Always Creative, Nothing New

THE BLOG IS MOVING!

2009-01-15T15:19:00.004-07:00

With months of sporadic posting Always Creative, Nothing New has decided to pack up and move to Wordpress at JoshBurcham.com. We're excited for this new journey and have some great posts lined up for your enjoyment, encouragement and challenge. New and improved layout, commenting and posting sections (Ministry, Leadership, Family and Personal) we're expecting to be blown away with Josh's new blog at JoshBurcham.com (we can't promote it enough :)).

If you are an RSS guy or gal. You'll need to head over to JoshBurcham.com to re-subscribe. Check out Always Creative, Nothing New at JoshBurcham.com.

Okay, one last time, promise, JoshBurcham.com.

Lied, go to JoshBurcham.com.

Christmas Morning

2008-12-27T08:24:00.009-07:00

I'm sitting in the airport waiting for my flight home and looking back on this week. It was fun to hang with the whole family (or "the original four") as we've called ourselves in the past. I think my dad said it at some point this weekend: we're blessed, some families don't like each other. We love spending time together. Here are a couple of videos from Christmas morning:

Christmas Morning (Part 1) from Joshua Burcham on Vimeo.

Christmas Morning (Part 2) from Joshua Burcham on Vimeo.

Learned a lot about my siblings yesterday when we played to truths and a lie. I thought more highly of my older siblings before that game.

Religous People

2008-12-23T09:05:00.003-07:00

Then Jesus asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they remained silent. He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored. Mark 3:4-5

Its the same today as it was 2000 years ago. When Jesus starts to move, to change hearts, to restore lives and change the world. The religious people step in and plot against it.

Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus. Mark 3:6

Because it's different, because it's new, because it's hard to understand, because it's biblical and not of this world. People step in and try to quote scripture to destroy it. My Prayer is constantly that I do what He asks me to even in the times I don't understand and I'm called crazy. Someone once told me that God gave me a brain for a reason, He did, but scripture tells me that on my best day with my best thoughts they are are still as far as the heavens are from the earths on God's worst day with His worst thoughts.

I'll leave you with this. Stop being religious. Stop getting in the way of God moving. If you haven't heard from God, don't do it. And if you're seeking God and He seems to not be answering. There is a heart problem and it's on your side. I would start there.

Don't be the one Jesus says this about, "He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts." Don't be the one that Jesus the Son of God is angry at.

My Christmas Present to Myself

2008-12-14T21:28:00.001-07:00

I'm stoked. They should be here tomorrow!

Office's One-Liners

2008-12-13T18:34:00.001-07:00

"...they don't give out black belts for things that are stupid!" - Dwight

RE: @perrynoble

2008-12-11T09:15:00.002-07:00

Dear (Enter Your Name), I will be running the universe today & do not desire your help!
- GOD

Thanks for the reminder, @perrynoble.

Bye Bye Site Meter

2008-12-03T11:46:00.003-07:00

I've been a stat whore. I've checked them on a daily basis and today I stop. It's been a pride thing for me and it's going to be a pride thing no more. What do you need to cut out of your life today to humble yourself to so God can use you?

My Strength Themes (2 of 5)

2008-11-24T15:16:00.004-07:00

After taking my Strengths Finder, these were the strengths themes that described me. See this past post to learn about the workings of Strengths Finder.

My Strength Themes:
1. Responsibility
2. Adaptability
3. Connectedness
4. Strategic
5. Belief

Today's Theme, Adaptability:

Shared Theme Description
People who are especially talented in the Adaptability theme prefer to “go with the flow.” They tend to be “now” people who take things as they come and discover the future one day at a time.

What makes you stand out?
Chances are good that you now and then set aside time to appreciate the loveliness and splendor of your surroundings. Driven by your talents, you are quite comfortable letting the day's events and people's demands determine what really deserves your attention. Instinctively, you picture yourself handling situations and issues that could arise in the coming months, years, or decades. You mentally rehearse what you plan to do in various worst-case and best-case scenarios. Your forethought prepares you to deal with whatever happens. You are a flexible person. You are not easily flustered by unexpected events, problems, or opportunities. By nature, you are the group member who moves through the day handling unexpected situations as they arise. Some are important. Others are not so important. You probably have earned a reputation for changing plans to deal with surprises. Because of your strengths, you generally find it is easier to know a person when the individual understands how to take life easy. Unraveling the mystery of what makes someone unique cannot be rushed, in your estimation. This explains why you intentionally avoid people who are constantly harried, hurried, stressed, or tense.

Busting Barriers with Mind Shift Changes

2008-11-23T11:33:00.003-07:00

BUSTING BARRIERS WITH MIND SHIFT CHANGES
notes from Dave Ferguson on Craig Groeschel

Think differently about your church culture.

Don’t say, “Our people won’t ___________” (insert problem). Instead you should say, “We have not led our people to ____________” (insert problem).

Think differently about the mission.

Are you about the mission or are you about guarding people’s feelings?

Think differently about people leaving the church.

The normal mindset is “we can’t let anyone leave.”

Think differently about limitations.

Most of the time we say, “we can’t because we don’t have _______.” Great leaders see opportunities where others see limitations.

3 ASSIGNMENTS FOR MAKING A MIND SHIFT CHANGE

Find someone one or two steps ahead of you and learn how they think.
Identify one wrong mindset and ask God to renew your mind with truth.
Identify one painful decision you’ve been avoiding and commit to making the right decision immediately.

Take a Minute and Watch

2008-11-19T20:46:00.000-07:00

My Strength Themes (1 of 5)

2008-11-17T14:58:00.005-07:00

After taking my Strengths Finder, these were the strengths themes that described me. They really know what they are doing over at Strengths Finder 2.0 to nail me so well.

My Strength Themes:
1. Responsibility
2. Adaptability
3. Connectedness
4. Strategic
5. Belief

Today's Theme, Responsibility:

Shared Theme Description
People who are especially talented in the Responsibility theme take psychological ownership of what they say they will do. They are committed to stable values such as honesty and loyalty.

What makes you stand out?
Driven by your talents, you volunteer for additional duties. You really enjoy being given authority over projects, individuals, or groups. You expect to be held accountable for the results you produce as well as your words and deeds. Instinctively, you yearn to be given additional duties. You expect to be held accountable for your productivity, profit, behavior, comments, and actions. Chances are good that you probably are the team member who wants to be held accountable for the results you produce and the obligations you assume. You can readily admit when you are wrong. You usually accept without complaining the consequences of your words and deeds. By nature, you are naturally compelled to admit the truth. If someone asked you or told you to intentionally mislead someone, you would reply, "I cannot and I will not do that!" It’s very likely that you try to finish the tasks you agreed to do. Perhaps you even overcome some unexpected problems. Occasionally you work longer hours when it is necessary. Maybe you do whatever you can to avoid breaking the promises you made to people.

Strengths?

2008-11-17T14:17:00.006-07:00

Too often we spend to much of our time trying to develop our weakness and not our strengths. What happens if we start focusing and improving those things that God has naturally talented us with. Those that God has gifted us with. Strengths Finder 2.0 is a business tool to help you find your strengths and improve on them. (Re-Post from Brad Ruggles)

The Path of Most Resistance
As kids, when we came home with a report card that was all A’s and B’s with one D which did we spend the most time on? Right, we tried to fix that D so that we could be a good, “well-rounded” student.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying that we just ignore our areas of weakness or tell our children that it’s ok to fail classes they’re not good at. The problem arises when we spend so much time working on fixing our shortcomings that we neglect to invest time into improving our strengths.

Overcoming deficits is an essential part of the fabric of our culture. Our books, movies and folklore are filled with stories of the underdog who beats one-in-a-million odds. And this leads us to celebrate those who triumph over their lack of natural ability even more than we recognize those who capitalize on their innate talents.

Tom Rath, Strengths Finder 2.0

Climb Every Mountain
Have you ever been told by a well-meaning parent or teacher, You can be anything you want to be as long as you try hard enough! This flawed maxim of personal development may sound good but is usually a recipe for frustration and discouragement. No matter how hard I try or how much I practice I’ll probably never be much of a singer because I just wasn’t blessed with a singing voice. I can set my mind to becoming the best CPA but let me tell you, you definitely wouldn’t want me preparing your tax return (I suck at numbers). Here’s a simple formula from Strengths Finder 2.0 to illustrate:

So in my case, let’s say on a scale of 1 to 5 that I am a 2 when it comes to my singing ability (I’m sure if you heard me you may choose a negative number but that’s beside the point). Even if I score a perfect 5 for investment (the time spent practicing and building my knowledge and skills) the most I’ll I can ever hope to attain in this area is a 10 (5 x 2).

The inverse is also true. When I place the maximum investment into the areas in which I have the most natural talent and ability, the results are far greater.

Be A Better Version of Who You Already Are
The idea that we can create perfectly well-rounded individuals in our schools and universities is a myth. There is no such thing as a perfectly balanced individual. We’re all going to have areas where we excel and areas where we fall short.

The truth of the matter is this: you cannot be anything you want to be - but you can be a lot more of who you already are.

So let’s turn this into a practical discussion.

What Are Your Strengths?
List your top 3 strengths. There’s a time and place for modesty but this isn’t it. I want you to list your natural talents and abilities, the things that make you come alive.

Broken Glass

2008-11-17T12:17:00.002-07:00

Mark Batterson brings up a very true and interesting point in his Broken Glass post. A point we in the church should listen to and learn from:

I've blogged about trojan horses and purple cows. Here's what I mean by broken windows.

In the March 1982 issue of Atlantic Monthly, James Wilson and George Kelling wrote a piece titled Broken Windows. They argued that something as insignificant and innocuous as a broken window sends a subliminal message. If the window is left unrepaired it communicates that crime is ok. So Wilson and Kelling argued that the way to fight serious crime is by cracking down on small infractions.

That is precisely what happened in New York City when Rudolph Giuliani was elected mayor in 1994. He cracked down on squeegee pests; arrested fare jumpers; and cleaned up the graffiti on subway cars. Critics said it was a waste of time and a waste of money. Statistics would suggest otherwise. The murder rate was more than cut in half.

In his book, Broken Windows Broken Business, Michael Levine applies the broken window theory to business.

A broken window can be a sloppy counter, a poorly located sale item, a randomly organized menu, or an employee with a bad attitude. It can be physical, like a faded paint job, or symbolic, like a policy that requires customers to pay for customer service. When the waiter at a Chinese restaurant is named Billy Bob, that’s a broken window.

Can I share two of my pastoral pet peeves? Unevenly folded bulletins and misspelled words on worship slides! I know those things aren't apocalyptic! But everything says something about everything. Or to put it another way, little things are big things. We need to strive for excellence in everything we do. One of the things that brings me the greatest joy is when we do something really small really well. I think it honors God.

