Church

We're kicking off a new teaching series at Mountainview called "Hope Lives."  Here's a quick blurb about it: "The sheer enormity of the problem pins Christians to their couches. What can we do? Where should we start? And didn’t Jesus himself say the poor would always be with us? Beginning August 1 and 2, Mountainview is embarking on a one month journey in weekend services, LifeGroups, youth, childrens ministries, and in our personal lives to nudge us beyond the horizons of our 401ks. Not just to save the world… but also to restore our souls." (read more). This is a church-wide emphasis on how we can better engage the poor and disadvantaged.  I'll be starting the series this weekend by talking about how God has designed every believer to be an impact-player.  As Christ-followers, we all have the ability to make a difference.  I'll be sharing one of my favorite…

As usual, I was up early this morning.  In our new house, all the bedrooms are upstairs and the kitchen is downstairs ... which means I get to putter around and not disturb anyone.  I made my coffee, opened a Bible, and read the last chapter of Hosea.  Here are the first three verses: 1 Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God, for your sins have brought you down.  2 Bring your confessions, and return to the Lord.  Say to him, “Forgive all our sins and graciously receive us, so that we may offer you our praises.  3 Assyria cannot save us, nor can our warhorses.  Never again will we say to the idols we have made, ‘You are our gods.’  No, in you alone do the orphans find mercy" (Hosea 14:1-3, NLT). A few things struck me about these words.  First of all, the prophet reminds us that…

We held LifePoint's last worship service yesterday and it was amazing to hear people tell stories of how our church had impacted their lives.  As a pastor, you're usually aware of life situations and struggles.  What you may not always be aware of is how you are influencing lives.  After our opening set of music and communion, we had an open mic time of sharing.  Nearly a dozen people got up and talked about the difference our church community had made in their lives.  One lady spoke of the "ripples" of influence that LifePoint would have for years to come.  I thought that was an appropriate image.  By some measures, our time was short (only four years).  But by God's measures, the ripples will extend throughout eternity. It was humbling to hear how God orchestrated events to allow our paths to cross at critical junctions.  One lady spoke about finding…

June 28, 2009, will be LifePoint's last Sunday as a church community. Join us as we will be celebrating and honoring what God has accomplished during the life of our church family. Four years ago, a small group of seven people gathered in our living room and we dreamed of starting a new church in San Diego. As new faces began to show up in the living room, we realized our dream was becoming a reality. On September 11, 2005, we held our grand opening and watched as people previously disconnected from God found their way back to Him. People who hadn't been to church in years, if ever, felt at home. We reached out to the arts community in San Diego and hosted many fine musicians and artists. For nearly four years we shared the ups and downs of life -- babies were born, marriages were celebrated, people were…

My last teaching series at LifePoint was entitled "My Three Wishes." I shared the three values I hoped each of our members would come to embody: prayer, simplicity, and worship. Yesterday's message was on worship and was taken from Isaiah 6. The message concluded with God asking Isaiah, "Who will go for us?" and Isaiah responding with, "Here I am. Send me." I closed the message by challenging our people to rethink how they will look for their next church. Instead of looking for one that will serve them, look for a church that they can serve. Look for a place where their gifts and talents will make an immediate impact. It's tempting to think like consumers rather than contributors when looking for a church home. With that in mind, here are a few random thoughts about what to look for in a new church home. 1. Christ-centered. Jesus should…