Unbelievable :-)

This video was sent to me and I can't help but pass it on to you! This rivals nearly everything I've seen. Amazing. I'll never think of the Lord's Prayer the same way. ENJOY.



Give me your thoughts...

Rain and Storms

As a pastor it appears to me that, in an odd way, people tend to grow closer to God through trial and tears - even more so than sitting in a stained glass cathedral for years. Do you remember the story of the three little pigs and how each of the pigs built their home out of different materials? As much I love this story and the truths behind it, I have an odd feeling that God probably did his best work with the little pig who lost his entire home with the one puff from the big bad wolf. This is not to say that you shouldn't build a sturdy or strong house. But, I've noticed that God tends to use the storms in life to demonstrate His power in our lives.

Take a look at this great video - along with the song, Jesus bring the Rain, by Mercy Me. Give me your thoughts on this important truth from this video.

Share 'Your' Go God Thing!

I just got a call from a friend of mine who shared a cool story about how God worked in his life during a phone conversation. He said to me, "I'm not sure what happened but all of the sudden it was like God's words were flowing through my mouth and it really made a difference in this person's life. I felt so used by God. It was awesome."

I would consider this a "Go God Thing" (GGT)

The Bible says that we are to share good things with one another and to encourage each other when the days are hard and difficult (Hebrews 3:13).

Okay...so take a shot at it. It won't hurt you at all. And of course, you can do it anonymously.

LET THE GO GOD BEGIN....

What Makes for a Mature Church?

As you might guess, much of my time each week is spent researching and reading about the church. I love the church. In fact, I have come to believe that "the church is the hope of the world." Because of this, I have dedicated a large portion of my life to this organism called, the church.

I came across this writing the other day by Pastor Mark Beeson that I found interesting. I'd love to get your thoughts on this below (click on, "comment" and give me your thoughts). Here it is:

Anywhere in the world, whether plant or animal, the clear delineation of maturity is the ability to reproduce. Immature animals can't reproduce. Immature plants can't replicate themselves. The definition of maturity is being fully ripe, fully aged, so the connotation of maturity is obvious. Where you see maturity you'll observe new life, babies and immaturity all over the place.

Maturity desires reproduction. Maturity tolerates juvenile behavior (from juveniles) while training its progeny for success in life. Maturity means little [babies] running all over the place.

If you attend a mature church, be prepared for immaturity. Where you find mature Christians you'll find little babes in Christ running all over the place. In fact, if you have been looking for a church where everyone tithes and everyone serves--you're not looking for a mature church, you are looking for a dying church - aged, impotent and bereft of spiritual newborns because everyone is mature.

Few things are more disturbing than a flock of adult believers standing around complaining that no one has come to Christ while refusing to do something that might result in new life. So when you bump into someone who acts immature at one of our services, don't complain, and don't be surprised. Instead, thank God the mature in Christ are busy delivering newborn babies to the family of God.

Give me your thoughts...

Monday after Easter

To God, who is able to do immeasurably more than we can ask or imagine, according to His power that is within us...
Ephesians 3:20



Monday!

It's Monday morning and I'm crashed out on our living room couch getting ready to gear up for another week ahead. I must admit, my motivation isn't even close to where it was last week - with Easter on the horizon. It's Monday. The Monday after Easter.

Yesterday was amazing! The people kept coming and coming (record attendance - auditorium packed), our worship was off the chain - awesome! Our drama team pulled off one of their best of the best, our special music was just that - incredibly special. I even survived the message - with very few 'boos' from the crowd! It's as close as we could come to getting a "hole in one" in golf. It was simply a God thing. Although Sunday is gone - Easter remains.

So - get this: This Sunday I'm starting a new series based on a great book by Max Lucado called, "Everyday Deserves a Chance." This book is truly a God send. It talks about seeing God in every day life - not just Christmas or Easter. So, this morning I'm jotting some notes for my message and I'm feeling my heart rate going up as we gear up for another great Sunday at Willowbrook! I dont' know about you, but I'm giving this day a chance!

A Good Laugh

I had a good laugh at the cartoon above. Just the other night I was working on my blog when my wife, Terri, said to me, "Should I start a blog too so that we can better communicate with each other?" Herein lies the danger with blogging. So, if I'm not on my blog 26 hours a day - don't worry, I'll be back. But for now, I'm going to see if I can find my wife -

Today was a great Sunday at the Brook - and I'm really looking forward to our Good Friday and Easter service. I know that God has been working big time on a lot of hearts at our church and this Easter has the potential to be BIG! Go God!

