What's Your Problem?

Have you ever noticed how lately everyone seems to have some sort of problem.  Now I know that at first glance the term "What's Your Problem" can cause peoples defenses to go up but hang with me here for a few moments because I am going somewhere with this.  "Problems" we all have them: people problems, health problems, job problems, money problems, relational problems, government problems, and sometimes just general problems.  We all deal with problems on a regular basis and I am not trying to minimize the size or scope of your problems. 
However, I do want to challenge you with something. I believe that we live in a culture that has made some things major problems even "First World Problems" that are not really problems at all.  Think about it.  When Starbucks stops carrying Pumpkin Spice we can sometimes have a major meltdown.  Or when someone is only driving the speed limit in the fast lane on the interstate "how could they go so slow?" what about when the server gets your order wrong when you go to the restaurant and you cannot believe that this could happen to you ever single time and you loose it. 
Does it ever occur to you that the things in our culture that we have deemed problems may actually be a series of problems that we as a culture have created due to our own "entitlement issues". Over the course of the next 4 weeks we are going to be addressing some serious 1st World Problems at Relevant Church during our weekend series and I thing we are all going to be challenges to look at our problems through a different lens. 
Join us this week as we dive into this new series "First World Problems" it is going to be a game changer.

Superbowl of Jesus Sports

Can you believe that in just 5 days 7 hours and 41 minutes as of right now we will be celebrating what I have dubbed the Superbowl of Jesus Sports.  Yes that is right in just 5 days we will be celebrating Easter and here at Relevant we do not like to do anything halfway especially on such a special day like Easter.  For 3 weeks at Relevant we have been talking about Investing and Inviting and this week is the perfect time to put that investing and inviting into practice. I would like to encourage every person who calls Relevant home to use every possible tool at their disposal to get as many people here Sunday as possible. FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM, EMAIL, PERSONAL INVITE, PONY EXPRESS, what ever it takes.  We will be launching a brand new series called #523Greater and I know that it will impact everyone here. Here is a run down of what to expect.

• Incredible music from our Band 
• Creative relevant teaching with the launch of a brand new series "523Greater"
• Fun filled Children's ministry with special play area open after each service
• Bounce Houses
• Super Slide
• Obsticle course
• Games
• Cotton Candy
• Kona-Ice Snow Cones

You don't want to miss the opportunity to bring a guest with you, young or old they will have a great time.  Remember we will be having 3 service times to choose from on Easter. 8:45, 10, and 11:15am they will all be identical and all ministry areas will be fully staffed. 

See you all Sunday,

Paul

Let the Dunking Begin!!!

We are right in the middle of college basketball's "March Madness" which now stretches into April and that is kind of confusing to me, but I digress. This is the time of year when Cinderella stories take on a whole new meaning and sometimes the underdogs end up as heroes.  It is a time when dreams are made and hopes are dashed.  Since those games are sometimes only remembered by the dunks,  here are a few reminders of some of those types of dunks:  Tomahawk, Put-back, Reverse, Triple Pump, Windmill, and my personal favorite, The Alley Oop!  Oh the dunk is by far one of the highlights of any basketball game, and I realize that the three-point shooters reading this are probably begging to differ with me; but the facts still remains that the dunk is just an epic way to score in basketball.  My son Anthony loves to play basketball and he and his buddies like nothing more than to lower the rim to the height that they can take their place with basketballs greats and dunk. 

This got me thinking. What is it about dunking that is so incredible?  Dunking in basketball is something that sets you apart from the rest of the field. But I think there is another dunking that is even more incredible.  It is the spiritual dunking called baptism.  You see dunking a basketball is awesome and it sets you apart in the basketball arena, yet spiritual dunking, through baptism, sets you apart for the Kingdom of God.  Spiritual Dunking-Baptism is a public display of a transformation that has already happened on the inside of a persons heart when they began their relationship with Jesus.

Tomorrow there will be several March Madness games played and I am sure that there will be several epic dunks.  However, I do not think any of them will compare to the dunks that will take place at our very own March Madness here at at Relevant.  Come out tomorrow and support some life changing spiritual dunks.

If you have been thinking about getting baptized and would like to get baptized tomorrow just email me or Josette and let us know and we will get you added to the list.

OBEY

WOW! I cannot believe that I looked at my blog and it has been over a month since I have posted anything.  Not that I am an avid blogger, but that is a long time.  With the summer almost at an end and school cranking up I think it is a perfect time for us as a church and me as a person to consider this idea of OBEY.  Now upon fist glance a series like OBEY may seem a bit childish because we all want to think that the idea of obeying is something that only children struggle with. However,  I am learning that as an adult I seem to struggle with obeying even more than I think my own kids do.  Please do not tell them I said that it could ruin everything.  LOL!

