Here is last week’s message “Deep Bench”. Click here if you have trouble viewing.

Here is this week’s message “Marching Orders”. Click here if you have trouble viewing.

I’m reading through Jeremiah in my personal study time and God is stirring some thoughts in me. I read this verse in context this morning and I was struck by this thought.

God spoke these words through Jeremiah to a people who were already in Babylonian exile because of their repeated disobedience.

Every time I hear this verse used, it is one of those “feel good” verses. What’s interesting is that God gives Jeremiah this message to counter the feel good message that some false prophets are giving the people. They are promising a short exile…but God says ‘No, you are in exile because you disobeyed. Go ahead and build houses and plan to stay a long time. I told you this was coming, BUT don’t give up hope. You’ll be here 70 years. You won’t even be alive when I fulfill this promise, but I will fulfill it in your children – not because you are good, but because I am good’ (my words).

There are consequences for our actions. Some are major and others are less overt. But there are always consequences. Remember that the Lord is using you and me for the exclusive purpose of bringing Him glory. He always has a plan for a future and a hope, to bring good not disaster…but first there may be a season of preparing, or perhaps even discipline.

But we can be thankful that his faithfulness is based on God’s character and not our own.

“So I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was working at his wheel. And the vessel he was making of clay was spoiled in the potter’s hand, and he reworked it into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to do.” – Jeremiah 18:3-4 (ESV)

I am so often tempted to resist.

My default nature is to reject, often violently, character development and changes to my basic nature.

It’s natural I suppose. As natural as sin at least.

Jeremiah has what most today would consider a miserable ministry. His was a ministry defined by harsh condemnation of Israel’s actions followed by a swift and thorough rejection of whatever it was he was selling that day. He was beaten and jailed for his actions. Yet, he cried to the Lord and said that he couldn’t keep silent. The message was like a fire shut up inside his bones!

This message in Jeremiah 18 is the most powerful section of Jeremiah’s ministry. Here, Jeremiah is telling Israel what God is trying to do.

Why are they so tempted to resist?

Why do they default to rejecting, often violently, the changes God is trying to orchestrate in them?

It comes natural for them. As natural as sin anyway.

Maybe we’re not all that different. Maybe God is trying to work something beautiful in me and in you and we keep spoiling ourselves in the potter’s hand.

God is always all-good all the time. He is reworking us ‘as it seemed good to the potter to do‘.

Why are you fighting that?

While my training has been getting more intense, so has my appetite! I may be the only person who can actually gain weight while working out as much as I am.

I am ready to compete in the event today, BUT I would do so with some unneeded baggage weighing me down. On May 13, I stepped on a set of scales and I had reached 245 lbs! YIKES!

I had this very startling revelation that day. Why am I carrying extra weight that only makes my task more difficult and will hurt my performance? So I decided to do something about it! I have adjusted my caloric intake and along with training as of yesterday (June 9) I am down to 220 lbs. My goal is to hit 200 by race day.

This reminds me of an even more important spiritual principle. The writer of Hebrews said it best: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us” (ESV). Anther translation says the sin “that so easily entangles“.

We all face challenges in life. Some are excruciatingly difficult and we can’t do anything about them!

Others are merely distractions. They are things that don’t have to be there – but are. They are things we can control. These things are distractions. They are the “weight” this passage is talking about.

You can drop the weight.

Eliminate the distractions that take your eyes of following Jesus.

There is another more deadly enemy for the believer though. This passage also talk about sin that clings so closely and so easily entangles.

This can be deadly. These are not mere distractions. They are the things that have no business in the life of a believer. These can kill your spiritual life.

To extend the metaphor, it would be like me swimming with my hands and feet bound, or biking while carrying a baby grand piano, or running with a can of nitro glycerin! All of these are deadly!

So is sin.

It robs you of your joy. Kills your spiritual senses making you dead to hearing from the Holy Spirit. And it will destroy your testimony and effectiveness for the gospel.

Jesus said ‘the thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy but I came that you might have life more abundantly‘ (paraphrase).

So drop the weight. It’s killing you.

Besides, what Jesus offers is so much better!

Here is week 5 dealing with the Church:

If you have trouble viewing the video you can view the source here.

Here is week 4 dealing with the Gospel:

If you have trouble viewing the video you can view the source here.

Here is week 3 dealing with the Trinity:

If you have trouble viewing the video you can view the source here.

Here is week 2 dealing with the authority of the Bible:

If you have trouble viewing the video you can view the source here.

I tweeted this the other day: “I’m excited about the future. But I’m excited about today too. Don’t miss the journey!”

I began thinking about Abraham and this encounter he had with God when the world was only 11 chapters old:

Genesis 12:1-2

Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.

