BillSimmonsLive

Why I am Fasting

2010-02-10T12:44:17-05:00

I am hearing so many people from SpringWell talk about how our church-wide fast is affecting them.

Several have shared how they are being stretched by the discipline and encouraged by prayers being answered.

During the first week of our fast, I wrote down several things where I am praying for a breakthrough.

Teddy (our son) to find a job - He lost his in the fall and like many have struggled replacing it.
Conquered Addictions – I desire every personal impulsive choice I make be disciplined and for our church to reach as many as we can through Celebrate Recovery. We will be launching this ministry in the fall or early 2011.
Financial Breakthrough for SpringWell – We are seeking God on behalf of those who are not tithing and asking Him to stretch their faith and give them consistency in giving. This would radically influence our effectiveness as a church to reach our community.
Expand Legacy Coaching – I am asking God to open up doors locally for churches and pastors to partner with our Leadership Coaching and Church Health Consulting ministry. Local clients would help decrease my travel and expand our networking. This would also empower us to give more to the Kingdom.
Greater Physical Discipline – I have personally struggled with my physical weight and health more over the last 2 years then I ever have. I am learning that I really need God's help to renew this discipline in my life.

If you were at SpringWell on Sunday, you certainly experienced how prayer and fasting produced an incredible sense of expectation during the service. God showed up in a big way. Lives were changed! We also received our biggest weekend offering in over a year.

You tell me….does prayer and fasting work?

This is just the beginning….get ready for your breakthrough!

Why are you fasting?

Do Not Miss Sunday

2010-02-05T14:34:38-05:00

This Sunday will be an incredible day at SpringWell. We start a new series: The Face of God.

YOU WANT TO INVITE YOUR FRIENDS!

If you have put someone's name on the prayer boards, now is the time to get them to a service.

Why?

We have been praying for this specific service for months
Our church-wide fast started this week…this has raised the level of expectation
A special guest will join us to help illustrate the message
Lives are going to be changed

Do not miss this opportunity.

Who will you bring?

Internship Announcement

2010-02-03T16:28:33-05:00

I am very excited to announce SpringWell Churchwill begin an Internship starting August 1, 2010.

This intentional leadership development program focuses on helping interns discover their own call as a church leader, acquire specific skills relating to ministry, and form habits that will carry them into a lifetime of ministry service.

Interns will have the opportunity to receive practical training through one of two different internship tracks: General and Specific. Our hope is to give our interns a 30,000 foot view of the church in the General Track or detailed training in the Specific ministry related Track.

Interns will be fully immersed in ministry alongside a staff pastor who leads a specific area. That staff pastor will serve as your immediate supervisor and coach. Mentorship in the areas of spiritual formation and leadership development will be provided by the Executive Pastor. Your involvement will span everything from service tasks that are critical to the running of the ministry, to significant leadership opportunities designed to stretch and grow you, and then everything else in-between. While your focus will likely be on a particular ministry area, you will need to see yourself as a team player who is able to serve wherever needed.

If you sense God calling you to an adventure that requires huge faith, this might be just what you are looking for.

Interns will raise funds as a missionary to our community. You will receive training and personal coaching to help develop partners and raise funds.

Download SpringWell Internship Application

Check This Out!

2010-02-03T12:04:21-05:00

Todd Carpenter is our Pastor of Connection & Discipleship at SpringWell.

He has written a couple of great posts this week about Fasting.

Check them out:

21 Days of Fasting…

Fasting and the Face of God

Prepare for Your Breakthrough

2010-01-29T11:37:11-05:00

Are you ready for a God-Sized breakthrough?

As you prepare for Sunday's message, take time to read Isaiah 58:1-12.

You don't want to miss this weekend, invite someone to join you!

Fasting – Suggested Reading

2010-01-28T09:10:38-05:00

As we prepare for our 21 Day Fast (February 1-21), I wanted to offer some suggested reading. I have read each of these books and can easily recommend them. You can order each book by clicking the picture below.

I would love to hear about your learnings if these books are an encouragement to you.

The Daniel Fast

2010-01-26T16:32:59-05:00

As we prepare for our church-wide 21-day fast, I wanted to share the basic guidelines for a Daniel Fast. This is based the experience of Daniel in the book of Daniel in the Old Testament.

SpringWell is fasting from February 1-21, 2010. Each person is asked to fast something of his or her choice. Some will be fasting food altogether, others will be fasting technology such as TV, texting, internet, or Facebook, while some will do different types of food fasts.