I think as adults we struggle with obedience because most of us have mastered the art of justification.  When we do not want to do something we just justify why it does not fit into our lives any longer or if we want to do something that we know is completely against what scripture teaches then we just justify why it is OK for me to ignore scripture.  Of course any time we do either of these two thing there are consequences.  And just like a child, we never focus on the consequences until they are effecting us in a negative way.

So over the next 2 weeks at www.relevantchurch.com we are going to explore this idea of OBEY through the life of a prophet named Jonah and see how far his justification took him and what it took to get him back on the right path.  We are going to use this definition of OBEDIENCE as we journey together.
OBEDIENCE- doing what you are told to do, when you are told to do it, with the right heart attitude.

WOW!  Doing all three of those together is going to be difficult but I think we are all going to learn a ton about ourselves through this journey together.  I read a verse today in Galatians 1 that rocked my world in consideration of this idea of OBEY.  Check it out.

Galatians 1:10 (NLT)
Obviously, I’m not trying to be a people pleaser! No, I am trying to please God. If I were still trying to please people, I would not be Christ’s servant.

Strong words and a strong message.  Join us this weekend as we kick off "OBEY"

Summer 2012 and the Identifier

I cannot believe that it is already July 13.  It seems like yesterday that our family was talking about going on our family vacation to the beach and that already took place a month ago.  I can remember as a kid thinking that the summer would never get here and then once it came it was over before we knew it.  The same seems to true even as an adult.  I always look forward to my kids being out of school so that we can do fun things.  We pack as much fun as we can in right after school get out and it is awesome.  However, around this time in the summer the fun seems to slow down and the boredom sets in. There seems to be no great recipe for disaster then boredom and kids.  Now if your kids are not like mine then the rest of this will not make sense at all, but if they are I will ask for an amen.  Boredom in our house leads to trying to find ways to not be bored, which leads to someone picking on someone else, which leads to a frustration in someone, which leads to a blow-up, which usually leads to chaos.  Can anyone relate?
This got me thinking about our series that we are currently in right now at Relevant Church called "The Identifier".  I think it would be great if we could have some special power to identify the chaos before it get to the point of now return. However, most of the time we identify the problem after the chaos.  Hence the term "hindsight is 20/20".  It is always easier to identify the problem after the fact but in our spiritual lives we need to identify sin before it destroys our lives.  But how do we accomplish this?  Last week we identified the sin of fear which many of us have often thought was just a kid sin.  However, after last week my prayer is that all week you have been quoting the verse from 2 Timothy:
2 Timothy 1:7(NLT)  ⁷For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.

My prayer is that as we identify the sins in our lives each week we would be collecting the tools that we need to identify them before they wreck us.  I am learning this principle with my kids "a little"> Now when Susie and I see the warning signs of boredom we divert the attention.  Quite frankly right now I need to go because Ashlyn needs a serious diversion or we could be having some chaos this AM.  Can't wait to see you all on Sunday as we identify a whole new issue.  All I can say is what do you get when you pair a 32 year old female and a Glee cheerleader costume.  "SCARY VILLAIN"

Things I learned at Middle School Camp

Since last Sunday night Susie and I have been away speaking at camp for a couple of hundred middle school students.  It has been nearly 8 years since I have been a youth pastor and I feel like I am still young at heart, however I learned some things this week that I think we can all use in our lives.

1. Passion for Jesus is not just for adults-  In fact, this week I witness students worshiping Jesus with a passion unseen in most churches today.  They worshiped without all of the fancy lights and sounds and full band that we have come to expect when we worship.  These students worshiped to new songs and songs that I sang when I was first in student ministry.  I leaned this week passion for Jesus is just that passion and the style of your worship should not dictate your passion.  Your love for Jesus should be demonstrated by your passionate worship of Him.

2. Sundays should be mini Camp experiences- Maybe you remember a camp experience that you has as a kid where you were so excited about Jesus that you thought you would never turn your back on him. Most of us when we returned home kept that excitement for about a week then it soon faded. This got me thinking, what if our Sunday experience at church is supposed to be that mini camp experience where we get excited about Jesus and by the end of the week when the excitement begin to fade we come back to church for a recharge.

3. This next Generation is going to change the world- I am amazed at the desire for transformation in this generation of students who are growing up.  I know that sometimes people give students a bad rap making statements like "we are in trouble if this is our future".  My question is what investment are we making in this next generation.

We can either spend our time padding our 401k plan or we can invest in the next generation.  If we invest more in the next generation by modeling for them a lifestyle that honors Christ I believe that our future will be amazing. 

