An Unforgettable Weekend

This past weekend was the most unforgettable weekend of my life, not to mention one of the most difficult. My father passed away last Monday at the age of 75 years. In the midst of consoling my family, dealing with the funeral arrangements I was also going to be the one officiating his services. Talk about a tall order! Years ago after his mother's funeral over which I officiated, he asked me if I would oversee his. In the last several months, as his Alzheimer's Disease progressed, he would remind me from time to time that he still wanted me to oversee his funeral. On the one hand, I couldn't imagine having the strength to do it, but, on the other hand, I couldn't imagine someone else leading those services. I was the one.

It was only going to be through divine strength that I could possibly hold my emotions in check and get through the services. After sending out broadcasts via phone, texts, Facebook and Twitter, the response began pouring back to me. The prayers of so many covered not only me, but my entire family this weekend. Words can't begin to express the appreciation I have for so many lifting me up to the Lord. I could feel God's arms wrapped around me and His strength encouraging me and sustaining me.

Oh, and did I mention it was Easter weekend, too? Talk about an emotional roller coaster... The spectrum of feelings I experienced from the visitation on Friday to the funeral on Saturday to our Easter church service on Sunday must have been similar to what the disciples felt: sorrow and disappointment being replaced with excitement and jubilation!

Yesterday was probably the best service we've ever had since we launched City on a Hill Church almost three years ago. Worship was amazing! King's Kids rocked the socks off of our children! We had a record attendance! Our ministry teams were all over the place, taking care of everything and everyone! The Holy Spirit poured out of me during the sermon and transformed lives for eternity!

This Easter weekend held so many memories for me. Thank you to everyone who was a part of it by being there in person and by supporting me through your prayers. I will never forget Easter weekend 2011!

You Talkin' to Me?

"You talkin' to me?"

This was the classic line from DeNiro in the movie Taxi Driver.

There's some relevance in this line, though, for pastors, leaders and teachers. We need to know to whom we're talking. If we don't know our audience, we may talk below them or above them.

Case in point. I'm going through more training this week for my secular job. This week, my trainer is a former Junior High School teacher. As a reward for answering questions correctly, we're being given stickers. Yes, that's right - stickers...

There's nothing worse than being treated as someone you're not. So, teachers, leaders and pastors, know your class, audience and flock. Know how to reach them. Know how to teach them. Know how to inspire them!

Hands-On Training

The company I'm working for is a service provider which means I'm actually working with not only my employer, but also the client. That means, I get to carry around two laptops (in addition to my personal one) and learn two company's systems. For the last few weeks, I've been completing online training about these systems. This week, I've been engrossed in hands-on training with an instructor leading us in every step to ensure we know how to use these systems in the field.

There's really nothing quite like hands-on training. I'm one of those people who can read about or watch a demonstration, but until I actually try it myself, I just don't get it. There are a lot of people like me in that regard, and there's no environment where this is more important than ministry.

Pastors, teachers and leaders need to not only teach and model ministry, but give opportunities for hands-on training to all believers. Every person in the Church needs to be given the opportunity to go out and serve. He needs to share his stories with others. We shouldn't wait until he's completed his Membership 401 classes. She shouldn't wait until she's read the Bible from cover to cover. Yes, every Christian should be involved in proper (and formal) discipleship steps. I'm all for those! But let's not let the formal training get in the way of opportunities for hands-on training. Let's make sure we're all doing ministry in the real world!

Community in Leviticus

Today I was reading in the book of Leviticus. This book that's considered part of the Torah ("Instruction" or sometimes referred to as "The Law") is not exactly exciting reading that keeps a person on pins and needles. It contains detailed instructions on the rules and regulations the Hebrews were to follow in their religious life as well as their social life.

In Chapter 13, Moses details the instructions to follow if someone presents himself/herself with a skin disorder. At first glance, the reading is mundane and not terribly relevant to a culture that has the technological and medical advances we have today. Dig a little deeper...

Consider what God was doing with the Hebrews in the desert during those 40 years. Before allowing them to enter into the promised land, God was preparing His people to be a community. In other words, He wanted them to be other-centered, not self-centered. That's what community is all about!

