Happy Seek Me to Live Wednesday... or what's left of it, anyways. Better late than never, right?
I'm needing your help with this one. Weigh in with your insights to this question below:
"How do you keep God's vision for your life before your eyes?"
needing your help.
Happy Seek Me to Live Wednesday... or what's left of it, anyways. Better late than never, right?
I'm needing your help with this one. Weigh in with your insights to this question below:
"How do you keep God's vision for your life before your eyes?"
Monday Soup
Happy Monday folks, and happy post-Sturgis Falls for you Cedar Falls Prairielakers.
We had a couple of firsts this weekend at our Prairie Lakes Church campuses:
We had a couple of firsts this weekend at our Prairie Lakes Church campuses:
- We didn't have a Saturday night service at Cedar Falls - not because we were doing an outdoor service, but because we wanted people to participate in their community.
- We went live in Waterloo.
- We called an audible after the end of last weekend, deciding to split the topic of one weekend into two weekends. As it turns out, God has a lot to say about His Spirit, who He is, and what He does.
Again, we used Dave Koob's story for message support. Pastor John did such an amazing job weaving back and forth through story, scripture, and message content - incredibly powerful and clear truths.
The moment that stood out to me in the services was the part of Dave's story where John highlighted this truth about of the Holy Spirit: that He uses teams to accomplish his purposes. Dave's brother, John, was invited by Dave and encouraged by his mother to go on a mission trip in Atlanta with Samaritan's Purse. Long story short, John comes to Christ via a conversation with a Samaritan's Purse staffer. Amazing how many people and events and conversations God will weave together just to get one person into his family.
Jon Lloyd has another incredible story from Waterloo. Jon, Jeremy, and the rest of our P&P Teams there rearranged the last song, Chris Tomlin's "Our God," based on a gut feeling. When they performed the song during the service, a first-time guest later shared that he accepted Christ - right in the middle of the song! The Holy Spirit is certainly powerful and present among us.
I had a chance to overhear a conversation that Pastor John was having with another first time guest after our 9:00 a.m. service in Cedar Falls. The man was brought by his brother, who came to Christ this past Easter, who had since invited his father, who came to Christ not too long ago, and now these two are working on their son/brother. Basically, the gentleman related to Pastor John, in front of his newly converted brother and father: "I don't have a problem with what you believe. I believe in some of it. But I don't believe in all of it. And I don't feel like I have to."
As I listened to how John navigated through that conversation, my heart was warmed: I can't think of another place that I'd want a guy like this to be. It's perfect for him. He feels the space to be authentic, and yet is hearing the gospel proclaimed clearly and relevantly every single weekend. Nothing about our services embarrassed me as I thought about him sitting there in a seat. And I know that it's only a matter of time until God reaches him and he becomes a part of the family... just like his dad and brother.
We are blessed to be able to do what we do, where we do it, with the people we serve alongside every weekend. And God is using it.
See you next weekend!
relevant.
Happy Seek Me to Live Wednesday to you. Let's see if we can make up a bit for a missed post last week.
We talk a lot about relevancy in our area of ministry. In fact, it's one of our values as a Programming and Production ministry: we seek to be relevant. Here's what that means:
We want what we do on the weekends to matter the most to those whom we're trying to reach.
Digest that statement for a bit.
Seriously. Take some time to think about that before you continue reading.
Okay.
Let's take a little different track before we continue to talk about relevancy as it relates to artistic ministry. Instead, let's first look at Jesus' life. Here's a question that I've been pondering recently:
What was the most relevant thing Jesus ever did?
You'd be tempted to say the obvious: "die on the cross..." right? I mean, what could matter more to those whom Jesus was trying to reach than his death on the cross?
Well... I don't know that there's necessarily a "right" answer here. But if you asked me, I think that the obvious answer may not be the "right" one.
Here's what I think. Of all the amazing, miraculous, life-giving, Spirit-inspired, God-directed things that Jesus did, I think that the most relevant was this:
Incarnate.
Incarnate. It's the word that describes what Jesus did when he came down from heaven, took on the form of a human being, and became one of us. As relevant as his message was to us, as much as his cross mattered to us, neither of these things would have been possible if Jesus did not first come to us.
