Well for the past couple of days, I have been M.I.A on my blog. Last week I spent from Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday and yesterday (I will be there today) at the FUSEBOX. We are in the middle of some major renovations of the place. We have knocked down a wall, built back another, built a new check-in counter in the back, rewired the lights and sound along with moving the sound board and light board.
We also just took over the lease for a new place in the mall are in the middle of trying to outfit that section as well. Today we have to try to finish up as much as possible as carpet and ceiling tiles will be arriving on Thursday. SO much to do and so little time!! If you have some time to spare head out to the FUSEBOX, we can put you to work!
By the way, HUGE / BIG Shout out to Dale Sellers and Jeff Scott. Dale is taking care of the demo and reconstruction of all that we are doing and Jeff is our electrical GENIUS. These guys have put in a lot of time and energy in to helping us outfit both places. Both are doing a GREAT job! Thanks guys for your willingness to serve and for all you are doing for the kingdom, so students can hear the love of Jesus! YOU ROCK!
See you at the FUSEBOX!!
Tuesday, August 22, 2006
Tuesday, August 15, 2006
Congratulations!!!!!
A BIG shout out to Jonathan and Amber Herron as they are expecting!! Check out Jon's Blog for all the details. Jon and Amber, we are so excited for the both of you! You both will be excellent parents. God Bless in this wonderful adventure!
Monday, August 14, 2006
Sometimes you just need to DUCK....
It seems that I am always posting after IGNITE. I hate that I do this, but I found myself evaluating on Monday and being excited about all that happened at IGNITE and then I hit it hard for the rest of the week to make it happen again! I need to be a little more faithful in posting, although there are probably not that many faithful readers, but to the FEW and FAITHFUL: THANK YOU!
Needless to say, last night was really good! First of all it was exciting that last week was not just a jump in numbers. We had 178 students attend last night. We also had 6 students accept Christ as Lord and Savior. In the past three weeks there have been 37 salvations (average of 12 a week)! That is only from God!!
We continued our series called BASIC and discuss our Freedom in Christ. IGNITE is continuing to go great, but the problem we are running into is that our SMALL groups are not as small as they could be. Please pray with me that God would continue to raise up leaders to join us in the ministry to the Middle School Students in the Anderson area.
Oh here is a pic of the set design after our first week. (This picture was taken as a reference for us to remember were things went, so it was not taken with much detail in mind!) It has changed for the better with more sandbags (instead of two rows, we now have 4 rows), etc.
By the way, we "got" the students last night. As a part of the introduction to the lesson, I was reviewing some of the things we had talked about and I said, "Also sometimes you just need to learn how to duck..." At that point David and Andrew jumped up from behind some sandbags that we were using as stage design and SOAKED the students with water guns! The faces we priceless! It was chaos! After we got calmed down again, I said, "Not only do you need to duck, but you need to watch your back..." Then John came out from behind the students and got them from behind! It was GREAT! Nothing to do with the message, but something a little fun to do!!
Peace out for now!
Needless to say, last night was really good! First of all it was exciting that last week was not just a jump in numbers. We had 178 students attend last night. We also had 6 students accept Christ as Lord and Savior. In the past three weeks there have been 37 salvations (average of 12 a week)! That is only from God!!
We continued our series called BASIC and discuss our Freedom in Christ. IGNITE is continuing to go great, but the problem we are running into is that our SMALL groups are not as small as they could be. Please pray with me that God would continue to raise up leaders to join us in the ministry to the Middle School Students in the Anderson area.
Oh here is a pic of the set design after our first week. (This picture was taken as a reference for us to remember were things went, so it was not taken with much detail in mind!) It has changed for the better with more sandbags (instead of two rows, we now have 4 rows), etc.
By the way, we "got" the students last night. As a part of the introduction to the lesson, I was reviewing some of the things we had talked about and I said, "Also sometimes you just need to learn how to duck..." At that point David and Andrew jumped up from behind some sandbags that we were using as stage design and SOAKED the students with water guns! The faces we priceless! It was chaos! After we got calmed down again, I said, "Not only do you need to duck, but you need to watch your back..." Then John came out from behind the students and got them from behind! It was GREAT! Nothing to do with the message, but something a little fun to do!!
