Archive for February, 2011
Heaven Went CRAZY Yesterday… February 28, 2011
Just got this email from my assistant…absolutely fired me up, Luke 15 says that when one sinner repents the angels in heaven rejoice!!!
Just wanted to keep you updated…
there were 2 salvations in Greenville and 2 salvations in Florence yesterday.
Every one counts! Yay Jesus!
THAT NEVER GETS OLD!!!
THIS SUNDAY We’re Taking It To The NEXT LEVEL!!! February 24, 2011
Interested in an upgrade?
I’ve said it before and I will say it again…hardly anyone reading this still has an eight track player in their car. (In fact, many of you have no idea what in the heck that is!!! Google it!) I haven’t seen any Sony walkman tape players in the gym. AND…I haven’t heard ANYONE under the age of 12 ask anyone to come and play their Atari lately. Why? Because, although these products used to have value we have BETTER OPTIONS today…we’ve UPGRADED!!!
Yet…what is sad is that we’ve embraced upgrades in nearly every area of our lives, yet so many of us have never really thought about/considered what it might look like to upgrade our walk with God…to step into what Jesus promised us in John 10:10…
BUT…this Sunday we’re going to DIVE INTO how to make that a reality in our lives as we examine things such as…
- How in the world am I supposed to forgive “that person” after all of the hurt they brought into my life? How can I break through the bondage of bitterness?
- How in the world can I break free from financial bondage, debt AND believing the lie that having “more” will solve all of my problems?
- I hear people say “I heard from God” a lot…and yet I’ve never heard His voice–how can I hear Him speak to me?
- If God wants me to be successful then why is my life the way it is right now? Am I the exception?
- I keep struggling with the same sin–why can’t I seem to get past this?
- I am so concerned for my friend/family member who does not seem to “get it.” I don’t want to push them away; however, I desperately want them to meet Christ…how in the world do I manage that tension?
- I want the life I am living TODAY to matter in 100 years…how can I do that?
So…make plans on being here AND bringing people with you (remember, FOUND PEOPLE FIND PEOPLE!!!)
Cannot wait!
STOP IT!!! February 24, 2011
When God speaks clearly to you then you have a choice…
You can make plans…OR make excuses!
People who make excuses DO NOT change or impact the world around then.
They get STUCK because they keep obsessing over what God may want next for their lives when they refuse to deal with what He is speaking to RIGHT NOW! (Please see Ezekiel 14:1-6…when God deals with an issue He will CONTINUALLY deal with THAT issue for as long as it takes to be confessed and repented of. AND…God is relentless!!!)
So…are you going to make plans OR excuses?
What is your answer TO THIS QUESTION? (It changed my life!)
What is “that thing” that you can’t get past…maybe it…
- Finally deal with/confess sin and ask for help! (James 5:16)
- Have that hard conversation that deals with confrontation/forgiveness! (See Matthew 6:14-15)
- Begin to put God first in your finances! (See Proverbs 3:9-10)
- Ask for help in your marriage! (It’s way better to seek help when there is a problem than trying to find a divorce lawyer to help figure out who gets what!)
- End an ungodly dating relationship. (And ungodly dating relationship is one that God keeps saying “NO” to you about!!!)
- Join a church!!!! (You are way too valuable to sit on the sidelines.)
I could go on and on…but you get the point!
What IS IT? STOP making excuses and STEP into WHO HE IS and WHAT HE wants you to do!
Go for it!
Five Conclusions I Firmly Believe February 23, 2011
God’s been really stretching/challenging me lately as I’ve been reading through the New Testamant. The other morning in reading through the book of I Timothy 2 I could not stop reading I Timothy 2:3-7 and feeling pretty solid about the following conclusions…
#1 – Ministry should be done to be pleasing to the One who called me, equipped me and will sustain me! In the past I have fallen into the trap on getting to the end of a worship service and asking myself, “I wonder what the people thought” rather than, “Jesus, what did YOU think?” (BTW…I do believe ministry CAN and SHOULD be both pleasing to God and life changing/impacting the people who are in attendance!)
#2 – God wants people to be saved…His church should want that as well!!! AND…when they are saved we should CELEBRATE instead of diving into skepticism! I firmly believe that a church that does not have a heart for the lost DOES NOT have the heart of Jesus in the church! (Luke 19:10)
#3 – There really is only ONE WAY to be reconciled to God! I’ve known and believed this for quite some time…but this truth is becoming SO consuming to me right now. Ministry MUST point people to Jesus! Sure, we can teach people how to have great marriages (and we should)…but it would be a tragedy if someone had a great marriage and wound up dying and going to hell because they didn’t KNOW CHRIST! We get obsessed in the church (AND CULTURE) over things that DO NOT FREAKIN MATTER!!! People NEED JESUS…and the CHURCH should champion HIM and the Gospel over any other ridiculous cause!
