openingsalvo

What's going on?

2012-01-26T19:27:00.000-05:00

Just wanted to let you all know, that I am dealing with a serious flu/virus/cold/whatever this is, and, as it is, I can hardly keep my head up. Thanks for all your love, prayers, and lots of motherly advice.
I'll be back, with some new stuff...soon.

Be blessed,

pax Christi,

sp

Books I'm reading this year....

2012-01-11T18:32:00.002-05:00

I'm reading / re-reading some books this year. I'd thought I'd list them, in that they may encourage somebody in the blogopshere to pick them up, or comment on what they're reading.

Question: How do you decide what to read? Do you read reviews, get free copies in the mail, or what?

If you are not sure how to begin deciding what to read in 2012, you could start with this book...
http://www.yourwellreadlife.com/

You probably would never think about reading a book on how to read, but this is a good one. Promise.

Anyways, here's my short list:

The Bible. Duh. I am using the Amplified Bible in my daily reading.

Stages of Faith (1981) James W. Fowler. HarperCollins. Classic book on faith development, integrating the work of Piaget, Erickson, and Kohlberg.

Design (2011) Brian McMillan. CenterPoint Publishing. The birth story of one of the fastest growing churches in the Northeast. Good read.

Healing the Masculine Soul (1988). Gordon Dalbey. Word Publishing. This book started me on my journey, and it's always good for me to tune-up (before my wife tells me to!)

Prayer (1992). Richard J. Foster. HarperSan Francisco. My modern-day hero in spiritual formation, Foster describes the prayer landscape, and serves as an expert guide over each footstep.

Unstuck (2004). Keith Yamashita & Sandra Spataro. Portfolio Press. A little book I found and used in some consultation with a couple of companies. Using it again in getting ready for the next sermon series, called.....unSTUCK (surprise!)

The Making of a Leader (1993). J. Robert Clinton. Navpress. Clinton devised a time-line style development for leadership formation, after studing Biblical and modern leadership profiles.

I also have a list of books I want to read, that's a little longer. Trying to mix it up between several areas of interest.

What are you reading this season? Drop a comment, and let me know. Check out the Your Well-Read Life title, I think you will really enjoy it.

Shalom.......and happy reading.

Are you ready for a Throwdown?

2012-01-05T07:46:00.001-05:00

Our Next Worship Gathering is going to be a little different, because..... what....did I hear you say...THROWDOWN???   Calling all wing enthusiasts....wing sauce chefs: Do you have a favorite wing sauce? A secret recipe? Come and take on our resident chef with the killer sauce......and take part in our First Annual Wing Sauce Throwdown!

Sunday, January 22 - 6 pm, 1650 Sycamore Avenue, Bohemia, NY.   Here is a link to a Google Map for your convenience....
http://g.co/maps/hf6xc

We'll have some inspiring worship, a relevant Word for your life, activities for kids, and WINGS, lots and lots of WINGS!!!!

See you there? More info, call into the office 631.363.6100 OR email theconnectionlongisland@gmail.com

It's January 3rd, and it still feels like Christmas!

2012-01-02T18:11:00.001-05:00

It should, shouldn't it? I should not be in a hurry to go back to normal, right? I want to ponder and treasure the wonder of the Incarnation a little longer. In reality, it's all about Advent....each successive year passed is one year closer to Jesus' return, and in this reality I live, no matter what season it is.

The year was capped off with some 24-7 worship, co-hosted by the Mosaic Vineyard Church and supported by The Connection. Several congregations were represented here - and we pray God was pleased with our offering of faithfulness and love.

I gained some powerful personal insights over the prayer / praise / intercession time, many of which had been given and confirmed through prophetic word some years before, the reminder is always good.

Well, is it resolution time? Better it to be REVELATION time, or DECLARATION time, because these aion depend on the Word of God, and not our ability to follow-through. Recently I was chatting with an owner of a health club, who told me that memberships balloon in the days leading to New Year's Day, but then attendances return to pre-New Year's levels by about January 6th! Wow! January 6th!!?? I thought the resolution thing would last longer than that? Declarations and proclamations from the Word of God cannot go wring

So here are some declarations, from Extreme Prophetic Ministries, that you can adopt for yourself, or adapt to fit your needs:

Patricia King:

"12 BLESSINGS FOR 2012"

A Proclamation – A Year of Increase
Blessing #1 - Increased Love
I decree that in 2012, I will increase in my love for God, for myself, and for others. (Matthew 22:37-40)

Blessing # 2 - Peace (Shalom)
I decree that in 2012, I will increase in perfect peace, wholeness, and soundness in my heart and mind, in all my ways, and in every situation. (Numbers 6:26; 2 Peter 1:2)

Blessing #3 - Increased Wisdom
I decree that in 2012, I will increase in wisdom from above because I love wisdom and ask for wisdom. (James 1:5)

Blessing #4 - Increased Grace
I decree that in 2012, I will increase in the grace of God that enables me both to will and to do of His good pleasure. (John 1:16; Philippians 2:13)

Blessing #5 - Increased Strength
I decree that in 2012, I will increase in the strength of the Lord as I wait on Him. (Isaiah 40:31)

Blessing #6 - Increased Health
I decree that in 2012, I will increase in divine health and healing. (3 John 2)

Blessing #7 - Increased Prosperity
I decree that in 2012, I will increase in abundance and prosperity. All my needs will be met according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. (Deuteronomy 1:11; Philippians 4:19)

Blessing #8 - Increased Revelation
I decree that in 2012, I will receive increased revelation in the knowledge of Jesus Christ, His Kingdom and His righteousness. (Ephesians 1:17)

Blessing #9 - Increased Power
I decree that in 2012, I will receive increased manifestation of miracle working power. (Acts 1:8)

Blessing #10 - Increased Answers to Prayer
I decree that in 2012, I will receive increased answers to prayer as I pray according to God's will. (1 John 5:14-15)

Blessing #11 - Increased Purity of Heart
I decree that in 2012, I will increase in the purity of my heart, its motives, and its passions. As a result, I will perceive God in new realms and dimensions. (Matthew 5:8)

Blessing #12 - Increased Boldness
I decree that in 2012, I will increase in boldness to proclaim the Gospel and as a result many will turn to the Lord! (Acts 4:31)
Patricia King
Extreme Prophetic Ministries
Email: info@extremeprophetic.com

Our next Worship Gathering will be January 22, Sunday evening, 6 pm at 1650 Sycamore Avenue, in Bohemia. Connect to us via Facebook: http://www.tinyurl.com/theconnectionLI

may the peace of Christ keep you centered in His love,

It's Christmas Eve morning, and there is a chill in the air...

2011-12-24T08:33:00.001-05:00

...that warms my heart, it feels a bit like Christmas.

I am looking forward to the time of respite: to ponder and treasure, to journal and pray, to laugh in the company of family and friends.

Would you pray with me, on this day:

For the people The Salvation Army has been able to help, that our sacred service would serve as an arrow to God, and to His only-begotten Son, the Saviour of the world, Jesus Christ?
For the families that did not get a Christmas basket this year, for the kids whose angels did not get picked off the Angel Trees....that Divine Providence would find them?
For all the donors, companies, church groups, Scout troops, individuals, and families that banded their resources together to help all the families in need via this ministry?
For all the people who served as bell-ringers, that their families would be blessed, that our time together would be remembered as more than a job, but as a bridge to the spiritual life?
For our staff that worked so diligently to insure that every family they could reach got the help they needed, that this time of respite would be restorative to them.

I suspect that 2012 will be a season of great change; after all, change is the only constant. On the edge of the new year, there is always a sense of pregnancy, of expectation, of longing. This end of year proves no differently than any of the others; there is a stirring in my soul, can you feel it too?

Something great is afoot, God is up to something. I can't wait to join Him. "Behold, I do a new thing; do you not perceive it?" (Isaiah 43:19) There is so much glory packed into this one word, "behold." Think of all the times that word has been used to describe a move of God. Well, just think of one: "Behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today, in Bethlehem, a Child is born. He is Christ the Lord."

"Behold" in the NT Greek is in the middle voice - an interesting voice indeed.   Active voice in languages depict something being acted upon,e.g, "I hit the ball" Passive voice emphasizes the effect of a thing, for example "The ball was struck." Middle voice is interesting: middle voice represents the subject acting upon itself or in its own interest. (in this case: to show in a mirror, to make to reflect, to mirror to look at one's self in a mirror to behold one's self in a mirror behold as a glass)

So this thing that the angel told the shepherds about, this Child lain in a manger, was a sight to behold - they should witness this. But also, because of the use of the middle voice, this sight was also to be seen by the subject - God. God was witnessing His own self-revelation in Jesus!

Hopefully, after the "holidays" you will want to behold yourself, that is, look in to the mirror. Most of us don't want to, and especially not in those gigantic mirrors in the health clubs!

But God has something for you to see......like the Greeks at the feast, who said, "We would see Jesus," God desires for you to behold His own self-revelation. Christ the Lord

O come let us adore Him,
O come let us adore Him,
O come let us adore Him,
Christr the Lord.

May the beauty and the mystery of the Incarnation: the eternal Word becoming flesh, and moving in to your neighborhood, take your breath away.

Our next Worship Gathering will be on New Year's Eve, we will be co-sponsoring a multi-community prayer and praise time, called the Burn - from 12:00 Noon on December 31st until New Year's Day, at least until 6:00 AM....and beyond I suspect. We are contending in prayer for Long Island, and you are invited...can't wait to be here....can't wait to see you there!

Connect with us on Facebook: tinyurl.com/theconnectionLI

In the midst of everything, remember the simple things, and the best thing...

2011-12-20T14:50:00.003-05:00

Warning signs, guideposts to replenishment meltdown.

2011-12-11T16:26:00.001-05:00

I was chatting with a friend the other day, an introvert by nature. He does public work all day, and he can't wait to get back in the cave at night. Often, he can't. He has other people in his life who are vying for his precious down time. Anger erupts.

This is the role of self-clarification. When we get to know who we really are, we can being the hard work of peeling off the onion-like layers of our personae, our false selves, our masks. This as, Thomas Merton has said, is hard, laborious work, but there are divine dividends. We get to know God. Spiritual greats from Augustine, to Teresa of Avila have reminded us through the centuries: as we get to know ourselves, we get to know God.

Another friend is on a similar journey of self-discovery. This is good.

I am on what I have liked to call "Long Night's Journey Into Day." There are certain rhythms that I need to stay replenished. Jazz is one of these rhythms, these watering holes I need (Thanks be to God for Larry Carlton, whose every string-bending note just makes me happy!)

Along this "long night" I have become weary in well-doing. Just plain knocked out.
The activism of the Christmas season has left me with long nights, and short, fast days.
But to counter this draining of emotional and physical resources, I have crafted a Rule (see http://openingsalvocr.blogspot.com/2011/11/defeating-seasonal-lunacy-disorder.html)

When I follow this, my soul remains sane. It takes work to do this, it takes an active partnership with the Spirit of God to follow-through on my commitments to soul sanity. Got to heed the warning signs: Hungry, Angry, Lonely, Tired.

Pickiness -
Attitude (see pickiness) -
Abruptness of speech (see attitude)
You get it.

Quick Start Guide:

1 - Stay in the mystery: the wonder of the Incarnation, God with us, Jesus got feet, and is walking in the neighborhood. This neighborhood: up and down the streets and alleys in my soul! Wow!

2 - Pray the "Jesus prayer." Just say His Name.....watch what happens inside your soul. Jesus. He is faithful: you call Him, He shows up.

3 - Slow down. Get quiet. If even for a minute or two, in car or waiting for an elevator, get still.

This might be the beginning of a Rule of Life for you, or it's the emergency escape hatch off the slippery slope leading to some "below the line" habits.

These are the toughest 2 weeks for many, the "not so holi-" days.....keep watch over your soul.

pax Christi,

sp

What's going on at The Connection these days.....?

2011-12-03T08:36:00.001-05:00

Haven't posted since Black Friday, guess I've had a few things going on since then....

We're getting ready for our Christmas Worship Gathering, happening on Sunday, December 18th, 6 pm, at our new location: 1650 Sycamore Avenue in Bohemia. If you check out the Facebook Page for the event you can get a really coool map, but here is a Google Map for your convenience here:

It's going to be a really interactive event, not so much as a live nativity, but everyone will have a part to play. Should be fun.

Tomorrow, (12/4), our Community Group is going to have dinner together, then go in New York for the Christmas Spectacular. Not at Radio City, though, but at The Salvation Army's Centennial Memorial Temple. The Salvation Army has a fabulous program all set for Sunday at 5:25 PM. There's still room, and you don't need tickets for the event. Here's a link: http://tinyurl.com/christmasspectaular

Then we go into the heart of the Christmas activity: Picking up, packing and delivering toys, delivering gifts to local nursing homes, picking up and delivering food to senior centers, all kinds of stuff. If you can carve out a moment or two to volunteer, it would be a great help. Just email us at theconnectionlongisland@gmail.com to get more information about what and when.

In the middle of all the hustle and bustle, it can be easily forgotten that the reason for the season is Jesus. That night, that Silent Night, that inauspicious night, was a night that changed the world forever. That night, that One Solitary Life, came into the world to bring a redemption no one else could deliver, Christ the Lord. During the entire birth narrative of Jesus, there is one reaction that stands out - Mary, pondering and treasuring in her heart the happenings surrounding this blessed event.

I hope you will have time to ponder and treasure the mystery of the Incarnation. Many blessings!

Black Friday 2011 and the Quest for Contentment

2011-11-25T19:12:00.001-05:00

"I am sure glad fewer people were trampled this Black Friday." Not the quote of choice, thought I, as I dashed and weaved through the mall today. Usually we measure sales on this day, the official start (after all the pre-pre-pre starts) of the annual Christmas shopping season. Is it a sign of the times that we measure the success of this day by the absence of fatalities?

The term "Black Friday" was first used around 1966, when describing the sea of Philadelphia pedestrian traffic, between all the shoppers and spectators going to the Army-Navy game. By 1975, the description of this day took on the alternative meaning of shopkeepers making a profit, or being "in the black."

Black Friday 2010 was deadly, one of the fatalities being a security guard at a New York Walmart,
trampled by crouds teeming in anticipation of their "Wallbusters" sale. There were at least two fatalities that I heard of this year. Were there others? From the Online New York Times tonight:

"And while most malls and stores were packed but relatively calm, in California, a woman pepper-sprayedfellow Wal-Mart shoppers, apparently to keep them from grabbing an Xbox she wanted. Two other Wal-Mart shoppers, in San Leandro, Calif., andMyrtle Beach, S.C., were shot in the stores’ parking lots, while police arrested shoppers who were fighting over products in Wal-Mart stores in Milford, Conn., Rome, N.Y.and Kissimmee, Fla.

One first-time Black Friday shopper, Debra Banks, 48, was jostled by crowds when she entered a Toys “R” Us in New Jersey and missed out on the limited-edition coupon books. She left the store with nothing. “Well, I can’t say this is fun,” she said. “Enlightening, maybe.”"

Compared to the rising Sahara, the famines in Ethiopia and Somalia, millions still recovering from weather events in Japan, much of the Pacific Rim, and Haiti, among other disasters worldwide, and the impending global water shortage, these deaths pale in comparison. At least 2 people an hour suffer in the West Bank, Egypt, or Tunisia. However, it is the reason behind these deaths that sickens us - avarice and greed. (Though, if you think about it, disparities in wealth cause every other famine, war, or shortage there is.)

Dying to get more stuff. Most around the world are dying because they cannot get access to anything.

When is enough, enough? Do we really need the newest model, or the most recent upgrade, or the thing itself at all?

Paul, writing to Timothy and the believers in Ephesus, in thanksgiving for gifts to the struggling community in Jerusalem, says: "But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will content with that." (1 Timothy 6:6-8). Contentment is the deep sense that enough is enough, being satisfied that what one has is sufficient to meet the need. I recall years ago eating with some friends, and that the end of the meal, the woman of the house said without fail, "Well, that's all there is!" She said it with such a content heart, meaning, "Be satisified with this!"

What does it mean to be satisfied in this day?

Am I the only one who finds this cultural event a bit strange: from Thanksgiving, a quiet day where we give thanks for what we have, we jump into Black Friday, a day when we buy all we can as fast (and now, as early) as we can!? Thanksgiving was the last holiday left without some kind of full-scale retail angle, but now with the store openings at 11 PM on Thursday....what's next?

But we did have fewer trampling deaths, that's a good sign.

A Word on Thanksgiving 2011

2011-11-23T13:58:00.001-05:00

There is much unrest in the world. Uprising, protests, brutality everywhere. Political upheaval is rampant. More are dead via abortion than in all wars combined.

Rainforests are shrinking, and the Sahara is rising.
Economic uncertainty, however critical, is outstripped by the moral uncertainty worldwide. What is evil? What is good?

Deconstruction of all social mores and cultural institutions leave a troubled generation to ask, like Pilate, "What is truth?"

In the midst of the sturm und drang, I remain thankful. Like the eye of the storm, gratitude keeps me sane, balanced and frankly, together! I tend to be a "glass half full" person anyway, but I have to stay more conscious of the blessings that we have....Here's where my thinking on gratitude is these days:

Gratitude is that unique state of mind in which the individual recounts the happenings, circumstances, or results that proved positive, optimistic or hopeful. Often these results are attributed to Divine Providence.
The opposite of gratitude is amnesia.
"....but in everything, with prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." (Philippians 4:6) The Christian worldview is unique, in that thanksgiving for the positive ends is produced in the individual before conditions change. This is the ground of faith. God is always previous. Look at how Thanksgiving changed the outcome of the Revolutionary War....

