Keep the porch light on...

There are plenty of you who today will be turning off the porch light and hiding in your basement hoping to avoid all that is Halloween. I appreciate the desire to stay away from something with some "evil" roots, but I've got to tell you, you are missing a great opportunity.

Halloween is arguably the most neighbor-centric holiday in our country. Tonight, almost all of your neighbors will stop by your front porch to say "Trick or Treat". Our three most celebrated Christian holidays are set up to avoid our neighbors. When we celebrate Easter it is Church-centered. Thanksgiving is usually with family and friends that we invite and Christmas is almost exclusively family. Halloween is our best shot.

So in an effort to get you out of your basement and onto your front porch meeting and greeting your neighbors, here are some tips for you tonight:

-Give out good candy, be generous.
-Engage with your neighbors and their kids.
-Don't be afraid to dress up...
-Remember names.
-Pray for the folks who are stopping by your house.
-Have fun.
and
-Keep the porch light on.

Get Smart 5k

This past Saturday morning at 7am it was pouring down rain outside, but I got up anyway and headed over to the Get Smart 5k that Destiny had co-sponsored. I didn't feel like running, actually, I didn't even feel like getting out of bed, but I headed over anyway and am I ever glad that I did. The rain slowed down for the start of the race and we had about a dozen Destiny folks run in this thing and it was a blast! It was great to cheer each other on and to gently rib Greg who arrived just as the race was beginning. Kyle Scheren represented Destiny well and took first place in his age group, Steve Mirch was not too far behind him and then came me following closely behind Josh Showalter. We all had a great time and got soaked and perspired for a good cause. I can't wait for next year...

(By the way, I'm definitely not a runner, but I do run so that I can eat what I want to eat...an exta bowl of ice cream equals another mile on the trail for me...it may not be medically sound thinking but that is my story and I'm sticking to it.)

From the mouths of babes...

Last night I got to tuck my seven year old Emily into bed and as we finished praying together, she told me she wanted to "see God". She shared how she wondered what He looks like. I told her that the best place to look is at Jesus.

"He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created..." Colossians 1:15-16. Or as my friends in the South say, "Jesus is God with skin on."

Emily also asked me "What if we are wrong?" I could have gone on and on about the philosophical idea of Pascal's Wager but decided to encourage her to keep seeking God and asking Him to not only show himself to her, but to also assure her that He is real.

That encouragement works not only for a first grader but also for each of us...

And they all lived happily ever after...

I'm happy to tell you that this will be my last Red Sox entry until next season. SWEEP!

Into the Wild

Went and saw Into the Wild today and was reminded of a few things:

-Lack of forgiveness and reconciliation can ruin our lives. Ron Franz, the main voice of truth in this film waxes philosophical when he says "When you forgive, you love, and when you love, God's light shines down on you."
-Books are usually better than the movie rendition that follows... I'd read John Krakauer's book Into the Wild a few years ago and it is a much better story line.
-Much of our culture's theology is communicated at the cineplex. Sean Penn would want us to embrace experience as the ultimate in life. Certain characters are seeking truth but the main theme unhealthily elevates experience.
-Great books should be embraced. The main character in this film spends a lot of time developing his philosophy of life through literature. I appreciated his reading of Tolstoy's Wise Thoughts for Everyday and his focus on the following quote: "I have lived through much and now I think I have found what is needed for happiness. A quiet, secluded life in the country with the possibility of being useful to people..." -Leo Tolstoy.
-Ultimately happiness is only real when we experience it together.
-Emile Hirsch looks frighteningly like a young Jack Black.
-God's creation is absolutely beautiful (from Virginia to Mexico to Alaska).

-Wouldn't recommend this movie (a little too long, a little too rated R, and a little too much overindulged angst), but it's depth does cause one to think...

Halfway There

It's fun to watch Schill work. If you are looking for stats, check out the Red Sox official site. If you are looking for some insight from a player check out Kevin Youkilis' blog...

By the way, I woke up this morning thinking about Fearless and am encouraged by the number of people at Destiny who are being challenged and encouraged by this Fall series. It seems we have touched a sensitive spot.

