Frank Bishoff

Sunday Afterthoughts 2:27

2011-03-03T15:21:00.000-05:00

PORN!! This one word stirs up all kinds of emotions, thoughts, opinions and questions! This past Sunday we addressed the issue from a Biblical viewpoint because, believe it or not, God has a lot to say about the subject! In fact, I have received more feedback from this one talk than any other talk to date. If you missed this important conversation, you may still have questions like….

What is really wrong with looking at porn?

At what age should I talk to my kids about porn?

Can porn be considered an art form?

How much is too much porn to be looking at?

How do you flee from something that is everywhere you turn?

These are all great questions, and they are questions that we tried to answer in Sunday’s talk. If you missed our talk, take some this week to listen online. Our main motivation was to get the conversation started, because the truth is, that is the first step to freedom! The problem with porn is that it’s just too easy! It’s done in secret; when no one else is watching. The other problem with porn is that it’s easy to justify when you are living in obedience in every other area of your life. The bottom line is this: God is against porn not because he is opposed to our pleasure, but because He is so committed to it! If you’re struggling with porn, get help…today!

Below are some helpful resources to help you break free now!

Websites

www.xxxchurch.com – facts on porn and other helpful resources, including how to get free

www.x3watch.com – free accountability software for your computer

www.covenanteyes.com – accountability software and filtering

www.pureonline.com – 30 days to purity

www.purerestoration.com – 4-day recovery workshops

www.purelifeministries.org – help-at-home program

Books

Sex is Not the Problem, Lust Is – Joshua Harris

Purity – Kris Vallotton

Every Man’s Battle – Stephen Arterburn

The Game Plan – Joe Dallas

Sunday Afterthoughts 2.20

2011-02-22T14:58:00.002-05:00

Week one of our “Sex Series” was nothing short of epic! Our first week was a talk on Purity, which might be better described as the journey from the battlefield to the bedroom! For those who dare, this is exactly what feels like as we contend for God’s call on our lives as Christ-followers. However, my prayer is that through this series God would ignite a fire of an entire generation to recapture the trophy of purity!

Because of the request of so many I will post some of my notes below:

Why Wait?

1. Because we trust God ( 1Thess. 4:3-5, 7)

I think too many times we (especially single people) read this verse and automatically interpret it to mean that God is a cosmic kill joy...however, if you look closer what you’ll really discover is God’s blueprint for the journey!

Proverbs 5:18 - "May your fountain be blessed, and may you rejoice in the wife of your youth."

Remember: God will never ask us to give up the greater for the lesser!

Not waiting is risky business…..

STD’s, pregnancy, hurting people, the loss of God’s blessing and future pain, are all things we risk when purity is devalued.

In all my years in ministry and counseling singles and married couple, I have yet to run across anybody who says that they are better off because….

…they have an STD

…because of divorce

…because they had an unwanted pregnancy

…because they gave themselves away emotionally and physically

…Because of their addiction to porn

So what are the benefits? In my journey with my bride, these were what we came up with in terms of the benefits of waiting:

It keeps God first

It cultivates the discipline of self-control

It builds a foundation of trust

It empowers you to pass on a legacy to your children

Why wait? Because we trust God (Proverbs 3:5-6)!

2. Because we respect ourselves (1 Co. 6:18-20)

In light of Christ…my body belongs to God.

Hint: If you treat yourself like you’re worthless, you are inviting other people to do the same.

If you carry yourself like you’re a prince or princess, others will relate to you like one!

Things to avoid:

Runway modeling – dress modestly

Strip Poker – research shows that it’s easier to remain sexually pure when you clothes are on than when you're butt naked!

Avoid playing house – You are only training yourself for divorce because when it doesn’t work out…you take you ball and go home. If you're not married, don't live like it!

Technical virginity – The reason oral sex is called oral sex is because it’s sex! Mutual masturbation is sex!

Tonsil Hockey – The truth is this, will only fuel your fire!

Three life-giving themes to live by:

1. no rang…no thang!

2. My bod is for God!

3. Can’t touch this! (make this your athem!)

Romans 6:13:

"Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness."

3. Because of honor (Hebrews 13:4)

You can start being faithful to your future spouse today!

Remember: The best way to steward tomorrow is by being faithful today.

Helpful Hints to steward your future:

State your standards up front

Become a student of godly relationships

Find a couple to mentor you

Begin praying for your future spouse daily

Ask the right questions

What can I do about my singleness? (wrong question)

What can I do with my singleness? (better question)

Does my current relationship hinder me from serving God as a single person?

What is my motivation in relationship-pleasing myself, or serving others?

Do I give myself away physically or emotionally in ways that I regret?

Our journey continues this Sunday with week two of our “Sex Files” Series!

See You Sunday!

Sunday Afterthoughts 2.13

2011-02-15T14:46:00.002-05:00

What a rich weekend! This week we had our first-ever college retreat up in Ringgold, Virginia. I love seeing the passion of this generation of young people who are living into their destiny! Of course, the retreat weekend was totally made when Will and Janet McFarlane showed up and shared their heart, their experiences, and many great stories of their journey from stoner to saint!!

Obviously, Sunday was an absolute hoot as Will led us in worship and then downloaded all that God had put on his heart (no notes required)! One thing that really stood out to me - and I’m sure to many who were present - was being reminded of how rich many of the old hymns are. I have to be honest; I’ve never been much of a hymn guy myself, probably because they remind me of what I perceived as dead religion growing up. However, yesterday it was hard not to be overwhelmed by the depth and truth that our faith is built on as we sang some old classics!

Another huge truth to take away from Will being with us is how much religion really resides in most of us. The goal of the gospel was never to make us religious! The heart of God is to set us free, so that we would live from our hearts as we pursue the call to reconcile the world to the creator of the universe. Religion always seems to find ways to isolate us from the people who need God the most!

As we move forward, it is awesome to see the church Awaken City is becoming! It was never our goal to launch a church based on a man’s personality or some church model that we read in a book and wanted to copy. Our prayer all along has been that God would build His church! Over the past year, we have seen the progression of Awaken City as God’s people continue responding to his invitation, and it’s simply nothing short of beautiful! It’s not perfect, mind you...but I know that God takes great delight in the child-like heart that marks His people!

If you're new to Awaken, here are some things that you need to know:

Homeless Ministry – We have a homeless outreach every Sunday morning at Center City Park in downtown Greensboro. We would like to invite you to join us any Sunday morning at 8:00AM to see all the incredible ministry that takes place as we simply love our homeless friends by serving them breakfast.

OFY – OFY (On Fire Youth) is the name of our youth ministry here at Awaken City Church. If you have a teenager, then you know that with the God-ignoring culture that we have to raise our children in...we could use all the help we can get! OFY is a perfect opportunity for your family to take advantage of. It’s amazing what happens when God captures the heart of our teenagers! If you’re a parent, we invite you to come see for yourself all the awesome things that God is doing in the youth ministry here at Awaken! You can contact Jacob@awakencitychurch.come for more info.

Stay Tuned because next week I’ll give you more info on some of the other incredible ministries here at ACC.

See You Sunday!!

Sunday Afterthoughts 2.6

2011-02-08T19:28:00.001-05:00

What another amazing Sunday here at Awaken City Church! God seems to be continuing to draw us into deeper waters as we respond to the deeper hunger that turns within us. As we see God for who he is, our appetite for more increases!

As we finished our series “It’s Your Move,” what we discovered was that sometimes, what we really need is the motivation to actually take the first step. The reality is, information simply isn’t enough. Just take a look at our culture today: how many know they need to lose weight, or get out of debt, or drop a bad habit? Having the right information is certainly the starting place, but what actually gets us to apply action can be something altogether different! If you weren’t able to hear this week’s talk, then just log on www.awakencitychurch.com and listen. Just remember, as we draw near to God, He draws near to us (James 4:8)! If we will give him what we have, he will give us what he has!

If you missed Sunday, then you also missed an incredible time of worship with Ember! There is nothing like gathering with the people of God to worship him in absolute freedom!

The morning ended with several people receiving Christ….and you know what….. that never gets old!

Here is a quick reminder of some of things going on here at Awaken City:

This Sunday, February 13th – Will McFarlane will be with us

College Retreat – It’s not too late to join us on our first ever college retreat. If you are a college student and are interested in going please contact Alex Yonjof at Axyonjof@earthlink.net. Don’t forget the retreat is THIS WEEKEND!

Sunday Afterthoughts 1.23

2011-01-25T17:28:00.001-05:00

Well, I have to say that I am totally jacked! What a Sunday morning here at Awaken City Church! If you missed it than I’m sorry, but there is simply no way my words will do justice to what we experienced as a church as we gathered to worship the true and living God.

We started by beginning a brand new series called, “It’s Your Move.” What we discovered it that we are not saved by our deeds; we are saved to do good deeds! The second discovery was that usually what God requires is something very simple! Simple, but profound! And finally, we discovered that we have to know what season we are in to truly follow what God is asking us to do! Sometimes all we know is to take one more step forward!

As we responded to as a congregation, you could since the grace of God overwhelming us again; giving us the courage to step into his call and destiny on our lives! There were about 10 people who responded to receive Jesus this morning along with many people being healed emotionally and physically! The overwhelming sense was that God is truly in our midst!

These are truly exciting days as we are experiencing the acceleration of what God is doing here at Awaken City Church! My prayer is that we would continue to have the courage to embrace all that God desires to do in His church in these days! This is the greatest hour the church has ever known…the real question is, “How much do we want?” For those who are hungry, get ready…God is about to blow your mind!!

What will happen next? Come next Sunday to find out!

Jacked!!

Sunday Afterthoughts 1.16.11

2011-01-18T20:32:00.001-05:00

Wow! What an incredible Sunday as we gathered to celebrate Awaken City’s 1^st birthday! As I think over the last year there are so many stories that point to God’s desire to use ordinary people to do extraordinary things! For those who have been around for any length of time, you know that is the story of this incredible church! Sunday wasn’t us celebrating someone’s personality or persona! It wasn’t a celebration of all that we have accomplished! No, it was simply a celebration of our gratitude to the creator of the universe who has graciously invited us to join him in what he is doing all over the globe! Thank you to everyone who made our birthday bash so special! To all the volunteers who gave so much time and energy to make the day special for everyone else….THANK YOU!

As we look to the future, we must continue to celebrate the process! We can’t ever forget that in between the “promise” and the “palace” there is the process! It’s the process that us prepares us to live into the promises! The process is that which is preparing us for the day that is coming! As happy as I am for our future, I am totally amazed by the beauty of the process! As I witnessed the video that recapped our first year together, I was overwhelmed! As I stood among all the others who gave their testimony, I was overjoyed! God has truly been faithful! Here‘s to one year under our belt! Happy Birthday Awaken City Church!!

But may all who seek you
rejoice and be glad in you;
may those who love your salvation
say continually, "Great is the LORD!"- Ps. 40:16

Sunday Afterthoughts 11.14

2010-11-15T20:07:00.003-05:00

Well, we ended our series “worship?” this morning with a talk on “How we worship!” What we discovered is that Awaken City is actually a pretty traditional church in terms of our style of worship. We’re traditional because our style of worship is 3000 years old! Check it out for yourself. As you read the word praise in the Hebrew it can take on seven different meanings. Here they are:

1. Halel – to rave, boast, celebrate…to be clamorously foolish.

i. (Psalm 22:26) “…they who seek the LORD will praise him.”

2. Yadah – to acknowledge in public..literally by lifting your hand

i. (Psalm 138:1) “I will praise you, O LORD, with all my heart.”

3. Barak – to bless by kneeling or bowing

i. (Psalm 103:1) “Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.”

4. Zamar – making music to God with strings. (Literally to do it loudly)

i. (Psalm 92:1) “It is good to praise the LORD and make music to your name, O Most High.”

5. Shabach – to address in a loud tone, to shout.

i. (Psalm 63:3-4) “Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands.”

6. Towdah – to lift hands in adoration.

i. (Psalm 50:23) “He who offers praise glorifies me: and to him that orders his conversation aright will I show the salvation of God.”

7. Tehilah – exuberant singing.

i. (Psalm 34:1) “I will extol the LORD at all times; his praise will always be on my lips

Yes, I would say that we are not only traditional, but Biblical as well! Let’s continue to be a church committed to Biblical worship as our response to God demonstrates His worth

Don’t miss nest week when we have a special treat line up! You’ll have to come to hear for yourself! It will be a perfect follow up to this series!

Don’t forget our homeless ministry continues to meet the needs of the homeless here in the city of Greensboro! Please continue to stand and believe with us for a building downtown so that we can expand all that we are currently doing!

I’m as jacked as I have ever been as we move closer to the vision and destiny God has for Awaken city Church!

See You Next Sunday!!

Sunday Afterthoughts 11.7

2010-11-10T19:24:00.001-05:00

I’m Jacked! Sunday was absolutely incredible for a lot of different reasons!

Here are the highlights:

· Our homeless ministry continues to see many new faces and the number of people we are feeding continues to grow

· We had our very first “Advance Sunday”

· We had a record number sign up to “serve” and to join a “Life Group”

· There were a bunch of new faces in our Sunday morning worship experience

· Steve & Rachel are finally married J

· There was an obvious freedom in our worship

· There continues to be a positive response as Awaken City Church continues to press into our future

Other notables here at ACC:

· Over the last month there has been an overwhelming response in our congregation as we are transitioning as a church. Change is never easy, but the hearts of those who call Awaken home is amazing. The level of unity across the board continues to rise as we are seeing God beginning to galvanize what we are called to do as a church.

· The “Bro House” leadership team is coming together and great things are continuing to happen

· OFY continues to be a life giving ministry to teenagers in the Triad

· Homeless Ministry continues to be a light in our city

I’m Jacked!! That’s All!!

Sunday Afterthoughts 10.31

2010-11-10T19:23:00.000-05:00

Yesterday had to be the best Halloween to date! It was blast seeing everyone dress up and participate in all of yesterday’s festivities….we even had the “Holy Ghost” live and in color! I am continually amazed by the faith and the grace of God that is so apparent here at Awaken City Church!

For those who missed it, we started our second week of our new series “Worship?” What we are discovering is that worship goes way beyond a song that we sing. Real authentic worship is birthed in the heart that continually cries out that Jesus is enough! As we press into the next two weeks, I want to remind everyone of the two challenges that we have encouraged everyone to participate in during the series. The first is our worship only music diet. We are challenging everyone to listen only to worship music over the course of this series. Like any diet, take the challenge and see what happens! The second challenge is to burn your stuff. We now have a barrel in the front near the stage for all of those who want to get rid of any music, books, magazines, video’s, video games or whatever else you think it’s time to part with. At the end of this series will be burn all that has been collected as we believe God for a spiritual increase! (See Acts 19:18-20)

Yesterday, we also fed our homeless friends a hot breakfast downtown at Center City Park. For those who have not yet ever served downtown, I want to encourage you to come out any Sunday morning at 8:00am and just jump in. Trust me…you’ll never be the same! We also had the privilege of baptizing two of our College students at the end of worship service and of course we ended the morning with a wonderful covered dish!

I continued to be overwhelmed by all that God is doing here at Awaken. If you have been here awhile or if have just joined us, than we certainly want to encourage you to be here this Sunday for our “Advance Sunday!” We are going to help you “Advance” by sharing with you how to take the next step in your walk with Christ! We will also take an “Advance” offering to go towards helping the church take the next step in our journey!

See You Sunday!!

Sunday Afterthoughts 10.24

2010-10-27T20:18:00.000-04:00

Wow, what another great week here at Awaken City! So many stories are still unfolding as we continue to press into all that God is calling us to. Here are some of the highlights:

We had several testimonies of God encountering people during our Sunday morning worship service
We fed over 100 homeless friends this past Sunday
OFY had a powerful fall retreat and all of our teens are still buzzing
Some of our folks participated with Street Watch, Igniter Ministries, Ember Worship and Grace Community Church to host an out-reach to the homeless on Saturday.
Bro House continues to move forward and a new leadership team has now formed

I can’t say enough about the courage of this church. I’m honored to be part of a church that is so committed to demonstrating the gospel.

As we approach the end of the year and our very first year as a Church, we plan to finish strong! If the trends continue, our numbers, giving and over all outreach are going to continue to rise! Now is the time to get involved. Over the next few weeks we will have several opportunities for many of you to take the next step and get involved in the life here at ACC. Sunday, November 7, will be out first step in that direction so make plans to be here!

This Week’s Announcements:

Join the challenge – as you know, we have challenged the whole congregation to a “worship only” diet in the area of music. This challenge will last for the four weeks of our new “Worship?” series. Take the challenge and see what happens!

Burn your stuff – along with the our music challenge we are providing a barrel for all of those who want to get rid of any music, books, magazines, video’s, video games or whatever else you think it’s time to part with. At the end of this series will be burn all that has been collected as we believe God for a spiritual increase! (See Acts 19:18-20)

Baptism – This week we will baptize those who so desire. It’s not too late so please just e-mail Chris Carey if you are interested. His e-mail is Chris@awakencitychurch.com

Covered Dish – THIS SUNDAY! Please bring a covered dish to share and plan on staying after service to hang out and eat with all those who call Awaken City home!