Gabriel "Picachu" Iglesias

2008-11-16T22:23:00.001-07:00

Two Great Apps

2008-11-14T15:34:00.006-07:00

These are just that good. Both written in Adobe AIR. Phil recommended one and found the other. I'm running them both on desktops and like the flow and design. Pretty stoked about Action Methods being online from Behance. I've used Behance products for a good amount of time now and now that they have moved online, I can't wait to get my hands dirty:

Action Method Online TweetDeck

Action Method Online (AMO):
There are too many ideas in the world, and not enough action. Without organization and productivity, brilliant ideas never happen. Action Method Online is a radically different approach to productivity, designed to simplify project management and life. All of life can be divided into "projects" - the categories we use in our minds to separate and make sense of what we need to accomplish (e.g. "the party I'm planning," "client X," "event Y," "finances"). The Action Method helps you manage your projects starting with the most basic elements - always with an emphasis on action.

TweetDeck:
TweetDeck enables users to split their main feed (All Tweets) into topic or group specific columns allowing a broader overview of tweets. To do this All Tweets are saved to a local database. The far left column will always contain All Tweets. The GROUP, SEARCH and REPLIES buttons then allow the user to make up additional columns populated from the database. Once created these additional columns will automatically update allowing the user to keep track of a twitter threads far easier.

My Heart Broke When I Read This...

2008-11-14T15:27:00.003-07:00

"Please don't bring your teenager to Nebraska," Gov. Dave Heineman told CNN. "Think of what you are saying. You are saying you no longer support them. You no longer love them."

Due to their “save haven law” which allows parents to drop off children at hospitals if they can’t care for them, without being charged with abandonment. the law extends to 17 years-old. but as lawmakers are working to lower the age to 3 days old (that’s quite a change, but apparently reflects the original intent of the law, which was to provide for infants whose parents don’t think they can care for them), a small number of parents are actually flying their teenagers into Nebraska to drop them off before the law gets changed.

I'm praying for those kids! I don't know what else to say or do.

Hello Love

2008-11-12T20:48:00.001-07:00

This album is rocking my world! Thank you God for blessing Chris Tomlin with these songs! Buy this album. It rocks!

What is Next....

2008-11-12T20:33:00.003-07:00

I have no idea. And tonight I realized that I would rather have it this way. It is forcing me to rely on my Creator and trust Him. I have a burning inside my soul to see lives changed and to allow God to use me in that process. I want people to meet JESUS! The real Jesus. Not one they've created in their heads or the world has created. I want them to meet JESUS! In all His power, in all His love, in all His forgiveness and I want to see their lives transformed. I want to see His church transformed!

What is next? I have no idea and I'm okay with that! My God is a big God with an AMAZING BIG PLAN!

This Post is For Me, Not You.

2008-11-10T14:28:00.005-07:00

Warning: the following has a very good chance to make no sense to you. I just needed a open place to share my heart. Bare with me.

I've been doing a lot of thinking over the past couple of weeks. With a lot of things I held onto in my life being removed this week, it's given me plenty of time to process and evaluated. About a month ago I decided to not plant Ridgepoint. I decision that wasn't easy for me to make, but the right decision. Ridgepoint is going to go into my book as a failure (which isn't a bad things). We can't grow as followers and leaders if we aren't willing to fail. Mark Batterson suggests that the cure of failure is not successes, but small amounts of failure. We have to fail to get us to the place God wants us to be. The place where His power is truly shown. I took a risk, as we all should. A risk that I believe God could of blessed, but I got in the way. In hindsight, I'm glad I made the decision when I did, because it would a been too much for me to handle if I was still planting and had a week like I did last. I don't know how I would of reacted. I would of been two pre-view services in and dealing with life. It would of been hard.

Why do I think Ridgepoint failed? I couldn't carry the weight of the church on my shoulders and as a church planter you carry that weight. My heart was for the existing church. Northwest Valley has plenty of churches. I got too focused on the church and not on Whom who called me to plant one.

Don't get me wrong. I've learned a lot this year. My heart has changed toward non-believers, the church and my God. I wouldn't change this last year for the world. As hard as it was at times, I love the outcome of it. A new me. I don't look at life the same way. I still have a long ways to go, but I'm on the right path now. I've learned how to be crazy in love with God and with others. I still miss ministry and ask God daily to give me a place to service in my passion, but I trust His plan and hold onto that hope.

Someone asked me this week if I made the right decision to leave Arrowhead. My answer was this to them: Yes! I wouldn't be the man I am today if I stayed. Nothing against Arrowhead, I'm back there now, but God had to get me uncomfortable to take me on this journey. I was happy and comfortable at Arrowhead and God never moves when you're comfortable. He moves when you've decided to get uncomfortable and do whatever He is calling you to do. I got uncomfortable, took a risk and God blessed that. I would make the same decision again.

My prayer: God, give me an opportunity to be reminded every day that You are God and You are Holy. That Your thoughts are greater then my thoughts and Your ways greater then my ways. You are the God of this universe and I stand in awe today. Push me to become the man you've called me to be. Bring people around me to love on me and challenge me in my love toward you and the people you bled for. Remind me that You are always there and Your plan is always perfect. Even in the times I don't understand and beg to know why. Father, give me a place to use my talents and knowledge. Father, guide my path and give me opportunities to be dicisplined toward your purpose. God remind me that I am yours. Thank you father. Thank you God. Amen.

Side note: pray for two guys God has laid on my heart. Pray that God would keep opening doors and giving me boldness to plant and water seeds. Thank you God for speaking!

What Are Your Core Values?

2008-11-10T14:16:00.004-07:00

What guides your church? All churches have core values, they just might not be written down on paper. Core Values guide the church in pursuing your vision and mission. They help you make decisions and next steps. They help you say 'no' and 'yes' to new ideas and ministries. Below were Ridgepoint's Core Values (elements that made up the heartbeat of Ridgepoint):

Our communities' needs are more important than our own.

It takes risk and faith to do what we are called to do.

We must do life together.

Being a Christ-follower is about being not doing.

We can't be healthy as a church, if you're not healthy in your home.

Money is never our focus, but giving gauges the heart.

It breaks my heart that these values never saw the light of day in the lives of people, but God's plan is perfect and sovereign. My heart is that more churches embody these values into the fabric of who they are. They're not Ridgepoint specific. We planned out our first years teaching based off of these values (elements) to take our people to the place God wanted us to be.

Laughing this Season

2008-11-09T13:53:00.002-07:00

The Office is rocking this season! Laughing every episode.

Classic Quote:
"You think I'm retarded"

What if Starbucks Marketed Like a Church? A Parable.

2008-11-07T10:05:00.002-07:00

Didn't completely agree with the whole video, but it was cute and funny. Thought I would share it.

Where Have You Been All My Life?

2008-11-06T19:57:00.002-07:00

NHL GameCenter will change my life. All games at my finger tips. Now I just have to find $20 a month. That will take some work.

Team Model Leadership

2008-11-06T11:27:00.002-07:00

One of the things that Ridgepoint Church taught me was the importance of a team. In our structure we had a senior pastor team (call it what you want) of five: lead pastor, creative pastor, strategics pastor, family pastor and executive pastor. I model that I was never able to see in action. I still believe it is a healthy way to lead a church and would love to see the model play out in my life. Craig posted a great post on this very subject over at Swerve:

Many leaders have a right-hand-man (or woman). To maximize your leadership effectiveness, I would suggest a right-hand-team.

For years, many churches that grew large enough had a senior pastor and his right-hand-man, the executive pastor. In my opinion, this is a dated and limited model of church leadership.

I suggest breaking the traditional “second spot” into two to four roles. I can’t tell you what those roles will be for you, but I’ll offer some broad suggestions.

Serving alongside the leader, you’ll probably want two to four team members that cover these roles:

An administrative player. You’ll want to ensure someone is capable of building systems, structures, and accountability.
A relational player. Hopefully you’ll have someone who is very good with people. This person could be an expert in recruiting, team building, pastoring, relational problem solving, or some combination of the above.
An innovative player. In the best environment, you’ll have someone who is an idea-person. This team member is often young (but not necessarily). You’ll want to make sure this innovative mind isn’t rebellious and is a team player. When you find a person like this, she’ll be a great asset to your team.
A stabilizing player. Most good teams have a person who can rise above the details and see the big picture. This person may not be the most visible, but is often one of the most important. He is someone who can bring objectivity and stability in the middle of challenges.

Jump into the discussion!

It's Not Spiritual Warfare

2008-10-30T11:54:00.007-07:00

It's not spiritual warfare if you brought the problems upon yourself. Too many Christians complain of being in the mist of spiritual warfare when all the things being thrown at them are the outcome of their past actions. Lets not give satan too much credit and examine our actions. Jesus didn't promise us, "you won't feel pain and you won't have to live with the consequences to your bad decisions." Lets man up believers and make our past right. Sorry for the rant, but I read 5 blog posts and talked with three people that last two days and that's all I've heard.

Random Randomness

2008-10-28T10:59:00.005-07:00

My brother made a comment on his blog about my lack of posting this week. Up until then I forgot I had a blog and that I've been neglecting him for 6 days. If it was a child he would be dead. I am and ready then ever. That's not true. I'm back today and we'll see about the rest of the week. I figure, if I under promise and over deliver my blog will come out on top (I wouldn't suggest you using that for a life strategy). Anyways, here is what I've been up to:

Went to Cali last weekend and hung with the family. Very cool to see the boys. It's a blast to watch them interact with each other. They are pretty funny kids.

Work has been slow. Hours have been cut way back to get ready for the holiday season (I know, it made no sense to me either), but at least there will be plenty of overtime in a couple of weeks to take advantage of.

Went to the State Fair on Saturday, which was cool. Got to go for free which is always better. Went on some spinning ride with Cal and regretted it the rest of that day and the next. My head wouldn't stop spinning.

Been working and processing through some thoughts on a couple ministry ideas. Could be pretty cool.

I've been away from my computer the last couple of days and have a lot of blog posts to read. Somewhere around 130 (got to love Google Reader).

Sitting in Starbucks right now. I think I get an instant headache just walking in this place now. It is crazy to think that I haven't worked for them for over 6 months.

Finally watched "You Don't Mess with the Zohan." Not a movie I would recommend. I wasn't really funny and had a lot of crude humor. Stinks. I was really looking forward to it. Watched "Where in the World is Osama Bin Laden?" It was pretty good. Interesting to see another prospective and I'm a fan of Morgan Spurlock. He also did Super Size Me and 30-Days.

