Awakening Fast – Day 1

Words can’t express how excited and expectant I am today as Cornerstone kicks-off our church-wide 21-day fast.  Today is Day 1 of our Awakening Fast and I am filled with anticipation with how God is going to move and reveal Himself to us in greater and more powerful ways over the next 21 days.

Our greatest desire is to draw closer to the heart of God over the next 21 days and to see His power at work in our lives.  I’m grateful for your fasting and sacrifice and even more grateful for your heart toward God.  In addition to fasting from food in the areas where God has led me to do so, I will be fasting from Twitter & Facebook for the next 21 days.  I will basically be fasting from all social media/computer websites with the exception of this blog and the new blog that Cornerstone Church has posted for our Awakening Fast.  Check it out here!

It is our hope that you will regularly check in on our Awakening blog and contribute with comments all that God is doing in your life during our fast.  Everyday we will post that current day’s devotional reading and throughout the fast I’ll be sharing some insights from God’s Word and from my own personal journey on this amazing fast!  I will also be sharing here on my blog some thoughts and insights from our journey together.

God is doing something truly amazing and I believe that we are going to grow and be more spiritually impacted over the next 21 days than we ever have.  Cornerstone, I am so proud of you for dedicating the next 21 days to PRAYER & FASTING as we seek God.  The best is yet to come!  To God be the glory!

Weekend Recap

1.  What an amazing start to our TRANSFORMATION series!  3 powerful services!

2.  We saw right around 12 people surrender their lives to Christ!  Awesome!

3.  TONS of new faces!!  So great to meet so many of you, hope to see you this Sunday!

4.  Preached through the beginning of Judges 6.  Talked about the vicious cycle that the Israelites lived through:  Sin-Slavery-Sorrow-Salvation and how we often live through that same cycle.  Thank God that He brings true and lasting TRANSFORMATION.

5.  Also touched on these verses… some of the SADDEST verses in the Bible.  It’s up to our generation to pass down our faith to the next!

6.  Our band rocked the house!  Wow!  POWERFUL WORSHIP!

7.  Announced to our church that beginning Monday, January 17th we will celebrate a church-wide 21 day fast that will end on Sunday, Feb. 6th with ONE AMAZING CELEBRATION SERVICE!!

8.  Praying for you as you pray and prepare for our fast that begins this Monday.  Seek God about what He would have you fast and prepare yourself spiritually, mentally, and physically.  You are about to enter and go through one of the most spiritually transforming and uplifting experiences of your life!

9.  So PUMPED UP that Bil Cornelius and Shake The Nation will be with us at Cornerstone on Feb. 3rd to help us celebrate our fast and bring our TRANSFORMATION series to a powerful end!

10.  Bil is a great friend and mentor in my life and his church Bay Area Fellowship has had a HUGE impact on Cornerstone.  So grateful for them!

11.  Great time of prayer last night!  God is really moving in our church on Monday nights as we gather to pray and on Mondays as our church observes and celebrates a day of Prayer/Fasting.

12.  Really on a kick reading Presidential biographies right now.  Just finished Decision Points by George W. Bush (phenomenal read!), reading a bio on Theodore Roosevelt right now and have bios on George Washington and John Adams on deck with a bio on Winston Churchill too!  Love it!

13.  Let’s hope Super Bowl is better than the BCS Championship was last night, although I think Auburn has a higher payroll than most NFL teams!

14.  Michelle and I had a great time celebrating our 16th Anniversary!!  Read more about that below this post.

16 Amazing Years!

Yesterday my beautiful bride Michelle and I celebrated 16 years of marriage!! It was a wonderful day and we had a great time reflecting on all of God’s blessings through 16 years and even greater than that we spent some time looking forward to the years to come!!

Reflecting on that day 16 years ago and where God has brought us is amazing. 16 years later so many things have happened, we’ve experienced highs and lows, and have worked hard to build a life and marriage with Jesus as our foundation. We are blessed with four amazing children, both earned college degrees, discovered amazing callings that have fulfilled our lives, dreamed of launching and leading a church that would impact thousands for the glory of God, built up a strong love, and most importantly we are serving the Lord with our lives and listening intently to HIS VOICE as He guides us.