The first National Thanksgiving...began...in 1777 in York, Pennsylvania

July 1776, the American colonists declared independence from Britain. The months that followed were so bleak that there was not much to give thanks for. The Journals of the Continental Congress record no Thanksgiving in that year, only two days of "solemn fasting" and prayer...

[The war effort was going poorly. Many Americans were wounded, captured or killed by the British]. Philadelphia, America's largest city, fell on Sept. 26. Congress fled...to Lancaster then to York... John Adams wrote in his diary, "The prospect is chilling, on every Side: Gloomy, dark, melancholy, and dispiriting."

Samuel Adams, [among 20 delegates left from the 56 who signed the Declaration of Independence]... predicted "Good tidings will soon arrive. We shall never be abandoned by Heaven while we act worthy of its aid and protection." He turned out to have been correct... On Oct. 31, a messenger arrived with news of the American victory at the Battle of Saratoga. The American general, Horatio Gates, had accepted the surrender of 5,800 British soldiers, and with them 27 pieces of artillery and thousands of pieces of small arms and ammunition.

Saratoga turned the tide of the war -- news of the victory was decisive in bringing France into a full alliance with America. Congress responded to the event by appointing a committee of three that included Samuel Adams, Richard Henry Lee of Virginia and Daniel Roberdeau of Pennsylvania, to draft a report and resolution. The report declared Thursday, Dec. 18, as "a day of Thanksgiving" to God, so that "with one heart and one voice the good people may express the grateful feelings of their hearts, and consecrate themselves to the service of their divine benefactor."

It was the first of many Thanksgivings ordered up by Samuel Adams. Though the holidays were almost always in November or December, the exact dates varied (Congress fixed Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday in November in 1941).

In 1778, a Thanksgiving resolution drafted by Adams was approved by Congress ... setting aside Wednesday, Dec. 30, as a day of public thanksgiving and praise.

After the Revolution, Adams... eventually elected governor of Massachusetts, maintained the practice of declaring these holidays. In October of 1795, [he] proclaimed Thursday, Nov. 19, as "a day of Public Thanksgiving to God," recommending that prayer be offered that God would graciously be pleased to put an end to all Tyranny and Usurpation, that the People who are under the Yoke of Oppression, may be made free; and that the Nations who are contending for freedom may still be secured by His Almighty Aid."
A year later, Gov. Adams offered a similar Thanksgiving proclamation, declaring Thursday, Dec. 15, 1796, as "a Day of Public Thanksgiving and Praise to Our Divine Benefactor."

History shows that prayer and thanksgiving proclamations were not uncommon in the British Empire, but their issuance and practice became vital in the colonies, and especially accelerated during the War for Independence. Prayer and thanksgiving have been institutionalized and memorialized by presidents and congresses since.

It is up to us who believe to stir the Spirit of Prayer and Thanksgiving today, not just keep tradition. Our task is not simply to defend the status quo, but to magnify prayer, praise and thanksgiving, until, as Samuel Adams hoped, "every Nation and Society of Men may be inspired with the knowledge and feeling of their natural and just rights" and "That Tyranny and Usurpation may everywhere come to an end."

Lord, thank You for all You have done for our nation and for the liberty we enjoy. Thank you for keeping all your promises to revive us again as we seek You!
Revive our churches;
Heal our families;
Awaken our fellow countrymen and a bring reform to our culture.
Draw us closer to you.
Thank you for the Gospel of salvation through Jesus Christ.
Thank you for our nation's Christian heritage.
Thanks to You in advance for fulfilling the vision you gave our Forefathers for America to be a Gospel light among the nation--
Transform every sphere of our society.
Be exalted among us we pray.
May our children and grandchildren observe and celebrate Thanksgiving with wholehearted faith long after we are gone. In Jesus name we pray, Amen!
(1 Chr 16:1-36; Psalm 75: Psalm 92: Lk 17:11-20; Php 4:6; 1 Tim 2:1-2; Heb 13:5; Rev 11:16-17).

Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people. ---Proverbs 14:34

Be blessed. Be a blessing. Happy Thanksgiving.

The Shaping of the Soul: Burden as impetus

2011-11-12T07:03:00.001-05:00

And the king granted me what I asked, for the good hand of my God was upon me. (Neh 2:8c)

You and I know that before Nehemiah received what he had asked of the king, he did a series of things:

He wept, he fasted, he mourned, and he prayed..... then he received.

This was how God shaped Nehemiah's heart to receive the reward that was promised him. And this is how God shapes us. No matter where you where you are, whether you are weeping, fasting, mourning or praying, the good hand of the Lord will provide just what you need, and just when you need it.

This is our time. This is our season. The good hand of the Lord is upon us.

Watch and pray. Watch God work. Stay in thanksgiving. Keep your Rule of Life.
Stay girded with the full armor of God.

If you are in need of prayer, please call. If you are in need of help, please call. We are inspired to deliver. Many blessings on your day!

Defeating Seasonal Lunacy Disorder

2011-11-09T05:14:00.001-05:00

(Note: If you would like more posts referring to Christmas and ways to cope you can search all the posts on the blog using this link:
http://openingsalvocr.blogspot.com/search?q=Christmas

I have just "invented" a new syndrome. I figure if Al Gore can invent the
Internet, I can invent a disease. Yeah, DSM people, bring it on....(actually something like is already there!)

It's called "Seasonal Lunacy Disorder," and it is the normal syndrome of Corps Life, when its leaders and soldiers, are spinning all the plates necessary to balance ministry, family, and life during the period of time we call "Christmas."

Ordinarily it is "6 weeks of lunacy to support 12 months of ministry," but this year seems to be

different.

Greater degree of competition for fewer resources...

Greater needs of the people whom we serve....

Greater frustration on the part of service providers.

Greater apathy when it comes to contributions ("everyone's on pins and

needles..")

There is only one cure for Seasonal Lunacy Disorder, and it is what to do

when you don't know what else to do.

"Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own

understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge him, and he will direct your

paths." (Proverbs 3:5-6)

God knows what we are in need of, and He has given to us the resources of

heaven at our disposal. He will give the wisdom and revelation, as get to

know Him better and better, to do what needs to done to glorify Him and to

exceed every need.

Keeping company with the LORD during these days is challenging for all of

us. Sometimes it is a struggle to keep the Biblical idea of Christmas in

full view. Here's some things that can help:

Taking advantage of the small silences throughout the day to practice

the presence of God....

Doing like Mary did, "Let it be done to me as you have said..." She practiced a awe-filled obedience. How her life changed when she said "Yes!" I can't imagine what our world would be like if Mary said, "Why don't you pick someone else?"
Staying in communication: with Him (and with each other). If there is resource or an idea, it's yours!

; to keep your soul sane, you might want to craft a Rule of Life.
Just what is a Rule of Life? Well, we can thank the Church Father Pachomius, and Benedict for crafting this idea from of old. If you think about a trellis, with blooming roses all up and down it, you will note that the trellis enables the roses to healthy, and beautiful. The Rule of Life is a "framework for freedom, providing healthy boundaries, a conscious plan to keep God at the center of everything we do."

The Rule is a set of daily commitments to maintain soul sanity. The Rule has to be challenging enough to put you at stretch, but not so demanding that it leaves you overwhelmed. Here are some of the commitments I am making, in order stay close to the Presence during this time of high activity:

1 - I will craft silence and solitude, taking advantage of the small silences throughout the day, to focus on God.
2- I will meditate on the Scriptures, as they water my soul: evening, morning, noon. (see Psalm 55)
3 - I will bless others with my speech, changing atmospheres by God's glory within me.
4 - I will cherish my family, even more so as the activity gets how... it gets.
5 - I will enjoy the company of refreshing friendships, especially on the Sabbath.

6 - (just added) I will teach my colleagues how to craft a Rule of Life for themselves

If you like number 5 on this list, we can come hang with us! Sunday nights, we gather together for worship, Word, and prayer. You are welcome - just clik here for more info. (www.tinyurl.com/equipp-gathering)

So the 6 commitments above consitute my Rule for this season. What do you think? Do you have a Rule that you work under? Most have one, even if it is intuitive. Feel free to leave a comment, or share your Rule.

May the mystery of the Incarnation take your breath away.

What a night last night!

2011-11-07T06:55:00.000-05:00

As you know, we gather in the ancient way, meeting in homes. We call these home meetings, Community Groups. We have been training a few new leaders to launch groups in January. Please pray that through the winter, we meet many people whom we can connect to these groups being launched. Each group meeting is tethered to one of five purposes of our ministry:

Discipleship = Training as apprentices of Jesus via the Word of God
Fellowship = "One another" ministry
Worship = Lifestyle adoration of the King
Ministry= Prayer, share, care for each other
Evangelism = Connecting others to Jesus Christ.

There is still a freedom in the Spirit....every meeting has a life of its own, and we minister to the needs of those in the group, either through the worship, the fellowship, the study portion, or the prayer time.

Last night, everybody was ministered to through everything! Give God the glory.

We are working through a series called "Equipment for the Militia Christi (Soldiers of Christ)" We identified the schemes of the enemy of our souls, and got to see God bring some schemes to light, which we are all happy for!

If you are in the Long Island area, and if you are looking for a place to connect, you really should be a part of this faith community. Everybody ought to be connected to Jesus.

Here's a Facebook link that will get you connected to our Sunday night Community Group
http://www.tinyurl.com/equipgathering

You can also join our group page on Facebook too: http://www.tinyurl.com/theconnectionLI

Many blessings!

Walking in Rhythm, moving in sound...carrying my cross

2011-11-02T16:57:00.000-04:00

Whenever I hear the word "anyone" I think of "Ferris Buellers' Day Off," the movie in which this high-school cut artist devises an elaborate scheme to get out of a day of school and head to Chicago with his friends.

One of the early scenes in the movie has his teacher taking attendance, going through the names beginning with "A", then on to the "B's".

When the teacher gets to "Bueller", there is no response. The teacher says, "Bueller,...Bueller, ..anyone.....anyone?" The teacher doesn't an answer from Ferris, and the adventure begins.....the plan to cut nearly backfires, takes the kids through crazy adventures, and Ferris.....gets over, "clean" as a whistle.

When Jesus asks "If anyone would come after me......" in Luke 9;23, he makes an open invitation to everyone.

Anyone means.....anyone. Jesus is equal-opportunity here. Where you have been, whatever you have done, it really doesn't matter at this point. Salvation, the life of God is accessible to anyone.

He is just like the Father, and He desires none to be lost, , but wants all to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth. (1 Timothy 2:4).

Jesus says, "My word is truth." (John 17:17) Getting a hold of the Word of God sanctifies us, makes us holy.

So, this is the truth that Jesus is looking for people to get hold of. What He said.

Well, Jesus says this in Luke 9:23 ....."If any man would come after me, he would deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me."

Jesus is not trying to become famous, and get more fans on His fan page. He is seeking after followers, those who will imitate Him in the earth.

He's not looking for members, or groupies to watch him perform miracles. He is looking for disciples, students, soldiers, apprentices of His. Rabbis in Jesus' time would walk in the countryside, attracting people who would want to follow their teaching. So they were invited to "walk in the dust of the rabbi."

Jesus invited Peter and Andrew, James and John, Matthew and the others to follow Him, and so they knew what this meant. They dropped their nets, in Matthew's case he stopped his tax collection, and followed Jesus; literally walking in His footsteps along the rough hills, and arid deserts.

In the following in the Way of Jesus (He is the Way), they left others take care of what they left behind in order to follow Jesus. In today's language they traded: we trade -

We trade consumerism for communion with God - I no longer at what I can buy to fill the voids in my heart, they are instead filled with God's love, and contentment that comes from Him.
We trade individualism for community - What's important is how my brother, my sister are.....preferring them over me. I am now my brother's keeper. It's not about "me," it's about "we."
We trade materialism for mission - I come to prefer giving to others, rather than keeping for myself.
All this "trading" amounts to a total surrender. This is a sticking point for many. Jesus never shied away from the terrifying gift of truth. And wherever you or I get stuck in this process, here's where the work begins.
Surrender means we get to die every day. Every day: dying to our own needs, our desires, our ambitions. You all know the quote from Bonhoeffer: "When Christ calls a man, he bids him to come and die." We take up our cross, to die every day, die to ourselves. The cross is a symbol of humiliation, suffering and death. Just as Jesus overcame death, we become overcomers through Him who loved us. The death we die (to self) can never compare to the life we live (in Christ).

Ah, such great fun.

It's only fun if we get to do this together.

pax Christi,

sp

From Frank Viola: Beyond Evangelical - Whenever God is Moving Among a People, This Will Happen

2011-10-30T12:42:00.000-04:00

This is an on-time word for our community right now. Community: please take note. You don't know you are in a war, until you get hit. So, if you are engaging warfare, good. If you are not, you've been had. Get ready, you will.

When the Lord is having His way in a body of believers, God’s enemy will be sure to attack. Nothing so threatens the enemy’s kingdom than the church of Jesus Christ being expressed and standing for God’s timeless purpose and Christ’s fullness and headship.

Four things to keep in mind when such attacks occur (notice that I said “when”):

1. The enemy virtually always uses uncrucified flesh as the ground for his attack against a body of believers.

2. Those who are giving ground to the enemy aren’t aware that this is what they are doing: giving ground to him via selfishness and self-gratification.

3. The only way to close the gap is to die to self. God’s enemy has no ground by which to work then. Remember Jesus’ words: “Satan has come, but He has nothing in me.” There was no ground in Him for the enemy to use.

4. The enemy uses lies and deception to hold ground. He’s a master at it. The Scriptures wielded by crucified hands and in the Spirit are a force to break that deception.

Here are priceless words from T. Austin-Sparks on this score:

But this thing is very deeply rooted in us; the subtlety, the imperceptible desire of the flesh for gratification. If we were asked straight out whether we wanted to please ourselves, whether we were after our own personal gratification, whether it was our pleasure and satisfaction that was motivating our lives and directing us, we would at once most vehemently repudiate the suggestion, and probably be very offended with whoever made the suggestion; and yet, beloved, deeper than our deepest honesty, deeper than our truest sincerity, there is that subtle constituent of fallen nature which so often unperceived by the believer himself or herself does just love to be gratified, personally satisfied, and which does not like to be emptied out and have nothing.
Gratification and glory is the very essence of the flesh even when we are engaged in the Lord’s work. To set up something FOR THE LORD, yes, but men point at it and say: “That is his work and her work,” and how we like that! Something that will be a good testimony to faith, a great monument – yes, but subtly the monument to OUR faith. Such is this horrible thing that is always reaching out from beneath, under cover, and, quietly and imperceptibly, taking the glory of the Lord to itself.
The remedy for that is the Body of Christ practically applied in principle. Yes, it is! That is why it is so difficult to live a corporate life with other believers, because you have to be so thoroughly crucified. There is nothing that demands crucifixion more than to live with other Christians all your days. You say: “That is a terrible thing to say,” but you know what I am talking about. You have to defer, refer, consult, submit, let go. In a thousand and one ways you have to put your own likes and dislikes aside if the Lord is to get His end. Oh yes, it is the Body of Christ that is the saving thing.
It is corporate life that is the remedy, but O beloved, that is the way of triumph, the way of victory. It is! It is a mighty remedy for the flesh, a mighty remedy for the work of the Devil, but it does represent the mighty power of God working in us. You see, you can never come into the Body of Christ until you have been crucified. It is because uncrucified flesh has impinged upon the corporate life of believers that there is such contradiction and denial, because the Body represents the exclusion of man, in himself – flesh.

Heaven kissing earth: Advance of the Kingdom

2011-10-30T11:14:00.001-04:00

"May your kingdom come, Let your will be done: on earth as it (presently) in heaven."

This is the crux of the Disciple's Prayer, the model prayer that Jesus gave His disciples after they requested, "Lord, teach us to pray!" He didn't give us a laundry list of requests to bring, although God will listen and respond to each one. He didn't tell us to cry or whine for every little request, like a parking spot, or the last teaching tape at the media center. He told us to pray for the manifestation of the Kingdom of God on earth: the rule and reign of God in the earth.

Right, rule, reign. That's what it is. And even in the midst of the strife, storms and stress in the earth, "All over the world this gospel is growing, just it had been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth." (Colossians 1:6b)

Just what will it look like when God's rule takes over every corner of the planet? Revival. It will look like revival. Revival is reformation of the esteem of Jesus, that will culminate in "The kingdom of this world (becoming) the kingdom of our Lord and and his Christ." A lot more tribulation is going to occur between now and then.

What we call revival now, it is really awakening. Awakening must happen in the church, as we shed churchianity, and press in to see the gospel operating everywhere. Jesus loves the church, and died for her, but not just for her. Jesus is not just for "us;" salvation through grace by faith is for everyone.

The enemy of our souls would like nothing more than for us to become church-centered, all about the building, or just those who are already in. We become so local that we lose sight of those in the highways and byways. Jesus is preparing a great feast, a wedding feast at the culmination of the age, and nobody wants in. So he compelled His servants to go out to the highways and the byways, and to gather all the people they could find. (Matthew 22:1f.)

Given the way our world is now, the enemy would like nothing more than for us to get so personally involved in us, in our personal struggles, in our own survival, that that becomes all we think about.
And we forget the Kingdom, woe to us! We forget to "seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness (so) these things are added to us as well. (Matthew 6:33)

There is an intentionality we must apply to this pressing in for the Kingdom: "From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of God is forcefully advancing, and forceful men have take hold of it." (Matthew 11:12) We must fight off the apathy of this generation - "To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others: 'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn."

Live out Jesus. On. Purpose.

As the days grow more and more evil, the love of most will grow cold. We must stay awake, we must stand firm until the end. (Matthew 24:12)

Heaven is coming to earth, and it is coming with increasing effectiveness right now. As we pray, "Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven," God will answer your prayer.
Let's match our actions with our prayers.

