Why I Love My Church - Small Groups

This Sunday, our church will be promoting joining small groups for the upcoming semester.  Our small groups, focus on home Bible studies, fellowship, and community.  We do not have traditional Sunday School for ages beyond youth, so Small Groups are our primary resource for deeper biblical teaching and for deeper connections among the members.  Particularly in a church the size of ours.

It's an embodiment of the early church in Acts, chapter 2.

"They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.  Everyone was filled with the awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles.  All the believers were together and had everything in common.  They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need.  Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts.  They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people.  And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved."

                                                                                                                                                      Acts 2:42-47

A place where we seek to abide daily, devote relationally, live authentically, and admonish biblically.

Small group bible studies hold a special place for Jamie and me.  We met at our community group in Austin.  We both had sought community in connection with the Austin Stone and had ended up in the same central Austin community group.  Since then, we have sought home Bible study in each church that we have attended since. We've led them in Wills Point and started leading one very quickly here in Brownsburg.

There's something special about studying in someone's home.  About gathering together, breaking bread and eating together, sharing in each other's lives.  Crying together.  Laughing together. Praying together.  Living together.

About taking our faith outside of the church and remembering that it carries with us each and every day, and in every location that we inhabit.

These are the people in our circle.  When we are hurting, we we struggle, they are who we reach out to.  And we've been through a lot with this small group.  We've shared and grown in great leaps with them.

We look forward to the new year.  We have room for one or two new couples, so, we are looking forward to getting to know the new members of our group.  To continuing to grow together with the continuing members.

If you're not in a small group, if you are not connecting with a small group of people to grow in your faith and in your life, why not?  What opportunities exist for you in your community?

If you are in the Brownsburg area and would like to find a church to connect and grow with, and would like to learn more about Connection Pointe Christian Church, you can find out more here.

Why I Love My Church CPCC 2: Community Garden

From connectionpointe.org

"For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat..."

Matthew 25:35a

I haven't written in this series a lot recently and wanted to pick it up again to write about our new church home, Connection Pointe Christian Church in Brownsburg, Indiana.  The series was started to write on special Sundays and outline reasons I love the church we are attending.  

It can be very easy to focus on the negative in anything we do.  To point out everything we would change, every little problem we have.  Everything that doesn't make us happy.  All too often, we focus on those aspects to the exclusion of all that we have been blessed with.

And please do not misunderstand me, I love a lot of things about Connection Pointe.  I love the staff, I love the intentionality that everything is done with, I love the biblical foundation, I love the people.  The foresight to start an online ministry a year before the pandemic.  Everything listed probably does not get enough recognition.  

But this series will not initially focus on those aspects.  To start this series is going to focus on those really unique, standout things our church does, including a few things that I would love to see other churches do as well.

Today, I learned about Connection Pointe's community garden.  And I think this is an amazingly great idea for any church.  The church campus has the blessing of size and of land, so a portion of the land in the northeast corner has been set aside as a community garden, to grow food to donate to local schools, food banks, and elderly care.  

I've seen the space in the back and thought it was likely for a garden, but never knew its impact until the bumper today.  Such a great opportunity for everyone to serve, whether they have a green thumb or not, by pitching in and literally helping grow the food that can have such a tangible impact on the community.  

Community gardens have existed for ages, and have had their surges in popularity, from the Victory Gardens during the world wars, to the current resurgences helping to offset America's "food deserts."  It's so inspiring to see a church joining in that effort.  To not only provide food, but to provide fresh food.  Fresh fruits and vegetables.  

Such a simple but profound way to demonstrate God's love to a community by meeting such a basic need.  "Isn’t this the fast that I have chosen:  to break the chains of wickedness, to untie the cords of the yoke,  to set the oppressed free and tear off every yoke?  Isn’t it to share your bread with the hungry, to bring the poor and homeless into your home, to clothe the naked when you see him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?"  Isaiah 58:6-7.

And it's such a great idea that aligns with the interests and service areas of most churches.  In most rural suburban churches, I guarantee that you can find people with the time and the interest that are already gardening in their spare time, that would be perfect volunteers for such a community effort.

All it takes is someone to take the charge and lead it.

If you are looking for a church home, to find a place to truly connect and dig in deeper, you can find out more about Connection Pointe here.  We have a great online presence and people joining in from across the country, so it is a great way to start a connection to a church.