Awkward Email Moments

While enjoying the Red Sox victory yesterday, I surfed over to the Rockies homepage to discover that a friend's little brother is on their pitching roster. I emailed him today and his response was about how difficult it was to watch his brother walk in three runs during the 13-1 loss to the Red Sox. He then asked for prayer for his brother.

Now, what am I supposed to do with that? Of course, I'd want to pray for a friend's brother who struggled through the biggest game of his professional career. But, he's pitching against the Red Sox....

I told him I'd pray, but that I'd also be praying for the Red Sox. Between me and you, I'll probably pray twice as much for Manny and the rest of the guys...does that make me a bad person? and what does that say about my theology of prayer?

I'm glad that God is in charge of the details and not me, I bet you are too.

Decisive Victory in Game 1

(Don't worry, once the Series is over, I'll go back to some less sport-oriented posts....assuming the Redskins don't surprise everyone during the NFL season...thanks for indulging me)

Church on time...

Most of us were on time for our own wedding ceremony.
We probably all have made the effort to be early for important an job interview.
My kids rush out the door every day to make it to the bus stop on time.

But,
Far too many of us wander in late for Church. I know, I know, "the kids spilled Cheerios in the car" or "the dog ate your car keys." I know it isn't easy to get to Church on time. But somehow, in the midst of all this other stuff, we make it to the other important engagements on time....

Let me encourage you to consider your time at Church as your most important appointment of the week. During this time you get to speak to and hear from the Creator of the Universe. So use your Iphone, or your dayplanner to remind you of this important rendezvous and do all that you can to be there ready for what God has for you. You just might be surprised by what God has to say to you during those precious first 10 minutes of worship.

See ya there early this Sunday.

Get Smart 5k

I love Destiny Church because as a Church, we strive to be involved in our community. This weekend is evidence of that. Destiny is helping to sponsor our local middle school's 5k race. We have folks running in this 3.1 mile race, we have recruited sponsors to provide food for the end of the race and will also provide volunteers to help run this event. Our hope at Destiny is not to provide a church to go to in our community but to be so woven into the fabric of our community, it just makes sense to go there. Our logo ought to be recognizable by people all over Leesburg because of how we live out our faith, as well as because of what happens on Sundays. If you would like to be a part of this event with us this Saturday, head over to www.active.com and sign up as a runner for the Smart's Mill Middle School Get Smart 5k!

Now, on to the competition...
I'm not sure what the Vegas oddsmakers have on us, but Greg, Dan and I are all entered into this event. Each of us have gotten into running lately and have been "in training" for this event (mostly so we don't embarass ourselves). None of us are fast runners, but all of us should finish without incident. As a staff team, we'll see if we can all maintain a less than 10 minute mile pace. That may sound like slow motion Chariots of Fire running to you, but it feels like Olympic pace to us. If you have some time on Saturday morning, come on out and cheer us on!

In a pit...

If you were in the Smart's Mill auditorium this morning and got to hear Greg talk about "Facing Your Fear" of failure, then you heard about the little known Bible character of Benaiah who is found in II Samuel 23. If Greg piqued your interest and you are looking for more check out "In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day" by Mark Batterson. The book is basically about seizing divine opportunities and doing big things for God. The hope is that we’d see that in our greatest fear, worry, or difficulty might be God’s great dream for our lives. You can get your copy on Amazon or at christianbook.com.

Sox made it, I didn't.

I was out by 10:30. Didn't even make it out of the seventh inning. No worries though, the boys from Boston took it to the Indians 12-2 which sets up a Game 7 tonight. If I can't stay up for a game 7, then I'll have to throw out my fan card. I figure if I eat right, get enough sleep and exercise, then I should be good to go....

Red Sox Nation

I must really be getting old. It is only about 9:30 at night and my beloved Red Sox are leading the Indians 4-1 in the bottom of the third. Already I'm wondering if I'll be able to stay up for the rest of the game. I couldn't last on Thursday night but will give it a try as I wait for my wife and daughter to return from a middle school boy-girl party. They'll probably find me with the tv on and drooling on the couch pillows.

