Jeff Calloway
website of a husband, father, writer, follower of Christ, and Apple enthusiast
In Honor of My Wife Julie
02 years ago
My spouse is the former Julie Ann Smeenge and we were married on May 25, 1981. For those of you suffering from math deficiency, that is almost twenty-nine years. We were just kids when we said the two words that we really didn’t understand then and sometimes still can’t comprehend today. I was nineteen and Julie was twenty when we vowed our love to each other.
I wanted to honor my wife today by writing about how wonderful a lady that God blessed me with. We met in college while taking an accounting class which was as exciting as watching grass grow on a hot afternoon. Julie though was a different story. She wasn’t boring like the class we were in, as a matter of fact I saw her as a challenge. She already had a boyfriend, but she was a pretty little thing that I started taking a liking to and finally got around to asking her out. After a lengthy courtship(three months), we both decided we wanted to spend our lives with each other. This is the Cliff notes version of our courtship.
Julie worked at Western Sizzlin Steak House as a waitress and I worked at Hardees as the biscuit boy (I still have the recipe for those biscuits, email me if you want it) while we both attended college. We got a one bedroom aprtment in west Knoxville and began to live our lives together. As a new married couple, we played tennis together, went swimming in the pool at the apartment, and were with each other as much as possible.
Not long after we were married, possibly a year, something wonderful happened that set the path for our lives over the years even to this day. I had been a nominal Christian at best during my teenage years… wait, my Christianity was non-existent during those years. I had been raised in a Christian home and made a profession of faith in Jesus at the age of nine, but like so many children who do so, I had no idea of what that meant. Back to the story. My Dad had been asking me to come to a good old fashioned revival and I agreed to go. That night God gripped my heart and I decided then and there to allow Jesus to become the Lord of my life. That meant I was going to give up control of running the show. After that service, I went to where Julie worked and told her that I had something I had to tell her when she got home that night. Nothing like leaving your spouse in suspense! That night I told what had happened and how God had changed my heart, and it was like “okay, good for you.” After that I thought we should start attending church and we began to attend the church I grew up in and after about three months Julie accepted Jesus as her Lord and we began to serve together and have been serving since.
My wife is the most wonderful woman I know. She has given birth to two of the lovliest daughters ever to walk the face of this planet. Julie has given herself away in serving God and serving the people of the churches I have pastored. She is a person who doesn’t like the limelight and is a back stage kind of worker. As a pastor, she is my best asset as she has been by side in the good times and bad. Because she is not an out front person, she has been criticized by some people who really don’t know what she does. Ask anyone who knows her and they will tell you she is a go-getter who is not afraid to get in and do the dirty work of ministry. She has always been that way. After graduating from college, she went to work for Martin Marietta in a mail room. By the time she resigned from Lockheed-Martin fourteen years later, she was a supervisor in their IT department, supervising twenty-eight people! A slacker doesn’t get that kind of advancement. She is the typical wife and mother who goes over and above the call of duty.
But there is something you need to know about Julie Calloway. She is a wife that encourages me and is a true model of the wife being the help-mate that God wants for every marriage. She understands her role as a wife and mother and accepts it and through that role seeks to serve God and please him. Whant a woman! I love her dearly.
One last thing about this wonderful lady that I love so much today, she loves another man more than myself. His name is Jesus.
I love you sweetie!
Self Determination – Seth Godin
02 years ago
…are we stuck in High School?
I had two brushes with higher education this week.
The first was at a speech I gave in New York. There were several Harvard Business School students there, invited because of their interest in marketing and exceptional promise (that’s what I was told… I think they came because they had heard that Maury Rubin would make a great lunch!).
Anyway, they asked for my advice in finding marketing jobs. When I shared my views (go to a small company, work for the CEO, get a job where you actually get to make mistakes and do something) one woman professed to agree with me, but then explained, “But those companies don’t interview on campus.”
Those companies don’t interview on campus. Hmmm. She has just spent $100,000 in cash and another $150,000 in opportunity cost to get an MBA, but…
The second occurred today at Yale. As I drove through the amazingly beautiful campus, I passed the center for Asian Studies. It reminded me of my days as an undergrad (at a lesser school, natch), browsing through the catalog, realizing I could learn whatever I wanted. That not only could I take classes but I could start a business, organize a protest movement, live in a garret off campus, whatever. It was a tremendous gift, this ability to choose.
