Lately, a lot of “so called” experts believe the church is in decline. I don’t.
As a result, there are plenty of conferences offering their latest and greatest pitch to stop the church’s decline. Each year we’re invited to hear “celebrity” pastors share God’s plan for the church and how we ought to adopt it and be large and successful like them. Frankly, I’m surprised that there hasn’t been a venue to really address how and why churches grow.
Many pastors & church leaders make their annual pilgrimage to Catalyst, Saddleback Church, Willowcreek Association’s Leadership Summit, North Point’s Drive Conference, Greater St. Steven FGBC, The Potter’s House, etc. and come away excited and delusional with unrealistic expectations. Ed Stetzer calls it ministry pornography. (more…)
Growing up watching the 3 Stooges provided hours of laughter. Their comedy is timeless and still makes me laugh. The Three Stooges will always be remembered as comedic geniuses and as one of the best comedy dream teams who made our day by slapping the laughter out of us. Honestly, the slaps look real to me 🙂
I chose this video to show that oftentimes we do something similar to guests each Sunday. Sometimes the way we treat our guests is equivalent to a slap in the face. And when that happens, guests forget everything else (awesome praise & worship, children’s ministry, & the message) – even the good that happened before the slap.
A slap in the face to a guest can be a number of things. It can be an insensitive comment from the pulpit, a moment of awkwardness, a harsh word from an usher, or a nasty glance from a member.
Since Easter is our “Spiritual Superbowl” let’s do everything within our power not to spiritually slap our guests. Remember, you never get a second chance to make a good first impression.
Mars Hill, let’s make Easter Weekend memorable and not “spiritually slap” anyone.
Today is the one of the most important holidays in the Stowers Household: Valentine’s Day. It’s importance ranks up there with July 2nd (Shauntai’s birthday), June 27th (Our anniversary), December 25th (She loves Christmas – her favorite season), and Mother’s day.
I have a 9-year-old daughter at home and Valentines Day has morphed into a silent, but friendly competition between the two. My two sons could care less. On June 27, 2011, Shauntai and I will celebrate 19 years of marriage. I still make an effort to go all out to make the days that are special to her special to me. As I grow older, so does my love for my wife. She’s my best friend, helper, cheerleader, and coach.
Here’s what I love about my wife:
She believes in me more than I sometimes believe in myself.
She’s a true P-31 Woman (Proverbs 31) & is the Chief Operating Officer in the Stowers household.
She’s immaculate & keeps our home clean, organized, and functioning like a well oiled machine.
She listens to me ramble and never cuts me off.
She’s funny & makes me laugh – she has a great sense of humor.
She’s very compassionate & loves deeply. You gotta love anyone who cries watching Martian Child.
She loves God and is a TRUE WORSHIPER. While she’s cleaning, she’ll go in listening to Shekinah Glory in a heartbeat.
She encourages me at the right time which makes me feel I can do anything.
She’s extremely serious about her relationship with God and desires to grow spiritually.
FINALLY. She’s FINE, GORGEOUS, A TRUE DIME-PIECE 😀
Question: Have you told your spouse how much you love them?
Have you ever noticed how circular life really is? We start not knowing anything, and enjoy it immensely (childhood). Eventually we think we know everything, but everyone else still thinks we don’t know anything; this causes a lot of frustration (adolescence, end of childhood). At last we realize…no, we don’t know everything, in fact we still hardly know anything; again, we seem to enjoy this stage, in many cases a bit too much (college and professional life, the in-between to adulthood).
The legal age for adulthood is eighteen for women and twenty-one for men (never understood that). However, we all know many enter adult well before AND after the legal age. So, when did it occur for you? When did you discover you were “good and grown?”
I discovered I was good and grown (an adult) when:
On December 2, I celebrated my 44th birthday with family and close friends. During the week of Thanksgiving, we loaded up a rental minivan and hit the highway headed to Jackson, MS. We had a great time bonding with family, shopping, and of course – EATING! I’m happy my wife had a chance to see all of her relatives including her mother and grandmother.
(All the grandchildren posing for a pic…including my Shauntai – my wife)
Last week, my family and I shared a birthday meal together and I hopped on a plane to a much warmer place with a few close friends. You can call it an official “fellas” trip. We had a chance to catch up on old times and enjoy each others company in a “warm” & “stress-free” environment. In short, we had a great time. While away, I thought about my next steps in life…what they would look like…how I would approach the next phase of my life. It’s been said “when a man enters his 40’s he carries with him the experiences from the past and the anticipations of tomorrow.” Thus, I decided to create an organic…ongoing list called “Now that I’m 44.
Today, I received an email fromAppleencouraging me to reserve or pre-order my iPad. Honestly, the more I learn about this device, the more tempted I become. I am beginning to think this could be a game-changer.
Check out this new ad:
Temptation is real…
Temptation always appeals to the vulnerable part of your heart. The taste will be palatable, persistent and powerful.
Don’t believe me, ask Adam & Eve:
“When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.” (Genesis 3:6)
Temptation is…
Enticing – It appeals to your hopes and desires (I plan to use the iPad to preach & teach…yea right).
Enjoyable – It promises you immense pleasure (I can see myself smiling as I use my iPad).
Evasive – It evades the truth with excuses (My heart is telling my head to find a reason to justify the purchase).
Escalating – It multiplies your appetite for more (If I don’t control it now, my desire for more will increase…darn it).
Ok, so did I talk myself out of purchasing one…to be continued 😀
Do you plan to purchase an iPad? If so, why? If not, why?
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Best regards,
Clarence E. Stowers, Jr.
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