WOW now?

I was reading a favorite blog of mine by Seth Godin, a marketing guru, and came across the above picture from an article in The New York Times.

This article is written about the unveiling of Microsoft's new operating system, Vista. It has been a long time coming and has has many setbacks. It was expected to be released some time ago. Nonetheless, it is out! The marketers have created a curiosity in the computer world. “Will I like it? Will it make my life easier? Will it crash? How much will it cost?”

There are all kinds of ways to build excitement in marketing and Microsoft has the resources to create a massive splash across America. In fact, if you look at the article mentioned above, you will also see a picture of acrobats hanging off the side of a building in Manhattan to unveil Vista. WOW! The words on the presentation screen in the picture above state: “The Wow starts now.”

Seth's words were: “Not one smile in the bunch, never mind ebullience, mania or even pleasant anticipation. Just because a marketer says something is amazing, exciting or just plain wow doesn't mean it is.”

His comment struck a chord in my spirit. Take a look at the guys in the photo. They are from left, Kevin B. Rollins of Dell, Sean Maloney of Intel, Steven A. Ballmer of Microsoft, Hisatsugu Nonaka of Toshiba, Hector Ruiz of Advanced Micro Devices and Todd Bradley of Hewlett-Packard. These guys are the ones who are there to share the good news!

While the marketers are dangling people in mid-air to create excitement, the guys who really know what this is all about cannot muster a smile or at least a look of anticipation? I understand that they are not actors, but they shouldn't have to put on an act if this product is really supposed to give new life to machines across America and to their businesses! It should show. It makes you wonder if Vista is all that the marketers are saying that it is.

As the ones who have experienced God and His good news of a new life for us, we should never forget that we cannot lose the excitement of His presence. What do we look like when we stand before people to express our praise and worship to the King of Kings? Do they leave asking the question, “What's the big deal?” No, we are not actors, but we shouldn't have to be. When we really think of the life-changing “product” that we have in our midst, it will show in our enthusiasm. (This thought was also mentioned in Ronda's blog a couple of days ago about musicians and singers.)

While we are marketing our churches and promoting the ministries that we offer, we must remember that our expressions at church must mirror the promotion. When our flyer says “Exciting praise and worship,” we must make sure that we are excited about our God in each service. When we promote “Dynamic preaching,” we must make sure that our preaching is more than a warmed-over, lack-luster sermon. We must practice what we promote!

The great thing is that we can accurately describe the moving of the Spirit as awesome and it WILL be if we cultivate it! God always comes through. We are not promoting something that doesn’t produce. This new life experience is real! Let there be no question in the minds of the lost that we believe in it. Let us not lose the “Wow” as we share the good news.

The Great Philosopher

PHILOSOPHER—“a person who offers views or theories on profound questions in ethics, metaphysics, logic, and other related fields.”

If you are like me, you have been amazed by the great insights and interesting writings of Joseph James Ouellette. He just seems to have intriguing views and theories on the profound questions of life. Hence, the title of this post, “The Great Philosopher.” (And this paragraph is seriously written. I do enjoy his writing.) I have had the opportunity to scroll through some amazing pictures from the past on my computer. By using Photo Booth we have brought out the inward personality of our friends. These photos have given me much laughter each time I see them. Some of these pictures are of our very own profound professor of unique knowledge— so I thought I would share with you.

First off, we have a picture that explains why Joseph has such deep insights into our world. He is nosy; or should I say, an investigator of knowledge. And with a nose like this....

Our great philosopher is always ready and willing to share a laugh at the absurdity of the political left.

We must be very careful not to let him get out of hand in the folly of laughter
lest THE GREAT VEIN burst from his forehead!

I think these photos provide such a potpourri of who Joseph really is.
This is why we all love him and his diverse views.
(Joseph, go get a space heater. Summer is still several months away.)

A good day.

Today was a good day.

The worship was heartfelt. We used the two McClain girls pictured at the left. Taqueria (left) is 19 and Phylicia is 16. They were so excited to sing. We practiced after church Wednesday night and met at 9am this morning. One of the great things about it for me is that Phylicia can sing most of the songs in tenor. YEAH! I can LEAD worship - not having to sing every word! I could get used to that again.

The Word of God hit the mark. There was a great conviction and response. The altar service set some lives back on the right course.

I can't help but believe that our Men's Prayer and Breakfast had something to do with the solid feel of the service. I don't really know how to explain it, but maybe you can catch what I am saying. There was a completeness to the move of the Spirit.

In our bulletin today is a picture of a bobsled team in the midst of a run. It was used to point out that we have been called to a great adventure - as a team. If you have ever seen a bobsled team in action, you know that it is quite a team effort. God has already set us into motion, but we must all do our part. We are headed somewhere...we must gently maneuver this body of believers in the right direction. In a small church, just as the bobsled team, when one person moves in a wrong direction it quickly effects the whole operation! Each person has a mission to fulfill and we have to function in unity with every move. Together we are going to see the work done.

Last week, I was told by a senior member of the mother church that as they looked across the congregation at us, they were impressed that God had something beyond our wildest dreams planned and to keep believing.

I just have to say, "Thank you, Lord, for staying close and sending encouragement right when we need it. Thank you, Lord, for a good day!"

An exciting link...the Watts Family

We received an email from Jason and Karisha Watts, David and Kay Gilbert's son-in-law and daughter, letting us know that they had visited our website. In the email they included their church's web address. It was really neat to see what God has done in Franklin, North Carolina in the four years since they have been there. They just completed a Church-In-A-Day project, and I think it was the first one to be constructed in North Carolina! Bro. and Sis. Gilbert took their food trailer that they use at the Texas Church-In-A-Day projects to help out.Many of you have known Karisha for a long time, so I thought you might find this interesting! One of the things I found really interesting was…

"Since coming to Franklin, she has learned to play the keyboard, something she tried all her life but never could do! Now each service she leads in music and song the spirited worship at TRUTH."