Yet most of my classmates refused to choose. Instead, they treated college like an extension of high school. They took the most mainstream courses, did the minimum amount they needed to get an A, tried not to get into “trouble” with the professor or face the uncertainty of the unknowable. They were the ones who spent six hours a day in the library, reading their textbooks.
The best part of college is that you could become whatever you wanted to become, but most people just do what they think they must.
Is this a metaphor? Sure. But it’s a worthwhile one. You have more freedom at work than you think (hey, you’re reading this on company time!) but most people do nothing with that freedom but try to get an A.
Do you work with people who are still in high school? Job seekers only willing to interview with the folks who come on campus? Executives who are trying to make their boss happy above all else? It’s pretty clear that the thing that’s wrong with this system is high school, not the rest of the world.
Cut class. Take a seminar on french literature. Interview off campus. Safe is risky.
Wisdom vs. Knowledge
02 years ago
Have you noticed that common sense is not so common. It is actually a challenge to find people who have good old common sense. A lot of smart people are not too wise. They may be educated but they don’t have wisdom. They may have all kinds of degrees but they’re a wash out with relationships. It’s not a matter of what you say with your lips but a matter of what you live with your life. Not a matter of your words but of your works. Not so much the diplomas on the wall, but your disposition that really shows how wise you are. Wisdom is applying the knowledge you have to every day life in building better and stronger relationships. Wisdom is applying that knowledge to your life in order to make a positive impact on howyou live your life in a proper relationship with others.
Wisdom Is Shown Through Our Life
It has nothing to do with your intelligence. It has everything to do with your relationships and your character.
“Who is wise and understanding among you. Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in humility that comes from
wisdom.” James 3:13
There are two sources of wisdom. One is “worldly” in nature the other is Divine in nature. One comes from below the other comes from above. If you are going to live a better life you must live life with the Godly wisdom that’s from above.
Proverbs 14:12 “There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.”
A Lack Of Godly Wisdom Causes Problems
James 3:14-16 says: ”If you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your heart don’t boast about it and deny the truth. Such `wisdom’ does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, even of the devil. For where you have envy and selfish ambition there you find disorder and every evil practice.” Lack of wisdom causes all kinds of disorder and problems, and chaos. Do you have confusion in your home? Do you have chaos at work? Is your life a mess? If you can’t get it all together you lack wisdom. It causes all kinds of problems in our lives.
How can I know if I’m wise?
James in v. 17, lists the characteristics of wise people. “But wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure, then peace
loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.”
Pure means uncorrupted, authentic.
Integrity. If I’m really genuine, if I’m wise, I’m not going to lie to you, I’m not going to cheat you, I’m not going to manipulate you, I’m not going to be deceitful. I’m not going to try to take advantage of you. I’ll be a person of integrity.
Because all relationships are built on trust and respect. If you don’t have honesty who’s going to trust you? If you don’t have honesty who’s going to respect you? You have to have integrity in your life.
I won’t make you angry. Wise people work at maintaining harmony. You ever met someone who is always arguing, always looking for a fight? I heard about one guy who was so argumentative he would only eat food that disagreed with him. If I’m smart, if I’m wise in relationships, I won’t compromise my integrity and I won’t antagonize your
anger.
Proverbs 14:29″A wise man controls his temper. He knows that anger causes mistakes.” How many of you have ever done something stupid in anger? Anger causes mistakes.
“Wisdom is considerate” and ”considerate” means “mindful of the feelings of others“. James says, wise people are considerate; they don’t minimize other people’s feelings. I don’t have to accept them but I can understand them. James says if I’m wise in relationships I will not minimize your feelings. I’ll be considerate.
A wise person can learn from anybody. He’s not defensive. He’s open to reason. He’s not stubborn. He’s willing to listen and learn. “Wisdom is submissive”. This word is used only one time in the New Testament. It doesn’t really mean submissive. It really means reasonable, willing to listen, willing to be open to ideas and suggestions.
Are you a reasonable person? Can your kids reason with you? The Bible says if you’re wise, you’re reasonable. You’re open to suggestions. “Don’t confuse me with the facts; I’ve made up my mind. When I want your opinion, I’ll give it to you.”
Proverbs 12:15″The way of a fool seems right to him, but a wise man listens to advice.”