Peace out for now!
Monday, August 07, 2006
Losing My Hair....
Last night, we had 179 students attend IGNITE last night! Wow! We also had 21 students accept Christ as their Lord and Savior. It was an awesome night! To top it off David, John, and lost all of our hair! Here are some pics from the event:
I am smiling, but I was thinking, "What in the world have I gotten myself into!!!"
I think Andrew is enjoying this a little too much!
There you go! All the hair is gone! (By the way, we made a deal with the students, if they would bring 160 students we would shave our heads. NOTE: When we made the deal about 3 weeks ago, we were running about 90 students!) Well, it was worth it to see 179 students hear the name of Jesus and 21 accept Him as Lord!
I am smiling, but I was thinking, "What in the world have I gotten myself into!!!"
I think Andrew is enjoying this a little too much!
There you go! All the hair is gone! (By the way, we made a deal with the students, if they would bring 160 students we would shave our heads. NOTE: When we made the deal about 3 weeks ago, we were running about 90 students!) Well, it was worth it to see 179 students hear the name of Jesus and 21 accept Him as Lord!
Sunday, August 06, 2006
Yes....
There were three heads that got shaved tonight at IGNITE! Pics and details about the night will come tomorrow.
Ready for tonight.....
I am sitting hear finishing up the lesson for tonight with our series, "BASIC" on the topic of GRACE. I am excited about it and I pray that God will move in the life of our students tonight. Anyways, the BIG question at hand is: Will the Middle School Staff be "BALD" after tonight? Not sure, I guess we will see. If we are, then I will post a picture of it later! PEACE!
Saturday, August 05, 2006
What's the address?!?!?
If you ever decide to go out and TP a house, you might want to make sure you have the right house! Check out this article and home video of what the police say, "This is the largest (toilet papering) case we've had in recent memory..." WOW! (Link via YSMarko)
Be careful all you youth pastors out there planning to take the kids!
Be careful all you youth pastors out there planning to take the kids!
Friday, August 04, 2006
Passion
The other day, I had the privilege to be in an interview for a position at our church. Of course, I was told to ask any questions that came to my mind. So…I did. There was one question impaticular that I was glad I asked. Not only to hear the person’s answer, but to ask myself this question.
The question was, “In ministry, there is always something else to do, always something coming around the corner, always another phone call or letter, or email to write. Your time will always be filled with something to do. What is it that you enjoy doing that is a “release” for you?”
We get tired, which can lead to burnout if we are not careful. Don’t always go and go and go and go that you end up neglecting everything else in your life. This is something that I MUST be careful of in my life!
Although, every night when I am going to bed and I am tired from a good day’s work, I am still thinking about ministry. I am still thinking about my students.
Recently, I started running (supposedly to train for a half-marathon) which has become a release for me. Needless to say, that when I run, I am thinking about ministry. Last week I was running on Wednesday and I remember finishing up my sermon for Sunday while I was running. I am constantly thinking, dreaming, planning for ministry. I can’t stop thinking about it! Some would call me possessed, some may call me stupid, but I pray that it is seen as PASSION; passion for Jesus, for the lost, for middle school students, for the church, and so much more.
At the end of the day, I am glad that I spent my energy and gave it my all, but I am so glad that I don’t get “weary, sick, tired” OF ministry! Sometimes, it is so easy to get sick OF ministry. I pray that when I get physically tired that I rest, but I also pray that I NEVER get sick OF ministry. May God continue to swell up a passion in me that continues to grow and burn! Thank you Jesus for allowing us to be a part of your Kingdom work!
The question was, “In ministry, there is always something else to do, always something coming around the corner, always another phone call or letter, or email to write. Your time will always be filled with something to do. What is it that you enjoy doing that is a “release” for you?”
We get tired, which can lead to burnout if we are not careful. Don’t always go and go and go and go that you end up neglecting everything else in your life. This is something that I MUST be careful of in my life!
Although, every night when I am going to bed and I am tired from a good day’s work, I am still thinking about ministry. I am still thinking about my students.
