It's beginning to look a lot like LAUNCH...

This past week was a full one. Sunday we observed at Aviator Church (another church plant that launched a year ago in Derby, KS). We left Andover at about 6:40 AM to observe their set-up at 7:00. An early morning, but it was a great time of learning and observation. Monday we had our first official staff meeting, which went excellent. We spent some time catching one another up in our personal areas and we also spent time just praying for the community of Andover and for launch. Tuesday we hosted yet another "Summer Fun Day" at the Andover Library. The library group is starting to become a bit more consistent, so it's nice to meet new people as well as catch up with mom's and kiddos we've met before. Many are starting to really show a great interest in launch. Wednesday, I got to spend most of my day planning for children's ministry. I started planning Sunday's out and worked on reviewing our children's ministry curriculum, Kidmo. Whoo!! So wonderful. Thursday, we hosted another "Summer Fun Day" at the Library, and rested Friday. Saturday, the real excitement started. Central Christian Church, another church in East Wichita is partnering with Epic and supporting us by allowing us to come into their Saturday night Service, 5:33, and ask for volunteers on Sunday morning to help us get Epic up and running. We were officially introduced this past Saturday night during service. Central has such a heart for church planting. After service we were able to connect with some potential volunteers. It was an AWESOME time for us. God really showed us himself that night. Each person that we talked with fit in places where we need people to fit! It was so exciting. This morning, Kent, Jory, Damion and I headed out at about 10:00 AM and did some door-to-door advertising and this evening we met with our launch team for a worship service and a time of fellowship at a local park! The days are busy but good. Keep praying, harder now than ever! God is GOOD.

The Adventure Continues...

And the adventure continues. So much has been going on the past couple of weeks, I can't believe it's already mid-July and summer's closing up! Well I have done lots of traveling in the past few weeks. I went from Colorado Springs to Dallas to Joplin. I was the camp missionary at Cyokamo Camp about a week and a half ago. That was a wonderful time! I got to hang out with kids (400 or so to be exact) and talk a little bit about church planting with them. They were a pretty awesome bunch. They raised over $1,500 for Epic Missions. Such a blessing! Then, last Sunday, we partnered with the YMCA in Andover to do, what we call, "Summer Countdowns." Epic comes in and we set up our moonbounces, have free-throw contests, prizes, and homemade Italian Creme Sodas (My Personal fav). Yum, Yum! On Tuesday we hosted "Summer Fun Days" at the Andover Library and that was a wonderful time as well. Again, we set up our moonbounces, handed out free popsicles, blew bubbles, drew with sidewalk chalk and hung out with kids. We sat up to meet the kids and their moms right after story hour concluded. One of the coolest things about church planting has been getting out into the community and just meeting families. Jory, our brand new worship pastor also came on Tuesday. Our staff is now up to 5...woo! He's here for good and is preparing for launch. Wednesday night we had a "Welcome" BBQ for him and a bunch of people came over to our house for that. Also on Wednesday night, Trista and I attended our first midnight premier--yes, we went to see Harry Potter (nerds, I know)! We also went bulk shopping for our children's ministry. That was AWESOME. I can't wait to start up and meet the kiddos! As we are getting closer please be praying for this stuff:

• Perseverance, perseverance, perseverance and strength!!
• Our launch team and our new worship pastor, Jory
• The Epic community God is formulating...
• ANDOVER (seriously this is huge)
• Our mass advertising day on August 29th and youth groups/small groups to help us out
• LAUNCH on September 13, 2009 (Can't wait, I'm so antsy!)

Work Worth Doing

Psalm 40. Read it. Last night, in the middle of prayer during my devo time, I was completely overwhelmed by the Spirit. I was praying for the community of Andover and I was overcome with a sense of urgency and passion. I was somewhat bothered by a comment that had been made to me earlier that day about having a job in ministry for the summer and how it's not a "real job." It made me really stop and think. Which is where Pslam 40 comes in. Psalm 40 is probably one of my favorite pieces of scripture. It was never one that stuck out to me until last year when I was at a prayer meeting at a conference in Colorado Springs. I was in a room of about 45 people and they were praying, participating in intercession and praying scripture all over the place. There was one specific moment when a woman in the room started reading Pslam 40 and my ears were just drawn to her voice as she read. Every time I read it or quote it now, I can only hear her. She read it and prayed after with such passion. As I was reading last night the Lord just kept speaking "trust" to me. That Psalm is all about trust. It's about being a sinner saved by grace who trusts in someone higher and greater.

You know, there should be so many reasons why planting this church should not work. Kent, Trista and I were in prayer this morning and we all three just kept saying, we don't have enough money, we don't have enough people, we don't have enough this, we don't have enough that, BUT what we do have is Jesus. That's enough. That seals the deal. He is someone that can't ever be taken away. To me, God has been preparing my heart for this summer and this opportunity for a very long time. It's not about money, or resources, or having it all together to me because God has never failed me before. He's always provided. He's a good dad. That makes this as "real" to me as ever.

