Following Jesus is an adventure of faith. There are times when God prods or pushes us into areas where we might be fully prepared. His timetable for action doesn’t always match our own; in fact, I’m not sure he consults our timetable at all.This adventure of faith is filled with twists and turns. Those looking for a straight line from accepting Jesus to spiritual maturity will be frustrated to know ... There’s not one! A Christ-follower must be content to know that God is in charge and is at work in her life.But it’s also the twists and turns that add excitement to this great adventure of faith. For when we least expect it, God shows up and in ways we may not have predicted.What a great God we serve!
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Here are two graphics I just designed for Opportunity Camp's theme. Full picture: Text only:
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I just finished redesigning the website for Opportunity Camp, a camp I've worked with for the last ten years. Opportunity Camp provides a week of free camping for kids from Contra Costa County Social Services and is staffed entirely by Christian volunteers. A fair number of these kids are in foster homes or group homes; others are in the social service network for various reasons. Opportunity Camp really is unique among Christian camps.My "official" role is Director of Spiritual Development ... a fancy way of saying that I create the teaching material and speak at the morning and evening assemblies. Most of our campers have little or no church background and have a hard time sitting still -- a great combination for a pastor!You can download a copy of the teaching material if you're really bored and need something to do.
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I'm blogging via email from the open mic at Cosmos. Up on stage is one of the freshest voices I've heard in a long time: Tommy Edwards. He's singing and playing a mandolin. He's got funky glasses and a stocking cap. And he rocks.
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Those of you familiar with Andy Stanley's approach to preaching may recognize the "me we God you we" way of organizing a message. It's fleshed out in much greater detail in his book on preaching called "Communicating for Change." In fact, he uses the term "communicator" instead of preacher. Not a slight change in and of itself.Me = starting with a personal revelation or disclosure.We = finding common ground with your audience.God = bringing God's truth to your one point.You = applying your one point to the listener's lifeWe = inspiring a vision of what life would be like if everybody got it, too.
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