Sunday Night Recap

Today we finished our current series and I spoke about three things: “Surviving your schedule, surviving your work, and moral survival. It felt a tad tense when I talked about the moral and sexual stuff. People were locked into the message.

This past week I had this sense that I HAD to speak some of the contents of the message today. I felt a weight of responsibility and compelled to share some of the truths. I hope the message made sense.

The Jeff Mercer worship band was great to have as our guest worship band. We love to mix it up. It was very cool to see a number of people respond to the invitation to receive Christ at both services. I am amazed at how people respond to the gospel.

I BIG thank you to the ever expanding dream team that sets up for the Sunday morning services. We are blessed with a small army of supercool people who make Sanctuary happen every week. I thank God for you.

Mother’s Day - Is going to be incredible! It will be a day never to forget. Invite your mom or a friend.

May 18′th We have a guest worship team called “Shaka” and in June we will be having “Two or More”.

I love this church! May we portray Jesus to our neighbors, our community and to the uttermost parts of the earth.

G’nite!

How to Mess up a Marriage

I know that this post may sound 1950’s old fashioned, but here are some thoughts about ways to NOT safeguard your marriage…

HOW TO MUCK UP A MARRIAGE…

(1) Schedule regular lunches with the opposite sex… alone. Better to do the group dynamic. Its just not wise to go solo, besides it looks suspecious. I had a married woman who was a professional contact me numerous times to meet for lunch. I told my secretary to tell her, “You have to bring your husband or he is not going to meet with you”. She invited her CPA husband who was polite and sat quietly while we all had lunch.

(2) Visit On line chat rooms - A great way to muck up a marriage. People are more vulnerable for some reason and begin to go down a road they may soon regret. How many people start building a relationship and… end up chasing some dude or dudette to Texas? I had this happen once where a gal helping with the church fired up a chat room relationship. She ended up getting divorsed, moving out of state and getting married.

(3) Take frequent drives alone in the same car with the opposite sex. Yea, you are going to waste gas! Yea, it may feel ackward to climb into separate cars and then drive to the same destination only minutes away.

(4) Offer your free counseling services for one-on-one marriage counseling with the opposite sex. I am happy to talk to the men about their marriages, but I like to make the hand off for a woman to talk to a counselor or another woman.

(5) GO TO CLUBS WITH FRIENDS - People go to clubs not because its “two-for-one” night. Clubs are not just about entertainment either, they are a PATHWAY that leads to something else.

Being married and doing the club scene is flirting with the beginning of the end. Clubs are not just one-stop entertainment. Entering a club is setting your foot on a well traveled PATH that may lead somewhere else.

And the END of that path has pain, regret, and remorse written all over the top of it. Enter at your own risk, but it would be wise to do otherwise.

Sanctuary = Community

I cannot even begin to describe how passionate I feel about Sanctuary being a genuine community that is relationally authentic, engaging, fun, and biblical.

I wonder if we could just pause for a moment and drink in what the bible has to say about us being a community.  Consider that scripture says…

“Love one another”

“Be devoted to one another in brotherly love”

“Give preference to one another”

“Be of the same mind toward one another”

“Pursue the building up of one another”

“Accept one another”

“Warn and admonish one another”

“Greet one another”

“Care for one another”

“Serve one another”

“Bare one another’s burdens”

“Be kind to one another”

“Forgive each other”

“Speak to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs”

“Submit to one another”

“Regard one another as more important than yourself”

“Don’t lie to one another”

“Teach one another”

“Comfort one another”

“Encourage one another”

“Be at peace with one another”

“Don’t speak evil against one another”

“Pray for one another”

“Be hospitable to one another”

“Clothe yourself with humility toward one another”

And the list goes on and on… but you get the picture.  Would anyone disagree that God has much to say about “one another” and us being a real Christ centered community?

We can keep building community by sharing life together, being a part of one another’s lives, sharing what someone else is experiencing, caring for one another, building up one another, reaching out to one another, and loving one another.   Everyone is valued.  Everyone is invited.  All aboard!

Kiss Dating Good-by

I am not an experct, but here are some of my thoughts on dating or pursuing a relationship that could lead to marrige…

(1) BE A TRUTH TELLER - Don’t try to be cool. Tell the whole truth. Do not tell them what you think they want to hear. Be yourself. Be real. They will appreciate it. No games. No Jr. High type communication where you ask her best friend what she thinks about you.  Be secure in who God has made you. 