Here’s two quick thoughts.

#1 - God absolutely kept his promise to Abraham. He delivered on his end in a BIG way! Ultimately, we have Jesus coming through this lineage God promised Abraham.

#2 – Abraham never arrived at the destination God promised…for him, it was all about the journey. He caught glimpses like birthing a child in his old age, but his was a walk of faith planting seeds that would not germinate for years – and some for centuries – to come.

It is so easy to focus on where we are going that we miss the beautiful nuances contained within the journey. Conversely, we can be so bogged down in the temporary pain or difficulty of the moment that we forget God always keeps his promises. He has promised to ultimately work all things out for good for his children.

This is one of those posts that has many applications. I hope it gives you some encouragement today!

To Revolution Church, I just want to remind us all that while there is always more to come…I am honored to serve with you and to make the most of every moment we have on this journey together.

Everyone these days seems to have an idea on how to build community. While I certainly think there are ways to encourage and facilitate this, I am leaning more and more toward the view that community is not something you build so much as you experience.

We began to hold weekly services at Revolution Church in September of last year. At that time the several families that made up the core of the church were from all over the spectrum geographically speaking! Seriously, some of them had to stop for gas on the way in! My great fear was that this distance would hinder us from being able to build community among fellow believers.

What surprises me today is the community I felt so compelled to “build” is actually being “experienced” as a natural extension of the commonality we share as believers. Relationships are growing regardless of age, race, gender or socioeconomic factors.

One primary reason for this seems to be the ability to share the deeper and more private things that are going on in the course of life. Galatians 6:2 says we are to bear each others burdens. Today, we are able to do that as an entire church. As we grow, this function will necessarily become a function of smaller units (probably community groups) since it becomes impractical when the size of the church increases.

What we are experiencing at Revolution is a beautiful boiler plate for the future since we began as a small group.

Community has not been created. Community exists among believers. We just need to get out of the way and allow relationships room to grow.

I’d love to hear your thoughts…

Here is week 1 dealing with the Sovereignty of God:

If you have trouble viewing the video you can view the source here.

I am finding myself in one of those times right now and it is altogether beautiful and entirely terrifying at the same time. God is stretching me in areas of faith and stirring my spirit to seek Him for a fresh experience.

Paul compares the life of the believer to an athlete (1 Cor 9:24-26 and 2 Tim 2:4-6). Just like an athlete experiences the pain of training as muscles are stretched to new boundaries, so the believer encounters similar discomfort as the spiritual muscles are taken beyond the last point they were tested. Without this component, there is no growth.

You can maintain. But you cannot grow.

Growth requires stretching. It demands it.

So stop resisting. Lean into the new challenge in front of you. Engage the contest before you knowing it is the very doorway to your growth.

Henry Blackaby said it is impossible for your faith to grow unless God takes you beyond the point your faith was last tested (paraphrase). We so often pray for God to get us through something when what we ought to pray is God grow me through this.

This message (The Man) explores what it meant for God to come to us as a man.

If you have any trouble with the video you can view it directly here.

This message (The Warrior) explores how Jesus dealt with religion.

If you have any trouble with the video you can view it directly here.

We are starting a new series this Sunday at Revolution Church called Which way?

Do you ever struggle with decisions?  Ever wonder if you are making the right choice?

• Do I take this new job?
• Should I buy this car?
• Do I really love this person?
• Am I ready to take this relationship to the next level?
• What school should my kids go to?
• Is this the right college for me?

We all make thousands of decisions every day!  Some are simple – but others…not so much.  For the next three weeks, we will look at a decision making filter to run our choices through.  Be sure you are prepared the next time you have to decide Which way?

Join us Sundays at 10:30am 220 Howe Street / Downtown Greenville (nursery and children’s ministry provided).

“Don’t criticize someone until you have walked a mile in their shoes.” - That’s the anonymous quote many of us have heard pretty much all of our lives.

A couple of weeks ago, my oldest daughter made an observation about me before she had an opportunity to consider the weight of her statement. In a moment of heated debate, she chose to describe me in a terribly unflattering manner. She called me “LAZY“!!!

Now, truth be told, we probably all have our special moments of laziness…that downtime when nothing “has” to be done and no one is “dominating” our time. These are the times when we steal away to that quiet place and relax without any intention of doing ANYTHING for the rest of the evening.

It was during one of these times that my daughter happened to stumble into the room and within 12 seconds, determine that I was “LAZY“.

Needless to say, I struggled with this a little!

Now…I love my little girl and want only the best for her. In almost every case, I give her the benefit of the doubt.

However, this was clearly a case where she needed a little “education“!

