It's 2am and I can't sleep. Big reveals lay ahead of HPC and today marks a moment of great significance for us--as it will be our last Sunday under the name Higher Praise...
Saturday is coming quick and the new name will be revealed by this time next week. I'm excited and I can't wait to join you in taking this journey of Kingdom advancement to a brand-new level!
Greater things are yet to come!
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Milk the Cow...... AGAIN!
It's late and I find myself reflecting on nine years of pastoral minstry... There are men with far more experience than me, but I feel like I've heard my fair share of off-the-wall stories. At the top of the list are the reasons people typically give to validate their bad attitudes, while harboring bitterness and offense.
Sometimes all you can do is laugh at the way we process things: He said, she said, I did, they didn't, should have, would have, surely they could have!
But to tell the truth--in my opinion--most people who are offended, first wanted to be offended. I've often found that people wrestling with offense were first seemingly waiting for someone to display an action towards them that would give them a reasonable excuse to display hateful feelings. Many times the feelings were obviously locked up long before the actual event in question transpired.
Take a word of advice from someone who has had the root of bitterness plucked from his heart on more than one occasion: LET IT GO!
Think about it for a moment... Is it really worth it? Do you really want to go through the details of your petty indifferences at the Great White Throne of Judgment. After all, finger-pointing will be null and void at that moment. You will answer for you and you alone.
Now answer this question again: IS IT REALLY WORTH IT?
Choose to laugh rather than cry. Choose to forgive rather than begrudge and to smile instead of frowning. Move
forward through life with humility and cast down the pride that fuels the foundational stages of offense to begin with.
As one farmer--stepping into an unexpected, sudden flow of milk from an overturned pail--told his bitterly arguing, finger-pointing children, "One thing is settled: the milk has been spilled. Now stop whining over the fact that it happened and just go milk the cow again!"
However Jesus said it better, "Take up your cross--DAILY-- and deny yourself!"
I'll do my best to come with you as we strive, together, to be less like us and more like Christ. May we decrease, that he may increase.
Greater things are yet to come. Don't miss them because you're curled up in the defiled bed of bitterness... :)
Sometimes all you can do is laugh at the way we process things: He said, she said, I did, they didn't, should have, would have, surely they could have!
But to tell the truth--in my opinion--most people who are offended, first wanted to be offended. I've often found that people wrestling with offense were first seemingly waiting for someone to display an action towards them that would give them a reasonable excuse to display hateful feelings. Many times the feelings were obviously locked up long before the actual event in question transpired.
Take a word of advice from someone who has had the root of bitterness plucked from his heart on more than one occasion: LET IT GO!
Think about it for a moment... Is it really worth it? Do you really want to go through the details of your petty indifferences at the Great White Throne of Judgment. After all, finger-pointing will be null and void at that moment. You will answer for you and you alone.
Now answer this question again: IS IT REALLY WORTH IT?
Choose to laugh rather than cry. Choose to forgive rather than begrudge and to smile instead of frowning. Move
forward through life with humility and cast down the pride that fuels the foundational stages of offense to begin with.
As one farmer--stepping into an unexpected, sudden flow of milk from an overturned pail--told his bitterly arguing, finger-pointing children, "One thing is settled: the milk has been spilled. Now stop whining over the fact that it happened and just go milk the cow again!"
However Jesus said it better, "Take up your cross--DAILY-- and deny yourself!"
I'll do my best to come with you as we strive, together, to be less like us and more like Christ. May we decrease, that he may increase.
Greater things are yet to come. Don't miss them because you're curled up in the defiled bed of bitterness... :)
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
HPC NAME CHANGE
If you are looking for info on why Higher Praise will be revealing a new church name, please scroll down until you find the post labeled: The Big Reveal or just CLICK HERE FOR NAME CHANGE INFO
Zero Tolerance
At the start of my message on Sunday night I don't really know how to describe what I felt. There was just this overwhelming feeling that something wasn't right. As I tried to process it, I kept coming to the conclusion that someone was present in the congregation who had full intention of disrupting the service. As a result, at the same time I felt so indescribably troubled I also felt an intensity in my spirit that such an act could not be permitted.
