Saturday, December 5, 2009
So this month we are working towards connecting everyone from church to our Facebook page for the express purpose of getting the word out there about our church. On our page you'll find regular updates, information regarding up coming message series, and well as a information that will keep you connected to Lincoln Avenue. So join today, then suggest us to other friends!
Monday, April 27, 2009
Monday's Download
Ok so I haven’t really blogged in a while, I’ve really been trying to stay faithful to Twitter and I think I have done a fairly decent job with that. But now inspired by my Tennessee Pastor Buddy, I’m really going to try and do better with this blog thing. To start with I want to do a Monday Download, a blog that pretty much covers what’s been going on in my mind the previous week…so here it goes.
Yesterday was a great day, I thought that it started out well with what I felt were 2 great worship services. The message was on how to live with eternity in mind. I loved seeing the Holy Spirit moving in the hearts of our people, we had 1 person pray to receive Christ, and a few other say I’m gonna give my life to this Jesus stuff. Cool huh?
After church we had a meeting at my house with those who oversee each of the 5-purposes in our church. I started the meeting by asking the question, “What’s been going well at our church?” I’m sure you could add some things to our list, but the first thing we talked about was how someone got saved yesterday; also about how great it was that many people responded to our Easter push to fill up our food closets and to minister to those in need; also how our workday was the most productive work day we have had since my arrival as pastor; we also shared that God is opening up many new opportunities for our church to serve the community. One exciting opportunity in particular is that Lincoln Avenue has been asked to host next years Easter Sunrise service for Orange County to be held at Knott’s Berry Farm. This is going to be a great time for our church to give back to our community by sharing the love and message of Jesus Christ. Let me just tell, for me as your pastor, it was great to hear about all the exciting things going on. FYI…One major thing that we discussed which affects us all was our need to give many in our ministries a little time to refresh over the summer. So with that need in mind, we will be going to ONE 9:30 AM SERVICE DURING THE SUMMER. We also felt this would allow us the opportunity as a church to experiment with some things as we try and grow our church. You might ask is it possible to grow the church over the summer, let me just say we have had only one summer over the last 6 years that we haven’t grown. But something for all of us to keep in mind, it takes a united effort to keep reaching people for Jesus Christ and for all of us to keep growing in our faith. This summer there will be many opportunity to grow and serve as we try servant evangelism projects, and any other idea we might try to draw people into a relationship with Christ and bring them into our church. The first day we will be going to one service will be on June 14th, the day of our youth led service. Also, keep in mind that in September we will once again move to two services as our Summer’s End Party will lead in our big Fall push to keep growing.
Ok, so let me talk about Catalyst for a bit…first of all let me say it was awesome! What is Catalyst? It was a conference for the next generation leader, which had so many fantastic musicians and teachers. Just to give you a little laugh, I just so happened to win an award in one of the side sessions for being one of the old guys there who has been in ministry the longest. My 11 years in youth ministry and almost 7 years as a pastor pushed me over the edge over all those young guys. I couldn’t help but laugh, here I am an old pastor at 39. hahah
Andy Stanley, son of famous pastor Charles Stanley, began the conference by encouraging us minister with Clarity and Flexibility in the uncertain times. That even when we are unsure of the world around us, we can be certain that God is still in control and he will lead and guide us to fulfill the vision He has given us. No matter how uncertain life can be, the vision remains clear. If you want to know what that vision is for LABC you can check that out our on our website under about us... “We want to be a church where…”. The message of Jesus Christ never changes, but our methods are always flexible so that by all mean we may win one to the Lord. There are no sacred cows at Lincoln Avenue that we will not sacrifice in order follow the Lord.
Guy Kawasaki was another speaker, who inspired us with his talk on 11 keys to innovation. I won’t go over all of them, but one thing he mentioned was churches must be willing to Roll the DICEE to become the church God intends for them to be…
D – stands for deep, the church must be willing to give their life to this things we call the gospel and be willing to do what ever it takes to reach people
I – stands for intelligent, the church must anticipate what people need to cross the line to follow Jesus
C – stands for complete, the church needs to strive to work together so that the whole is a whole lot better
E – stands for elegance, the church should not be all that complicated, it’s design should be easy
E – stands for emotive, people will either love or hate your church, he challenged us to design something people will either love or hate, he said don’t build a church where the people are indifferent. Good word…
Craig Groescel, pastor of LifeChurch.tv stuck a knife in my heart when he said, “Lukewarm pastors create lukewarm Christians”. Ouch, Lord I don’t want to be lukewarm…your servant Abel
Brian Houston, pastor of Hillsong Church in Austrailia encouraged me when he said, “The best days of the church are ahead”; and “the church needs to believe what we could be”; and “The church can do so much more when we are together”.