We are working at this in our new faith community, called The Connection, where we live to connect people to Jesus Christ and to His loving family. We are growing big by growing small, healthy Community Groups throughout Suffolk County (Long Island), NY and wherever else the LORD leads us. You can get updates on what's happening in our community by clicking http://www.
tinyurl.com/theconnectionLI
History belongs to those who pray.

Be blessed today.

pax Christi,

sp

Dealing with suffering.....

2011-10-27T16:18:00.000-04:00

In my encounters with people lately, there are many out there who are angry with God about something that happened to them: a terrible divorce, tragic death of a family member or friend, loss of a job, etc. Often, they use that tragedy as evidence that either God doesn't exist or that God is arbitrary and capricious; that God is not loving. Therefore, they would like nothing to do with God or the spiritual life.

While there are no easy, cookie-cutter answers to deal with the problem of suffering, I usually note that as tragedy happens, you can find markers of God's grace, even in the midst of suffering.

The suffering that happens in the world is not because of the absence of God, but because of the evil in men. We have the free choice to pursue good or evil, and that cannot be taken from humankind; otherwise we'd all be Stepford children.

Stuff happens, bad, bad things happen to good people. But grace happens also. Like at The Salvation Army children's home in Port-au-Prince. Although the building was completely collapsed in the earthquake, not one of the children living there were killed, or even badly hurt. There are markers of grace in this world.

Stuff happens when systematic evil is engaged by humans who are in a strangle-hold of consumerism, materialism, and individualism. Drunk driving, human sex trafficking, abortion-on-demand, unjust wars, the growing disparity between rich and poor, among other evils, are all narcisstic at their core. Hedonism, greed, power, are all self-serving, and for those who engage in these things, the self is king.

Systematic evil exists in this world because our world is broken. There is no return to Eden, at least not yet. Natural law is marred because of the existence of evil: right becomes wrong, and wrong is hailed as right.

Our world is broken. There are no easy fixes. The solutions will come from people whose hearts are broken. If your heart is broken, don't worry: now, you can fit more people into it.

God's people have a responsibility to be salt and light in the world. This is why it is so important to know how God has wired you - your unique SoulPrint, so that you and I can serve in the areas God has already assigned to us - to make this world a better place.

Our faith community, The Connection, is an intentional community of believers who live to connect people to Jesus Christ and to His loving family. We are learning about our SoulPrint, so that we can serve and make a difference.

We gather monthly (check our FB page: http://tinyurl.com/theconnectionLI)
and we also gather in small groups. Here's the link to the group that meets at our house

God is moving mightily in our midst. We are gathering people who are hungry for the presence of God, and God is meeting our needs.

Even in suffering, we will keep praising God. Because His love is stronger than death! We thank God for the life that is bubbling up in our Community Groups - little bonfires of faith, hope and love - that are making a difference.

pax Christi,

sp

Tourist mentality or pilgrim in process?

2011-10-25T22:43:00.002-04:00

The American approach to most things is a tourist mentality. Consumerist, individualist, materialist: anything worth having can acquired by some kind of instant process, personally crafted, to "have it your way." Big church has fallen into this tourist trap: 12 steps to this, 3 principles to master that, 4 steps to grow bodies 12 ways. Discipleship and baking Wonder Bread are two very different things.

We have become accustomed to the sound byte approach to nearly everything: we never give more than 10 minutes of content on any subject without some kind of infomercial. (By the way, I'm not knocking any of this, but I'm seeing the light!)

Christian discipleship cannot be achieved in ten-minute sound bytes, it is a long obedience in the same direction (Eugene Peterson, quoting Nietzche) Becoming an apprentice of Jesus Christ, one who walks in the dust of the rabbi, is a lifetime journey. Pilgrims are people who spend their lives getting somewhere, living on purpose: step-by-step, day-by-day, building their stone slowly. Pilgrims are steadily on pilgrimage. Psalm 84 is a song of pilgrimage; "who set their hearts on pilgrimage." (v.5) Just like climbers on their way to the summit, the destination of Christlikeness is achieved only as the hiker keeps hiking: "they go from strength to strength, till each appears before God in Zion." (v.7)

We like to visit: occasionally attend worship service, visit places of worship when something "special" is happening, (like meeting the Creator of the universe is ordinary). The entertainment motif is taking first place, not that we should be intentionally boring, but walking with God is not always entertaining; sometimes it is just hard.

Salvation may be free, but an apprenticeship in the school of Jesus Christ will cost you everything (He'll give it back, but we must have a willingness to surrender everything!)

Jesus did not appear on the earth to create visitors, fans or tourists to faith; He came to make disciples. Perhaps you can grapple better with the word "apprentice."

Apprenticeship does not lend itself to a tourist mentality; the successful apprentice shows up for work everyday, takes instruction from the experienced journeyman, and makes the most of every learning opportunity, eager to practice what is learned.

Apprenticeship is not a sprint, it's a marathon: "Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith." (Hebrews 12:1-2) To go this far, no one needs to go it alone. That's why we gather as a community of faith.

Do you want the blessings of a mature, complete faith in Christ? Or do you want the quick fix of instant blessing, while your life and character limps from one worship service to another, hoping that the next Christian celebrity will jump-start you just enough to limp to the next meeting?

Find a place to worship Christ, and make it your home. Give yourselves to that ministry. Ask for discipleship. Get a pastor. (By the way, October is Pastor Appreciation Month. If you don't have one, get one.)

Our new faith community, The Connection, is a place where you can grow in faith, make new friends, and belong to the family of God. We are growing big by growing small, building healthy Community Groups throughout Suffolk County. If you are interested, please check out our FB site: http://www.tinyurl.com/theconnectionLI

pax Christi,

Charles

What's going on at The Connection? - Kicking off a new season!

2011-10-19T18:51:00.003-04:00

We are in a new season, watching God open doors that no man can shut!

Our October Worship Gathering is going to ROCK, this coming Sunday! We are looking so forward to gathering all our loved ones from all over to worship the LORD! http://on.fb.me/pC66aU

Sunday night's Equipping Gathering is gaining momentum - the LORD is blessing people in our midst: miracles, restorations, healings, jobs, cars, houses, and new Christ-followers, and we praise God for His faithfulness! http://www.tinyurl.com/equipgathering

The Equipping Gathering caps off the weekend: Sunday School, Outreach, Visitation, Teen Vision Quest, then Equipping Gathering (3 out of 4 Sundays)

We are training several people to be Community Group Leaders, to open their homes throughout Central Suffolk County, when this first phase of training ends, we can have 5 groups open, and an Area Leader to help shepherd the leaders.

When the groups are formed, the leaders will meet in a monthly VHS (Vision, Huddle, Skill) meeting, where they will receive ongoing support and training.

Tuesday nights we are conducting a Prayer Conference Call - "Get On Heaven's Agenda!" Inbox me if you want to call in!

Friday nights we are getting the men together for some needed fellowship, around the Word and with each other!

If I were to liken this ministry plant to a baby, I can begin to see hands, and feet and a bit of the nose on the baby. Thanks be to God, who builds the house, so that laborers do not labor in vain.
Our goal is to see what God is up to, and join Him in what He is doing. God is great! Jesus is Lord!!

If you are in the metro NY area, or if you are somewhere else, and you sense that God is calling you to co-labor with us, or if you want to get updates on how God is moving, join The Connection's Facebook group: http://www.tinyurl.com/theconnectionLI

Many blessings on you through Christ our Lord!

pax Christi,
sp (aka Charles)

Uprising

2011-10-17T14:37:00.002-04:00

When the protests started in Tunisia, I knew that soon the riots would spread throughout Egypt and the Middle East. When demonstrators began to gather at state legislatures, it would not be long before they would be held in state capitals across the US. When the "Occupy Wall Street" protests began in Zuccotti Park, it wasn't long before people occupied Times Square, Boston, and DC, joined in; most recently the Phillippines was added to the "Occupy" list.

People are discontent. Frustrated. Angry. And, with good reason. The 99% is growing: "In the last month, the message of “We are the 99%” has won the hearts and minds of over half of Americans (according to a recent Time survey) and is gaining ground globally, with 1500 protests in 82 countries this past Saturday (October 15)."

"Occupy" is changing the conversation: "The movement is inspired by popular uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia, and aims to expose how the richest 1% of people are writing the rules of an unfair global economy that is foreclosing on our future." OWS changed the rhetoric at the dedication of the Martin Luther King, Jr memorial on the Washington Mall. Only its continued and prolonged vibrancy with constructive change will alter our reality.

The New York group is getting re-stocked: The mini-camp in the renamed "Liberty Square" is receiving some donations (approx $200,000 US) and regular boxes of food, clothing and supplies to last through November, according to the last report. Warehoused in a donated facility, these supplies are keeping a movement alive.

There are many lessons to learn here. Injustice inspires people to action. When people from a wide range of concerns can find common ground, and mobilize around that consensus, a movement can change the global conversation.

This morning, I received a Facebook post reminding the Jesus-followers worldwide to "occupy until He comes" What this word "occupy" means is up for some debate: What is doesn't mean is "to take up space." It does mean to "trade, conduct business." There are many among evangelicals who are calling for the formation of a Gospel Movement.

Do we have the same level of discontent with the shape of this country, the dislodging from our moral foundations? Do we have the same willingness to be out front with our discontent on our collective sleeve?

Can we wait for the social change to occur one person at a time? What kind of uprising does our Lord require of us? What is the trajectory of the Gospel Movement that God is planning? Across all strata? All disciplines? I would suggest that is not dependent on any man-made thing.

When the Gospel Movement foments to full strength, there will be some who will speak as Gamaliel did of Peter and John in Acts 5:35-39

"Then he addressed them [the council, saying]: Men of Israel, take care in regard to what you propose to do concerning these men. For before our time there arose Theudas, asserting himself to be a person of importance, with whom a number of men allied themselves, about 400; but he was killed and all who had listened to and adhered to him were scattered and brought to nothing. And after this one rose up Judas the Galilean, [who led an uprising] during the time of the census, and drew away a popular following after him; he also perished and all his adherents were scattered. Now in the present case let me say to you, stand off (withdraw) from these men and let them alone. For if this doctrine or purpose or undertaking or movement is of human origin, it will fail (be overthrown and come to nothing); But if it is of God, you will not be able to stop or overthrow or destroy them; you might even be found fighting against God!

New Tribes' Community: living out the DNA of growth!

2011-10-14T21:37:00.001-04:00

New Tribes’ community
Relationships. Resources. Revival.

Behold, I will do a new thing; now itshall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in thewilderness, and rivers in thedesert.

(Isaiah 43:19)

Many who are planting new ministries or revitalizing existing ministries often need a communityof like-minded, like-gifted people: people who speak the language of growth,the language of revival, for needed support and encouragement in ministry.

Those who are planting independent ministries are oftendependent on their network of personal friendships for support. These friendships are vital, but may lack thecommon experience of the church planter. Others who are part of denominations or federated churches have anexisting support system, but those systems may lack the local flavor or understandingof the land.

God has placed a burden on my heart to convene ameeting of potential like-minded individuals to pray and discern the usefulnessof reaching out to other planting ministries in the region, for the purpose ofgrowing the interdependent relationships required in a well-functioning Body.

So we have convened a group of planting pastors and asked some foundational questions:

How can we serve each other, and by doing so, marshall the unity in the Body of Christ?

How do we keep connected, so we can network, getting each other "intel" on what is happening in the region?

Is there place for a "skill-building" component to this group?

Is this kind of meeting useful every 6-7 weeks?

Who else should be invited?

We met once, with a few leaders, and there was a consensus that the meetings should continue. Our second meeting is coming up and there have been some others invited. A Facebook group was created, and all have admin capability, that is, all the members can post and add other people.

Please keep us in prayer: that we hear Abba clearly, and do what He says.
If you are a church planter/ministry leader in the metro NY area, or another area, and this kind of community will bring you replenishment, just leave a comment at this blog, and we will connect you to this network, or another one.
No one should have to go it alone.

God is in the house!

2011-10-13T22:02:00.001-04:00

I cannot begin to tell you how good God is: all I can tell you is "Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him." (Psalm 34:8)
You have got to check God out for yourself. Jesus makes all this God-stuff accessible, He is Emmanuel, "God with us!"
Believe. Follow. Jesus.

We are seeing all kinds of miracles in our midst: healing, restorations, salvation, properity and contentment.....God is in the house.

And if not.....we will still praise Him. Ain't no rock gonna cry in my place!

Hang with us on Sunday nights: tinyurl.com/equipgathering

We get everybody together once a month: this month: 10.23.2011
http://on.fb.me/pC66aU is going to be bangin'

Join a Community Group: coming to a community near you (if you are on Long Island)

God is moving in our midst, it's a blast! Get on the wave!

October's Worship Gathering is going to ROCK!

2011-10-11T17:09:00.000-04:00

Independent Christian worship artist Stacy Lugo is confirmed for our October 23rd Worship Gathering!
http://www.myspace.com/stacylugo

The gifts of song that God has given Stacy: an infectious musical style with crisp arrangements in an R&B groove, will surely bless you and your friends. Bring a friend to our NEW location, and get a FREE GIFT. Dinner will be served, so please RSVP by replying to this email by October 15th! Come early, so you can sure to get a front row seat......the first 25 people who RSVP will get an additional FREE GIFT!

God is moving in our midst, and we are looking for YOU to be a part of what is happening!

Inspiring worship....great place to make new friends....relevant Word for your life....and our special guest....also some surprise guests as well....

NEW location: 1650 Sycamore Avenue # 2, Bohemia, NY
NEW time: 6:00 PM (Come for dinner!)

Connect with us on Facebook!

Connect with us on Twitter!

EMail us if you want a prayer, or for more info

An interesting chat.

2011-10-11T00:59:00.000-04:00

Stephen Court April 28 at 5:32am

hey - Crossroads corps in Edmonton Alberta. Praise the Lord.
Thanks.

Charles Roberts April 28 at 5:32am

oh good, blow it up!

Stephen Court April 28 at 5:36am

Yahoo! full-time soul-bustin'! :-)

Charles Roberts April 28 at 6:08am

lol, go get 'em! You need a custodian??

Stephen Court April 28 at 6:15am

Oh, I've GOT The Custodian! The Custodian fills and He thrills; He makes me drop and flop; He convicts and He converts; He tidies up the furniture while moppin' up the demonclature; He protects and He points. He checks the locks and He frees the captives. He covers my back and He backs my cover. He overrules and He undertakes. I owe Him everything and I'm up on my payments. The Custodian helps me to PROVE GOD RIGHT!

Charles Roberts April 28 at 6:41am

That's my King! the image of the invisible God, the exact representation of His being, the chiseled exactitude of Yahweh Elohim, by Whose Word all things were created, and Who holds all things together, the Arm of the Lord Who exacted such a full salvation by His Blood, and who executes liberation by raising from the dead! He's an expert Pilot Who knows how to get His children home! Is that the Man to Whom you refer?

Praying for revival

2011-10-05T21:34:00.001-04:00

Revival is not a singular event- it is a series of events that result in:
Every area of society esteeming the name of Jesus Christ,
Conforming to moral law,
The strengthening of gospel movements across all disciplines,
The unity of the church,
Individuals and institutions aligned to the values of the Kingdom.

This process begins with the awakening of the church.
A renewal of prayer,
A renewal of ministries to men, reaffirming and restoring the role of the father in society,
Economic collapse.

Two indicators:
Repentance.
Awakening.

This will be a "saints' movement," the most unlikely ones will lead this, ones that have not been previously affirmed by the church. God sets it up.

This is coming. Soon, really soon. So do not give up hope. God will bring the harvest.

When you wish upon a star?

2011-10-03T18:21:00.001-04:00

John Ortberg tells the story of Cliff Edwards, a hobo who made it big on the one talent he had, a voice with three-octave range, "who could slide up three octaves with pure quick-silver magic." He was discovered in the 'twenties, and quickly became a vaudeville and Broadway star, getting top billing as "Ukelele Ike." His star rose very quickly, and plumetted just as fast.

Even though his rendition of "Singin in the Rain" was number 1 for three weeks in 1929, his taste for the fast life kept him on Skid Row.

Married and divorced three times, by the late 'sixties, Edwards was living in a home for indigent actors. Disney studios quietly provided charity care for him.
He died in obscurity in 1971. To this day, you would recognize Edwards' melodious voice at that of Disney charcter Jiminy Cricket: "When you wish upon a star....."

Complete in many ways, save one.

"What does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul?" (Mark 8:36) This is the question for Everyman, posed by Jesus. We get the privilege of purpose when we align ourselves with God's plans for our lives. We get to discover our unique SoulPrint, the means to be happy, holy, productive and content, all while serving the King and expanding His Kingdom.

Hope deferred makes a heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life. (Proverbs 13:12) When we come to the realization that no longer live for ourselves, but for the Almighty, we get access to this little virtue called "joy." Since Jesus was anointed with it, and the Father says joy is at His right hand (as is Jesus!), we get to experience His pleasures evermore. (Psalm 16:11)

Fulness. Completeness. Wholeness. 100%. This is what Jesus is. He is the fulness of the Deity, and we have been given every fulness in Christ "So you also are complete through your union with Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority." (Colossians 2:10, NLT)

Be full, and complete through union with Jesus today.

pax Christi,

sp

The medium can never change the message...

2011-09-28T06:39:00.003-04:00

No matter where you live, spoken word has become the dominant channel for our culture, even frogs are sitting on lilypad turntables, selling inssurance! Dare2Share has flipped the script and given us the relevant Word - old skool, but wild style!