“Wisdom is full of mercy and good fruit.” Do you jump on people every time they blunder, every time they make a fault and fumble it? Do you always use everybody in your family as the butt of your joke. That’s dumb. Wisdom is full of mercy. I won’t emphasize your mistakes. Do you ever let people go, or do you keep hounding about their past mistakes? Wisdom is full of mercy and good fruit.” Good fruit is kind actions, it’s something you do. You don’t just show sympathy. You don’t just say, “I feel for you… You brought it all on yourself.” You do something about it. You take action. It’s a kindness. It’s being a doer of the word. A mark of a wise person is they don’t try to hide and disguise who they are. “Wisdom is impartial and sincere.” The King James say’s without hypocrisy. It means to be honest and sincere. It means to be straightforward, right on. James says if you’re smart and wise, you’re not phony. You don’t wear masks and try to be something you’re not. Be yourself, don’t try to be something you are not just to impress others. Proverbs 28:13 “You will never succeed in life if you try to hide your sins
How do I get wisdom? How do I become one of those wise people in relationships so that I have that peace that everybody is talking about? Do I just make a New Year’s Resolution — Today I’m going to be wise! No. This is the difference between knowledge and wisdom. Knowledge comes from education. Wisdom comes from God. To get knowledge you look around. To get wisdom you look up. Knowledge comes from reason. Wisdom comes from revelation. Knowledge is something you learn. Wisdom is a gift.
James 1:5 “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God.” Wisdom is a gift from God.. “Ask of God who gives generously.” He loves to give.
Colossians 2:3 NLT “The secret is Christ Himself. In Him lie hidden all God’s treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”
It’s all wrapped up in a person, Jesus Christ. If you want God’s wisdom get Jesus in your life. You invite Him into you life and say, “Christ, think Your thoughts through my mind and say Your words through my mouth. Help people through my hands. Love people with my heart. And put Your wisdom in my mind.” The wisest thing I ever did was give my life to Jesus Christ. That’s where wisdom comes from. When you get God’s wisdom in your life, day by day, as you allow Him into your life and develop your character, you’ll find your relationships getting better and better.
The Bible Is Full Of Lies
02 years ago
Maybe the title of this post grabbed your attention and you wanted to see the lies that are in the Bible. I guarantee that there are lies in the Bible, but they are not spoken by God, Christ, the apostles or the prophets, but the Bible is full of lies. The first lies can be found in the first book of the Bible, Genesis. Lying started right from the beginning and continues today.
For example:
• It’s a good thing you came in today. We have only two more of those items in stock.
• I promise to pay you back out of my next paycheck.
• Five pounds is nothing on a person with your height.
• But Officer, I only had two beers.
• You made it yourself? I never would have guessed.
• Go ahead and tell me, I promise I won’t get mad.
• So glad you dropped by. I wasn’t doing a thing.
• You don’t look a day over forty.
• The baby is just beautiful.
• Put the map away. I know exactly how to get there.
• And of course, the three biggest lies: I did it. I didn’t do it. I can’t remember.
The majority of lies that we find in the Bible are perpetrated by Satan. Satan spoke lie after lie to Eve and to us today:
➢ It’s all right to doubt God and what He says Genesis 3:1
94% Of America reads their Bible but 38% believes the Bible is not 100% truth
➢ Convinces us that sin doesn’t have consequences Genesis 3:4
➢ His lies make us delusional (can’t see the truth for the lie) Genesis 3:5
You Can Be like God!!!!
WHAT MUST I DO TO TRUST GOD? This is the most important issue in your life. There are other important issues, but this is the most important one. But if you miss the most important question , “Who am I going to live for?” that has eternal implications. Heaven and hell are in the balance. This is the question of purpose. You’re going to live for someone. You’re going to live for the approval of the world or the approval of your boss or the approval of a spouse or someone else or for yourself. Or you’re going to live for God who made you and made you for a reason.
You’ve got to start by committing your life to Christ. What does it mean to commit my life to Christ? Jesus made it so simple, nobody could say it was too hard to understand. He said, “Here’s what you do if you want to be saved and commit your life to Me. You first believe God raised Christ from the dead (that’s what Easter is all about) and then confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord.” Circle “Lord”. The word “Lord” is an Old English word for “the guy in charge, the CEO, the boss, the manager, the director.” God wants to be the director of your life. He wants to be the manager of your life. He has a plan for it.
Every commitment that you make in your life has a cost, a price tag. It has a benefit and a cost. And you have to look at that commitment and say, “Is the benefit worth the cost?” Every time you make a keep a commitment, you’re growing mature. You’re growing character, building maturity in your life.