#4 – Jesus GAVE HIMSELF for all men…we need to teach people to do the same. Christianity is NOT, “I prayed a prayer and told God I didn’t want to go to hell!” Christianity is SURRENDER to JESUS…it is Galatians 2:20…it is Acts 20:24!!! When a person is fully surrendered, when a CHURCH is fully surrendered then the WORLD WILL be a DIFFERENT place!
#5 – I was called, gifted, equipped and am expected to be a HERALD of the GOSPEL!!! Once again, if I am not focused on proclaiming the Gospel to a world that does not know Christ…then I am NOT fulfilling HIS primary calling on my life!
A Letter From Pastor P To NewSpring Church… February 22, 2011
I LOVE MY CHURCH!
Seven things today for everyone at NewSpring Church…
#1 – We saw over 230 people receive Christ this past weekend at NewSpring! (THAT NEVER GETS OLD!!!) Seriously, stop RIGHT NOW and read Ephesians 2:1-10 and II Corinthians 5:17…THAT happened to over 230 people!!! (AND…people received Christ on EVERY CAMPUS!!!) Folks…230 people crossed over from DEATH to LIFE! Wherever you are, whatever you are doing right now just STOP for one second and offer up a “thank You” to God for the amazing work He IS doing in our church.
#2 – What God has accomplished in this “Make War” series has BLOWN MY MIND! I can honestly say that I’ve never seen the spiritual temperature in our church as high as it is RIGHT NOW. We’ve seen LOTS of next steps, LOTS of healing and LOTS of salvation. AND…as I’ve been saying all along I really do believe that this series has been FOUNDATIONAL for what God really wants to do in this next series we have entitled, “Upgrade!” It all begins THIS SUNDAY as we DIVE into how to not just exist in life…but to LIVE the LIFE that Jesus promised in John 10:10.
#3 – NewSpring, I learned a valuable lesson in this series. I always say this…but God retaught it to me – the Christian life is all about LISTENING to God and then DOING what He says. Remember…I had other plans for the beginning of the year. Seriously, we, as a church, had already made preparations to launch a completely different series in January. Graphics had been designed, plans had been made and things were in motion…then God spoke VERY clearly to me at 4 am one morning and told me to do the “Make War” series! I resisted at first because HIS plans did not line up with mine…and changing things was not going to be easy. But then I was reminded that my walk with Christ is all about SURRENDER, not SUGGESTION! And…the rest is history. So…today strive to LISTEN to God and DO what He says!
#4 – I am so thankful for Clayton King and his faithfulness in preaching God’s Word to us this past weekend. While he was here preaching I had the honor of preaching at Elevation Church in Charlotte, North Carolina for one of the best friends I have in the world, Pastor Steven Furtick. I had an absolute blast and LOVED seeing what Jesus is doing in the “Big-C” church as men and women strive to simply listen to Him and do what He says.
#5 – Thanks so much for your continual prayers for Lucretia. She is feeling better this week and I think the toughest part may now be behind us. Please continue to pray for her strength to return.
#6 – I have a meeting with my agent THIS THURSDAY in regards to my book. I have two ideas that we will be working through…pray as this is an overwhelming process!
#7 – I absolutely cannot wait for THIS Sunday as it will be one of “those services” that people talk about for YEARS…trust me!
Web Developer Job Opening At NewSpring… February 21, 2011
We’re looking for people who want to change the world and leverage technology to its fullest capacity…here’s more specifically what we’re looking for…
You are a curious, quick, meticulous front-end web developer who can take Photoshop or Illustrator files, wireframes, or Sharpie sketches and craft them into web pages. You are passionate about Jesus and His Church. You care about the web and its users. You’ve been hand-coding HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and PHP for about 3 years and are well-versed in cross-browser compatibility techniques. You believe code is a craft and can be beautiful. You enjoy working in an open, collaborative environment, can make accurate deadline estimates, and have architectural familiarity with ExpressionEngine and CodeIgniter.
Bonus points are awarded if you’re familiar with version control (we use Git), social web APIs (like Facebook and Twitter), and user experience and mobile web design. Small, nondescript trophies await you if you’ve dabbled in typography, color theory, and layout.
This position is full-time and onsite at our campus in Anderson, SC. Send links to your portfolio, your resume, and a cover letter. If you don’t have an online portfolio, this job will not be a good fit for you. No phone calls or faxes please.
Please contact the Central Operations Team with any questions.
Some Quick Thoughts On A Monday… February 21, 2011
Some really quick thoughts I wanted to share today…
#1 – Unleash is two weeks from this Thursday! WOW…can’t believe I just wrote that line! There is still come room in our overflow facility (which is AWESOME) if you have not yet signed up. We’re praying for AND believing that this is going to be the BEST YEAR EVER! (sign up here!!!)
#2 – The Perry Noble leadership podcast is now available for free download on itunes. This month we responded to some questions sent in by church planters and dove into the things that we did right in starting NewSpring Church…AND the things we did wrong. (Quite a few of those!) It might be the most intense podcast we’ve recorded to date!
#3 – The more and more I think about this event the more I ask myself, “what have I gotten myself into?” :-) Seriously…this is going to be an amazing day!
That’s all!