Sunday Sum Up

Well, the church train was LOOOOONNNNGGGG this morning!  I was going to second service and the traffic into the church was stop and go from both sides of the Tegner/Tuolumne Road intersection.  I think the greeting time between first and second service attenders will be when we all roll down our windows and visit while passing each other on the road.  :)

I loved the singing time and communion during our worship today.  We recognized Orphan Sunday today by watching a video, and all I could think about was our sweet Gracie girl.  There's not a day that goes by that I don't pray for her and her brothers, hoping that one day we will be able to have a relationship with her.  She is always in my heart; always.  At the end of his message, Dave reminded us that "anyone can be a part of God's family."  That's right, we were all spiritual orphans and when we accepted God's invitation, He adopted us into HIS family with all of the provision, protection, power, and peace that He gives.  Thank you, Jesus! 

Today's message (from Acts 2) was the third message in the Unstoppable series.  I love the second point: "The center point of the message is JESUS.  Dave reminded us of the story from John 9 about the blind man that was healed and gave the most concise gospel message, "I was blind, but now I see."  But I loved it when Dave told us that the unspoken, central part of his message was, "and then Jesus showed up."  "I was blind, and then Jesus showed, and now I see."  That's all of our stories......we were blind (lost, addicted, alone, hurting, etc...) and then Jesus showed up, and now we see!  Thank you, Jesus!

During the third service, I was in a planning meeting for our upcoming Women's Retreat.  Please mark your calendars now because I believe God has some wonderful things in store for us.  You can check out our speaker's website here:  http://www.strengthforthesoul.com/  The dates are March 8 - 10, 2013.  If you save $10.00 a week, starting this week, you'll have the money you need to attend ($145.00).  We will have the entire camp to ourselves this year; it's going to be great!   Let me know you'll be joining us!  

Sunday Sum Up

***Note: Started this Sunday evening, and well......here it is finally!

Wow; I don't even have words to express how suprised and humbled Dave and I were this weekend by the incredible blessing given to us by our church staff and family!  We have been at NLCC for 20 years (I thought only old people made comments like that!), and our church family, board, and staff generously blessed us with a vacation and some money. I have to tell you; my first thought was, "We don't deserve that!" and my second thought was, "How can we spread that gift among the staff so that everyone receives some of that blessing because everyone deserves it."

You see, I immediately thought of all the things I DIDN'T do over the years that disqualified me as a worthy recipient of such a gift. There were phone calls and visits that I didn't make; there were cards I didn't write; there were meals I didn't take; and there were prayers I forgot to pray; and there were plenty of people I didn't connect with personally.  That's one of the hardest things for me being a part of such a large church - it is hard to keep up with people and their needs, and I can name off myriad ways I've failed to be the pastor's wife I want to be.  However, when I sit in quiet before the Lord, I am at peace with the fact that I have been called first and foremost to be the wife my husband needs so that he is free to minister as God has called him, to be the parent that is there for our children when weddings, crisises, or funerals pull their dad away, and then to minister where God has called me. So, sometimes I am not free to do all of the things that my mind can come up with to do for people from the church. 

Anyway, all of that to say, "Thank you, sincerely, NLCC staff and family for blessing us so greatly." Your love, honor, and gifts are not taken lightly or with an attitude of entitlement.  It has been an incredible blessing to be able to serve with you all these years.  We love you!

I don't want to sound biased, but I thought Dave did a great job today with the teaching from Acts 1.

Here are some of my notes and my thoughts from his message: An Unstoppable Force

WE are the unstoppable movement of God.    The Greek word "ekklesia" means "the called out ones". Church is not a "building" but a people. Dave shared that after Jesus had risen from the dead, he showed up over and over again to His followers because He knew it would take that many times for them to fully believe it was Him.  I'm thankful that Jesus shows up over and over again to us until we believe, as well!

2) We are called to share what we've seen and heard. It doesn't take a PHD to be able to share your story. We are simply called to be witnesses.  Most concise gospel message? "All I know is that once I was blind, but now I see!"  Everyone has a story, and every story matters!

3) The time to move is now. My job isn't to stand here waiting for perfect circumstances to begin living out my faith and sharing my story. When we go "all in," God gives His power to us. 

Yep; great message. I'm excited to hear the rest of this series.

God bless any dear soul that might stop by this little corner of blogland.  :) 

Post Servolution Videos

In case you weren't able to be in church last Sunday, here are the post Servolution 2009 videos. If you weren't able to be a part of Servolution this year, be sure to join us next year as we again go out into our community to serve and to love. And.....you don't have to wait until next year to serve as a part of Servolution. Our prayer is that Servolution will become a way of life for us all. You also have the opportunity to serve the second Saturday of each month (sort of a mini-servolution) with people from the church; watch the bulletin for more information.