My response may have been right, it may have been wrong. Truthfully, I'm not for sure. All I knew to do at the moment was to make sure that every person present possessed a firm understanding that in corporate gatherings of worship, we are Biblically mandated to do everything decently and in order. Therefore, I gave a brief disclaimer that ignorance would not be tolerated.
There has been enough nonsense happen in church environments, under the pretense of the moving of the Holy Spirit, to forever scar Christ's body. I simply sensed or discerned--whatever you want to call it--that I had an obligation as a pastor to give a reminder that such acts of ignorance would not and could not be tolerated at 3515 West Hwy 80.
I have a reverential awe for the presence of God and I never want anything to be done under the guise of His moving that is actually fleshly in nature. During the course of nine years of pastoral ministry, on two or three different occasions that I vividly remember, I did not have the courage I needed as spiritual leader and stood passively by in moments when I should have addressed some things with authority. Each time I sensed something foolish was about happen and I just couldn't seem to find the strength to address it before it transpired. (Obviously, it is easier to stop something before it gets started than vice-versus.) God has deeply convicted my heart over my past cowardice and has led me to the understanding that as a spiritual leader there may be no greater hypocrisy than the sin of silence. Thus, the reason I spoke so bluntly on Sunday evening. :)
Perhaps, I should have given a better explanation at the time but honestly, at that moment, I wasn't for sure how to.
If you have any further questions regarding the brief comments I made that evening feel free to send them to me and I'll do my best to answer them. You can reach me directly at: jackrambles@gmail.com
Love guys. Hope you have a great week.
Greater things are yet to come!
My response may have been right, it may have been wrong. Truthfully, I'm not for sure. All I knew to do at the moment was to make sure that every person present possessed a firm understanding that in corporate gatherings of worship, we are Biblically mandated to do everything decently and in order. Therefore, I gave a brief disclaimer that ignorance would not be tolerated.
There has been enough nonsense happen in church environments, under the pretense of the moving of the Holy Spirit, to forever scar Christ's body. I simply sensed or discerned--whatever you want to call it--that I had an obligation as a pastor to give a reminder that such acts of ignorance would not and could not be tolerated at 3515 West Hwy 80.
I have a reverential awe for the presence of God and I never want anything to be done under the guise of His moving that is actually fleshly in nature. During the course of nine years of pastoral ministry, on two or three different occasions that I vividly remember, I did not have the courage I needed as spiritual leader and stood passively by in moments when I should have addressed some things with authority. Each time I sensed something foolish was about happen and I just couldn't seem to find the strength to address it before it transpired. (Obviously, it is easier to stop something before it gets started than vice-versus.) God has deeply convicted my heart over my past cowardice and has led me to the understanding that as a spiritual leader there may be no greater hypocrisy than the sin of silence. Thus, the reason I spoke so bluntly on Sunday evening. :)
Perhaps, I should have given a better explanation at the time but honestly, at that moment, I wasn't for sure how to.
If you have any further questions regarding the brief comments I made that evening feel free to send them to me and I'll do my best to answer them. You can reach me directly at: jackrambles@gmail.com
Love guys. Hope you have a great week.
Greater things are yet to come!
Monday, March 8, 2010
The Big Reveal
There is a time and a season for everything. The time for our fellowship of believers to be recognized by the name Higher Praise Church has come and gone. It is now time for a NEW NAME!
The decision is not one that was made quickly. For 18 months I have wrestled with, and sought wise counsel, regarding the concept.
I firmly believe when God is dealing with your heart about something, He will honor the promise of His word and confirm His plans through "the mouth of two or three witnesses." Over the course of these last 18 months it has been an amazing lesson for me in obeying God, as far more than two or three people (that I greatly respect) have prayerfully agreed that it is time to change the name of our church. As well--and maybe most importantly--HPC's Lead Team has also expressed an overwhelming consensus of agreement that it is time to reveal a new name.
Why is there so much certainty that the name of our church needs to be changed? I believe there are at least 4 significant reasons.
