• Great day on Sunday.  No rain for the first time in 5 weeks!
• Freedom – you are doing a great job inviting people.  Keep it up!
• I am excited to hear about all the plans surrounding the block parties that will be happening in neighborhoods all across our community!
• Mark it down:  My neighborhood will have the largest party known to mankind
• Once a month we have an all-staff meeting.  This month the production team did a presentation on the Christmas Series coming in December.  One word = Wow!
• Kids grow up FAST!  Having a 7 year old, 4 year old, and 6 1/2 month old seems VERY strange.
• Next week I will have been married 9 years.  Doesn’t even seem possible.
• We are kicking off a 3 week series this Sunday that I am praying will be the most life-changing series we have ever done.
• I’ll leave you with the video…

Forgiveness: The Real F Word from Freedom Media on Vimeo.

If you have been around this blog for any amount of time you know how much Pastor Perry Noble has meant to me and to our church.  As I was about to publish something on my blog – I saw this straight from Perrynoble.com- and decided to publish it instead.  Enjoy.

We get things messed up from time to time…especially the words of Jesus…here is what He did NOT say…

#1 – “They will know you are my disciples by your theology, and the arrogance that accompanies it.”  (John 13:35)

#2 – “Dream really small dreams and make sure you never ask for anything big!”  (John 14:12-14, Psalm 2:8)

#3 – “If someone doesn’t believe just like you believe…make sure to do all you can to attack, criticize and beat them down as much as possible.”  (Mark 9:38-41)

#4 – “Be tolerant of everyone…I am one of the many ways to God.”  (John 14:6)

#5 – “Make sure you make the church about you…that you are served well…please, don’t do anything that might cause you any type of inconvenience.  My goal is for you to be happy!”  (Matthew 20:28, Luke 9:23-24)

#6 – “Please, whatever you do, DO NOT tell people the good news…keep it to yourself!  The reason I died on the cross is so that you could get into really small groups of people and talk about ‘deep things’ that aren’t going to help anyone when it comes to eternity.”  (Matthew 28:20, Mark 16:15, Luke 24:48, John 20:21, Acts 1:8, Romans 10:14, Romans 10:17)

#7 – “Don’t EVER try anything new…don’t ever take a risk…don’t ever take a step of faith.  Be AVERAGE!”  (Isaiah 43:18-19, Hebrews 11:1, Hebrews 11:6)

#8 – “You can follow me and it will not impact your money at all!”  (Matthew 6:19-24)

#9 – “Pray a prayer to get out of hell…and then live however you want.”  (John 14:15, John 14:21)

#10 – “You can do it without me!”  (John 15:5)

#11 – “I don’t expect you OR your church to be fruitful in any way.”  (John 15:4)

#12 – “Isolate yourself from the world!”  (John 17:15)

#13 – “Make sure there is a time when you question my word because it will one day be no longer relevant.”  (Luke 21:33)

#14 – “Stop crying out to me in desperation…can’t you see I’m busy.”  (Mark 10:46-52)

Here is a great quote I ran across in a book I am currently reading called Mavericks at Work.

Dan Levitan a venture capitalist said

A lot of people think about brand in terms of marketing or packaging, like it’s a wrapper.  For us, the foundation of a brand is the psychological contract – the contract between a company and its employees and between those employees and their customers.  Great consumer companies are built on genuine passion, plus a day-to-day commitment to great execution. Employees won’t feel the passion, and can’t maintain the operating discipline, unless they feel good about what the company sells and the values it stands for.

Love that!

Get some friends and family to Freedom Church this Sunday for the final week of this mini-series called Block Party

We exist so that people far from God can experience life in Christ.  Most of our 1st timers show up at 11:00 and we need to make room for them!  Help us most effectively reach people by making the switch to the 9:30 Worship Experience.  This past Sunday (in the middle of a torrential downpour) we were 98% higher in attendance than we were the same Sunday last year and had 41 First Time Guests.  God is blessing in an incredible way and we need to make room.  Thanks in advance!

See you Sunday – Rain or Shine!

A little over a week ago we challenged families who have not experienced the joy of giving to take part in a 90 Day Giving Challenge.    The challenge is a money back guarantee of sorts encouraging people to tithe (give 10%) for 90 days.  After that 90 days if God has not proven Himself faithful (Malachi 3) that I will give you 100% of your money back – no questions asked.  I believe that God always comes through on His promise and I want you to get to that point as well.  That being said, here is a cool letter we received in regard to the 90 Day Giving Challenge:

Pastor,
Thank you for challenging us in the area of giving.  It’s something I haven’t done well for the past few years and it’s even harder now to start because I don’t make as much money as I once did.  We’re trying to get out of debt, even looking to rent a home for less money so we can throw money at debt.  I say that to say this:  This truly is a leap of faith, right or wrong, to write this and future checks.  BUT, I know it’s all His anyway.  My family and I are blessed in spite of my earthly circumstances (that I created) and I will give, even though I am a bit scared to.  Pray for us and thank you for allowing God to use you in this way!

Excited for this family and other families just like them who are choosing to obey God’s Word!  God is doing great things in the lives of people.  If you would like to join the other 46 families in this challenge – please send us an email at info@freedomlive.net.  It’s not too late!