Some stats from this year:
1300+ volunteers
120+ projects
500 Food Baskets given away
300 people were given community resources
117 people went through our health screening
73 haircuts given
1800 hot dogs eaten
70 people gave blood at the blood drive and.....
Approximately 15,000 man hours of work was donated by those who joined the Servolution!

Now THAT is love in action!

Women's Conference

I went to a conference yesterday with a friend of mine.  It was the "Gifted to Lead" conference and the two speakers, Nancy Beach and Nancy Ortberg, are women I highly respect and love listening to.  When I saw that they were the speakers, I signed up right away!

One great surprise was seeing our retreat speaker, Kathi Lipp, there.  We had a great little visit, and I thought I'd share with you her thoughts about the conference (since it makes this blog easier for me!  :-)

Quoted from her one of Kathi's emails:

The 8 Best Things I Heard at the Women in Leadership Conference

Posted: 22 Apr 2009 11:17 PM PDT

Today I spent a very long, but good day listening to Nancy Beach and Nancy Ortberg discussing the topic of women in leadership in the church. (And I know that many of you were there as well, as we had deep, deep discussions re: Steam Punk.)

I loved the day – not just because the two Nancys are so right on, but I got to spend some quality time with Jane Liddle (the Worship leader for one of Menlo Park Prez’s campus churches, and the leader of Tapestry – the rockin’ chick band) and Debbie McDonald, a cool chick pastor from Westgate church in San Jose.

Oh, women in leadership… I so wish that you all could have been there not only to listen to these two ladies who have been-there-done-that in the church, but to be in a room with maybe 300 women who love God and love to lead.

For those of you who were not able to be there – here is a list of the eight best things I heard at the conference.

1. Help! I am a leader trapped in a woman’s body.
2. Nobody ever calls little boys bossy.
3. We need to learn to wait well.  (Note from Gena: Nancy O. quoted from one of my all time favorite authors, Sue Monk Kidd, and her book, When the Heart Waits.  See, I knew I loved Nancy Ortberg!)
4. John Ortberg Re: Women serving in the church: “It is not an option for 50% of God’s kingdom to be sitting on the sidelines.”
5. Leaders need to be the most self-aware people in the room.
6. We want to keep making mistakes, just different ones.
7. Almost every issue is a team issue.
8. You don’t get the right answers unless you ask the right questions.

Resurrection Day!

I have a hard time comprehending the sacrifice Jesus made for my sin, and there are no words to describe my gratefulness for it.  To think that the power that raised him from the dead is available to me today is amazing.  Happy, glorious Easter to all of us who long to follow after the risen Christ with our whole hearts.  

We will be spending Easter at my sister's house after the three morning services.  Dave will be wiped out, but the kids will have so much fun with all of their cousins.  I thought I had been given the easiest of items to bring to her house for our meal, but the dessert that I was to make really threw me for a loop.  This dessert has an initial layer that needs to be baked for exactly (as the recipe stipulates) 8 minutes at 400 degrees.  Easy, right?  Well, I put the dish in the oven, and then proceeded to set the timer for 20 minutes.  Why?  I guess it's because the one recipe that I make all the time, my grandma's Texas cake, needs to bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes, so when I saw that recipe said 400 degrees, I went on auto-pilot and set the timer for 20 minutes, and as a result, the crust was charred!

No biggie, though; I would just make another one.  That would have worked well, but I was being so efficient, that after I put the second batch in the oven (and setting the timer for eight minutes), I looked at the next recipe I needed to start on and realized that I needed something from the store so I thought I'd just run to get the last few items I needed.  I didn't even think about the dessert crust I had just put in the oven!  So, I ran off to the store, picked up my few items, and then came back home to the smell of another burnt crust!  I COULDN'T BELIEVE IT!  That's what I get for trying to do a couple of things at the same time and not paying attention!

My kids  got their Easter baskets on Saturday morning.  It's a tradition we started long ago for our family.  "Why on earth would you give your kids their Easter baskets the day before Easter?" you might wonder.  Well, on Easter mornings, Dave is up and out of the house even earlier than usual (Easter being a big day in his line of work and all), so we aren't able to be together when the kids get up.  Long ago, we decided that the Easter bunny (oh, lighten up!) would come to our house on the Saturday before Easter so that we could have a fun morning together as a family.   It works great for us!

