- The ups and downs of being a church planter continued today…
- Unlike last week, today was an up.
- We had our 3rd highest attended day ever!
- More importantly yet another person came into a relationship with Jesus!
- The day started out not so good though when I realized I had left my bible at home.
- Luckily Lisa had not yet left the house so she was able to bring it.
- Although we only live 3 minutes away so it really wasn’t that big of a deal.
- It was foggy and chilly this morning as Mike and I put signs out. I told him it reminds me of last year the first couple of times we did it.
- Hard to believe we’re coming up on our 1 year anniversary.
- Speaking of…we’ll be celebrating it on October 16th and we’re asking everyone who has ever come (even if it was just once) to be with us that day.
- Also for those of you who have been meaning to come this would be a great day to come as well.
- We have some special things planned and expect it will be a great day.
- Ok back to today…set-up went extremely smooth although it was really warm because the theater wasn’t sure whether or not to turn on the AC.
- Glad they did because I was drenched by the time set-up and practice was done.
- I think because of the big crowd, the band had their best day yet.
- The energy was incredible and the band and the crowd seemed to feed off of each other.
- It was great seeing so many people engaged in worship and hearing them singing loud during some songs that have “crowd” parts.
- I continued with the Unveil series by talking about what you need to do when you need to know God’s will quickly or when your facing a deadline.
- You can listen to it here.
- I didn’t feel like it was one of my better messages, yet many have already told me they really liked it so I guess that’s a good thing.
- Loved meeting so many new people today out in the lobby.
- Especially great to see a number of people that we’ve helped through www.HarrisburgFloodRelief.com.
- So today was a good day…from the bad end however…
- I shared briefly that one of the greatest challenges for a church plant is financially.
- To be honest we’re not doing well right now.
- So two things…
- First please pray.
- Second, if you’re feeling lead, please continue or perhaps for the first time consider supporting us financially.
- In 11 1/2 months we’ve had 108 people come into a relationship with Jesus and we’ve been able to help so many people in all kinds of ways in the community both from a practical and spiritual level.
- What I’m saying is your financial support WILL make an eternal difference…but we can’t do it without you.
- Thanks in advance…and thanks for your continued prayers through both the ups and downs of getting a new church off the ground.
- Next week we’ll continue the Unveil series by looking at how to discover principles in God’s Word that will help us determine what God’s will is for us…hoping we can keep the momentum going!
Inside Today’s Experiences
- Had a really good day.
- Today was the 3 year anniversary since I first spoke at United.
- A bunch of the United crowd threw me a surprise party last night which was really cool!
- Hard to believe its been 3 years already.
- That very first weekend we had 85 in attendance…now here we are 3 years later and not only do hundreds of people attend each week, but hundreds of people have come into a relationship with Jesus!
- This morning I came in early and couldn’t get the network or 3 screens to work…I panicked…oh no what are we going to do.
- Ummm…reach over and turn the power button on might be a start. :)
- At the beginning of the band’s warm-up, our drummer was running late so I sat down to at least provide a beat…everyone laughed at me…so I saw Aaron had come in to observe practice so I asked him to drum.
- He did the entire first song and wasn’t half bad…although when he was done I thought we might have to call the paramedics…he was wore out.
- It’s amazing how much energy our drummers expend and they just keep going and going and going. Many thanks to our drummers over the years, you guys rock (literally).
- Since Andrea was leading a bunch of songs today we also gave her the chance to do a lot of the speaking roles as well.
- I thought she did a great job…I think God has big plans for her…it’ll be interesting to see what they are.
- For the first time in a long while both myself and the team seemed to bring as much energy to the later Experience as we did the early one.
- In fact, we posted the 2nd message online.
- I’ve really enjoyed this series…hope you are as well!
- As I mentioned in the message, I’m going to be offering a class again on how to study the bible on October 10th from 9am-12pm. If you’re interested, please let me know. gilbert@unitedworshipexperience.org
- In the meantime, make sure you are in God’s Word everyday looking for principles, not promises.
- Had out of town friends visiting in the early Experience and some family members in the 2nd. Always great to have the support of family and friends.
- I dropped the hammer at 11:15 on the whole evangelism purpose…seriously God wants you inviting every week. People’s eternal destinies are at stake…what are you doing about it?
- Time for a nap and then dinner with friends…have a great week…see you and your guests next week!
3 year anniversary!
3 years ago today I began a 4 month consulting agreement with the Chambersburg First Church of God. Part of that time was also to determine whether CFCOG was where God was calling Lisa and I to next on a more permanent basis. Now here we are 3 years later and the answer was obviously yes!
And what a 3 years it has been. The church has tripled in size…United which I was asked to lead has exploded with growth…hundreds of people have come to Christ…stories of life change are everywhere. It hasn’t all been fun and games though…I’ve experienced some really down times…but through it all God has been faithful and I’m a better follower of Christ and pastor as a result.
So happy anniversary…can’t wait to see what the next 3 years and beyond hold!
Random Thoughts on a Friday
- Haven’t done a random thoughts for awhile so let’s see where this goes…
- Why oh why on my day off did I wake up at 6am wide-awake?
- Couldn’t believe the news yesterday about Michael Jackson.
- Thriller was the first album I ever bought.
- Too bad he got really weird because he was an amazingly talented man.
- However, no matter how talented you are, death is coming for all of us and it will sometimes come unexpectedly.
- The moral…you’ve got to be prepared for eternity and the best way to do that is to begin a relationship with Jesus.
- I’m getting back into the swing of things after vacation.
- Working on two huge projects right now…1 is exciting…the other is overwhelming…both will be great when they’re completed.
- Vacation highlights were:
- Spening time with Lisa 24/7.
- Celebrating our 14th anniversary.
- Our dinner at Phillips Seafood in Atlantic City overlooking the beach and ocean.
- Not checking e-mail the entire 2 weeks and truly being able to relax.
- Walking with Lisa hand-in-hand up and down the boardwalk with no cares (ok dodging seagulls but other than that) or agenda.
- Treating my parents to a couple days away in the Pocono’s with us.
- Hiking to Bushkill Falls…beautiful!
- Hacking around a par-3 approach course with my dad.
- Celebrating my birthday.
- Getting a sweet authentic Alexander Ovechkin Caps jersey from Andy and Gayle.
- Getting to hang out with my friends.
- We’ve got some pretty cool stuff coming up for July and August in the Experiences that we’re pretty excited about.
- This week is the last week of the One Prayer series…Perry Noble…can’t wait!
- Then I’m back preaching again…really excited about what God is going to do in the next series.
14 Great Years
Today marks 14 years since Lisa and I got married. I know it sounds like a cliche but we really do get happier and happier with one another with every passing year. I’ll be the first to admit that in life I’m far from perfect, yet she overlooks and/or forgives those flaws and loves me anyway.
Happy Aniversary Lisa…looking forward to growing old and more in love with you!