The Passion Worship Conference was an awesome time. We talked about being pit dwellers. How many times do I find myself in a pit that I can't get out of! I don't need a 'pit expert,' I have Jesus. He came down into the pit that I was sinking in and died in that pit. He absorbed all of the mud that I was sinking in, it was the only way I could get out! Doing that killed him (literally), but he rose!

Heaven isn't for good people. It is for sinners, prostitutes, and tax collectors.

Another thing we talked about was trouble. Everyone has trouble. There are two things happening all the time:

1. A messed up world
2. An overcoming Savior

God turns bad things into good things. Example: The cross! Can you think of something worse than the son of God being crucified? He didn't even do anything wrong and he suffered the most horrible death known to man! When it happened it was the worst thing in the world. But in just 3 days God turned the worst thing in the world into the best thing in the world! Can you think of anything better than what happened as a result of Christ dying? I have salvation because that happened! On Sunday God turned horrible Friday into good Friday!

There are not always answers to the bad things that happen to us. When those times come we need to cling to the cross. Our message is never louder than when the bottom falls out. The world expects to hear us praise our God on sunny days, but when the bottom falls out they listen to our song.

Enjoy the Journey

Extreme Makeover

Here at FCC Clearwater, we are getting ready to undergo a major project. Repainting, resigning, and generally repairing the building. We have decided to call it, Extreme Makeover Church Edition. It really is a pretty fitting name since the church will look entirely different once it is completed. Each room in the building will go up for adoption. Once adopted the room will be made over. We are so excited about this project, and hope we can get the whole churhc involved in Extreme Makeover Church Edition.

Rooted
Being rooted in scripture is something that is vital to life as a Christian. As we journey towards our goal (heaven) we must stand rooted or we will be knocked over by the storms of life that come our way. I am so glad that I have a God whose roots go back before time began. Christianity is not a new thing, know your roots!

Getting rid of the old man can be hard. It is something that is a daily struggle in our lives. This doesn't mean that we should kick senior citizens out of church! However, when we become a Christian we are told to get rid of the old man! His ways are not God's ways. The old man is our old self, our old way of living. It takes a total mind-set change. We were going in one direction, now we are going in another. It is a difficult change at best. The old man creeps back in whenever he gets the chance, so watch out! With God's help we can keep the old man out and live the way Christ calls us to live.

Brickianity

How often is our Christianity like a brick wall? Each part is set in place and we think we have it all figured out. But lets but honest, we don't! In a brick wall everything is firm and in place, if a part of it moves or changes shape the whole thing falls apart. Is that really how Christianity is? Don't we learn new things all the time about God? If we could completely figure God out, would He even be God?

Right now I'm reading Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell and he poses that question. He compares Christianity to more of a trampoline with supporting doctrines (or springs). We don't have to, in fact we will never have it all figured out so why are we so headstrong and exclusive of others? Not to say that we embrace every teaching, but that we are open to discussion. Here is a quote from the book that I really like: "Have you ever seen someone pull a photo out of their wallet and argue about the supremacy of this particular loved one? Of course not. They show you the picture and give you the opportunity to see what they see."

That is what we are supposed to do as Christians, invite others to see Christ! The invitation to jump is for everyone. And you can jump with all your fears and doubts, and all the things you haven't figured out. "The invitation to jump is an invitation to follow Jesus with all of our doubts and questions right there with us."

Enjoy the Journey

The goings on...

It has been so long since I used this thing I actually forgot that I had it for awhile. Abi and I now live in Clearwater, Fl, and we love it! It has been an amazing journey since December: Graduating, getting married, getting a job, getting a house, and getting settled in a new place. God has been incredible throughout the whole thing, continuous blessings. We are still close to both sets of parents (but not too close) ;) and we are working with a great group of people here at First Christian Clearwater. We couldn't ask for more.