday to help.

* We will be working there Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday this week, so if you are available, call the church office for times and directions. (864)888-8008

*On Sunday evening we held our first-ever Get In The Game class at our Hartwell campus. It was a blast  to meet all the new people. They are super-excited and raring to go.

* This Sunday evening we will be doing training at the Hartwell campus for all areas of ministry in preparation for the first service there on September 23rd. Their official Grand Opening is set for October 14th.

* Our Toccoa campus baptized 6 more people Sunday!!!

* Our next baptism opportunity at Seneca will be on September 30th at Party in the Pasture. Be sure to sign-up ASAP, it's going to be awesome.

New campus coming soon

Right now there are so many things God is doing at Foothills Community Church it's hard to keep up.
During Sunday's service I mentioned a few of these things. But there is so much more.

* One of the things I'm very excited about is our new campus in Hartwell, Georgia.

* We are shooting for an official Grand Opening on October 14th. Between now and then there will be a lot of things that need to get done. One of the big things is getting the facility ready for services. As I mentioned, we are renting a portion of the former Walmart located at 1541 Anderson Hwy. Ste D in Hartwell.  I really want to thank all of the folks from our Seneca and Toccoa campuses that have volunteered to help over there. You will be contacted this week with the schedule of work days.

* We have a group of people in Hartwell that are very excited about Foothills coming to their town. If you live in Hartwell or know someone that does, let them know about Foothills Hartwell.

* Our Toccoa campus is exploding right now. It looks like another service will be coming soon to accommodate the growth.

* We are talking to people about adding a Foothills campus in a couple of other towns. That's pretty exciting!

* We believe that God has given us a unique vision to add campuses in small towns.  In case you missed it, here is our campus expansion strategy.

* On another note, this past weekend services were fantastic. Yes it was Labor Day, and yes, there were a bunch of people out of town, but wow, it was a good day!

* I am loving our new series, Be The Church. We talked about the need to get connected with a small group. I know a lot of people signed up for our Find and Follow small groups. I love it.

* Looking forward to catching up with some Pastor friends later this week.

* Our Toccoa campus will be celebrating baptism THIS Sunday!

* Our next Seneca baptisms will be on September 30th. It's not too late to sign-up.

sunday review

I can't get over what a fantastic day we had at Foothills Community Church yesterday. Now that school is back in session, our attendance continues to grow.

* The worship team did an amazing job leading us. It was powerful and inspiring worship!

* I especially loved the scripture reading between songs. It fit well, and added so much.

* We started the new series, Be The Church. The first message in a series tends to be a little longer because you have to spend time setting up the series. This particular series is on the book of Acts, so a little background of the book really helps people understand.

* Yesterday we covered Acts 1 and some of Acts 2. We talked about the Holy Spirit. I really hope that the message cleared up any confusion people may have had regarding the Holy Spirit.

* It is astounding that every single believer has the same power inside of them that raised Christ from the dead. Why do we try to live our lives in our own strength when we have His power available?

* Our Toccoa campus had their highest non-Easter attendance EVER yesterday! They were setting up chairs to keep up! It looks like they will be needing to go to two services very soon!

* After church at both campus locations we had our Get In The Game (membership) class. It was the second largest class of the year with 75 new people attending. There will be one more class in 2012, in November. We are on pace to have more people go through Get In The Game this year than any year of our existence!

* The momentum we have right now is unbelievable.

* We are getting ready to launch our Fall Find and Follow Groups. If you are not a part of a group already, be sure to sign-up this weekend. We have several new groups that are forming, so there is room for you.

* We are praying about a couple of huge opportunities for additional campuses. More info to come shortly.

* Now that Fall is here, I want to challenge everyone to make sure to keep inviting those friends of yours that have no church home. We do many forms of advertising, but without a doubt, by far most people come to Foothills because someone invited them.

* If you are a teenager or know a teenager, make sure you let them know about ICE. It's happening this Wednesday evening. This thing is going to be huge.

sunday review

It was so much fun being back at Foothills Community Church this past Sunday. I had not spoken in 4 Sundays, so to say I was raring to go would be an understatement.

* I keep hearing wonderful feedback on the messages that were done in my absence. Thanks to Michael Robison, Brian Rhodes and Justin Terry.

* This Sunday I spoke from Psalm 1, which is one of my favorite Psalms, on The Secret To Success. I have learned that everyone wants to be successful, but few know the real meaning of success. You can watch it here.

* I love my church and all that God is doing here. I am looking forward to our next message series which begins this Sunday, called "Be The Church". It is going to be a series on the book of Acts. There is so much we can learn about what it means to be the church from the 1st church. It is going to be great. Make sure to come and bring a bunch of people with you. I have found that once school gets back in and people start to get to a more regular schedule they are very open to attending church.... so INVITE!

* I am very excited about our new Campus Expansion Plan. If you have not heard, we are currently seeking God's direction for possible new campus sites throughout SC, GA, and NC. Check out this video for more details:

Foothills Community Church Campus Expansion Video from Foothills Community Church on Vimeo.


* I am also excited about some new technology that we are planning to implement that will improve our multi-site strategy. I won't go into detail, but it will significantly enhance our campus experience!

*  I got a chance to hang around some great Pastor friends today from Marathon Community Church. I have known some of these guys for almost 15 years, and they have always been huge supporters of Foothills Community Church.

* It is less than one month until archery season. That makes me happy!

