Michael Jernigan

Good Does Not = Great

2012-01-26T10:11:00.000-08:00

There are certain things in life that I view as good: Carolina Panthers, Milky Way's, and Vanilla Ice. However, there are other things that I view as great: UNC Tarheels, Rick's Chicken Pie, and my Wife. Lots of times we get good stuff mixed up with great stuff.

There's a guy in the Bible named John the Baptist. John did some great stuff: he baptized people with water, spread the news about the coming Savior, and even ended up getting persecuted for who he was and what he believed in. John had some followers/disciples. No doubt John was a good teacher and did a lot for his followers. But in John 1:35, when they saw Jesus walk by and John himself said there, "Look there is the Lamb of God" his disciples quickly left a good thing for a GREAT thing.

It's so easy for us as believers to get comfortable with good stuff, that we totally miss out on some of the great things that God has in store for us. We can get comfortable with our group of friends and comfortable with the job that we have. When that happens it's easy for us not to recognize that God is calling us to a great life. Jesus himself said that He came to give life, not just an average, ordinary, good life, but an abundant and GREAT life.

Make a commitment with me to not miss out on the GREAT things because we really like the good things in life. God maybe calling you to a different type of ministry to different people at your school or work. Don't miss out on being a blessing to other people because what you're doing now is good. What would have happen to John's disciples if they wouldn't had left John to follow Jesus?

stay HUMBLED

stay FOCUSED

love GOD

love PEOPLE

Work It Out pt. 2

2011-10-31T12:22:00.000-07:00

----See Previous Post If You Don't Understand This One----

Paul calls us in Phil. 2:12 to work out our salvation.

To work out (i interpret) means to stay active. If we are to stay active in our physical bodies and stay fit in our physical bodies then that means we have to exercise and work out often, maybe even everyday. They same is true for our spiritual lives. If we are to be growing towards Jesus Christ everyday, then there are certain things I need to do everyday to stay active and in good spiritual shape. Paul is challenging us to move from child/adolescent spirituality into adult spirituality. In the next 6 verses we find ways to grow in our christian faith...

Philippians 2:12-13

-Obedience

-God works in you so that you can work out your salvation. God gives us the ability to know, understand, and obey His Word.

Philippians 2:14-15a

-No complaining

-It doesn't matter how mean someone is or how bad your day is going, that does not give you a reason to complain, argue, and fight with the people around you. It does however give you the right to forgive, love, and move on.

-We have selective grace sometime...we only show grace on the people that we want to but not everyone. Grace knows no boundaries.

Philippians 2:15b-16

-Being A Light

-We are to shine like stars in the universe. Jesus said that we are the Light Of The World. Our lives should direct people towards Jesus Christ.

-Light is a source of life. John 10:10, Jesus came to give abundant life.

-Light is a source of safety. Psalm 23:4, I will fear no evil because you are with me.

-Light is a source of direction. Jeremiah 29:11, God has a purpose for our lives.

Philippians 2:17

-Being Poured Out

-We are put on earth to serve and to bless other people

-Jesus first, Others second, Yourself third

Philippians 2:18

-Rejoice in ALL Things

-Make a decision everyday to rejoice no matter what life throws at you that day.

We wants to change our lives from the inside out. God works in you so that you can work out.

Work It Out

2011-10-27T13:03:00.000-07:00

This Sunday morning I will be preaching at the 8:45 (goodnight nurse that's early) service at Foster St. Wesleyan (we also have a 10 and 11:30 service in case you were interested). The staff has been going through the book of Philippians for our sermon series the past few weeks. This week I will be speaking from Phil. 2:12-18. Interesting section of Philippians. My main focus for this sunday is how to "work out" our salvation.

1-What does that mean?

2-How do I do it?

(for the sake of not giving everything away for sunday morning, just in case someone actually reads this... here is a hint of our message)

I love playing basketball, working out, running, and being active. I used to like it much more than i do today. After a back injury it makes doing these things a little more of a task than pure enjoyment. But i remember someone saying years ago that if you dont use your muscles you lose them. So I try as much as possible to use'em so i wont lose'em.

The same is true for our spiritual lives. To workout our salvation is the same as working out your body. If you don't obey God and use the gifts and talents and blessings that God has given you, then you are in danger of losing them. We are called to grow in our faith, trust God more, let God change us more. We are not made to be stagnate believers. We are made to grow closer and closer to Christ until our final breath on earth. In this passage I believe there are 5 ways to "work out" your salvation.

