Come

 I just finished reading the book of Revelation, PHEW! I don't know about you, but whenever I read Revelation more times then not it stirs up more questions then answers. I mean really, Dragons are real???!!! This is every geeky guy's dream come true! And when does Babylon (modern day Iraq) become the financial mecca  center of the world?
I once heard a preacher say that if someone tells you they can interpret Revelation you need to run, because it probably means they are a weirdo!
But even in the craziness and confusion of  the book of Revelation you still find some of the most powerful scriptures in the Bible about how much God hates sin and how redemptive and powerful the death and resurrection of Jesus really is. He is our rescuer and our deliverer! And by the end of the book in the mist of all the dragons and serpents and multi-headed beasts one thing is clear. JESUS WINS! And the Church, The Body of Christ, Overcomes! Not by our own strength but by the Blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony! (Rev. 12:11)

At the end of Revelation is one of my all time favorite scriptures.

Revelation 22:17

The Spirit and the Bride say, "come." And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price.

I love this verse. I see so much of God's grace and love for us here. "The spirit and the bride say come." The Spirit of God is saying "Come." Speaking to those who are far from Him, those who have not yet come to an understanding that Jesus is the only way, truth and life. "Come." 

Then the next part of the scripture is one I think we tend to overlook. The Bride says "Come" the Bride. Who is the Bride? 

The body of Christ is the Bride, the Church, those who claim to be Christ followers. WE are the Bride of Christ. 

I wanted to take a minute to challenge us today. Who in our lives are we telling "Come"? Who in our lives are we reaching out to? The Gift "the water of life" that God offers us is a free gift, But how will people know if we are not inviting them to come drink? Pray for boldness today. Pray that God will open your eyes to the opportunities that are constantly before us. Pray that we can reach a thirsty city with the life giving message of Jesus. He is the ONLY answer. 

Now What?

2 Peter 1:5-8
"Make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, LOVE. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ."

Well, we finally did it! we moved to Oregon to start a new church! This has been such an exciting and terrifying process. I have stepped out in faith like never before and am learning to trust God more then I ever have. We are excited to start this journey and believe with all our hearts that God is going to do something significant and amazing in Hillsboro Oregon.

So now what?

We moved our family, our amazing team, and our lives here to reach this city; so how do we do that?

I came across this scripture in 2 Peter and it gives the perfect formula for reaching those who are far from God.  here is is......
Be full of
Faith
Goodness
Knowledge
Self-control
Perseverance
godliness
mutual affection
LOVE

If we want to be affective in reaching our city we must be a reflection of Jesus. The church is the only Jesus this world will ever see. What kind of Jesus are we reflecting?

Are we reflecting a Jesus who is good?
Are we reflecting a Jesus who is full of knowledge and self-control? A Jesus who does not grow weary but is able to persevere? And what about LOVE? are we portraying a Jesus who Loves?

Scripture tells us that "No man has seen God but when we love each other then they see God through us because God is love."

If we want to reach our city we must walk in these Christ-like attributes.

Now, I know this all sounds good and amazing because really, who doesn't want to be like Jesus? and I am the first one to admit that it is so much easier said then done!

But I have good news! Jesus sent his Holy Spirit to lead us. Scripture says that when we become Christ followers the Holy Spirit lives in us and empowers us to live lives that reflect who Jesus is.

Galatians 5:22  says that the fruit of the Spirit is Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness. Goodness, and Self-control.

Pray and ask the Holy Spirit to lead you and guide you. To give the strength to live a life that reflects Jesus and the grace to uphold us when we fall short.

Because, yes we have other strategies and plans to start this church and to reach our city but, if we lack the fruit of the Holy spirit in our lives we will be INEFFECTIVE and UNPRODUCTIVE just as Peter tells us in 2 Peter 1.  But if we walk by the Spirit and live a life that reflects Jesus we will be effective and productive in reaching our city for Jesus!

Ephesians 4

Ephesians 4

I love the the book of Ephesians! The 4th chapter has especially been speaking to me lately. Over the next week or two I am going to begin blogging about all that God is speaking to me in this chapter. Lets begin with Verses 1-3........


Ephesians 4:1-3"As a Prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in LOVE."

 Paul gives us 5 initiatives here

1. Live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 

What is the calling? The calling is a Christ follower. We are all called to follow Christ and to live a God honoring life. Live in such a way that makes the world around you want what you have. I am not saying be fake or unauthentic, sometimes life is challenging, People are challenging. But how we respond or react to our situations is what the world around us will take notice to.

