Reminders Week 2 – God Has A Plan For Your Life

 

Listen to the sermon here God Has A Plan For Your Life

Reminders Week 2 – God Has A Plan For Your Life

God’s Plan Is To Make You and Mold You Into His Masterpiece

 Ephesians 2:1-10 NLT

Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins. ² You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil—the commander of the powers in the unseen world. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God. ³ All of us used to live that way, following the passionate desires and inclinations of our sinful nature. By our very nature we were subject to God’s anger, just like everyone else.

⁴ But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, ⁵ that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!) ⁶ For he raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus. ⁷ So God can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible wealth of his grace and kindness toward us, as shown in all he has done for us who are united with Christ Jesus.

⁸ God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. ⁹ Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. ¹⁰ We are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.

Reminder  #1. God’s Love Does Not Make Sense 

Ephesians 2: 8

⁸ God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God.

God doesn’t love you today because you’re beautiful; he loves you because you are his. If you are loved by God it is because you are his, not because you are good, not because of good performance.

Somebody said to me on Friday, “I hope God is pleased with me.” I said he is, He is pleased with you because of Jesus.

God’s love doesn’t make sense.

Reminder  #2. God’s love means complete forgiveness. 

Ephesians 2:9a 

⁹ Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done.

If you’re a Christian, you’re forgiven for everything in your past and everything in your future.

John 19:30 Jesus died on the Cross and he said, “It is finished.” Paid in Full.

God loves us enough to Correct us BUT He will NOT Condemn us.

Hebrews 8:12 

And I will forgive their wickedness,  and I will never again remember their sins.”

Isaiah 43:25 

“I—yes, I alone—will blot out your sins for my own sake and will never think of them again.

Psalm 103:10 

He does not punish us for all our sins; he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve.

Psalm 103:12 

He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west.

Reminder #3. God’s Love Is Permanent 

Your big mess is not as BIG as God’s Love 

Romans 8:38-39 

And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Reminder  #4. God Has A Plan For Your Life 

Ephesians 2:10

We are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.

God is the painter, we are the canvas.

God is the Builder, we are the house.

God is the Potter, we are the Clay.

God’s Plan for your life is to do the Good Things He Planned for you long ago.

God has specific works for you to do.

 

God’s love is bigger than the mess you’ve made. Come on back.

Hunger Games and The Bible – You interested in finding out more?

7-830pm @ Out Of The Box Worship Center

In Downtown Hillsville Va.

What in the world do The Hunger Games and The Bible have in common? Come and check it out!

Have some free coffee, great fellowship, and a great evening.

My Top 10 Books Of 2012 – with almost as many Honorable Mentions

I have struggled after reading 70 books this year to narrow my reading down to the Top 10 for 2012 and due to this fact I am not ranking the books in order of better to best, only the Top 10, with a few honorable mentions. In the Top 10 is the Series by Suzanne Collins called “The Hunger Games.” There are three books in the series and I counted these as one. Therefore the first 12 are the Top 10. Sorry if that is confusing.

Each one is in it’s own right the number 1. There is a variety in the list from Leadership, Church Growth, Social Media, Fiction, and Spiritual and Physical Health. Every one of these books could benefit every member of my church, every church leader, and most of the world.

I hope these brief notes will encourage you to read.

Ronnie

“All the proper doctrine in the world can’t save us from eating away our sensitivity to God’s presence or throwing away years of potential ministry if we wreck our heart’s physical home.”

After doing a fair amount of fasting over the past 20 years, I am convinced that the biggest struggle in America is the food that we eat and shouldn’t. Of course this isn’t the issue for everybody but it is for the masses.

Gary talks a lot about his own personal struggles with food and over eating and that is one things that makes this book such a winner. He admits that he runs a little more so that he can eat a little more of the things he likes that are not good for him. That describes me pretty well also.

The whole idea of the book is that God created us with perfect bodies that work well when treated well and fed well. It is when we eat the wrong things, which is almost everything with processed foods being the norm today. However, there are ways we can combat the wrong foods. They are exercise and eating well, not overeating and not always going for the easy foods.

I would give this book 5 stars out of 5.

Here are a few great quotes from the book.

“God gave us souls — and bodies to go with them. To be fully alive, fully human, fully the people God created us to be, we have to care for our bodies, discipline them, and make them our servants in our service to God.”

“Staying in shape require a lot of work and even regular pain, not being in shape requires its own pains and labors.”

“Protecting your health is the same thing as protecting the vehicle through which God wants to change the world.”

“Sin can lead us to become overweight, but being overweight is not, in and of itself, a sin.”

Here are a few of my favorite quotes from the book.

‎”The signature of mediocrity is not an unwillingness to change; the signature of mediocrity is chronic inconsistency.”

‎”The critical question is not “Are you lucky?” but “Do you get a high return on luck?”

‎”Greatness is not a matter of circumstance; greatness is first and foremost a matter of conscious choice and discipline.” This is my favorite.

‎”None of us can predict with certainty the twists and turns our lives will take. Life is uncertain, the future unknown. Yet the task of mastering our own fate remains. ”

You shouldn’t wait until you are in an unexpected storm to discover you need more strength. You don’t wait until you are shipwrecked to find out if you can eat raw dolphin. (This is one of the concepts from the book and not a direct quote.)

The following are the 3 concepts found in the successful over the long haul companies they studied.

Fanatic discipline: Discipline, in essence, is consistency of action—consistency with values, consistency with long-term goals, consistency with performance standards, consistency over time. Discipline is not the same as regimentation. True discipline requires the independence of mind to reject pressures to conform in ways incompatible with values, performance standards, and long-term aspirations.

Empirical creativity: They relied on researched empirical evidence. They don’t look to conventional wisdom during a time of uncertainty, nor to other’s opinions—they look for empirical evidence.

Productive paranoia: They maintain hyper-vigilance in good times as well as bad. Even in positive conditions, they constantly consider that events could turn against them at any moment. In fact, they expect it—and recognize that they better be prepared when it does. By embracing the myriad of possible dangers, they put themselves in a superior position to overcome danger.
Note: it isn’t just that they were disciplined, or paranoid—the difference is that they took those qualities to an extreme that few others did.

Here is something I love about the book.

Fire bullets, then follow with Cannonballs. To find what works, don’t risk the whole, fire bullets, find out what works and when you find it, then fire the cannonballs. And by the way, fire lots of bullets.

And finally, a lengthy quote that I think tells the whole story of the book.

