Life Palette

Jeff's Blog: We Have A Winner!

2012-02-05T18:36:00.000-08:00

It's the end of Superbowl weekend and we have a winner! Along with the N.Y. Giants winning the Superbowl (congrats!) our super youth group at Alive was the winning team at Winter Youth Camp at Prescott Pines in Prescott. Throughout the weekend camp the different youth groups compete in games and team spirit and Alive Youth won overall - way to go gang!!! (25 of our youth attended Winter Camp along with 5 Youth Leaders) A special congrats to Chad Lacy who set an all time record for the Prescott Pines campground in Snooter Shooter (you stick a Skittle in your nose and blow it out for distance) with over 40 feet! We are so proud of you Chad. It is so great to know that our youth worship leader has other talents besides being a great musician! (I'm trying to figure out how to incorporate having Chad demonstrate for a weekend talk) Parents, if you didn't know the Alive Youth group meets on Wednesday evenings at 7pm and Sunday mornings during the 11am service.

This weekend we wrapped up the weekend talk series "Unlock", with "Unlock Freedom". (Investing in others for the sake of something bigger - freedom - eternity) If you didn't have a chance to catch the weekend talk you can watch the archived version at Alivechurch.com

I've already begun preparing for next weekend and the beginning of our new weekend talk series, "Pure Sex". We are going to spend a few weeks looking at what the Bible has to say about sex. A lot of people tend to think that the Bible is silent about sex or simply just says "no" to sex. Nothing could be further from the truth. This will be a very powerful and important series. Make plans on attending this coming weekend an inviting your friends.

Have a great week - I think I will go practice my skills in Snooter Shooter and put out a challenge to Chad and the rest of our awesome youth group at Alive - the pastors vs youth!

P.S. My favorite commercial during the Superbowl was the Hyundai one with the Rocky music. What was yours?

Jeff' Blog; Weekend Update

2012-01-29T20:10:00.000-08:00

Awesome weekend at Alive! Kathy and I attended Alive Church Online while we were away for the weekend celebrating our 28th anniversary. If you didn't get a chance to here our Executive Pastor, Jason Marsden, speak, you will want to catch it online in our service archives - great job Jason - Kathy and I totally enjoyed you from Sedona.

I love the illustration Jason used pouring the water from one container to another as he talked about the Timeless Truth of God's Word and how we are committed to continually using Relevant Environments as we communicate it.

What a great blessing it was for myself and Kathy to be able to spend time alone as a couple celebrating our 28th. We had the incredible privileged of spending a night at the Ritz in Dove Mountain - thanks to Chris from Life Group. Wow - that place is out of this world - thanks for the blessing Chris!!! Then we drove to Sedona, one of our favorite AZ destinations and spent the night there. Did some touring and hiking Sat. and Sunday and back home now ready to start the week.

I'm looking forward to wrapping up the weekend talk series, Unlock, this coming weekend. This series has definitely challenged me in Unlocking My Personal Potential! It has helped me to step up in a few places and dream and pray bigger in others.

Superbowl Sunday is next weekend - it is a great time to try Saturday night service at 5pm so you can go to your Superbowl party early.

Thanks again Jason - home run! Not only am I thrilled to be a part of a church committed to Relevant Environments - but I want to be personally as well in all areas of my life!

Jeff’s Blog: 28 Years Of Marriage

2012-01-25T05:27:00.000-08:00

This Saturday, Jan. 28^th, Kathy and I will celebrate our 28^th wedding anniversary. Just some thoughts about marriage after 28 years:

I’ve recently completed my Meyers Briggs personality profile with our staff and I am an INTP – it’s amazing anyone would want to live with me let alone for 28 years!
I married way above my head. Kathy is first class in more ways than I can share in this brief blog. – Not sure she knew what she was getting into?
One reason we made it to 28 years is our decision at the beginning was that this was a deal with no exit ramps. That decision early on made us face our problems knowing that either we deal with things and help them get better or we would be miserable.
Not much miserable about it all. Picking a mate with a lot of character and someone who is passionate about God as a follower of Jesus makes for more good times than bad.
Early on we decided that if something was of interest to the other than the other would explore it to see what the interest was. That allowed us to develop a lot of mutual interest. (now a days, Kathy says that I’m her hobby! Really my art is her hobby – but I’ll take the idea that I’m her hobby – after all I’m an INTP)
When we said “I do” we both were very clear that neither of us would ever be first place in the others life. We knew then and it has proved true, the more we each keep Christ in first place in our lives the better we can love and serve one another.
Her family – Kathy has such great roots! I hear so many young couples say that they are not marrying their fiancés family – ha!!! Ask anyone who’s been married for more than a few years – you are marrying the family! That has been a bonus and a blessing for me.
A good healthy understanding and definition of love – it’s a choice, not a feeling. It’s pretty cool when the two line up, but it that’s the barometer every storm will bring disaster – and there will be storms. I hear couples talk about how they “fell in love”. That sounds painful. Like you’re walking down the sidewalk and didn’t see a big hole and fell into it – like you had no choice! The choice of love is lasting – the feelings of love will always follow the choice but are fleeting when our choice follows our feelings.
Like anything in life that is worth our time, discipline is the key to having and staying in love. We talk about most of the disciplines we are committing to in our marriage vows - stay the course. If you do marriage can be like a fine wine – it gets better with age. (I don’t even like wine! But I’ve heard it said that it’s better with age.)
Freedom and celebration of who we are individually. She loves coffee, I hate it. I like NASCAR, she takes a nap. She likes working in the yard; I am only called upon if she needs me to carry something heavy for her. Having a King size bed helps, you can always get close for intimacy but when it comes time to sleep – give me my space. I’m an artist – she has a thing for artist!!! She’s a hot singer – I have a thing for hot singers!!!

