Wednesday, March 31, 2010

25 Day Challenge Update

So a few weeks ago I talked on here about the 25 Day Challenge, a simple Bible reading plan for James and 1 and 2 Peter that Brendon Foulke and I offered to our teens at the Sr. High Retreat in February (see the original post about that here). I don’t know how many of you decided to join in with me on that, but I know I just finished about a week ago. I blogged through the entire experience (check out my blog here... sorry for the shameless promo), and I found it really beneficial, even if for no other reason than simply it forced me to develop a rhythm where everyday I am getting into God’s Word, praying, and then really thinking about it. I think that no matter who you are, that’s a beneficial thing to get into the habit of doing, even if you’re just like me where it’s 15-30 minutes when you wake up or before you go to bed each night.

Anyway, I guess this post is more so to just encourage you to give it a shot. If you’re interested, my blog has a page dedicated to the 25 Day Challenge; you can pick up the reading plan from there and then do your own thing. We’ll be starting a series on how to read your Bible here at Suncrest next week and in conjunction with that, we’ll also be starting something called the E100 Challenge where we as a church will be reading 100 really “essential” Scripture passages.

I know I talk about reading your Bible a lot on here, but it’s a firm belief of mine that people who make a regular habit of reading their Bible are usually people who are cultivating their relationship with Jesus. I highly recommend it.

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Beyond Sunday - Refresh

...by Bobby Jackson

Our church has been in an amazing season! There was such an electricity in the air surrounding the Not a Fan series where so many crossed a line a faith. For some it was baptism, others moved beyond cheering Jesus on or limiting a relationship with Him to an hour on Sundays, to living as a fully devoted follower. Awesome stories of faith and spiritual movement almost became common for us. We went from there to the Jesus Mission. What is God calling us to do now? How can we partner with Him and continue the trend of doing what He has called us to do in dramatic ways? How can we launch out in faith again and trust Him even more? And again people rallied toward sacrifice and a deep level of commitment to whatever God asks. In the middle of that time we sent a group to Liberia, Africa, we did a push for community groups, hired a new youth pastor,….whew!

I know from our prayer list and talking with many of you that you feel like you’ve been burning the candle at both ends for a while now and are feeling the effects of a worn down existence.
That’s why this Sunday was so important to me. It seemed that this week would be the perfect time to take a deep breath, reflect, and gain perspective.

We were reminded this week of how connecting with God refreshes us. Someone once said that everyone has three tanks: an emotional tank, a physical tank, and a spiritual tank. We can tell when the physical tank starts to run low…it wears on us. Though not seen as easily, if we are not refilling our emotional tanks, we wear out too. Our spiritual tank is even less noticed by most, but greatly affects our energies and passions. What’s more, when one tank is low it affects the other two. What can you do this week to refill your tanks? I pray Sunday refilled at least one.

Confessions of a Pastor

You might or might not be familiar with him, but Craig Groeschel is the lead pastor of LifeChurch, an innovative multi-site church community based out of Oklahoma. Remember our “Little Drummer Boy” song from Christmas Eve? That was an idea we stole from LifeChurch. They’re truly an impressive group, and if you have the time, I’d highly recommend checking out their site.

Anyway, Groeschel is the lead pastor of this church, and recently I decided to pick up his book Confessions of a Pastor (pictured above). I must say, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Groeschel mostly writes it from the perspective of a pastor, saying the things that pastors aren’t supposed to admit, like “I really hate prayer meetings” or “I sometimes doubt God” or “I worry all the time” as a few examples. But reading the book, I found it incredibly refreshing and helpful to me personally. Pastor or not, overcoming things like worry, doubt, sexual purity, handling criticism, etc. are things that everyone probably needs work on. Groeschel is really honest about his struggles, and then offers some practical advice on how he’s handled these various issues in his own life, in hopes it will help those who read, too.

Anyway, I finished the book a few weeks ago and thought it was definitely a worthwhile read... it’s already become one of my favorite books. Definitely found some things in there that will be helps to me in cultivating my relationship with Jesus. If you’re interested in reading Confessions of a Pastor, Amazon is selling some lightly used copies for about $2-3 plus shipping. That’s how I got my copy, and trust me, it’s well worth the couple bucks you’ll shell out for it.