God has given each of us a unique opportunity to impact the next generation.  And I think as I read scripture I am reminded that most of the time when God wanted to start a revolution he started with the young people.  Maybe because they have more energy then old people but maybe it has more to do with the fact they they are willing to believe God for the impossible.  I know that I cannot go back and be a middle school student again but I can learn from them about passion and transformation.

It has been an honor to serve as camp pastor for a week and my prayer is that my experience this week will not be a short lived experience but a life changing one. 

Football, Family, and Dirt

I know at first glance those three words do not typically go together, but in the Wirth house, around this time of year, they do.  You see on Monday of this week, Anthony began his pre-football season, skills camp, AKA run and exercise until you throw-up.  Actually it is not that bad, and he loves it.  Seems hard to believe that my boy has played football for 7 seasons and he is only 13.  If I am honest, I love it as much as he does. I love being out on the sideline and on the practice field with him, coaching him and watching him play.  It is exciting to see him improve from year to year, and turn into a leader on and off the field.  So football is a huge part of our lives from now until early November, and it can be a dirty sport.  However, today also marks the beginning of summer as well which for us means family fun time and family craziness.  I am sure that over the next 8-10 weeks we will make more than a few journeys to the Magic Kingdom, be out on the boat tubing, and at the beach relaxing, all with family and friends, and I cherish these times.  After all, it is what summer vacation is all about. 
So you may be asking, "Paul I get the football and family so far, but where does dirt fit in to all of this?"  As I was thinking about summer fun and family vacations, it got me wondering how many times do we end up with dirt in our spiritual lives because we just take a vacation from our spiritual journey.  You know how it goes... you miss one week due to vacation, then the next week you are too tired from vacation, then work is busy and before you know it you are disconnected from your spiritual community.  Now before someone says I do not have to go to church to be a good Christ Follower, I agree.  Church is not the answer to all of our spiritual problems. However, I liken church attendance and spiritual health to working out and weight gain.  I do not have to workout to maintain a healthy weight but it sure does help.  Dirt is one of those things that comes into our lives very suddenly or slowly over a period of neglect.  Similarly, weight is gained one small pound at a time, but over the course of a few weeks or a month it can be devastating.  Dirt is the same way.  Without a regular way to identify the dirt in our lives we just keep piling it on not even realizing the damage it is causing.
This weekend at Relevant we are going to look at another character who was born dirty and lived dirty for the majority of his life, but then he spent some time in the Octagon with God and everything changed.  Join us this weekend as we unpack the dirty life of Jacob. 

I love my Dirty Church

So this week was the launch of our new series Dirt and as I was preparing for Sunday's message with a story of a serious dirty girl in the Bible, I could not help but think of all of our people at Relevant.  Not because you are dirty but actual yes because we are all dirty.  I love being a part of a dirty church.  The fact is you and I are part of a seriously dirty church.  We are dirty in more ways that just the dirt that I talked about last week.  And I wanted to share with you the dirt that I love at our church.

1. I love that our church does not mind getting dirty for the right reason.  Every year I see hundreds of you get some serious dirt on you by working at BTW work days, field days, yard clean-ups and home rehabs.  That is some seriously good dirt.
2. I love that as a church you do not mind allowing people to know that you are personally dirty and that it is only because of what Jesus has done that you are even clean a little bit.  You have no idea how many times I have had someone walk in to Relevant and bump into someone from their non church world and say "you go to church here?' Then they say well of the church did not fall in with you here then I think I will be ok too.  LOL!!
3. I love that you are accepting of dirty people.  The church is supposed to be the place where people get cleaned up not the place where only clean people can attend.  I love that our church allows people to come in dirty and leave clean because of what Jesus does in their life.
4. I love that at Relevant we neither wear dirt as a badge of honor nor as a badge of shame.  Dirt is part of life and we all have it and we are all in the process of getting our dirt cleaned up.  And where ever you are in that process Relevant church exist for you.