[We sense a dangerous disease infecting our modern culture and eroding hope: an increasingly prevalent view that greatness owes more to circumstance, even luck, than to action and discipline—that what happens to us matters more than what we do. Our research evidence stands firmly against this view. This work began with the premise that most of what we face lies beyond our control, that life is uncertain and the future unknown. And luck plays a role for everyone. But if one company becomes great while another in similar circumstances and with comparable luck does not, the root cause of why one becomes great and the other does not simply cannot be circumstance or luck. Indeed, if there’s one overarching message arising from our
research, it is this: greatness is not a matter of circumstance; greatness is first and foremost a matter of conscious choice and discipline. The factors that make a company great lie largely within the hands of its people. It isn’t a matter of what happens to them but a matter of what they create, what they do, and how well they do it. We are not imprisoned by our circumstances, our luck, or the inherent unfairness of life. We aren’t imprisoned by the times in which we live, our previous mistakes, or our past successes. In the end, we can control only a tiny sliver of what happens to us. But even so, we are free to choose, free to become great by choice.

This book has shaken me from my comfort zone once again and started me back on the path of even greater growth. Here are some notes on what the book is about.

• The Law of the Mirror: You Must See Value in Yourself to Add Value to Yourself
• The Law of Awareness: You Must Know Yourself to Grow Yourself
• The Law of Modeling: It’s Hard to Improve When You Have No One But Yourself to Follow
• The Law of the Rubber Band: Growth Stops When You Lose the Tension Between Where You are and Where You Could Be
• The Law of Contribution: Developing Yourself Enables You to Develop Others

“Improving yourself daily guarantees you a future filled with possibilities.”

I plan to dig back through this book and work through the next year putting into place the things that I have learned.

This book asks the question, “Are we creating worship services for churched people or un-churched people? If all we are interested in is keeping the people we have happy, then we can keep doing the things we have been doing for the past 20, 30, 50 years. If we want to reach people who are not in church then we have to make some changes.

Every church leader, pastor, board, and member should read this book.

Some quotes from the book.

“This is a book about creating churches that unchurched men, women, and children love to attend.”

“This is a book about how to make your church more appealing to the people who are put off by all the shenanigans that give church, big churches in particular, a bad name — people who know there’s more to life than this life but who can’t imagine that the church holds any clues.”

“As I will discuss in detail later, our ongoing challenge is to make sure we stay in the unchurched people market. That’s not easy. Now that we’re so big, it’s not even necessary. Who would know? Who would care? Truth is, only our core would know. But we would all quit if we thought that staying meant spending the rest of our productive lives running a big church rather than making a big difference.”

“All my critics are religious people. (It may be the only thing I have in common with Jesus.)”

I first heard of Paul Young when someone suggested that I read his book, “The Shack.” I read that book and it was a game changer for me. It was one of those books that you read and it changes the way you see things. It didn’t change my theology, it changed my way of viewing some things. Paul Young has a gift of helping us use our imagination. Many people saw the book as controversial and those who did will also see this book as controversial. The book is FICTION!

If you are religious and like to find fault, you will not like this book and you won’t like Paul Young. On the other hand, if you are hurting, if you have hurt in the past and you are having a hard time seeing God in the pain, if you’re trying to get a grasp of who God is and how he behaves, you will love Paul Young and his books.

In the first book I cried through the first half of the book and in this one, “Cross Roads” I laughed so hard through most of the book. It is amazing in the midst of a tragic story there was great laughter and love and new understanding. I don’t want to give anything about the book away but I hope that you will read it and I believe if you do, you will fall even more in love with the Creator of this universe. I believe that you will come away with a better understanding of pain and suffering. I believe you will come away with a better understanding of forgiveness, grace, and true meaning in life.

And most of all I believe you will come away with a great understanding of the life-after.

I couldn’t put it down and would recommend you get it and devour it. One suggestion, if you haven’t read “The Shack” I would read that one first but it isn’t necessary for understanding.

Dr. Steve Brown has done it again. I read everything that he writes and I own more of his sermons than any preacher I have ever listened to. Steve Brown has taught me more than any other preacher in my entire life. He has taught me about leadership, he has taught me about being a teacher, and a preacher, but most of all Steve Brown has taught me about the Radical Love of God. Steve Brown is my favorite preacher of all time.

That is what this book is about, “Three Free Sins” is not a joke and it isn’t a gimmick to get people to read another book. Steve really believes that God loves us and that is what matters. He is not advocating sin, he is advocating taking God at his word when he says, he took our sin when he died on the cross.

This is not a book for the faint at heart, the judgmental, or the religious, or maybe it is. It might oil a person’s mind and heart and help them to see truth.

Read everything Steve ever writes, you can’t go wrong.

Awakening is a church movement started by the ministry of Celebration Church under the leadership of Pastor Stoval Weems. This church starts every year with a 21 day fast to start the year off right. In the book Stoval explains the different types of fasts people undertake for the 21 days, he shares stories of answered prayer and changed lives, and the tremendous impact these 21 days and living a fasted lifestyle have blessed the church to grow from 7 people to over 10,000 in attendance each week in just 12 years.

God uses fasting in us to make room for new things He wants to do in and through our lives.

Pat Williams is the Senior Vice President of the Orlando Magic and author of several books. Several that I plan to read ASAP. If you are a sports fan, you’re going to love the stories Pat shares in this book.

However, it is not just a leadership book for the sports world. It is a leadership book for the Church, the Sports World, the Business World, and just about any leadership situation you find yourself engaged in.

“The purpose of a committee is to gather information and discuss items brought before them but a committee doesn’t lead. Leaders lead and leaders make decisions, therefore committees were never meant to make decisions.”

“One thing I’ve learned through the years is that leadership is like a three-legged stool. The first leg is viewing yourself as a leader. The second leg is preparing yourself as a leader. The third leg is stepping up and taking a leadership role when the opportunity presents itself.” Pat williams

“Every great leader, from Washington to Lincoln to Churchill to Disney to Jobs, has experienced discouraging failures and setbacks. Every one of these leaders would certainly have quit somewhere along the line if not for a vision.”

“We need leaders with the vision to imagine a world beyond terrorism, a world beyond poverty and hunger, a world beyond energy shortages and energy dependence, a world beyond cancer and heart disease and Alzheimer’s and AIDS. We need leaders with the bold, optimistic vision to believe that nothing is impossible, that every problem has a solution.”

If you are in ministry, you should read this book and process it. You may disagree with it, you may get angry that the world is changing and has changed rapidly. But one thing you can’t argue with, if we refuse to change with the times in how we present the the changeless message of the gospel, then the world will pay us no mind.

