All Saints Day

This coming Sunday we will be celebrating All Saints Day. This is a great experience as a Christian as we remember those who have gone before us and those saints that are in our midst. I was wondering what you all think of All Saints Day? What does it mean to you? What do you think God teaches us through the saints?

In Disciple Bible Study

In Disciple Bible Study we have been studying about God's law found in the first five books of the Bible (Torah). As I was studying for Bible Study I found this great video about wearing a Jewish Prayer Shawl. This is talked about in Numbers 15.38 and Deuteronomy 22.12. I thought you all would enjoy watching this video that explains the shawl and how to wear it. If you cannot see this video then follow to my blog at www.wikiworship.blogspot.com

The Church

At the Rob Bell Seminar ......

At the Rob Bell Seminar he quoted Frederick Buechner saying: "The common view is that life itself, whatever life is, does not care one way or another any more than the ocean cares whether we swim in it or drown in it. In honesty one has to admit that a great deal of the evidence supports such a view. But rightly or wrongly, the Christian faith flatly contradicts it. To say that God is Spirit is to say that life does care, that the life-giving power that is life itself comes from is not indifferent as to whether we sink or swim. It wants us to swim."

Revival

We are in the midst of a four night revival. So far it has been going great. I have really enjoyed partnering with Concord, Oak Grove and Lea's Chapel in this revival. It has been a lot of fun to see what God is doing in the four different churches. The Lord has truly been present and some people have made some big commitments to Jesus Christ. Tonight is the last night and we are gathering at Concord United Methodist Church. Rev. Jim Jones will be preaching and the Warren's Grove Choir and Praise Band will be sharing the special music.

Autonomous Vehicle

I saw this really cool website that is having a van drive for 3 months using the latest in Artificial Intelligence. I found a trailer on it, but you can also check out the website for more cool videos: www.viac.vislab.it If you cannot see this video that go to my blog and you can watch the trailer www.wikiworship.blogspot.com

Chapel Service

I went to an awesome service at Goodson Chapel this week. Goodson is at Duke Divinity School. I actually missed going to Chapel at Duke so I have continued to go to the seminary once a week and attend chapel. This last week was a song service and I got introduced to a new song by Hillsong United. Here is the video from YouTube. If you cannot see this then follow this link: www.wikiworship.blogspot.com

Jeremiah 29.1-7

This passage from Jeremiah 29.1-7 is a letter that was sent to the exiles in Babylon. After being sent off to Babylon Jeremiah sends this letter to the exiles instructing them to put down roots. That even in the midst of oppression and chastisement they were to bloom. They were to be like a cactus flower. They were to be a people that thrive in a place that does not feel like home. Do you ever feel like you are not at home? Have you ever made a determined effort to find your place in a community that made you feel out of place?

Hiking Trip

I took my three oldest children on a hike in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park and it was awesome. It was one of the hardest things I have ever done ----- but truly a meaningful experience all around. It is nice to have bathrooms and tables ----- but it was awesome to be out in the woods for 5 days.This is the last day of our journey. We had just ascended 1800 feet in 3 miles.We had an opportunity to see wild elk. They ended up coming about 100 yards from us.We spent a lot of time near creeks. We got to play in the creek.This is the day we left on our 24 mile journey. It just a few hours we were wet and I was told a tropical depression came through. We did end up getting soaked on the next day. The sun did come out and all of us started to really enjoy our time out in the woods. I would highly recommend this trip to anyone who likes to hike. It was tremendous.