Broken Bow

Well... its been a week since my dad and I got back from Broken Bow. We had a blast hanging out and havin some father/son time!! Wish I was still there... but on the other hand, I don't miss the tent camping in 24 degree weather. That...was not much fun because I did not go prepared for it to be that cold...lol.

Was great to get in the river and catch some fish on the ole' fly rod. Took out our kick boats and spent time floating down the river =) Good times and I will never forget this trip.

Braelynn at 15wks

Ok... here is a pic of Braelynn at 15 weeks. As of today she's at 17 weeks 3 days, so this pic is a little dated, but it's the most recent I have.

I love her so much! =)

IT'S A GIRL...!!!!!

So... we found out that we are having a GIRL...! I'm so excited and can't wait until April gets here. Just a few more months

Braelynn Shae Henry... mom and dad can't wait til you get here =)

Emunah....אמונה

This week I've been stuck on the actions and heart of the Woman who "Touched Jesus" in Mark 5. Before this encounter: she tried everything in her power to stop the physical pain in her life. Exhausted her finances to doctors and yet still grew worse in her condition. (Will elaborate on the medicine practice back then to understand the context. page 1674 from The Archaeological Study Bible)

Then, she just heard that Jesus was near, so she went in faith believing that if she might just touch his clothes…she would be healed. I find that my heart is still being molded as I read the scriptures and will continue to be molded. Sometimes I get so focused on what it is that I need to be doing in life, that I feel like every other person in the crowd that was touching Jesus just wanting to see what's going to happen next.

Jesus is the Word…right?!?

I think some of those people were probably crowding Jesus too see a show. Do some of us crowd the church in this same way to just hear something from the Word on Sundays? Or, do I come to the Word like the Woman to touched Jesus (the Word) so that it may actually change my life? "Jesus, mold my heart that I may fully rely on you and press on with pi'stis (an active Faith).

This Woman, in Faith, touched him and JESUS KNEW IT. I bet many of those people who were following Jesus were just waiting to see what as going to happen next. In fact, they were crowding him because Jairus came and asked him to come heal his daughter. They were probably touching him because they thought this is going to be cool, he heals people, speaks with authority over the scriptures, teaches in parables, he's about to go do another miracle; but the scriptures do not say anything about the effect on Jesus as all the other people who were touching him. Why didn't power come from Jesus when the others touched him? I believe Jesus knew who had touched him. He was waiting to see if she would come forward with her Faith…and she did! Because she acted on her Faith, Jesus healed her.

I have spent so much of my mental, physical, financial energy trying to make everything right in my life, but sometimes I find myself only getting worse. How many of us are in that boat?

The word "faith", translated from the Greek πιστις (pi'stis), and Hebrew אמונה (emunah) was primarily used in the New Testament with the perfect tense and translates as a noun-verb hybrid; which is not adequately conveyed by the English noun. Pi'stis in the New Testament context is a physical action, based upon a mental belief and sustained with confidence. Belief, in this context is non-synonymous with faith because, belief primarily conveys the mental action, thought of confidence, trust, and/or firm persuasion, not the physical act. Depending on the context, the Greek and Hebrew word may also be understood to mean faithfulness or fidelity (cf. 1 Thess 3:7; Titus 2:10).
Again…the Hebrew word for faith is אמונה… emunah - and is an action oriented word meaning "support". This is important because the Western concept of faith places the action on the one you have faith in, such as "faith in God". But, the Hebrew word אמונה emunah places the action on the one who "carries out their Faith". It is not knowing that God will act, but rather I will do what I can to “carry out my Faith” in God.

I learn and grow from experience. Sometimes I have to physically do something to have something I learn stick with me. When Im in training for something, its one thing to tell me how to do it, but let me get hands on and I'm going to get it quicker and I wont forget it.
Write אמונה on pulp paper with your finger (using theatre makeup.) This will relate the "touch / motion" aspect of our Faith and writing the word. This is going to take physical action on your part. Putting our faith into motion is going to "help the helpless" We cant always see faith, but physically writing it here in Hebrew with your fingers, making it come to life with YOUR touch, will give the illustration of touching in faith and seeing/committing to put it into action.