The most relevant thing that Jesus ever did (at least, from my perspective) - the thing that mattered most to the people that he was trying to reach - was to come toward us. It was to live among us as one of us. Without sin, without a sinful nature, with perfect obedience, of course... but one of us nonetheless.
Back to artistic ministry.
As artists in God's church here in northeast Iowa, the most relevant thing you can do is this: to go towards those lost Iowans we're trying to reach. To develop relationships with them. To live among them. Without sin. With God's love in your heart, his message on your lips, and his service directing your hands, for sure. But with them. Knowing them. Understanding them. Feeling what they feel. Listening to what they say. Seeing the world through their eyes.
Why?
So that you can be all the more sure of how to reach them in a way that really matters to them - not to whatever idea you have in your head of who these people are or what others are saying about them. So that we don't fall into some sort of debate about preferences, or hypotheticals, or whatever. So that we don't spend more energy talking about how to artistically reach lost Iowans than we do actually living with lost Iowans.
Be sure that what you're doing matters to them, not because you think you know how to reach them, but because you know them. Be sure that what you're doing matters to them because you can see that what God is using what you're doing to draw them closer to him.
Everything else is just...
Irrelevant.
We talk a lot about relevancy in our area of ministry. In fact, it's one of our values as a Programming and Production ministry: we seek to be relevant. Here's what that means:
We want what we do on the weekends to matter the most to those whom we're trying to reach.
Digest that statement for a bit.
Seriously. Take some time to think about that before you continue reading.
Okay.
Let's take a little different track before we continue to talk about relevancy as it relates to artistic ministry. Instead, let's first look at Jesus' life. Here's a question that I've been pondering recently:
What was the most relevant thing Jesus ever did?
You'd be tempted to say the obvious: "die on the cross..." right? I mean, what could matter more to those whom Jesus was trying to reach than his death on the cross?
Well... I don't know that there's necessarily a "right" answer here. But if you asked me, I think that the obvious answer may not be the "right" one.
Here's what I think. Of all the amazing, miraculous, life-giving, Spirit-inspired, God-directed things that Jesus did, I think that the most relevant was this:
Incarnate.
Incarnate. It's the word that describes what Jesus did when he came down from heaven, took on the form of a human being, and became one of us. As relevant as his message was to us, as much as his cross mattered to us, neither of these things would have been possible if Jesus did not first come to us.
The most relevant thing that Jesus ever did (at least, from my perspective) - the thing that mattered most to the people that he was trying to reach - was to come toward us. It was to live among us as one of us. Without sin, without a sinful nature, with perfect obedience, of course... but one of us nonetheless.
Back to artistic ministry.
As artists in God's church here in northeast Iowa, the most relevant thing you can do is this: to go towards those lost Iowans we're trying to reach. To develop relationships with them. To live among them. Without sin. With God's love in your heart, his message on your lips, and his service directing your hands, for sure. But with them. Knowing them. Understanding them. Feeling what they feel. Listening to what they say. Seeing the world through their eyes.
Why?
So that you can be all the more sure of how to reach them in a way that really matters to them - not to whatever idea you have in your head of who these people are or what others are saying about them. So that we don't fall into some sort of debate about preferences, or hypotheticals, or whatever. So that we don't spend more energy talking about how to artistically reach lost Iowans than we do actually living with lost Iowans.
Be sure that what you're doing matters to them, not because you think you know how to reach them, but because you know them. Be sure that what you're doing matters to them because you can see that what God is using what you're doing to draw them closer to him.
Everything else is just...
Irrelevant.
Monday Soup
First of all: sorry about our miss this past "Seek Me to Live" Wednesday! We'll make it up to you this week.
This past weekend we continued our series in Acts, this time journeying into the story of Pentecost in Acts 2. Pentecost marks the time in the history of Jesus' Church that he sent the Holy Spirit to us.
From John's sermon, the Holy Spirit inspires several different things in us:
This past weekend we continued our series in Acts, this time journeying into the story of Pentecost in Acts 2. Pentecost marks the time in the history of Jesus' Church that he sent the Holy Spirit to us.
