More Than Today

Ahead of the PA primary I was looking through some old video tapes from 1986 when I was running for Congress. It was quite a learning experience for me and one which I thoroughly enjoyed. I put the clips together from various TV news segments where I was talked about. You can watch it here.

Running. Up the rolling hills past the apartment complex I lived in. Pushing, straining, and churning with energy longing to be spent. Different than my normal jogging that was usually so casual, so slow, so safe. This wasn’t safe. I was pursuing or being pursued, I wasn’t sure which and was just…running. Just me…no one else…alone…racing past familiar sights but now it was all different. A short time before I had been in my cozy apartment getting ready to pray, not an odd thing for me, a usual occurrence in my day, when it struck me that there was no God. Not a thought that I had entertained before. In fact, I had spent my life running towards and then with God. Now that this thought of “no God” struck me with such force I grabbed my coat and ran out of my apartment. Running. On the level past my apartment and the adjoining ones and around the turn I ran. Up and down the easy hills I ran harder, pushing myself. And at some point in running I just knew…that God did inde...

Just wrote this song last week and used it in worship over the weekend. It's called "Sometimes When We Are Lonely." Sometimes when we are lonely Sometimes when we despair That's when we say "if only," "If only there was somebody there" We feel that our past is present We can't leave our hurts behind Powerless to move forward Hopelessness controlling our mind It feels like we have no choice but to stumble and fall Then we hear a quiet voice the best solution of all But admitting that we have problems is so hard for us to do Trusting in God to solve them wondering what else we can do And God says "Just humble yourself, and put your hope in me I've got a plan for you, find how good life can be" Thank You there is somebody there

Lately I have enjoyed connecting with old friends from years gone by. One of them posted this video of a news show where someone commented on how God offers forgiveness to Tiger Woods, and of course to all of us. It was so cool to watch this guy share his faith in this way. No matter what we have done in life, Jesus is there with arms stretched out waiting to love and forgive us. This video is a positive expression of that truth.

Christmas is around the corner now. Just two weeks from today we will be opening presents, eating good food, and spending time together as a family. I look forward to the day. One of my favorite parts of the season is Christmas Eve. At church we have candlelight services and I get to lead them with an incredible group of volunteers. They use their gifts and are there for 4 hours or so, a great birthday gift to Jesus and His family. Thank you Jesus, my family, and my church family. Happy Birthday Jesus!

Spoken word poetry is its own special kind of creativity. My friend and comrade in ministry, Kylee Spangler, recorded a spoken word poem that she wrote. Watch it here.

Monday, September 28, 2009. This morning we set up our 2020 Initiative display for the FIND Conference, a church planting conference, in Mt. Pleasant (near Charleston), South Carolina. Chuck Frank, Eastern Regional Conference (ERC) Church Planting staff person, led our “talented” crew of himself, Greg Utermahlen, Mike Schooley, and myself in putting the display together. There could be a video just for that adventure. But moving right along… After meeting some other attendees including welcoming the others from ERC who had come for the conference, 13 in all, we had lunch. Then it was time to head into the opening session of FIND. Worship was led by the Worship Band/Team from Seacoast and then Pastor Greg Surratt shared his heart to plant churches. Seacoast has 13 sites. Important questions to consider. Why plant churches? Many people are reached for Christ that wouldn’t be reached by established churches. Is church planting for me? Greg shared his passion to plant churches in t...

It's Sunday afternoon and I will soon be heading for the FIND Conference in South Carolina. I will be flying there tonight with four others and starting at the conference tomorrow with others from across the country. I expect to blog my experiences there so if you follow this you will see a lot more posts from me than normal. This conference for church planters will be filled with information for any of us who want to make a difference in the world. So if you want to help people discover the fulfilling life that comes from a relationship with Jesus, join me these next few days as I share what I am learning at the Conference. Usually I learn a lot of things that weren't on the agenda. God is funny that way, wanting to teach us what we don't even "hear." So I better go pack up and get ready to get picked up for my trip to the Harrisburg airport, the first leg of my journey.

This morning I got a newsletter from Midnight Oil Productions. They have a monthly freebie of a graphic or video and since I like quality and I like free, I decided to zip on over to their site from the link in my newsletter. I watched the video and listened to the very cool voice over or under depending on which seems the most important to you. So of course I wanted to get it for free, hey who wouldn't, and I typed in my username and e-mail address. Well, it seems that the e-mail address matched but not my username or password. So I needed them to send me my password but the system wouldn't allow it without my typing in my username with my e-mail address. Well, I already told you that I don't know my username either apparently so I couldn't retrieve it. Did I give up? No way. I thought to myself "I'll just register again." So I started through the registration, which is quite simple on their site, but was told in an appropriate font that my e-mail ...