When done explain this:
Everyone’s word אמונה is going to look slightly different. This shows the same for each of ours physical action of “carrying out our Faith”. Mine is not going to look exactly the same as yours; there is no cookie cutter way to carry out your Faith. The message will be the same, but the action will be yours. Where is God calling you today? How will you “help the helpless”? How will we as a church “carry out our Faith”?

Time gets away

wow...cant believe a month has gone by since i've posted here. well, i have a pic of race car here at 11 weeks 4 days and 5.2cm. if you look close, you can see race car waving!!! everyone say HI to race car!!!

so excited about the baby. cant wait to find out if its going to be a boy or girl.

wheew..!

burned an image

Hey you… wanted to see if you’d be interested in going to Leadnow 08 with me and a few other peeps? You can check it out by clicking here. It’s a conference targeted for leaders of 20 & 30 somethings. They have some really influential leaders speaking this year and it’s always been such a mind-blowing experience. The sole purpose of this event is to equip Leaders with resources to help point/lead people in the direction to put their Faith into action. There’s even a portion of the event, Fusion, which is totally for those seeking direction in their life. “God’s placed me here on this Earth to do more than just exist…so where do I go from here?” Fusion is that avenue. They expose your God given talents, passions and desires of the heart and unleash you to GO! After all… that’s what we are all supposed to do…RIGHT?!?!?

There’s so many times I run into people who are followers of Christ sitting in the mundane because they just don’t know how to put their Faith into action. They think because they are not a preacher, teacher or worship leader… that there is no place for them in the church. Or they don’t have the schooling to lead out and share the Gospel.

My heart hurts for our generation to see this constant struggle. We are so busy trying to finish school, start families, maintain that job that keeps us afloat, and trying to balance healthy relationships with the busy lifestyle. By the time we are in our mid 20’s, church is usually an afterthought. I mean, come one… we can get all the preaching, teaching we want by just searching the web. We even have ministry organizations that sell great quality resources to where you just pop in a DVD and have bible study right there. (not saying that any of this is bad) But the mindset I can see is “So, why go to church? Why spend the effort trying to establish a relationship with someone at church that just puts on his or her “Sunday Best” for all to see.” We have so many talents and gifts, but struggle with using them for the glory of Christ. I had an interesting job that allowed me to spend a full year calling churches all across the US trying to get connected with young adult leaders. INSANE to see and hear the VOID of 20 & 30 somethings in the church! I heard a pastor once say “we don’t even try to reach that generation…they don’t tithe”. That crushed me! I heard the struggles and felt the heaviness in their ministry. So… how do we effectively reach and unleash Young Adults to put their Faith into action?

That question has burned an image in my brain these past few years. Being that I’m 25 and most of my friends are this generation…it’s an everyday reminder. My wife and I talk about it all the time. Why is there such a struggle… what’s going on…why are so many disengaged from the church that should be bringing hope, peace, love, and direction by encouragement to this generation. Are we okay with this? Are we content with the void or are we so frustrated that we give up?

Come with me to Leadnow / Fusion. I want to learn and grow with you.

It’s November 13-15th. But there’s also the Fusion event, which is Friday night and Saturday. (you wouldn’t even have to miss work)

heartbeat

WOW... thats all i can say. right now im pretty speachless. about a week ago, kacie and i found out we were going to be having a baby!!!

And today...we heard the baby's heartbeat for the first time. SO AWESOME!!! there's a little life in my wife's belly. So, I came home and Kacie had the sono on DVD for us to watch. Amazing times standing there glued to the TV watching our baby grow and to hear the sound of the heart. I think im in shock...cant wait to find out if its going to be a boy or girl!!!

=)

Sunday Reflections

When passion meets the heart of the saved, we should find ourselves becoming an unstoppable force sharing the word of Christ. When I get so excited about something new in my life, you’re going to hear about. And on top of that, you’ll probably catch a bit of emotion in the words coming out of my mouth! I hope I'm this way with my Faith. I cannot begin to explain the fire that’s burning in me right now. Especially after this past Sunday’s service at Four Winds. Not just energy hype from a feel good motivational speaking (combined with 2 cups of coffee), but Truth leaping off the pages of my bible as if they were coming to life. Really excited to be a part of this new church plant in Royse City. God is really moving in an awesome and powerful way.

