Big Meeting Tonight

Tonight is my introduction meeting with the members of Hope Center Fellowship. I am so excited about this! I will miss being with my Sumner Life family, but I know they will have a great night with Kim Driver teaching. When I think about tonight's meeting, I am not really nervous. I am confident in God's vision He has shared with me, and to share that with a new group of people is quite an honor. There is genuine excitement and enthusiasm right now. This is such a special time.

The Merge

It has been an exciting few weeks as the leadership team and I have been working on a merger with The Hope Center Fellowship in Hendersonville. The Hope Center Fellowship is a wonderful church that has been without a pastor for 14 months. In this proposed merge, I would be the lead pastor of the combined congregations. We would establish a new name for the merged churches to present a fresh face to the community. There are many reasons to merge, but here are some things that come to the forefront of my mind:
1. It demonstrates unity to the community. People are tired of churches splitting. It would be great to see two churches come together.
2. This move would allow both churches to be in a stronger position to reach the dream God has given them to be a church of influence.
3. This makes the churches stronger financially.
4. It enlarges the family.
With any merger there are challenges, but I desire for the people of both of these congregations to enjoy the miracle of this new opportunity. There are some rare times in life that life we are part of moments that are bigger than life and unforgettable. I hope people recognize this moment as such an opportunity. I pray that the song recorded in Psalm 126 can echo the experience of this new beginning:

1 When the LORD brought back the captives to Zion,
we were like men who dreamed.
2 Our mouths were filled with laughter,
our tongues with songs of joy.
Then it was said among the nations,
"The LORD has done great things for them."
3 The LORD has done great things for us,
and we are filled with joy.

Welcome to 2008. We need a new year, but God doesn’t. Every year we look at a new calendar, and let the new year define our life, and create time boundaries. It’s so good to know that God isn’t limited by certain years; He is always doing a new and fresh work – daily.

Speaking of Jerusalem, Zephaniah described God within that city as:

The LORD within her is righteous; he does no wrong. Morning by morning he dispenses his justice, and every new day he does not fail. – Zephaniah 3:5 (NIV)

Christmas Review

It was a great Christmas! Our Christmas Eve service was successful, and my family had our traditional Mexican food afterwards (a Texas thing!). Christmas morning was fun because we had five children under age 7 in our house. We had a Christmas Dinner with 16 people, and it was a great time of fellowship and laughter. One of the highlight of this Christmas was the opportunity I had to preach at the Gallatin Outreach on the 20th. I am amazed each month at the poverty that is evident at these outreaches. I was able to share Christ with these beautiful people, and several responded to the invitation. What a privilege - nothing was a significant as this night during my Christmas. Now will be several days of reflection and vision casting for 2008.

Good News about Missions

This week we received some great news from our missionaries Phil and Katja Zarns. After months of raising money, Phil and Katja have raised all their monthly support. They are on their way to Stockholm, Sweden to start a ministry called “Stockholm Life.” Sumner Life sends this couple $200 a month on a continual basis. In addition to this, Sumner Life was also able to send them at $200 Christmas gift for their enjoyment this Christmas.

We are so proud of what Phil and Katja are going to do in Sweden. Check out their ministry at http://www.zarns.com/. Keep this family in your prayers.

Rudy

On November 11 I was in Manhattan. Standing on 5th Avenue, Rudy Guliani walked by me. He was all by himself - no wife, no aides, no security. He went into a tie store. He came out and took a picture with me, Peg Blair and Melony Burgess. It happened so fast. To say it was a cool moment is an understatement. This was huge for me, because I get excited when I take pictures with local politicians - the type that are so local, they give out their cell phone numbers. This was a whole new level - a thrill for me and my friends. Rudy was a very nice man.

Break My Heart For What Breaks Yours

A song that has meant a lot to our church this year is a song titled Hosanna by Brook Fraser. One of the lines in that song always grips me.

Heal my heart and make it clean

Open up my eyes to the things unseen

Show me how to love like you have loved me

Break my heart for what breaks yours

Everything I am for your kingdom's cause

As I walk from earth into eternity

The phrase “Break my heart for what breaks yours” is a bold prayer and declaration. I sing this line with energy because I want this to be true. But, I am not so naïve to believe I understand what this prayer means.

Here is what I understand so far. The things that break God’s heart are the things most people have no interest in. God’s heart is breaking for injustices. His heart breaks over the greed of the nations. His heart is breaking over the systems of power that keep people in oppression. His heart is breaking over genocide. God’s heart is breaking over the condition of His church. God’s heart is breaking over the weakness of His people.

God’s heart is breaking over things we aren’t concerned with. God’s heart is breaking over things we won’t honestly admit. So, I keep sing that line with hopes that I have the capacity in my heart to live out the reality of this prayer.