2. Be Humble

Jesus spoke of humility often. In Luke 14:11 Jesus tells us "All who exalt themselves will be humbled and those who humble themselves will be exalted" 1 Peter 5:5 says "All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble." Romans 12:3 tells us "Do not think of yourselves more highly then you ought to." 
God is asking us to be humble, not proud. He gives unending grace to those who are humble and believe me, I need a lot of grace! 


3. Be Gentle
Titus 3:2 tells us to "speak evil of no one, avoid quarreling, be gentle and show courtesy toward all people." Be gentle and kind to each other. This honors God. 


4. Be Patient 
Yikes! this is a hard one isn't it? I sing a little song to my girls about patients and it goes like this..... 
"Have patients, have patients, don't be in such a hurry, when you get impatient, you only start to worry, remember, remember, God has patients too, So think of all the times when others have to wait for you!" 
Patients is not easy but it is attainable. Lets learn to be patient with each other and patient with God. 


5. Bear with one another in LOVE
God expect and mandates us (Christians) to be there for each other. when we see someone hurting or burdened we should to be the first shoulder they have to lean on. We can not let people fight alone. We have to be there for each other in love. 


Today I want to challenge you all to Pray. Pray that the Holy Spirit will help you live a life worthy of the calling, to be humble and gentle; to be patient with people and patient with God; and to bear with each other in love. Love each other. 

Those Who Dreamed

Psalms 126:1-3 
When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dreamed. Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, "The Lord has done great things for them." The lord has done great things for us and we are filled with joy!

I read this today and loved it so much! God has given us so many good gifts and sometimes we forget. We tend to focus on all that we don't have and forget all that we do. But when we begin to remember and thank God for all he has given us we become like "those who dream" I love that statement! I love it because people who dream are the people who change history, dreamers are the people who change the world! But also, dreaming brings life and joy not only in our own lives but to the lives of the people around us. When we have God's inspired joy it causes people to say "The Lord has done great things for them." Just like Matthew 5:16 says, "Let your light shine before others that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven." When we let our light shine it brings glory to God.

So, today I am going to make a challenge to us all. What do you have to thank God for? Maybe its for our families, or our health. Maybe its for a job or for a great friend. Whatever good thing it may be, give thanks to God.  But if you still can't think of anything to give thanks for I know of one that we all have to be thankful for, salvation. The fact that God sent his son Jesus to die so we could have salvation is enough for all of us to thank Him today. Be filled with thanksgiving and joy today. And be a dreamer!

Harvest

 Hey Guys! I wanted to give you a quick update on all that is going on with the Church plant. Adam and I are officially out of New Mexico. We are staying in Arizona until June. We then will officially become Oregonians! Can't wait! We will be taking these next few months in Arizona to dream, pray, and prepare for the launch of Catalyst Church.  We should have our Website up sometime in the next week so keep your eyes open for that. www.Catalystchurch.com

We will be taking a trip to Portland at the beginning of February with a few people from our launch team. Please pray for us. We still need some direction on where exactly in the city God wants us to launch. We are hoping God gives us some clarification on this trip. Thanks!

Matthew 9:36-38
 When Jesus saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. He said to his disciples, "The harvest is great, but the workers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”

I can't stop thinking about these verses today. I believe with all my heart that God is preparing the harvest in Oregon. Please pray with us that He will draw in even more laborers. Ones who are ready and willing to give there lives to bring in the harvest, to bring in the confused and helpless, to bring in the broken and the hurting, to bring in the ones desperate for an encounter with a God who loves them.

Thank you for all your prayers and support!

Changed

2 Corinthians 5:17
^" This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!"

I cant stop thinking about this verse today. When I became a Christian at the age of 15 my life was completely changed. At the time I was just a little girl with serious abandonment issues. I remember I would come to church and my youth pastor would say this simple sentence to me "Dana, I am so glad you are here!" and that simple sentence would bring me to tears. Every week he would say the same thing and every week I would cry. During that first year of me becoming a Christian my life was completely changed. I didn't become a perfect Christian (I am still not) but my life was set on a completely different course. I fell in love with Jesus, I realized that Jesus loved me even though I was a completely broken person. I realized that he had a plan for my life and I wanted nothing else but to fulfill that plan. I was a changed person, not a perfect person, but changed.

As we are closer then ever to the launch of Catalyst Church I cant help but to remember that 15 year old girl who gave her life to Jesus at a tent revival meeting on a rainy summer night almost 15 years ago, and wonder about all the other 15 year old girls who are desperate for their own life changing encounter with God. Those are the people we want to reach. The broken, the hurting, the abandoned. We want to be the hands and feet of Jesus and show them that God sees them and that he loves them. We don't want to grow a church full of church attenders, we want to grow a church full of broken people that have a life changing encounter with the living God and will never be the same again.

"Diversity's Symphony"