* I am praying for all the faculty and students as they begin a new school year today.

* In case you have not heard, FCC is about to begin a new small group for young adults 18-25yrs. old Tons of response already. For more info stop by the link at the back of the Concourse on Sunday.

* If you have not gone through our Get In The Game Class, you can do it THIS Sunday at both campuses. If you like what you see at FCC and want to take your next step, this is it.

Let's get in shape

** Click here to go to my new fitness website, Pastorfit.com


 Back in April I did a post on fitness/nutrition that created a lot of discussions with people. I would advise you to read it first so that this post will make sense.

Now to today's topic. Once again I want to talk about fitness/nutrition. I know I might sound like a broken record but if it helps someone, then it's worth it.

A couple of weeks ago while on vacation in Florida I posted a few pictures to my Twitter account. One of those pictures was me on the beach holding my cast net without my shirt. What I didn't know at the time was that posting that picture would generate so many questions about what I was doing to get in shape. I have lost count of the people that have asked me about this.

15 months ago, I THOUGHT I was in pretty good shape. I ate relatively well, and exercised moderately a few days a week. As I look back at pictures from 15 months ago I realize that although I wasn't "fat", I had gotten really "soft". I guess compared to other 51 year old guys I was in OK shape, but in reality I had a long way to go.

I refuse to settle for OK anymore when it comes to my health. I am committed to do everything I can do from a human standpoint to not have health problems. That's why I work so hard everyday to get in the best shape possible.

Over the last 15 months I have lost around 12-14 pounds and added lean muscle. My body fat is now around 6%. I work out intensely 6 days a week, and eat clean. It is ridiculously hard! But at the age of 52 I am in the best shape of my life. I am passionate about this. I don't dread waking up at 5:45am to work out. I look forward to it! My motivation is not the mirror, it's my health.

So why am I sharing this with all of you? Because I care. Because I want to encourage you. Because I'm sick of hearing people making excuses for their poor health. I want you to say, "if he can do it at the age of 52, than I can do it too!"

By the way, my wife is just as passionate about working out as I am. She looks awesome!

I am going to list and link all of the tools that I am using for my health in this post. Some will be redundant if you read the post from April I referred to earlier.


My workout= P90X (I love it!)
Note: I am going to be starting a new program called Body Beast in the next couple of months.

My supplements: Multi -vitamin once a day, fish oil pills twice a day, Vitamin B-100 pill once a day, Suma Root pill twice a day.
Pre-workout: 1 scoop Body Octane, 1 scoop Hemavol, Con-Cret Creatine powder, 1 serving Crystal light Energy (all of the above mixed with 20 oz water 20 minutes prior to work out) and 1 handful of raisins.
Intra-workout: 1 Scoop Xtend powder with 12 oz water.
Post workout: 1 scoop of Dymatize Iso-100 Whey protein mixed with 8 oz skin milk (sometimes add a second protein supplement in the P.M.)

I order all of my supplements from All-Star Health. Best prices I have found



Workout schedule: (This varies quite a bit, but for right now it might look like this)

Monday, Wednesday (sometimes Friday) CARDIO--6:00am-7:00am basketball
Abs (either ab-ripper X or Body Beast abs) Monday, Wednesday and Friday (usually p.m.)

Tuesday: P90X Back/Bicep routine (6:00-7:00am)
Thursday P90X Chest/Shoulders/triceps routine (6:00am-7:00am)
Friday (If not playing basketball) P90X Legs/Back routine
Saturday P90X Shoulders/Arms routine
*As you can see if you're familiar with P90X, I have customized it for myself


Nutrition: (By the way, It is true, Abs are made in the kitchen. In order to get 6-pack abs, you need to lower body fat below 10%)

* I hate the word, "diet". A diet is something temporary. This is about lifestyle changes.

I track all my eating with MyFitness Pal.
In order for me to maintain my weight (based on my size) I need 2,170 calories per day. I track all my macro's, especially my fat intake. Per my cardiologists orders, I am allowed no more than 30 fat grams per day. I eat roughly 300 grams of carbs and 150 grams of proteins a day.

I won't list all of what I do and don't eat. You can read it here.

Just to be clear. There are NO Short-cuts. Sorry, that's just the way it is. It is hard work and a lot of discipline. But I also want to say this. I know I tend to be a little extreme with all this. You may have read some of this and thought, that's way too much work. Please don't let that stop you. Something is better than nothing. For you, a big step might be to walk around the block. Fine. Do it. It beats sitting on the couch. Or maybe instead of always frying the chicken you might start grilling it. Just start somewhere.... Please!

At the risk of embarassing myself, I will post kind of a before and after picture. The first picture is from April 2011 (1 month before having my 2 stents installed)(Not really fat, but soft)
The second is from August 2012 (this month)

Lastly. If I can help in any way, let me know! I don't have it all figured out. I'm learning every day.

*** Update: Here is a link of an update on my health/ fitness as of August 2013***

Before (April 2011)

After (August 2012)

Sunday review

This was not what I would call a normal Sunday by any stretch of the imagination. As I mentioned in my last post, my father-in-law passed away in Virginia so I left on Friday to spend time with the family.
It was a bit of a whirlwind trip, as I got to Virginia on Friday afternoon and got home last night at about 1:00am. In case you're keeping score at home the trip is about 9 hours each way. So needless to say, we're a bit exhausted today.
The memorial service for my father-in-law was a beautiful time of remembrance of this great man. I was honored to be asked to give the eulogy. It is so hard to encapsulate someone's life down to around 15 minutes. I pray that my words honored him, and brought comfort to the family.
I was so proud of my wife and oldest son. They shared (along with other family members) how he had impacted them. It was a phenomenal service.

