It is so hard to get any work done these days. It seems all I want to do is sit and look at the pictures of the wonderful little angles that my wife has carried the last nine months. I realize that as I stare at the two amazing gifts God has given us that I am even more blessed because God has also allowed me to be married to the greatest wife ever! Yea, I may be bragging but this is my blog so I guess I can brag if I want to. Anyway, I am not sure if it is bragging if I am simply stating the obvious truth! I can honestly say that I am truly blown away by the whole birth and pregnancy experience and am simply amazed at how awesome our God is. God prepared the womans body for this miracle and then the body just begin the process of readjusting to a new normal. AMAZING!
So let me end by sharing this picture and thanking God for His tremendous BLESSINGS! Have a blessed day and remember to thank God for all He is doing!
The Lord my God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality and accepts no bribes. He executes justice for the fatherless and the widow and loves the alien, giving him food and clothing. (Deuteronomy 10:17–18)
My soul magnifies the Lord
And my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
For the Mighty One has done great things for me,
And holy is His name.
His mercy is on those who fear Him,
From generation to generation. (Luke 1:46–47, 49–50)
Pause to express your thoughts of praise and worship.
Confession
God’s eyes are on the ways of a man,
And He sees all his steps.
There is no darkness or deep shadow
Where the workers of iniquity can hide.
He does not need to examine a man further,
That he should go before God in judgment. (Job 34:21–23)
Ask the Spirit to search your heart and reveal any areas of unconfessed sin. Acknowledge these to the Lord and thank Him for His forgiveness.
Renewal
May I flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a man commits are outside his body, but the immoral person sins against his own body. (1 Corinthians 6:18)
May I not set my heart on evil things, or be an idolater, or commit sexual immorality. (1 Corinthians 10:6–8)
Pause to add your own prayers for personal renewal.
Petition
Let me hear Your unfailing love in the morning,
For I have put my trust in You.
Show me the way I should walk,
For to You I lift up my soul. (Psalm 143:8)
Faithfulness as a Steward
Of time
Of talents
Of treasure
Of truth
Of relationships
My activities for this day
Special concerns
Intercession
May I honor all people, love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, and honor the king. (1 Peter 2:17)
Government
Spiritual revival
Local government
State government
National government
Current events and concerns
Affirmation
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16–17)
We have the prophetic word made more certain, to which I will do well to pay attention, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in my heart. (2 Peter 1:19)
Pause to reflect upon these biblical affirmations.
Thanksgiving
The Lord my God is the faithful God, who keeps His covenant and His lovingkindness to a thousand generations of those who love Him and keep His commands. (Deuteronomy 7:9)
I will tell of the lovingkindnesses of the Lord,
The praises of the Lord,
According to all the Lord has done for us,
And the great goodness toward the house of Israel,
Which He has bestowed on them according to His mercies,
And according to the multitude of His lovingkindnesses. (Isaiah 63:7)
Pause to offer your own expressions of thanksgiving.
Closing Prayer
I know that my Redeemer lives
And that in the end He will stand upon the earth.
And after my skin has been destroyed,
Yet in my flesh I will see God;
Whom I myself will see
And behold with my own eyes and not another.
How my heart yearns within me! (Job 19:25–27)
God is exalted beyond our understanding;
The number of His years is unsearchable. (Job 36:26)
Boa, K. (1997, c1993). Handbook to prayer : Praying scripture back to God. Atlanta: Trinity House.
The world is firmly established, it will not be moved. (1 Chronicles 16:25–30)
You are the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac. (Genesis 31:42)
Pause to express your thoughts of praise and worship.
Confession
Save me from bloodguilt, O God,
The God of my salvation,
And my tongue will sing aloud of Your righteousness.
O Lord, open my lips,
And my mouth will declare Your praise.
For You do not desire sacrifice, or I would bring it;
You do not delight in burnt offering.
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;
A broken and contrite heart,
O God, You will not despise. (Psalm 51:14–17)
Ask the Spirit to search your heart and reveal any areas of unconfessed sin. Acknowledge these to the Lord and thank Him for His forgiveness.
