It is working

I have not been a very good blogger lately. I apologize. I am almost done with my commissioning papers and then I should get back into my routine. Thank you to all of you that are praying for me. It is working!

Awe and Wonder

This Sunday I will be preaching from Psalm 19. In verse 1 it says: "The heavens are telling the glory of God; and the firmament proclaims his handiwork." This verse makes me want to ask: when was the last time we laid in the grass and looked up into the sky? Honestly, this is an exercise that we all should practice more often. The practice of awe and wonder is a much needed exercise in the world of staring at computer screens. I encourage you to take a loved one and go lay in the grass (even if it is not so green right now). Stare into the heavens and see what they are telling.

Over the Break

I thought I would post two pictures from the break. This first one is from a Duke Men's Basketball game that I was able to take my three oldest children to. You can tell who we root for.This second one is right before we went and braved the elements of Sugar Mountain. It was around 9 degrees when we left and still snowing. It had been snowing for around 36 hours straight. Even though it was cold I never heard the kids complain about how cold it was.

Hello

I am back from vacation and I just wanted to send out a quick comment. We went to Boone, NC for vacation and had a great time. It was very chilly and very snowy. We were there for 5 days and it snowed every day. When we left it was 2 degrees and it had snowed 8 inches the night before. We are truly ready for some warmer weather. But the skiing was wonderful. Hopefully I can get some pictures uploaded soon. But, I just wanted to drop a quick note.

Colossians 3.12-17

This Sunday I will be preaching from Colossians 3.12-17. I love verse 17 that says: "Whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." Imagine living into this. That whatever we do we feel confident that we can do it in the name of Jesus. This kind of reminds me of the "What Would Jesus Do" [WWJD] bracelets that were popular years ago. This is where we should be aiming for as Christians. That our Christian lives become all encompassing ----- so as to involve every aspect of what makes us who we are. Christianity is not just for one hour a week ----- but instead it is a way of living and being that is shaped by the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Have you all had opportunities in your daily lives to do things that reflect the new life that you have in Christ?

Announcement

Luke 2:8
There were some shepherds out in the nearby fields, keeping watch over their flock at night.Luke 2:9
An angel of the Lord appeared before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them. The shepherds were terrified. Luke 2:10-12
But the angel said, “Don’t be afraid! Listen, a Savior has been born to you today who is Christ the Lord. Here is your sign: you will find a baby wrapped in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.”Luke 2:16
And they found Mary and Joseph, and the baby was lying in the manger.

Selfish Giving?

I heard a great conversation starter on selfish giving. This was on NPR on December 22nd, 2009. I thought you all would enjoy hearing this. If you are reading this on facebook then check out my blog at www.wikiworship.blogspot.com

I forgot

I forgot to tell you all about my interview in November. If you will remember I wrote a post about the commissioning papers that I was writing (you can read it by clicking on this link). The interview went very well. I have a discernment team that is made up of 9 people from all over North Carolina. There are 7 clergy and 2 laity. I passed the initial part of the interview that had to do with my call into the ministry. Now I am in the process of writing the second part of these commissioning papers. They are due on February 1st, but I am hoping to have them done by the end of my winter break. These papers are a lot more lengthy. The total page count is about 60 pages. I have written about 6 pages so far ----- and I should have another 6 written by the end of this weekend. Please continue to pray for me through this commissioning process. I appreciate all of you that have shown your support and have prayed for me so far.

Micah 5.2-5

This coming Sunday I will be preaching from Micah 5.2-5. The thing that sticks out to me immediately about this passage is verse 2, which says: "But you, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah, who are one of the little clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to rule in Israel." This seems to be a theme in all of the Bible, that God uses the little ones ----- the ones that the world does not look at as powerful and influential ----- to do the miraculous and awesome tasks that God has for the world. In Isaiah 11.6 it says: "The wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them." Notice the little child shall lead. Paul says something similar in 1 Corinthians 1.27: "But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong." God's ways are not our ways, like it says in Micah ------ God is using little ole Bethlehem to raise up a ruler. Have you all ever seen God take the little things or supposedly "insignificant" people to do awesome things with?

Casville Lights

If you cannot see this video go to my blog at www.wikiworship.blogspot.com The Pairs and Spares Sunday School class is going to go to see the Casville Lights again this Sunday, December 13th. You all are invited. We will be leaving the church at 5pm and we will be getting something to eat along the way. I look forward to seeing you then.

Veggie Tales - Saint Nicholas

If you cannot see this video then go to my blog and you can watch it www.wikiworship.blogspot.com This coming Wednesday, December 9th at 6:30pm we will be showing the latest Veggie Tales video ----- Saint Nicholas: A Story in Joyful Giving. I want to invite all children out for this wonderful time. There will be balloons, popcorn, coloring and 2 CD's and a DVD as a door prize. I look forward to seeing you all then. You can find out how to get to the church by going to the website at www.warrensgroveumc.org

Vimeo

Urban Abstract from Musuta on Vimeo.

I just found a cool new video site ---- you will want to go to my blog if you are reading this on facebook. www.wikiworship.blogspot.com I thought you all would enjoy this cool video.