When we begin to put others' needs before our own, we'll discover community. When we sacrifice for the good of others, we'll discover community. When we love our neighbor as we love ourselves, we'll discover community.

Community is a theme found in Scripture from the beginning of the Bible to the end. Our relationship with God isn't just vertical. It's also horizontal. When we have both the vertical and horizontal in our lives, we'll discover something more than just community. We'll discover the cross!

I Want More!

Before asking for more, consider what you've done with what you already have.

The Parable of the Talents found in Matthew 25:14-29 details a story that Jesus told about three servants who were given specific amounts of money by their master. The master's money was entrusted to them. That's an important piece of the story that often gets overlooked. When you and I are entrusted with something valuable, the owner trusts that we will not squander what we've been given - that we will be good stewards!

We've been entrusted with our lives on this earth. From a Biblical perspective, our lives are not our own. God forms us in our mother's womb (Psalm 139:13) and breathes life into us (Genesis 2:7). The Apostle Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 6:20 that are bought with a price. Not only our material things and money, but also our relationships have been given to us from our Sovereign Lord. They are not our own, but we are entrusted with them as stewards.

The Parable of the Talents concludes with the moral of the story found in verse 29:

"To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away."

What an important truth for us! Before asking for more, consider what you've done with what you already have.

1Culpeper Prayer Walk

Tomorrow, Christians from around Culpeper will gather together to conduct a prayer walk, consisting of a 2.5 miles loop around the Town of Culpeper. The walk will start at 12noon and begin and end at Yowell Meadow Park. All are invited to join us!

I Have a Dream!

Martin Luther King, Jr wasn't the only one who had a dream. In Genesis 37, we read that Joseph had a dream. Actually, he had two dreams. They were both prophetic and gave him a glimpse of his future relationship with his family. As we read, we discover that Joseph shared these dreams with his brothers. What his motivation was in sharing the dreams, Scripture doesn't tell us. What the reaction to his dreams was, we read all to clearly.

His father scolded him. His brothers hated him, mocked him and sold him into slavery while telling their father he had been killed by a wild animal. Joseph's dream was the culprit, the straw that broke the camel's back. It was his dream, however, that actually saved the lives of not only his family, but millions of people.

When Martin Luther King, Jr gave his famous speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial back in 1963, he said, "I have a dream!" His dream was a God-given dream, and he shared that dream with the whole world that day. It shocked some, scared many and gave others hope. His dream saved lives as hearts turned from violence to peace.

There will be times when God gives us a dream... a vision... a purpose. It may be strange to us at first. It may even seem dangerous. After all, I can't think of a single instance where fulfilling a God-given dream didn't involve risk. In spite of the potential risk and danger, we need to not only be ready to dream these dreams, but pray for those dreams to be given to us. We must desire them and not be afraid to dream God-given dreams. Also, don't be afraid to share those dreams. Sure, you'll have some who scold you. They'll mock you. They may even be jealous or threatened by you. Don't let those things stand in your way. Dream dreams. Dream big dreams. Dream God-given dreams! You never know whose life you'll save.

My Birthday Gift To You

Today is my 42nd birthday. Wow, I feel old!

On my birthday, I want to offer a gift to you by sharing some words that first touched me while read Mark Batterson. This phrase is a pearl of wisdom for me every time I hear it!

Apply these words to everything God calls you to in your lifetime... Every time you are staring at a task that seems difficult, remember these words... If you apply these words to your life, you will reach your dreams and God will use you in amazing ways!

Pray like it depends on God!

Work like it depends on you!

Top 11 Blog Posts from 2010

Here are the top eleven blog posts from 2010:

Can't We All Just Get Along

Saved AND Called

Stripped Down

Despondency vs. Depression

Walking in the Same Way

Commitment

Be a Good Coach

Vision and Relationships

Good Enough

God's Discipline

A Big Deal

May the Lord bless you as we enter into the new year!

I'm So Excited - Part 2

Some more reasons I'm excited heading into 2011...

We're growing! City on a Hill Church's growth has necessitated that we take over more space in the building where we rent. We're practically doubling our square feet in the near future.

The Dameron's are growing, too! In February, we will take our first steps in moving forward with adopting a child through foster care. Carrie, the girls and I couldn't be more excited for our family to grow!

