...to everyday life

First-time Guest Comments

Here's the latest from cards we send to first-time attenders:

Woodbury 

• I loved the service. I am new to church and I found the service very engaging. The nursery was amazing and my son seemed very happy. Everyone was very friendly and willing to show me around and answer any questions! 
  
• I was turned off by the secular “Rout 66” song/flashing lights at the beginning of the service. I would have preferred something with a more reverent atmosphere for entrance into worship. This was my only major concern. Otherwise, good worship, sermon, and friendly atmosphere.  
• Good: big screens, free coffee, barn views, spacious lobby, comfy lounge, comfy church chairs, personable pastor, friendly people, good worship team, free mug/candy. Odd: unattended communion stations, no traditional songs.  

Hudson 

• Great job! People were very welcoming. My children enjoyed the children’s ministry programs. I appreciated the message and the style of music as well. The only red flag was your very small size given that you’ve been around for 2 years.

Passed by Route 66 on our Road Trip

On Our Road Trip

Lois and I are on a road trip, enjoying seeing friends and relatives. Some highlights so far include:

• Paella at my aunt's. Lobster, crab, etc. on rice. Awesome.
• Seeing my nephew Henry Blake playing ball.
• Seeing my best man (one of two, my cousin Henry was the other) and his family after about 15 years. We were inseparable in high school (see picture).
• Seeing Aaron play at Cornerstone (see picture). Wild place. Fun.
• Lunch at Primanti Bros. in the Strip District in Pittsburgh with the Westurns. The sandwiches were delicious and one of a kind (meat, fries, coleslaw, cheese, tomato). Or was the highlight walking 4.5 miles with them (half of it going up a mountain)! Guess which one.

First-time Guest Comments

Here are the latest comments we received back from the card we send to first-time guests:

Woodbury

• I was literally on my knees 2 weeks prior to attending church and with help through prayer from family and friends God set me back on my feet. I met...beautiful Christians but God used...to show me the non-judgemental (mainly of other religions) that so many legalistic Christians carry. Thank you to all and thank you God!
• Thank you for having us, we will be back again this weekend!

Hudson

• I enjoyed your church. The movie theater is actually a nice place, the sermon was applicable to life, people were engaged in worship, and I enjoyed the small church feel. I also really appreciated your service mentality – that you cancelled “church” the week before to go BE the church at Feed My Starving Children. I hope to come again.

Quarterly Survey Results and Reflections

Here are the results of our third quarterly survey of the ministry year (our year starts in September). The numbers in parenthesis are for the second and third quarters.

• Volunteer participation in a Five Oaks ministry: 60% (63%; 66%)
• Volunteer participation in and/or outside of Five Oaks: 15% (17%; 23%)
• Invited someone to Five Oaks: 50% (50%; 51%)
• Read and reflect on Scripture at least 5 times per week: 52% (previous quarters asked about three times or more per week and the results were 60% and 53%)
• P.E.A.C.E. participation since September: 78% (77%; 74%)

Some of these number are bound to go down most years as we get further into the year. We set a goal over a year ago of 80% in P.E.A.C.E. and I would have hoped the Feed event would get us there. Surprised it did not. But we still have the summer. We're pretty excited about the jump in daily Bible reading and reflection. The number is lower, but the frequency we asked about is higher. This bodes well for our growth in maturity.

Here are the results of our third quarterly survey of the ministry year (our year starts in September). The numbers in parenthesis are for the second and third quarters.

• Volunteer participation in a Five Oaks ministry: 60% (63%; 66%)
• Volunteer participation in and/or outside of Five Oaks: 15% (17%; 23%)
• Invited someone to Five Oaks: 50% (50%; 51%)
• Read and reflect on Scripture at least 5 times per week: 52% (previous quarters asked about three times or more per week and the results were 60% and 53%)
• P.E.A.C.E. participation since September: 78% (77%; 74%)

Some of these number are bound to go down most years as we get further into the year. We set a goal over a year ago of 80% in P.E.A.C.E. and I would have hoped the Feed event would get us there. Surprised it did not. But we still have the summer. We're pretty excited about the jump in daily Bible reading and reflection. The number is lower, but the frequency we asked about is higher. This bodes well for our growth in maturity.