From John's sermon, the Holy Spirit inspires several different things in us:
- the freedom to be authentic with people
- the power to love people differently
- the mission to reach the lost by all means necessary
- the illumination of Scripture
God blessed us with the opportunity to tell the story of the Holy Spirit by telling the story of Dave Koob, now a member of the Waterloo campus, and how he came to Christ this past year. In fact, scattered in segments throughout John's sermon were video clips of Dave's story. Matt Miller, our Created Video Director, did a wonderful job of shooting and editing Dave's story, and our technical teams did a fabulous job of weaving in and out of John's live sermon and Dave's video. What a powerful, powerful way to tell the story of how the Holy Spirit changes lives.
On a side note: Dave's story was so good, and John felt he had so much to tell about the Holy Spirit, that we're having to make a mid-course correction and split this message into two parts. We'll see the rest of Dave's story and hear the rest from Acts 2 this coming weekend.
John ended the weekend with a challenge: to intentionally and deliberately create space for the Holy Spirit to speak to you. He illustrated this with a part of Dave's story where Dave got quiet, turned the cell phone off, embraced silence, and started to listen to God. In Dave's words, here's how he recounted what God said: "I love you, I love you, I love you."
We created space for people to do the same by playing some instrumental music, and then singing part of Hillsong's "Fire Fall Down." Give it a listen sometime this week as you read the story below.
On a side note: Dave's story was so good, and John felt he had so much to tell about the Holy Spirit, that we're having to make a mid-course correction and split this message into two parts. We'll see the rest of Dave's story and hear the rest from Acts 2 this coming weekend.
John ended the weekend with a challenge: to intentionally and deliberately create space for the Holy Spirit to speak to you. He illustrated this with a part of Dave's story where Dave got quiet, turned the cell phone off, embraced silence, and started to listen to God. In Dave's words, here's how he recounted what God said: "I love you, I love you, I love you."
We created space for people to do the same by playing some instrumental music, and then singing part of Hillsong's "Fire Fall Down." Give it a listen sometime this week as you read the story below.
I had someone from the Cedar Falls campus run up the stairs on to the stage after the 11:00 a.m. service, kids in tow, and grab my arm as I was tearing down the stage. His name is Mike. He simply had to tell me what happened to him earlier this summer as he was fishing in Canada with his dad.
There they were in the middle of nowhere, out on a boat in the middle of the lake on a beautiful day. All of a sudden, he insisted that they shut of the motor and just sit and listen. Mike couldn't explain why. He just felt compelled to be silent, and for everyone else to do the same.
So they did. They cut the motor. The boat drifted silently along the water. And has the silence grew, here's what Mike said that he heard: God, speaking to him, revealing himself to him. In Mike's words, here's what God said:
"Mike. Look. Look around you. Look at this. I created this. It's beautiful. And I'm here, right here, out in the middle of nowhere, right with you."
Mike was tearing up as he was telling me this. It was a moment that crept up on him, took him by surprise, and made a very deep part of him alive. I resonated with him. Here's why:
It wasn't the most complex theological truth that God revealed to Mike that day. He didn't answer Mike's biggest question. He didn't solve any specific problem that Mike was wrestling with. In fact, he wasn't even responding to some sort of specific request that Mike had made or meet a need that Mike was praying about.
What God did was this: he reminded Mike that he was real. Apart from any prayer, apart from any song, apart from any program, apart from any request, apart from any initiation on Mike's part, apart from any manipulation or need, apart from any devotional practice, God is.
It's those types of encounters with God that our souls sorely need. We need God to creep up on each of us. We need to encounter him in a way that isn't initiated or controlled by us. Our hearts need to be reminded that God is, apart from us, good, and revealing himself to us.
Will you create some space for God, through the power of his Holy Spirit, to do that to you this week?
did you miss it?
We had a fairly information-heavy week last week, but there was some pretty significant pieces of information. Did you miss that:
- if you're a vocalist on a Cedar Falls teams, you need to schedule a re-audition?
