J.R. Lee

One of the things I value most from the people at Freedom Church is the prayer they offer on my behalf!  Many of you have asked recently how you could most effectively pray for me.  I am GRATEFUL – not to mention that I need it BADLY.  Here are some specific ways that you can pray.

#1 – Me and Jesus

Having a great team around me and working as hard as humanly possible are irrelevant if I am not hearing from God and becoming more like Jesus every single day.  Pray that I hear from God and consistently live in a state of confession and repentance so that I can become more like Jesus every day.

#2 – Me, Devin, Lexi, London, and Bryce.

I want to be a Godly husband and dad.  It’s a lot easier to type than it is to live.  Pray that I model the character of Jesus to my incredible family and that nothing ever comes between Devin and I – including the kids.  We want our kids to grow up loving God AND the church.  It is possible!  God first.  Devin second.  The kids third.  The church fourth.  Pray I never forget that and prioritize accordingly.

#3 – Me and Leadership

God is doing so much so quickly in the context of Freedom Church.  I have SO much to learn if I desire to be the leader that God has called me to be.  Pray for Wisdom and the Audacity to Act!  (By the way – I am praying some HUGE prayers right now that will not happen apart from the supernatural work of God on our behalf).   Pray with me!

#4 – Me and Integrity

Nothing can sabotage the work of God in my life and the life of our church quicker than a lack of integrity.  I know that I am not above making some incredibly stupid decisions that could wreck my life.  Pray that I stay close to Jesus and guard my integrity with vicious tenacity by consistently allowing the Bible to point out things in my life that need work.

Thank you and I am honored that you would pray on my behalf!

• Devin and I went to Dante’s Down the Hatch on Wednesday night for our anniversary.  First time messing with Fondue and I liked it much more than I thought I would.  The atmosphere at the restaurant makes it worth the experience.
• I absolutely can’t wait until Sunday!  I believe that the next two will be the best  back-to-back weeks we have ever had at Freedom.
• This past Sunday was very good and strange all at the same time. 9:30 was off all the way around.  I had more trouble with the message at 9:30 than any message I have ever brought.  Very strange.  11:00 on the other hand went very well.  I changed up the message quite a bit between Worship Experiences and I think it flowed much better.
• People accepted Christ which alone is a reason to celebrate.  Never get familiar with the fireworks!  We see people give their lives to Christ every week – never take that for granted!
• With that in mind, don’t forget to register for Baptism!  We are baptizing a week from Sunday (October 25th).  Email Corey at Corey@freedomlive.net for more information.
• We had a creative element that was pretty powerful this past week involving a burn barrel and a substantial amount of fire.
• I’ve got a guy at the gym that I have been praying for.  I’m confident that God will break through several layers in the days ahead and he and his family will not only show up at Freedom, but will give their lives to Jesus.
• By the way, Newcomers Lunch after both Worship Experiences went very well.  I love hearing how people heard about the church, etc.  One family came because someone had a Freedom Church sticker on their boat.
• I am praying for things right now that WILL NOT happen apart from the power of God.  Join me in praying for a miracle to take place!   Don’t worry: I’ll let you in on what I am talking about soon enough.

Leaders are by definition optimists.  They have to be because there isn’t a soul on the planet who is attracted to pessimism.  Not to mention, pessimistic people have a hard time seeing what could be because they are too busy complaining about what is.

Leaders are people who see and move toward a preferrable future.  They feel the tension of what life is and what life could be.

Regardless of the area in which you have been entrusted with leadership (Pastor, Business Owner, Teacher, Stay-at-home mom): Discover God’s preferrable future and lead people in that direction.  I am positive that God can lead YOU to do it!