This Weekend

I'm so excited about this weekend! I get to teach to the whole family at South Hills & I'm really looking forward to it. I've been on an incredible journey the past few years with Christ, and I'm so honored to get to share the things I've been learning.

I want to help our church, South Hills, answer a few questions about the story of the woman who had a issue with bleeding. For 12 years she had an inability to be able to be loved or touched in the same manner as any other woman. Jesus didn't just heal her physcial condition, he restored her holistically. Its a beautiful thing. I'm looking forward to seeing eyes opened to Truth they've not known before. Say a prayer for me and I'll let you know how it all goes!

Brothers & the Church

Today I got the awesome chance to spend some time with my brother Phillip. He had his two toddler baby girls, 2&4, at the Chick-Fil-A in Corona. Brenda & I went to support South Hills mission fundraiser, and he was there as well. I love talking with him because he is passionate about pursuing God, understanding Gods Word & His plan for His life. Not to mention, he can make me laugh like NO ONE else in my life. He has a way of self-depreciatingly (not a word) commenting on things he isn't doing right that is hilarious. I just love Phillip.

It was one of those great moments in life when you are laughing so hard in a public place without a care in the world, your church friends are laughing while trying to make a difference in the world, and your wife is playing with your neices in the play area and showing you why you married the best future mom in the world. I sighed a few breathes of appreciation to God. I was so fulfilled with my night. Thats how I knew I was around the church..."to us, church is not a place, its a people."

Unamazing Grace

One of the central themes to following Christ is that He has an amazing amount of Grace for us. As I look and evaluate the current trends or themes of Christianity, I am filled with so much hope. We now have a better picture of what Biblical Christ following even means. As I grew up, it seemed there were only sermons about 'getting your act together' from a preacher who obviously had arrived at that glorious location where sin did not abound in his life. A place where everyone gets "there." In fact, its called "ThereLand," the place for the holy & godly. Oh to taste the treats of that place! To sing those songs, to run on those grassy fields & to be friends with such amazing and glorious people.

It turns out, there is no such place. There never was. The place called "there" doesn't even exist. What does exist is the humble place of journeying with a Christ that has more grace than I do sin. A Jesus who knows my hearts desire is to serve him. A place where everyone believes that they need Jesus just as much as everyone else, and that actually affects the way that they treat anyone they know or meet.

If you believe that the only people in need of grace are ‘those’ people over ‘there’ that are caught up ‘in sin,’ then I wish to inform you that the concept of grace isn’t very amazing at all. Its very un-amazing. We could sing the song: "Unamazing Grace, how terrible the sound. That made a wretch like me. I once was humbly saved, but soon arrived in that place, where everyone isn't as amazing, as me."

We Are Whats Left...

Recently I've been having some people ask me about the viewpoint or idea I have regarding Christianity, Christ, or spirituality. I figured I outta write my thoughts, and then I remembered that I already did back in September last year. As I shared them with our team, they believed in them enough, that we designed our Remnant T-Shirt with the words in them. (btw, they are $10 & $3 of every shirt goes to Haiti Relief) Here is the overall message of love, Christ, hope, & real revival as I understand it.

"For years people have been walking away from Christianity, and for good reason too. The message of love has no heart. The message of Grace has too infrequently been used by His followers. The voice of God is muted by judgmental elitists who condemn and yell at those 'in sin.' The sound of a people who worship together is silenced by the noise of racial indifference. Remnant is a people who've not bowed their knee to another god, even the god of religious Christianity. We love those we don't understand. We celebrate everyone because we believe that everyone matters. To us, church is not a place, its a people. We are the church. Remnant is a people who think Jesus meant it when he said: love your neighbor as yourself, and they will know you are my disciples when you love each other. Its time to redefine what people think about followers of Christ. We need Jesus just as much as anyone else. It's not about what we do, it's about who we are. We Are What's Left from what should have been the message of Christ all along...and theres room for you. Welcome to the family."

Who Does Jesus Believe in?

We are in the middle of our "Miracles" Series at Remnant. We've been praying over the prayer walls for the past few weeks and learning how to pursue the heart of Christ the way the woman who had been bleeding for 12 years did. She did something physical and believed something deep within her heart. God has been asnwering a lot of our prayers and its been such a great reminder that we can be used by Christ to do unbelievable things.

Tomorrow at Remnant, we are going to learn what was really going on when Jesus called on people to become His followers, specifically His disciples. We believe that the stories of Jesus always have a deeper meaning than what we have normally read from the stories. I often say: "we can't understand the words of Jesus, until we understand the world of Jesus. Come find out what He believed when it came to choosing the ones who would carry His message of hope & redemption to the world. Tomorrow night @ 7p!

Spirit of Intentionality

The conversations that God wants us to have used to be a part of the biblical culture of the 1st century. Faith wasn't a foreign concept. If someone talked about their belief in god, its wasn't like they were talking about sex w/ their parents in the next room. No one whispered about it. It was normal. It was healthy. It was spiritual. It was a part of everyday life. I wake up. I brush my teeth. I tie my shoes. I talk about God with my friends & coworkers. I learn about myself & what God wants from my life. Crusades, Slavery, Hate, Bigotry, Judgmental Beliefs, September 11, Jihad, etc are all phrases that remind me of reasons why faith can sometimes have an ugly sense to it. I believe God wants to raise up a people who will redefine that feeling. Remnant is a ministry that seeks to live that out in a real-world scenario.