Jeff's Blog: My Overwhelming Mercy For The Italian Cruise Ship Captain

2012-01-23T13:39:00.000-08:00

A recent international story regarding a sinking Italian Cruise Ship got me to thinking a little about leadership. Here are seven things all leaders should know that this story solidifies:

1. Stay the course: When you get off course of the final destination (vision) you are in danger of hitting the rocks and sinking the ship!

2. Know what you are getting yourself into upfront: As a leader you need to know you have made a commitment to go “down with the ship” so to speak, especially should you be the one to cause it to sink.

3. Enjoy the blessings: The charge of going down with the ship holds in it the promise of enjoying the blessings while the ship is on course and there is smooth sailing.

4. Know when to enjoy the blessings: You don’t deserve dinner in your cabin with your lady friend after you have collided with the rocks and the passengers are scrambling for their lives.

5. Listen to wise counsel: We all make stupid mistakes from time to time and that is why we all need wise counsel. When your wise counselors are saying; “Hey you idiot get back on the ship”, listen to them. You could still be a celebrated, forgiven captain even after sinking a ship - provided you weren't being totally stupid to begin with. I mean hey - look at American politicians!

6. Workout: Seriously, if you are in such bad shape that you can’t get out of a lifeboat after falling in you need to consider using your own gym that you have on your ship!

7. Find A New Career: Once you break trust by abandoning your post, it’s hard to regain it. Let’s be honest, even if the cruise line is offering deep discounts, do you really want to sail on a ship in the near future knowing this guy is the captain?

Jeff's Blog: Green Or Not?

2012-01-18T05:49:00.000-08:00

Because of my position I am often asked about things that you will probably never hear me talk about in my weekend talks. Not because I don’t care or have an opinion (If you know me you know I have an opinion on most things!) but because that the mission and vision of what I do in my position is very clear and I stick with it in every talk. So, I thought my blog might be a place to give voice to some issues that I am often asked about. Besides I would love to hear your opinion.

One that I often am asked is about being Green? Am I Green and should the Church be more Green? Here’s my simple answer: As a follower of Jesus, God the Father is my loving heavenly Father and we are called to be faithful stewards of God’s creation, responsible for its care and use. That being said let me give a few of my thoughts and observations:

1. Christian Environmentalism is more about the fact that we worship and acknowledge our creator. Be it that we are being faithful stewards with the money He gives us or the world we live in, we do so as an act of worship to our creator who gives us all things. Unfortunately, many Christians are motivated by the trendiness of being “green” or quilted into it by the world, rather than living the value of worship and the results of that being stewardship of all God has given us. Stewardship is not just a trendy thing.

2. The other concern is that stewardship is replaced with a subservient mentality. In other words, we cannot allow concern for the environment to lead to worship of the environment. We worship the creator, not creation. It could be easy to buy into the mentality that we were created for the earth rather than the truth of the Bible; God created the earth for us. Much like we see in scripture that the Sabbath was made for man not man for the Sabbath. God has blessed us with much that is for our benefit, not so that we would worship any of His gifts. We are to worship Him alone.

How quickly the trends of society change, already this issue is quickly taking a back seat. Just listen to the political debates and you will see where the trends of society are going. For the Christian, ours is not to be trending and make the Bible fit into the latest and greatest concerns rather to live by the values God has given us through the Bible – His Word. As we do so we will be able to avoid the trendy and hip things of culture and faithfully steward the blessings of the Father.

Jeff's Blog: Weekend Wrap-Up

2012-01-15T15:49:00.000-08:00

I have to start out this weekend wrap-up blog with sadness: my Broncos got spanked! Horribly - embarrassingly - pathetically spanked!!! Disappointing, yet they ended the season a lot better than I thought they were going to at the beginning of the season.

On the upside: at Alive Church we baptized 4 people over the weekend! Celebrating a new spiritual journey through baptism never gets old. I will have to try to get the video from 3rd service; a young couple got baptized. The dad went first and while the mom was getting in the water their little boy, I think about 7 years old, went running down the aisle and onto the stage to hug his dad. It was so cool! So awesome!!! I love seeing everyone sign the certificates. (the cake after each service is pretty good too!)

I continued in the weekend talk series: Unlock. We looked at how to unlock Fulfillment in life through serving one another in love. Take a few moments and read through Gal 5:1-14 or catch the video archive at alivechurch.com. From the talk, remember we are Called to Freedom. God wants and intends for us to live in complete freedom. Next weekend the talk will be about one of my favorite topics: Unlock Truth. The more we live in Truth in every area of our lives the more we will live a rich and satisfying life. (John 10:10)

A special thanks to all the folks who talked via Skype this weekend - especially our Church Online Host, Don Young from Ohio who Skyped in all three services.

This was the last weekend for our Christmas offering, so we will be announcing the total next weekend and begin giving it out to the community and missions ministries that we are committed to supporting.

I hope and pray that you all have a great week this week. If you are like me I have a lot on the plate this week, starting with a staff training tomorrow morning. We are working through the Meyers Briggs stuff so that we can better communicate with one another. I am loving this stuff and have brought it home to work through with Kathy as well. It has really helped in our staff and personal communications. I have a couple of paintings to complete this week and putting in some time to prepare a little more for out next talk series that begins Feb. 11th/12th: Pure Sex.

Have a great week!

Top Ten Time Management Tips To Begin 2012

2012-01-12T06:49:00.000-08:00

2012 is well underway and most of us have some specific goals we want to attain this year. The number one reason I hear people say they can’t or didn’t reach their goals is they just didn’t have the time. Yet, we all have the same amount of hours in the day. In fact we have all been given enough time to do ALL that God wants and created us to do. So, here is my list of Top Ten Time Management Tips for 2012:

#10 – Set a specific time (and a limit) to check emails and social networks. If not you will spend time needed to be productive doing email and browsing your social networks.

