Monday Morning Perspective

It was a great Sunday at both of our Fairview campuses. We are having first timers and returners at both and the energy is contagious! Keep inviting Fairview! We are surrounded by people who need Jesus and need a church family and are just waiting to be invited. 

My husband brought a great message from Acts 17 as Paul shared with the people exactly who this unknown god was that they worshipped. Many of the things mentioned in scripture are the same for us today. Many of the people were extremely intelligent but believed wrong. There were idols everywhere in the city just as they are in our city, only we don't label ours as such. We see that religious people feared God but had no relationship with God. 

Paul shared the simple truth of the gospel with them, pointing out that the one true God who created everything was also involved in every aspect of life. He is a God who is bigger than what their hands could create and He's too big to keep in their enormous buildings. He created them, they didn't create Him. 

The people also responded much like people today. Some sneered and mocked and denied. Some decided to delay their decision and hear more later. And others decided to follow. As we looked at Dionysius who was an up and outer and Damaris a down and outer, we see that it's a whosoever gospel as they both decided to follow. 

Too often good people think they're good enough and bad people think they're too bad. Christ overcomes all of that and His blood covers all sin. 

Follow up

Following up on the last post girls! Proverbs 31 ministries is also offering a summer study online if you want to check that out! Get in the Word! Lots of options, zero excuses! 

This has to be my shortest blog ever!!!

Summer Idea

Hey to all you girls! I wanted to share a great summer opportunity that you may want to jump on. Lifeway is offering two summer bible studies online. The only cost to you is the cost of the workbook. One study is called Seamless by Angie Smith. It's a great overview study from Genesis to Revelation. It's especially good for those new to bible study but also for everyone else. The other study is by Kelly Minter called What Love Is and is a verse by verse study through 1,2,and 3John. This is the one I've chosen because, in case you haven't heard, my husband's summer series will be 1John ssshhhhh ;)! That means I can just go all in there and get filled up with those letters. Both are only 7 weeks. Lifeway will post a video once a week from these authors to go along with your workbook study. You can watch it any time and any where. You don't have to worry about getting behind on vacation. You can watch laying by the pool or wherever you are. But it keeps us in the Word girls!! We don't want to take a summer vacation from studying scripture! You can do it alone or get some friends together and do it with a small group. You can go online to Lifeway and sign up and they'll email you when it gets started and you can get more info! 

Also summer is when I catch up on my reading! I usually save up some books for those times I'm laying by the pool or on vacation or long rides. I'm going to start with The Best Yes by Lysa Terkeurst. I've heard great things about that one. Also I'm planning on reading Tim Keller's The Freedom of Self-Forgetfulness. I have a feeling this one will kill me and his book Prayer. Actually I've heard you should read anything Tim Keller writes! One I would recommend that I've already read is The Uncommon Woman by Susie Larson. It's a great read! And if you've never read The Wild Goose Chase by Mark Batterson, read that first! It changed many things about my life and it's one I always recommend. All In by Batterson is another good one. 

Don't forget all the opportunities at Fairview and through Favor this summer. Summer is my favorite time of year and it always goes by so fast. Don't get to the end of it and realize you left the important stuff behind or it got squeezed out by the fun and sun. Stay in church girlfriends and stay in the Word on your own! I'm so thankful God never takes a vaca from me and my neediness! Love you al!

Monday Morning Perspective

Old Soldiers Never Die! That was the message title yesterday from Joshua 23 and 24. We looked at the great address Joshua gave to his leaders and the people. It was a great address to leaders and God's people today as well. Joshua had noticed the moral drift of the people. He had seen the compromise of God's people and how they had been impacted by the culture around them instead of impacting the culture. Eddie challenged us to be people who drive the climate of the culture instead of reflecting it. We looked at the keys to being blessed by God, but reminded that just as in Joshua's day, we can choose for ourselves whom we will serve. Eddie gave a great quote by Spurgeon on how God will not allow His people to sin successfully and if we are doing so and not miserable in our sin, we should check out if we are really saved. God is not happy with lip service, we are saved to serve. We were left with the question to ask ourselves, what kind of influence are we having?

It was a great message, a great day to be in His house. We missed all of you traveling for the long weekend! Look forward to next Sunday, it's sure to be a good one!!

Happy Memorial Day everyone! Thankful for those who serve and grateful for many who have served. Praying our nation will turn from our wicked ways and get back to God for some much needed healing! 