We're going to give more to missions! COAHC has long been wanting to make missions a priority in our church. We've been praying and brainstorming about developing a business plan to launch a new business in our community that would give profits to missions work. I believe this will come to fruition in 2011.

Celebrate Recovery is coming! COAHC will launch a new ministry for our community called Celebrate Recovery, celebrating God's healing power in people with hurts, hangups and habits through 8 Recovery Principles.

I'm So Excited!

Instead of reminiscing about all the great things that have happened in 2010 (there have been a lot!), I want to spend some time sharing what I'm most excited about in the coming year:

Awake 21 - This is a 21-day period of prayer, fasting and personal devotion focused on drawing closer to God. It begins January 10 and ends on January 30. In every major move of God in the Bible, prayer and fasting were a component. I can't wait to see what God does!

Guatemala Missions Trip - City on a Hill Church is taking its first foreign missions trip to Guatemala in July. We're going to get a chance to minister to a lot of people in different ways. Most of the people coming on this trip from COAHC have never been on a missions trip before. This is going to be exciting!

Apocalypse - In January, I'll be preaching the toughest sermons I've ever preached. We're going to spend several weeks looking at the Biblical accounts of the End Times. Hold on to your seat!

Lots more tomorrow...

Distractions

Awakening

In January, City on a Hill Church will be joining hundreds of churches worldwide in a 21-day prayer and fasting season. Our church believes strongly in the power of prayer. To cultivate the culture of prayer in a larger way, we will encourage our church family to devote themselves to prayer and fasting January 10-30, 2011. Click here for more information.

The Value of Twitter

When I first heard about Twitter, I thought it was the most ridiculous idea I'd ever heard. "Who would be that interested in what someone is doing every minute of the day?" I asked. I imagined posts like, "Sitting on the couch, watching TV" and "Heading to the grocery store now." Who cares?

Little did I know the impact it would have on me! 1566 tweets later I've come to realize the incredible worth and value of Twitter in my life. I've been mentored (through tweets) by great Christian leaders like @AndyStanley, @RickWarren, @perrynoble, @MarkBatterson, @stevenfurtick, @chuckswindoll, @BethMooreLPM, @craiggroeschel, @DerwinLGray, @MattChandler74, @greglaurie, @edstetzer, @jonathanfalwell, @JohnCMaxwell, @MaxLucado, @PastorMark (Mark Driscoll) and about 150 other leaders who have great insights into the Church and our culture.

All day long, I receive mentoring, encouragement and ideas from those who have blazed the trail before me and those who are blazing the trail with me via messages that are 160 characters or less. Thank you Twitter!

Life Groups

Imagine what it would be like to have a group of people who you loved and longed to be with as much as possible. Imagine being able to trust them with your most inner thoughts. Imagine that kind of relationship!

That's the kind of relationships that were shared in the early church. Luke wrote about it in the book of Acts.

They devoted themselves... to the fellowship... Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. Acts 2:42, 46-47 NIV

These relationships are fostered at City on a Hill Church today through our Life Groups. We're getting ready to launch our new season of Life Groups beginning this Sunday. We offer two open groups that meet weekly on Sundays and Thursday, respectively. They're open to anyone and everyone and provide free childcare.

We also have a women's Life Group that meets on Tuesdays (free childcare) and a men's Life Group that meets on Saturdays. Click here for more information.

Life Groups are important for two primary reasons. The first reason is that we, as the Body of Christ, need strengthening and encouragement from one another on a more consistent basis than just the few minutes before and after Sunday's worship service. God designed us for intimate fellowship with one another. That's what Life Groups provide! The second reason is that the genuine relationships that demonstrate love and care for one another are witnessed by others in the community and result in favor from those people (Acts 2:47).

Another inferred result of these close relationships is what we read in the last sentence of verse 47: And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. We can conclude two important truths from this. Firstly, God liked what He saw and blessed the church. Secondly, people were attracted to it and came to know Jesus as their Savior as a result.

I believe in Life Groups. It's an important part of our vision for City on a Hill Church. Please join one as we launch this next week!

Money

Yesterday, I saw an article that reminded me of the poor job most churches do in communicating matters about money. Jesus talked more about money than He did heaven and hell combined. 15% of the quotes from Jesus captured in the Gospels are about money. So why shouldn't churches talk about money as much as Jesus did?