So……

………Tomorrow, Greenville County Schools are out – but guess who’s coming to work with Dad??? That’s right! My oldest daughter, Mary Beth, will be joining me for a day “in my shoes“! She will come to work with me and walk through the various “tasks” that have to be done during a typical day.

It’s going to be AWESOME!

She may not think so…but that is another story. For now, let’s let her enjoy a day of walking in someone else’s shoes! Maybe we all could benefit from that on occasion??

“He said, Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them. Then Elisha prayed and said, O Lord, please open his eyes that he may see. So the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.” – 2 Kings 6:16-17 (ESV)

If we only knew the power that is really behind us, there is no limit to the things we would attempt to do for God!

So often, we are like the young man with Elisha that can only see with our natural eyes and refuse to exercise our spiritual eyesight to see beyond the physical limitations that cause us to quiver and keep us from conquering.

This man couldn’t understand how a prophet and his band of supporters could withstand the thrashing that the King of Syria was about to unleash on them. If they were an army with weapons…maybe – but this was just a preacher with some loyal followers! All they had were some scrolls and maybe a donkey or two. But when the Lord opened his eyes, he could see that God had dispatched a massive and powerful force to protect Elisha and his mission!

When God is behind a work, there is no force, on earth or otherwise, that will keep it from accomplishing what God has purposed!

That’s good news for the Church today!

“Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” – Eph 3:20-21 (ESV)

That’s good news for you too! What is it God is asking you to do for him? Look around you. You have an ARMY to go into battle with you.

First, let me offer a word of explanation. I blog when I have things interesting and (hopefully) uplifting to write about. Lately, I have not felt the urge or ability to report what is going on in my spirit. Church planting is hard! It is without a doubt the most difficult thing I have ever attempted. It’s even harder than having a strong marriage. I covet your prayers and support as my family and I eagerly and joyfully embrace the path God has us on.

I do have something interesting to report…and also something that should keep me blogging a lot more regularly. I committed myself to something the other day in an effort to engage a particular family and get them plugged in at Revolution. I have agreed to compete in a sprint triathlon in August of this year! In case you missed that last part…yes. I am suspending the baseline response I give to everyone that, should they see me running, please stop because that means someone is undoubtedly chasing me with malevolent intentions.

If you see me over the next 7 months, I will no doubt be whipping this almost 37 year old body into the shape required to attempt this challenging feat! So, with that said, I will regularly be updating the blog with my status and thoughts on what will be the most difficult endurance exercise I have ever attempted.

Through this process, I will also be sharing some things that are going on at Revolution as well as insights gleaned from this physical challenge. Thanks for reading and for your patience during this new phase of my family’s life!

From Matt’s own comments, you can see the grace with which he is facing this. In one of his Twitters yesterday he said “Path report is 2ndary at best…good report doesn’t mean much, bad report doesn’t mean anything…my days r numbered and n0t by ths report”. The video he posted prior to surgery is amazing! You can view it on the church’s blog here.

I do not know Matt personally, but I consider him to be a hero of my faith. I have only heard him live twice, yet because of technology, he serves in a pastoral role to me. As a 36 year old husband, father of three, and pastor of a church plant, I feel connected as many of you who read this will feel connected to Matt and his family.

With everything within me, my heart’s desire is that God would heal Matt of this horrid malady called cancer and that the world will have the treasure of trustworthy dispensation of the Word Matt so faithfully offers.

“Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health,
as it goes well with your soul.” – 3 John 2

My comfort and joy comes in knowing that whatever course this journey takes, God will be glorified and the gospel will be declared. That is already happening!

I was sick yesterday as I learned the results from the doctors and deeply saddened by the news. Today I reflect on the goodness of God and the beauty of His ways. Ways I do not understand. Ways I cannot understand. Yet ways I know to be best – even and especially when they don’t seem so.

“This God—his way is perfect;
the word of the LORD proves true;
he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him.” – Psalm 18:30

Special Prayer

On Sunday, December 27, Revolution Church will devote a segment of time to pray specifically for Matt’s healing. We confess that Jesus is eternally the same (Heb 13:8) and with only a word he still heals today (Matt 8:8). I am inviting other pastors, church leaders, teachers, and volunteers to join us in prayer that morning at your places of worship. We have seen remarkable displays of God’s power when the Church agrees and comes together in unity and we expect nothing less here.

“Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him” – James 5:14a

• We concluded our series The Vow (LifeChurch) with The Vow of Purity:
  • We hide the things we are ashamed of.
  • The only way to deal with darkness is to bring it into the light.
  • Where secrets live, intimacy dies.
  • Where intimacy lives, secrets die.
• The new building is working out great!
• Still have a few things to do, but we are fully functional.
• Excited about starting “The Story” this Sunday. Click here to send an e-vite.
• All the messages are online from this series and you can watch them here.