#9 – When you do check your emails, do something with them. I am amazed at how many people keep emails in their in-box and then end up reading through them multiply times. Read them and respond, file or throw away. If you say you don’t have time at that moment to deal with them then you probably need to go back and read #10 again!

#8 - Realize you are not as good at multi – tasking as you think. Everyone thinks they can multi-task! Guess what, it shows up in your productivity and the quality of your work. You will get a lot more done and reach more of your goals when you set aside focused time to do your work.

#7 – If you are a person who does “To Do” list, make sure it is a priority list. Many times people take what was not accomplished today and put it at the very top of tomorrow’s list. A good “To Do” list should be made by priorities not by what didn’t get done today.

#6 – Delegate, delegate, delegate. If a task can be done by someone else and they can do it 80% as well as you can – delegate it!

#5 – Decide when not to be a perfectionist. Some things don’t require all the effort we put into them. Give your best time and greatest effort toward your top priorities.

#4 – Write things down. A big mistake when it comes to time management is to think that you can remember things without either writing them down or putting them in your Smartphone with an alert.

#3 – Invest time in planning. You’ve heard it before but it is so true: failing to plan is planning to fail. If you do not spend time planning toward your goals and priorities, something will come along and steal all your time!

#2 – Learn to say “NO”. This one simple two letter word will add more value toward time management than any thing else. Say it out loud right now. Practice: No, No, No!!!

#1 – Live by your priorities. This is the number one thing bar none when it come to time management. In fact your life will radically change as you begin to live by priorities. You will have more time, be more productive and fulfilled than ever. If you have never prayerfully considered your top priorities for your life – for 2012 – for the coming week – this is where you begin.

Benjamin Franklin said, “Do you love life? Then do not squander time, for that's the stuff that life is made of.” Don’t squander 2012. Don’t make excuses, you have been given this incredible gift of time by God to do and be all that He created you to do and be. Be a good and faithful steward. When you hear yourself saying you don’t have time to do the things you really want or you wish you had more hours in the day – you are probably doing some things that God does not want you to do because He has given you all the time you need to do all that He created you to do.

Happy New Year!!!

Jeff' Blog: The Christmas Story Via Facebook

2011-12-21T07:16:00.000-08:00

Social media is a big part of our daily lives. There are a lot of good things about it, connecting with family, friends and loved ones. I can't help but wonder how Jesus and the disciples would have used this tool in ministry and in starting the New Testament Church!? The good news is no one would have been rejected as Jesus "Friend" (Maybe a religious leader or two!)

Here is a great video that considers the Christmas story through the tool of social media:

I want to personally invite you to join me Christmas Eve for one of our 3 Christmas Eve services. I will be talking about The Tradition Of Celebration, we will be doing Candle lighting, a few interactive things for the kids and some favorite carols. 3:30, 5:00 or 6:30. Be sure and invite friends and loved one to join you for this special evening.

Jeff's Blog: Character; It's Who We Are

2011-12-13T17:08:00.000-08:00

The word character is found only a few times in the Bible, a key verse speaking of it is Romans Rom 5:3-5 "We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. 4 And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation." These few verses point out the very unique relationship between tribulations, perseverance and character.

The assumption of this passage is that the person being persecuted would endure, faithfully, and not deny their faith in Jesus. Enduring/persevering is something we do. Character is not something we do, character is who we are. The reality is that those who persevere trails are those with character. In other words our response to what is happening around us is the only evidence of our character.

Character is doing what is right because it's right. Not right because I feel it's right for me, but because the standard that God has set is what is right. Character requires a willingness to and ability to obey.

I have never met anyone who is against character. No one has ever said to me, "what we really need in our society is a little less character." We are all for character, it just that often we are not for going through all that it takes to prove our character, not willing to make it a priority. This is a matter of submitting to God and His principles and committing to obeying.

As I drive through my community, it is amazing to me how many places there are that we can go to improve our looks, out-ward appearances and character. There are so few places geared toward developing character. The church is one of the few places that would still be listed as one of those places.

Let this coming year, 2012, be a year for being committed to character development. Without a plan for character development we will eventually fall in line with the masses. Start by prayerfully listing out several things that you would like to be known for. Imagine that your spouse, friends or children are speaking at your memorial; what would you want them to say about you? Once you have your list, look for practical ways to develop those traits in your life this coming year.

Character is what a man is in the dark. -D. L. Moody

The God-given capacity to lead has two parts: giftedness and character. Integrity is the heart of character. -Dr. J. Robert Clinton

Jeff's Blog: Ton-teen

2011-12-08T06:06:00.000-08:00

I've been a MASH fan most of my life. In fact when I was younger and MASH was still a current series (before the days of DVD or VHS recorders for that matter) I would be late for dates, work, just about anything to watch the weekly series. One of my favorite shows was entitled Ton-teen, where character Col. Potter was the last of his buddies living that had made a ton-teen during the war. In the show he toast the final passing of old friends, he was the last one living, thus he received a fine bottle of bourbon that he and his buddies had left unopened and made a ton-teen with. Then he toasted his co-workers, new friends, at the MASH 4077. Well, yesterday Henry Morgan, the actor who played Col Henry Potter, died. I loved his character on MASH, so here's to you Henry Morgan! Rest In Peace! Can't help myself, if I'm channel surfing at night and MASH is on, even though I mostly have them all memorized, I have to watch. Some things are good because they are just good.