Happy reading! Until next time...

wb

Thursday, March 18, 2010

Beyond Sunday - The Jesus Mission: Our Commitment

...by Gordon Barker

I like the way Greg described Suncrest on Sunday as a “Celebration of Stories”. The stories of how we started and the generosity of our people over the years are powerful. Suncrest is “Being used by God to change lives”. If we are paying attention we get a front row seat to watch this happen in ourselves and in others. As Greg put it, we get to see God work in life…after life…after life…after life… after life… A statement of the unending, continuing changes happening all the time. The delivery of these words really impacted me. To think about lives being changed is awesome and inspiring. The poignant pause between each “after life” a chance to let that awe inspiring thought sink in. Each one, a person, a soul connecting with God.

I love the spirit of our church. Willing to embrace a big vision, ready to take a risk, to step out in faith, excited about where it will lead. Anxious to see what God can do through us. Recognizing how blessed we are and our responsibility to share those blessings with others.

The Jesus Mission will stretch and challenge us again. A chance to be used by God in Highland, South Bend and Liberia to change lives. Life…after life…after life…after life...

This is the continuing story of Suncrest.

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Worship.

I don’t know that I’ve talked about it very much on here, but I think that for all of us, one of the most beneficial things we can do to cultivate our relationship with Jesus is to worship Him.

For me, worship has always been sort of an elusive thing. Like most people, I just kind of got into church and saw people singing, so I sang too. No one ever sat me down and explained what worship really is, and so for me, worship has been a learning process. I’ve went through seasons in my “worship life.” Maybe that’s your story too.

I feel like I talk about Romans 12:1 a lot, but it’s because it’s the truth. Here, Paul writes to Christ followers in Rome that they should “present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” I think that first and foremost, the greatest act of worship we can participate in is the giving of our hearts and lives for the purposes of Jesus.

But what about when we sing? Well, I’ll actually be talking about this a little bit on Sunday morning during a devo I’ll get to give during our services, but essentially for me, worship through singing can be at times a really refreshing thing. When I fully engage, I am reminded each time I worship that it’s not all about me. I’m reminded of the doctrine and truth of God’s Word. I’m reminded of who Jesus is, and the promises that He has made with me... with all of us. Sometimes during worship I even have to wrestle with those truths; I may not always believe that Jesus is going to bless me in this incredible way, but when I worship, I learn how to trust God’s promises even when I don’t always feel like He’s going to come through on them.

The best thing I can say about worship is that you need to fully engage, whatever it is you do. Don’t waste the opportunities you have to sing to God each week. Don’t just cruise through. This week we sang a song called “The Stand,” and it was an awesome opportunity for me to once again declare to God and the world around me that I am going to offer my life to God for His purposes; that I’m going to live in a way that is fully surrendered to Jesus. You can’t do that unless you fully engage. Worship can be one of the most awesome ways to cultivate your relationship with Jesus; you just need to let it.

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Beyond Sunday - The Jesus Mission: Our Potential

...by Jo Anne Stas

Jim and Karen Bowman did a great job recounting the beginnings of Suncrest and how a small group of people, meeting in the backyard of a home in St. John, took a collective leap of faith to start what many of us now call our church home. That small group of people had a desire to live out Acts 1:8 and as a result, about a year after Suncrest started my family began attending.

The same year Suncrest started, my husband and I took a different kind of leap and began a home based service business. From the beginning, we realized God was in control and we would literally need to rely on Him for our daily bread. We taught our kids that every time the business phone rings it means God is sending work our way and we regularly thank Him for providing for us. We also realized that what God provides us is a gift and we have a responsibility to give back to God a portion of what He provides through regular giving (tithes) and special faith offerings.

We have had the privilege of being part of all the faith steps Suncrest has taken over the last 15 years. From the purchase of the St. John land, the building and expansion of the St. John campus to the start of the Hobart campus we have financially sacrificed along with many others to make it happen. But honestly, it doesn’t feel like a sacrifice because so much blessing comes back to us and we can never out give the One who gives us everything. Sixteen years later, we are still blown away at God’s faithfulness and we are excited to be part of another faith step at Suncrest. We know that being part of God’s bigger picture of reaching out to our local community, our region, and the world (Liberia), lives will be changed. We know this because 16 years ago a small group of people had the same vision and it changed our lives.

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

One Powerful Prayer.

One of the most powerful things that we can pray is simply, "God, transform my heart."

I began the month of February with the decision that I was going to pray that prayer every day this month. I don't know that I quite lived up to that goal, but I know that I came close. I think the heart is the most important thing in the life of any Christ follower. If anything, I want God to keep molding and shaping it in the ways that He sees fit. So I prayed.

And let me tell you, I think God answered.