Between my vacation and the funeral, I have been away from preaching at Foothills Community Church for 4 Sundays in a row. That is the most Sundays consecutively I have ever been away. I am so proud of our staff and volunteers. They not only held ground, but took new ground in my absence!!

This Sunday I am preaching on one of my favorite chapters in the Bible. The message is called, The Secret of Success. You do not want to miss it. I am about to burst because I have been gone for so long. I promise not to preach for more than an hour :-)  (In case you're wondering, that last sentence was a joke..... kind of!)

The following Sunday we will begin a new series called, Be The Church. This series is going to be life changing, trust me.

One last thing. If you have never attended our Get in The Game Class, your next opportunity will be August 26th at both campuses. The class will tell you about Foothills' history, vision, values, and strategy. I will personally be leading the Seneca class and Pastor Brian Marshall will lead the Toccoa class. Free childcare and lunch will be served. You can sign-up today here.

I'm back

I haven't blogged much lately because I have been on vacation. I am home and am ready to get back to work.
Our usual summer vacation is a trip to Florida to stay with my parents. I also tow my boat down with us. We fished quite a bit (and caught quite a bit). The highlight was watching my son Cole catch his first sailfish. He did an awesome job handling the fish, and the sailfish put on quite a show.
My daughter Kristen wasn't quite as enthusiastic about fishing offshore. She found out after catching a bonito that it's a workout to reel them in.
My wife and I caught a bunch of dolphin (mahi-mahi) one morning about 12-15 miles offshore. That was a blast.
We also fished from the beach several times. The schools of bait stretched for miles along the beach, which meant there was some pretty good action. We caught a lot of fish, and did hook-up with a 50+ lb tarpon that got off, but not before going airborne several times.
I also got a chance to spend a lot of time with my parents. They are such wonderful people and great hosts!
Unfortunately just before we were scheduled to leave, we got a call from my wife's mother in Virginia letting us know that her Dad was in the hospital and fighting for his life. She booked the next flight out and got to Virginia to spend a little time with here Dad before he passed away. I will be leaving to go to be with them later this week.
It is humbling to have such wonderful friends. So many people calling or sending notes of encouragement. Thank you all so much. To top it all off, when I got home yesterday evening after driving for 11 hours, David and Jerod Ayers were at my house cutting my grass! I said, 'what are you doing?', he said, "I didn't want you to have to worry about cutting grass with all that is going on right now" Wow!
My father-in-law was a great man, and I will surely miss him.

Also, I am blessed to be able to get away and not worry while I'm gone. The staff at Foothills Community Church are the best in the world. Thanks guys!

Here are a few pics of my time away:

The drift

I am in Florida right now on vacation. I grew up in South Florida and have spent hundreds, if not thousands of hours on these beautiful beaches over the years. One thing many tourists are not aware of is that there is a subtle current that is not visible to the eye . Many people come to the beach and lay their towels, sunscreen, coolers and other beach gear on the sand and then go in for a dip in the ocean. They swim for several minutes and get out of the water and cannot find their belongings. They assume someone must have come and stolen their things while they were swimming, but what happened was that they drifted down the beach without realizing it.
As I have read the headlines over the last couple of weeks, I am reminded of a subtle current that has swept our Nation from its foundation. We have lost our moral and Biblical bearings. We have been swept downstream by the current of evil. The worst part is that we don't even realize it.

Take for instance the media firestorm over Dan Cathay, Chick-Fil-A's CEO, comments about his personal beliefs about the definition of marriage. What was it that he said that has caused this national outrage? He simply stated his position that he believed in the Biblical definition of marriage, which is one man and one woman. Yes, that's right. He had the gall to say that he believed in the sanctity of marriage.

Please bear in mind that Chick-Fil-A corporate does not discriminate in its hiring process based on sexual preference. This not about "anti" anything. This is about the support of marriage. Whether we realize it or not, we're drifting. 20 years ago, Dan Cathay would be applauded. Today he is being assaulted. America has lost its way.

The prophet Isaiah put it this way.  Isa. 5:20 Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. 

Now, more than ever, mainstream America has got to stand up for what is right. This isn't a political statement (I steer clear of that) This is not a Republican/Democrat issue. This is a moral compass issue.

Hate groups are calling for a boycot of Chick-Fil-A. Mayors from some cities are making it clear that Chick-Fil-A will not be welcomed in their towns. How sad.

What can you do?  Many people are planning to do show their support, on Wednesday, August 1st by participating in  "Chick Fil-A Appreciation Day.”   This is just a way to affirm a business that operates on Christian principles.

I am thankful that I live in the greratest country in the World. I think it is our responsibility to stand for what is right, in a respectful, Christ-honoring way.

sunday review

Awesome is the only way to describe the services at Foothills Community Church yesterday. We wrapped up what could have been the best series we have ever done. It was called Spiritual Warfare. In the series we took a close look at the tactics that Satan uses to try to destroy our lives. Yesterday we talked about how to win over temptation.

* David Odom and the worship team did such a phenomenal job of leading the congregation into the presence of God.

* Speaking of David Odom, he and Amanda are celebrating their 7th anniversary today!

