The Brown Bytes

Out of the ashes of Isis

2016-01-21T20:12:00.001-05:00

I just recently returned from Kurdistan/Iraq with a team of 11 men from our Church,Grace Community. About 18 months ago God laid on our hearts the desire to help the refugees that were fleeing worn-torn cities in Iraq because of ISIS. We linked our arms together and put boots on the ground to help our brothers and sisters.

We were able to rescue many displaced people and secure housing for them. On my most recent trip we were able to witness first hand many victorious stories. This is just one of many to come..

Waheeda pictured above still lives in the apartment complex with her family. She is married and a mother of 3 children. She fled Bagdad and found herself lost and unprepared for what might be next. By the grace of God she was able to find safety,security and a fresh start in Erbil.

She was a bank accountant in Baghdad but had a love and desire for crafting...

In order to make it and help her family make it she is making crafts that have Arabic Bible verses etched into it. Day after day she spends time etching Bible verses on wood, rocks, and vases.

We were able to stop by and see first hand her makeshift work station in her home. I recognized her from our visit a year ago and her son remembered me from playing soccer with him. As we listened to her tell her story and work her craft my heart was encouraged.

What man intended for evil God is using for good. Waheeda refuses to give up and refuses to deny Jesus. She could have stayed in Baghdad and kept her home and job when ISIS took over but she refused to deny Jesus and left everything behind.

What I am learning from these precious refugees is that they are resilient and refuse to let the circumstances of life keep them from pressing on for Jesus.

As I watched her work and drink tea with her family I was deeply moved and grateful to be part of a church that responds to the needs in our world instead of just talking about them.

And by the way we bought everything she made and supported her new business venture. The national news doesn't cover these kind of stories but I do so that we can see that our God is alive and well in Iraq!

Hope is growing from the ashes!

The Boston Redsox have a Fight Club Man.

2015-12-29T14:40:00.001-05:00

Every once in a while God does something to show his approval on the mission. About 4 years ago www.fightclub414.com was launched here in Goshen at our church. It began as a burden in my heart to reach men and God put wings to it by setting it into motion in the local church.

4 years later it is in 170 churches across America and by God's grace men's lives are being radically transformed with this discipleship tool. Jesus does the transformation, Fight Club is the tool. I have witnessed first hand the impact it has had on men and have witnessed some amazing resurrections.

Every new venture, mission, and vision, is tested and critiqued along the way and those are the very things that can make it better. We have made some adjustments along the way and are releasing a 2.0 version this year.

I believe with all of my heart that if you get the man, you get the family, you get the community, and you get the world for Jesus!

What was started to help the local church is now reaching men from Alaska to California to Florida and everywhere in between.

And there is nothing like seeing another Fight Club grad wearing his FC band in public. I have run into men in airports, at Pro Golf matches, at amusement parks, churches, and all over the country. But this week we got word that Justin Masterson a Professional baseball player for the Boston Redsox is a Fight Club graduate. I must admit that excites me.

So to all my Fight Club Brothers out there, how about a shout out to Justin and few prayers that Jesus will use him in a powerful way in the MLB!

The lost discipline of Spurring one another on

2015-09-02T12:04:00.003-04:00

I have spend a large part of my time watching people. I learn a lot about their fears, weaknesses, strongholds, and insecurities by listening to them talk and interact with others. But I learn more when they are in some kind of community with their own peers.

I spend a large part of my time studying men and what makes them tick and what makes them come alive and what keeps them chained in their patterns of insanity.

I have also noticed the dumbing down of men... Let me explain... We let them waddle in their sin without ever calling them out and even coddling them in their listlessness. We have truly lost the art of spurring them onto love and good deeds.

Hebrews 10:24 says "And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds."

Spur is defined this way: to stimulate, urge someone forward, prod them on, and becoming a catalyst for them to move in the right direction.

Whatever happened to a man poking his brother, calling him out, challenging him to get with it? We have lost the art of spurring.

Why? Because you become the mean guy, you open yourself up to criticism, you give them permission to do the same to you. You become that guy that people have mixed feelings about when you enter the room. You become the man that has to speak truth when its hard and you could possibly lose friendships over it.

Yet, we know we need to do it!

Men run from this kind of accountability too because they fear being spurred on. They would rather waddle in their sin and live below their redemptive potential than become the men God made them to be. It such a sad day for me to watch men refuse to get in this kind of community because they believe some lies from the Enemy.

Every time I see a cowboy with spurs on his boots and spurring his horse in the right way I wonder why we have lost the art of spurring with men? Go spur another brother on to good deeds today, he will be better for it and the world needs men that are willing to truly keep other men accountable!

Divine encounter

2015-08-28T10:48:00.003-04:00

I have often said that a praise does not become a praise until it is spoken otherwise it is just a thought. If we see a post on social media and think "wow look what God has done" but never articulate PTL then it is just a thought. The Bible tells us that we overcome the Evil One by the Blood of the Lamb and the Word of our Testimony.

Satan is unable to hear our thoughts so it never truly becomes a Praise that can overcome him until we speak it. So I am firm believer that Christ-followers miss out on overcoming Satan because of the way they refuse to speak praise about how great our God is.

So this morning let me tell you of an incredible divine appointment that took place last night so that the Enemy can be overcome and Jesus gets more glory and praise!

Last evening I went for a run as I do on many days, yet this night I left the house at a very different time because of some scheduling changes. As I was running I spent the majority of the time talking and listening to God. As I finished my run I worked my way down to the water to build an altar (pictured above) to spend time with God. This was part of a moment that many men were to do this week. As I knelt at my homemade altar and laid my life before Jesus. I confessed my sin, worshipped him, and played a song by Jeremy Camp "The Same Power" and prayed "Dear Jesus use me in a powerful way to change the world for you."

As I began to work my way up from my spot with God I noticed a man running. I waved to him and soon came to realize that he was just finishing up his run too. So as I walked by him I greeted him. As I began to walk the trail back to my Jeep I noticed that the man was jogging towards me. So as he got closer I felt compelled to talk more.

So I began to talk to him about running. I also felt compelled to share why I was walking out of the woods. So I told him I had just built an altar to talk with God and that I was part of a men's group that was doing the same thing. I then asked him how his day was going. What happened next was only a God thing.

He shared his day had been really hard and stress was killing him at work and that things at home were really strained. I began to speak the truths about Jesus. Then he said, "by the way I go to your church and have been on and off for the last 9 months" and that he was in the same group called Fight Club that I was. Which by the way was the very first day of this chapter. He shared how he had tried to get a hold of someone to talk to that day but they weren't available.

He then shared that he had heard me say in Church that I liked to run at Benton Trails and he normally didn't run there so he prayed "Dear God please let me run into Pastor Jim tonight" well guess what God did.

I began to connect the dots for him of how much Jesus loves him and had orchestrated the details for us to cross paths. I normally don't run at that time and I normally don't build altars :) and that the odds of us both meeting when we finished at a place that has 7 miles of trails was truly a God thing.