I appreciate all the extra work everyone (and I mean everyone!) put in to help make our Easter services flow so well and our campus look so great!  The fact that so many people love Jesus and are willing to do whatever it takes to point others to Him is a HUGE blessing!   I LOVE MY NEW LIFE FAMILY!   You guys are the best!

 

Time Out

I don't usually talk much about Dave's sermons because that seems a little self-indulgent and prideful, but I have to recommend that you listen to THIS MESSAGE.  One of the things about having a pastor as a husband is that I often think that my husband takes everything he'd like to say to me and turns it into a sermon, just for me!  See, on Sundays, Dave isn't speaking with you in mind, you just get to benefit from what I need to be learning in life!  ;-)  This isn't true, of course, but God does speak to me through what Dave teaches, and I need that.

Anyway, I was gone last weekend at the women's retreat (which was fabulous - thank you retreat team!), so I missed his sermon, but I knew it was one that I HAD to listen to.  I think it is sad that so many of us women missed this particular message because it's a good one!  Please take a few minutes to listen to THIS (titled "Time Out"), and take Dave's challenge to try this concept out for the next four weeks to see what happens.   

I'd love to hear your thoughts.

"How do you do it?" cont.

I wanted to continue my thoughts in relation to the question asked of me a few months ago that I previously posted about.

My life may look perfect from a distance, and indeed, I am truly blessed. My prayer is that everyone that sees my life recognizes that any good in my life or in me comes from God, and I pray that they see Him and that HE is glorified.

While still in college, after I truly committed my life to the Lord at age 20, I began making decision after decision that brought me and my life into greater alignment with His Word (truly seeking to be faithful in the little things), and God has blessed my feeble attempts to live for Him. However, as a young believer, I went back and forth between the faith I wanted so desperately to have and the life I had been living for myself with all its chaos, destruction, and hopelessness. Heck, this is still a struggle for all of us sometimes, isn't it?

Anyway, what I am going to share next is not a cry for validation, sympathy, or help. God has redeemed every area that I am about to share with you. Through Christ, I have been forgiven of every sin and set free from everything that wanted to enslave me. And that is the reason I don't like it when someone thinks that I've lived or have a perfect life. I don't deserve to be on any pedestal, believe me, and just so you know, I've never climbed up on a pedestal because that's not where I want or deserve to be. :-)

As a child, I grew up in an alcoholic home, and I know the chaos, confusion, and pain that it causes. I am a child of divorce and understand being raised by a single mother (who did the best job EVER as a parent). She worked hard and sacrificed MUCH to keep us in our home and raise us alone. I was molested for years, and I didn't feel like I could set boundaries with others later in life because I was too scared to say "No." I actually didn’t even know I could say, “No.” I understand and know the devastation and power of secrets. I began drinking in high school and would drink because I didn't know what to do with my feelings and pain. I know what it's like to live life one way during the day, and another way at night. I understand depression and extreme self-condemnation. I have lived through betrayal and the pain and damage of emotional/verbal abuse from a man I thought I loved. I thank God for saving me from a life that would have caused me to be a divorced, single mom by now. I understand trying to sabotage a good and healthy relationship because I knew I didn't deserve it. I broke up with Dave while we were dating because I knew he deserved someone far better and holier than me. We struggled with infertility (I know with having four kids that no one probably believes that), and we lost our first baby through a miscarriage. I've made (and continue to make) mistakes as a wife and mother that have caused pain or hurt to my husband and children.

You may look at my life as you see it now and not know all the events that molded and created me to be the person I am today. Because of God's Word, His grace, hard work, counseling, prayer, and sometimes just the act of taking another step, these situations no longer have power over me, and the shame I carried for so long is gone. I have received grace and healing. I still struggle with some issues, especially when I haven't had enough sleep or I allow myself to get overly stressed, but I don't live with secrets anymore.

So you see, I sit in the front row on Sunday mornings with Dave simply as a woman who loves God and wants to live for Him. I don't do that perfectly, but I want to do it honestly. I'm sorry if there is something that I do that makes it seem like I'm not real, and regrettably I can't know everyone personally who calls New Life home, but that doesn't mean I don't want to know you. I would love for everyone to know the real me, and to also know and experience the hope and forgiveness that I have found in Jesus.

I am reminded of this verse from 1 Thes. 2:8 "We felt so strongly about you that we were determined to share with you not only the Good News of God but also our lives. That’s how dear you were to us!"

You are dear to me, even if I don’t know you well, so I will continue to endeavor to share my life with you, as I continue to hold out the hope of the Good News of Jesus Christ. No, I can't get up on Sunday morning each week to state who I am just so people won't have a wrong impression of me, but it's not about me anyway. I just want everyone to know that I am approachable and understanding. Don't shy away from me because you think I can't understand where you might be coming from, and especially don't judge yourself against who you think me to be. I am on this journey with you.

