Saturday Night Thoughts . . .

Thoughts before I go to bed . . .
- I am thrilled to see my mother-in-law (no sarcasm).   Peggy is a great mother-in-law and friend.   She is in town until Monday.
- Hurricane Gustav is hard to believe.   I feel horrible for all the destruction this hurricane is causing in The Carribbean, and will potentially cause in our country.   There is this part of me amazed at the fury and magnitude of a hurricane, and I feel a little guilty with that fascination.
- Beth, my sister Shelby, Margie Huff and other friends in the "soccer mom" category were thrilled with Sarah Palin as a vice-president nomination.  The circle of women in my life have never been so excited about a political news item.   Brilliant move and timing by John McCain.
- The city of Hendersonville is really excited about MiMi's Cafe.
- In case you ever need a quick Saturday night dinner, the Cracker Barrell in Whitehouse was almost empty tonight.  We met Rich and Jessica there (Beth's brother and wife).

- I think Tailgate Sunday will be a nice change of pace tommorrow.   We are setting up for it at 6:30 a.m. tommorrow.

- Brent and Kirsten Batson - my good friends from Austin - are somewhere in Nashville tonight. They may be in church tommorrow, but they will probably be on their way to Gatlinburg.  Brent will be preaching this Wednesday night.
- Two of my friends from HS are getting married this weekend (not to each other) . . . Both are in their early 30's, both on first marriages.  People really are getting married later in life these days.

Take the Next Step

As I pursue things God has put on my heart, I am discovering the power of the "next step."  Whenever you chase something big, there is a little voice that tells you to stop or give up because the dream seems too hard or so far away.  At other times, we might think someone else has done what we want to accomplish or could do it better.   Taking the next step can sometime seem futile and undproductive.   Yet, when we ignore that voice and take that next step, God often has two or three steps immediately ready for us.   Even if you don't feel like it, take the next step.

Quote #5

"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams." - -Eleanor Roosevelt

A Good Tired / The NET

Oh man, I am tired.   But in a good way!   There is a certain type of tired that feels good - Like:
- The "tired" after a long jog
- The "tired" after winning a game
- The "tired" after finishing an academic test or project you know you aced
- The "tired" after worshipping God with all your heart
It feels great to feel "spent" for the work of God.    I am amazed at how hard the staff at Indian Lake is working right now.   I know God is going to bless this effort, and we are about to see some really great fruit. 

Quote #4
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit."   Aristotle

Today, we hosted the Hendersonville Youth Pastor's Network (a.k.a "The Net") at the church for their monthly lunch.   It was good fellowship.   Jonathan did a great job leading some worship, and David did a fantastic job on the devotion.    I felt like our church was represented well by the entire time.

Newcomers / Stocker / College Football

Tuesday night we had a great representation at our Newcomers Dinner.  It was great to meet new people, and to see how a diverse group of people are interested in The Church at Indian Lake.  Steve and Janeen Kohler were great host.

I really enjoyed David Stocker's preaching tonight.   This guy was full of passion and was an excellent communicator.  He is the first of several "home-grown" talents we are going to have in the next few weeks.  I really like having different speakers on Wednesday nights for a few reason:
1. It gives people an opportunity to use their gifts. 
2. It frees me up for more time with staff, church members and creative thinking when I don't have a Wdnesday night message to prepare.  People or sermon prep?  When it comes to Wednesday nights, I choose people
3. It provides different voices to the church.
4. People don't get tired of me.   Seriously, my voice doesn't get too "familiar."  No one is so good of a speaker that people can hear them 2 to 3 times a week without listening fatigue.


Tomorrow night is an important night for me - the college football season starts.   I know that is a little silly, but I love college football.  I am looking for the first upset of the year to be NC State over South Carolina on Thursday.   Though I hate to admit this, I think Miami (Ohio) will beat Vanderbilt.

Speaking of football, Tailgate Sunday will be really great.   David and I have a couple of sideline passes to film clips at Thursday's Hendersonville-Beech game.   It should be fun to use the new camera on some gridiron clips.

The Making of A Great Church Outside of Sunday Morning

When I think about Sunday, I feel great about The Church at Indian Lake.   Beyond the service (which was a good one), we had positive things happen beyond the hour and thirty minutes.

- Our men's Bible Study before church has grown.
- We have a great sign up for our Newcomers Dinner on Tuesday . . . our best group yet!
- The Young Adult lunch was well attended and a positive experience . . . the group is really growing in camaraderie.
- Kenny Powell and Chris Taylor took a small group of boys (including my son Luke) to Circus World as a reward for their Scripture memorization over the summer.  Kenny and Chris are great leaders!  Luke had the time of his life!
 - Both of our 242 Hendersonville Groups were packed . . . we had lots of young families involved (thank you church for paying for childcare).
- We are starting the 4.6 Experience for 4th - 6th graders on September 7  . . . this is our most crucial age of discipleship.  I am pumped about this!

God is building a great church, and the Sunday service is just one aspect of it.   The most effective ministry usually happens outside the Sunday morning service.

Week in Review / Modern Gadgets

I was on a roll in my blog, but this week was wild and I lost steam. Here is a quick breakdown of my week:
Tuesday - Leadership Board meeting . . . the best one we ever had. We were able to dream about the future. Everyone appeared to leave energized. Plus, we got to eat a meal cooked by Beth Barnett and Judy Terry - which is always good.
Wednesday - Loved our communion & prayer time during the mid-week service . . . so nice!
Thursday - Launched our 50+ ministry. Great turnout, great home cooking, and even better fellowship. I think this ministry will be an important part of our future. Any name suggestions?
Friday - During parent's night out, we had an impromptu dinner with Clay and Tawana Baggat (www.livingtogo.org). It was the first time Beth and Tawana have hung out extensively, and they connected as well as Clay and I do.

After resisting quite a while, I am on Facebook. I even started "status updates." If you have or want to join the social networking revolution, look me up.

The latest iphone addict
I also reluctantly got an iphone this week. I must admit, I am in love (i know that is lame!). This really will be a revolutionary device.



Quote #3
""Every man is entitled to be valued by his best moment" - Ralph Waldo Emerson

A Day Off with "True North"

I had a good day off on Monday. 

I read about half of a book called True North: Discover Your Authentic Leadership by Bill George.  So far, this is the best leadership book I have read in years.   Bll George teaches at Harvard Business School, and he has lead billion dollar companies.   I look forward to finishing it this week.  I am getting a ton out of this writing . . . perhaps I'll summarize some things in future blogs.

Tuesday has become my big meeting day.   I have my weekly Staff Meeting and the monthly Leadership Board Meeting on this Tuesday.  A long day, but I am looking forward to it.