Recently, I started running (supposedly to train for a half-marathon) which has become a release for me. Needless to say, that when I run, I am thinking about ministry. Last week I was running on Wednesday and I remember finishing up my sermon for Sunday while I was running. I am constantly thinking, dreaming, planning for ministry. I can’t stop thinking about it! Some would call me possessed, some may call me stupid, but I pray that it is seen as PASSION; passion for Jesus, for the lost, for middle school students, for the church, and so much more.
At the end of the day, I am glad that I spent my energy and gave it my all, but I am so glad that I don’t get “weary, sick, tired” OF ministry! Sometimes, it is so easy to get sick OF ministry. I pray that when I get physically tired that I rest, but I also pray that I NEVER get sick OF ministry. May God continue to swell up a passion in me that continues to grow and burn! Thank you Jesus for allowing us to be a part of your Kingdom work!
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
NewSpring Middle School Staff
I had the awesome privilege to meet with the greatest Middle School Ministry Staff in the world! Andrew, David, and John do a great job at serving our students! So many awesome things are coming our way. I have been doing a lot of brainstorming about our ministry and how we function. In the future there will be changes to our volunteer leader structure, follow-up procedures, service evaluation, volunteer leader evaluation and interviews, and much more! That is a whole lot of stuff. The great thing about it is that God is totally in control of everything.
Andrew is the quiet, humble leader. He does an awesome job of leading the band and our students in worship each week. He takes time to prayerfully choose each song, work with me on set list, and spend as much time with students as possible!
David is all over the place. He is primary responsible for our follow up procedure. Each week he makes sure that all of our new students get a letter, phone call, handwritten letter, etc.! He also shares most of the responsibility for the care of our volunteers and campus group planning with John!
John is MR. CAPS LOCK! JOHN ALWAYS WRITES IN CAPS LOCK. IT QUITE A THING TO READ. JOHN IS OUR NEWEST ADDITION TO THE STAFF. JOHN SPENDS A LOT OF HIS TIME WRITING SKETCHES FOR VIDEOS, BRIANSTORMING ANY WILD IDEA THAT I COME UP WITH AND MUCH MORE. He also shares most of the responsibility for the care of our volunteers and campus group planning with David!
Both David and John are also preparing to speak at IGNITE in the very near future! John will be speaking on August 27th and David on September 3rd. They are going to do a great job!
All these guys are great! Thank you so much for your dedication and loyalty to Jesus Christ, NewSpring Church, the Middle School Students, and to me.
I look forward to see where God takes us in the future and I thankful to know that I have the right pieces in the right place and the right time for God to take us there! Keep up the GREAT work!
Andrew is the quiet, humble leader. He does an awesome job of leading the band and our students in worship each week. He takes time to prayerfully choose each song, work with me on set list, and spend as much time with students as possible!
David is all over the place. He is primary responsible for our follow up procedure. Each week he makes sure that all of our new students get a letter, phone call, handwritten letter, etc.! He also shares most of the responsibility for the care of our volunteers and campus group planning with John!
John is MR. CAPS LOCK! JOHN ALWAYS WRITES IN CAPS LOCK. IT QUITE A THING TO READ. JOHN IS OUR NEWEST ADDITION TO THE STAFF. JOHN SPENDS A LOT OF HIS TIME WRITING SKETCHES FOR VIDEOS, BRIANSTORMING ANY WILD IDEA THAT I COME UP WITH AND MUCH MORE. He also shares most of the responsibility for the care of our volunteers and campus group planning with David!
Both David and John are also preparing to speak at IGNITE in the very near future! John will be speaking on August 27th and David on September 3rd. They are going to do a great job!
All these guys are great! Thank you so much for your dedication and loyalty to Jesus Christ, NewSpring Church, the Middle School Students, and to me.
I look forward to see where God takes us in the future and I thankful to know that I have the right pieces in the right place and the right time for God to take us there! Keep up the GREAT work!
Monday, July 31, 2006
BASIC: LOVE
Last night was AWESOME! We began a new series at IGNITE called "BASIC." We are spending the next 4 weeks looking at some basic elements of the Christian life. Last night we talked about LOVE (How to love others) - 1 John 3:16-18. The sermon points were: 1. Love is Sacrificial; 2. Love is Generous; 3. Love takes Action.
