reverb

WOW!

WOW! When is the last time you were wowed by something or someone? Me? A number of times within the past 24 hours...

---I was wowed by the wonder of God this morning as I gazed upon the beauty of God's handiwork when I looked at the snow-capped mountains on my way to the office... WOW!

---I was wowed in our services this weekend as I witnessed the work of the Holy Spirit in people's lives..specifically when one of our friends/neighbors surrendered their life to Christ! WOW!

---I experienced jaw-dropping wonder today as I read through the e-mails in my inbox...I was wowed by what I interpreted as polar opposite responses from people who received the same message in our current series, Bucket List.

---One individual went to visit 3 or 4 different people within 3-4 hours of hearing the message. These are people she had been meaning to get to for months and just kept putting it off...WOW!

---Another individual went to reconcile with her grandfather who she hadn't spoken to in 15 years...WOW!

---On the flip side of that, I received an e-mail informing me of two different married couples that were going to "split up" after making out their "bucket list" and thinking the rest of their lives would be better off without each other...WOW.

Your jaw may be dropping as mine was when I read these e-mails. I'll address the concerns I have with some of these choices as we continue our  series this weekend. For today and for the record---I want to encourage you to "WOW" me and others through a response that aligns itself with God's Word as opposed to contradicting God's Word. Let's all live to "WOW" the One who "WOWS" us everyday!

Share Your "Bucket List"

BUCKET LIST...it's a great movie and sets the stage for a great series and small group experience. Many of you are already developing your personal bucket list. I would personally love to hear from each of you the top 4-5 things you would put on your bucket list. Just leave a comment using the link below.

Golf

GOLF. Are you serious? We haven't even hit March Madness yet! What about baseball? Spring training just started this week. So why golf? Most people---even if they're not that in to sports---know that baseball and basketball are "team" sports. However, when it comes to golf it's not as clear. You can go out and play 9 or 18 holes by yourself.

My question is this, what do you do when you get a "hole-in-one"? Let's say you call someone---do you really think they'll believe you?Even if they do, it's just not the same---it's tough celebrating by yourself!

Many people liken their faith to golf. How's that? They see it as an individual deal. More private and personal. Personal? Absolutely! Private? Absolutely not! Every one Jesus called to follow Him, He called into community and sent them out publicly.

There's really nothing about the Christian faith that is private. We are called to live out our faith in the context of authentic community and contagious service to the world around us! Life really is better together---including golf! Especially if you golf like me---you're always playing best ball.

Point of application this week? Don't go through life alone. Connect with others in a small group. If this is all new for you, give it a shot for the next five weeks as part of our Bucket List series!

Expectation

EXPECTATION. Have you ever looked forward to something with a strong sense of anticipation that something good was going to happen? I sure have. In fact, I am right now. I'm looking forward to our upcoming series, "Bucket List" with a strong sense of anticipation that God is going to do something significant in all of our lives and at all of our campuses across the network.



Is it "OK" to have expectations? Can't you be hurt or let down? Yes and yes. Let me explain---Yes, there's always the possibility of being hurt or let down. After all, this is earth, not Heaven. However, if you think about it, we all live with expectations. Therefore, I believe the more important issue is at whose feet we lay our expectations.



Psalm 5:3 (NIV) "In the morning, O Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation." 



I love that verse! David clearly had expectations. Expectations are really an issue of faith or fear. Faith is expecting the best, whereas, fear is expecting the worst. What are you expecting God to do in your life? What are you asking Him to do? Let's join David and lay our requests before the Lord and wait in expectation!