Monday Soup: Look Death in the Face
And why do you think I keep risking my neck in this dangerous work? I look death in the face practically every day I live. Do you think I'd do this if I wasn't convinced of your resurrection and mine as guaranteed by the resurrected Messiah Jesus?Paul wrote this about 2,000 years ago to some church folks in Corinth who were doubting the resurrection. Basically, his rebuttal was:
Listen: I wouldn't constantly be risking my life for something I wasn't absolutely sure of. Jesus is real. And he's worth my life, even if it means my death.I shared this truth with our Cedar Falls team on Sunday morning because I think it's incredibly applicable for us as artists who put all of who we are out there every single weekend we serve. We try to get as close to perfect as we can. We take risks. At times we make attempts at things that we know--we know--we may fall short of achieving or pulling off to our own standards.
We had a night like that at Cedar Falls on Saturday. Some of it was our own fault--like me realizing on Friday night that my son's dedication and my obligation to worship lead both were going to happen, somehow and some way, at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday. My fault. But some of it was beyond our control--like Pastor John hitting the modulator on Kim's keyboard as he tried to place communion on it, or two amps that powered the main speakers going kaput right at the service's opening. Nobody's fault.
These things are going to happen.
And I, for one, am glad.
I'm glad because they are a sign that we are on the right track.
We are on the right track when failure is a real possibility, because it means that we are not content to remain safe in the false comforts of the familiar.
We are on the right track when failure is not only a possibility but a reality, because in our weakness we are moved to find that He is strong.
We are on the right track when failure whispers from its hiding place thoughts of fear and insecurity, or tempts us to be angry and critical, for then we must rely on our eyes of faith.
And let's be very clear of something else. Big picture: we hit a home run this weekend.
- We created an environment that was fresh, creative, relevant, God-centered, pure, biblical, clear, and compelling.
- We sang songs that lifted Jesus up and encouraged everyone to give everything to him.
- We did nothing for our own glory, but everything for God's.
- We begged people to take next steps of obedience towards God.
- We celebrated the sacrifice of Jesus through communion and song.
- We made a way for people to talk and pray and confess and return to God.
- We connected with one another, laughed together, served together, and fought together as one.
How many churches in the Cedar Valley are doing the same? Truly: we are part of something rare and good. And we'd do well to remember that.
Jesus is worth the risk, my friends. He's worth the minor failures and setbacks. He's worth the sacrifice. He's worth our lives. And he's worthy of our death, if that's what it comes to.
I'm glad to be dying with you, because we're dying for Christ. And Christ is in the business of raising the dead to life.
P.S.
I've been listening to this song for two hours on repeat now... during the entire time that I composed this entry:
I see Your face in every sunrise
The colors of the morning are inside Your eyes
The world awakens in the light of the day
I look up to the sky and say
You're beautiful
I see Your power in the moonlit night
Where planets are in motion and galaxies are bright
We are amazed in the light of the stars
It's all proclaiming who You are
You're beautiful, You're beautiful
I see you there hanging on a tree
You bled and then you died and then you rose again for me
Now you are sitting on Your heavenly throne
Soon we will be coming home
You're beautiful, you're beautiful
When we arrive at eternity's shore
Where death is just a memory and tears are no more
We'll enter in as the wedding bells ring
Your bride will come together and we'll sing
You're beautiful, You're beautiful, You're beautiful
I see Your face, You're beautiful, You're beautiful, You're beautiful
I see Your face, You're beautiful, You're beautiful, You're beautiful
I see Your face, I see Your face
I see Your face, You're beautiful, You're beautiful, You're beautiful
P.S.
I've been listening to this song for two hours on repeat now... during the entire time that I composed this entry:
I see Your face in every sunrise
The colors of the morning are inside Your eyes
The world awakens in the light of the day
I look up to the sky and say
You're beautiful
I see Your power in the moonlit night
Where planets are in motion and galaxies are bright
We are amazed in the light of the stars
It's all proclaiming who You are
You're beautiful, You're beautiful
I see you there hanging on a tree
You bled and then you died and then you rose again for me
Now you are sitting on Your heavenly throne
Soon we will be coming home
You're beautiful, you're beautiful
When we arrive at eternity's shore
Where death is just a memory and tears are no more
We'll enter in as the wedding bells ring
Your bride will come together and we'll sing
You're beautiful, You're beautiful, You're beautiful
I see Your face, You're beautiful, You're beautiful, You're beautiful
I see Your face, You're beautiful, You're beautiful, You're beautiful
I see Your face, I see Your face
I see Your face, You're beautiful, You're beautiful, You're beautiful
all I need
On Monday at our staff meeting, John Church, our GroupLife Coach, walked us through a great exercise that I want to share with all of you.
