"What's Your Next Step?" I asked .......

Last night, I met someone from Journey at the local Barnes and Noble (my office for the day), and we were talking about our Baptism coming up. She had some great questions, and when I asked her about her own spiritual journey, I was blown away.
Like many I've talked too in the past year, she recently developed a renewed interest in Jesus Christ and Spirituality - and wants to go deeper.
Last fall, we passed out candy for a "reverse" trick or treat, and her home received one - then she visited Journey at our first preview service.

Since then, she has crossed the line of faith and is now ready to be baptised at our Sept. 9th gathering. How awesome!!

We spent the evening talking about God, running, and what a great place this area is to live in.

We are all on a Journey..............

Was Jesus' resurrection physical?

That was the question brought up at last nights ALPHA spiritual discussion group. Our discussion centered on the empirical evidence of the Bible that verifies the beliefs of millions over the centuries.

Well - hundreds of people saw Jesus Christ days after his death - and that either would have had two affects: 1) They would have gone crazy and claimed he was a ghost (had he been just a ghost) or 2) Jesus' followers, and the church, would have had their faith encouraged and emboldened (leading to explosive growth of Christianity).

You know the latter happened - and it was because Jesus was physically resurrected - it wasn't a vision or vague hallucination experienced by 500+ people. GREAT, GREAT topics to talk about in today's culture. It's certainly a hot button - and the one issue that separates apart Christianity from other religions.

The lights are going on in the hearts of our church community known as "Journey". I love it when that happens!!

Having Guests over.......

You know the feeling......as you anticipate guests coming over to your home, you get out the vacuum, pick up the loose couch pillows - clean the bathroom.....all because a few friends are coming over! Unless they are REALLY REALLY good friends who don't care how your house looks (and you don't feel insecure about them seeing it how your house usually is), we make a concerted effort to have everything done well to honor guests.

Well, in the same way, that's what we do every Sunday at Journey. We are getting ready for guests. Even now, while I am sitting here at Panera Bread enjoying my Wild Blueberry scone and coffee, I am preparing for guests. Looking ahead at each Sunday brings the exhilaration of anticipating special moments with guests. And it never gets boring.

If you haven't yet, consider bringing some friends with you this Sunday. As always, the environment will be such that they can explore connecting to God in a way that makes sense!

It's why we do what we do every week. And we are lovin' it!!!!

Home Improvement

This weekend, I undertook the task of sealing our deck in the backyard. Man, was it hot! On top of all that, our youngest son, Christian, contracted a rare virus that manifests thru pain in the mouth and tongue. The typical response was a bunch of crying, screaming and wimpering - from Mom and Dad. Much more from Christian!!

Yesterday, we saw marked improvement and thanfully he started eating as well (after 4 days of only ice cream). Those seasons leave us drained and frazzled as parents. I think we need about a 8 hour massage to take away the drain!!

On Sunday, we ended our "Reel Truth" series with the movie "Evan Almighty". I appreciate those of you who came up after and expressed how God spoke to you to "change your world". I believe Journey is a place where people will always be equipped to change the world all around us!

Heat Wave!!!!

Dude, it's hot!!!

You know it's hot when you say.."it's finally dipped down to the low 90's!"

I am actually inside, attending a leadership conference. I just listened to an author named Marcus Buckingham, and he had some profound things to say. He wrote the book "Discover Your Strengths", the premise being for you to FOCUS ON YOUR STRENGTHS AND NOT YOUR WEAKNESSES.

To often, we focus on working on our weaknesses vs. building on our strengths. The things we are gifted for, interested in and enjoy doing should be those areas we "build" and develop. That's when work is fun. That's when life is fun!

We all want role models

I was amazed that my 4yr son Collin stopped eating a DQ chocolate Sundae yesterday, with carmel sauce. He stopped only after a few bites, and said "Dad, I want what you are having."

I know what you're thinking: "Dad has a HUGE sunday filled with 7 different kinds of ice cream, and everything else on top!!" Nope, couldn't be further from the truth. Actually, I only had a fat-free fudge bar. Nothing mouth-watering compared to what others were having, including my son Collin.

Why did he want what I was having? Because I was having it. As kids do, they want to eat what Mom or Dad are eating because they think "Whatever they're eating must be good, so I will take their recommendation."

His Sundae was far more tastier, yet he wanted to be in Dad's world. We all want someone to look up to and show us the way.

Who do you look up to for guidance and inspiration? Why?

Web and Email Down

We have had some MAJOR problems this past week, one of which our server has been "lost" - in other words the guy who manages it can't be found. So our web administrator has been furiously finding a suitable fix. Consequently, we have had no email, blog or web. Thanks for understanding!!

I'll be back blogging in a couple of days. Until then, our Series "REEL TRUTH" continues this coming weekend as we look at "THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA". Should be tons of fun and insight as we discover God on film!!