As amazing as the past has been, we are looking forward to the amazing future that God has for us! Michelle, you are the greatest blessing in my life apart from my salvation. I have said it over and over, but your presence and love in my life is some of the greatest proof to me of God’s existence and especially of His miracles!

Michelle, my belle, thank you for marrying me and for being the greatest source of encouragement and love that I’ve ever known. I am proud to be your husband and I will spend the rest of my life doing what I’ve done for the past 16 years, loving you, supporting your dreams and chasing you around the house! I want to continue to relentlessly pursue you,  just as Christ relentlessly pursues us. Here’s to many more years of God’s love and blessings!

Books Read in 2010

The following is the list of books that I read in 2010.  I make it a goal to read at least 25 books every year, as you can tell, about 2 a month.  While I read 5 more books than I did in 2009, I still fell 5 books short of my goal.  Hopefully I’ll hit my goal of 25 books this year.  Oh yeah, and I read through the Bible in 2010 but that doesn’t go on the list, THE BIBLE STANDS APART FROM ANY LIST.  What about you?  What did you read this past year?  How did it impact you?  What do you plan to read this year?  No such thing as someone who’s not a reader, it just depends on what you like to read:  blogs, magazines, twitter posts, books… we all read in one way or another.  Reading is one of the greatest ways you grow as a person and one of the greatest ways you grow your leadership!  I encourage you to press on, discipline yourself in this area and READ!  I’ve said it a million times and I’ll say it again:  LEADERS ARE READERS!  Over the next couple of days I want to share my top 5 reads from this past year… stay tuned.

1.  PRIMAL by Mark Batterson

2.  MORE THAN A GAME by Brian Billick

3.  THAT CRAZY LITTLE THING CALLED LOVE by Jud Wilhite

4.  SEX, ROMANCE, & THE GLORY OF GOD by C.J. Mahaney

5.  WHO’S HOLDING YOUR LADDER? by Sam Chand

6.  FASTING by Jentezen Franklin

7.  CHURCH IN THE MAKING by Ben Arment

8.  DOCTRINE by Mark Driscoll

9.  THE GRAND SLAM by Mark Frost

10.  I DARE YOU TO CHANGE by Bil Cornelius

11.  RADICAL by David Platt

12.  THE CHURCH GOD BLESSES by Jim Cymbala

13.  FROM THE TOP DOWN by Michael Lukasewski

14.  FUNDED AND FREE by Casey Graham & Joseph Sangl

15.  VISIONEERING by Andy Stanley (re-read)

16.  YOUR MONEY COUNTS by Howard Dayton

17.  THE BLESSED LIFE by Robert Morris

18.  SUN STAND STILL by Steven Furtick

19.  FIELDS OF GOLD by Andy Stanley

20.  DECISION POINTS by George W. Bush

“I got a B and I didn’t even study!”

“I got a B and I didn’t even study!”  Those were the words that a student of mine yelled out to a friend outside the classroom in the hallway after I ‘d given my class back their tests.  My student must’ve forgot that I was only 10 feet away!   I walked out of the class, into the hallway and asked my student what they had said, the look on their face was priceless!  It was nice having a little fun with that.

I have the joy of teaching a Bible class on weekday mornings and I’m blessed with a great group of kids.  As I walked back into the class it hit me that my student’s innocent and excited statement was really a mindset that a lot of people live with.  I think if you ask most people if they could have a “do over” in life, many would say that they wish they could go back to school, study harder, and get better grades.  It’s amazing that while we wish we could do that, there are many areas in our life where we’re settling for the “B” instead of going for the “A”.  These areas will eventualy be regrets if we choose to settle.  You know what I’m talking about:

You want the marriage of your dreams but you’re settling for a “B”…

You want to raise kids that will change the world but you’re settling for kids that will merely survive it…

You want a career with purpose, exitement, and passion that brings God glory but you’re settling for a paycheck…

You can be in the best shape of your life but you’re content to sit on the couch…

You can be a part of a community-impacting, world-changing church but you’re settling for one that “goes through the motions” and “meets your needs”…

You can have a vibrant, exciting relationship with God but you settle for opening your Bible, praying, giving, and serving when you feel like it and not as a lifestyle.

Are you going to keep settling?  Are you going to do the little extra to get the “A+” in all areas of your life or are you gonna coast and settle for the “B”?  God puts it like this:  “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward.  It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” -Colossians 3:23-24 NIV  Kinda puts it in perspective huh?  Don’t settle for the “B”, work at it with all your heart.