BE HERE SUNDAY MORNING TO HEAR THE REST

(or i may post it monday morning.)

stay HUMBLED

stay FOCUSED

love GOD

love PEOPLE

I Hear The Lord Passing By

2011-08-19T08:40:00.000-07:00

I heard this song the other day and I am totally in love with it. My hope and prayer is that neither your nor I will miss our day of visitation from the Lord. There is no doubt an urgency for us to meet with God. There is no tomorrow, there is no next week. I often wonder how my life and the world would be different if we all followed God's call and not wait until a tomorrow that may never come?

I hope you enjoy this song as much as I do. Here are the lyrics and the youtube video

CHORUS
I hear the Lord passing by
This could be my day of visitation
Have mercy on me, Lord
Hear my cry of desperation
I hear the Lord passing by

BRIDGE
My heart, my flesh
Yearn to be with You
Open my eyes to see Your glory
All the days of my life

BRIDGE 2
This is my one chance
This is my moment
Lord, I throw everything aside
Just to run blindly after You
This is my one chance
This is my moment
I wanna see You
I wanna touch You
I wanna hold You
I wanna know You
I wanna follow You
I wanna follow You
All my hope is in You
All I need is in You
My miracle is You

CHORUS 2
I hear the Lord passing by
This could be my day of visitation
Have mercy on me, Lord
Hear my cry of desperation
Have mercy on me, Lord
From the depth of my affliction
I hear the Lord
I hear the Lord
I hear the Lord passing by

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gmvr4Zvsu7w&feature=related

Don't Hate

2011-06-07T12:20:00.000-07:00

Everybody loves to be loved. Everybody loves to be cared for and cared about. I believe that everyone alive today has a longing to be apart of a group, accepted, and loved. I had a teenager tell me 2 weeks ago that she could go all day at school without any interaction with another student. I quickly replied (by the way, with this particular teen, there is no way she could do this) I would love to see you make it 20 min. without talking to someone.

One of the things I find strange about the Christian life, is that for me to be 100% sold out to Jesus Christ, the Bible says, I will be persecuted. One type of persecution is when people that were friends are no longer because of my choice to live a faith filled life. That leads to the question that people have asked over and over, 'If you're not being persecuted for Jesus Christ, are you really following Him?'

I find sometime in my life there is no friction or tension between my world view and close friends of my mine with a different world view. I hope that my life hasn't blurred the line betweens believers and nonbelievers. I pray, for myself and for all Christ followers, that we all will be set apart and that we will be in the world but not of the world.

Greg Laurie in his book "Let God Change Your Life" puts it this way,

"We will either find harmony with God and friction with the people in our lives, or we will have harmony with people and friction with God. If we live the way that God wants us to live, then it's going to seriously bother some people....

If you are truly a follower of Jesus Christ and living in His way, certain people won't like you for that reason alone. Don't be hurt by that rejection. We must understand that this is par for the course. As Jesus said, 'A servant is not greater than his master. If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you' (John 15:20)."

A TRUE DISCIPLE LOVES GOD MORE THAN ANYONE OR ANYTHING ELSE

stay HUMBLED

stay FOCUSED

love GOD

love PEOPLE

Hide and Seek With All Your Heart

2011-02-23T10:07:00.000-08:00

I remember as a kid playing hide and seek. I never was a big fan of this game, however I do remember playing hide and seek with my friends. The main reason I didnt like the game was because I never could find the absolute best hiding place. I would be hidden in a corner of a closet and sure enough the "seeker" would always find me. I guess my mind isn't creative enough to find the right hiding place so that I would never be found.

There is something about trying to hide and not wanting to be found. Everyday all across the world, there are people that are leaving their families and loved ones to be by themselves. Either by choice or consequence they will never been found by their families again.

It's a great and comforting thought, to me, to know that God is not like that. The God of the universe, the creator of all things, the first and the last, wants us to find Him. Chris Tomlin has an excellent song titled "I Will Follow" (http://christomlin.com/ ). One of the lines of this song says, "You're the one I seek, Knowing I will find, All I need in you alone". Most of the time a King or a well known public figure wants their privacy. They don't want to be seen or heard from or found. Not King Jesus.

"Then you will call my name. You will come to me and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will search for me. And when you search for me with all your heart, you will find me!"