The world today, which operates in the social media world, virtual, online, will simply leave behind those who ignore it.

“Our well-being depends on our ability to connect with other humans.” Leonard Sweet

(Social Media is about connecting)

“We know time is constant, but in recent years it seems time started moving much more quickly.” Leonard Sweet (Social Media is the reason)

“The tribe that feels most at home in the twenty-first-century Digital Age is what we will call the Googlers—the digitized, globalized group that spends much of its life getting to know one another in a virtual world.” Leonard Sweet (In Viral)

“As I look at the waning of Gutenberg Culture and the arrival of Google Culture, I have to wonder if Jesus wouldn’t be more at home with the Googlers. In fact, as the Western church built by Gutenbergers continues to lose ground in a world of Googlers, I am convinced that Christians need to start taking cues from the Googlers.” Leonard Sweet (In Viral)

Reading this book has helped me to see that I need to read more non-Christian fiction. Here are a few reasons why.

#1. This is a really well written book with a good story.

#2. It kept me turning the pages. (In Kindle that is)

#3. It was a great and relaxing break from the reading and serious study I do for sermons on a regular basis.

#4. There are lots of possibilities to use here in sermons.

#5. It is a very popular series that has now surpassed “Harry Potter” in sales and I can now carry on a conversation with a lot of people in something they really enjoy talking about.

It would be difficult for me to tell you much about the book without giving away things that I would rather encourage you to find out by reading this book. It is a post apocalyptic setting where the Country has been sectioned into 13 districts. One of the districts has been destroyed because of rebellion against the governing authorities and the Hunger Games were started to remind people they should never rebel again.

Several parents have asked if it is appropriate for teens and pre-teens to read and I believe that it is. It is a great story line of a very real possibility in the world in which we live. There is killing in the book but it is no worse than the cowboy and Indian movies I watched almost 40 years ago where people would shoot flaming arrows into people. The book is not so graphic to be offensive in this manner. The people who are killing are not doing it because they want to, they are being made to do it to not only save their own lives but the lives of family and friends.

I love these books. Yes, I think the thought of kids killing kids is repulsive, yes, I think the thought of a government forcing people to kill each other as a game for others to enjoy is terrible, and yes, I believe there are disturbing things in these books that will cause you to wince. With that said, they are great books. I said in my notes on the first book in this series, “The Hunger Games”, and I will say it again. The people in the story were not basking in the idea of killing each other, they were not crazed criminals looking for their next kill.

This is a story in the setting of a post-apocalyptic world, the government has taken control of the people and to remind each section or district of the Country not to ever revolt again and try to overthrow the government, the government draws out two names each year, a boy and a girl, from each of the 12 districts and they have to go into an arena of sorts and fight to the death. The victor is rewarded and the reminder is that every year this is what happens because of the first uprising, it could be made to be worse.

Several Definite Honorable Mentions and Valuable Reading.

If you want to be encouraged in your prayer life, read this book. If you want to learn more about the God we serve who answers prayer, read this book. If you want to know how to understand the answers to your prayers, read this book.

“Bold prayers honor God, and God honors bold prayers.” Mark Batterson

“God isn’t offended by your biggest dreams or boldest prayers. He is offended by anything less.” Mark Batterson

“If your prayers aren’t impossible to you, they are insulting to God.” Mark Batterson

If you want to be challenged out of the status-quo, then read this book. If you would rather do things like they have always been done, then don’t read it, it would just make you mad and you would be one with a numb gluteus maximus instead of wet feet. (You have to read the book to find out what that means) :0

The book is a serious look at the story of Beniniah in the Old Testament. Mentioned in only a few short verses but in a story that Batterson is able to bring to life like I have never seen before. As a matter of fact, I have never heard a sermon where this man was mentioned in my life.

I can’t say enough good about this book. Batterson is encouraging us to take what we have and serve God with it. Be it much or little, God makes all the difference.

“Usually, when the image of a man-eating beast travels through the optical nerve and registers in the visual cortex, the brain has one over-arching message: Run away. Normal people run away from lions. They run as far and as fast as they possibly can. But lion chasers are wired differently.”

The message here is that we cannot continually run away from challenges in life. These challenges are often times what God uses to get us to a new place in life and in our spiritual life. Confront your challenges.

“I’ve learned that taking no risks is the greatest risk of all.”

“I’m absolutely convinced that our greatest regrets in life will be missed opportunities.”

“When you cross paths with the lion, are you going to run away like a scaredy-cat or are you going to grab life by the mane?”

“Maybe it is time to quit running and time to start chasing. Try something new. Take some risks. Start doing some things that are worth recounting in jaw-dropping detail. I think we owe it to our kids and grandkids.”

Adam and I do not agree on everything but I would say on most. This book and its conclusion is one that we definitely agree upon. In Adam’s book he tackles some of the hardest questions we struggle with. Why do bad things happen? Why do people die? Why doesn’t God answer my prayer? and several more.

The overwhelming take home from this book is that we misunderstand who God is and how God behaves. We have heard through the years so many thing about God that the Bible really doesn’t teach and we have heard them from sources that we take for granted they know what they are talking about. Sad to say, we have gotten some very bad information through the years.

God never promised to make everyone well in this life.

God never promised everyone would be wealthy in this life.

God never said that if we lived for Him and tried our best that everything would go well for us.

God never said that being good gained us favor above others in this life.

As a matter of fact, the Bible teaches us that if we follow God’s will as laid out in scripture, we may very well face hardship because of it. This is a fact of scripture.

“As I began to actually read the Bible I found that my assumptions about what the Bible taught were wrong. The sweeping message of the Bible is not a promise that those who believe and do good will not suffer. Instead the Bible is largely a book about people who refused to let go of their faith in the face of suffering.” Adam Hamilton

“Twenty to thirty thousand people die every day of diseases related to starvation and malnutrition. Is this God’s will? Or is God’s will that those who have resources work to help those who do not? The clear message of Scripture is the latter.” Adam Hamilton

“When non-Christians hear Christians say things like “everything happens for a reason” and “it must have been the will of God,” they are left with an impression of God that is hardly loving and just, but instead a picture of God who wills evil and suffering in the world.” Adam Hamilton

“Our primary aim should be to glorify God, not to be honored or to be healthy or to be happy.” Adam Hamilton

A book that speaks to leaders across a broad spectrum. This book is really geared to the person who is going to run a business, especially a business you would start from the ground up. With that said, there is a lot of great leadership gold here for Non-Profit leaders, Church leaders, you name it, if it is leadership this book can help you.

