In addition to the wonderful new donations of much needed items (like towels, shampoo, soap and other supplies), we were able to raise a total of $718.45 for Graceworks Ministries.

Not bad for our first fundraiser.

M

Posted: June 2nd, 2010 under Church info, Culture/Society.
Comments: none

I used my iPhone for the first time in preaching at church this past Sunday. I used it to read from another translation of a scripture I was teaching through. It felt strange and almost a little TOO high-tech, even for me. Then I come across this article this morning…

LOVE IT.

M

Posted: May 25th, 2010 under Culture/Society, Tech stuff.
Comments: none

We already have a few churches represented on our worship team for Friday.

Grace Park Church
Vineyard Franklin
New Song Spring Hill

Plus Graceworks Ministries will be on hand for the night.

Are you coming to our Multi-Church Worship night / Fundraiser for the Flood Victims? It’s going to be an amazing night…

M

Posted: May 24th, 2010 under Church info, Culture/Society, Worship.
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Do you treat Worship as an “opening act”? You know, like the band that you didn’t pay to see, but have to sit through until the main event? Do you come to church late so you can miss some of it….or maybe all of it? Do you find yourself hanging in the lobby or by the coffee bar a little longer than normal to try to buy some time?

Maybe you are a pastor and you look at worship as something you have to do before you get your big moment. I’ve watched pastors walk in on the last song and spend half their time talking to other people, while treating worship as a side show.

Worship becomes something like “background music” before the big event.

Pastors – How much importance to you put into the worship time? Do you invest in your musicians and worship leaders? Do you give them opportunities to grow, be challenged and enjoy doing what they do?

Church Congregation -  Do you appreciate the time and effort that goes into preparing 4-5 songs each week? Do you appreciate it enough to show up on time to engage in all parts of it?….maybe even if it’s not your favorite song?

I believe worship is an extremely important part of Sunday morning (let along the life of a Christian). Not only does it set the tone and atmosphere of the service, but it prepares people’s hearts for God to do amazing things in them. I believe that diversity, excellence and excitement should be part of the worship experience. I also believe we can’t sacrifice God’s anointing and His involvement into this important time of the service. I love when the Holy Spirit high-jacks a worship experience and does something totally new.

The Word of God tell us to enter into his presence with praise! There’s a reason we need to do it first and why we don’t want to skip it.

Worship is far more important than an opening act before the big show. Start to engage in it and see what God can do through you and with you in this time (that includes you too Pastor!).

M

Posted: May 11th, 2010 under Culture/Society, Worship.
Comments: none

I’m back home from Mexico and back into the routine of the Life of Mark. Our church took a total of 6 people (including myself) from SouthView to Baja Mexico to build a house. We worked with Baja Christian Ministries. This trip was so amazing on so many levels that I decided to list my points to get them off my chest.

-I’ve never seen this extreme level of poverty before. And I’ve been to some big ghettos in the USA. Mexico was on another level.

-Bob Sanders, Hector, Ps Nikko, Juan, Ramon and all the other amazing people of BCM were both an inspiration to us as well as an extreme reminder that “the harvest is plenty but the workers are few“.

-Still can’t believe we built this house in a day and ½!

-Everyone of us got choked up when our family (that we built the house for) started talking about their father (husband) that died a few months earlier. He was dreaming and praying for this house but never got to see it built.

-Loved hanging and getting to know Ps Rob Taylor and his crew from Calvary Chapel Brentwood as well as Katherine from New Zealand. Amazing people!

-Strange to have dogs and a donkey as your security system at night.

-Ever drove by a sewer? Think of that smell and imagine it everyday and night. Now imagine living in it.

-These “roads”, and I use that word very loosely, were unbelievable. I’ve never seen things worse that them. Makes our potholes nothing in comparison.

-I’m very thankful we can throw our toilet paper in the toilet. You never know this pleasure until you are in a country where you can’t do that.

-I’ve never paid to go to the bathroom until this trip. Still a little upset about that.

-Not sure I laughed as much on any trip as I did on this one. I love that we can have fun doing God’s work. I love that our God has a sense of humor. I’m so thankful that even in the midst of extreme wear and being very tired, we were able to enjoy the moments serving God together.

-Hector, our friend that guided us in building our house, was so inspiring. He was never down or never complained (and he could have by how bad we hammered nails). He was a true example of “the joy of the Lord is your strength”. He has 5 kids, 5 grandkids, 5 dogs and worked almost everyday building houses with teams from all over the world….but he did it with joy unto the Lord. I was amazed and blessed by his love for God and people. Made me feel bad ever complaining again. Every mess up is an opportunity…

-I never witnessed one Mexican begging for money….although they had every reason to do so according to our standards. They found ways to provide a service (like charging you for a bathroom or selling wiper blades) or do a job (like filling in the huge dirt potholes) to make money. I really admire that and those people.

-You could tell that family meant the world to these people. They lived together and did most things together as a family. That’s all they truly had. I wish people in the USA felt that way.

-Witnessing and evangelizing was at a whole new level here. These people are hungry for love, truth and acceptance. On our first meeting we saw 75 people come to know Jesus as their Lord and Saviour. On the second one, about 50 people did the prayer. All I can say is WOW!!!

-BCM gives everyone a Spanish Bible and a Spanish Purple Book (which is an amazing foundations book). They then give them a certificate upon finishing the book and have a local pastor follow up with them. I LOVE that they just don’t get people saved but they help walk it out with them. That’s the key, and Bob Sanders truly understands it.

-My heart and prayers go out to all the people involved in this life changing ministry. They need our prayers, support, encouragement and involvement. They have already build tens of thousands of houses and want to do so much more. Bob’s vision of reaching 1 million people for Jesus is both inspiring and challenging. I believe they can do it. We will definitely be back to help with that!

Here are some images from this great trip:

M

Posted: April 14th, 2010 under Check This Out, Culture/Society, Trips.
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