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"And We're Back!" - Monday Morning Reflections

- Great to be back at LCC yesterday. I always miss everyone when I'm gone.

- Enjoyed a really wonderful time with our friends at Longton Community Church near Preston, England. They are really making an impact for the kingdom and seeing heaps of lives being changed by God's power, grace, and love. I'll hopefully blog about them a bit more this week - complete with photos! (If I can figure out how to input them correctly...)

- Yesterday was all about contentment and, no, I do not have a fetish for Tag Heuer watches ... just an unhealthy, unfulfilled obsession. Here's my favorite one (notice the color...isn't it beautiful!?).


- Contentment is living with what you have and being available when God asks.

- In this new series called "Revolu$ion," we'll discover that people who are financially free trust God, save consistently, spend intentionally, build purposefully, and give freely. It's going to be a blast!

- "Stuffitis" is when we have an insatiable desire for more and better stuff - it's the Elvis-head Chia Pet syndrome... "I just gotta have it!"

- Last year, over 5.3 billion credit-card offers were put in our mail-boxes and, according to CardTrak, Americans currently have $660 billion (that's a "b") in credit card debt. Hebrews 13:5 really puts this in perspective.

- Generous giving - whether it's of our time, talent, or treasure - also helps keep things in perspective for us. And God owns it all anyway (Ps. 24:1).

- The balance in the bank and the numbers of the paycheck aren't ours. They are resources God has blessed us with. They all belong to Him and we show Him honor when we give back our first fruits to our Provider. This reminds us of who we are and who He is.

- Tony Morgan has really challenged me with the following statements. I'll be thinking these through this week. Check them out and wrestle with them along with me:

When you teach on “felt needs,” you aren’t watering down the message. You are helping people find forgiveness and healing and a new direction for their life. It’s easy to preach through the Bible. It’s much harder to preach to hurting people who need to understand how the Bible applies to their lives.

When the person sitting beside you is dealing with a marriage crisis that’s leading to a crisis of faith, it makes your preferences of music and volume seem pretty small.

When you neglect the mission field in your neighborhood because of your desire to help people across the ocean, I wonder if you’re just choosing the path of least resistance.

When you choose to focus on your theological differences at the expense of helping people find healing and hope, could it be that you haven’t spent enough time living out your faith because you’re too busy defending your faith?

- Lauren surprised me and made a quick trip home from Atlanta this weekend. It was so good to see her again.

- Bear, the world's greatest dog, hung out with us this weekend. Tiff and Bryan went to see our Tigers paste Wake Forest. Wins sure do feel better than losses.

- So, what's on for this week? As always, getting ready for Sunday, then catching up on over 100 emails, blogging, heading to Atlanta with our youth ministers, Rob and Aaron, to check out Grace Fellowship's youth ministry, annual staff evaluations, meetings, and getting over jet lag.

- Have a great one!

Monday Morning Reflections

- At LCC yesterday we examined how to handle conflict in a biblical manner - which is always the best!

- We can be peace fakers, peace breakers, or peace makers. Jesus calls us to the latter. Matthew 5:9

Here are the "Seven A's of Confession" from Ken Sande's book, The Peacemaker:
1. Address everyone involved.
2. Avoid the words, "if," "but," and "maybe."
3. Admit specifically both attitudes and actions.
4. Acknowledge the hurt.
5. Accept the consequences.
6. Alter your behavior.
7. Ask for forgiveness and allow time.

- Ever wonder how to pronounce those hard-to-pronounce Bible words or names? Here's a website I use from which I learned to correctly pronounce Euodia and Syntyche.

- My Mom and Dad were visiting with us this weekend. It was great to have them here again.

- The video lead-in to the message highlighting Ohio State football was definitely NOT my idea!

- We dedicated some of the sweetest children yesterday. I love child dedications!

 - After church we went to one of our favorite restuarants, Fiesta Fresh, (where we saw about a dozen LCCers). Their Fiesta Grilled Chicken Salad is the best around!

- Busy week ahead as I prepare to leave for the U.K. again on Thursday night. I'll be with the great people at Longton Community Church near Preston, England. God is doing some great things there and I can't wait to see it all first-hand again.