Check the Heart

2008-10-28T10:38:00.003-07:00

One of my biggest fears and greatest prayers is that I do something, I believe is right, when it's wrong. I look at it this way: too many people in history destroy and harm with a mindset they are doing the right thing and come to find out they were wrong.

I pray constantly for my heart and for people around me that love Jesus and love me (in that order) to speak into my life. I'll be the first to admit when I was wrong, my problem is I don't always know I was wrong until later. So I pray and ask God to speak clear and with wisdom (key ... with wisdom) through people to my heart. Asking God to guide my steps and my actions.

There are things in my life that I pray and talk with God about constantly, because I haven't gone through them before. Decisions are always taken back to scripture. My mom gives me a hard time, because a lot of things to me, because of scripture, are black and white. Not a lot of gray. To check your heart you must go back to scripture. Examine your actions and your thoughts to how God describes how they should be.

God spoke to my heart this weekend and I need to make amends with some people. I don't know how it will turn out, but I do know I need to open up conversation and love people. Whether I think they should be loved or not. Thank you God for your words of truth and healing.

Now, go check your heart!

7 Questions to Ask in Making a Decision

2008-10-20T11:02:00.004-07:00

Jeff posted about some of his takeaways from his coaching network that Perry Noble hosts on the east coast. Which I would pay big money to be able to attend, if I only had big money. In their last coaching network these 7 questions were shared in response to making decision in ministry:

Does this decision compromise the Gospel?
Does this negatively impact the vision?
Is this something that we can genuinely be excited about?
Is this a temporary solution?
Is this adding more to the plate or making things more simple?
Is this excellence or extravagance?
Am I looking out for what is good for the church or for what is good for my area?

For me, number six hit home. I have a hard time figuring out the difference between excellence and extravagance. I love for thing to look good. I work hard for them too, but at times it hurts in the long run, because something else got forgotten.

Revisit Your Church’s Vision, Mission, and People Focus

2008-10-19T09:56:00.007-07:00

I don't read this blog that often, but I this was a great post about vision and importance of not just for the health of the ministry, but your ability to reach new believers. Ministry Marketing Coach.com post the follow post and knocked it out of the park:

Work out a written Vision and Mission plan the staff (or lay ministry team) can all get behind. You may already have mission and vision documents. It needs to be determined if the church is actually functioning according to them. Also, many times the vision and mission are too general to inspire action. What are the real ministry dreams of your church? Where is God leading you? Find out together!
Brainstorm with the staff (or lay ministry team) on ways to fill in the GAP between the vision and the present situation. If you don’t know where you are going, any road will do. But if you have a target you are aiming at, you can develop a clear plan anyone can follow.
Write out the next steps for at least the next 6-18 months. What are the “low hanging fruit” you can harvest right now? What actions can you work on now that moves you toward the vision?
Think more about what your strengths and weaknesses are. (Consider a church health survey ChurchCentral.com). Know your strengths and work from them. Some of your weaknesses will never become strengths, be who you are! David couldn’t fight using Saul’s armor—why should you try to be someone you are not? On the other hand, if you have weaknesses that are due to a broken process or lack of training–they can be improved, why not understand your problems and tackle them?
Determine your ministry’s best focus considering your strengths (in light of your vision and mission). Every ministry is unique by God’s design. There are people only you can reach!
Consider your opportunities and threats. Study community issues that could impact your ministry for good or bad. Work out a list of them and how the church plans to respond to them.

I'm a huge fan of the importance of vision in the church. It makes ministry easy. Anyone in the body can make a decision based on the vision. "I want to start such and such ministry." "Does it fit this and this aspect of our vision." Yeah, it forces you to have a hard conversations with people, but it makes the ministry simple.

God Is Moving and I'm Excited

2008-10-17T19:10:00.005-07:00

I'm excited for what is next, but after much prayer and evaluation I have decided to not plant Ridgepoint Church.

This year has been a time of growth for me. God has changed my heart and has taught me to be crazy in love with Him and teaching me to be crazy in love with others. I thank God for this journey He has had me on over the last year. He has molded and shaped me for His church, just not start a church from the ground. I don't know what God has in store for me over the next couple of months. I have my ideas, just waiting on His plan.

Thank you for your prayers and support over the last twelve months. Know that God heard them blessed accordingly.

Thank you God for loving and having a plan for me.

Use Common Sense

2008-10-16T13:55:00.006-07:00

When something sounds to good to be true...it is to good to be true! I'm sitting in Starbucks and across from me is a sales rep for ACN pitching a guy on a pyramid scheme. Has all the right words, but isn't backing anything up. If you tell me that ACN is the only company the Donald Trump as endorsed. I would want proof. You can't just feed me lines and not give me meat.

Are you going to get rich? Yeah, if you can sell this crap phone to people and get people to buy into selling it with you. You can't go through life looking for the easy money. You'll never find it and be able to sleep with yourself. Or maybe I'm wrong and you can.

I'm going to wait and see if it cost this dude any money to join.

Under the Influence

2008-10-16T11:59:00.004-07:00

Steven talked on his blog, Steven Furtick.com today about being under the influence of paranoia, momentum and doubt in a place of leadership and the lack of sound decision you as a leader has when you allow these three to take over your thoughts:

Sometimes as a leader, I find myself making decisions so dumb that it’s almost like I’m drunk on something.
There are obvious elements that can intoxicate leaders: pride, jealousy, sin, lust…
But lately I’ve been thinking of some less obvious leadership intoxicants that often seem to impair my judgment. Here are just a few:

1. Paranoia.
Occasionally I hear of one or two families who have left the church, and I find myself playing out 45 scenarios as to why they left, what I said that made them mad, and who might leave next. Overdosing on paranoia causes a pastor to reduce his congregation to the lowest common denominator, and operate out of suspicion, needlessly punishing good, loyal people.

2. Momentum.
Sometimes success and momentum can make a leader cocky. You ever seen a drunk redneck start talking trash, looking for a fight, and get himself hurt because he didn’t even bother to size up his opponent? Kind of like that. I think this happened to Joshua after he defeated Jericho, and strutted into Ai without his best men. At times, I have presumed that God will keep doing tomorrow what he did yesterday, no additional faith or effort required. And this always ends badly.

3. Doubt
You’ve got to be careful. Someone might slip something strong into the punch bowl while you’re not looking. Proverbs 4:23 warns you to guard your heart above all else, because the issues of life flow from it. When you let people who don’t have your best interests at heart speak into your life with open access, they can contaminate your pure faith with drops of discouragement and doubt. And next thing you know, you find yourself inebriated by insecurity.

Leaders, we’ve got to sober up. We’re carrying precious cargo.

Doubt hit me hard. When I first read the title, I assumed something else and then it spoke what I needed to hear. Perry Noble says he only listens to those that love Jesus and love him and in that order. And that he prays constantly for God to speak through those people. There is some sound wisdom for you.

He is my problem: I want to believe people. I have to be VERY careful in what I believe when people talk. It's my weakness, I recognize it. One level of protection, take what they say and HOW they say it (just as important) back to scripture. If it contradicts God's word. Throw it out and don't give it any more thought.

P.S. For someone that doesn't believe in the Bible I sure do put a lot of trust in it. ;)

I'm Not Happy

2008-10-13T21:12:00.003-07:00

Rumor sites are all buzzing right now with the "notebook" media event at Apple tomorrow. Some photos were leaked tonight; here is one of them:

Let me tell you everything that is wrong with this computer and these rumors: black plastic keyboard (seriously Apple, nobody wants that, we didn't like it on the Air), ports, screen (I might be able to get over that, the more a look at it, the more I start to be okay with it) and rumors of no 17" or MacBook update. All I'm saying, I'm going to be disappointed if they don't refresh the MacBooks. I'm hoping for a shock moment, where I stand back and say WOW!

Ebay Layoffs

2008-10-13T11:10:00.006-07:00

Ebay is in the process of laying off 1,500 employees. What happened? Only a couple of years ago Ebay was the place to buy online. It was the place with all the deals and now it is in the history books. They got comfortable with their style of doing business and their style went out of date. There is a couple of lessons for ministry to be learned here:

1. Just because it has worked in the past, doesn't mean it is going to work in the future.
2. You always have to be pushing the envelope. Don't get comfortable.
3. Don't grow too big too fast.
4. Make sure the ministry will make a lasting impact and not become a fad.

TOP 100 - Outreach

2008-10-12T17:57:00.005-07:00

Not so interested in the TOP 100 Largest Churches, but the TOP 100 Fastest Growing Church is where it is at.
I'm going to watch churches that are movers and shakers and we even have some in Arizona. No love on the west side, but we can change that. I had to purchase the PDF so I won't show the list, but if you are wanting to check it out you can get a copy at www.outreach.com. There are some things that these Fastest-Growing-Churches have in common (that I've noticed):

1. Clear Vision: they know what God is calling them to do and they are RUNNING in that direction. They don't let anything or anyone come in the way for what God is doing and they limit their ministries to their vision. Because their vision is clear, they use it as a guide to which direction the church will head with specific ministries and all the ministries in the church align with the vision.

2. Simple Ministry: the fastest growing churches keep things simple. They don't over populate their church calendars with individual minsitries events, but with the church as a whole's ministry and vision (there is that vision again). They understand that even though the ministry could do great things, it could be a ministry that God hasn't asked their church to do. Being aligned with God - their budget, time and energy are all aligned as well and they are seeing results.

3. People Are Crazy in Love: their churches are full with people that are excited by the vision and what God is doing. They are living lives that reflect being crazy in love with God and others. They are changing and transforming peoples lives around them.

iTunes Agreement

2008-10-12T15:55:00.004-07:00

Next time you agree to a software user agreement, make sure and read the fine print.

You also agree that you will not use these products prohibited by United States law, including, without limitation, the development, design, manufacture or production of missiles, or nuclear, chemical or biological weapons.

I'm In Love

2008-10-09T12:06:00.002-07:00

Mila Kunis.Nuff said!

What They REALLY Mean.

2008-10-07T17:05:00.002-07:00

Perry knocked another one out of he park! I laughed, I cried and I did them both at the same time. Hopefully you get a kick out of these as well, What They REALLY Mean:

(WARNING…you will probably only like this post if you are a pastor or a staff member of a church!)

What They Say: “I’m looking for a church that preaches the Word!”

What They Mean: “I’m looking for a church that preaches MY view of the Word. I think the BLANK translation should be used…I think BLANK should be talked about a lot while BLANK should be ignored. And if you ever stop preaching my view of the Word I will leave and tell others that you don’t preach the Word!”

