Here I am, once again, sitting on my couch…needing to go to bed…but trying to wrap my mind around an incredible day. Last week we took the opportunity to challenge the men…and so this week it was time to challenge the women. (You can listen to both messages here.)
I would have to say that, out of all the message series that we have ever done, this one has been one of my favorites. We have definitely seen a ton of people respond to the fact that we are doing a series on relationships—which means that people are desperately seeking some type of help with their fractured lives…and when a church cares enough to deal with those issues…they will respond.
Marriage is something I am passionate about! I discovered several years ago that marriage was not just something people should do because they have dated a long time…or because they feel time is slipping away…or because they had too much to drink the night before. Marriage was GOD’S IDEA...HE DESIGNED IT…and THE main reason that so many marriages are screwed up is because people are seeking the advice of Oprah and Dr. Phil rather than seeking to see if God might actually have something to say on the subject.
In this series we simply decided to go to Scripture and see what God has to say about issues such as sex, submission, masturbation, pornography, affairs, divorce, homosexuality, and a ton of other things that are rarely addressed in church—and I don’t understand why because people have so many questions about these things…and GOD, through His word, addresses each issue.
I personally believe it is because many pastors are cowards. They would much rather discuss the rapture than dealing with divorce. AND PLEASE hear me on this—IT IS NOT EASY TO TALK ABOUT THIS STUFF!!! On more than one occasion during this series I stood on the side of the stage and asked our pastoral care pastor, Jake Beaty, to pray for me because my stomach was in knots. I remember during the message on, “How To Have An Affair” that I literally felt like I was going to throw up all day…and I cried at the end of the second service because I didn’t want to have to talk about it again that evening during the third service…I have NEVER felt that heavy in a message—EVER!!!
But pastors—it’s worth it!!! There have been so many people write in and call in…marriages have been saved—families have been held together because our team at NewSpring was sensitive to the Holy Spirit & followed His direction…and taught people that marriage is something worth fighting for.
Today at the end of the second service we had a wedding…and it was AWESOME!!! I stood there and watched the bride and groom say their vows…exchange rings…I pronounced them husband and wife…and nearly floated out of the room. I love seeing two people who love Jesus and who love each other get married…it’s one of the greatest joys of my life—congrats Chris & Jessica…
And scenes like the one I just described make it all worth it…AND assure me that we will do another series on relationships—we’ve got to…not sure when…but it is coming…so hold on!!!
Speaking of what’s coming…the next several Sunday’s will be…
This coming Sunday we will do the last message in the relationships series…and will literally be teaching couples how to eliminate at least 75% of their arguments.
The following Sunday we will use Ephesians 3:20-21 as a launching pad to begin to talk about the fact that God created us and designed us for a purpose…and He wants to do more with our lives than we could think of or imagine.
And then December 10th we will have Chelsea Stewart, the daughter of the late Payne Stewart, on stage to talk about the tragedy that took place in her life and in the life of her family…and how her faith in Jesus Christ brought her through that experience. Trust me…YOU DO NOT WANT TO MISS THIS!
AND THEN…let’s not forget our Christmas services that are heading our way…more information coming soon.
I love what I do!!! I sat at supper tonight with some friends from Texas who flew into town today just to see what is happening here at NewSpring. These guys work with large churches all across America and told me that they could not think of a single church that is experiencing what we are experiencing right now. I told me…and it is true…no one is more amazed at what God is doing than me. Folks—let’s never take this for granted—let’s celebrate & beg God to do more…thank You Jesus for all that You are doing!!! May You continue to do more than all we can ask for or imagine!