One of the most inspiring speakers in the whole conference was a man named Nick Vujicic, founder of LifeWithoutLimbs.org. You really got to check this guy out on the web, what an awe inspiring God story he has. Born with out arms and legs, God has transformed this man to pray for the world around him, thank God even though life without limbs can be so hard, and to trust God with all you have. He broke down the word go-disable, to God is able…he epitomized how amazing life can be when you put your life in God’s hands.
Other leaders who were there include, Ravi Zaccarius, Rick Warren, Erwin McMannus, Jud Wilhite, Francis Chan, and Perry Noble. Also there were Jeannie Mai, Naomi Zacharia, and Bethany Hoang (3 womens working to bring the church into the arena to stop the sex trafficking of young women throughout the world). This was something God has put on my heart to pray about already so it was great to hear how the church can become involved.
These and many others made this one of the best conferences I have ever attended. I am hoping that many people from Lincoln Avenue will want to join us next year for Catalyst 2010, any takers? Ok now it’s Tuesday, it’s still my Monday download. LoL
Yesterday was a great day, I thought that it started out well with what I felt were 2 great worship services. The message was on how to live with eternity in mind. I loved seeing the Holy Spirit moving in the hearts of our people, we had 1 person pray to receive Christ, and a few other say I’m gonna give my life to this Jesus stuff. Cool huh?
After church we had a meeting at my house with those who oversee each of the 5-purposes in our church. I started the meeting by asking the question, “What’s been going well at our church?” I’m sure you could add some things to our list, but the first thing we talked about was how someone got saved yesterday; also about how great it was that many people responded to our Easter push to fill up our food closets and to minister to those in need; also how our workday was the most productive work day we have had since my arrival as pastor; we also shared that God is opening up many new opportunities for our church to serve the community. One exciting opportunity in particular is that Lincoln Avenue has been asked to host next years Easter Sunrise service for Orange County to be held at Knott’s Berry Farm. This is going to be a great time for our church to give back to our community by sharing the love and message of Jesus Christ. Let me just tell, for me as your pastor, it was great to hear about all the exciting things going on. FYI…One major thing that we discussed which affects us all was our need to give many in our ministries a little time to refresh over the summer. So with that need in mind, we will be going to ONE 9:30 AM SERVICE DURING THE SUMMER. We also felt this would allow us the opportunity as a church to experiment with some things as we try and grow our church. You might ask is it possible to grow the church over the summer, let me just say we have had only one summer over the last 6 years that we haven’t grown. But something for all of us to keep in mind, it takes a united effort to keep reaching people for Jesus Christ and for all of us to keep growing in our faith. This summer there will be many opportunity to grow and serve as we try servant evangelism projects, and any other idea we might try to draw people into a relationship with Christ and bring them into our church. The first day we will be going to one service will be on June 14th, the day of our youth led service. Also, keep in mind that in September we will once again move to two services as our Summer’s End Party will lead in our big Fall push to keep growing.
Ok, so let me talk about Catalyst for a bit…first of all let me say it was awesome! What is Catalyst? It was a conference for the next generation leader, which had so many fantastic musicians and teachers. Just to give you a little laugh, I just so happened to win an award in one of the side sessions for being one of the old guys there who has been in ministry the longest. My 11 years in youth ministry and almost 7 years as a pastor pushed me over the edge over all those young guys. I couldn’t help but laugh, here I am an old pastor at 39. hahah
Andy Stanley, son of famous pastor Charles Stanley, began the conference by encouraging us minister with Clarity and Flexibility in the uncertain times. That even when we are unsure of the world around us, we can be certain that God is still in control and he will lead and guide us to fulfill the vision He has given us. No matter how uncertain life can be, the vision remains clear. If you want to know what that vision is for LABC you can check that out our on our website under about us... “We want to be a church where…”. The message of Jesus Christ never changes, but our methods are always flexible so that by all mean we may win one to the Lord. There are no sacred cows at Lincoln Avenue that we will not sacrifice in order follow the Lord.
Guy Kawasaki was another speaker, who inspired us with his talk on 11 keys to innovation. I won’t go over all of them, but one thing he mentioned was churches must be willing to Roll the DICEE to become the church God intends for them to be…
D – stands for deep, the church must be willing to give their life to this things we call the gospel and be willing to do what ever it takes to reach people
I – stands for intelligent, the church must anticipate what people need to cross the line to follow Jesus
C – stands for complete, the church needs to strive to work together so that the whole is a whole lot better
E – stands for elegance, the church should not be all that complicated, it’s design should be easy
E – stands for emotive, people will either love or hate your church, he challenged us to design something people will either love or hate, he said don’t build a church where the people are indifferent. Good word…
Craig Groescel, pastor of LifeChurch.tv stuck a knife in my heart when he said, “Lukewarm pastors create lukewarm Christians”. Ouch, Lord I don’t want to be lukewarm…your servant Abel
Brian Houston, pastor of Hillsong Church in Austrailia encouraged me when he said, “The best days of the church are ahead”; and “the church needs to believe what we could be”; and “The church can do so much more when we are together”.