I wonder what would happen if we were just normal and introduced God into those talks? If it wasn't to prove a point, to look better than someone, or whatever, but just to be, normal. I'm a human. I care about my world. I have values & standards. I do my homework, sometimes on time. I love my family. I want to get married & stay married to one person. I love to laugh. I want to live a life of purspose & fulfillment. My belief in Jesus, not a religion, is what unites all those passions. I believe he was the perfect example of someone who cared, loved, & stood for whats really right.

I'm believing for Remnant to continue to live out the intentional, normal & passionate pursuit of connecting people to the 'real' love of Jesus. Every conversation that leads someone closer to that real love, is spiritual. And it requires the spirit of intentionality.

Celebrating "Voices"

My wife & I went tonight to see the play "Voices" at Corona High School. Our very own Cory Pilawski was the assistant Director for the play (the first time in the school history a student has done that!) We of course were so very proud of her. We also saw a few other Remnant students, MJ & Charles.

It was such an INCREDIBLE play. It made us laugh, think, cry (Brenda), and smile!! It displayed the real life struggles of everyday teenage life. There were so many different scenes that caught the attention of our heart. The different actors & actresses were amazing and YOU KNOW we invited them all to our Remnant Family and a bunch of em said they'd be there Tuesday @ 7p! We laughed with them all afterwards and just encouraged them. They were so much fun!!

My wife & I LOVE to find out what other people are excited about and then celebrate them while they do it. People love it when you are passionate about what they are passionate about. The great thing about being connected to Christ, is that it gives us an excuse to be excited about anyones passion, even if its different than mine. Whoever said the only thing I had to celebrate was things that only I really enjoyed? That would make for a very small god.

DMV Always Is Funny!

Best story ever. Ready. Begin.
I take Thursdays off. My best friend Katieli, needed me to help him register the Road Runner that I gave him a few months ago. So we went to the DMV and had a hard time finding it because of the endless sea of cars parked on the street. Apparently we weren't alone.

We did what I always do when there is a long line...we cut. Just kidding. But I did walk to the very front, picked up a "Change of Address" for my license, and while I was there asked the guy my question. He informed me I'd have to wait in line to get my registration appointment, and the line was 3 HOURS LONG!!! Are you kidding me? I could go to San Diego and back in that time!

Thats when I remembered I had AAA. We left to go over there (where it took 20 minutes for us to be on our way!), and thats when one of the funniest moments at a DMV ever happened.

On our way in, we said hi to a man who was just standing on the island by my car. He was a middle aged man, nice enough, and unshaven. He had a flannel on, and looked like he had drank a few beers already. It was 9:14am. I'm getting ready to back up, I then see a man in a big truck who sees me backing up, and of course, he wants my spot. He stops, gets his truck into reverse, but theres a problem. There is a car behind him, that also saw my spot and wont back up. "Prepare for the MAIN EVENT!"

At first, they honked. Then the big truck threatened to run him over & revved his engine. Then they yelled. I mean, YELLED! Recap to this point: Honking. Revving. There is more yelling. There is more honking. The big truck HONK, and then the tiny, little baby honk from the Datsun behind him. Not only that, but my friend on the island is yelling at the car behnd him: "Back up you (cussing ensued)! Quit wining, you're a (cussing continued).

Being the observer that I am, I can see that we are clearly at an impasse.

I get out of the Road Runner, head over to the Datsun and very politely said: "Sir, I'm trying to back up, can you please back up so this man can too, and I can leave?" He replied in a VERY strong European accent (which, only further set off my NRA card carrying, Pledge of Allegiance reciting, cussing, drunk & proud to be an American and at least he knows he's free "buddy" on the island), "I ohnlay naid to gehou around, kind sur!"

Thats when "Carl" let him have it. He said, quite distinctly...and I quote: "Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaah, Waaaaaaaaaah, waaaaaaaaah! Quit your cryin, you little baby, WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA, WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH, WAAAAAAAAAH!!! (More Cussing)!"

And we wonder why they hate Americans.

I waited for the truck guy to circle back so he could have my spot, because I was feeling very American, and I knew I was free also, so on way out, I said with a boisterous chuckle what only was appropriate to Carl the DMV Gatekeeper:
"God Bless America!"
He smiled & waved proudly, unaware of my sarcasm. Kat & I peeled out, and laughed our heads off as we drove away.
WAAAAAAAAAAH!!
The End. See you at Remnant on Tuesday. Carl will be there.

This Is SOOOO FUN!!

Remnant stories keep POURING in from last night!! I'm so in awe of the story that God is writing through his ministry: Remnant. From the beginning, we believed that God destined this ministry to represent His heart to people who were burnt out on the religion of Christianity, but still desired Jesus to be what shaped & guided their lives. To date we've seen that happen in some special ways.