A Bad Day for Jesus

Leave it to Vintage 21 to come up with another great dubbing from an old Jesus movie. What I find interesting in this video is the partial truth in the way many view Jesus today - strongly judgemental. Turn up your volume and enjoy a few good laughs - and remember: "for I did not come into this world to condemn it, but that the world might be saved..." (Jesus - John 3:17) NLT

Have a Question About Life?

The greatest part of being a pastor at a church where more than half of those attending each week are seekers, is that I receive some of the best questions about God, life, and relationships. This blog was created as a bridge to generate some of the best dialogue imagineable between us. Got a question? Give it a shot.

Defeating Discouragement

We are on a Life Talk Series this March (08) that is all about defeating our giants. David, from the Old Testament, defeated a nine foot Philistine named Goliath. In a short period of time David went from living as a shepherd with his sheep - to living in a palace as a King. However, David suffered a tremendous defeat a few years later when he lost to a giant called, lust. All of us have giants in our lives. A huge internal giant is called, discouragement.

What Drives Me Bananas

What Drives Me Bananas

Every so often I will have those moments in my life that I'll just shake my head and wonder, "What are we thinking?" Let me take a moment just to share with you those things that make me go bananas.

1. Parents who fail to get their teens to Youth Group.

After 14 years of youth ministry, I discovered a powerful truth while working with teens and here it is: If a parent drove their son or daughter to youth group, they arrived. How's that for truth? It's true! ONE HUNDRED percent of the time the kid made it to youth group if their parent was behind the wheel. What makes me go bananas are Christian parents who fail to make youth group just as important (I would argue - more important)than school. Okay...I could go on forever.

2. Failure to protect Sundays for the family.

Every study that I have ever read indicates that a family that worships together on a regular basis develops a healthier lifestyle and spiritual depth than a family that is inconsistent in their worship. While growing up we had a plaque on the kitchen wall that read, "The family that prays together stays together." In many ways, it is true. Again, I go bananas when I see someone struggling with their spiritual walk and yet they fail to meet God in church. Hebrews 10:25 says that we are not to "neglect" meeting together. There's a reason for this. Out of site, out of mind.

3. Busy schedules.

There's a wise saying and it goes like this: If the devil can't make you bad, he will keep you busy. Most of us pride ourselves on being busy. We like that feeling of having our daytimer tell us that we are important - irreplaceable. But the truth is this - the longer our RPMs operate in the red zone, the less effective we are in just about every area of our life. This is especially true in our spirtual life. Rick Warren, author of the Purpose Driven Life, once stated, "If you have to work more than 45 hours a week you are probably less productive as you think." The key is to try to build a safe margin into your life so that you can say "no" to good things in order to say "yes" to far greater things.

Grow Your Jesus

I found this "Grow your Jesus" at a store in Chicago. The directions tell us to place Jesus in a cup of water and watch him grow over 600 percent of his actual size. I thought this might be what John had in mind when he wrote in the Gospel of John, "I must decrease while Christ increases." (John 3:30) Here's a real challenge for you and me: What do you think would happen in our lives if Jesus got just a little bit bigger (3 percent, 5 percent, 10 percent) in us? I wonder if anyone could tell the difference? If you're a Christian (Christ follower), Jesus shares that we are "salt" and "light" to this world. So, let me encourage you to take the challenge with me - to grow our Jesus bigger!

Sergei and Aylona from Ukraine

I have known Sergei and Aylona for over three years. I first met them in 2005 when I went with a team of church planters from Minnesota to Cherkassy, Ukraine. While in Ukraine we shared ideas together on how we can make an impact on the many villages that have yet to hear about Christ. I'm happy to report that Willowbrook has a partnership with Sergei and Aylona and that plans are underway to fly them to Minnesota to be with us in July and August. Sergei and Aylona have never, in their entire life, been on an airplane or out of Ukraine! This is going to be an awesome summer! Go God!

What is Willowbrook?

What is Willowbrook?


It is important to understand that God is God of variety. And what is so magnificent about the body of Christ is the many facets in which people can come to know our true Savior. We believe that each church has a specific purpose in reaching our world for Christ. The key is for each church to find that purpose and commit to it.

Easter is Coming

I'm making some important plans for our Easter Service this year (2008). I hope that you check back soon to learn more about "Defeating the Giant of Death." You can go to our website at http://www.willowbroookchurch.org/ to learn more about us!