Jeff's Blog: What I Like About Alive

2011-12-05T06:54:00.000-08:00

During the wrap up this weekend of the talk series called "Why", I asked you to txt me answers to the question: What I like about Alive. Why did I ask the question? Not only did we talk about why we are here as individuals but why we are here as a church. I shared that in 2012 we are going to focus on the vision of creating a preferred environment for people who don't go to church but desire to connect with God - as we live our mission of leading people who are far from God to be followers of Jesus.So, I got some of your feed back about our environment. Here are some of YOUR answers that I didn't have time to read during the talk:

I was accepted here with no hesitation
The fellowship
We love the teaching and how it gives us a focus for each week
Being allowed to text during the service.
Its the only church I've walked into and felt completely welcomed.
Succinct, applicable bible studies that don't sound preachy and don't include emotional sappy stories.
I like that I don't feel I'm being judged, or that my mistakes from the past aren't the topic of here and now rather its an attitude of accepting the Person I am today, instead of constantly dwelling on the sins of my past.
Biblical & solid Christ-centered teaching & programs that cares 4 people spiritually & personally.
1. jesus hangs out here 2. the people 3. the atmosphere
Alive is comfortable, inviting, warm, and accepting of everyone for who they are and where they are in their walk. Alive teaches straight from the Bible!
No fluff. Teaches how it is
Certainty,Accountability,Friendship, My needs are met here beyond my wildest dreams.
I love everything. And yes I am in church instead of watching the game
The music. The people. The emphasis on making disciples who make disciple
A non-judgmental environment! You are patient with where people are which helps them to get to where they need to be. Thank you
The music, and all of the free pie you are going to be serving on Sundays in 2012
Pastor Jeff
It is real
I love the small, intimate, family-like atmosphere
I like that the pastor reminds me of Jay Leno... Seriously, i like it that Pastor Jeff gets the message across without being too preachy.
I like Alive because: They have a Lead Pastor that don't know you have to cook Pumpkin Pies.church online
The music, and the fact the service feels like you are at a party with close family
I like that I feel welcome and its not about the clothes we wear!
It has really helped me understand the difference between a relationship with God and biblical knowledge.
what i like is the free donuts!!
That we get to learn about God.. (8 yrs old)
My children can understand and it makes sense, casual, down to earth, friendly, fun.
I am here because it feels like home.. The message I get every week just speaks to me. Its hard to describe.
The church has helped me grow so much closer to God. And I feel so comfortable here.
The candor

We mentioned that we will be having a Christmas offering starting in a couple of weeks, here are some of the details: Our goal this Christmas is $20,000

Here where we are going to give it:

Care for the Community - 45% Benevolence and community care utilizing Interfaith Community Services to maximize our impact.
Save Lives - 25% International Missions (Joe and Averyl Morris) Goal - Feed 4 Widows and their children for a year and an AIDS Training course. All in Africa.
Reach Out - 15% Big Days / Digital Missions. In other words Evangelism
15% Invest in our students and children. Camp scholarships (youth and kids), youth curriculum, etc. Kid's environment and VBS.

We will be giving out more details this coming weekend as we begin a new weekend talk series called Christmas Traditions.

Jeff's Blog: My Top 10 List, Rain Makes #1

2011-11-27T18:30:00.000-08:00

Here we are at the end of a holiday weekend; Thanksgiving. Can't help but think about the things I am thankful for, here's my top 10:

10. I'm so thankful that God had someone invent ice-cream. Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough has to be a little bit of foresight into heaven! (seriously if you've never had it - run - don't walk - RUN - to the nearest store and get some Ben and Jerry's Cookie Dough!!!!!!)

9. For Thanksgiving itself - we all need an extra day away from the office now and then.

8. For the incredible team at Alive that I am privileged to work with - even with an extra day away from the office you guys rock - you still made a great weekend happen!!! (At least I didn't put ice-cream ahead of you.)

7. Beauty. I mean the incredible beauty of God's creation. We live in an awesome place! The mountains, sunsets, desert - all of nature is proclaiming the glory of the Lord. (Don't believe me? Read Romans 2)

6. For my evening fires in my fire-pit in the back yard. Especially over the Thanksgiving weekend. I loved having all my kids (and all their awesome friends) sitting around the fire night after night telling stories, making crazy bets about dumb things we were all sure we had the right answer to, and making up wild games. (To all my neighbors, sorry we kept you up late every night this week - next time - grab a chair an pull up to the fire)

5. I'm thankful the weekend is over - I need to quit eating all the sweets we have around the house. Somehow Monday's are always the right days to get back on track with my eating habits. (I guess I should go finish the pie that's left over so I won't be tempted next week)

4. Church Online - seems like we get use to the idea - but then someone goes and makes a faith decisions at church online like they did this weekend and I'm thankful all over again for how God is allowing Alive Church to leverage technology!!! Yeah God!

3. God's Provision - a couple of weeks I felt like I was suppose to sell my Jeep (my kids are still mourning - me to if I'm being honest) next day a guy came up to me and said "I heard you were going to sell your Jeep and are looking for a beater with good gas mileage". I said "yeah, feel like that's what I'm suppose to do!" Then he gave me a 1999 Honda Civic - Cool! I've never driven a car that small in my life. (I had no idea how tall the drive through windows are at McDonald's until I pulled up in my new - to me - Honda hot rod) Seriously - God's Provision!!! (Hey anyone interested in buying a Jeep? )

2. My wife and family - I know that you think I'm saying that because I'm suppose to say that - but seriously, I'm not just saying it. And, it's not because my wife or kids read my blog and I'm trying to score points. (I don't think Kathy even reads my blog - but it you are reading it this time babe - I hope this scores me some points!) I'm genuinely grateful for my family. I have to put our Alive family in there as well! I love you guys and are so thankful to be your pastor!

