There is an old saying "If you fail to plan, you plan to fail." We have all experienced this in some part of our lives. In my new role as Creative Pastor at The Creek I am responsible for planning out the Sunday morning experience, so I take this old saying seriously. Pastors need to realize that they may only have one chance to connect with a visitor. A poorly planned service could dramatically effect that chance. With almost 20 years of ministry experience I totally know that things sometimes will go wrong, but usually when there is no real plan the effects are far worse than of there was one.

However, if we would spend time making sure that everything on Sundays tied together, then we could possibly relieve some of the stress that occurs when things go wrong. Somehow in ministry we have dwveloped this attitude that it's all good, we can just get by. What if thatcwas the attitude God had when he created the universe? What about you? Don't you think he had a plan in place for you or did he just throw you together? He reminded us in Jeremiah that He knows the plans he has for us. Shouldn't we love him enough to do our part to plan our service as leaders for Him? Imagine what ideas, what resources, what life change you could do as a church leader if you only planned.

AS believers God has called us to live such an amazing life. We are promised that when we put our faith in Christ, God sends the Holy Spirit to us to guide and direct us. It helps us to live the life that we are called to live. So often many times we say that we can't help but allow sin in our lives. We say that we can't be perfect. However, God calls us to be holy and to live a life that honors God. We are called to follow Jesus' example. We are free from the bondage of sin.

Galatians 5:1 "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery." should remind us that we are no longer in bondage to the sin that entangles us, but we are free.

What is it in your life that is keeping you bondage? What do you need to change in your life to understand that you can live a holy life. One that is like Jesus. Sure Jesus is the only person that has ever lived a sinless life, but we are new creations. The old is gone, and the new is come (1 Corinthians 5:17). Our new nature can allow us the ability to live the life God has called us to live.

How have you been stretched lately? This may seem like a weird question, but what in your life is God trying to teach you. For me, it's been totally about finding a job. I accepted the call to leave the security of my home and dear friends to move hours away to a place where I only knew a handful of people to help plant a church. Wow! Talk about crazy! Yet, there was a certain peace about moving. Well that was over 8 months ago, and yet I am still unable to find a job. Unfortunately, the church I am planting isn''t able to pay a salary. So, We have been living by faith and trusting God over the last few months.

God has used this experience to teach me that no matter what I think I need, He is able to provide for me. He is stretching me like never before. I have totally been moved from my comfort zone and placed in a situation where I can minister and work to plant a church a church, yet totally have no idea what tomorrow holds for us. God has been showing me in Scripture that He is in control and that He will provide for me. I am excited to see what is on the other side of this challenge. I know that when I do find a job, I will have an AMAZING story of God's love and provision. As a matter of fact, I am working on a sermon series at The Creek entitled "Stories" based on my journey. I can't wait to see what God will do through it.

Sometimes as believers I believe we over complicate how we should live. We have made all these rules and regulations that we have to do this, can't do that. We have made our lives into more of a checklist than a real relationship. Sure, we hide behind the premise that we are "being spiritual" if we speak and do the "spiritual" things, but honestly living life like that leaves us empty and hollow on the inside. It creates a believer that is shallow and superficial. I believe what so many Christians have become, is nothing like what Go wants us to be. He is all about deep, rich, intimate relationships not a checklist.

For me, one of the greatest spiritual giants was my mother because, she never wavered in her faith. She not only knew how much she loved God and how much He loved her, but she knew that the key to her relationship with Him was her faith. Look at what Ephesians 3:17-19 says:

17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith--that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

The key to being filled with the fullness of God for a Christian isn't the list of to do's or "looking spiritual," but it is simply putting our faith in God. 

If we allow God to work in our life by faith, that means putting our trust in Him not ourselves to do the things He says He will do, then we will begin to experience His love. Remember God is love. Once we truly experience God's love we fully understand who He is. We are not in bondage to a set of regulations, but engulfed in His love. I know that I want to experience His love like that, you?

I haven't posted anything on my Blog for several months now.  Four months to be exact, I have been doing a lot of soul searching during this time of transition in my life. I have had to reexamine priorities and learn to make tough decisions. I haven't always understood why God places things in our lives that we call obstacles, but I know that we all experience them. I am reading through Mark Batterson's book "In A Pit, With A Lion, On A Snowy Day" and ran across this quote. It leaped off the pages to me, so i wanted to share it long with a few thoughts:

To often our prayers revolve around asking God to reduce the odds in our lives. We want everything in our favor, but maybe God wants to stack the odds against us so we can experience a miracle of divine proportions. Maybe faith is trusting God no matter how impossible the odds are. Maybe our situations are opportunities to experience a new dimension of God's glory.

 I believe that we have created a culture in the church today in which we are looking for the easy way out. We want the easiest way to do everything. Unfortunately when we look for the easy way, we might be missing out on a valuable lesson from God. s I read this passage, it helped me reexamine my questioning of God about calling me to a new place to start a church, yet not opening the doors for a full-time or even part-time job. I t helped me to rethink my feelings of seeing my back account go from 5-digits, to 4-digits, to 3-digits and next month singe-digits.  If this entire move came easy would I have really missed out on a blessing from God?

I know that He has taught me more patience than I ever thought possible, better financial responsibility than I ever had. He has taught me to depend solely on Him for sustenance, not anything else. I know that God is about to do something incredible in my life. I am truly humbled and blessed to think that I am a part of it. He is continuing to move in The Creek with attendance nearly doubled what it was just 7-months ago. I can't wait, and even though I have to remind myself, I will one day be glad the odds were stacked against me, when I see His whole plan come together.