I guess I love being the pastor of a dirty church because I am a dirty pastor who is love by a dirt loving savior name Jesus.  He came to clean us up and I love the process.  I hope that you will join us this weekend at www.relevantchurch.com for week 2 of Dirt.  I think the story of Rahab from Joshua is going to be amazing.  If you want to do some reading ahead check out Joshua 2-8 the story is pretty cool.  Until next time remember this: "GOD MADE DIRT AND DIRT DON'T HURT"

Dirt

This Sunday we will launch a new series called "Dirt" at Relevant Church.  I have been looking forward to this series for quite some time because I have this keen association with dirt.  You see I am a dirty guy and I can identify with dirty people.  You know the kind of people I am talking about in fact you may even be a fellow dirty person.  Here is what I mean by dirty: I am the guys who when I was a kid and I was told not to do something because it might be harmful to me I did it anyway.  Do I have a few takers on that?
When you are a kid that just means that you may get burnt with the stove or ruin a pair of jeans, shorts, or shoes or all of the above because you played outside in them and ended up ruining them with dirt.  However, the older you get the harder it is to clean off the dirt and it sometimes ends up staining us for the rest of our lives. As adults we have dirt on us like: cheater, backstabber, liar, thief, addict, manipulator and the list goes on and on.  Sure we have become pretty good at covering our dirt with the right clothes or the right job or even the right relationship.  But sometime the dirt raises its ugly head we are exposed for how dirty we really are. 
Have you ever been there? Exposed by your personal dirt.  Well you are not alone in fact the bible is full of characters who were every bit as dirty as you and I are and in some cases even dirtier. Yet, God found a way to allow them to grow through the dirt in their life and actually go on to do amazing things.  Over the next 5-6 weeks we are going to journey through scripture together and dig up some of this dirt on these people in the bible and in the process our own dirt is going to be exposed.  However, when our dirt is exposed I am going to encourage you to not try and cover it up but to embrace your dirt and allow God to begin the process of growing you up through it. 
Don't miss this weekend as we launch into DIRT it is going to be amazing.  I cannot wait to see all of you this weekend. Plus I hear Carl and our tech guys have re-rigged our lighting for a whole new look.  I cannot wait to see that as well.

For the 5400 and beyond,

Paul

Anniversary number 22

So right now I am sitting in the Denver International Airport with some great friends and my best friend @susiewirth.  Susie and I are celebrating our 22nd wedding anniversary and our friends @darrenpearson and @Jplovesdp4ever AKA Julie are celebrating their 23rd wedding anniversary.This got me thinking what does an anniversary represent?  Sure they are milestones in our lives but they are so much more. Here is my quick list of things I have experienced with the greatest woman in the world, my wife of 22yrs, Susie Wirth.  I love you baby.

• 2- amazing children Ashlyn and Anthony
• 3- miscarriages (we will see each of these precious babies one day)
• 7- missions trips 
• 22- incredible Christmas vacations
• 4- different ministries all in which she supported me in a huge way
• 4- home building projects 3 of which we lived with my parents for 6 months (WOW)
• 1- almost devastating failure on my part that almost cost us our marriage
• countless youth camp bus trips that lasted hour upon hour
• 8030 amazing days
• 192720 incredible hours
• 11,563,200 unforgettable minutes
• 693,792,000 priceless seconds

With a life like this I know why the Bible say this in Proverbs

Proverbs 18:22 (NLT)
The man who finds a wife finds a treasure and he receives favor from the Lord.


I am that man.  Feeling truly bless tonight.  Can't wait to spend a week in Vegas with her celebrating.

It's Been A While

Hello Blog.  I had almost forgotten that you existed until someone recently told me that you were still around.  For some reason almost 5 years ago I started this blog as a way of expressing everything that I was feeling as a person and a church planter.  This was going to be the place that I would share with the world everything that God was teaching me as a person and as a leader, I was pumped.  But then writing everyday became difficult and then writing 5 days per week became difficult, then I said I will just do three days per week and finally I just quit.  In fact when I looked at the last time that I posted anything on this blog I realized that if I would have just waited another month it would have been 4 years since I wrote anything at all on here.  It is not as if I have been abducted by aliens for the past 4 years or something.  It is just that Life and ministry has just gotten busy and I have gotten lazy.

This got me thinking that maybe my laziness in my blogging is no different that many peoples spiritual journey.  We all start out saying I am all in for Jesus and we sign up and show up for everything.  Then we begin to sign up far more than we show up for stuff and finally church becomes something that we used to do but now it has been 4 years since we have gone and we are not sure why.  We liked going and we even liked the people but somehow life just got too busy and one week turned to one month and that turned to one year and so on.

So this post is one of questions more than answers for both my blog and our spiritual lives?

1. What are things that make a blog worth doing and a blog worth reading?


2. What do you do when you feel like you want to quit writing?

Now to the spiritual questions:

1. What are things that make following Jesus and being part of a spiritual community worth it?


2. What do you do when you feel like quitting spiritually?

Backpacks of Hope

BACKPACKS OF HOPE-

Our Backpacks of Hope campaign is in full swing and the money and supplies are pouring in right now. Just last night I received confirmation from Bic Pens that they are going to supply every child with pens and pencils. WOW! Yeah God!! Also, this week one of our member while "On Mission with God" in their work setting, told a client about Backpacks of Hope and the client was so moved that he took out his checkbook and wrote a check for $500 without batting an eye. THAT JUST PUMPS ME UP!!!! Also, last week in church someone who was a guest for the first time who is still not sure about this whole Jesus thing decided to invest in someone else and give $10 for a backpack. AMAZING!