Renewal
May I remove the places of idolatry from my life, and like Asa, let my heart be fully committed to God all my days. (2 Chronicles 15:17)
May I trust in the Lord and do good; may I dwell in the land and feed on Your faithfulness. When I delight myself in the Lord, You will give me the desires of my heart. I will commit my way to the Lord and trust in You, and You will bring it to pass. You will bring forth my righteousness like the light, and my justice like the noonday. May I rest in the Lord and wait patiently for You; I will not fret because of him who prospers in his way, with the man who practices evil schemes. (Psalm 37:3–7)
Pause to add your own prayers for personal renewal.
Petition
May I not pervert justice, show partiality, or accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and perverts the words of the righteous. (Deuteronomy 16:19)
Relationships with Others
Greater love and compassion for others
Loved ones
Those who do not know Christ
Those in need
My activities for this day
Special concerns
Intercession
We are the fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing; to the one an aroma from death to death; to the other, an aroma from life to life. And who is sufficient for these things? (2 Corinthians 2:15–16)
Evangelism
Friends
Relatives
Neighbors
Coworkers
Special opportunities
Affirmation
There is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for Your sake and the gospel’s, who will not receive a hundred times as much in this present age—houses, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields, along with persecutions—and in the age to come, eternal life. (Matthew 19:29; Mark 10:29–30)
If anyone comes to You and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be Your disciple. And whoever does not carry his cross and follow You cannot be Your disciple. (Luke 14:26–27)
Pause to reflect upon these biblical affirmations.
Thanksgiving
You have loved me with an everlasting love;
You have drawn me with lovingkindness. (Jeremiah 31:3)
You led Your people with cords of human kindness,
With bands of love;
You lifted the yoke from their neck
And bent down to feed them. (Hosea 11:4)
Pause to offer your own expressions of thanksgiving.
Closing Prayer
You are the Lord, the God of our fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. This is your name forever, the name by which you are to be remembered from generation to generation. (Exodus 3:15)
I will sing to the Lord, for He is highly exalted.
The Lord is my strength and my song;
He has become my salvation.
He is my God, and I will praise Him,
My father’s God, and I will exalt Him. (Exodus 15:1–2)
Boa, K. (1997, c1993). Handbook to prayer : Praying scripture back to God. Atlanta: Trinity House.
God is seated on His holy throne. (Psalm 47:2, 7–8)
You must be treated as holy by those who come near You, and before all people, You will be honored. (Leviticus 10:3)
Pause to express your thoughts of praise and worship.
Confession
Lord, I have heard of Your fame, and I stand in awe of Your deeds.
O Lord, revive Your work in the midst of the years,
In our time make them known;
In wrath remember mercy. (Habakkuk 3:2)
Ask the Spirit to search your heart and reveal any areas of unconfessed sin. Acknowledge these to the Lord and thank Him for His forgiveness.
Renewal
May I not turn aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all my heart. May I not turn aside to go after worthless things which do not profit or deliver, because they are useless. (1 Samuel 12:20–21)
The works of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, envyings, drunkenness, revelries, and the like. Those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. (Galatians 5:19–23)
Pause to add your own prayers for personal renewal.
Petition
When I ask, it will be given to me; when I seek, I will find; when I knock, the door will be opened to me. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. (Matthew 7:7–8; Luke 11:9–10)
Spiritual Insight
Understanding and insight into the word
Understanding my identity in Christ
Who I am
Where I came from
Where I am going
Understanding God’s purpose for my life
My activities for this day
Special concerns
Intercession
For God is my witness, whom I serve in my spirit in the gospel of His Son, how unceasingly I make mention of you in my prayers. (Romans 1:9)
Believers
Personal friends
Those in ministry
Those who are oppressed and in need
Special concerns
Affirmation
The Lord is a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate Him, but showing lovingkindness to a thousand generations of those who love Him and keep His commandments. (Exodus 20:5–6; Deuteronomy 5:9–10)
God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should change his mind. Has He spoken and not done it? Has He promised and not fulfilled it? (Numbers 23:19)
Pause to reflect upon these biblical affirmations.
Thanksgiving
I will remember the works of the Lord;
Surely, I will remember Your wonders of long ago.
I will meditate on all Your works
And consider all Your mighty deeds.
Your way, O God, is holy.
What god is so great as our God?
You are the God who works wonders;
You have revealed Your strength among the peoples.
