Thinking About Good Friday

If you are a Christ follower, one of us who has been bought with the blood of the Lamb, I pray you’ll pause for just a minute today (maybe now) and reflect on all that it took for God to redeem you. I would submit to you that as painful as the beatings were, as humiliating as the mocking was, as gut wrenching as the nails and the crown of thorns were, perhaps the most devastating thing for Christ on that day was bearing the weight of my sin and your sin. Think about it.  Jesus had lived 33 years and had never felt guilt over something He’d done.  Not even once did He have a reason to be ashamed.  He never suffered the feeling of embarrassment about a stupid mistake.  But, suddenly, on this day some 2000 years ago, He felt the weight of the fall.  He felt the guilt of my sin.  He experienced my shame.  He suffered the embarrassment of my stupid mistakes. (And not just mine, but yours and everyone else’s.)  And because He went through all that, I no longer have to be chained to guilt and shame and embarrassment.  He took all that and crucified it on the cross and gave me freedom and life and a newness that permeates everything in me.  That makes this Friday awfully good!

He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. - 2 Corinthians 5:21

Eden Mercy Reed - July 16, 2007

Eden Mercy Reed was born July 16, 2007 at 7:49am at Tanner Medical Center in Villa Rica. She weighed 7lbs 8oz and was 19 1/2 inches long. Mama is doing well and Eden's big sisters are excited to welcome her to the world. To see more photos of Eden, check out the following link:

http://adobe.kodakgallery.com/ShareLandingSignin.jsp?Uc=2e6sf0tp.6nn1ulyl&Uy=8r511n&Upost_signin=Slideshow.jsp%3Fmode%3Dfromshare&Ux=0&UV=144658107112_729684808109

Thank you all for your prayers and support.

Life is Discipleship

Have you ever said, "If I can only make it through this week," or "I'm just trying to make it through the day!" I can't tell you how many times I've said those kind of things. But I think when we say those things, we are living unaware of what God is doing. Could it be that when we are focused on the daily grind or the rat race or whatever you call it that we miss important opportunities for God to develop us? Could it be that God's discipleship process is more than a Bible study or a church service (not that I'm against those things!)? Maybe "life" is God's discipleship process. Jesus discipled 12 men by experiencing life with them.

So the next time you find yourself saying, "that's life," maybe its not just part of "life." Maybe its God's discipleship process for you. Maybe He's trying to make you more like Jesus. Maybe there's more going on than "life."

Ignorance is Bliss

The bliss of not knowing has come to a halt. Yesterday, I had my cholesterol checked. And, as no surprise, its a little high. I can't believe all those cheeseburgers haven't helped to get it down! So the doctor told me to go on a low cholesterol diet. Its not looking good. It seems most of what I eat regularly is in the "Avoid" category - bacon, sausage, cheddar cheese, butter, doughnuts, icecream, potato chips, chocolate, hot dogs, "prime" grade fatty cuts of meat...Man, I'm getting hungry. Fortunately, my doctor pointed out the positives - I am allowed to have low-fat jelly beans! You've got to be kidding me.

6/8

Today marks eleven years since Wendy became my wife. It's also fourteen years to the day since I first told her that I was madly in love with her. On one hand, I can't believe that it has been that long. It seems like only yesterday we were standing up there saying our vows. On the other hand, I can barely remember life without her! It is so awesome to be in this adventure of life and family and ministry with someone so captivating. There is no one else I'd want to go through life with, no one I'd rather have beside me. I love you, Wendy!

Risky Business

I'm certainly no thrill seeker. The thought of plummeting toward earth in a skydiving adventure really freaks me out (I've seen to many movies where chutes didn't open!). I don't really like to travel that fast or jump off things. Waterskiing is about as adventurous as I get - and last time I did that I strained my rotator cuff. But God seems to be speaking to me about risk. Our current sermon series The Great Escape...breaking free from the things that keep us in chains! is a study through the Exodus where Moses comes back to Egypt (after being chased out of town 40 years ago) to convince a king to just let all his slaves go! No armies. No secret weapons. Just the call of God on his life. Pretty risky, I'd say. I just finished reading The Big Idea from Dave Ferguson. Part of the premise is that we've got to take risks in our churches. The mission is too critical to just maintain the status quo. Besides, in eternity, what else should we risk more than connecting others to God? Then I read Perry Noble's blog this morning and he talked about the importance of taking risks as a pastor to advance God's kingdom. God is definitely working on me in that area. I'm not really sure where all He's taking me, but it's going to be a great ride. I just hope He doesn't lead me out of a perfectly good airplane!

Is it just a guy thing?

Our new church building is coming along. Its so exciting to see things being done. Its probably a guy thing, but I love to go over to the building site and just watch the heavy equipment work. We don't have a lot over there - an excavator, a skid-steer, and a small dozer. But I could sit over there for hours and just watch them move dirt around. Odd, I know!