- LCC peeps, we have our third annual Clothing Connection coming up again on November 14th. We need your gently used clothing, shoes, baby furniture, and household items. Sorry, no toys accepted. Please bring your donations to the Bluffton campus on Sunday mornings, or Monday through Thursday during normal business hours. Please call Alaina at 843/368-1752 to help sort or for more information. You can also click here and Mark will give you more info. Let's all get involved; it's one of the best outreaches of love we make to our communities.

- That's the same weekend as our church's senior high retreat up in the S.C. mountains at an awesome place called Awanita Valley. I took my first youth group up there in 1986. And this year, Pastor Rob has asked me to be the speaker! I am so jacked about it. I've been wanting to get to know our kids better and this will be a wonderful opportunity for that...can't wait!

- I'm out. My computer is freaking out for some reason this morning. Have a great day!

Monday Morning Reflections

- I really enjoyed being with our Hilton Head campus yesterday. Great things are happening there!

- Two hundred were on hand to celebrate two years of God's faithfulness to us as we celebrated our island campus' birthday.

- Four huge bouncy "things" for the kid's, the BBQ Krew fed us all, Cynthia and the worship band did an incredible job of leading our worship, Todd led so confidently from the stage and behind-the-scenes, and to top it off, they asked me to speak!

- I loved being with our island peeps. I shared from Philippians 2, keeping us in our current series, and was able to communicate some vision, dreams, and God's call to us.

- There are still thousands yet to reach. If not us, who, and, if not now, when?

- I heard Brian did a great job preaching at the Bluffton campus yesterday and I can't wait to watch it on-line later this week.

- By the way, did you know you can view messages from the Bluffton campus? And download messages from iTunes? Click here and follow the Messages link for the Bluffton campus. Click here for the HHI campus downloads. Then click on "Hear Our Weekly Podcast."

- One of the most awesome things I saw yesterday at the HHI celebration were the volunteers from the Bluffton campus who came to serve to free others up to attend the worship celebration. You guys rock!!

- Beach Baptism is soon upon us! This is always one of the coolest things we do as a church. We see changed lives personified and we celebrate (and eat)! Plan on attending ... Sunday, September 27th, 5 p.m., Chaplin Park, HHI. Watch the church blogs and worship folders for details.

- One of my best ministry friends is leaving the area this week. Mark Beebe planted and pastored The Harbor, which meets at Shell Hall in Bluffton. Mark is joining the staff at Cokesbury United Methodist Church in Knoxville, Tennessee, to direct their Celebrate Recovery ministry and serve as one of their three campuses teaching pastors. He is so wired for this! Their CR program is the largest in America, averaging 400 people on Thursday nights. I'm going to miss you, buddy, but it's the right decision at the right time for the right reasons.

- This Sunday, as we continue our Philippians series, we'll answer the question, "Will I be Happy When I've Reached the Top of the Ladder?" This will give us a wonderful opportunity of presenting the gospel again in a clear and understandable manner. Paul uses such vivid word pictures and gets to the heart of our relationship with God.

-  LCCer's, I'm asking you to do all you can to invite and bring someone with you this Sunday! Don't come alone this weekend ... Jesus will be preached .. lives will be changed ... we're partners in the gospel ... let's do this together! God wants to use you in a big way through one sentence: Will you come to church with me this weekend?

- I'm totally pumped!! Can't wait for Sunday!

Monday Morning Reflections

- I heard good things from both campuses yesterday. Clay and Todd both brought strong messages. Thanks, guys, for leading us so well.

- I went up to Clemson's opening game which turned out well for us. Had a wonderful time seeing extended family and friends I haven't seen in a while and enjoyed spending the weekend with Bryan and Tiff.

- The Tigers looked decent against a middle-of-the-road foe. The real test is Thursday night against Georgia Tech in Atlanta.

- There's nothing like sitting at a college football game in the rain. Yeah, I left a little early, but I was amazed at how many thousands of people sat through it. So I think, "They'll sit through the rain to watch 18-22 year-olds play a game. Then, why can't we get people to come to church?"

