Friday, November 30, 2007

Elf

Anne is hosting a party upstairs for all of our NStar staff ladies & wives of staff.......some absolutely awesome ladies!! I love a good party but since it is a "ladies only" - Anne has banished Casey & I to the basement.....

To liven up our evening downstairs, we ordered some great Chinese and are watching Will Ferrell in "Elf" - dude, that is just a Christmas classic!! We are laughing out loud (about my 10th time) watching and it is funny every time!!

Impact

Yesterday I was able to attend a meeting in preparation for "Impact"......it is a summer camp for middle & high school students but it is run by student pastors from all over Georgia! Though I have now been out of student ministry for 10+ years I have stayed involved with Impact. It is certainly not because I have tons of spare time but it is because I do not want to forget what is was like to be in student ministry!! I do not think there are any guys on the planet who work harder than student pastors and anything I can do to give them I am honored!! I now have a student in 8th grade and our guys at NStar (Nick & Brad) are two of his heroes.....and I love it - they are two of mine as well!

I would also say - Impact is the greatest camp I have ever been associated with. This coming summer will be my 20th year.....crazy how time flies!! If you have leadership students and do not have a camp to take them to - check out Impact and let me know if you have any questions!!!

Wednesday, November 28, 2007

Two things

I always enjoy hooking up with our team on Wednesdays and hearing about what is going on with everyone! There are times I miss the early days when "the whole staff" would see each other all the time and you knew everything going on.....now with 30+ folks going a ton of different directions, it is really easy to disconnect from each other. Our Wednesday time serves as a great time to hear what is going on and to celebrate God's faithfulness!

Today at the close of the meeting we watched the video of Steve Jobs doing the commencement address to the Stanford University graduates. What an incredible challenge he gave the graduates and what a challenge it was to our team as well. Here are a couple of the highlights:
  • You cannot connect the dots of your life looking forward, you can only connect them when you look back
  • Do what you believe is a great work
  • Courage to follow your heart
His final thought...........stay hungry & stay foolish!

Monday, November 26, 2007

Goodbye Coach Gailey


As you may know, I am a die-hard Georgia Tech fan! Since following the Jackets as a kid, I have seen a ton of ups & downs through the years. Why I became a Tech fan I have no idea, I guess my dad liked them and so back then you had to choose (UGA or Tech) and I chose Tech! I have endured endless ribbing and heckling from Dawg friends and have almost become numb to their "barks"!! Ha! I was not smart enough to go there (hated Math) but always loved the Jackets!

Today, GT announced that they have fired Coach Chan Gailey and have decided to take the program a different direction. Regardless of how you may feel about Coach Gailey as a coach, there are none who differ on the fact he is a great man who truly loves his players and loves His Lord! I know that there is a lot of good still in store for Tech but I have to admit, you always hate days like this.....though they are a part of life they are still no fun!

So Coach Gailey from a "nobody" Tech fan - thanks for being the man you are and thanks for work you have done molding these football players into young men!! I pray for God's best for you & your family as you go forward!

Great post!

Craig Groeschel at Life Church TV had a great post today that all pastors should read!! Good stuff!

Choices

I am in the middle of studying for the "Little Big Town" series that we are starting at NStar this coming weekend. This little town of Bethlehem had some big stories and really none bigger than Mary & Joseph stopping in to deliver their newborn son. This is going to be a fun series!

I guess in the middle of studying, one word keeps hitting me....choices. Mary & Joseph both had choices in the matter but their obedience to God and to do what was right...not what was easy....kept them going in the right direction! I think all of us want to make good choices but invariably we do what we do not want to do. Why is that? Here is my shot.......Our most natural instinct is to choose easy & pleasure now and not what we have to wait for and what we cannot see.

My prayer today for you & for me is for God to keep us focused on what we cannot see but by faith know is there......if we can do that, our choices will probably match up to what God has for us a little better!!!

Saturday, November 24, 2007

Black Saturday

I just got back from Atlanta and the GT - UGA game......brutal! The Jackets had a ton of chances to do something with the game but could not catch a break.....from some officiating calls to dropped balls....the Jackets could not get it together! The highlight of the day was the Volunteer score being posted during the game and the Dawg fans hopes of the SEC championship going down the drain!!!

Maybe next year or at least the next!!! No matter the outcome - I am glad to be a Yellow Jacket!!

Thursday, November 22, 2007

Happy Thanksgiving

I want to wish all of my friends & family a very Happy Thanksgiving!! We have so much to be thankful for and my life has been so blessed by all the special people that God has sent my way! Today I get to spend the day with the people in my life that mean the most to me, my incredible family, and think about how blessed we really are to have each other and to have such a great life!

Today, my heart goes out to my assistant Ludell Bishop, whose mom went home to be with her Savior early Wednesday morning. I know that their hearts are heavy during this time - so please lift up this special family! When Anne & I moved to Kennesaw in 1991 Eddie & Ludell Bishop were two of the first people to take us in and model for us a great marriage and the way to parent.....they have blessed our lives more they will ever know! I am sure praying for this family during this time!!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Day off

Today has been so awesome.....we have done absolutely nothing this morning and it has been so nice!! I am so thankful for so many things in our life but I am incredibly thankful for times of rest where we just chill!! We may catch a movie this afternoon and enjoy the day together as a family....no where to be and nothing to do.....good stuff!!