-Jeremiah 29:12-13

WHEN YOU SEARCH FOR ME WITH ALL YOUR HEART YOU WILL FIND ME.

What a great promise we have in Jesus Christ. He's not hiding in a dark closet behind a bunch of old clothes. He's waiting for us to search for him with all our heart, and he has promised that we will find him.

stay HUMBLED

stay FOCUSED

love GOD

love PEOPLE

Dislocated Heart

2011-01-19T12:54:00.000-08:00

There is a classic scene in the movie "Joe Dirt", where an older man tried to communicate to Joe that, "home is where you make it." However, his communication skills are not the best and Joe Dirt left thinking the guy said something totally different than he really said.

One lyric in a song by Mercy Me says, "If home is where my heart is, then I'm out of place." The song goes on to say, "I've never been more homesick than now."

There's been a number of times when my heart has seemed like it has been out of place. Meaning, that I'm in one place in life but my heart is in another. Chip Ingrim (http://www.livingontheedge.org/home/) calls this feeling having a "dislocated heart". He describes a dislocated heart as a "God-given concern that propels us beyond our comfortable routine. It is a passionate concern for God's people and God's agenda that supersedes our own personal comfort and prosperity." Every so often we hear about people like this. People that are so passionate about a situation or a group of people that they will do whatever it take to impact their life. It could be someone or something close to your home or it could be something in another country. Whatever the case maybe, if your heart is not being moved to action by a situation or by a person around you (teen pregnancy, broken homes, murder, people separated from God, etc...) you are missing our impacting people for the kingdom of God.

I don't believe this is a call from God for everybody to get on a plane and move to a for off country to help people. I do believe that God is calling us to step outside what is comfortable for us, so that we can make an impact on people around us. The challenge before me and you is, will we be to scared or afraid to make an impact for God. Don't miss your opportunity today to impact someone else's life for God's kingdom.

Chip conclude with this thought, "Stepping outside what is comfortable often begins with something very, very small. It's not about doing something great for God; it's about letting God do something great in your heart! God never does something great through us until He does something significant in us!"

stay HUMBLED

stay FOCUSED

love GOD

love PEOPLE

A Very Thin Line

2010-11-16T10:20:00.000-08:00

There are several things in life that there is a thin line between the two. Creed from "The Office" made the comment one episode that the only difference between him and a homeless man is his job. In this episode Creed messed up and his job was at stake. Creed, doing the only thing that Creed could do, turned the blame around on another lady and ended up getting her fired so that he could keep his job. There is a thin line between Creed and a homeless man.

There is also a thin line between loving "love" and hating "love". Love can make you do some things that you normally wouldnt do. Love will cause a playa to settle down with 1 woman forever. Love will make you stay up all night watching over your children to make sure they are safe. Love will keep you in the gym shooting free throws all day long, so that you will get better.

Love can also drive us crazy. It seems like so many times love leads to heartache. The people in our life that we love have the ability to do what they want to with our heart, feelings, and emotions. I believe that we are created with a desire to be loved. I also believe that we are created with a desire to love other people. Erwin McManus said "When love does not come to you, it breaks your heart, but when you do not give love away, it hardens your heart." Why are we so affected by its presence and its absence? We are most alive when we find it, most devastated when we lose it, most empty when we give up on it, most inhumane when we betray it, and most passionate when we pursue it.

It's so important that we love the right things/people and allow the right them to love us back. McManus concluded with this, "The most powerful evidence that our souls crave God is that within us there is a longing for love."

We are all connected by a thin line.

stay HUMBLED

stay FOCUSED

love GOD

love PEOPLE

Calling All Passionate People

2010-09-23T08:54:00.000-07:00

There is nothing in this world more impacting, intoxicating, or better than to meet someone with passion. I love meeting people that are passionate about anything: their family, sports, Jesus, school, their job, etc... Passion is a strange thing. It will take you to many great places but it will also make you do some crazy things.

Passion says: ive got to study tonight

Ordinary says: i can read through it in the morning

Passion says: stay up late shooting 1000 free throws every night

Ordinary says: no one else is doing it why should i

Passion says: im skipping time with my friends to spend with my family

Ordinary says: i can be with my family tomorrow

Passion says: Lord give me more boldness

Ordinary says: we've been punished we must stop talking about Jesus

Acts 4:29 we find Peter and John gathered with other believers and praying for greater boldness to spread the message of Christ. It takes passion for Jesus and passion for other people to want MORE boldness to spread God's message after just getting in trouble for doing that very thing.