He gave us each a piece of paper. On the left column, under the heading of "Identify: God, I need..." was a list of about 25 different possible needs that we have from God. He instructed us to prayerfully select those that we need God to provide. Here were mine:
He gave us each a piece of paper. On the left column, under the heading of "Identify: God, I need..." was a list of about 25 different possible needs that we have from God. He instructed us to prayerfully select those that we need God to provide. Here were mine:
- to enjoy You
- intimacy
- more of You
- courage
- wisdom
- discipline
- understanding
- strength
- joy
- to show gratitude
- to be close
- faith
Then on the right side of the column, under the heading of "Express," were four action points:
- Pour out your feelings to God in prayer and be honest with him
- Recognize that God is able to change you or your circumstances, meeting your need with grace
- Align your will with the Father's, knowing that he knows best
- Surrender yourself to embrace and do God's will
Also on the right were various scripture passages, detailing truths from God's word that He is a God who can and will meet all of our needs.
Finally, right before we went on our own to interact with God in this exercise, John played Hillsong United's "All I Need." You can listen to it below.
So, on this Seek Me to Live Wednesday, take some time to identify and express your needs to God. Maybe you need to create some space for him to reveal to you what you need. Maybe your needs are so obvious that they are screaming out at you. Either way: your Father is love, loves you, and has the grace to meet your need.
From 2 Corinthians 9:8:
And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.
summer announcements
Hey folks,
Just wanted to give you a few reminders as well as a snapshot of some summer training events.
No All Team Meeting Tonight - We're taking a break in June from our All Team meetings, but we'll resume with a barbecue in July. So, enjoy this rainy summer day!
Scheduling Concerns? - Some of you (and you know who you are) are still sending your scheduling questions and comments to Shari. While she still loves you all, she's having to hit the "forward" button on the emails a little too often. Remember: scheduling questions and issues should all be directed to Angela Payne from now on.
Summer Events, Trips, and Training - Finally! We have a firmed up schedule for some of the events, trips, and trainings that we'd love for you to be a part of this summer. Take a look below at what is available to you:
Gurus of Tech - June 28th-30th, Louisville, KY. This is an amazing opportunity for you if you're a production volunteer at any of our campuses. Tech directors from Willow, Granger, and North Point will all be there. And get this: the conference itself is free! All you pay is lodging and food. Contact Dan Olsen if you're still on the fence about this opportunity and would like to go.
Sonshine Music Festival - July 14th-16th, Willmar, MN. We were looking for a good concert experience, and Sonshine does it well. Take a look at the link to see who's there. Cost will be either $75-80 per person, depending on how many would like to go. We'll be looking for hotels near there, so add the cost of lodging and food to that, and we're looking at about $250 per person. If you're interested in going, send Angela Payne an email, and we'll firm up details here in the next few weeks.
P&P Volunteer and Staff Retreat - August 20th-21st, Waterloo Center for the Arts. We'll be taking our annual staff and volunteer retreat at a new location this year - at the Waterloo Center for the Arts. It's a little bigger venue, with a little more space and even outdoor seating. We'll have more of an opportunity for a worship experience together - something that we don't get very often. And just like usual, we kept it local, so it won't be an overnight, and we won't be cutting into volunteer time on Saturday. Theme and other details to follow.
That's it from me for today. See you on the weekend!
Just wanted to give you a few reminders as well as a snapshot of some summer training events.
No All Team Meeting Tonight - We're taking a break in June from our All Team meetings, but we'll resume with a barbecue in July. So, enjoy this rainy summer day!
Scheduling Concerns? - Some of you (and you know who you are) are still sending your scheduling questions and comments to Shari. While she still loves you all, she's having to hit the "forward" button on the emails a little too often. Remember: scheduling questions and issues should all be directed to Angela Payne from now on.
