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Grace Church...Part 2

3. It is a church where people can be real.

The church is not a museum of beautiful believers but a hospital for broken people . . . broken hearts, broken dreams, broken relationships and broken lives.

If there is any place where people should be able to be real . . . to be honest about hurts, habits, and hang-ups . . . it should be the church . . . a place where we can drop the masks, be honest, and still be accepted for who we are not what we pretend to be.

4. It is a church where authentic change can take place

Authentic change is not outward conformity that just gives the appearance of change. It’s not about doing “spiritual things” like reading the Bible, attending church, and going through the religious motions. There’s nothing wrong with any of these . . . but to do them while all the while being controlled by greed, envy, jealousy, insecurity, anxiety or fear . . . is, well, to miss the point. That’s why we have to be real . . . honest . . . bring it out into the open . . . then the change begins to happen.

5. It is a church where everyone is welcomed

Everyone means everyone . . . the good, the bad, the ugly. No pre-wash needed! No prerequisites required. My guess is lots of people who are in touch with their brokenness and know that what they’re doing now is not working, would feel much like the tax collector in the story Jesus told in Luke 18. He went up to the temple to pray but stayed at a distance. He didn’t feel he was good enough.

A church of grace is a church where everyone is not only invited, but also welcomed when they show up.

A church of grace . . . that’s the kind of church I want and desperately need. I pray Abundant Life Church will always be that church.

Grace Church…Part 1

A lot of churches go by this name . . . Grace Church. It's a good name for a church because it's central to the heart of God and the message of Jesus.

What does a church of grace actually look like?

Without question, the church has amazing opportunities to accurately reflect the heart of God . . . to be His hands, feet, and voice to people around us everyday who don't know . . . or who misunderstand His heart for them.

His is a heart of understanding, mercy, compassion, and forgiveness. You see it in Jesus . . . with the people He hung out with. You hear it in the stories he told . . . stories of lost things . . . lost sheep, lost coins, and lost people. So much was Jesus' heart for the broken, marginalized, and excluded that He earned for Himself the title . . . a friend of sinners.

Since God's heart was a heart of grace . . . the church needs to be a place of grace.

What's that look like?

5 signs of a church of grace

• It is a church where God is changing people.

It's not our job to change people but to introduce them to the One who can. Our job is to cooperate with God . . . to be cultural farmers . . . creating an environment of love and acceptance where people can get a glimpse of His heart. That means we can stop playing God . . . I make a lousy Holy Spirit . . . besides I have a hard enough time trying to get my own act together much less someone else's.

• It is a church where there is no "us" vs. "them."

No "us" the good people who have their act together and "them," the bad people who haven't figured it out yet. Sin is the great equalizer . . . the ground at the foot of the cross is level. It's just us . . . people desperately in need of God's grace.

Next three next week!

God’s Delight

This weekend I shared a reading at the end of my message . . . the result of a scripture search on "God's Delight" in us and His words to me while at Blessing Ranch . . . a retreat/counseling center in Colorado for Pastors and their spouse.

Several of you asked me for a copy so I thought I'd post it on my blog.

God's word's to me at Blessing Ranch . . . September 1, 2010

George, you are my precious child because, by faith, you have received My greatest gift to you . . . My One and Only Son (John 3:16; John 1:9). And because you are my son, I have forgiven every sin you have ever committed and every sin you ever will commit. I have removed all of them from you as far as the east is from the west. (Psalm 103:8-14) I have cast every last one of them into the sea. (Micah 7:18,19) They have all been nailed to the cross so you can stop nailing yourself to the cross. (Colossians 2:13, 14) When I look at you I don't see your sin . . . your screw-ups . . . your weaknesses . . . I see righteousness because I see you through the righteousness of my Son. (2 Corinthians 5:21)

George, I saw you before your body began to take shape in your mother's womb . . . before you ever came to be. And when I created you, you were fearfully and wonderfully made. (Psalm 139:13, 14) You are my masterpiece . . . my work of art. (Ephesians 2:10)