I hope that i am never ordinary, average, or just acceptable. God through me leads me to be bold and passionate for the things and the people in my life.

stay HUMBLED

stay FOCUSED

love GOD

love PEOPLE

Count the Cost

2010-08-27T10:10:00.000-07:00

Someone once said there is nothing in this world free. You don't receive anything unless you pay something for it. If you have been to WalMart anytime lately, then you are well aware of this fact of life. (On a side note, I went to the WalMart in Asheboro last week and they have a big UNC / Back to School section. They have everything you could imagine in Carolina Blue. I left with a UNC shower curtin.) If you drive a car, then you pay for the car, insurance, gas, etc... If you live in a house, you pay for the rent, house payment, heat, air, power, etc... Everything may have a price, but not everything cost money. If any of you want to be a professional athlete, it will cost you time, blood, sweat, effort, to put in the hard work that it takes to be a professional athlete.

The Christian life is no different. It cost us something to follow Jesus Christ. That price is simply your life. There is no amount of money, time, effort, etc... that you can give to Jesus to substitute for your life. When the decision is made to follow Jesus, at the same time the decision is made for your life to be over. All of your dreams, hopes, desires, wants, etc... all become what God wants, dreams and desires for your life. The cost of following Jesus is a high cost that a lot of people believe they cant afford to pay. When Jesus called His first disciples He called them to leave their jobs and families and come follow Him. The call for us is no different. When we follow Jesus our lives have to change to the life that God wants to live through us.

The question we have to answer is: Is the cost worth the reward? Is the reward of serving people, being a slave to God, putting other people first, and the great reward in Heaven worth the cost of me not being as important as i thought i was. Or me having to deny myself and pick up my cross and die daily.

stay HUMBLED

stay FOCUSED

love GOD

love PEOPLE

I Just Can't Stop...

2010-08-05T09:10:00.000-07:00

"I just cant stop", have those words ever came out of your mouth? If so, I wonder what you were referring to: watching tv, eating candy, being mean to people, saying cuss words, having premarital sex, stealing, looking at porn, telling lies, etc... Have those words ever came out of your mouth? If so, please no that you, along with me, are in a very dangerous place. When we get into something so deep that we feel like we "just cant stop" we are addicted to it. The problem with realizing your addictions is that no one wants to admit to being addicted because we like to be in control. If i had to admit that i was addicted to stealing stuff that would mean that Im not in control of my life anymore, the addiction is.

The Bible doesn't use the word "addicted" it more commonly uses the word "enslaved". Being addicted to pornography is the same as being a slave to porn. If there is anything worse than being addicted to something, it's being a slave to it. In today's "IM BIG AND BAD, I CAN DO ANYTHING I WANT BY MYSELF" society, no one wants to admit that they are addicted and we surely dont want to admit that we are enslaved to something. "This is a free country, Im free to do what i want and go where I want, Im not a slave to no one or nothing." 2nd Peter 2:19 puts it this way, "For people are slaves of anything that controls them." If you we were really free, we would be free to stop sinning. However, since we "just can't stop" we are in the same position as someone locked in a jail cell...a prisoner.

Luckily for us we have a Great Redeemer who wants to free us from anything that has us enslaved, tied up, in bondage to, etc... Redemption is synonymous with being liberated, set free, rescued from bondage or slavery from any person or thing. The prototype of this type of redemption is when God rescued the Israelites from the bondage of Pharaoh in Egypt.

Redemption always comes with the backdrop of helplessness. We see humans captured and held against forces they cannot overcome. Only by the involvement of a powerful third party can the captives be released from bondage and set free. The good news is that God is more powerful than anything, including your sinful desires. If you turn from sin and trust in Jesus, God the Holy Spirit will indwell you. As a result, you will receive a new power by which to say no to your sinful desires and yes to the holy desires of God.

God is willing and ready to redeem us from the things in our lives that we are enslaved to. It doesn't matter if it's something small or big, our redeemer is ready to set us free.

Let's Fight

2010-07-26T09:43:00.000-07:00

I LOVE RIC (WOOOOO) FLAIR!!