If you have a church home, I would ask you what you love about your church.  Could you list the things that you feel your church is really strong in?  And are there areas that you recognize you are being called to serve in?

Why I Love My Church CPCC 1 - Yuletide Festival

I recently realized that it has been a while since I wrote an entry in this series and that I had not yet done so for our new church home, Connection Pointe Christian Church, though there has been a lot that is worthy of celebrating.

One thing I love about our new church home is a de facto motto that they have adopted in their ministry.  We do things we've never done before in order to reach people we've never reached before.  And this has manifested in a variety of different ways.  A dedication to online ministry beyond just a simulcast.  An increased community service presence in this trying year through blood drives, meal drives, etc.  And in this Christmas season, it has manifested in a particularly fun way: Yuletide Festival.

The Yuletide Festival is an event occurring every Friday night, Saturday afternoon/evening, and Sunday afternoon/evening in our parking lot.  They bring in a super screen on a flatbed to create a drive in movie theater showing a good rotation of Christmas movies.  On Saturday night and Sunday morning, it includes a drive in worship experience for those that still are not ready to come back in the building for Covid-19 concerns.  There has been an "ice" rink for skating.  And picture opportunities.  With a neat little gift bag for snacks during the experience (including popcorn balls).

It's a partnership with the parks service that simply serves to bring a little joy this holiday season to our community.  Particularly in a year when light has been difficult to find.  When joy might be a little elusive.

It's something different, something new to reach out to people who would never have any other connection to our church.  And if all we have done is brighten their day and blessed them a little, then it's been a success.

And that it gives us an opportunity to tell them about our church and to let them know what we're about.

"A Thrill of Hope" indeed - I hope your church is likewise sharing that thrill this Christmas season.

For Such A Time As This

"As soon as you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God being carried by the Levitical priests, then you shall set out from your place and follow it.  Yet there shall be a distance between you and it, about 2,000 cubits in length.  Do not come near it, in order that you may know the way you shall go, for you have not passed this way before."

Joshua 3:3-4

This past Sunday, the church that we will be joining focused on this passage above for its message.  It focused on identifying what to do when you find yourself at a place that is unfamiliar.  When you don't know the way forward.  When life doesn't go as planned.  The lesson from Joshua being that the Lord led the way for His people forward, and He is still doing it today.

The pastor discussed a bit of the church's history over the past two years and how it had prepared them for this current crisis.  The church has strong roots in the town, founded in 1837 as Brownsburg Christian Church.  It has been growing and changing over the past 163 years.  

Now, this church is big.  Five thousand to six thousand, five hundred members/attenders.  Six services.  The church campus looks like a school campus in size.  It's close to mega church.  But when we consider the demographics of the community around it, it's proportionately size to the town and surrounding area.  For example, it would reach the same size percentage as Stonepoint does in Wills Point and Edgewood.

Two years ago, the church found itself at a decision point.  Given the church's growth and trajectory, it was time to think towards expansion.  Most of the elders and members assumed this would occur in the way this normally occurs.  Satellite campuses.  Church split to found another church in another location.  Etc.

Pastor John Dickerson had a different vision.  He knew God wanted them to go a different path.  He saw a much needed investment in digital technology.  Envisioning the churches expansion path forward in a virtual world.  To get services and more online and accessible, so that the church could have a world-wide reach.  This included live streaming services, updating the churches webpage to be more accessible and interactive.  Designing apps for various platforms to provide a centralized location for sermons and services, as well as modifying them for upload on popular platforms like Facebook and Youtube.  I've recently discovered their AppleTV app for example.  We were previously watching on TV via Facebook Watch.

This required a new way of thinking.  New equipment, new service roles.  It was an entirely different picture of how to proceed.  A completely new path.

And at the time, the need was not as easily recognizable.  Two years ago, who could have imagined the need for great numbers of people to experience church virtually.  

Here we are.

While Pastor John focused on Joshua, I kept thinking of Esther.  Esther was a young Jewish girl, taken into sex slavery, to be a concubine for the king, one of his "queens," who ended up capturing his attention.  It's not exactly the future she might have imagined for herself.  And yet, it's that very situation that put her in a position to save her people.

"And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?"