1) I have become burdened, and even broken, in prayer about the fact that "Higher" Praise may, on occasion, be perceived as an arrogant proclomation. While that was NEVER the intention behind using Higher Praise as a name, I believe God and wise counsel has helped me to see how someone might perceive our name to be an egostistical statement. Perhaps, there have even been some who wrongly interpreted our name to mean that we are of the opinion that our praise is more effective at reaching God than someone else's might be. I sincerely apologize to our community if we have ever UNINTENTIONALLY given that perception.
2) Our church was once focused on the theme of "Come and See". We sat and waited for the community to come to us as we held our worship gatherings. During that six-year period, we struggled to consistently break the 200-attendee mark. Today, the attitude of our Lead Team and church is totally different. Everyone is still invited to come, but first we will "Go and Tell"! No longer do we lazily sit inside our church waiting for the world to change itself.
Three years ago we made a decision to serve this community tirelessly. "Captivate" at the Adair County Fairgrounds is one example of an outreach that was birthed from that decision. This particular event has exploded with success, as we take a Saturday in April and do our best to bestow unconditional love upon the Lake Cumberland region. Last year over 1,000 people received help in a 3-hour period of time. God has taught our church that nothing is more exhilirating than finding a need and meeting it.
The result of our new approach has been phenomenal, as our church has more than doubled in size during the last 36-months.
Because of this change in ministerial philosophy our new name must effectively move us away from a term that denotes the event that happens at our gatherings (praise) and move us toward better communicating that we are here as a church to follow Jesus' example and take up our cross. To put it bluntly, it is time to more effectively communicate through our church name that we are here for one specific reason and that is to present the love of Jesus' sacrifice to all of Lake Cumberland.
3) The growth of Higher Praise leads us to another significant reason for the name change.
Every Sunday, people are gathering on our hillside from at least 7 different counties, and it is not unusual to see as many as 9 counties regularly represented. This is an awesome thing. But, one dilemma has been discovered as our influence has expanded: there are several other churches and ministries using the term Higher Praise to identify themselves. There are even two more ministries sharing our name in just the state of Kentucky. This has caused confusion on more than one occasion, not only online, but also with UPS. :)
Our new name has already been secured and it is a name that no other church in America currently uses. This will help us tremendously as we move out across Kentucky with other satellite locations and across America with media ministries.
4) There is a growing lack of emphasis on the Cross of Jesus in the world today. Our new name will more clearly communciate the happenings on a hillside 2,000 years ago, which has led to the OPPORTUNITY of salvation for each and everyone one of us!
This new name will even allow our church (when inviting unsaved friends or family) to find a quick opportunity to sow salvation seeds regarding the events of Calvary. And even more specifically, present without awkwardness, the central truth of the Gospel, which I believe is that we must all decide whether to receive or reject Jesus as our Lord.
I'm ecstatic! I feel like it is September 2000 all over again as we prepare for a new day of ministry. But, a New Name is not the only Reveal we have planned for the month of April!
Our schedule for the Reveals will be as follows...
THE BIG REVEAL: New Name. New Vision. New Facility.
New Name Reveal: Saturday, April 3rd @ 5pm.
New Vision Reveal: Easter Sunday, April 4th @ 9am 11am 12:30pm
New Facility Reveal: Sunday, April 25th @ 10:30am.
Greater things are yet to come!
The decision is not one that was made quickly. For 18 months I have wrestled with, and sought wise counsel, regarding the concept.
I firmly believe when God is dealing with your heart about something, He will honor the promise of His word and confirm His plans through "the mouth of two or three witnesses." Over the course of these last 18 months it has been an amazing lesson for me in obeying God, as far more than two or three people (that I greatly respect) have prayerfully agreed that it is time to change the name of our church. As well--and maybe most importantly--HPC's Lead Team has also expressed an overwhelming consensus of agreement that it is time to reveal a new name.
Why is there so much certainty that the name of our church needs to be changed? I believe there are at least 4 significant reasons.
