rows 13 - 18

I just have to blog about this.....so I'm on the plane to Jamaica as the stewardess is passing out the drinks, cookies and peanuts....that is until she gets to me. I asked for some peanuts and she said that she couldn't give them to me because I was between rows 13 - 18. I smiled and was trying to find the "hidden" camera. I asked why, and she told me that there was someone with a peanut allergy in those rows. Now I'm cool with not wanting anybody to get hurt, but this wouldn't even have been a thought 15 years ago. It had me thinking about where is the line when it comes to protecting one persons rights, but in order to do so, you have to infringe on another persons? I know ministers in Canada were trying to be told what they "couldn't" say from the pulpit, because it infringes on an others beliefs. We have freedom in America ONLY because it was based upon God's law and freedom that comes from being a Christian nation. You don't have that going to an Islamic, Hindu, Communist, etc, nation. As we continue to water that down, I worry about the outcome.
I have no clue how I ended up here....by just talking about peanuts....anyway, make it a great day!

messed up

I still can't get over how God messed me up last week in Jamaica. When you go to love and serve, God dumps it all back on you multiplied. I truly believe that we look the most like Jesus when we are serving. In fact, a non-serving Christian is an oxy-moron. The key is trying to see my city/neighborhood as my mission field. How can I show the love of God today. Who's life can I influence with the power of Christ. Personally, I want to be "under the influence" of the Holy Spirit continually. I want to live in a state of being continually messed up by God.

alot

So much is happening in the life of our young church. We are finishing our bylaws this week and are moving to a sovereign "general council" church on Sunday. (that of course means nothing to most people) We are looking to break ground next month on our 500 seat auditorium and have been taking a look at what C3 needs to move to the next level. It is a constant struggle to stay ahead of the growth that God is entrusting to us. I am finding that church planting is a continuous motion and evolution. As my friend Troy Jones says, "Grow daily, or die gradually."

C3 vs C3

Today, I had a great time with my family and it couldn't have been anymore beautiful outside. Being gone for a week, they were in need of filling the family tank. We made a Rita's run and then headed to the first softball game of the season, where C3 played C3. The game went into an extra inning and C3 won! JK...My team did win and we took home the new traveling C3 trophy! We have some really great guys on both teams and I'm excited about the season and the male bonding that will happen.

Be the change

Last night, we rolled in from Jamaica just before midnight, due to a flight delay. Got in the bed at 2am and back up at 6am to preach 3 services, Kaden's baseball practice, a leadership meeting and a prayer service. I'm ready for bed.
Today was a great service where we showed the video of the trip, had testimonies and talked about being the change and bringing God's Will to Earth. I used a big puzzle on the stage with a couple pieces missing. I talked about the piece that we play in the big picture of God's Will. That our lives can help complete His Puzzle/Will. What part do you play and are you willing to become the change?

waterfalls

Yesterday was our off day for our missions trip. We have been working very hard and I am so proud of the entire team. While the kids from the orphanage were in school, we headed for a place that had waterfalls! It so was beautiful! We swung out on a rope swing and dropped into a pool of water right below the waterfalls. Then we got to ride an incredible zip line from the top of the waterfalls, down to the bottom. It was a very fun day and now we are back to work. Our team has a great work ethic that would make any pastor proud. Tonight after we do a service for the kids, we are having a bonfire with smores!

onsite in Jamaica

It has been an incredible trip so far. We got here and jumped on a bus for a 2 hour trip high into the mountains where the "New Vision Children's Home" is located. We then met the 25 or so kids that we would be spending the week with. We have done everything from painting, cleaning, busting up tile, moving dirt and literally several tons of rocks.....with a wheel barrow. The most important thing though, has been the interaction with these amazing kids. At nights we do a service for them and they have been responding to the message of Christ. We then go and have our own devo's as a team. Last night, God showed up in a huge way in our devo's. People on our team were being set free and LifeChange was happening. We have all been changed so much by this experience....and it's only Tuesday. Please pray the God continues to move in a powerful way.
PS - We also beat them in a game of soccer and I'm proud to report, I scored my 1st real international goal! lol