You redeemed Your people with Your power,
The descendants of Jacob and Joseph. (Psalm 77:11–15)
Pause to offer your own expressions of thanksgiving.
Closing Prayer
O come, let us sing to the Lord;
Let us shout joyfully to the Rock of our salvation.
Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving;
Let us shout for joy to Him with psalms. (Psalm 95:1–2)
O sing to the Lord a new song;
Sing to the Lord, all the earth.
Sing to the Lord, bless His name;
Proclaim the good news of His salvation day after day.
Declare His glory among the nations,
His marvelous works among all people. (Psalm 96:1–3)
Boa, K. (1997, c1993). Handbook to prayer : Praying scripture back to God. Atlanta: Trinity House.
But You, O Lord, are exalted forever. (Psalm 92:5–8)
You are the Lord, that is Your name.
You will not give Your glory to another,
Or Your praise to idols. (Isaiah 42:8)
Pause to express your thoughts of praise and worship.
Confession
I will endure discipline, for God is treating me as a son. For what son is not disciplined by his father? If I am without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then I am an illegitimate child and not a true son. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us, and we respected them; how much more should I be subjected to the Father of spirits and live? (Hebrews 12:7–9)
Ask the Spirit to search your heart and reveal any areas of unconfessed sin. Acknowledge these to the Lord and thank Him for His forgiveness.
Renewal
Christ must increase; I must decrease. (John 3:30)
You are the true vine, and Your Father is the vinedresser. He cuts off every branch in You that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit. May I abide in You, and You in me. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can I, unless I abide in You. (John 15:1–2, 4)
Pause to add your own prayers for personal renewal.
Petition
May I follow Abraham’s example of willingness to offer all that I have to You, holding nothing back and trusting in Your character and in Your promises. (Genesis 22:2–12, 16)
Growth in Wisdom
Developing an eternal perspective
Renewing my mind with truth
Greater skill in each area of life
My activities for this day
Special concerns
Intercession
May we rejoice, become complete, be of good comfort, be of one mind, and live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with us. (2 Corinthians 13:11)
Family
My immediate family
My relatives
Spiritual concerns
Emotional and physical concerns
Other concerns
Affirmation
When I give, it will be given to me; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be poured into my lap. For with the measure I use, it will be measured back to me. (Luke 6:38)
He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one should give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion; for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to us, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, we may abound in every good work. As it is written: “He has scattered abroad His gifts to the poor;
His righteousness endures forever.”
Now He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase our seed and will increase the fruits of our righteousness. (2 Corinthians 9:6–10)
Pause to reflect upon these biblical affirmations.
Thanksgiving
We give thanks to You, Lord God Almighty, the One who is and who was, because You have taken Your great power and have begun to reign. (Revelation 11:17)
There will no longer be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the new Jerusalem, and His servants will serve Him. They will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. And there will be no night there; they will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they shall reign for ever and ever. (Revelation 22:3–5)
Pause to offer your own expressions of thanksgiving.
Closing Prayer
Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever,
For wisdom and power belong to Him.
He changes the times and the seasons;
He raises up kings and deposes them.
He gives wisdom to the wise
And knowledge to those who have understanding.
He reveals deep and hidden things;
He knows what is in the darkness,
And light dwells with Him. (Daniel 2:20–22)
Boa, K. (1997, c1993). Handbook to prayer : Praying scripture back to God. Atlanta: Trinity House.
You have set Your glory above the heavens! (Psalm 8:1)
Great and marvelous are Your works,
Lord God Almighty!
Righteous and true are Your ways,
King of the nations!
Who will not fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your name?
For You alone are holy.
All nations will come and worship before You,
For Your righteous acts have been revealed. (Revelation 15:3–4)
Pause to express your thoughts of praise and worship.
Confession
The Lord is in His holy temple;
The Lord is on His heavenly throne.
He observes the sons of men;
His eyes examine them. (Psalm 11:4)
Ask the Spirit to search your heart and reveal any areas of unconfessed sin. Acknowledge these to the Lord and thank Him for His forgiveness.
Renewal
O Lord my God, may I fear You, walk in all Your ways, love You, and serve You with all my heart and with all my soul. (Deuteronomy 10:12)
I have not been made perfect, but I press on to lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus also laid hold of me. I do not consider myself yet to have attained it, but one thing I do: forgetting what is behind and stretching forward to what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:12–14)
Pause to add your own prayers for personal renewal.