150, 100, 100 and a Pie in the Face

That's 150 excited kids in VBS, 100 energetic volunteers, 100 pair of shoes for Karen kids (the goal) and a pie in the face for me and some other staff if the kids reach their goal. Pretty cool.

Ripples

I got this email yesterday from a Five Oaker about the Feed My Starving Children event. I think you'll be excited to read how the event's impact continues to ripple.

I just wanted to pass along some exciting donation information which resulted from the FMSC event at Five Oaks.  Our family...attended one of the sessions that weekend.  My husband had never been to one of these events.  He was very touched by the issue.  About a week after attending he was able to direct some corporate funding from his work toward both FMSC and the MN food shelf ($30,000 was donated to FMSC and $17,000 to the Minnesota Food shelf).  I just wanted to let you know the impact that this had on our family and most importantly people in need.
 
Thank you--we loved attending the event!

First-time Guest Comments

Here are the latest comments we received back from the card we send to first-time guests:

Woodbury

• I was greeted the minute I walked in through the door, given a quick tour before the service, and introduced to the lead Pastor. I’d thank you all by name, but I am really bad with them – sorry!
• DEFINITELY a “Baby-Christian” church. I need sermons a bit more deeper than “Road Trip.” Nice church; music invigorating. Length of service good. Congrats on your outreach program!

Feed Event Dance Video

Feed My Starving Children

First-time Guest Comments

Here is the latest we got back from the cards we send out to first-time guests:

Woodbury

Enjoyed the worship and liked the atmosphere of your sanctuary. The message was really good – I appreciate that it wasn’t “sugar-coated.” Thanks.

First Impressions Quarterly Report

Here are the averages for the last quarter responses from the cards we send first-time attenders. The numbers in the parenthesis are from the last two quarters.

Woodbury Campus Averages

• I felt welcome when I visited Five Oaks Church (on a 5-point scale, 5 = agree strongly): 4.39 (4.57; 4.59)
• I felt that my child(ren) was/were well taken care of during our visit: 4.33 (4.67; 4.5) 
• How likely is it that you would recommend Five Oaks to a friend or colleague?  (On a scale of 0 = Not likely at all, 5 = Neutral, 10 = Extremely Likely): 7.64 (8.48; 8.0)

Hudson Campus Averages

• I felt welcome when I visited Five Oaks Church (on a 5-point scale, 5 = agree strongly): 3.8 (4.0; 4.63)
• I felt that my child(ren) was/were well taken care of during our visit: 5.0 (4.0; 5.0)
• How likely is it that you would recommend Five Oaks to a friend or colleague? (On a scale of 0 = Not likely at all, 5 = Neutral, 10 = Extremely Likely): 7.8 (7.62; 8.09)

It's Not a Book

It's not a book, per se. Philippians is a letter. Letters are meant to be read in one sitting. To be understood as a whole. And that's what we'll be doing every week in this series. We'll be reading this letter once per week for eight weeks in one sitting.

Since our group met last night, I completed Day One of the "Detours" Group Life on Philippians 1:12-30 this morning. That prepares me for the next meeting while getting me into the Word daily. My assignment today was to read the whole letter in one sitting. As familiar as I am with the letter, it was fresh. Since I'm reading it out of my most recent experiences as a pastor, I "felt" it differently than before.

I felt Paul's burning desire to see this church mature in Christ. I felt his passion to lead the way as fellow believer on this road trip of spiritual growth. He seems less concerned with what's happening to him and how others have hurt him, and he's focused on their spiritual well being. The dangers from within the church (conflict) and from outside (bad theology) concern him, and he appeals to them in a very emotional way--overtly affectionate, but determined and protective.

I kept thinking of him actually writing or dictating this letter from his imprisonment, wanting every word to count because this letter had to stand in for his personal presence. But I also imagine him spending a lot of time sharing his thoughts and concerns with Epaphroditus who would carry the letter back to Philippi and be able to share more of Paul's heart with them. But how fortunate are we that he conveyed his concerns on papyrus! And here we are almost 2000 years later, reading his thoughts from prison. Amazing!