This is the Real!

enjoy, and be blessed! sp

What a night at our Equipping Gathering last night!

2011-09-26T17:56:00.001-04:00

This is how it was last night......We gathered together for worship, and it was like the angels met us there! You know the difference between singing a song, and singing to God? Well, it was just like God was in the room, and He was making His presence known to us.

After a time of singing and prayer, we went around the room just to check in with everybody, and everyone had a story of how God was working in their lives: new jobs, miracles in health, faith of loved ones. Even in the stories of struggle, it was clear that God was evident and getting ready to do something great!

Then we spent some time in the Word, we shared from Ephesians chapter 1 how God has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in Christ, so that we can engage in life-giving leadership.

After some time studying the Word, we prayed for each other: for needs, for blessing in the midst of struggle, for wisdom, thanksgiving for blessings received.

It was just how a Community Group ought to be. Folks hung around afterwards and chatted, prayed some more, sang some more.

The Connection is a faith community that lives to connect people to Jesus Christ and His loving family. We desire to grow big by growing small, in Community Groups just like our Sunday night Equipping Gathering.

If you live in the New York area, and you are interested in being part of a Community Group, just email me at theconnectionlongisland@gmail.com

You can follow us on Twitter: @TheConnectionLI.
You can join us on Facebook: www.tinyurl.com/theconnectionLI

What's going on tomorrow?

2011-09-24T22:09:00.003-04:00

Tomorrow morning, (Sunday) we're going to do some outreach in Starbucks in Selden. Come hang out, have a beverage, and let's meet some people. We'll be there around 11:30 am.

After that, we're going to gather in our weekly Community Group at my house. We call this group an Equipping Gathering, because God equips us for the week ahead via worship, personal connections, fellowship, study of the Word of God, and prayer for each other.

We all get to my house at 6:00 pm. The group goes for about an hour; if people want to hang out, it goes a bit longer.

If you have kids, and you have to bring them with you, no problem. The more the merrier.
If you are interested in getting involved, you can join our Facebook event for the Community Group
http://tinyurl.com/equipgathering Inbox me on Facebook for location.

Connections are everything. Most especially, Connection number one. Jesus and you.

Follow us on Twitter: @TheConnectionLI
Follow us on Facebook: The Connection

Be blessed today.

"Shape Your Soul" - Kingdom Connection podcast re-launches today!

2011-09-23T06:38:00.001-04:00

Today, we are relaunching our series on soul sanity: How do you keep afloat spiritually, in the middle of a topsy-turvy world?

Rudyard Kipling said it best, albeit not with a Christocentric perspective:

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,

Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,

Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;
If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;
If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with triumph and disaster
And treat those two imposters just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with wornout tools;

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on";

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,

Or walk with kings - nor lose the common touch;
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run -
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man my son!

In my work, "keeping your head" is maintaining God's perspective, an eternal perspective on things. A former General of The Salvation Army always referenced the present in terms of the aion: "Live in the here-and-now in light of the there-and-then."

When Christ shall come / with shouts of acclamation / and take me home/ What joy shall fill my heart / And there I'll bow / with humble adoration / and there proclaim /"My God, how great Thou art!"

The heart of the "Shape Your Soul" series (hopefully) answers the questions:

How do we get from "here" to "there?"
How do we keep making room for God to act, guiding and directing our lives?
How do we get the virtue we need to live out a virtuous life, especially in the midst of a world that eschews virtue?
How do we live out "the sacrament of the everyday moment?"

I hope you will enjoy the podcasts. You can hear them at BlogTalkRadio, or in the embedded player right here on this site.

Be blessed today.

pax Christi,

sp

Dating God

2011-09-20T13:54:00.000-04:00

"You must love the Lord with your whole heart, and your whole mind, and your whole strength."
--Mark 12:30

I never heard this term, "Dating God," before this morning, but the idea intrigued me. I guess the dating thing would go like this:

You feel empty inside, like something is missing.
You hear the Gospel message, and you're feeling really bad for your sins.
You start to cry, because you are hearing about a new life that is possible for you.
You respond to the message, you go to the front of the church and you say a little prayer.
As soon as you say the prayer, you feel so much better, like a burden has been lifted.
For some strange reason, you wake up the next day feeling like a brand-new person.
There's a smile on your face, no matter what. Like somebody painted this on.

This "God-thing" is pretty good. At least for a while.

Then, you find that you still have to deal with your character. Maybe you have an issue with anger, or fidelity, or something else.

You see, when we say "Yes" to Jesus, we are indeed free from the penalty of sin. "He who had no sin became sin for us, so that we might obtain the righteousness of God." (2 Corinthians 5:21)
We also become free from the power of sin  "In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus." (Romans 6:11).

But there is a part we play in our own discipleship: "Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness." (Romans 6:12, 13)

To be a fully committed follower of Jesus Christ, we must be engaged in the means of grace that God gives to keep us safe in His will.

Worship.
Getting together with other followers of Christ (formerly called "fellowship")
Reading the Bible.
Praying: alone and together.   There are other disciplines too, but they are all good for us.

You see salvation is free. It is the free gift of grace given through faith in Jesus Christ (Ephesians 2:8,9) But discipleship: becoming an apprentice of Jesus Christ, is not a dating situation where you can just try God out. Discipleship costs everything we have, and in exchange for what Christ has done, it is still the best deal ever.

One of the most popular televised sports these days is poker. I can't believe how much people love to watch poker on TV. One popular poker game is Texas Hold'em.   The critical question in that game is: "Are you all in?"

That's the question that Jesus has for you and me.    "Are you all in?"   If we want a full salvation, we're going to have to give Him our whole lives. Since we are created by God anyway, it's still a great deal.

be blessed today.

pax Christi,

sp

Follow us on Twitter: @TheConnectionLI
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On the Potter's Wheel

2011-09-19T12:58:00.001-04:00

The Potter and the Clay

The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD saying, ² “Arise and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will announce My words to you.” ³ Then I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was, making something on the ^[a]wheel. ⁴ But the vessel that he was making of clay was spoiled in the hand of the potter; so he remade it into another vessel, as it pleased the potter to make.
⁵ Then the word of the LORD came to me saying, ⁶ “Can I not, O house of Israel, deal with you as this potter does?” declares the LORD. “Behold, like the clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel. ⁷ (from Jeremiah 18)

Sometimes in ministry as in life, one can feel as if your head is spinning: all the competing demands, presses for ROI, people, processes and projects, all vying for your little 168 hours each week.

For me, just a moment ago it was summer. I blinked, and it's nearly Fall. Am I the only one here who feels like this?   Some time back it came to me, I received an epiphany:

"If you feel like your head is spinning, don't be surprised. You may just be on the potter's wheel."

God uses whatever He wants, whenever He wants, to conform us into the image of His Son, Jesus. Right now, God is using the narratives of people, and their trials and tribulations, to shape my heart.
I am meeting people whose lives are breaking my heart.   Surprisingly, I find this is a good thing, because when my heart is broken, more people can fit into it.

One such person is Katy (name changed for her protection) We met a couple of years ago, at a prayer event we sponsored. She was among the last of those to come over for prayer that day. We just clicked. You know when you meet someone, and they just "click?"   For almost two years, we have been corresponding via email and text messsaging; calamity after calamity have occurred in her life, or her family, so that she has felt so badly that she has not been able to serve in ministry.

During one of our conversations, it became clear that she was indeed serving, right there in the context of her family.   We often think of those "good works" that God has for us can only be performed in the four walls of the church, on Wednesday night, or Sunday morning.   Our lives are actually more than that; the 168 hours that God provides for us each week take place in a variety of contexts: home, work, the gym, the market. All of those hours are given for us to worship in; this kinds of thinking happen to me when I am on the potter's wheel.

He is always reshaping our thinking to conform to His good will, for His good pleasure.

God wants to use all of us, everywhere, anywhere. What has God said to you on the potter's wheel?

be blessed today,

pax Christi,

sp

Follow us on Twitter: @TheConnectionLI
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New Trend for the New Normal: Reverse Mentoring

2011-09-18T20:40:00.002-04:00

I was sharing this morning with a church organist, who still faithfully writes program notes for the music played in the weekly service. The notes were exquisite, and just as faithfully he led from the choir loft, he cheerfully deferred to the worship band.

These days, I am often not the teacher. I am the learner. I learn from the current generation of Christian faith leaders who are leading growing congregations.

Mark Batterson
Mark Driscoll
Andy Stanley
Erwin McManus
.....among others. I still have my share of senior mentors. But I can also learn from those who are younger and wiser.

Often, I learn more. The position of the learner is the best.

Happy Friday!

2011-09-16T05:23:00.002-04:00

Happy Friday! I pray that the Lord is blessing you during these beautiful days we are having! It is glorious to see how wonderful nature speaks to the love of our Creator.

"The heavens declare the glory of God, says the Psalmist (Ps 19:1)

Guess who else displays the glory of God.....that's right, YOU!

YOU display the glory of God, as He renews your mind, day by day, through the Word of God.

THIS Sunday afternoon, we Gather for worship at the Crowne Plaza - Long Island Hotel, 1730 North Ocean Avenue, Holtsville NY - exit 63, LIE, off the south service road. We sure hope that you can join us! If you are far away, you could sure pray for us.....
Here's what we've got for you:

ConnectKids Activities for children ages 4-11

Casual, laid-back, fun atmosphere

Ways to meet new people

Inspiring, modern worship

Relevant Word for your life.

This is the third installment in our SoulPrint series, in which you can begin to discover, "What does your heart long for?"

God is doing some great things among us. Don't want you to miss out on a Word for your life. Hope to see you Sunday afternoon!!

Thank you for 10,000 pageviews!

2011-09-16T05:19:00.000-04:00

As of right now, 10,014 to be exact!
Thank you for reading openingsalvo so frequently, you faithful readers from around the world!

The milestone is a great affirmation: that day after day,months into years, you realize that you have a voice, and that your voice is heard.

Let us pray for those serving Christ underground, whose voices are most often kept to cautious whispers, who meet in homes, in caves, beyond the eye of oppressive governments.

Let us pray for the modern-day martyrs, who are brutally murdered throughout the world, who keep faithful unto death, who live by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony.

Let us pray for the familes of those who have been silenced with the sword, whose voices we hear no more, but now join with the heavenly choir: that their legacies of faith will live on in the next generation.

"Let this be recorded for a generation to come, so that a people yet to be created may praise the LORD:"
(Psalm 102:18)

Abba,
May this blog, our radio show, be a reflection of how the good hand of the LORD is blessing us. May we continue to refresh others from the love of God shed abroad in our hearts. May every viewer, every listener, every person in our worship, every reader of our emails, be blessed and inspired by the Word of God. LORD, we thank you for the voice of truth. Sanctify us by the truth, for your Word is truth.
Thank you, Jesus, for walking the path to Calvary, that you, although you had no sin, became sin for us, so that we could obtain the righteousness of God.
Thank you Holy Spirit, who provides us with strength, guides us into all truth, gives us right to become children of God and the power to display Your glory.

Make us ready for revival, Lord. Will you not revive us again? Thank you, Lord
In Jesus Name, Amen.

Thanks for following! Be blessed today.

pax Christi,

sp

Listening to the Voice of God

2011-09-14T19:57:00.000-04:00

There is no better skill one can receive than to hear and respond the Voice of God. Just think about the range of decisions you make every day. Imagine how adept you would become if each of those decision points were governed by your hearing the Voice of God? Conflicts resolved, many avoided. Relationships strengthened.

"I know my sheep, and my sheep know Me. My sheep know my voice, and they go in and out and find green pasture." ---Jesus

There is the knowing, the intimate wonder of being in and falling in love with Jesus, over and over and over, that brings us into the kind of relationship. Knowing Him is like sharing pillow talk; those soft, intimate whispers you share with your spouse.

How do we get better at this? Let's chat about it.

Be blessed today.

pax Christi

sp

Kingdom Connection podcast is back!

2011-09-14T07:54:00.001-04:00

Beginning this Friday, at 10:00 AM EDT, Kingdom Connection podcast is coming back to Blog Talk Radio. It's been a great summer, and as we continue into this season, we look forward to what God is doing.

Jesus calls us friends, because a friend gets to know the master's business. Jesus wants to give you the inside track on what He is doing in the earth. Kingdom Connection podcasts are inside tracks on what God is doing with us in Suffolk County, NY and beyond!

We are continuing with our Relational TOOLKIT series - how to maximize your relationships for God.

Going on with some episodes from our Shape Your Soul series, we'll talk about the means God has given for us to be molded in the image of Jesus in everyday life.

And, then we'll podcast out current SoulPrint series. In this series you will get clarity about your mission, get a glimpse into your divine destiny, and come out with a laser-beam strategy to live holy, happy, and productively in this world, all while being a vessel for God to expand the Kingdom of God.

To access the archives: just click on this link http://www.blogtalkradio.com/connectionldr
There is also an BlogTalkRadio player embedded on this site.
I hope and pray that you will enjoy the podcasts

be blessed today,

pax Christi,

sp

More on what I learned on the 10th Anniversary of 9-11

2011-09-13T06:16:00.000-04:00

For years after the incident, I would attend a party in Chinatown with 9-11 volunteers, first responders, and neighbors to the site. We'd eat, and drink, and recollect, and cry and hug until it was time to go home. And even after, for a bit.

I am really jonesing for some real Peking duck, but I haven't been downtown in some time. Couldn't get to the memorial, wasn't invited. (I'm still a little burnt on Bloomberg's decision, but I guess I understand.) I guess I can't just walk the ground yet.

But serving on Sunday at our National Healing Center really brought healing to me. Another witness that service heals, that a person who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.

Among the therapy dogs, the counselors, all the helpers, I remembered a conversation I had several years ago with Mia, a good friend, whom I served alongside at Ground Zero. As we were walking one time, I asked her, "What is the value of sorrow?" We were both perplexed for a moment, as the pain of 9-11 was still very fresh. When I ask people this question, they often react. "What do you mean,?" "There is no value to sorrow."

But there is. Grief, loss and sorrow enlarges our hearts. When all is well, we can tend to skip through life, doing normal things, spinning in our orbits, not much time for those outside our circles.

When trouble comes, and we feel loss, there is a death to the flesh, the old operating system that works on the "It's all about me" paradigm. Loss and death point us to resurrection and other eternal things. Nobody wants trouble, but nobody, oh nobody, gets to go it alone.

When trouble comes, virtues like courage, loyalty, honor, empathy begin to emerge within the human community. When trouble comes, we work better together, because we are galvanized by a great cause, something that is larger than all of us.

This is how grief, loss and sorrow enlarge our hearts.

When our heart is broken, we can fit more people into it.

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. "

Standing on the Promises

2011-09-09T07:50:00.002-04:00

Good morning, beloved! As you wake up this morning and watch the morning news, so filled with dread, please remember that God is with you. The world will want to fill your view with despair, but God is the stronghold of your life, and we walk by faith and not by sight.

"God is our refuge and our strength, a very present help in times of trouble."

(Psalm 46:1)

You may be waiting for an solution to a problem in your life. You may have been waiting. As you wait, remember that God is with you, and He always gives good things to his children at the proper time.

When you are facing a problem, find the promise in God's Word concerning your situation, stand on it in faith: ask, seek, and knock, and you will see the salvation of the Lord.

If you need a promise today, here's one you can count on (from Isaiah 43)

¹
But now, this is what the LORD says—
he who created you, Jacob,
he who formed you, Israel:
“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
I have summoned you by name; you are mine. ² When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you;
and when you pass through the rivers,
they will not sweep over you.
When you walk through the fire,
you will not be burned;
the flames will not set you ablaze.
You know, I was talking to a friend last night, and as we were discussion this whole idea of standing on the promises of God, my friend said, "There are a lot of people who don't know how to get a promise from God's Word. How do you get a promise to stand on?"

Well, that got me to thinking. Let me find some resources.

1) There are lists of Scriptures that are grouped by topic or situation -

http://www.bibleinfo.com/en/topics

2) Here is a web page with promises from each book of the Bible -

http://bible.org/article/selected-promises-god-each-book-bible

3) This is a blog that gives you a Bible promise a day -

http://www.365promises.com/

My favorite Bible promise book, on CBD -

http://www.christianbook.com/my-little-book-of-promises/9781869200626/pd/200626

Hope to see you all on 09.18.2011 - We are planning for the next talk in the SoulPrint series: "What does your heart long for?"

Don't miss it - I guarantee that you will hear a Word for your life! BE blessed this weekend!

Shalom, pax Christi,

Affirmation: What a feeling!

2011-09-09T00:31:00.002-04:00

When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3:16-17)

When Jesus was at his baptism, the Holy Spirit appeared on him as a dove, and there was a voice from heaven: "This is my Son, whom I love. With Him I am well-pleased!" This is more than an "Atta, boy" for a job well done. This is the Father, affirming His Son. We see in this one sentence the Father's affirmation of Jesus - in position, purpose, and pleasure.

Jesus is clearly positioned in this affirmation in relation to the Father; this is MY son! If you ever saw my son, from the time he was born, and you looked at him and then at me, you would affirm that a DNA test is not needed. Just one look at Chaz and you knew: This is his son. Looking at Jesus, we get a full look at the Father: Jesus Himself said, "When you see me, you see the Father." The writer to the Hebrews describes Jesus as the express representation of the Father- a look-alike. Jesus position is clear from the words of the Father.