What They Say: “Lot’s of people have been coming to me and saying they don’t like is…”

What They Mean: “I basically only have three friends…and all of them think exactly like me. The other night we were enjoying a time of self righteousness because, after all, we are right about everything…and were also slandering you (in the form of prayer requests) and thought it would be wise to approach you with our pet peeve. We’ve actually talked to no one else about this but said “lots” because we wanted to validate our dysfunction.”

What They Say: “I’m leaving the church.”

What They Mean: “Beg me to stay. If you will just ask me I will share with you several ways you can compromise God’s vision that He’s given you, thus becoming nothing more than a people pleasing pastor who is more interested in popularity than obedience. If you don’t bow to my demands I will remind you that I tithe and that the church needs my money, reducing you to a mere preaching whore…one who is paid for a service for the pleasure of another person.”

What They Say: “I want a church that is more focused on discipleship.”

What They Mean: “I want a church where everyone knows me and how important I am! I don’t want to reach people who are different from me, be it economic class or race or even musical preference. I already know WAY more than I do…but I somehow equate spirituality with knowledge rather than application and I rather enjoy feeling intellectually superior to those who don’t know as much as me.”

What They Say: “Don’t take this personally…but…”

What They Mean: “I am about to lower the BOOM on you…but you can’t get angry because I told you not to take it personally. Even though you have dedicated your life to this and pretty much invest every ounce of energy you have to this cause…and I think about it once or twice a week…you need to receive my attacks, even when they are personal…and you cannot retaliate because, remember, it’s not personal.”

Four Transitions We SHOULD NOT Want To Make

2008-10-03T13:43:00.005-07:00

Great posts over at PerryNoble.com on four transitions that will plateau the church. Check them out below (link to Perry's posts by clicking on each transition).

#1 - “I Want To” to “I Have To.”
#2 - “It’s All About Jesus,” to, “It’s All About Me!”
#3 - “Let’s Risk It All,” to, “Let’s Play It Safe.”
#4 - “Learning From Others” to “Comparing To Others.”

Leadership is a gift of Perry and I learn from him constantly. I tried to point to the one transition that I really hit it home, but they are all right on the button. Taking any one of these transitions would plateau the church and taking more then one would create a certain doom for that church's effectiveness.

Forget It! I'll Just Run!

2008-10-03T13:26:00.003-07:00

It happened over night and I am speechless!

Click Here for the news article.

Weekly Download, Volume 5

2008-10-03T13:04:00.002-07:00

the weekend/week was: it was better then the last couple of weeks. I'm still praying through somethings and asking God for wisdom and guidance. Work was quick, which was a nice change of pace and things seem to be getting better. But still waiting for an interview for Full-time.
where i am at the moment: home. watching TV with Andrew. Enjoying my day off.
ridgepoint update: things are in the works. Praying asking God for next steps.
work update: Market Core was good. It was a nice change of pace and I enjoyed working with new hires. Reminds me a lot of ministry; hands on training. I really missed it.
procrastinating about: couple of things I need to change and update on my computer. I just like to think I don't have enough time to do them, but the truth is I don't want to.
book i’m in the midst of: still nothing. To many other things in life going on that I haven't sat down to read.
music that seemed to catch my attention this past week: my music has been off this week. Lots of praying in my car drives.
from the BOOK: we started reading Philippians in our small group and I've been reading it a lot in my quiet time. I love this book. Called to high commitment and calling. I always get pumped up when I read chapter 2!
how i’m feeling about this week: we'll see.

Got this Text

2008-10-02T10:44:00.002-07:00

My mom isn't a texter; so it made this text that much sweeter. It's been a rough couple of weeks for me and I was drained and then I got this text.

Can You See Me Know?

2008-09-30T09:19:00.001-07:00

Hearing reports that all the images from my blog are missing. Is it happening to you? Trying to figure it out.

Addicted to Porn?

2008-09-28T22:22:00.006-07:00

I know a lot of guys, myself included, that have struggled with this exact sin. If you're there now, know that you can with the power of Christ overcome and beat this sin. Here is where you start (eBook, Porn-Again Christian by Mark Driscoll):
Next step is to talk with someone. Anyone. Ask for help.

I Would Go Every Week

2008-09-28T22:13:00.002-07:00

If this happened at our prisons I would visit every week.

How did they get everyone on cue! This is amazing!

1 - 1 Preseason

2008-09-26T15:52:00.004-07:00

So far the Avs are 1 - 1 this preseason. With a lost in shootout to LA on Wednesday and a win over Dallas last night this are looking good. Avs played their second string last night to give the seniors a break and they played well. Looks like we will be competing this year.

Weekly Download, Volume 4

2008-09-26T15:24:00.002-07:00

the weekend/week was: tiring. I am wore out. Between work and everything else going on. I just done physically, mentally and emotionally. On a good note: Andrew got his MacBook this past week and is loving it!
where i am at the moment: hortons.
ridgepoint update: looks like Ridgepoint church will have its First Elements (Pre-View Service) mid-October. I still have to lock down a place. Meeting with some people this week to talk through some basics for Ridgepoint.
work update: have my first Market Core this weekend for work. I'm a store mentor now and I hoping to grow in the role even more over the next couple of months.
procrastinating about: I still need to call Nationwide and figure out what it going on with them. I'll try calling later tonight. I need to get back to reading as well.
book i’m in the midst of: nothing. I know. It's weak, but its been on of those weeks and I just have had to many other things to worry about that I just haven't made the time to sit down and read.
music that seemed to catch my attention this past week: Brandon Heath's Give Me Your Eyes, easy. I have Chase addicted to it now. He has probably listened to it more then I have in the last two days.
from the BOOK: don't you hate it that when we get down or overwhelmed with life we start to dift away from truth. The time when we need God the most, is the time we try to do it on our own.
how i’m feeling about this week: hard to say and I'll leave it like that.

It's Finally Here!

2008-09-21T20:40:00.002-07:00

Pre-Season starts this week! Avs play LA at the Pepsi Center on Wednesday!!

What Advertising Can't Fix

2008-09-20T14:22:00.009-07:00

Seth Godin's post on Microsoft's 300 Million Dollar Marketing Campaign.

If you spend more than a quarter of a billion dollars on an ad campaign for a tech company, people will talk about it. If you give Jerry Seinfeld, the most famous comedian ever, $10 million to be in a few of the commercials you do, people will talk about it even more.

Microsoft has fallen into a trap that befalls many large companies in search of cred, buzz or respect. They've decided to buy some via advertising.
For more than twenty years, Microsoft has relentlessly commodified itself and the software it makes. It has worked to become a monopoly, a semi-faceless organization that cranks out very good (or pretty good) software that gets a job done for the middle of the market. It's been a profitable strategy.

But now they have Apple envy.

The Zune plays music, the iPod is the badge of a tribe.

A PC laptop runs Excel. A Macbook Air generates buzz and creates joy.
The answer must be to run better ads! And lots of them.
Question: When was the last time you met an Apple employee who was truly passionate about the products she made or sold? My guess is this happened the last time you went to an Apple store. When was the last time you had a similar experience with a Microsoft employee?

If you talk to Google employees, odds are that they are totally engaged and on a mission to change the way people interact with the internet and with information. Talk to a Microsoft person and they will be happy to talk about reliability or standards they set or the way to engage the bureaucracy of the organization.

Microsoft may very well not be broken. The world needs reliable bureaucracies that mollify the needs of corporations and individuals in the center of the market. But if it is broken, advertising isn't going to fix it.

Great principle to apply to the church. If we were honest with ourselves we would come to a conclusion that people don't give (money, time, energy, themselves) to ministries. They give to a mission, a vision! Our your ministry leaders excited about what the church is doing to fulfill it's vision or they happy with the ministry they are involved in. Let's rally the troops and run towards a vision.

1Password

2008-09-19T11:30:00.005-07:00

Great utility for the Mac. Keeps all your personal information, credit cards, address, logins in one place. I don't know what would do with out it. One downside: you forget your passwords. If you aren't near your phone (since they have an iPhone App) or your computer you're tough out of luck in remembering the password.

People Watching

2008-09-17T11:31:00.007-07:00

Ever people watch? How people interact with each other has always been interesting to me. Watching people in a group setting is the best. I think you can learn more about someone by watching how they interact with others in the group then in any other setting. I'm sitting in Del Taco listening to a group of five guys that work for the City of Phoenix:

The Friendly Foreman: sat with the employees not by himself or with the other foremen. Doesn't see himself as higher or better then the guys that work under him. Lunch time is his time and he'll take advantage of the down time.

The Boss: Sitting at a table with just one other employee. Would like to be part of the guys, but doesn't want to undermine his place of leadership. Tries to pass the time by texting away on his cell phone.

The In-Guy: he isn't a foreman or in a place of leadership, but buddy, buddies with the foremen for a place of status among his peers. Sat with "the Boss" to show he's cool and took the time with his peers to show he is still one of them.

The Quiet One: older gentlemen. Doesn't want to play the game. He seems happy with where is at or at least has excepted it. Would love to move up to a management role, but doesn't feel it would be worth his time to apply.

The Wanna-Be: hesitant to interact with the foremen, but wants to be in their position. Try to buddy up to them, but tries to hard. Applies every year for foreman, but never gets a second interview. Figures if he tries to buddy with the foremen they will through in a good word.

Just an outsider looking in, but interesting what you can learn about people by listening and watching. I could be totally off, which is a good chance. I only observed an hour of their lives. They seem to be happy with their jobs, but it's just a job.

Watch some people today.

300!

2008-09-17T11:31:00.002-07:00

Started blogging November 1st, 2007...

...and today I post my 300 post!

I'm Counting Down

2008-09-14T18:53:00.004-07:00

I work Thursday nights, so I need to find some way of watching. Hopefully it is a much better season then the last one.

Weekly Download, Volume 3

2008-09-14T17:12:00.002-07:00

the weekend/week was: long. I still can't believe it is Sunday. It feels more like a Tuesday or Wednesday. Pretty uneventful. Went to Good Egg and Apple with Andrew and watch Callie and Chase's games. I spent all day today in a meeting for mentoring at work. Should be exciting change at my job.

where i am at the moment: hortons. I know I said I would be somewhere cool, but honestly I totally forgot that I said that till right now. I'll try next week.

on my to-do list this week: things got all shifted around this week with some things that came up, but I still need to hammer down a place for Mission Trip. If you have any contact, please, please shoot me an email. I have a couple of things to get done with Ridgepoint and need to catch up with some people.

ridgepoint update: planning the first ever meeting for Ridgepoint! Scary and exhilarating at the same time. It will be out next week sometimes. Just need to talk with some people and finalize some things. I'm stoked at what God has in store!