- I could go off on a rant here and now, but I'll save it for later. And when and if I go off, my rant will be against those of us in the church - not those who aren't yet attending...

- We attended NewSpring yesterday and heard a powerful message from Brad Cooper, their Student Pastor. He was speaking on lies Satan seeks to deceive us with and yesterday's was: Follow Your Heart. I wrote down a few points I want to remember...
    - Don't follow your heart. It is desperately sick. (Jeremiah 17:9 tells us, "The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; who can understand it?")
    - If we're bored with life, it's because we're following after our heart; not God's. Follow God's heart and life is exciting!
    - The Cross is important because I have failed.

- I am jacked about this upcoming weekend! I will be preaching at one combined service (imagine: preaching only one service!) at the Hilton Head campus. We will be meeting at the HH High School Performing Arts Center and it's gonna be a blast!

- Our HHI campus is two years old, averaging about 150 in attendance and really starting to come into its own. We are offering ministries for children 0 - 18 now and our outreach into the community has been healthy and strong.

- So, this Sunday, we celebrate!  Check the HHI campus blog for more information.

- College football "kicked off" this past week. How did your team do? More importantly...

- What do you think is on God's scoreboard for us when He looks at our lives? God's scoreboard for our churches? Something to ponder as we walk through this day.

- If you missed yesterday's blog, "You Think You Know?", check it out.

- Happy Labor Day, everybody!

Monday Morning Reflections

- With the coming of the school year, there has also come a new energy at church these days. People are back, and even worshiping early! Our 8:30 a.m. service had the largest attendance we've seen there in quite some time.

- We also had parking problems challenges again. Bluffton peeps, remember: we have three services: 8:30. 10:00, and 11:30...

- We are taking some steps to add parking in Bluffton. You'll be hearing more about this in the coming weeks, but we hope to have something done in September. Right now, it's a "permit" thing...

 - Revolu$ion and Financial Peace University are off and running. Approximately 400 people are in FPU classes at both campuses! This stokes me because folks are getting some sorely needed help with budgeting, spending, giving, and overseeing their total financial picture. And we all need a dose of that these days.

- We began the new series on Philippians yesterday called The Pursuit of Happiness. I am really looking forward to teaching through this wonderful letter that Paul wrote to the Christ-followers in Philippi. It is incredibly relevant to us today.

- Yesterday we sought to answer the question, "Will I be happy when my circumstances change?"  We found that Paul's example and teaching tells us that if we desire to have joy (not fleeting happiness) in life's changing circumstances, then we must: 1) rely on the power of prayer; 2) rely on the provision of the Holy Spirit; 3) Give Jesus first place in our lives; 4) be prepared to die, and; 5) decide to really live! 

- And the greatest thing that happened yesterday was that over 20 people confessed Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour. That is always awesome!!!

- This week we tackle the query, "Will I be happy when my problems disappear?" If you want a head-start, then read Philippians 1:27 - 2:2.

-  After church we headed up to Lake Marion and spent about three wonderful hours tubing, skiing, and wake-boarding. On our way back home, we stopped at the Cracker Barrel in Santee. Our son-in-law, Bryan, announced that he believes Cracker Barrel is the best place in the world to eat - even better than the Golden Corral! (For my overseas readers, don't ask!) I'm still partial to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse. (But I do love Cracker Barrel with the Waffle House as a close third!)

- We had a great time - and Bear, the world' greatest dog - went out on the boat with us. But we missed Lauren! She's coming home for a few days on September 9th and we're counting the hours!

- Speaking of hours and days, only 12 days, 7 hours, and 10 minutes until the Tigers kickoff the 2009 season! (Of course, I'll be there...what a silly question!)

- Are you a leader? Do you lead creative people? If so, check out Tony Morgan's recent post on how to lead creative people. It's short, to-the-point, and helpful.

- LCC's own, Al Allnoch, is serving Christ in South Africa and he shares a wonderful story about a recent ministry opportunity utilizing the film, "Facing the Giants." Check it out here.


And today is our daughter's birthday! Tiff, you have always been an absolute delight and joy to your mom and I - and you're sisters would say the same thing! We love you and wish God's richest and choicest blessings upon you. HAPPY BIRTHDAY! We love you.

