Thoughts from a slow learner

This past Sunday seemed to be a pretty normal Sunday at Riverlife. Summer is always interesting with so many gone and busy it can be a frustrating time. I knew God had led me to preach on the spirit of antichrist that is alive today in our culture. I have to say, I did not feel my communication of the message was as good as it should have been. As we closed service several people came forward for prayer and I was reminded again that in spite of my weakness God will move and desires to meet needs! I truly believe several lives were touched by the Lord. (Thank you Jesus for being so good to us!)

Then Monday came, I received a phone call that explained to me why the message was pressed into my heart. A very intense need had arisen and the enemy was attempting to use the very tactics I had just shared with the Church. This person was strengthened by the Lord and prayers were, and continue to be, answered! It is amazing to me that after 18 years of ministry I still struggle with my performance, when over and over God proves that it is all about His Word and His presence. Let all of us learn to be obedient to God and trust all of the results to Him, He knows every need of every individual, and He wants to meet them all! Today I am thanking the Lord for choosing to use me to declare His Word and for the lives that are being changed because of His word!

Alignment

Finally back to blogging! I want to take you on a journey with me this week. I was in prayer today and God began to speak to me about alignment. In our body if we are out of alignment we will have all sorts of difficulties. Aches and pains, discomfort and problems occur because of alignment gone bad. Spiritually we have all kinds of problems when we are not properly aligned with God. The enemy tries constantly to cause us to twist and move ourselves out of alignment. Isaiah tells us in the 26th chapter and the 3rd verse that God will keep in perfect peace those whose mind is stayed upon Him! Perfect alignment will release the peace of God and then God's perfect plan can begin to take place. This is the beginning of my message process for Sunday. Be praying with me for perfect alignment and the release of Gods plan in our lives! Remember to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness (alignment) and then all these things will be added to you (Gods favor and blessings)! Leave your comments and let's build this message together.....

Church Softball

I just got in a little while ago from our softball games. We won again! I thought I should post while I can brag a little. 6 and 0 for Riverlife!! We are having a blast and our fans are awesome! When I get out there I realize my athletic days are behind me. lol. Also it is sad that I am the oldest one on our team! It seems like yesterday I was 22 or 23. Oh well! We are 6-0 and having fun. Come out on Fridays and join our fans (bleacher babes) and have some fun!

What are you known for?

This past Sunday I preached on standing out. This thought came out in the message "what are you known for?". What Christian character do people recognize in you? At work, at school, at home, in the community what are you known for? I want to encourage you to begin to ask God to empower you to stand out for Him. Check out the message Stand Out!

Sunday Recap

We had a great time ministering at the Lighthouse Assembly of God in Locust Grove, Oklahoma last Sunday. We were able to see family and friends. There were some there from the Chouteau Church of God where we were blessed to Pastor for 4 1/2 years. We had 2 great services. Alters were full and there were some who rededicated their life to Christ!!! It is nice to step out of the pastoral role and just be an evangelist again! I love it! I look forward to going back and ministering for them again. Sunday night Austin, my son, sang and played his guitar. This was the first time he has experienced that without a band with him. He did an awesome job! I know God has a calling on his life and even though he is a typical teenage young man, I was one of those as well, I see him growing in his gifts and talents. My prayer is for him to continue to grow and experience all God has for him. Well, that is a quick update so until later...

Let The River flow.

Easter Recap

I am a few days late on the update but here it is. We had an awesome day at Riverlife! It started a little chilly for our sunrise service. It is always great to worship a risen savior on Resurrection Sunday at sunrise. Our worship service was great from the worship to the illustrated message, the drama and human video were terrific. What was the greatest point of the day was the commitment made to Christ by at least 7 people that we were publicly aware of!!! That makes all the planning and work worth it.

Thank you to every person that was involved (invite team, registration team, ushers, greeters, worship team, food teams, follow up teams, ministry teams - kids and adults, those who helped with the props and the egg hunt and anything else that was happening.) Together we put together a day that had an impact for the Kingdom of God. We had over 200 counted in service. This means many lives were impacted for the cause of Christ. Again thank you Riverlife for all of you effort. Let's see where God leads us from here!

Discipleship

I need a little help. Give me some input on the subject of discipleship. I am developing a class for new believers and those wanting to plug in at Riverlife. This class will discuss what Riverlife Church is all about, where we have been and where we are headed. Also, it will include a gifts discovery portion and how to plug in using your gifts. But also a portion will cover the foundational aspects of christian living. This is where I need your help. What areas do you believe are the most important for a new believer to help them on their adventure with Christ? I feel like too often we see people make a commitment to Christ and then that is as far as we go as a Church. This will change!!! Give me some feedback and get involved with helping to disciple others!

Thanks in advance

Pastor G

Resurrection Sunday is coming

This Sunday is Easter. I cannot believe it is already here. at Riverlife we have been planning for this day for a while. We have mailed out alot of personal invites to friends and family and now we are praying for God's favour. To check out our plan for the day click on this link. (Riverlife Easter). Be praying with us. I will update on the results later.