Duh

I must admit I have not been able to understand the nature of the question when people have said, "Group Life isn't deep enough"...until a few weeks ago. How can an inductive method (that means, you are not spoon fed but you have to dig to discover meaning) not be deep enough. My usual response has been, "It's as deep as you want to or are able to take it."

Then I had a conversation with one of our small group leaders. Someone in his group told him Group Life wasn't deep enough. So he asked this small group member a very important question that I've never thought to ask: "Do you prepare before you come to group?" The answer was, "No." Of course not. And of course! Duh. The light all of a sudden went on for me.

A guided inductive Bible study can't go deep enough if the first time you look at the questions is at your small group study time. Why? Because the questions require digging in, thinking time and reflection. When you're studying it in a group, it moves too fast for that. It moves at the speed of those who have prepared ahead of time or just know a bit more than your average person.

But what happens when everybody comes prepared? You've gone deep on your own, you've heard from God through his Word (if you went in listening), and now you have the added value of other people's insights. That's a powerful combination. It takes more work, but nothing of value happens without hard work.

That's why the new norm for small groups at Five Oaks is to come prepared. Do the daily study or, at the very least, do it all at once before coming to the group. And don't forget to listen!

DAILY Group Life...Start Now

The number one catalyst for personal spiritual growth is daily reflection on Scripture. So we've developed Group Life into a daily tool for your Quiet Time. Get into the Word every day and come prepared for small group. I'm convinced that this one-two punch have a huge impact in taking our congregation to a deeper level in their walk with Christ.

Get your Group Life at your small group or at the Media tab at fiveoakschurch.org. Don't delay. Start now.

Celebration Weekend

In addition to kicking off the Road Trip series, which I think you're going to love, we'll be showing pictures and video and celebrating the Feed My Starving Children weekend. I can't wait for you to hear the numbers of meals, kids fed, volunteer guests to our church...all that great stuff.

First-time Guest Comments

Here are the latest comments from the card we send to first-time folks:

Woodbury

I didn’t feel welcomed by others, it was like no one realized I had never been there before.

Hudson

We really enjoyed our visit and will definitely come again. Art and Roxy were very helpful.

T Minus 90 Minutes and Counting

Volunteers have been at work all day setting things up for the 4pm start of the Feed My Starving Children event. It's going to be great! I can't wait. My neighbors are coming at 9am tomorrow and my Fantasy Football buds on 11am Sunday.

Evangelism or Compassion

I really like how British church leaders Tim Chester and Steve Timmis speak of the both/and of evangelism and compassion in their book Total Church.

1. Evangelism and compassionate action are distinct activities.
2. Proclamation of the good news is central. Compassionate action without proclaiming the gospel is like a signpost leading to nowhere. It could imply that socioeconomic betterment is the goal of life.
3. Evangelism and compassionate action are inseparable. They can't be separated because mission takes place through relationships. Compassion and love compelled Jesus to proclaim the good news and heal the sick. Paul says of his relationships with the Thessalonians, "We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us" (1 Thessalonians 2:8)

Lots of Worship Service but No Worship Services this Weekend

Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. (Roman 12:1; NIV)

Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you. (James 1:27)

You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate. (Luke 6:36)

When someone has been given much, much will be required in return; and when someone has been entrusted with much, even more will be required. (Luke 12:48)

Woo and Wow

We're seeking to woo and wow all the guests we have coming to the Feed event. Woo them to come back to celebrate and learn and grow in the Road Trip series. Wow them from the first step into the building. Gary and Wendy Miller are hard at work creating the environment for the Road Trip series and this may be their most ambitious project ever. I love the attention to details they bring. They are artistic geniuses.

Thanks to the all the others who have helped too, including the Berglunds who put in a long day helping yesterday. Jonathan Haage, who oversees this ministry, is to be commended for all he's done to coordinate this project. I can't wait for you guys to see it all.