Esther 4:14b

Pastor John had the vision for the future, yes, and it was a digital vision that would be beneficial regardless of the times.  But it especially prepared the church for such a time as this.  It was a bold move in the past that made them particularly suited to grow and to help so many people in this crisis.  They've shared story after story of blood drive, of PPE drives, of food drives, of donations that are occurring and possible now because of their obedience then.

It prepared them to easily transition into virtual church.  To add services so that the members stay connected during this time.  To add a Thursday night worship service.  Virtual prayer services.  Etc.  Welcome Meetings over Zoom.  Small group meetings over Zoom.  To make a big church feel small.

While it would have been great to be able to go into a church when we moved here and get to know it, we still feel connected to this new body and know this is the place we are called to attend.  We have felt connected to them and they have been reaching out to us to check on us during this time.

No one expects a global pandemic, but they were prepared.

I think back over our own story the past year and how God prepared us for such a time as this.  How we would not have been able or in any position to move, if Jamie didn't know it was time to take a break from teaching and focus on Avalyn and Jude.  If I didn't lose my job.  I can look at how I've been prepared to work from home during this crisis at a brand new job and not be anxious, because I was already doing so in project work for months before we moved.

If we listen, if we follow, if we are obedient, God prepares us for the path ahead.  He sends His covenant ahead of us to show us the way.  And He teaches us along the way to be prepared for whatever situation He is leading us into.

How has God prepared you for such a time as this?  

And then the next question, are you stepping out and doing what He has prepared you for?  

Or are you hoping this moment will pass you by?

Baptism Sunday October 2019

Today is baptism Sunday, the last of 2019.

At Stonepoint, we do not have a traditional baptistery, so Baptisms are scheduled for three times a year.  The whole service will be dedicated to baptism and its celebration.  It's a time for the whole church, both campuses to come together to celebrate life change.  And celebrate we do.  In addition to the baptisms themselves, we sing.  Loud.  After the service, we have bounce houses, Kona ice.  Barbecue and hot dogs.  This year we can attempt a rock climb challenge.

Because of the wetness, we'll be outside in the parking lot at the Edgewood schools.  It may be cold, but it is going to be a party nonetheless.

We come together as a family.  It's part dinner on the grounds, part river baptism, part worship service.

This is homecoming.  It's a family reunion.  It's a party because our brother, our sister was lost and has now returned.  We celebrate with the angels in heaven who rejoice when a sinner repents.  "Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents."  Luke 15:15

We involve each other in the process.  The baptisms involve the whole staff and those who have been influential in the life change that is being celebrated. Journey Group leaders and members.  Parents.  Siblings.  Best Friends.  A recognition of the joy that is to be spread.

What a great day in the Lord!  Oh that we celebrated the Lord's work more often.  Certainly he has given us plenty to celebrate.

If you are looking for a church home, to find a place to truly connect and dig in deeper, you can find out more about Stonepoint here.

If you have not believed and followed Christ in baptism, I ask you, Look, here is water.  What stands in your way?

Mission Van Zandt

This Sunday is one at Stonepoint we have previously called Stonepoint Serves.  We take one Sunday out of the year and do not just go to church, we remember that we are the Church.

This Sunday, we meet for one "service" where we will sing a couple of hymns/choruses and say a prayer, and then that's it at the building.  From there, we will go out and spend the morning serving and meeting needs in the community.  Yard work, small construction projects, painting, whatever needs we can address.  Journey Groups (small groups/Sunday School-like classes) will work together.  Other members will be broken up into groups.

It's about giving back to the community.  About making the community better.  About serving and meeting the needs that we can see or are brought to our attention.  About feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, inviting in the stranger, clothing the naked, caring for the sick, and visiting the imprisoned.

This year, it's gone beyond our church.  It's Mission Van Zandt involving churches around the area.  It's part of a larger weekend of service. On May 25 and 26, area churches across denominational lines will be actively helping meet the needs of the community through service projects.  It's an opportunity for the Church as a whole to be about the Lord's business.

For if we just sit in pews, Sunday after Sunday, without anything outside the walls, where will we have gotten?

"When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, He will sit on His glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate the people one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will place the sheep on His right and the goats on His left.

Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave Me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink, I was a stranger and you took Me in, I was naked and you clothed Me, I was sick and you looked after Me, I was in prison and you visited Me.’

Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You something to drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? When did we see You sick or in prison and visit You?’

And the King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me.’

Then He will say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave Me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave Me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, I was naked and you did not clothe Me, I was sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’

And they too will reply, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’

Then the King will answer, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for Me.’"

Matthew 25:31-45

Baptism Sunday

Today is baptism Sunday.  Now we might be fighting a little bit of rain or effects of rain today.  But it is a Celebration nonetheless.

At Stonepoint, we do not have a traditional baptistery, so Baptisms are scheduled for three times a year.  Today is the first baptism service of 2019.  The whole service will be dedicated to baptism and its celebration.  It's a time for the whole church, both campuses to come together to celebrate life change.  And celebrate we do.  In addition to the baptisms themselves, we sing.  Loud.  After the service, we have bounce houses, Kona ice.  Barbecue and hot dogs.  We come together as a family.  It's part dinner on the grounds, part river baptism, part worship service.

This is homecoming.  It's a family reunion.  It's a party because our brother, our sister was lost and has now returned.  We celebrate with the angels in heaven who rejoice when a sinner repents.  "Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents."  Luke 15:15

We involve each other in the process.  The baptisms involve the whole staff and those who have been influential in the life change that is being celebrated. Journey Group leaders and members.  Parents.  Siblings.  Best Friends.  A recognition of the joy that is to be spread.

What a great day in the Lord!

If you are looking for a church home, to find a place to truly connect and dig in deeper, you can find out more about Stonepoint here.

If you have not believed and followed Christ in baptism, I ask you, Look, here is water.  What stands in your way?

Why I Love My Church 7: Community Easter Egg Hunt

Today, Stonepoint presented its 8th Annual Community Easter Egg Hunt.  In the church, we often remind the members that the Church is the one organization that exists for the benefit of those that are not members.  And this tradition is one way we prove it.

This Easter Egg Hunt takes weeks of preparation and the entire church getting involved.  Journey Groups filling and stuffing eggs.  Staff coordinating everything.  Many, many volunteers today to rope off the sections for each age group, to distribute the eggs, to cook and serve hot dogs, to serve popcorn and drinks.  Bounce houses, shaved ice, balloon animals, face painting, music, and a photo booth.   Half a days work of set up, program, and tear down.

And the process is repeated for two locations.  All offered for free to the community at large.  

There's no ulterior motive, no "Jesus Juke" as Jon Acuff would say, though we do let them know we have services tomorrow.  It's just an opportunity to pour out love into the community.  Love and fun.  Infectious fun.  

A celebration on the greatest celebratory weekend of them all.

And this is a weekend where it would be easy to forgo this particular celebration.  To turn inward and focus on all the preparations for the "big" services.  We move to the local high school for the services on Easter to make sure there is plenty of room.  This involves again another whole day of setup and preparation of the space for nearly every aspect of our services.  From Sunday School classes to the service.  It would be so easy just to take today to just setup for the services and rest.

I'm glad we don't.  I'm glad we take today and do something crazy.

It's exhausting and overwhelming.  But it is so worth it for the community to see our involvement in it and our love for it. 

It's one of the many reasons why I love my church!

What does your church do that you really love?  What are the strengths of your church that you want to pass along?

I hope you have a church home that enjoys fellowship as well as the praise of, worship of, and service to our God.

If you don't and would like to see what Stonepoint is about, come pull up a chair tomorrow.  We will be at the high school in Wills Point and the Edgewood Middle School Gym. Services at 9:00 and 10:30 at both locations.  We will have plenty of room, but we would love for us to have to drag out more chairs.  

If you are interested in more information on our Easter services, check us out here.

Finally, if you are interested in more information on the church, check us out at http://www.stonepointchurch.com.

Holiday Parties - Why I Love My Work and Why I Love My Church

This week has marked the start of the holiday party season for the Keeler household.  On Tuesday evening, Jamie had her annual Christmas Cast Party (the first year it has not been at our apartment).  This evening, we will be attending the annual Level 2 Legal Solutions Holiday party in Richardson.  This Sunday evening, we will have the privilege of attending the Volunteer Appreciation dinner at Stonepoint Church in Wills Point.  Both are events we look forward to all year long. 