Monday Morning Reflections

- What a fun day we had at LCC yesterday!

- Great time of worship and a real sense of excitement as we have started Revolu$ion.  There's still room and time for you to register if you do it now. Click here.

- We are beginning to understand and live a new kind of normal. Debt is normal; we want to be abnormal. Having no savings is normal; we want to be abnormal. Using credit cards as an emergency fund is normal; we want to be abnormal. Retiring with $10,000 as the average American does is normal; we want to be abnormal.

- Financial Peace University has helped thousands of people in great ways. Darlene and I are just two of them. And now hundreds of LCC peeps are being, and will be, greatly aided by this tremendous and biblical ministry.

- Following the third service we had a picnic/water wars afternoon. It was a fantastic time. We tailgated, ate out in beautiful weather (yeah, hot and sticky, too), got to meet some new people, got to know one another better, and watched HUNDREDS of LCC kids have a soaking wet blast.

- Schools start back this week. Teachers and administrators, you all are in our thoughts and prayers. We appreciate all that you do for our children. You are underrated, underpaid, and underappreciated. But you are doing one of the most important jobs in the world! I wish you were being paid the millions instead of entertainers and ball players.

- I'm pumped as we begin a brand new series this coming weekend called, "The Pursuit of Happiness." We'll be taking a walk through Philippians - one of my favorite books.

- This coming Sunday's message is entitled, "Will I Be Happy When My Circumstances Change?" Author Henry James said, "The best use of your life is to invest it in something which will outlast it." Good advice. Ever wonder why God doesn't just translate us to heaven after we're saved? Because he's got some work for us to do. And it's eternal. Can't wait to unpack this!

- We have an LCC elder meeting this Thursday, and as always, we appreciate your prayers for wisdom and guidance. I am privileged to serve with, and we are privileged to be led by, a great group of elders.

- I'm excited as we enter yet another new season of ministry. Good things are happening: longed-for help to hundreds in our church in the area of finances and stewardship, reaching out to thousands in our community, and new levels to which God wants us to climb! Let's go!

Monday Morning Reflections

- Captivate on Friday night was a pretty cool time. It was so refreshing personally to be able to sing, worship, and focus on God without thinking about what my next responsibility was in the service.

- It made me realize that I too often allow what I "have to do" on Sunday mornings crowd out unfettered worship of God. Captivate helped remind me that the worship of Almighty God really cannot be done with a mind cluttered by other things .. I guess that's true for all of us.

- I was able to preach at our Hilton Head campus yesterday and really had a wonderful time. It was good to see some folks I haven't seen in a while and to meet many new people.

- There is a real spirit of friendliness, love, and worship on that campus. Some Bluffton peeps decided to worship there for the first time, saw me, and "Give me a break!" was written all over their faces! You just can't escape me! I am speaking in Bluffton this weekend, Lord willing, so this weekend would be a great time to worship on the island! (except I'll be there again via video ... ha!).

- Behind-the-scenes, we've been working with an architect on developing a master plan for a new Bluffton facility. We just received the first draft and it's pretty exciting! I still dream about reaching thousands on weekends through maxing out our Bluffton campus and utilizing other campuses.

- Revolu$ion registration is really picking up. Financial Peace University starts next week. If you haven't signed up yet, what are you waiting for? Go to www.mylamebankaccount.com and get 'er dun!

- We're going to have a Revolu$ion celebration at the Bluffton campus immediately after the third service this Sunday. Water games, tons of things for the kids, and just some fun time hanging out with friends. Plan to make it a part of your day. I'll be under the Clemson tent, of course. And I've heard rumors of a dunk tank!

- I'm a big John Maxwell fan. The man has mentored me in leadership for years and he doesn't even know it. I watched a fantastic sermon this morning preached by John Maxwell on Peter and how Pete overcame the failures in his life. Peter experienced despair, disappointment, and discouragement. But these things didn't keep him down forever. Have you hit the wall in some area of your life? It's worth your time. Check it out here.