God declares the unique role, the purpose of Jesus's coming and calling by saying, "This is my SON." In the family the firstborn carries the responsiblity of the Father to keep the line alive, and to keep the posterity of the line intact. Jesus, as the Son, is responsiblity to make other sons in order to keep the line alive. The writer to the Hebrews tells about Jesus: "For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers." (Romans 8:29) (God) he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will--Ephesians 1:5

As the most joyous being in the universe, the Lord of all creation smiled down on Jesus, and declared His pleasure of Jesus for all to hear, "With Him I am well-pleased." I love Him, says Yahweh Elohim. I love Him! So often, with our earthly parents, we get the "goodies" as a reward for a job well-done. The Father spoke these words at the beginning of Jesus' ministry - He hadn't done anything yet. Up to now, Jesus was cutting wood, and shaping stone. This was affirmation for what was to come, but the love was unconditional - no limits, no fine print, no gimmicks. Just straight up love.

Love not for what He had done, but for simply Who He Is, in relation to the Father.

Try giving some unconditional affirmation to someone today, not for what they do, but for who they are. Watch the smile appear on their face. Your words will bring healing to someone, I promise.

Our next Worship Gathering is September 18, Sunday afternoon, 3 pm at the Crowne Plaza, in Holtsville, NY You will get an answer to the question, "What does your heart long for?"
You need affirmation. We got it here. We are all about making the Connections to maximize your life!

Follow The Connection on Twitter: @TheConnectionLI

Be blessed today,

pax Christi,
sp

twitter.com/TheConnectionLI

My feelings on 9-11, 10 years later

2011-09-06T18:09:00.001-04:00

I am really upset that Mayor Bloomberg is not allowing clergy and first responders at Ground Zero for the tenth anniversary. When the towers were struck, they were among the first there. Now, ten years later, it's an event for cultural elites, not the blue-collar folks who moved the steel and dealt with the victims. When the bell rings again, they will be there. No question. No hesitation.

Even tonight, I was remembering being part of the honor guard for the first anniversary, that strong wind whipping the red dust into the air, swirling and lifting out of the site. Our blue uniforms were covered with it. With our lost family members. There are neuropsychologists who say that we carry our families within us, in our own neurologies; we carried our martyrs on our blue serge, on our hands, in our eye sockets, and everywhere else the wind carried us. Going back uptown, the wind was just as fierce, as a reminder to us that 9-11 affected all of us, not just those who weren't granted the luxury of amnesia north of 23rd Street.

No matter where we were, or where we are, we carry the 2,819 with us. We carry the 422,000 New Yorkers treated for post-traumatic stress disorder also.

I probably won't watch most of the specials coming up commerorating the event. Just can't stand the commercialism, although for most millenials, 9-11 is a memory, and they will need these productions to remember anything. For most East Coast millenials, Hurricane Irene was the closest they had ever come to a catastrophic event.

Staying vigilant today will prevent another event of this scope. Staying prayerful will keep us close to our Creator, that we will have divine protection, and turn the trajectory of this nation toward righteousness.

All this week, we will hear speeches that will end with "God bless America."

My final plea is, "America, will you bless God?"

"Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people." Proverbs 14:34

Back to Life, Back to Reality:

2011-09-01T08:11:00.000-04:00

We live in a new reality. There are disaster zones all over the globe. Many of my colleagues are still caring for people displaced by Irene, by tornadoes Joplin, Missouri, or by wildfires in the Western United States. Others are still working in Port-au-Prince, Japan, and post-tsunami countries around the Pacific Rim.

Right here in the coastal flood zones on Long Island, we are helping people recover their hopes and homes through disaster recovery centers.
The Salvation Army operates in over 120 countries, and provides practical help and spiritual hope through a wide variety of programs, including disaster relief. As a non-governmental organization (NGO), The Salvation Army is not eligible for government cost reimbursement programs.

So, in order to continue the work of helping those surviving disaster, we depend on you.
To get the latest updates on disaster relief efforts, check out blog.salvationarmyusa.org or disaster.salvationarmyusa.org

To make a donation, you can call 1-800-SAL-ARMY. Just so you know, when you label your donation "disaster relief" that's where it goes. If even you would like to label your gift "Irene," or "Haiti", it goes right to the fund support that particular effort.

You can also text NYSA to 52000 to help The Salvation Army.

I know most people are hard-pressed to give. There is a spiritual dynamic at work here: One of the last words of Jesus to us is "It is more blessed to give than it is to receive." (Acts 20:35) There is a blessing that you receive when you give to help the poor, it's a principle of the Kingdom of God. As you give, you will not go without. God wouldn't have it that way.

So thank you. Really, thank you! We appreciate your gifts. We will use them to help the poor.

Shalom,

sp

How we are responding post-Irene on Long Island

2011-08-30T06:33:00.000-04:00

Hi there - Really have not had time to post, since Irene came into town. It's been a hectic weekend, planning and coordinating our local response, helping sister agencies to provide help to those evicted by the coming storm, and to help those who couldn't back to their homes after Hurricane Irene hit.

Locally, we are proving recovery resources to residents in Mastic Beach, a low-lying coastal community on Long Island, that is still without power and traditionally underserved.

You can read some of the stories from all over the East Coast on our blog: blog.salvationarmyusa.org

And, since this is only the beginning of hurricane season, you can get preparedness and other resources on disaster.salvationarmy.org

If you want to give to disaster relief efforts around the world, efforts where The Salvation Army is still active, you can call 1-800-SAL-ARMY. If you are Long Island, you can call our office 631-363-6100 to donate.

As the Mastic Beach operation ensues, we'll get you more information: if you are local, we'll get you info on how to volunteer, or help us get in-kind resources.

Pray for us as we bring good help to a bunch of good people going through a rough time.

Shalom,

sp

How to Take Care of Yourself

2011-08-27T04:18:00.000-04:00

In an emergency situation, taking care of your self is not a selfish act, it insures that you have resources to help others.
First, you must be aware of your emotional state:
You may be experiencing a wide variety of feelings yourself, as you prepare for a critical incident:
You may be experiencing a higher degree of anxiety.
You might feel like it is hard to get moving.
You may not be able to sit still. You may be more sensitive to normal situations.
You may find yourself becoming angry over things that you would not normally become angry about.. Or, you may feel a kind of general sadness.   This is all normal for the kind of event we may be facing.

For those of you who served 9-11, you may have what is called an "anniversary reaction," you may begin recalling memories of Ground Zero you haven't thought of in a while. Whether or not you are experiencing these things, the primary person for whom you are responsible is YOU, Without you, your organization cannot marshal the best response to the critical incident. You are responsible to keep yourself safe, physically and emotionally.

Here are some things each of us can do to take responsibility for our own self-care.
Pray: Don't have to tell a bunch of ministers and leaders about prayer, but a prayer life has emotional benefits. A simple walking prayer as you go, like "Jesus, walk with me" can bring benefits to body and soul.

Laugh: There are emotional benefits to laughter, the Bible tells us so.

Exercise: The physical exertion gives us good chemicals for our brains to function well.

Read:   Read good books. Read the Bible. The Psalms are our emotional dictionary, and helps us to express ourselves.

Journal: For some people, it helps to write your feelings down, because once your feelings are on paper, they are out of your head.

Rest:   Do your best to sleep your eight hours.

Eat:   Eat good. Eat good food, moderately.

Drink: Water that is. Poland Spring. H2O.

This is how we prepare to answer the call. Give yourself these simple gifts, and you will have resources to assist others through a critical incident. This is how we overcome.
May the peace of God, which passes all understanding, guard our hearts and our minds in Christ Jesus,

Shalom,
sp

Beginnings of my process from 2011 Global Leadership Summit

2011-08-24T19:31:00.004-04:00

As you may know, the Global Leadership Summit is the high point of my leadership year. It is a time of exhilaration, inspiration, information, and for me, an opporunity to give and receive impartation. There is a holy, spiritual dimension to leadership, and there no better chance to connect and inspire your team than at the Global Leadership Summit. More than inspiration, the GLS is the best place to get whole-team world-class leadership instruction.

Without vision, the people cast off restraint.....the NIV renders this familiar verse. We need the discipline of vision to create and channel energy. I usually come back from the GLS with a leadership "high", pumped with adrenaline. This time, I returned much more subdued. Yet, the leadership vision that is beginning to appear begins with "High!" Interesting. So far, the vision is coming like this, in our priorities for the coming season.

(Create) High visibility/Greater footprint in the region
(Recruit) High capacity volunteers
(Demonstrate) High Gospel - undergirding of everything (Matt.4:23, 9:35)
Living it.
Doing it.
Sharing it.

As we work and watch and pray in the region God has given us, I remember one quote from Steven Furtick: "If the vision around you does not match the vision within you, you have to close your eyes and remember what God has said."

Abba, help us.

sp

Faith at Work

2011-08-23T22:17:00.001-04:00

I'm taking a little break from recording podcasts, to get back to my first medium, the blog.              When I do get back to the podcast, I'll be resuming the spiritual formation series, "Holy Habits."

Having recently spoken in a corporate environment, (see the previous entry) I was sharing my experience with a friend, who is CEO of a firm here in town.   As I was sharing the plans of this gift company to create a work environment so that staffers become fully devoted followers of Jesus, my friend's eyes were full of interest and desire.

You see, aligning the work rules and job roles into a discipleship paradigm allows for good pastoral care, which encompasses coaching, as well as firing. Work is worship.   Avodah, began its use to describe slavery, in which the person is fully immersed as an object toward production as its only goal. Later, that word was used to describe worship, study of Torah, and eventually the restoration of Israel. As the use of avodah is expanded, the worshipful nature of work is also expanded across all settings.

Some people are more expressive of their faith, articles of clothing or desk ornaments are the means to integrate faith.

Others are more about proclamation, and are active in verbalizing faith, to the end of convincing others.

Still others are more interested in the ethical dimension: fair trade, anti-trust, consumer protection, worker safety are examples of this particular faith integration.

And there are others, who will express their faith in a contemplative role, via secret prayer, anonymous acts of kindness, quietness, performing contemplative exercises or spiritual disciplines to increase personal virtue.

However you are integrating your faith at work, know a couple of things.
First, faith is not limited to corporate worship, nor it is limited to private personal time. Faith is marketplace-driven and it is meant to be public
Second, faith is not limited to what happens in houses of worship.

Last year, I heard an interview with Peter Xhao Chao, an economist sent by The Republic of China to study American business to learn the secret of their success. He studied all the companies from the early colonies, through the Agricultural Era, the Industrial Revolution, to the Information Age. Peter learned that the secret to American business success was its alignment with Christian moral values. Along the way, Peter became a Christian. Peter made his report to the Chinese government, and they accepted his results. Now, he and his cohorts run "Transformation Through The Cross" workshops across mainland China.

So, don't be surprised how God works in you to share your faith at work. Just remember, Jesus used a holy axe, a holy plane, and a blessed chisel to carve wood and stone.

. . it is written, ’Be holy, for I am holy’ —1 Peter 1:16

Working in the Glory

2011-08-16T16:32:00.002-04:00

Text: Exodus 33 - "Show me your glory"

Fromour brief look at the life of Moses, we are left with the critical question:"What will distinguish us from theother peoples of the earth?"

Theanswer to Moses' question is the presenceof God. Moses was desperate to haveYahweh accompany him; he was determined not to travel another step without Him. Unfortunately, there are companies that call themselves Christian where the "talk" does not match the "walk."

This is not the case with you. You are aware of the power of God's Word, thejoy and gift of giving, and the cost of discipleship as a firm. You are also painfully aware of the cost ofnon-discipleship, and it is this pain that you desire to avoid at all costs.

Theanswer to Moses' question is the Presence of God. It is the descending glory, the weight of Hispresence. Jesus is better than Moses,because Jesus is the exact representation of the presence of the Father. Jesus leaves the Spirit of God with thedisciples, and He leaves the same Holy Spirit to us.

Itis the Presence that changes us, makes us new creations, and makes usdifferent.

Howare you distinguished from the other firms around you?

· In your business rules?

· In your customer service?

· In your mission outreach? (CalledCorporate Social Responsibility elsewhere)

· In your workflow?

· In your workplacecommunication?

· Simply, in your love for the causeand for one another?

Often the disconnect in "Christianbusiness” is in the values we all adapt from business that are at conflict fromthe Bible. Sometimes it may feel like acreative tension, and other times like you are crossing a vast wilderness toget to the truth.

And it is in that wildernesswhere you live.

Hereis a quote from Lance Wallnau that may serve to reframe your perception of thewilderness:

"Thewilderness is a special place where God takes you aside to rekindle the divineromance, upgrade your identity and expand your commission. Every great thingGod ever did had come out of the wilderness: Moses to deliver the Jews, Joshua to conquer the promised land, John the Baptist to reveal Jesus, who came outof His wilderness experience to redeem the world."

Godmeets us in the wilderness. Like the"rogue waves" that Jesus got Peter through, Jesus' Presence walkswith us in the wilderness as well.

RememberingMatthew 14, and the account of Peter walking on water,

1- One word fromJesus, His command to Peter "Come," changed water into solid ground.

2- Keeping his eyeson Jesus kept Peter's focus on the mission (“in the face of Christ – see 2 Cor.4)

3- The endowment offaith that Peter received kept him moving from one step to the next.

Beat peace, beloved, as you travel from glory to glory, from strength tostrength.

Updates on Day 2 of the Global Leadership Summit

2011-08-12T22:09:00.000-04:00

Day 2 was a mind-blower. I will be sure to blog more on this after I have processed it all. For those who are unaware of the Global Leadership Summit, it is a 2-day catalytic event sponsored by the Willow Creek Association, and Willow Creek Community Church. The Summit exists for the purpose of "transforming Christian leaders around the world with vision and skill development for the sake of the local church."

This link will take you to the highlights of Day 1, some free resources, and registration to next year's Summit.

There is so much truth, presented in such a dynamic way, that it takes some time to digest and metabolize it. But I have a plan. Whatever from this experience I share with my staff, I will develop within a "crawl-walk-run" paradigm, so that whether or not the person is an accomplished leader, he or she can gain some level of skill development from what I have been blessed to experience.

To my fellow GLS'ers: Allow me to recommend getting the Summit Team Edition. You will have the leadership resources to guide your team all year long. I hope to bring my whole team to the Summit next year. I hope you do too.

Updates on Day 1 of the Global Leadership Summit

2011-08-12T06:28:00.002-04:00

Tons of ways to connect to what's happening at Day 1 of the Global Leadership Summit: wcablog.com, twitter.com/wcagls#wcagls, or facebook.com/wcagls

Willow Creek (wcagls) on Twitter

twitter.com

Willow Creek (wcagls) is on Twitter. Sign up for Twitter to follow Willow Creek (wcagls) and get their latest updates

I'm really psyched about the Global Leadership Summit

2011-08-10T09:52:00.003-04:00

I will be attending the Global Leadership Summit LIVE at Willow Creek for the first time! I am really stoked! From my local buddies, I hear that it is sold out, and more than 7500 people will be there!

If you can you want to connect to a simulcast location, just check out http://www.willowcreek.com/events/leadership for a list of host sites around the world, walk-in registration is still being encouraged at some of these sites.

Today, I will be praying specifically for those who attend to have hearts open and prepared to receive.
I will be blogging on the specific events, speakers, and my takeaways from this rich experience.

You can also follow my spontaneous tweets as well:
twitter.com/TheConnectionLI
twitter.com/SuffolkSalArmy
twitter.com/chazsdad

If you already following one of these Twitter accounts, you are going to get updates as fast as I can keyboard.

Be blessed today. May the Lord bless and inspire your leadership, as you lead right where you are.
pax Christi,
sp

Jesus and Work

2011-08-08T08:17:00.001-04:00

It is clear from the Gospel narratives that Jesus functioned with a rhythm, harmony and balance of life.

Followingafter Jesus: Wesee Jesus praying, and we listen to his teaching on the life of intimacy withGod. Wesee Jesus battling Satan in the wilderness, and we listen to the teaching onthe importance of a pure heart. Wesee Jesus ministering in great power, and we listen to his teaching on thecomfort, wisdom and strength that come from the Holy Spirit. Wesee Jesus helping the sick and needy, and we hear his teaching on theimportance of loving care for our neighbor. Wesee Jesus proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of heaven, and we listen tohim reading from the Scriptures. Wesee Jesus integrating sacred and secular, while observing the ceremonies offaith, and enjoying the celebrations of life. Wesee Jesus from the view of the Scriptures, in harmony and in love with theFather, balanced in his specific mission, with clarity of mind and passion ofheart. Unfortunately, we don't get a glimpse of Jesus after 12 years of age, when he stayed behind at the temple. We don't get to see Jesus functioning as a carpenter; we do get him as Teacher, and the Sermon on the Mount gives us an ethical framework for life.

Many of us struggle with a "compartmentalized" Christianity. Not every thought and every action is brought under the headship of Christ. Work, in particular, seems difficult to integrate. Usually, the value structure used at work, (that is, work-week activity) is derived from secular leadership, corporate management, which can place profit motive and answering to shareholders above other things.

The difficulty with work is that it is distinguished from toil. Work, from a Genesis standpoint, is more like creative play. Literally, work was no sweat in Eden before the Fall. And, even though, we don't see Jesus at work, from his life we see an evenness of tempo. The sweat we do see from Jesus, in the garden at Gethsemane was real agony, sweating drops of blood. The only toil we see from Jesus, we see in his finished work, the work of redemption.

Jesus tells us that the work of God is this: to believe in the One whom God has sent. So how do we express our faith at work? We will explore this a bit more down the road.

How can your work become creative play?

Update on National Night Out

2011-08-04T09:40:00.002-04:00

We had a great time at National Night Out. Thanks for all the volunteers who came to help out! Lots of folks from the neighborhood came out to support local law enforcement and all the community-based organizations.

We brought out the "Free Prayer" tent, gave out lollipops, CD's, tracts and New Testaments. We had a few takers, many of whom had never received a word of prophecy before. All said some version of "You're right on the money!" One fellow I recall, James, asked us to pray for his son, who had just returned from Afghanistan, and needed a long course of therapy.