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The Level 2 Legal Solutions Holiday Dinner is truly one of the things that I love about my work and one of the things that really sets us apart from other companies in our field.  Every year, our company gives back to its employees with a great dinner, door prizes, games, gifts, and a truly enjoyable evening.  We'll close the office early and head out to dinner, with a drinks and plenty of opportunity to socialize.  Everyone is there from the CEO to the newest reviewers. 

For years, the dinner used to be held in Wills Point at Four Winds Steakhouse.  The one night of the year my drive actually worked to my advantage.  One benefit, I suppose, of having a four star steakhouse in your town half-way between the offices.  We would bus all the reviewers out to Wills Point and back again.  Last year, we finally moved the party up to Richardson, allowing an earlier end for everyone involved.

The dinner was also an opportunity for us to announce the recipients of the L2L Charitable Giving Grant Awards.  Each year (and now multiple times a year), we ask the employees to nominate charities that are important to them for the opportunity for a grant for that organization.  This is the fifth year of that program, I believe.

The dinner can be very difficult to schedule.  We never know exactly how many people will be working on projects at the time, especially as far in advance as many locations need to know, so it takes a lot of coordination and preparation to pull it off as well as we do.  It is noticed and very appreciated by our workforce.

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The Volunteer Appreciation Dinner at Stonepoint is an opportunity for the staff of Stonepoint to say thank you to the many volunteers that help keep Stonepoint serving.  They provide the meal and serve the many volunteers and provide the evenings entertainment.  It's a night of games with prizes and consequences (our church is a big believer in consequences), with a few surprises along the way. 

This will be Jamie and my third Volunteer Appreciation Dinner.  It's a gesture that truly reflects the hearts of those on the staff of the church and their care for its members.  A reminder that the Church is not the pastor, not the staff - it's the members of the body.  This is just one of the many reasons Why I Love My Church.

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I hope you and yours have many opportunities to get together with the various groups that make your lives great.  From family, to friends, to church family, to co-workers.  To enjoy this season and to look forward to greater things ahead.

Top Ten Things I'm Thankful For #5 - A church family that pushes us to growth

So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

Ephesians 4:11-13

I've written a few entries on specific services and ministries I love about our church, but I want to take a step further back.  In that series, I've specifically avoided discussing the fundamentals (ministers, preaching, teaching, worship, etc) of our church because those are things that any healthy church should be doing well.  I wanted to highlight unique and different things that our church does, showing my appreciation for the "outside of the box" ministries.  Today, I want to express my gratitude for a church that is striving to meet those fundamentals and doing it well.  I want to say thank you for having a great church home in Stonepoint Church, Wills Point.

I am thankful for having godly leadership in those on staff at the church.  I am thankful that they take serious their duties as shepherd to the flock entrusted in their care.  I'm grateful to get to know and serve along beside them.

I'm thankful for Biblical teaching grounded in the Truth and not on feeling, politic, or tradition.  For pastors who will proclaim the Truth that needs to be heard and not falling into either trap of too much "truth" or too much "love."

I'm thankful for a church that calls us all to action.  That requires service.  And reminds us that we all have a function and purpose to play within the body, however small, however remote, however unseen or unsung.

I'm thankful for a church that pushes its members to growth.  That checks in on our progress regularly and holds us to development in our faith.

I'm thankful for a church that works with other churches in the community.  I'm especially grateful to have seen the turnout and unity at the community service on Sunday.

I'm thankful for a church that knows how to celebrate and that has fun.  From baptism, to family worship, to Facebook challenges, and blooper reels, I'm grateful for a church that shows its enjoyment in life and spending time together.  If we believers are family now and will spend eternity together, we should probably start learning to enjoy each others' company now.

I'm grateful to be in a church that is alive in the Spirit of God, for the sad fact is that there are many, many churches across this nation and the globe that are not.

So, to the members and staff of Stonepoint Church, thank you!  Your spirit and service are recognized and appreciated.

If you are looking for a church home, to find a place to truly connect and dig in deeper, you can find out more about Stonepoint here.

Why I Love My Church 5 - Journey Groups

Yesterday we started our Journey Group for the fall season, following a kickoff with Group Link before Labor Day.  Journey Groups are our small groups, focused on home Bible studies, fellowship, and community.  We do not have traditional Sunday School for ages beyond fifth grade, so Journey Groups are our primary resource for deeper biblical teaching and for deeper connections among the members.