To be honest, I was convicted by this (again!) and have committed to doing a better job of talking about money and finances from the pulpit. No, I won't be preaching fire and brimstone sermons about tithing. While I will address tithing from a Scriptural perspective, I'll talk more about how the Bible tells us to handle our finances on a day to day basis.

Let's face it, practically all of us need this kind of guidance, especially in the economy in which we find ourselves.

Making A Difference

"We haven't celebrated Christmas in two years."

That's what one woman told me as I listened to her story. Another one told of her son who is legally blind while another child has a rare form of cancer. These are all stories of families who City on a Hill Church have adopted in our Angels of Love ministry this Christmas.

I'm probably more excited about this ministry than any other we've done in our community since the launch of COAHC back in August 2008. We selected one low-income apartment complex with over 150 dwelling units in our community on which to focus our love this Christmas season. The ministry isn't original, but it is going to make a difference in many lives. We're simply providing our church family an opportunity to select ornaments from our Christmas tree that have on them details of children who need some help receiving Christmas gifts. The children will attend either our Christmas Eve service or our December 26th service to receive their gift.

Jesus' ministry was constantly addressing the physical and emotional needs of those around Him while ministering to their spiritual needs, too. That's what this is all about. We're expecting many lives to be transformed this Christmas!

What's In a Name?

What's in a name? In many cultures, names mean a great deal. They not only identify a person, but they also describe a person. Isaac means "laughter" (Sarah laughed at the thought of giving birth at such an old age), Moses means "draw out" (Moses was drawn out of the Nile by Pharoah's daughter), Jacob means "deceiver" (He deceived his brother Esau out of his birthright and blessing), and Jesus means "Jehovah saves."

We're kicking off the Christmas season this year with a sermon series on the names given to the Messiah by the prophet Isaiah.

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Isaiah 9:6 NIV

Each one of these names are incredibly important when we realize the identity and role of Jesus in our lives. I encourage you to dwell and prayerfully consider each name in the next four weeks. Consider how these identifications and descriptions apply to the Savior and how He has impacted your life.

Coming Attractions

Sometimes there are sermons that I get more excited about than others. That's pretty normal for pastors. For example, the series that we are currently in at City on a Hill Church entitled Climate Change is a series of three sermons that are so near to my heart because the content contains the vision for our church and the role we're to play in our community.

I've been researching and preparing for another series that I'll be kicking off in January 2011. It's a series that will focus on the Apocolypse - the End Times. Initially, the series was scheduled for four weeks. It's going to be very difficult to cover all the bases in just four weeks. We may need to go longer.

I've never taught on this subject before, but I honestly cannot wait to preach these messages. Most pastors avoid the topic of the Apocolypse because the content is so difficult to understand and there are so many interpretations of what the end times will look like. For me, I can't ever remember spending so many hours preparing for a sermon series. It's worth it, though!

So, here's to a preview of coming attractions...

Fueling Up

Ministry has a way of draining every drop of energy you have. Elijah experienced it firsthand. But God has the solution...

All at once an angel touched him and said, "Get up and eat."... He ate and drank and then lay down again.

The angel of the Lord came back a second time and touched him and said, "Get up and eat, for the journey is too much for you." So he got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God.

1 Kings 19:5-8 NIV

When you read this story, you see that Elijah was so exhausted, he prayed for his own death. He expended spiritual energy in his encounter with the false prophets on Mt. Carmel. He expended physical energy by killing the false prophets and then running for his life from Jezebel. He expended emotional energy by worrying about his people and his own life.

Elijah was fed supernaturally. God not only provided the sustenance, He actually did the cooking, too! Elijah was so strengthened by God's food, he traveled another forty days and forty nights. In this passage, we get a glimpse of what God can do for us when we're run down and have given all we have to give.

The source of our strength isn't in a retreat in the mountains. The source of our strength isn't in a weekend at the beach. The source of our strength is in God's food that He has provided through His Word. You and I have a recommended daily allowance of God's Word that not only sustains us through the ups and downs of life, but also provides strength for those very difficult times.

The next time you need supernatural strength, get fueled up with some supernatural food - your daily Bread - God's Word!