rite of passage

My oldest son is now is 9 and ready for his first rite of passage. The other night after all the kids were dozing off, I snuck in and got him up to watch Lord of the Rings. I will have to do this for at least 12 nights. We had some great discussion already and we are only 1 hour into it. Last year at bed time I told my boys the whole trilogy which took over a month. It was great, there was a certain part that my son thought he had seen. He must have a great imagination.

the gifts

The gifts that are given by Holy Spirit are much needed in our lives and churches today. I believe God is wanting to do something new in our church and wanting to take us to the next level in our adventure following HIM and in reaching our city. I think sometimes the gifts of the Holy Spirit get a bad wrap because people get in the way. They do this by making it more about themselves than about Glorifying Jesus Christ and this is sad. BUT, just because there is MIS-USE, does not mean it should lead us to DIS-USE. We need the power of Holy Spirit now more than ever operating in our lives. I am believing for an authentic move of Holy Spirit within our church, and we will know it is real when everything that is done is pointing to Jesus Christ and not to ourselves.

room

I have traveled to several developing nations and have found that they have a rule when it comes to public transportation...."there is always room for one more." I have been riding where I thought there was literally no-way possible that someone else could get in the vehicle and then 3 more people somehow find a way.
This is true in our lives as well. We cram so much in, it is uncomfortable and nothing gets the proper attention. It's sad to say that we cram Jesus right in there with everything else and sometimes He is shoved to the back. Personally, right now I am trying to make more room for Jesus in my life. More time to pray, read and listen. How much room do you have for Jesus in your life?

5ft 4in

Today was cool! I got to shop with a professional decorator who attends C3 and pick out the furniture / paintings and decor for our foyer and cafe. I'm almost afraid to say this...but I kind of enjoyed the whole process. I did learn something valuable today. I asked her at what height do you know to hand the pictures? She said the standard was 5ft 4in for the middle of the painting. Good luck applying this to your life, if you do come up with something, let me know.

the mix

At home when I give my kids juice, I water it down. One, because with my kids it doesn't take much sugar to set their energy levels through the roof and secondly, because the juice lasts longer. The key is, how much I water it down. The more water I mix in, the more it lessens the strength of the juice and the reaction on my kids. The same could be said for how much I water down the power of Jesus Christ in my life, with myself. "I must decrease, so He may increase." What's your mix?

District Council

I had a great time at the Ohio District Council. It is always good to see friends from all over the state. I had the opportunity as the presbyter (overseer) of the Central area to be a part of the Ordination service and to pray over my friend Mark. I account that as truly a high privilege. I still remember when I was ordained and prayed over by the leadership. I literally felt like I could take on hell with a squirt gun and win!......and I still want to live that way today.

together or alone

"Alone we go fast, together we go far."
When alone, decisions are fast because there is only one opinion to convince. When together, the hard work of casting vision has to be done well and then caught and bought into. BUT, when the vision is caught and together a group of people begin running in the same direction, they can carry a greater load at a greater pace, for a greater distance.