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I’m Fired Up!

Hello Blogosphere…. I’ve taken a season of fasting from the blog world to focus on hearing from God and seeking His direction. I’ve known with every fiber in my being that I was called to pastor since I was 21 years old. The ride I’ve been on has been nothing short of incredible. The vision God has burning in my belly is to set the city of Wichita on fire with the revolution of Jesus Christ.

Now starts a new season with the launching this Sunday of GracePoint Community Church. I cannot wait to see what the Lord does in this new venture. Please come out and join us starting Sunday March 8th at 9:30 and 11:00 at Northwest High School (13th and Tyler).

I resigned from the United Methodist Church and GracePoint United Methodist Church on March 1st along with our entire staff, board of directors, and 100% of the leadership of the church. It’s very rare to have 100% of people on board for anything, but I was floored by how this has rallied people. I have received more e-mails and voicemails of encouragement this week than any other time in my life. We do not see this as a “church split” because our church is ONE behind the decision.

Let me make one thing clear. There is absolutely no malice in my heart toward the UMC as a denomination or anyone who is in leadership at the UMC. I am forever be grateful to the UMC for my start in ministry and to the conference for sponsoring the launch of GP UMC. I hope that the UMC reaches gazillions for Christ in this city and all over the world. Please know that this was a very difficult decision. I spent a great deal of time listening to God as well as receiving wise counsel.

We are making this move now because of both the short-term opportunities GP has to expand the vision as well as position us for long-term success. We want to reach people far from Jesus Christ and have plans for multiple locations. A non-denominational structure will allow us the liberty to spread the message of Jesus - and our campuses - across the city. Our vision is truly a movement of God and does not fit traditional church systems. We will align ourselves with other churches that are similar in style and vision so that we can work in unison to make a kingdom difference. We are connecting with the Association of Related Churches and the Willowcreek Association.    

We are very serious about fulfilling the vision God has given us for GPCC. We believe the sky is the limit when there are no limitations to where we can expand the church. We have the opportunity during this season to put God in the driver’s seat and fulfill the vision God has given us to “take great risks to reach people far from Jesus Christ.” A foundational verse for this church comes from Luke 19:26 (Msg.) where Jesus says “Risk your life and get more than you ever dreamed of. Play it safe and end up holding the bag.”

Finally, I want you to understand that we are not competing with any other churches in this city, but see every other church as a partner in fulfilling the great commission. We are all on the same team when it comes to reaching people who do not know Jesus Christ. Sometimes there is a competitive nature between churches. However, in reality, our competition is all the other things people have to do with their time, not other churches! There is well over 60% of people in Wichita who are not in church on Sunday mornings. No one will reach all of them.  We want to partner with anyone and everyone who has a passion to reach people for Christ. Let’s work together to set off a revolution by starting more new churches all over this city. Let’s ask God to set this city on fire and let people come watch us burn with love and passion for the Savior of the world, Jesus Christ! I am just a little FIRED UP!!!!

Getting in the Gutter

Greetings… long time no blog. Let me just say that I am in a season of fasting from both writing and reading blogs. Why? Because over the past six plus years I have devoted my life to studying the church, learning from leaders of great churches, reading everything I could get my hands on, etc.

At this point in time, I am particularly interested in hearing from God about where to go next with this church and not so concerned about what everyone else is doing in the church world. I’m reading a great book called “Fasting” by Jentzen Franklin and blogging just happens to be one of the things I’m not spending my time doing in this season.

One thing I do want to share with you about is the incredible season we are in right now called Unleash Wichita. Last week it was so incredible to give a mini van away to a single mom. The week before that it was $500  given to another single mom at Wal-Mart to get what she needed for her family. You’ve got to be there in the next few weeks to see what happens next. Our church is getting in the gutter and helping those with real needs. We’ve been feeding people at the overflow homeless shelter, and are getting ready to feed a ton of people on Thanksgiving Day at Quincy’s Bar and Grill where we’ve ordered over 100 Turkeys!