To make a long story short I shared the Gospel of hope with him and we bowed our heads and he trusted in Jesus as his LORD and Savior on the Benton Trails. And two sweaty brothers hugged each other as mosquitoes hovered everywhere.

Now, not only is he a fight club brother but a brother in the LORD! Our God is awesome and will go to great measures to pursue us! All praise to JESUS!

I love how God used an assignment in Fight Club to create a real ALTARing experience!

Whatever happened to hard work

2015-07-09T13:19:00.001-04:00

I am concerned by the subtle shift I see in our Culture. The shift of not wanting to work hard. The notion that hard work is something that we should work hard to work away from. And even more disconcerting to me is that it is spilling over into our walks as Christ Followers.

We live in a day where we want to get to a place where we don't have to work so hard anymore in our jobs, finances, marriages, families and lives so that we can finally just go into cruise control. I realize that is a very simple explanation to a bigger issue but its true. Today we have a culture that somehow believes the lie that hard work is only for those belonging to the lower class. Somehow the notion of manual labor or physical exertion should be something to work away from. And this philosophy morphs into all areas of our lives. especially the Local Church. Yet...

More than ever in my walk with God I am seeing more followers of Christ talk more about being than doing. I know that God loves us the same regardless if we do more or do less. I know that nothing we will ever accomplish will change his love for us. I know that sitting in his presence is where I get refreshed and renewed. I know that we don't need to earn our salvation. I know what legalism is. I know that God loves us for who we are and not for what we do. I know all of those things. Yet...

The more I read his Word and look closely at what happens when we truly live out our faith it drips with the sweat of Work. Passages in the Bible tell us to Work out our salvation with fear and trembling; remind us to be doers of the word and not hearers only, asking for workers for the harvest, telling Adam to work the ground, to work as though you are working for the LORD, telling us to labor and strive in our faith, to be busy about the Father's business, running the race and much more. The concept and picture of Working and Doing is everywhere. Yet...

Have we swung to the other end of spectrum and become more influenced by our culture than the Words of the LORD? And have we become a group of Christians that would rather sit and soak only instead working hard for the LORD? I am not only concerned by the younger generation but my very own age group as I watch them move closer to retirement. That's another blog subject. They seem to be moving towards comfort and safety and places that aren't challenging them to do the Work of an Evangelist etc. Yet...

God has a high calling on our lives and way too much is at stake for us not work hard for the LORD. I am saddened by this shift because the closer I get to Jesus the More I am compelled to labor and strive and DO more for him because of all that he has done for me! Yet...

We will stand before Jesus one day at the Bema Seat and he will reward us for the way we have worked out our faith and in turn place those crowns at his feet as a way of saying LORD we loved you this much! May I never be the man who does not daily work out his salvation with fear and trembling and enjoy the Work of the LORD and work for the LORD!

Why we do what we do for men!

2015-06-23T12:26:00.003-04:00

I have just begun my 20th year at Grace Community this month as the Senior Pastor. I have witnessed a lot of ministry moments through the years and have seen many great moves of God. I also have experienced opposition as to why we do what we do to reach men. Seem nuts for someone to say I don't like the way you unashamedly go after the men for Jesus. But that doesn't stop us and we trust that we listen to The Holy Spirit and remain obedient to his leading.

All that to say this, "every single meeting, conversation, letter, phone call, text, email, rolling of the eyes, criticism, list, accusation, and much more" was and is worth it!

Jesus longs to see men lead their families in a tender way and shamelessly chase after him. And when a man does that the family, the community, the world is changed for the better!

As I rode away Sunday on my Harley with my daughter Hannah on the back I felt this deep, deep, deep satisfaction from the Lord. The mental picture of men stepping forward with their sons and daughters, wives and friends to trust in Jesus gave me the fortitude to press on!

My wife, Anne who is my greatest cheerleader and supporter said it best when she said this "Keep doing what you are doing Jim it is worth it!"

Yes we had man games...

yes we had relentless effort...

Yes we crowned a winner....

Yes we gave away an ATV...

Yes we had a motorcycle entrance with a fireworks display...

Yes men walked forward to trust in Jesus...

Yes men hugged and showed great emotion...

Yes men crossed over from death to life...

Yes sons watched their dad do the bravest thing and admit they need Jesus...

Yes men walked with other men to show support...

Yes men drove stakes in the ground as a new beginning...

Yes daughters walked with their dads and watched him trust in Jesus...

Yes over 100 men trusted in Jesus!

Yes, yes, yes, yes and YES!

That is why we do what we do and yes all glory goes to Jesus!

My daughter captured it in one sentence

2015-06-04T16:08:00.001-04:00

Love keeps no records of wrongs. I have read that 100's of times and even used it in sermons, weddings, and counseling sessions. It is the crux of a healthy relationship.

YET...

... My daughter said something to me on Sunday while we were debriefing the Message that I had preached that Sunday morning. Yes pastors do discuss the sermon too, we just don't roast the pastor :)

I had just preached from the Book of Malachi and we were in Malachi 3:13-18 and it gives reference to God having a scroll of remembrance that he writes in concerning the things we do that are praiseworthy to him. I shared the story of God getting a chance at our funeral's to give his testimony about our lives after everyone else has spoken. Jesus walks to the microphone and pulls out the Scroll of Remembrance and just reads.

Certainly it would be a pin-drop moment for those in attendance as every detail would be 100% accurate and meaningful because the God of the Universe has recorded it. It basically would be a summation of all the good we had done for him.

As we were talking about this, Hannah said, "Dad, God only keeps track of the good things!" Wow that truth pierced the air like a flaming arrow in darkness. God keeps no records of our wrongs.

Process that a little as we did that afternoon the King of Kings only records and remembers the good we have done. The Bible says He chooses not to remember our sins anymore. The Bible tells us that the good deeds we have done will somehow be broadcasted and rewarded at the Bema Seat. The Bible is clear that God's record keeping keeps no record of wrongs.

Imagine if you can if we began to do the same with those that we love. Imagine a world where we forgive and choose only to point out the good in each other instead of our religious lists of what we don't like. Imagine family members keeping track only of the good that their family has done that day, that week, that year, or that lifetime.

Imagine family gatherings, church worship services, business meetings, friendships that only journaled the good.

That thought is a divine one that our Father God models well and we have some major work to do! When we begin to do that the world will run to Jesus in droves because they have never witnessed anything like it. Love keeps no record of wrongs and they will know we are Christians by our love for each other!

Do Your Kids love you more than they Love Jesus

2015-05-28T14:02:00.000-04:00

Parenting is such a great joy...

Yet the greatest satisfaction comes when a child ages and continues to chase hard after Jesus. I would even go so far to say that the greatest gift a child can give their parents is for them to still chase after Jesus all of their lives. There is no full-proof way to make this happen because children have a free will and can make their own choices once they become adults. But there are some things that can help build godly characteristics in them.