Baseball's Our Game

Another season is in the book.  It doesn't seem to matter how tired I am, how exciting or frustrating the season was, our record, or how long or short into the postseason we go, I'm never ready to see it end.  It always means that there are seniors we won't be seeing again, another season on the horizon of wondering how it's going to go, just plain missing the ball field.  But like all good things, and there were many good things this year, it must come to an end.  Thankfully, we have one more college season to look forward to.  

This year started very differently for us.  It's the first year Stephen wouldn't be playing since he graduated.  That meant our time wouldn't be split between two boys which made things easier, but didn't take away the sting of missing seeing Stephen on the mound.  And we've never known a year without two boys playing. There were also question marks looming over John's season.  John had suffered a back injury his sophomore year at SMC.  He had played through it with lots of therapy and pain, but we knew something had to be done in the offseason.  Since it was his second year of juco, he had to make the decision where he would go and play next.  He had not committed to the offers made, even late in the game.  Nothing seemed quite right or a fit.  I think he settled and half heartedly made a decision in his head but God quickly stepped in, thankfully.  And then a call came...North Greenville was hiring a new coach.  Not just any coach.  They were hiring Landon Powell and John was asked to hold on and at least talk to him.  NGU wasn't really on John's go to list.  We also heard that he was bringing a pitching coach with him.  Not just any pitching coach.  They were hiring Jon Coutlangus.  He was at Charleston Southern at the time, where Stephen was finishing his senior year, but wasn't getting to coach pitchers.  Stephen told John he had gotten to spend a day with him during that season and learned an awful lot.  He told him he may really want to consider NGU.  Thankfully Coach Powell called and we sat and talked.  The only question left was the back.  Dr visits and tests had already started but we had no answers.  John was upfront about the injury but, unlike some coaches, he didn't write John off.  He knew about injuries and rehab and believed in John coming back. He still didn't want to make a commitment and then get bad news from the Dr. that he would have to back out, but coach wanted him  to commit, so John committed.  He was told to work hard in rehab and be ready for opening day.  Fall was no fun! Watching the team practice and work while he sat and went to rehab was not fun.  Wondering all along how it would be once rehab was complete and he got back on the field was no fun.  I remember holding on to what I knew in my head but came to believe in my heart and that is that God really does work all things for our good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. He was in control of the injury and the timing of it.  Between having a great Dr, a great rehab work ethic, and having a coach who believed in him and most importantly serving a God who is still in the healing business, John was ready opening day.  He placed him on a team where he could be encouraged in his walk and also be an encouragement to others.  He placed him under a Christian coach with a testimony who walks it out and who was no stranger to injuries himself.  He was allowed to be a 2-way until pitching seemed to become more of a need than 1st and what was amazing to all of us is that he really hadn't thrown hardly any since high school and ended up having a phenomenal year on the mound as well as a not so bad batting average.  The coaching staff took a team who had only won 8 games the year before and turned it completely around.  They ended with a winning record, won some series, swept some series, won their conference tournament and went to a ncaa regional for the first time.  We told John when NGU first called that we believed the coach would turn it around pretty fast, which of course was a question for someone who only had 2 years left since he was a junior, but we would never have thought it would be this fast or this big of a turnaround.  Another way God was just working it out.  John could've gone to a few other places and might've been frustrated and may never have seen the mound.  Great coaches are key.  They not only can turn teams around and win but they also know what to do with who they have.  What still makes me laugh is that John went to SMC as a pitcher and ended up on 1st and hitting and he came to NGU as a 1st baseman and hitter and ended up on the mound most of the time.  He's been blessed to have great coaches who knew not only where John could do well but where he would best help the team at the time.  Those are fun coaches and teams to watch. Ultimately, my belief is that God placed both of my boys where He wanted them to be for school and baseball.  That takes a lot of pressure off knowing that He is ultimately in control of my boys and their #1 coach. Yes, lots of good things happened this year.

Actually great things happened this year! It was so nice to watch John play again injury free and pain free.  Watching him struggle through the pain was rough.  It was fun watching this group of boys become a team, a team who liked each other and played well together.  A team that consisted of some players who had been there all along, which was awesome seeing them enjoy a winning season, some players transferring from other schools, and some juco players.  Who knew how all of that would go? Yep, it's baseball, but I believe it was a God thing.  All good things come from Him, right? He's taught us some good life lessons during good seasons and bad, molded and shaped our character, taught us trusting Him is better than trying to control things yourself, being a team player is better than living in your own selfish world, hard work pays off, and on and on it goes.  He reaches down into our ordinary, everyday lives and teaches us about Himself, if we let Him. He shows us that on some days we can be a hero and the next day not so much, but He's working in all of it. I do know it's always better to follow Him and go where He says go.  He even saves us from ourselves when we are about to make the wrong decision. He opens up a new door while we are scratching our heads wondering what is going on and then floods us with blessings.  And we scratch our heads again. 