Stopping to Reflect

I had an interesting time in prayer on one of the lies this week. It was one that I thought I did not buy into very much, but as soon as I started praying, it became obvious that I did to a much greater degree than I would have thought. Very insightful. Interestingly, it only took a few minutes of stopping and listening and asking God about it to reveal it.

I realize that what I saw is likely only a surface issue. More layers underneath. And most of the time the insight doesn't come so quickly. The the deeper we're willing to go, the harder it is. But it hit me in a fresh way how important focused reflection on biblical input is. The temptation is to go go go and not stop and reflect. Yet without it, some of the most important things don't happen.

Road Trip and Feed Update

Here's the look for the series. Bryan finished this up yesterday in time to make some posters for the commons area. A team was here getting the commons ready with the Road Trip theme in time for the Feed weekend. Other folks were here getting the flower beds and exterior in tip-top shape. Things are coming together beautifully. About 1300 volunteers will be here on the weekend. Remember, no services this weekend.

Prayer at Check-in

Our whole staff meets for a "check-in" every Tuesday morning over coffee and a morning snack. It's a time to connect, share information about ministry, share stories, etc. This week we invited Fritz Dale to lead us in a time of prayer during our check-in (a mini-concert of prayer). Fritz did a little teaching on prayer, shared some resources and then moved us into smaller groups for prayer. Great time. Thanks Fritz.

First-time Guest Comments

Here's the latest one we received from the cards we send out:

Woodbury

• I really enjoyed myself. I am not accustomed to that type of church. I liked it and we will be back!

78.6...84.3...79

Those numbers represent our small group registration following our fill month! That's percent of adults registered in a small group over against regular attendance average.

• 78.6% - Woodbury Campus
• 84.3% - Hudson Campus
• 79% - Five Oaks Ministries

That's so exciting. Way to go Keith and all the small group leaders.

Too Busy? Too Complicated.

Abraham Piper has been posting on an interview with Paul Tripp on the Desiring God blog. Paul Tripp wrote the best book I read on raising teens (The Age of Opportunity: A Biblical Guide to Parenting Teens). Here are some highlights from a May 21 post on biblical community:

What is the greatest hindrance to cultivating community in the American church?

The first thing that comes to mind is frenetic western-culture busyness.

I read a book on stress a few years back, and the author made a side comment that I thought was so insightful. He said that the highest value of materialistic western culture is not possessing. It's actually acquiring.

If you're a go-getter you never stop. And so the guy who is lavishly successful doesn't quit, because there are greater levels of success. "My house could be bigger, I could drive better cars, I could have more power, I could have more money."

And so we've bought an unbiblical definition of the good life of success. Our kids have to be skilled at three sports and play four musical instruments, and our house has to be lavish by whatever standard. And all of that stuff is eating time, eating energy, eating money. And it doesn't promote community.

...I've talked to a lot of families who literally think it's a victory to have 3 or 4 meals all together with one another in a week, because they're so busy. Well, if in that family unit they're not experiencing community, there's no hope of them experiencing it outside of that family unit.

...You can't fit God's dream (if I can use that language) for his church inside of the American dream and have it work. It's a radically different lifestyle. It just won't squeeze into the available spaces of the time and energy that's left over.

...We have sold our four-bedroom house because our kids are gone, and we've bought a loft in Chinatown, Philadelphia. And we're amazed at how simple our life has become. We're grieving over how we let our life get so complicated.

...We're living in a much smaller place. We got rid of most of our stuff. As we went through it, we laughed about how we just collected stuff. All that stuff has to be maintained. It grabs your heart, it grabs your schedule, it grabs your time. It becomes a source of worry and concern and need to pay.

So we've just been confronted with how all of those things that aren't evil in themselves become the complications of life that keep us away from the kind of community that we need in order to hold on to our identity.

This Week's Going Deeper Exercise

Practice “identifying,” “replacing” and “acting on” this week in your daily quiet time. Each day you will...

• Focus on one lie and one truth.
• Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal how and to what extent you have bought into the lie.
• Read the Spripture and reflect on the truth.
• Act on that truth that day, reflecting on the results.