So this, then, is how I do "it." I keep going, trying to learn to relax more and more into His love, and to live authentically before God and man.

I thank you for being a part of my journey and ask you to continue traveling together with me.

"How do you do it?"

This question stopped me in my tracks as I was leaving the women's lobby area in the restroom at church. I was already at the door, pulling it open, when the quiet voice behind me wearily whispered these words, "How do you do it?"

At first, I wasn't sure the woman was speaking to me, but as I turned around, I realized there was no one else in the room.

"Excuse me?" I said.

And she repeated, "How do you do it?"

"How do I do what?" I asked, genuinely not knowing what she was referring to.

"How you do it all? How do you get up and get here every Sunday, looking all put together, with good kids and a good marriage? How do you get it all done and do it so well?" she asked.

If she hadn't been so sincere (with a sigh of hopelessness in her voice), I would probably have laughed out loud and said, "Are you talking about ME?" because I couldn't for the life of me figure out how she thought that I had it all together. Although I knew this woman as an acquaintance, we had never had a true conversation. She looked at me and compared herself and her struggles to who she thought me to be.

"You don't know me very well," I said, "because if you did, you'd know that some days are a struggle. I don't do "it" very well much of the time."

We women have a tendency to compare ourselves to others. This woman mistakenly believed that because she sees me sitting in the front row of church with Dave that she knows what my life is (and has been) like.  She did what so many of us do; we assume everyone else has it more together than we do. We think we just don't measure up.

In case you were wondering, just because I'm married to a pastor doesn't mean that I have it all together, and I'm usually the first to try to dispel that notion. Sitting in the front row on Sunday mornings with my husband doesn't give anyone a true picture of who I am and what my life is like, just as seeing others at church doesn't give me a true glimpse into who they are. Seeing me at church for one hour on Sundays might make it easy to believe that my life is perfect and that I can't understand where others might be coming from.

Pastor's wives can find it difficult for people know who they really are because they can't always personally know everyone who goes to their churches.

I can't get up and spill each and every detail of my life every Sunday just so people won't make assumptions about me.

This topic came up a couple of days ago when I was at lunch with a friend of mine. We don't know each other all that well, and something came up that she didn't realize was an issue I have had to deal with. I shared that I don't keep those things secret, but I wonder, how do I let people know that I understand pain and struggle without wearing a sign that tells everyone up front what issues I have faced or am facing? 

Don't get me wrong; I am a living testament to the goodness, power, and love of God and the life-change that He makes possible, and I thank Him for the many, many blessings He has poured out on me, my marriage, and my family in spite of me. But...... my life isn't (and hasn't been) perfect. I am definitely not complaining, but I regret that people may look at me and think that I don't understand how hard life can be, that I can't sympathize with where they are, and that I have it all together.  

My dear friend, I am just a fellow traveler on this journey.  No one has "arrived" and we are ALL becoming.  

How do I do it? Well, I'll share some things in next couple of posts, but for now, this was the suggestion of my friend....

You should just show up at church with your hair all ratty and uneven. :-)

Is that all it would take? If so, perhaps I should try it sometime.

Behold the Lamb of God/Servolution 2009

Today, I'm posting some links for you to visit.  The first is for the beautiful, poignant, and memorable event that our church is providing for our community.  It is called, "Behold the Lamb of God - The True Tall Tale of the Coming of Christ."  Click on the link (the title) and you'll be directed to the website that gives more information, including video clips from last year's production.  The thing I heard over and over from those who attended last year is that 1) if they had known how beautiful and terrific the production was, they would have invited everyone they knew to attend, and 2) "Wow!  I don't know what to say."  That's how good it was - really.  You can see my post from last year with my comments HERE.  In fact, here's an anonymous comment from someone who read that post: "Anonymous said...`What an amazing evening....such talent! I brought a friend along, and she was moved to tears more than once. On the way home she asked if she could come to church with me sometime! I think I'll be back Sunday evening.....maybe bring another friend!"  That's the best kind of endorsement - non-solicited and genuine.  Invite everyone you know to come with you to the Turlock Community Auditorium to experience this event on December 20 and 21.  You'll be glad you did, and I'm not just saying that!  

Another link for you to visit is the Servolution website.  Now, not all the information is up yet for this year's event, but believe me, you'll want to mark your calendar for May 9, 2009!  I also posted about last year's first ever Servolution and you can check it out HERE.  A commenter on that post said, "That was the most amazing day....this is the most amazing picture.....And we have the most amazing God......He is so working in this most amazing church family....

