Night Of Worship

Last night was an AWESOME night of worship at Southbrook . It is so cool how God can show up, calm us down, slow the pace, and make it possible for us to focus on Him. We are truly blessed among all men to have that opportunity every month, to be captivated by The Spirit, and led by our mighty pastoral staff. I pray everyday for our church, it’s staff, and the body.

Today I would particularly like to pray for everyone from Ephesians 4:1-16

As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope when you were called— one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. This is why it says: "When he ascended on high, he led captives in his train and gave gifts to men." What does "he ascended" mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions? He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe. It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

Amen! God is good, ALL the time! I am more than happy to be captive and also set free in Him.

Flat Tire Thanksgiving

It is the Monday after the Thanksgiving Holiday and I'm coming out of a turkey induced, tryptophan funk. Need another day off but I am slowly getting back into my routine of being hyper-busy with work and family. (still love it nonetheless) The past few days were a rollercoaster ride of highs and lows. Definitely one of the most interesting Thanksgivings I have experienced, to say the least. We went to Raleigh to be with family and one of the “highlights” of the weekend was a flat tire, on turkey day no less. I wanted to go home and cry. The one thing that kept me sane was God and my wife. I kept thinking of Philippians 4:7

"And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

Under those circumstances, I needed that peace. My wife may disagree, but I think I handled the situation pretty well.

What Are You Thankful For?

I am thankful for the sacrifice that Jesus made to save us from sin. I am thankful for God's mercy and favor. I am thankful for my family, my wife, my children, my health, and my loved ones. I am thankful for my home church and my brothers and sisters in Christ. I am thankful that God blessed us with the opportunities we are presented with, His presence in our lives, and His will being done through us. I am thankful for this great nation we live in, and all the freedoms we have, but, most of all, I am thankful for the ability to call on Jesus at anytime. My redeemer, restorer, rebuilder, rewarder, to only a God like You do I give my praise.

What are you thankful for?

The First and Great Commandment

From Mark 12:30 - Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.

Great message over the weekend at Southbrook from Tim Buwick. A healthy fear of the Lord is a good thing. Tim closed with some encouraging, powerful, Spirit filled Words of God.

Joshua 1:1-9 After the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, the LORD said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses' aide: "Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them—to the Israelites. I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses. Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the great river, the Euphrates—all the Hittite country—to the Great Sea on the west. No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you. "Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their forefathers to give them. Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go."

The Great Commission

No better way to start this off that with some scripture. With some help from Wikipedia, of course.

Matthew 28:16-20: Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."(NIV)