I spoke with Mr Pepe this week at BT Washington Elementary and he was just overwhelmed that we would adopt their school this year and provide backpacks and more for every student. For those of you who do not know much about BT Washington Elementary. It is the only "D" rated elementary school in the city of Tampa, which means that most of the students are one or two grade levels behind in most of their subjects especially reading. Our goal is to develop a long term relationship with this school to help kids and families that are marginalized by society in general and help them begin to realize their God given potential.

So far we have collected about $1500 of the $5000 that we need to pay for the backpacks.

I am asking that everyone give at least $20 above their regular giving to help pay for these backpacks for the kids of Booker T Washington. If you can give more that would be great as well. You can give on Sunday in the regular offering or you can go to www.relevantchurch.com and click on the giving link and give through our secure online giving.

"VS" Update

I hope that all of you have had a great week. I am now thick in the throws of football and loving every minute of it. Sometimes as a pastor you can get caught up in the business of the church and forget that there is a whole city out there who does not connect with the church. Not because they do not like Jesus but because they have never seen Jesus in the lives of the people who claim to follow Him. Coaching football allows me to be a regular guy and rub shoulders with people outside of the religious bubble.

Last week I had a compliment from someone who was watching me coach football. This person said "Paul when you are coaching you are just a coach and you get after kids just like any coach I have ever seen". Well for me I knew what he meant. He was saying you did not have your pastor face on out on the football field but everyone still knew who you were. As a Follower of Jesus we do not have to wear the Jesus t-shirts and carry a Bible around with us everywhere we go for people to know it. Who we are should shine through in the everyday circumstances of our daily lives. The problem with this idea is that there is a battle raging within us to keep us from accomplishing this sort of life. That is what our new series has been about and that is why we called is "VS" VERSUS. Because there is always a choice in our life that we have to make as to who we will serve and the type of person we will be.

I look forward to seeing all of you this weekend as we continue our series "VS". This week we will be looking at the topic of Going to A Church "VS" Being THE Church. I think coupled with what we discussed last week about Doing Missions VS Living on Mission With God, this weekend is really going to give us some traction for where God is leading us. This series is taking Relevant to another level in our commitment to Jesus and our commitment to our community. Make sure that you invest and invite someone to come with you this Sunday.

Spirituality and the Dentist Chair

So yesterday I twittered something that I know sounded like I had been given too much novacaine. I twittered that going to the dentist was like coming to church in many ways. Now before you start sending me emails of your dentist horror stories just listen to mine. For one I have the most amazing dentist in the world. (Dr Mike) Shameless plug for my friend and fellow Relevant peep. So be kind with the dentist stories at church he is sensitive. (LOL) Back to the story. So a couple of weeks ago I went in to have some dental work done and at that time Mike told me that I really needed a good cleaning. So that is what I had done yesterday and that is when God spoke to me in the dentist chair. (I admit it is a little weird, but stay with me). As I sat down in the chair the hygienist (Penny) came in to perform the same cleaning that she has done on probably hundreds of patients, but God wanted to speak to me as His patient at the same time.

So the cleaning began. She started by asking me some questions you know the standard "do you have any pain in your mouth?" etc to which I responded, "actually one tooth on the top is kind of hurting." She then said, let's take a closer look at that and she pulled out the x-ray machine and snapped a picture. "We will take a look at that in a moment," she said as she went back to work. She proceeded to scrape off all of the tartar that had built up on my teeth over the past year. As she was scraping the tartar off she was telling me why it was hurting and bleeding a little. She said when you do not brush and floss on a daily basis the bacteria in the food mixes with your own saliva and creates this substance called tartar and then there is no way you can get it off without help. She then asked me the dreaded question, "Do you floss?" to which I responded, "Well sometimes but probably not as much as I should." I told her that I like the new flossing tools on the stick. I said "those make it easier," to which she responded. "They do make it easier but they do not do it properly." I was busted. She then told me she was going to polish my teeth and get them looking good. Then she said, "now I am going to teach you how to brush and floss the right way." I was a bit taken back, I mean I am 40 years old and I have been brushing my teeth and flossing occasionally for years. I did not think I needed a class on brushing and flossing. But she insisted. She then showed me that she had a mirror above the dentist light and she adjusted it so that I could see what she was doing. She said " I want you to watch how I do every step so you can replicate it when you get home." I watched her brush and floss every tooth with precise detail. Her next statement rocked my world. She said, "Paul I can show you how to do all of this, but now I am going to give you all of the tools and you are going to have to go home and do it every day for yourself." It was now my choice to determine the health of my teeth. So I left the office with a bag of tools that could and would help to keep my teeth healthy if I choose to use them.