Some of you may know that I used to be (still am a little) a HUGE professional wrestling fan. In my opinion and widely agreed upon by other professional wrestlers, Ric Flair is the greatest wrestler of all time. I believe the reason he is so loved is because he was not only the best good guy ever, he was also the best bad guy ever. In professional wrestling the bad guys goal is to make the audience hate at them. There has never been another wrestler that is more hated than Ric Flair. He would talk about your momma, girlfriend, wife, and space mountain all in the same sentence. By the end of his statement you would be ready to climb over the guard rail and whip his tail. No matter how many people hated him when it was time for him to turn into a good, the same people that hated him felt sorry for him because he was cheated in some way. I love Ric Flair.

I love the action of professional wrestling. There are always people jumping off the top rope, off of a cage, or hitting someone with a steel chair. I think I just like seeing people fight. I remember being in high school and seeing a couple of fights. The best one was between 2 girls and it took 4 teachers to break them to chics apart. I've never been in a fight myself. I've been close a few times playing basketball and either me acting like i shouldnt be or someone else acting up and neither one of us knowing when to stop. I believe that if i was ever was in a fight i would win because of all the training I've got from Ric Flair over the years.

Ive been reading a book titled Death By Love (they have a Facebook page, check it out.) In the first chapter it talks about a young lady that was deep into sexual sin with multiple partners. The young lady states in the book that she wanted her dad to catch her having sex with a boy so that he would stop them and she wouldnt have to do it any more. She purposely had sex in their house while her dad was home so that she would get caught. Her dad never stepped in and further more he went on to make fun of her having so many boyfriends coming over to the house. This book is written from the Pastors viewpoint in his letters to her. In his letter to her he reminds her that even though her earthly father would never stick up and fight for her, her Heavenly Father has already fought the fight and won the fight so that she can have life to the fullest. Not only would her Heavenly Father fight for her but her church family and her husband (both who are christians and church attenders now) and he as her Pastor would fight for her.

I wonder how many people that have came through my path that needed someone to fight for them and i didnt. Either because i was to scared or didnt notice they needed someone to fight for them. My prayer is that I will live my life with God's eyes and heart, so that when my friends, family, or church family needs someone to stand up for them and fight for them because no one else will, I WILL FIGHT FOR THEM. I will not back down because YOU are to important to me and to God for me to step aside and let you keep walking.

Please forgive me if you have been in my life and i didnt fight for you. I make a commitment to you and to God that you are not to unimportant to me and to God for me to go to bat and to fight for you.

stay HUMBLED

stay FOCUSED

love GOD

love PEOPLE

Foster St. Wesleyan Church YOUTH

2010-07-19T20:49:00.000-07:00

It is 12:06 am on Tuesday July 20th. I am very excited about the next month. Recently, Callie and I took a job at Foster St. Wesleyan Church in Asheboro NC. In less than 1 month we will have our kick off youth night on Sunday Aug. 15th. We have been planning and brainstorming ideas for different things to do with the teens at FSC. Both of us are about to bust with excitement about what God has in store for the teens in Asheboro. Between myself and other leaders at the church we have come up with different ways that we can serve the schools and the community to express to the community our love for them.

In the past couple of months we have been working on video packages, games, music ideas, youth group name, room designs, ministry opportunities, and everything else that you can think of. Some of you that read this I will be approaching to ask for you to partner with us in different activities. Callie and I both feel so blessed to be apart of a church family that loves Jesus and loves other people. Again, we are both very excited about moving ahead to see what God has in store for FSC in the next phase of our youth ministry.

For those of you that read this blog, I ask that you to will partner with myself, Callie, and the other leaders at FSC, and join us as we pray for the teens in the community and for Gods direction and anointing. Please over the next couple of weeks and months remember us in your prayers and lets team up together and do some amazing things for God's kingdom in Asheboro.

stay HUMBLED

stay FOCUSED

love GOD

love PEOPLE

a funeral vs. a celebration

2010-05-14T08:28:00.000-07:00

On thursday i attended a funeral at our church in jamestown. a lady in the church had bone cancer and passed away monday. a lot of people don't like going to funerals. I, however, am not one of these people. I sometimes wonder what my funeral will be like. Will there be a lot of people? Will be people be crying? Will someone come that I havent seen in years? All those things I have thought about concerning my funeral. That is until yesterday. The Pastor that did the funeral made a statement, "Funeral's are for people that don't know Jesus. Celebrations are for people who die in Christ." There have never been more true words spoken. The "funeral" i went to yesterday quickly turned into a CELEBRATION b/c of the lady's life. She died in Christ and no one there could claim anything different.