* During my message I talked about fighting the temptation of the soft-serve ice cream machine on my cruise (by the way, I lost that battle, and gave into the temptation :-) ), but it was pretty ironic that we gave away free ice cream after the service! I'm pretty sure that some people thought it was a set-up, but it wasn't. It just worked out that way

* Attendance continues to increase during the summer. That is always nice.

* Our Toccoa campus had a high attendance yesterday as well!

* Looks like FCC is going to be involved in some unbelievable community service projects this fall. I'll fill you in on the details soon. But let's just say that this is HUGE!

* I am praying overtime for our Campus expansion plans. If you know of a town in GA, SC or NC that would love to have a Foothills Community Church campus, let us know. We are creating a web page that will have a lot more detail available. It should be up pretty soon.

* I'm also really pumped about a series that we will be doing this fall on the book of Acts, called "Be The Church"

* Lots of people have been handing out our new invite cards. They are great conversation starters.

* Excited for my friend Dean Herman and the church that he Pastors. They will be moving into their new building this Sunday!

* You don't want to miss FCC this weekend!

sunday review

I love the energy level at Foothills Community Church right now. Even though we are in the middle of summer, we are not experiencing the dreaded "summer slump". In fact, if anything, we are seeing summer momentum. We estimate that on any given Sunday approx. 15% of our regular attenders are on vacation, but there are a bunch of new people that are showing up and checking things out. That is awesome.

* Yesterday we continued the Spiritual Warfare series. The focus of the message was understanding the tactics that Satan uses against us. If you missed it, I shared that the tactics he uses are the exact same tactics he has always used: DISTORTION, DOUBT, DISTANCE and DECEPTION. Once we're aware of the tactics we can better defend against them.

* We will wrap up the series this Sunday with a message called, How to win over temptation. this will be the most application oriented message of the series, and you do not want to miss it!

* We had the choir back on stage. I always love that!

* I will be doing a video tomorrow where I will share a little more in-depth about our new campus expansion plan. This is going to be huge!

* I hear that the Toccoa campus is very fired-up about the possibility of having additional FCC campuses in Northeast Georgia!

* I am looking forward to the series coming up this Fall on the book of Acts called, Be The Church. I have been studying the book of Acts lately and it is packed with powerful, practical truths for the church in the 21st century.

* Mark your calendars for August 26th. I will be leading our next Get In The Game class in Seneca (Pastor Brian will be leading the class in Toccoa) If you are new to FCC, or have never gotten plugged in, this is your next step. You will learn all about Foothills vision, strategy, history and future and how you can join us on our mission. In Seneca, the class will be at 12:30pm with free lunch and childcare. Sign-up at the Link on Sunday or by checking off the box on your info card or do it online.

Exciting News

If you were not at Foothills Community Church you missed one of the biggest announcements we have ever made. We unveiled our new campus expansion plan. Let me share a little more detail.
As most of you know FCC currently has 2 locations (Seneca, SC and Toccoa, GA). Over the last couple of years we have been praying for clarity on where we would add our next campus. Through that time of prayer I sensed that the Lord was leading us to do something very innovative when it comes to adding campuses.
First off, one of the things we feel strongly about is adding campuses in smaller towns. Both of our current locations are in small towns. I have always said that small towns don't lack churches, they lack choices. Although most small towns have churches that are reaching people for Christ, most don't have churches like Foothills. Please understand our goal is not to reach people who are already happily attending a church, it's to try to reach people who are un-churched or de-churched.
Our plan will be to begin a Bible study group in a living room, and grow it to the point that they would eventually hold services in a larger location (Pretty much the way that Foothills Community Church got started-- in my living room).  In order for this to be successful, we need leaders who have a passion to reach their communities for Christ, and will do whatever-it-takes. As I read the book of Acts it is apparent to me that a Holy Spirit directed grass roots approach is what the early church was all about. That's exactly the model we will be using.
We know that in many of these towns we will never grow a mega-church. That is not our goal. Our goal is to be effective. To help people find and follow Jesus.

Here's some things you need to know. We are actively seeking potential leaders that could possibly become campus Pastors as well as people who would like to be a part of this movement of God. We are targeting the following locations in Georgia: Hart County, Habersham County, Rabun County, Elbert County, Franklin County, White County, Jackson County. In North Carolina: Transylvania County, Macon County, Jackson County. Of course we are also considering other areas of South Carolina as well.
Here's what I need you to do:
1. Pray. This is a God-sized vision. We cannot do it on our own. (In fact, we will only move forward as God leads. We will not "force" this to happen. If God doesn't guide, we will wait for His timing. Please pray for clarity, wisdom, the right people, for favor in these areas, and for campus pastors in these locations.
2. Get the word out. If you know people in these areas that you think would be a good fit, let us know. Maybe the Lord would call you to go to one of these areas!
3. Give. This is going to cost a lot to do right. We are committed to keeping the costs low so that we can start multiple locations, but there will be costs involved

You are probably wondering when all this will happen. It will happen in phases. A lot of things have to come together first, but I am hoping that we will be starting our next campus in late 2012 or early 2013.

mid week review

It has been pretty much non-stop around Foothills Community Church. Instead of summer slowing things down, I think things have actually sped up.

* Our church is spread out all over the map this week. We have a group of teenagers at camp in Tenn. We have a group of 3rd-6th graders at a camp in Alabama, and we have a team doing ministry in Haiti. (We have another team leaving this weekend for Harlan County KY as well!)