Dress Up – This Sunday is Halloween and we are encouraging everyone to dress for the occasion. We will be drawing for a $50 cash prize for all of those who participate.

See You Sunday!

Sunday Afterthoughts 10.17

2010-10-21T14:35:00.000-04:00

What a way to finish our “Practical Atheist” series! Sunday was our last talk and we tackled the subject of money! I’ve said from the very beginning that we need courage as we embrace the full council of God as we made our way through this series and Sunday was certainly no different. In case you missed it here are a few highlights.

Point One: Conversion and the filling with the Holy Spirit are supernatural experiences that produce supernatural responses.

Acts 19:18-20
The Ephesian occultists demonstrated the reality of their spiritual conversion by their willingness to burn their magic books, which were worth the equivalent of perhaps six million dollars in today’s economy.
Acts 2:44-45; 4:32-35
The depth of transformation in the lives of the early Christians was most clearly evident in their willingness their money and possessions to meet each other’s needs.

Point Two: Money tells our true story.

Mark 12:41

Jesus deliberately watched to observe what people were giving
This passage makes it painfully clear that God makes it his business to know what we give
He doesn’t apologize for watching with intense interest what we do with the money that he has entrusted to us

Point Three: Money is the number one competitor for our hearts

Jesus said you can’t serve God and money! Why did he say that? Because he knew money would be the number one competitor for our hearts

Just look at the stats:

21 % of reg. church goers don’t give anything
71 % give less than 3%

Point Four: What we do with our money will effect eternity

The reality is we were made for one person and one place

Jesus is the person and heaven is the place
Jim Elliot said, “he is no fool who gives away what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.”
Martin Luther said that on his calendar there were only two days: “today” and “that day.” May we invest our money and possessions today in light of that day?

As we continue to transition into the future, I am more encouraged than ever by the response of those who call Awaken City home. If we are going to be the church we must be willing to embrace ALL that Jesus taught. If we’ll be faithful to give him what we have, he’ll be faithful to bring the increase!

Exciting days are yet ahead! Let’s continue to embrace the radical of God to display this message that we have been entrusted with!

See you next Sunday!

Sunday Afterthoughts 10.10

2010-10-11T13:29:00.000-04:00

Once again we had another incredible Sunday here at Awaken City Church. So many stories, testimonies and God encounters still seem to rule the day! I am honored to be part of such an amazing church with so many committed to taking the gospel beyond the four walls.

Since I missed last week, let me say that Steve brought an incredible word in our “Practical Atheist” series on the need to trust! What a great reminder that as we journey through life we can absolutely trust in the sovereignty and authority of God! If you missed the talk log on and listen for yourself!

Yesterday we continued our series with a look at the issue of conflict. We must always recognize that when conflict comes it is never to prove our weakness, but prove God’s work in us. Every conflict has a purpose and if we can keep that before us then James says we will be complete and lack nothing! I truly believe that God is preparing us for the day that is coming and the reality is…. WE WERE BORN FOR THAT DAY!!

As Awaken City transitions into the future, I must say that I love the hearts and the courage of those who have embraced the call to see His Kingdom come ….in our day and on our watch! I will say it again!!!! I love this church! God is at work writing the stories of people lives who have embraced the call to take this message to the ends of the earth!

Until All Have Heard!!

Sunday Afterthoughts 9.26

2010-09-27T15:13:00.003-04:00

Wow! Another incredible Sunday here at Awaken City Church! God is continuing to build His church…literally! We had a packed house yesterday as we moved into our third week of our series “Practical Atheist.” Here are just s few quick highlights:

We had a packed house and scrambled to get enough chairs out for everyone who came.
Our homeless ministry continues to be a great blessing to so many in our city. If you want to get involved, just show up at 8:00AM any Sunday morning at Center City Park and we will put you to work! Believe me…you won’t regret it!
Our worship team continues to write incredible songs! We are truly blessed!!
Our volunteers are awesome! Thank you ALL for your servant’s hearts!
We had a wedding, talked about tickle fights, thongs and staying vertical!

If you weren’t there, I wish I had some video to help you catch the full experience of everything that happened yesterday morning! Yesterday’s talk was entitled, “I believe in God, but sexual purity is simply out dated.” If you happen to be one that holds to this attitude, than you need to take a closer look at the reality of sexual sin. Here is what I mean! I don’t know anybody is who is better off because….

They’re addicted to porn
Because they had an abortion
Because of divorce
Because they were raped
Because they have an STD

Remember, every thirty seconds in America a teenager gets pregnant and every day in America 4,219 teens contract a sexually transmitted disease! So the real question is, “Do we really desire purity in our relationships?” We say we do, but do we live the kind of lives that foster this purity? I would say that a lot of folks are not really interested in purity at all if they were really honest! Instead, they feel satisfied by meeting the minimum requirements, content with spending time in the gray areas, flirting with darkness and never really daring to step in the true light of purity. You see true purity is a direction; a consistent determined pursuit of righteousness. This direction starts in the heart, and is expressed in a life style that flees opportunities for compromise. We can certainly learn from the life of David that one little detour, even if it is just for a second, can be deadly! Most of the time that detour begins in the heart, long before we ever cross the line physically!

Check this out!

Galatians 6-7-9

“God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction. The one who sows to please the Spirit, from the spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we don’t give up.

In other words, when it comes to purity and God’s radical call to Holiness, this is what we need to know! Holiness is more than an emotion, or an event, or a mysterious state! Paul makes it clear that holiness is a harvest! So then the real question becomes, “Where are we sowing?” Let’s ask God for His abundant grace as we pursue God’s call to purity!

See you next Sunday!!

Three Maxims

2010-09-24T17:06:00.001-04:00

Below are three maxims that have been life-giving to me in the church planting process. So much of this process is just trying to help people see the way Jesus see’s. These three maxims have been instrumental to that end!

The Revelation That You Have Can Keep You From The Revelation That You Need.
Simply put, the information that we currently have can keep us from the information that we need. This maxim came to life for me when I read an article on a man who took his own life believing that he had a terminal disease. However, the autopsy revealed that the man just had a virus that a simple prescription could have cured! Wow! Now that is tragic! But sometimes I think this same dynamic can be true in our spiritual lives! What do we currently believe that may be keeping us from we need to believe?

We Can React To Error And In The Process Create Another Error.
We are probably all familiar with this one and I have to say this is pretty self explanatory. However, let me give you something I have discovered in my own journey. Over the years I have come to really hate legalism! This hate was born out of my legalistic years as a Youth Pastor! I cringe when I think back to some of the things that I used to believe…and tried to convince others that they needed to believe! (For anyone reading this who suffered because of my ignorance please forgive me). But here is my point. In my hate for legalism, which we would all agree is error, the tendency would be to migrate towards the other extreme of being too careless with the way I live (which is also an error). I think in all things we must carry the weight of this truth so that it doesn’t become the legacy of our lives!

If It’s Not My Own Experience Than It Can’t Be God.
We love this one in “church world!” In other words what we are saying is this is, “Why would God do anything for you that he hasn’t already done for me first?” This critical attitude keeps us divided! How do you respond when someone shares with you an experience that they have had (that they are crediting God with), but has never been your experience? I think most of the time we are way too quick to judge, instead of allowing it to provoke in us some deeper, more honest questions!

"Few swimmers and the one you do have aren't very strong."

2010-09-22T11:38:00.001-04:00

This was a statement that my doctor made to me as Michelle and I were investigating why we were having so much trouble bringing forth life…you know….getting pregnant! Because of the number of children Michelle and I have, some of you may not know that after Cody we tried for four years to conceive our second child (who we all know today as Chelsey)! I’ll never forget those years in our marriage as we navigated all the questions and emotions of not be able to bring forth life. I remember the day that I finally told Michelle she needed to go and get check out and I remember the way I felt when she walked through the door and told me that her doctor said that it wasn’t her…..the problem was ME! Obviously, I was shocked! After my own trip to the doc the line, “You don’t have very many swimmers and the ones you do have aren’t very strong,” will forever be etched in my brain! It’s been 15 years since I first heard those dreaded words, so why bring it up now? Good question!

Maybe the church in America has the same dreaded problem! I guess, sometimes I wonder if Jesus himself would say the same thing in regards to the condition of the American Church! Could it be that that, “We have few swimmers and the ones we have aren’t very strong?” But why?

Maybe we have embraced a self-centered gospel with our needs as the primary concern
Maybe we don’t really understand the cost of discipleship
Maybe we have created God in our image
Maybe we have turned a blind eye to the multitudes that are headed for a Christ-less eternity
Maybe the real answer is that we have turned the Jesus of the Bible into a Jesus that we are more comfortable with

For instance, take a closer look the following comforting words from Jesus found in Luke 9:57

As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go."

Jesus replied, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head."

He said to another man, "Follow me."
But the man replied, "Lord, first let me go and bury my father."

Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God."

Still another said, "I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say good-by to my family."

Jesus replied, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God."

Or these…

Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple. And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. -Luke 14:25

I think ultimately the Jesus of the Bible is calling us to abandon ourselves! To leave certainty for uncertainty, safety for danger, self-preservation for self-denunciation.

At the end of the day this much is true: The church in America needs more strong swimmers! If not, just like with me and Michelle, the end result will be our inability to bring forth life!

Sunday Afterthoughts 9.19

2010-09-21T12:43:00.001-04:00

Wow! Another incredible Sunday here at Awaken City Church! Every week it seems I am beholding the faces of those who dare to risk, knowing that…. great risks always bring great rewards. Yesterday, we continued in our series “Practical Atheist” as we tacked the subject of the Radical call of Christ!

Remember we have defined a Practical Atheist -Someone who believes in God but lives as though He doesn’t exist
The reason this series is so important for us individually is because….

We are prone to wonder
We are prone to forget
We are prone to neglect
Because things alter for the worse spontaneously unless they are altered for the better intentionally

This series is important corporately as a church because…

Here at Awaken City Church, our ultimate goal is never to just gather people on Sunday morning…although we are going to do that
As a church, we have to live with the conviction that we owe people an encounter with God
Our ultimate goal is to be those who demonstrate the message that we say we believe as we re-present Jesus to the world

In this series we want to challenge the way we perceive Christianity. We are asking ourselves this very important question: “Are we settling for a Christianity that revolves around catering to ourselves when all along the central message of Christianity is actually about abandoning ourselves?” This question is important to answer because maybe, just maybe, we have missed what is radical about our faith and replaced it with what is comfortable! If we are courageous enough to respond to Jesus’ radical invitation then we must know that he promises us radical reward!

As our journey continues, let’s ask God for grace to be those who confront the things in or lives that would hold us back. The stakes are high but the reward is great! Awaken City Church…this is our moment! LET’S RISE UP AND BE HIS CHURCH!!

Part Three Next Sunday Morning!!!

Sunday Afterthoughts 9.12

2010-09-14T19:54:00.001-04:00

Wow! What another incredible Sunday here at Awaken City Church! In case you missed it here’s what you missed!

You missed the incredible volunteers who get to the church around 6:30 to get the building ready for our 10:30 experience (to all the set up volunteers… you guys are amazing)
You missed another great Sunday as we gathered to feed our homeless friends at Center City Park (our homeless ministry was featured on the Fox 8 News Buckley Report)
You missed another incredible time of worship as our worship team led us into the life-giving presence of God (to our worship team…thank for modeling the heart of a worshipper)
You missed the great work and commitment from those who work in our children’s ministry (to all those who work with our children…thank you for your faithfulness)
You missed all the new faces that are continually coming in our doors
You missed the “double,” “double” (you had to be there)
You missed the first week of our brand new series Practical Atheist
You missed the reminder that we are not interested in a form of religion that denies the power to change the world

As we continue on our journey here at Awaken City Church, we have to be gripped by the incredible opportunity that we have been entrusted with to see the display of the gospel in our day and on our watch! But with every great opportunity comes great responsibility! The real question is this: “How much do we really want!” Do we trust that God will never ask us to give up the greater for the lesser? Will we refuse to buy into a “Cafeteria Christianity” that deceives us into believing that we have the right to pick and choose! What we are discovering is that it ALL belongs to God! As the Apostle Paul put it, One man died, therefore we are ALL dead (2 Co. 5:14)! If we have courage to trust God in all things than we position ourselves to see and experience all that God intended! So how does this apply to you? Great question!

If you call Awaken City Church home here is what you need to know!

We are committed to the conviction that we must go beyond just hearing! The true affirmation of our faith is found in our willingness to DO that which we hear
You must understand that the call of the gospel is a call that bids us to come and die
If we really want to live we must be those who are willing to exchange our plans, ideas, dreams, preferences, perceptions and our heart for His!
In a nut shell… we must come to the place where we believe that God is worthy of our immediate and total surrender

As we align ourselves with the creator of all things, we will see and experience more than we can imagine! There is too much at stake to allow any other response! We must determine not to waste our lives on anything but uncompromising, unconditional abandonment to a gracious, loving Savior who invites us to take radical risks and promises us radical reward!

This is our moment! It’s time to rise up and contend for all that God desires to give us…individually and corporately!

If you’re ready…..I’ll see you again next Sunday!!

Sunday Afterthoughts 9.5

2010-09-08T11:17:00.000-04:00

As a church planter I’m jacked! Not because of our great facilities (because we don’t have any)! Not because of the thousands of people who came to Awaken City on Sunday (because that didn’t happen)! I’m jacked because of the stories that continue to be told from people who are encountering the one, true and living God! As we finished up our series “Ghost,” I was overwhelmed by the story of a college student who came to our service still hung-over from the night before! One of our own Awaken City college students drove to her apartment and picked her up believing that maybe, just maybe she would drink from the fountain that never runs dry! This girl sat through the meeting and asked for prayer following the service. She told those who were praying for her some of the details regarding her life, which included an ongoing, unexplainable bout with seizers. To make a long story short, this girl received prayer and was visibly moved as she was encountering the person and the ministry of the Holy “Ghost!” A week later she reports that she has not had one seizure and was so excited that she brought her mom all the way from Charlotte to church this past Sunday morning! Stories like this never get old!!

I have said many times over the past eight months that we owe people a encounter! We owe people a demonstration of this message that we hold so dear! I’m jacked because what has been in a lot of ways just theory, is now becoming part of what we would call the normal Christian life! Jesus continues to be the draw here at Awaken City! In the midst of all we don’t have as a new church plant, the one thing we do have….The King of ALL Kings, continues to provide unlikely people with his unlimited , unforeseen and uninhibited power!

This excites me most because we may be living in a day when the American church has created a whole host of means and methods, plans and strategies for doing church that require little, if any power from God!

Here at Awaken City Church God continues to write our story! What will happen next……..come next Sunday to find out!!

Jacked!!

Sunday Afterthoughts 8.29

2010-08-30T13:50:00.000-04:00

Wow! What an incredible Sunday here at Awaken City Church! So many “God” stories are continuing to emerge from our Homeless Ministry, our Children’s Ministry, Life Groups, OFY and the Bro House! Yesterday, I couldn’t help but be overwhelmed by the Spiritual hunger that seems to be increasing! I think the take away is that people are tired of just doing church….people hunger to be the church! To be the people who re-present Jesus to the world around us!

Yesterday was the largest crowd we’ve had since our launch and as God continues to build His church I am more jacked up than ever about all that is to come! Here are some questions we must answer as we look forward to the future:

Are we willing? Are we willing to let Jesus lead us? Awaken City does not belong to any man; however we are called to carefully steward all that He has entrusted to us!

Are we willing to pay the price? The easy answer would be yes, but we must look deeper and be more honest as we tackle this one! Are YOU and I willing to go where he leads us! Are we willing to risk? Are we willing to let go of our agenda in order to get his?

Are we willing to be faithful with all that we have? Our talents, our time, our finances to see God’s dream come to pass?

It would be so easy to applaud all that God has done (and we should), but never at the expense of all that is still to come. If there is one thing I am learning it is this: Every time we encounter God; every time we are more aware of His love; every time we are overwhelmed by hi s faithfulness; it’s just another invitation to come in closer! To press into him all the more! I can’t help but believe that God is preparing us for what could be the greatest harvest the church has ever seen! But are we ready?

A few closing thoughts to that end:

Don’t isolate yourself! Get connected! I’m not real sure God is too interested in independent people who are not connected to the Body of Christ! The best way to do this is to get plugged into a Life Group. If you need info on a Life Group please e-mail Ray at Ray@awakencitychurch.com. As we like to say around here…”A lone ranger is a dead ranger!”

Pursue God! The greatest contribution we can make to the cause of Christ is our own passionate pursuit of Him! Don’t leave your destiny in the hands of others. We should never allow the spiritual temperature in our own lives be determined by the cold the hearts of others!

Give! We must be willing to give of ourselves in every area! Ask yourself this question, “If everyone gave financially like me; if everyone served like me; if everyone worship like me; what would the church look like? I won’t ever apologize for provoking people in these areas because there is way too much at stake! We have this one, brief, momentary life that we have been entrusted with! Let’s make it count!!

See You Next Sunday!!