What’s the cost of following Christ? You give up control of your life and put Jesus Christ in charge. You say, “No longer am I going to go out for my plans but I’m going to say `God, I want to fulfill the plan You put me on earth for. I want to be the person You want me to be. I want to do the things You want me to do.” That’s the cost and it’s very clear and it’s very up front.
What’s the benefit? In the first place, you get all your sins forgiven. Second, you get power for living. Third, you get a purpose in life. Fourth, you get heaven when you die. A pretty good deal. You’ve got to settle this first issue. If you haven’t done this yet, do it today. Open your life. Say “Jesus Christ, I open my heart to You. I want to commit myself to You the rest of my life.” Do that. But that’s just the foundation. Once you’ve committed your life to Christ there is so much more that God has in store for you.
Satan’s main attack on Eve was getting her to doubt the Bible, the Word of God.
2 Samuel 22:31 ”As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the LORD is flawless.” If you believe that the Bible is basically a good book, but it has errors and some of it can’t be trusted as accurate, then you’re going to have a hard time following what I’m about to say. If you doubt what the Bible says, then you doubt God. And if you doubt God then you doubt that Jesus is is Son, and if you doubt that Jesus is His Son, the you doubt that Jesus is the only way to heaven, and if you doubt that Jesus is the only way to heaven, then you doubt if you’re going to heaven, and if you doubt that you are going to heaven, guess what,you probably won’t go to heaven. Isaiah 40:8 “The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever.”
By Reading It Daily
By Living It Each Moment
Matthew 4:4 Jesus answered, ”It is written: `Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
By Sharing It With Others
1 Timothy 4:13 Until I get there, read and explain the Scriptures to the church; preach God’s Word.
Godly Counsel
02 years ago
I can’t say enough about this one. How many times have you done something really stupid and later you think, “I should have asked so and so their advice.” It happens time and time again all through our lives. When we are kids we think our Dad is the smartest man in the world, there is no one smarter! When we become teenager, we start to think that Dad doesn’t quite know everything. In our twenties, we realize that Dad still does have some smarts. When we reach our thirties, it is obvious, Dad really was/is smart!
It hasn’t been hard for me to realize that there are lots of people out there smarter than me, my Dad was one of them and so is my wife. Wives and Moms are the most underappreciated species on the face of the planet. They are filled with wisdom, grace, mercy and when need be, judgment. Both of my parents have passed on and I often wish I could call my Dad up on the phone and ask for advice regarding situations and life issues. James Calloway was such a wise man to have a eighth grade education. Without a shadow of a doubt my Dad’s wisdom came from his walk with God and the friendship of wise men in his life.
You might be thinking, “What good does it do to get counsel if you have already decided what to do?” That is the point. You have decided the direction you need to take. What you are seeking to do at this point is listen to men and women who are godly and are focused on growing God’s kingdom. These people are not hard to find. There will be hopefully at least one in your church or your family or circle of friends. These people will know hear your heart not your ideas. They will be excited to see you excited and probably be able to help you refine the details of the vision you are about to implement.
It is no secret that people are here to help you through life, not to hinder you, because you have been around some real knot heads. God created us to have a relationship with Him, but also to have relationships with each other. Two heads are better than one and three heads are even better than two! There are times when people give advice without you asking and there are times when some advice isn’t worth listening to. Again, this is why it is extremely important that any counsel you receive, lines up with the teachings of the Bible. Do not be afraid to get other Christ followers involved in helping you discover God’s vision for your life and putting it down on paper and helping you implement it. You can’t go wrong with people who give you godly counsel, “Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.” I advise you to seek counsel from those who know God’s vision for their life and can share it very clearly with you.
You may be tempted to shortcut this area of seeking godly counsel, but I would not recommend that for your own good. Almost everyone has either read or heard about the story Job in the Old Testament. Job was a man who loved and respected God and was God’s friend. He was a very successful businessman, had a great family, and the respect of friends and associates. Satan approached God and attributed Job’s success and love for God only because God had blessed him greatly. Satan believed that if God would allow him to test Job, then Job would buckle and thus prove that his allegiance to God was only apparent when God was blessing him. God gave Satan permission to test Job. Satan could touch everything that belonged to Job, except his soul! Job lost his servants to invaders, lost all his livestock to calamity and theft, then his children were killed in a freak storm, and then he is struck with boils all over his body. Job’s wife gave him counsel to curse God and die. He had three friends who come not to comfort Job, but to blame Job for the predicament he is in and Job cried out in amazement that no one had a good word to give him. That is until God arrives on the scene and explains to Job that He is Sovereign, (knows what is going on and has a purpose for it) and that there has been a purpose to what has happened. What does Job do? He prays for his three friends who provided him with unwise counsel and when he does, God restores all that he lost plus more. When you are seeking God’s vision for your life, be sure you surround yourself with those who can and will provide godly counsel.
