Sunday Rewound

Sunday was another great experience at ECC. We had new faces and it seemed like they were welcomed by those who understand what it means to love others unconditionally. Here’s a quick recap…

·      It was wonderful to have some of my family in our experience for the first time. I am long forward to getting to know Regina and Pat more and having them a part of our ECC family. Get to know them and build relationships with them and their family.

·      The music was intense as Arron and the guys did a wonderful job of blending a traditional song “I Surrender All,” with a newer song “Majesty.” The combination of the two songs was a great blend that moved many people. Arron will be teaching a lot of new songs in the upcoming months…get ready.

·      I love watching people drinking coffee together. Why is that a big deal? Because in between sips, relationships are being forged.

·      Our church is growing younger, and the older crowd is liking it. Do not listen to those who say the old and young can’t attend together. If God is present anything is possible…

·      Our new series “Deal or No Deal” starts in two weeks. It is going to be fun, and challenging for us.

 

 

Don’t forget that our community group meets each Wednesday at 7:00. We are starting a new set of teachings by Andy Stanley called “Pause.” It is about overcoming the daily temptations we all face. Check it out!

Sunday Rewound…(a little late)

So a couple of people have been wondering about the Sunday Rewound blog. I have received some emails about why it is not up yet. First let me say I am honored that so many people are waiting for it, and I am sorry it has taken me this long. I was in meetings in Tampa for the last two days so I have been unable to get the blog posted, so without any further delay…Sunday Rewound…

 

·        The new blue lighting in the sanctuary looked great! I love blue and I think it looked wonderful behind the stage.  It gives a great first look to the room. This sanctuary has come along way in décor ion the last six months due to all the wonderful volunteers at ECC. It is great that people take ownership in their church. Keep it up!

·        Our greeters had on matching outfits in the foyer. Awesome! They say they didn’t plan it, but I am not so sure. I told them that if they would tell me the color of the week I would get involved! They do a great job. Smiling, directing people, informing visitors where to go and what to expect, they are just great at what they do.

·        Speaking of visitors, there were several in attendance. One of whom was named LA LA. You got it…LA LA. What a name! I told her she must be able to sing with a name like LA LA. Get to know her she seemed great. We also had a family that had been a part of this church years ago come and be with us for our Sunday experience. They seemed to like the changes, and that is very encouraging.

·        It seems like I say this every week, but Arron and the band did an amazing job with the music. Each week I am now expecting bigger things, and you can see the confidence they are gaining as God is using them. The closing song “Freedom Reigns” was a last minute addition (my fault not his) and they did an unbelievable job with it. Don’t be surprised to hear that one again…soon.

·        We had an altar service. Yes it is true. I know many people are getting away from them, and while I do not think they need to be every week, when God impresses on me that it needs to happen it is always a humbling experience. To see people unashamedly come to the altar to seek God is truly why ECC exists. “Mission Statement – to allow people to encounter God in a personal, life changing way.”

 

Many of you may have heard but if not, I want to let you know the situation our family is in. My mentor, and father-in-law, Dr. E. Bob Kuschel was diagnosed last week with stage 3 lung cancer. He will begin chemo treatments today and radiation shortly afterwards. He is a man of tremendous faith and this will be seen throughout this time. He is a friend to this church and will covet our prayers. Please keep not only Dr. Kuschel in prayer, but the entire family lifted up as well. I will keep you posted on the progress…and eventual healing. In his words, “Ben, this just gives God a chance to show off!” Remarkable.

Letting Go…

Many of you know that I am a control freak. I am an evaluator, thinker, planner, and initiator. The problem comes when I have multiple options and all of them are great options. It is like I am on overload and I have to retreat mentally. In a battle retreat means to return to a safe place, a place of familiarity, or maybe just where you came from. But when you retreat mentally, as a leader you can’t just do that. You can’t just step back into a previous way of thinking just because it is comfortable or safe or even easy. As a leader, once you have moved beyond a certain level of progressive thinking or motion, where do you run when you are overloaded? Here’s something I figured out this morning. You don’t retreat, and you don’t move forward. You just be still. You sit still.