Once a single woman approached me after church (before I was married) and cornered me. She asked me why I did not warm up to her.  Without hesitation I asked her a question, “What to you think?”  She said, “Because I like you?”  I told her “yes”.  End of conversation.  End of her bugging me. 

(2) HONOR THE PARENTS - Build relationship with them. Ask them out
to dinner with your date. Have fun. Listen carefully. Guys, go after the Mom’s heart. Show genuine and absolute interest in her… be like a favored son… not just another dude in hot pursuit of their daughter.  You are being evaluated as a candidate to marry her / his treasure!    

I made it my point to treat Kirstin’s mother with the same respect as if she was my mother.  I am talking about showing the utmost respect.  This is the biblical thing to do.  I once told Kirstin’s mom, “I will never violate your trust in allowing me to date Kirstin”.    She is her parents treasure and not yours until the day you are married, so be ever mindful of this reality.

(3) SERVE GOD TOGETHER - Make it this your first priority.  Find something you can do together to serve God.  How is the trajectory of your relationship?  Have a godward focus. Pray!  Establish your LIFE in church.  Do not just be a casual attender.  Establish an IDENITY in your church.  Instead of only writing love letters to one another, Kirstin and I also wrote letters about how excited we were about serving God together in the moment and in the future.  What you do before marriage is what you will do after marriage. 

(4) BEST TO STAY SINGLE - rather than in a dead-end-going-no-where relationship. Get out of the relationship if you have CLARITY and it is going no where! Think trajectory.  When you stay TANGLED UP in a dead end relationship, you are delaying the relationship God has for you.  And you are DISOBEDIENT!  Its much wiser to WAIT for the right person, than to SAMPLE a bunch of duds.  Be selective and do not comprimise. 

(5) GIVE THEM SOME SPACE - Be patient. Do not RUSH the relationship. Talk direct. Be honest.  Ladies, DO NOT SMOTHER and try to figure out every little detail about the relationship!  Most guys do NOT like aggressive, controlling women.  Sometimes they just need time to figure things out.  If they are dragging their feet too long for an unreasonable period of time, HAVE AN HONEST CONVERSATION and state your feelings and why.  Tell him, “Here is my time frame…”.  Do not let him string you along for 7 years and them dump you when he sees some hot new babe. 

Once after a church service, this woman who was a control freak was trying to get me to come over for dinner.  She kept trying to pin me down and I had ZERO interest.  She would not give up! Finally, she came up to me after church and asked me, “So what night of the week are you available to come over for a chinese food dinner with your friend Dan”. 

At this point I was irritated and I told her, “I am not available to come over ANY night of the week as I have plans and I am busy every night of the week”.   STUNNED SILENCE.  WAY UNCOMFORTABLE.  I just locked  eyes with her and did not utter a single word.   Just let my words sink in… 

That was the last time I ever saw her in church.  She was at there for the wrong reasons anyway.  If you are not interested, DO NOT string someone along.  It is dishonest and unfair keep their hopes alive.

(6)  GUYS - LEAD OUT IN THE THINGS OF THE SPIRIT - Do not be a pathetic whimp!  Give them something to follow!   Lead them dude!   Step up and pray with them.  Share a scripture that inspired you.  Give them a good word from God’s word.  Invite them to church or an outreach or christian concert or something.  Don’t just go to the movies!!!  Come on!  You MUST lead spiritually or you will end up with a christian woman who is irritated with you.  An intimidated man leads to a irritated woman!

(7)  DEVELOP YOURSELF - Be a man of God.  Be a woman of God.  Do not just look for Mr. Perfect or Ms. Perfect.  Develop interests.  Grow spiritually.  Go on a mission to Mexico or overseas.  Get out of your comfort zone.  Take a spirited anointed risk.  Work out and exercise.   Look your best too.  Appearence is very important, but do get obcessive over non-essentials. 

Look at not only where someone is at presently, but where are they going?   Spiritually?  Are they hungry for God?  Bored?  Career wise, where are they going?  Do they have a stable job?   A hard worker?  Good character?   Do they have dreams?  Any God breathed goals?  Look at the whole of someone’s life in determining if they are a good candidate to develop relationship with that may lead to marriage.  Do not waste your time dating if you determine they are not marriage material.   Casual friendship is another deal.