It's an embodiment of the early church in Acts, chapter 2.
"They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.  Everyone was filled with the awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles.  All the believers were together and had everything in common.  They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need.  Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts.  They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people.  And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved."

Acts 2:42-47

A place where we seek to abide daily, devote relationally, live authentically, and admonish biblically.

Small group bible studies hold a special place for Jamie and me.  We met at our community group in Austin.  We both had sought community in connection with the Austin Stone and had ended up in the same central Austin community group.  Since then, we have sought home Bible study in each church that we have attended since.

There's something special about studying in someone's home.  About gathering together, breaking bread and eating together, sharing in each other's lives.  Crying together.  Laughing together. Praying together.  Living together.

About taking our faith outside of the church and remembering that it carries with us each and every day, and in every location that we inhabit.

We look forward to the new year.  To getting to know the new members of our group.  To continuing to grow together with the continuing members.

If you're not in a small group, if you are not connecting with a small group of people to grow in your faith and in your life, why not?  What opportunities exist for you in your community?

If you are in the Wills Point area and would like to find a church to connect and grow with, and would like to learn more about Stonepoint, you can find out more here.

Why I Love My Church 4 - Family Worship

This Sunday, August 12, 2018, Stonepoint will be holding Family Worship at all worship services.

To explain how this is unique, let me give a little detail on our normal Sunday morning experience.  Stonepoint offers five worship services on Sunday mornings across two campuses.  Three in Wills Point and two in Edgewood as identified above. We do not generally have Sunday School as some would expect, but do offer classes for children under sixth grade (or under youth) during the worship hours.  This means parents and their young children are generally separated during the worship services.  For us, Avalyn and Jude get a double dose, hearing the same lesson twice as we volunteer at least one service and attend another.

Family Worship is a time when the kids are brought into "big church."  We will still have childcare for infants, but all other children's classes will not be meeting.  The goal is to bring families fully together to worship.  The amps are cranked up to eleven.  There may or may not be confetti cannons.  Beach balls will be bouncing about.  The music is pulled form what the children are learning in their classes (and for that reason Jamie is going to get to jump around on stage with the band instead of me this week).  And the message will be conveyed in a method geared toward reaching children and their families.

I find this particular Sunday important and impactful for a couple of reasons.

It's important that parents see and aid their children in worship.  "Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it."  Proverbs 22:6.  It's important for parents to see to their child's spiritual life.  To teach them the Word, to bring them into worship, and to lead and direct them.  We have wonderful teachers and volunteers in the children's ministry at Stonepoint, but we must remember that we as parents are that first line of education and reinforcement.  Family worship is a great way to see them in the worship service and to ease them into that transition as they are ready.

It's also important that children see their parents and other adults have joy in worship (and be a little silly).  "Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the earth: make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise."  Psalms 98:4.  It is vitally important that children observe joy and excitement in worship.  I understand the need for reverence and know its power in song and in word, but across the world we have way too many worship services that look like funeral services.  It can be ironic to have a time that is called praise and worship that seems to have very little outward praise.  We've seemingly conditioned ourselves to feel that outward expressions of joy and exuberance are to be avoided.  That solemnity should rule.  And that's a really hard barrier for kids to break.  This is what most often separates children out into kids church and big church.  We want "big church" to be quiet so the message is heard.  We want them to sit still and quiet, when their bodies and our bodies, were meant to dance, to jump, to shout, and to sing praises to our King.  We have way too much to be thankful for than to be silent all the time.  "I will not be silent, I will not be quiet anymore - Make a joyful noise to the Lord."  Our children need to see us being excited, being joyful, praising out loud, so they know it is acceptable and desirable for them to do so.  They are little sponges observing and taking in all we do.  We need to give them the best example in this area.

So, come join us.  Come dance for joy for what the Lord has done.  Come sing praises to his name at the top of your lungs.  It doesn't matter if you know the words or the tune.  It's called a "joyful noise" for a reason.

And if you are worried about looking silly, don't be.  We're all in this together and doing it for the best reason possible:  all for the glory of God.  This dates me, but I think of Undignified by David Crowder Band.

