Category Archives: faith

Where I’ve Been

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Wow! I know I haven’t posted in a while but there’s a good reason for that. Things have been absolutely crazy since we got back from vacation. You know how it is when you get back from vacation and need a vacation to recover from the first one.

So, since then here’s a little bit of what’s happened since we’ve been back.

1. The Kudlas family, our good friends from GA, came up for a visit the last weekend in July. It was a great time.
2. Jake fell off the bed and almost bit through his lip; very close to needing stitches.
3. I left for Atlanta with our Sr. Adults on July 30th. Stephanie called me in the middle of the night on Thursday and said that Jake woke up with an extremely high fever; so bad he was seeing things flying around his room.
4. Steph took him to the doctor on Friday and he had a severe infection and needed some serious medical attention.
5. I flew home from Anniston, AL to Millington, TN thanks to a very kind act from a friend of a friend in order to get back and take care of my family.
6. We had a GREAT day on Sunday as we celebrated 5 years for Crosspointe and our family’s first year here.
7. I woke up feeling awful on Monday and as of last night (for our Clay Crosse concert) I had no voice at all. Still nothing today.
8. Today, Stephanie and I woke up at 4:15 AM to get the boys ready for their surgery. They both had tubes put in their ears (details here). They’re both doing well but it has been an extremely long day!

So, I hope that is proper justification for my online absence. The funny thing is, that this is only the beginning. It’s going to be a crazy fall!

Powerful Book

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I just finished Jim Cymbala’s book entitled “Breakthrough Prayer.” Man, what an incredible book. There is no other author I have seen that writes like him. I started loving his books with his very first one, “Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire,” and I have loved every book that I’ve picked up by him.

I have read many authors on prayer and this book was absolutely incredible. Cymbala writes about things that almost every other author, pastor and teacher ignores. He’s not afraid to jump into the deep spiritual disciplines that must be a part of our journey as followers of Christ. I’m telling you, Cymbala is quickly becoming my favorite author! His works stand almost like “the voice of one crying in the wilderness.” He’s calling us to passionate prayer, to embrace the work of the Holy Spirit, to live by radical faith each and every day.

If you need a time of refreshing and encouragement…or maybe a time of conviction and motivation…or maybe some inspiration and challenge, this book is for you. I couldn’t recommend it any more highly!

Great Weekend!

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Man, this was a really great weekend! It started on Friday afternoon with a 1:00 PM date with my wife. As you might deduce from the earlier post, we went and saw the new Narnia movie, “Prince Caspian.” It was great! I’m not a huge movie fan but I’m also not a critic. This is a trilogy we will definitely own when it’s all said and done. Great movie…and Stephanie and I had a great time together on our date.

Sunday was incredible at Crosspointe! God has been moving in our church in awesome ways and I’m just thankful to be a part of it. We had several people saved in our service yesterday and God really moved in a powerful way. I am excited about what’s coming up for our church. The fall is going to usher in some big changes for us but we will be positioned to really impact our community and reach families like never before.

I think this great weekend was just a preview of things to come. David Ring will be with us this coming Sunday and even though it’s Memorial Day Weekend, this should be a huge day for our church. Our people love David Ring and God always uses him in great ways.

I’m thankful for a great weekend and excited about all that God has in store for us as we continue to move forward.

I Love What I Do!

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I can’t imagine what it must be like to hate your job. I’ve known lots of people who went to work every week just for the paycheck…nothing more. They’re not doing something they love or something they’re passionate about. That must be tough!

I am so blessed because I love what I do! I get to do the second most important job in the world (to me, Stephanie has the most important and most difficult job on the face of the earth- managing our home and our children while I’m at work). I love being a pastor. Since I was 16 years old there’s nothing else that I’ve ever imagined doing. It’s such an honor and privilege to lead the people of God in His church.

And I love my church as well. In case you didn’t know, you cant find out why right here. I am so thankful God has brought us here to lead, love and shepherd the flock of God. It’s an incredible honor and privilege to pastor such loving people and I’m always encouraged by the incredible potential I see here at Crosspointe. God has awesome plans for our church and I’m just thankful to be a small part of it.

In good times, hard times, fun times, sad times, up times and down times…I LOVE what I do! How great is that!?!?!

Can’t Sleep

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It’s about 20 minutes past midnight and I can’t seem to fall asleep. Now, I know that for some of you, 12:20 AM is actually still pretty early; not for me. I’m an “early-to-bed, early-to-rise” kind of guy.

Tonight, I’m having trouble sleeping. Believe it or not, it has nothing to do with any of my children keeping me awake. Truth be told, I can’t really complain because I rarely have trouble getting rest. And with three kids ages three and under that’s a pretty big accomplishment!

For some reason tonight, I just had the overwhelming urge to get out of bed, read my Bible and pray. At the risk of sounding “unspiritual,” this doesn’t happen to me a lot. I like to read my Bible, pray, memorize Scripture and read other books during the normal hours of the day. But tonight, God has just burdened me.

I’m burdened for my family. Not because anything is bad or wrong, but because if I don’t pray for my wife and my kids, who will? If I’m not the priest of my home that God calls me to be then I’ve failed at my most important job in life!

I’m burdened for my church. Again, not because anything is bad or out of place, but simply because God has given me a huge responsibility to “shepherd the flock of God.” This is a privilege that I absolutely love and enjoy, but it comes with great responsibilities and duties.

I’m burdened for me. I don’t want to settle in my life; in any part of my life. I don’t want to settle for a mediocre marriage. I thank God for my relationship with my wife and treasure her as a precious gift from God. I don’t want to settle for a casual, cursory relationship with my kids. I want to be a huge influence in their lives for the cause of Christ. I don’t want to settle in my ministry. Being a pastor is one of the highest honors of my life and I will never be satisfied with the status quo. I love my church and thank God for the opportunity to serve Him at Crosspointe.

Simply put, I want everything that God has for me in every area of my life. I want to do everything I can to accomplish all that I can for God with the time that He has given me upon this earth. Life is too short, the stakes are too high and eternity is too long to let one more moment slip by.