Jamaica Maaann

Tomorrow morning at 6am, 25 C3'ers will load a plane for an orphanage in Jamaica. We will be working and staying in the orphanage. I'm excited to see how God is going to use us in the lives of those kids. Every time I go on a missions trip to give, I always walk away more blessed than when I went. It's amazing how when you go to give, serve and love, God always give you more in return. We will "give till it hurts." I'm so excited for God to rock 25 C3'ers lives on this trip. Pray for God's favor for us.

wonder

Reading an article yesterday how people today are flooded with so much information all day long, that they/we don't have time to think about anything deeply. It really got me thinking (deeply...lol) about how we have so much technology that takes our attention off of the "wonder of God" all around us. May I never get to "busy" to wonder at a sunset or to see the sense of amazement in my kids eyes. To look at a flower and see the reflection of the Creator. All around us, all day long, God is revealing Himself in wonder.....but many times we are too busy to see it. What "wonder" are you missing today?

questions from my reading

First, the builders said the meeting with the City of Picktown went well. We are getting the "official" building contract tomorrow and then we are only a few building permits away from breaking ground! Exciting.
OK ...changing gears....a couple of questions I've been asking myself from "The Treasure Principle."
- Have I and my family over accumulated?
- When I get a pay raise, is it to up my standard of living....or my standard of giving?
- What am I holding on to that is robbing me of present joy and/or future reward?
- What is my giving saying about me?

I hope you wrestle through these questions like I have. Keri and I are continuing to learn the power of giving.....it will change your life!

city council

Tonight our builder "MidWest" goes before the city council to get approval to build our new addition. We're praying everything goes smooth. Pickerington has some strict codes and laws but have been great in their dealings with us. I think our city sees that the heart of our church is to work alongside them to make our community a better place. We want to be a church that is in love with it's community.

EASTER!

Easter was awesome! I want to say a special thanks to the C3'ers that came to the 1st and 3rd services to make room in the 2nd. We had a full house all 3 services. We have an amazing team of leaders that pulled the day off. There were several who gave their lives to Christ and had a ton of guests. I don't usually like to talk numbers but want to celebrate what God is doing. We had 559 in attendance between the 3 services on Sunday. God has given us some great momentum and we are enjoying His favor......and we've only just begun!

the Cross

It's funny how through a turn of events, Keri and I ended up watching a movie last night we had never heard of, nor was the movies in our plans. We watched "The Cross," which is the story Arthur Blessitt, the guy who carried a 12ft cross literally around the world. At first, I was not too sure about this guy, but as the documentary went on, you began to see how God was using this guy. I wrote down some great quotes that really spoke to me:
- "Your vision can never be bigger than the next person God leads you to."
- "The way someone treats the worst person in the world, is how that person treats Jesus."
- "Your circumstances doesn't change the Will of God."
- "My unworthiness, doesn't disqualify me from the Call."
- "I'm just the donkey that carries the message of Jesus to the world."

For me, it was one of those movies that will have me thinking for a long time.

the real story

Tuesday, I was at my parents in Canton with my family, when this incident occured. My mom had just bought a glass top stove about a year ago. On Monday night, a big glass jar on top of the fridge falls off and shatters the whole top of the stove and damages one of the burners. It cost just as much to replace as to buy new....so they bought another one. My dad and I load the new stove (same model) in the back of his truck and are in transit back to their house. While driving down the highway, the wind catches it and slings it to the back and looks like it's going over the tailgate. I yell, and my dad hits his brakes, just in time to keep in in the truck, but it lands on it's front and shatters the door glass and brakes the handle. (We can both now feel the wrath of my mom who is already devasted the first one was broke) We get back home before my mom and Keri, who went shopping. Then after some nifty problem solving, we switched out parts from the old one to the new one, and pulled off a perfect no scratch/shattered/dented stove! Thank-you Jesus! Mom of course still found out, but we minimized the damage.

