sunday’s scuds (september 26, 2010)

It was part two of the SNAPSHOT series Sunday. Great stuff from Dwight. Hope you got to get in on it. Here are the scuds as I see ‘em:

• We all have expectations of God. The question is: are they the right expectations?
• In order to have a proper sense of hope, we must have a proper understanding of who God it.
• Jesus never promised us a problem-free life.
• We tend to think that if we do X and Y then God has to do Z. No, He doesn’t.
• Do you follow Christ because of what He can do for you or are you following Him simply because He is God?
• God has not promised to reverse the consequences of my sin and unwise choices.
• We allow hopelessness to creep in when we have certain expectations of God and then He doesn’t do what we think He ought to do.
• Some of the most depressed people on earth are “Christians.”
• Christ-followers are called to be full of joy!
• One reason we’re not filled with joy is because we expect God to do something He never promised He would do.
• For many of us, our belief in God changes as our circumstances change.
• Here’s what I believe: God loves me, He’s infinitely wise, and He’s in control.
• If I allow my circumstances to determine my faith in God, I will lose hope.
• There’s nothing you will ever feel that Jesus hasn’t already felt.
• The definition of grace: strength and energy to persevere—given to us by God. 
• He doesn’t promise to deliver us from our circumstances but He DOES promise to give us the grace to get through it.
• God is not bound by space and time. He does not work on your timetable.

If you forget everything else, remember:

God loves you, He’s infinitely wise, and He’s in control.

where we’re headed

A couple Sundays ago Dwight gave a great sneak preview of some big things that are in store for NewPointe. He talked about what God’s been doing in his heart and where he feels God is leading us as a church. If you missed it, or you’d like a refresher, here are the three major initiatives we feel God is moving us toward over the next few years:

1. To reach a greater percentage of people for Christ in NE Ohio. Dwight talked about how it was never his goal to pastor a large church. It’s his goal (our goal) to reach people for Christ. And we can rest until we done everything we can to carry out the Great Commission.

2. To reach more people in for Christ in  the Middle East. You’ve probably heard Dwight talk about the fact that there are more than 12,000 villages along the Nile River that have no church—at all. No Christian presence. We want to change that. We’re committed to changing the world. And, like reaching people in NE Ohio, we’re going to work hard to reach people for Christ in Jordan, Iraq, and Egypt.

3. To invest in church leaders and pastors. Dwight has a huge heart for pastors and leaders of other churches. We want to help them create relevant, helpful environments so they, too, can reach more and more people for Christ. We know that we don’t know it all but we want to be able to share what we have learned with any pastor or church leader that wants to learn from us. It’s one more way we feel we can literally change the world.

You’ll learn more and more about specific plans in the weeks ahead. We’re going to be bold and aggressive. We want to be able to look back and tell a story that begins with the words: ONLY GOD…

we need your help (and your snapshots)

Hey NewPointe, we could use your help with an idea for the final Sunday of the SNAPSHOT series. Here’s the idea: we thought it would be cool to have NewPointers send in photos of you holding snapshots of loved-ones who have  passed away that come to mind when you hear the song “I Can Only Ima

gine.” We’d like to show these pictures as we close the series with that song on October 3.

If you’d like to be included , send a picture of you holding a snapshot of the loved-one comes to mind when you hear the song I Can Only Imagine and when you think of hope.

Send your pic to: snapshot@newpointe.org

And then don’t miss the conclusion to the series, October 3, at all three NPCC campuses.

 

calling all actors (and wannabe actors)!

Soon we’ll be launching another exciting season of KidStuf at NewPointe. The new version of KidStuf isn’t going to look a whole like like the old version. New set, new characters, new ideas—pretty much everything will be new.

The “new characters” part presents an opportunity for new actors to get involved. So…if you’ve ever wanted to try your hand at stage acting, we’ve got a terrific opportunity for you:

Right now we are scheduling auditions. The auditions are open to ANYONE age 14 or older. All you need to do is email jmast@newpointe.org to set up your very own audition time. Auditions last about 30 minutes. You’ll be asked to fill out an application, read some lines, and show us your crazy side.

No previous acting experience is necessary. Just show us what you can do! Audition times are available now through the end of September. If you’re reading this and thinking, that might be fun, don’t put it off! You may be exactly who we’re looking for!

Questions? Contact Jessica Mast (jmast@newpointe.org), or you can track me down (jbunn@newpointe.org).

