From Michael This week we took our annual staff retreat. I was surprised by how much work it turned out to be. We went to Avalon, New Jersey which is a beautiful place, but it was cold and rainy (actually a good thing, because no one was tempted away from our agenda). The group is […]
Easter was amazing here at Nativity. The Holy Week services were moving and uplifting; at the Vigil we baptized and confirmed 25 people into the faith, Easter Sunday saw thousands of people at our morning Masses (nobody actually took count, but there was a huge crowd), people graciously filled our video venues, parked off campus, […]
From Michael Palm Sunday was an incredible day here. There were over 4200 people but it was so prayerful and spirit filled it was almost intimate. When Charlie and Al started singing “Were You There” I don’t think there was a dry eye in the house. Lots of high school students have been putting in […]
From Tom Maturity means taking responsibility for my life, all of it – my thoughts, my feelings, my actions and my decisions. Maturity also means recognizing what I do not control, what is not my responsibility. Christian maturity means taking responsibility for what I do control, recognizing what I don’t control and then trusting God […]
From Michael We had a really great weekend to close out the current message series as well as the season of Lent. Last week we topped 4100 in attendance but this weekend it was over 4200. Incredible. This was also our annual “First Serve” weekend where we challenged every member to become a minister. At […]
From Tom As I have said on our small group videos, I am not very handy, however lately I have been trying to lean into my household problems that require me to use the handyman part of my brain and require skillful use of tools. For me, this has been a big step because usually […]
From Michael I am currently reading a book called “The Emotionally Healthy Church.” In the many ways that I have studied and even talked about Church, I had never seen this designation before. Big/small, old/new, vibrant/boring, traditional/contemporary, rich/ poor, well maintained/falling apart, Catholic/Protestant…are all designations that are usually made of Churches; but how about emotionally […]
From Tom We promised this list last weekend. I had a busy week that kept me from getting this out. But here is an examination of conscience. “I am the Lord your God, you shall have no gods besides me.” This commandment tells us to put our trust and faith in God more than myself […]
From Michael Fear is something we have been talking about this Lent. The Bible says “fear no evil.” And yet we live in fear all the time. And we work in fear. Fear is a danger I face, especially in leading this Church. I know I am operating in fear when I don’t do the […]
From Tom I read a few articles over the last few days about the numbers of professed Christians shrinking in our country, down from 86 percent to 75 percent. The temptation for religious people and professionals is to begin blaming the people, that they just aren’t committed to God anymore. Or we can easily become […]