1. Christ and the Cross. The older I get the more I see how hopeless my life was and that the path of destruction that I was on was devastating. When I was younger I think I always somehow thought I wasn't really that bad off - I was wrong. I am so grateful for the Grace that my Heavenly Father continues to pour out on my life everyday. No puns in this one: my passionate desire to know Jesus and Him crucified is more intense now than ever and I pray that it will continue to grow. I remember coming into 2011 thinking I couldn't wait to get out of 2010 and get a fresh start - boy did I? I've told several pastor friends - 2012 has been the hardest year in ministry in my life - so far! Yet, I wouldn't trade one moment. God has stripped me of so many things that I was letting get in the way of my passion for Him. I'm sure there are many things that He still needs to strip away from my life for me to live as Paul said: "I am determined to know nothing among you but Christ and Him Crucified." I know the year is not over, and there may be many more days ahead that bring rain, and that's OK as long as it get's me a little closer to Christ and the Cross. I'm not sure if the song in the video (Jesus Bring The Rain, Mercy Me) is my favorite (and has been from several months) right now because of what the last year has brought or because it truly is my prayer - but I pray it:

Bring me joy, bring me peace
Bring the chance to be free
Bring me anything that brings You glory
And I know there'll be days
When this life brings me pain
But if that's what it takes to praise You
Jesus, bring the rain

Jeff's Blog: Weekend Update

2011-11-20T21:06:00.000-08:00

I was so challenged and moved coming into this past weekends talk as I wrestled with the question: if God would say yes to one prayer what would it be? After wrestling with it for several days I came back to Jesus prayer in the garden before His crucifixion; "never the less, not my will but your will be done." If it is good enough for Jesus to pray as His prayer to the Father, then it's good enough for me!

This past weekend at Alive Church we continued in our weekend talk series called "Why". We looked at the question; "Why didn't God answer my prayer?" My prayer from the weekend is that not only did we grow in our faith as we looked at this question but that we would grow in our desire to know Jesus more intimately through prayer. Tonight I spent an hour or so outside sitting around the fire pit praying that prayer for everyone who heard the talk this weekend. As well, praying for everyone as the Lord spoke to us about the things that may be hindering our prayers; broken relationships, not believing God will really answer our prayers. I especially am continuing to pray that we trust that sometimes God during the times He says no or wait because He may have something better!

During our services this weekend there were 2 people who made faith commitments to follow Jesus - I am so grateful to be a part of a church that continues to invest and invite those who don't know Jesus!!!

It was our first weekend to be reunited at one location here in the Tucson area. I was so excited to reconnect with many who have been attending the TP campus. It is a time to refocus and prepare as God leads us forward, into our future; united.

Jeff's Blog: When Computer Backup Doesn't Work

2011-11-16T15:45:00.000-08:00

So...this week was the week that it looks like I've been given a complete clean slate from my past. My computer died on Friday of last week, how and why is a story that will make a message someday soon, and I got a new one on Sunday evening. I started the task of loading all of my programs etc...I think I would rather get a root canal. (yes, I've had several - and I would rather) Thinking everything would be fine as far as my data (20 years worth of study, sermons and writing) because I use a major online company, I was at peace until Tuesday. I went to get my backup and it was gone! I mean completely gone. (I won't say the name of the company just yet, because my case has been escalated to their engineers - I will wait to see the results)

I couldn't help but think about how this correlates with God's Grace and Forgiveness through Jesus and all that He did for me on the cross. How cool is that, all the experts of my past looking for my sins and they can't be found - gone - clean slate - it's as though they never existed!!!

As far as my data is concerned I'm hoping the engineers at this major company who guarantees my backup can somehow find it all. One friend suggested that maybe God didn't want me to use any of the research and writings from the last 20 years as I go forward - could be! If my wife is right and my memory is as bad as she says, it would be like a whole new life!!! I wonder what 10,000 hours of research and writing is worth? I guess it depends on whose it was!!! All I know is that I like having a clean slate from the sins of my past and I love God's guarantee that they are gone forever!!!

Jeff's Blog: 28 or 30 Baptisms

2011-11-13T14:19:00.000-08:00

I'm still trying to confirm the stats but it was somewhere between 28-30 people baptized this weekend at Alive Church. What's impressive is how lives have been changed as decisions have been made to follow Jesus and to take this Next Step of baptism. I have to share a couple of stories, at least as an overview, that were so moving to me this weekend. The first is of a family reunited after many years and they have made faith decsions to follow Jesus over the last couple of months. This weekend Dad, the son and his family were all baptized. Hearing the story from the daughter who has been praying for them all for so many years is overwhelming. God answers prayers. There were several other entire families or parent/kid combinations that have made recent decisions to follow Jesus that were baptized this weekend - this is why we do this - seeing people. entire families, come Alive from hopelessness to hope in Jesus!

Baptism kits - for the first time we were prepared with what we are calling batism kits for those who felt led to get baptized but did not come prepared. The kit included shorts, an Alive Church tee shirt and an Alive Church towel. I was thrilled as a few people obeyed the Lord and took the next steps in their faith by getting the kit and getting baptized even though they did not come prepared with dry clothes. As a church this is just one more way we can continue to remove barriers that keep people from following Jesus.

I have had alot of cake this weeken!d. Baptisum is a time of celebration so we party, not only with worship and applause but with cake. One of the things I love is seeing everyone sign the certificates. All of the pastors and friends sign certificates for those who were baptized. If you have never had a chance to do that - next time don't miss it - many write notes of encouragement on the certificates as a memory of the occasion.

Reuniting and Refocusing - while it was sad that it was our last weekend to broadcast to the Twin Peaks campus, it is also a time of renewal, reuniting and refocus. I am looking forward to having everyone together next weekend on one campus. Service times will be the same. 5pm Saturday and Sunday 9:30 and 11.

