WholeHeartedLife

Sun Shinin' Challenges and Treet Meat!

Finally! For the 1st time this week the L'town sun is shining in my window as I pray, read, blog and prepare... and it feels SO good! This has been a gloomy week as far as the weather goes. Matthew said to me on Wednesday, "Dad - it has been the same day everyday this week!". Well, Matt, it's friday and the sun's shining - here's what's on your dad's mind this morning:

• I am BEYOND excited about Sunday's services at hyde park. This weekend's message has challenged me as much as anything that i've experienced in a while. God totally showed up in my preparation time (He is always on-time - that is a story in itself!) and so this morning, I'm enjoying His sun (and His Son ) thinking about what we'll experience this weekend.
• When I walked into the worship center Wednesday nite during the band/singer rehearsal I was blown away... they were in the midst of one of the most powerful, passionate worship songs ever and I found myself immediately just feeling the desire to stop what I was doing, lift my hands and acknowledge the Living God, the Great God of heaven, Our Savior! Best part is that i'll be in the midst of that 3 times this Sunday. I love hyde park worship - "thank You, Jesus, for giving me the opportunity to serve at this great fellowship".
• I am excited to see how hyde park steps it up in our EMERGENCY FOOD DRIVE. We have the trailer in place and I know that you, the most outward focused group of believers that I've ever had the priviledge of working with, are getting ready to represent! You can see a list of needed items here. And yeah... bring on the Treet Meat!

Some would say Psyched, Others Psycho...

I just gotta say that I am BEYOND being psyched today! So much exciting stuff happening! What am I so psyched about?

• about the music at this weekends services at hyde park. The worship this weekend will be served up in a powerful way - my request would be that you come into the place with a thankful heart ready to meet with Jesus.
• about next week's baptist state convention - Most people don't enjoy convention (I myself don't like the political side of things though it is necessary). But for me it is an opportunity to get away and worship - to be ministered to rather than "be" the minister. I'll also get to meet with some of my buds that I only see when I'm at something like this.
• I'm also looking forward to hearing what our new president of the SBC, Johnny Hunt, has to say about the condition of our convention and the fact that we are losing MY GENERATION of pastors. I read this week that he told the Executive Committee of the SBC about the problem, "Some would say the younger generation is our problem. I'll say this: if they're our problem, we don't have a future. I say they are our future.". Amen! 
• By the way... did you miss my testimony yesterday? I wanna hear your story.
• about my message this weekend, "I Got This One!"!!! Have you ever been faced with something that is just so big; so impossible that there was no way that you could see a favorable solution - matter of fact, the best looking option appears to be quit or give up? In Sunday's message we will see that God is never caught off guard by our circumstances, no matter how impossible they may seem. 

I'm psyched to serve with you at hyde park - I can't believe I get to do this everyday!  And yes... I KNOW I'm crazy.

How I Learned About Giving

I thought Sunday's message, "A Manager for God" was an excellent reminder of the importance of biblical giving.   A couple of quotes I wrote from Pastor's message:

• "There are 2 kinds of people in this world when it comes to finances: those who are paying interest and those who are making interest - which are you?"
• "A lot of people say, 'if I came into a lot of money I would give' or they say, 'if I had more I would give...' - NO YOU WOULDN'T!!! If you're not commited to giving now having money would only make you more selfish!"
• "if you are 'blah' in your relationship with God I can help you out real quick - let me see how you spend your time (how much time you spend giving to God) and let me look at your checkbook and see how you give financially to God. Why? Because the way that we give is tied to our heart!"

I think that it is very important to teach the concept of biblical giving - most people don't understand what God expects from them in the way of giving. I find it hard to name a scenario in which a person doesn't give to God but would truly be a WholeHearted worshiper. I'll never forget the way that I became a giver...

As a new believer (less than 1 week) I was sitting on my bed talking to Keyna and she asked me, "are you gonna tithe?". I replied by saying, "what is tithe - what does that mean?" "When you give your money to the church...". I asked her, "how much are you supposed to give?" and she told me, "Tricia (her assistant at school) told me she gives 10% and that's what you're supposed to give. (I FREAKED!! 10%?!!?) and she continued, "she says that she has never missed it."

I looked at Keyna with surprise, "WHERE DOES IT SAY WE HAVE TO GIVE 10% IN THE BIBLE?!!!?" because I was like, DANG!, you know? She told me that she didn't know and suggested we call our Pastor and settle it once and for all (she's so wise ) which we did. He took me to the scripture and explained to me that if I give like this to the Lord that He (the Lord - not the Pastor ) will take care of my family and I. He also explained to me the fact that giving the tithe to the Lord was a demonstration of the fact that my heart was His with scripture.

That night after our conversation, before I had ever written my first check, I became a tither and have been every week of my life as a follower of Jesus. God said in that scripture, "test me in this" and I did, and He has never let me down. I can also say that it has never been a challenge because for me, my tithe comes first (as Pastor demonstrated in his excellent illustration). 