You may want to remember that the next time you visit...

Spiritual Food

I'm not much of a dieter...in fact, I don't really like thinking about whether or not food is particularly healthy or not, just whether or not it tastes good. An ice cream sundae is delicious but it does not provide you with a whole lot of valuable nutrients. Sure, I can argue that it has value because it involves milk products, and may provide protein if you add nuts, and you can even use fruit to legitimize it. The bottom line is that it still is an awful lot of sugary calories.

Spiritually speaking, we often consume too many "empty" spiritual calories. A movie, a song or a tv sermon can all be used by God, but unless it contains truth based in Scripture, it will only be empty calories with no real spiritual value. What does your spiritual diet look like? Are you taking in enough of the right kind of calories?

"...by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil." Hebrews 5:12-14

Do you know how to be destinized?

Once you have been to Destiny on a Sunday morning and are drawn in by the authentic relationships, relevant teaching and exciting environments, do you know what to do next? Let me know what you think about this 4 point plan:

1. Stop by the Jump Start table and pick up your Jump Start materials which will help you get started with your personal relationship with God.

2. Sign up for a Starting Point group which promises to be a conversational environment where people can explore faith and experience community.

3. Follow up your short term Starting Point experience with a long term Life Group. These groups meet in homes and are safe places to go deeper with God.

4. Connect with a Ministry Team and serve God through your gifts.

You can jump in at any of these four steps, but if you are new to your faith, then start at step one and move your way on through to spiritual maturity. Is that a simple enough process?

Dodgeball - A Spiritual Gift

It is important for us to get to know just how God has fashioned each of us individually. If you are looking to find your fit in a ministry, then you can look to your personality or your experiences or your skills, but one of the best ways to ensure a good fit is to evaluate your spiritual gifts. If you want help in determining your spiritual gift, just let me know and I'll help you through the process. Until then take a look at this insightful look into a little known spiritual gift...

Blog Action Day, II

The growing possibility of our destroying ourselves and the world with our own neglect and excess is tragic and very real. -Billy Graham

Wedding Vows

Have you ever been asked the question: Would you marry him or her all over again? For most of us the answer is yes but after a few years of marriage we know a little bit more about each other and that is not always good. Hopefully we can work hard to see beyond annoying habits and deeper into the person that we love and cherish. This is a rough guesstimate but I think that over 90% of us cannot remember the words of our wedding vows. You know the whole in sickness and in health stuff. It might not be a bad idea to look into the scrapbook and remind ourselves of our commitment to love one another and just what we committed to that day.

Well, I had the opportunity to take that idea one step further with a couple last week. It was their 15th wedding anniversary and they decided to renew their vows together. The house was decorated, there was wedding cake, and their two children served as the maid of honor and the best man. It was a very simple ceremony but it was powerful as these two "re-upped" with one another. It reminded me that ceremonies are important as they create memories and offer a visual picture of a verbal commitment. I can't wait to be a part of their renewing of their vows on their 30th!

Blog Action Day

Today thousands of bloggers throughout blog land will be commenting about how to preserve our environment. There will be calls to recycle, to live more "green" and to rid our highways of SUV's. Because of that, many of you who are evangelicals will automatically dismiss the paragraphs that challenge us to live a more environmentally conscious life. I'd like to challenge your thinking on that and recommend a book that is way out there (beyond my current comfort zone) and challenges us to rethink God's view on our environment. Pick up a copy of "Serve God, Save the Planet" and then empty out your recycle bin of your kid's toys and begin to use it as it was intended.

"The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it." Genesis 2:15.