Footprints and Offsets

I keep hearing about carbon footprints and carbon offsets. My personal beliefs on this are probably not popular. Can you say money scheme and power grab? Anyway, it has got me thinking about the Church. I think in these terms we can define a huge problem. Carbon offsets are all about reacting to what has happened. For too long the Church has been in the offset business. Always reacting to the culture. I believe we need to move into the footprint lifestyle! What kind of impact are we leaving on our culure if we are only reactive? When I look at Jesus I do not see reaction but action that impacts His culture. Same goes for the early church! If all we do is react, we are always a step behind. God never lags behind but always leads His people to pave the way. The question is how can we do this with less funds than the World? God is a creator. We must tap into the creative nature of Christ in us and make a difference!

Carbon footprints are about changing culture. To make a footprint on culture means we may stir up a little controversy, but that is what has to happen to have impact. I don't have all the answers but I know Christ left a huge footprint on culture. Through love for all, uncompromising faith, and a boldness to do things differently than the establishment! What about us?

Footprints or offsets.....

Spirit filled or relevant

I believe we are to be a missional church and missional believers. What does this mean? We are to make sure we are relevant to the world around us. A missionary that travels to a foreign country must learn the culture then make the message of Christ relevant. It is the same principle with us today in our unique cultures. I also believe that a Spirit filled life is the only way we can truly reach every culture we find ourselves in. How can we balance the two, relevant and Spirit filled.

In the church world today it seems churches are either one or the other. It doesn't have to be this way. Being Spirit filled is more than hype and emotion, although the Spirit of God brings alive our emotions, also being Spirit filled is more than lively or upbeat worship music with high entertainment value as some have attempted to promote. Being Spirit filled is truly a lifestyle of being led by the Word and the Spirit's presence. In the Word it is very clear that God gives His Spirit, to those who ask, to help us witness and have an incredible impact in our World in a relevant way. As we are led by His Spirit we will speak the truth in love, we will confront the spirit of this world, and we will allow God to release His power through us to truly make a difference. The most important aspect of being Spirit filled is to use His leading to serve our generation. The creativity of the Father can be released and we can expect to see our world transformed. Join me and lets discover the relevancy of a Spirit filled life! What do you think?

Let the River flow,

Riverlife '08 (pt.4)

The adventure is experienced to the fullest when it is shared with others. Relationships are vital in the kingdom of God. When you take a vacation or go on an adventurous trip you either want to take people with you or you can't wait to share the experience with others. It should be the same with our life with Christ. Tell someone, take someone with you, enjoy life together.

Honestly, this is sometimes difficult for me. I can often be a very private person, not easily letting others close. Or, I can sometimes get so busy in the duties of ministry or with the busy lifestyle of my family that I fail to reach out to others and enjoy the adventure with others. Have you ever noticed how the enemy will fight you and keep you from spending time with your friends and family? This is because he knows if he can keep us isolated, life ceases to be an adventure and simply turns into survival. Join with me and this year lets determine to care more for each other, share the adventure together, and enjoy life together in relationships!

A great way to jump in the adventure together is Network Community Groups. They happen on the 2nd and 4th Sunday Evening of each month at 4pm in homes around our area. For more info go to Riverlifechurch.com or contact the Riverlife office.

Let's do life together,

Riverlife '08 (pt.3)

I have been pretty busy lately and I have had issues with the church network so I have not posted. Back to the adventure. The adventure God is calling us to can only be experienced by taking some leaps of faith. I believe God is asking us to believe Big!! Examine your life, evaluate your situations, and then choose to elevate your living. What is God asking you to do? What gifts and abilities has God placed within your life? What is the best case scenario for your life? The Lord has a plan for our lives but it is only through faith that we can accomplish all He desires for us. The challenge now is for us to find one thing we are passionate about, Begin to apply our gifts and abilities toward this goal, and then envision the outcome that could happen with Christ empowering every effort!! C'mon join me and together with Christ let's take a leap of faith.

Until the other side of the leap....

Riverlife '08 (pt.2)

Get into an adventure with the Word of God. Some people believe the word is boring, just a bunch of rules, and history. I think they are out of their minds! The word is a radical revelation of a God that is a creator, warrior, King, an adventurer! Think about it, God created this earth. There is nothing timid or boring about our world. It is full of mountains to climb, jungles to journey through, deserts to survive, rivers to ride! The greatest thing about God and His Word is the gift of His son, Jesus. Christ is an amazing adventurer who ultimately gave His life for our sins. Also, the Word gives us a glimpse of who we can become through Christ! Wow! In the word we find stories that would make soap stars blush, Rambo to be amazed, and even would make Chuck Norris intimidated. What are you waiting for? Dive into the Word of God, and join with me, for an adventure of a lifetime!

Riverlife '08

I am making a renewed commitment to blogging my thoughts, vision, and discussion opportunities this year. The discipline of writing my thoughts is not a strength of mine so I need your support, prayers and accountability to keep this alive. I believe by writing the vision down it will help us to run with it!

Riverlife, this year lets get into the adventure of life in Christ! We are not a new church plant, I am not a new pastor and we are now nearing 10 years of our journey together, it is time! My prayer has become "God help me not to fail with Your vision". We must press forward and join in the adventure.

Our focus this year is to offer families an adventure with Christ in the Word, an adventure through leaps of faith, and an adventure built on strong relationships. Let's join together this year and make '08 the breakthrough year we have been praying for. Let me know your thoughts! More on the specifics of the vision to come.....

Let the River flow!