Sitting still is hard for me. I have been given a huge vision from God and with that comes enormous responsibility. I want to do everything to make that vision come to pass, but guess what…I can’t. God gave the vision, God will equip me to do what I need to do, and ultimately it will be God that makes the vision happen. For me, God will have to equip me to do one major thing…sit still. For me, my faith is grown in the stillness, in the moments when I am no longer in control, in the moments that my evaluations and plans fail due to the “me-driven” mentality that I have. For me, faith grows…when I CHOOSE to no longer be in control.

Our lives are in His hands, and He keeps our feet from stumbling. – Psalm 66:9

Sunday Rewound

This week is a new start for me because I have changed my work week around a little bit. Normally I keep office hours Tuesday through Friday, and take Mondays off to breathe a little. The problem was that I spent most of Monday thinking about Sunday. So it really did not feel much like a day off. So I am moving things around and will be working Monday – Thursday in an effort to be more productive in the office, and take better advantage of my day off. I also started a new workout routine this week, and since yesterday was my first day on this new workout, I AM HURTING! Typing is hard because I am having a hard time lifting my arms. So if there are typos, so be it! Here is the Sunday recap…

·        The new lights looked good and it is great to be able to change the lighting monthly. It adds a fresh look each time we switch teaching series.

·        I love seeing all the service teams showing up on time and getting ready to serve. As a leader, it makes me feel great to see people serving. First impressions team did a great job, ushers were proficient in service, and Jamie did a great job in only her second week working the media computer system.

·        On Thursday night we found out that one of our air conditioners in the main sanctuary had finally gone out. It is 30 years old and ran its final limit. So we are in the search as to what to do. It will be very expensive and funds are tight right now. The morning was cool so it was not an issue…but it will be as summer approaches.

·        Worship was intense this week! We made some important changes to our sound system and it paid off big time. Arron and the band sounded awesome, and there were people able to worship under an intense presence of God. We are a Pentecostal church and it as apparent as people were in the altars and tears were coming down numerous faces. Sometimes the word Pentecostal is lost in understanding and application, but it was apparent people were for the most part experiencing the power of the Holy Spirit.

 

There are big things coming for ECC. We are having several staff meetings this week as we prepare for the next big phase of ministry development. Be in prayer that we make the right changes and decisions that will ultimately propel us to the place God wants us to be.

A Call From A Friend

Today I received an email from a person that was very important in my high school years. She was like a little sister to me, but over time we lost contact. In her email she described her life, a great one that I am very happy about for her, and gave me a run down. But also in this email, she reminded me something of my past. It was a name she used to call me that I had completely forgotten about. Why is this important? For her, I had left a deposit in her memory for something that I had forgotten about myself. How many other people have memories of me that I have forgotten? For her it was a good memory, I think, but how many people remember me for a bad reason. Was I mean, hurtful, unforgiving, manipulative, divisive, or any other things that would give them a less than favorable memory of me? Why would this matter now?

It matters now because of who I represent. As a Christ-Follower, everything I do is about trying to bring the relevance of Christ to a crazy world. If I take a minute “off” and do something that brings a bad light on Christ, I might not even know it. I might make a memory deposit in someone’s mind that turns them away from Christ because of who they think I am. I want people to find the grace of God in everyday life, and I am responsible to reflect that in my living, speaking, and behavior modeling world.

There is a passage in the Bible where David does something stupid. God, in response, says “You have now given them a chance to blaspheme me.” God did nothing wrong, yet because of the careless actions of one of His followers, God Himself was kept in a low regard. That scares me. It humbles me. And most importantly, it drives me. It drives me to know every conversation matters, every decision matters, and I am responsible as a Christ follower.

Stop for a moment and think. Think about the cross and what it means. Think about what you are called to do as a believer. Make a point today to make a deposit in someone’s memory that will ultimately point them to the cross.

New Wednesday Series!

Hey guys! I wanted to let you know that this Wednesday we will be starting a new teaching series in our community group called “TXT.” This is a video series taught by Craig Groeschel, Senior Pastor of Lifechurch.tv. This is an exciting a deep study about the bible. It covers things like where we got the bible, how reliable it is, and things of this nature. It is a great way to bring people who are skeptical about the bible and why Christ followers rely on it so much. I know many people have these questions about the bible and this series will be a great way to learn things you never knew before. Come get some coffee, hear a challenging teaching, and discuss things to help you grow closer to God. We meet at 7:00 and I hope you will join us.