What amazing hearts there are to serve the Lord.....I feel as though the church is going to bust at the seams to make more room to grow!!!!!! You can absolutely feel the Love!!!!"   

Want to see what it's all about?  Watch this:

Wow!  Don't you want to be a part of that?  Last year was just the beginning; we will step out to serve our community in even bigger ways this year!  I'm so excited, and you'll love hearing all that we'll be doing.  I will be posting more about this event in the future, but for now......just mark your calendars so that you will be free to serve along with us on May 9th!

So, get ready!  There's lots of good stuff coming up and you don't want to miss it!

God, you are REALLY something!  Thank you for the many ways in which you are working, and thank you for opening up our eyes to see all that you are doing.  We stand in awe.

AIDS Experience

World Vision Experience: AIDS

I encourage everyone who stops by my blog to visit the above site.  Watch the trailer videos, spread the word, reserve your ticket time, and PRAY!  I truly believe this experience will change the lives of those who attend, and I want as many people as possible to take advantage of this opportunity.  Although our church is the host location, this experience is open for anyone throughout our area.  If you belong to another church, and you long for your church to grow in their love for the hurting, get everyone to come with you.  If you are a student, take a chance and ask your friends to experience this with you.  If you are a teacher, pastor, or even a human being (*smiley face), ask someone else to come with you.  I can promise you this:  you won't regret it!

We can become so insulated in our little safe worlds that we sometimes forget that we are a part of ALL mankind, and insomuch as one part suffers, we all suffer.  (At this time, please remember to pray for those in the middle of the Russian/Georgia war.)  Sometimes, we need a wake up call, and I believe this experience will not only wake us up, but it will enrich our lives beyond measure as we gain a glimpse of our Father's heart.    

I am serious; please, PLEASE, make sure everyone you know is given the opportunity to come to the World Vision Experience: AIDS.  

I Missed Church Today

Well, not really.   What I really mean is that I missed church at New Life Christian Center today. 

Dave, our two younger kids, and I went to Yosemite Church in Merced this morning.  Our two older kids wanted to be at New Life, so they went on their own.  (I must say, I am so grateful that our children LOVE being at church.  I think it's a good thing when your teenagers don't want to miss a Sunday morning or a youth event.  I can't give enough thanks to Jake and Jennah, Vince and Cheri, and the entire youth staff team.  We, as a church, are blessed more than we realize.  If you see or interact with anyone involved with our youth leadership, please be sure to let them know how valuable they are and how much they are appreciated.)

Anyway, back to my story.   We visited Yosemite Church, which is located, ironically enough, on Yosemite Road in Merced.  They are at a fairly new campus, and there were some things I loved about what I saw/experienced this morning.  

First of all, I loved sitting with my husband in the back row for a whole service.  (We didn't choose the back row, folks; it was the only place in the auditorium where the four of us could sit together!) 

It was the Sunday service after their VBS (Vacation Bible School) week, so the stage was set as a pirate ship and all the kids were there, sitting on the floor at the front of the church.  We saw a video of their week, and we heard them sing two of their special pirate songs.  I could tell that they had had a great week.

Dave and I met the pastor, Jeff Leis, and his wife YEARS ago at a conference in Southern California.  We haven't kept in touch, but Dave and I have always wanted to visit their church, so since Dave had the day off, we decided to go. 

They have a cool outdoor baptism pool sort of thing by a big, rough-hewn cross.  Very neat!  They were having baptisms out there today after the second service.  They must keep it drained when they are not using it because otherwise it would be a BIG liability issue as there is not fence around it.

Pastor Leis spoke about becoming a "Lie Detector."  Good stuff about discovering the lies that we believe and the process to overcome those lies (that often become strongholds) in our lives.   I loved his points:  

1) Deception Detection - figuring out what the lie is and why we are vulnerable to it.  

2) Deception Confession - We must agree (confess) that we have bought into a lie.  We have to face the fact that we are owning wrong thoughts.

3)  Deception Correction - We must seek the truth of God's word in relation to the lie we find ourselves believing, and we must commit to those truths.

The church has a cool outdoor amphitheater, much like CSUS, but obviously on a smaller scale. They also have an outdoor stage built at the base of the amphitheater, so it makes it easy for them to do outdoor services or concerts.  