A few kids came over for the lollipops, a couple of folks visited because the "Free Prayer" sign got their attention.

One family who visited us a few times kept bringing people over to receive prayer. Gotta love that.

We gave a lot of invitations for the our August Worship Gathering - which by the way is Sunday, August 21st, 3 pm at the Crowne Plaza in Holtsville, Long Island, NY (exit 63, off the Long Island Expressway, south service road)

Be blessed today!

How do you integrate your faith at work?

2011-08-02T07:38:00.001-04:00

I am preparing a set of talks on the subject and I would love to have your comments.

We are going to National Night Out

2011-08-02T07:38:00.000-04:00

The great people at our local Target invited us to take part in National Night Out, which is a fun night to gather with neighborhood folks, law enforcement and community-based organizations.

We'll be putting up the Prayer Tent, and giving out some free prayer, along with information about our faith community, The Connection, and our existing service programs.

We'll be giving out prayers for families, thanking God for his protection.

Connection Updates - "Free" Prayer

2011-07-25T17:43:00.004-04:00

We are going ahead with the "Free Prayer" scheme for August. We are in the process of scouting out locations - just found one near the Cablevision in Port Jefferson Station - and not too far from home. When we get permission to use the vacant property, we'll set up a 10-by-10 canopy, and these 6-by-4 signs that you can see from about 1/4 mile away. Some of our peeps will staff the tent, with information about The Connection, free Bibles, and other stuff.

The coolest part is when people stop by, they are usually waiting for the "Gospel sales pitch," which of course we have, but it's not the main thing - we simply serve up prayer, and then we pray for whatever they want prayer for. We mostly listen, and listen for some keys to help us focus in on what God wants to download to us about them.

Often the time ends up being a "power encounter," where God downloads a need for healing or a word of knowledge about a person or a situation, sometimes in an image, or a word, or just a feeling.

So, here's the quick scoop on how we listen, and then how we pray.http://tinyurl.com/3ck7q6f
See the link between our listening guide and the parable of the lost son in Luke 15.

Be blessed today,

sp

New edition of Kingdom Connection podcast is UP!

2011-07-22T18:48:00.003-04:00

Did you know?

That right here, on this openingsalvo blog, you can hear the most recent edition of the "Kingdom Connection" podcast on the embedded BlogTalkRadio player?

For the past 4 weeks, we have been sharing from the Relational TOOLKIT series: practical tools from the Word of God to maximize your relationships, especially Relationship # 1 - Jesus and YOU!

So, feel free to check it out, leave a comment, and if you really like it, you can follow the podcast!
Thanks! Be blessed today!

Heatwave!

2011-07-22T08:07:00.001-04:00

Most of the US is in a heat alert through Saturday, affecting more than 100 million people. Seeing the international weather this morning, most of the Middle East is facing near 100-degree temperatures today, some countries over 100 degrees today.

Where water is available, you will want to drink as much water as you can to prevent heat-related conditions. To prevent heat-stroke, you will want to take some preventative measures:

Drink water, even when not thirsty

Wear protective coverings on your head

Refrain from wearing dark clothing

Put on SPF 50 sunscreen.

Get into a cool environment - find a local cooling center. In New York City, go to NYC.gov or call 311

When we face these conditions, we don't just sit there, we do something.

What are when we face these conditions in the culture at large?

We live in a culture where wrong is deemed right, where you can get away with murder.

There is a growing heatwave of moral relativism, a growing red tide of apathy.

Jesus Christ: more than fire insurance, more than moral guide, He is the Savior from sin, self and sorrow. Got Jesus? He's so much more than a "get out of hell free" card.

When you believe in your heart that Jesus Christ is Lord of your life, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

That is, through faith in Jesus Christ, you can receive access to a new life, eternal life, and be blessed, forgiven, freed from sin, and into an inheritance of faith, favor, and new relationship with God, free from enmity and division.

Get on the new wave. Get Jesus. Get eternal life.

Healing comes in community!

2011-07-10T18:26:00.003-04:00

So often, we feel isolated, like nobody cares.We often feel like nobody is walking with us in our sorrow. Perhaps that's because you've closed the doors of your soul to others, out of fear of being hurt yet again. Perhaps you are just too tired to wait for anyone to care.

Once upon a time, there was a man, a man with disabilities, sitting by a pool in place called Bethesda. For thirty-eight years, he sat by this pool known for its healing properties, waiting for the angel to stir the waters so he could get in. Every time the waters stirred, someone made their way first into the waters, and received their healing.

When the Prophet came there and encountered the man, He asked about why he had not gone in. The man replied, "There was no one here to help me."

Can you imagine this? Thirty-eight years before, this man had come for healing. He knew where the healing was, he just couldn't get enough strength to go it alone the last few feet to get in the water at the right time. Perhaps if a kind stranger, someone with an ounce of compassion would come by......and just lend a hand, a strong arm for just a few minutes, a few precious moments......One week, no one. One month, six months, a year...nobody. Five years, ten years, twenty years, not one person would help. Thirty years, 35, 36, 37, 38.....would you be hopeful anymore?

Hope deferred makes a heart sick, and some of you may be in a position like that today.......If you think about it though, that stranger would have to wait for quite some time until the waters stirred again. In order to help the man by the pool, that person would have to have had more than an ounce of compassion, she would have to to give a great gift of time to wait, wait, wait...until the waters stirred.

During this interminable waiting, along comes Jesus. With a word from Jesus, there was no need to wait for the angel to come. The Savior had come, and said to the man, "Rise, take up your mat and walk."

Your healing is coming. Jump in the pool. We'll help. At The Connection, the compassionate people to help you get in the pool are here.

The people to walk along side you and help you grow in faith are there too.

...but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.......

At The Connection, we meet in the ancient way, meeting in homes. We are looking for people who are willing to open their lives and share an hour a week with us - at a diner, Starbucks, or a local library to share in the Bible, in fellowship, in faith and friendship with us. Help us help you. We're willing to give the time. To you.

We meet together every first, second and fourth Sunday nights at our home, but we'll come to your home, or meet at another place.

We want to create healing pools with Jesus for you, your friends, family and neighbors. Would you help us? Would you be the one with an ounce of compassion to open your life to another?

Host a Connection Community Group today! We'll help you.

Why not? Let's watch the waters stir and our friends get healed!

If you are interested, comment in this blog OR email us at theconnectionlongisland@gmail.com

Be blessed today.

sp

New edition of Kingdom Connection is up!

2011-07-08T20:19:00.000-04:00

There is a embedded player right here on the site. Check it out! Be blessed!

Randomosity Friday - musings of a madman preacher, on the edge of the lunatic fringe....

2011-07-08T20:18:00.001-04:00

Why is 50 called "middle age"? How many of us live to 100?
Why do we drive on parkways, and park in driveways?
Why are sweetbreads called that? They are neither sweet nor bread.
Why is the Cross Bronx called an "expressway"? You can only negotiate the express lane at a speed faster than 17 mph from 3-5 AM! The naming of that road is the ultimate audacity. It should be called a "crawlway."
Why do we call the system that handles criminals the "criminal justice" system? Don't the non-criminal types need justice?
What's in a name?
Bernie Madoff "made off" with billions, at least for a time.
Casey Anthony was acquitted of the major charges of her landmark "case"
OJ Simpson never hawked orange juice, never played baseball, but in the slammer for stealing baseball cards?
Why is it that most things considered right in the Bible are wrong in society?
Why is that a minority liberal opinion in this country changes legislation and judicial opinions, but a minority conservative opinion is considered intolerant?
Why can't we engage in a civil discourse, agreeing to disagree.
Why is truth considered stranger than fiction? Because often fiction is sold as truth.
If humans are to have evolved from monkeys, and weaker species are to be overun by stronger ones, why are there still monkeys?
Why is it that a growing number of Americans consider themselves to be Christians, but will never cross the threshold of a church this weekend?
Why is it that these same unchurched Americans prefer streaming video and Christian media to real live worship?
Why is it that those who claim to emulate the Servant of all, prefer to be served than to serve?
Why can't we act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with God (Micah 6:8)?

These are but a few of my current ravings. Subscribe, and comment so you can talk me off the blogospheric ledge.

Hey! Do you want to subscribe??

2011-07-07T14:34:00.000-04:00

Just had a convo with a brother who said, "How do you subscribe to this thing?" So, just in case you want to subscribe to openingsalvo, just go to the bottom of the page and clik "Follow with Google Friend Connect." Keep scrolling, it's way down there.

You can also get this blog as an RSS feed. We'll be back tomorrow with a fresh podcast of Kingdom Connection on BlogTalkRadio. You can get it right here in the embedded player on the blog.

July updates: Radio blast, new talk series, cool stuff to do

2011-07-05T19:06:00.002-04:00

Right here on this blog, you can listen to the latest episode of the our radio program, Kingdom Connection. You can also get to the archived episodes via the embedded player.

The latest episode of the show is the first installment of the Relational TOOLKIT series, brought to you by The Connection, brought LIVE during our monthly Worship Gatherings, 3rd Sunday afternoons of each month. This is a series that is part of our DNA, because relationships are everything!

We are getting ready for the next series, SoulPrint. I am very excited to get this series off the ground, because the material in this series is also essential to the DNA of The Connection ! See, when we are aware of how God has pre-wired us via our SoulPrint, we can be holy, happy productive and content in this world, all while building up the body of Christ and expanding the Kingdom of God!

When we have Mission Clarity, we have a glimpse into our Divine Destiny. With a Laser-Beam Strategy on how to get connected into mission and the relationships God has prepared for us, we can serve with joy.

One of our upcoming series for 2012 is SERVOLUTION!

(Can't you Kirk Franklin in the background?)

When we maximize our Connections, beginning with Connection # 1 (aka, Jesus n Me!), understand how God has wired us to serve, we can go crazy in a SERVOLUTION!

Now if you want to get Connected to what's happening right now, click this link to our activity updates:

Blessings on your summer!

paxChristi,

A Message to Americans on July 4th

2011-07-04T07:54:00.000-04:00

In the midst of the BBQ's, fireworks, and parades this weekend, remember that our Creator has endowed us with inalienable rights, among those being life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Our dependence upon Almighty God is the ground of our national identity.

Our Founding Fathers constructed the Declaration of Independence, and later, the Constitution of the United States with a foundational presupposition - the existence of and fervent belief in a God, the God expressed in the Bible, who is Creator, Governor and Sustainer of all things.

And, our Founding Fathers were so intent in granting freedom: freedom from tyranny, freedom from unjust taxation, freedom from a heavy-handed Federalism, that they even wanted to grant freedom for establishment of a state religion, although they were themselves religionists.

God does not force Himself on people, He is self-evident in creation, and revealed Himself in moral thinking, patriarchs, priests and prophets, and now has fully revealed Himself in His Son, who is the express representation of the glory of God.

We sing, "God bless America," and from over 200 years we have experienced God's grace shed abroad on this nation. In this challenging times, we find ourselves culurally adrift in this nation, having lost our mooring, and now cast upon the open seas of moral relativism.

We sing, "God has shed His grace on thee..." and we take His grace for granted. He is mighty to save, and He does not judge us as our sins deserve. But, as a nation, our corporate sins are piling up. Just the number of abortions in this nation, more dead than the casualties in all wars combined, are enough for God to bring judgment on America.

The world is forming us to its mould. We are a counter-culture, but we have been reduced to a market segment. We can't take God's grace for granted.

pax Christi,

sp

Friday's thoughts.....following the randomosity of my mind.

2011-07-01T13:38:00.001-04:00

I've been watching movies lately, looking for clips that speak to the limitless life there is in Christ Jesus, using contemporary culture. There is a fundamental wrong with this approach, because contemporary culture has no need for Jesus, historical or any other. Or, at least, no explicit need. Even with the best of contemporary movie clips, there is too much one has to ignore from the plot to make it stick in a Christian context.

I hope that fewer overtly Christian movies are coming out, and more Christian filmakers to come. Because even the best Christian movies get such limited run time, because they are marketed to the Christian market. We need filmakers who are able to exegete culture, and become "soul artists" to communicate the timeless truths of the Gospel in a post-modern context. I wonder if Jesus was thinking of the lifecycle of the "evangelical Christian market segment" as He was braiding cord to drive the moneychangers out of the Bazaars of Annas?

How do you deconstruct the market segment back into a counter-culture?

Having worked in the Christian resource ministry for a time, I often ponder on the postcards and emails I receive, promoting discipleship or children's ministry resources, with the implied hope in the marketing that kids will grow better, faster, holier with THIS material versus any other. Perhaps what is best is one significant relationship with one caring adult?

As I went outside a few minutes ago to water a planter outside my office, one that has been woefully ignored, I thought, "Jesus, Jesus, how does your vineyard grow?" As we have been in planting and recruiting mode these days, I am often at wits' end as to how to attract someone to the life that is in Christ Jesus. I am often perplexed, and wearied, like a salmon going upstream again to spawn, knowing that soon after spawning, I will die.

There is hope in the simple facts: "I am the vine, and my Father is the vinedresser." But if you've been living in the desert, all the while thinking it is an oasis, being content with sand, which appears to be a garden,"vinedressing" is seen as either purely ceremonial, unnecessary, or outdated.

Which is why "church" is good for baptisms, weddings, and funerals, and not for much else. What happens in the church the rest of the time? Who knows?

We are founding a faith community, where people can walk in faith together. Living authentically, transparently. Making faith friends for life. Be part of this community. Walk with us into something good.

Meeting Sunday nights, in the ancient way, in homes. Need places, times, more info, email me at theconnectionlongisland@gmail.com.

peace!

Today is the first day of the rest of your life!

2011-06-29T11:18:00.003-04:00

If you are like most people in world, you are in a state of flux. Wars and rumors of wars all over the world, economics in disarray, struggling to survive, trying to live an ordinary life in the midst of extraordinary times. For many of us who are in transition, even your transition is in a transition!

I am starting to get the central idea that change is the only constant that there is. Wished I'd said that - Epictetus said it first! In many denominations, this is the time of year that ministry leaders get reassigned to new ministries; for those on the move, it is a time of wistful excitement - gazing out of the windshield to what is ahead, while spending some time looking in the rear view mirror reflecting on past experiences. We are praying for your journeys, one and all.

For us at The Connection, it is the time for summer ministry. Clik on this link for our summer schedule. We are looking forward to our next Worship Gathering, July 17th, 3 pm at the Crowne Plaza in Holtsville, NY. (That's exit 63 off the Long Island Expressway, south service road!) If you are coming, bring your beach wear, because we are going to hang at Smith Point afterwards!

We are looking for some possible locations for another "Getting Away - A Spa Day with God" experience. Click on this link to what a Spa Day is like! Everyone who took part in June's Spa Day discovered a new way to connect to the ancient paths....and were really blessed!

If you would like a "Getting Away - A Spa Day with God" experience for your church or small group, just email me at berachahleadership@gmail.com

We are working on locations for our Prayer Tent this summer. Even harder is a free Saturday to put it up! If you've got a location idea for the Coram/Farmingville/Selden communities, please let me know right away!

And (don't tell anybody) we are working on doing some "man on the street" interviews with some pretty deep questions.....

If your life is in a state of flux, as are many of my friends and colleagues, remember that in this state of change, the only constant in the universe is Almighty God - Great is His faithfulness, there is no shadow of changing in Him. He is not a man that He would change His mind (See Lamentations 3:22, Numbers 3:19, Malachi 3:6, for the context) Jesus Christ takes on this same unchanging quality of the Father (Hebrews 13:8)

So, as we change: some places, others seasons, we can count on the unchanging nature of God, and His limitless love. You can depend on God. His Presence is a constant, His character is unchangeable, His promises are unbreakable, and His Kingdom is unshakable!

Blessings on you today!

pax Christi,

sp

"Spa Day" is a reality - for spiritual replenishment!

2011-06-25T21:40:00.001-04:00

Our "Getting Away - A Spa Day with God" was a great success! Thanks so much to Edward and Junetta Xavier for lending us their lovely home, beautiful gardens, and meditative fountains!

The day began with arrival. It takes time just to arrive, to begin to slow down. It was clear that during our opening time together that God had put us together for something special.

We spent some time in corporate worship, learning about lectio divina or spiritual reading.

After having lunch together, we engaged in two-plus hours of silent worship in the garden, walking through several contemplative prayer centers. Each center has a prayer focus, a corresponding Scripture, and some reflection questions for journaling. We processed that experience, and engaged in some teaching on creating a rule of life.

We then processed the silent time, had supper together, worshipped some more, and prayed for each other. I gave some take home exercises on what we had learned today, some final instructions on leaving the experience and not losing the grace, and a benediction.

If you would like to sponsor a "Spa Day with God" experience for your church or small group, we would love to come in and conduct one, designed just for you. Just email me at berachahleadership@gmail.com or make an appointment on the scheduler embedded on this site.

I am glad that everything went well. All the participants said that they had heard from God about their particular lives. We are praying that each of the people who came will be able to learn more about the spiritual disciplines, and create a spiritual replenishment strategy to keep vibrant.

A special thanks to Pat Quinn, who went the world over on a scavenger hunt for materials for the contemplative prayer centers...! Didn't find a left-handed ladle, but knowing you Pat, you would have found one! Thanks to everyone who came out!

If you are interested in personal coaching on spiritual replenishment, or if you want a "Spa Day" experience for your church or small group, feel free to email me at berachahleadership@gmail.com

be blessed today.

pax Christi,
sp

Fresh Updates on Connection Happenings

2011-06-23T09:59:00.003-04:00

Hi, Connection homies! (and others in the blogosphere, who have been following this community!)