But never forget you do not bring Me delight because of what you do (Ephesians 2:9) . . . your works have nothing to do with it! By My grace I took delight in saving you and giving your life meaning and purpose. You have a job to do! (Ephesians 2:10) and in order to do it you have to stay connected to my Son! (John 15:5) And don't worry so much about what it is you're supposed to do. I'll guide you . . . I'll lead you. Trust Me and I will direct your steps . . . I will crown your efforts with success . . . I will make level paths for your feet. (Proverbs 3:5,6; John 16:13)

Keep your guard up against the enemy who wants to discourage you and even destroy you. (1 Peter 1:8,9; John 10:10) He will try to convince you that you don't have what it takes. And when he attempts to do so always remember that you have been called . . . anointed . . . and set apart . . . (1 Peter 2:9, 10) You are gifted . . . talented . . . creative . . . and capable. (Genesis 1:26; Romans 12:3-8) You can do all things through Jesus who will give you strength. (Philippians 4:13)

And when you feel weak and that you don't have what it takes, lean into My grace . . . it will be sufficient for you. (2 Corinthians 12:9.) And when you get tired ask yourself, are you carrying burdens that you shouldn't be carrying? Unload them on Me! I can handle them easily enough. (Matthew 11:28; 1 Peter 5:7) And when you are fearful remember this . . . I am greater than all your fears (1 John 4:4) and my perfect love for you will cast that fear down . . . so believe in my love for you! (1 John 4:18) When you are worried and anxious, pray! (Philippians 4:6,7)And one last thing . . . don't give up! I know you will get tired . . . I know at times the battle will seem too difficult . . . I know at times you will want to throw in the towel . . . That's why you need to renew your mind daily (Romans 12:2) . . . take captive every negative and evil thought (2 Corinthians 10:5) and keep your eyes on Jesus and the finish line in mind. (Hebrews 12:1-3) Persevere! Hang in there! Stay with it! (1 Corinthians 15:58; Galatians 6:9) What you are doing matters for all eternity. Be assured . . . you can say today with confidence, "I am fighting a good fight, I am finishing the race, I am keeping the faith." (2 Timothy 4:7) Today I am dancing over you with great joy and taking great delight in saying to you . . . well-done good and faithful servant! (Matthew 25:21; Zephaniah 3:17)

Weekend Reflections

It was great being able to spend some time with my son and beautiful family in Barcelona . . . it was good to be back and into my weekly routine . . .

 

• Happy Birthday Abundant Life Church . . . we turned 21 this weekend . . . so cool to see all that has happened . . . an amazing God!

 

• Loved being able to watch a couple of the services live, in Barcelona, through our live video stream . . . so grateful for our capable staff who taught the messages while I was gone

 

• Awesome Men's breakfast on Saturday . . . great seeing the room filled . . . Pastor Dean Crist gave us a very thought provoking message on relationships between fathers and sons

 

• The band absolutely rocked this weekend . . . they knocked it out of the park . . . I love it that I get to be in the service 5 times . . . and I love sitting right up next to the stage . . . my son calls it the blast zone . . . I was talking to someone else who was near me and they said they loved it too!

 

• Looking forward to our new series . . . Body by James . . . strengthening your spiritual core . . . it's gonna push you to the limits!

 

• We all have some spiritual flab . . . some areas that need attention . . . maybe areas we have not been able to gain victory over

 

• James will be a great personal trainer . . . our fitness instructor . . . driving . . . motivating, pushing, and getting the most out of us to help us realize our spiritual goals

 

• I hope you accepted/will accept the challenge to take the Body by James workout challenge . . . and be with us for every workout . . . to invite others to join you . . . and to spend time daily using SOAP to give you that edge you need to strengthen your spiritual core and realize your spiritual goals

 

• James doesn't let us off easy . . . out of the gate he pushes us to be patient when the pressure is on . . . to show love to all people . . . to control the use of our tongue . . . to be peacemakers, not trouble makers . . . and to pray in times of trouble

 

• Next week . . . No Pain, No Gain

 

We have a great summer ahead of us . . . Super Summer for Kids . . . cool camps for kids and students . . . One honkin' huge service in the Park July 3rd . . . amazing weekend services . . . be there . . . invite others . . . don't miss out!