* This past Sunday was an awesome day at FCC. Worship was led by Pastor Bill Swindle and our talented team of singers and musicians. They did an incredible job in Pastor David Odom's absence. David and Amanda just had a new baby last week, so they were a bit preoccupied.

* I wrapped up the Urban Legend series with a message called, Saying a Prayer makes You a Christian. Of course, this is an urban legend. I am attaching the video in case you missed it.

* I had planned to do the Urban Legend series for 1 more week, but the more I prepared, the more I sensed God's leading to go in a different direction. This puts a lot of stress on our team, but they do whatever it takes to make it happen. I like that!

* The new series is simply called, Spiritual Warfare. Believe it or not, we are in a war, spiritually speaking. It is the war between good and evil. There are way too many casualties in this war, so this series will help you understand the battle, the enemy, his tactics and how to overcome him. YOU DON"T WANT TO MISS!

* On Monday my friend Pastor Shannon O'dell from Brand New Church in Harrison Arkansas came by and spoke to our staff and Sr. management team. God really used him to speak into my life. Pastor Shannon has a heart for doing ministry in small towns, and has written a book to help other churches. I highly recommend it.

* I know I have mentioned this before, but if you have not used our online giving, you might want to consider it. You can use it one time, or every week. This is especially helpful during the summer months when people are in and out of church on vacations. Why not sign-up now?

* One last thing I want to leave you with. This Sunday I have a very important announcement that I'll be sharing. God is at work and we have a very exciting opportunity that will extend our reach like never before. Can't wait to share it with you!

Is Church for perfect people?

This is from last Sunday at Foothills Community Church. We deal with the myth that church is for "perfect people"

Awesome Father's Day

It was an awesome Father's Day at both campuses of Foothills Community Church.

* In Seneca we had a lot of Dads in the house, and we had a lot of fun with them. If you missed it, we gave away several very nice gifts. But before you could claim a prize you had to win a little friendly competition. Whoever could eat a hotdog the fastest, would win.

* I was actually surprised  how long it took for them to eat the hotdog. I was getting a bit nervous watching them and actually was thinking we might have to use the Heimlich technique on one of the contestants!! Fortunately everyone survived.

* We had some great worship, and then continued the Urban Legends series. The Urban Legend we debunked was, "The Church is For Perfect People" The bottom line is there is no such thing as perfect person.

* I'm not sure, but I think that could be the most feed back I have received about a message in quite a while.

* After the service was over we had free ice cream, which went over big!

* All in all, a terrific day.

* Over at our Toccoa campus they had a great day as well. They ha a few fun things planned and gave away a newgrill to one of the Dad'.

* Later that day they had a huge party and the best part was that they baptized 11 more people!! God is at work at both of our campuses!

* You don't want to miss this Sunday. The Urban Legend we will tackle is, Saying A Prayer Makes Me A Christian. Prepare to be challenged. This is going to rock some people's world. Don't miss it.

sunday review

It's been a busy time around Foothills Community Church. Here a few highlights:

* Last week we held our annual SonSports kids event. It was a huge success. Over 200 kids participated and 100 adults volunteered.

* 15 of those kids indicated that they were ready to begin a relationship with Jesus!

* Yesterday, was a fun day at FCC. Our attendance were definitely affected by the weather, but the services were great. It has always been a mystery to me how a little rain can deter some people from coming to church. To me, Church is the best hour of the week. No way am I missing it!

* We tackled the urban legend, Faith Fixes Everything. Faith is extremely important, but it doesn't fix everything. To watch the message you can check it out here. (It will be online by Wednesday)

* The weather also caused a little change in plans for our baptism party. With the forecast of 100% chance of rain, we decided to move it indoors to our concourse.

* I must say, I think having it inside worked awesome. Lots of people showed up, and it seemed like everybody had a good time.

* The best part by far, was that 21 people were baptized! It was so moving. I can't think of anything I enjoy more than baptism services. Congrats to all of  those who stepped out in faith.

* I am really pumped about this Sunday--Father's Day. We are giving away some sweet prizes. Every man 18 or over will be eligible. In case you're wondering why? It's because unlike Mother's day, Father's Day is one of the least attended Sundays of the year, so we are giving Dad's a reason to get their families to church this Sunday. Let's face it, Dad's are instrumental in the spiritual direction of their families, and unfortunately many dad's have relegated their responsibility to their wives.

* This week's urban legend, The Church is For Perfect People. We are going to seriously debunk this myth.

* Make sure to be there Sunday, and bring a friend.

summer time

Can't believe it's summer. But at Foothills Community Church things are in full swing. One thing for sure, things never get boring around here.

* This past Sunday was incredible. From the time you entered until the time you left, the experience was phenomenal.

* Having Brian Rhodes in the kiddie pool as you entered the concourse got some strange looks (and a whole lot of smiles) He was promoting our Baptism party. If you haven't been dunked", this is your opportunity!

* Some of the guest services team put 150lbs. of ice into the pool between services (which would explain Brian's grimace :-) )

* I LOVED the music. Having the choir up there always adds so much.

* The Rascall Flatts tune to kick things off was awesome!

* The Urban Legends series continued wit the legend, God's Will Is The Safest Place To Be. Sounds true enough, but what the Bible teaches is that the will of God is not the safest place to be, but it's the BEST place to be.

* This week the Urban Legend is Faith Fixes Everything. You definitely do not want to miss!