All New Weekend Talk Series: "Why". This weekend I started the new weekend talk series called "Why" as we asked the question "Why Don't I Always Feel God?" Many of you were very encouraged as we started this series. It was a time to build our faith - if you missed it I encourage you to go to Alive Church.com and watch the weekend talk. Next weekend we are going to talk about the question: "Why Didn't God Answer My Prayer?" Remember, if the weekend talk encourges you, it will encourage your friends, neighbors, co-workers and loved ones. Take a min and invite someone to join you at a servie next weekend - they will be gald you did!!!

Jeff's Blog: Weekend Update, Important Announcement

2011-11-07T15:32:00.000-08:00

Today has been crazy busy from the weekend and all that is going on at Alive Church, so I am a little late getting out this weekend update.

First let me start by telling you that after the weekend teaching on Baptism we have 25 people who have made commitments to be baptized next weekend, with 1 new faith commitment! Next weekend is going to be a great time - party! You won't want to miss it. Also, next weekend will be the beginning of a new weekend series called "Why" with the first weeks topic being: "Why Don't I Always Feel God?" Thanks to Phil Starke for painting during the message, Jesus right after His baptism, pictured here in my blog. We are going to use that picture as a give away to those we baptize.

This past weekend I made a very important announcement; our Twin Peaks campus will be re-uniting with the Oro Valley campus. This will be a time for us to re-focus as we re-join forces. Vision church and Pastor Toby will be taking over the lease at the Twin Peaks location as well as the Rock-N-Java coffee house there.

Though it has been a hard decision, we see that the timing is God's timing. Over the course of the last 12 months with two churches launching out of Alive, our resources, leaders, volunteers and finances have been stretched short. While we have seen growth and lives change at Twin Peaks, it has not been fast enough to get us where we needed to be to continue building that campus. After working with our land-lord he encouraged us to sub-lease and ultimately forced a move as of last Monday. We put the word out that we were interested in sub-leasing the space and Pastor Toby stepped forward and said that he and Vision Church would be very interested and were at a place where they could afford to do it at this time. They are going to lease the space, continue to operate Rock-N-Java as a community outreach and have gone ahead and assumed all debt as a way to purchase equipment. Our land lord was very willing to work with them and has decided to go ahead, and instead of us sub-leasing, he is going to assign the lease to Vision Church.

As we continue to go forward by reuniting our forces and resources all on the Oro Valley campus, I believe that God is going to continue to bless in a great way and give us the wisdom to live out His mission and vision for Alive Church and our future.

This coming weekend, Nov. 12th and 13th, we will have baptisms on both campuses and the following weekend, Nov. 19th and 20th, we will all be together for weekend services at the Oro Valley campus. I want to encourage all of you in this that God is working in and through this in ways that we can see as well as in many ways we cannot see.

One question I have had is what about staffing? As a church we have always staffed very lean, therefore a move like this does not force us to have to let go of staff. We have a great staff and have a place for all of them as we go forward - the staff has been stretched pretty thin as well over the last 6 months. As we all re-unite into one physical campus for now, we will actually still be a little understaffed...we are able to operate this way because of all of you - you are an incredible volunteer staff committed to seeing the mission and vision of Alive church go forward.

I want you to know that if you have any questions about this move I am available to meet or to answer questions through email and so is our Campus Pastor from Twin Peaks, Jason Marsden. Jason will continue to serve as a pastor here at Alive and I personally value him in a great way along with the rest of our pastoral staff.

Jeff's Blog: A Picture Of Apprencticeship

2011-10-30T16:42:00.000-07:00

This weekend was a picture of living out one of our Core Values: Ministry Apprenticeship. I loved being able to partner with our Campus Pastor, all three. Jason at Twin Peaks, Phil at Church Online and Mike at Oro Valley, for the weekend teaching. We are blessed to have such a great group of leaders at Alive Church and all have great skills in teaching and communicating God's Word.

Another great picture of Ministry Apprenticeship was having the Youth worship band from Oro Valley lead worship for the weekend at the Oro Valley campus. Great job gang! Chad Lacy is not only a great musician but really lead me personally in a Spirit of worship and God's presence.

There were 2 people from the weekend services that made faith commitments to follow Jesus! Yippee!!! Not only is that just the best of news but to see all of you who made the decision and commitments to take some time and fast this coming week to hunger for God spiritually. I will be praying for you and hope you will do the same for me as we fast together for breakthrough, clarity and courage.

Looking forward to being a part of the Boo Bash tomorrow evening (Monday) at the Twin Peaks campus - this will be a great event to reach out and get connected with our community there!

Jeff's Blog: A Weekend Experience

2011-10-27T08:07:00.000-07:00

I love it when I get a chance to combine a couple of my favorite things which is the case with the current weekend series Remember at Alive Church. My dear friend and world known artist Phil Starke painted an oil painting of Jesus face while on the cross while I talked about Communion and it's meaning. Phil is best known as a western artist and western landscapes, but is very skilled with portraits. Having the expression of an artist while teaching and being able to interact with him makes for a great overall experience. In fact one person came up to me after one of the weekend services and said: "that was not just a talk, that was an incredible experience."

Part of the passion we have is to create a weekend experience every week and at every venue that is a relevant environment for people who are far from God and followers of Jesus. Within the context of Relevant Environments is an incredible joy to be creative and yet still share the Bible, God's Word. While the message of God's Word never changes and there is never a need for us to make it Relevant, (it already is) we are committed to communicating it relevantly.