Sunday Afterthoughts 8.22

2010-08-24T09:06:00.001-04:00

After returning from New York it was so good to worship with my Awaken City Family this past Sunday morning. As always, we started our Sunday by feeding the homeless downtown at Center City Park. The need continues to be great, but thanks to our committed volunteers we seem to always have enough. I can’t say enough about the hearts of so many who prepare the food and also serve our homeless friends week in and week out! You guys rock!! (By the way…the Buckley Report has been rescheduled for September 12^th)

This week we started a brand new series called “Ghost” and for the next three weeks we talk about the person and the work of the Holy Spirit in the lives of those who call themselves Christ-followers. For those who missed the talk I am including some of my main points here because we were not able to record this week’s message.

Ghost

What did Jesus say about the Holy Spirit?

Matt 3:11

In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!”

I want to pause here to say that unless we are familiar with the central message of Jesus’ teaching, which is the Kingdom of God, then all that we are going to say this morning about the Holy Spirit loses its punch
Important scriptures regarding the Kingdom ….

Matt. 10:7 – Jesus speaking to his disciples as he sent them out: And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’
Matt. 6:9 – Jesus when teaching his disciples how to pray: In this manner, therefore, pray:
Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Luke 12:31 – Jesus when speaking on God’s provision: But seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you.
Matt.24:14 – Jesus when speaking of the end times: And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.

Jesus did not come to bring a religion, he came to bring a Kingdom

Back to Matt. 3 skipping down to v.11

I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.
Jesus is the one baptizes us…man baptizes with water, but Jesus is the only one who can baptize with the Holy Spirit.

Do you trust Jesus?
Jesus would never give you anything that wasn’t good for you.

POINT ONE: Jesus said the Holy Spirit would give us new information

John 16:5

"Now I am going to him who sent me, yet none of you asks me, 'Where are you going?' ⁶Because I have said these things, you are filled with grief. ⁷But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. ⁸When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt^[^a^] in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment: ⁹in regard to sin, because men do not believe in me; ¹⁰in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; ¹¹and in regard to judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.

¹²"I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. ¹³But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. ¹⁴He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. ¹⁵All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.

All the information of heaven is at our disposal

The Holy Spirit searches the greatest reservoir of information imaginable – the heart of the Father
He’s the greatest search engine man has ever known
Psalm 139:18 says, “ God’s thoughts about each one of us outnumber the sands on every seashore
And according to Jeremiah 29:11 those thoughts are for our welfare, benefit, and blessing
And He has had a long time to think about you
He’s been living in the experience of knowing you long before you were ever born
He doesn’t just have a few random thought about you
For trillions of years God has been thinking about you and the Holy Spirit searches the whole archive and brings unbelievable treasures to you precisely at the right moment if you’re listening
His thoughts will so overwhelm you that you will want to draw close to Him so all that he says about you …you will actually live into

Jesus said, The Holy Spirit will give you a new mission

Acts 1:3

After his suffering, he showed himself to these men and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. ⁴On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: "Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. ⁵For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit."

So when they met together, they asked him, "Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?"

He said to them: "It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. ⁸But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."

After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.

They missed the point. It wasn’t about what Jesus was going to do, but what they were going to do!
The book of Acts records the unfolding of this crazy mission that Jesus calls us to

John 7:37

On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. ³⁸Whoever believes in me, asthe Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him." ³⁹By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified. the imagery is an overflowing well
Back to Acts one…Jesus had already been glorified
Our assignment has always been not to get to heaven, but to bring heaven to earth!
John 3:8 - The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit."

When we surrender to this new mission our lives than have the same effect of that of the wind

Next week we will talk about the gifts of the spirit and answer some of the following questions:

Are the gifts of the spirit for today?
What does the Bible teach about the gifts of the spirit?
Are the gifts of the spirit for me?

This past Sunday we also gathered with all the children’s workers and talked about the re-launch of our Children’s Ministry in the coming weeks. I am stoked about all the energy and new ideas that were put on the table and we will all get to see the results in a few short weeks.

As we continue to press into our future please continue to pray for the following:

The launch of our brand new college life group
Our move downtown – pray that God would give us favor and wisdom
Our finances – let’s continue to ask God for a spirit of generosity to mark those who call Awaken City home so that we can do all that God is calling us to
More volunteers as we continue to grow

As always, I am so jacked about all that God is doing here at Awaken city Church! I’m convinced that our best days are still in front us and the best news is……we’ve only just begun!!

See You Next Sunday!!

Sunday Afterthoughts 8.8

2010-08-09T09:17:00.003-04:00

This will be short and sweet! We started out the day by feeding our homeless friends a hot breakfast downtown at Center City Park. I would guess we had close to 100 or so gathered this morning and it is always truly amazing watching all of our volunteers come together to pull off such an incredible ministry week after week. Fox 8 was also on the scene shooting for an upcoming Buckley Report!

As we gathered for our Sunday morning worship service it was very evident that God was visibly speaking to and touching people all over the room. I truly believe we are in a season where God is calling us as His people to contend for our inheritance. Most Christians live their whole life with much of what they know about God staying in the “just theory” department of their life! In other words, that which they claim to believe doesn’t match their practice. I have to confess I’m there myself in a lot of different ways. However, I know God is awakening our hearts to see what we haven’t been able to see before. It’s exciting to be on this journey with such a great group that we now know as Awaken City Church! Our talk today was another rant in this vein. If you are one who can identify with some of what I am saying feel free to take a listen to this week’s talk entitled “Unbelievable!”

Finally, seventeen of us from Awaken City Church are heading to New York City for a missions trip where we will be working with the New York School of Urban Ministry. We have been to New York for the last several years, but what makes this trip special is to be able to share with our friends at NYSUM that we have launched our own ministry to the homeless right here in our own city. Please pray for our team this week as we are ministering in the big apple!

One last thought! I am so thrilled to be part of such a life-giving, dynamic church. In the midst of 90% of churches in America today either having leveled off or are actually in decline, I am honored to pastor such a committed church of believers! Every week I am challenged in my own walk by the display of authentic Christianity that marks so many of those here at Awaken City. You guys inspire me to run harder after all that God has for me and us! Thank you for showing me what Christ looks like week after week!

It gets better with Time

2010-08-06T16:31:00.002-04:00

Like a great wine…it gets better with time!

Twenty One years ago today I did something that today may seem old fashion, out dated, or simply impossible. On August 5, 1989, I made a covenant before my friends, family and God to commit my whole life to one very special young woman in marriage… for life. Twenty-one years later I have absolutely no regrets. You see after all this time I can honestly say, “She’s still the one!” Even today I can’t imagine my life without her! You see my bride is….

The strongest woman I know – time has only proven what I knew way back when

The most authentic person I know – What you see is what you get! In a world marked by superficiality she is the real dea

The best friend anyone could ever have –This goes way beyond my partiality just because she is my wife. She a great friend because she has always seen the best in me and in people. She’s never been afraid to tell me the truth or to hold any of herself from me

Is more beautiful today than the day I first laid eyes on her (even without the eighties hair) – Michelle has always been my hunk-a-hunk burnin love…but today she more beautiful than ever! I’ve had twenty one years to study my wife and the more I get to know, the more overwhelmed I am. She is stunning in every way!

Michelle, you are better than I could have ever hoped for. You commitment to love and stand by me has made me the man I am today. Your strength has been the glue that has held my heart and the hearts of so many others together. I truly love and appreciate you more today than I did the day I said, “I do!” You are an incredible friend, wife, mother and lover! Thank you for giving me six beautiful children! I will never regret the day I asked you to me my wife! Thank you for loving God, me and our children with such a sacrificial love. I love you more than my words can express. Happy Anniversary baby!

Lies most people believe about marriage

It’s not a big deal – In the midst of our God-ignoring culture that is trying out how to define marriage, this one may be easy to believe…but don’t you buy it! Not only did God create marriage, He also defines it as a life-long covenant between one man and one woman for life (Gen. 2:7, 18-24). On the hand, our culture desires intimacy without responsibility and pleasure without commitment. Don’t let our culture devalue or cheapen what God esteems!
It can’t be done – With the divorce rate among marriages being so high, it’s no wonder so many fall for this one, but don’t ever forget with God all things are possible! Don’t ever forget that there is no circumstance that God can’t change, no hand dealt to you with which God can’t win, and no mistake so bad or sin so great that He can’t fully restore you!
It’s no fun – Like with anything else in life, you get out of it what you put into it! Remember, you can’t build a beautiful mansion on a rotten foundation! Studies continue to show the benefits of a great marriage from better emotional health to a more satisfied sex life!

Sunday Afterthoughts 8.1

2010-08-05T17:20:00.001-04:00

Guest Post by Ray McKinnon

Wow! Sunday was such an amazing day. I have said it before and I will say it once again: I flippin' love my church.

This past Sunday we tackled an issue that a lot of folks within Evangelical circles shy away from: Homosexuality. The talk dealt not so much with the causes of same-sex attraction but the reaction of the Church to folks with same-sex attractions. The challenge is the Church getting to a point where we get beyond the sex issue and get to the love issue. The challenge given to the folks at Awaken was to stick to their job description and not attempt to help out God nor the Holy Spirit. I challenged the folks that it was the job of God the Father to judge, God the Holy Spirit to convict but our job to love folks.

I was blown away with the positive response from my ACC family. There were some folks who came up and confessed that they were unsure the direction that the talk would take but after the talk that Holy Spirit had challenged and convicted them. It is so amazing to serve a group of folks who really want to get it right. Folks who are not content with just fighting the fights that can be won but the fights that simply need to be fought. The folks at Awaken reminded me what could happen when a group of folks go before God with open hands and hearts that are also open to allow him to pour into it. The Awaken City folks made me abundantly proud to serve as one of their pastors and leaders. We know that we are in process as a church and as individuals and have purposed to make room for folks without regards to where on the journey they may be. We refuse to say that you must believe here before you can belong here. That can get messy but I know that with the folks whom God has providentially called to Awaken that we are up to allow folks to make as big a mess as they have the grace to clean-up—all the while being ready to lend a hand if the mess is too great for one or two folks to clean.

To finish, I want you to know that God used us last week to share his love with folks who were at Awaken as well as those who were not. I got emails and facebook messages from folks from all over who are happy that we decided to tackle such a potentially divisive topic from an angle that put love at its center. My prayer is that always Awaken will be know as a safe place for folks to walk out their journey...free from ridicule or harm. May love and honor prevail in all that we do!

Ray McKinnon, Executive Pastor

She's Fat, She's Thin

2010-07-30T09:13:00.002-04:00

“She’s fat she’s thin, she’s fat she’s thin….why can’t she just pick a body and go with it?” These are the words of Jerry Seinfeld speaking of Oprah Winfrey back when Oprah was doing the whole dieting thing. I have to confess I can really relate to this statement because of all that I am currently going through in the whole church planting process. For any who reads this blog you may have noticed that I have not blogged in a while. The reason is simply because I feel like I’m learning so much I don’t really know anything. A lot of what I thought I knew about church, leadership, faith, people, effectiveness, vision, and church growth is being challenged these days. In a sense I feel like Oprah because it seems as though I can’t make up my mind!

For me the hardest aspect of church planting has been the work of discovering! Discovering who God has called me to be and allowing that to shape who God has called Awaken City Church to be! I think the temptation for many is to be what others think you should be instead of having the courage to be who God has called you to be! In my “discovering journey” I have felt a lot like Oprah! Let me explain!

In church world it is easy to believe that true success is measured by the number of people who come to your church. Even today, when talking to many folks the answer to the question, “How many are you running now?” always seems to be the definitive measure of success! I have to confess that for a while I was so focused on how many were showing up that I was failing to see all the good that was happening with the folks who were coming! In the tension it was hard to know if I could even really give myself permission to celebrate the few stories that were emerging in the small congregation which I pastor! But why? Where did I learn what true success really looks like? The reality is this is a complex question with an even more complex answer! However, maybe the place to start would be to acknowledge that it seems that “how many we gather on Sunday” has become the single most important thing for most church leaders! It used to be mine! But don’t hear what I’m not saying; it is still our goal to get as many people in the door as possible every Sunday morning, but here is what’s changed! Every week I can’t help but go crazy with excitement when I know that we are feeding over 100 homeless people every Sunday morning here in Greensboro! Every week I can’t help but get excited as I see people discovering who they really are in Christ and exercising their faith in such a way that it is impacting the people around them. Every week I get to see a generation of young people who burn for God and whose confession is Jesus is enough! (All this in the midst of our God-ignoring culture)

Maybe I am finally moving beyond my “Oprah syndrome!” Maybe it’s because I am learning to value the things that really matter! Maybe it’s I’m viewing success differently these days!

To all of my Awaken City Church Family, I truly believe I get to Pastor the greatest Church on the planet!

Sunday Afterthoughts 7.25

2010-07-26T09:45:00.000-04:00

Have you ever wondered what’s next? I think for far too long the overwhelming emphasis of the church has to get people to cross the line of faith and repeat the “sinners prayer!” While I still contend that this is the greatest miracle of all, I also believe that this is just the beginning. It’s at this point that the answer to the question of “What’s next” is so important. When we come to Christ it not just the end our search, it’s the BEGINNING of a whole new life of discovering all that we were created for! As each week passes here at Awaken City Church I am amazed by all that I see God in and through His people.

Yesterday, we began the day by feeding 100 homeless people here in our city at Center City Park. We often say that we get to “be” the church before we ever “do” church! I’m blown away by those who serve and make the sacrifice to provide all that we give away every Sunday morning. For those who may not know, its committed people, not an agency or Government Funding, that resource all that we are doing with the homeless. It’s “love sick” folks who spend their Saturday nights making sandwiches and going to the store to purchase juice and water. Its regular folks who get up extra early on a Sunday morning, (a day most people sleep in because it’s one of the two days off they get every week) to brew enough coffee to give to all those who show up downtown. If you want to know what’s next, go downtown on any Sunday morning and you will get to see first-hand one of the reasons we are on the planet! We are here to demonstrate the message that we claim we believe! For all those who serve our homeless friends…. your love is truly changing lives…including mine!

As we moved into our 10:30 service I was reminded again of the importance of answering the question, “What’s Next?” I was blown away by the atmosphere in worship and more blown away that many of the songs we were singing were written by one of our own worship leaders! There is nothing like watching people, created in the image of God, moving past the line of faith and living into their calling and destiny! It really gives great hope to all of us!

As we continued in our series “Soap Box” our Experience Pastor Chris Carey gave an absolutely incredible talk about the importance of owning your faith! I have known and worked with Chris for years and was blown away as I heard him share all that God had placed in his heart. Again, another great example of God’s people discovering their purpose and calling and living into it! (If you missed yesterday here at Awaken I highly recommend going to the website and listening to this great talk yourself)

Of course we ended the day with OFY, the youth ministry here at ACC. I can’t say enough about the leadership of our Youth Pastor Jacob Dunkelberger as he leads this great ministry. If you have ever been to an Awaken City Sunday morning service than you have witnessed first-hand the passion that marks most of the teens here. Every week I’m provoked in my faith as I hear all that God is doing with this generation of young people!

“What’s Next?” Stick around because the story…. your story is still unfolding!

See You Next Sunday!!

Sunday Afterthoughts 7.18

2010-07-19T12:32:00.003-04:00

Wow! What a day Awaken City Church!

Yesterday kicked off with the largest number of homeless folks we have seen since we launched this ministry back in September! Many there said we fed right at 100 people and ran out of everything except water! I’m continually blown away by the hearts of those who serve our friends every single Sunday! Rain, snow, or shine, they are there! I love being part of a church that is having such a huge impact on our community! (By the way, we will soon be using our Life Groups here at Awaken to help resource many of the supplies that we need on a weekly basis. In addition, we will take up an extra offering just for this ministry on the first Sunday of every month….stay tuned for more details)

Yesterday we continued in the third week of our brand new series “Soap Box.” Our “rant’ yesterday was on the value and purpose of the local church in the life of every believer. In a nut shell we need the local church because we prone to forget wonder and neglect all that God desires for us! The truth is we were designed to need each other in the on going process of sanctification. The following quote should be etched on the heart of every Christ-follower: “Things alter for the worse spontaneously, if they are not altered for the better designedly.” Francis Bacon

We finished out talk by answering the question, “Why do we need the local church?”

1.) By committing ourselves to each other we are learning to cultivate the “spirit filled” life. The failure to cultivate all that God is doing, results in us applauding an isolated event in our lives, instead of stewarding it so it becomes the normal Christian life

2.) We provoke courage – “Provoke one another on towards love and good deeds”

a.) Our hearts can embrace things that our heads can’t

b.) Our hearts will lead us where logic would never dare go

c.) No one ever attributes the traits of courage and valor to the intellect or the strength of human reasoning

d.) Courage rises from within as we provoke each other towards the spirit filled life

e.) The greater revelation that we carry the greater the faith we will exercise when we get beyond these four walls

3) We get to extend the boundaries - Someone has to go beyond the historical accomplishments and attempt something that has been considered impossible.

a.) The church has been known as the group that changes not

b.) Very little of what exist today would exist at all if those who preceded us did not seek to surpass the boundaries experienced by their predecessors

c.) So it is with the church

d.) It is the adventure that God has called us to

e.) And it is the adventure that we call the normal Christian life

We closed our time yesterday with this splendid reminder of why we gather!