It's the 14th of September! Some pretty big things happened this week and weekend that overshadowed the 13th and actually I didn't even notice that it pasted, but thanks to coffee with a friend and a good butt kicking. Things are going to start rocking 'n rolling. I'm stoked!!

work update: got a promotion. Kind of. I'm been asked to be on the Mentor Team and that should help, I would think, in getting me a full-time position. I could use the raise and forsure the benifits.

procrastinating about: nothing. actually. I'm pretty proud of myself. I do need to call Nationwide to cancel my car insurance through them, but that's more finding the time and number. Who am I kidding. It's procrastination.

book i’m in the midst of: had a rough week in reading. Last week was great this week. I just got busy so fast I missed reading. Looking to pick up It by Groeschel and finishing it. I figure, if I keep my list small I have a better chance of completing what I have to accomplish.

music that seemed to catch my attention this past week: Brandon Heath's Give Me Your Eyes, easy. Andrew made a comment about my iTunes and how many times I've listen to it. Play count is 86 between my phone and computer. It is kind of sick. I play songs I like over and over and over again.

from the BOOK: this week. Corinthians, Malachi and still reading in Revelation. Learned somethings, but hard to share them all typed out.

I do read and believe in the Bible for all of those out there that don't believe I do or let's be alittle more specific, that talk to others about the fact that they don't believe I read the Bible or believe in it. Seriously, you really think people don't talk to me. If you have a problem with me MAN-UP and talk to me, not about me. (I know I shouldn't say that, but...it my blog I can do whatever I want.)

how i’m feeling about this week: Not that excited. I know it's going to be a LONG week!

what I'm asking God: wisdom and truth. A lot is going on and I just need wisdom and truth to be spoken into my life.

blog anything: sorry. I know I said I would try harder.

Mark the Calendar

2008-09-11T12:13:00.003-07:00

My heart aches to love God with all my heart, soul and mind and to love others as much as I love myself. Loving those that will never love me back. Loving on those that don't feel love from others often. One of Ridgepoint's core values is Our communities needs come before our needs. A value that should be lived out in all Christians lives. Here is a chance to do just that. Love on the community and put out needs and wants behind theirs.

Yes, Thanksgiving. A time of year that the homeless and unloved get forgotten, so we can have family dinners with family and friends. Join me to love on others.

Project still in the works. Talking with a couple of Rescue Mission: Phoenix, Tucson, Albuquerque, Las Cruces, Yuma and Nogales. Looking for a place that doesn't have help yet and has a need to be met through the weekend.

Interested. Email me.

Big Day at Work

2008-09-09T22:54:00.005-07:00

Apple had it's "Let's Rock" keynote today and release some new products, but is always a huge thing in Apple-land. New nanos, classics, touches, and shuffles. Cheaper and beautiful. New features for great products. iTunes 8 and iPhone 2.1. All in all a good keynote. But this is what caught my attention and got me excited!

NBC back in iTunes. That means my beloved The Office is back on my computer and I don't have to try and watch the shows on the horribly designed site over at nbc.com. More pictures from keynote:

Catch the Keynote by Jobs here.

Weekly Download, Volume 2

2008-09-07T23:02:00.004-07:00

the weekend/week was: it was good. Had coffee with a friend on Saturday and Good Egg with the Horton kids. I love the Good Egg. I spilled Chelsea's drink all over the table. Yeah, I know. I should be past that stage of life, but I did blame it on Chelsea when all the employees came to our rescue. Looking to start a small group and mission trip. See why I'm excited for the week.

where i am at the moment: home. Same as last week. I was at Paradise Bakery when I thought about writing this post earlier today. If that counts. Next week I'll pick somewhere cool.

on my to-do list this week: details, details, details. prayer, prayer, prayer. That is about it. :)

ridgepoint update: little slow this week in term of all the legal stuff. got some organizational stuff done though.

work update: God did some work in my heart his week. I need to get over myself and tough it out. Work isn't readily available right now and I need to start making strong friendship with my fellow employees and stop talking poorly about my manager.

procrastinating about: bylaws and incorporation stuff for Ridgepoint. I'm praying about a lot of stuff and when I don't know what is next or how to do something, I procrastinate.

book i’m in the midst of: Finished The FIVE Disfunctions of a TEAM by Patrick Lencioni. I really enjoyed it. I think Curt (previous boss) tried to get us to read it and I just wasn't hip on the idea. Wish I took his advise and picked it up earlier. Learned a lot and re-enforced a lot as well. I'm a leadership/management buff (some people love history, I love being able to lead people effectively). It by Craig Groeschel, started this one while I was in Colorado and haven't gotten the chance (actually I haven't made it a priority) to finish it. I was into it enough that I bought another copy of it. I'll try and finish it off by the end of this week. Still re-reading Crazy Love by France Chan. Started reading Why We're Not Emergent by Kevin Deyoung and Ted Kluck earlier today and wasn't so impressed. It seem to be getting better or at least my reaction towards it was getting better.

music that seemed to catch my attention this past week: Hillsong's Mighty to Save. Andrew recommended Brandon Heath's Give Me Your Eyes. God of this City by Chris Tomlin.

from the BOOK: Still in Revelation. Re-read through the churches and the bigness of God. Didn't do a great job at slowing down this week and making time to ask God to show me how big He is and how small I really am.

how i’m feeling about this week: stoked actually. A lot of cool things are going to happen. I'm wanting to put together a mission trip for Thanksgiving and seem to have some people interested. Also, looking to start a experimental small group to walk through Crazy Love. I love to learn with others and I think this could be an amazing experience for everyone evolved. Apple has a media event on Tuesday. Can't wait to see what Apple has to share with the world.

what I'm asking God: to get a glimpse of how big He really is and next steps. what in my life needs to be addressed and changed or encouraged.

blog anything: nope. I only posted twice last week. Sorry. I'll try harder.

Religous Views

2008-09-05T21:35:00.005-07:00

I was on Facebook this evening and noticed something about people's pages. Their religious views. They are kind of all over the place: Christian, Christ-Follower, Walking with Christ, Baptist, etc. Here is my thought: why did you choose to write what you did? When setting up your page that field is a write in text box, unlike MySpace which gave you a couple of choices.

Thought is was interesting what people did write. Specially if it was different from "Christian." Granted I'm going with the understand that the pages I was looking at were Christians.

I have my reason for my response to the question. It's was a conscious choice for people to write what they did. I was just curious.

Just my thoughts.

Question. Part Four.

2008-09-04T19:35:00.006-07:00

Part One, Two and Three.

Do you believe the Bible is the authentic word of God? If not, why? If yes, why?

I'm interpreting this question this way: is the Bible (as a book) still God's Word or over time has it been changed; intentionally or unintentionally.

Short Answer: Yes. I do believe the Bible is God's Word.

Long Answer:
This one for me is hard and not so hard at the same time. Three years ago I took an New Testament Survey class from a retired, liberal Methodist Preacher (nothing against liberals). It messed me up.

The sad part is that I carried it around for a long while. He challenged my way of thought and crushed what I believed. In the end I would thank him, but at the time I questioned a lot of things and I had nowhere to go with my questions. I didn’t have a safe place. Questions are great, but there are certain questions in the Christian community you just can’t ask. Which is sad and I completely disagree with and will do everything I can to change. People have to question. Scriptures teaches it. People questions God over and over again. It’s part of the process in growing towards Him.

Now you have background let me answer the question. Back a couple of years ago I would of said no. It’s been perverted and changed. Today, I would say yes. Do our versions/translations have errors, yes, but that doesn’t change God’s power to speak in to our lives. Words might be different, things interpreted incorrectly or things missing or added but God isn’t limited to a book. His word is living and active, sharper then a double-edged sword, it cuts through bone and marrow straight to the heart. When God speaks, truth is spoken. Do I believe the Bible is God’s Word? Yes. Do I believe that if the translation of scripture has errors it can’t be God’s Word? NO. I would be limiting God’s power!

Take it from someone that has journeyed down the difficult and loney road. Now go read your Bibles!

Weekly Download

2008-09-02T20:22:00.005-07:00

the weekend/week was: it was quite other then Friday night. That was just nuts! I think I set a new life record though: two baseball games within a week and a half of each other.

where i am at the moment: home. Nowhere special. Though I would love be somewhere other then here this week!

on my to-do list this week: Get my bank accounts switched over to Bank of America and finialize paperwork with Progressive for my car insurance. Speaking of Ridgepoint (I was speaking of Ridgepoint, then I deleted what I wrote. It's my blog. I can do what I want.), I need to write out their Articles of Incorporation. Bought a book today and it should help. Need to call: my mom, my dad and my sister to catch up. It's been a couple of weeks. Find another job!

ridgepoint update: September 13th is right around the corner. That day is significant because it is the one year marker from the point when I told God I would give Him a year to pray about planting Ridgepoint. I'm praying be things happen that day. Received our EIN (Employer Identification Number) from the IRS. Incorporation and bylaws are coming together. Bank account was finalized last week. Who would of thought so much goes into setting up an account for a company.

work updatge: I'm tired of that place. Retail is rough and I have a manager I just can't stand. We are in the process of moving stores (nothing special, just next door). But it does mean a BRAND new store. It's pretty cool looking. I'll have to take pictures tomorrow. The way Apple does it: they open the store as if it is a new store. Meaning we get new EVERYTHING. Very cool setup. This week is all about unpacking boxes, visuals, and product placement. It has been a nice change of place.

procrastinating about: job stuff. looking but not really. I hate rejection and job searching is the worst.

book i’m in the midst of: The FIVE Disfunctions of a TEAM by Patrick Lencioni. Picked it up a couple of years ago, but never got around to reading it. I've only read through the introduction, but I'm looking forward to it this time. Re-Reading Crazy Love by France Chan.

music that seemed to catch my attention this past week: I've been in a weird mood the last couple of weeks. Nothing really hits me. This morning I was really feeling Shane and Shane. I'm one of those guys that when I find a song that is moving me. I hit repeat and listen to it a hundred times.
We Love You Jesus.

from the BOOK: the last week or so I've been in Revelations. It's been a couple of years since I've worked through it. One of the things I've been asking God as I read is...show be how big you are God.

how i’m feeling about this week: good. I'm hoping to get a lot done this week in regards to Ridgepoint. Work should be easy.

what I'm asking God: what is next, what is right, what is working, what do I need to change, what do I need to give up. God let me see as you see and do as you would want me to do.

Question. Part Three

2008-08-30T13:09:00.003-07:00

Now another question. Question One and Two are here.

Since we are on the 10 commandments, what do you think about commandment #3, "You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name" Exodus. 20:7. What do you think it means to take the Lord's name in vain?

Two thoughts:

First, using the Lord name in a verbal way and not address Him. Let's put some understanding on this: When Old Testament scribes came upon the name of God while coping scripture they would go through a ritual cleansing before and after they wrote His name. Do you know how many times God's name is in the Old Testament? God is HOLY, set apart. There is nothing like Him. He is above all. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. Scribes understood that holiness and reacted accordingly.