The Essentials

This Sunday, not only are we launching what will be a GAMECHANGING series called Great Expectations (see post below), but we will also be celebrating THE ESSENTIALS! 

What are “the essentials”?  That’s what I like to call baptism and the Lord’s Supper.  Both are ordinances that Jesus commanded to be followed in His Church.  Jesus comanded that His followers (1) be baptized to demonstrate their faith in Him symbolizing Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection as well as the new life and identity of a Christian who has died to their old self (immersion under water) and born into new life with Christ (coming up out of the water). 

He also commanded that His followers remember His death and resurrection by coming together to celebrate a supper of bread and wine, in which the bread is symbolic of His body which was nailed to the Cross for our sins and the cup of wine is symbolic of His precious blood that was shed on the Cross for the forgiveness of our sins. 

 

At Cornerstone Church we celebrate both ordinances every month on the first Wednesday of the month during our 1st Wednesday celebration experiences, this Sunday however we will be celebrating both essentials during our Sunday worship experiences. 

I want to challenge you to go public with your faith if you have not been baptized!  It’s the first step of obedience in the life of a believer.  Come expectant, excited, and prepared to take your next step in your walk with God.  I also want to encourage you to come prepared for the Lord’s Supper.  Spend some time with God, seek His heart, and prepare yourself spiritually and emotionally for an awesome celebration!  Sunday is gonna be POWERFUL!!!

Gamechanger

This past weekend, the 2010 class of the Pro Football Hall of Fame was inducted.  Experts have said that it was probably the greatest class ever because it included the running back with most yards and touchdowns in NFL history, Emmit Smith, and the greatest wide receiver (and some say, greatest football player) ever, Jerry Rice.  Really, the whole class was outstanding and I have a particular bias towards Minnesota Viking John Randle, a former teammate at Texas A&I University.  One thing that can be said about all of the Class of 2010 is that they were GAMECHANGERS.

A “gamechanger” is coaching lingo for someone who can effect the outcome of a game on one play.  Barry Sanders comes to mind.  He could change a game from anywhere on the field.  As a Houston Texan  fanatic, Andre Johnson comes to mind, he can easily change a game on one play.  These players are special because they have a unique ability to impact or change the course of a game by overcoming any odds or making something that is already good, EVEN BETTER.

I have a firm belief that not only athletes or people can be “gamechangers”, but situations and events in our life can also be “gamechangers”.  Think about it… the moment you asked out the girl of your dreams for the first time was a gamechanger in your life, the moment that you found your passion, purpose, or “calling” in life was a gamechanger, for a follower of Christ, the moment that you surrendered your life by faith to Jesus for salvation is the most extreme and important GAMECHANGER that you’ve ever experienced!

This Sunday at Cornerstone Church we are beginning a new series called GREAT EXPECTATIONS that I believe will be a ”gamechanger”!  Yes, I know that I say that EVERY series at Cornerstone is going to be the greatest, AND I BELIEVE THAT WITH ALL MY HEART!  But the next three weeks are going to be IMPORTANT, LIFE-CHANGING, & AMAZING in your life and in the life of our church!  This series is GOING TO CHANGE THE COURSE OF YOUR LIFE!!! One series, gamechanging.  You’ve been warned.   I challenge you to make every effort to be at Cornerstone Church (www.cornerstonechurchrgv.com) for the next three Sundays!  You will be challenged, you will be blown away, you will be changed in amazing ways.  GREAT EXPECTATIONS will be a game-changer!!!

A Walk To Remember

Today I was reading through the book of Micah. Micah is considered one of the “minor” prophets of the Old Testament. I love that! Like if anyone that would be used to speak for God could be considered “minor”! Anyway, as I was reading, I came across this verse:

“He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?” -Micah 6:8

You might be shocked to know that God “requires” things of you as His follower but you shouldn’t be. When God calls us to be His it is a complete surrender of our lives. I want to focus on the last part of that verse: “to walk humbly with your God”. I think that is a perfect description of what the purpose of our life should be as followers of Christ. We should desire to walk humbly with God all of our lives.