Let me illustrate this. If you are near my age you can remember things like Albums when you first started collecting and playing or dancing to music. Then came the 8 tracks - what a revolution! I can remember that it wasn't long before all the 8 tracks were traded for Cassettes. About the time I got to the place I had all the Cassettes I wanted along came CD's. I had a big financial investment in Cassettes but I could see how much better CD's were and started making the change...and like most of you CD's went by the wayside to MP3s...digital everything...and now all my music is on my iPod, with better quality and more songs and they all fit in my pocket and go with me everywhere I go.

That's Relevant Environment. You see the music is still the end result, that's not the big change. In fact most of the music I had on big old vinyl albums is some of the same music I have on my iPod. For some reason a lot of times in the church we are still communicating the message of the Bible, God's Word, which never changes, in ways (environments) that are antique. Relevant Environments is a matter of method not message. I am so glad that our loving heavenly Father never changes, His love is steadfast, and that His Word never changes, (that is the truth and message of the Bible) and yet He gives us the creative skills and abilities to communicate with creative methods, Relevant Environments!

My friend Phil will be joining me again during this weekend series Remember, I am looking forward to it as we create another Experience!

Jeff's Blog: Weekend Update

2011-10-23T20:44:00.000-07:00

I am so grateful for all that God did over the weekend at Alive Church. It is so good to hear the stories of spiritual growth and to see how God is working in our lives. Let me give you some details from the weekend, it is so encouraging seeing the vision that God has given us lived out:

I love sharing the faith stories that happen through all you do Alive Church! This past weekend 8 people made faith commitments to follow Jesus. That is a direct result of all that you do in serving and partnering together here in ministry. I believe God has just begun – the best is yet to come as we go forward together!

I hope you had a chance to see artist Phil Starke paint the face of Jesus live as I spoke. We began a New Weekend series called “Remember” , we started the series by looking at the importance of Communion and the significance of it in our lives. Phil’s painting of the face of Jesus helped us experience what we were talking about. If you were unable to be with us this weekend you can catch the teaching online at our website.

Courageous Resolution: There were nearly 40 men and their families who attended our Courageous Resolution Ceremonies on both campus and made a resolve to live as Courageous Men/Fathers/Husbands. Be praying for all our men as we live out this resolution. (Men if you missed the ceremonies this weekend and still want to get in on it we have another one you can get in on)

Foundations 101, Spiritual Growth. Mike Gray, Campus Pastor at Oro Valley , did a great job partnering in teaching at the Foundations 101, Spiritual Growth class , there were eight of us total. It is exciting to see people make decisions to the habits the Bible gives us to grow daily as followers of Jesus and to live successfully the life and purpose He has for us. (I feel so blessed to work with all of our Campus Pastors, they are all great teachers/communicators)

Regarding Vision: It is such a blessing to see and hear how God is working through the vision and strategy God has led us in – One Church – One Vision – Multiply Locations: Many of you may not know it but God is up to something at our Twin Peaks campus – you guys rock! Our Campus Pastor, Jason, and team at Twin Peaks are making a big difference in the Continental Ranch community. Church Online continues to expand the influence of Gods Kingdom every week along with Campus Pastor Phil Thompson, I got a chance to join Phil online for a few moments during all of the services this week. (Congrats to Phil and Mary Kay on celebrating 18 years of marriage today) The Anchor, our Thursday evening venue with Venue Pastor Ezra, started joining us for this series - Welcome gang!!! (I love you guys - your life and youthful vigor is great to be around)

On a Personal note: my son had a concert Saturday evening – I headed to it right after the Saturday evening services and caught up with the fam. It was awesome to have the whole family together at the concert and to hear him sing. We had a great dinner together as a family afterward. Kathy and I feel so blessed as we sit around the dinner table and catch up with our kids and their lives.

Next Steps: the challenge this week is to take some time during your daily time with God and take communion alone. For many this will be the first time that you have ever done this as a follower of Jesus – this will be a powerful time for you.

Remember; to help us all remember the significance, importance and power of taking communion as a follower of Jesus, I encouraged you to take your communion cup and put it in a prominent place this week so that we can Remember all that Jesus has done and is doing in our lives. It is already having a profound impact on me with my cups sitting on my desk next to my computer. I’m looking forward to what God is going to continue to do and speak to us about through the remainder of this series; Remember.
I want you to know Alive Church that I am praying for you. I am honored to serve as your pastor. You are an awesome church family! It is so great to see all the lives that are being transformed because of your commitment as followers of Jesus. As we continue to partner together I believe our best days are yet to come. I wish you could have heard the stories that people shared with me this weekend of how God is working in their lives and families. A young couple shared with me their journey with Jesus and how God has used you Alive Church as a part of that journey – they are so grateful for you and the ministry that you give through your service and commitment to living out Jesus mission.

Jeff's Blog: Faith Seperated From Application

2011-10-12T08:00:00.000-07:00

It requires incredible courage to take the risk of applying faith in God in different areas of our lives. For some there are areas that we feel like applying our faith and trusting God is a no brainier and yet for others those same areas seem like stepping out into the Grand Canyon of trust and faith. Yet, faith separated from application is worthless. The people that I talk to on a week to week basis whose lives are so messed up are often Christians. Not that they don't have faith for eternity, for their salvation and the forgiveness of their sins, but they are often not applying faith in God's ways and His Word for their day in and day out living. As a result we often live beneath the privledge God has for us here on this earth, financially, relationally, personally, in every-way.

As we choose to obey and put our faith into action, that is apply it, God promises that we will be blessed. "But don't just listen to God's word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. For if you listen to the word and don't obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don't forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it." (James 1:22-25)

Last weekend there were a lot of folks who made decisions to put their faith into action, to begin applying their faith. Many of us made a commitment to take the next step this week and apply our faith in one area of our lives that we knew we were not applying it - I love it and can't wait to here the reports.