We are reminded in Proverbs 22:6 of this truth... start children off in the way they should go and even when they are old they will not depart from it.

Anne and are not perfect parents and we have been showered with gobs and gobs of grace as we parent our children. But we have also been very intentional in trying to start our children in the right direction as Proverbs refers to above. I will share a few things over the next couple of blogs that we have worked hard at with them.

Elevate Jesus and his mission in their lives.

* As soon as possible let them experience a mission's trip on the other side of the world.

* As soon as they can understand have them pray regularly the armor of God on their lives.

* Eat together once a day at a table at home and talk about God-moments.

* Actively share your faith with others and pull them into those conversations to show them how important it is and let them see how they are an important part in the evangelism process.

* Get them to pray at gatherings.

* Encourage them often and then some more about how good our God is and tell them you love them.

* Ask them to pray for their lost classmates regularly.

* Elevate God's Word in their lives.

* Create a safe place where they can ask questions about God and the Bible.

* Help them to be stretched in their faith by encouraging them to stand up against the peer pressure and express how God is pleased with them.

* Talk about the joy of knowing Jesus and worshipping at your local church.

* Never gossip or talk despairingly about other Christians.

* Invite them to serve in your local church with their gifting.

* Tell them often how proud you are of the way they live their lives for Jesus.

* Never expect anything from them that you are not presently willing to do yourself.

* Model Jesus in front of them.

* Teach them to tithe as soon as possible and find ways to connect their giving to an event, person, or mission so they can see how they have made a difference.

* Pray often with them instead of telling them you will pray for them. Do it now with them.

* Make sure they are connected to youth group at church.

* Allow them to fail and extend forgiveness laced with grace often.

* Make sure they worship regularly on Sunday Mornings.

* Have God talks in the car while you are going from point A to Point B.

* Help them connect the dots as to how God provided for you and them.

* Ask for forgiveness and say I am sorry when you have sinned with them.

* Let them see that Hard Circumstances create Strong children.

* Laugh a lot with them

* Pray for favor protection and blessing on their life everyday.

* Never compare their progress or lack of against their siblings let them become the best version of themselves.

More tomorrow, but I will close with this... Way too many parents raise Children that love them more than they love Jesus. Thanks Josh, Hannah and Isaiah you are a great blessing to us!

Out of the Ashes of Isis... Jonah and Ninevah again?... Report #4

2015-02-06T07:33:00.000-05:00

What I am about to tell you is so incredibly awesome...

Many of you know the story of The Reluctant Prophet Jonah and Ninevah. God had called him to go to Ninevah and preach a message of repentance. Jonah wanted no parts of that because he had witnessed first hand and heard plenty of stories of Assyrian cruelty.

It is recorded in Biblical history that the Assyrians had killed many of Jonah's people . In fact stories are told that the Assyrians impaled them at the end of the cities and in some cases flayed them alive. It was brutal manslaughter on God's people. So when God called Jonah to go and preach he said no way and fled to Tarshish. Well, God had other plans and now enter the the story of the large fish which eventually puked him back on the shore towards Ninevah.

You know the rest of the story... He preached a message of Repentance and the whole city repented even the dogs were covered in sackcloth. I believe Jonah knew this was going to happen and that is why he fled in the first place. He remembered how the Assyrians had done such evil things and caused his people to flee...

Fast forward to today...

Ninevah is now modern day Mosul and thousands of people are fleeing the city because of Isis. A modern day group doing similar things that the Assyrians did. People are leaving in droves and to be quite frank many that we talked to do not want to go back there. They remember what Isis did they recall how their neighbors have raided their homes and broke their trust.

Do you know where many are headed to as I type? They are headed to Erbil. They are now gathering in groups to learn about Jesus. Many will get saved and find Jesus in the church that is being planted in Erbil.

Could it be that these same people that Grace4Iraq is rescuing in these apartments will one day be the group that reluctantly returns to Modern Day, Ninevah (Mosul)?

My heart skips a beat at this thought because we could see God do the very same thing he did in Jonah's day. We could see one of the greatest revival's recorded in the Bible taking place in Mosul by the very people we are rescuing and our Pastor friend is equipping...

We know from the Bible that the Middle East is the greenhouse for the end times... Could this movement help usher in the Rapture?

I ask you to pray for Pastor Malath and his wife Nour as they are elbows deep into leading this church movement and they are sharing the good news of Jesus with many modern day Mosul refugees...

Could God be up to something really big? All I know is that he longs for all to come to repentance and there are many in Mosul that need Jesus!

May we see in our day what Jonah did!

out of the ashes report #3 Everybody needs a daddy!

2015-02-05T10:43:00.001-05:00

I love being a daddy. I love it when my kids send me a text and call me Dad. I love when my kids introduce me to their friends as Dad. I love seeing the name Brown on the back of my kid's sport jerseys. I love providing, caring, praying and pouring life into my kids. I thank God that I get to be daddy!

I know the importance a Dad has in the formation of his children. I work hard at this incredible opportunity I have with my kids. Everybody needs a daddy. All over Iraq are children reeling from the effects of Isis. Children are trying to find some security and new identity in a foreign city; children that have witnessed the horrible tragedies of Isis; children on the run; children sleeping in tents; children with absent daddy's; children trying to cope.

My heart always breaks for the kids. On many occasions I had to gulp the emotion I was feeling as I interacted with them, yet I knew this was a chance to be daddy to these scarred kids.

The Bible says that Jesus often took time for the children and loved on them. I picture Jesus sitting with them, playing King of Hill and skipping rocks across the Jordan with them. I picture him telling them stories and laughing with them. I picture the kids running to him when he came to town.

Well, we had many opportunities as a team to be daddy to a lot of kids. The picture above is a boy named Frank. He is one the kids we were able to rescue. The first time we met was in his apartment. He sat down beside me on the couch. I wrapped my arm around him and gave him a daddy hug. After that hug it was as if he never left our side. Everywhere we went Frank showed up. Frank loved soccer and told us that his name was Messi the famous soccer player. I told him I was Renaldo. He became our adopted kid for the week..

Whenever we walked outside our doors the kids gathered around us and joined us. It was soon apparent they needed daddy time so our team became 11 dads to these precious kids. George gave them a soccer ball and it was as if he had dropped a million bucks in their hands. They carried that ball everywhere. In the midst of the apartment complex was a private school with tons of kids. This school had two really nice soccer fields for the private school kids.

These rescued children didn't have access to these fields because they weren't in school. So we did what any daddy would do we walked into the principle's office and asked if we could play soccer with our kids. You should have seen these rescued kids as they walked into the school for the first time with their American daddy's. They held their chins high and smiled like kids do on Christmas morning...

Well, we explained that we were from the USA and were there to help the refugees and we wanted to play soccer with our kids. God moved in the hearts of the staff there and he let us in. You should have seen Messi, it was as if he was in the World Cup. Kids laughed and ran like deer on this new soccer field while we gasped for air. It was so much fun mixing it up with the kids. In fact at one point the Principle came and joined the rescued kids in his suit.

