On my way back

I am on my way back from Ft. Myers, and this is in front of me. Been sitting her for 15 mins. Hope it hurries so I can get home to see my girls.

(sent from my Motorola Q that wishes it was an iPhone)

Arjuna

Hanging out with Arjuna Chiguluri..... Who is an Indian from India doing church planting. He has been a part of a movement that has planted 250 churches over the past few years. I wanted to share with you a quote he just said:

"My life was changed when God broke my Karma." (He was Hindu before God saved him)

(sent from my Motorola Q that wishes it was an iPhone)

Hanging in Fort Myers

I am in Fort Myers for a few days. It is bitter sweet. It is cool cause I have been asked to teach at a Church Planters Basic Training class that is going on down here, but sorta sucks cause it is the first time that I have been away from Lora and Ansley overnight.

I am not at all worried about them since I am married to a pretty tough chic who is an incredible mother and can definitely handle Ansley on her own, but Ansley is starting to do new things every day and I don't want to miss a thing.

I have not been a regular blogger for a whole now. It seems like every time I feel like I am turning a corner and will start blogging more again, that something else happens.

I will try to update later on tonight on some of the exciting things going on at Journey, God is about to take us to another level!

Pray for me as tomorrow I teach on developing Core Values at 9AM and then Mission at 5PM.

Pastor Forrest Pollock's body was found

I asked many of you this morning to pray for Forrest Pollock and his 13 year old son Preston. TBO is reporting that the plane, and both bodies were found.

Please continue to pray for Bell Shoals and their members during this time. They are an incredible church and many people who attend Journey have ties to Bell Shoals in one way or another, either through attending there at some point, or having family members who still attend there.

All-In

This Friday Journey Church will put on our first ever Charity "All-In" Tournament. All the proceeds will go to support Churchwell Elementary. It should be a great time, and will hopefully raise alot of money for an INCREDIBLE school. I'm hoping to get a celebrity there like this guy.

Here are the details:

• Registration starts at 7 PM with a Texas Hold em' for Dummies Class
• Buy-in is a suggested donation of $30
• Appetizers will be provided by Outback
• Taking place at Churchwell
• Professional Dealers and tables
• Blackjack and Roulette tables as well
  

Lots of prizes like:

• Free in home poker tournament
• Free Family membership to the YMCA for a year
• Free Horse back riding lessons
• Karate membership
• Items from Go Fish
• Certificates to Nanna's Kitchen
• Certificates to Palace Italian
• Certificate to bowling
• Certificates to Movies
• Certificates to Five Guys
• Certificates to Cosy Oaks
• Certificates to Red Lobster
• Certificates to End Zone
• CD Radio from Sears
• iPods

And maybe more.

Are you willing to go ALL-In for Churchwell?

Forrest Pollock

Pastor Forrest Pollock and his son Preston have gone missing. Pastor Pollock is the pastor of Bell Shoals Baptist Church in Brandon, FL (which is just outside of Lakeland and a suburb or Tampa). He and his son were flying their plane to a conference in Texas and never arrived. They have not yet located him or the plane.

Will you join me in praying for them?

You can get updates here.

Mario Cart

Nintendo Wii - $299.99
Mario Cart for the Wii - $49.99
Watching Turtles fiance' KILL him at it - PRICELESS

(sent from my Motorola Q that wishes it was an iPhone)

I was going to post that....

I was going to write a post similar to this one today. Greg said it so well I am just going to let you go over there and read it. Here is an excerpt:

Then came his senior year. He started slow. It was a slump... surely he would come out of it. Game after game... he was good... still better than most, but something just seemed off. He looked to be a step slow on defense. His shot wasn't falling. His drives to the basket were out of control. What was wrong? Was it senioritis? Nerves? Did all the press go to his head? Turns out it was none of that...

It was cancer.

The Future of Church planting.........I hope.

This is the most amazing story I have ever read. For those of you who will not click through to the link, I will give you a run down.