Here are some thoughts from Sunday’s service at Revolution Church:

• Continued our series The Vow (from LifeChurch) dealing with relationships.
  • Dealt with the Vow of Partnership: I promise our marriage will be about “WE” and not “ME”.
  • Marriage is a covenant, not a contract.
  • Contracts are based on mutual distrust.
  • Covenants are based on mutual commitment.
  • We have to take leaving off the table.
  • Covenant partnership includes godly leadership and mutual submission.
• We held our first morning service and our first service in our new facility. I will post some pictures soon.
• The service had a completely different feel – in a good way!
• It was awesome to be able to hang out and engage in conversations without worrying about the set up and equipment.
• There were approximately 25 different people who spent roughly 300-350 man hours to make the facility ready for Sunday.
• We have our services online now. You can view them at www.revolutiononline.cc.
• The final week of the series is this Sunday! You don’t want to miss it as we make The Vow of Purity together.

Several weeks ago, I was preaching through a series at Revolution titled Concealed Weapons dealing with spiritual warfare and our tools to fight against the enemy. One of the weeks was on the topic of fasting and my good friend, accountability partner, and elder at Revolution Church Zach Slagel tackled the topic.

At the conclusion of the service, I challenged our people to join in a 10 or 21 day corporate fast asking God for direction on location and facilities. I was blown away!

I was blown away by the response of the people. It’s easy to get people excited about some things. If you have a building to build or a specific project that results in hungry people getting fed or lost people getting found, you can rally support for that kind of thing with relative ease.

But that was not the case here. We were simply seeking God’s purpose and direction. We wanted to know more fully what His plan for us was. We weren’t asking Him to bless our plan, but rather to reveal His plan so we could jump in with both feet.

The response was somewhat overwhelming. An amazing number of people joined in the fast with the leadership! This is an underutilized spiritual discipline that many fellow Revolutionaries took the opportunity to step into an area of faith development. I am excited to hear the stories of what God showed people during their time of fasting.

I was blown away by the response of God. We asked him to give us a greater glimpse of His plan. We longed to know more fully His purpose for Revolution Church. And He answered.

We are now leasing an amazing space from the Greenville Baptist Association located in the downtown Greenville area. We are now situated in a location that is central to many areas and this is definitely a community we can pour our hearts into and physically display the love of Christ!

There are a handful of times in my walk with God where I have clearly and distinctly heard from Him about a specific situation. There are fewer still where I could see the tangible effects of His handiwork in bringing the situation to bear. This was one of those moments. I can’t recount all the specific details, but this is one that has God’s fingerprints all over it!

I would like to thank so many of you for praying with us in this matter.

This Sunday morning, we will have our first service at the new location and our first morning service ever! If you are reading this and in the area, I would like to personally invite you to come. The details are above and if you click the card you can get directions. I don’t want to pull anyone away from being plugged in at their own church. Sometimes, it’s just encouraging to see what God is up to in other branch locations of The Church!

Great time at Revolution last night. Here are some thoughts:

• Week 2 of The Vow series (from LifeChurch) as we looked at the Vow of Pursuit.
• We tend to pursue things we don’t have.
• It’s slightly uncomfortable talking about sex with your 13 year old daughter listening.
• I’d rather be a little uncomfortable and have her appreciate a healthy respect and proper view of sex within marriage than fail to man up and ignore the tough talk.
• If you don’t like what you are getting from a relationship, look at what you’re giving!
• More often than not, we’re the ones that need to change something rather than focusing on what our spouse needs to change.

This was our last week at the Hilton. We have our own space at 220 Howe St and we are moving our services to Sunday mornings at 10:30!

I am SO EXCITED about this move! I am planning on another post with the details on the new space if time allows this week. We will be working on getting the new space ready every night this week, so if you’re not already signed up to volunteer, come join us!

We started a new series (from LifeChurch) Sunday called “The Vow” focusing on relationships. I am deeply burdened for marriages, both present and future, in this day that we’re living where 1/2 will end in divorce.

Here are some thoughts:

• God is my #1 priority and my spouse is #2.
• Divorce is not God’s plan, but it is not the end of the world either. God is a God of Grace and he can redeem relationships a give new starts.
• Most men are willing to die for their wives, but they are reluctant to do a load of laundry or wash a dish!
• Your spouse comes before your children.
• Your spouse comes before your job.
• Your spouse comes before your ministry.
• Our schedules are the greatest reflection of our priorities.

This is a great series to invite new people to ‘come and see‘. Visit www.revolutiononline.cc to send an e-vite.