Christina and I reluctantly decided to let the kids stay up and usher in the 2008. We were a bit hesitant because their bedtime is at 7PM, but the clincher was Jordin Sparks. Once KiKi found out, it was game over. Now, let’s see how long they will last until the countdown… HA!
Sunday TV Afternoon
It was great today hanging out with the kids and just watching some football. It’s been awhile since we were able to sit down and watch some NFL on a Sunday afternoon. But then to include everyone, we all ended up watching a movie together. It was relaxing and restful. Now we are gearing up […]
The Intelligent Reformed Charismatic Theologian
For many years, people from a charismatic background have been labeled as unintelligent, feeling-oriented Christians. Some people from the Reformed circles have argued passionately about the shallowness of any charismatic experience. This is why it is a bit surprising when a person like J. P. Moreland, a distinguished professor of philosophy at Talbot School of […]
2007 Youth Retreat Update 2
Last night I talked about laying down some of the hindrances in our lives so that we can be “all in.” It was a powerful time of the Holy Spirit ministering to the deep parts of our lives. Areas of addictions, shame and bitterness were confronted. It is amazing how Satan uses these things to […]
2007 Youth Retreat Update 1
The theme for this retreat is “All In” based upon Philippians 3:7-9, “But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I […]
2007 Youth Retreat
Today, the worship team and I will be heading out to Wisconsin to lead a joint youth retreat with about 10 churches in the Chicagoland area. Since we have planted the church in Chicago, I am seeing the importance of reaching out to the youth of Chicago. They will become the future college student at […]
2007 Christmas Blessings
Merry Christmas! I pray that all of you will have a blessed Christmas day as you celebrate the birth of our Savior. Particularly for those of you who are away from family or might be alone during this holiday season, I hope you experience the closeness of God Immanuel. Our family is thinking of you.
2007 Christmas in Chicago
Just overnight from Saturday to Sunday, the weather dropped like crazy. It is definitely going to be a cold Christmas here in Chicago. The family and I went to HMCC of Chicago on Sunday. It was good to see some of the people who stuck around in area. Afterwards I met up with the UIC […]
Closing the Christmas Sermon Series
We are closing out our series, “The Worst Christmas Ever” with part 3: “The Unwanted Gift.” I am here in Chicago and I will be preaching this message today. It is always a joy to come to Chicago and share God’s Word with everyone. Even though our church is only a […]
Early Christmas 2007
It was great meeting up with some of the men that I am spending time with in our church this morning. This group is special because many of them are either thinking about pastoral ministry or wanting to be part of a church plant in the future. We just sat around with some good coffee […]
Getting the Heart Back
We finished off the summit tonight. It was amazing how much we were able to finish and not be distracted by all the various rabbit trails that we are sometimes (or should I say that I am sometimes) tempted to follow. I praise God because we were not only able to reflect and review this […]
2007 Reflections
The Board members and I spend some time reflecting, repenting and recalibrating. We were able to praise God for a lot of things this past year. God has truly been faithful to us as a church. We have seen transformed lives and God was opening many doors for us. But the sobering part of it […]
2007 Board Summit
The Board of Directors and I will be heading out for a day and a half summit to pray, plan and prepare for the new year. There is a greater urgency for prayer in our church. Whenever God is working, Satan is always hanging around trying to counter the work. We really need to seek […]
1st Class Service Fuels Impatience?
It is great traveling with Christina especially when she gives illumination to things that I might not normally see. All throughout this trip, one of the complaints that I had was how certain things were done slowly and inefficiently (one of my top 10 pet-peeves). Whether it was waiting in line for service or trying […]