Very thorough, from hiring, firing, communication, casting vision, budgeting, a to z, it’s all here.

“I resist the standard employee mentality so much that I have quit using the word “employees.” I call them team members, and I mean it.”

Everything in the book is about being a productive, unified, team. People want to be part of a team and not just an employee. Dave says that employees come in late to work, goof off, and steal from you, but team members work together to make everyone better. One note, he isn’t saying that all employees do these things, he is saying that we should stop using the term employee’s and every working situation becomes a team.

“Words matter. So when we call someone a “team member” at our place, that means something; it isn’t some corporate HR program that tries to make slaves to jerks feel better by changing the words. It means you will be treated like and expected to act like you are on a team. When we call someone an EntreLeader it means something. It means you are more than a renegade lone ranger and it means you are more than a corporate bureaucrat who treats his people like units of production.”

I have read through the years, many books that state the following, “Everything rises and falls on leadership,” and I believe that statement to be true. If the leaders isn’t motivated, the team will not be motivated. If the leader isn’t a learner, the team will not be learners, if the leader isn’t responsible, the team will not be responsible. Everything rises and falls on leadership. Lack of leadership is painful for the team and detrimental to the organization.

Dave says, Spineless Leader is an oxymoron.

“So the problem with my company then and now is me. The problem with your company is not the economy, it is not the lack of opportunity, it is not your team. The problem is you. That is the bad news. The good news is, if you’re the problem, you’re also the solution. You’re the one person you can change the easiest. You can decide to grow. Grow your abilities, your character, your education, and your capacity. You can decide who you want to be and get about the business of becoming that person.”

“Let’s face it, the reason so many churches are half full on Sunday morning is because a whole bunch of people decided not to come back. Why? The preacher didn’t give ’em anything to come back for. There were plenty of points, but nothing worth coming back for the following week.”

“Are you willing to abandon a style, an approach, a system that was designed in another era for a culture that no longer exists?”

One of the best books I have read on worship. Zach Neese has spent a considerable amount of time on this project, He takes us back to the Old Testament and helps us to see why we worship the way we do. Zach also drives the point home that all of life is meant to be about our relationship with God, our worship of Him, and not just an hour on Sunday morning.

This book does a great job of bringing to the fore the importance of community and the importance of connection. Of which, many in the church world feel that community is only done in face to face communication. John Voelz in this book challenges that thinking with the basis of scripture and he does it quite well. Now, there will be people who will read this book and still disagree but that is better than refusing to read it because you believe that social media is evil in some form.

“The classroom battle cry “Stop passing notes” has become “I’m going to confiscate your smartphone.”

I include this quote just because when I was in school cell phones were unheard of and it was a matter of getting into trouble for passing notes. The quote is a reminder that social media, cell phones, facebook, twitter, etc are here to stay, they are not going away except to be replaced with something that will be even more confusing to those who refuse to learn what is happening now.

“In corporate worship environments, people need to be made aware of the rules. Social Networking in church is only out of line if it is understood that it has no place there. If you desire to create an environment where Social Networking is acceptable as part of the experience, you will have to educate your people so they know it is appropriate.”

This is a great place to start with social media in the church. There is nothing wrong with social media in the church. It is no different than having hymnals, multi media, etc. However, we will have to educate people in established churches about what we intend to do with this media and how it will be helpful. This has been an easy task where I am currently serving as the pastor because I helped plant the church and I essentially pastor a group of 300 plus people through social media throughout the week and we are being very fruitful with it. It was not this way in the church where I served full-time before. It is going to be like introducing anything else that is new and different. Sometimes a battle but I believe it is one worth entering.

“To use or not to use Social Networking in church is a question of methodology, not theology.”

“Social Networking is not a fad. It is a new way of communicating. Whether your church is a forward-thinking midwestern church, you live on one of the coasts, or you belong to a small passive congregation, this new way of communicating is affecting you, your children, your grandchildren, your neighbors, your real estate agent, and everyone you are called to love for the sake of the Kingdom. They are speaking a new language. It is a default language. You may not become fluent in every situation overnight. But you need to learn it.”

Here is one of my favorite nuggets from the book. I cannot be everyone’s buddy but through social media, I can be everyone’s friend. 

I have been saying to people this is the best book I have read all year but after thinking about it, this book is probably better stated as the most beneficial.

“The average person receives 41.5 texts per day and sends/receives 141 email messages per day.”

I am right smack dab in the top rung of this statistic.

For years now I have struggled to keep up. Every morning when I wake up there would be 100+ e-mails waiting for my attention and many of them would sit in my inbox for weeks and even months. Not anymore…

Here are some of the things Eric recommends for defeating the e-mail monster.

#1. If you are like most people, you have too much coming into your inbox. Whether it is email, text messages, instant messages, Skype video, Facebook chat, Twitter, or the next new thing—a lot of material is coming at you. You should relish this as it means someone else thinks you are important.

“You should tackle answering your email at two 30-minute intervals during the day and get through as much of it as you can. While you probably will not be able to answer everyone in 24 hours, you will be less stressed and more focused on responding to the most important emails first.”

“Most messages can be answered in one to two sentences—start making this a habit.”

“Some people suffer from a digital pack rat mentality. If you haven’t read something in 10 days delete it. It must not be that important. If you cannot bring yourself to delete rigorously, then make a folder called “to read” and put them there. Most likely you will never read these, but it quickly clears your inbox of unnecessary clutter.”

“Before you send a message determine if it’s absolutely necessary. The more messages you send the more messages you will receive.”

“Turn off the message alert functionality on all your devices and applications.”

This is a book every leader should read.

Book Notes: Proof Of Heaven by Eben Alexander M.D.

 

 

I had never heard of this book until this past Sunday. One of my church members said to me after the service, “there is a book I just read and wanted you to have it but I left it at home.” She was so convinced I should read it that she went home and retrieved the book and brought it back to me. That was Sunday morning and here I am Tuesday morning having finished the book. It is amazing to me that I am going to preach on the following scripture text this Sunday morning.

2 Corinthians 12: 1-10 NLT

This boasting will do no good, but I must go on. I will reluctantly tell about visions and revelations from the Lord.² I was caught up to the third heaven fourteen years ago. Whether I was in my body or out of my body, I don’t know—only God knows. ³ Yes, only God knows whether I was in my body or outside my body. But I do know ⁴ that I was caught up to paradise and heard things so astounding that they cannot be expressed in words, things no human is allowed to tell.