It wasn't pretty. It saw me go through some mini-moments of crisis along the way. But I believe that I saw God work in my heart as I prayed that prayer. And to me, that's exciting, because my heart can be one of the coldest, deadest parts of my being at times. But now, looking back on the month of February, I believe that I can really say that I saw God make my relationship with Him more authentic. More genuine. More real.

So go ahead... I dare you. Ask God to transform your heart. I believe that something special will happen.

Friday, March 5, 2010

Beyond Sunday - The Jesus Mission: Our Responsibility

...by Jeff Sanford

Blessing. We all love blessing, right? Often, when I seek God in prayer, that’s what I ask for…blessing. Bless me. Bless my marriage. Bless my kids. Bless my finances. Bless my church. Bless my travel. Bless my efforts. Bless this. Bless that. As a follower of Christ, I am good at asking for blessing.

However, I am not nearly as good at noticing the ways that God has already blessed me. I mean, I got that job because I did really well during my internship. And the promotion, well that was just because I worked really hard. My talents…I’ve spent numerous hours sharpening my skills. We may not admit it, but that’s how many of us think. But the truth is that every blessing that comes our way comes from the hand of God (James 1:17).

And often, I’m too busy complaining about all the things I haven’t been blessed with to pause, look around, and notice all that I do have. Every one of us has been blessed beyond measure. We’ve haven’t all been blessed in the ways that we tend to recognize (namely, financially), but we are all living blessed lives. Think about it this way. God, who created galaxies and sunsets and mountains and caterpillars and jellyfish and flowers, loves YOU and sent his only Son to die for YOU while YOU were still rebelling against Him (Romans 5:8). The fact that God even thought about me for a second makes me wonder why, but that the same God sacrificed His Son to make right all of the wrong that I’ll ever do while I was still running from Him makes me recognize that I am loved and blessed and that I actually owe God my entire life.

As Greg mentioned in his message, God did not bless us with life, gifts, talents, finances, etc. so that we can sit back, relax, and “get fat”. God blessed us so that we can go and share that blessing with others (Genesis 12:2-3). It only makes sense. Since the blessing is not of my own doing, then I have no right to hoard it. Hoarding the blessing is my attempt to bring glory to myself (Genesis 11:4), while giving sacrificially is a way to worship and give glory to God for what He’s already done.

So, this week I’m going to pause, recognize, and thank God for all the ways that He’s blessed me. I’m going to pray that the Holy Spirit will grant me power over my own selfishness and transform who I am so that I have a generous heart. I’m going to pray that God will supply the courage and faith to give sacrificially to the Jesus mission in view of all that God has blessed me with so that I can continue the system of blessing that God started in my life.

P.S. I’m also going to pray that I do more than just honor God with my lips and with my written words but more so with my heart and my actions.

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

25 Day Challenge.

So if you haven't taken the opportunity, you should get to know Brendon Foulke, our new student pastor.

Recently, I got the chance to go with Brendon and a gang of about 30 up to Wisconsin Dells, WI for the Senior High Winter Escape retreat. I got to lead worship for our high school students, and it was a blast.

As Brendon and I sat down at the beginning of February and thought about planning and themes for the retreat, we arrived at Matthew 4's story of the temptations of Jesus. We both quickly noticed that if you look through that narrative, you see that Jesus fights each of the temptations that the devil throws at Him with Scripture.

Brendon and I aren't the smartest guys, but even we can figure out that knowing your Bible is pretty important. So that led us to decide that we were going to center the whole Dells retreat around gaining a love and knowledge for Scripture through something that we are calling the "25 Day Challenge."

Here's how it works: there is one reading each day for twenty five days (when you're finished with all 25, you will have read James and 1 and 2 Peter). After you complete the assigned reading, you need to journal about it. What do you think the point of the passage you read today was? What do you think God is trying to show you? What action steps can you take to apply the truth of God's Word to your life? I'm a few days in, and I think it's going to be a really beneficial discipline for me.

Anyway, I wanted to challenge you to join in with me. I'm doing it all on my blog (you can visit it here). Click on the "25 Day Challenge" link at the top of the page (or just click here), and you can see all of the assigned readings. I have made the personal commitment to blog through each day of the challenge. I'd love to encourage you to do the same. If you don't have a blog, journal in a notebook. Make a Word document on your computer and use that as a journal! Do whatever you have to! Knowing Scripture is important, and this could be a great way for you to get started on this worthwhile discipline.

So jump in! I'm looking forward to seeing what God does in your life through the 25 Day Challenge.