I pray that we continue to stay humble and totally focused on Him. still praying for the staff and people of Four Winds...

Mug

Just got our new Four Winds mug... think it looks pretty good! =)

Ableton Live 7

Wheeewwww… Ableton finally came in. Really stoked about getting this set up for our worship services. We’ll dive into it tonight and hopefully it won’t give me a brain cramp.

I’ll post later what we uncover tonight =)

whats the hold up...

Stumbled on this church website a while back and just wanted to re-visit a few thoughts I had.


This church started with 20 people passionate about God and passionate about reaching the lost. They grew from 20 people to over 3,500 in just 2 years. thats is insane and unheard of, you may be thinking...i know. but why is that?? why is that really so insane? why the jaw dropping shock that a small group of people could start such a huge chain reaction within their community to be reaching 3,500 in 2 years. On top of that...they are a mobile church that meets in 2 different High Schools. INTERESTING...!! I thought so.


It wasn't encouraging to me because i was looking at it through the lens of "wow, these guys are meeting in a school and grew this much...cool, we could do that" but i was looking at it as...."ya know...God doesn't need a huge Church building or permanent facility to reach the lost. He doesn't need me sitting around racking my brain trying to figure out what our church appearance should look like, what people will think their first time visiting, what the music sounds like to them.... he needs people passionate for the lost. He needs me to be totally focused on him and to let the Spirit move through me by staying in his word and being prayed up." He needs people to do what Jesus did...GO. Get a group of people who are passionate about sharing his word and truth and GO. Not to wait around to build a group of people who were book/bible smart so they could school the lost. God has called us where we are and it's for an obvious reason I think. I've been so comfortable with 'doing church' over the years that i sometimes lose sight of what God has put right in front of me. This new church plant and being mobile has totally taken me from my comfort zone...SWEET. its about time for my wake up call. feel like i've been asleep for a while


To check out that church, just click here


I don't know much about this church...and you can check it out if you want. But its not just about this particular church.... its about what God wants do with people who have a passion for the Gospel of Jesus Christ!!


I'll never forget what I heard Rob Bell say about Jesus' disciples... he called them the "not good enough's". What is that about? They were the ones who didn't make the list to be a disciple of a Rabbi while they were in school. They did not have the fullest knowledge of the scriptures to get that far. Ouch. So they had to take up the family trade... fishing. yippee. Jesus saw these guys, called them out and the rest is history. I was called out the moment I put my faith in Jesus Christ. We are all called out at that moment!! We are called to make fishers of men. We are not going to do any good at all if we are afraid to even just get our hooks wet! I so often leave the "hard" work (opening my mouth) up to the ones who have the schooling and the knowledge of the scriptures because after all...that's what they do and it looks easy for them.... I think it's cause I've been lazy and afraid.

new study!!

Ok... so i'm really excited about the new study coming up August 6th!!! Check it out on the Four Winds website by clicking here

Leadnow is coming...

looking for passion...

Just a few months until the Leadnow 2008 event in Dallas!! I worked for this organization “The Rightnow Campaign” about a year ago and got to catch a glimpse of what it means to be ‘missional’…and then to be passionate about it! I went to Orlando and D.C. in 2007 and got to hang out with peeps like David Crowder, Donald Miller, Dan Kimball, Margaret Feinberg, Todd Phillips and way too many others to list here. So, I invited a couple from my church to come check it out. Little did I know what God had in store for them…and little did they know?!?! Insane… but really awesome what God did and is continuing to do in their lives.

Leadnow is ALL about equipping leaders and those passionate about 20-30 somethings. Expose what you’re passionate about and unleash those passions into action. I’m not talking about “ok, I love to teach soccer…so, I’ll go home, get online, research and see how this might be something I could use”. NOPE… they have over 30 mission organizations there at the events that you can connect with right then and there and get plugged into. Missions? I used to associate missions with going out of the States, but I think Dwight Ozard states it well “The greatest mission filed we face is not in some faraway land. The strange and foreign culture most Americans fear is not across the ocean, it’s barely across the street. The culture most lost to the gospel is our own, our children and our neighbors. It’s a culture that can’t say two sentences without referring to a TV show or a pop song. It’s a culture more likely to have a body part pierced than to know why Sarah laughed. It’s a culture that we stopped loving and declared a culture war on”.