Look around and remind yourself: These are my blood-bought brothers and sisters in Christ. We are His church, His people. We are here this morning to proclaim His work in our lives. We are here to give witness to the world of His great love and power and glory!

To end the day yesterday, our OFY (the youth ministry here at Awaken) meeting was invaded by the Holy Spirit is an unusual, life-giving way! I wasn’t there personally; however, I was at home receiving phone calls from those who were! All three of my teenagers came home overjoyed by the Spirit’s presence! To some this may seem strange or unusual and I understand to a point. The greatest need of this generation of young people is to encounter the very one who created them. May God continue to raise up a generation that fears lack more than excess! As they see God for who He truly is, the glitter of “other things” loses its appeal! As the Lead Pastor here at Awaken I want to simply say….”More Lord!”

See You Next Sunday!

Sunday Afterthought 7.11

2010-07-12T15:43:00.001-04:00

Dang!! Just Dang!! Today was just freakin awesome!! I totally love what is currently doing in our church. I’m excited, humbled, scared, jacked up and broken al at the same time! You see. I’ve never done this before and I don’t know what it’s supposed to look like! All I know is what I see and feel and it’s changing me! It’s breaking me! There will never be anything that compares to being in the presence of God with the saints of God!

I have to confess that today was a blast! It was too much fun! Here’s why!!

Ember worship paved the way for us in worship ( I love those guys)
There was an overwhelming response from the people
We discovered that what God wants to do will cross all generational lines
Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom

During our talk we recognized a few of the mistakes we have made as a church.

We have called young people to morality instead of destiny
We have called them to a gospel of information instead of a gospel of transformation
We have told them there is assignment is to get to heaven, when all along there assignment is to bring heaven

These are truly exciting days and I can’t wait to see all that God does in the days ahead.

I’ll see you next Sunday as we continue in our series “Soapbox!”

Sunday Afterthoughts 7.4

2010-07-07T10:32:00.003-04:00

I have to confess, I am still reeling from our all that God did this past Sunday morning! Maybe I shouldn’t be surprised; after all we are the Church of Jesus Christ! As we gather in His name, He comes and does what only He can do! For those who missed this Sunday this post will not help you much. However, in light of all that God did, I want to give some thoughts from my perspective!

As I have said many times before, I believe our hunger attracts heaven. In other words, it’s the surrendered heart that becomes a target for the ministry of the Holy Spirit. As I think about the current state of the church in America, I’m convinced more than ever that it’s not more programs or better planned services that will untimely make the difference in the lives of people who are broken. It’s the tangible presence of the very one who created us. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not that programs and prep don’t have value; it’s just that those things are only the means to the end! They are only tools that should bring us to the ultimate goal which is an encounter with God. Sunday was another example of what happens when we allow our hearts to lead us. Many, many people experienced the overwhelming love of the Father as we gathered to worship. Even today, I am continuing to hear stories of how God met with so many who were present!

Now the real responsibility is to be great stewards of all that God did! Here are some thoughts along those lines:

Learn to recognize that every encounter with God is just another invitation to intimacy
Learn to cultivate a life that is fully surrendered on a daily basis
Recognize that what God is doing in us is ultimately because of what He desires to do through us

As we continue to gather a church body, my prayer is that we would come with a greater expectation to meet with God.

I can’t wait until next Sunday!!

Sunday Afterthought 6.27

2010-06-29T14:44:00.003-04:00

Unstoppable….it’s a word that needs to be engrained in the hearts of God’s people. Yesterday, was another powerful example of how God desires to position us …His people! This is the very beginning here at Awaken City church. Over the next few months we will see the unstoppable power of God as we continue to press into all that God has called this local body to. The real question is, “Are we ready?” Do we believe it or have we reduced the living word and promises of God down to just an applaud? These are days to rise up and believe God!

We are closer than ever to being thrust into the heart of our city. Over the next few months we believe that we will open our doors in downtown Greensboro. God is preparing us for the days ahead and the ministry that will continue and the ministry that will be launched. If you were there yesterday you got a glimpse into one of the ministries that we believe God is calling us to. Yesterday we had an opportunity to sow into the ministry of Harmony Dust who leads www.iamatreasure.com. Harmony will be with us this fall and we will launch a brand new ministry here in our city.

The doors are wide open! Now we just need courage to run hard after what is in front of us! Are you ready?

Awaken City Church…our story is still unfolding!!

Lessons from the Garage II

2010-06-24T11:27:00.001-04:00

Lesson Two: The second big insight from my recent experience cleaning my garage is twofold. The first is this: Cleaning your garage reminds you of all the stuff you have let accumulate over time. As you are sifting through your junk you are continually asking yourself all sorts of questions like: “Why did I ever buy this?” “What was I thinking when I brought this home?” “Why have I held on to this for sooooo long?” I think it is helpful to go through the same process spiritually as we take inventory of all the stuff that we have let accumulate over time. When we allow stuff to accumulate in our lives, more than likely we will lose our vision to see things change and just like with our garage, we end up just keeping the doors shut in hopes that no one ever looks in. However, if we are courageous enough to take an honest assessment, we will find grace to part ways with unnecessary baggage that at the end of the day keep us from moving forward into our destiny.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. – Hebrews 12:1

Part two of part two to be continued…

Father's Day First

2010-06-23T12:07:00.001-04:00

I have to admit that Father’s Day had never been a real big deal to me until I became a dad over 19 years ago. Since then I have viewed and enjoyed the day in a whole different way (I love my kids and that my wife makes a big deal about this special day). However, yesterday was a first. Here’s the skinny: Every Fathers Day my family travels back to the Danville area to see our dad’s. We usually stop in and see my wife’s step dad first and then finish up the day at my dad’s house. Yesterday was different because we never actually made it to my dad’s house…instead the hospital was the place we went to see my dad!

Obviously, for me this was the first Father’s Day I had ever spent with my own dad, who is now 84, in the hospital. But something about being in that hospital reminded what Father’s Day is really all about. It about celebrating the life that gave me life (Pro. 23:22)! Yesterday I recognized how many Father’s Day’s I’ve wasted. Somehow the token card and gift don’t really communicate what really turns inside as you stop long enough and reflect on your dad. Yesterday, I realized, again, how much I truly love this great man!

I think all dad’s are committed to giving their own children what they missed growing up and sometimes that can keep us from celebrating all the wonderful things that we were given…I for one stand guilty!

However, today I’m thankful!

I’m thankful that my dad modeled for me what a tender heart looks like.

I’m thankful for the gentle spirit that has marked the life of my dad.

I’m thankful to have had a dad that always treated my mother with great love and respect.

I'm thankful that my dad has always let me know, especially as I have grown older, that he’s proud of me.

I’m thankful for all the life lessons that dad would me from time to time.

Yeah, this Father’s Day was a first, but maybe the best!!

I love you dad more than you’ll ever know! Happy Father’s Day!!

Sunday Afterthoughts 6.20

2010-06-21T20:57:00.001-04:00

Yesterday we completed our third week in the “One Prayer’ series with another great reminder that as we align ourselves with who God says we are….we are unstoppable! Jesus told Peter that the very gates of hell would not prevail against His unstoppable church! As we continue to press forward we have to be continually reminded that WE are God's people who have His authority to shift the status-quo! This conviction is rooted in the core of who we are and what we are trying to do here at Awaken City Church. As we enter into our last week of “One Prayer” let’s commit to cultivating all that we’ve been learning!

Yesterday was also Father’s Day and there seem to be an overwhelming sense of the Father’s love touching his people. The prefect love of our Heavenly Father casts out all fear and frees us to live into our destinies! With Father’s Day came our Father’s Day grill give-a-way! (Our very own Mark Lovette won the massive grill..congrats Mark!!)

We ended our morning by praying for our team of young men skating to the beach to raise money for our upcoming mission’s trip to New York City. Please keep these guys in your prayers this week.

Don’t forget ...one more week in “One Prayer”…see you Sunday!!

Lessons from the Garage

2010-06-18T09:24:00.000-04:00

Part One

Well, I finally did it…I cleaned out my garage…again! Unfortunately for us this means more than pulling out the cars and sweeping! In fact, here at our house we don’t even use our garage (a building for parking or storing one or more motor vehicles) for our cars! Our garage is really a dumping station more times than not! Over time, so much stuff collects that we just can’t take it anymore and we are forced (most of the time against our will) to actually take some time and clean it out! However, it’s not all bad…there are quite a few lessons to be learned here as it relates to our spiritual journey!

Lesson One: It takes time! Every time we begin this process the temptation is to quit before we even get started. When you open the doors and actually see all the stuff that has accumulated it can be overwhelming and naturally you just want to give up before you even get started! Sometimes the same can be true as we navigate our lives spiritually. The overwhelming sense of all that is there; the history, the same mistakes made over and over, all the unfulfilled promises made to God, yourself and others can be enough to make you believe that nothing is really ever going to change! I think we have to remember that every move forward starts with one small step. However, what is also true is that if you are going to accomplish your goal you have to stay with it! Our spiritual pursuit, just like cleaning out our garage, requires a sustained and vigorous effort that is saturated by the grace of God! In the end we reap a harvest if we don’t give up! (Gal. 6:9)

Not Everyone Likes Chocolate

2010-06-16T10:29:00.001-04:00

Baskin Robins became famous because they offer 31 different flavors of ice cream. I think they understand that diversity should be celebrated because at the end of the day….it’s ALL still ice cream! I think as local churches, we can glean from this wonderful, yet much overlooked, truth!

Maybe the place to start is by recognizing the same diversity marks the body of Christ! Here in Greensboro, we have over four hundred different flavors…but it’s still ALL ice cream! Alright, for those who couldn’t read between the lines, what I meant is this: Here is Greensboro there are over 400 life-giving churches that in some way, shape, or form look and act a little different, but at the end of the day are all trying to reach people with the SAME message that transforms the human heart! I think it would be foolish for me as a Pastor (of one of those 400 life-giving churches) to expect or even believe that everyone is going to like our flavor of ice cream!

Our primary purpose as a local church does not require us or any other one of the 400 churches to reach every single person with gospel! Believe it or not, that would be impossible! Why? Because it would violate the establishment of the of the body of Christ. Instead, God requires each of us to be faithful and effective stewards of those who he has called us to reach! Instead of wanting everyone to like chocolate (my personal favorite) I get to celebrate the fact that some people love vanilla!

Here are the benefits to understanding this truth:

It takes the pressure off any one church – when I know we are not called to reach everyone it helps dial in on being effective on the mission and vision that God had given us

It helps me help people – By learning to celebrate the different flavors in our city I can, with a clear conscience, recommend the other life-giving ministries that are represented here in our city and not feel like a failure in the process

It raises the level of the Holy Spirit’s activity in our city – The Bible says that where there is unity there is God’s commanded blessing. When we as Pastors can move past our insecurities and pride by cultivating unity, God’s blessing has to come!

It helps mean re-adjust the way I measure effectiveness – I’m not sure that true success should ever be measured by how many people we bring in! Maybe true Biblical effectiveness should not be measured by how many people we bring in, but by how many we are actually sending out

Sunday Afterthoughts 6.13

2010-06-15T09:24:00.002-04:00

Well, this week we actually got to view the second video (thanks to Steve and the Tech team) as we continued in our series “One Prayer.” If you didn’t make the meeting I would highly encourage you to go to the website (www.awakencitychurch.com) and take a few minutes to watch it.

Yesterday we had a great reminder of the value to true Biblical Fellowship and how it pertains to our spiritual life as believers. Proverbs 27:6 says, “Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful. “ As God continues to establish the work He is doing here at Awaken City Church we must be gripped by this powerful truth. The truth is we will only go so far in our spiritual journey without the ongoing investment in relationships that help us cultivate Godly, Biblical, Christ-centered lives! Yesterday was just another reminder that the real life here at Awaken does not take place on Sunday mornings. It’s only as we are connecting with each other in an authentic, transparent relationships that the real work of sanctification takes place. When we create a culture where love prevails then there room for this type of fellowship to actually take place and the reality is…. it really is something that we all want!

You can start this process by plugging into one of our Life Groups here at Awaken City Church. It’s on the context of these smaller gatherings that we are afforded the opportunity to connect at a much deeper level. If you not currently in a Life Group you can contact Ray (Ray@awakencitychurch.com) and he can help you find a group that works best for you.

Next week we will continue in our series “One Prayer” with thousands of other churches all over the world!

Don’t forget next week is also our Father’s Day Grill Giveaway!

See you next Sunday!

Don’t forget our Homeless Outreach takes place every Sunday morning at Center City Park at 8:00am. This past Sunday we feed over 60 people and the needs continue to grow. Please consider taking part in this critical ministry to our homeless friends.

Me, the Bi-Polar Pastor

2010-06-09T09:33:00.001-04:00

I’ve never been diagnosed as bi-polar, but here lately I feel like a bi-polar Pastor! Here’s why: I love every opportunity I get to see people far from God arrested by his presence! I love to see these people as God awakens their heart…it’s freakin beautiful!! I truly believe that the regenerated heart is the greatest miracle of all. In fact, most pastors I know would probably agree with me and that is why there is such an emphasis on creating an excellent, warm and inviting atmosphere in our Sunday morning worship experience. We all know to reach the un-churched in today’s God-ignoring culture, we have to do church differently….in a nut-shell….the church must change!

And then there is the other side of me! The side that knows that the regenerated heart is just the very beginning, the front door if you will, for the life that Jesus said we would live and experience here on planet earth! It’s the life of the Kingdom…right here, right now! There is something about seeing people come to life as they embrace the spirit-filled life that scripture calls us to! Just this past Sunday I heard the story of a woman in our church who felt like she had a word of encouragement for somebody, but she was scared to give it! After taking some advice from a close friend she mustard up enough courage to give the word! I don’t have to tell you how this ends! The person who received this encouraging word was absolutely lit up! You know what…that’s freakin beautiful!

If you know much about the apostle Paul you may be convinced that he too was someone who was bi-polar! Listen to the following words…If we are out of our mind, it is for the sake of God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you (2 Cor. 5:13). I think Paul wrestled with the same tension I am taking about…the desire to reach people and the raw desire for the presence of God!

The good news is that we can do both! Below are some thoughts on how to move forward!

1) If we are going to be good at both we must let love prevail

2) If we are going to do both it may require multiple environments

3) If we are going to do both it must be talked about and then cultivated into the local church culture

4) If we are going to do both we must ask for wisdom from heaven

Sunday Afterthoughts 6.6

2010-06-07T16:48:00.002-04:00

Well, this Sunday was a first! As much as we value and work hard to be fully prepared for our Sunday gatherings…this Sunday the whole game changed! For those who were there, you got to experience the change-up first hand! Our “One Prayer” video stopped working a few minutes in and there we were wondering what the heck was going on? However, church leadership must never forget that the church doesn’t belong to us! We are only stewards of what ultimately belongs to God! Yesterday, we had an opportunity to be “instant!” (2 Tim. 4:2 KJV) What followed was an incredible time of prayer and worship! I love the heart of God’s people to follow…even at times if it seems we are not sure where we are going! We can’t ever forget the “preacher” isn’t the only one who can minister! So to all of our Awaken City Family….You guys rock!

Last night we had our very first “Awaken Live!” Today, I am still taking in all that God did as we gathered in His presence! I am convinced more than ever that as a church, and as Christ-Followers, we must always fear lack more than we fear excess. I believe that religion and control keep us from “the more!” As I observed the passion of our young people, I was overwhelmed by the call of the church to steward what God has awakened in the hearts of his people! If the church fails to faithfully steward the mighty wind of God that is blowing through his church than we will leave it to our God-ignoring culture to define what we should really give our passion to!

These are truly exciting days as God continues to shape Awaken City Church! Let’s remain flexible and always allow love to prevail as we press into our destiny!

Exciting days are always before us! To God be the glory!!

Love, Sex and Jesus

2010-06-03T15:37:00.001-04:00

Did you know that in the in the next 60 minutes....

· 58 young people will attempt suicide

· 116 teenagers will become pregnant

· 28 teenagers will give birth to illegitimate babies

· 44 girls under the age of 19 will have an abortion

· 1,370 teenagers will drink an alcoholic beverage

· 114 teenagers will run away from home

As a church we can have our lists of all that we think teenagers should do to avoid becoming another statistic. However, I truly believe the answer for any teen is found in one simple rule….pursue Jesus with everything within you! Maybe that’s why Jesus said to love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind and strength! You see, as we learn to live from our hearts that we find the freedom that we all are really looking for!

The call of the gospel has never been a call to morality! The call of the gospel is to embrace with your heart the one who gave you life! It’s his live that empowers us to walk in the freedom our souls long for! It’s his love that gives us life! It’s his love that changes the way we live and think! God love gives God’s life!

Rules and religion will always fall short! Maybe what we need is to stop telling teens all that they can’t do and start telling them all that they can do! They can live into the destiny that has been set before them! The following are words penned from one young man who is doing just that!

