WholeHeartedLife

Join Me Online Tonite - LifeShare

Welcome to LifeShare, a 7 day online challenge for all of us to extend the love and compassion of Jesus to our friends, followers and online communities. We will be live streaming through the LifeChurch.tv video player in the right sidebar (click on post title to see it) to launch LifeShare on September 17th at 8pm Central Time. 

What will we be doing?

This LifeShare online challenge will have 5 different types of sharing opportunities you can choose from as you get involved. They go from easy and quick, to more and more involved, to the point where you are taking your own time to specifically care and invest in the people around you. Here is the run down list:

1. Share the Experience

This is where you can invite your friends to come and share an online experience at LifeChurch.tv,

2. Share your Space

All of us have a space online, whether our social networking profiles (MySpace, Facebook, Bebo, etc.), our blogs or even micro-blog sites like Twitter. To “Share your Space” all you need to do is something like posting an update about the LifeShare event,

3. Share His Message

The internet is an amazing tool to share the messages and information that are important to us. In Sharing His Message we are putting some of the LifeChurch.tv weekend series into our blip.tv account so that you can go and embed them on your blog, your myspace or point to them for people in your online communities to come and interact with.

4. Share your Story

All of us have a story of how God is continuing to save us, shape us and heal us. Whether it is the story of how Jesus saved us from our own sin, or even a the story of what we are learning about faith and life currently. Sharing your Story is about what God is teaching you and encouraging others to share along with you. This could be a video in Youtube, Facebook or even Seesmic, a blog post, a MySpace bulletin or a Twitter “tweet”. The point is that we Share our Story of how God is moving in our lives, and in a way that could bless, encourage and influence those in community with us.

4. Share your Story

All of us have a story of how God is continuing to save us, shape us and heal us. Whether it is the story of how Jesus saved us from our own sin, or even a the story of what we are learning about faith and life currently. Sharing your Story is about what God is teaching you and encouraging others to share along with you. This could be a video in Youtube, Facebook or even Seesmic, a blog post, a MySpace bulletin or a Twitter “tweet”. The point is that we Share our Story of how God is moving in our lives, and in a way that could bless, encourage and influence those in community with us.

Schedule

• Wednesday; September 17 8pm CST
• Thursday; September 18 8pm CST
• Friday; September 19 11am CST
• Saturday; September 20 11am CST
• Sunday; September 21 8pm CST
• Monday; September 22 11am CST
• Tuesday; September 23 Off
• Wednesday; September 24 8pm CST

 

For a Moment all eyes were on...

HIM.

I was just thinking about this and writing in my journal and felt led to share with the world...

7 years ago this morning we were going into our staff meeting, we had not really gotten in good yet. I remember it was a Tuesday. I remember that we were having our stage renovated/enlarged and Bobby Speights was working down there. All of a sudden he runs in Pastor's office saying, "an airplane just slammed into the world trade center!!". We stopped what we were doing found a tv. The questions were running: "was this an accident? Did someone do this on purpose?" There was a lot of speculation until all of a sudden that 2nd plane comes into the picture and showed us one of the most horrifying thing we've ever seen - we watched someone use an airplane and innocent lives as a bomb to attack our country.

We immediately responded, "let's go pray" and headed down to our auditorium and got on our faces before the Lord...

We called an impromptu prayer meeting/solemn assembly for that night (it was packed) where we had no plan - we just called upon the Name.

(a Prayer for this morning) "I had never seen anything like this before and never have since - All eyes were on You, Lord - for a moment our nation remembered our God. Too quickly though, their eyes shifted from You to us, your followers... they then shifted from "WE" back to "ME" to the place where September 11th is just another day that we "remember" (and briefly, at that). I remember, Lord - I remember that I hoped that the change would be lasting, deep - transformation at it's core. Oh, How we need You, God!".

At hyde park, within the month everyone went back to living their lives (except when they would raise the terror alert to a higher level or a holiday rolled around) - we saw no lasting impact.

So this morning I remember - not just those who lost their lives senselessly on that day; I also remember the fact that for a moment "our Nation looked to YOU, Lord.". God, move on us that we would turn our eyes to You.

