Five Reasons we are launched Church at the Grove Social Circle

 Bible, Church, Church at the Grove, Church Planting, Faith, Jesus, Leadership, Missional, READ THIS!  No Responses »
Feb 062012
 

Our Social Circle campus pastor Nathan Boyd (via Perry Noble) shared this with our launch team a few months back in preparation for launching our second campus in Social Circle.  We must continue to advance the gospel through church planting and multiplying movements!

1. Because we understand that found people find people…and we will not stop doing whatJesus commanded us to do.

  • Matthew 28:18-20- “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.  And surely I am with you always, to the very end of age.”
  • Matthew 9:35-38 – “When he (Jesus) saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field”

2. Because we understand that saved people serve people…and we will not stop doing what the Bible commands of us.

  • 1 Peter 4:10 – “Each of you should use whatever gifts you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.”
  • Matthew 20:28 – “…just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

3. Because we understand that growing people change…and we will not stop praying for Jesus to change us.

  • Psalm 139:23-24 – “Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”

4. Because we understand that we can’t do life alone…and we will obey what the Lord has instructed us to do in Hebrews 10:24-25.

  • Hebrews 10:24-25 – “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another – and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”
  • Ecclesiastes 4:9 – “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor.”

5. Because we understand that we cannot out give God…and so we will obey what God’s Word teaches.

  • Malachi 3:6-12- ‘”Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,’ says the LORD Almighty, ‘and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.”
  • Proverbs 3:9-10- “Honor the LORD with your wealth, with the first fruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine
 Posted by at 1:20 pm

The Hidden Life of a Leader

 Church Planting, Faith, Leadership  No Responses »
Feb 032012
 

God often takes us into a dessert experience to do a deep work in private before he performs a broad work through us in public.

A life that is characterized by spiritual depth is most often cultivated in time spent in solitude, quietness and obscurity.
Paul experienced this dessert obscurity and solitude immediately following his Damascus Road conversion.

Galatians 1:15–18 (ESV)
15 But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, 16 was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone; 17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me, but I went away into Arabia, and returned again to Damascus.
18 Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas and remained with him fifteen days.

 

Paul spent 3 years in dessert obscurity for the purpose of preparing him for the ministry to which Jesus had called him.
I am reading Paul: A Man of Grace and Grit by Charles Swindoll, and I cannot remember EVER being taught about Paul’s 3 year journey into the dessert.  Why did he spend 3 years in the dessert prior to his public ministry?
Before we answer why, let’s take a look at who else spent time in obscurity before their ministry went public:
  • Moses fled to the plains of Midian and tended sheep for 40 years before God used him to free the Israelites from Egypt.
  • David spent 13 years as a fugitive in the caves of Engedi where many of his Psalms were born before assuming the throne of Israel he was anointed for when he was a boy.
  • Joseph spent time in jail unjustly accused in Egypt before he ascended to a place of authority that would allow God to use him to protect his family from famine.
  • Elijah spent time hiding in the wilderness being fed by ravens.
  • John the Baptist ate locust and honey for most of his ministry.  He announced the public ministry of the Messiah and he was beheaded as a reward for going public with the truth of a political leader.
Here are 3 areas that God often works on while we are in the dessert:
  1. God often desires to forge in us a work of lasting transformation and character.  To do the work of God in ministry we must have a heart for people, we must craft our theology and we need to cultivate an identity solely in Christ.
  2. Often it takes time to discover what REALLY matters.  In the dessert experience we learn that to be great leaders we must lead in areas that truly matter to God!
  3. When we are so busy and fixing everyone else at breakneck speed, we simply can’t hear God’s voice clearly.  God takes us into solitude in order to slow down, get quiet and listen to his still, small voice.
I spent some time in the dessert under a pastor that lacked integrity and leadership.  It was in that experience that I learned to depend on God.  My relationship with my wife grew stronger during this time as we leaned into God and one another.

The church I planted and now pastor went through a very difficult period two years into the plant.  It was a bit of a dessert experience where I learned what really mattered.  

