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Archive for the ‘General’ Category

Thought I had better dispel the rumor that I had been abducted by aliens, since I’ve not been posting much on here lately.

We’re in the ramp-up to the Portsmouth World Changers project. This means that the typical number of meetings each week is increased by a factor of like 5. So, I’ve been trying to take some extra time when I can catch it to rest before the project begins.

There are some really incredible things that are in the works, and hopefully in the next few days I will be able to blog about some of them.

Have had a bunch of really incredible meetings and have some coming up that I’m really excited about in the next few days.

Bottom line: God is working like wild around here! I feel like I’m in the front-row outside seat on Griffon every day!

More to come soon!

David Porter is giving away an ESV Study Bible in calfskin leather over on his blog,  A Boomer In The Pew.  This Bible retails for $239, so this is an incredible opportunity!

Here’s the link: http://tinyurl.com/al49d3

Check out the contest!

Tomorrow we’re headed to the mountains for a few days of rest and relaxation. Unlike past years where I’ve schlepped a backpack full of books, this year I plan to take only two or three books to read.

Here’s my “things to read” list.  The top three votes go with me. The rest go back onto the “to be read” shelf.

Crazy Love, Francis Chan
Life with God, Richard Foster
Living a Life on Loan, Eric Swanson & Rick Russaw
Peppermint-Filled Pinatas, Eric Michael Bryant
The Attentive Life, Leighton Ford
The Multiplying Church, Bob Roberts
Waking the Dead, John Eldridge

Is there one book not on my list that you would say is an absolute-must-read this week?

I need to know by Noon on Thursday. Comments are open. The clock is ticking!

By this time next week I’ll be well on my way (along with my good friend Jason) up to WiBo. It’s hard to believe that a few shorts months ago this incredible conference was a synapse firing off in the mind of Ben Arment.

It’s been a blast to watch how WiBo has developed its own identity and claimed its rightful place on the conference circuit.

Last week, Dave Daniels, Terrace Crawford and Clayton Bell started tossing around the idea of a blogger’s lunch. That idea has now become a reality, and will probably be sold out before I get this post published. I’m planning to be there, but I definitely feel like the donkey in the Kentucky Derby compared to rest of the guys who will be there. I’m definitely going to be taking good notes!

So why, as a pastor of a traditional, established church, am I looking forward to a conference like WiBo?

First, the range of speakers is unparalleled. Period. Check out the website for their bios. These guys are out on the leading edge of the Church. I am expecting to get stretched. I need to hear from folks whose ministries are different and who challenge me so that I avoid the temptation to perpetuate the status quo. I am anxious to see what Ezekiel saw in Ezekiel 1–”the likeness of the Glory of the Lord.” And I have this feeling that I may just wind up like he did–”facedown” when God shows up. And I think He will.

Second, I can’t wait for the chance to hang out with some pretty awesome folks who are going to be there. Some are folks I’ve known for several years, while others are recent friends. And the chance to meet new friends and hear what God is doing where they are. WiBo is attracting one of the most diverse audiences of any conference I’ve ever heard about. It has gone viral, and I wouldn’t miss it for (just about) anything in the world.

Still not signed up? There’s still time. On-line registration ends May 21. Whatcha waiting on?

Well…it is…..or was. Until yesterday.

Those who know me know that I’ve been a devoted Jeep driver since 1997. Well…..yesterday, while I was en route into the office, it decided to offer itself up as a burnt offering. And so, with 210,000+ miles, it departed this life for Jeep heaven.

On a more serious note, we had just returned from the long road trip from Norfolk to East Tennessee (7 hours each way), with it seriously loaded down with luggage and the stuff of spring break trips. We had returned home and unloaded it safely. In fact, earlier in the morning, I had just taken the children to school, and they had arrived safely. That, too, was a blessing, because normally when I get into the Jeep, I would put my laptop briefcase either on the passenger seat beside me, or in the front floorboard. But, since I was making the drop-off yesterday, I had put it in the back seat. Not only that, I had actually put it up onto the seat, and not in the floorboard. Another small, yet Providential, act.

I was in a meeting when the fire began, so it was well under way by the time someone finally alerted me and I ran outside, furiously pressing the “unlock” button on the remote control (as though that might magically stop the conflagration!). The fire department was already there, and were spraying it down with a 4″ fire hose. I finally got the attention of one of the firemen and asked him to get my briefcase out, which he did, and it was intact and relatively dry. I wish I could say the same for the rest of the car, but it wasn’t. There was about 4″ of murky water throughout the floorboard, and the grille looked like one of the clocks in a Salvador Dali painting.

Later, fire out, smoke cleared, and the remains towed to a junkyard to await final disposition (at the mercy of the insurance adjustor), I went back to fish through the 10+ years of “stuff” that inadvertently accumulates under the seats. Soggy bags full of papers, CDs, cassette tapes (does anyone know a sure-fire way to dry them out?) in the trunk of the rental car, I headed home for the onerous task of pawing through it to determine what could be salvaged and how to do it. A couple of hours later, it was all spread out over the dining room table, ceiling fan on high.

As I sat down to survey the spread, my daughter climbed up into my lap, full of questions. With those answered, I could not stifle the laughter. She asked me why I was laughing.  I told her I wasn’t sure I could explain it, but  Wednesday night I will begin to teach through the Epistle of James…..which opens, “Count it all joy, brothers, when you face various trials…..for the testing of your faith produces perseverance….but let perseverance have her perfect work that you may be complete, lacking nothing.” And it was only Monday evening.

And it was then that I knew for sure…it was just a Jeep.