- Promiseland will be implementing a brand-new, computerized check-in system this weekend at the Bluffton campus. Parents, please be patient. It might take a couple of Sunday's to work out the bugs - but it will be worth it. It's providing greater safety in our children's areas. It's the way we've wanted to go for a long time ... thanks. 

- We've been invited by some friends to dinner this Wednesday night for lobster!! I'll be there early.

- Thought for the day: Why is the Jerry Springer Show still being televised? (And no, I'm not linking that.)

- Better thought for the day: 26 days, 8 hours, and 29 minutes from now the Tigers kick-off the 2009 season! (Of course, I'll be there!)

- Ultimate thought for the day: "For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are - yet without sin" (Heb. 4:15, NASB)

Monday Morning Reflections

- Yesterday was a pretty amazing day for me. While it was emotionally draining to preach the message on divorce and re-marriage, I have already heard from a number of people who were helped by the truths presented. I'm so glad...

- I think it's so draining to preach about because it's such an emotional issue for so many people. And any preacher worth his salt wants to present biblical truth - even while knowing it can sometimes cut pretty deep - while offering hope and help. 

- This coming Sunday we'll tackle the topic of anger and how we can handle it biblically. How much you want to bet there will be any number of situations coming my way this week that will have huge potential to really chap my hide?!

- Pratt Reed and his family attend our Bluffton campus. Pratt wrote an incredible story about his friend, Captain Mike Holmes, USMC, and Mike's wife, Meredith in today's Island Packet newspaper. It's a "human interest story" in newspaper parlance, but it's so much more than that. Set aside a couple of minutes and read it here. Thanks for bringing this incredible man and woman into our lives, Pratt.

- You may or may not have noticed that MMR was missing last week. We took some vacation time and went up to Long Island, N.Y., to visit with Lauren who is working up there for the summer. Tiff and Em joined us later in the week and it was great to be together again as a family (although we did miss our son-in-law, Bryan, and the world's greatest dog, Bear.) While there, Lauren decided to jump out of a perfectly good airplane! Her first - and I hope ONLY - skydive is under her belt. Is it any wonder my hair is disappearing faster than a politician''s promise? 

 - We rented a house in a great village called Sag Harbor. The back room of the home was built in 1630; the "new addition" was added in 1731. It was great!

-  And speaking of Bear, he somehow got out of his invisible fence on Saturday morning and went missing for almost two hours. Ever wonder what a pastor and wife do on Saturday mornings? Ride around neighborhoods, talk to anyone who is outside, and help look for their "grand-dog." We found him in a neighboring community. He had decided to go for a swim in a lagoon(!) and some folks saw him who know a gator lives in that lagoon, and got Bear out. They then called Bryan's number on Bear's tag. There are good people in the world!

- According to Knight-Ridder Newspapers, Krispy Kreme produces enough donuts every week to line them up one after the other from New York City to Los Angeles. That just thrills my heart.

- A colleague and fellow pastor, Gene Jennings, (from TrueNorth Church in North Augusta, S.C.), has just released a book entitled, "Laughing With Sarah." He'll be at Heaven Sent Christian Bookstore in Bluffton this week on Saturday, August 8th from 1-3 p.m. (That's 1300-1500 for our Marine and Navy friends.) Stop by and check it all out.

- Call me weird but I've been listening to Christmas music all morning while doing sermon prep. I love Christmas music! (And this might explain why the "anger" message will be mellow!)

Monday Morning Reflections

- It was a pretty interesting day at LCC yesterday. We began our new series, "Got Questions?" by attempting to answer the multi-faceted question of, "What does the Bible teach about Alcohol?"

- We were able to dig into the question of, "Should a Christian drink alcohol?" It felt like many were holding their breath throughout the entire message!

- If you want to know how we answered it, check out the LCC website and click under "Messages." It should be posted in a day or two.

- The bottom line, as with many things we face as Christians is, "Is this something through which I can glorify God? Is it making me more like Jesus? How will it affect my testimony?"

- There are wonderful godly people on both sides of this issue. Paul's words to us from Romans 14:1 should guide us as we seek to find common ground. And yes, I did say that we can't get after someone who drinks a glass of wine with their meal if we can't even see our own toes! Scripture very oftens couples drunkenness with gluttony. Both are sinful.