We live with a conviction that life is to be sown into the destiny of people

This conviction drives the mighty to pursue the impossible

The strong to brave the many storms

You see, there is no escaping the storms of opposition

But we are the ones that have been commissioned to calm each of them

Each believer is called to take the test of life and turn them into a testimony

We are launched into the darkest places in the earth to transform them into the light of the world

We are counter-culture by nature

We are predestined from the womb and set apart from the beginning

This life that we have chosen can only be navigated by those with a renewed mind

The old man screams when faced with the impossible

The flesh is a poor decision maker

Have you decided who you will be

Do you know what you will leave behind

With your words you create worlds

With your prayers you release inheritance

The balance of life and death has been designed to rest in your hands

There is a day coming when the fruit of your life will be unveiled right before your eyes

How we choose to live today is a choice for eternity

Sunday Afterthoughts 5.30.10

2010-06-01T14:29:00.000-04:00

Wow…this post could be ridiculous! I have to say that this past Sunday was the most fun I have had in church in a long time! There is nothing quite like the presence of God when He meets with His people! I think that is why the Psalmist said, “Your love is better than life!” In a day when programming and programs seem to be the all the rage, I believe it’s the raw passion of God’s people that really brings heaven to earth! If you happened to miss this past Sunday, than there is no real way this post will accurately communicate all took place…but here goes!

· Worship was raw and authentic

· There seemed to be a greater hunger and expectation in the hearts of Gods people

· There was a call to get on the rope and well….we got on the rope…literally

· Overall there was a visible breakthrough that was felt by most everyone I talked to

· It spilled over into our youth meeting Sunday night

For those who read these posts and were there Sunday morning or Sunday night I want to give you an opportunity to finish this one out! Please leave your comments and share your thoughts!

Can’t wait until next Sunday!!

You Did It For Me

2010-05-26T12:03:00.000-04:00

Matt 25:31:46

"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. ³²All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. ³³He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

³⁴"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. ³⁵For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, ³⁶I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'

³⁷"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? ³⁸When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? ³⁹When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'

⁴⁰"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'

⁴¹"Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. ⁴²For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, ⁴³I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.'

⁴⁴"They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?'

⁴⁵"He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'

⁴⁶"Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."

Sometimes I wonder if the heart of the gospel has gotten lost somewhere in between Calvary and the Western “God-ignoring” culture that we have found ourselves in? With the pressure on the church to regain influence in today’s culture, have we somehow drifted away from the responsibility that Jesus has given us?

I think we would all agree that we live in a country that certainly knows what we, the church, are against. More than ever I think we owe the world a demonstration of all that we are for. I think this brings us back to the gospel which in case we have somehow forgotten means GOOD NEWS!

As I read the words of Jesus in Matthew 25 my heart cries out for God to open a door for us to be down town. We are currently feeding the homeless every week and have been long before our church officially opened. But we all know there is more. I want to see Awaken City Church re-locate to the center of our city for a lot of different reasons…here are a few!

I believe it’s where God has called us

We want to do more than feed the homeless

We want to be able to offer free laundry service

We want to open a food bank

We want to open a clothing closet

We want to offer free prayer for anyone who has needs

We want to give people a warm place to sleep in the cold winter months

We want to open a homeless shelter that is run by a local church and provides not only the practical needs of our friends, but there spiritual needs as well

If we do it for them we are doing it for HIM….Jesus!!

Sunday Afterthoughts 5.23.10

2010-05-24T12:02:00.000-04:00

Wow!! What another incredible raw, passion filled Sunday! As I think about the church in America I think the greatest need might be that of passion! I believe passion is the one ingredient that destroys the greatest enemy of the church…APATHY!! What would happen if we became gripped by God’s passion for His mission…which is people! What if we became a people who were ALL in? I think we would then position ourselves to see more of….

God’s favor

God’s power

God’s resources

God’s mercy

God’s provision

God’s authority

GOD!!

I truly believe with all my heart that this is the overwhelming desire of those who call Awaken City Church home! Every week I’m blown away by the lives of people who are laying it on the line! As we move into the second quarter of the year as a new church I can sense the hunger to actually BE the church! To give ourselves away by demonstrating what the message of the gospel really looks like! This is born out of passion! A passion to see God’s Kingdom come in our day and on our watch! This passion flies in the face the apathy that has marked the Western Church for way to long!

I said it before but I’ll say it again! This is the greatest day to be alive! This is the greatest day to be a Christ-follower! This is the greatest day to risk it all for the sake of the gospel!

Awaken City …get ready because we are just getting started! Our best days are still ahead! This is our time! This is the moment that God is re-awakening His church to be those who re-present this Jesus to our world!

I can’t wait until next Sunday!! You won’t want to miss this one!!

Church Planters Biggest Fan

2010-05-18T14:23:00.000-04:00

A church planters greatest asset. Every church planter has a long list (whether it’s only in their head or actually on paper) of things they need to make their “new” church go! I’m with you….I’ve got mine as well! However, the greatest asset to any church planter is already in your possession! If you’re going to plant a church, which we all know could be the hardest venture ever taken on because of the astronomical failure rate; you better take good stock of your partner in life! My wife has been my greatest asset in the past few months as we have set out to plant Awaken City Church! More than anything else she has been my greatest source of encouragement and still to this day is my greatest fan! Don’t mistake what I’m trying to say, this is way more than just a pat on the back! It’s the ability to speak into the deepest part of my soul in the darkest moments, “Rise up man of God!” Those words carry weight when they come from the person who knows you the most! Michelle is my greatest asset….

She’s my best friend

She’s my soul mate

She the mother to my six children

She fears God way more than any man

She’s conquered more in the last fifteen years than most will conquer in a life time

She is a risk taker

She the bravest woman I know

She the strongest woman I know

Her beauty goes way beyond words

She has more discernment than anybody I know

She’s authentic

She’s not afraid to tell me the truth

She’s not afraid to lose it all for the sake of the gospel

She my greatest fan!

If you’re going to plant, don’t ever forget that your wife is your greatest asset!

The man who finds a wife finds a treasure,
and he receives favor from the Lord. Proverbs 18:22 (NLT)

Sunday Afterthoughts 5.16.10

2010-05-17T15:23:00.003-04:00

Yesterday we continued in our series “Next” with a challenging talk from Ray on the need to be part of a Life Group here at Awaken City. If you missed yesterday you can go to the web site and hear this challenging word yourself. What we are trying to do in this series is answer the question, “What’s Next?” This is an important question for us as we head into the second quarter of the year as a brand new church. Wed started this series by recognizing that if we are going to do all that God has in mind we need a greater capacity for God… to see Him, to know Him, to respond to Him, and to enjoy Him! Two weeks ago we discovered that we are also going to have to be a generous church! We must trust God in every area of our lives including the area of finances. This week we talked about the importance of being connected to a smaller group of people who we can begin to do life with through committing ourselves to a Life Group! We have to remember that the areas we are talking about are not “rules” but rather “privileges!” It’s about alignment! As we align ourselves with God’s word we discover the life that Jesus came to give us! It simply doesn’t work any other way! This week we will tackle another important aspect of our life together as believers and as we all respond we position ourselves to have the greatest impact individually and corporately!

Every week I hear more and more stories of God’s grace being poured out in the lives of those who are coming. That’s why the gospel actually means “Good News!” More than ever, people are looking for life and hope in the midst of a word that seems to be spinning out of control! We are the ones that God has commission to announce to the whole world that real life comes from the very one who created life and that he has given us access to know him and to be known by him! There has never been a more exciting time to be those who carry this message to a world in desperate need!

Here at Awaken our story is just beginning, but we must know and be gripped by the cost of seeing the life changing message of the gospel find its place in the lives of people who so desperately need it! I have never been part of a church that I believe has had so much potential! The culture here at Awaken is marked by people who are determined to show the world what radical love really looks like!

If Awaken is your home, than it’s time to contend for all that God has for us! Get ready because God is preparing us for what’s next!

Sunday Afterthoughts 5.9.10

2010-05-12T09:30:00.000-04:00

Our first Mother’s Day as a Church is now in the books. Sunday we talked a lot about the heart of a Mother and how her heart reflects the heart of God. We also gave away a great gift to one special mom who happen to win our Mother’s Day giveaway (Hope you enjoy it Jennifer)!

As we talked through our second week of our series “Next,” we took our cues from some of what our moms thoughts us growing up…here’s the recap:

Dream Big – Here at Awaken we are doing just that. God has given us a dream to be in the center of our city. We believe this will position us to have a greater impact on the city of Greensboro.

Generosity – If we are going to run after the dream that God has put in our heart we will have to be a church that is marked by our generosity!

Don’t Waste Our Life – As we do the first two points we position ourselves to have the greatest impact – an impact that continues long after we are gone!

As we continue to talk about where we are headed as a church, let’s not make the mistake of focusing so much on that day that we don’t faithfully steward the day we are currently in. Tomorrows dreams come by faithfully stewarding all that we have been entrusted with today! My passion is to see everyone here take the necessary steps to be those who are willing to lay down their lives for the sake of the gospel! Our dream of being planted downtown in the heart of our city is within reach! The real question is, “How bad do we really want it?” Are we willing to count the cost to see a city Awakened to the reality of a revolutionary love that transforms even the hardest heart!

Stay tuned as we continue to answer the question, “What’s next?”

See You Sunday!

Sunday Afterthoughts 5.2.10

2010-05-03T16:00:00.001-04:00

Yesterday we launched a brand new series entitled “Next!” In the next few weeks we will be talking about what is “Next” here at Awaken City Church. We are now in the second quarter of the year as a brand new church plant. Here is the skinny: We started with 28 folks; today we average over 100 a week. We started with one Life group; today we have 7. We started with an idea to feed the homeless; today we feed over 50 a week and that number is increasing. Awaken City Church started as a dream; today it is a reality!

There is nothing quite like being in the center of a group of people who aren’t satisfied with just doing church…here at Awaken, we want to BE the church! Every week there are stories of lives that are being radically changed by the hope of the gospel. Whether we’re singing about it, talking about it or simply showing it, people are getting it.

As our story continues to unfold, we continue to pray that God would make us willing to be willing! To be more than just a church that gathers people! To be more just a bunch of people who have learned how to be good at being good! To be more than just people with good intentions! God is calling us to demonstrate the message that he has entrusted to us! We must live with the conviction that we owe people more than just words…we owe them an authentic encounter with the creator of the universe!

Awaken City Church, if you like where we’ve been, you’re going to love what happens “NEXT!”

Sunday Afterthoughts 4.18

2010-04-21T11:55:00.000-04:00

What another incredible Sunday! What is evident more and more is the fact that God continues to break in among His people! The revelation of His love continues to overwhelm us, His people! Yesterday was no exception! Many, many stories continue to emerge! Here is an e-mail I received from a mother who was visiting for the first time with her teenage daughter.

Yesterday after church my daughter asked me if we could pleaaaaasssssseeeeee go back. I asked her why and she said mama I have never felt that way and it was the first time I heard God speak to me!!!!!!!! We are going to church with a friend next week but I have a feeling we will see you again soon.

If you’ve been coming to Awaken City Church for any length of time than you yourself have seen the increase that God is bringing! Yesterday we had the most folks since our launch! Yesterday many people were visibly touched and overwhelmed by the presence of God. Every day there is a greater revelation that unless God builds the house the laborers labor in vain! God is truly at work building His house!

As we press into our future we can only expect increase! We are living in a day when the church being the hope of the world has never been more true! People are hungry for an authentic relationship that brings real hope to real life! Every day we get to partner with God to be the ones who broker this hope! Can you see it? Are you gripped by it? If not, stick around because it’s only just beginning! God is positioning us to daily give away all that we have freely received! Yes, these are truly exciting days, but let’s not be complacent! Instead, let us live from what our hearts are gripped by…an overwhelming love by an overwhelming God!

Greensboro is waiting….ARE YOU READY?

See You next Sunday!

Leadership Insights

2010-04-15T16:30:00.001-04:00

Here are a few thoughts on keeping your spiritual passion white-hot.

It begins with stewardship – Keeping spiritual passion alive is not a onetime event, it must be cultivated. Just like going to the gym every once in a while won’t produce the results you want, the same is true spiritually. The mistake that we often make after we have had a “God encounter” is that we fail to steward that encounter. If we make this mistake, then our “God moments” just become a memory that we cherish instead of an encounter that takes us into a deeper revelation and ultimately into our destiny. This is most clearly seen when all we talk about is what God did way back when, instead of being jacked by what He is still doing. Faith comes by hearing, not having heard (Romans 10:17)!

Find Your Fuel – What I mean is that all of us are different. What does it for one person may not do it for the next. Find the person you can connect with and drink in all you can. Have you ever been to a conference with many different speakers? There is always that one guy or gal that gets your spiritual juices going and it is probably because your heart beats the same! TAP that resource and others like it. I do believe it’s good to read and listen to a lot of different folks to keep a healthy perspective (I draw from a lot of different people), however, there are just a few folks that I draw from on a regular basis to get a good word. Proverbs 12:25, "Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression, But a good word makes it glad!"

Get Creative – We all learn differently. Find the thing that you have grace for and tap it! For me, I make good use of sermons on cd. I consider car time down-time, so I try to use it to listen to messages that fuel my passion! Most people spend a lot of time in their cars every week so take advantage of this time by feeding yourself. Cut off the radio and cut on the fuel. Reading is another great way to keep yourself focused spiritually. I take books to most places I go…whether it is a doctors appointment or picking up my kids. There is a lot of time to squeeze in a good read!

It’s All About The Music Man – Pay closer attention to who is whispering in your ear (or if you’re a teenager into screamo, who is screaming in your ear)! I believe music is spiritual (one day I’ll blog about it); it can touch places in our souls that nothing else can. Find some good, God saturated music and turn it up. Make good use of your i-pod and i-tunes by loading it up with music that will feed your soul! Remember: Garbage in, garbage out.

Don’t Go At It Alone – Find people who are shaped like you...people who burn with the same passion. Run with people who live with the conviction that we were created to be more than just fisherman…we were born to change history. Don’t ever let the cold hearts of others determine the condition of your own heart.

Sunday Afterthoughts 4.11.10

2010-04-13T11:32:00.002-04:00

Every Sunday I come away with the same confession….I love Awaken City Church! I love the people, I love the culture and I love the pioneering spirit that seems to permeate our people. Every week I get another glimpse at the reason we planted ACC!

In our new series, “Epic,” we are discovering that God has called us to live lives that surpass the ordinary. Yesterday we started this series by learning that God has a Theocracy.
For this has been decreed by the messengers:
"it is commanded by the holy ones,
so that everyone may know
that the Most High rules over the kingdoms of the world.
He gives them to anyone he chooses—even to the lowliest of people.” - Daniel 4:17 NLT
That is a great reminder because we live in a culture that would have us believe that majority rules…that somehow large crowds change God’s mind. However, what we also discovered yesterday is that God is really just looking for someONE. Just a willing person.

"Go up and down the streets of Jerusalem,
look around and consider,
search through her squares.
If you can find but one person
who deals honestly and seeks the truth,
I will forgive this city." - Jeremiah 5:1

Here Jeremiah is saying that if there were just one who would seek after truth, God would move and pardon the city. That is great news because it reminds us of God’s heart for people. We ended our talk by making the statement,"Movements do not define men, men define movements!" We are living in a day when God desires to display His sovereignty through anyone whose heart is turned towards Him!
At the end of the day, I truly believe that there is no greater time to be alive. There is no greater moment to be a Christ-follower! There is a shift that is happening in our culture. People are hungry for an authentic relationship with their creator and we are the ones that God has invited to partner with him to re-present Jesus to the world. I love our church because I’m convinced we carry this conviction.

Awaken City Church, great days are still ahead. Let’s purpose in our hearts to be those who will be found faithful with all that God is entrusting to us. May our prayer continually be that God would “Awaken” our hearts!

Sunday Afterthoughts 3.28.1

2010-03-30T11:38:00.000-04:00

Wow, another great Sunday at Awaken, including a historic event as OFY re-launched here at ACC! Here is the recap:

Since I had this Sunday off from speaking, Connor and I headed downtown to be with our homeless friends and to check in with the homeless ministry at Center City Park. I was blown away as I pulled up and saw the huge crowd gathered around our awesome team of volunteers who serve our friends every Sunday morning. As I watched the interaction and the look of gratitude of the faces of everyone there, I was overwhelmed and knew again that this is what the church is called to do. I was reminded that every Sunday morning we get to BE the church before we even gather to DO church. To all of you who faithfully serve every Sunday morning….thank you!

In our Sunday morning service, God’s presence seemed to overwhelm many as Larry and the team led us in worship. I truly love Sunday mornings because there is nothing that compares to gathering with the body of Christ to worship our creator! Larry, we are blessed by your heart and the passion of the team. Thanks bro!

Equally as exciting was being able to hear Ray share his heart with such a passion—he provoked us to dream big for God! I would never have guessed that when I first met Ray, when he was just a senior in High School, God would bring us together to plant Awaken City Church. Ray, thanks for sharing your passion and encouraging us to run after the dreams that God has put in our hearts.