This past week our services at The Creek were amazing. I am so excited to be a part of what God is doing with the ministry here. As Jeff was speaking this past week and sharing a message on focus from the passage where Jesus calms the storm, God spoke into my heart. So many times in our lives as believers, we look for God to do amazing things in our lives. After all, we are His children and he should take care of us right? We deserve it, don't we? This seems to be the mentality of many of the believers I run across. Somehow the culture we live in has created the culture of 'me first and I deserve it" mentality. This has eroded over into our faith and belief in God as well unfortunately.

So often when we har the story of Jesus walking on water to the boat the disciples were in, and Peter walking out to meet him, we are in awe. We comment on how we wish we could do things like that or it stirs up some emotion in us that makes us imagine how amazing the feeling for them must have been. So God shared with me, "If you want to walk on water, you have to get out of the boat." In order to experience an amazing step of faith, you have to step out. We have all learned to be safe in our boats that we have.  For some the boat is a lifestyle that is controllable, for others it is your career, for others your finances, or anything ele that keep you secure.

Let's be honest, we all have boats in our lives. We all have developed a sense of things that keep us secure and we don't like to move away from them. Sure we would like to, but taking that first step is difficult, but you can never do it if you don't. In the Bibles account, Peter lost focus and sank, but  first he walked on water. HE WALKED ON WATER!!!! He got out of the boat. What is it that you want to experience from God, but are afraid of getting out of the boat? Sure. you may sink, but you may not. Isn't the risk worth it? Follow God's leading and take a step of faith, and get out of the boat. I did! I moved to Goose Creek to help plant a church. I have not been able to find a job, my wife's new job has here working twice as hard, yet we still got out of the boat. How about you?

Well it's been one year today that the senior pastor at First Calvary told me that the Personnel Committee felt that someone new needed to be hired to work with the youth since I had already been there seven years. It was a shocking time for me. I had never experienced such feelings of hurt from a body of Christians before. I had became a casualty of ministry. My life has changed dramatically since then. This even forced me to trust God more than ever. He proved His faithfulness to me by revealing to my wife and me that the committee wasn't against us, they were only following the lead of the senior pastor. I have to say, it was a huge growing step for me. I had to make a decision at that moment to not react or do anything that would hurt my personal relationship with God.

Honestly it was a struggle over the first few months to not share all that I really knew with friends and former church members that we were close with. The human side of me wanted to see him get what he deserved for ending my ministry there, but God continued to help me see that He was in control and reminded me that I am only accountable for my actions, not others. I have moved to a new area since then and taken on the role of a church planter. God has used me over the last year to do some incredible things that I wuld not have done otherwise.

My hope in sharing this is that I know there are many other pastors and staff members that have experienced hurt and pain from being asked to step down from you position because of peoples personal agendas. I want to share my story to encourage you that God will always be faithful to care for you. Don't feel guilty at the emotions of anger and hurt that you experience, they are natural and a part of the healing process. God has taken my hurt and anger over these last 12 months and turned it to pity for the type of leaders that can't "man-up" and nbe honest or that hide behind looking spiritual when God isn't a part of what they are doing. Please remember that God is love, and He would never cause or do any action that would hurt you. He loves you and wants to use you. For me, I believe with all my heart that God took His hand of protection off my ministry to allow the senior pastor to move me from my ministry. He then placed His hand back on me to move me to a new place where I cold bloom in ministry. God wants to do the same for you, if you will allow Him. You have to make the decision to not walk away. It's easy when your wounded to give up, but remember we are called to ministry by God, not man. It is in our soul, it is who we are.

If your in a bad spot in ministry keep your chin up, face forward and don't look back. Maybe God is taking His protection off you, so He can move you to a new place to serve Him. I can promise you that the journey will be rough, you'll question and feel frustrated. However, run the race with perseverance, for the prize lays ahead of you. If you have been wounded in ministry, I'd love to hear your story. Contact me so I can hear what God is doing in your life.

Here is a sneak peak at the first draft design of The Creek's new membership book. I'm excited that we wil provide a way for those that want to know more about The Creek before they become members.

As I continue my journey as a Church Planter, I have realized that it is an extremely slow process. Learning to do ministry without walls or structure is a difficult thing. God is taking time to teach me the importance of trusting Him for all that I have. Far to long a time, I became like so many believers, comfortable, in our faith. Sure I wasn't doing "bad" things, but I wasn't going deeper. I had grown complacent where I was in my life. I have learned that complacency in a believers life is the same as spiritually ineffective. I had became like the ones around me. I wasn't moving on to the hard places in my relationship with God. I was a part of a leadership team that was satisfied with looking good instead of being honest and moving into the tough places, so God could do amazing things.

I have learned over this past year that God wants to do AMAZING things in my ministry. He is fully able to give me the desires of my heart (Ps 37:1-7). I want my desires to see my community be reached for Christ. I want to see relationships healed, hearts mended, lives transformed. I want The Creek to be a catalyst for change in our city. I want to see thousands worshiping and praising Jesus, not because I want to be at the biggest church, but because there are thousands of people in our area that need Christ. I struggle daily with allowing myself to get comfortable in my place, like many other believers so as well. I pray that I can be used by God as a leader to help my generation to do more than any other generation for Christ. What do you want to see God doing? What steps are you making to not become comfortable in your spiritual journey?

It’s the time of year when we begin to start the crazy dash to get ready for the holidays. Soon we will be racing from one place to the next, whether it is to make a party, to complete our shopping list, or a million other things we seem to take on during the next several weeks. Often when we begin filling our days and hours with extra stuff, we can begin to lose sight of what we are really trying to accomplish.