One of the most inspiring speakers in the whole conference was a man named Nick Vujicic, founder of LifeWithoutLimbs.org. You really got to check this guy out on the web, what an awe inspiring God story he has. Born with out arms and legs, God has transformed this man to pray for the world around him, thank God even though life without limbs can be so hard, and to trust God with all you have. He broke down the word go-disable, to God is able…he epitomized how amazing life can be when you put your life in God’s hands.
Other leaders who were there include, Ravi Zaccarius, Rick Warren, Erwin McMannus, Jud Wilhite, Francis Chan, and Perry Noble. Also there were Jeannie Mai, Naomi Zacharia, and Bethany Hoang (3 womens working to bring the church into the arena to stop the sex trafficking of young women throughout the world). This was something God has put on my heart to pray about already so it was great to hear how the church can become involved.
These and many others made this one of the best conferences I have ever attended. I am hoping that many people from Lincoln Avenue will want to join us next year for Catalyst 2010, any takers? Ok now it’s Tuesday, it’s still my Monday download. LoL
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Ok so I'm not all that great updating this thing, so I'm going to try something to go along with this blog. Since I do love texting I'm going to Twitter what's going on in my world. Just check out the lower right hand portion of this blog to get regular updates. We'll c! Lol
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Homework
So it's a lot harder then you thought huh? It is for me! Last Sunday I asked for those in our church to spend, 5, 10, or 15 Minutes a day talking to each member of your family living under your roof. And by gosh if I didn't blow it the first day. I can't believe how often I don't talk. You would think that I could yap with the best of them, however the tv (aka the devil) kept me from opening up. Monday I did better, but again was surprised how difficult it can be to ask question of an 8 year old that doesn't talk about the things I do. I learned that I had to speak pokemon if I really wanted to talk. So I did, "pika, pika". As far as my girl goes, I had to talk nail polish, HSM3 (for those uniformed High School Musical 3), and dancing in order to get on the same page. I guess the topics will change in the future, however I'm really am enjoying being pokemon and dance dad right now.
As far as the mrs. goes, I have been doing better in this area too. I guess the thing about talking to your spouse really just involves make a choice to talk.
Guys don't miss your opportunity to develop those relationships. I don't want to!
As far as the mrs. goes, I have been doing better in this area too. I guess the thing about talking to your spouse really just involves make a choice to talk.
Guys don't miss your opportunity to develop those relationships. I don't want to!
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Yea Yea It's Tuesday
So it's Tuesday! For some reason Tuesday always comes after Monday (my day off) then it's back to work "on Tuesday"!!!! I don't know why, but Tuesday is such a hard day for me to refocus on God. Come on I'm a pastor. I spent time in God's word today, I prayed today, I even studied today, along with everything else that came my way, and yet it’s still hard to keep focus.
My heart is heavy for those in our church who are struggling with relationships. What I noticed from our survey Sunday was that those in marriages are having a hard time, those who are single want to find a good partner, and those with relatives, seem to have many who are driving them nuts. This seemed to be the recurring theme. Let me just say a few things as we move throughout the week...
Single people, please don't settle! God knows the desires of your heart, He knows when you’re lonely, He knows that some of you desire to be in a God honoring relationship. Don't settle for less! Just know that when you have God's desires flooding your heart (like finding a good Christian man or woman, like staying a virgin till you’re married, like honoring God in this huge area of your life), God will be there to give you the desires of your heart. In the mean time, become the one God wants you to be, never settle for anything then God's best! At the right time God will blow you away with what He has for you.
Married people don't give up! Marriage is hard work, especially in a world when people don't think much of marriage anymore and people are seeking an early exit. God is on the verge of doing something incredible in your life and marriage if you just hold on and get on board with what God wants from you. Let me ask you, what is the one thing you can do in your marriage to make it better? DO IT! Do it today!
What about your family, so their nuts! LoL Ok their not all nuts, but some of them do drive you over the edge. I guess the only thing we can do in times like that is to ask God to help us love them unconditionally, just like God loves us. Perhaps God will use you to reach them, so that instead of our goals and desire for them being reached, they will fulfill God's desires for them. Lord, be with our relatives, especially those who are far from you.
Hey look, while writing I started to focus! Hahahaha
Btw, I got word that a pastor friend of mine had a heart attack and will have to have bi-pass surgery this Thursday (if you read this, please keep him in prayer his name is Galen). Thanks.