There was an understanding that when you came into the presence of the Almighty you would not live to tell about it. Jacob, when He wrestled with God, knew what the outcome should of been: "So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, "It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared" Genesis 32:30.

In today's age I think we don't understand God's size and holiness. We like to think we do, but our actions show otherwise. You will probably hear me say a lot of words, but one I will never use is God's name when I'm not speaking to or about him. I might not understanding the God of this universe in a humble manor, but I do understand enough to know I don't want to experience His wrath!

Second, once heard this explanation of the 3rd commandment: If our belief in God is not to be in vain, then it must be total belief, total allegiance. There is more difference between one and two then between one and one million. This is significant in our loyalties. We cannot give complete allegiance to two nations. We cannon give complete loyalty to two wives. If our allegiance to God is not to be in vain, if it is to be a valid allegiance, then it must be total and complete. This is the only kind of Christianity the Bible teaches. Lip service to Christ is but to take His name in vain.

What is dangerous in our age in not atheism, but a very mild form of Christianity. It is not outright rejections that is most dangerous, but the meaningless form of acceptance. This is to take His name in vain.

It's an interesting idea and good for thought. I would lean more towards litteral understanding in scripture. i.e. scripture reading: You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God; really meaning use of His name.

Those are my thoughts to the question. Yours?

Priceless

2008-08-29T23:44:00.005-07:00

Ticket to the Game . . . $20
Burger, Fries and a Coke . . . $16
Program . . . $5

Seeing 15 people thrown out and 3 fights in our section . . . Priceless.

One of the best baseball games I've ever attended. I think I watched section 140 more then I watched the game. Sodas were thrown, people were tackled and fists connected with faces. I was absolutely chaos and a blast. When the Dodgers come back into town. I'm getting a ticket.

Internet Anywhere!

2008-08-25T17:29:00.004-07:00

You can't beat it. I've only had it for a day, but I'm stoked about it thus far. We canceled on Cox at home, since we haven't had the internet working properly for the last couple months and I went out and bought this.It's pretty sweet and quick. 3G is almost as fast as WiFi and some WiFi I've connected to it's faster then. Not for everyone and we had to sacrifice XBOX LIVE, but it saves us money, gets TV out of my house (so much wasted time) and gives me a new level of mobility.

Question. Part Two

2008-08-20T20:37:00.006-07:00

See first question and response here.

What do you think it means to love God with all your heart? With all your soul? With all your mind?

This is a hard one. Steve emailed me this a couple of days ago and I'm still processing my answer. I've looked this at every angle and I just can't find a way to put my thoughts together. Probably because I don't have any idea. I don't know. I wish I did. But I've been journeying on this road for a couple of years and I still don't have a specific answer.

Lets journey together to find the answer.

Here is another question for you, as we journey together through this. How do we get to a point where we want "more God" and move away from the place of, we have "enough God"? People say they want "more God", but their lives don't reflect Jesus. I believe Christians need to stop lying to themselves and realize they are at a place where they have "enough God." When we get to a place where we want "more God;" the heart, soul and mind stop being our focus because they become who we are.

I don't have a three step process (key word process, since I have no idea), but I do know some things that have to be there:

1. We must realize how big God is.
This is one that I struggle with. In the book Crazy Love, Chan describes the vast world we live in. He describes the 350,000,000,000 galaxies that exist. No I didn't add too many zeros. This world God created is just absolutely HUGE. Look at how complex the human body is and how everything just works perfectly together. That is amazing. Think of the 6.68 billion people that live on this earth and how God has a plan for each one of their lives. His creation is nuts. This is one I just can't get my head around. We have to remember that God is too big for our minds to wrap around, but I don't think I'm even close to understanding it. I believe the more and more we step back and realize God's size, even in small doses, the more we love our all-powerful God.

2. We must get uncomfortable.
This one is hard. Specially for us Americans. At some point Christianity and the American Dream became one. The first will becomes last and the last will become first. "You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me" Luke 18: 22. Josh, you can't say that God is asking me to sell everything I have. Why not? If God asked you to sell everything; would you? Don't lie to yourself.

Most of us wouldn't. It gets me to a VERY uncomfortable place and I'm not okay with that. Instead I would quote scripture to prove it wrong (I can prove that I should be able to have 90 wives if I picked and choose verses) or give myself excuses like: God really isn't speaking, it's just gas from dinner. Sometimes we need to take scripture at literal truth and not over analyze it. I'm not saying, to love the Lord you God with all our heart, soul and mind we need to sell everything, but I am saying if God said sell everything we need to be at a place where we would with no questions asked.

3. We must get over ourselves.
Warren said it, "It's not about you." We all have a calling on our lives. A calling that is bigger then ourselves. A calling that takes a miracle from Him to fulfill. It's not about what we want, what we care about, or what we desire. It's about God. "Another disciple said to Him, 'Lord, first let me go and bury my father.' But Jesus told him, 'Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead'" Matthew 8:21-22. We have to be ready to follow Jesus even when we don't want to or it doesn't make sense to us. It's not about us. We would be an unstoppable force if we could live this principle out.

4. We must believe He could really do it.
Trust. Even when this doesn't seem to make sense. Mark Batterson puts it a great way: our galaxy (the milky way) is 100,000 light years away. A light year is 5,865,696,000,000 miles. Multiply 5,865,696,000,000 by 100,000 and on your best day with your best thought you are at least that far from God's thoughts. "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts" Isaiah 55:9. God knows best and we need to trust Him. Much easier said then done. Even when it seems stupid, crazy and absolutely ridiculous. We need to trust that God can and will do it. Jesus said, "...and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth" Acts 1:8. In a time when people didn't travel more then 60 miles from their homes. Jesus says you will be my witness to the ends of the earth. We need to trust He will do what He says He will do.

First Step for Me.
I had to get uncomfortable. I left somewhere I loved, to do what God called me to do. It made no sense, it seemed like a stupid decision and in my deepest being, I did not want to do it. It took trust and it takes trust everyday. I miss ministry and I miss the ministry I had at Arrowhead, but God called me to move on and at the time I had no idea Ridgepoint was in my future. I held onto God in that time. We grew. I should say, I grew. I would not be the same person I am today or in this place in my relationship with my Creator if I stayed at Arrowhead. I had to get uncomfortable to hear God's call; deepen my trust and my intimacy with Him. Even though it was hard, I wouldn't change it for the world.

Process with me. Your thoughts?

Crazy Ones

2008-08-20T16:17:00.002-07:00

Great commercial from back in the day from Apple. Are you a crazy one? Are you ready to change the world.

Read Anything Lately

2008-08-19T15:10:00.003-07:00

Have you been reading anything good lately? Leaders are learners. Post in the comments some of the good books that are in your bookshelf. Here is my list:

It by Craig Groeschel.
Crazy Love by Francis Chan
Making Vision Stick by Andy Stanley
Good to Great by Jim Collins
Made to Stick by Chip & Dan Heath
When Leadership and Discipleship Collide by Bill Hybels

My Week!

2008-08-19T14:50:00.004-07:00

My trip is coming to an end and I leave to catch my flight back to Phoenix in a couple of minutes. It's been a great long weekend to spend with my mom and Nathan. But before I go back to the real world let me update you on the happenings of this weekend:

- Went to the Art Museum for my mom's birthday. It was different, but still worth the trip. It rained all day, but I think it was a good birthday for my mom.
- Watched some movies: Oceans 13, Nanny Diaries, Firewall, Mama's Boy, Day Zero and a few others.
- Ate out at Yard House, Olive Garden, California Pizza Kitchen, Cheesecake Factory & a steak joint. Don't get to eat out that often anymore and it was nice to be able to spend time with my mom over a meal.
- Shopped. I'm not a huge fan of shopping, but I did get some stuff. That's always nice.
- Went to service at my mom's church. It was good and it looks like they have a lot of great change ahead of them. Exciting to see.
- Spent some time with Nate. I wish I was able to do more of that. With all his quarks, he is a great kid.
- Had dinner over at Kris and Laura's house. Saw the little ones. Payton (sp?) is two and half and full of life. We walked in with her stark naked doing her business in the back yard. It was cute and funny. Told Kris to film it for blackmail later in life. Lucas is a cute kid. Their family seems to be doing really well!
- NO HOCKEY. It's been awhile since I've visited Colorado without seeing one of Nathan's games. Sounds like he is doing real well. It would of been cool to see him play. Maybe later in the season. He was in Minnisota till Sunday night for a tournament.

New Olympic Sport?

2008-08-17T15:10:00.003-07:00

I'm thinking about making a ritual out of the office this year. Anyone want to make a weekly occurrence at my house or if another house is offered?

I can't wait. Can you?

Red Hat Society

2008-08-16T10:54:00.004-07:00

This just came to my attention and I had to share. My Grandma is a member of the Red Hat Society. We'll maybe not them exactly, but a similar group. I haven't gotten it confirmed from her yet. These are the ladies to see at Restaurants that all look alike with their purple dress and red hats. I would of loved to able to post a picture of her and her group, but I don't have one and I like my life. I don't think I seen my Grandma in a dress either. This is a tribute to you Grandma and to your group!

Finally Here!

2008-08-15T15:00:00.002-07:00

Flight left 3 hours late, but I arrived in Colorado. One of the things I always look forward to about visiting is being able to talk with my mom to the wee hours of the morning. I like to talk and spend time with people. It's one of my love languages. And sitting down and talking with my mom about life is always a good time. Had lunch at Yard House and looking forward to the rest of the weekend.

Question.

2008-08-14T20:25:00.006-07:00

My brother in-law asked me a question that Wendy and him asked each other. What's the point/objective of a Christian's life? I'm going to answer it in this way. But because the term "Christian" has been so perverted over the years I going to refer to a Christ-Follower when answering this question and not a church-goer. There is a difference.

Short Answer:
Being at a place where God has your entire heart and where you will do whatever God asks you to do. My heart as a pastor is that I have a congregation what will do whatever God asks.