Weekend Highlights

This weekend I was only there live for Saturday . . . needed to be in Indy for a meeting . . . I'm on a missionary agency board and we meet about twice a year . . . but here are some highlights from the week and weekend.

• Finished up our series Faith, Hope, and Luck . . . got some good feedback from the series . . . thanks!

 

• Nothing can shake your faith if it is build on Jesus, the Son of God, and the reality of the resurrection . . . it changes everything . . . God can say "yes" . . . "no" . . . whatever . . . and the resurrection still stands . . . God still rules . . .

 

• Heard the DVD went really well at our Happy Valley Campus on Sunday . . . hope it was good for all of you . . . love our great technology that allows us some wonderful flexibility and outreach opportunities

 

• Announced a new series coming up . . . called . . . Coming Home . . . based on the awesome story of the Prodigal Son . . . you don't want to miss it

 

• Anybody guess the hitchhiker in the video yet?

 

• Checked out some possible locations for our Sandy Campus . . . it's gonna happen . . . keep praying . . . it's gonna make a difference . . .

 

• Got two great and gracious gifts this weekend . . . a Niiice tee shirt and a Harley tee shirt from Hawaii . . . cool!

 

Weekend Highlights

Another exciting weekend at Abundant Life Church . . . here's a recap and some highlights

• Just love seeing the excitement and joy on people's faces as they walk into the lobby and into the auditorium

 

• It never gets old meeting new folks . . . keep inviting . . . keep inviting . . . keep inviting . . . the Good News is way too amazing to keep to ourselves

 

• I get really jazzed meeting people who are returning for the second, third, and fourth time . . . it tells me Abundant Life Church is meeting a need and making a difference in their life

 

• The band hit it out of the park . . . the people were engaged . . . and it was especially fun for me to heckle Scott a bit

 

• Getting close to finishing up our series . . . Faith, Hope, and Luck . . . this weekend the message was . . . No Dice

 

• We have all had a front row seat to God's "No." Even though we think we know what is best and that our requests are perfectly reasonable . . . God sometimes still says no

 

• When God says no . . . His grace to endure is available to us

 

• We cannot live in God's grace and run from His "no" at the same time . . . when He says "no" we can either bow our knee or shake our fist . . . we can either walk away from God or run to God

 

• Had a person to email me after Saturday night's service with an amazing story of peace after finally accepting God's "No" and believing He has something better in store

 

Even in the face of a "no" we can still affirm God's presence . . . God's power . . . and God's purpose

Weekend Highlights

It was another fabulous weekend at Abundant Life Church

• Always love seeing our lobby fill with people excited about being there

 

• Love seeing people pouring into the auditorium

 

• Love standing near the entrance to the auditorium and getting to say hi to all the cool people showing up

 

• No shortage of opinions about me getting a tattoo . . . yeah!

 

• Love seeing soooo many young people . . . young couples . . . and by that I mean somewhere around 30ish and down . . . awesome

 

• Great seeing the bags and bags of food coming in for our 100 x 100 challenge . . . we have a long way to go . . . everyone is needed . . . so be sure to jump in and be a part of helping others

 

• Great seeing everyone attending our Membership Class

 

• Pastor Scott brought the message live at our Parkrose Campus and I heard he "brought the message!" Way to go Scott!

 

• Also heard there were lots of first time guests at the Parkrose Campus this weekend . . . love it! You guys keep up the great work . . . you're making a huge difference in that part of our city

 

• This weekend I talked on the promises of God we can take to the bank

 

• What He didn't promise that we wish He had . . . no problems . . . no sickness . . . and lots of money

 

• What He did promise . . . to forgive all my sin . . . to always show me mercy and grace . . . to guide my life . . . to always be near . . . to always meet my needs . . . to come back for me . . . to give me a home in heaven . . . and a new body! There's so much more . . . but what more could we ask?

 

I really do hope Jesus returns soon but until He does we have a lot of people to reach for Him . . .

Weekend Highlights

Another fantastic week and weekend at Abundant Life Church . . .

• Met several people who were return guests and have been coming for several weeks now . . . that's awesome . . . it's one thing to come once . . . it is something else to return two, three, and four times and eventually discover . . . this is the place I've been looking for!