Monday

Big Lie #1: “I am what I am and cannot change. I am hopeless.”
Symptoms: Feelings of shame, hopelessness and inferiority; passivity
God’s Truth: Regeneration - You are a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17; Colossians 2:10; 1 Peter 1:3)

Tuesday

Big Lie #2: “I must be approved and accepted by certain people in my life to feel good about myself.”
Symptoms: Strong fear of rejection, people pleasing, overly sensitive to criticism, withdrawing/isolation, fear of what people say about you

God’s Truth: Reconciliation – You are accepted by God (2 Corinthians 5:19; Colossians 1:19-21)

Wednesday

Big Lie #3: “Those who fail (including me) are unworthy of love and deserve to be punished.”
Symptoms: Feelings of guilt, fear of punishment, punish others the way you punish yourself, blaming for personal failures, withdrawal because feel unworthy, driven to do anything to avoid punishment
God’s Truth: Propitiation – You are supremely loved (2Corinthians 5:21a; Romans 3:25-26)

Thursday

Big Lie #4: “I must meet certain standards to feel good about myself.”
Symptoms: Strong fear of failure, desire to do things perfectly, driven to succeed in order to be loved/liked/admired, manipulating others, risk avoidance
God’s Truth: Justification – You are declared not guilty (2 Corinthians 5:21b; Galatians 2:17-21)

Friday

Reread 2 Corinthians 5:17-21. Reflect on your week of practice: What lies are you most prone to believe? Ask God to help you deal with the lies and live in the truth.

The Trinity

One of the things I really like about Discipleship Essentials is that it covers practical stuff like prayer and Bible study, but it also delves into important theological topics like the Trinity. And I also love that it covers topics so often missing in discipleship training like Justice and Generosity. The Trinity is this week's topic for my group (session 7). We meet in twelve minutes.

Relevance Conference: Bill Hybels

We had a general session with Bill Hybels and a senior pastor session. I can't tell you what was said at the senior pastor session or I'd have to kill you. Here are a few highlights of the afternoon with Hybels:

• Without a white-hot vision a church runs out of steam.
• When he almost burnt out in 1989 he had a victim mentality, expecting someone else to replenish his spirit instead of taking personal responsibility for it.
• A thriving church is (1) blindingly clear about its mission, (2) engages the congregation in its mission and (3) offers memorable worship gatherings.
• He wants all killer and no no filler in the services these days. If he's told "we have a pretty good drama" he doesn't use it.
• Every time you take time to replenish yourself, someone is disappointed in you. But you have to do it.
• When the church plateaus in growth, it should be expected. But it becomes a new important problem to solve without panicking. 

Okay, the last two were from the pastor's session, so don't tell anybody.

Relevance Conference

There are nineteen Five Oaks staff at the Relevance Conference put on by Eagle Brook. Bill Hybels is being inerviewed right now by Eagle Brook's pastor Bob Merritt. Morning sessions were great in content, funny and moving. Some big ideas shared by the three speakers (Merritt and the other two teaching pastors):

• For Jesus, ministry was important, but mission trumped ministry (let the dead bury the dead).
• The worship service can be for beievers and unbelievers because we share many of the same issues (to be better parents, marriage partners, etc.) and many of the same tastes and interests.
• Friendship evangelism doesn't work all that well today and in the New Testament. People are usually won by the ministry of the "crowd" today and in the New Testament (e.g., Mt. 4:22-23; Acts 2; 14:1; 17:1).
• Relevance is to know the world, not to become like the world, but to help people in the world become like Christ.
• Relevance = Content + Delivery + Environment
• Face reality. Reality + Humility = Opportunity.

91

That's how many are registered so far from Five Oaks for the Leadership Summit! Unbelievable. It's not too late to register. This is an awesome event. Check it out here. For very special pricing (Five Oaks attenders only) contact Deb Johnson at office@fiveoakschurch.org.

Volunteer Appreciation Event Tomorrow Morning

Hope you got signed up for the breakfast/brunch event. The staff went to great lengths to embarrass themselves to make it more fun for you. I'm still cringing at what I'm going to see on screen for the video we shot. It's the least we can do for all you all do to make Five Oaks effectively serve every week. We could not do it without you and it would be wrong to even try.