WOW! that is when it all sunk in and God smacked me in the head with this idea that I had just experienced church. You see we come in each week and hear a message that generally poses a question as to where we are on our spiritual journey. Then we look into the Word of God to see what God has to say about that situation. Upon looking at what God says about it, sometimes we feel Him scraping the tartar off of our life and sometimes this process hurts. Then, we generally ask the question, "How did things get so bad?" This only leads to a response from God in the form of another question, "Have you been spiritually brushing and flossing each day?" After realizing that maybe we have been neglecting the proper form of spiritual maintenance, God tells us, "No problem I am going to polish you up and show you exactly what you need to do to continue the process". There is only one catch, "When you leave here, He says, you will have to do some of this yourself!"

You see, I think we get confused sometimes with two words. Salvation and Sanctification Salvation or the act of becoming a Christ follower is something that only God can do. Salvation comes from God, but sanctification is the process that God uses to make us more like Him and just like flossing and brushing, we are very involved in the success of this process. I think Proverbs is a great book to help us in this process. Keep reading this week and don't skip the process

Leadership Opportunity

Well I know that yesterday I twittered that today I would share with you a great leadership opportunity so here it goes. Last year I took my whole SMT (Senior Management Team) to the leadership intensive training at GCC (Granger Community Church) called Leadership Live May 6-7, 2009. The only thing that I can say about it is WOW! We had been outside observers and fans of GCC and their ministry for a couple of years, so when we saw the opportunity to spend 2 days with their top leaders in a small intimate setting we said lets make it happen. All I can say is that it was worth every penny that we spent. Here we are a year later still talking about and using the principles that we learned from the Team at GCC.

So what is the offer you may ask? Well here is the deal. I heard that there were a few spots still available for this years Leadership Live. (Which I was shocked by) and so I wanted to help some guys out who would like to go but the finances are a bit of a problem. So here is what I am offering. I would like to pay $200 toward anyone that would like to go to this 2 day leadership training. The total cost for the trip is $1500 and I know that $200 does not seem like a lot but I can tell you that if you have any money set aside for leadership training this is where you should spend it.

This is what I can tell you from my personal experience about Leadership Live:

• The GCC team is the most honest down to earth (real guys) I have ever rubbed shoulders with.
• They share both the successes and failures of ministry (don't you hate going to conferences where everything is great and you feel like all your stuff sucks)
• This is not a conference it is real people sitting around a table talking about how to expand the Kingdom of God.
• This is not just for large churches. (we are only church of 400 and we learned stuff that is going to help us over the next 5 years)
• The Systems and leadership structure that they share are extremely practical and useful for any size church.
  
• This is not a 2 day event and then it is over. (The GCC team has made themselves available to our staff when we have needed them since Leadership Live)
• Where else can you get one on one face time with 5 key leaders of a growing ministry for a round table discussion.
• I do not know of any other training event that I have been to where the idea of Excellence was displayed better. (from the accommodations, to the food, to all off the little things that just made it over the top)
  

Guys I could go on and on. I feel like the guy from the Hair Club for Men. "I am not just a fan, I am a client". Well I am not just a fan of GCC but God has used this ministry in a huge way in my life personally and in the life of Relevant Church and things are different because of it. Last year like I said we took our SMT to last year to Leadership Live and then took 20 key volunteers to Innovate in September and things have not been the same since.

So if this sounds like something that you would like to do go to WiredChurches.com and Sign up. Just mention my name and GCC will let me know that you signed up.

FYI: I am not getting a kick back from GCC for this I really believe in leaders learning from great leaders. Trust me I have been to a ton of conferences and seminars and not one of them compares to the tools that I received from Leadership Live.

"I was Blind but now I can See"

Well I am sitting here in my office in Ybor sipping some coffee while listening to the rosters in Ybor crow. Boy I love Ybor!! Where else can you look out of your window and see skyscrapers and listen to rosters at the same time. LOL. But seriously this has been an amazing week. Sunday was incredible with so many of you joining us for the Hope Epidemic and Easter. My prayer is that you have been able to share that hope with someone else this week.

I have heard some incredible stories about the hope epidemic this week and also have heard that some of you are struggling a bit. So I wanted to give you a few pointers.