• Loved one email I received this past week . . . went something like this . . . I just moved to the area and Abundant Life Church was the fourth church on my list to check out . . . when I walked in, I knew there was something different and decided this is the place! Yeah! I love that!

• Always great meeting our newest guests during our Connection . . . love seeing the excitement on their faces . . . and sometimes the "what am I doing here" look!

• Continued the series Faith, Hope, and Luck this week and talked about what true biblical faith is

• It is not a "star-wars" force kind of thing

• It is not a magic formula or secret religious code you punch in like at the ATM machine . . . 2 daily prayers and one monthly church attendance . . . or was it 3 prayers and 1 daily Bible reading and one church service . . .

• It is not the same as confidence or having a positive attitude

• Biblical faith is believing that God is who He says He is and that He will do everything He promises He will do

• The promise of God is the bridge between hope and faith

• We can ask God for anything we want . . . He has the power to deliver . . . sometimes in the moment . . . sometimes later on . . . sometimes not at all . . . however He chooses doesn't change the fact that He is still God

Some noticed my little disclaimer and word of thanks to Northpoint Resources for some great ideas for this series . . . someone asked me how we come up with all this stuff week after week and series after series . . . well . . . I'll tell you what . . . I'll do a blog entry on it later

Weekend Reflections

What an amazing weekend at Abundant Life Church . . . here are some reflections . . .

 

• We saw just over 5000 in attendance between our two campuses . . . most every service was filled to capacity . . . lots of people in overflow

 

• The weekend was electric with anticipation . . . excitement . . . enthusiasm and overwhelming joy in celebrating Jesus' victory over death

 

• Those of you who invited people to celebrate with us . . . thank you, thank you! Lives were changed for all eternity and heaven only knows what difference your invitation made

 

• Now be sure to invite them to come back next weekend and through our series . . . Faith, Hope, and Luck . . . this series will run for four more weekends

 

• The resurrection message never gets old . . . it's the cornerstone of our faith . . . if it's not real nothing else matters

 

• The worship songs were incredible . . . the energy coming off the stage was engaging . . . and the team's enthusiasm in lifting up Jesus was genuine and spoke straight to the heart. Way to go team!

 

• All of our First Impression Teams did a phenomenal job . . . imagine transitioning anywhere from 600 to 800 people in 20 minutes . . . but you did it and you did it amazingly well

 

• I spoke with the Parking Lot Team leader and she said it went as smooth as it has ever been in the last four or five years. Awesome!

 

• The tech team . . . the unseen heroes . . . did a superb job . . . lots and lots of technical components to this weekend's service and you guys pulled it off . . .

 

• Didn't you love the artist . . . and what a great illustration in how God takes all the components of our lives . . . the good, the bad, the ugly, the unexplainable, the confusing and bring them all together into a beautiful work of art!

 

The highlight of the weekend for me . . . a young lady came up to me after the service . . . eyes red and filled with tears . . . and said she asked Jesus into her life for the very first time. That's what it's all about!

Weekend Highlights

This was another great weekend at Abundant Life Church . . .

• It never gets old celebrating baptisms . . . we did so at both campuses and in every service . . . that is always awesome

 

• It was so cool . . . one person that was introduced to me between services as a first time guest . . . I later looked up and saw in the baptism line . . . awesome!

 

• The band rocked at both campuses . . . while I was at the Happy Valley Campus . . . I heard the band was awesome at Parkrose, too.

 

• Always love meeting first time guests . . . met several of them this weekend

 

• Soooo grateful our Student Ministry team got back safely from their Mexico mission and had an amazing trip

 

• Loved the series . . . Famous Last Words . . . and Tetelestai . . . Jesus left nothing undone . . . no unfinished business . . . He finished exactly what He came to do!

 

• John pointed people to Jesus . . . we need to do the same

 

• People who have met Jesus want others to meet Him, too

 

• Invite as many people as you can to our Easter services this weekend . . . so many people in our communities need Him . . . this is one of the times people are most receptive to your invitation . . . don't miss it . . . don't let it pass you by . . . hopefully if you got nothing else out of our last series you got this . . . Jesus paid way too high of a price for us to keep that GOOD NEWS to ourselves.