For a moment it was just a daddy-son moment and it was good, really good...

Every single time we walked outside the kids came out of nowhere to walk with us and asked us if we can play soccer. It was as if they were peering out the window waiting for us...

Each morning we were greeted by boys wanting us to come out and play. Well, we did what any daddy would do. We had pillow fights...

We wrestled with them...

For a few days in the lives of these kids they became superstars and we high-fived them. We told them we were proud of them. We got lost in moment and loved on our family...

You never know how God will use you in Iraq but what I do know after traveling the world every boy needs a daddy. Every boy wants a daddy to tell them they are proud of them.

So for a few days we did just that...

The goodbyes were hard because we really loved our new sons. I got to believe this is what Jesus felt as he traveled from city to city in the Middle East. I got to believe that when he came to town the kids ran to him and asked him if he was Renaldo or Messi...

Out of the Ashes of Isis Report #2 Only God...

2015-02-04T10:23:00.003-05:00

Each morning in Iraq a group of us would get up and go for a prayer run across the country-side. We would run in packs and often pray over the country asking God to bring revival and healing to this land. It was a great way to bond as a team and link arms together.

On one morning a few of us decided to take a left off the beaten the path and run across the sandbox and pray. It's amazing how you immediately recognize the presence of God with you as you run. We saw sheep and some rugged muddy terrain and were reminded that this country has been the place where many battles have taken place for centuries. We all have run many miles in our lives in America but only God would have known that one of the reasons we did so was to prepare us to do a prayer run across Kurdistan.

One of our greatest desires was to go back to the tea shop we had visited on our first trip in September. This is the place where God gave us the opportunity to pray over the men all together. We were excited to find some of the same people we met the first time around, like the man above who graciously served us tea.

I have almost 20 emails and phone numbers of Kurds who have been displaced from this shop. We met doctors and teachers and engineers in this tea shop who are trying to find hope. We played dominoes and smiled and gave Iraqi hugs to them.

Just today I received a Facebook Message from the Doctor I met there... Only God can make that happen. Pray for Dr. Saaad..

We were able to meet with many of the families in the apartments and pray with them. In one of the apartments this little girl was all bundled up in her seat. Imagine the mom and dad as they carried this child across the sandbox as they fled Isis wondering what was next. Only God could answer their prayer by sending a community of believers 6500 miles away to help rescue this baby and answer their prayer.

Imagine if this was your baby and you began to beg God for help...

One day we were out shopping for Apartment Supplies and this man came buzzing by us. I love the hooded sweatshirt he is wearing. I was proud to be an American when I saw this. I am so grateful for all the men and women who served our country from the Military to bring freedom to so many in Iraq. I am sure many times our veterans wondered what good could come out of the war in Iraq.

Because of our Military we can now follow up with the Gospel of Jesus. Had they not served we could have never been on this mission. Only God could take such hardship for our Soldiers and turn it into something good...

God has equipped us all in unique ways to do his work. We were able to have Scott Devlin on our team to capture the story on video. He found himself in many precarious positions filming the work there. Scott has longed to take the story of how God is working in other countries back to America for a long time. Little did he know that God would give him the chance to do it in Iraq.

Only God can take something as atrocious as the devastation of Isis and build a church from it.

This picture is truly an Only God kind of moment. As you know we long to see many churches planted in the ashes of Isis. One of the days we were there we were able to sit in the office of the Minister of Religion of Iraq. On his wall were pictures of him with the Pope and Franklin Graham. We talked about the refugee implosion in Erbil and about our mission project with the apartments. He shared how the country of Iraq especially Erbil was overwhelmed with 1.5 million Refugees. At one point he was overcome with emotion as he spoke about the pain his people were facing.

He served us tea and he was very encouraged by the work we were doing and shared how he longed for the local church to step up and help out. At one point in the conversation I said to our guys to stop and consider where we were at and what God has just done to get us in this office.

As we neared the end our stay I had the privilege to pray over him and his country. He gave me his personal contact information to keep in touch with our work in Erbil. Only God could arrange a meeting with a group of 11 American Christians to sit in the office of the most influential religious leader in Iraq...

As we left the building we snapped off this photo and thanked God for his hand in this meeting... Only God...

This photo represents so much more than the naked eye reveals. These are many of the people that worship together in the church that we have linked arms with in Iraq. As I scan the picture I see family members that were once in tents along the road but now in Apartments where they are finding dignity, hope and a fresh start. I see refugees worshiping from pain of Isis with a deep love for Jesus. I see people who were once far from God now Christ-followers. I see Hope stamped everywhere... Only God can turn this tragedy of Isis into good, only God, only Our God, Amen!

Out of the Ashes of Isis

2015-02-03T07:11:00.000-05:00

About 5 months ago God spoke clearly to me in my office while I was prepping for my sermon in the Book of 1John. It was as if The Holy Spirit had grabbed my heart and wouldn't let go. Out of that came a vision to reach the precious people in Iraq who were being displaced by the atrocities of Isis. Our church unloaded their support. They immediately prayed, gave, sacrificed and formed a team to go to the war torn country. To be quite honest, we were discouraged by many to not go. Some people thought we were crazy, others were even upset with me because they thought I was leading people to a death march.

But we knew God wanted us to go! Out of that prompting by the Spirit a team of 8 mighty men who decided to go in first, knowing full well the potential cost. Our wives and families stood in support and bravely held down the home front. I will never forget the night we rolled out of Goshen with tears streaming down our faces realizing the risk at hand.

Fast forward to today...

We just returned after a second visit with a big vision to rescue hundreds of refugees. We desire to find them housing in apartments for 6 months and a fresh start to their lives. Our prayer is that out of the ashes of Isis comes a strong a mighty church planting movement for Jesus.

God is alive and well in Kurdistan... on this second trip we were able to go and support, love, care, and pour courage into these precious people. We saw first hand what God is doing with our Grace4Iraq mission. God is giving us a chance to link arms with a man of God, Pastor Malath Baythoon and his church to reach people who once would never have given us any chance at all.

In this photo above to my right is Pastor Malath and to my left is a Yazidi man who greeted me with a kiss on both cheeks because he knew that this group of Americans were caring for his people. In fact he showed up to the church service I preached at earlier that week. God is truly at work for that to happen.

Grace4Iraq is rescuing people who were in tents along the side of the road and pulling people in who had no place to call home and restoring dignity, hope. Plus it is showing them that Jesus loves them. The ladies above represent 3 generations of women, who now have a place to call home. We sat with these precious ladies and heard their horrific stories of Isis pushing them out. We ate a meal with them that they had prepared for us. We saw the smiles on their faces. I wept tears of joy as I saw first hand what can happen when a church decides to help their brothers and sisters on the other side of the world.