By sitting in the back of the church today, Dave got to experience the noise that came in from the lobby.  He didn't realize how distracting it can be sitting in the back hearing the doors open and close, hearing the people laugh and talk in the lobby, and hearing the chairs being brought out and moved.  One of my pet peeves (I'm just being honest here) is when people at our church talk loudly during services in the back hallway.  Do they not realize that they might be disrupting someone from hearing what God has for them that day?  I've been known to "hush" people a time or two, and you know me, I do try to do it in the nicest way possible.  It's much easier to hush the teens than to try to hush the adults.  It just seems like a respect issue to me.  I want people to visit, don't get me wrong, but please do it where it won't interrupt others who are longing to worship.   Okay, I'll come down off my soap box now.  :-)

I love, LOVE being with other believers, and I thank God for all of our differences.  I loved how multi-ethnic the church body was.  A prayer of mine (since before we came to New Life) has been that the church we would serve at would reflect, ethnically, the body of Christ.  We miss so much richness when we are so homogeneous. 

Yosemite Church has a big boulder outside of their sanctuary (Half Dome Worship Center) that is engraved with a likeness of Half Dome and says, "Meeting people where they are and loving them to where Christ wants them to be."  

All in all, it was a great day, but I'll look forward to being back at New Life next weekend!  :-)

FYI: on July 29th at 7:00 PM, Yosemite Church is the site of a free Listener Appreciation Concert featuring Building 429.  If you are free, you might want to travel down for that.  The doors open at 6:00 PM and it is first come, first served.

Goldenrod Sea

Just thought I'd post a little picture of some of the good folks who decided to put their love into action last Saturday as part of Servolution.  Most of those serving were able to show up at the church before heading to their work sites, and here's a little pic of us in the auditorium.  Look at that sea of yellow shirts!  :-)

Anyway, there was a lot to process from the day, and I truly haven't had time to sift through it all in my mind yet.  Some of you just blow me away with your generosity and love!  I am so proud of you all, and I truly thank God for you.  Check back soon as I hope to have some of our own pictures posted here.

Final Stretch!

Well, in looking at the Servolution Countdown Clock (a previous post), it says there are only 8 hours and 7 minutes left until we, the body of Christ at New Life Christian Center, step out to serve in the biggest way we ever have!  Our goal is to show God's love in action, not to make a name for ourselves.  If we can love even one person into recognizing that Christ cares for them, all of our work and effort will have been worth it.  

I hope I can get to sleep tonight; I'm so excited for what is to come!  Please be in prayer with me for this event; may God be glorified! 

Preparing for SERVOLUTION!

Well, Servolution is only five days away now, and the most important things we can do in these remaining days is to pray and to prepare our hearts.  I happened to pick up a devotional that we keep in our living room called, The Book of Days, and I found the following thoughts:

"Bless the LORD, all you His hosts, you who serve Him, doing His will.  Bless the LORD, all you works of His, in all places of His dominion; bless the LORD, O my soul!"  Ps. 103:21-22 

The call of the Kingdom - "Follow Me!" -is a call to follow in the footsteps of Christ as servant.  Jesus came to serve those who were desperate in body, mind, and spirit and to invite you into serving alongside Him.  It's not optional.  But neither is it drudgery.

The call to serve God, and those God leads you to, could be seen as slavish.  In truth, the apostles embraced, rather than shunned, the concept of being a slave for Christ.  But in the heart of God, serving is always the pathway to true freedom.  Neither can serving God be separated from your worship of God, as this passage illuminates!  Blessing the Lord with your mouth is organically connected to serving Him with your feet.  They are, in fact, one and the same action--simply expressed in two different, but essential, manifestations.

"God, let the praises of my mouth be consistent with the love that flows from my life in serving others practically."

The above was taken from "The Book of Days," page 258

Serving others practically is exactly what our teams will be doing.  We have hundreds of volunteers who have stepped up to say, "Let me love God and bring Him glory by serving and loving others on May 10th."  It's going to be a great day!

Since this is our first time organizing an event of this size and magnitude, we are learning LOTS!  As with any event that is undertaken for the first time, our learning curve is VERY steep right now.  We are working diligently to account for each person who signed up, to coordinate hundreds of projects, to provide an organized team for each service project, and to prepare to love like we've never loved before!  Will there be mistakes, flub-ups, and frustrations?   You bet, but if our hearts are all focused on what our main purpose is, to love God and love others through serving in practical ways, we will exercise grace toward all that are involved.  We will also be gathering post-event evaluations from each person who participates to be able to refine, streamline, and evaluate ways to improve our organization and mission for Servolution.

Okay, I've got some Servolution projects, contacts, and emails to take care of, so I'm outta here!  Hope to see you all on Saturday!

You are Needed!

The countdown is on, and I'd love for you to put your "Love in Action" by signing up for Servolution. What are you waiting for?

Love in Action!