The Sunday night cap was the re-launch of OFY! What an incredible night as many teenagers from all over Greensboro gathered to join us in this historic event! While the fun was incredible (dodge ball/assault all in one), there is nothing like watching teenagers respond to the invitation to give their lives to Jesus. Man, even after fifteen years in ministry this never gets old! Mike and his team did an outstanding job of leading a broken generation into the presence of God, and Jacob preached the best message I have ever heard him give (you knock it out of the park bro!).

While I continue to say how much I love what God is doing here at Awaken City Church, we have to know that what God desires to do goes way beyond any one church. I sense more than ever that God is preparing us, and the Church in Greensboro, for something that many have been praying for and sowing towards for many, many years! It goes way beyond just gathering people to our churches, it’s about seeing the display of this message that all of us have been entrusted with infect our city in a very tangible way.

Let’s continue to pray for a greater revelation of the plans and purposes of God and that we as a church would be faithful to steward everything God is doing!

OFY

2010-03-25T14:30:00.001-04:00

Well, this week it will happen…OFY will officially re-launch here at Awaken City Church. I can’t explain how excited this makes me. As most of you know, OFY started fifteen years ago with a handful of students and a dream that God could infect a generation with a passion to make his name great. That dream is still very much ALIVE! Over the years there have been thousands of teenagers who have been impacted by this ministry, and I believe there are thousands more yet to be touched. You see, OFY has always been more than a ministry or a meeting….at its core it is a movement.

I am excited for a lot of different reason. I will list a few:

1) The need to still great – At current trends here in America, the church is reaching 4% of this generation of young people. This may sound like discouraging news, but for those who have eyes to see, this is the greatest opportunity the local church has ever known.

2) Students are receptive – While it may seem that the church is dropping the ball, the fact is 90% of this generation of young people, are wide open to the message of the gospel. For those who know the stats, young people are the most receptive people on the planet to the counter-culture message of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Young people are broken, and most have tasted the pain of divorce, rejection, and trying to fill their lives with things that untimely won’t bring them life. Teens are searching for answers in a quest to find hope that brings them back to life. We are the ones who posses this message that causes dead hearts to beat!

3) Teens are radical – There is nothing quite like worshiping with a bunch of spirit-filled teenagers who have been gripped by the love of God! Their faith is infectious. They pray with passion, worship with a reckless abandon, and run hard towards the front lines, believing that with God all things are possible. This sounds exciting, and it is, but it requires the leadership in the local church to be faithful stewards of the fire that burns within the younger generation. Instead of calling them to morality, we are to release them into destiny! Most churches aren’t ready for the wild wind of the Spirit that blows through their lives. Maybe it’s because it exposes our lukewarm heart that has learned to walk with God from a distance.
This generation is different than us because instead of fearing excess they fear lack! They are not afraid of what they do not understand. What really scares them is wasting their life pursuing the idols that are so prevalent in our God-ignoring culture. They live with the conviction that their lives are to be sown into the destiny of their friends. This conviction drives them to pursue the impossible. They realize they will not escape the storms of life, they just believe they are the ones that have been commissioned to calm each of them. These teenagers believe that they are to take the tests of life and turn each one into a testimony. They are convinced that God is going to launch them into the darkest places so that they can transform these places into the light of the world. This generation is counter-culture by nature and at the end of the day, they believe they have been predestined from the womb and set apart from the very beginning.

4) The changing of the guard – Today, I am no longer the Youth Pastor of OFY. This mantle now lies squarely of the shoulders of Jacob Dunkelberger, who is the Youth Pastor here at Awaken City Church. I can’t think of anyone else who I would rather see lead the charge of this generation of young people!

Yep, these are truly exciting days! OFY is getting ready to begin the next chapter…are you ready?

Sunday Afterthoughts 3.21

2010-03-22T17:00:00.001-04:00

Wow, what an incredible Sunday! Every time we gather, I am reminded that the church is still the hope of the world. I have been thinking a lot about a passage we touched on yesterday, as it relates to us here at Awaken City Church. “My food," said Jesus, "is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work" (John 4:34). Every week I get to see the passion within our people to carry the weight of this verse. Jesus made it clear that his purpose was to finish the work the father had sent him to do--it was the reason “he had to go through Samaria” (listen to the message for the context).

One of the things I enjoy most about Sunday mornings is being surrounded by those who work with our homeless friends. It seems every week they have another story to tell and every week I am provoked by their passion. Yesterday, we also got a glimpse of the passion that burns within our young people...I have to confess, it was hard to talk after such a moving drama. I thought these were teenagers who are supposed to be wasting their life by throwing themselves at the God-ignoring culture that marks our day. Instead, they are throwing their lives at the one cause that has changed the course of world history. Awaken City, we have world changers in our midst!! I am more encouraged than ever as I think about our future, not because I think I have all the answers, but because I am surrounded by men and woman who believe that we have been predestined from the womb and set apart from the beginning. Our mission is to infect a city with the hope that only comes from heaven. God is building a church that carries the conviction that our life is to be sown into the destinies of those around us. I love our church, I love the passion that marks our people, and I am humbled to lead such a genuine church of Christ-followers. I can’t wait until next Sunday!

Find a Life, Don't Construct One

2010-03-17T15:30:00.003-04:00

We live in a day when self help is all the rage. Just go to your local bookstore and walk the aisles and you will see the evidence of the growing appetite for the “better me!” Mark wrote a story about such a guy in the tenth chapter of his gospel. The story goes that when Jesus was about to dip out and be on his way, there came a well-dressed man with a well-dressed question. The drama unfolds with this man throwing himself at the feet of Jesus and crying out, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Many there at the scene must have recognized this man because he was a prominent personality--a leader in the religious community. This guy was good at being good! Yet, in spite of all of his goodness, he was still empty and numb on the inside. The entire outward successful persona was there, but the truth was this man was dead on the inside.

As the conversation continues, Jesus asks the man why he called him good. Jesus went on to remind this man about the Biblical standards of goodness, you know..don’t steal, don’t cheat and don’t lie! The young man responds, "I’ve have followed all these rules from my youth (…and I’m still dead!)!" Doesn’t take long to see that making morality your God doesn’t work in the end. It certainly didn’t for this dude. This guy’s problem was that he believed the lie that says by doing all the right things and by keeping all the right rules he could bring himself to life.

In the end, Jesus challenges the man to trust in the one who truly is good. By encouraging him to abandon his false life, Jesus makes it’s clear that true life isn't found in improvement of the old self but the acceptance of the new one!

Sunday Afterthoughts 3.14

2010-03-15T12:30:00.002-04:00

I’m blown away once again! I know I say this often, but every Sunday it seems like I fall more in love with Awaken City Church. Every week I’m amazed by God’s expression of who He is through the lives of so many here at Awaken. Here are a few examples:

We had two of our folks (one a senior in High School) sleep under a bridge with some of our homeless friends. That just fires me up, and at the same time provokes me to the core!

Our worship team's love and passion for God is contagious. I love the free flow of worship as God begins to give them songs right in the heart of the moment. I love being led in worship by people who know it’s more than a song…it’s the cry of our hearts. Thank you all for your faithfulness and willingness to lead us into the unknown.

Our homeless friends are starting to come (and they love it). Thank you for reminding me why the church exists. Believe it or not, you’re teaching our church more about God than I as the Pastor ever could. We love you.

I love the heart of our people. Today, watching people respond by giving up their preferences in order to be effective was powerful. You all make want to love Jesus more, thank you for demonstrating was our faith is really all about.

Here at Awaken we are just one of over 400 life-giving churches in Greensboro. We love our city and want to be as faithful as so many other great ministries who are being led by so many great men and woman of God. May the “Church” in Greensboro rise to the occasion for the name of the one who rescued the hearts of humanity…Jesus. There is no greater name, no greater Savior and no greater cause. May you, King Jesus, receive the reward of your suffering!

Unleash II

2010-03-13T19:00:00.001-05:00

Here are few more insights from Unleash.

Opportunity – In spite of the grim news, in terms of the declining growth rate of so many main line churches (over 3000 close each year), God is raising up a new breed of churches. I remember years ago I was in a church growth seminar and listened to a Pastor in his sixties talk about his grandchildren. As he talked about the challenges that his grandchildren would face, in light of our ever evolving culture, he looked us and challenged every Pastor and leader there to build churches that could reach them. Even though I was only a Youth Pastor, something inside me was gripped as I listened to this man pleading for the church to rise up and be the church that would impact the world, including those broken and far from God.

Unleash is a conference for those with the same passion! As thousands of leaders gathered in South Carolina, we gathered knowing full well the challenges for the “Church” today. However, the overwhelming sense was that every great challenge brings with it the greatest of opportunities! For those who are gripped by the promise of God (I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail) the future has never looked brighter! However, desiring our preferred future and be willing to do whatever it takes to step into it, requires a courageous spirit that is willing to go beyond the desire to do church as it has always been done! Are we, as leaders and Christ –Followers, really willing and ready to step into the opportunity that today’s challenging culture had afforded us? Are we willing to answer the questions that people are really asking from today’s emerging culture? If so, then get ready to unleash the power of the gospel that we all know still brings life to dead hearts! This indeed is the greatest opportunity the church has ever known!

May God build His church that transforms cultures and changes the world one life at a time!

Sunday Afterthoughts 3.7

2010-03-08T13:30:00.001-05:00

Sunday Afterthoughts

Another great morning at Awaken City Church! I love being around people who share the same conviction. That conviction is this:

We owe people an encounter with God.

We owe them more than words.

We owe them more than a message.

We owe them something that has the power to change their life.

As we wrap up our series, “Don’t Tap Out,” I am reminded that the call of the gospel is to do that which we cannot do! Unless we see the supernatural interventions of God, all we are left with is to give the world the best thing we can produce and I think we would all agree....that’s not going to get it done. My desire is to cultivate our appetite for God; to be those who are willing to step out and take a risk. For the true blue Christ-follower, what we have come to realize is that this appetite for the impossible cannot be ignored or wished away--it must be cultivated until we become a people who transition from theory to practice. Jesus said, “The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit" -John 3:8. I think the impact of our life is like that of the wind. As we pay closer attention to the one who lives inside of us, others will feel the impact! This is church done differently. The emphasis is different, the culture is different, and my prayer is that the results will be different! For those at Awaken City Church I’ll continue to say…there is more and God has made it possible for every person on the planet that so desires, to be those who re-present Jesus to a city and to a world that so that so desperately needs it!

See you next Sunday.

Unleash

2010-03-05T08:00:00.000-05:00

Ok, so we just got back from Unleash (a one day conference hosted by New Spring Church in SC) and I wanted to blog about some of my take-aways. I want to start by thanking Perry Noble and his staff for hosting such an incredible conference. There is nothing quite like being around thousands of other believers who are hungry and believe that God is still committed to the plan of the church being His expression of hope in the earth today. There is nothing like being influenced by leaders and churches who are still committed to challenging the statuesque and calling us to be gripped, not by what God was doing yesterday, but by what God is doing today to rescue those all around us. Yep, yesterday was a great day (thanks Chris)!!

Lead Pastor Virgin:

This conference was the first one I have ever attended as a Lead Pastor and I have to say, this time was different. It felt different. It actually scared me because no longer could I just sit as a casual observer! Every talk seemed to carry more weight! Every talk carried with it a call to faithful stewardship. It was also different because as I watched and listened to the hearts of some of our leaders, I was overwhelmed by the potential of our future. I was overwhelmed because our leaders were giving me permission to dream as big as I could dream! To run as fast I could run! They were affirming that they believed, just as much as I did, that God has brought us together for such a time as this to see what God could accomplish through a group of people crazy enough to believe that with God all things are possible! Yes, it was a great day!

More insights coming in Unleash part Two.

Sunday Afterthoughts 2.28

2010-03-01T14:30:00.001-05:00

I want to start by saying that I love this church! The people, the culture, the Spirit…it’s all too good to be true! We are doing Church the way we always wanted but never thought we could, and yesterday was just another powerful example of that. God seems to be breaking in on us and He is breathing life into His people again. I’m thankful to have the opportunity to watch people come alive as they encounter what is really behind the message of the gospel….transformation! We will continue to say we owe people more than a message, we owe them more than just words, we owe them something that has the power to change their life! It’s found in the message, that we are not only called to proclaim; but to demonstrate. What will happen when the authentic message of the gospel begins to permeate our city? God is determined to show forth His goodness and we are the ones who get to broker it. How awesome is that? Get ready Awaken City Church…we are just getting started! Soon, it won’t be theory anymore because we will see the gospel’s impact on our city in way that we never thought possible. Things to be watching for in the next few months:

- Homeless Ministry Expanding

- Hospice Ministry Emerging

- Street Ministry Intensifying

- Launching of Ministry to Girls Trapped In The Industry

- Youth Movement That Changes the Way Youth Ministry is Done

- Awaken City Worship Releasing Original Songs …CD to follow

- Awaken City Church Opening In Downtown Greensboro

Leadership Insights III

2010-02-25T16:30:00.000-05:00

Top Four Lessons Since Planting

It’s been about eight months or so since this whole church planting process started and here lately people have been asking me about what I have learned. Here are my top four:

1) Trust God – This one sounds like a no-brainer because as Christ followers this is part of what we are called to do, but I submit this is a lot harder than it seems. You see, church planting is an all-or-nothing venture. The last eight months have been filled with the highest of highs and the lowest of lows and it’s in the lows that you better know what you heard! The only real way to navigate through questions, an unseen future, doubt, and fear, is to trust God. If He has called you than you can trust him…with everything! This has happened again and again along the way. Make Proverbs 3:5-6 a close friend.

2) You don’t have to know everything – Some of the most asked questions over the past eight months have been, “Why?” There have been a lot of these and the honest answer was always, “I don’t know!” The only thing I knew is that God was calling me to do it. For most people this is simply not enough, but at the end of the day it’s really all you have! I think about Abraham who also didn’t know where he was going, he just knew where he couldn’t stay! God will show you as you go!

3) People come and people go – This is one of the most fascinating aspects of church planting as I look back over the past eight months. Some people who I knew would be here till the end aren’t! Others, who were not even on the radar, have become some of the pillars of this brand new work! This is another reason trust is so valuable. For all you church planters, be very slow in putting people in any sort of oversight. Allow there to be enough time, for you the leader and for all those who think they are called to join you, to figure some things out. Planting a church from all angles is not what it seems from the outside looking in! Everyone involved must know that this is what they are supposed to do…and that simply takes time!

4) Be Yourself – Don’t bend under the pressure to be someone you are not! What people really need is YOU! I’m not Andy Stanly or Perry Noble and I never will be! However, I’m the best Frank Bishoff the world has ever known. God has created me with a specialized rod that has specialized bait that will catch the people that only “I” can catch! Lead and preach from who you are…your strengths, your personality, your gifts, your DNA! Simply put: BE YOUR FREAKIN SELF!

Sunday Afterthoughts 2.21

2010-02-22T14:30:00.001-05:00

What another incredible Sunday. There is nothing quite like gathering with the people of God (especially in a church plant situation). As I think about where we are and where we have journeyed so far I am truly amazed! Over the past eight months, God has done the impossible. When I think back to our very first gathering in September, and all that has happened since, I am exceedlingly amazed. Over and over God has met us every step of the way, and every Sunday is just another reminder of that. I have to confess that even today a lot is still unclear, but in the process of clarity God is breaking in.

It was beautiful to watch as the Holy Spirit broke in and ministered to so many as we gathered yesterday. I love the authentic culture of Awaken City Church because it removes all the unnecessary baggage that keeps so many churches from being what God intended. If we were honest, we would have to acknowledge that even in the church there is a growing need for the power of the Holy Spirit to come and heal the hurting. Sometimes that gets lost because of agendas or time constraints, and yet the need is still there. What I am learning is that this is bigger than me…the Pastor! These are God’s people and what they really need is to encounter Him! That is what happened to so many yesterday as we discussed the difficult subject of death. What we discovered is that in even in the face of death and loss….life prevails! I’m thankful to pastor a church that is so committed to the authenticity of the Gospel. Jesus said he came for the sick and he came to give us LIFE! There is nothing better than to witness the power of those truths being displayed right before your eyes! Thank you to all who are on the Awaken City journey! I truly love you guys, and I love the opportunity to be your pastor, but most of all I love calling Awaken City Church home! See you Sunday!!

What the...

2010-02-19T15:30:00.002-05:00

I was all prepared to write another entry …you know, those entries from me, the Lead Pastor of Awaken City Church! But this morning I picked up a book that I have had for a few days and decided I would knock out a chapter or two. Well, that was early this morning and I haven’t been the same since. I ended up reading the whole thing and I’m sitting here still digesting all that I read. It was one of those "what the heck is going on?!" days. The days when you have the day planned and then all of a sudden you get wrecked!! To give you a better understanding of what I am talking about, here are a few take-aways:

First, read the book! It will speak to you and give you a fresh perspective on life.
(The rest are in no particular order, but have equal importance)
Give this one short, momentary life away every chance you get!
Don’t get hung up on the details!
Laugh more often!
Don’t let ministry kill the ministry in you!
Take more days off!
Don’t take yourself too seriously!
Love often!
Celebrate friends!
Grab hold of God and don’t ever let go!
Take off the limits!
Believe God tomorrow more than you did today!
Kiss your kids (and your spouse) more often!
Run after the dreams that God has put in your heart!
Forgive more often!
Celebrate your wins!
Live every breath for the one who gave it to you!