We were able to purchase beds, cabinets, blankets, heaters and mattresses to get a couple of apartments ready for two families being rescued. I will never forget the smiles on their faces, the taps on the hearts by men, and the kisses on our hands from the women to show us how grateful they were.

As we carried supplies to the new apartments I again wept knowing full well this is what God longs to see his church do for the harassed and helpless.

The apartment complex entrance was a daily reminder to us that this was a war torn country as a guard packing an AK47 stood on his watch. But if God is for us who could ever stand against us. This apartment complex now holds 100's of rescued refugees who are meeting in small groups to study the Bible and learn more about the love of Jesus. Out of the ashes of Isis, Jesus is building a mighty church.

One of the most powerful moments was us being able to hand the keys over to a large family who had been displaced. As we stood in the hallway and looked out the glass window we watched a van roll in packed with a family that would be placed in this apartment.

As we stood in the hallway and prayed over this family and prayed over many family members I was overcome with emotion knowing full well this is what can happen when God's people link arms together.

I wish you could have been there as we handed over the keys to this new apartment and watched the families enter their new apartment... Simply beautiful...

Apartments like this one are now bustling with kids, adults and families. We ate with them, prayed with them and saw first hand hope emerging in their hearts.

I still can't wrap my mind around the fact that God allowed me to preach in Northern Iraq last Sunday while Isis was a town away. I was able to tell them from Matthew that they do not need to worry because Jesus had their backs and that there was a church in America called Grace Community that had their backs too..

This picture above captures fully the emotions our team felt as we were able to sing happy birthday to every person who had a January birthday. Stop and ponder this reality. We sang happy birthday and cut cake together. In fact, I too have a January birthday and never for the life of me did I ever think I would be celebrating my 53rd birthday with a group of rescued people and an Iraqi Church on Sunday Night in Kurdistan.

Out of the ashes of Isis hope is emerging... this is kind of story the press needs to be reporting!!!

They are being rescued!

2014-11-04T15:56:00.001-05:00

Glory from the ashes... Since our God is for us, what can ever stand against us!

You gave, you prayed, you sacrificed, you linked arms, you believed it could happen, you refused to just sit there, you knew we could do it and God made it happen.

It all began with a prompting from the Holy Spirit after reading Scripture and developed with a vision that knew we had to do something and ended with these precious refugees getting rescued!

As I type I weep because I met many of these people along with 7 other men from the Grace4Iraq Team . I saw their pain I hugged them and prayed with them. And we took the hope of Jesus to them. We told them that there was a group of Christians in Indiana who wanted to help them.

We told them that Jesus did the same for us and we wanted to do the same for them.

Now family by family is moving into apartments for 6 months and finding some dignity and hope.

Now a community is being built with rescued refugees who understand the Love of God. Now a church is being planted in the ashes of ISIS. Now Hope upon Hope is being poured out and Jesus is getting greater glory! Just a take a few minutes and look at what can happen when God's people rally together.

A Dad can put a shelter on his family...

A person can have a bed to sleep in...

Food can be cooked...

Families can find community without the threat of starvation and homelessness...

A man has a place to call home...

Hot water to take a warm shower and be clean...

Generations can live in peace...

Dad can lead the way to hope...

A smile can be found on a person's face...

Food to eat...

A sense of pride can be reestablished...

And a bed to crawl into at night with curtains to match...

The rescue continues and hope is brimming in the war-torn country of Iraq! Thank you from the bottom of my heart! To God be all the Glory! Never underestimate what Faith, Passion, and God can do!

Tourniquets. Football. Band of Brothers. Iraqi Realtors

2014-09-25T15:11:00.000-04:00

There are only some things that God can teach you on the "other side of yes." There are many things that we will never learn that God longed to reveal to us because we refused to follow that little voice of the Holy Spirit that says "I want you to go."

It is a huge privilege to be part of a church that is willing to step into the mess of our world to offer hope at a moment's notice. Something deep happens in your soul when you link arms with people of like faith and mission. The men pictured above are some of those men in my life.

At each moment of our journey all of us found ourselves doing things that God had built us to do before this trip, while some of us were quick learners and were adding to our tool bag of life. By God's foreknowledge we were able to connect with a Group on the ground called CRI led by its founder Sean Malone. This team of warriors spends their time jumping into the unknown to offer hope too.

We had an immediate bond with them, it was as if we knew each other since the day of our birth. Our hearts carried the same DNA. We loved the same God and carried the same mission. We were able to bring 14 trunks of medical supplies on our trip to Iraq to help supply them to care for wounded soldiers on the front lines.

By the way, you should have seen the looks we received in line at the Chicago International Airport when people began to read the labels on our trunks.. as we stood in line... that were labeled on all sides, in a bold font, our Hotel address in Iraq.

In any case one night we spent hours packing medical boxes and making tourniquets for wounded soldiers and then prayed over all the supplies. You never know what God has in store on the "other side of yes"...

This is a photo of some of the CRI people that we grew to love, and were privileged to meet on the other side of the world, in a war zone. You never know who God wants you to encourage, till you step to the "other side of yes." This journey allowed us to meet some brave warriors for Jesus that were pushing back darkness and bringing light to a very dark place...

I have spent thousands of moments with my kids throwing footballs in the back yard. Yet, I never thought we would be standing with 8 men on the other side of world, tossing a football with children who had never touched a real American Football... and in turn offering them hope in Jesus and telling them that there was a church 6500 miles away that loved them.

We would have never witnessed the smiles, heard the giggles, watched the tackles, and sweated a dry-heat :)... and left with our emotions up to our throats on the "safe side of yes."

I'm not a realtor, nor was any man on this team, yet we have all sat in the room on many occasions with realtors. Yet, for the life of us we would have never, ever, ever, ever thought we would be sitting in room with eight men from America... trying to broker a deal with an Iraqi Realty Company.

Sometime I will tell you the full story and all the amazing details that were happening as we spoke in English and they Spoke in Arabic... plus having notes passed to me from Jeff, reminding me that the Iraqi realtor probably understood English so I better speak quietly or in English slang when talking among our team.

At one moment we all paused and were reminded to stop and consider what was happening there... we are sitting in Iraq trying to work a deal to help refugees that we didn't know one month ago. There are only some things God can teach us on the "other side of yes."

As we sat there trying to figure it all out, in the 11th hour, on the last day, God spoke clearly to our Pastor Friend, Malath that there might be a better option.

It wasn't until a 30-minute road trip later, in the 11th hour, when we pulled up to this apartment complex that everything became clear, crystal clear. God had brought our team and our church to Iraq for this defining purpose... Rescue the refugees and give them dignity, hope, and a fresh start in these apartments.

As we walked around these empty concrete rooms it was as if God knocked on each of our hearts and said in 100 % agreement, Yes! We knew God was saying this was his plan from the beginning of time. Yet all he needed was a church that was willing to say yes and step on the other side of it.