On the Horizon - Part 4

Hopefully you've been with me this week as I've shared the things currently "on my horizon" - check out the post about Men's Conference here - Worship here - "The Gathering at UNCP" here

So the last thing on my horizon this week would be the usage of an increased spiritual boldness that God has made me aware of this summer. I have to admit that God has rocked my world this summer. That is a good thing. The thing that will shock many of you is how He's rocked my world:

HE HAS MADE ME MORE DEPENDANT ON HIM THAN EVER.

Psalm 51:16,17 (NIV)16 You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it;  you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.  17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

• Sometimes God just has to "break you" so He can fix us again. It's not necessarily because He's mad at you - maybe it's because you've lost the ability to hear Him. So with me, He does stuff to get my attention, to get me on my knees, to get me to the place where I can truly say, "Speak, Lord, Your servant is listening."
  
  That doesn't mean I wasn't praying - I was. That doesn't mean I wasn't in the Word - once again, I was. What it means is that He was trying to take me to another level and I wasn't ready. I was reminded that "brokenness precedes blessing".
• I work hard. You can't see it, but my mind NEVER stops. What I have discovered this summer is that I can't solve spiritual issues with human solutions. I thank God for showing me this. No matter how hard I try or good intentioned I am there are some things that He's just gonna have to do (or break). He has taught me (once again) that prayer and what I'll call "face time" (time just listening and seeking Him) is more important than anything I do.
• Remember the message I preached on 6/8, the one where I preached "the wise men built his house on a rock..." (download it here)? God has made me "live out" this message and brought glory to Himself through it. I made a statement in it, "you don't wait until you're in the middle of a storm to begin working on your foundation, because by that time it's too late!". Well, this summer, Jesus has shown me that I DO have a foundation built on Him. And here's what it came to: when the storm began and the wind and waves got scary, I climbed into the home that was built upon the foundation of His word. When I got in that house, I watched the storm from within Him and I felt safe, protected and wasn't afraid. When that happens, my friends, you'll receive a mighty boldness from Him because you recognize HOW MUCH He's in charge and you remember that He cares way more than we ever could.

Because of this we will step out in bold ways this fall. We will do this at hyde park and hyde park will be extended to other places. Some of those places that God will put His boldness in us on display:

• August 19th & 20th - Youth Conference, Bear Swamp, Pembroke - I'll be Preaching
• August 28th - BSU Back to School Jam, UNCP - Narrow Way Band
• September 7 - Burnt Swamp Youth Revival, Berea (Pembroke) - Narrow Way Band
• September 12-13 - Commitment '08 Men's Conference - Galeed Church - Featured Speaker 
• September 21 - GroupLink 1 - Speaker - hyde park (more about this next week)
• September 28 - GroupLink 2 - Speaker 
• October 7 - Youth Nite RC Crusade - Narrow Way Band
• October 19th - "The Gathering at UNCP"

All of these things are on my/our horizon and they are HUGE! And I agree with my friend, Janice's, comment the other day - "when you look up on the horizon, what do you see? The SON, of course!". Clever, Janice, real clever . 

"The Gathering at UNCP" - On the Horizon - Part 3

This week I'm sharing with you things that are "on my horizon" - things that are coming up in my life over the next few months that I'm excited about. On Monday I shared about "Commit '08" - Tuesday we talked about what's on the worship horizon and today we talk about...

"THE GATHERING at UNCP". I have had Pembroke, specifically the University of North Carolina at Pembroke, on my heart for more than 2 years now. The following is the result (at least currently) of those 2 years of thoughts, prayers, musings, speeches, messages and leadings.

Beginning on October 19th, Hyde Park, in conjuntion with the UNCP Baptist Student Union, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Campus Crusade for Christ and the Robeson Baptist Association, will be hosting a one-per-month, on-campus Sunday nite gathering called, "The Gathering" (how imaginative, huh?). "The Gathering" will meet on 3rd Sunday Nites at the brand-new UNCP Annex - centrally located on campus between the Student Center and The Givens Performing Arts Center

 

Music for the event will be provided by local worship leaders, Narrow Way Band - Mike Pittman will bring the message.

 

The purpose of "The Gathering": a place where all Christians from different groups, BSU, FCA, Campus Crusade and area churches can come together for the purpose of worship (in a context purposely designed to reach students), community, glorifiying God and most importantly, evangelism. "The Gathering" is going to be a place on campus where Christians can bring their friends and allow God to show them who He is. Sunday nites are a great time: not much is happening on campus - we are petitioning God to create a buzz among the students.