Summer Events, Trips, and Training - Finally! We have a firmed up schedule for some of the events, trips, and trainings that we'd love for you to be a part of this summer. Take a look below at what is available to you:
Sonshine Music Festival - July 14th-16th, Willmar, MN. We were looking for a good concert experience, and Sonshine does it well. Take a look at the link to see who's there. Cost will be either $75-80 per person, depending on how many would like to go. We'll be looking for hotels near there, so add the cost of lodging and food to that, and we're looking at about $250 per person. If you're interested in going, send Angela Payne an email, and we'll firm up details here in the next few weeks.
P&P Volunteer and Staff Retreat - August 20th-21st, Waterloo Center for the Arts. We'll be taking our annual staff and volunteer retreat at a new location this year - at the Waterloo Center for the Arts. It's a little bigger venue, with a little more space and even outdoor seating. We'll have more of an opportunity for a worship experience together - something that we don't get very often. And just like usual, we kept it local, so it won't be an overnight, and we won't be cutting into volunteer time on Saturday. Theme and other details to follow.
That's it from me for today. See you on the weekend!
ch-ch-ch-changes
When I take a 40,000 ft. glimpse at the last three years, I am amazed not only at how many changes we've implemented in Programming and Production ministry at PLC, but also how God has blessed them, protected us, and used them to cause us to grow.
Think about it: we've changed our artistic direction, how we do community, our video environment, our staffing structure, and even how many locations we have - all within the last couple of years. Those are big. And yet, here we are. Stretched for sure... but healthy and heading in the right direction.
We're entering yet another season of change in our ministry - specifically as it concerns our vocalists at Cedar Falls, but more generally as it concerns how we audition people. Jon Lloyd, Renee Tink, and myself took some time to explain some of these changes via video. Take a look:
So, in summation, here's what we're proposing:
Think about it: we've changed our artistic direction, how we do community, our video environment, our staffing structure, and even how many locations we have - all within the last couple of years. Those are big. And yet, here we are. Stretched for sure... but healthy and heading in the right direction.
We're entering yet another season of change in our ministry - specifically as it concerns our vocalists at Cedar Falls, but more generally as it concerns how we audition people. Jon Lloyd, Renee Tink, and myself took some time to explain some of these changes via video. Take a look:
So, in summation, here's what we're proposing:
- Reducing our vocal team size from 4 vocalists (plus a worship leader) per team to 2 vocalists per team (plus a worship leader)
- Adding a callback round to our audition process in which we have our vocalists sing in a full production environment with a band and worship leader
- Having all of our current vocalists re-audition - both regular rotation and alternate
- Limiting our alternate list to 10 people
Again, if you are a vocalist on one of our Cedar Falls teams or an alternate, we need you to re-audition on one of these dates:
- Thursday, June 10, 7:00 - 9:00 p.m.
- Thursday, June 17, 7:00 - 9:00 p.m.
- Thursday, June 24, 7:00 - 9:00 p.m.
Fifteen minute slots will be available during each of those two-hour blocks. We'd like for you to bring one song prepared, and then plan on singing one of our worship songs from a weekend service that we'll put in front of you to have you sing with a worship leader and another vocalist. Contact Angela Payne to schedule a time.
Thanks in advance for your time and understanding. If you have any questions at all, or need some further clarification, please contact me directly - jesse.tink@prairielakeschurch.org.
Monday Soup
Happy Monday!
This weekend at PLC was good. Just plain good. Everything about it. Good.
We kicked off a new series that we'll be walking together in during a couple of the summer months. Acts: one God, one Story is really going to bring our community a lot of life this summer.
I want to show you the moment that we created. The video is taken from Waterloo as they were rehearsing it:
On Saturday night at Cedar Falls, we almost had a train wreck as we launched into it - so many moving parts at once, and we had to stop and start all of those parts over because our beloved Senior Pastor decided to say a few more words after his prayer! But, Andy Iehl did a great job of calling it, and Spencer a great job of making sure that everyone on stage made the adjustment.
