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February 2009
February 20, 2009
February 16, 2009
February 12, 2009
It's coming...
26 days until book camp and assessment!!
Mahaney Interviews Piper...
There are few pastors like John Piper and I jump at any chance to hear a bit more about his personal life and pursuit of Jesus. I don't think there is anyone alive who preaches with his passion. I have heard him say we should preach in a way that people walk away saying, "I may not believe everything that guy said, but He sure does!"
Thanks to C.J. Mahaney we get a bit more insight into this great man of God.
You can find the interview here...
You can read the Desiring God blog here...
February 11, 2009
Redemption Logo...
It's finally done! This is the Redemption logo and we're loving it! The guys at Wave Studios did it for us and they did a great job. We have also launched an informational site you can find here...
If you want to find out more about Redemption and our vision for Schaumburg, make sure you stop by and check it out!
Also, if you still haven't signed up to receive our weekly updates, make sure you sign up here...
February 10, 2009
Remember...
I remember being young and hearing having my dad ask me, "Why didn't you (you fill in the blank) like I asked you to?" I would always respond with the same tired reply, "I forgot!". To which my dad would reply, "You did not forget, you chose not to remember!" In truth, my dad was right and unfortunately this issue has not gone away in my life.
I choose not to remember the times God has provided for me and instead choose to worry.
I choose not to remember the gospel and instead think I must earn God's love.
I choose not to remember my identity must be found in being a child of God and instead choose to find significance in what people think of me.
I choose not to remember that God is in control and instead I choose to try and control my life myself.
The command to REMEMBER is found all over the Scriptures. In Exodus 13:3 right after leading God's people out of slavery in Egypt, Moses exhorts them saying, "Remember this day in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery, for by a strong hand the LORD brought you out from this place." The Jewish people celebrate Passover to REMEMBER God's grace to them in Egypt. Jesus commanded we take communion to REMEMBER His sacrifice in our place for our sin.
Yet, we are prone to forget. In fact, I believe one of the greatest ploys of the Evil One is to encourage us to forget: to draw our attention away from the goodness of our God and fix our eyes on our present circumstances. This means it is of the utmost importance that we make a discipline of remembering. Remembering was one of the reasons God had people construct alters in the Old Testament. They were to serve as a sign and help people remember their God.
So how are you fighting to REMEMBER? One of the things that helps me is to journal. I right down my thoughts, prayers, worries, concerns, and trials so I can look back over them at a later time. This helps me remember that God has always provided and protected in the past so I have no reason to worry. It's also important that we talk with God and with each other about who God is and what He has done and is doing in our lives. We must always fight to remember and write down the evidences of God grace in our lives because:
"When we forget the grace of God, we forfeit the peace of God."
February 09, 2009
Weekend Recap...
1 Weekend + 180 Students + 5 Worship Gatherings = 1 Amazing Weekend
This weekend I was back up at Camp Harvest in Michigan for the High School Winterfest Retreat. We had an incredible weekend and amazing times of worship. It was probably the most engaged I have ever seen a group of students in my 11 years leading worship. God did some amazing work in all of our hearts and I'm excited to see what more He has in store in the weeks to come!
Mahaney Interviews Dever...
C.J. Mahaney just posted another interview on his blog, this time with Pastor Mark Dever from Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington D.C.
Read the interview here...
Listen to Dever's talks from this past week at the Desiring God Pastor's conference here...
C.J. also lists a number of Dever's books with links to where you can purchase them. I highly recommend "Nine Marks of a Healthy Church".
February 05, 2009
My New Job...
God has been extremely gracious to Tami and I in providing an amazing part time position at Harvest Bible Chapel's Elgin campus. This was my first week and so far we're off to a great start. With so many out of work and looking for jobs, I feel super blessed to be in a job I love and surrounded by like minded people pursuing the mission of Jesus. My role is to develop the student ministry bands. Right now there is an all student band that leads 4-5 grade, a Jr High band, and a Sr High band that I will be working with. God has blessed Harvest with some talented students and I'm really enjoying getting to partner with them. So here's where I've been all week:
This is the front of our campus as you drive in:
One of my favorite aspects of the campus right now is the parking garage since the sun seems to be broken right now and we are living in an arctic climate:
During the week I work here on the fourth floor:
Here it is ladies and gentlemen! The moment you have all been waiting for...MY CUBE!
I worked in it for about 6 hours on Tuesday and felt like I was starting to lose it, so yesterday I found my friend Cody who is a few feet away and took down one of the walls to open it up a bit:
Now I see this:
Instead of this:
Much better! This weekend I'm headed back up to Michigan for the High School Winter Retreat, so I'll try and post some pictures next week!