We're in the finishing touches for the Spa Day on Saturday, and we are praying for good weather - a good deal of the retreat is outdoors, so we need a sunny, pleasant day. Would you pray for us?

Should be a good day, if God grants us the weather we need!

Our June Connection Worship Gathering was a blast with Rev 7, led by Leah and Allen Cuffey. Thanks also to Cathi for singing so well. (The boys in the band got the day off for Father's Day!) Rev 7's new CD release - "Witness" - is out, you can check out their web site for more information

Thanks to everybody who came out!

July's Worship Gathering (July 17th, Sunday afternoon, 3 pm at the Crowne Plaza Long Island Hotel in Holtsville) is the launch for our new talk series - SoulPrint - where we will learn how God has pre-wired us to be holy, happy, productive and content in this world, all while expanding the Kingdom of God. I'm really psyched about this series, because it is the heart of our DNA. The Connection is an intentional community that loves to connect people to Jesus Christ as to His loving family, and so as each of us learns the unique way that God has wired us, we are more able to connect with other people who need Jesus! Really, this is going to be so cool!

July is also filled with summer-time activity! We are sending 45 kids to Star Lake Camp for a week of sleep-away camp. We need helpers at the office to help send the kids off - call Irene at the office, if you can help out on July 13th or July 23rd, from 7:30 AM to about 8:30 AM

Here are couple of ways you might want to kick it with us this summer:

July 7th - Dessert and Theatre Party - Gateway Playhouse - $50 per person. We have a nice dessert fellowship before the play, which is "Legally Blonde." Tickets are still available - call the office for tickets - 631.363.6100
July 17th - July's Worship Gathering is the launch of our new series, "SoulPrint." Crowne Plaza, Holtsville, 3 pm.
July 26th - Target Back-to-School Shopping Spree: Thanks to Target, we are sending 30 children to the Medford, NY Target for a time of shopping for school clothes and supplies. We need volunteers to chaperone the kids through the store. We all leave the Blue Point Office at 7:30 AM on July 26th, arriving at the store by 8:00 AM. (Most of the parents will have pre-shopped with their children, and they will have shopping lists!) Each child will have $80 to spend on a Target gift card. The shopping spree should end by 11:00 AM. We are looking for volunteers and kids to take (ages 5-11). Call the office 631-363-6100, ask for Irene.

July 29th - Salvation Army Night at the Long Island Ducks. A great family night of fun, we sponsor a night at Bethpage Ballpark. Tickets are available, you get a souvenir baseball from the night. Call the office, 631-363-6100, ask for Paul.

Thanks for being willing to help out, we can use you! For sharing your time and your talents, we say, Thank you!

Update on Spa Day....etc

2011-06-16T07:17:00.000-04:00

For those who are registered for the "Getting Away - A Spa Day with God" experience, you are going to be in for a treat. If you have not registered, if we get sufficient demand, we will conduct another experience in the Fall. If you are a leader of a faith community, and you would like a one-day retreat, you can contact me at berachahleadership@gmail.com

Listening to the stories of many Jesus-followers in this age, it is becoming clearer by the day: we need retreat. Not retreat from the culture, but an advance into the life with God. 22nd Century soul artists need a spiritual replenishment system, because constant mission without renewal makes the work lifeless, and after a prolonged time of spiritual drought, the work can become unfocused.

Berachah Leadership Counseling is here for you, to help congregations and individuals to redesign life. Through personal coaching, congregational development experiences (like the Spa Day!), we look to provide resources for replenishment to leaders and faith communities.

If you are interested in learning more about the Spa Day, or the other resources provided by our group, please email us at berachahleadership@gmail.com

Have a very blessed day. Shalom,

More on Sabbath

2011-06-14T13:26:00.000-04:00

If, as Dallas Willard says, that silence and solitude are the hinges of the spiritual life, then Sabbath is the door. Living and keeping a Biblical Sabbath is the one-day seed that grants week-long fruit in our lives. Sabbath is the time to stop, rest, delight and contemplate in the glory of the Almighty.

God himself establishes Sabbath, they are called "my" Sabbaths. In Exodus, God gives Sabbath in terms of time: six days shall you work.....living out Sabbath is a way to imitate the Father in His creative play in speaking the world into being. It is a weekly means to prove God: that you have seven days of provision through six days of work. In Deuteronomy, God gives Sabbath again in terms of place; it is a remembrance of the deliverance of the children of Israel from Egypt. In this context, Sabbath is a weekly celebration from oppression, an expression of freedom. So, Sabbath is a restoration of time and place.

And, if we live out Sabbath right, we can keep Sabbath daily, weekly, and even yearly.

Here are some questions that will help guide us into keeping a Biblical Sabbath:

How does one actually stop from doing?

What does it mean to rest?

How do we savor and delight in the human dimension?

What does it mean to contemplate?

Stop - means stop. This is a foreign idea for the Type-A's among us. (Not a putdown, Type - A's are needed to get things, many things done.) For the inveterate activist, stopping is a categorical error in their perspective. While God requires us to be vigilant every waking hour, he does not require us to be moving at light-speed for every hour. Usually, for me, it takes three attempts to actually get still: First, my head says it is time to stop, then my spirit says "stop;" finally, my body can no longer go....I have hit the wall. I would like to tell you that is it better than that, that I am getting better at unplugging; often when I am still, my mind is still going. In an ordinary day, stopping begins by slowing: taking a slower pace while walking, actually chewing food, putting my to-do list to the side. In Sabbath, these means to unplug take on greater significance, because the stopping process begins to bring you into a state of rest.

Rest - resting means ceasing from actual work. There are many activities that can be done in a restful manner. Playing with your children, loving your spouse, sharing a meal, visiting with good friends. Rest is a re-creation of the creative play of Yahweh (and Adam) in Eden. Care must be taken to engage in amusements that do not violate the laws of love and prudence.

Everything may be permissable, but not beneficial.

Delight - is the enjoyment of Presence of God, the Word of God, the people of God. It is a relishing, even of the simple things, looking at them as simple gifts. Nature, laughter, tears, hugs are all objects of delight, sublime enjoyment. Simple gifts are opportunities for wonder and awe as you keep Sabbath.

Contemplate - if meditation is holding the face of Christ in your hands, contemplation is Christ holding your face in His hands. Beholding the beauty of Christ, and Christ beholds His greatest creation - you. Through stopping, resting and delighting in a sabbatical rhythm, one can enter into a state where you can contemplate the beauty and mystery of the Almighty. Here's the gift of it all: As you contemplate the beauty and mystery of God, He reveals the beauty and mystery that is in you, too.

Hey, if this is working for you, and you want to hear more, you can check out our most recent edition of Kingdom Connection on BlogTalkRadio, which you can access in the media player embedded on this site. You can follow us on Twitter@TheConnectionLI

You can also check us out at our next Worship Gathering, this Sunday, June 19th at the Crowne Plaza, in Holtsville, NY - at 3 pm.

Be blessed today.

sp

Where's Your Voice?

2011-06-10T07:59:00.001-04:00

I just took a look at my archive, and realized that I have not blogged in a while. Feeling the pressure of the blogosphere / social networking / update your status frenzy, but instead of succumbing to the pressure, I thought I would write on some meta-themes.

Whenever I blog, or record an episode on Kingdom Connection (clik on the embedded player for the last edition!) I find that I am working on one or more of the following meta-themes

Spiritual Leadership

Biblical Theology

Spiritual Theology (spiritual direction/spiritual formation)

Contemplative Spirituality

Theology of Worship

Intentional Community

Small Groups

Pastoral Theology

Just this morning, I was thinking of this: "A contemplative spirituality is a pathway for the restoration of beauty. We get to remember God and be re-connected to the mystical Body of Christ. 'Think on these things...' Philippians 4:8" Thinking on the beauty of the Almighty restores the beauty of Jesus in me.

http://openingsalvocr.blogspot.com/2011/05/getting-away-spa-day-with-god-coming-in.html Preparing for our June 25th "Getting Away - A Spa Day with God" experience has really helped me to reconnect to the beauty of slowing and centering on God. Reflection on God brings us back into the beauty of Him, and restores His beauty in us.

All this thinking (and writing) has been about finding my voice.

Have you found your voice? I hope so, because:

You are beautiful.

You are amazing.

You are holy.

You're a firework!

Also, I am very excited about our upcoming SoulPrint series - because understanding how God has endowed you with his creational gifts, and discerning his endowments given to you in the New Birth, helps you to gain three things that help you to live holy, happy, productive and content in this world, all while doing his work to expand the Kingdom of God!

Mission Clarity

Divine Destiny

Laser-Beam Strategy

Doing this Spa Day and preparing the SoulPrint series is all about the meta-themes in my personal mission statement: To help people overcome defeat and find their God-given places in ministry and life.

And while all this preparing is going on, we are still recruting people to help us in this new faith community, called The Connection.

We are looking for people who want to help us in the following kinds of things:

Clerical work: sending out postcards, helping make telephone calls, etc.

Graphic design

Audio/Video production

Youth Ministry

Evangelism

Prayer

Worship ministry

Leading/hosting small group Bible studies

Have you found your voice? Well, if you have, maybe The Connection is the place where you can express yourself.

If you would like to help: you can email us at theconnectionlongisland@gmail.com

Bless you today,

SoulPrint - Coming in July to The Connection - Discover it!

2011-05-14T07:19:00.003-04:00

The Kingdom of God is a Great Adventure, an alternative universe right here. When we pray "Your Kingdom come, your will be done," we are asking for that God-alternative to evident in the earth, and that means righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit of God. This is cool, really cool.

Our radio program, Kingdom Connection, is the "flagship" media outlet for our new faith community, called The Connection. The Connection is an intentional community of believers who live to connect people to life through Jesus Christ and to also to His loving family.

So our Gatherings are really informal, worship-centered places where someone can hear spoken Word, but not in the same way. We work on purpose to tell the real deal about God and His love, in a casual setting where how you dress or how you look doesn't really matter. All that matters is that we love God and love people. The rest is wallpaper.

Starting this week, we are featuring excerpts from our new series "SoulPrint," the unique endowments that God has given each one of His children to express and expand the Kingdom of God, telling the good news of Jesus and displaying the good works that God has pre-ordained for us. Our SoulPrint gives us 1) Mission Clarity, insight into our 2)Divine Destiny, and with a 3) Lazer-Beam Strategy. Like a fingerprint, SoulPrint is how God has imprinted us, and made us to be holy, happy, productive and content in this world.

SoulPrint: Discover it!

USA National Donut Day

2011-05-11T12:23:00.000-04:00

The Salvation Army helped to usher in the donut during World War I. Entenmann's will donate up to $10,000 to the charity for each like on their National Donut Day Facebook page!

What's going on at The Connection!

2011-05-03T16:54:00.004-04:00

God is moving on Long Island! Revival fires will break out, as we press in, keep faithful, keep prayerful, maintain our compassion for those who are wandering, and love on Jesus! The God we serve is faithful and He will DO it!

The Connection is an intentional community of believers who live to connect people to Jesus Christ and to His loving family.

If you are not getting to Sunday night Equipping Gatherings at our home......well then, you must be doing something else! But, lemme tell ya...God is up to something really awesome - when we are not at the Crowne, God is blessing us big time in our small group gatherings.

And we have a new Connection Community Group happening in Farmingville -starting Friday, May 20th - if you need directions to the Community Group, just inbox me and let me know.

The May Worship Gathering is shaping up to be a great event. Hope you can bring a friend to the Crowne Plaza - 05.15.2011 - 3 pm. We'll be groovin' on a Sunday afternoon together! We have a surprise worship leader, and another surprise guest. We're just full of surprises!

June's Gathering (06.19.2011) is going to feature Rev 7 - so I hope you'll make it out to get ministered to the musical side of your mind....and get some good Word too!

The Saturday after that - June 25th - will be our retreat: Getting Away - A Spa Day with God - already we have 3 people registered - so check out my blog (http://www.openingsalvocr.blogspot.com/) and register for the Spa Day (registration is free, but we will be taking up a freewill offering.)

July and August are shaping up with some social / fun / hanging out 'n living out Jesus-type events. Can use some help in planning and staffing our Prayer Tents - you can help us by finding us locations that take a 10' X 10' canopy....we want to God to use The Connection "out there!" We'll also be going to the beach, doing bowling, stuff like that, so hang out with us, okay? Cool! (Also having Worship Gatherings, even on the beach!!!)

September 18th will be the Worship Gathering to kick in our next series:
SoulPrint - Discover it! What is your unique SoulPrint, and how has God already wired you for power and purpose in your world??? Come as we launch this fresh series and find out!

September 24th will be our Family Day at Country Fair in Medford. Fun, fun, fun. Michael K. Harewood has already agreed to be one of our special guests for that day, MC'ing words of fire!

So, as you can see: there's a lot going on at The Connection - and YOU can be a part of it!
God just may be calling you to be the answer to our prayers. Thanks for your love, support, presence and prayers for the growth of this new faith community.

Love God. Love people. The rest is wallpaper.

Shalom,

Charles and Kelly Roberts
Co-Lead Pastors, The Connection
office -631.363.6100
The Connection is a worship and service ministry of The Salvation Army

Getting Away - A Spa Day with God: Coming in June

2011-05-01T11:40:00.003-04:00

Get the first glimpse of a new service provided by The Connection and sponsored by Berachah Leadership Coaching! Launching Saturday June 25th. Spaces are limited to the first 15 people, so register today!

Getting Away - A Spa Day with God:

A luxurious experience of eternal proportions, A Spa Day with God gives you the opportunity to soak in the glorious Presence of the Almighty in a guided retreat format. This day is designed with you in mind: Most people are so driven by life's demands that the unintended consequence of suchfast-paced activity is soul neglect. Over time, working in a Type-A environment results in spiritual malnourishment, soul starvation, stress, burnout, and a whole host of psycho-spiritual condtions, many which have harmful effects on body and mind as well as soul.

A Spa Day with God takes place in a home retreat center in Farmingville, Long Island, NY on the highest point in the region. Nestled on a less-traveled road, with breathtaking views of Fire Island to the south, the Retreat House has all the amenities you need for a day of tranquility.

Prior to the scheduled retreat, the Retreat Director will meet with you by telephone, Skype, or face-to-face, depending on your availability, in order to discern how the retreat can best meet your spiritual needs. If you have any unique medical needs, you should discuss them at that time. Then you will be placed either on the guided or self-directed retreat track with specific assignments in Scripture, other Christian reading, and/or guided prayer to accompany you in the experience. For both tracks, there will be a schedule which will involve communal time in worship and meals, as silence, solitude, and tracking through the 12 contemplative prayer centers.

In order for you to get the maximum benefit from this experience, you will need to pull away from all normal activities for a minimum of 18 hours. This will require you to take a day's leave from work, family and other social obligations. You will need to find a relative, friend or neighbor to provide you with child care. If you desire to engage in fasting during this experience, this is entirely up to you.

Since the spiritual life requires a circadian rhythm, the day begins the night before. On the evening before the Spa Day with God, you will have readings from Scripture, and a short journaling exercise to complete with prayers before bedtime.
As part of the "decluttering" process, you will want to tie up all business matters before sundown on the evening before the Spa Day, so your heart can be fully open to the experience.
You will also have a reading and journaling exercise to do on the morning before you arrive to the Retreat House. Please bring the completed assigments with you.

Daily Office:

9:00 AM - Arrival at the Retreat House. You will meet the other participants, have a time for fellowship and a brief oveview of the day from the Retreat Director.

9:45 AM - We will engage in a time of corporate worship of the Almighty.

11:45 AM - Mealtime. Midday Prayer

12:30 PM - Silence begins. Maintain Holy Obedience. You will then be directed to the 12 contemplative prayer centers to engage in each specific exercise. During this period, you may be asked to have a brief process interview with a retreat facilitator.

3:00 PM - Communal Scripture Study. You are released from silence now.

4:30 PM - Mealtime. Evening Prayer

5:15 PM - Corporate worship. Time for individual examination.

6:30 PM - Regathering for group process session. Prayer for individuals.

8:00 PM - Spa day concludes. Take home prayers and readings will accompany you. You will receive back the pre-retreat assignments with personal prayers attached.

In order to give each participant the maximum attention, registration is limited to 15 people.

Please register for the Getting Away - A Spa Day with God retreat experience on the automated form on this site. We are prayerful that you will get the spiritual replenshment you need from Getting Away - A Spa Day with God

For more information, email us at theconnectionlongisland@gmail.com.
Follow us on twitter @theconnectionLI
OR call the retreat office at (631) 363-6100

Equipping volunteers for ministry - part 4 of C.O.R.E

2011-04-30T20:29:00.000-04:00

Here are some quick facts on leadership:

1- The primary requirement for leadership is an affirmative response to the question: "Are you breathing?" Wherever you are, whatever you do you have a leadership position. It does not mean you are supposed to have a title, position, or wear a tiara, but you do lead in some capacity, because...

2- Leadership is influence.

3- Leadership is getting people and projects from "here" to "there."

4- Spiritual leadership is getting people onto God's agenda.