What about you? Have you trusted God with your finances? I challenge you, especially in this financially turbulent time, to take His challenge, trust Him with your finances and watch what He can do.

Fall Back Saturday Nite

All Hyde Park Volunteers and Attenders:

We are SO GRATEFUL for all that you do that we are going to give you all an extra hour to sleep tomorrow nite (saturday) ! The following video will remind you to do something very important Saturday nite:

Don't forget to "Fall Back" like Scarlet did tomorrow nite - set your clocks back 1 hr before you go to bed. We ought to have a record BFG day Sunday, huh?

Big Things that YOU can do!

At hyde park we believe A LOT in "Next Steps".

Life with Jesus is all about next steps - one of the greatest ways that we can help you to grow is to give you an opportunity to become a part of the ministry at hyde park.

Become a part of the ministry? You mean like be a preacher or a teacher?

No.

There are SO MANY opportunites for you to be a part of the week-to-week ministry at hyde park. For example:

• are you decent on a computer? Do you enjoy the stuff that you see week to week on the screen during worship? We are looking for 2 more people to join our ever expanding audio/visual team. No experience necessary - we train - just a competence with a computer.
• are you good at making people feel welcome? Could you smile and say "welcome to hyde park" when someone's coming in? Could you work in the parking lot and wave at people as they enter our campus? Did you know that a smile and a wave could be so powerful?
• Would you like to sing in the worship choir? We will be accepting new singers next Wednesday nite at 8pm.
• Are you a musician? Play at a high level? We're always looking for talent...
• Maybe you have a desire to be a part of GroupLink - helping to connect with new people at hyde park? Are you a teacher, orgainizer?
• Are you a leader and really organized? You could produce and keep something happening? I'm looking for 2 service programming directors, someone to serve to keep things running smoothly during our worship experiences. This is a brand new position - Maybe it's one created to fit you.
• Do you have time during the week that you could be a part of a team that comes into the office for a couple of hours for the purpose of connecting new and old people, making them feel special and wanted?

All of these things are huge - did any of them speak to you? If so, speak to me and tell me which ones. Looking forward to hearing from you!

Why I'm So Excited for Sunday?!?

I am so excited about this weekend! Why?

Reason #1: Our new Series "WE". On our Message Board there has been a lot of discussion about how friendly we are as a church. The discussion is due to a couple of comments (made anonymously - they were cordial which is why they stayed up - non-cordial anonymous comments are always struck down and sent to the abyss, never to return to this realm again! ). In a church this size it is SO EASY to "fall through the cracks" which is why we talk so much about you taking "next steps" - we want you to find a place within our fellowship that you can call yours, and the worship service is not the place that is designed to do that.

In our new series, "WE", we're gonna talk about biblical community, what it looks like and why you need to add it to your life. We're gonna talk about how to turn your "ME" into a "WE". It's going to be a powerful service!

Reason #2: Kidz inc. LIVE begins this Sunday! What is Kidz inc. LIVE? It's the revamped, Kidz Konnection. We have been working this summer to make your kidz hyde park experience the best it can be and we're excited about the results! As with Kidz Konnection, Kidz inc. LIVE! will run at 8:21 and 11:11 and will feature great music and a wonderful message of God's love all on your kidz level. Your kidz are gonna love it!

Reason # 3: FAITHTrac 101 is running this Sunday. 101 is our new attenders class. In 101, Pastor Harrell teaches you why we do, what we do the way that we do - literally like a "behind the music" of hyde park! You need to check it out if you haven't been a part of it yet. FAITHTrac 101 is the official "next step" of all new hyde park attendees.

Why do I love 101 so much? Besides the fact that I basically live to see people take their "next step" with Jesus, I also get to eat one of the greatest lunches available with them . Can anyone say, "food"?

See ya Sunday - Don't be late!

What's Your "Next Step"?

This week on WholeHearted we are talking "Next Steps".

I am SO about "next steps". I love to see people take the "next step" of regular church attendance - the "next step" of identifying with Jesus through baptism - the "next step" of church membership - the "next step" of joining a small group - the "next step" of deciding it's time to grow in my faith. "Next Steps", for me, are one of the highlights of leading people in their journey towards God.

Wednesday Nites at hyde park are about "next steps". There are basically 2 tracks that can be excercised on Wednesday's in the arena of the "Next Step":

Track One: Service.

One of the greatest things that will happen as you become a follower of Jesus is that you take the changes happening in you and allow God to use you to impact others through service. Wednesday is a beautiful time to serve JESUS through our Awana program. Awana is a kidz program that helps kidz to grow in their knowledge of who God is and what He means to them. Because of Awana my 12 year old daughter knows more scripture than most people who are reading this RIGHT NOW! Amazing!

Those who serve in Awana are affecting our future for Jesus. Ready to take the "next step" of service? Let me know.