⁵ That experience is worth boasting about, but I’m not going to do it. I will boast only about my weaknesses. ⁶ If I wanted to boast, I would be no fool in doing so, because I would be telling the truth. But I won’t do it, because I don’t want anyone to give me credit beyond what they can see in my life or hear in my message, ⁷ even though I have received such wonderful revelations from God. So to keep me from becoming proud, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me and keep me from becoming proud.

⁸ Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. ⁹ Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. ¹⁰ That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Let me state up front that I believe Scripture to be the source of truth that God has given to us as humans to understand our lives here on earth and out future life in eternity. I do not need more proof that heaven exists. With that said, this is a GREAT read.

Dr. Eben Alexander’s story is worth reading for many reasons. His life story, being adopted, and all of the things he dealt with because of his feelings of being given away and then finally being reunited with his biological family, this story alone is worth reading. However, his story is quite similar in many ways to Paul’s experience in 2 Corinthians. Paul stated that he didn’t really know whether he was in or out of his body, Dr. Alexander knew that he was having an out-of-body experience because of his grave illness. By the way he survived an illness that few people ever live to tell about.

Religious people will read this book and condemn it off the cuff. Correction, religious people will hear about the book and never read it and condemn it off the cuff. As Christians we are so good at missing the point.

I would love to read in the book that Dr. Alexander had his experience and met Jesus and they had a grand conversation where everyone was convinced that we are to get back to the business of telling the world about Jesus but that’s not what happened in the book. As a thinking person though I have taken so much from this book. There are so many things we can learn from Dr. Alexander’s experience, if we will just read it and think without condemning because everything we have been taught, studied, and believed is not exactly in line with Dr. Alexander’s experience.

Dr. Alexander is sharing what happened to him, he is now convinced from that experience that heaven exists. I have no idea what he believes about Jesus and only one way to heaven. Matter of fact, I hope to learn these things because I feel a great draw to Eben and what he was allowed to see. I don’t have any reason after reading this book to change what I believe about God, heaven, the truth of the Bible, that Jesus is the way to heaven, or anything else. But I can say that this book has enhanced my understanding of the spiritual world and our eternal life.

Maybe someday I will get the opportunity to meet Dr. Alexander, I have students at Liberty University and it would be great to sit around the table with Dr. Alexander and my students and have some good fellowship, conversation, and a good meal.

I recommend it, it is a quick read and thought-provoking.

Ronnie

Here are a few of my favorite quotes from the book.

“We taint God, His truly awesome nature with our insufficient descriptions.” Eben Alexander

“Most of what people have had to say about God has involved bringing Him down to our level, rather than elevating our perceptions up to His.” Eben Alexander

“Most skeptics aren’t really skeptics at all. To be truly skeptical one must examine something, and take it seriously.” Eben Alexander M.D.

“The physical side of the universe is as a speck of dust compared to the invisible and spiritual part.” Eben Alexander

 

A letter from Pastor Ronnie to Out Of The Box WC – November 26th, 2012

Hello Out Of The Box Family,

Yesterday was another record setting Sunday, we had 263 in attendance which is the most by 2 we have had in the almost two years we have been in existence. Our attendance for the month of November was an average of 245 each week and that is a work of God. I want to take every available opportunity to say to those of you who work so hard each week to make the services at OOTBWC a success, Thank You.

You are truly making a DIFFERENCE in the lives of a lot of people.

Every week I have people come to me and tell me what the ministry here is doing in their lives. Just yesterday someone said, “The message was aimed right at me, it was what I needed to hear, I am going through a lot right now.” Now, I would love to get the credit (not really) but I think it is what Mike and Kris Musser did in their part of the sermon yesterday that drove the message home. Thank you especially Mike and Kris for such an awesome job, you rocked.

December is going to be a hectic time for most people and it is literally just around the corner. Here is what I want for you this Christmas. I want OOTBWC to be a place that helps you slow down, take a breath, and enjoy the season like never before. I want OOTBWC to be a place where you can come and just unwind, let your guard down, take a break, have a cup of coffee, a snack, whatever and just be yourself. Wear the clothes you are comfortable in, kick off your shoes, enjoy the music and let the music get inside of you. Yesterday Samuel our 5 year old was singing the songs and he said, “Daddy, this is such a good song.” We were all singing it then and it really blessed us. I want you to be able to give your friends the gift this Christmas of OOTBWC, think about how you have been blessed, then think of someone that you know who is hurting and could use a family to lift them up. Bring them with you, experiencing is believing.

Make plans to be with us each Sunday in December and remember December 21-23 Christmas Celebration, more details coming later this week.

And one last thing, Remember that God has a plan for your life, you are His Masterpiece and He is making and molding you to be like Him. You will do the works He has created you to do.

I love you Out Of The Box Worship Center

Pastor Ronnie

Top 10 Three Minute Thursdays

Here are the Top 10 Three Minute Thursdays. Be sure and send in your questions.

Ronnie

What does God think of tattoos?

What Does the Bible Say About Interracial Marriage

God’s View of Masturbation

Will Smoking Send You To Hell?

Can God Forgive Me of Sexual Sin?

Will We Eat Mexican Food in Heaven?

Christians and Alcohol

Astrology and Your Horoscope, What Does The Bible Say?

Does God expect me to dress up to go to go to church?

How many times will God forgive me?

Be sure to go and LIKE the Three Minute Thursday Facebook Page

threeminutethursdays?fref=ts

Random things I am thankful for…

I am thankful for my family, every one of them.

I am especially thankful for my wife Misty.

I am especially thankful for my three sons, Michael, Samuel, and Judah.

I am especially thankful for my two grandchildren, Christopher and Victoria. (And One On The Way)

I am especially thankful for our daughter in law, Caitlin

I am especially thankful for my mom and dad, Gray and Sylvia Collins.

I am especially thankful for my nephews and great nephews and great-niece.

I am especially thankful for so many awesome friends, you know who you are.

I am especially thankful for an awesome church, an awesome congregation to serve.

I am especially thankful for the Call God has on my life.

I am especially thankful for grace and forgiveness.

I am especially thankful for the joy of running.

I am especially thankful for the joy of reading.

I am especially thankful for my home.

I am especially thankful for sitting around a fire and just enjoying the peace and warmth.

The blessings God has given to me are too many to list and I am thankful for each and every one.

By the way, I am thankful for those of you who read my blog.

