This is life-changing and where we’ve been living the last few years…read the comments too. Ours has been an exhilarating journey yet full of sacrifice and battle scars….I’m trusting, worth it!
Archive for the ‘Faith’ Category
God has ways, for sure…………as a pastor since 1991, and hopefully influencing some lives, the note I received two days ago from the granddaughter of a good friend is a good example of how God gives you what you need, even less than two weeks before launch. Louise Disney went to heaven over a year ago and was a huge encouragement to me through the years. She always said that God had some plans for me in this part of the country.
As we come down to 11 days before launch, the enemy can try to shortchange you, cause doubt, sideline you, or just plainly cause a state of “There’s no way.” The great news about this whole venture is, it’s not been our idea, but HIS, therefore, it’s HIS outcome, HIS challenge, HIS result, HIS people, and HIS church. So often in life, me included, we manufacture our dream and ask God to bless it. It never works! Been there done that…..trust me; you’ll be on a desert experience if you insist. The even greater news for all of us is that we are not defined by what we do. We are defined by the who we are down deep on the inside. Regardless of what we do, if we are advancing HIS kingdom, we are laying the groundwork for our legacy. We all need to be at peace with that thought, and rest. You may be doing something or being called to something you never thought you would do, but it’s not about you, or me. Our job is to surrender.
Thanks to Paul Peterson, he’s just stated what we all feel, have felt, or will feel as a church planter. I don’t think anyone can improve on this blog: http://paulpetersonlive.com/2009/02/10/starting-something-new/
For us, there is never a financial crisis, only a faith crisis. Are we going to do, during even these times, what only HE can get the credit for? I plan to…God come!
A dear friend of mine told me years ago that “one day all your experiences will come together in one place.” I sensed, listened, and saw a deja vu happening in a meeting I sat in yesterday! I’m talking about how God re-brings together relationships that are over 20 years old to masterfully think, interact, and act on a project to advance the CAUSE of adding value to lives of people who don’t like church or who don’t go to church. God will give us glimpses…but never the whole picture. Here are some good statements from yesterday (more to come on what God is up to when the time is right).
- I think this is your last work. It’s a fun thing to plant your life.
- You’ve got a great story.
- We tend to underestimate what we can do in 20 years but we often over-estimate what we can do in 5 years, therefore giving up or getting discouraged.
- Values should drive vision. If one of the values is the American Family, then deal with issues they are struggling with. For instance, parental involvement in a child’s school work matters in determining the outcome of the child’s test grades.
- The why must be bigger than the how.
Read Steven Furtick’s blog post.
Unbelievable confirmation for us and you too!
I was standing in line at the customer service desk last night at Walmart and began a conversation with the couple behind me. They were very friendly and asked me what would bring me to NW Georgia. I responded, “We’re here to launch a new church.” The man, whom I hope to hear from today by email, responded a few seconds later, “If I give a donation, would you pray for me.” He did and we will. He handed me a $10 bill for Origin Church. God has ways! The last three days have literally been trying for our family. Everything has seemed to go wrong……….you second guess yourself, you want to resort to the comfort zone, you want to ease the pain, and just when you think you cannot take anymore, something like the miracle of the $10 bill takes place. It has happened so many times throughout the last 11 months. We give all the praise to God!
Just one of God’s ways to tap you on the shoulder and let you know you should be leaning on Him. On the way home, our oldest son was in his car following us. We saw a beautiful black lab dart near us, and then we got the call from Jordan that after we passed the dog, he ran in front of his car and he hit him, killing him. It tore the rubber bumper off of his car. Our entire family loves all kinds of animals. Abigail cried and I’m sure Jordan did. We’ve had that same thing happen to our own dogs. Sometimes you just don’t know all the reasons why. I think it’s a lesson for us to re-lean, not on our own understanding, but to trust, stay the course, and keep the faith. God must be up to something large! I don’t know what it is, but I’m interested in finding out.
As we transition from the development phase of our church planting mission, to the launch team building phase, we have so many emotions going on. There are so many facets of this quest that are unknown to us, but known to God. I continue to have strong belief that we all must continue to train our minds “to be Godly.” Paul said, “to have the mind of Christ.” That doesn’t just happen. I’m learning that it’s a discipline that must be worked out just like our physical bodies. There is always more to be thankful for than we recognize. “God, show us.”
MARIA SUE CHAPMAN, DAUGHTER OF STEVEN CURTIS CHAPMAN, DIES IN ACCIDENT AT FAMILY HOME
At approximately 5pm on the afternoon of Wednesday May 21st, Maria Sue Chapman, 5 years old and the youngest daughter to Steven and Mary Beth Chapman was struck in the driveway of the Chapman home in Franklin, TN. Maria was rushed to Vanderbilt Childrens Hospital in Nashville, transported by LifeFlight, but died of her injuries there. Maria is one of the close knit family’s six children and one of their three adopted daughters.
More than five years ago, Chapman and his wife MaryBeth founded The Shaohannah’s Hope Ministry after bringing their first adopted daughter, Shaohannah, home from China. The ministry’s goal is to help families reduce the financial barrier of adoption, and has provided grants to over 1700 families wishing to adopt orphans from around the world. Chapman is a five-time GRAMMY ® winner and 54-time Dove Award winning artist who has sold over 10 million albums and garnered 44 No. 1 singles.