I want to encourage you to get involved in helping people who are hurting and broken through UNLEASH Wichita. You can go to www.unleashwichita.com for details. You will experience the radical generosity of God and others will experience the gift of grace.

Dirty Little Secrets

I want to invite you to GracePoint during the month of October for our series “Dirty Little Secrets”. Every one of us have things we’ve done that we don’t want anyone to know about. These secrets can plague us, limit us and haunt us. We are going to address things like addictions, lying, sexual secrets, and other things that cause us pain and shame.

God wants to free us from the secrets that hold us in bondage. People are going to be set free by the truth of the Scripture and the power of Jesus Christ. There is nothing greater than seeing people liberated and able to live in the fullness of God’s purpose for their lives. 

Invite everyone you know to GP for this series that will speak to issues that few are willing to address but that is so relevant to our lives. See you Sunday…

Don’t Miss GP Ink

GracePoint is currenly in the series called GP Ink where we are hearing the stories of people’s tattoo’s (INK) and what they represent and how God has Inked us on the inside. This Sunday is going to be incredible. The message is titled “Set Me Free” and the story you hear will blow your mind. Each week we’re hearing the stories of people that God has impacted in amazing ways. This series is one we’ll never forget, so please invite everyone you know.

We’ve been enjoying incredible growth at GP with the last month being the largest attendance numbers we’ve ever experienced. The best way to get people to come check it out is through your personal invitation. Tell your friend you’ll meet them at GP and go out to eat afterward. Believe me, they will love coming to this series. Unless, of course, they are highly “religious” and believe tattoo’s are from Satan. If that’s the case, they’re not gonna like it!!!

I’m really looking forward to next week. Our staff team is leaving for 5 days to go to Buena Vista, Colorado where we’re going to have a staff advance. We’ll spend time in prayer, planning for 2009, and team building. It’s gonna be a blast. 

See You Sunday!

Vegas at 40

We just returned from fabulous Las Vegas Nevada where I celebrated 40 years on this planet. There are alot of great things in Vegas. The shows are amazing. We started out with a blast from the 80’s by seeing Air Supply. It took me back to junior high with songs like “The One that You Love”, “Every Woman in the World”, “Even the Nights are Better”, “Making Love Out of Nothing at All” and “All out of Love”. My only regret is that I did not have the guts to ask girls to dance with me on any of these songs! However, neither did anyone else. Maybe your junior high dances were like mine where it was hard to get people on the dance floor.

Another night we went to “LEGENDS in Concert” which is the third longest running show in Vegas celebrating 25 years. It had live performers who looked and sounded very much like the originals such as Tina Turner, the Blues Brothers, Tom Jones and Elvis. It was a lot of fun. My wife Susan got her picture taken with Elvis.

Our last night in Vegas we went to Cirque du Soleil’s show LOVE which celebrates the musical legacy of The Beatles. LOVE mixes these classic songs with aerial performances, extreme sports and, freestyle dance. It was the best show I’ve ever seen. Period. All that I could say was Wow. It was a sight and sound explosion.

We were not lucky winners at any casino’s, though I did talk with a guy who was playing quarter slots and his machine hit. The officials were there getting his social security number. I asked him how much he had won and he said “they haven’t told me yet!” The casino official then said “you just won $4,500.”

The food was out of this world. We had some friends give us some excellent recommendations and we were not disappointed. Probably the most enjoyable thing I did was sit poolside at Caesar’s Palace. It felt like I was a Roman hanging out at the palace! This is the most luxurious place I have ever been to in my life! It was so HUGE they give you a map when you check in because it’s easy to get lost. It was fabulous, and was like living in lifestyles of the rich and famous, though I’m more comfortable in a more casual, less opulent environment. 

Vegas is fascinating. It’s capitalism on steroids. The amount of building happening there right now is astounding. Just one place we saw is spending 8 billion on a new building. Vegas is whatever you want it to be. For me it was a great place to celebrate an awesome 40 years with my lovely wife. I look forward to an even better 40 years to come!