Over 10 years ago i made a commitment to Jesus to change and save my life. At the same time I made a commitment not to have a funeral but to have a celebration. There is nothing sad about someone passing away that is a Christian. There is nothing sad about someone passing away that is now alive in Christ.

Paul questions in Philippians whether he wants to say alive or die and be with God. He concluded that it's better for the people around him that he's alive until his work is done. If we can live our lives with a purpose and that kind of mindset that it's more important for the people around us that we live than die, that will not only change our life but the people's lives around us. The challenge for all of us is to live a life that reflects Jesus so that it impacts and influences people around us.

I cant wait for people to celebrate my life when i'm gone. But until then my life will be lived with purpose to impact the people around me for Jesus Christ. Then and only then will people celebrate my life, like we did yesterday.

stay HUMBLED

stay FOCUSED

love GOD

love PEOPLE

MADE TO LAST

2010-04-27T09:08:00.000-07:00

So the past 2 weeks with our youth group we have been talking about how we can live forever. God created us to last forever. We have to exp. date, there is no time when our soul comes to an end. Simply put we are created to LAST FOREVER. For anyone that has been in the church for any amount of time you know that you can only live forever with Jesus Christ. It is just a awesome thought to know that no matter what the enemy throws at you, nothing can harm you b/c of Jesus.

One main concept that we have to understand (to the best of our ability) to live forever is that of God's Grace. It's easy for someone to say that God's grace is so amazing, but I believe it goes much deeper than that. To often I (i'm sure much like you) take advantage of God's grace. We feel entitled to the things that we have, we feel that we deserve the things that we have. Every blessing that I have in my life (life, health, family, friends, food, house, etc...) is all b/c of God's grace. I am a sinful person and born into a sinful world, disobedient and disconnected from God. It's only b/c of God's grace that He blessed me and you with the blessings that He has.

Be thankful today and don't take it for granted. God's grace goes far beyond anything that we can image. Live today accepting and receiving God's grace on your life. The ultimate example of God's grace is Jesus Christ. God sent His Son Jesus to live die and live again all while we were still sinners. That is grace...Be thankful...Accept it

"The word GRACE emphasizes at one and the same time the helpless poverty of man and the limitless kindness of God" -William Barclay

stay HUMBLED

stay FOCUSED

love GOD

love PEOPLE

Somethings Rub Me The Wrong Way

2010-02-17T20:18:00.000-08:00

As a Youth Pastor i face many challenges during the average week. The challenges could be a number of different things: lack of adult help, lack of rescources, lack of leadership, etc... I can think back and remember one wed. night when we had about 50 teens in our youth ministry and me plus 1 other adult. you talk about having a wild night and not enough eyes to watch every thing thats going on.

Out of all the things that could possibably get me down, i think the biggest would be the lack of commitment that some teens have. No doubt there are some teens in every youth group that you would almost pay them a salary to come to your youth night. They are always paying attention, always the first one to step up and lead something in the ministry, and always someone you can depend to be the "leader" of the group. However, I also believe that there are some teens in every youth ministry that almost seem like they are there to bring down everybody in the group including the Y.P. I believe that i have been in youth ministry leadership long enough that i know how to handle someone being disruptive or loud or being a distraction.

However, what i can not handle or control is what the teens do when they leave our youth group meeting. There is nothing worse for me than to see a student being so involved in every aspect of a youth night, then as soon as they get home they completely forget everything that was said and done 25 min. ago at church. I came home after a youth night and saw 2 boys that were both at our church 1 hour ago, were already on facebook calling each other and other people names that have no reason to be coming out of the mouth of a christain.

There is nothing that rubs me worse or takes all the air out of me than to see that. Maybe i need to be more clear about what it is that, not only me but God, expects from them as Jesus followers. I am a huge believer in loving the unloved and loving the "least of theses", but goodnight i get so worked up when i see a lack of commitment like this.

I would love to know your thoughts or suggestions.

stay HUMBLED
stay FOCUSED
love GOD
love PEOPLE

ANYONE THIRSTY?