I'm super thankful that as much time as we spend sitting by the diamond, as much energy as we spend on it, as much heart and soul that we spend on it, that God is not absent from it.  He's there enjoying it with us, teaching us, bringing relationships into our lives that teach us so much, convicting us of poor attitudes and redeeming it by giving us another game to get it right, and that's just on the parent side of the fence.  I'm sure the players on their side of the fence could share many ways God has shown up and taught them.  A few of my fave pics from the year...

Monday Morning Perspective

Hi Dawn Leopard readers! This is Chrissie this morning filling in for my mom who is getting some much needed R&R with my dad this week. Mom asked me to write her MMP this morning since my husband brought the messages yesterday! (Thanks Mom, I love a good takeover :))

Yesterday morning, if you walked away with one thing, you walked away with a life motto challenge- that everyday when you leave the house it's as if you're changing the sign on your door to say, "Gone Fishin'." We, as Christ followers, cannot afford not to fish! If we don't fish, people perish. If we aren't fishing for people, we're just cruising by them.

In the first 16 verses of Mark 1, we see Jesus putting together the first team that would ever change the world. He's essentially recruiting His squad (as the young folks say ;) Notice something profound: Jesus did not start calling disciples in the synagogue or the temple. He started by the Sea of Galilee. He recruited fishermen, tax-collectors, those we would label "sinners". For us, this means that there is hope. Jesus can use anyone he pleases to be His disciples and change the world. None of us are excluded from fishing.

Jesus's first call was to "Come and follow me." He never rejects anyone that comes to Him but you can't fish for people without first following Jesus. The more we follow Jesus, the more He will give us a heart for people.

After following Jesus's call to "Follow Him", we must obey His command to GO. Jesus started His ministry by commanding that we GO and fish for people. When Jesus ends His ministry, He leaves us with the command to GO and fish for people. Don't you just love the way Jesus does things?

Know that the fish/people are not going to show up on your doorstep begging you to tell them about Jesus. You have to go to them. If you have a story to tell, you can go fish.

Fisherman exhibit three qualities: Passion, Patience, & Persistence. There are different types of fish just as there are different types of people. If you are passionate about fishing, you have to get to know the type of fish you're fishing for. Same goes for people. When you fish, you may not catch a fish the first time. But, often times that fish will grab at your bait and swim away with something. Know that people may not accept Jesus when you offer Him, but they walk away with some bait and often times they'll come back for the rest.

God never quit on you - don't quit on people.

Often times, the bigger the fish the bigger the fight. You may be fishing for someone who's heart has grown overly cold and hard because they've been away from the Lord for so long. Know that they'll put up a strong fight. The bigger the fish the bigger the fight. Don't give up because catching fish can be addicting. Once you catch one, you'll want to catch more!

When the disciples decided to follow Jesus, there was a cost. It cost them their families, jobs, security, and more. There's always a cost to following Jesus but the cost is a lot greater when we don't follow Jesus. Let's be participators and not spectators to what God is doing. If the gospel hasn't touched others has it truly touched you? We can't say we love people if we haven't shared Jesus with them. 

My husband ended by sharing a story about His love disdain for cleaning fish. Here's something profound that we believe Jesus would tell us today: 

You catch them, I'll clean them.

Go fish.