Haunted Mountain Coasters

This weekend was my 10 year old son's birthday weekend. On Friday we loaded up a couple of his buddies and headed out to Wisp Mountain and then stayed at a cabin in Canaan Valley, West Virginia. Here is what I learned:

-If you want to learn about what your son is "into", let he and his buddies talk non-stop on a three hour trip.
-It is not necessarily good to have your son get scared at a haunted Mountain Coaster. (the coaster itself was very cool, it was the haunted house you had to walk through to get to it, that was not my best judgement call).
-One can gain about 5 pounds if one only eats sugary junk food for a period of 36 hours.
-10 year old boys know how to have fun and stay up late and still have energy at 7am.
-Take advantage of every single opportunity you have to have real spiritual conversations with your kids.

Operation Christmas Child

At the end of this month we will pack up all of the Christmas boxes that have been brought into Destiny and send them off to Samaritan's Purse. Be sure to get your shoebox filled soon. Brenda Hicks will have a Operation Christmas Child table up for the next three weeks.

TGICD

Phew! Thank God It's Columbus Day! The Sunday that kicks off Destiny's Fall Journey wears me out and over the last few years it has fallen on Columbus Day weekend. I'm thankful for that because I need a little bit of time to recuperate. But no matter what this day does to me physically, emotionally I'm jacked to be a part of reaching out!

Fearless kicked off today and Greg's message was rock solid. Now we get to hear from him daily through the email devo or by simply clicking on his blog on www.destinychurch.info.
Mike and the decor team went over and above with the graphics and "feel" of the stage. It definitely captured a sense of fear and I'm sure we'll get some pushback from that! That's ok, because the bottom line is that folks struggle with fear and we all need to know how to invite God in to help us to overcome those fears.

After the message folks walked outside to an incredibly beautiful day and an OctoberBlast! that included great food, inflatable games, and a very cool jazz band.
There were classic cars filling the parking lot, video arcade racing games, and radio controlled cars. This was an incredible event that captured Destiny's sense of having fun together because we serve a God who desires for us to have a full and abundant life!

After we packed up from the day, I took a quick power nap and then headed over to my Starting Point Life Group which was great! This group is described as a conversational environment where people can explore faith and experience community. I think we nailed it last night.

Makes me tired just thinking about yesterday. I think it might be time for another power nap...

Team Destiny

I learned something about myself today. I knew that I was growing to really like triathlons and I knew it was a great way for me to maintain some semblance of fitness in my life. I was reminded again of the fun of hanging out with great people. The Edellmans and the Oesterblads were two great families to spend a Saturday with. None of that is new news for me.

The thing I realized is that on triathlon days it is not the swim, the bike or the run that I look forward to most. It is the post-race meal that really makes my day. Today it was Pancho Villa Mexican Restaurant on the way home. Nothing better than a plate of fajitas to complete an already great day.

(By the way, Pancho Villa is located in Culpeper. Who would have thought Culpeper would play host to some good authentic Mexican food? Thanks for the tip, Oesterblads).

Colossians 4:2-3

"Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ...Pray that (we) may proclaim it clearly."

That is my prayer for Destiny this weekend. OctoberBlast! kicks off the Fearless fall journey and there are going to be tons of people who would benefit from hearing about Jesus. We're just asking for two things: open doors and clarity...oh, and some nice weather as well.

Sundays at 7pm!

I get to be a part of a Starting Point group again and I am ecstatic. Starting Point is not just a Life Group, it is a conversational enviornment where people can explore faith and experience community. It is ten weeks of "finding your place in the story". We are meeting on Sundays at 7pm and we begin this week. I cannot wait to have the opportunity to hang out with some folks and simply talk about who God is and if that really matters. This is a group that I could lead every year! Call or email me if you are interested in being a part of this group with us.

www.faceyourfears.tv

It is only Tuesday, yet I am already excited about what is going to be happening at Destiny on Sunday. This Sunday is OctoberBlast! Sunday and it is the kickoff of our Fall Journey series. There will be 60+ antique cars, a couple of fully decked-out tailgaters, a cool jazz band and some good eats. Couple that with the fact that the forecast calls for sunny and 83 and we have an incredible day on tap. This Sunday will mark the kickoff of Starting Point and the Life Groups that go along with the Journey. There is a lot of buzz around this kickoff and I, for one, am ready to see God work through this new series.

Are you ready to ask: What are you afraid of?