* SonSports began yesterday afternoon. We have been doing SonSports for several years, but I think this year is going to be the best ever. Thanks to the 100 volunteers that are serving this week, and a special thank you to my amazing wife, Liz, who has spent probably hundreds of hours organizing it.

* I'm praying that many of the kids will begin a relationship with Jesus!

* By the way, it's not too late to have your kids participate. Just get them here this afternoon!

* As I mentioned earlier, this Sunday at 4:30pm at Biggerstaff Retreat Center on Lake Keowee, we will have our next baptism party. It is going to be a blast. Bring enough food for your family + 1, your friends and a lawn chair. Come and support those who will be stepping up and proclaiming their faith in Christ through baptism!

* If you would like to be baptized, show up ready to get dunked!

* On Father's day (June 17th) we are going to be giving way some fantastic prizes. Both campuses will be doing the give-aways. To qualify for the prizes you must be a guy (18 years or older). These are some serious big-time prizes, so bring your Dad's. Who knows he may walk away with a killer prize.

* We are exploring a couple of extremely exciting opportunities. I can't go into much detail just yet, but I can tell you this much, if the Lord opens the door, it will be the most amazing thing FCC has ever done!!

random thoughts

Since it's already Wednesday, I thought I would just share some random thoughts, so bear with me because they're extremely random.

* This past Sunday at Foothills Community Church was awesome. I pretty much did nothing. Brian Rhodes preached for me and did an amazing job!

* Worship was led by Kevin Robison who is our Toccoa campus worship Pastor. David Odom was out of town spending time with family, but we never missed a beat. Kevin did incredible job.

* What a blessing it is that God has provided so many gifted people at FCC. And I'm not just talking about our staff. We have so many incredibly gifted volunteers as well!

* I got so sunburned last weekend. I'm starting to peel. I hate peeling.

* Don't forget that June 10th will be our next baptism party at Lake Keowee. There are no parties like FCC parties! If you would like to be baptized sign-up today!

* Speaking of baptism, I loved having Justin Terry, our youth Pastor, out front in the dunk tank. So thankful for his willingness to take one for the team.

* You won't believe what we've got planned out for our Father's Day on June 17th. Trust me, if you are a guy, you NEED to be at FCC. We are going to be giving away some UNBELIEVABLE prizes! You will hear more about this on Sunday.

* I went for my one year check-up since having my stents put in. My cardiologist said I am doing fantastic! You can read more about that here.

* I just heard that Foothills Community Church had the 3rd most baptisms of all Southern Baptist churches in the State of South Carolina for 2011! (There are around 2,000 SBC churches in SC) That is a result of the folks at FCC that continue to help others Find and Follow Jesus!

* Son Sports begins next Monday afternoon. This is going to be HUGE! Invite every kid you see. They will have the time of their life!

* Went to watch my middle grand daughter's awards/graduation from kindergarten. I can't believe how time flies.

* Summer is here. Have you considered using our online giving option? This will help you to stay consistent in your giving throughout the summer.

* I officially got ripped-off by someone on Craig's List. Not happy about that.

sunday review

It was another great day at Foothills Community Church yesterday. I really love the people that I get do life and ministry with.

* I thought David Odom and the band knocked it out of the park yesterday. I know I've said it 1,000 times, but wow, we are blessed to have the worship team that we do at FCC!

* We kicked off the Urban Legends message series, with the #1 church urban legend out there, "God helps those who help themselves."

* Although there is a measure of truth to that statement, overall the Bible teaches just the opposite. God helps those who CAN'T help themselves.

* This series has a similar feel to the Questions Uncensored series (which I love).

* Memorial Day weekend is coming up. It's hard to believe that summer is here.

* We are really gearing up for SonSports. Make sure you bring your kids/grandkids. There are some huge things planned. Parents, don't miss this opportunity for your kids to encounter Christ through sports, art and crafts, music and skits.

* Our next Baptism Party is coming on June 10th at Biggerstaff Retreat Center. You will be hearing a lot more details about it starting next Sunday.

* I usually avoid going to Walmart, but my wife asked me to stop by yesterday afternoon for a couple of grocery items, so I did. I must have seen 50 people that I knew in 20 minutes. It was like a Foothills Community Church reunion!

* My softball team won the FCC softball league. Not bragging, just stating the facts :-)

* I am really excited about this. Supposed to be out in July.

* Was really hoping to begin a hybrid program of P90X and Insanity, but it's currently on hold because I ordered the Insanity DVD's from Craig's List, and it appears that I have been ripped-off. So until my dispute is settled I will stick exclusively with my P90X.

* I loved this message by James McDonald about consumerism in the church.

sunday review

It was an awesome day as we celebrated Mother's day at Foothills Community Church.

** I loved the energy yesterday morning. Normally when it's rainy and gloomy, people have a tendency to be pretty mellow.  Not yesterday! The parking lot was even buzzing thanks to the greeting team that had the Mom Mobile (golf carts running, and the umbrella team helping people stay dry)

** We had 22 people that gave their lives to Jesus at our Seneca campus. Also, we had hundreds raise their hands and repent of not reading their Bibles with passion and zeal, and committing to dive into God's Word with a renewed awe!

** We had tons of parents dedicate their children to the Lord. In our 11:15am service there was literally not enough room across the stage for everyone! I love all of the young families the Lord is sending to Foothills Community Church.