As I was at the throne of God in prayer last night I just kept asking for God to pour out his love on the people of Andover who don't know Him. I've honestly never been so passionate about anything in my life. This stuff is real. Because of Christ's love, I can freely run to God's throne where I belong everyday, but other people cannot. People are lost. If I may blog bluntly, this world is asleep. It's asleep and the bridegroom is coming. This is the most real job I've ever had. I may not be paid a fortune, but I hope, one day, I get to see people in Heaven who otherwise might not have been there if it wasn't for Epic Church. The work that God is doing around here is real. It's important. Therefore, I trust in the one who has no limits-- my deliverer, and above all, my provider. This is work, to me, that is worth doing.

P.S. Jory said YES to the worship position! Guess what that means beautiful people? We have a worship pastor! WEEEEEEEEEEE!!

Service, burning for Jesus, Date night with Peter!

Another great weekend has come and gone! Yesterday Epic volunteered at the new YMCA in Andover. The Y just recently opened, and their outdoor water park's grand opening was yesterday. We helped grill free hot dogs, hand out free pop, baseball tickets, and sign people up for door prize drawings! It was pretty awesome to get out and serve in the community. We met tons of cool people and had the chance to chat it up with them. I also got a ridiculous sunburn on the back of my leg...burning for Jesus. The things we do...:) just kidding. But really, if you ever get the chance to check out the Andover water park...NIKE (just do it)!!!! It's pretty sweet. I wanted to trade in my epic shirt for a swim suit yesterday and take a ride on the lazy river. So fresh.

Also, last night, Kent and Jenni went out to dinner and a movie with a couple that we met at the Marble Slab one Tuesday night so Trista and I got to have a date night with our favorite 9 month-old stud, Peter Wagner! Great times at the Wagner household. Then, this morning, we headed over to attend church at Gracepoint, a 6 year-old church plant in Wichita. They meet at Northwest High School, and are gearing up and getting ready to head into a permanent facitility sometime in 2010. It was awesome to be a part of their family for a Sunday. The atmosphere was so real. People were themselves. That's what I really appreciated about Gracepoint. My favorite part of the service came when the pastor called for people who needed prayer to stand up. Then, people around them just went and laid hands on those who needed prayer. I loved that. There's such a bond in praying together.

Tonight we have a launch team meeting at the Y, and we are spending the rest of the afternoon relaxing and gearing up for another week.

An Epic Summer

I can't believe summer has finally arrived! It's almost JUNE! For the last few months I have been anticipating summer because of the work I get to do with Epic Church in Andover, Kansas. For those of you who don't know, Epic is a new church plant spearheaded by my high school youth pastor and his wife, Kent and Jenni Wagner. They moved to Andover in January and have been planning to do a church plant for quite awhile now. I am so stoked to love God and love people this summer and represent Epic in the most positive way possible! It's so great to be a part of team with a vision that is bigger than ourselves, and a vision that can only be fulfilled by God alone. It's amazing to see how God continually provides -- church planting is a scary thing, it's an ultimate step of faith, that's for sure. Today was my first day at work and I'm already exhausted! One of my best friends from high school, Trista, is interning with me as well so we've gotten right down to work. Both of us got jobs to head for the summer already and we've gone straight to work. Here's some of the stuff that we've worked on today and a few insights I've had already:

• I am working on heading the summer Mini-Mission teams and events that will be going on this summer. My job, in this realm, is to basically recruit groups to come help us advertise Epic to the community of Andover.
• Looking at this job, I realized how God has continually been preparing me in ways I didn't even realize throughout the school year. By being in Winfield at college for a year, I know of many potential youth groups in many of the surrouding areas that could come help us out. Everything just flowed today, it was sweeeeeet!
• I've also realized how important the power of prayer and personal relationship is during this season. I am already exhausted from work and I've only been here a day! Please pray for strength, guidance, perseverance and wisdom for all of us here on staff at Epic.
• I totally, totally dig getting to work in coffee shops and Panera bread. Woot, woot for free wi-fi AND building relationships at the same time
• Trista is working on planning block parties and other evangelistic things...pretty SWEET. This all leads up to Epic's launch on September 13, 2009. Can't wait!!

With that said, I will end this post on this note. The other day I was reading in the book of 2 Thessalonians 3:1-5, which states:

"Finally, brothers, pray for us that the message of the Lord may spread rapidly and be honored, just as it was with you. And pray that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men, for not everyone has faith. But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen and protect you from the evil one. We have confidence in the Lord that you are doing and will continue doing the things we command. May the Lord direct your hearts into God's love and Christ's perseverance."

Paul's request for prayer from the Thessalonians in this passage floors me, and it's really become my prayer for the community of Andover. May the message of salvation spread rapdily and be honored. And, as God's people, may our hearts be directed into his love and Christ's perseverance. What a b-e-a-utifully appropriate request!