So the mission continues with hopes that 100's of refugees end up here, because people give to this dream. I got a feeling that it is going to be a big, really big offering, because this is the heartbeat of our God. He came to seek and save the lost and redeem dead things... Plus, Grace Community Church and this Community is loaded with people who love living on the "other side of yes."

Yes it was a dangerous trip

2014-09-18T11:03:00.004-04:00

Yes we are crazy. Yes we knew it was a dangerous mission. Yes we had naysayers. But we were not stupid nor were we foolish.

Yet, we knew God had compelled us to go. There was a moment before we all left where we stood in a circle and had each man state for himself that he was in even with the possibility of not coming home. Each man and his family knew the risk but we just couldn't sit there and do nothing to help these precious people. We believed, as did our wives that now was the time to act.

There were many unknowns for us on this trip. We had very few contacts on the ground and we knew we had to rely on the Holy Spirit to guide us and for God to protect us.

One of the days we felt compelled to travel north to a city called Duhok. This meant we would travel through the War Zone and would encounter some Military Checkpoints.

We had hired a Kurdish driver and had an Iraqi Christian Translator with us in the van, as we traveled through the Hill Country.

So we prayed up before we headed north and our antennas were on full alert as we progressed. We saw bunkers and passed through a city that ISIS had bombed the day before. We saw many Peshmerga soldiers along the way. As we traveled, we knew we were not in Indiana anymore.

What we didn't plan for was this... at each checkpoint a soldier stopped us and if we said these two words they gave us the green light. By the way, I did not see any other Americans at any checkpoints so this was not a normal kind of van to be checking in.

The two words were.. American or Christian... let me explain...

In God's sovereign plan to get the Gospel to the nations he uses all necessary means to do that. You see the Kurds loves Americans because we came and fought for them in previous wars in Iraq. They are appreciative of what our Vets have done for them and love Americans.

I salute and thank our Vets, had you not sacrificed your lives then we would never been able to follow behind you with the Gospel. I praise God for every American Vet for giving us a pass at every checkpoint in Iraq. You made our trip a little safer because you went first!

You better go back now!

2014-09-17T14:03:00.001-04:00

Each morning as we gathered for our team time at breakfast we prayed and asked God to protect us and be with our families back home. Each man on the team had a swim buddy that he kept close eyes on in all situations, yes all situations. We walked in full confidence that God was with us as were a host of angels. We certainly stood out in Iraq as we walked the streets. Everyone noticed 8 white American men walking in file with their backpacks on through the city. We received many glances from the people of Iraq.

One day we felt prompted by the Spirit to do a prayer-walk through the city. So we got ourselves prayed up and quoted Isaiah 30:21 and began to walk through the city. As we walked we prayed and listened for the still voice of the Spirit to direct our paths. As we were walking by a building packed full of men drinking tea we wondered what they were up to.

After getting about 40 yards past the building one of our teammates, Sam who had already been prompted twice to go back to the building said his heart was pounding out of his chest to go back and told me what the Spirit was telling him. So, I said "men we are going back!"

As we walked back we just spread out in front of the building and stood and prayed quietly, not really sure what God was up to. As we stood there a crowd began to gather around us wondering why eight white men were standing out in front doing nothing but standing with backpacks on and praying. Then out of nowhere a Iraqi man emerges and in perfect English asks if we speak English. It was as if God had spoken. He asked what we were doing there and we shared that God had sent us to Iraq to care for his people. He immediately invited us into the room full of men for some tea. We all spread out and smiled and drank tea with the refugees that were packed in this room. I found out that these men were the leaders of their towns prior to getting pushed out by ISIS.

After about 45 minutes and after Sam bought the house some hot tea I asked the man beside me if I could pray for them. He spoke a word quietly and then another man said something in Arabic and the whole room was quiet in 6 seconds with men standing on their feet. I then had the opportunity to pray over this group of men. Some were Muslims and many were Christians. It was a tear dripping moment for me and our team as God had prompted us to stop and then we were able to proclaim hope to these men.

You never know what can happen when you just step out in faith and listen to God. He can place you in a circle of men on the other side of world drinking tea and praying Jesus over them.

As we left that building a man grabbed a hold of Sam and said "thank you for praying for us." I wonder how many Christian men in that room had spent the morning praying to God asking for a sign that God was with them and God answered their prayer by sending them 8 white American Men. God can do more then we ask or imagine and goes to great extremes to show us he loves us.

An "Only God" Moment on my Iraq Mission's Trip

2014-09-16T12:55:00.002-04:00

I just returned from a mission's trip to explore the land in Iraq with 7 other men from Grace. I will attempt to tell a few stories over the next week or so of God's amazing intervention.

Each morning we would wake up and pray this verse from Isaiah 30:21 "Whether I turn to my left or right my ears will hear a voice behind me saying this is the way walk in it." We knew we were in a dangerous place but we also knew our God was with us wherever we went. We felt compelled by the Spirit to find a way to reach out to all these precious people who had been displaced by the darkness of the ISIS leaders. Needless to say we have hundreds of stories but here is one of them...

After purchasing 11k of food and supplies and handing it out to the refugees I found myself in a room with a family that had just made the trek from their homeland to Erbil Iraq. I began to share the good news of Jesus Christ and that we had come from a distant land to help them. I shared that we saw their distress on the news and just couldn't sit there and do nothing. I began to share that the God I love and serve sent me there to help. In the midst of the conversation the young father of the child above, began to speak in Arabic to my translator. I could tell he was pretty passionate about what he wanted to tell me, so I asked my translator what he said.

He went on to tell me that this baby that was laying to my right on the ground was four days old and he and his wife had fled their home and had not yet named their baby girl. Then he said he wanted me to name their baby! Imagine for a second the gravity of that moment. I was asked to give this girl a name.

Well, immediately The Spirit gave me a name. It was so clear and so fast that I didn't miss a beat to tell him what he should name his daughter. I said that I would name her "Grace." Tears began to stream down my face as I begin to realize how God had orchestrated this moment from the foundation of the world to be a setup for the Gospel.

So I went on to explain what Grace meant and how God extended grace in giving his son Jesus, and that there was a church called Grace back in America that loved them too. As I was sharing this truth another man dressed in full Kurdish Garb began to weep when I told him that Jesus loves him.

It will be a moment etched in my heart forever. And somewhere in Iraq years from now a young women will tell a story of why her name is Grace and how God's Grace saved her and her family. Only God could set up something so beautiful like this in the midst of death, execution, chaos and fear!

We are the only plan left

2014-08-13T15:09:00.003-04:00

All through the Bible God has been on a mission to rescue lost people. He raised up prophets, priests, and Kings in the Old Testament. He sent his own son to come and rescue the lost.

He gave everything he had to reach those that are lost. Yet some still never connected the dots and many never followed the rescuer! Seriously, what else is left to give after you have given your only son? We are! We are his last rescue attempt, he gave everything he could and his last plan is us!

Humankind's last chance to find Jesus is through us! We are all that is left!

And since we were bought with a price, and we are not our own we must not retreat but stand boldly and proclaim the truth of the gospel!