** We also gave gifts to every single parent/ grandparent that was trying to raise their child by themselves.  I applaud these people because they are working hard to provide for their families in a single income household.

** Our Toccoa campus had a phenomenal day as well. Several spiritual decisions and lots of parent/child dedications.

** My wife spent lots of time in the concourse promoting our Son Sports. She was the pretty lady that was wearing the football shoulder pads, cheerleader pom-poms and dribbling a basketball. In case you're not familiar with Son Sports, it's Foothills version of Vacation Bible School, but we add the element of a sports theme. (For kids that aren't into sports we have arts and crafts as well) They meet in the Venue auditorium for a time of music, skits, games and a Biblical message, and then they head out to their sport of choice. It is a blast.  You can sign-up your child here.

** With summer almost upon us, have you considered using our online giving option? This is a good way to stay consistent in your financial support of the ministry of Foothills Community Church even when you're out of town. It only takes a couple of minutes to sign-up. It's safe, secure and convenient.

Sunday review

I really loved the services at Foothills Community Church this past Sunday. Here are a few observations:

* Our worship Pastor David Odom was on a well-deserved mini-vacation.  He does an amazing job leading us every week, and we are blessed to have him. He is one of the best worship leaders in America (if not the world)!

* Our worship didn't miss a beat, because the team stepped up and brought the heat. Bill Swindle and Mary Douglas tagged-teamed the worship leading role and along with our incredible band, led us to God's throne.

* Right before our first service one of or projectors decided to break down, but as Brian Rhodes so aptly reminded us, God is bigger than non-working projectors.

* We continued the Kings series. I must say that I enjoyed delivering the message on Jehu so much. I have wanted to do a message on him for the last couple of years.

* I believe that Jehu is one of the top 5 most interesting men in the Bible, and yet 90% of the people have never heard of him. Do yourself a favor and read 2 Kings 9-10.

* Jehu had the potential to go down in history as one of the greatest king in Israel, but missed it.

* We have to be careful to live our lives without an asterisk. (That statement will make no sense unless you watch the message)

* I received one of the most encouraging notes from someone (anonymously) that I have had in a long time. Thank you, whoever you are!

* I am preparing for a funeral for this Thursday. Pray that the Lord would do a great work.

* I want to thank all of the people that volunteer at Foothills. You are our Dream Team. We couldn't do it without you.

*Our Toccoa campus also had a great Sunday. They are led by two awesome Foothills staff members (and a ton of great volunteers) Brian Marshall is our campus Pastor, and Kevin Robison is our worship Pastor. By the way, Kevin is also one of the best worship leaders in America (if not the world!) too.

* We will be wrapping up the Kings series this Sunday. You don't want to miss it.

* Don't forget, that Sunday is also Mother's Day. We have a couple of very cool things planned! So bring your Mom and we'll see you Sunday.

* Summer is just around the corner,  but we are not putting it in neutral at Foothills. We've got some really cool things planned all summer long. Stay tuned for more details.

Let's talk about health

Well I decided to dedicate an entire post to health and fitness. As most of you are aware, last April (2011) the doctor discovered that I had a build-up of plaque in a couple of the arteries in my heart. It apparently was a hereditary thing, as I had no symptoms whatsoever. The only thing that was slightly elevated was my overall cholesterol number which was 225. This wasn't a real concern for the doctor because my HDL (good cholesterol) and my LDL (bad cholesterol) numbers were so good. But as it turned out, there was still a couple of arteries with significant blockage.
They decided to do a heart cath, and once they got in they decided to put in 2 stents to fix the blockages. All of this came as a complete shock, to say the least.
After the procedure the recovery time was quick, and I was back playing softball within a week, and basketball within 2 weeks.
 My cardiologist also changed my diet (which really wasn't too bad to begin with) to a very low fat diet. My maximum fat grams for a day I am allowed is 30, which is difficult at first to get to. I decided that I was going to go all the way with my health so I took it upon myself to adjust my diet even further. Which leads me to this blog post.

I have had so many people ask me what I'm doing I decided to cover everything.

Let's start with nutrition. A lot of people go to the gym, but never adjust their eating habits and get minimal results. You have to eat right. I track everything I eat using MyFitnessPal. My main concern is my fat intake, but I monitor everything anyway.

Over the last eleven months I have lost approx. 12 lbs. but it's not because I'm not eating. I'm just eating the right foods. I pretty much eat all day long. My personal target calorie intake is around 2,000 calories, which goes a long way when you're not eating junk.

I have cut from my diet all fatty foods, fried foods, beef, processed foods, cheese, ice cream (I do have fat-free yogurt), cake, cookies, candy, pizza, fast food, butter, margarine, regular mayonaise, regular salad dressings, potato chips, high sodium foods.

I do eat mostly chicken or turkey breast, venison tenderloin, fish (all of these are grilled only) I will sometimes eat lower fat, lean sliced turkey deli meat. I eat a lot of fruit. I can have all the veggies I want, unfortunately I don't like most veggies. I do eat a lot of salads (Low fat dressing), brown rice, whole wheat pasta, whole wheat pita bread. I have a Myoplex lite protein bar daily as a meal replacement. For breakfast I eat Kashi cereal with raisins and skim milk.

As far as supplements, I take a daily multi-vitamin, fish oil, and on weight training days I will have 2 protein shakes with skim milk. I use ISO-100 because it's fat and carb free, and it tastes awesome!
Although I keep track of carbs and protein, the main thing I focus on is my fat and  cholesterol intake.