Road Trip Series

I spent most of the day yesterday outlining my next message series through Philippians. I have to do this for the programming team's planning and Group Life writers. We launch it the week after the big Feed event and it will run through July. I'm really excited about it.

Be ready for some important changes to Group Life. Actually, one very important one that I believe will have a big impact on your spiritual life. We'll also be employing a Bible study technique as part of that change, just for this series: reading a book of the Bible all the way through in one sitting...several times. You'll be amazed at how you will grow in your understanding through this simple exercise. Philippians is only four chapters long, so it works well for this. Reading the parts in light of the whole will transform your reading and grow your understanding.

Identity: Forgiver 2

Sobering parable. I know it well, but it still moves me when I read it again. God forgives us our many sins against him. And he is perfect. And we choose not to forgive sins against us. And we are not perfect. Our sins, compared to God's holiness, are huge. Others' sins against us, compared to our own righteousness (our track record), are small. Yet we dare withhold forgiveness!

My pray, reflecting on this parable, focused on questions arising from this passage and on lack of forgiveness in some cases. I need, more than anything, to see my own sins and God's holiness more clearly. I need to be more realistic. I need to grow in grace.

This reading has a lot in common with my Disciples Essentials lesson this week. Here's a quote from the reading portion of this week's preparation:

Karl Barth once said that religion is not the fruit of humanity's pursuit of God but hte product of our repression of the trauma caused by the holiness of God. Adam hid from God--and people since have continued to do so.

And here's a note from the ESV Study Bible regarding the king's treatment of the unmerciful servant:

A transformed heart must result in a changed life that offers the same mercy and forgiveness as has been received from God (cf. Is. 40:2 ). Someone who does not grant forgiveness to others shows that his own heart has not experienced God's forgiveness. Throughout Scripture, the heart refers to the center of one's being, including one's reason, emotions, and will.

First-time Guest Comments

Here are the latest comments we received from cards we sent to first-time guests:

Woodbury

• One of your members heard me asking where your worship service was. She overheard me saying that I’d never been there before and she made a point to come and welcome me during the greeting. I thought that was awesome and made me feel so welcome!!
• We had a wonderful visit and are plan on returning next week. We were warmly greeted and helped getting our kids situated. Thank you!

Identity: Forgiver

Forgive me as I forgive others (Matthew 6:12). God's forgiveness makes us forgivers. And the more we understand God's forgiveness and the atonement (just think of propitiation), the more we are able to live up to our identity.

As I've gotten older or because of some experiences I've found it harder to forgive some people who have hurt me, even when I recognize my role in the conflict with them. I use to be able to forgive and forget much more easily. My prayer time focused on that and how God--the only one who has no culpability in our conflict with him--has not only forgiven us, he has done it by absorbing his own perfect anger against sin.

Forgive as I forgive others would be a scary thing if God would hold us to that standard before accepting us or in order to continue to accept us. He doesn't. Our lack of forgiving is part of the sin Christ died for. But a growing ability to forgive is a sign that we have truly understood and received his grace. A growing ability. A willingness to struggle with it is evidence of God's grace. I want to grow in that grace. My identity is not only that I'm forgiven; I'm a forgiver.

Leadership Practice

Our full-time staff had our monthly meeting around the Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI). Each one of us is working on a area of needed development identified in the LPI, where at least ten people working close to us evaluated us using the LPI questionnaire. We don't use this for performance reviews and I've not seen anyone's results, but we openly share what we're working on, how we're working on it and what progress we're making. Mike Kirley is leading us in this and he brings great questions, guidance and insight to the process. It's a great tool. Have you used anything like this for your ongoing leadership development that you care to recommend?

Identity: His Own Child

Today's passage to reflect on is Hebrews 12:5-12. We are not under God's wrath, but he loves us enough to discipline us and train us to be holy. I prayed through this passage, phrase by phrase. That means I read a phrase or sentence and then prayed using the ideas in that phrase--possibly giving thanks or praising God, sometimes asking for insight or help in living it, etc. It's a great way to reflect on Scripture and interact with God at the same time.