We had 10 students accept Jesus as their Savior and Lord! WOW! It was great! Also we had a total of 143 middle school students hanging out with 30 leaders. What a great ratio of close to 5 students to 1 leader! God is continuing to do some awesome things at IGNITE!
We had 10 students accept Jesus as their Savior and Lord! WOW! It was great! Also we had a total of 143 middle school students hanging out with 30 leaders. What a great ratio of close to 5 students to 1 leader! God is continuing to do some awesome things at IGNITE!
Friday, July 28, 2006
BASIC......
I am so stoked about a new series that we are starting this week at IGNITE called BASIC. We are going to be going to boot camp and learning about some basic things about the Christian faith. We have decorated the stage to look like an army bunker, with sandbags, camo netting, ammunition boxes, bared wire (not real, just looks like it), and much more! It is going to be an awesome night!
Needless to say, David is going to shave his head if we have over 160 students present! It should be awesome!
Needless to say, David is going to shave his head if we have over 160 students present! It should be awesome!
Friday, June 23, 2006
LONG TIME & NEW STUFF.....
It has been a long time since I last posted. Summers - you have to love them! They are always filled with LOTS of activites and things to get done in ministry! We just completed our summer student camp at NewSpring. We went to Panama City Beach, FL and stayed at the Majestic Beach Towers! WOW! It was aweosme. Perry spoke, Lee and Band lead worship. God did some amazing things down there!
We have a lot more coing this summer in student minsitry! Be listening at the services for details. Also I just got invited to a new service called eBible.com. It is Beta right now, but is really awesome! I have three invites remaining. If you would like to be invited, please leave a comment and I will send you an invite! Trust me, it is awesome! Check out the blog for more information: http://blog.ebible.com
We have a lot more coing this summer in student minsitry! Be listening at the services for details. Also I just got invited to a new service called eBible.com. It is Beta right now, but is really awesome! I have three invites remaining. If you would like to be invited, please leave a comment and I will send you an invite! Trust me, it is awesome! Check out the blog for more information: http://blog.ebible.com
Monday, May 29, 2006
MEMORIAL DAY.....
Memorial Day is always fun! Today, I woke up at 10 AM, ate a bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios and read the paper. Then Deanna came home for lunch. I love being able to have lunch with my wife at home. After we ate, we sat on the couch and watched TV, while see fell asleep. After that I vacuumed the floors and clean the hardwood floors in the den and kitchen. I also installed a ventilation fan/light combo in the master bathroom! Just a reminder, attics are HOT! I was sweating all over the place! CRAZY!!
Now, Deanna is home and we are getting ready to head over the big metropolis of Pendleton, SC. We are going to a get together at the home of Saunders Gibbes, JT, Eddie, and John F. Should be lots of fun! I will post some pics later, from my NEW digital camera!!!
Now, Deanna is home and we are getting ready to head over the big metropolis of Pendleton, SC. We are going to a get together at the home of Saunders Gibbes, JT, Eddie, and John F. Should be lots of fun! I will post some pics later, from my NEW digital camera!!!
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
WHAT ELSE WHOULD I DO.........
What else would I do if I wasn't in the ministry? Yesterday this question was posed to me. My answer:
I do not know! I cannot see myself doing anything else. This is what God has called me to! He has called me to ministry, specifically to students and their families. For me, serving in ministry has to be something that it is the only thing you can do! If you can see yourself doing something else, go and do it!! My passion for ministry is something that is deep down inside of me, I can feel it, it is deep inside my bones, I think about it, I dream about it! Serving the Living God through ministry is all I WANT to do!!
So I pose this question, what are you passionate about? For me, it is serving God by serving and ministering to students! You may ask what do you mean by passionate, passion, etc. Try this: what do you dream about, think about, love being a part of?
I do not know! I cannot see myself doing anything else. This is what God has called me to! He has called me to ministry, specifically to students and their families. For me, serving in ministry has to be something that it is the only thing you can do! If you can see yourself doing something else, go and do it!! My passion for ministry is something that is deep down inside of me, I can feel it, it is deep inside my bones, I think about it, I dream about it! Serving the Living God through ministry is all I WANT to do!!