Petition
My body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in me, whom I have from God, and I am not my own. For I was bought at a price; therefore may I glorify God in my body. (1 Corinthians 6:19–20)
Growth in Christ
Greater desire to know and please Him
Greater love and commitment to Him
Grace to practice His presence
Grace to glorify Him in my life
My activities for this day
Special concerns
Intercession
We must take heed to ourselves and to all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made us overseers to shepherd the church of God, which He purchased with His own blood. (Acts 20:28)
Churches and Ministries
My local church
Other churches
Evangelism and discipleship ministries
Educational ministries
Special concerns
Affirmation
The love of Christ compels me, because I am convinced that One died for all, and therefore all died. And He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for Him who died for them and was raised again. (2 Corinthians 5:14–15)
Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree.” (Galatians 3:13)
Pause to reflect upon these biblical affirmations.
Thanksgiving
In Your unfailing love You have led the people You have redeemed.
In Your strength You have guided them to Your holy dwelling.
You brought them in and planted them in the mountain of Your inheritance—
The place, O Lord, You made for Your dwelling;
The sanctuary, O Lord, Your hands have established. (Exodus 15:13, 17)
You are the Lord our God, who brought Your people out of Egypt so that they would no longer be their slaves; You broke the bars of their yoke and enabled them to walk with heads held high. (Leviticus 26:13)
Pause to offer your own expressions of thanksgiving.
Closing Prayer
Whom have I in heaven but You?
And there is nothing on earth I desire besides You.
My flesh and my heart may fail,
But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
Those who are far from You will perish;
You have cut off all who are unfaithful to You.
But as for me, the nearness of God is my good.
I have made the Lord God my refuge,
That I may tell of all Your works. (Psalm 73:25–28)
Boa, K. (1997, c1993). Handbook to prayer : Praying scripture back to God. Atlanta: Trinity House.
I was fortunate enough to be able to receive an advance copy of Mark Batterson’s new book “Primal A Quest for the Lost Soul of Christianity…I must say that this book is MUST READ for 2010. Mark does such a great job of walking us down the steps into the catacombs of early Christianity while walking us down the steps to our first love with Christ. Has our Christianity moved from a primal passion where all we wanted to do was read and pray and worship God to a more routine task? If you are willing to examine your own personal walk then pick up this book. If you ever had a more intense and passionate walk with God than what you are currently experiencing, then pick up this book. Primal will challenge you and make you re-evaluate your walk as it definitely has made me rethink my steps!
I truly appreciate authors like Mark that make us rethink our steps and help us evaluate ourselves! Thank You Mark for your contribution to this Christian walk!
To order this awesome book click the picture below:
It has been a while since I have updated this blog so I will just give a brief synopsis for now on all that has transpired lately.
1. Let me begin by saying that Camille is still pregnant and we are certainly eager to see our two little girls when it is their appointed time to come into this world!
2. Over the Thanksgiving season we were able to provide Thanksgiving meals for over 60 families in the communities around us. This was a remarkable blessing as we had the chance to enter the homes of all these families that we had never met before. One woman came to church as a result of this outreach effort and with tears streaming down her face she gave her life to Jesus! It is awesome to know that God still saves!
3. The first Friday in December we hosted the Village of South Holland as we welcomed Santa to town. Once again this year it was an incredible time as we had nearly 200 kids in our building waiting to make their request to Santa. The best part about this event is that we are able to open our doors to people in our community that may have never entered had we not had an event like this. Last Sunday we had several visitors that came as a result to the Santa event.
4. This weekend we did our big Annual Christmas Gift Give-Away! We served a generous portion of God’s love to almost 350 people! Every child received a couple of gifts and everyone walked out with plenty of snacks. Praise God for the provision He has supplied through local partnerships that have made this event possible! Watch the video below for a sample of what it was like:
Lastly, don’t forget to pick up a daily bible and An Instrumental Christmas CD for everyone on your gift list this year! We have them available in the lobby beginning this week.
Now keep watching this blog as I will be providing a detailed review of Mark Batterson’s soon to be released book Primal A Quest For The Lost Soul Of Christianity, I received an advance copy and I have to tell you…this is going to be a must read book for 2010!