2010-01-28T12:08:00.000-08:00

I absolutely love SUNKIST drinks. Without a doubt that is the best drink ever created. It's just sweet enough, tangy enough, and orange enough to be the best ever. There was a time when I would easily drink 1-2 20 oz. bottles of Sunkist every single day. I LOVE IT!!! However, recently due to some injuries that I have had, I have not been able to do anything active (run, play basketball, work out, etc...). So before I get my body to a place where I will be able to sign up to be on The Biggest Loser tv show, I have decided to cut back 95% of all soft drinks. Including Sunkist. This past Tuesday night I fell off the wagon. I went over to one of my boys house to watch the UNC vs NCSU bball game. One the way there I stopped at the store and bought a Sunkist to enjoy during the game. It's almost like once I tasted it once, years ago, i cant stop drinking it.

A lot of people talk about the famous story in the Bible when Jesus ministers to the "woman and the well". In this story Jesus offers her "living water" so that she will "never thirst again". I believe that Jesus offered her, what would have the same effect on me, Sunkist. It's not that Jesus would give her water 1 time and then she would never drink anymore.

I believe the mistake that we make is think that God will only give us water once and it's supposed to last a lifetime. God didnt give us water that will last a lifetime (Leonard Sweet). He gives us water that will make us want to drink more and more and more and more. Everytime we search for more of the living water that God gives us, He will gladly fill up our jars once more.
TASTE AND SEE THAT THE LORD IS GOOD

stay HUMBLED
stay FOCUSED
love PEOPLE
love GOD

UPDATES

2010-01-05T13:16:00.000-08:00

Today is tuesday jan. 5th...therefore last night was monday jan. 4th and carolina lost to the college of charleston...enough said im not happy.

Some of you guys may know that back in april i hurt my back playing basketball. i have a compressed or bulging disk in my back. since april i have woken up and lived life everyday in pain. for anyone that has ever had back pain before you know that it effects every part of your life. you cant sit, lay, stand, or move without your back hurting. my gorgeous wife has been picking up a huge load of the slack that i physically cant do....until the day after christmas. she was coming down the steps and was on the 3rd one from the bottom, she slipped and now has a bruised tailbone. now everytime something falls on the floor i am the one that has to suck it up and bend over and pick it up. luckily my back is a little better so we are able to do our daily activities.

Heres my point...it doesnt matter whose hurt worse, we will always be there for each other. i have her back and i know she has mine. much like God has our back. no matter what we're going through or where we're at in life God will have our back. some how some way He will help us to bend over and pick things up when they fall to the ground

stay HUMBLED
stay FOCUSED
love GOD
love PEOPLE

Missed Shots

2009-10-29T12:42:00.000-07:00

I LOVE BASKETBALL SEASON!!!! This past tuesday and wed. were 2 of the best days of the year because of basketball season starting. Granted, the NBA isnt the same without michael jordan playing. However, i do believe that the NBA has more than enough talent to keep me interested in watching the games. Sometimes i watch NBA games and i am blown away at how professional basketball players (getting paid millions and millions of dollars) miss easy shots. Over the years ive seen missed lay ups, missed dunks, missed free throws, etc... It seems to me that someone that is considered to be one of the best ball players in the world can miss shots. Someone that has practiced countless numbers of hours shooting 1000's of shots a day, can miss those same easy shots in a game.

Much like ME. I have been a Christian for almost 10 years, i have led small groups, prayer groups, youth ministries, i read my bible and pray, ive challenged and encouraged teens and adults to not miss chances to share God with other people. But sitting here today i feel like a NBA player that has practice for a life time and still miss shots in a game.

Callie and i were at walmart last weekend. when we got out of the car and started walking towards the doors a teenage boy stopped us and asked us if we would like to buy some cady to raise money for his youth group. the candy was a $1 so we bought 2 pieces (i got a kit kat and callie got reeces cups i think). I asked him what church this was for and he said a Baptist church in kernersville (this was the walmart in kannap). I found it strange that a church in kernersville would be doing a fundraiser in kannap. I then told him that i used to live in High Point which isnt far from kernersville. I asked him what high school he went to and after a long hesitation he said Lexington High School. That too struck me as odd that someone would live in lexington go to church in kernersville and come to kannap to do a fundraiser.
So i gave him 2 dollars for the candy and callie and i went on into walmart. it wasnt long after leaving that boy callie said she thought there was something more going on with that boy (homeless, hungry, lonely, etc...) we spent maybe 30-45 min. in walmart and the whole time we were both thinking and talking about that boy and maybe there was something else we could do for him. So when we were walking out of walmart we looked for him and he was no where to be found.