I know, I know......I haven't been very faithful in keeping up on my posting, but it's been vacation time for all of us here in honor of resurrection day!  We've had a simply wonderful week: we've enjoyed a GREAT get-away day with all of the staff and their families at Gilroy Gardens, we've relaxed in the mountains for a couple of days, and I've been able to get a couple of cleaning projects done.  It's been a good and relaxing time!

If you attend our church, you've no doubt seen the signs, bulletin inserts, video, banner, and sign up tables for Servolution.  I am on the planning team, and we are so excited to see God work through our body of believers at New Life to bless our community.  In short, Servolution is "Love in Action" in our community; as you know, words are cheap, but actions speak loud and clear.  It is our prayer that many will experience the love of Christ through our love and service to them.

If you haven't signed up yet, you can CLICK HERE.  If you have questions about what Servolution is and what we will be doing, you can check the Servolution FAQ page.  I encourage everyone reading (which by the way, some of you need to de-lurk!) to sign up to serve alongside of us.  You won't regret it.

We have all kinds of projects that we will be doing that day, so there's a place for everyone to serve.  We encourage you to serve with your children ages 8 and older.  (Childcare is available for those 7 and under.)  We desire to serve our community not as a strategy, but as an act of love.  You can be a part of it, and I know you won't regret it.

Also, we are in need of projects and project leaders.  If you know of someone we can serve, or if you are already a part of a small group, neighborhood group, etc... and would like to lead that group in a project, just let us know.  There is a "Contact Us" link on the Servolution website (www.nlccservolution.com) for you to use.

I consider it such a blessing that God has allowed David and me to serve in a church body that is so sold out to radically loving and serving others.  Seriously, you guys (and gals) are some of the most giving and loving people I have ever had the privilege of serving with.  I am excited about what God wants to do through us as we live for HIS glory!

Oh, and by the way, "de-lurking" is the bloggy term for leaving a comment to let the person know you are reading his/her blog.  It is considered polite to leave a comment when you begin reading a person's blog so that they have some way of knowing who's out there.  I know some of you live in mortal fear that someone else will know you are reading, so feel free to send me an email if you'd like:  gena (at) newlifecc (d0t) com

Okay, I'm outta here.  It's time to get ready for the new week, so blessings to you all!

Easter

Well, I did a new thing this Easter weekend; I attended all four Easter services!  Let me just say, I LOVED EVERY ONE!  I met many of your family members who came to church with you for Easter; thank you for that honor!  I saw God at work in each service, and I discovered that even though Dave speaks four times, each time is slightly different, so I felt I learned something new at each service.  I prayed multiple times throughout each service, and I felt that I could almost explode from the pure joy of people deciding to come running home to Jesus!  HE is so good, and all glory and praise belong to HIM!   

Oh, and by the way, when Dave was describing his perfect day (waking to the aroma of freshly brewed coffee, having it brought to him, having all the time in the world to read the paper, etc....., I (along with many of you) thought he was hinting at what I should be doing for him!  :-)  Actually, he may have been hinting, but I am blessed because HE often gets up and makes coffee, brings it to me on a tray with the newspaper, and encourages me to take time to read and relax.  I'm blessed, I know.

This Easter weekend was filled with mixed emotions as two of our church family members had funerals for loved ones.  However, in some ways, it seemed most appropriate that their family members' funerals were during a season when the resurrection Sunday reminds us of the hope we have through our risen Savior who has conquered death and given us eternal life with Him.  The knowledge that our loved ones are with Jesus and that we will see them again brings comfort in the midst of incredible grief.  I thank God that He is our comforter and that he knows our pain.

On Tuesday, we are off with our staff and their families for a day at Gilroy Gardens.  We take all the staff families somewhere on the Tuesday after Easter each year as a thank you for ALL the extra work they do to prepare for Easter.  I am so looking forward to our time together.  We are blessed with the best staff, and we love each one so much.  It is wonderful to see all of our children having fun together, and we love the chance to simply "be" with each other.

Well, my children are wrestling in the living room, and I await the crying that is sure to ensue.  You all know how it is.....it starts off so fun, but inevitably someone gets a little too rough and doesn't know when to stop, and it's all downhill from there!  And usually, I know exactly which child will be the one to turn all the fun around.  Do you have that "one" in your family also?  ;-) 

Bibles and Burlap

I arrived home a couple of hours ago from our church's women's retreat. I had a wonderful time, and I felt so absolutely blessed by the women who attended. I was blessed by the women who were able to ride up (and back) with me, the women who were in my cabin (Go Cabin 6!), the other women who attended, and by the speaker. I met some incredible women that I had not previously had the privilege to knowing, and I caught up with some others that I am not able to visit with very often.