Last night I took a great walk with my little girl and we had a blast. I did not know it was possible for a human being to "walk, dance & sing" all at the same time....She had to of burned 10x the energy that I did because she would not slow down! I love that girl....she truly makes me laugh!! I kept saying that I would do the "soul ja boy" dance in the neighborhood and the fear of that frightened her to no end!! Thanks Mary-Michal for being not only a great daughter but also my most faithful blog reader!!!

Monday, November 19, 2007

Pause - Spin Series

If any of you missed NorthStar this past Sunday...here is the video from the service! We did it in three parts with worship in between and gave out a card for people to work through. The response to the morning was huge and actually I was blown away!! I hate you do not have the worship that was done during the morning....it was unreal!!! The video was really a small part...but it was fun and different!!

Great post

C.A. Phillips, one of NStar teammates, wrote a great post about how thankful he is for NorthStar!!! Way go buddy......a must read and a great reminder of all we have been blessed with!! I told our crowds yesterday, that they are what I think God had in mind for the church to be!! Good stuff!

Sunday, November 18, 2007

Pause

We wrapped up our "Spin" series today at NorthStar. Today was an incredible day just taking a "pause" and slowing down to be reminded of what we are thankful for in life. The whole message we shot on video and we did it in 3 segments with worship in between.....it was nice to just in the crowd and enjoy the day.

Pausing is something that I need to do more, I move through life at a pretty quick speed and most of the time never slow down long enough to appreciate much. The only time we normally pause is when life throws us a curveball and we have to......we normally only appreciate something when we have lost it or stand to lose it. What a sad way to live life.....I don't think that is the way that God intended for it to be.

I hope sometimes this week you will take a pause and appreciate all you have been blessed with...isn't that what thanksgiving is all about!

Friday, November 16, 2007

News

I was reading today in the AJC about a local pastor who has been charged with a crime against his wife. I do not know him but have heard great things about him through the years. It broke my heart for he & his family and it also served as a great reminder.....

No matter what happened or did not happen, our lives can become headlines in an instant and all of the years we have spent doing good can be erased in a second. That scares me.....I pray it always scares me enough to think through every decision I make. I was reading what comments on the article and of course people used the story to blast Christians and Pastors....

I will be praying for this Pastor and his family and I hope we all pray daily for ourselves and our families..........we all sure need don't we??

Thursday, November 15, 2007

Good luck Warriors, Hoyas & Jackets


On Friday night there will be a "Orange Out" in Kennesaw! The North Cobb Warriors will be battling the defending state co-champs Peachtree Ridge at North Cobb. I was at a lunch with Coach Queen today and he made a statement that I loved....."We fear no one but respect everyone"....I love it - tons of confidence without the cockiness....

Good luck to Harrison & Sprayberry tomorrow night as well - we are pulling for big Cobb victories!

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Great friends

There are people that you meet in life that becomes friends for life. This week I have had in town a great friend that one was one of my roommates at the Liberty and also we played baseball together at LU! He is in town and visiting schools about the possibility of moving this direction for the 2007/2008 school year and coaching and teaching in the NW Cobb area.

Dave & his family currently live in Phoenix, AZ and have been there since college. We have only seen each other once since I left LU in 1991 but we have picked up right where we left off then. After him being in town a few days, it is like he has lived around here for years and we have never missed a beat! We will all miss him a ton when he leaves and cannot wait for him to come back with his wife & kids!

God thanks for friends like Dave, who are still walking the walk and living for You......what an example that is to me and so many others!

Monday, November 12, 2007

Are you kidding me?

What a day at NorthStar yesterday......we were part 2 of our "Spin" series and I do not know if we have had any other series that so touched a nerve in our people's lives like this one has. At the conclusion of the message, I had people bring up their biggest worries and leave them on the stage as a reflection that we no longer will hold them as worries but turn them over to God in prayer! I began reading through the worries today and was overwhelmed at what our people are going through.....it broke my heart and also reminded me how much I love the people I get to be with each week...I almost feel guilty getting paid for doing something I love so much!

The week before in Spin, we talked about one of the best things we can do in life is when we are in tough times "a spin", is to do something to serve someone else. We gave out grocery bags and asked NStar families to buy thanksgiving groceries for needy families and we would partner with Redemption Baptist to get the groceries out. Yesterday, NStar families brought over 800 bags of groceries and someone donated $2500 for Redemption to buy turkey's for families in their community!

I guess yesterday was proof again.....NStar is it's best when we are serving & giving!!! Way to go NStar - you are the best I have ever seen!!!

Saturday, November 10, 2007

Black Saturday

UGA grabbed the headlines again with their black jersey's and their thumping of Auburn......the black cloud is not the jersey's or crowd in Athens but rather the mood at Tech knowing the Dawgs are getting hot just in time for the clash with the Jackets.......Why does this happen every year?