I don’t really know where to start. This past weekend was filled with all sorts of action from youth convention to Slime Time and even another trip to the hospital.
The Youth Convetion began for our group early Friday morning as they boarded the bus bound for Springfield. This is the first year that did not attend and I must say it was very painful to know that I was going to miss such a great time. Yet with my wife having some delivery issues I felt that it would be a wise thing to stay home. Dexter assumed the lead in my absence and from the reports that I recieved back it is clear that he did a great job! The bus came back just in time to get the young people fed and ready to help out for our annual Fall Festival.
Slime Time was another success event as we made some minor adjustments from what we did last year. I am happy to say that we served over 409 children and 189 adults bringing our total to 598 people that were impacted with the love and creativity of our savior!
After all was said and done I called my wife only to find that she was still in a lot of pain and I convinced her to go into the hospital so they could check things out. Good thing we did as the contractions had really gotten severe and began dialating. While the two of us are extreemly anxious to meet these girls we also kniw that it is better for them to not come out this early. So we prayed and prayed and the doctors started her on meds that would help to control the contractions. Around three in the morning on Sunday morning I realized that we are at a crucial point and I knew that my wife would need me to be here by her side. I sent Dexter a text message asking him to handle service so I could stay by Camille’s side. Around 9am on Sunday it hit me that I would not be at church. I was suddenly overcome with saddness for missing my church family and a sick feeling knowing that I would not be there. Please understand I knew that ROCC was in good hands with Dexter and our leadership team all doing what needed to be done, yet I felt as though I was neglecting the church. It was confirmed that as much as I labor in this position as the pastor of ROCC I realize that I am called to it by the feelings I experienced when not able to be there.
I am happy to say that I have heard nothing but positive feedback from the worship and message. God moved and did what He wanted to do and I was able to be right here by Camille through what was a very rough night. God is good and His mercy is everlasting!
I don’t really know where to start with this blog. So many things happening at ROCC makes me happy and tired all at the same time.
Saturday, I had the chance to meet with one of our young couples that is making the next step in their relationship and preparing for their upcoming marriage. It is always encouraging seeing young adults that are obviously committed to each other go forward in this commitment to the Lord. I believe this is one of the best things we have going at ROCC. Young people giving their lives to the Lord and them making the serious decisions to honor Him and live for Him and set an example of Godly living for others to see. I thank God that we have all the young people that we do and continue to praise Him for what He is doing in this congregation. Later in the afternoon I was able to hang out with one of our Jamaican families for a birthday celebration and let me tell you this…the food was off the hook! I ate a lot more than I should have!
Sunday, started off with a bang! Now that Tony is in place and working with our worship team my wife was able to come to church a little later than normal and just enjoy being a part of this really great team. Tony adds a lot to the team that is in place and I am confident that we are heading in a great direction with our worship team. Make sure you begin getting to church early so that you don’t miss this awesome opportunity to lay down our cares and worship the Living God. The message was a tough one to preach yet I have to say I was very encouraged to see 9 people come forward to ask Christ into their lives! Praise God! After service Camille and I had lunch with a couple that recently began attending the church and it was awesome to begin a new relationship with an incredible couple. Again Praise God for bringing really great people into our life! Later in the afternoon I had to stop by Rodney’s house to apologize to him for saying that the Bengals were going to get smashed by the Bears, (it was a humbling process). Then the day ended with a great New Member class with 10 adults and 4 children coming on board and deciding to be part of our family. The thing I like best about this group is the diversity in age and experiences and knowing that God is truly expanding our territory.
Late in the night Sunday I was awakened by Camille getting dressed at 2am. She told me that she needed to go to the Doctor and off we went. Praise God that she woke up when she did as she was having some really strong contractions and the doctors had to quickly treat her to stop the contractions. The staff at the University of Chicago Hospital took great care of her and then the doctor made the decision that she needed to be admitted. So our Sunday turned into Monday and after about 25 hours they had finally slowed the contractions and allowed Camille to eat. What a journey!
I can say this…around 3pm yesterday we had plenty of people praying and then we began playing worship music from our phone and God allowed us to finally fall asleep and rest and the Lord brought His comfort! When we woke up the contractions were spread out more and not as intense! Have I said Praise God?!?