So I pose this question, what are you passionate about? For me, it is serving God by serving and ministering to students! You may ask what do you mean by passionate, passion, etc. Try this: what do you dream about, think about, love being a part of?
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
THE PIECES......
The pieces are starting to come together for IGNITE, the Middle School Ministry at NewSpring Church. Since January 2006, God has given me the wonderful calling to be the pastor to the middle school students of NewSpring. Since that time, I have spent a lot of time in prayer, spent time dreaming, spent time studying, and spent time investing in people. Today, we hired another piece to puzzle as we continue to build the ministry and staff that God desires. Andrew, David, and John make up a wonderful team of people who love Jesus and love students! Each one has so many different gifts and talents! I cannot wait to see all of us mesh and see the strengths blossom in each one of us! Welcome to the team John!
I am excited about what the future holds for IGNITE, FUSE (High School Ministry), and NewSpring Church! God is already doing some awesome things in the lives of our students and I know that it is going to get even better! My prayer is that we will stay faithful to God's call on our lives!!
I am excited about what the future holds for IGNITE, FUSE (High School Ministry), and NewSpring Church! God is already doing some awesome things in the lives of our students and I know that it is going to get even better! My prayer is that we will stay faithful to God's call on our lives!!
USE CAUTION.....
Use caution in heading over to Perry's Blog! You might just be offended! Check this link out!
Sunday, May 14, 2006
Tonight at IGNITE....
Tonight at IGNITE, we had an awesome night! We are in the middle of a 5 week series called "Exposed," giving a biblical view on sex. Interesting topic tonight, we discussed "sexual sin." It was a semi-tense night! I think that my students are still in shock of some of the terms that I used. It was awesome to see their faces of shock! Next week, a genuine Q&A with the students!! ! Reading through the questions it should be very interesting!
Here are some of the questions:
Here are some of the questions:
- Is making out wrong?
- How far is too far before getting married?
- Why do people look at porn?
- How far is too far? (Be specific!)
- How do you know if a guy is looking at you lustfully?
- How do you dress modestly?
- What do you do if you have already committed sexual sin?
- What do you do when a guy wants to go further than you want too? How do you say no?
Thursday, May 11, 2006
Check this out......
Do me a favor and head on over to Mr. Lee McDerment's Blog and read his post titled: "Calling All Critics." I have say....WOW! Homerun!
Wednesday, May 10, 2006
INTRODUCING......
Jonathan Ellis Neighbors
Born: May 8, 2006
Time: 6:37 AM
Weight: 9lbs. 6 oz.
Length: 21 inches
Parents: Ashley & Nathan Neighbors
Brother: Anderson
Time: 6:37 AM
Weight: 9lbs. 6 oz.
Length: 21 inches
Parents: Ashley & Nathan Neighbors
Brother: Anderson
LONG TIME.....
It has been a long time since I posted on this blog. Since March 1, God has been doing some awesome things in my life, my family, IGNITE Middle School Ministry, and NewSpring Church. At this time we are gearing up for the summer and focusing on our summer camp, The Gauntlet, which will be off the chain! Lee McD is going to be leading worship, Perry Noble is going to preaching, Majestic Beach Towers is providing the digs for the week, needless to say it is going to be AWESOME! To all studnets involved in IGNITE & FUSE, sign up TODAY!! You do not want to miss this!
**Side Note: March 8, 2006 at 6:37 AM, Jonathan Ellis Neighbors entered into this world! He weighed 9 lbs. 6ozs., and 21 inches long! Deanna and I are so blessed to have another nephew. Nathan and Ashley are wonderful parents and are thankful to have a healthy little boy! Anderson, his big brother, is very excited!! Pray for them as they go home today!!***
**Side Note: March 8, 2006 at 6:37 AM, Jonathan Ellis Neighbors entered into this world! He weighed 9 lbs. 6ozs., and 21 inches long! Deanna and I are so blessed to have another nephew. Nathan and Ashley are wonderful parents and are thankful to have a healthy little boy! Anderson, his big brother, is very excited!! Pray for them as they go home today!!***
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