I will dance
I will sing
To be mad
For my King
Nothing Lord is hindering 
This passion in my soul

And I'll become
Even more undignified than this
Some would say it's foolishness
But I'll become
Even more undignified than this
Leave my pride by my side

It's all for You my Lord!

If you are looking for a church home, to find a place to truly connect and dig in deeper, you can find out more about Stonepoint here.

Why I Love My Church 3 - Movie Night

Continuing in the series of things I love about my church - Movie Night.

Tonight is movie night at the church.  We'll be at Heritage Park in Edgewood, Texas to gather as a united church and watch a movie under the stars. 

We'll gather starting at 7:30 pm for games and fun activities, with the movie starting once  it's good and dark.  There's plenty of space to spread out a blanket, to set up a lawn chair to get ready for the show.

The church is providing hot dogs and popcorn.  Plenty of food to enjoy.

I'm not sure what the movie will be, but it will definitely be family friendly.  In the past, it has been the newest Disney home release.

The Heritage Park is a fun place to be in any instance.  It's an outdoor museum, with a collection of twenty restored buildings representing life in East Texas from the 1800s to the 1920s.

Now, I know this sounds like an odd one to write about for Why I Love My Church, but hear me out.  This goes beyond Jamie and I being movie people.

I love this event because it is so outward facing.  It's an opportunity for the church to give to the community.  For people to bring guests and family to just be loved on.  No ulterior motive, no bait and switch.  No Jesus Juke.  Just a fellowship event where the church gathers together to enjoy spending time with each other and the church pours out on its members and the community.  The church providing free food and a show to whomever comes up.

Now there will be mentions of service times if people would like to come check us out, of other things the church is doing, but they are announcements.  We'll pray, we'll eat, and we'll have a good time.  A get together with the whole family, if you will. 

And it's a perfect time here near Fourth of July celebrations.  A time together broken out of the mold of what we think church is.  A time to be the Church instead of going to "church".

In the early days of Christianity, "church" took up a lot more time than we would assume.   Even more than Sunday morning service, Sunday evening service, Tuesday night prayer service, and Wednesday night devotion.

They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.  Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles.  All the believers were together and had everything in common.  They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need.  Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts.  They broke bread in homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people.  And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

Acts 2:42-47

This went far beyond the religious activities planned.  The Church hung out together.  They liked being around each other and enjoyed spending time together.  

And it showed to the people around them. Others in the community wanted to be a part of that fellowship.  Of that kind of love.

How is your church doing?  Do the members actually like to be together?  Or do you tolerate each other?

Can you fellowship together and enjoy just spending time and getting to know each other?  You know, I think if we cannot get this right down here, eternity is going to be a very long process.

I hope you have a church home that enjoys fellowship as well as the praise of, worship of, and service to our God.

If you don't and would like to see what Stonepoint is about, come pull up a chair tonight.  If you are interested in more information on the church, check us out at http://www.stonepointchurch.com.

Why I Love My Church 2 - Stonepoint Serves

"You, my brothers, were called to be free.  But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love."

Galatians 5:13

This is one of my favorite Sundays of the whole year.  Stonepoint Serves.  We take one Sunday out of the year and do not just go to church, we remember that we are the Church.

This Sunday, we will all meet at 9:00 am.  One "service" where we will sing a couple of hymns/choruses and say a prayer.  That's it at the church.  From there, we will go out and spend the morning serving and meeting needs in the community.  Yard work, small construction projects, painting, whatever needs we can address.  Journey Groups (small groups/Sunday School-like classes) will meet and work together on specific projects they have noticed and identified within the group.  Other church members will tackle projects identified by nomination or request.

It's about giving back to the community.  About making the community better.  About serving and meeting the needs that we can see or are brought to our attention.  About feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, inviting in the stranger, clothing the naked, caring for the sick, and visiting the imprisoned.

And it makes an impact.  We can see it and observe it.

Could you imagine if all churches could do this?  What would it look like if every church took one Sunday morning to go out and serve?  For it to be such a priority that they took the regularly scheduled worship time to serve?  What would our community look like?

In a quick search, I can identify twenty four churches in Wills Point, Texas alone.  If every church took one Sunday, that works out to the Church serving the community nearly every other Sunday.  And it does not matter if the church has five members or five hundred members, it is still the church getting out of its walls and acting as the hands and feet of Christ, whether in one project or fifty.