1) I have become burdened, and even broken, in prayer about the fact that "Higher" Praise may, on occasion, be perceived as an arrogant proclomation. While that was NEVER the intention behind using Higher Praise as a name, I believe God and wise counsel has helped me to see how someone might perceive our name to be an egostistical statement. Perhaps, there have even been some who wrongly interpreted our name to mean that we are of the opinion that our praise is more effective at reaching God than someone else's might be. I sincerely apologize to our community if we have ever UNINTENTIONALLY given that perception.
2) Our church was once focused on the theme of "Come and See". We sat and waited for the community to come to us as we held our worship gatherings. During that six-year period, we struggled to consistently break the 200-attendee mark. Today, the attitude of our Lead Team and church is totally different. Everyone is still invited to come, but first we will "Go and Tell"! No longer do we lazily sit inside our church waiting for the world to change itself.
Three years ago we made a decision to serve this community tirelessly. "Captivate" at the Adair County Fairgrounds is one example of an outreach that was birthed from that decision. This particular event has exploded with success, as we take a Saturday in April and do our best to bestow unconditional love upon the Lake Cumberland region. Last year over 1,000 people received help in a 3-hour period of time. God has taught our church that nothing is more exhilirating than finding a need and meeting it.
The result of our new approach has been phenomenal, as our church has more than doubled in size during the last 36-months.
Because of this change in ministerial philosophy our new name must effectively move us away from a term that denotes the event that happens at our gatherings (praise) and move us toward better communicating that we are here as a church to follow Jesus' example and take up our cross. To put it bluntly, it is time to more effectively communicate through our church name that we are here for one specific reason and that is to present the love of Jesus' sacrifice to all of Lake Cumberland.
3) The growth of Higher Praise leads us to another significant reason for the name change.
Every Sunday, people are gathering on our hillside from at least 7 different counties, and it is not unusual to see as many as 9 counties regularly represented. This is an awesome thing. But, one dilemma has been discovered as our influence has expanded: there are several other churches and ministries using the term Higher Praise to identify themselves. There are even two more ministries sharing our name in just the state of Kentucky. This has caused confusion on more than one occasion, not only online, but also with UPS. :)
Our new name has already been secured and it is a name that no other church in America currently uses. This will help us tremendously as we move out across Kentucky with other satellite locations and across America with media ministries.
4) There is a growing lack of emphasis on the Cross of Jesus in the world today. Our new name will more clearly communciate the happenings on a hillside 2,000 years ago, which has led to the OPPORTUNITY of salvation for each and everyone one of us!
This new name will even allow our church (when inviting unsaved friends or family) to find a quick opportunity to sow salvation seeds regarding the events of Calvary. And even more specifically, present without awkwardness, the central truth of the Gospel, which I believe is that we must all decide whether to receive or reject Jesus as our Lord.
I'm ecstatic! I feel like it is September 2000 all over again as we prepare for a new day of ministry. But, a New Name is not the only Reveal we have planned for the month of April!
Our schedule for the Reveals will be as follows...
THE BIG REVEAL: New Name. New Vision. New Facility.
New Name Reveal: Saturday, April 3rd @ 5pm.
New Vision Reveal: Easter Sunday, April 4th @ 9am 11am 12:30pm
New Facility Reveal: Sunday, April 25th @ 10:30am.
Greater things are yet to come!
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
The Big Reveal...
THE BIG REVEAL.... That's all I'm going to say about it for now... But don't miss Sunday! We will be setting the stage for an announcement that you will have to buckle your seats for as we prep for greater things that are yet to come!
And trust me... Even if you think you know what it is... You don't! LOL
And trust me... Even if you think you know what it is... You don't! LOL
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Decisions...
HPC's Administrative team has entrusted me with the responsibility of making some important decisions this week and I ask for your prayer. It involves some significant budget appropriations and I definitely want to make sure that we head in the right direction.
I will be seeking direction from my mentors, and most importantly the Holy Spirit, tomorrow as I prepare to make the decide on Thursday and Friday.
Thanks for covering me in prayer...
I will be seeking direction from my mentors, and most importantly the Holy Spirit, tomorrow as I prepare to make the decide on Thursday and Friday.
Thanks for covering me in prayer...
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