Some of you started putting faith into action and applying it for the first time; 2 people made decision to follow Jesus for the first time this last weekend and 10 others made a decision to recommit their lives to follow Jesus. If you are a follower of Jesus and you just read that without your heart rate going up - stop and reread it! All of heaven rejoices so we need to as well. Don't ever let news like that get old.

This coming weekend as we wrap up the Courageous series, I am going to share my personal prayer and wish for all of you (as well as myself) for us to have a courageous resolve as followers of Jesus. I want to share my heart with you this next weekend in a very personal way. If fact if these were the last words that I could say to someone, if this were the last thing you would ever hear me say, this weekend would be what I would say and pray for you.

Can't wait to see you all this weekend - hope you have a great week. Let this be the week that you don't just listen to God's Word but instead that you do what it says: Faith Separated From Application Is Worthless!

Jeff's Blog: One Of My Favorite Artist, Carl Rungius

2011-10-09T20:59:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite artist and one of the most important artist of the 20th Century is Carl Rungius. I recently attended a show in Jackson, WY at the National Museum Of Wildlife Art where many of his pieces were are on display. (They boast the largest Runguis collection in the U.S.) Wow! I loved it and hoping to someday soon travel to see the largest Rungius collection in the world at the Glenbow Museum in Canada.

Rungius spent much of his life painting wildlife, and so many of his real life studies were derived from North American wildlife that he would seek in the western wilderness. Not only did he paint animals with incredible anatomical accuracy but because of his love for the wilderness he painted their habitat and mannerisms like no other. He spent much of his time in a studio in Banff that he call "The Paintbox".

One of the things that set Rungius apart from other wildlife artist was his first hand knowledge of the encounter between man and animal. Which is true of all of us as artist. The greatest learning of all is to paint from real life, regardless of the subject. As a landscape artist my greatest lessons come from painting En Plein Air. I try to get out at least once a week.

Seeing and experiencing Runguis work up close and personal was powerful. It reminded me that to continue to pursue excellence as an artist is to continue to experience the environments I want to paint first hand. There is no faking it!

I know that many artist will not be able to travel to see Runguis paintings firsthand, the next best thing is a book I've added to my collection: Carl Rungius :Artist and Sportsman

Jeff's Blog: The Secret To Getting Results

2011-10-05T15:26:00.000-07:00

There are many things in life that just don't do any good until we put them into practice. Since I just finished my Phillie Cheese Steak sandwich and a large order of French Fries I was thinking that having the knowledge of good health does me no good unless I decide to put it into practice. I know that eating healthy and exercise are keys to good health - but my sandwich and fries tasted so good!

The same is true with our faith. This coming weekend at Alive Church we are going to talk about making our faith active, engaging, putting it into practice as we talk about Courageous Faith. There is one key word that makes it all happen: APPLICATION. From the book of James we see the incredible way God uses our faith to Preserve the good things in our lives from our families, marriages, reputations, finances, self-esteem and the list goes on because the APPLICATION of our faith has the power to transform your life as every single level.

Actually this is something we work at every week here at Alive Church. Through creating Relevant Environments for people to be followers of Jesus we are always asking the questions of Life Application. There is so much more to our faith than just telling others the right stuff, knowing the right stuff, or singing about the right stuff.

If you are like me, I discovered a long time ago life is to short to go through the motions and not see results. This simple principle from the Bible, APPLICATION, will open the door in your life for results oriented living. Want to geared up and ready for the weekend? Read James 2:14-26.

Hope In Hard Times

2011-10-04T18:06:00.000-07:00

During this economy there are a lot of folks dealing with a lot of stress. For many the stress is not only from the needs but also from fear. Here is a great video from two of my favorite teachers that will help lead us in the right direction during hard times and away from fear. Spiritual Autopsy If you're not familiar with them here are links to all they do: Dave Ramsey and Craig Groeschel.

Jeff's Blog: My Side Of The Dance

2011-10-01T22:41:00.000-07:00

Our family just got home from the theater where we went to see Courageous. I love it, even better the second time around. (Kathy and I were honored and privileged to see a private showing about four months ago – definitely better on the big screen) There are so many scenes that really moved me as a man and challenged me to be a Courageous Father and husband. I have to say though the scene that stuck with me most, from first viewing and when we just saw it in the theater is the scene where the Dad dances in the park and in his prayed ask God to tell his little girl that he “did his side of the dance.”

I loved all the stuff about Dads with their sons and how challenging that is. My son Joel loved it and we already have been able to talk about some favorite scenes and I can see how it challenges the little man in him. But, I think the fact that I have 3 girls, and they are all 3 my little baby girls I don’t care how old they get, the dance scene got to me. Maybe even more the second time around because I knew what was coming.

My youngest daughter Kristi was just in our room talking with her mother and I told her, “I will dance with you anytime you want.” I’m sure I’ve blown it and miss so many moments in my girl’s lives, but after seeing that movie I am committed to making sure I dance my side of the dance every time there is a chance to dance with those I love.

Jeff's Blog: Paint The Parks Top 100 Competition and Exibition 2011

2011-09-28T16:02:00.000-07:00

I received word today that Paint the Parks 100 has chosen one of my paintings for their national exhibition, the show is getting ready to open, and they have not received the painting yet... The problem is that I didn't hear anything from them and assumed that I didn't make it in so I was hoping to sell it another way ... Never been so glad to have a painting NOT sell! Paint the Parks100 is America's leading competition and exhibition designed to illustrate the beauty and significance of America’s National Parks. I am honored to get in and I am heading out right now to find a nice show worthy frame so I can get this sent off! The show can be viewed at Paintamerica.org