Long Answer:
God has a calling on each one of our lives and that calling forces us to get uncomfortable and rely on Him when we say yes to that call. Our "Christian" lives shouldn't be about rules and behaviors it should be about giving our hearts to God. The Lord says: “These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is made up only of rules taught by men." Isaiah 29:13. Our hearts are at the core of our relationship with God. "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind." Matthew 22:37. Christians do a great job at loving our God with all our mind. We are book smart. We equate our relationship with God with how much I know about the Bible. Don't get me wrong that is God's word to us, but knowing it like that back of my hand doesn't make me a follower. Loving God does! We love God with our souls. We worry about the punishment for sin and we want to live in eternity with Jesus. But what about our heart! Do we give God our heart or do we give our heart to our sinful nature? Think about it. Not doing what God has called us to do is just as much a sin as doing what He told us not to do. Reason one of our core values at Ridgepoint is Being a Christ-Follower is about being not doing. Jesus during His sermon on the mount took the ten commandments and took them to a whole new level. He was screaming I want your heart. I don't want you just following rules. When we give God our hearts; sin doesn't have power over us and we truly can conquer it. I'm a living example. Christianity is about surrendering control and giving God our heart, souls and minds and get to the point where we will do whatever, whenever God asks.

Small Groups, Do They Work? Part 2

2008-08-11T09:07:00.001-07:00

Idea: Lose the facilitators, group leaders, question askers and put in pastors. Empower small group leaders to pastor the people of their groups. Ask much more work on the front end finding the right people to shepherd a small group of people and water and plant seeds, but in the when people are cared for. Vulnerability and openness happens. Different with every person, but that's responsiblity of the group leader. We want to move a person closer to Jesus. We want them to meet Jesus.

Group Pastor + Caring for His Group = Healthy Succesful Small Groups.

Pros - Cons?

I Don't Feel Good

2008-08-10T19:46:00.003-07:00

Did a little wine tasting, soda style tonight with the Horton kids. It was cool, can't say the soda was good though. Bevmo has a whole row of non-norm Soda that you don't find in grocery stores. We picked out 8. Fun experience, but my stomach didn't like all the soda.

Small Groups, Do They Work?

2008-08-10T12:33:00.005-07:00

I've been working and praying through our discipleship plan for Ridgepoint and have been wrestling through small groups. Do they work as they are intended to work? I've been looking at typical small group models and talking with people that attend a small group currently.

Questions I've asked: Why? Why go to a small group? Does your small group have community? What are things you've done as a group?

With these questions I got the expected answers. To learn and fellowship with other believers. Yeah, we all have a good time. We usually have a time to catch up on the week, prayer and bible study.

Here is my question...is this a new testament model? They meet in homes in small groups, but are they really as Act 2 describes? Shouldn't there be more to them? Shouldn't they be on a different level?

I asked these questions, next: Can you say that you are are completely open and vulnerable with individuals in that group? Maybe not the whole group or the members of the opposite sex, but are you open? Has there been a crisis in your group that brought your group together or have you been in a group where the group fell apart in a crisis? Do you hang out with those members of your group on a regular basis? Go to them when you're in need? Do you seek out the members of the group during the week to just be yourself? Do you go out as families and enjoy life and ministry?

Answers looked a little different then the first round of questions: When I pushed the community aspect of their group I was surprised at the lack of true community. Looking at the models, I understand, but still kind of surprised. Vulnerable, not so much. Outside of the specific group time, groups really don't see each other. "Thinking about it, I would call them friends, but not close friends. We have a great time every Tuesday, but I wouldn't call _______ up and ask if he wanted to go golfing this weekend. We're bible study friends..." That gentleman's group has been together for over a year. Groups that have pushed through crisis. Seemed to be, at least in a small degree, do-life-together. Weekend trips, kids hang out together, etc. Vulnerability isn't something you find in most small groups. Don't get me wrong there are a lot of groups out there that really do model the new testament church, but they are they exception, not the norm. I don't believe that you can have a life transforming group environment without authenticity and we don't have true community without vulnerability.

As I journey through this I'll keep you updated, but those are my findings and thoughts. My next post will be some ideas Ridgepoint is moving forward with.

Love to hear your thoughts.

Spent Some Time With God

2008-08-08T20:44:00.003-07:00

Things in my life seemed to be at a complete stand still and I was uneasy and down. I not a person that likes to sit in the same place for very long and the last couple of weeks have been real rough on me. But this morning I went for a drive with God with a heavy heart asking to hear His voice. I was broken and in need to know my Lord was there.

I had multiple things on my heart when I decide to go; Job, Money, Ridgepoint, and Relationships. I was frustrated and upset and wanting God to do something. At points I was demanding God to move. I would love to say God spelled everything out for me, but He didn't. He did tell me that He was in control and even though I don't understand why things are the way they are, His plan is perfect. Here are somethings that God spoke:

I'm in control. Don't worry about anything. Give it to me and don't forget I took care of it.
Josh, you're not patient, but I tell you to be.
You set a date a year ago for Ridgepoint and that date is right around the corner. September 13th.
Wait on me. Don't do anything until I give the go head. I care about the little things in your life; they are apart of my plan.
You still have a lot to learn.

My Heart Beats

2008-08-03T22:33:00.004-07:00

My heart beats faster when I'm doing what God has called me to do. My heartbeat right now is summed up by John Waller's song Something Big. Lyrics go something like this:

It's time to dream big dreams
To see Your vision
Become reality
‘Cause it’s for You, by You, those who
Love You wanna do
Something so big
It’s destined to fail without You, Lord
It’s gonna fail without You, Lord
Something so great
It takes a miracle to do
We, Your children
Wanna do something big for You

I want to do something so big that it will fail with out you God. My heart beats for my life mission, I've done my job as a pastor when I have a congregation that will do absolutely anything God asks them to do.

When you know what you've been called to do and are doing it, nothing else matters. I love that fact about our relationship with our Creator. I know, I'm weird, but it makes life so much easier for me.

Great advise I live by and you as a pastor should take the advise as well. I only listen to criticism from people that love Jesus and love me (in that order) and I pray often that God would speak through those people when something in my life needs to change. Everyone else, I probably won't even take the time to sit down and hear you out. Sorry, I know what I'm called to do. If you're threatened by that, take it up with God. He is the one that called me to it.

Facebook?

2008-07-31T21:05:00.002-07:00

I'm still getting the hang of this Facebook deal and if you wrote on my wall, don't feel bad that I didn't respond. It had nothing to do with you. I just don't know what I'm doing. You would think, for someone that sells computers I could figure out Facebook, but the truth is I haven't spent any time on it to really understand it. I have the App on my phone, but I can only do certain things and I'm not a huge fan of people poking me and buying me (whatever that means). I keep it simple no extra applications on my facebook page.

If you're a Facebooker add me as a friend. I'm pushing an impressive number of 14 friends. Let's get that number up.

Crazy Love Quote

2008-07-31T20:44:00.008-07:00

I've been re-reading Crazy Love. It's just one of those books that stretch me and make me think. I completely agree with the book, but I have a tough time saying okay to God in some of those areas. I love the amount of God's Word that Chan uses. Nothing in the book isn't backed up my scripture after scripture.

Would anyone notice a difference if you just stopped believing in God?

I would love for the answer to be yes, but for most of us. If we were honest with ourselves, our answer would have to be no. Go spend some time with your Creator.

Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God

Where Are People From? (Arizona Addition)

2008-07-31T20:31:00.004-07:00

I've done this before and I figured since my traffic in Arizona has picked up in the last couple of weeks I would give a shout out to all the Arizona folk.

Glendale
Surprise (welcome to Josh Burcham.com)
Sun City
Peoria
Scottsdale (Erik, are you getting on my blog at work? is that allowed?)
Mesa (East valley cities. who would of thought.)
Chandler
Tempe
Phoenix (Figuring this was my house. Since it's been going down and I have no internet at home.)

It's Been a Couple of Days

2008-07-31T20:00:00.004-07:00

Since our internet isn't working at our house and Tuesday and Wednesday are my long days at Apple. I finally have time to blog. It I was better at Twitter I could of been twittering, but as we all know. I'm not a twitter-er (not sure if I made that word up). I wish I would be able to say a lot has happened in my life and in the life of Ridgepoint, but that just wouldn't be true. Here is a quick update:

I'm liking the free internet from Starbucks. Makes my life so much easier and cheaper. Paradise Bakery was getting stinking expensive.
Andrew got back into town from Turkey on Sunday. It was good to see him. He is off again to Colorado for two weeks. At least I get to spend the weekend up there in a couple weeks. Going up for my mom's birthday. While picking up Andrew our car broke down and Andrew, Matt and I had to hitch a ride with Keith. Tedd got to ride back with his car and the tow truck. It made it a night. It would of been just boring with we picked up Andrew and headed back to my house.
Looking for another job it looks like. Apple doesn't look like they are going to hire for full-time for a couple of months. I need something now, not in a couple of months. So we'll see. Anyone have a lead on a job, let me know. Not thinking retail. I've had enough of that to last a life-time.
Haven't gotten the iPhone 3G. I'm thinking about waiting now. Not really sure I want it. Not a lot different then my current one. We'll see. I did promise Myra my old one.
Ridgepoint has a direction we are headed with out Community aspect to our ministry. Our vision has always had a two sides. One was the church and the other was the community. We want to make a difference. Not for the sake of Ridgepoint, but for the sake of the people of our community. I could care less if they ever set foot inside of a Ridgepoint service. We want them to meet Jesus. I've said it before and I'll say it again. I'll spend money, resources, time and energy on whoever; whether they will ever be apart of Ridgepoint or not; I just want them to know and fall in love with Jesus!
Please keep praying for Ridgepoint and the leadership God has called to lead this church (who ever they my be, God hasn't told me yet).
[Starbucks Internet is going in and out.]
My weekend starts in two more days. I'm stoked.
That's enough for now. Hopefully it all makes sense. I'm not planning on reading over it.

My Heart Is Burdened

2008-07-28T14:38:00.001-07:00

Pray for me this week. Pray for wisdom. Thanks.

Random Randomness [Moleskin Edition]

2008-07-24T13:18:00.004-07:00

I love the idea to have a place to dump my thoughts, the downside is because this is a public form I can only dump certain thoughts. All of my other thoughts have to be dumped into my Moleskin. I've been using it for little over a year and love having everything in my head in one place to look back on. My problem is that I never look back at them. I need to fix that. So I'm going to have a special installment of Random Randomness and dump my Moleskin here on my blog:

It's cool to be able to track my thoughts through the pages. When Ridgepoint's vision came together and our core values were put down on paper for the first time. My thoughts from Israel. Verses that spoke to my heart at a specific time.

My Desktop

2008-07-21T18:07:00.003-07:00

Here is my desktop. Love the new folder fan features of Leopard; they de-cluttered my desktop. The only files that you find on my desktop are action files that still need to be processed. Picture is of Cal swimming. I have it setup for the picture to change every 15 minutes. Nice change of pace.