Favor Coffee Breaks

I'm so excited to tell you about our Favor Coffee Breaks that will begin in June.  We realize that in a church our size, even with bible study classes and life groups, we don't always get the opportunity to know one another like we would like to.  We also know that with the way we have grown, many of our women haven't gotten to connect especially since we are so often segregated into specific age groups.  And now we have two campuses and we want women from both campuses to get to know one another.  Our mission from the start was to provide opportunities for girls of all ages to connect.  We believe this is so important as we can learn so much from one another and mentor and grow together. A healthy church is a growing, loving, multi-generational church.  Believing this, we are offering "coffee breaks" on the 3rd Saturday of the month at 10am for only an hour.  Also believing that meeting in homes is a wonderful way to relax and break down barriers, we will be doing our coffee breaks in different homes each time.  We have a different host in place for June through October and will take a break from the coffee breaks, ;), in November and December for the holidays.  This will be a time with nothing planned other than to enjoy one another and offer encouragement and prayer support for one another.  It is open to anyone and everyone!  Please feel free to bring friends.  This will be great for outreach and inreach.  Yes, coffee will be served along with a light snack, perhaps even coffee cake.  We will be handing out invitations at church very soon and posting everywhere we can think of.  Help us get the word out!! We will post the home we are meeting in so noone will be left out.  Hopefully these will grow so much that we will have to have several host homes each 3rd Saturday and spread the love around.  Our Favor Team is hosting to begin with, but if you would be interested in hosting or perhaps providing the breakfast snack, please let us know.  We will plan more of these come the new year and we would love your participation. Again, help us spread the word.  Our first Favor Coffee Break will be June 20th at the home of JoHannah Joines.  We will have her address posted and like I said, we will have invitations printed to hand out at church with all the details of the months to come.
Have a Favor-filled day and week to come and remember, God's favor is never about us, it's always about Him!!
May God be gracious to us and bless us; look on us with favor so that your way may be known on earth, your salvation among all nations.  Psalm 6:1-2

Monday Morning Perspective

Mother's Day 2015 is in the books. I hope yours was great! One thing I always want us to remember is that we don't have to birth children to mother. I love my mother more than any woman on the planet but I've had more than a few mother me. Some when I was young and had other women, even my mom's friends, pour into my life. Some have been just slightly older than me but invested in me and mentored me in life and faith. I've had the privilege of having some younger women in my life that have allowed me to "mother" them in some way. I'm thankful for those I know who have done the same for my children. Please don't let Mother's Day or Father's Day make you feel left out. If you feel a loss or emptiness in that area, look for opportunities to invest in the lives of others. It makes a difference. 

Now for church yesterday, it was great! It always is great to gather with our church family to worship and fellowship. My husband had a great word from Mark 7 and Matthew 15 as we see Jesus venture into Gentile territory and heal the Canaanite woman's daughter. The points I loved most from this message...

...when Jesus shows up, He shows out. And He should always stick out in our lives. 

...she had heard about Jesus and was willing to see if He would help her. Are we telling, so others can hear and be willing to trust Him? 

...Jesus annihilated the thought that we must come to Him through the Jewish door. We don't come to Him through the Jewish door or denominational door. We come through the gospel door. 

...crumbs from the master's table are better than anything else we can get. She was willing to take whatever. How many of us would be insulted or just walk away? 

...she believed before she saw that her daughter was healed. 

...the daughter wasn't in the area near Jesus but her mother was. Preach!

...the world says give your children stuff. God says give them Jesus and yourself. 

Have a super blessed week. This Sunday will be fantastic at both campuses so don't miss it. And invest in that person this weekend and bring them. Don't give up on anyone. It may take just one more invite!!

A few of my pics from yesterday...

Monday Morning Perspective

Yesterday we wrapped up our series Running on Empty with The empty tomb means...I am not stressed. With all of our technology and our hectic schedules we've added much speed and noise to our lives. We don't always know where we're going but we are getting there fast. So how do we handle the stress that comes with this pace that we now live? We look at the person with the biggest job, who had more demands on Him than anyone, the person who had more people to see than anyone, was criticized and misunderstood...we look at Jesus. And that's what we did yesterday. We looked at how Jesus handled stress. We looked at Luke 10:35-42 as He went to the home of His friends to rest and recreate. We took a peek at Martha who was stressed and it was noted that she wasn't necessarily stressed by all she had to do, but she was stressed because sister Mary wasn't helping. She chose to sit at the feet of Jesus. How often are we stressed not by our own demands but by looking at others and the choices they make and comparing ourselves? 

We saw Jesus had the proper perspective in John 17 as He did what God had called Him to do even when there was more that could be done. We saw that Jesus aimed at pleasing God rather than people and let the chips fall where they may. We looked at the gospel of Mark to see that Jesus knew the importance of coming apart to rest and placing a priority on prayer. And in Matthew 11 we looked at our need to be transformed through a relationship with Jesus. 

This was a great series as we looked at so many of our emotions. The common thread throughout was our need for Jesus. He truly is our only hope and the only answer to our feelings of worry, fear, loneliness and stress along with all of the others we face. Have a blessed week and remember to cast everything on Him because He cares for you.