MISSED SHOTS

stay FOCUSED
stay HUMBLED
love JESUS
love PEOPLE

CNN and Latino's

2009-10-27T13:41:00.000-07:00

CNN is doing a huge profile of Latino's in America. I usually dont watch a ton of CNN however when i flipped by the channel i noticed that they were showing a church. Usually anytime i see a church on tv ill always stop and see what is being said about it. i love seeing how different people view the church and see how the church is portrayed to the world on tv. CNN was documenting a catholic ( i cant remember what city it was in) that was running a low attendance and they were close to having to close the doors. So the leadership of the catholic church decided to reach out to the Latino community. I am all for reaching out to people that arent like you, loving the people that are hard to love (people unlike yourself). The whole CNN story was about the division in this church between the white people and the latino people. They interviewed about 10 white memebers and 10 latino members and asked them the same questions. There was 1 lady in the "white group" that stood out to me. she seemed really passionate about having the 2 congregations united for 1 service and 1 God. however when asked if she had attempted to learn spanish, been to the latino neighborhoods, ministered to latino people, shared a meal with, or been to a latino church event, she strongly said no i dont think i should do any of that. Then she said these words, "how long do we have to go out of our way to meet their needs?" About 2 min. later this same lady started crying on camera b/c she wanted so bad for their church to be united.

If im being honest here, i believe that lady is whats wrong with the american church. there's no love, there's no acceptance, and no patience for people that are unlike you. If we all are really serious about being united for the cause of Christ it starts with loving Jesus and loving people JUST THE WAY THEY ARE, THE SAME JESUS LOVES US.

stay FOCUSED
stay HUMBLED
love JESUS
love PEOPLE

And 1 Street Balla's

2009-10-24T13:58:00.000-07:00

Are you a witness? Lebron James has used that tag line for years now. I must say that everytime i watch Lebron play basketball (minus last years playoffs) I have been a witness to something pretty good. I was just at an event where some And 1 Street Balla's were playing. I was assuming that I would go there and be a witness to some extremely athletic basketball players. However i must say that the team that we had to play against the "balla's" more than held our own against the other team. I came away a little dissapointed by the game. The And 1 team did come away with a victory in the end, i guess i was just expecting something a little more.

On another note I am really excited about going to church in the morning. I dont know why this sunday seems any different than any other, but I cant wait until tomorrow morning.

Stay humbled
Stay focused
Love Jesus
Love people

guess whos back?

2009-10-22T21:50:00.000-07:00

Its been awhile since I wrote one of these, however I decided tonight would be a good night to get started again. Someone told me years ago that you never stop learning. My hope is that since starting a new part of my life with Callie that I will learn and grow even more than the past 27 years of my life. In the next couple weeks and monthes I hope to communicate and grow with everyone as the Lord works through Callie and I.
And trust me when I tell you we are open for His work.

Greatness

2008-06-21T00:28:00.000-07:00

I dont think there's even a question about Michael Jordan being the greatest basketball player of all time. With the NBA Finals ending last week, I once again was reminded of this truth. Everytime Kobe Bryant made a tough shot all I heard was "that reminds me of MJ". And if I hear one more person say that Lebron James is better than Michael Jordan, I might be tempted to enforce some physical harm on that person. With that said, greatness is a strange thing. In my opinion it's easy to define greatness in the world. Michael Jordan (Championships, MVP's, and Scoring Titles), Tom Hanks (Oscar Winner and his movies have made MILLIONS), Lynard Skynard (Millions of records sold, Millions of ticket sales for their tours all over the world, and of course FREE BIRD), Ric Flair (16 Time World Champion WOOOOOOO).

Jeremy Kingsly in "Be Last" points out that in the Christian world greatness is defined a little different. If Jesus is supposed to be the GREATEST Christian ever, then there must be something we can see in His life that is great.

There is absolutely nothing great about Jesus' birth. He couldnt even make it into the hotel b/c there wasnt enough room. So He was born outside in a dirty manger. There were no fireworks, no big announcement, and no big celebration. I would think that God would want to make a big announcement that His son had came to the earth. Maybe a little earthquake, darkness for a couple of days, or even a big trumpet sound. But there was none of that.

One day Jesus had a great teaching oppertunity that He took advantage of. His boys were arguing about who would be the greatest then Jesus dropped a bombshell, "The first will be last and the last will be first."

WOW, Jesus was showing us greatness His entire life. Everything that Jesus did while He was on earth was for us. He was putting us first and all the time BECOMING GREAT.