Dreaming or Dying
02 years ago
If you are not dreaming, if you don’t have a goal for life and if you do not have a vision, you are dying. Because you’re either growing or you’re dying. We develop our dreams and then they develop us. Our dreams define us. I believe when
an ordinary person is committed to a great dream, it makes that person a great person. If you want to be healthy, you
must have a dream to live for. God expects you to use your imagination.
In Ephesians 3:20-21 the apostle Paul writes, ““Now to Him who is able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think according to the power that works in you, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations.” God’s dream for you hasn’t changed. He is still able to do more than we could ever think or imagine according to His power, not ours. God’s dream for your life is for His glory, not yours. I am reminded that God’s vision is about people. God loves people more than anything. That is why you are alive. You are not a biological entity. Even though it was through biological processes that you were conceived and continue to develop physiologically, you have God’s fingerprints all over you. He created you to love you and for you to love Him back. The more we love God, the less fear we will have. It is a matter of trust. When we realize that God will take care of us, it relieves our fear.
Open your heart to God’s love. When you do, He can work in your life to bring fulfillment, joy, success, and service to Him. When you open your heart to Him, you are inviting Him to be the one and only leader of your life on this short journey on earth and for the time that we call eternity. If you really, really want God to work his vision in your life you must learn to love Him and other people who walk this life with us. Love is not a feeling; it is a verb in action. I can best define love in this manner – love is when you are willing to sacrifice yourself for the good of another. When you experience this kind of love you don’t have to worry about fear.
Over the years of reading and attending conferences I have come across many people that God has done a “God thing” in their life, family, or church. It is amazing to hear the stories of people who have prayed for an unsaved family member for years, to see them become Christ followers and to see churches that have exploded with growth by reaching the multitudes of their world who didn’t know Christ. God’s vision for the world is still the same today as it was 2,000 years ago and that is to see those who are lost come to know Him through his Son Jesus. That is His dream for the world. What’s yours?
TextEdit icon – Think Different
02 years ago
It is no secret that I am a Apple enthusiast. I thought about labeling myself as an Apple evangelist, but I don’t go out and preach Mac to the masses. Apple has always been a company that focuses on creativity, which is not one of my stronger points, although I do see myself as a visionary thinker and leader. In Apple’s cadre of applications that comes installed on a Mac is the program TextEdit. I never paid much attention to the launch icon for this app, but noticed recently that there is writing on the icon, a note pad with a pen laid on top of the paid. I decided to find out what was written on the icon and below is my finding, a larger shot of the icon.
This is the copy from a commercial that Apple aired during the final episode of Seinfield and it was the only time it ever aired. I love the copy! You can be a “crazy one” that changes things. I want to be a “Crazy One” that God will use to change the spiritual landscape of our country and our world. How about you?
Science of Happiness
02 years ago
From Time magazine dated Janauary 17, 2005, the cover story was titled, “The Science of Happiness.” The article deals much with the “psychology” of happiness. Some interesting statistics in the article report that based on their own assessment, Americans are overwhelmingly happy and optimistic people regardless of their income. The top four answers that people gave to what makes them happy were: Children/grandchildren – 35%, Family – 17%, God/faith/religion – 11%, and Spouse – 9%. One thing that struck me while reading this article is that people are trying to find happiness in every nook and corner of their lives. It seems that the majority of us are searching for happiness, the American dream. Is happiness attainable and if so how?
In John Piper’s book, When I Don’t Desire God: How to Fight For Joy, he states, “One of the most important discoveries I have ever made is this truth: God is most glorified in me when I am most satisfied in him.” I remember as a boy there was a spring in the woods on the property adjacent to our property. I don’t know who, but someone had build a small concrete dam to pool the water so that it could be easily accessed. In order to get a drink of the refreshing water, you had to get on your knees and drink the water from your cupped hand. It was perhaps some of the best water I have ever drank. It brought refreshment to my body and quenched my thirst. In our underlying search for happiness, that is the premise, to have a thirst quenched.I don’t know about you, but I want to be happy. I want my wife to be happy. I want my daughters to be happy.