Grace is messy

2014-08-12T14:51:00.002-04:00

Often something hits me post-sermon on Sunday mornings that pushes me through the week.

This past Sunday I spoke on Grace and how God continues to lavish his grace and love all over us. I used a pitcher of water and an empty container that I had drilled holes into that represented our sins. I then poured pitcher after pitcher of water into the container showing how God's grace keeps coming and coming and coming... You can see this sermon on our web site. God's grace is more than the sin we can produce.

But as I was getting ready to pack up my stuff and go home it hit me like a ton of bricks that I had created quite a mess after 3 services of using this demonstration. Water was everywhere, the floor was wet, my shirt was wet, the counter was a mess and I was reminded that "Grace is messy!" When we extend grace in someone's life it will be messy and it is not clean.

It also hit me that while I had run out of water in my demonstration that God never runs out of grace he just keeps pouring it out, pitcher after pitcher of it. We can't out-sin grace!

I was moved deeply by this post-sermon moment and felt deeply loved by my Savior as he continues to walk into my mess and pour out grace upon grace.

Wow, what might happen if we were willing to dole out grace like that and walk into the messes of people's lives? I think we know the answer to that question, the world would be won to Jesus in droves!

The way it should be

2014-08-02T10:50:00.005-04:00

On a side street, while First Fridays was in full motion in Goshen with lots of fun activities for our community; a special group of hoopsters from ADEC put on a great hoops display.

Tina Bowser from ADEC organized the event which let the team display their talent to a small audience in attendance. Effort and hustle combined with laughter, smiles, and sportsmanship filled the court.

I found myself stripping me from the game and becoming a member of their team; longing to see them score and win the game.

My kids and Ross Elias formed a team to compete with them.

We celebrated their win with them and cherished the hugs we received from them afterwards.

The Goshen Cheerleaders came out in full support to cheer on the ADEC Silver Bullets...

I loved how they cheered for them on each shot ...

It was one of those nights with my family that I will never forget...

We hit a couple of shots to keep it close but honestly it really didn't matter if we made any shots at all...

Ross had fun too as he set aside his skills for a night and rewarded the ADEC team with a steal or two...

The handshakes afterwards were some of my best ever as an athlete...

I even loved the Referee :)

I wondered as I pulled away with my wife, Anne who cheered loudly for the ADEC Silver Bullets and snapped off all of these pictures, if we had just experienced a little taste of heaven. I wondered if Jesus was in the crowd away from the hustle and bustle of main street. I wondered if that was why my family had spent 1000's of hours practicing hoops; so that we could show up last night and be the best players for the other team.

I am a better man because of my time on the court last night and I thank God for my new ADEC friends who truly understand what is most important ! Bless you Silver Bullets!

Go Deeper

2014-07-31T11:15:00.001-04:00

The word "deeper" is a buzz word in Christian circles. Sometimes it is used to characterize a church or rate its effectiveness. Often it becomes the word that takes on its own meaning. Most of the time it is used to determine whether or not a church has the best discipleship method.

To be quite honest... I chuckle when I hear that question asked about our church or any church, not because I don't think it is very important but because I know what they really mean. And this question doesn't require a complex answer.

So let's answer that question. How do we know if we are going deep enough? Or when is a church too shallow or better yet, a mile wide and an inch deep? By the way, that always makes me chuckle too when I hear that expression used.

Ultimately, deeper for me expresses a desire to get closer to Jesus. It is a journey to know the heart of God. It is a process, method, or tool that gets us right up against the mission and heartbeat of our Savior.

So what is the heartbeat of our God? What is His mission? What is the core mission of our Savior when we finally get close enough to figure it out? The answer is clear and reveals that our God is a rescuing God. Our God sent his Son, Jesus to Seek and Save the lost! The deeper you get it becomes very apparent that God longs for us to rescue people. At the deepest spot is a heart that says, go rescue lost people!

So, if you are going deeper as a church, as an individual, as a family then there must be evidence that a person is actively sharing and rescuing lost people. It is impossible to get deeper without a contagious desire to see lost people saved. This "Deeper" journey will produce churches that long to see lost people saved and will find them longing to do whatever it takes to help that happen.

So the next time someone longs to see your church go deeper, ask them to explain deeper and then ask them how deep they have been. A deeper Christian wakes each morning with the mission from his God to seek and save the lost! And he loses sleep thinking about the ways he can verbalize and live that message out until his neighbor, co-worker, stranger, or family member trusts in Jesus Christ. Now that is Deeper!

We are missing the boat

2014-07-24T10:40:00.002-04:00

Knowledge puffs up... Yes the Bible tells us clearly that the pursuit of knowledge alone for noble or not so noble desires can lead to puffy/prideful/I'm right and you are not/ Christ followers.

I am an educated man by the world standards I have an AS/BA/ MDIV/ and Doctorate level studies. I am "in-the-know" when it comes to knowledge, well at least in the eyes of some credential only Christ followers. Yet, does that really equate to a more intimate relationship with Jesus? Does the knowledge about Jesus alone and the pursuit to know him more-only truly deepen my intimacy with him? Or better yet, is that the formula, discipline, or path that God longs for us to get to know him? Does knowledge about God naturally produce intimacy? Can a heady understanding of God be the best way to develop true intimacy with Jesus? Could a Christ-follower get to a point where he believes that knowledge and more knowledge about Jesus alone is the best path and the right path to develop intimacy? Does the knowledge-only path produce fully-devoted followers of Jesus? Does this desire to know more-only produce puffy-Christians? Can this be the best and only way? Does this produce the kind of disciples that our Father-God longs to have?

Let me expound a few thoughts... The Bible gives us two Greek words used for "know" in the New Testament. One word is Oida and the other Ginosko. Oida is intellectual knowledge, the path where we learn more about something. Ginosko is knowledge that comes from experience, the knowledge we learn by hanging out with or sharing time with someone. Both paths gain knowledge. But do both paths end up in a place of intimacy with God?

I am a Father of 3 precious kids that I love with all of my heart. I long for them to shine in our world. I long for them to be world changers for Jesus. I also long for them to love me. Yes, I want to know that that my kids love their daddy.

With that being said, when do I feel the closest to my kids? When do I experience the deepest levels of intimacy with them? The answer to that question is when I know they want to be "with me." When they run to me, sit with me, laugh with me, sit in my lap, call me, talk to me, share their deepest struggles and greatest joys, sit with me, and hang with me.

I don't want to dismiss that I know they love me when they obey, follow my lead, live out their faith and are interested in my philosophies and wisdom for life that I have gleaned from God's Word. I love that they "oida" me. But, if that was their only pursuit to love me I would feel a major void in our relationship. It would very heady and academic and would be remiss of touch, hugs, laughter, tears, priceless-moments, and rich intimacy.