Break a leg!

sunday’s scuds (september 12, 2010)

Sunday Dwight brought us a message about not having an ordinary story. Nobody wants to live an ordinary life. NewPointe does not want to be an ordinary church. So Dwight talked about four truths that challenge an ordinary story. Here are the scuds (and the four truths):

• No matter what your story has been up to this point—God wants to change it.
• God has not called you to live an ordinary life.
• You can’t go to a new level in ministry without going to a new level spiritually.
• Your faith was never meant to be private—personal, yes—but not private.
• If your personal faith has no outward expression it’s lacking—it’s dead.
• Everybody spends forever somewhere.
• It doesn’t take a Bible expert to lead someone to Christ. It just takes someone who cares.
• I believe that you and I have the opportunity to do, in the next decade, something that will eclipse anything you’ve done in your life up till now.
• You and I have the opportunity to be the redeeming solution to the world’s problems.
• Big vision takes big dollars.

Here are the four truths that challenge an ordinary story:

1. If you’re a Christ follower, you represent Jesus Christ.
2. Following Christ requires more than mere belief.
3. The world desperately needs what we have.
4. Sacrifice leads to significance.

jim mason talks about his experiences in WWII

NewPointer (and Dwight’s dad), Jim Mason, has some amazing stories about his experiences in WWII. He was at Pearl Harbor the day it was bombed and he also jumped at Normandy. Wow. He says he’s not a hero, that he was just doing his duty. He’s a hero in my book. Here’s a link to a news story and a video of Jim. Good stuff:

Akron News Now: Jim Mason

lindsay and darcy

Showed this video during Dwight’s message on Sunday. Great story about childhood friends who reconnect with each other and their Heavenly Father. Check it out:

sunday’s scuds (september 5, 2010)

Sunday Dwight (also known as D-lite) concluded the Behind the Curtain series by bringing us part two of The ING (5 faith catalysts). Hope you got in on it. If you missed it, be sure to catch it online, or pick up a CD.

Here are some of the scuds I wrote down:

• When your faith intersects with God’s faithfulness, something incredible happens.
• Christians should be the most generous people on earth.
• The reason we’re not generous is because we have a scarcity mindset—which reveals our lack of faith in God.
• The reason most Christians don’t have a strong faith is because they don’t have a strong giving record.
• God honors giving.
• Your problems reveal how much faith and trust you have in God.
• Fasting: giving something up so God has your undivided attention—saying no to something so you can focus on God.
• If God can raise the dead, surely you can trust him with your situation.
• When you engage in ministry, you’ll experience God’s power in ways you never have before.
• Some of you have never experienced God’s power in your life because you’ve never moved past your fear.
• What are you doing right now that if God were to die, you’d have to stop doing?
• I don’t want to be known as a big church. I want to be known as people who have big faith.
• God doesn’t want you to be religious—he wants an intimate relationship with you.

i totally dig this…

Whenever I come across something cool and creative I simply must share it here on my blog. Here’s a video I recently came a cross that absolutely fun and delightful. Check it out.

 

So, what’s this have to do with church? It’s about creativity, man! This is the kind of outside-the-box thinking and ingenuity that the church needs to bring to the table! This is my job: to come up with crazy stuff that connects with people. I love innovation. I love new ideas. I love my job!

surrender sunday

Been wanting to post this for a while. Finally getting around to it:

On July 25 Dave D’Angelo and I wrapped up the CHRISTIAN series by calling people to surrender. We tag-teamed the message on that Sunday and concluded by asking anyone who has surrendered completely to Christ to come forward and write their names on white cards. We also asked anyone who was making a first-time decision that day or since the first of the year to underline their names as an indication that they are newly surrendered to Christ.

The result? In addition to hundreds and hundreds of people solidifying their state of surrender, more than 200 people underlined their names! That’s over 200 people who say they’ve made a decision to follow Christ within the past seven months at NewPointe!

How awesome is that? How awesome is God?!

Two Sundays later we displayed many of those names in the shape of a cross which was raised during the closing song at all three campuses.  It was a great visual reminder of the lives that have been impacted through God using NewPointe.

If you were at NewPointe on Sunday, you heard Dwight talk about just how serious we are about reaching people for Christ and leading them into a growing relationship with Him. And here’s thing: we’ve just begun to scratch the surface. Can’t wait to see what God does in the future.