Have you spent some time in the dessert?  What did you learn?
 Posted by at 5:57 pm

Gravity is not good for the soul

 Faith, Jesus, Random Thoughts  No Responses »
Feb 012012
 

The older I get (no jokes, comments, or making fun of me please!) the more gravity wreaks havoc on my body!

Things sag where they didn’t before, clothes don’t fit the same and all of that, BUT the biggest difference is related to exercise and fitness activity. I have never been able to jump extremely high or run exceptionally fast or for extreme long distances, but the older I get, the STINKIN’ less I can do anything without killing me!

I have tried to reverse the process with adding P90x to my regular routine, but it is harder and harder the older I get.

It all comes down to gravity weighing the ole’ body down! I feel the weight more than ever on my body and the body feels good for nothing!!!!!

Isn’t that the way it is with us spiritually? The more weight we carry spiritually, emotionally, and relationally, the less we feel capable of being loved by God and we feel less capable of being used by God.

GOD WANTS US FREE FROM JUNK THAT CONTINUES TO WEIGH US DOWN!

Read Hebrews 12:1-2 here.

I talk to people that have turned to follow Christ and they inevitably say, “Yeah, I trusted Christ to forgive me for my sins, BUT……….THAT IS A BIG BUT! They always refer to something that keeps them from living free!

Either he forgave us or He didn’t. The same work that Christ did on the cross to forgive us from our sins is the same work He did to remove the baggage and free us from the baggage that weighs us down. GRAVITY WREAKS HAVOC ON THE SOUL!

God does not want….nor did He intend for you to carry baggage for the rest of your life! We are not built to carry sin, shame, guilt…..whatever it is, into eternity. I say get rid of it now.

I want to jump higher….run faster….dance more freely! God wants that for me too!

The Body can be good for something!

Jesus came to free us from the baggage…….

 Posted by at 11:37 am

Let’s Keep Growing: 3 ways for Church at the Grove to continue to grow!

 Church, Church at the Grove, Community, Faith, Jesus, Random Thoughts  No Responses »
Jan 302012
 

We have experienced enormous blessing over the last year and specifically over this past month as we have launched our new campus in Social Circle!  We continue to see new people added to both our campuses this month!   We are growing and it is exciting!

Here is my BIG HAIRY AUDACIOUS GOAL and desire for Church at the Grove right now!  Are you ready?!
Let’s keep growing!  Yeah, I said it!  Let’s keep growing and here are the specific areas I want us to focus on growing:
Let’s keep growing numerically!  
  • I will never apologize for wanting and desiring our church to grow numerically.  Do a word study in the book of Acts on the word “numbers” and you will see that Luke records over and over when people were added to the church.  If our mission is to lead people to follow Jesus and Make Disciples then we should be adding people.
  • I want to see 100 people baptized this year!  There, I said it!  I believe it can happen.
  • I believe that we can average over 500 people in attendance by September this year!
Let’s grow spiritually!
  • I want us to have more people reading their Bibles daily.
  • I want to have more people engaged in serving their community.
  • I want to have more people being transformed into the image of Jesus in every area of their life.
  • I want to see more people sharing the gospel with their family and friends.
  • I want to see more people investing in people and inviting them to our Sunday CATGrove gatherings.
  • I want to hear about more families having a nightly family devotional/prayer time.
  • I want more marriages to grow stronger and healthier.
  • I want to see more people involved in Community Group Bible Study.
Let’s grow relationally!
  • I would love to set a record this fall for how many people are involved in Community Groups.
  • I challenge you to make more time to simply develop your friendships and relationships this year.
  • Make time for people.
  • Come early and stay a little late on Sundays so you can have a conversation with some people you don’t know that well.
  • Plan to get to know some of our newer attendees over this next month!
  • Remember, we are about PEOPLE!
I love Jesus!  I love what He is doing.  I love Church at the Grove!
 Posted by at 11:26 pm
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