• Be natural. (Just walk up to someone and say "hey I just wanted to give you a little hope today")
• Don't tell them it is from a church (many people think it is just religious propaganda then)
• You may have to instruct them to look inside cause most people won't think that there is $5 inside. LOL
• Be creative

Here is a story that I heard this week. I thought you might enjoy it:

Someone from Relevant gave their Hope Envelope to a cashier at a grocery store and then about an hour later someone from Relevant went into the same store and saw the envelope sitting on the cash register so the person enquired about it. The cashier said oh some lady gave it to me about an hour ago, it is just some church thing I think, I haven't even opened it yet. The person from relevant said "I kind of know about that Hope Epidemic and I think it is worth opening. So the Cashier opened the envelope and saw the $5 then he started running around the front of the store telling everyone the he got $5. The person from relevant said it was priceless. That is what the Hope Epidemic is all about. If you have a story of how you shared Hope this week go to HopeEpidemic.com and submit your story. Let's make this viral.

I was reading John 9 in my Bible this morning and there is a story in this chapter about a man who was blind since birth who Jesus healed. After he was healed the religious leaders began to question him about his miraculous healing and here is what he said.
John 9:24-25 (NLT)
24 So for the second time they called in the man who had been blind and told him, “Give glory to God by telling the truth, because we know Jesus is a sinner.” 25“I don’t know whether he is a sinner,” the man replied. “But I know this: I was blind, and now I can see!”

This statement rocked my world this morning "I was blind and now I can see" SIMPLE AND TOO THE POINT He was basically saying until this Jesus guy came along he was helpless, hopeless, and in despair, but when Jesus entered his world He opened his eyes to see thing completely different. That is why Relevant exists and that is what the HopeEpidemic is all about. To impact the emerging culture with the reality of Christ. To clear the vision. You see when you are blind like the guy in the story and someone helps you to see for the first time you cannot help but tell someone about it. My prayer is that we would begin sharing our stories of how we were blind in certain areas and then we meet this guy Jesus and he opened our eyes to the truth.

Good Golly its Good Friday

Can you believe that it is already Good Friday and that this Sunday is going to be Easter? It seems like just yesterday that I was putting away my Christmas decorations and now I am prepping for summer vacation. Every year that I grow older I am amazed at how fast time seems to fly. One day I was 10 years old and the next day I have a 10 year old of my own and I wonder, "where did the time go?

This week Susie and I have been hanging out with my parents and our kids over here in Orlando at Universal Studios. I am now sitting here this morning on our last day reflecting a bit on our time here and to be honest I am sad and excited at the same time. I am sad because today we must pack up and head home. No more thrill rides that make me scream at the top of my lungs, no more all you can eat buffets where I don't care how much I eat cause I'm on vacation, no more staying up as late as possible just to catch a glimpse of the fireworks in the distance, no more completely uninterrupted time with the people that I love the most, my family. Not that all of those things cannot happen at home; but a lot of times they don't. Why? because time won't allow it.

This week I found myself excited while listening to my dad tell my son some of the same stories that I heard as a kid. He told them with the same excitement and passion that he shared them with me over 30 years ago when I was Anthony’s age. I watched my dad and mom ride the amusement park rides with my kids like they did with me when I was a kid still laughing like they were 30 years old again. But they are not and all I could do was keep hoping that this time would never end. It was that good. And as my parents drove away last night and I watched my son look out the window of his room and say, “we sure had a great time with Nana and Papa didn’t we dad” I was a bit overwhelmed. I kept saying to myself I HOPE we can do this again real soon, I HOPE that my mom and dad stay healthy. I HOPE, I HOPE, I HOPE.

All this hoping led me to the passage that I read last night in John 17 and all of the other accounts of the prayer of Jesus in the Garden just before he went to the cross. I kept reading over and over again all that Jesus was praying and this theme kept coming up. HOPE. Jesus was the giver of HOPE yet during this time He was asking for HOPE from His father. HOPE that this was the right choice, HOPE that His followers would be ok, HOPE that his followers would share His message with the world. Then I thought about Jesus human side and wondered if during His prayer to His father was He hoping for more time with those He loved so much like I was last night. Was He hoping for more laughs together, more meals together, more, memories? Probably. But he knew for them to have any eternal Hope that He would have to become their HOPE.

And so here I am at the close of another Holy week, so what do I do? I HOPE. HOPE for more time, more vacation, more food, and more fun. The problem is, all my hopes seem like dreams to me and I am tired of dreaming aren’t you. I want my HOPE to be a reality and I know that the only way for that to happen is for me to first find my HOPE in Jesus and then become His Agent of HOPE. I believe that Jesus wants His message of HOPE to become an epidemic that sweeps across our lives and transforms our world. I believe He wants it to become an epidemic -a HOPE EPIDEMIC. And this Sunday at Relevant Church we are going to launch that epidemic.