Full confession, I write this as Jamie and I are visiting family in San Antonio and not able to be a part of the activities this morning.  But we are anxiously looking forward to serving with our Journey Group on an alternate date.  And we would love it if the church added one or more Stonepoint Serves Sundays throughout the year.

It's a reminder that our call is to care for and serve our neighbor just as much as it is to evangelize.  Loving them requires both.

"For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."

Ephesians 2:10

The Living Bible translates this passage as "It is God himself who has made us what we are and given us new lives from Christ Jesus; and long ages ago he planned that we should spend these lives in helping others."  The "good works" reference is service.  It is what we are to be about, to serve God and to serve others; to serve God by serving others.

Further, where it mentions "God's handiwork", it should be translated as a work of an artisan, not just of a craftsman.  We are the pinnacle of God's workmanship.  His masterpiece.

So let's go serve and live like it.

Why I Love My Church 1 - Baptism Sunday

"As they traveled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, "Look, here is water.  What can stand in the way of my being baptized?"  Acts 8:36

I wanted to start a new series to write on special Sundays to outline reasons I love the church we are attending.  It can be very easy to focus on the negative in anything we do.  To point out everything we would change, every little problem we have.  Everything that doesn't make us happy.  All too often, we focus on those aspects to the exclusion of all that we have been blessed with.

And please do not misunderstand me, I love a lot of things about Stonepoint.  I love the staff, I love the intentionality that everything is done with, I love the biblical foundation, I love the people.  Everything listed probably does not get enough recognition.  But this series will not initially focus on those aspects.  To start this series is going to focus on those really unique, standout things our church does, including a few things that I would love to see other churches do as well.

This is on my mind because today is Baptism Sunday.  Stonepoint does not have a baptistery, so Baptisms are scheduled for around three times a year.  This Sunday, May 6, 2018, will be the first baptism service of 2018.  And if you've never been to a Stonepoint baptism, here are a few things that really standout to me about this Sunday.

1) The whole church comes together - At Stonepoint, we have five services on Sunday mornings, three in Wills Point and two in Edgewood.  This Sunday, we will only have one service at 10:00 am outside at the Wills Point campus.  The platform will be setup for the worship team and the "pool" for the baptisms.  All services and both campuses will come together to recognize the life change that has occurred in the lives of those baptized, as well as the growth of the church and God's kingdom.  It is a time for us all to be united.  To see those that serve in other services that we may not get to see as often.  To celebrate together.  It's one of the important milestones where we are all united.

2) The baptisms involve the whole staff and those who have been influential in the life change that is being celebrated - Our baptisms are not performed by Brandon, the senior pastor, only.  The baptism itself is performed by the staff member, journey group leader, teacher, parent, etc. that has the strongest connection to the person being baptized.  Beyond that, those members that are closest to the person being baptized are invited in the water with them.  Parent, sibling, journey group members.  It's a celebration of the journey and we have those that are celebrating the most involved in the process.

3) It's a party - I've been using the word celebration over and over again because that is the best way to describe our baptism services.  It is a celebration of the lives that have been changed and brought into a relationship with Jesus Christ.  It is a celebration of the lost being found.  It is a celebration of relationships being restored, of lifelong friendships, of forgiveness.  Of the old passing away and being made new.  For a fresh start.  A new hope.

It is written that the angels in heaven rejoice when a sinner repents.

"Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents."  Luke 15:15

We want to join in that celebration.  So in addition to the baptisms themselves we sing.  Loud.  We have bounce houses.  We have Kona Ice.  We set up our lawn chairs and blankets.  Throw footballs and frisbees.  And we eat, eat, and eat (we're mostly recovering Baptists, so of course we eat).

This is homecoming.  It's a family reunion.  It's a party because our brother, our sister was lost and has now returned.  We can learn a lot from the story of the prodigal son here, because when the prodigal comes home, it is a time to bring out the best, the finest.

So, if you are looking for a church home, to find a place to truly connect and dig in deeper, you can find out more about Stonepoint here.

If you have a church home, I would ask you what you love about your church.  Could you list the things that you feel your church is really strong in?  And are there areas that you recognize you are being called to serve in?

And if you have not yet believed and followed Christ in baptism, I would ask you:

Look, here is water.  What stands in your way from being baptized?