Happy Thanksgiving 2012

Ronnie

Book Notes: Your Life In Rhythm by Bruce Miller

 

 

If you are struggling with trying to lead a balanced life, this is a great book for you. Bruce Miller says, I don’t want to lead a balanced life but a fulfilled life lived in Rhythm.

What does he mean by this? Bruce has discovered that we operate in the seasons of life. There is the season of harvest where we work really hard to reap the crops and there is the winter season of life where we rest and regain the strength we need to run the race well. Bruce says we need to get back to understanding Chronos time and Kairos time. Chronos time is the calendar and this relates to the seasons in our lives. We have seasons of being single, married, with children, etc. We have to learn to live life to the fullest in these seasons of our lives and not beat ourselves up over what we can’t do, what we don’t have, and what we want to do in the future.

Bruce says that burnout doesn’t happen as a result of working hard but rather burnout happens because our lives are unfulfilled. We must come to the point of learning to live in the season of life in which we find ourselves. We can also look forward to and draw strength from the seasons we are looking forward to.

Bruce makes a case for the Sabbath rest that God gave to us. We are terrible at resting. By the way, resting isn’t the same thing as being lazy. I know lots of people who work hard at being lazy. We must learn to take the rest that God gave us as a gift. We cannot keep going at a wide open pace and continue in the long-term. Learn to rest.

Be at peace with the stage of life you are in right now. Ride the wave of life where God has placed you. You never get this stage of life back.

Bruce is right, this is a great message, we need to let it sink in. There is a lot of the wisdom of Solomon in this book.

Ecclesiastes 3: 1-15 NLT

For everything there is a season,
a time for every activity under heaven.
² A time to be born and a time to die.
A time to plant and a time to harvest.
³ A time to kill and a time to heal.
A time to tear down and a time to build up.
⁴ A time to cry and a time to laugh.
A time to grieve and a time to dance.
⁵ A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones.
A time to embrace and a time to turn away.
⁶ A time to search and a time to quit searching.
A time to keep and a time to throw away.
⁷ A time to tear and a time to mend.
A time to be quiet and a time to speak.
⁸ A time to love and a time to hate.
A time for war and a time for peace.

⁹ What do people really get for all their hard work? ¹⁰ I have seen the burden God has placed on us all. ¹¹ Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end. ¹² So I concluded there is nothing better than to be happy and enjoy ourselves as long as we can. ¹³ And people should eat and drink and enjoy the fruits of their labor, for these are gifts from God.

¹⁴ And I know that whatever God does is final. Nothing can be added to it or taken from it. God’s purpose is that people should fear him. ¹⁵ What is happening now has happened before, and what will happen in the future has happened before, because God makes the same things happen over and over again.

Ronnie

The Swirl: Friday Night November 30th, 2012 and Everyone Is Invited

 

 

Reminders: Week 1 – God Loves You

 

Listen to the sermon here: 1199883029

Reminders Week 1: God Loves You

Post It Note – One of the best inventions of all time – Because we need reminders

(One of the saddest things in the world is this: some of you love God so much but you feel like you are not loved by God. You feel like you have been so bad that God can’t possibly love you) That is a lie of Satan, it comes from the pit of hell and it smells like smoke. 

4 Ways God Reminds Us Of His Love

#1. Creation

Psalm 19:1-6

The heavens proclaim the glory of God.
The skies display his craftsmanship.
² Day after day they continue to speak;
night after night they make him known.
³ They speak without a sound or word;
their voice is never heard.
⁴ Yet their message has gone throughout the earth,
and their words to all the world.

God has made a home in the heavens for the sun.
⁵ It bursts forth like a radiant bridegroom after his wedding.
It rejoices like a great athlete eager to run the race.
⁶ The sun rises at one end of the heavens
and follows its course to the other end.
Nothing can hide from its heat.

God has made Himself obvious in Creation!

Psalm 139: 13-15

¹³ You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body
and knit me together in my mother’s womb.
¹⁴ Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!
Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.
¹⁵ You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion,
as I was woven together in the dark of the womb.

Lamentations 3:22-23

²² The faithful love of the Lord never ends!
His mercies never cease.
²³ Great is his faithfulness;
his mercies begin afresh each morning.

Every morning the sun comes up again – that is a reminder that God has not forgotten you and that He loves you.

#2. The People That We Meet

Who did God use to bring you to Christ?

Who is it that brought you to this church?

Who is it that told you about Christ?

Who was it that took you to church as a child?

You didn’t get here on your own, other people play a role in your relationship to Christ.

Found People Find People

Jesus said in Mark 1, Follow me and you will fish for people.

#3. Circumstances

Circumstances change our lives.

#4. Jesus is the 4^th Sticky Note to remind you that God loves you.

Romans 5:8

If you ever doubt God’s love, look to the blood stained cross.

⁸ But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.

Salvation is not something God gives to good people. Salvation is something God gives to those who trust him.

Because of Creation, and because of Other People, and because of Circumstances, and because of Jesus, you can know that God loves you.

Book Notes: Cross Roads by WM Paul Young

I first heard of Paul Young when someone suggested that I read his book, “The Shack.” I read that book and it was a game changer for me. It was one of those books that you read and it changes the way you see things. It didn’t change my theology, it changed my way of viewing some things. Paul Young has a gift of helping us use our imagination. Many people saw the book as controversial and those who did will also see this book as controversial. The book is FICTION!

If you are religious and like to find fault, you will not like this book and you won’t like Paul Young. On the other hand, if you are hurting, if you have hurt in the past and you are having a hard time seeing God in the pain, if you’re trying to get a grasp of who God is and how he behaves, you will love Paul Young and his books.

In the first book I cried through the first half of the book and in this one, “Cross Roads” I laughed so hard through most of the book. It is amazing in the midst of a tragic story there was great laughter and love and new understanding. I don’t want to give anything about the book away but I hope that you will read it and I believe if you do, you will fall even more in love with the Creator of this universe. I believe that you will come away with a better understanding of pain and suffering. I believe you will come away with a better understanding of forgiveness, grace, and true meaning in life.

And most of all I believe you will come away with a great understanding of the life-after.

I couldn’t put it down and would recommend you get it and devour it. One suggestion, if you haven’t read “The Shack” I would read that one first but it isn’t necessary for understanding.

Ronnie

Pastor Ronnie’s Cake

It takes a lot more faith to believe this world came into existence by chance than it does to believe the Biblical account of Creation.

Ronnie

Divine Rhythm

Divine Rhythm is Coming!

Pastor Ronnie and Misty Collins will be leading a group and going to Divine Rhythm on Feb 1 – 3, 2013 in Gatlinburg, TN and anyone 18 – 35 years old is invited to attend.

