Update from the American Idol Series

The American Idol series is creating buzzzzz around The Creek.Today's service was packed with 2,041 people (unofficial count).  The remarkable thing for me was the response time at the conclusion of the service.There were between 10 - 15 people in each of the three services to raise their hand to make a decision for Christ. That's special.  I was raised in a church where we went seven years and only saw one decision for Christ.I love it that Stevens Creekers are passionate about inviting their friends and family members to come to faith.

About Phil Stacey.  A lot of times you may see performers on stage and you may wonder what they are like when the stage lights are turned off.  Phil and his wife Kendra are the "real deal".  They were genuine, sincere, and very humble.  He said several times that it was an honor to sing at The Creek.  I was not expecting him to say anything like that and for him to say it two or three times let me know that he really meant it. He and Kendra were very kind.  I also found out that our own Melissa Lloyd (Kevin's wife) was in a musical group with Phil and Kendra while they were in college. It's a small world.

I asked them about their kids and they said that there kids hated to miss their home church, Hendersonville Church of God, Hendersonville, Tennessee.  Phil's dad is the pastor.  His kids were at their grandparents today.  

Trivia side note:  The Hendersonville Church of God was the home church for what country star?  Johnny Cash.   Thirty years ago, the pastor of that church was John Colbaugh.  Pastor John led Johnny Cash to the Lord and baptized him in the Jordan River.  You know that you are six steps from knowing everybody.Well, when Pastor Colbaugh left Tennessee, he moved to Louisiana where he was my wife's pastor growing up.  Pastor John married Patty and me back in the 1980s. Patty's dad was the treasurer of the Monroe Church of God and I can remember him showing me checks to the Monroe Church from Johnny Cash. Where your name typically goes on the check, his checks read "House of Cash".

Pastor Colbaugh passed away a few months back.  He was the nicest guy that you would ever meet.  At 62, we thought that he had many more years, but God had another plan. 

Six Steps again.  Do you know who Pastor Colbaugh's Children's Pastor was?  Our own Bob Wilson.  Yes, a few weeks after Pastor Colbaugh died, Bob joined our staff.  Okay... it's a small world.

Do you want to hear another small world story?  Right after the third service today, I met a guy that sang in Phil and Kendra Stacey's wedding.  He just moved to Augusta a few weeks ago and has been attending The Creek.

I hope you have a great week.  Pastor Dave and I are headed to a conference featuring some of the greatest churches in America. It will be held outside of Raleigh, NC.  So, if I am pumped up when you see me on Wednesday, you will know why.

Be blessed.

American Idol Series Begins with "An Opportunity for a Lifetime"

This Sunday, April 19, 2009, Stevens Creek will be introducing the new series, American Idol. We are very excited about this series because we believe that it is an perfect opportunity to invite your friends to attend church with you. There will be some hilarious moments in the day's program including some "auditions" to sing on stage at The Creek.

As I have been preparing for this week's message: "The Opportunity for a Lifetime," I ran across a Steven Furtick blog post that made me think. Hmmm... I wonder if I will use this Sunday? Come and find out.
The lifetime of the opportunity
“The opportunity of a lifetime must be seized in the lifetime of the opportunity.”Leonard Ravenhill
Every opportunity has an expiration date. Exceptional people, churches, and businesses possess the agility to move at the speed of God. This usually means merging into oncoming traffic at breakneck speed.
A lot of people I know are more fearful of making a wrong move than making no move at all. Not me. I’ve been alive long enough to know that if I just sit at the intersection after God has given a green light, He’ll only honk a few times before He passes me by in the other lane. Doesn’t mean He’ll stop loving me or stop using me. It just means that that opportunity is gone. Forever.
If you are currently considering an great, godly, risky opportunity, consider this:The cost of missing out can be greater than the cost of messing up.The opportunity of a lifetime must be seized in the lifetime of the opportunity.

Be Positive ... speak LIFE !

Imagine that you are stressed, tired, and drained. It’s 5:30 PM and you are on your way home. It has been a busy day and a difficult week. You have been on the phone most of the day working through logistical problems with a recent issue that was completely out of your control, but somebody had to handle and that somebody happened to be you.

When you get home, your spouse has been cooped up with a two year old all day long, new construction down the street cut the cable and telephone lines and your house is disconnected from cyber space. All you want is solitude; all your spouse wants is community. All you get is frustration.

Psychologist tell us that every day a man begins his day with 10,000 words and a woman starts out with 25,000 words. Most men use up their allotment by 2:00 PM; most women, on the other hand, never have a shortage of things to says. So dinner time, there is a long list of questions with corresponding short answers. One spouse feels neglected, the other feels attacked. They both long for sweet community, but their idea of community is vastly different. They long for connection, but end up in conflict. If our conflict is not resolved, over time it intensifies and threatens the bond that holds us together.

Have you ever been in a conversation that focused on a couple splitting up? Of course you have. When you first hear about it, the typical question is: “Is there another person in the equation?” In a recent article published by the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, the number one cause of relational breakup is not infidelity, nor is it money. They cite the number one problem in troubled relationships is poor communication

How many times have we heard, “communication is the key,” yet we never invest time or energy in learning new communication skills. We are going to spend the next two weeks in our new series called, WordCount. Hopefully, these talks will help us make our words count.

People tend to underestimate the power of their words. We say things that we do not mean and mean things that we fail to say. The Bible provides insight into the power of communication when it says in Proverbs 18:21.

Proverbs 18:21
The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.

The Message translates it like this:

Proverbs 18:21
Words kill, words give life; they're either poison or fruit--you choose.

All of us are given over ten thousand words every day, how are we using them. Are we using them to encourage or discourage? Are we speaking life or are we speaking death? It’s time to speak LIFE.