Alright, alright…the book is Life Stories by Ted Hopkins! By the way, he’ll be at Awaken City Church this Sunday morning! Thanks Ted for your friendship and for investing your time so that you could share with the rest of us!

Sunday Afterthoughts

2010-02-15T15:00:00.001-05:00

This Sunday we started a brand new series at Awaken City Church called “Tap Out!” As we continue to see the emergence of Awaken City Church I am excited about all the possibilities. We are in the midst of God clarifying what He has called us to, and how we as a church can step into this unique call. Each week we are getting a greater sense of what that calling actually looks like. Yesterday was no different. Teams are continuing to form, systems continue to develop, and we are continually aware of the great need to reach inside the hearts of people and apply the healing grace of God. The good news is that it is happening! Yesterday I heard many stories of God gripping people's lives as they were confronted with old mind sets and old ways of thinking. God is building His church and the story is still unfolding!

Reflections

2010-02-11T22:40:00.000-05:00

A trip to Panera was all it took! I found myself having a flashback this week while driving to that well known bakery on my way to an Awaken City Staff meeting. All of a sudden I was taken back about six months, when the church plant was nothing more than a crazy idea. I started seeing the faces of people who had called me and wanted to talk about the possibility of being part of ACC. Panera began to be the meeting place where, with nothing more than a dream, I would share all I thought I knew about what God might be up to. Now here I was getting ready to meet with some of the staff and those who oversee different ministries here at Awaken. For a minute it all just seemed like a dream, but the awesome reality is that God has done it…He’s really done it!! At this point there are way too many stories to tell about all that we have watched God do over the past few months (and it’s still unfolding), but here is what I know as I reflect: God is good. He really is better than we think! He loves us more than we’ll ever know! He’s bigger than can be described!

As I sit here today I am amazed and overwhelmed. I still spend a lot of my time dreaming, except now I am dreaming with some of my closest friends who now have become my partners in ministry. I now pastor some of the most precious people on the planet. Every week it seems God gives me another glimpse of what the Church can be as God’s people respond to Him and with great courage chase the dream that He has put in their hearts! Perhaps the most appropriate way to end my entry is with this: “We are getting to do church like we always wanted to but didn't think we could." To God be the glory!!

Leadership Insights II

2010-02-09T21:59:00.001-05:00

Today I want to give another important leadership principle. Are you ready? Because here it is: Write It Down!
I heard the following statement a few years ago, and it has really helped me navigate the ups and downs that are associated with church planting: “Don’t ever doubt in the darkness what you were sure of in the light!” The past six months have been the ride of a life time. For those who may not know, church planting is an all or nothing venture. I realized this on the front end and did a lot of praying and soul searching in the weeks leading up to the decision to plant a church. It seems that every time I began to question if I made the right choice, I have been reminded of that statement. I am always led back to what I know I heard in those weeks leading up to the decision.
Early on I began to write down everything I could think of that I believed was confirmation for me to plant this church. I wrote down conversations I had with people that were speaking into my life at the time, I wrote things that I believe God spoke to me through books I was reading, I wrote down the phone calls I received and the random visits we had that only pointed to me making this move, I wrote down words that people had given me out of the blue (before anybody knew about me planting a church). I say all this because in those moments when it seemed as though the darkness was crashing in on me, I went back and reviewed all the these things that I was absolutely sure of before I made this crazy decision! This process has been a lifeline many, many times over the past several months!

So, how about you? Are you writing down the things that you know God is speaking to you? If you’re not I want to encourage you to start today! Don’t take it for granted that you will remember all the secret things that God is saying in regards to your life and ministry. Write them down and let them be a resource to you as press ahead towards that which you know God has called you to! I love Paul’s exhortation to his spiritual son Timothy found in 1Timothy 1:18--

"This command I entrust to you, Timothy, my son, in accordance with the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you fight the good fight."

Paul is encouraging Timothy to remember what God has spoken over his life so that he can fight the good fight of faith; so that he can better contend for that which God has for him. That same encouragement is what we need to embrace so that when we are tempted to doubt, we can remember the life giving words that empower us to forge ahead and capture the destiny that God has called us to! The truth is that leadership at most levels is risky business and requires us to KNOW what is at stake. It takes courage to chase what we believe God is calling us to do. At the end of the day this is a whole lot easier if we have taken the time to write down all that we know God has said!

Hey you…WRITE IT DOWN!!

Sunday Morning Afterthoughts

2010-02-07T16:57:00.001-05:00

Today was the proudest moment any Pastor could ever hope to experience! If you were not there, this post will not help you much (sorry). So I planned a drama without most of the congregation knowing and it didn’t quite turn out like I had planned. I had four different actors (who don’t go to ACC) planted in seats across the auditorium. I had planned for them to interrupt my talk and begin to share their life story. The power of this skit is when after they share their story they look at the crowd and say, “But I still need Jesus and what are you going to do about it?” We have done this skit a ton of times over the years, but never with the response that we had today. You see, the actors could not even finish their lines because our people refused to just sit there; they actually began to interrupt the skit. They simply could not sit there and listen to these people (whom they did not know were just actors) share their stories. Their hearts would not allow it. Instead of just sitting there, a hand full of different folks began to stand up to let these people know that it didn’t matter what their story was, because God loved them! A few even began to share their own stories in hopes that it would encourage these “lost people” to realize that, in spite of their circumstances, they were not beyond the reach of God’s love and forgiveness. I was blown away watching as God’s people responded right there in the moment. As a Pastor, I got to witness the radical commitment to love that marks those at Awaken City Church…it is a moment I will never forget. At the end of the day, our congregation preached the best, most moving sermon, I have ever seen as they displayed what radical love really looks like.

Other highlights:
We had our first baptism at Awaken City Church with four people committing their lives to Christ
We had more folks there than ever before
We had the highest offering we have ever had (not including our launch)
Today was baby Corwin’s first time at church
I was reminded today why the church really exists

I want the whole world to know….I really, really, really, love Awaken City Church!!

I SUCK at life

2010-02-05T14:30:00.001-05:00

OK, I’m glad the title grabbed you, but here is the reality…this phrase probably runs through our heads more than we would like to admit! Most of us don’t wake up feeling super encouraged and ready to tackle whatever God brings our way. Whether we know it or not, most carry the “I suck at life” mindset everyday. Now don’t hear what I’m not saying, it’s not that we want to suck at life. Inside we have dreams and a deep desire for our life to count! That part we have down…it’s all there, tucked away where most cannot see (not even ourselves sometimes). It is about believing that those dreams and desires can actually be realized, that is the big problem!

Here is the good news: God loves using people with “Isuckatlifeitis!” As you read through the scriptures, what you will find are people making excuses for why they are not qualified to do what God is calling them to do. What you will also see are those who fit the description of people who seem to suck at life! Check this one out… 1 Samuel 22:2 -- "All those who were in distress or in debt or discontented gathered around him, and he became their leader. About four hundred men were with him."

Here we find a description of those who were added to David when he was all alone. Look again at the words that describe those who had gathered…distress, debt and discontented! These were the ones who surrounded David! Maybe they too felt like they sucked at life! And yet, here they are positioned by God to fight alongside one of the greatest men in the Bible.

God used these men because there is something wonderful about people with “isuckatlifeitis.” There is a certain innocence that leads to having greater expectations when it comes to doing something great for God. When you are raw and inexperienced there is a certain innocence that allows you to lead differently. In fact, sometimes these folks are a whole lot easier to follow because their innocence stands in stark contrast to the know-it-all’s. There is also a child like faith and expectation that comes with those who have “Isuckatlifeites.” Because of your innocence, you don’t know any better. You’re prone to believe that God really CAN!! That all things really are POSSIBLE(You know a child will believe anything until an adult comes along and tells them otherwise)!

So for all of those with “Isuckatlifeitis,” count yourselves among God’s favorite! You are those whom God loves to use, don’t ever forget that in your weakness He is made strong. Go ahead and step into your destiny with your bad “Isuckatlifeitis” self, because all of heaven is behind you!!

Do You Remember?

2010-02-02T15:00:00.001-05:00

Well, we are officially one month in and one month out from all the millions of resolutions made coming into the New Year and New Decade. I wonder how many of us are still standing strong (don’t worry you, don’t have to tell)? I also wonder if most people even remember all the promises that were so strongly etched on their hearts just one month ago? The problem with humans is that we are prone to neglect and prone to forget. While we would all agree that this is true, it is especially true as it pertains to the voice of destiny calling to us each and every day! Today, I want to address the principle and power of remembering. Read carefully the following words:

The works of the LORD are great,
Studied by all who have pleasure in them.
His work is honorable and glorious,
And His righteousness endures forever.
He has made His wonderful works to be remembered (Psalm 11:2-4 NKJV)

Remember - to bring to mind or think of again, to keep in mind for attention or consideration

When we remember and feed ourselves on what God has done, we are better conditioned to respond to what God is doing. In other words, when we keep the activity of God in the center of our hearts we position ourselves to stay encouraged. Historically, as believers, I think we have shot ourselves in the foot by doing two things:
1) Not remembering
2) Choosing what we remember
Why is remembering such a big deal? I believe the obvious answer is because everything around us, the entire world system, is a system of unbelief that denies the existence of God, the nature of God, and
the nature of faith and God’s supernatural interventions.

In Joshua 24:31, we get a glimpse of the power of remembering.
Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua , and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua, who had known all of the works of the LORD which He had done for Israel (NKJV).
It seems that as long as they were conscious of what God did, it changed the way an entire nation lived! You see, when we remember, it changes something about our make-up, it changes how we relate to people, it changes how we relate to problems …it changes everything. It reminds us of who we are partnering with to shape the course of world history. This becomes critical to every believer because we are called to have influence. The fact is, each of us is the best representation of Christ that somebody knows! When we remember and feed ourselves on what God has done, we are conditioned to respond to what God is doing. This makes us very effective and very dangerous.

The second important point about remembering is in choosing what we remember. The reality is, we hold dear and close to our hearts that which we choose to remember! John 5 is a perfect example of what I am getting at:
"Some time later, Jesus went up to Jerusalem for a feast of the Jews. Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades. Here a great number of disabled people used to lie—the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, "Do you want to get well?"
"Sir," the invalid replied, "I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me."
Then Jesus said to him, "Get up! Pick up your mat and walk." 9At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked.
The day on which this took place was a Sabbath, "10and so the Jews said to the man who had been healed, "It is the Sabbath; the law forbids you to carry your mat." But he replied, "The man who made me well said to me, 'Pick up your mat and walk.' "
So they asked him, "Who is this fellow who told you to pick it up and walk?"
The man who was healed had no idea who it was, for Jesus had slipped away into the crowd that was there."

If this were to happen today and the media were to get ahold of it, the take away would not be on what God did, but what he didn’t do. The tragic mistake would be this: instead of celebrating the miracle and all that God did do, the temptation would be to focus on all that did not happen. When it comes to remembering, it is important that we do not keep a list of all the perceived things that God has not done, because keeping a list legitimizes our unbelief.

As I close let me ask you a question. What are you holding close to your heart?
Are you living your life gripped by remembering all that God has done? Or are you fixated on a list that you have been keeping of all that you think God hasn’t done?
Today chose to be intentional about what you remember!

Leadership Insights - Part I

2010-01-29T14:59:00.005-05:00

Today I want to begin a series of leadership insights; this entry will be Part One of several more entries to come. Let me begin by making a pretty bold statement: “I am a great leader!” In fact, “I am an exceptional leader!” I am blown away at well I lead! It is pretty freakin’ amazing how great of a leader I really am! You see, we are all great leaders. We all lead well every day and the truth is we are leading people whether we realize it or not. We lead at home, in the office, at school, in the car, on facebook, twitter, myspace, at church, and when no one is looking. We lead with every breath we take, every thought we think, every word we write, and every decision we make. We are very potent people when we stop and think about it. We are ALL born leaders! So the real question then becomes how do we lead? Where will we lead those who follow (and yes, they are following)? Will we lead out of pride, fear, and insecurity, or will we lead out of the red hot burning convictions that are marked by love and humility?

Andy Stanley made a statement a few years back that has been etched on my heart, “Leadership is a stewardship, it’s voluntary and we are all accountable!” Leadership carries with it great responsibility. So how do we exercise leadership? That really is a big fat hairy question and I am not going to pretend that I have all the right answers, but I do have a few ideas that may get us off to a good start.

1) Lead With a Humble Heart: At the end of the day we all have blind spots. There are many areas in all of our lives which are still in process, and the fact is we just don’t know it all! God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble.

2) Be Willing to Learn From Others: One of the greatest resources we have is the people around us. I remember as a young twenty -something, I would always make time to hang out with those who were already in their thirties or older. It was in those years that I learned a lot about living, dying, spending money, making money, humility, marriage, hearing God, spiritual gifts, and leadership in general.

3) Voluntarily Make Yourself Accountable: Use these same folks as a source to help you grow in the areas where you are the weakest and help you recognize your strengths. Give them permission to ask you questions that most people are not going to ask you. Here are a few examples:

-How is your thought life?

-What is God speaking to you?

-What current sin are you wresting with?

-Are you looking at pornography?

-How is your marriage?

-What is the current state of your soul?

-What do you see as my greatest strengths?

The truth is that if no one is asking, we are prone to fudge in some of the most important areas of our lives.

4) Be Quick to Repent: This one is a biggie! Even if you are only one-percent wrong in a situation, you need to own that one-percent and repent for it. Don’t ever let your position or title keep you from living a life of ongoing repentance.

5) Become a Reader: Until my college days I had never read a single book from cover to cover. Now it seems I can’t go a day without reading. Learners are readers!

6) Don’t Live as a Dead Sea Christian: One of the greatest contributions you can make on your quest to being a better leader is to give yourself away. If all you do is take, you become a Dead Sea Christian because everything is flowing in but nothing is flowing out. It can be as simple as giving a little encouragement, opening the door for someone, buying someone lunch, offering to pray with someone, but so something daily to give yourself away. Don’t be the guy who is always taking!

What do you have?

2010-01-27T09:00:00.000-05:00

You know there seems to be a cry for more throughout the body of Christ these days and I count myself among those who long to see a greater expression of God’s Kingdom in my own life and ministry. I believe inside each of us there is an appetite to see the impossibilities of men bow to the name of Jesus! We all want more, we want to see more, we want to be entrusted with more… we just want more! However, I’m more convinced than ever that the road to seeing more is being faithful with what we have.

I convinced that the secret to “the more” is often the greatest overlooked commodity we have because it’s the seeds which we already posses! It’s called stewardship! One of our greatest sins as believers has to do with stewardship…the stewardship of what we already posses! Luke 19 records this powerful truth. As you read the account of the talents it becomes clear the ladder to our promotion is found faithfully stewarding that which we have been given. How many have disqualified themselves from receiving “the more” because they failed to recognize that the seed was in their hands! The problem is that in the process they end up taking the life right out of the most significant thing they have. In a nut shell Jesus is saying faithfulness in small things is what qualifies us for great things. It’s promotion through stewardship! The measure we receive seems to be directly tied to the measure our stewardship.

So what are we doing with what we have? No really, think about it! What are you doing with what you have been given? How do you spend your time? How do you spend your money? What are you doing in your fight against sin? Are you still wasting your time trying to explain to God why you can’t? You see, our excuses only deceive us into feeling better about our current circumstances when the truth is the route to promotion is already in our hands! So again the question really comes down to this, “What do you have?” Don’t despise the day of small beginnings and give God what you have!

Sunday Afterthoughts

2010-01-25T13:30:00.001-05:00

I am again blown away by the passion of God’s people! Yesterday I was

able to get another clear glimpse of the potential of the local church.

Every Sunday it seems more and more stories are emerging. For instance,

Mary introduced me to her friend who was visiting for the first time. Mary

met this lady because they were involved in a car accident! Instead of the

typical car accident response, the one that goes something like: “My car,

my car!” Mary saw an opportunity. She was able to pray with this lady and

then invited her to church! Yesterday I got to meet her, and from what I

hear she loved Awaken City Church! The truth is I too am falling more in

love with all that God is doing through and at ACC. I feel like I’m

living a dream and I know the best days are still to come! Here are the

highlights from yesterday:

• Next to our launch, which really doesn’t count, we had our highest

attendance

• There was a greater sense of the presence of God during our worship

• People willingly committed to being part of a church that will put

it all on the line

• Next to our launch we had the highest week of giving

• Our homeless ministry continues to be a beacon of light and hope to

those who so desperately need it

In other news…

We will be meeting in a couple weeks to brainstorm about the next move for

our homeless ministry. The long-term goal is to be able to do more than

just provide food and clothes—what if we could actually rescue people

from the streets one person at a time?