Way to GO!!

I am overdue in doing this, but here are some "High-Fives" to some of my NorthStar buddies who had big weeks!!!
  • Watched the CMA Awards the other night.....awesome show with some great country music! The guy doing all of the voice overs is John Willyard, one of our core NStar members! I think John has been doing this now like 12 years...huge! Every time we heard his voice we started cheering - because John is just one of those people that you have to love!! You hear his voice all of the time and do not know (WKHX 101.5 plus hundreds of other stations!) John, you are proof that preachers kids and nice guys do not always finish last but rather come out on top!!
  • Coach Billy Shackleford, the head coach at Sprayberry High School, guided Sprayberry back to the playoffs after a long time! This was Coach Shack's first year there and he turned it around quick!! Way to go Coach!!
  • Emory Lott, one of our staff, is Chaplain for the North Cobb Warriors and they finished with a perfect season last night (10-0) and they go to the state playoffs ranked #1 in Class AAAAA. Way to go Coach Queen!!

Saturday

Here is a little run-down of what is ahead today........
  • Going through my message "Spin Out" one more time and putting on the finishing touches...tomorrow is a big day! We have some hurting people right now and I think what we are going to talk about is very timely!! Pray for NStar tomorrow!
  • Finishing cleaning around the house and getting ready for company for a few days
  • Watching some good football today (does it get any better than GT vs. Duke? HA!)...as much as it pains me, I am looking forward to the UGA vs. Auburn game! Go Tigers or is it War Eagle!
  • Check in with my brother and see how his twins are progressing! Keep praying for John David & Lucy Elizabeth!
  • Picking up an old college buddy, David Eeles, tonight at the airport! He & his family are praying about moving here from Phoenix, AZ next summer.....He is a teacher & coach and he is meeting with Principals from some schools next week! Dave is a winner all the way around and we are praying God opens up a door for his family to move here!! "Wheels" was our catcher at Liberty and one of my old room-mates......I am sure we will not run out of things to laugh about and talk about!
  • Getting ready for Kennesaw Business Association where I am speaking on Tuesday.....I am praying that God uses that time to touch a lot of lives!
  • On the baseball front....we will play one last scrimmage tomorrow at 3pm and I am using it to take a look at a few players we are thinking about picking up! Sounds like the weather will be perfect!!
Enjoy your Saturday!!!

Wednesday, November 7, 2007

Hurting and down

I have had some pretty interesting feed-back this week from some guys in ministry who are discouraged. You would think this would be the profession that would be the most rewarding and uplifting but in fact sometimes it is the thing that can sometimes drain you the most! My heart breaks and goes out to all of you out there that are not in a place that you love and where you feel that you and the other leaders of the church are not on the same page......

Take a look at many of the great churches that are going out there(there are so many super one's)and many of them started from guys who said, "It doesn't have to be this way!!"

Is that you? Are you down? Trust me buddy, "God is Near" and He has your back! Keep walking tight with Him and praying that your eyes are open when the right door opens!

Monday, November 5, 2007

I am a new uncle

My brother and his wife welcomed twins into the world yesterday! We got to meet (John David & Lucy Elizabeth) today and it was just a great reminder what an awesome God we have! Congratulations to David & Nancy!! Your new world has just begun!

Rearview Mirror

  • Great start to the "Spin" series
  • Response to the message at the end was OVERWHELMING....we have a ton of people really hurting right now
  • The worship team wrapped the message with "Little Moments" the new tune by Steven Curtis Chapman in both our venues......totally nailed it!
  • The crowds were up BIG time over October and it was a holiday weekend - go figure!
  • My little girl's squad took first place again yesterday in her cheerleading competition - way to go Hoya's! Anne is their coach and she is incredible - I would probably be smart to turn my baseball team over to her!!
  • Working on a new baseball coaches small group that I am going to roll out after the new year for high school baseball coaches in our community - I have a huge heart for these guys!
  • The Falcons won again........can you believe it?
  • I met tons of new people coming to NorthStar that just wanted to let me know about what is happening in their lives - crazy what our people are having to go through.....
  • I am taking the day off today with my kids being out of school - so we are going to enjoy the day off together!!

Sunday, November 4, 2007

Thanks Alan!

NorthStar is full every week of some awesome people and great bloggers! Thanks to Alan Riley for a nice post today!

Saturday, November 3, 2007

Idea

Yesterday I got to enjoy my day off by going out to lunch with Anne. It was so good to not be in a hurry to get anywhere and while we were sitting at lunch we came up with an idea that we are going to do as a couple this spring! I can't wait to tell you about it......later! A lot of details to hit but I think what will come out of will be huge! Stay tuned!

Thursday, November 1, 2007

Great recipe

This weekend we will begin a new series at NorthStar "Spin" that is about what to do when our world seems to be "spinning" out of control. Paul in Philippians 4 gives us a great recipe for how to navigate during these tough circumstances. I am really looking forward to sharing with NStar what this recipe contains.......we all sure need the good word that Paul left for us!