I wonder if God ever feels this way? I wonder if he ever wishes his kids would crawl up into his lap and sit a while? I wonder if he ever says I know you "oida" me but I want to "ginosko" you? I wonder if our pursuit of knowledge-only has left us empty because intimacy has become the Book not yet read?

Does growing deeper in our walks really mean knowledge-only? Do knowledge-only Christians produce fully devoted followers of Jesus? I think we need a good dose of intimacy that is built, learned, and practiced from ginosking...

Otherwise, we end up with puffy-only Children. I long for more than that! I love it when my kids run to me and sit in my lap!

Blue ticket-God touches

2014-06-17T15:42:00.000-04:00

I have made a concerted effort over these last two years to slow down. Let me explain...

I have been part of some amazing moves of God. I have witnessed first-hand moves of God that you read about in the Bible. Yet, it is so easy to just quickly move on to the next event because of the pace of life.

So, one of my goals has been to savor the moments that God brings my way. In order to do that, I have worked hard at finding ways to give him greater glory and tell the story so that others are encouraged that God is alive and well, and that he longs to do great things in their day.

I blog about it, FB, Twitter, and verbally tell others so that Jesus can gain more praise. Often I will grab a piece of the story and keep it with me so that I can remember how God came through.

The Bible is littered with this very kind of thing, only they didn't have social media, but they did broadcast it in another way. They built memorials all over the land. Just take a look in the OLD Testament. These memorials were left for people to remember that God did an amazing thing here. These memorials encouraged people week after week, year after year, as they stumbled across them in the desert or mountains. These memorials became beacons of hope for people of God. And I am sure at the most needed time they breathed life into God's people concerning the adversity in front of them.

So today, I went outside to remember what God did this past weekend. I wanted to soak it in and not move too quickly to the next event on my calendar.

As I walked the now empty property I remembered where men stood, where people praised, where men knelt and surrendered, where men competed, where God showed up and I did a praise memorial walk around our property.

As I walked, I saw this blue ticket laying out in the lawn all by itself and the whole weekend story flashed before my eyes. All the hours of praying, all the hours of planning, all the volunteers, and all the hours of begging God to show up scene by scene ran through my mind. It was my time to remember and thank God again, by the means of a blue ticket.

No you won't see an altar on our property, but every time I see a blue ticket in the future I will remember the great move of God and it will add another bounce in my step to press on!

God wants the man!

2014-06-16T10:26:00.002-04:00

I want to say thank you to every single volunteer and staff member who prayed, supported, invited, served, sacrificed, gave, used their gifts and talents; from the parking crew to the bulletin stuffers. Because you joined the vision and supported the dream God absolutely moved in a mighty way.

Yes, we go all out on Father's Day to reach our men in our community, because we firmly believe if you get the man, you get the family, you get the community, and you get the world for Jesus. 1000's of people came out yesterday to be led in inspiring worship, enjoy a pre-service motorcycle ride, to engage God in creation, to hear a sermon from God's Word and to enjoy life.

We even gave away a free Harley Davidson that was won by Todd Lehman above.

Our Property was packed with people longing to encounter Jesus. Thank you Rusty Edwards for taking these pictures.

We had Dad games that let men compete and have fun

We witnessed tons of decisions and watched men support each other.

We competed in tug of war while kids cheered their dads on

We had dads love on their kids

We saw the Spirit move in men's hearts

We saw men make life-changing decisions

We saw hundreds of Men take the challenge to carry the torch and lead their families.

We had a KidFest for our children 4th grade and under.

We saw a dad, David Kustron, win the prestigious Deer Mount for a year while his kids loved on him.

We watched grown men let the little boy come out of them.

We worshipped God in the outdoors led by gifted musicians

We competed some more

We worshiped our Savior in a loud, proud, and unashamed way! Yes, my heart overflows with gratefulness as Jesus visited us in a very special way and 100's of homes will now be changed.

Thank you Jesus and thank you Grace Community!

My Pastor Review of "It Takes a Church"

2014-06-13T10:31:00.002-04:00

Yes I am Pastor Jim Brown of Grace Community Church in Goshen Indiana. Yes our church was featured last night on Game Show Network's new reality show called "It Takes a Church." I have watched most of the feeds on social media and read review after review, which everyone is freely entitled to. So, I thought I would give my insider perspective of the whole process.

I believe with all of my heart that the local church can be the hope of the world. I love the local church and have been the Senior Pastor at www.gracecommunity-church.com for 19 years. I love Jesus Christ and have witnessed 1000's of people trust in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior through our ministries here. I consider it a special privilege to be the pastor of these precious people who call Grace their home. Our church lives on mission and offers the hope of Jesus to thousands locally and around the world. With that being said I cannot think of a better place for a single to find someone to date, than the local church. We preach the truth when it comes to chasing after someone. Our church is loaded with Jesus followers. In my mind, this is a safe place to meet someone. Plus the Bible has plenty to say about dating and marriage.

I love that this show gives people everywhere; whether they are far from God, want nothing to do with God, or love God an inside look at the local church and real Jesus-followers. This show allowed us to have a platform to elevate Jesus and show the world that Christians are real people who date; yes we do date you know. And to reveal that we are not weird, boring, or from another planet. I love the bride of Jesus Christ. Courtship and dating are the ways we get to know one another. Why not allow the church to be the greenhouse for that?

I believe risks are part of the faith journey. I believe there are times when you ask the Holy Spirit to guide you and he whispers go for it. This was one of those times. Besides, it is a faith journey and we answer to God and not man. So, we prayed and prayed and felt like Jesus said go.

I love how the show revealed to our world that chivalry is not dead and there are real gentlemen out there that know how to care, protect, and respect women. I love that it showcased a godly, single lady who loves Jesus and longs to meet a godly man. I love that Jesus got exalted as we worshipped with Natalie Grant. I love that it gave a snippet of a sermon I preached that morning. I love that it gave me a chance to dance with my precious wife, Anne and allowed us to care for our church in a tender way together. I love that it let some of my own people a chance to offer godly counsel to their man. Aren't we supposed to listen to godly counsel? I love that it showed the inner workings of a local church.

I love that it gave us a chance to meet and rub shoulders with some of Hollywood's best producers and to live Jesus in front of them. I love that it gave millions and millions a peek at what it looks like to have fun as a Christian.

We took a big chance, but our God allowed the producers to edit a show that I would let the children of Grace Community watch

Plus I love how it cemented us together as a church as we prayed, served, worked, laughed, and enjoyed each other for filming process.

In closing, I loved working with Natalie Grant, she is the real deal. She loves Jesus, her husband, her children and others. Besides, how many chances does a person get to share a stage with woman who has the hand of God on her life? I rested well last night. I smile today because 1000's of tweets are bouncing out in cyberspace talking about Jesus, the local church, worship, and godly dating.

And when I last checked two tweets brought me to tears, "I think I need to go back and visit the local church" and two athiest said "I might have moved one step closer to God." It's in your hands now Christians you can choose to find all the good in it and move people closer to Jesus! That's what I choose to do :)