When God calls and we answer...He provides the way. Our prayers are with them for continued revival!

That's MY President

As I listened to President Bush give the State of the Union address Tuesday night, I was again reminded of what an awesome country we live in. I may not agree with him on everything, but that's beside the point. He has taken a stand for what he believes is right and has not backed down in the face of strong adversity. You have to admire a man who stands up for his beliefs and who is not afraid to be a Christian in the White House.

I am proud to be an American, and I am proud to call George W. Bush MY President!

I've included several of my favorite pictures of President Bush. Hope you enjoy them as much as I did.

A chuckle...

A vendor transports poultry to a market in Xiangfan,
central China's Hubei province on January 22, 2007.

I got a chuckle out of looking at this picture I pulled off of a newswire! I got to thinking about these vendors trying to explain to someone how hard their job was. It would be quite a feat to keep these birds on this vehicle!! It looks like some of them may be dead already, but many of them look alert and anticipating a chance for freedom. Any bump would be a major cause for concern! I don't imagine it is a peaceful ride to the market. Whatever your job is, thank God. It could be worse...

Our First Youth Activity and Today's Service

Bonnie, Taqueria, Phylicia, Hannah and Cheyanne

We had a great time of fun and getting to know each other at our first youth activity. There were 10 young people present. We played card games, ping-pong, and sang around the piano. Today, we heard great comments about how much fun they had!

We are not as young as we were last time we worked with youth — but we're IT again! It was fun though. We discovered that several of the girls were in our Crusader Camp Choirs when they were young! They remember me handing out dollars to those who were really getting into worshipping. They also remembered why I handed them out. Some things DO stick.

You should have heard them when they sang around the piano- WOW - they were loud! We will be using some of them in church soon! In fact, we are planning practices now.

We had 25 in church today. There were 4 regulars out, but Todd, Julie, Madison and Mason Shahan from Wichita Falls joined us in service and filled in for the missing ones! It was good to see them, spend lunch together and visit for a while. We have new friends, but there is still nothing like the 'old' ones!

This coming Saturday is our Men's Prayer and Breakfast. The guys are looking forward to this event and I believe it will build unity. We made a few updates to our website about the Youth, Men's and Ladies' events. Our bulletin is also available on the website each week.

If you know someone in the Austin area that needs contacting, please let us know.

Chad, Cameron, Phillip (not pictured—Josh and Jake)

Flashpoints

I am in the process of reading the book, "Flashpoints" by Stephen Arterburn. It is not a new book, but one that I was attracted to because of the subtitle— "When God ignites the passion of your soul to make a difference— no matter what the cost."

I came across a passage that I thought I would share with you:

"Some of us are called to church ministry. Others are called to the workaday world or to serve their families at home. But regardless of where we are, we will be among people who either need to be told or reminded that God is alive and all-powerful. And whatever God calls us to do, He will equip us for service—even if it requires Him to work miracles of provision. Even then we might be tempted to shrink back and make excuses."

But Moses pleaded with the Lord, "O Lord, I'm just not a good speaker. I never have been, and I'm not now, even after you have spoken to me. I'm clumsy with words."
"Who makes mouths?" the Lord asked him. "Who makes people so they can speak or not speak, hear or not hear, see or not see? Is it not I, the Lord? Now go, and do as I have told you. I will help you speak well, and I will tell you what to say."
But Moses again pleaded, "Lord, please! Send someone else."
Then the Lord became angry with Moses. "All right," He said. "What about your brother, Aaron the Levite? He is a good speaker. And look! He is on his way to meet you now. And when he sees you, he will be very glad. You will talk to him, giving him the Words to say. I will help both of you to speak clearly, and I will tell you what to do. Aaron will be your spokesman to the people, and you will be as God to Him, telling him what to say. And be sure to take your shepherd's staff along so you can perform the miraculous signs I have shown you." EXODUS 4:10-17

"Can you imagine arguing with God the way Moses did? In light of the miraculous burning bush, his resistance is hard to imagine. Yet we all defy God every day, arguing with the Almighty about changes we need to make or opportunities we ought to take. We just don't resist Him as honestly as Moses did. Instead, we ignore, deny, rationalize, and excuse ourselves from the things God calls us to do. We declare ourselves not worthy or ill-equipped. We buy into the false belief that God can use us only on the basis of our qualifications, rather than in spite of our weaknesses."

This is so true. What is God calling us to do? What are we ignoring? It is easy to point a finger at Moses and say, "You had a burning bush experience! What's your problem?" Yet, when we hear a Word from the Lord, we are quick to dismiss it. We should strive to respond at His first call and not hesitate until He is angry with us. Think about where we could be if we followed Him without question. He already has a vision of it in His mind.

Whatever He says - DO IT - in spite of your weaknesses! That is when He is made strong.

And the ice goes on....

Well, here we sit.

The boys and I haven't left the house since Sunday night. Gene went to the store Monday evening then went to check the roads and sidewalks around the church today. We are not able to have church tonight!! How disappointing. We were supposed to have a new family there and another visitor that we knew of - but God knows all about it. Everyone will definitely be ready for church on Sunday!!

Just an update for those of you who are keeping up with our lives here in Pflugerville. Have a great day and good church tonight! Love you all!

New Video on Website

Here's the latest addition to our church website. It is a short video with a clip from our Sunday worship service. It actually was a song we sang after the other praise singers had gone to pray with people in the crowd. Also, there are pictures in order from the time we arrived here with "The Great Adventure" song behind it. Thanks to Dad for bringing his camera with him for service this past weekend. Hopefully, we can add some others as time goes along!