Track Two: Learning

If you were at hyde park Sunday morning you heard Pastor remind our church that we need to learn to feed ourselves spiritually through reading of scripture and prayer. Becoming a "self-feeder" is one of your most important "next steps" (if you missed Sunday's message I HIGHLY SUGGEST that you check it out here). He went on to say that we want to help those who are learning about God to go deeper in their faith. Our Wednesday nite classes are designed to do that. Here are our current classes:

Class One: If you feel like you need to learn the major teachings of Christianity, Pastor's new class, "Foundations", is for you.

Class Two: Parenting is one of the toughest jobs that we have. We all want to raise kidz who grow up to be great adults (no pressure, right?). If you want to learn about raising "rock-solid" kidz you'll want to check out our class, Value-Packed Parenting.

DivorceCare: Are you struggling with the pain of divorce or separation? DO YOU KNOW SOMEONE DEALING WITH THIS?  Our DivorceCare group is a much needed "next step" for someone dealing with separation - are you willing to help them take the "next step"? Ask about our give-a-way brochures that can tell your friends what they need to know about DivorceCare.

All classes begin at 6:45. You can get more info about classes here.

(by the way: While I'm throwin' links at ya, some of you might be wondering about how to actually take the "next step" of bible study?  Here's a cool tool on our site that you maybe never saw. Enjoy - hope it helps you to take a "next step".)

"ONE" Service

 

We do multiple services for a variety of reasons: so we can connect people in small groups during a corresponding worship service, to utilize our building to its full potential, to alleviate parking over 3 service times and to give people choices as to when they worship (choices are always good!).

The only thing that I struggle with about having a multiple service schedule is the fact that it isn't often that we get to have the majority of the church together at "ONE" time.

People who go to 9:51 service don't see people in the 8:21 service - people in the 8:21 service DON'T EVEN KNOW PEOPLE who attend the 11:11 service (8:21 person: want a shock? Attend an 11:11 service and count how many people you actually know in there )

We noticed last year that there were a few days per year where we had a large number of people out of town (The Sunday after Christmas, 4th of July, Labor Day). We looked at the numbers and decided that rather than stretch a thin crowd across 3 services we would just have "ONE" huge service. When we do this...

• we get to worship with people who attend different times.
• if we just do "ONE" service we can have an extended service (which means a little more music )

• it feels good to worship when the place is packed out!

This Sunday is "ONE" of those days - be here early and come with your heart prepared to meet with JESUS! And make sure you tell your friends (they may not know...).

Tech-Savvy Peeps 3

Do you feel special yet??? This week it's been just us - the few of us who take advantage of utilizing a feed reader. The only exception would be the few that went directly to the WholeHearted site. My stats show me, however, that most of you come through one of the links i post in various places.

Being that it's just us here today I wanted to share something that bothers me...

I REALLY WANT US TO SEE OUR REGION TRANSFORMED BY JESUS!

As you probably know, this Sunday we begin a new series titled, "Fish Tales". In this series we're gonna talk about the greatest need of the church today - the need to share JESUS with "our world". Even though we all know that this is the most important message that you and I will ever share with our family, friends, work associates, neighbors, and anyone else we care about, most of us are just plain afraid to do so. I believe it's because...

1. we're not confident in our ability to adequately share what God has done in our life AND...
2. because our heart is not broken for the lostness all around us everyday.

With this in mind, I'm going to ask you, my faithful readers and tech-savvy readers, to pray for 2 things over the next 6 weeks beginning today:

1. that God will give us the confidence to share who HE is to us and what HE's done AND...
2. that God will break our hearts for all those who are around us who do not yet know Him - that He would give us eyes to see them as people who desperately need HIM.

Just between you and me...

Not too many...

From the looks of my stats from yesterday, it looks like I don't have a lot of "tech-savvy peeps" (see yesterday's post to figure out what that even means...).

So, I guess it's you and me here today on WholeHearted Life while everybody else catches up with last weeks Wednesday post...

So, being that it's just us today - what should I tell you?

• I would tell you that I really hope that you'll come to Summer of Service tonite. It doesn't matter that you haven't been yet... (don't let the old, "i missed it so much i might as well not even go" work on you ). 6:30 in the ROC Gym - be here...
• I would also ask you if you've joined the "hyde park group" on facebook? We have a chance to really use that site. Not on facebook yet - join the nation...

Lastly, I would tell you that I am REALLY EXCITED about the new series beginning this weekend, "Fish Tales". How many of you are uncomfortable sharing your faith? How often do you do it? Over the next 6 weeks we're gonna learn to share our story for the glory of JESUS, so He can use us as an agent of transformation in our world. I want you to be confident and able to share your faith when the opportunity presents itself. Doesn't that sound fun? I'm also excited about the theme song for this series, "Tears of the Saints" by Leeland!

See you tommorow...