Got back from vacation just after midnight last night. It is so nice to get away from the everyday activities of life and travel with my wife and daughters. We went to New York City last Friday to tour Columbia University. What a campus and what a history that university has. Then we went to Tom's Restaurant and discovered while eating there that it is the exterior shot for "Seinfeld." That was cool and I had my picture taken outside. Friday night we stayed with Sarah R. who lives in New York City. She gave us an insider's view of Columbia, where she had graduated and is attending again (for a few more weeks), and a unique look at the city. It was a special experience for our family to be welcomed by her...quite different than a hotel. On Saturday we went to AMDA, the American Musical and Dramatic Academy, for an open house. They are all about training actors for the practical side of drama. Acting, singing, dancing, and even stage combat. Quite a good exper...

This week I'm on vacation with my family. So far it has been reasonably relaxing with lots of sleeping in...watching videos, The Price Is Right, and The Bachelorette...eating a bunch, and playing some board games along the way. Tonight we went to Dutch Apple Dinner Theatre. Instead of eating there we went to Sonic and I enjoyed chili and cheese fries and a chili and cheese hot dog (a big one). Then we went to see "Singin' In The Rain." It was definitely well done. Very talented actors/singers/dancers. It took a little while to get used to having different actors than the movie version...but after awhile I just enjoyed the people who were in this version and went with the flow. Afterwards? It was back to Sonic for a strawberry shake for me and a variety of other sweets for the rest of my family. It has been a good vacation. Tommorrow it is supposed to hit 90 degrees and we are headed for Hershey Park. Roller coasters, the wave pool, and assorted other activiti...

It's raining tonight so the drive-in won't happen tonight...but hopefully it will dry out enough to show "Fireproof" tomorrow night at 9 PM.

Friday and Saturday night I am looking forward to seeing "Fireproof" again. I have seen it three times already but it is so good that I am glad to get the chance to watch it and share it with the Dover/York area. It's free! No entry fee! No exit fee! No cost at all! Bring your own drinks and snacks if you like. The teens will be running the concession stand for those who wish to buy something. These sales will benefit the teens traveling to Baltimore in June to serve in a downtown soup kitchen and do other volunteer activities to serve the people there. If you get the chance this weekend, come watch it at Friendship Community Church, 3380 Fox Run Road, Dover, PA . It's just off Route 74/Carlisle Pike. If you're northbound turn right at the McDonald's there and the ballfield & church are on your left within a 1/4 mile.

  Last night we had a great beginning to a new small group at Friendship. We met in the Friendship Cafe and ate cake and drank coffee and got to know others, ourselves, and God. Our study was "The Ten" and we began the series with the first of the 10 commandments. It's a series called "Liquid" which includes a dramatic episode and then a good teacher. Then we talked around tables and read and discussed scripture. Twenty people enjoyed a nice night together and I'm glad to be a part of this group. Sharing life together

Let's remember.

It's nice to have a couple of days in a row off from work. Memorial Day holiday tomorrow and then Tuesday for my official day off for the week. Then I am looking forward to taking a couple of weeks of vacation this summer. One of the nice things about knowing that vacation is coming is just the anticipation of it, the dreaming of what could be experienced on vacation.

Day Two of the Church Planting Summit in Harrisburg, PA with Ann and Jared Roth began by reflecting on what was learned yesterday. Then we immediately moved into looking at the ERC vision for planting new churches. We looked at the vision before we got into the specifics of implementing it. Later in the morning and in the afternoon through 4 p.m. we covered a lot of topics and shared ideas. Throughout these two days I was stretched and gained so many insights from the Roth's and all of the participants. The important thing is for us to truly love people and then work to implement ways of showing that love to everyone. And the best love of all, the most loving act of our lives, is to show people the love of Jesus and invite them to respond to His love.

MOTHERING A NEW CHURCH 1) Create a sense of urgency. People need Jesus. 2) Build a team. 3) Communicate the vision. 4) Communicate. Communicate. Communicate. 5) Empower people. 6) Celebrate short term wins. 7) Consolidate. Deal with the laggards. Invite them to change their behavior. 8) Anchor into the corporate culture. Be glad for late adopters who finally have gotten on board. Announce your next church plant. Jesus said, "I will build my church..." The day ended by participants mapping out the next action steps that each of us needs to take. It has been a good day and I am glad to have been here to learn and be surrounded by others who care about starting new churches.

FUNDING OF CHURCH PLANTS 1) Planters raise money. Planters start a micro-business. 2) Denomination puts in money. 3) Mother church puts in money. 4) Several sources of revenue including mother church, denomination, and planter raising money. Bi-vocational planters work in the ministry area to develop contacts. Typically different church plants cost different amounts of money and are funded at different levels.