Our team of 5 men built and repaired a fence during our Costa Rica mission trip this week. We worked well together, developed great systems, and shared the same work ethics.
The generally agreed upon leader of our team was a man old enough to be my father. I know that, because he has a son my age. This trip Jay invested in me! What a blessing that has been!
I grew up most of my life without…
What an amazing team we had on our Costa Rica mission trip! This was a light construction trip, helping with projects around an orphanage that is part of the Abraham Project. The group of 27 are some of the hardest working individuals I know. We did what may have been considered mundane work, but everyone always had a smile, there were no ill moods displayed, and we all realized we were playing small parts in a bigger God story.
One of my favorite parts of the week was spending it with my future daughter Mary. Mary will be officially joining our family May 27th when she marries our oldest son Jeremy. (We’ve claimed her as one of our own for many years, but I’ll feel better with a piece of paper!) Several months ago Mary brought up the fact that Grace Community Church was going to Costa Rica. She said if I would go she would go. How could I resist an offer like that?
This week, I’ve fallen more in love with our beautiful Mary. She’s kind, gentle, smart, mature, and hard-working. Mary reminds me of my wife Cheryl. She’s going to be a great wife and mother. (I’m throwing in that mother part hoping that makes it come true!)
Thank you Mary for accompanying me on this trip…and for making sure…
Jesus said faith as small as a mustard seed could move mountains. I’m glad God rejoices in small amounts of faith, but what can be done through those who, like Jesus’ disciples, give up everything to follow Him?
This week, our team in Costa Rica has be encouraged…and challenged…by the faith of two of our own… Jason and Kerby Harpst. Jason and Kerby are a precious couple, very special to Cheryl and me, who left our church this past year to begin full-time mission work in Costa Rica. Both were professionals, Jason an engineer and Kerby a teacher. They had a nice home, two nice cars, great friends, a wonderful church, the greatest pastor in the world (Okay, I threw that last part in…), but they had the “perfect” lifestyle in the United States.
This week we’ve seen first hand how much they’ve given up…at least as far as the comforts of the world….
Yesterday was our first official “work day” at the Abraham Project. (Read more about this trip HERE and HERE.) Everyone has their own assignments, but mine today was helping rebuild a fence. It was a long task. I’m not accustomed to working with my hands, but this was kind of fun.
The best part was the connections I made with people in my church who worked with me. These men can sling a hammer, but they can also…
This is my first trip to Costa Rica. We are here to support missionaries Jason and Kerby Haprst, who gave up careers and left our church to join the Abraham Project here in Costa Rica. I was privileged to speak today at Lighthouse Community Christian Church, where it’s Pastor Jorge Gomez first had a vision for the church and the Abraham Project. I love watching big faith and action come together and this is certainly such an example.
Changes…
I talk to people every week who are struggling in their current ministry assignment. Sometimes ministry produces a mindset that what you are doing now you’ll always be doing or that you are somehow less than holy if you are considering other opportunities. I don’t know that that feeling can always be supported Scripturally.
God never promised everything would be the same. In fact, God seems to like change as I follow Him. Consider the amount of movement in the Apostle Paul’s ministry. He seemed to experience a great deal of change. If you are experiencing burnout, frustration, and even a little restlessness, could God be shaping you for something else?
This passage spoke to me this week. Pastor, imagine if God had you stand on the front steps of your church and deliver this message as people entered your church Sunday morning…
This is hilarious. I found this on Ed Stetzer’s blog and I figured if he thinks this is what it takes to be a church planter, then it must be true. After all, he is the expert.
If you have a smart phone, you never have to leave home again without your Bible!
I love what the team at LifeChurch.tv has done to encourage Bible reading through their work with YouVersion. Our church uses the live version each Sunday (sign up HERE) and it has started to catch on with people. YouVersion continues to improve their offerings for churches. Consider these additions:
Yesterday we announced that Grace Community Church is going multi-site. We will be one church that meetings in two locations, adding our second location at Kenwood High School. (I wrote more about it HERE.)
As expected, we couldn’t answer all the questions in the time we had yesterday. This post addresses some of the most common questions I or members of the staff have received since yesterday’s announcement.