If you choose to do a Daniel Fast, the following will be helpful:

Foods You May Eat

Whole Grains
Brown Rice, Oats, Barley
Beans
Dried Beans, Pinto Beans, Split Peas, Lentils, Black Eyed Peas
Fruits
Apples, Apricots, Bananas, Blackberries, Blueberries, Boysenberries, Cantaloupe, Cherries, Cranberries, Oats, Figs, Grapefruit, Grapes, Guava, Honeydew Melon, Kiwi, Lemons, Limes, Mangoes, Nectarines, Papayas, Peaches, Pears, Pineapples, Plums, Prunes, Raisins, Raspberries, Strawberries, Tangelos, Tangerines, Watermelon
Vegatables
Artichokes, Asparagus, Beets, Broccoli, Brussels Sprouts, Cabbage, Carrots, Cauliflower, Celery, Chili Peppers, Corn, Cucumbers, Eggplant, Garlic, Gingerroot, Kale, Leeks, Lettuce, Mushrooms, Mustard Greens, Okra, Onions, Parsley, Potatoes, Radishes, Rutabagas, Scallions, Spinach, Sprouts, Squashes, Sweet Potatoes, Tomatoes, Turnips, Watercress, Yams, Zucchini. Veggie burgers are also an option if you're not allergic to soy.
Liquids
Spring Water, Distilled Water, 100% All-Natural Fruit Juices, 100% All Natural Vegetable Juices. You may also drink protein drinks.
Others
Seeds, Nuts, Sprouts

Foods To Avoid

Meat
White Rice
Fried Foods
Caffeine
Carbonated Beverages
Foods Containing Preservatives or Additives
Refined Sugar
Sugar Substitutes
White Flour and All Products Using It
Margarine, Shortening, High Fat Products

12 Reasons to Fast

2010-01-25T20:14:00-05:00

Jesus told us to
Jesus fasted and modeled it
To get closer to God
To understand God's purpose and direction
To receive greater spiritual power
To receive health and healing
To receive financial breakthrough
To experience deliverance in your life
For mountains to be removed in your life
For unity and blessing
For Revival in the Church
For faith to be increased

The Future of Spiritual Formation

2010-01-20T23:14:25-05:00

I am so excited to announce that SpringWell Church is partnering with Monvee to be on the forefront of The Future of Spiritual Formation.

We will unveil this exciting web-based tool on Saturday during our CORE Leadership Retreat.

Monvee will assist those who desire to be a fully devoted disciple of Jesus Christ by developing a handcrafted personalized spiritual growth plan.

John Ortberg says, "Assembly line approaches to discipleship don't work, because everyone is uniquely wired. Monvee will help people own and design the way of life where they can experience maximum growth. People have a crying need to find a way to follow Jesus that is not mechanical or legalistic and that is concrete. Disciples of Jesus cannot be mass produced they have to be handcrafted."

One of our Core Values at SpringWell is Personal Growth. We believe every disciple of Jesus Christ must take personal responsibility for growing in character, emotional wholeness, and relational authenticity. This is why we feel providing such an innovative resource as Monvee meshes with who we are as a church. You are unique and God created you that way. Therefore, a cookie cutter approach to discipleship must be replaced with unique personalized plan, based on how you were created.

Monvee will be the perfect partner with our Growth Groups. Monvee will challenge you as an individual to take personal responsibility and Growth Groups will provide a relational environment for support, encouragement, and accountability. This is a powerful combination.

Monvee will be available to those not attending the retreat for a cost of $40.00. This will give you lifetime access to developing your personalized spiritual growth plan. You will be able to update your plan periodically based on the stages and seasons of your life.

You will hear much more in the coming weeks and months. We are thrilled to be ahead of the curve as we partner with the exciting innovation that is going to take the church and discipleship into a completely new level.

Types of Fasts

2010-01-19T20:24:28-05:00

As we prepare for our church-wide 21 Day Fast from February 1-21, I wanted to share 6 types of fasts:

1. Normal - abstaining from all food, but not water.
Example: Jesus "ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them was hungry" (Luke 4:2).

2. Absolute - abstaining from food and water; normally no more than 3 days. The body can only go a very short time without water. This is an exceptional fast for an exceptional situation.
Examples: For three days Paul was blind, and did not eat or drink anything" (Acts 9:9), Moses (Deut. 9:9), Israel (Ezra 10:6), Israel (Esther 4:16).

3. Partial - restricting diet of certain foods or a meal a day rather than complete abstention. This allows for many variations.
Examples: Daniel "so the guard took away their choice food and the wine they were to drink and gave them vegetables instead" (Daniel 1:16), (Daniel 10:3).

4. Regular - fast days that commemorate an event or weekly fasts on a regular day.
Examples: Day of Atonement (Lev. 23:27; Ps. 35:13; Is. 58:5), a fast day (Jer. 36:6); four separate festivals (Zech 8:19); twice a week (Luke 18:11-12).

5. Public - fasts called to times of special need and emergency. Almost all regular fasts were public fasts, but all public fasts are not necessarily regular ones.
Examples: King Jehoshaphat when Judah was invaded (2 Chron. 20:1-4), Ezra returning the exiles (Ezra 8:21-23) Ninevah, as a result of Jonah's preaching (Jonah 3:5,10).

6. Involuntary -no desire for food because of anxiety, sorrow, or mental distress (Dan. 6:18), and where a person finds themselves in a situation where no food is available (Matt. 15:32; 2 Cor. 6:5, 11:27)

Fasting is effective because the man or woman who can conquer self-denial can be entrusted with spiritual power. The hard thing is conquering self. The way God trains us is through fasting.

Are you praying about how God wants you to fast?