 

Our churches are struggling with reaching this generation. Statistics (LifeWay research) show the dropout rate of baptist 18-22 year olds is 70% (!!!!). These aren't ALL 18-22 year olds - these are OUR 18-22 year olds, the ones who are currently attending our churches. Tom Rainer, CEO of LifeWay, states that this is because "church is not essential to them.".  It's obvious that we are not "connecting" this generation and their college years are enormously foundational in the direction of the remainder of their lives. None of us is doing a great job reaching 18-22 year olds (often college students) - we want to see that changed!

 

Prayerfully, "The Gathering" at UNCP will fill a place in students hearts that will show them God's plan for them in this time and begin to show them how "essential" their faith is to their whole lives. And that, also on my horizon, is something that FIRES me up!!!

On the Horizon - Part 2

This week I'm sharing with you things that are "on my horizon" - things that are coming up in my life over the next few months that I'm excited about. Yesterday I told you about "COMMIT '08", a men's conference taking place next month. Today I wanted to talk to you about what's up on the worship horizon...

I am as excited about worship at hyde park as I have been in a long time. I have been seeking the Lord recently concerning vision, focus, clarity, direction...

My mind is always on for hyde park. When I worship JESUS CHRIST and serve Him - hyde park is the medium/vessel that I do it through. When I sense that people are getting a little on the stale side I have learned through the years to look at myself (which, by the way, we'll talk about on Thursday - so don't miss that).

What's on the worship horizon?? Our worship is preparing to go to another level, that's what! It's time to stir things up... to expect the unexpected... to get outside of our normality, our "box". You know, on 2nd thought, I think it's time to BLOW UP OUR BOX!!! God has brought some very fresh music into my life recently that has drawn me to a place of worship and it has been marvelous. But the most exciting thing is...

GOD HAS DRAWN ME DEEPER INTO HIMSELF. It's as if I have become more and more dependent on Him this summer and He has spoken some very real things into me, things that I needed desperately to hear...

I have sensed lately that many people don't come expecting God to work in our midst. We can't "BE" the church when we don't love the church and when we aren't worshiping with the church, we have a problem. We need to build a bridge and fix stuff with our brothers, amen?  (By the way... i'm in love with me "some brethren"). I'm not pointing fingers; just stating an observation. My prayers have been to the effect of:

"God - what can I do to make our corporate worship to You come alive? I try to offer my best to you week after week - I try to lead our people to living water but, Lord, I CAN'T force them to drink."

Jesus says, in response, "just worship ME. Worship ME with them, worship ME without them. Worship ME when you get up, worship ME when you lie down, worship ME as you go through your day. Worship ME and I will draw men and women to myself...". So that's what I have decided to do.

Not only am I challenging myself to carry the mantle of a "constant" worshiper, I am challenging my leaders in the worship ministry to step up their game as well. I'm giving people more opportunities to lead than ever before. I am desperately trying to make the ministry LESS dependent on me as a front man and MORE dependent on JESUS as the true Head.

I think that we'll all be challenged. I also think that, if we are willing, we will all be changed. If we truly seek Him we will find that this season of ministry will be one that brings transformation into many, many lives.

And that, my friends, is something to get really excited about.

On My Horizon - Part 1

I am currently preparing to hit one of the busiest stretches that I've seen in a long time...

On Friday I shared with you some things that are coming up for me in the next couple of months. This week I'm sharing with you things that are "on my horizon" - things that are coming up in my life over the next few months that I'm excited about. I wanted to share them with you in the hope that maybe you'll pray for me when the opportunity arises.

On September 12 and 13 (Friday & Saturday) I will be speaking on a local men's conference titled, "COMMIT '08".

"COMMIT '08" is going to be held at Galeed Church in Bladenboro and is being hosted in partnership with the Bladen Baptist Association. On the conference their whole message is to challenge men to a greater commitment in their walk with JESUS and their commitment to truly serve Him with their lives. The format is: Friday Nite meal /conference / adjourn - Saturday morning breakfast / conference / lunch and done by noon

On the conference I'll be sharing the stage with Mike Cummings, Director of Missions (Burnt Swamp Association) who is a flame-thrower preacher. When I heard that he and I were speaking together on the conference my question was, "are you sure you want ME to preach?!?". They graciously answered yes (to my astonishment).

Not only will we worship through the word, the music is going to be provided by some of the hyde park band! They want to bring some hyde park flava to their weekend...