your best

What would happen if we did our best at everything, like we were doing/giving it to Jesus? Whether putting away the dishes, yard work, an assignment at school or something at work. Colossians 3:17 says: And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Today on the treadmill, I was running 1/4 mile repeats, and they were starting to hurt. I thought about going slower, but that wouldn't have been my best. So I did all I could to give my best. Of course when you do your best, you also reap from that. But what would happen if we did everything as if we were doing it for Jesus? It would probably change our lives.

mulligan

For Easter we are doing a message called "mulligan." It's about how Christ gives us "do-over's." That's His incredible mercy and grace. I will use the story of Peter. He started on a boat, then met Christ, walked with Him and then betrayed Him. 3-4 years later, Peter is down and out and Christ finds and calls him again......on a boat! Just like a mulligan.....a do-over!
I hope to hit a few plastic golf balls in the crowd and send everybody home with a golf ball as a token. I still have some work to do on my message, but that is the general direction.

Youngstown Christian School

This morning early, I was in Youngstown to speak the chapel service for their "spiritual emphasis week." They have some great students and faculty there. I had a great time and the kids seemed to respond well. I go back tomorrow morning as well and am praying for "Greater Things!"

Also, today I met with someone I love dearly who just got released from an almost 3 month jail sentence. They came out believing it was the best thing for them. God used that circumstance to get a hold of this individual. They now see life with a fresh set of eyes. The fact that they see what they were and now what they want to be. Sometimes it takes something like this, for God to get a hold of us.

great day!

We had an amazing day and broke through another growth barrier for our church! Our 2nd service was so full we had a few C3'ers have to stand in the back! Next week is Easter....oh Lord help us.
Monday and Tuesday morning I'm speaking at Youngstown Christian School for their chapels. Praying for God to show up huge.

3rd annual Eggstravaganza

WOW! Today was our 3rd annual Easter egg hunt / Easter bunny / inflatables / firetrucks / games / food / you name it, we had it. God has given us crazy favor within our community. We had 1266 people register! That doesn't include our C3'ers or many who didn't register. We had 15,000 eggs, 6 age appropriate fields and an amazing team to pull it all off. It was incredible! I have no clue what will happen tomorrow in our 3 services. We have every chair on the floor and praying for Greater Things! Last year we had close to 50 guests after the egg hunt that drew a crowd of 800 in the drizzle. Who knows what will happen tomorrow......and then Easter! We are praying and believing for more LifeChange through Jesus Christ!

my cinderella

There is a song out that says "I will dance with my Cinderella, while she's still in my arms...." That song rips me up every time, because I have a Cinderella. Little Kalvarie (Kali) is the apple of her daddy's eye. She has told me on numerous occasions that she will always be "my girl." I don't want to miss out on any part of her growing up, but rather enjoy every minute of it. This was one of our many dances together in the kitchen. When she plays with her little princess figurines, she still thinks the "prince" one, is her daddy. I will make sure it remains that way until she is at least 30! I probably tell her too much that I love her and how pretty she is. So when some boy tells her that.....she'll say "you gotta do better than that, my daddy tells me that everyday!" I have seen too many little girls search for "love" or what they think is love from boys or other men because they didn't feel that love from their father. I will do my best to let my Cinderella know she is loved and protected by her daddy. OK....I'm tearing up...this post is over..lol

LifeChange

When it comes to the focus of C3 Church, our focus is simply.....LifeChange. Our goal is for everyone that is a part of the C3 family to know why we exist. Everything we do must be measured by how many lives are being changed by Jesus Christ. This is a video we showed a couple weeks ago in our services to give God praise for the LifeChange HE is bringing.

self

Have you ever thought about your relationship with yourself? Do you like yourself? That sounds crazy, but the answer shapes our lives in a huge way. It's amazing how what we think of ourselves spills over into the way we see others and life. I have learned that how I see myself is in direct correlation to how I view God. When I see God as a loving, forgiving God who created me special and loves me unconditionally, it tends to change the way I view myself.