We will travel together in the Church Vans and the Church will cover the registration fees. The only cost to you will be your food and lodging for two nights and childcare.

Please contact Pastor Ronnie Collins (ronnie24317@yahoo.com) as soon as possible if you plan to go. You will need to complete a registration form and pay a $10 deposit.

www.divinerhythm.com

 

A letter from Pastor Ronnie to Out Of The Box WC – November 19th, 2012

Hello Out Of The Box Family,

Yesterday was another one of those worship services that just blew me away. Once again the music was over the top, we have so many gifted and talented musicians, but most of all, we have musicians who love God and want to play and sing for His Glory. It was good.

What blew me away yesterday was the fact that so many people are bringing their friends to church. The church is being the church, you are working in conjunction with God to make sure that people know Him. That was one of the points of the sermon yesterday, that we are reminded of God’s love by the people that we meet.

There was a gentleman that several people have invited many times from our community who came for the first time yesterday. The beauty of it is, it was a new follower that brought their friend to meet Christ. Blows me away.

We had 243 in attendance with 56 in children’s ministry. God is doing a Great Work among us and through us and I am grateful to be a part of His plan. I am grateful that you are part of the plan as well. Without you, this wouldn’t happen because God has chosen to use His people to carry out His work on the earth. Thank you for being obedient.

There are so many opportunities for you to serve and be a part of this growing ministry. We have opportunities in the van ministry, the children’s ministry, the music ministry, in greeting, gathering  and so much more. Let us know where you want to dig in and make a difference.

Remember to start inviting your friends and family to our Christmas Celebration on December 21-23 at Out Of The Box Worship Center. We will get more details out to you real soon but rest assured it is going to be over the top.

Be reminded this week that God Loves You and He really does have a great plan for your life.

Pastor Ronnie

Book Notes: EntreLeadership by Dave Ramsey

 

My first knowledge of Dave Ramsey was when Misty and I went through Financial Peace University. I must admit that even though we did not do everything we learned in that class, it was top quality training. I have come to be very fond of Dave and his style of leadership, he is no-nonsense and I have decided he is the Dr. Phil of Finance. I love this guy. Remember, loving him and his work doesn’t always mean that I follow his teaching. I need to do better about that.

EntreLeadership

A book that speaks to leaders across a broad spectrum. This book is really geared to the person who is going to run a business, especially a business you would start from the ground up. With that said, there is a lot of great leadership gold here for Non-Profit leaders, Church leaders, you name it, if it is leadership this book can help you.

Very thorough, from hiring, firing, communication, casting vision, budgeting, a to z, it’s all here.

“I resist the standard employee mentality so much that I have quit using the word “employees.” I call them team members, and I mean it.”

Everything in the book is about being a productive, unified, team. People want to be part of a team and not just an employee. Dave says that employees come in late to work, goof off, and steal from you, but team members work together to make everyone better. One note, he isn’t saying that all employees do these things, he is saying that we should stop using the term employee’s and every working situation becomes a team.

“Words matter. So when we call someone a “team member” at our place, that means something; it isn’t some corporate HR program that tries to make slaves to jerks feel better by changing the words. It means you will be treated like and expected to act like you are on a team. When we call someone an EntreLeader it means something. It means you are more than a renegade lone ranger and it means you are more than a corporate bureaucrat who treats his people like units of production.”

I have read through the years, many books that state the following, “Everything rises and falls on leadership,” and I believe that statement to be true. If the leaders isn’t motivated, the team will not be motivated. If the leader isn’t a learner, the team will not be learners, if the leader isn’t responsible, the team will not be responsible. Everything rises and falls on leadership. Lack of leadership is painful for the team and detrimental to the organization.

Dave says, Spineless Leader is an oxymoron.

“So the problem with my company then and now is me. The problem with your company is not the economy, it is not the lack of opportunity, it is not your team. The problem is you. That is the bad news. The good news is, if you’re the problem, you’re also the solution. You’re the one person you can change the easiest. You can decide to grow. Grow your abilities, your character, your education, and your capacity. You can decide who you want to be and get about the business of becoming that person.”

There is too much to tell, go get the book, but only if you want to be a better leader.

Ronnie

New Series This Week: REMINDERS

Week 1:God Loves You

9am and 1030am

Come and join us and let us Remind You How God Shoes His Love For Us

Three Minute Thursday – What Will Be Your Greatest Regret?

Tithing and I know It…

Misty and I just got paid. Before I could start to think of all the things I needed to do with that money, I wrote out a tithe check. You see the problem is, if I get to thinking of all the things that need to be paid for and purchased I will lose track of the most important thing, Giving God The First Part.

I believe that the Bible teaches from beginning to end that God wants the first part of all of our increase. It is not that He needs our money, the fact is, our heart follows our money or money follows our heart.  The bible says that we are to bring that tithe or 10% into the storehouse of God. In our time the storehouse is the church and I believe that is the church where you believe in the mission so much that you trust when you give that tithe it is going to worthy causes. Matter of fact, you should be sure that the money is spent in a way that you agree that it is distributed correctly.

One of the big issues people have to get around is paying staff  and pastoral salaries. The fact is, we need staff and pastors. Every dime that is spent and given by and through the church needs people to manage those ministries and those expenditures. Anyway, you need to be able to trust and believe in the church where you call home and the place where you contribute to the storehouse.

Matthew 23:23 NLT

“What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore the more important aspects of the law—justice, mercy, and faith. You should tithe, yes, but do not neglect the more important things.

There is no doubt that Jesus believed in the tithe and that tithe is again 10% of our increase. 

In the Old Testament of Malachi, God says try me or test me in this matter. bring in the tithe and see if I won’t open the windows of heaven and pour out blessings.

Here is what I am getting at. As Christians we march to a different drummer. Do we as His people believe His word when He says tithe? If we don’t believe it then do we really believe that our sins are forgiven? Statistics show that a very small percentage of Christians actually tithe and that is really sad. There is so much blessing waiting to be given and at the same time, think of all the good that could be done, the lives that could literally be saved, if all church attenders were tithers.

Another matter to consider. Jesus said, when you give, don’t announce it with trumpets and many many Christians try to say that because of this scripture we should not allow anyone to know what we give and that is just simply a bad interpretation of scripture. Now, those who don’t tithe are saying, you have no business knowing what I give, it is between me and God. Those who do tithe are saying, I don’t care if anyone knows what I give, it is 10% of what I make and that is what God asks for. Jesus simply meant that we are not to flaunt that we give a certain amount, the ground of tithing is level for everyone. 10% no matter what your income level.