It really is an honor to have the priviledge to challenge these men to a greater walk with Christ and to spend a few days with friends in what I know will be a gathering that will be life-changing for at least one person (that would be me ).

PS - these guys know how to eat and your meals are included. Is it time that you get serious about where you are - If so, this conference may be just what you need (and you don't have to go off for the night to get it!) Interested? register by calling Junior Callahan at 910-840-0291 or the church at 910-863-3407 and tell them how many you're bringing.

The Right Word at the Right Time

Galatians 6:9-10 says,

9Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. 10Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

Sometimes you just gotta be amazed at God and the way that His Word speaks...

All we did on Sunday is talk Harvest. Sunday morning I taught how the church teams with you in the mission of reaching people for Christ.

I have never felt more spiritual opposition to anything I have preached. Ever. Which is weird to me because we've been teaching and living this out for a while now. That's part of the reason I knew what I was feeling was spiritual.

Then on Sunday evening, during the Robeson Baptist Association Gathering that we had (I hope that you didn't miss this event - IT WAS UNBELIEVABLE), all we did was, again, talk Harvest.We had an awesome nite and even though when I left the service I felt pretty encouraged, there was still a part of me struggling...

...that is until Monday morning. God woke me up. It was early and I felt refreshed and ready to rise (which is so unlike me - i struggle to get up, ALWAYS). So I got my cup of Henry's Blend, headed out to the patio where HE met with me.

I opened my word to the above verse - not because I searched it out but because it was just the next reading in my long journey for depth in the Word. It encouraged me - it strengthened me - emboldened me - reminded me. It reminded me that if I continue to do the things that He is instructing me to do that HE WILL provide a harvest. "Get over it, Mike P - continue doing what I've told you to do and I'll take care of the rest". To say the least, I was beyond encouraged and it was just what I needed.

Isn't it amazing how God speaks to us the right word at the right time? I'm never surprised but I'm always amazed.  

Now, that was cool...

Ok.

So I just got off from the first hyde park 'Cyber-Prayer" meeting and I have to say that it was a really cool experience.

Not only did we have people from all across the state meeting with us - but I had the opportunity to:

• Pray with a friend whom was a part of my first church that was a huge encouragement to me as a new believer. We gathered together tonite, online while separated by many miles and shared the love of Jesus together.
• Pray with a homebound member of our church who is currently stricken with an unexplained illness. You could sense the love of Jesus AND the love of the participants as we prayed for his situation.
• Pray with one of my oldest friends - a friend that I commited many sins with (sorry, but it's true). We both love JESUS. Today, we don't sin together anymore - we pray and believe God together and we use our gifts for the glory of JESUS.

We prayed for each other, for lost friends, for the sick, for jobs, for families, for our "one" and for our mission team. You could feel the presence of JESUS in a real and tangible way. It was pretty awesome.

Hope you were there. If you missed it, YOU MISSED IT! Keep your eye open for the next one - you really don't wanna miss it.

How Can We Pray for You?

My little friend over here is wondering, "hmmm... how can i pray for you?"

We are pumped that our 1st Cyber-prayer meeting is tonite online here. If you have a prayer request please let me know - we promise to take that prayer to the Father.

If you want to participate you will have to register first at Buzzen. You will then take this link: (http://www.buzzen.net/chatui.aspx?rm=hyde+park+facebook+group ) 

Hope to see you tonite!

Submit Prayer Requests...

Hey Guys and Gals! Just in case you live in a cave and didn't know that we were having an online prayer session tomorrow nite - WE ARE! The thought behind this is that we might harness technology into a way to strengthen the Kingdom of God. With that in mind we are going to have our 1st Cyber-prayer meeting - put this date on your calendar:  Tuesday Nite, July 29th @ 10 pm (Eastern).

If you have a prayer request and want your online community to take it to the throne let me know

HERE'S HOW YOU CAN PERSONALLY BE A PART OF IT (YOU DO NEED TO PRE-REGISTER IF YOU ARE GOING TO PARTICIPATE):

We are using Buzzen as our gathering place. I have started a "Hyde Park Facebook Group Page". You will have to register with Buzzen to get on that page (it's quick and easy). Once you register, our gathering place will be here. Remember, our 1st meeting will be Tuesday, July 29th at 10pm at the above site and remember you must be registered to get in.

Take the link above tomorrow nite - i'll meet you there!