Monday Night's Group

2008-07-21T13:57:00.004-07:00

Last week's group was amazing. It been a couple of weeks since I was able to make it and I'm so glad I was able to. We got way off subject from the book we were working through, but I walked away challenged and inspired to know my God more intimately. Special thanks to Schuyler for challenging my thought.
Read through Genesis 32:22-32 and talked about God calling us to a purpose in life. We wrestle with God to give up aspects of our lives so He can move in ways that will blow our mine. It hurts to give up things we love, but we find true Joy when we are doing what God calls us to do.

Are you a Initiator or a Responder?

2008-07-21T13:49:00.002-07:00

Blog Re-Post: Perry Noble...

Are you an initiator or a responder?

An initiator spends their time trying to think big and extinguish the fires of hell…a responder spends their time trying to figure out how to keep people happy and tries to extinguish the fires of small minded people.
An initiator spends their time asking God to lead them to take huge risks…a responder spends their time asking God to keep them safe.
An initiator takes God led risks…a responder will call a business meeting.
An initiator spends all of their time trying to please God…a responder spends all of their time trying to please people.
An initiator will preach what he feels that God has told him to preach and not fear the consequences…a responder will preach what makes people happy so he can receive a paycheck.
An initiator spends all of their time trying to figure out what’s next…and a responder spends all their time trying to figure out how to guard the past and the present.
An initiator prays huge prayers and asks God for impossible things…a responder doesn’t really think God is in the miracle business anymore & will pray prayers that doesn’t require God’s help to accomplish so that “God doesn’t look bad!”
An initiator will surround himself with leaders who will speak their minds…a responder want people around him who will say, “Your poop doesn’t stink!”
An initiator wants to meet with people who do not think like him…a responder is threatened by people who aren’t just like him.

Just a few thoughts…

It Made my Mom Cry

2008-07-16T21:53:00.002-07:00

Can't deny God's hand is moving when your mom starts to cry. My mom wants to protect me at all costs. When things are going to be hard or tough for me she wants to step in and save her baby. Unless of course I was in need of money, then her response was normally "tough luck," but when I was called into pastoral ministry she knew it wasn't going to be easy and there were going to be times when it was just downright hard. She knew it would hurt her baby. And when I told her God was calling me to plant Ridgepoint. I wouldn't use the word excited to describe her reaction.

A couple of weeks ago we were just catching up on the phone and she brought true joy to my heart. Not sure if she realized it, but it was such an amazing moment for me, it just another way God was confirming what He is doing. "They made me cry" came through the phone line. My mom explained how Ridgepoint's core values made her cry. John and I aren't smart enough to have come up with those values on our own; they were divinely written. God is moving and he blessed me with a small moment of joy as we journey towards His call.

Happy Birthday, CAM!

2008-07-16T19:08:00.002-07:00

Cameron turns 16 today! I know it sounds crazy. He starts driving in a couple of weeks. Happy birthday!

Random Randomness

2008-07-14T16:06:00.001-07:00

It been a couple of months since I download my week on my blog and updated you all on my life as a church planter, lead pastor, apple specialist and whatever other titles people have given me. I've been home a week from Cali, visiting my family and I am just getting back into the swing of things. My last week:

I'll start here: iPhone launch on Friday and work was absolutly bonkers. I'm looking forward to going back tomorrow and there be no line for the iPhone. Apple reported this morning that they sold 1 million iPhone in the first three days of sales and 10 million apps on the Apps Store. That's just crazy!
Ridgepoint's launch is coming closer and closer and thing just don't seem to be getting done. I've been working on the Partner Church Booklet for more then two months now and it should of took me a week. I guess that's the down side of working a full-time job and trying to plant a church. We'll get there!
I miss ministry. I miss planning programs and events, working with leadership teams, teaching and meeting one on one with people.
Be praying for me this week as I seek God's guidance on some key things for Ridgepoint. I had a couple of things hit me this week and I'm just waiting on God for His answer.
Meet with Meisner this weekend for coffee. It was great to catch up with him.
Got to spend most of my weekend with the Horton's which was nice. I haven't seen them all week.
Using new software called OmniFocus to help keep goals and tasking going in the right direction. I'm loving it so far and they have an App for the iPhone with makes it even better. I've been using OmniPlan for a couple of months now for Ridgepoint and really like the company. Still waiting for 37singals to create Apps.
Andrew (my brother) seems to be having a great time in Turkey. Check out his blog of his trip.
Opened up Google Reader yesterday and had 523 blog post to catch up on. I hate when I get that back up. I end up missing a great post when I just scan through them.

www.ridgepoint.cc

2008-07-13T22:38:00.004-07:00

The Ridgepoint Site is up and running. Still only in phase one, but it's looking great! John did a great job. We spent some time today praying for our community. We want people to meet Jesus!

Crazy Love

2008-07-13T16:12:00.004-07:00

This book messed me up. I've been on a journey with my God for the last couple of months. Seeking out who is has called me to be and to change the understanding of Christianity. This book put on paper how I'm feeling inside and also had some points that I agreed with, but really forced me to re-think some things. I recommend it. It's a great read. If you live near by shoot me a text and I'll get you a copy.

Had a great conversation with a buddy today about his calling and next steps for him. I love hearing how God is working in others lives. I'll be praying for him.

When you read it post a comment. I would like to hear your thoughts.

Got an iPhone?

2008-07-12T19:29:00.006-07:00

With the release of the iPhone 3G and more importantly iPhone 2.0 software and the Apps Store. Your phone is now unstoppable. I've been on the Apps Store for the last couple of days and I'm absolutely loving the applications that are being offered. Developers are also reporting that Apple is allowing more developers into the iPhone Development Program.

Great App you NEED to install on your iPhone!! YouVersion.com (aka LifeChurch.tv) has created a Bible App that can't be beat! Install it now! It's FREE! As the Bible should be. They have all the Versions of Scripture that are found on YouVersion and also user add information. It's now in the TOP 50. App is called Bible and the icon says "Holy Bible." Check it out.

One Right After the Other

2008-07-09T11:01:00.004-07:00

My little, well he really isn't little (I think he has a foot on me), brother turns 22 today or tomorrow. Depends on what the time zone is in Turkey! Happy Birthday, Andrew!

Check out his blog, as he post about his trip to Turkey.

Wendy Turns the Big 3-0!

2008-07-08T10:54:00.004-07:00

It's my big sisters birthday today! Hope your day goes great, Wendy! Make sure and take some Advil before going to bed. Don't want to wake up with all those aches and pains in the morning. Just kidding. Love you and miss you.

Home Sweet Home

2008-07-07T11:43:00.003-07:00

I am for sure a home-buddy and love being back in Phoenix. I missed this place; even if its over 110 degrees. The Horton kids surprised me at the airport, which was really cool. Cal and Chels were wearing all the clothes in their closet to be funny. It was a nice surprise.

I had a great time in Cali. Hanging with my sister's boys and my brother's daughter was a blast. Logan is so smart and going so fast. Cam picks up on things so fast. He was swimming my himself at my dads and he just turned four! It is getting harder and harder to leave, though. We only get to see Steve and Gabby maybe a couple times a year. It was tough to say bye. I had to fight back tears when saying goodbye to Wendy, Steve and the boys. I knew it was hard for my brother to say bye.

I still have some pictures on my phone that I'll post later this week.

Leaders Are Learners

2008-07-02T20:27:00.006-07:00

It's a well known catchphrase and every great leader in the church and business worlds live by it. We as leaders don't know everything and the quicker we come to that realization, the faster we become great leaders. I've seen to many "leaders" head into the front lines with a full-of-himself attitude and only fall on their face. Leaders are to be humble, knowing when to lead and when to let others on their team lead, they know their strengths and weaknesses and surround themselves with people that complement them to fulfill their God-Given vision.

Great places to learn...in short....everywhere. Great leaders learn from the smallest and unlikely sources. Great leaders are always on the look out for new ideas, not that they are going to implement everything they see and experience. Great leaders look for opportunities to learn.

Here are a couple of sources of knowledge:

Books. Duh! They might be an old technology, but they are a great place to stretch your mind.
Blogs. Most of the great minds in the business and church worlds blog. To get a chance to see right into their brain is priceless.
Magazines & Journals. Keeps a finger on the heartbeat of the culture in every area of life.
Podcasts. Have you search iTunes recently to see what all is available there? If not you're are missing out.
Mentors. You might have a different calling on your life and ministry then them, but most leadership principles are timeless and overlapping.
People Under You. Just because you are in charge doesn't mean you know the answer. Take the time to hear the hearts of those around you. If you hired the right team, that is exactly what you will be in achieving your vision...a team.

The list could, honestly, go on and on. The key is to always be learning. I've challenged myself to read at least four books a month, keep up on my blog reader and seek out a mentor. How are you learning?

You Haven't Eaten Until...

2008-07-02T19:49:00.005-07:00

you have had a chance to eat a Rosa Maria's Burrito! I've have been know to drive an hour out of the way to get my hands on one or three. We were raised just down the street from the original store and have been eating their burritos since was rolling (I would say crawling, but my mom claim I never crawled, just rolled). Check them out at www.rosa-marias.com and if you are ever in Southern California look them up. Make sure and order a burrito, that is what makes them famous. Anything else on their menu is just okay. Keep the burrito simple. I recommend a Mean/Rice/Cheese.

Beach

2008-07-02T15:37:00.004-07:00

Yesterday we spent laying in the sand and playing in the ocean. Got up early and headed down. Steve and Gabby don't get the chance that often to be able to dip their feet in the ocean. Everyone seemed to have a good time and Steve, Gabby and I came back with a souvenir you can only get from teh beach. Well, you can get it other places, but not as good (see the last picture).

Under Construction

2008-07-01T08:54:00.004-07:00

I'm on of those people that needs things to change visually often and my blog is no exception. I've been looking for a blog template that I can stand for awhile now and finally found one yesterday. After testing my html skills, which I don't have. I got it to the point of uploading it. Still need to add and change a lot, but it's up and that is a start!

What do you think?

Golf and Dinner.

2008-06-29T21:55:00.005-07:00

Nothing Better. Family, Cigars, Shrimp, Steak and Captain. It was a fun night after a day of golfing. Which by the way was probably the best game I've ever played. I have a long ways to go still, but I'm improving.
Did you know that golf stands for Gentlemen Only, Females Forbidden?

Pictures I Promised

2008-06-28T22:09:00.003-07:00

It was a long day! Here is the play by play:

Picked up Steve and Gabby from the Airport. They only packed two carry ons. I was impressed.
Headed over to Hodad's Restaurant. Dad saw them featured on the Food Network and wanted to try them out. I would love to tell you they were amazing, but we never had a chance to test them out. It was packed down there.
Ate at Red Rock. Much better then I expected. I had a chicken pizza that was finger linking good.
Spent five hours at the zoo. Looked the same from when I was in second grade. They should have animals fight or something, so it's more entertaining.
Swam and had dinner.