We've had 5 atheists give their lives to Christ in the past 5 months. People who thought 'church' or 'god' just wasn't for them, are suddenly filled with awe & wonder that they have found a place where they are loved as they are with hope for who they can become. I'd love to tell you about Megan, Dani, Bryon, Scottie, Keyvan, Solomon, Maria, Gracie, Rodger, Amanda, Taylor, Morgan, Taylor, Jessica, and so many others who are quite simply not the same people that walked into "South Hills Next Gen" over the past 10-11 months. There are so many more stories than that...

To top it off, some of my old students who are now college aged came last night and God totally filled their hearts with new passion & excitement about Himself. They said they've been looking for a place where they could love Jesus, not have it all figured out, and still be around the kind of people who were so fun in their love for each other. Welcome to Remnant...thats a few things we want to reflect to this city & world.

Sleeping Giant & a Walking Beggar

At Remnant, we had the amazing honor of having some real men of God with us. The hard-core band Sleeping Giant was with us tonight. We are in our "Miracles" series and so we asked them to share their experiences of seeing God do the miraculous in their presence. It was so encouraging and faith-filling to hear the real-life stories of the God we all say is all-powerful doing the all-powerful. The guys helped with our altar call until 10p & we let students out right around 8:35p. We even had a special call for those with addictions and Jesus began the process of helping them be free tonight!!

Tonight we learned about a beggar who really needed a miracle but had friends just relegating him to his usually vice of coping with his pain. The ending of our service had people stand up on their seat to state what Miracle they really had in their heart. THAT WAS POWERFUL!! So often we walk right by the very people that God has strategically & purposelly placed us around. A GRIP of students just weren't ready to leave the spiritual & sacred night we were getting to experience.

 Remnant continues to grow spiritually and with passion towards the deeper things of God.  I pray that we don't 'hoard' these experiences, but that we share them with anyone we know or meet that needs to have it as well. If we do this, the months ahead are going to be RIDICULOUS!!
Lord, Remnant is yours, do what you will.

Miracles Part II

Remnants March series is on "Miracles." Last Tuesday we learned about what the Bible teaches us when it comes to the pursuit of a miracle. Often times, people are looking to God to 'touch' them, but we see a few times with Jesus that the people wanted to just touch the hem of His garment. The idea is that God wants to do miraculous things in our lives and sometimes they take place as 'we' reach out to touch Jesus.

The question then becomes what touches the heart of Christ in such a way that His power moves on our behalf? What are the things that touches Christ's heart and invokes His response to us? I know its not as simple as 2+2=4, but God has always responded to the cry of His people.

There is something about the passionate & trusting pursuit of Gods goodness that allows for God to dictate His response. When we really believe that the Miracle is up to Him, and that our role is to seek to touch the heart of God without an agenda, Miracles begin to take place in our hearts & lives.

Remnant Winter Camp 2010

If you just sit there and let the word "CAMP" run through the corridors of your mind, all of us can grab a few memories that warm our hearts. I think of the camp I went to as a junior in High School where I decided to give my life to following Christ. It was 4am a the Dennys down the road.

I always tell our students that you will get out of an experience like camp what you put into it. If you decide to really open up to other students, you will undoubtedly come back with a few new friends. If you open your heart to God and make decisions to pursue him with passion, you will come back with a renewed vigor & passion to make an impact in your friends lives at school.

Math has a place also: we spend 40 hours awake together. Thats 6 months worth of Remnant gatherings together in ONE weekend!! The potential for great friendships to start, God to transform you, and for you to be inspired to change your world can all happen if you're open to it...Are you ready?

Unavailable Focus

The moments where are minds are not cluttered with todo items, deadlines, reminders, emotional issues, & other stressful thoughts are the times where we can really become effective. The challenge of living a spirutally balanced life often is found in our inability to be focused. When your mind isn't unavailable to all of the seemingly 'urgent' components of daily life, your spirit & heart can't be available to hear the voice of wisdom, calm, serenity, direction, peace, or comfort.
The focus that comes when there isn't a thousand things trying to get your attention is essential to having a healthy & balanced life. Setting aside time to write, think, pray, listen & just 'be' will make refresh so much more than you can imagine. Our values get mixed up when we keep going from here to there, checking this box, making this deadline, finishing that project, making that call, and doing it all over again tomorrow & calling it: living.
Humans weren't created to be machines of productivity. We were created to reflect a glorious & amazingly in depth Creator & to live a life that honors him. Thats hard to do when the most important thing in life isn't being, but doing. It bares repeating: we were created as human beings, not human doings.

Touching Him

Last night at Remnant we launched our new series "Miracles." We talked about a woman who was considered 'dirty' or unwanted by the standards of her day. She had a condition that made it impossible for her to be touched. When Jesus was touched by her, His power instantly healed her situation.

I was blown away by how Jesus didn't just restore her physically. He allowed her to have access again to a community that she was osterisized from. She was allowed back into the realm of friendship. She could be hugged.

I know a lot of people how have emotional issues that make them difficult to love. I want to introduce you to the real Jesus...He might be different than you've been told. He desires for you to want to touch Him & move His heart towards you. Just know, you will never be the same once you do.