Sunday Night Reflections

Today I talked about “American Idol: You Got a Gift”. It was a bit intense as I spoke from Eph. 4 and Romans 12. I gave seven reasons why people do not use their spiritual gifts and seven reasons why we want to fire up our gifts.

I was mindful while speaking of the person who is at zero point with Jesus and church. I hope and pray that they were able to get something from the message, as it did not apply to them. Sanctuary is a church for anyone, and its very important to me to present the timeless truths of the bible in a way that people can understand.

NEW GUEST WORSHIP LEADER May 4′th - We have a fantastic guest worship leader this Sunday with a nine member band. I been wanting to bring this worship leader to Sanctuary for over a year, so I am pumped up. I am talking about “Survivor: Groups R US”. This is a such a vital message and pivotal to our future.

MOTHER’S DAY May 11′th - is going to be off the charts… it will be incredible! Wow! Come and invite a friend. It will be a wonderful day for Mom’s.

SANCTUARY VOLUNTEERS ROCK - A special thanks to our AWESOME volunteer teams who have been doing a brilliant job. You are the best of the best and I appreciate you!

G’nite!

Thoughts on God’s Blessing

Many times every week I talk with people who will reference how Sanctuary church is being blessed by God. Here are some of my thoughts about God’s blessing and what we can do with it…

1. Seek only to bless other churches, not criticize them. Last week I visited with a pastor who lost a worship leader. He was down to worship videos for Sunday morning. I offered to loan one of our worship team members to help them for a time. The pastor was very grateful. We want to be a blessing and encouragement to other churches.

2. Keep away from playing the comparison game.
It is not wise to compare ourselves to others or other churches. Its wasting energy. Let us keep our eyes on Jesus and stay focused on leading people into a growing relationship with Him.

3. Be open to learning from churches that are different in approach. I am always looking for what is bringing the blessing of God upon a church. What are they doing that is bringing God’s favor?

If God is pouring out His blessing and people are coming to Christ and growing, I want to know what is making them so effective and fruitful?

4. There is not just one way to do church. (Acts 2:42) Sanctuary has a way and an approach to doing church and reaching out to people. We are NOT THE ONLY
WAY! It takes different churches to reach different types of people.

5. Give God the glory for the great things He has done. Its His church.
His idea. We get to be a part of it. Be quick to acknowledge the hand of God’s blessing. For without his leading and blessing, we are SUNK in the water. We recognize that He blesses the work of His hands.

10 Things that Shape Sanctuary

1. Sanctuary church was started 14 months ago with a DREAM. A dream to lead people into a growing relationship with Jesus. Its too easy to get stagnant and fall into empty routines and get bored in church!

Someone told me just tonight that since his mom has been attending Sanctuary, “My mom is alive and excited about church”.

2. Sanctuary is all about helping people connect with God and each other in meaningful ways. To love God. Love others. Love life.

3. Sanctuary is a church for people trying to find their way back to God. People who got lost along the way. People returning to church. People who got bumped out of church.

4. Sanctuary is a church hoping to get our arms around people who are disconnected from God. We want to reach out with the love of God to people who have given up on church or God.

5. Sanctuary desires to be a church for people who may not like church.

6. Sanctuary is a church where we want people to stay awake! We want the Sunday morning services to be the best hour of your week. Encouraging, uplifting, inspiring, challenging, creative.

7. Sanctuary is a church where everybody is included. Everybody is important. Everybody is invited. Everybody is valued.

8. Sanctuary is a church that seeks to have a Sunday morning service that is engaging and people actually want to come back again. Jesus…is pretty good and if we don’t mess things up to much, people will want to come back and hear more about Him.

9. Sanctuary has been given an incredible opportunity to make a dent in our culture. To bring people hope. To leverage every ounce of influence God has given us to bring people to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, and to help resource them to grow in Christ and pursue an intimate relationship with Him.

10. Sanctuary church wants to bring spiritual renewal to our community and beyond.

Tuesday’s Random Thoughts

I have some random thoughts on my mind…

(1) MULTIMEDIA @ SANCTUARY - We use technology because it is an effective communication tool to reach out to people. It is engaging and often non-threatening.
It gets people’s attention. God has blessed us with people who know how to tap technology, so why not use it? OUR FOCUS IS ON JESUS, NOT TECHNOLOGY. We see multimedia as a way to POINT people to Jesus. We are not trying to be cool, trendy, or hip. We want to use technology for the glory of God.