Big picture: the story of Acts is the story of the church. But before the story of the church begins, Luke, the author of Acts, reminds us of the crux of the story. Quoting Jesus, Luke says in Acts 1:8:
John also quoted from Luke 15:7:
We saw a couple of people come to Christ on Saturday, a couple more on Sunday, and then we baptized 25 people at Cedar Falls and 10 people at Waterloo. God loves it when we embrace his purpose and passion, doesn't he?
This is the story God has been writing for 2,000 years now. And so, we wrote the story in our services using a Hillsong United song entitled "Tear Down the Walls" and an accompanying video piece that we created to drive home the words of the chorus:
Have a wonderful week!
This weekend at PLC was good. Just plain good. Everything about it. Good.
We kicked off a new series that we'll be walking together in during a couple of the summer months. Acts: one God, one Story is really going to bring our community a lot of life this summer.
I want to show you the moment that we created. The video is taken from Waterloo as they were rehearsing it:
On Saturday night at Cedar Falls, we almost had a train wreck as we launched into it - so many moving parts at once, and we had to stop and start all of those parts over because our beloved Senior Pastor decided to say a few more words after his prayer! But, Andy Iehl did a great job of calling it, and Spencer a great job of making sure that everyone on stage made the adjustment.
Big picture: the story of Acts is the story of the church. But before the story of the church begins, Luke, the author of Acts, reminds us of the crux of the story. Quoting Jesus, Luke says in Acts 1:8:
"But 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."Here is our purpose, my friends: to take the message of life and freedom that we've received from Jesus, and to spread it to everyone we meet. That's our purpose.
John also quoted from Luke 15:7:
"I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent."Love that. Heaven takes a side. More partying over lost people returning. More passion from the purpose of reaching them.
We saw a couple of people come to Christ on Saturday, a couple more on Sunday, and then we baptized 25 people at Cedar Falls and 10 people at Waterloo. God loves it when we embrace his purpose and passion, doesn't he?
This is the story God has been writing for 2,000 years now. And so, we wrote the story in our services using a Hillsong United song entitled "Tear Down the Walls" and an accompanying video piece that we created to drive home the words of the chorus:
Your name is glorious, glorious
Your love is changing us, calling us
To worship in spirit and in truth
As all creation returns to YouOn an interesting note: we played the same song last September on the weekend that we called people to grab a brick and either pray, give, or go to the Waterloo campus. Great song.
Have a wonderful week!
what is deep?
This Seek Me to Live Wednesday centers around this question:
What do you see, feel, and think when you hear the word "deep" used to describe a relationship with God?
Do you see a Bible study or a small group? Maybe a theological text book? A verse? A worship experience?
Do you feel a sense of profundity? Is it an intellectual feeling? Or mystery? A state of inner peace or satisfaction? A desire to go deeper than you are? Perhaps some sort of dissatisfaction with the way things are currently?
Do you think about a spiritual discipline? A command or a principle? A moral way of living? A higher calling? An ideal way of living? Perhaps a time or a season in your life when you felt that you went "deep?"
I'd love it if you'd take some time to share what you see, feel, and think when you hear the word "deep."
And then, if you would, at the end of your comments, take a stab at prayerfully answering this question:
"If you asked Jesus to recount a time that he went deep with God, which story from the Gospels do you think he'd tell you first? Why?"
What do you see, feel, and think when you hear the word "deep" used to describe a relationship with God?
Do you see a Bible study or a small group? Maybe a theological text book? A verse? A worship experience?
Do you feel a sense of profundity? Is it an intellectual feeling? Or mystery? A state of inner peace or satisfaction? A desire to go deeper than you are? Perhaps some sort of dissatisfaction with the way things are currently?
Do you think about a spiritual discipline? A command or a principle? A moral way of living? A higher calling? An ideal way of living? Perhaps a time or a season in your life when you felt that you went "deep?"
I'd love it if you'd take some time to share what you see, feel, and think when you hear the word "deep."
And then, if you would, at the end of your comments, take a stab at prayerfully answering this question:
"If you asked Jesus to recount a time that he went deep with God, which story from the Gospels do you think he'd tell you first? Why?"
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