At Least He Tried!

I once heard it said that a person had the words, "At least he tried", carved into his tombstone. I like that idea and in many ways I want the same to be true of me. However, I want a phrase added. I want my tombstone to say, "At least he tried to create a movement of multiplying disciples".

One of my attempts to help create a movement of multiplying disciples of Christ is to put in print some of what I have learned about making disciples. I hope that through the written word others will be inspired, motivated, educated, and encouraged to live a life of multiplying disciples.

With that said, I want to let you know that I have just reviewed the first printed copy of a book I wrote called "Conversations ...about making disciples!" Some very special people have helped me compile some conversations about making disciples that I believe are much needed in the Christian community these days. Just think, when is the last time you saw a new book printed on the topic of "making disciples"? How can so few books be available on the very thing that Jesus came to do?

Please pray with me that this book starts a whole new set of conversations about fulfilling the Great Commission. That is really what the world needs! If you would like to have a copy of this book you can pick one up at Crossroads Church as soon as they are printed or you can order one by e-mailing snash@crossroadsnewnan.org.

Whatifcoweta?.com

The past couple of weeks I've been driving around town with a magnet bumpersticker on the back of my truck saying whatifcoweta?.com. Hopefully a few thousand other people at Crossroads Church in Newnan have been doing the same thing. It is a simple way to get the word out to people about a series of messages we are doing on the question "What If?"

For three weeks we are looking at "what if" you could change your life, your relationships, and your circumstances. Most people I know are wanting to change at least one or more of the three. From the results of the first week I think we might be on to something. This past weekend we had almost three times the number of visitors we usually have for the first week of a message series. I guess some people are wondering "what if"?

What If?

"What if" is a great question to ask. Especially for a church. This question opens the door to explore the possibilities of what God can do through a group of people that are sincerely seeking to be with Jesus. Acts 4:13 says, "When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus."

What if the world once again took note and was astonished at what God was doing in the church? I am convinced that once we devote ourselves to being with Jesus the world will want what we have.

I wrote this small booklet called "What If Thirty Days Could Change Your Church" to be a catalyst for converstions for churches. I am asking the question myself, "what if" we could get a whole bunch of churches learning what it means to be with Jesus in such a way that the world was astonished and taking note!

Poison

A few weeks ago I preached a message on the impact that alcohol can have on a person's life. I preached on the passage in Proverbs 23:29-35. Read it if you get a chance. Regardless of the alcohol content, Solomon makes it very clear that "wine that sparkles in the cup" posions like a viper.

What has amazed me in the past few weeks is how many people have been ministered to by that message. It has been very clear to me that a lot more people are struggling with alcohol abuse than I realized. My heart breaks everytime I hear another story of how alochol has destroyed lives.

If you know someone whose life is being ruined by addiction to alcohol I recommend that you send them a copy of that message or have them check it out on itunes. If just one person finds freedom from alcoholism, the whole message was worth it.

A Cool Praise, A Big Challenge

I just opened my mail for the week and I found a magazine from my denomination with a listing of numbers of baptisms for churches in our state. I was blown away to discover our church was in the top eleven churches in our state when it came to baptizing people. That discovery led me to several thoughts.

First, I'm thankful and grateful that our church has been used to help people come to faith in Christ and follow Him in baptism. May God receive the glory in that praise!

Secondly, I'm challenged by the fact that as a whole baptisms in our denomination are down. Didn't Jesus say, "Go make disciples of all nations, baptizing them..."? Somehow we have to regain our focus on what is really important. Every church I know is busy. The question is, are we busy about the right things?

My prayer is that every church has an increase in baptisms. I pray that we increase baptisms so we can increase disciples. Let's get busy reaching "all nations".

Diapers, Diplomas, Disciples

This past week I took a new step on the journey of life. I watched my oldest son receive his High School diploma. It was a very surreal feeling. I'm expecting it to hit me even more when he moves away to college in the fall.
As hard as it is to watch your child develop wings you realize this is the way it is supposed to be. A healthy child does not remain in diapers for a lifetime. A child becomes an adult and is hopefully equipped to handle life on their own. Receiving a diploma is just one aspect of a process of training and preparation that we have been committed to for the past eighteen years. As hard as it is to watch our child leave us, we wouldn't want it any other way. It is the healthy thing to do.
Making disciples that make disciples is very much like raising a child. The time spent training and teaching a disciple is all a part of a process of preparing them to go out on their own. This is exactly what Jesus did and it is exactly what He expects us to do. God's plan is to see spiritual birth take place and spiritual growth follow until that person is ready to spiritually reproduce. That is the healthy thing to do.
I want to encourage you to make a spiritual investment in someone that will become a multiplying disciple of Jesus Christ. Be willing to do the hard work of training, teaching ,and equipping that person to be a disciple that builds more disciples. Few things compare to watching someone you disciple make another disciple! Take the next step in your spiritual journey. Become a disciple maker. I dare you!
On a side note, I developed a resource for my son as he prepares to start college this fall. It is a 30 day study filled with life lessons that relate to college life. Someone suggested I make it available to others so we printed it into a booklet and it is available through Impact Ministries. Let me know if you would like to order some copies.

Managing As Jesus Managed

This past Wednesday night I witnessed something that is simply amazing. I watched over 250 people pour into our church to start a thirteen week course called "Financial Peace University" by Dave Ramsey. We have been told that this is the largest FPU training for the spring semester. That's awesome!

What excites me about having so many people attending this class is what I know can happen in the next 24 months. Dave Ramsey teaches people to manage their money according to Biblical principles. To me, that is managing as Jesus managed.

When people learn to manage as Jesus managed several things can happen. They can become debt free. They can have resources available for emergencies. They can plan for future events like college and retirement. They can give abundantly and cheerfully.

Being a Pastor that is committed to being and building disciples, I can only give God thanks for such a great response to this training. I know that making disciples involves making better managers. For the next twelve weeks I will be praying for every person in FPU. Stay the course- you will be glad you did!