A Disciple's Journey

Time for a New Perspective

2011-04-18T21:23:00.000-05:00

After reading Rob Bell's book, "Love Wins: A Book About Heaven, Hell, and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever Lived," I found myself not feeling so alone anymore. He addressed some really important issues that I had been struggling with for some time now: issues that I feel like I have espoused and accepted without inquiring to their validity. Over the course of the last several years, I began to

A New World View

2010-11-20T08:02:00.000-06:00

I thought I would post one final thought on this blog as I enter a new phase of my life. When I began this blog, it was to share with those who read it, my thoughts in regards to my spiritual journey. My journey centered around this: Following after Jesus and being one of His disciples changes your life every day. He holds the keys to fullest life one can experience. The posts on this blog

Seasons

2010-06-06T20:04:00.000-05:00

The spring season is giving way to summer. Before long, we will see the summer turn to fall. This cyclical pattern continues year after year and so goes the seasons of this part of the planet. Interestingly enough, our lives tend to have seasons as well. Over the past year, I have had a dry season for my soul. Perhaps that is a bit mild. I've been in a drought. The problem really isn't the

Choice of Paths

2010-02-10T14:18:00.000-06:00

Over the last several months, I have been faced with making decisions about where I am heading in my career path. There has been a lot of wrestling with what fits and what doesn't. Through the help of my personal coach, the prayers of my inner circle, and the guiding of God's Spirit, many things are clearer now. What I am looking for is a path that will bring joy and fulfillment for the time

Effective Leadership

2010-01-12T13:40:00.001-06:00

A friend of mine recently asked me to answer a couple of questions regarding leadership. I thought I would share the questions here to find your thoughts as well. 1) What is your definition of leadership? 2) Could you describe your personal beliefs about effective leadership? Please post your thoughts here. Here are my answers to the questions: 1) Leadership to me was really defined by

A Rich Poor Man

2010-01-08T14:09:00.000-06:00

NC: For people who choose

What a Night!

2005-10-28T10:37:00.000-05:00

If you happen to be an Apprentice fan, last night's show was something else! Forget about all the normal expectations. This one got me fired up! After the one team was decimated in the task they were given, Donald didn't fire just one, he fired FOUR of the seven! Unbelievable! I shouldn't get so emotional about this kind of stuff but I just had to stand up and say, "You go, Trump!" I don't

Our Houston Conference

2005-10-26T09:30:00.000-05:00

We had a great trip to Houston, TX. We went to participate in a conference on “How to Make Cell Groups Work.” It was relatively small group (16-20) people and that made it very participatory on our part although we tended to listen and absorb more than anything. I walked away with some really important information to help us as we begin The Journey as a pure cell church. One of the keys or

Asset or Liability

2005-10-12T14:28:00.000-05:00

I have begun to ask myself some things surrounding this thought lately. I wonder if people's response to us, as Christian or otherwise, is in direct proportion to the attention we give to them either as a Asset or a Liability. Now I know that people will respond to us according to how we treat them, and maybe this is just a play on words. But, could you imagine if people treated you as an asset

Rest

2005-10-12T09:48:00.000-05:00

In the midst of all that is going on in life, there is a need for rest. Thinking back to the book of Genesis, God created for six days and then took a day of rest. He not only rested but God made that seventh day holy before any sin or any law came into being. The next mentioning of the day of rest doesn't come until Exodus 16. Shortly thereafter, the law is introduced and demands a day of

The Beginnings

2005-10-04T16:10:00.000-05:00

We have done it. We have started The Journey. Over a year ago, what was just the beginning of a vision of what God was wanting us to do has become a reality. We launched our first prototype cell group this past Sunday night at Borders. It was a night to get to know each other a bit better and to hear about the vision. It was cool!God is putting this thing together like the Master Weaver that He

Foundational Stuff

2005-09-30T10:15:00.000-05:00

Can you guess what the number one question we receive about planting a new church? No, it is not, “Well, how much can I give to help you out?” It isn’t, “Do you have enough money to move into the area?” The number one question we have been asked is, “So, do you have a building down there yet?” That’s right. When it comes to starting a new church the number one thought is having a building.

