Highlights from 10.10.09

Here are a few highlight pictures from my weekend.


This picture actually took place on Friday. The hawk landed on our deck just outside our kitchen window. He or she was in hunting mode and actually caught a squirrel under our deck not too long after I took this picture. Once I saw the hawk on our deck I knew the Wolverines had no chance on Saturday!



My good friend Joel Milefchik went to Wild at Heart Boot Camp the first weekend of October and really had a life changing experience. One of the things that he was ready to do was to surrender his life completely over to Jesus and be baptized into Christ...the catch was he wanted to do it outside!

Not a big deal in the summer. On this particular day, October 10th, it snowed in the morning! At the time of baptism the temperature was a brisk 37 degrees! I could hardly talk it was so cold, but it was awesome! Joel sent some of the pictures to the Wild at Heart team and they are going to use one of them on their website.

The last picture speaks for itself. I got to hang out in the student section for the Iowa vs. Michigan game. What an environment and what a game. Any time you beat Michigan it's a good day in my book.

So all in all it was a fantastic weekend and all I can say is, "God is good, all the time!"

Making Disciples: Come-Build-Send

God continues to do some amazing things here at IC Church of Christ! As I articulated numerous times during the last message series, the elders and I feel very strongly that God has positioned us with his blessings to make a huge impact here in Iowa City, around the nation and around the world. God is up to something here at this church…there is no doubt. That is why we have revised our mission statement and our strategy so that we can better focus on using God’s resources to expand his Kingdom. With that being said, here are some thoughts I have collected since completing the message series, Making Disciples, It’s What We Do.
· If you don’t claim Jesus as your Lord, Savior, and Teacher…then whose disciple are you? If it’s not Jesus then who is it…Oprah, Bill O’Reilly, Barrack Obama, or maybe Dr. Phil? Why not choose Jesus? He’s the only one to die and come back to life—that’s a deal maker in my book.
· If you are a disciple of Jesus do you submit to him as Lord? Do you love him as a Savior? Do you listen to him as a teacher?
· If someone asks what IC Church of Christ is all about just tell them, “We are all about making disciples of Jesus who love God, love people and serve others.”
· I love our new strategy for making disciples…do you have it memorized yet? CBS—Come, Build, and Send.
· Everyone who is a part of IC Church of Christ should be able to see where he or she is in the discipleship process. For example, if you are still trying to figure out what you believe about Jesus, then you are in the “Come “ stage. (It’s all right to take your time. After hearing the testimony of the young man who was baptized a few weeks ago, I was reminded that we are to count the cost of what it means to enter into a relationship with Jesus Christ. Salvation is free, but living your life in Christ costs you everything—it’s the most costly decision you will every make.) If you are new to following Christ, then you are in the “Build” stage. Lastly, if you having been following Christ for a while then you are in the “Send” stage. This is a great strategy to not only check your progress, but it also helps you help others along on their journey. You are now a discipleship expert!
· If you are a member of IC Church of Christ you should have a definitive, clear cut answer for each of the following questions:
o Who are you working on, praying for, and preparing to invite to IC Church of Christ so they can, come see Jesus? What’s their name?
o What are you doing to build yourself into a better disciple? What book of the Bible are you reading right now? How is your small group or A.B.F. class going?
o Where is Jesus sending you? What ministry are you a part of here at IC Church of Christ? What ministry or mission ambitions has God put upon your heart? How are you serving Jesus in your neighborhood, work, or family?

So now what? What are you going to do? What is your next step on the journey of following Jesus? Let me leave you with this quote: “Our life is not our project. Our life is God’s project.” God most definitely wants to shape your life into something incredible, he proved that by sending us Jesus. The big question now is this: are we going to allow God to build and shape our lives? Are we willing to surrender our lives into the hands of the great artist? The choice is ours, and honestly I can’t wait to see what he does!