There were two college girl softball teams playing against each other. The game was actually very important as the winner of the game would probably make it to the playoffs. It was Central Washington versus Western Oregon. Sara Tucholsky of Western Oregon stepped up to the plate and hit the ball over the fence. In the excitement of the hit (which was her first home run ever) she missed first base, as she turned to touch it, something in her knee popped. There Sara lay in the dirt, not able to get up and walk. The coaches checked with the umpires to see what they should do, he was told that she could attempt to round the bases on her own, or get a pinch runner. A pinch runner would mean that it was not a homerun, but a single. When asked if her teammates could assist her around the bases, the coach was told that that if she was touched by her players, she would be out. Mallory Holtman who plays first base for Central Washington had an idea, she grabbed the short stop and they carried Sarah around the bases. In case you missed that. The other team carried the hurt girl around the field. Below is a picture.

Could God move us as the church in that way? To move past our own gathering and it alone, and be focused on THE CHURCH? I pray the future of chruch planting looks alot like a group of college softball players, carrying each other around the bases.

By the way Central Washington lost the game, something tells me that didn't matter.

National Day of Prayer

Today is the National Day of Prayer. I started me day with a round of golf with my beautiful bride, and I am currently at a prayer event. I have more prayer events scheduled or the rest of the day. I wanted to share with you some of the things I am praying for today.

1. The City (for repentance)
2. My Wife (that I could serve her more, and she would fall deeper in Love with God)
3. My Daughter (that God would grow her into a World Changer)
4. For Journey (that we would stay focused on God's vision)
5. For the Lakeland Church (that God would show us how to get along and how serve our city together)

(sent from my Motorola Q that wishes it was an iPhone)

Easter Setup

Its raining, has been all day, setup won't be fun tonight. We keep everything in a trailer outside, it's gonna get sloppy.

(sent from my Motorola Q that wishes it was an iPhone)

Header to big?

Is my header too big????

I think so, thoughts?

Driscoll's Radio interview

Check out a Mark Driscoll radio interview by clicking here.
(this is mostly for Shawn, who has a Driscoll man-crush like the guy in the interview)

Anniversary

It's 3 o'clock.
I'm headed home.
It's my Anniversary.
Computer is off.
Time to enjoy my wife.

Ansley

Ansley is sleeping in her own bed tonight, cross your fingers.

Update

INBOX ZERO

My Pastor said next week is the week....

I have heard and read it said many times “Make sure you bring any of your lost friends next week because we are going to do a message that will lead them into a relationship with Christ.”

You will probably call me a heretic about this, but that statement makes me angry.

We at Journey don’t do an invitation a lot of times, nor do we do a lot of salvation messages (which has caused lots of “christians” to change churches) and it has nothing to do with the seeker sensitive movement and not getting in peoples faces. It has to do with being the church and not simply going to church.

Do you know why there are so many “christians” who are impotent when it comes to changing and impacting culture. Because they come to church and hear statements like the one above, and leave thinking, “The only way my neighbor Bill can start a relationship with God, is if I get him to church, and let my pastor talk him into it.” How are we calling people out on mission if we are cutting their feet out from under them saying, “Bring them to me and let me do it?”

At Journey we say all the time, that we want people making more spiritual decisions in living rooms than up at the front of our stage. We aren’t against to people making spiritual decisions on Sunday mornings at all, and we weekly give them opportunities to respond to whatever God is speaking to them about, but wouldn’t you rather empower your people to be leading people in their relationships with God?

Inbox Zero

So....last week I said I was going to work on getting my inbox cleared out, that never really went as planned, so I have been working on it this morning before and after staff meeting. I started the day with 798, and am currently at 407. I see daylight ahead.

I AM SO SORRY TO ALL OF YOU THAT NEVER GOT REPLIES.......THIS WEEK YOU WILL!!!!!!

Update

So.....blogs have been few and far between as of late. I am hoping to jump back on the wagon this week and blog. My goal this week is to write a blog of substance every day, not that I am going to continue that every other week, but that might just get me back in the swing of things. I figured I would use this blog to update some happenings in my life:

• Ansley is doing well, she is over 5 pounds now and continues to eat really well. Some of her premie clothes are actually to fit. Pretty cool and pretty sad for a 3 month old to still be in premie clothes.
  
• Journey is going well. We continue to connect with new people for the sake of the Gospel. We have alot of stuff going on in the upcoming months, not to mention Easter this week.
• This weeks service is going to be really cool. If I had to pick one place in Lakeland to go for an Easter service, I think I would pick Journey Church at Churchwell Elementary at 10:30. I think I will!
• I have started using Twitter, more on that later.

There is so much more, but....Right now my mind is blank, time to go get ready for staff meeting.

Tryin to get my hair fixed by Shawn's girlfriend.