I was blown away by the love and acceptance I felt between us all. I love it when God shows up and speaks to us about things we weren't even aware that we needed to address. He is so good! Life is not easy and hurts are many and deep. As I looked around the meeting room, I was honored to sit in the presence of so many courageous and beautiful women. I am so proud to know that they are a part of "my" church family and that they are walking the hard road of surrender and obedience. You all ROCK, and I am praying that you all continue to allow God to pour His spirit on you and through you. I specifically wish you could see how beautiful you are! I was humbled, challenged, inspired, and convicted through your stories and testimonies.


I heard there were a couple of midnight (or perhaps a little later) expeditions involving flashlights and burlap bags. There may even be an incriminating picture or two floating around. Just know that I pray for all of you delinquent souls ;-), and I am here to provide a model for you to follow.

Let's remember all that God spoke to us, and let's live out the Love that He poured over us. Love to you all!

Behold the Lamb of God

I was blessed beyond measure tonight and felt like I was given a few holy moments to wonder anew at the story of Christ's birth. We mostly think of the birth of Christ and the events surrounding it in such a sanitized way, but the reality of these events, the holy and the raw, were beautifully portrayed this evening in this wonderful event put on by many talented and gifted individuals from our church. It was simply wonderful, and you must make plans to attend one of the last two performances (Sat. 12/15 at 7:00 PM, or Sun. 12/16 at 6:00 PM).

I sat praising God that He has given such wonderful talents to people I am privileged to be walking on this journey with. Everything I experienced tonight was a gift to me. I could never have designed or built the set; I would not be able to paint the beautiful canvases; I am unable to play any of the instruments that were used tonight; I am definitely not someone others would want to hear sing; I am not able to run a sound board or handle the audio/visual aspects of a production, BUT my great God has placed people around me that have used their abilities and gifts to bless me! It's okay that I can't do any of those things, but my life would be so much emptier if these individuals did not use their gifts to serve the Lord and the rest of us. The people that were involved in the production of "Behold the Lamb of God" sacrificed many hours and evenings to enable me to catch a new glimpse at the wonder of the birth of Christ.

Thank you to all of you that put such effort and time in to providing such a wonderful experience for the rest of our family at New Life. You used your gifts for His glory tonight, and you were a blessing to me.

A Different Seat

I sat in church this morning and felt a little disoriented for a while.  You see, a friend that I worked with some 20+ years ago showed up by herself, so I sat with her in the center section, three rows back.  As you know, I always sit in the first row with Dave, but it's not my first choice of where I would want to sit if my husband wasn't the pastor.  When we first came to New Life, Dave would play the piano with the worship team besides speaking on Sunday mornings, so that meant he was on stage the whole morning.  This was great for me in some respects because I was free to sit anywhere I wanted.  I would sit in a different place each service, and I was able to meet and connect with different people each week.  Once David wasn't needed on the worship team any longer (which took quite a load off of him), he began sitting in the front row on the left hand side of the main auditorium.  I didn't even think to sit with him at first, but I began to realize that it might look like we were in an argument or something if we didn't sit together.  So began my front row sitting days.  :-)

So, when sitting in the third row with my friend today, I experienced the worship service from a slightly different angle, and I LOVED IT!  I think everyone should sit at different places around the auditorium every once in while just for a change of pace.  I sat looking at the wonderful Christmas set, praising God for all of the talented and selfless people who gave of their time and energy to put it all together.  I loved the rustic, natural, and simplistic look of the set filled with plenty of lit pine trees and a rough-hewn stable of sorts, along with the beautifully painted canvases of a night sky spotlighted with blue lights.   I am blessed to be a part of such a creative church body.

This afternoon, David and I visited for a few hours with a woman from our church who has just lost her husband.  We had a wonderful time listening to her memories and learning more about her life.  I have always had a special place in my heart for this fun, feisty, and God-filled woman, and after learning a few new things about her, I admire her even more.  It will be a hard adjustment for her to learn to navigate life without her lifelong love, but she knows that even though it won't be easy, God will be with her.

David and I also had our board members and their spouses over for dessert this evening to let them know how very thankful we are for their faithful service and Godly example.  Although there were some that were not able to make it, we had a fantastic time of visiting, praying, and celebrating God's provision and vision for us at New Life.  We were so very grateful God has allowed us to serve under such Godly leadership; we are blessed.

It's been a busy day, but I sit here this evening filled with gratitude for all that God has done and is doing.  I loved the verse of a song we sang this morning which said, "Not to us, but to Your name be the glory."  Yes, all glory belongs to Him!

(The photo used in today's blog post is not of our church, so don't get confused; it's just a representative photo.  GL)