SO… that’s what happened to my friends who went to Leadnow in Orlando. They heard God's voice calling them and they acted on it! They were checking out all the speakers and decided to check out a video about children in Africa. Long story short… they are currently in Uganda! Sold everything they owned, house and all…packed it up and moved to Africa. Don’t know how many of us would put all our trust and faith in God to do something so bold. Much less, just to even entertain the idea when we hear the voice of God calling us. We usually ignore it or think it’s the Taco Bueno we ate the night before.

There are so many different mission opportunities here in our area…we just have to open our eyes and engage our creative, God given brains to realize what they are. I would love see us all put as much effort into our daily mission field as my friends in Uganda are. Just think about the impact we could have on our spiritually impoverished communities?!?

Want to go to Leadnow/Fusion? let me know...it's in November

Youth Camp

What a freak... i cant even understand a word he's saying...! gotta love our youth pastor

good stuff to chew

I read this again today from Mark Batterson's blog. I read it every now and then... just to keep me in check. It's so true and i wanted to just throw it up here. I guess this is like blogmixing?!?


A Gut Check for Growing Churches

The more we grow...

1) ...the greater the PRIVILEGE

I never want myself or anyone on our staff to have a sense of entitlement. We're only servants--I Cor. 3:5.

2) ...the more COMPLICATED things get

Sin complicates your life in negative ways. Growth complicates your life in positive ways. Learn to thank God for complications!

3) ...the harder it is to maintain UNITY

Vision is the key to unity! The larger you get the more frequently you need to cast vision. Unity doesn't happen by default--Eph 4:3.

4) ...the better STEWARDS we need to be

Growth raises the stakes. With greater responsibility comes greater accountability.

5) ...the more ABOVE REPROACH we need to be

I Corinthians 10:23 says, "Everything is permissible but not everything is beneficial." As our leadership expands, there can be an unhealthy and unholy tendency toward the permissible end of the spectrum! Guard against it. As our influence expands, leaders need to move toward the beneficial end of that spectrum!

6) ...the easier it is to exist for those who ALREADY BELONG

As a church grows it is very easy to give in to centripetal force--we become inward-focused and ingrown. The Great Commission is centrifugal--go into all the world.

7) ...the easier it is to do ministry out of MEMORY instead of ministry out of IMAGINATION

The beginning of the end for every entreprenurial organization is the moment they stop doing what got them to where they are! You need to keep making mistakes. You need to keeping experimenting. Don't repeat the past. Create the future!

8) ...the more we have to remind ourselves of WHY we're doing what we're doing and WHO we're doing it for

There is a fine line between building Thy Kingdom and My Kingdom. As your circle of influence grows, you need to stay Christ-centered.

9) ...the more you have to guard your heart

As you grow, so does the target on your back. Leaders need to keep a pure heart in the midst of criticism and temptation. The blessings of God backfire when they produce pride. Stay humble.

10) ...the bigger our DREAMS need to get

The size of our dreams is one of the best barometers of spiritual maturity. People with a big God have big dreams!

Drunk Fish

ok.... totally forgot about "Drunk Fish" night at my parents. Really excited about getting to hang out with my buddy Lee Hinton. My pops is cooking up some trout and I've not had trout in a while, so I'm gettin the itch to do some fly fishing el pronto!!!!

The closest place to do any fly fishing worth the drive, I think, is Beavers Bend State Park in OK. They have a fairly new fly shop and they are starting to stock it more and more up there. Need to set up a quick trip SOON!!!!!!

Sunday Reflections

WOW...had a really good time hanging out with the crew at Four Winds this morning. Looking forward to hearing about the Youth trip when they get back next week.

We looked at one of the 7 deadly sins "Lust" this morning and how our lack of satisfaction in God leads to lust. To hear this mornings service check out fourwindschurch.org