I want to encourage you to be here this week and to bring someone with you. We are about to launch into something BIG.

See you all Sunday,

Paul

Fast Tuesdy week 4

Well it is week four of Fast Tuesday and God is doing some cool stuff. Join us today for Fast Tuesday. The instructions are below.

Here are the basic instruction again for the fast:

1. We are only fasting during breakfast and lunch on Tuesdays, (Drink water only).

2. We are praying for three areas and reading scripture that goes along with each prayer section.
Personal Direction (Spiritual Renewal)
Corporate Direction (Direction for Relevant Church and its leadership)
Global Direction (Direction for our Nation, our leaders and world leaders)
3. When you get hungry use that as a time to remind you to pray for an area.

4. To help with understanding the scripture each week stop after each section and ask yourself these questions and write out your answers:
What is God speaking to me/us through this passage?
What do I/we need to do?

FAST TUESDAY WEEK THREE SCRIPTURE (click on the verses to view them)
Personal Direction (Spiritual Renewal) Psalms 32:8-9(NLT)
Corporate Direction (Direction for Relevant Church and its leadership) Luke 11:1-11 (NLT)
Global Direction (Direction for our Nation, our leaders and world leaders) Proverbs 2

This will be a weekend to remember

Well Susie and I have enjoyed another Friday date day and it looks like we are going to end it at the Cheesecake Factory tonight. Yum!! This morning over coffee Susie and I were reading in the book of Numbers. Not a book that I normally read, but that is the awesome thing about You Version. It forces you to read from all over the Bible. Well today we were reading Numbers chapter 8 and it was where Moses was giving instruction for the Levites. I have never noticed Gods retirement plan for the people that worked in the temple. check out theses verses:

Numbers 8:23-26 (NLT)
²³ The Lord also instructed Moses, ²⁴ “This is the rule the Levites must follow: They must begin serving in the Tabernacle at the age of twenty-five, ²⁵ and they must retire at the age of fifty. ²⁶ After retirement they may assist their fellow Levites by serving as guards at the Tabernacle, but they may not officiate in the service. This is how you must assign duties to the Levites.”

The only bad about this whole thing is the fact that I turned 40 this year. Wonder if this means that I only have 1o good years left to work in the church. So this got me thinking. What would I do if I only had 10 years left to make a difference for the kingdom? Then I thought I hope I am doing what I will be doing this weekend. Serving our community through March Madness (yard clean up) with over 70 people from Relevant on Saturday. Then having a BEACH BAPTISM service at the beach on Sunday where I get the privilege of baptizing over 15 people who have become Christ Followers at Relevant and are now taking their next step by getting baptized.

I think I could be part of this for the next 10 years and beyond if God allows me. Life Change is the most amazing thing to be part of. It never gets old.

If you would like to join us Sunday at the beach but find yourself too far away. We will be streaming the service live on Sunday at 11am. CLICK HERE to watch the service Sunday. Or to view last weeks service at Relevant.

Fast Tuesday Week 2

Congratulations!!

You have made it to week 2 of Fast Tuesday. I do not know about you but last week God seemed to be doing some amazing stuff. The reason I know that is because I felt and saw satan working overtime. I really believe that when the people of God begin to live out the verse that we studied last week Satan really starts getting nervous. Let's look at it again.

II Chronicles 7:14
"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land." Satan know that something is about to change.

Here are the basic instruction again for the fast in case you were confused:

1. We are only fasting during breakfast and lunch on Tuesdays, (Drink water only).

2. We are praying for three areas and reading scripture that goes along with each prayer section.

• Personal Direction (Spiritual Renewal)
  
• Corporate Direction (Direction for Relevant Church and its leadership)
  
• Global Direction (Direction for our Nation, our leaders and world leaders)
  

3. When you get hungry use that as a time to remind you to pray for an area.

4. To help with understanding the scripture each week stop after each section and ask yourself these questions and write out your answers:

• What is God speaking to me/us through this passage?
• What do I/we need to do?

FAST TUESDAY WEEK TWO SCRIPTURE (click on the verses to view them)

1. Personal Direction (Spiritual Renewal) Proverbs 3:5-12 (The Message)
2. Corporate Direction (Direction for Relevant Church and its leadership) Psalms 37:3-5; 23-24
3. Global Direction (Direction for our Nation, our leaders and world leaders) Ezekiel 37:1-4