C3 got a facelift

Check out our new website and logo at www.myC3church.com.  Big thanks to my brother Josh for putting all this together.

leadership porn

I heard Scott Hagen talk on leadership porn a while back.  Leadership porn is where we go to a conference or read a book about another leader and hear all the amazing stuff that they are doing.  Basically, we are comparing their highlight reel with our everyday life.  This comparison strips us of hope and faith or causes us to lust after what they have.  The truth is, those leaders have had some very ugly days as well and we are only seeing a photo-shopped version of their story.  Have you been looking at Leadership Porn?

stretched

One of my goals on our past Kenya trip was to stretch our people from C3, not to the point of breaking, but to at least pull them out of their comfort zone.  It's almost like a rubber band.  A rubber bands true power is revealed when it is stretched.  When it is lying their unstretched, it's true potential is unrevealed.  This is how many of us spend our lives.  Are you being stretched?  Why or why not?

Kenya

I just got back from Kenya with the 2nd out of 3 teams from C3.  Every year, we help plant a new church overseas.  C3'ers gave $10,000 to build a new steel building in partnership with a strong local church there that has already planted 2 other churches as well as raising up their own pastors.  I am so proud of our people who gave and for those who went truly served the people of Kenya.  It was an incredible experience.
On a side note, the missionaries set up a surprise day for me.  I got up to run one morning and they took me to a different place to run.  That is when Wesley Korir (2012 Boston Marathon Winner) came out of the house and ran 7.5 miles with me.  It was an in credible privilege and honor to run with the Kenyan champion.  He is an incredible guy and a believer as well.  It was all I could do to keep up...lol.  God is good!

Think

When is the last time you stepped away from the craziness of life and had time to think without distractions?  We all need time to refocus, and get on the same page with those closest to us.  Today, our Ex. Dir. Gary and myself spent the good portion of the day "out of the office" defining reality of where we are as a church and to refocus on where we are heading.  Without times like this, things can get muddy.  Do you need to take some time to just think?

with glitter come litter

The more glitter, the more litter.  Many times we see someone who is successful at a higher level than we are and all we see is the glitter.  What we don't see is all the litter that comes with that glitter.  The more gain, the more pain.  This is truly why very few push to a certain level in any field, because there is pain and litter that comes with it.  The key is that the person finds a way to move forward in spite of it all.

My kid is in YOUTH GROUP

Tonight, my oldest son goes to our Youth Ministry for the first time.  I'm blown away and feeling old..lol.  This is another one of those mile stones in his life and ours as well.  Life is going by so fast.  I'm doing my best to enjoy every last drop of it.  This is a stage in my son's life where he will begin to be greatly influenced by other voices.  I'm excited that he has a solid youth pastor who loves Jesus and some incredible youth workers to help shape his love for Jesus.  Everyday is an adventure....I will meet it head on...and keep my eyes on Jesus.

What's wrong?

Saturday I ran a 5k as I normally do on occasion.  The only thing was I ran slower than I have run in 20 years, but felt like I was working harder.  I still placed 2nd, but I would normally have beat the winning guy by close to a minute.  I walked away scratching my head.  Could it be:
- I'm just plain getting old?
- I've just had my yellow fever, polio, typhoid, tetanus and"hepatitis  "A" shots a couple days ago for Kenya?
- I just had a bad day?
- I'm going bald?

I got home and explained what happened to my wife who posed a very tough question.  "Would you still run if you couldn't win anymore?"  Ouch!  After much thought, I guess my answer would be - NO.  If that were the case, I would try to find something else I could compete at and win.  My answer kind of shocked me and revealed alot about myself.  I'm running another 5k this Saturday and will hopefully bounce back.  If not, I guess I will be looking for a new hobby.  lol.