Sunday, July 10, 2011

Confidence...in the One who Begins and Finishes (Atlantis' Final Ride)


When I watch the Space Shuttle launch, I think of the confidence those Astronauts have to get on the top of this enormous rocket.   It has blown up before, and burnt up on re-entry.  Same as our lives have blown up or burnt up, dead from sin without Jesus.  

But the brave Astronauts are confident the Shuttle Atlantis will make it back to Earth safely.  

And, because Jesus Is Alive, we can be confident that God will finish what He started IN YOU!

We taught from Philippians 1:1-9 at our Worship Gathering this morning.  We will post the message on our YouTube page by tomorrow.  

Monday, July 4, 2011

Let Freedom Ring



I love America.

My trip to Honduras this week was fantastic, and I'll be sharing more of that story with you in the next couple of days, so check back - it will be worth it.

I hope the people of other countries love their homes, too.  

I was born here, and so appreciate all the great things about America, most particularly the freedoms that we have.   

Freedom, you see, isn't free.  It costs blood and treasure.  The flag pictured above is maybe my favorite picture I've ever taken.  It's from the Avenue of Flags display at the Orange Grove Memorial Cemetery in Lake Charles (on Memorial and Veteran's Days).  

One of the things I love about the picture is how the Sun shins through the flag, illuminating the color and adding vibrancy.  

It reminds me that my freedom, my real, enduring freedom, comes when the Son of God, Jesus, shines in my heart, breaking me free from every form of bondage.

That's why we are planting a church in theLC, to Let Freedom Ring here!  

I am proud to live in America, and to be an American.  Even more, I belong to Jesus!  Here is how the Apostle Paul says this in the Bible, his letter to the church in Philippi:

But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives.
Philippians 3:20

Let Freedom Ring!  

Happy Birthday, America

Sunday, July 3, 2011

from Honduras to Suffolk Manor

This week I went to Honduras.  My friend, Norman Thomas, Pastor of New Life Church International, here in Lake Charles, invited me to join him on a trip there.

I'm so glad.

Today at our Worship Gathering I'll share what God taught me on the trip.

And I'll post a couple entries on this blog and include some videos this week.

Last night, we hosted a party for the residents at Suffolk Manor Apartments on Lake St, here in Lake Charles.  The owners of the complex welcomed us as a church getting to know the people who live there, and we are excited to do just that.

These two are connected by the reality that the Apostle Paul wrote about in his letter to the church at a city called Colossia.

"This same Good News that came to you is going out all over the world. It is bearing fruit everywhere by changing lives, just as it changed your lives from the day you first heard and understood the truth about God’s wonderful grace." Colossians 1:6

All over the world, from the mountains of Honduras, among the Lenka people, who are less than 1% Christian (at least they were before the churches I met started a couple of years ago!) to the apartment complexes and homes right here in theLC.

from the city church in Lake Charles, Louisiana (LA) to new churches in Honduras, #theCityWillBeDifferent!