(2) WORSHIP - We come worshipping on Sunday’s. It is a lifestyle where we offer our lives to God in worship. (Romans 12:1-2)

(3) SANCTUARY VISION - Is to lead people into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ. Passionate. Dynamic. Real. We want to see people meet Jesus and grow up in Him.

(4) MESSAGES - We teach the timeless truths of the bible by going through the bible verse by verse as well as doing short series. We do both old and new testament. All of it is God breathed and profitable to build us up in Christ.

Sometimes I will re-focus on a truth that I feel needs review. I did this Sunday with my thoughts from Eph. 4 dealing with anger and forgiveness. People do not remember everything that is communicated. I feel responsible to not just teach people, but teach them to remember what God has said. This shapes my approach to giving messages.

(5) I LOVE THIS CHURCH- I cannot wait for this Sunday! Church is 100% God’s idea and I get to be a part of it. This could only have been conceived in the mind of Almighty God. Bring a friend this Sunday!

Today at Forrest’s school soccer game, a man walked from one end of the field to the other end where I was watching the game. His walk was very purposeful. I thought he was coming for me. He was a guest at Sanctuary for the first time this past Sunday. “We loved it! We are coming back this Sunday!” Yea God!

My Day

Today I met with some great people serving the Lord in various capacities. While driving home today, I was reflecting on what a blessing it was to see them. Here they are:

1. Pastor Darko Culjak - an ozzie from down under started Kiev Christian Life Centre in the Ukraine. I visited him a few times while he was in Kiev and we attended church conferences together in Sydney. He is going to plant a church in Australia. Darko is filled with vision and is a real man of faith.

2. Pastor Steven Johnson - from San Diego. He is a veteran lead pastor who is happy to share with me from his 20 years of pastoral experience. He invited me to join him on an evangelistic outreach to South America.

3. John Paul - from A missionary from France living in Tennessee. He does bible schools and today I met him for the first time.

4. F. Kenton Beshore, Ph.D., Litt.D., D.D., is the President and Executive Director of World Bible Society. He can be heard daily on the Bible Institute of the Air. His books have been translated into more than 40 languages.

“Doc” have me a small truckload of his writings and teachings on bible prophecy. It will take me months to get through all the materials! Down the road and I am going to see if Doc would come and speak at a Sanctuary event. He is a great man, fun to be around and has a great sense of humor at 82 years young.

5. Glen Megil - a friend of Sanctuary who works for Rock of Africa Mission. They bring hope to struggling people in Tanzania and training for pastors. Glen has a fire and zeal for God that is contagious. I also want to bring him to Sanctuary… perhaps to spend some time with our men. Glen always invites me to join him in Africa.

May God continue to bring people into our lives that will inspire us, fan the flame of our desire and strengthen our resolve to serve Jesus.

Sunday Night Reflections

Today was a great day. I thought the services were blessed by God. The welcome luncheon had 55 people enjoying some great food and atmosphere together. I overdosed on the chocolate covered strawberries… WOW! Those were delicious!

I hope that the message on “The Biggest Loser” was helpful. We gave away some weights to help us remember to “lay aside every weight…” (Heb. 12:1) and to not let our weights define us.

We occasionally do creative things at Sanctuary to help us remember the message. Today people put the weights on their keychains, in their pockets, and? I would rather put a weight into someone’s hand about the message, rather than have them forget everything they heard by the time they hit the parking lot.

James 1:22 says, “Do not merely listen to the word, do what is says”. We don’t want to mark or bibles, without our bibles marking us.

Is it possible to become sermon proof?

Is it possible to become “word hardened?”

It is possible to become a “hearer only?”

A “hearer only” is where you have proper notions in the head, but we forget to connect the dots and move to practical application. The the word does not even make a tiny DENT in our lifestyle. God wants us to absorb His words, and allow their supernatural power to transform our lives.

So here are some reminders about avoiding the “hearers only” syndrome!

Here are 10 ways to avoid sermon-proofing yourself…

1. Is there a sin to confess? The do it!

2. Is there something to thank God for? Thank Him!

3. Is there wisdom to apply? Ask for it?

4. Is there a truth to believe?

5. Is there an error to avoid?

6. A prayer to pray?

7. An example to follow?

8. Is there an attitude to change?

9. Is there a promise to claim?

10. Is there an attitude to change?