My heart is heavy for those in our church who are struggling with relationships. What I noticed from our survey Sunday was that those in marriages are having a hard time, those who are single want to find a good partner, and those with relatives, seem to have many who are driving them nuts. This seemed to be the recurring theme. Let me just say a few things as we move throughout the week...
Single people, please don't settle! God knows the desires of your heart, He knows when you’re lonely, He knows that some of you desire to be in a God honoring relationship. Don't settle for less! Just know that when you have God's desires flooding your heart (like finding a good Christian man or woman, like staying a virgin till you’re married, like honoring God in this huge area of your life), God will be there to give you the desires of your heart. In the mean time, become the one God wants you to be, never settle for anything then God's best! At the right time God will blow you away with what He has for you.
Married people don't give up! Marriage is hard work, especially in a world when people don't think much of marriage anymore and people are seeking an early exit. God is on the verge of doing something incredible in your life and marriage if you just hold on and get on board with what God wants from you. Let me ask you, what is the one thing you can do in your marriage to make it better? DO IT! Do it today!
What about your family, so their nuts! LoL Ok their not all nuts, but some of them do drive you over the edge. I guess the only thing we can do in times like that is to ask God to help us love them unconditionally, just like God loves us. Perhaps God will use you to reach them, so that instead of our goals and desire for them being reached, they will fulfill God's desires for them. Lord, be with our relatives, especially those who are far from you.
Hey look, while writing I started to focus! Hahahaha
Btw, I got word that a pastor friend of mine had a heart attack and will have to have bi-pass surgery this Thursday (if you read this, please keep him in prayer his name is Galen). Thanks.
Monday, February 9, 2009
Love Affair
so we kicked off a new series on love yesterday, there were 5 points to the message...
• We Love Because God Loves Us. God showed us how much He loves us by sending Jesus Christ...He loved us first.
• Love Is A Choice And A Commitment. We choose who we love, and we make a commitment to them. In a marriage, you have to start with the commitment. It's the commitment to one another that will see you through the difficult times in life.
• Love Is An Action Not Just An Emotion. Love can lead to emotions, but the way you show love is by the way you treat people, talk about people, care for people. We cannot just say we love, we have to show it.
• Love Is A Skill. Because God wants us to be skilled in this area, it's good to know we can get better at it. God wants us to be great lovers of people
• Love Is A Habit. Love is not something you can turn on and off. People who love always love, even the unloveable. You cannot say you love people, when you are choosing to love some and not others...
Let me encourage you to ask God to help you become a better lover when it comes to loving people. It's what you and I are made for, to love God first and then other people. Lords help us get better at this, amen...
• We Love Because God Loves Us. God showed us how much He loves us by sending Jesus Christ...He loved us first.
• Love Is A Choice And A Commitment. We choose who we love, and we make a commitment to them. In a marriage, you have to start with the commitment. It's the commitment to one another that will see you through the difficult times in life.
• Love Is An Action Not Just An Emotion. Love can lead to emotions, but the way you show love is by the way you treat people, talk about people, care for people. We cannot just say we love, we have to show it.
• Love Is A Skill. Because God wants us to be skilled in this area, it's good to know we can get better at it. God wants us to be great lovers of people
• Love Is A Habit. Love is not something you can turn on and off. People who love always love, even the unloveable. You cannot say you love people, when you are choosing to love some and not others...
Let me encourage you to ask God to help you become a better lover when it comes to loving people. It's what you and I are made for, to love God first and then other people. Lords help us get better at this, amen...
Friday, February 6, 2009
Thank God It's Friday
TGIF, that's usually what we think when we come to the end of the week. But honestly how much rest to do we really get on Saturday and Sunday? Saturday is usually busy doing work around the house, making sure the things you missed during the week are done. Spending time with family and friends (if you have any), although fun, not very restful. You stay up late, come home late, and then wrestle in your mind if you’re really going to get up early the next day so you can go to church. Come on after all it is Sunday, sleep in day, actually get some rest day, the day before another Manic Monday (sorry for the 80's reference lol). But let me be honest how prepared are we to meet a new week without giving time to God. A lot of Christians for some reason have bought into the idea that church is an option, a place to go unless you have other plans, unless the kids have a game, unless the sun is shining in the air. I for one think that's sad! Don't get me wrong there's time for family, friends, games, etc...but why give God our leftovers. As a parent, shouldn't we want to demonstrate to our kids our need to be among other believers, laughing, loving, listening for a word from God that will go directly to our heart. Man to me that's church, walking through the door, being warmly welcomed by others, and feeling a sense of belonging in the house of the Lord. If your reading this I hope you enjoy the weekend, but remember, God will be in church on Sunday, will you?
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