I think that as believers we often make the mistake of seeking God and calling on Him only for what He can give us or only for Him to reveal His purpose for our lives. Those things are great and we should seek the Lord about those things, but those shouldn’t be the ONLY reasons that we seek Him! I think we miss the point on what seeking God is all about. We don’t seek God to know what His will is; SEEKING GOD IS HIS WILL! We don’t seek God to know His purpose for our lives, SEEKING GOD IS THE PURPOSE OF OUR LIVES. In other words, seeking God should not be a means to an end, it should be our primary response as we WALK HUMBLY WITH HIM ALL OF OUR LIVES.

I don’t seek to be with my wife primarily for what she can give me, I seek to be with her because I love her and delight to be with her. I don’t seek to be with my children primarily for what they can give me, I seek to be with them because I love to be in their presence, they bring me exceeding joy! When we get to a point that we seek God not for what He can give us or show us but simply because we delight to be in His presence, then we begin to understand the purpose of life and it is then that God begins to truly reveal amazing things to us.

God is looking for men and women who will walk with Him, who want to know Him intimately. As a parent, I can think of no greater desire for my children than that they would walk humbly with God all of their lives. As a pastor, I can think of no greater desire for my church family than that they walk humbly with God everyday of their lives. As a child of God, the desire of my heart is to walk humbly with my God all the days of my life.

Sunday Stuff

What an awesome Sunday:

1.  Michelle joined me for the message today and we shared from the Song of Solomon on what Covenant love looks like. 

2. As always, she was amazing.  I’m blown away at my wife, her knowledge and wisdom, and the way she shares from her heart.  Our church is very blessed to have her leadership and heart.

3.  God moved in such a powerful, life-changing time during our “iLuv” series.  Tons of couples and lives that were impacted and transformed!  So powerful to hear story after story of how God is working in our awesome people’s lives!

4.  SO PUMPED ABOUT GOING TO THREE SERVICES NEXT WEEK!!!! WOO HOO!!!! 10:00 am – 11:30 am – 1:00 pm!!  3 identical services!

5.  Front weekend of our Spring Break week and we felt it!  We were way down in attendance.

6.  Gearing up for Easter and our new series, “Numbers” kicks-off next week!  Expecting great things from God!

7.  We’re having four Easter services, can’t wait!  8:30 am – 10:00 am – 11:30 am – 1:00 pm

8.  Looking forward to a great Spring Break week with my sweetie and my babies being home!

9.  God is doing some great things and is up to even BIGGER things on the horizon, can’t wait to see what He does!

10.  So excited about Sunday’s message to kick-off our “Numbers” series!  Can’t wait to preach it!  Love the creativity from our team!

11.  So proud of our band!  They simply knocked it out of the park on Queen’s “Crazy Little Thing Called Love”… wow!

12.  Our partners/volunteers are simply the best!  Your work ethic, heart, and selflessness BLOWS ME AWAY!  Keep serving God and His church the way that you do!

Sunday Rewind

Been a long time since I’ve done this but today was just too amazing not to…

1. What wonderful worship experiences we had today @ Cornerstone!

2. 7 people received Christ as Savior today! Yeah God!!!

3. I’m loving teaching through the Song oof Solomon! So much wisdom to be learned about our marriages/relationships!

4. HISTORICAL DAY TODAY AT CORNERSTONE CHURCH!!!! Our church approved the purchase of our first property!! So pumped up!!!

5. Announced during our meeting that we are going to THREE services on March 21st!!! Can’t wait!!! 3 identical services @ 10:00, 11:30, & 1:00!

6. Band has been knocking it out of the park lately. Did “At The Cross” better tthan Hillsong today and knocked it out of the park on “When You Say Nothing At All” Lots of couples holding each other tight!

7. God is moving in some HUGE ways at Cornerstone! Momentum is building and building!

8. Our Prayer Night on Friday was ABSOLUTELY AMAZING. Everytime we have a prayer night God reminds me of the power that prayer has on our people. There was brokeness, conviction, and purpose on Friday night. Amazing to be a part of it. Thank you to all of you who were a part of it!

9. Have had some mind-blowing conversations with different folks in our church about what God is doing in their lives. To see life-change in action is indescribeable!

10. Excited about our 1st Wednesday service this Wednesday: great worship, the Lord’s Supper, and Baptisms!!

11. Clarissa’s last game of the season is this week. So proud of my girl. She’s developing into a great basketball player.

12. Tons going on this week! Awesome.