Now let's talk about fitness/exercise.

Most of you hear me talking about P90X. I am a huge fan. Over the years I have done my own thing, and I have also done Body For Life, but in my opinion, P90X is hard to beat. I do not follow their program exactly. For instance, because of my cardiologists recommendation, I bypass the P90x eating plan. I also substitute basketball in place of P90X cardio routine. If I don't play basketball or if I don't feel like I played with enough intensity, I will do P90X Plyometrics routine (which is a beast).

Here's what this looks like for this week coming up. Monday: Basketball, and P90X Ab ripperX in the evening. Tuesday: P90X shoulders/arms.  Wednesday: Basketball and P90X ab ripperX in the evening. Thursday: P90X back/bicep.  Friday: Basketball and P90X ab ripperX in the evening (Possibly also Plyometrics) Saturday: P90X Chest/shoulders/triceps.  Sunday: Rest (play softball).

The average P90X routine takes approximately 50 minutes. it is high intensity with few breaks. It is awesome!

I purchased my P90X DVD's on Craig's List for $55.00 new in the box from someone who got them as a gift, but didn't use them.

I can honestly say that I am in the best shape of my life. I have never been overweight, but I have not only dropped pounds , but also a couple of inches off my waist, and my body fat is less than 8%

My cholesterol has dropped from 225 to 128 in the last 11 months.

I had to go back to the cardiologist a couple of months ago for a follow-up visit for a nuclear stress test. Basically, they shoot you up with medicine and put you on a treadmill to try to see what your heart does under stress. The people doing the test said that they couldn't get my heart rate up enough because I was in such good shape!

My latest fitness challenge is that I have ordered the Insanity DVD's and plan to do a hybrid P90X/Insanity/basketball routine.

Here's the bottom line. Anyone can do this! It takes hard work, and dedication. It's not easy, but it's worth it. I have added links to a lot of the stuff that I am doing, but there are  lots of other good ways to get healthy. I would also recommend Upstate Bootcamp. Pamela helps people acheive their fitness goals, She is a member of Foothills Community Church and has helped hundreds of people!

I probably left a bunch of things out, so if you have any questions, just ask.

Sunday Review

A little late getting to this, but it was a great Sunday at Foothills Community Church. In case you missed it, here are a few things that caught my attention.

 * I am really enjoying the Kings series. It is always so amazing that there is so much we have in common with people that lived thousands of years ago.

 * We talked about the "IT" Factor. If you've ever wondered what God looks for, it's our heart condition. What made King David special was that he was a man after God's own heart.

 * This Sunday we will look at a king that I guarantee every single person will be able to relate to.

 * David Odom and his team nailed the worship set. They just keep getting better and better.

* I love what is going on at our Toccoa campus! I am so proud of Pastor Brian and Pastor Kevin and all of the amazing volunteers. 

* I am always excited to hear great stories. I received a note this week from someone who has been out of work for three years. They had made a vow to God that when He provided a job for them, they would give the entire first paycheck back to Him. The note was attached to their check fulfilling that commitment to the Lord---- WOW!

 * We will be having our Parent/Child dedications on Mother's Day (May 13th) during both services. If you are a parent of a child/baby, and would like to dedicate them to the Lord publicly, you can sign-up this weekend.

* I had a blast leading our Get In The Game on Sunday. I love leading that class. If you have not gone through it, make sure to do it in our next class in June.

* I ordered the Insanity DVD's. I am planning on working some of that in with my P90X. If you are looking for a fantastic exercise/nutrition program I would highly recommend the P90X program. I have had a lot of people ask me about my fitness regiment, so I'll probably do an entire blog post related to that.

* I am so thankful for the staff of Foothills Community Church! * Really hoping for the weather to warm up soon.

Sunday review

The Sunday after Easter is always pretty interesting. History tells us that not everyone that shows up at Easter will be back the following week (I write that with a slight hint of sarcasm!), but many people will return a second time. Which is always exciting.

I can't help feel sorry for those that won't make it back to church until Christmas Eve. When I consider the important role the church plays in my life, it grieves me that so many actually miss out on it.

Sunday was another fantastic day at Foothills Community Church. People gathered to worship, lives were changed and Jesus was lifted high. In a way, sometimes I think that because the services at Foothills are done with such a high level of excellence, many people take that for granted.

We as humans have an uncanny ability to become "familiar" with things to the point that we no longer have the same passion that we once had. It happens in our marriages. It happens with the cars we drive and the homes we live in. When we first get married, or buy that car or house we are so excited. But as time goes by, we lose some of the "wonder" or appreciation.

It happens in churches as well. If we are not careful, what once was excitement, and passion can turn into complacency. Let's not ever let that happen.


Let's get back to Sunday, shall we?

* Once again David Odom and the worship team brought the heat. Such a great worship set.

* It was great seeing so many people return after Easter. I do my best to mingle in the concourse between services and shake as many hands as possible.

* I absolutely love to see our members and regular attenders going out of their way to connect with new people. I heard of a couple that met a first-time guest and took her out to lunch after the service. Nice!

* Foothills volunteers rock. They go the extra mile EVERY week!

* Talked about obedience and people-pleasing. We need to live for the applause of God rather than men.

* Religious activity is not a substitute for obedience.

* True obedience is doing what God says willingly, immediately and completely.

* I can't wait for this Sunday. We will be talking about the "IT" factor. Invite some people to come with you!


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