"No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living..." (Hebrews 12:11). This is one of the main ideas in Talent is Overrated and Outliers, both based on extensive research. People become great at business, sports, playing an instrument, parenting, etc. through deliberate practice. One of the key characteristics of deliberate practice is that it's not fun. It's very hard, tedious, mentally exhausting. But the outcomes are greatness, mastery, greater success.

Identity: God's

If you missed this past weekend, the passages for reflection this week follow:

• Day Two: Ephesians 4:30
• Day Three: Hebrews 12:5-12
• Day Four: Matthew 6:12
• Day Five: Matthew 18:21-35

Ephesians 4:30 contains an incredible message for us. My prayer time focused on how big God is that he can concern himself with my sin and grieve it. God is big enough to care about the smallest needs. It also focused on thanksgiving for his assurances. This one verse is one of the most emotion packed, loving and caring passages in the Bible. I hope to take it with me all day.

And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption. (Ephesians 4:30)

Identity: Forgiven

He is the propitiation for our sins... (1 John 2:2a)

I am forgiven because God's love is so deep and rich that God the Son absorbed God's wrath against sin for me and for the world.

My prayer time this morning focused on forgiveness and the gift of confession--the opportunity to admit when I've sinned, even though I am forgiven. To clear the air with God. To remember that I'm free to live for him. I don't have to sin. I live fuller and freer when I don't.

Top 10 Apps NOT to Buy for Mom

I'm going to be talking about an iPhone/iPod Touch app in my message this weekend so I came up with this list I really can't use in my message. I thought I might, as I developed it. But it really doesn't fit. But I'm not going to let it go to waste.

If your mom has an iPhone or iPod Touch, do NOT get her one of these apps.

10. Body Sound Machine - Okay, you're getting the idea why this doesn't fit in my message. My only comment is that I'm not saying this would not be a great app to buy, it's just that your mom would not appreciate its greatness.  I have a picture of this one but it uses words we didn't allow our kids to use until they were about eight, so you'll have to look it up.

9. The Moron Test – Currently #1 paid app in iTunes.

8. Hangman – Way too scary, unless your mom is into goth. Some of the younger moms might be.

(The next two are really not good for teens to buy for their moms)

7. Lie Detector - Actually, you should have nothing to hide and you shouldn't lie (not even a little bit). Plead the fifth when she asks if you like that girl or guy, but don't lie.

6. Annoy-A-Teen - Makes high pitched, irritating noise that most adults can no longer hear (or so it claims).

(These two would not be good for Mother’s-in-law if you want peace)

5. Ouch! - Especially if you put your mother-in-law's picture on this rag doll (something you can do with this game). The rag doll gets thrown around to see how much damage it can cause.

4. Face Melter - Ditto with putting your mother-in-law's picture in here. And you wouldn't want her doing with your face either, so avoid this app.

3. Kitty Kannon - Not if you mom likes cats. Shoot the cat from the canon and it lands and gets eaten by various carnivores.

2. Annoyance - Same as number Annoy-A-Teen, but applies to all ages.

1. Meth Faced – Actually you could get this for your own iPhone if Mom doesn’t have one. Put your own picture in there, show mom what could have been and then apologize for forgetting to get a gift. (Unfortunately, this is the only one on the list that you can’t actually buy.)

Identity: Grieving

Forgot to post this morning after my quiet time. I was praying 2 Corinthians 5:21, thinking about the fact that when I sin I don't anger God (Christ has become sin for me), but I do grieve him. I was writing my prayer in one of my prayer emails and I used the word "only." It only grieves God. It hit me that I had used the word "only" regarding grieving God and that led my prayer time into whole different direction. How sad to think like that.

Really Important Stuff

Thanks to Brad Wiger for alerting me to this really important stuff. See below. If you missed this last weekend's service, it was my singing debut and i sang a portion of Bohemian Rhapsody (all for the purpose of presenting the gospel, of course).

Who is our customer?

Peter Drucker, often called the father of modern management, worked a lot with non-profits and churches in his later years (he died recently in his 90's). One of the questions he posed to them (one of his five primary questions) was, "Who is your customer?" For churches and many non-profits that seems like the wrong question. And on one level it is. As a church, you certainly don't want to think of who you serve as your "customer." But the question is supposed to make you think and focus and be more intentional.