Many people ask me what should I do if I have so many bills and I am just getting by. I would say this, start somewhere. Yes some legalistic Christians are out there saying, no it is 10% just have faith.

Just ignore those people and have a talk with God and tell Him what you are going to do and then do it. Start with 1%, 2% or 5% and see how God changes your life. Put Him to the test, He said to.

Ronnie

Here is a video for you, just for fun.

GO – Week 3 The Sermon Series

Listen To The Sermon Here – GO do Something Different 1199874299

A letter from Pastor Ronnie to Out Of The Box WC: November 11, 2012

Hello OOTBWC,

Wow is about all the vocabulary I have when it comes to being in worship at Out Of The Box Worship Center. Just when you think you have seen the best experience yet, it gets better. The music was off the charts this morning. I mean “Man Of Constant Sorrows”, and then “Swing Low Sweet Chariot.” All of the music was great but we did these two just to be different. Different for Out Of The Box.

The message was “Go And Do Something Different” and we wanted to illustrate that for you in every way possible. I don’t ever want to get to the point that we can’t change something about the service. Either the type of music, the number of songs, the length of the message, you name it. If it gives people the gospel, I’m all for it. We don’t ever want to get sealed inside the box at Out Of The Box.

The joy on your faces today let us know that you were blessed and fueled for a new week and that was our goal.

We broke a record this morning with 261 people in worship attendance in the two services. I know, people sometimes question why we count. We count because Jesus counted. We always get the numbers from Jesus. Just this morning we got the exact number of fish the disciples caught when they listened to Jesus and “did something different”, 153. Every number has a name, every name has a story, and every number and name are loved by God. Numbers are important.

By the way, the numbers are also important when it comes to how we are doing in reaching our community for Christ. 261 is still a long way from 26,000 but we are working toward that. I am just crazy enough to believe that we will reach that 26,000. Do I believe that we will have all 26,000 come to churches throughout the county in one week? I believe it can happen and if I didn’t believe this, I would go get another job.

I love you guys a whole lot and Jesus does too and we want you to know that.

 

A letter from Pastor Ronnie to Out Of The Box WC

Hello OOTBWC,

This past Sunday God placed some things on my heart that I felt I needed to share with you in a letter. Sometimes it is really hard to communicate everything to you that needs to be communicated on a Sunday morning in an hour service.

We are in the midst of something very special and quite rare. We are seeing numerous lives changed through the ministries of 1st Hillsville and OOTBWC, people are being baptized, joining the church, and getting involved in service to others. I wish you could all see and hear the stories that I get to hear from the folks who are so thankful we are here and listening to what God wants for the people of Carroll County and for the world.

The fact is, many of these stories are too personal to share, and others we are beginning to hear about publicly as people work through what God would have them share with us, that we might be stronger and that others might know they are not alone in their struggles. People are finding freedom to talk about and share their past and present hurts and they are finding healing in the openness.

We have well over 300 people who now call Out Of The Box Worship Center their church home, that is amazing and something that is hard to sometimes grasp as we had not planned to grow so fast. Funny how the greatest blessings in life are seldom if ever planned. People have stepped up to serve and our services have been great. We recently added new children’s ministries and those have started with great numbers. Check out “God’s Loft” and see what the children and leaders are so excited about.

I believe that we have only just scratched the surface of where God is taking us.

With that said, there is room for you to serve at OOTBWC. We have opportunities for you to serve in the new children’s ministry. Let me give you fair warning, there is paperwork that you will have to do in order to work with our children. We are determined to keep the children safe at First Hillsville UMC – OOTBWC and in order to do that, every person who works with children has to go through a background check. It is not a problem and there is no cost to you but you will have to fill out the paperwork and spend some time working through our “Safe Sanctuaries” videos and materials to understand the measures we have committed to in order to keep the children safe.

We have opportunities in our van ministry that is now making 2 trips on Sunday mornings to pick up the people who want to come to church. There are opportunities to drive and for assistants to work with the drivers.

There are so many opportunities and serving in ministry is what drives our mission to Make Disciples. Let me or one of the leaders know today where it is that you would like to serve. You don’t have to be a member to serve.

I love you guys a lot,

Pastor Ronnie

Book Notes: An Essential Guide to Public Speaking by Quentin Schultze

 

“Christians historically contributed some of the most important insights on public speaking. Early Christians discerningly adapted speech practices from the ancient Greeks, who founded rhetoric (the art of persuasion).”

 

One of my goals to be a Lifelong Learner and Public Speaking is one of my passions. I picked up this book after reading John Maxwell’s most recent book and being encouraged to be the best that I can be in the place where God has called me.

I found it to be a helpful book, very practical, and something for everyone. There was not a lot of new information in this book but lots of great reminders that I needed.  

As the title states, this book is filled with the “essentials”. This would be a great book for starters as well as a great refresher for those of us who speak on a regular basis. One of the things that I was reminded of in this work is that we as preachers have been entrusted with people’s time and given their attention, we need to do our best.

Ronnie

Three Minute Thursday: What to do if your guy didn’t win the election…

There is a place where you’re not only accepted, you’re wanted…

Who is Out Of The Box Worship Center

Check out our latest newsletter. Find something different, something that looks like a place you would like to be, then join us and find out what God is up to in Hillsville Virginia.

Book Notes: The Handmaids Tale by Margaret Atwood

 

A friend told me I might enjoy this book after reading “The Hunger Games.” It is not the same story but there are similarities. The story is set in a society of captivity. The world has gone through something that changed the way people live, their freedom is taken away, especially the women. It is a story that takes you back to a time when women had no rights or very little, yet it is more severe than that. Women are used to basically keep the population alive. It is an interesting book, well written. It is for mature audiences, there is language used in a sexual nature but it is used to illustrate the life women were forced to live and not in an erotic way.

I certainly took away some useful stuff for lack of a better word. Probably the greatest lesson I learned is from the following quote in the book.

“We lived, as usual, by ignoring. Ignoring isn’t the same as ignorance, you have to work at it.”

This speaks volumes to me, this is why I read. We as a society have learned to ignore what we don’t want to see, what we don’t want to deal with. Otherwise there would not be so much misery in the world. This one quote was worth the price of the book.

Ronnie

GO – Week 2 The Sermon Series

 

Listen to the sermon here: 1199864282

Go – Week 1: The Sermon Series

Listen to the sermon form week 1 here: 1199864199