- Emily (The Intern) Wolf led worship with Clay and sang an incredible song at the end of the message. She has a beautiful voice and really added to our whole worship experience.

- And speaking of worship experiences, "Captivate" will help us experience the wonder of God through an evening of worship ... Friday, August 7th at 7 p.m. Child-care from infants through pre-school will be provided. Plan on it ... don't miss it!

- Immediately after church (and lunch at Bluffton's new Fiesta Fresh) I headed for Atlanta. I'm posting this from L.A. now (Lovely Atlanta). I'm here to meet with a few pastor friends, pick their brains, and learn from them. I also had lunch today with one of my mentors, Ravi Zacharias. It was great getting caught up and "sitting at his feet" again.

- I met with Mike Linch from NorthStar Church today and on Tuesday I'll meet with Buddy Hoffman from Grace Fellowship. These guys are both a few steps ahead of me  - okay, a mile ahead! - so I listen, ask questions, and seek wisdom. Now if I can only find it as Proverbs exhorts us to do!

- Atlanta traffic is ridiculous. Hwy. 278 looks like a side-street up here. No more complaining about 278! At least not until I get home...

- On Wednesday, I'm looking forward to hearing the latest from Equip in regard to China. Some amazing things are happening kingdom-wise in that country, and I want to learn all about it!

- Please continue to keep the LaGue family in your prayers. Carol and the boys really need the support of God's Spirit and God's people during these difficult days following Dan's passing. I mentioned Dan's final moments yesterday in church. If you want to read about them - and trust me, you do - click here.

- Pastor Rob Jacobs has been with us for over nine years and he's finally getting some serious time off! Our church provides a wonderful sabbatical for our pastors and Rob - although he is two years overdue - is taking a three-month sabbatical beginning on August 1. Please keep him in your prayers and ask God to rejuvenate, refresh, and relax him. If anyone is deserving of this, Rob is. We'll miss you, buddy, but don't call us! Enjoy your time and love on your family!

- Have a wonderful day, everyone.

Monday Morning Reflections

- Yesterday at LCC was a day of mixed emotions for me.

- I felt like we really were able to get a hold of some key principles regarding temptation and how to overcome it: refuse to be intimidated by the evil one; request help from God; refocus your attention; and, reveal your struggle to a Christian friend.

- And in light of temptation's power, it's good to remember that whatever gets your attention, gets you.

- The way we think determines how we feel; and how we feel determines how we act. Therefore, it's important to fill our mind with good things. Paul says it in Philippians 4:8.

- I really love the verse from Proverbs 4:23, "Be careful what you think, because your thoughts run your life." (NCV)

- It was a bittersweet day for me personally - and for our church as well. Two families that have been absolute stalwarts are moving away and yesterday was their last day with us.

- The Tallman family are moving to Virginia where John enters private medical practice after a stellar Navy career. John has served LCC as an elder.

- The Jones family are moving to Charlotte for Frankie's job. This family was here when the Cranston's arrived and have been so faithful. God has used them in the lives of hundreds of people. They have served in too many ways for me to list here.

- Churches need families like this and we will miss them greatly. I can only breath affectionate benedictions upon them and tell their future pastors and churches: "God is choosing to bless your congregations by bringing these families to you!"

- Our Belize mission team returned home safely from a fantastic week of ministry in that very needy nation. Our own Emily had a wonderful experience there and wants to go back asap! Thanks, Rob, for leading this team so effectively.

- One of our LCC missionaries, Dan LaGue, has been battling cancer for a few years and things have really been taking a downward turn in the last week. Please pray for Dan, his wife, Carol, and their sons. Click here for the latest update.

- Our middle schoolers are with Aaron up at the dcla09 conference in Washington, D.C. They will be returning on Wednesday. Please pray for a wonderful time for them and a safe journey back to the lowcountry. Our daughter, Tiffany, is with them as well.

- And since she is out-of-town, and our son-in-law, Bryan, was mountain-biking in the Pisgah National Forest, we had the privilege this weekend of keeping Bear, the world's greatest dog!

- Have a great day, everyone!