So, let's change it for a moment: "Who do we serve as a church?" Drucker encouraged folks to be very specific and to prioritizre, since too broad of an answer will inevitably lead to lack of focus and intentionality. For instance, while we care for and love the people of Oshkosh, WI (since my son goes to school there, right), do we serve the people of that town? Maybe to a degree. But does that town make our top five priority list?

So, since the staff leadership team is working on this quesiton this week (as we continue our ministry planning), you can help us.

Who is the primary person/group we serve?

Who is the secondary person/group we serve? (List no more than five and the list must be in terms of priority.)

Identity: Dignified Enough to Beg

I'm inspired and convicted by Paul's drive and passion to call people back to God. On the one hand he claims great dignity--he is an ambassador for Christ, representing him and his message of reconciliation to the world. On the other hand, he begs people to come back to God. That's the word used in the New American Standard Bible. The NIV and ESV use "implore" and the NLT uses "plead." (You can do this kind of comparison too by going to Biblegateway.com.) These are all strong words that, juxtaposed with "ambassador," stood out to me this morning. My prayer, growing out of this passage, was and is to share Paul's passion for helping bring people far from God back to him. I am Christ's ambassador...dignified enough to beg someone to listen to Christ's invitation.

Identity: For us

"God made him who had no sin to be sin for us." He did this for us. One of my favorite passages in the Bible is from Romans 8 where it says that if God is for us, who can be against us. This verse (2 Corinthians 5:21) shows us just how much God is for us. For him who had no sin to become sin is a reason for awe and praise. And that's where my prayer time was focused this morning. Awe and praise.

This week's message deals with propitiation. Yes, a big word, but an even bigger concept. It has to do with satisfying God's perfect anger against sin by absorbing it. When Christ became sin, he experienced the full wrath of God against sins committed in the past by his people and all the sins of the future, committed by those who will ever put their faith in him. When people refuse to think about or believe in the wrath of God against sin and those who commit sins, they actually diminish the grace and love of God. Jesus didn't just suffer for us by being crucified. He wasn't just a sacrifice for sin. He absorbed the wrath of God so that you and I can personally live in God's love.

Identity: Ambassadors

Today is the Woodbury Prayer Breakfast. I served on that committee for a couple of years. It's a great event and the starting point for a lot of folks to come back to God. My mind was drawn to this event as I read Paul's words about being ambassadors for Christ. And my prayer was, among other things, for this event and for people far from God to respond to the call to come back to God.

I read the passage in the Message today. Here's verse 21 (I really like the word play):

God put the wrong on him who never did anything wrong, so we could be put right with God.

Identity: For our sin

The challenge this week is to read and reflect on 2 Corinthians 5:17-21 all week, memorize verse 21 (working on it every day) and practice taking thoughts captive (decide what to validate).

My focus went to Jesus taking our sin for us. The ESV says, "For our sake...." He did this for us. It's not the whole story. He did it for his own glory as God. But he did it for our sake too. He took that on for us. My prayer this morning focused on that truth. I'm going to hold on to that today and see how that impacts my outlook.

Taking thoughts captive and running them through the filter of Scriptural truth will be a challenge. I think I do it all the time just naturally. That's good. But that also means that I miss a lot and have gotten use to missing a lot because it is natural and not intentional. This is going to be a challenge.

Identity: Masterpiece

Ephesians 2:4-10 - Another one of those passages today that drives home all we are and all we have in Christ. It's breathtaking when listed and prayed back to God.

• You love me
• You gave me life through Christ's resurrection
• I have been saved by your grace alone
• I have been raised from the dead
• Since I am united with Christ, I am essentially where he is: seated in the heavenly realms, this is my destiny
• I have experienced your grace and kindness
• You will point to me to future generations as an example of your grace and kindness in the past
• You have given me the gift of your grace and I have opened it and received your salvation
• I am your masterpiece
• I am created anew in Christ Jesus
• I am now able to do what you planned for me long ago