A Quick Memorial Day Quote

I hope you enjoy your Memorial Day.

Thought I'd share this famous quote from Teddy Roosevelt - I read this the other day and it really spoke to me.

"It is not the critic who counts
Not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled
Or where the doer of deeds could have done them better
The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena
Whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood
Who strives valiantly
Who errs and comes short again and again
Who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions
And spends himself in a worthy cause
Who, at the best, knows the triumph of high achievement
And who, at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly
So that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls
Who knew neither victory nor defeat."
- Theodore Roosevelt

One Prayer...God Is - June 2009

NewLife Fellowship is proud to be partnering with Pastor Craig Groeschel, LifeChurch.tv, and hundreds of churches around the globe for this year’s One Prayer/God Is… initiative.

I for one am blown away by the comprehensive and Kingdom-minded scope of the project. Thank you Pastor Craig for bringing the Church together in such a strategic and productive way.

I’m also excited for NewLife to hear some of the nation’s leading voices this June.

And...I’m even more excited to be a part of a generation of believers who are coming together to lift Jesus high through the power of unity.

I feel that all church leaders should consider being a part of this powerful vision.

It’s about time the church came together. One Prayer is a big step in that direction.

Midweek Reflections

I am still trying to wrap my mind around all that God did this past weekend. Here are some of the random thoughts that are running through my mind.

• I never cease to be amazed at our Volunteers. They turned out this weekend and made things happen!
• The way God uses a church to change a community is one life at a time…and this past weekend God used NewLife to touch some single moms lives!
• I am trying to think about how in the world to put into words what God allowed our church to do…and I don’t have them. You can see some video from the weekend HERE.
• We need to keep in mind that we didn’t do what we did this past weekend because we have a great church…but because we serve a great and awesome God! One day the name “NewLife” will fade away…but the name of JESUS will endure forever!
• Wait...I'm still not done talking about this weekend. Truth of the matter is God has called us to LIVE the Gospel…which means being willing to love, give and serve extravagently! God doesn’t do things halfway…and we as His followers shouldn’t either!
• I REALLY can't wait until next Monday! I am going to be attending the Catalyst One Day conference in Dallas. Really looking forward to hearing Andy Stanley and Craig Groeschel. Those two dudes are freaking smart...and God's hand is all over their lives. I know God's going to use them to speak into my life.
• Parents…YFN(camp) is going to be incredible for our students again this year! Your teenager wants to go…and you want them out of the house for a week! So go to the website and find out all things YFN right now!
• God is doing some great things right now…and the momentum that is building at NewLife right now incredible! Every week I show up EXPECTING God to do something huge! Words can’t describe how excited I am about this next year of ministry that is heading our way!
• Invite people to come with you this weekend...Practical Atheist. I really believe God is going to use this series to reach people who are far from God and people who are but don't know it.

I know that in my last post I shared about feeling like I was in over my stinking head and I've been trying to pull things back together. I thought you'd like to know things are still CRAZY...but what God's been teaching me is that when things get predictable that means God usually isn’t involved!!!

A Moment Of Honesty

I have been absent from blogging consistently for some time now. Sorry to all 3 of you who read this...(Hi Mom!)

I even hesitate to write this because I’m not looking for your self-pity but in a moment of honesty…I am finding that I’m so in over my stinking head these days. Now don’t read into this. I’m not having a personal breakdown or anything...and no I’m not standing on a bridge. =)

I just know that as a leader sometimes I have the tendency to project that I have it all together.
In case you haven’t already noticed this about my life: I don’t. I think I need to be honest with you and say everything is not “fine” all the time.

There are certain days I feel so overwhelmed I question my every move. And I bet I’m not alone. I bet many of you have moments where you’re…
Making decisions you’ve never made before.
Being criticized more frequently than before.
Facing situations you’ve never seen before.
Moving faster than you’ve ever moved before.
Risking more than you ever have before.
And you feel like you're running through a dark forest.

Henri Nouwen said…
“When we become aware that we do not have to escape our pains, but that we can mobilize them into a common search for life, those very pains are transformed from expressions of despair into signs of hope”

So I apologize in advance, but I’m going to be scarce around here for a little while I allow God to help me pull my life and emotions back together. I know He’ll help me transform them from expressions of despair to signs of hope.

God is humbling me and I’m learning to lean on Him for every ounce of strength.