Inspiration or the Lack Thereof

2005-09-29T08:54:00.000-05:00

When it comes to writing, there are times that I feel like I have a lot to share and then there are times like now where I feel the lack of inspiration to write. I think it may have to do with the busyness of all that is going on at the moment and there isn't much time left anymore to reflect on issues or thoughts. Perhaps that is just part of the journey that we all face. Maybe this whole

Talking or Listening?

2005-09-23T14:03:00.000-05:00

After watching the first episode of The Apprentice (Trump), you immediately see what happens when people talk instead of listen. Markus just didn’t get it. He is sitting there at the table with the Donald and is going on about the task. Trump doesn’t care that much about the task and what you did. Trump offered the guys an opportunity to learn some things, a chance to get to know him. He blew

Praying with Power

2005-09-16T12:03:00.000-05:00

There is a growing desire in me to bring about some changes in our prayer lives. I am reading through the Book of Acts making notes of all the times that prayer is mentioned. When I get to chapter 4 and read this, "After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly" (vs 31), I just want to come to a point of

Ranting

2005-09-16T11:07:00.000-05:00

I just want to do it. Rant! Sometimes I have these things inside of me that I just want to speak out but what would it bring about? What would be the result of ranting? I think if I were to post my thoughts here, I would just be speaking what you already know, the whole "preaching to the choir" thing. I am just tossing back and forth something that bothers me and I guess the thing that I

Of Boxes and Such

2005-09-09T10:55:00.000-05:00

In the box, out of the box, beyond the box, is there a box? A book that I ordered, “Beyond the Box: Innovative Churches that Work” describes what Easum and Bandy Associates (a ministry that does church consulting) as what needs to take place if the church is going to impact our culture in the 21st century. I was able to read some of the book on Amazon.com and it had a chart in the first chapter

Lordship

2005-08-31T09:27:00.000-05:00

My wife is reading a book called, "Total Surrender" writings by Mother Teresa. She read a paragraph to me and it has had me thinking all week. Here is a brief excerpt from that book: "Once the Cardinal of St. Louis asked me to write something for him in his breviary. I wrote, 'Let Jesus use you without consulting you.' He wrote back, 'You don't know what you have done to me. I examine my

It Finally Hit ME!

2005-08-30T09:00:00.000-05:00

You know that feeling, don't you? When you have been trying to figure something out and it finally hits you and you go, "Duh!" Well, that moment hit me the last few days. In trying to describe what it is that we want to accomplish with the new church, it finally came clear. What God has been laying on my heart since 1998 has been a pure cell church. It was then that I came across materials

In Search of the Spiritual

2005-08-25T09:17:00.000-05:00

Here is a really cool article that was printed in Newsweek, In Search of the Spiritual - Newsweek Society - MSNBC.com. In thinking of how to respond to this article, I think it is pointing to some changes that the church is going to have to consider if it is going to continue to grow. People are longing to experience the spiritual and are seeking it in different places. If the church is going

When to Sell

2005-08-18T14:35:00.000-05:00

In response to my previous post, someone asked, "How do I know when to sell something for someone or for the church?" Good question. My immediate response is to listen to God's voice. He usually will prompt us to action in some form or another. It is one of those restless stirrings in our soul that we can't escape until we do something about it.As far as the sell the house thing, for some it may

What is Most Important?

2005-08-16T09:38:00.000-05:00

Sunday's message here at CCOE really got me to thinking about something (this was a little off target from the message) concerning Acts 2:42-47. I read through those verses and I realize what it is that I am longing for. I think that what is described in those verses is the heart of the church. I think that we do well in some of those things and then others we lack. For example, we can