OFY (our youth ministry) is getting ready to launch here at Awaken with a

brand new agenda! Details are forthcoming so please stay tuned.

Our first baptism is just two weeks away! I can’t wait. This promises to

be a powerful event as we hear the stories of people whom God has

apprehended!

Off Line

2010-01-21T12:00:00.004-05:00

I have to admit I’m loving the opportunity to blog! However, there are times that I wonder if anyone really ever reads anything I write. So far no one has left a comment on any of my entries (on this site)! That’s not necessarily bad! If anything it frees me up to talk about anything I want! Heck, I could even use a few cuss words and get away with it! So today this entry is entitled off line! A few confessions from the Lead Pastor at Awaken City Church…off line!

- What most people don’t know is that most Sunday’s I am holding back! Good or Bad…I am! Most Sunday’s I fight the urge to say what is really burning on the inside! You see, the gospel has really changed my life! I owe everything I am to the one who pulled me out of the mess I was in! Jesus radically saved me 20 plus years ago! I have seen more than I ever thought I would. I’ve been to places I thought I would go! I’ve done things I never thought I would do! Awaken City Church is the latest of a long list! Maybe what it really boils down to is that I’m afraid that people will think I’m crazy!

- I don’t want to Pastor a church that makes excuses….. because there aren’t very many good ones! One man died…therefore we are all dead (2 Cor. 5)! There is no excuse not to give ALL that we are and ALL that we have! I believe everyone who calls Awaken City their church should give 10% of their income! I believe everyone should be committed to a small group and I think everyone should serve! I can already hear why people can’t! But here is the reality; we have one short, brief, momentary life that is fading way faster than we all know! I want to Pastor a church that has a 100% commitment! At the end of the day excuses only keep us back from all that God has planned for us! Excuses make us liars every Sunday morning if what we sing during worship doesn’t match what we demonstrate with our lives!

- I love radical worship! I love reading the account of the day of Pentecost in the book of Acts! What most people forget is that for 10 whole days earth was invading heaven before heaven invaded earth! Our hunger attracts heaven!

- I love taking risks for God! For those who stick around ….get ready, because there is no telling what we might do! Here are few thoughts turning in my head:

- Free Beer – I know it’s crazy so stay tuned!

- Porn & Pancakes – It’s the elephant in the room!

- Dirty Little Secrets – Yep, we all have them and soon we may just talk about a few!

The fact is most churches are way too safe! We live with a low risk mentality that has cost us because we end up missing great opportunities! You see, for far too long the church has bought into this refined civilized version of the gospel that is void at taking risks!

- I really, really, really believe that local church is the hope of the world! If not us …who? We are the only ones that can broker all the resources of heaven! We are it! We are God’s plan! If you’re not plugged into the local church you are in danger of wasting your life!

I feel better now!!

Live from Your Heart

2010-01-19T14:30:00.000-05:00

I would venture to say that every time we read a statement like “Live From Your Heart” we’re torn. I believe it’s because inside this statement connects with the deepest part of who we are! And yet, because of our own experience, we come to believe it’s just not possible. I’m not suggesting that I have all the answers here, however, I do want to suggest one possible ingredient that may be required if we ever hope to make this a reality in our lives.

Courage! Please don’t be mistaken…I’m talking about supernatural courage! I’m talking about a courage that flies in the face of fear! I’m talking about the guts to step over the line even when you don’t know the outcome! It is what I would call, “Courage that has said its prayers!” I believe this is the courage most represented in scripture! People who are scared to death but move forward not really sure if it’s going to turn out the way they think! But because they are living from their heart…they cross the line!

What we see most represented in most folks today are people who seem to wait for the stars to line up and sometimes that isn’t even enough to make us move. Stop right now and ask yourself this question, “When is the last time I put my faith on the line?” I believe the reason so many so called Christians are bored with God and bored with life is because we never take any risks! Our lives are void of any real risk that requires any real sacrifice!

Courage - mental or moral strength to venture, persevere, and withstand danger, fear, or difficulty

I think we may have forgotten that the requirement of the gospel is that we are required to do what we cannot do! How much of what really goes on in our life is stuff that doesn’t really require God anyway?

In the book of 1 Corinthians Paul makes an interesting statement.

“I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling.” (1Corinthians 2:3) This is courage that has said its prayers! The testimony here is that Paul was “with them!” in spite of not really knowing any outcome and wrestling with weakness and fear ….he still went! Why would Paul, the Apostle Paul wrestle with fear……

Paul gives us a clue in his own commentary about his life. Paul said of his journeys:

I have……

· Been in prison more frequently

· Been flogged more severely

· Been exposed to death again and again

· Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one

· Three times I was beaten with rods

· Once I was stoned

· Three times I was shipwrecked

· I spent a night and a day in the open sea

· I have been constantly on the move

· I have been in danger from rivers

· In danger from bandits

· In danger from my own country men

· In danger from gentiles

· In danger in the city

· In danger in the country

· In danger at sea

· And in danger from false brothers

· I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep

· I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food

· I have been cold and naked.

- 2 Corinthians 11:23-27

But if we could interview Paul…he would insist that even in the midst of the suffering and hardship, he was most fully alive…because this was man living from his heart! Courage that said its prayers understands the call and chooses it willingly! Courage that said its prayers comes from an understanding on the front end, that there might be some suffering and hardship and disappointment, but lives with the conviction that following Jesus Christ into the unknown is more powerful and more fulfilling than living with everything the world can give you ……minus Him!

If we are going to people who truly live from our heart it has to start with the declaration that says, “Fear will not tell me what to do.”

I’ll close this entry with some really good news! We are all terminal! We are all going to die! But the real question is this…”Are we going to live?” We have been born with purpose and destiny, but this is only captured when, with courage, we walk past the line and live from our heart!

It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly...who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who have never known neither victory nor defeat.

-Teddy Roosevelt

Sunday Afterthoughts

2010-01-19T10:00:00.001-05:00

What an Incredible day! Week two of Awaken City Church! As much as I enjoyed our launch,, I have to confess yesterday was much sweeter. Yesterday we really got to see our new Church! The launch was great because we had so many family and friends come to support us and help celebrate the birth of a new church! However, yesterday was our first service as a local church body!

Here are some quick highlights:

· We had several new folks who returned from our launch (our church is growing)

· Half of our offering went to support Haiti (felt good to be able to contribute as a brand new church)

· I got to share several different stories of God’s healing power as we continue to be a church that is “loving our city”

· Several folks signed up to serve and to connect to a small group

· Our homeless ministry continues to bring hope every Sunday morning before our service (there is no better way to start the day)

· More people are signing up to be baptized on February 7

· I am seeing more clearly the potential of the local church

What excites me more than anything is having the opportunity to build a local life-giving church! Already I am falling in love with what God is doing at Awaken City Church! The passion of our people inspires me and I’m already looking forward to next Sunday!

Sunday Afterthoughts

2010-01-12T12:33:00.003-05:00

Wow! What a great day! It’s hard to believe that just six months ago Awaken City Church was just a dream! Yesterday, January 10, 2010, that dream became a reality…Awaken City Church is officially here!

I wanted to list a few highlights and a few thoughts regarding our launch in today’s entry.

- I preached with my fly open! The whole message!! My daughter was on the front row and knew it, but failed to let me know the barn door was open (Thanks Chelsey). I’m still waiting to go to a Church Leadership Conference where they teach you a system that prevents this from ever happening!

- Our meeting was packed. We had around 175 and the atmosphere was electric!

- We received a great offering (Way more than we were expecting)!

- Many people responded to the prayer to either receive Christ or re-commit their lives to Christ!

- Many people are now participating in our 21 day fast.

- We had great feedback from everyone we talked to!

- All of our teams pulled together and got the job done!

- We had one of our homeless friends from our ministry downtown join us for our launch.

- I left Sunday morning knowing this is just the beginning! Our best days are yet ahead!

Yesterday I was reminded about the nature of Faith. Faith sees – unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God (John 3). Our conversion gave us the capacity to see. Faith sees…it is the nature of faith! What does it see? Faith sees unseen realities. Faith always lives from the unseen towards the visible! It was faith that got us here and it is faith that will take us into all that God is calling us to. At the end of the day this is the take away for all of us that call ourselves Christ-Followers…It takes faith to live by faith!

Moments that Forever speak - Behind the Blog

2010-01-06T11:39:00.000-05:00

I know this is a blog and blogs are supposed to be a place where you can go and get refueled as you read the insights of great leaders. But today, I wanted to take you behind the blog and into my own life. Today’s entry is a bit long but hopefully worth the read! This entry comes on the heels of my last entry “Moments That Forever Speak.”

Have you ever realized that at times your journey with God can leave you with more questions than answers? I’m sure every believer has their long list of why’s? I don’t think whys are bad, as long as they don’t prevent you from moving forward in your journey.

As we move closer to the birth our sixth child (one week away at the time of this entry) I have been finding myself thinking through the circumstances surrounding the birth of our last child Caden, which left our family and probably hundreds of people asking why?

For those who may not know, in the early months of 2006 Michelle and I found out that we we’re pregnant (by we, I mean she)! At the time we already had four children and were happy and excited about baby number five (no, we are not Mormons)! Due to some heart issues that our son Connor (our third child) had as an infant, we were scheduled to have a specialized sonogram that could detect heart informalities, if any were present, with this new child in Michelle’s womb. As the sonogram started the first thing the technician told us was that our baby was a boy! Inside my heart was leaping and my chest was sticking out… “another Bishoff boy!” But just moments later, while we were still glowing about the news of a baby boy, we were informed that there was very little amniotic fluid in Michelle’s womb because our baby did not have kidneys. They then encouraged us to terminate this pregnancy because there would be no baby! Needless to say we were stunned by the news and we both fell speechless as our minds filled with questions! By the time we left the Doctor’s office the one prevailing question in both of our minds was why?

One of the first things we did when we got home was gather our family and friends to pray! We needed wisdom and perspective! We needed to get hold of what God was doing because terminating this pregnancy was never an option! An hour or so after the our prayer gathering a friend called and said he felt from the Lord that we were to name this baby if we hadn’t already! Moments later we began to talk about what we would name our baby boy! I better pause and insert one small little detail about the names of our babies! All of our children have the same initials CEB! Here is the formula: First names start with the letter C. Middle names start with the letter E and are all Biblical! Call us crazy I know! Anywho, after kicking around some different names I threw out Caden. None of us had ever heard this name before, but we all really like it and started getting excited! About that time another close friend of ours called and said she had been praying and God gave her the name for this child but she wanted to know first if we had decided on one. Michelle told her that we had just been talking about his name but that it was a name that we had never heard of and it was the name Caden. Her friend started screaming into the phone with sheer excitement because that is exactly the name that God had spoken to her! Elated by the moment they both got on the internet and looked up the name Caden to see what it meant. It turns out that Caden meant fighter!

As the weeks passed the follow up sonograms only confirmed what we had already been told. In spite of the prognosis we stood in faith crying out to God for a miracle!

In early August Michelle was admitted to the hospital so they could better monitor this little one inside of her womb. By this time in the pregnancy there were new concerns we had to deal with; namely that Caden was moving around so much that he might get caught around the umbilical cord! At the time we admitted Michelle the baby was only 24 weeks. Concerns for Caden’s life continued to mount so the goal of the doctor’s was to get us to 30 weeks and then go for a Caesarean section delivery. For six weeks Michelle was stuck in a bed so they could watch every move Caden was making. At times she would have to fight the urge to sleep so she could turn over when they knew Caden was on the cord. The doctor’s kept telling us that even if we got to 30 weeks chances of survival were zero, but we were determine to give our son the best chance for life!

Week 30 came and Caden was indeed born and he was the most beautiful boy you could ever imagine seeing (a chip off the ol’ block). But they were right….. he did not have kidneys. For two and half days Caden fought for his life and for two and half days we got to see and touch and smell and hold and kiss and talk to this fearfully and wonderfully made CHAMPION! We called him Caden but God called him a fighter…and fight he did for two and half days until he finally on Thursday, September 16, Caden took his last breath as we held him in our arms.

Here comes the why? Great question! I wish I had the answer! The reality is I don’t know and I’m not going to pretend that I know, or for that matter will ever know! But I don’t want to get side tracked on all that I don’t know and you shouldn’t either! Instead I want to tell you what I do know! Because the secret to getting past every “why” is being gripped by what you do know!

Powerful truths that gripped me in this moment!

God is good! In a mysterious way …all the sweetest fellowship, all the treasures of assurance, all the ecstasies of joy and all the clearest sightings of eternity were discovered in this moment!

As we held our son in those last few moments it was if he was saying, Dad, today the well done is going to be spoken over me! Make sure you live the rest of your life so that the well done is spoken over yours! Just like Abel, our son Caden Elisha Bishoff gave his own offering! Caden taught me how to live, but maybe more importantly …how to die!

A few months after Caden passed away I received a letter from a dear friend who said she woke up in the middle of the night after having a vision of Caden in a dream. As soon as she woke up she began to write the following letter:

Mommy,

I am sorry that you had to be so brave. I am so proud of you. What you had to do was very difficult and I will never pretend that I completely understand how hard it was to have me for such a short time. Jesus is amazing mommy. Please tell my brothers and sister, that I love them. Tell daddy that I think he is the most wonderful man in the world. Jesus says that you all are amazing too.

I will never forget how wonderful it was to be in your arms. I could feel your deep love for me! Here with Jesus I am grown up and still a baby all at the same time. I can't explain it, but I know the feeling of being your baby and I also can understand things that are deep.

I want you to know how much I love you. I love you sooooo much! There is no greater love on earth than what I had with you. I walk around here with the Lord so amazed that He gave me such wonderful parents. I can't WAIT for you all to get here! Jesus is more wonderful than He can be described in this limited language that I have to use. What I mainly wanted to say was THANK YOU! I realize that you and daddy could have chosen a different path, but I am eternally grateful that you CHOSE me!! The life you gave to me was so incredible. I pray every day for you. That the joy that you will receive when you get here with me and Jesus will far outweigh the heavy, continual pain that I know you have to battle. Mom, I really love you. One of the things that amazed me was that you love me!! No mother ever loved a son more. I had so much fun playing in y our belly. I now know that I was too wiggly! I did not realize how dangerous my moving was! Your love in the hospital was a miracle love. Every night you had to fight your desire to sleep to keep me alive. Only a person with the love of the Lord could have done that. Your love gave me life. I am a painter like you! My painting style is different for yours but I adore painting. I like to make things beautiful like you. I can't wait for you to see the things I am making! I am also VERY chatty. I think I am pretty handsome too! I know you sometimes feel like you failed me. You did NOT! I am sorry I did not have kidneys mom. I am sorry that I can't be with you now. I don't feel your pain, but from what I understand, it is extremely hard for you to be away from me. Even though it seems like a mistake, it was NOT! You will see that I am EXACTLY how God created me! It is all good and perfect. When you see Him, you will understand fully that not ONLY am I perfect, but His whole plan is magnificently perfect! Jesus is closer than your breath. He is with me. And I am with you! We are all one! Jesus tells me every day that He adores you. He is crazy about daddy and our whole family. Jesus and I love you mommy.

All my love eternally,

Caden

You see our son Caden completed his destiny….and his life still speaks!

Moments that Forever speak

2010-01-04T11:34:00.000-05:00

A simple way to set your course for a brand new year is reading through the One Year Bible. I like it because it keeps you on track and keeps you away from the temptation to migrate to the parts of the Bible that you are already familiar with. If you happen to be reading through the One Year Bible than you may have already read the accounts of Cain and Abel (depending on which One Year Bible you happen to be reading). What we’ve read is that both men brought an offering to God; however only one man’s offering was made much of. You have to wonder if either man really understood the moment! I think the same is true today!

Sometimes I think we, too, fail to recognize the power of the moment! So much of our religious activity is mechanical and been reduced to us just going through the motions, whether we’re talking about prayer, worship, reading the word, or giving offerings! I’m sure neither one of these men knew this moment would still be talked about thousands of years after the fact! In Hebrews we get a glimpse of God’s take on the moment!

By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. By faith he was commended as a righteous man, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith he still speaks, even though he is dead.

-Hebrews 11:4

I’m convinced that some believers do enough to get to heaven, but not enough to see the Kingdom (God’s rule and reign displayed in and through their lives) and at the end of the day we are the ones that miss out! I certainly think that was the case here! Cain’s sacrifice was an add-on to his long list of stuff to do! He failed to see the moment for what it was! I think Paul got it right in his letter to the church in Corinth when he said, “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31).

A few good questions:

1. How many Sunday’s have I wasted because I didn’t understand the moment?

2. How many songs have I sung without being gripped by what I was singing?

3. How many times have I opened the word and failed to encounter the very one I was reading about?

4. How many offerings have been given without my heart ever being engaged?

Abel’s offering was one of devotion! It wasn’t based on what others were doing or what he could get by with! It came from a fully devoted heart! A heart that was love sick! Cain may have given a large offering but it wasn't from full devotion. I believe God is unmoved by offerings that position Him as an afterthought!

In the end God spoke well of Abel’s offering and to that end…. Abel’s life still speaks!