Does God want us to be happy? Is it sinful for Christians to be happy? Sometimes it appears that the answer to that question is yes and sometimes it seems to be no. I am in the process of reading When I Don’t Desire God: How To Fight For Joy, a book written by John Piper. I highly reccomend this book as it addresses the question of Does God want us to be happy and experience joy. Two weeks ago at a men’s retreat, I took the opportunity to share on the subject Loving God For Who He Is, in which I addressed the topics of happiness in the Lord, joy in the Lord, delight in the Lord and desire in the Lord. I shared that happiness happens when we are pursuing God. In our formative years as a believer in Christ we were taught to pursue godliness and you would find joy. We were taught to be obedient to God and His Word and someday we would experience happiness. The Bible teaches us we can be happy, joyful and delight in the Lord now, (Psalm 37:4, Psalm 100:2, Philippians 4:4, Psalm 42:1-2, Matthew 6:21, Psalm 16:11). Nowhere in the Bible does God condemn people for longing to be happy. People are condemned for forsaking God and seeking their happiness elsewhere (Jeremiah 2:13).
In my pursuit of God, I will become more like Christ – willing to serve, longing to love, able to forgive. Those attributes that we have tried to achieve by our own effort will happen naturally, or should I say supernaturally.
In the past I have heard well intentioned people make a statement that happiness was temporary and joy was eternal. Perhaps you have heard a variation of that statement to some degree. The premise is that you can’t really enjoy happiness while you are here on earth, but that it is something that will be realized after this life. When we examine scriptures, there is a very strong arguement that happiness can be achieved in this life and should be pursued. I will admit that for the greater part of my life, my belief in this area has been; serve and be obedient to God and His Word, then I will have joy. Happiness is not a science, it is not an emotion, it is not a state of mind. Happiness is found in knowing God, desiring God, delighting in God, and pursuing God.
I will be sharing more on this subject later.
The Difference Faith Makes
02 years ago
Let me ask you a few questions. What difference did your faith in Christ make yesterday? What difference will your faith make today? What about tomorrow? God wants your faith to grow. For many of us our faith is about the size of a speck of dust, very miniscule and almost impossible to see. I use a speck of dust as an illustration because Jesus said in Matthew 17:20, “If we have faith that is the size of a mustard seed we can move mountains.” In other words if you want to see God’s hand move, you must have faith.
Have you ever wondered what faith looks like when it is lived out with the intent of God doing great things in and through your life? The person who lives by faith acknowledges the presence of God. Living faith recognizes that God is in absolutely everything. Living faith gets up in the morning and realizes everywhere we go, God goes too. Living faith has the constant awareness of God’s presence in life. Living faith says, “God I know you are here.; I may not understand what you are doing but I know you are here.” Do you get up in the morning realizing that when you go to work God is going to be there? Faith is a choice. You chose to take God at His Word and act accordingly. You chose to believe the evidence you have seen. Faith is not a feeling. You might say, “I don’t feel like getting up today. I don’t feel like going to work. I don’t feel like going to church. I don’t feel like (you fill in the blank).” You often choose to act regardless of how you feel. Do you remember a time in your life when you experienced faith –when you made a choice to take a risk?
Are you living out your faith in a way that is visible? Is your faith more than words that you may sing in a song on Sunday morning or a subject you talk about around fellow believers? Is your faith making a difference in your life and in the lives of those around you?
A move regarding organic church
02 years ago
Last week, there was a conference in Austin called Verge that centered on organinc church life in North America. Speakers included the regulars – Hirsch and Cole, but something interesting came from that conference. The possible idea sharing/merging of the Exponential Church Planting Conference that takes place every April in Orlando with the purely organic Verge. Having been to two of the Exponential Conferences, it is full of church planters wanting to launch large and create the next phenomenal attractional church.
Does this mean that church leaders who pastor mega-churches are finally starting to see the need and validity of organic church planting movements? Hopefully, they days of looking at such movements as a fringe group wthat has to be tolerated in the church planting scene are coming to a close. The most effective church planting movements are not taking place in the United States and they are being done through organinc church planting. Church and denominational leaders would be smart to follow the lead of our brothers across the seas when it comes to spreading the gosple through church planting.