Are You Thirsty?

When was the last time you were really thirsty for God? When was the last time you were desperate for His presence? When was the last time you felt like the Psalmist who wrote: My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God? (Ps 42:2 NIV)

The good news is you don't have to wait for a Sunday morning worship service to meet with God. If you're a believer, then you've got His Spirit residing inside of you twenty-four seven. Worship shouldn't be something that we only do for an hour on Sundays; it should be a lifestyle. Don't let the busyness of the world keep you from being the worshiper that God created you to be. Start worshiping Him. Right now! He's worthy of all of our worship and praise!

If you'll do that, then on Sunday when you come into the sanctuary, you won't be coming in hoping to have a worship experience. Instead, you'll be coming in to continue your ongoing worship experience. And if everybody came in already worshiping, then I can't imagine the kind of service we'll experience this Sunday! Are you ready? I'm excited, and I hope you are, too!

This Sunday we'll continue our Messages For Messed Up People, and the sermon title is Turn On The Light. I think sometimes we can be guilty of acting like God is a secret to be kept, and that faith in Jesus is a personal, private matter. But is that what Jesus said? Not hardly. We'll talk about that this Sunday.

This message will also deal pretty strongly with the subject of hell. This will have a two-fold purpose. First, I'm hoping that this message will wake up those who are lost and headed to hell. I want to see people saved and hell depopulated. Second, I'm hoping this message will be a reminder to the saved that hell is a real place, and real people are dying and going there every day. Knowing the realities of a place called hell, it ought to motivate us to shine out our light in this dark world.

I'm truly looking forward to what God has in store for us this Sunday. Here lately, if you were to ask me what is the best service we've ever had at Eulaton, I'd say, "The next one!" I truly feel that way every week. I hope you do, too. Let's all come together this Sunday, having already been worshiping Him, expecting to see His power and glory!

And let's keep asking, "What's next?" I don't know for sure, but I can't wait to find out. However one thing I do know for sure is that the best is yet to come!

Sunday Preview

Hello everyone! I've been a bit under the weather yesterday and today, so today's message will be short and sweet. However, a little sickness can't dampen my enthusiasm for what I'm expecting God to do at EFBC this Sunday!

We'll continue our series of sermons entitled Messages For Messed Up People with the second sermon: Am I Making God Nauseous? I hope you'll all be here Sunday, and I hope you'll come expecting God to do great things. Remember: I have looked for You in the sanctuary, to see Your power and Your glory. (Psalm 63:2)

See you all Sunday, and don't forget: the best is yet to come!

New Sermon Series Begins Sunday

I just wanted everyone to know how excited I am about this Sunday (I know, I sound like a broken record every week, but I REALLY AM EXCITED). This Sunday morning I'll be beginning a new series of sermons entitled Messages For Messed Up People. The first message in this series is called Not What You Expected. I don't know what you expect from a message with that title, but you need to be here this weekend to see if this message is what you expected it to be or not. OK, was that confusing, or is it just me?

Anyway, I'm pumped about this new series of messages. But let me give you a little disclaimer: If you've got everything together, never have any problems, and never do anything wrong, you might just want to take the month of September off on Sunday mornings. If, however, you're like me and realize that you are anything but perfect, you should make plans to be at EFBC this Sunday.

Let's face it, folks: we're all pretty messed up, aren't we? There's not a perfect person on this planet. We all have struggles, we all have insecurities, and we all have sinned. Now I've met some people before who seemed to wear a façade of perfection on the outside, almost as if they can't let anyone know that beneath that glowing exterior is a soul that is just as messed up as the next person's. I believe it's time that we drop the charade and take off the mask. Let's just admit that we're all messed up and that we are nothing without Jesus.

I hope you will come to worship this Sunday with a sense of expectation. Remember the verse I shared with you last week: I have looked for You in the sanctuary, to see Your power and Your glory (Ps 63:2). I've asked Carol about putting this verse on a sign that we can hang above the glass doors in the vestibule. Are you coming to worship to see His power and His glory, or are you just coming to a social gathering to "see and be seen." I don't know about you, but I want to have an encounter with God Almighty this Sunday morning. I hope you do, too.

Before I close this message, let me ask everyone to please be praying for John McCoy and Ann Smith this morning. They are both having heart cath's at RMC today.

That's all for the moment. Just remember, you'd better not get complacent now; cause the best is yet to come!

Who's Ready For September?

OK, is anybody else besides me stoked about what God is doing in our church? We've been experiencing some incredible things, and I truly believe that we've only seen a small glimpse of what He has in store for us. August was an amazing month. We finished up the What Would It Look Like If… series and followed that with an incredible Sunday as we talked about Christ For Clunkers. God has truly been moving in our services, and I can't wait to see what He's got in store for us in September.

Knowing what God is doing in our church corporately, let me take just a moment and get personal with a few probing questions: What is God doing in your life? How's your personal walk with God? Are you excited about what He's doing in our church? Do you have a fervent desire in your heart to see fires of renewal and revival burn white hot in our church and sweep across our community? Are your attitudes and the things you are doing (or not doing) helping or hindering the movement of God in our midst?

I realize these are some very personal, probing questions, but I believe that it's always appropriate to look within and see if there's anything in us that needs to change. David prayed in Psalm 139:23-24:

Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. (NIV)

I believe that should be our prayer, as well. God is definitely up to something B-I-G at E-F-B-C! Let's make sure that we've prepared ourselves for what He wants to do in us and through us.

And let's get ready; cause the best is yet to come!