The primary facilitator in helping people discover God's agenda for their lives, develop the leadership skills needed to walk out that agenda, and to display the character of Jesus is the senior pastor and the pastoral leadership team. Ideally the leadership team in the local church has been developed and deployed according the five-fold ministry in Ephesians 4:11-13

Let's look at the text from verse 7: (AMP)
⁷Yet grace (God's unmerited favor) was given to each of us individually [not indiscriminately, but in different ways] in proportion to the measure of Christ's [rich and bounteous] gift.
     ⁸Therefore it is said, When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive [He led a train of ^[a]vanquished foes] and He bestowed gifts on men.^(A)
     ⁹[But He ascended?] Now what can this, He ascended, mean but that He had previously descended from [the heights of] heaven into [the depths], the lower parts of the earth?
     ¹⁰He Who descended is the [very] same as He Who also has ascended high above all the heavens, that He [His presence] might fill all things (the whole universe, from the lowest to the highest).
     ¹¹And His gifts were [varied; He Himself appointed and gave men to us] some to be apostles (special messengers), some prophets (inspired preachers and expounders), some evangelists (preachers of the Gospel, traveling missionaries), some pastors (shepherds of His flock) and teachers.
     ¹²His intention was the perfecting and the full equipping of the saints (His consecrated people), [that they should do] the work of ministering toward building up Christ's body (the church),
     ¹³[That it might develop] until we all attain oneness in the faith and in the comprehension of the [^[b]full and accurate] knowledge of the Son of God, that [we might arrive] at really mature manhood (the completeness of personality which is nothing less than the standard height of Christ's own perfection), the measure of the stature of the fullness of the Christ and the completeness found in Him.

It is the job of the pastor (and the other 5-fold ministers) to equip the saints, so that they may build up the church. This equipping is based on the premise that each Jesus-follower is gifted with a measure of grace to do specific good works. (There are other good works that are general and apply to the entire Body of Christ, like evangelism. We are all called to do the work of an evangelist, but there are some who are supernaturally gifted to evangelize. THAT person is to teach the other saints how to get it done.)

There are no spectators in the Body of Christ. Nobody sits. Everybody plays. There is no "B" team.
In order to move people from church spectators to fully engaged followers of Jesus Christ, there is a pattern and a process to get people to line up with God's agenda.

Equipping strategy along this line is in two major areas: Ministry skill formation and character formation. Getting ministry skills without the pre-requisite upgrades in the character area is like giving someone access to a high-speed train without putting the engine on railroad tracks. Ministry without character is just like that - an accident waiting to happen.

More on this in the next post.....

be blessed today.

pax Christi

sp

twitter.com/TheConnectionLI

How can I turn personal devotions into group devotions?

2011-04-28T06:55:00.002-04:00

Often I save my personal devotion time for where I can share it with other people, at a coffee shop or at other postmodern wells. I've been doing this for several years, maybe not as much these days. Lately I got a clue that I could do this again.

Somewhere around week 4 of The TK Primer, Hugh and Matt ask the question posed in the chapter (and in today's blog post title.)

How can I turn personal devotions into group devotions?

And, in this question, I had an epiphany....

Share my loves. I love nature, and walking in it. I love weather, almost as much as I love coconut macaroons. I love listening to and learning about people. I love noticing how people's lives are interconnected. I love cooking and feeding people good homemade food. I love reading aloud (ever since Kindergarten)., I love God and I love the Bible.

I also crave solitude. So in order to share my loves without having the life sucked out of me, I need to do the following.

Practice hospitality.
Clear calendar.
Make sacrifices.
Create margin.

Perhaps this is a formula for incarnational ministry - living out the life of Jesus in community.

Practice hospitality.
Hospitality is its essence is making room at the table for those who would not ordinarily get there. How do we make room for people? First, by noticing. Observing people, looking outside of ourselves is the first movement. In our daytime focus, emerging out of our morning solitude in conversant passion with Jesus, our days become moments of intentional blessing. Knowing we have come from God, and having the life of God within us, our outward manifestations of the living water show out through our gaze, our touch, soothing words, and gracious actions.
When you are filled to the brim with the Spirit of God, you can look at someone and bless them. Because a simple look at someone opens one to your world. Now, I am not talking about stalking - get a grip! There are other ways to include people - make a well-timed comment, shake a hand, share a meal, bless someone. There is not a person in this universe who will refuse a blessing. Opening your life to others blesses people.

Clear calendar.
If we are going to be intentional about living out Jesus, we are going to have put some facetime with Sojourners on our calendar. And clearing your calendar is as important is cleaning your closets, because in clearing the calendar, we purge the junk that we exchange our precious time for. So much of what Jesus did happened while he was on the way somewhere else; if we are bogged down with meetings, sports events, taking kids here or there, we don't have for the Spirit to create intentional moments with others. (Unless you are listening to God while you at soccer practice, there are soccer moms and dads who need Jesus.)

Make sacrifices.
What "serious" activities do you have narrow down to make more time for whimsy in your life? If you are SO intent in getting ahead, how does that make you inaccessible to interact with others to live out the life of Jesus within you? This was never a question for Boomers (born 1946-1964). Getting ahead was everything, and you sacrificed everything to get "It". Well friends, "It" ain't available at the moment. Think about it. You don't have to agree.

Create margin.
Dr. Richard Swenson has written a book of the same name. It's 10 years old, but a classic already. Overload is not having time to finish the book you are reading on stress. Margin is having time to read it twice. Overload is fatigue. Margin is energy. Overload is red ink. Margin is black ink. Overload is anxiety. Margin is calm. Because the stress that you took on to get ahead before the housing bubble burst is killing you now; the sacrifices you made to out-do the Joneses are shredding your organs right now. Margin is doing the right things for wholeness, and eliminating the wrong things that create bad stress in your life.

Then you might have time to read a good book with a friend. Or take a hike. Or kayak in the Hudson River. Why, you ask? Because within the context of natural activity, you have a unique opportunity to communicate supernatural truth.

be blessed today,

pax Christ,

sp

follow us on twitter: twitter.com/theconnectionLI Tell the story. Save a life.

Engaging People Outside of Ministry

2011-04-16T07:23:00.000-04:00

Dr. Tony Evans preaches a sermon to leaders about living outside of their "clergy" lives. I call this living inside of the Christian ghetto. When we think of the word "ghetto" we think of a slum, but a ghetto is where one segment of society lives. In that case, Rodeo Drive is a ghetto.

It is clear that as a person grows in faith, the numbers of their friends outside of faith decrease. People who are determined to live "set apart," stop doing "secular" activities, and replace them with "Christian" ones. What this trend actually does is isolate the new disciple in Christ away from the people who need the Gospel most.

Even though most people consider me an extrovert, and having the gift of evangelism, I am finding that I struggle in this area. You see, before I was a Christian, I was destined for hell but also a pretty interesting person. I did things, went places, recalled experiences. When Jesus made a home in my soul, I removed myself from all of the connections, jettisoned all my other interests, and set my heart solely on God. I gave up reading "worldly" books, and read the Bible. I immersed myself in Bible study, ministry and leadership books, theological works.

Frankly, I made myself boring.

Now, I am straining to discover who I really am, what I enjoy, and to engage myself and others in these interests, without feeling guilty.

I love jazz, but I learned (wrongly) that I had to abandon jazz to follow Jesus. Now all my jazz (and rock and soul) albums are gone. Jesus can use my love for jazz to engage other jazz lovers to discover Jesus.

Now I know. All my John McLoughlin records......alas.

What I would teach others to do now is to sanctify and Gospelize your interests. Your interests and hobbies and passions are compass points to whom God wants you to reach for the Gospel.

Your avocations are pointers to your unique personality, and coordinates to discover the unique good works that God has assigned you to do.

Jesus was a nice Jewish boy. An obedient son, a skilled carpenter and stonemason, he enjoyed good company, traveling the countryside. His hobbies included walking on water, winemaking, feeding large groups of people, holding religious debates, casting out demons, and raising the dead.

All this and more to be sure. Abba, help your apprentices to be interesting. Help us to be lettered and well versed in every productive discipline. Help us to discover our likes, our hobbies, our interests and passions, so that we can have fun and travel with others on the journey of life. May the life of your Son become so magnified in us that those with whom we travel will be attracted to you through our lives. This is to be authentic light-bringers to the world, because the life of Jesus is the light of men.

Amen. Be blessed today.

pax Christi,

Developing a C.O.R.E of volunteers part 3 - Relating to people outside of ministry

2011-04-10T21:09:00.000-04:00

The most powerful and effective tool to develop ministry leaders and volunteers is the small group. And, according to Emily Dickinson, mystery is the greatest need of the human soul. Mystery in the small group is watching God work in the midst of all different people. The mystery of God is communicated through the context of conversation. Through Word, Spirit and prayer, God does things, things that no one else can do.

Ministry Team meetings are places to see the mystery of God at work within the leadership community. Leaders need special times to relate, to have fun, to dream and to plan. Up the creative. Do teambuilding things: you can use the VHS format - Vision, Huddle and Skill. Leaders need to hear and re-hear the vision. Leaders need someone to hear their hurts and challenges in ministry. Leaders need concrete skills in their area of specialty.

Pray for your leaders. Let them know that they are being prayed for. Talk to your leaders, don't delegate all of that away. If you are the senior leader, be sure to communicate with all your leaders, even if it just a personal note, a "thank you." Leave a voice mail, drop an email, write a note. Don't delegate it.

One of my favorite leaders told me a story. He and his wife served in this particular church for many, many years. He chaired the elder board, the usher board, was the Sunday School superintendent, and even drove the church van. He and his wife were at the church when it opened and stayed until the doors were locked for the night, Sunday after Sunday, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays for many years. It was not until he and I began to work together, and as a result we met every week, that he told that after working nearly 20 years in that earlier church, that he had NEVER been given a personal interview with the senior pastor. NEVER. This guy was not a nagging malcontent, not a hanger-on, but a faithful servant. Never had face time with the pastor, ever. Never.

Jesus selected 12 of his disciples, designating them apostles, that they may BE with him. They were not just assets to make the Kingdom grow. They were not servants, but friends. Out of sincere love they walked with Jesus. In today's context, in the fellowship of the believers, we hear from God together, we love together, we live together, we face the hard questions together.

Be blessed today,

pax Christi.

How would like your coffee, with or without prayer?

2011-04-06T12:16:00.000-04:00

Whenever I travel to Manhattan, and whether I am walking down the streets, or if I am parked at a sidewalk cafe, I cannot help but engage in people watching. My mind drifts between what I am seeing and those movie musicals of the '3o's and '40's (that's 19....fill in the year!) in which every waitress is a starlet hoping to break to the big time, and every intern is an aspiring Clark Gable (who?), ok...Keanu Reeves!

I guess that's pretty much the same today, young Manhattanites doing a day gig, scrimping and saving and working for their big break! I watched with hope and anticipation at every one, praying divine guidance into their stories.

Last Saturday, some of our Connection homies, and soldiers from the Riverhead Salvation Army went to help another church put on a really special event, helping working people who rely on bicycle power for transporation get gently used bikes, and fix their existing bikes as well! It was a really cool event. Nearly 100 people came through to get something they really needed. The Long Island Food Bank was there, and gave out food. The Department of Labor was there to give job assistance. We were there, and gave out blankets, food, snacks and beverages.

We got to meet some of the people who were lined up to get bikes, everybody gots a story. Their stories were not unlike some of the young Manhattanites I talked to, except some of these folks getting bikes lived with much more adversity. Many had been homeless, others were on the brink of losing their homes. Others had gotten so used to living on the edge that it was their New Normal.

When we gave out coffee, we asked if they would like it "with or without prayer." Everybody took their coffee "with." That's right, everybody. So I guess we handed out some hope that day as well. That's our Mobile Outreach for you: hope-on-wheels.

Hope-on-wheels. Help us, Abba to be hope-on-wheels, to be available, to be transparent, to deliver the see-through character of Jesus.

twitter.com/theconnectionLI

Developing a CORE of volunteers - Organizing people for ministry

2011-04-02T22:25:00.003-04:00

Just to overview part one of this post, to know what to give away for others in the ministry to do, you must ask your self three big questions and do one big TO DO.

1 - What is in your skill set? Do that.

2- What is NOT in your skill set. Don't do that.

Now I know when a ministry is in start-up mode, it not always easy to to just do that. Like a start-up business, you do it all, BUT you do it with a view to give away tasks as, through your task analysis, you are creating the values and DNA of the ministry. The values of the ministry are the values of the leader.

And even as you delegate tasks, you cannot ever abdicate them. You may find great people to do big chunks of ministry, but they are still the leader's responsibility. 3 - What must you give away, so that others can thrive in their gifting? You gotta do that.

Recently, we had a service day helping another ministry give away gently used bicycles. We got more response that request for help than almost any other email. Why? Because people are hungering to serve.

What is the big TO DO? You need to challenge people to serve. Spiritual challenge is more important than spiritual care in every place in the growth continuum.

Organize people for ministry.

The new motif in understanding how people operate in ministry settings is not shepherding sheep, but herding cats…..people in this current setting act more often like cats than sheep. Understand that today’s people operate in several orbits: work, home, civic obligations. People do not have the same kinds of free time, as they had years ago.

So people need to be scheduled. Folks who help out need to told what that particular task is, how long it will take, what the duration is, what particular skills are needed to complete the task, what success looks like, etc.

People need ministry descriptions, that clearly describe skill sets needed, time and duration of the task, who will assist in the completion of the task, and who will keep them accountable.

People need to be reminded. Weekly follow-up calls, emails just to let them know that their involvement is still needed, what connection their work means to the mission of the ministry.

People also need to be encouraged. Personal phone calls, personal training, folks need to know what a clear win looks like, what coaching will be needed to hit the mark, and congratulated when they do a great job!

There are great online tools like planningcenteronline.com that will help you organize ministry and ministry volunteers, the greatest asset is someone who will help you recruit and organize volunteers. If you have to do this yourself, you can but you will have to give significant time to this, because in ministry, our greatest asset is people.

Who do you carry in your heart?

2011-03-28T19:16:00.000-04:00

Philippians 1:1-11

¹ Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus,

To all God’s holy people in Christ Jesus at Philippi, together with the overseers and deacons^[a]:
² Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Thanksgiving and Prayer

³ I thank my God every time I remember you. ⁴ In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy ⁵ because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, ⁶ being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

⁷ It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart and, whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God’s grace with me. ⁸ God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.
⁹ And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, ¹⁰ so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, ¹¹ filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God.

Footnotes:

Philippians 1:1 The word deacons refers here to Christians designated to serve with the overseers/elders of the church in a variety of ways; similarly in Romans 16:1 and 1 Tim. 3:8,12

Paul is praying for the saints in Philippi with joy. In fact this entire letter is about joy in suffering, joy in the midst of great difficulty. Paul is in prison, chained to a centurion (see 1:7), thinking of those whom he loves, chronicling his prayers for them. Remembering them, he thinks fondly of them, and prays their needs and their growth. He is assured in their partnership in the sharing of the gospel, and confident in Christ will grow them in line how they been birthed in the faith. Paul defends his thinking on the matter, because he has them "in his heart."

Who do you have in your heart? For whom are you praying to be "filled with fruit of righteousness that comes from Jesus Christ."?

When you have someone in your heart:

--you take a responsibility to pray for them, seeking God's best for them
--you take on a shepherd's heart, caring for them, admonishing them to walk in the ancient paths
--you offer availability to them: therefore
--you become willing to let the mission of God take over the purpose and schedule of your life.

Without this response-ability, you go back to old skool. This morning, before I went to a meeting, I stopped at my regular Starbucks, to drop off an inspirational gift to a friend. As I was on line, I met a new friend. We have a lot in common, and I pray that will be able to adjust my schedule to create time for him. I know that he will make time for me, just be how he responded to my invitation.

When you have someone in your heart, you never know just how powerful your prayers will be, and how powerfully God will answer.

pax Christi,
sp

The proof is in the pudding....or in the odor.

2011-03-26T09:31:00.006-04:00

"But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing" - 1 Corinthians 2:14-15

"The Lord's message rang out from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia - your faith in God has become known everywhere. Therefore we do not need to say anything about it, for they themselves report what kind of reception you gave us. They tell how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead - Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath."--1 Thessalonians 1:8-10

Everybody ought to know/everybody ought to know/ everybody ought to know/ that Jesus saves!

Where does your fragrance spread? In our monthly Worship Gatherings at The Connection, our theme is Love Stinks? Our mascot is Pepe Le Pew. Everybody knows that his love leaves an odiferous emanation, most notably in the feline nostrils of his persistently unwilling love interest, Penelope. Perhaps you don't smell like Pepe? Perhaps you do....to those who are perishing, you smell like rotting bones. Is that Good News? Think you need to switch deoderants? Need a fresh Secret? hehe. Where ever you go, so does Glory.

So, where are you going? What are you and Abba going to do today? I'm going to do some errands, take some stuff to Chaz (aka Mr. Paintball) and some other stuff.

How am I going to smell to those around me?

I hope to smell like the smell of fresh laundry on the line, drying on a sunny day. I hope and pray the Christ in me is so atrractive to the world around me, that I will have an answer to the hope that I have.

be blessed today.

pax Christi
sp

Time management vs. priority management - going deeper

2011-03-21T19:42:00.000-04:00

We all live with timelines, deadlines, goals and objectives, and ROI looming over us with Swiss-watch regularity. Sometimes we schedule all the spontaneity out of life. When do we ever have time for people? I remember when I was dating my soon-to-be-wife and we are having passionate discussions about time for getting to know each other, I used to put a big heart symbol on the days that we would schedule to date.

Schedule to date?

Yes, I put the "heart" on the date for our date to be sure that Kelly and I would have time, and not be crowded in with other things, important things like prepping for Sunday School lessons, writing sermons, leading Bible studies. Do you see the problem here? Time with people seemed to be less important that time in other things, even those special holy things, like study. Recently when discussing our plan to create small groups, someone said, "I hope that you use a curriculum, because I hate to hear that you are just sitting around talking." Like sitting around getting to know people is really such a bad thing. Conversation always leads to conversion.

It's not that they are not important, but that somehow time with people was not salvific, not transformative. I still use a schedule, still use goal planning sheets, still seek to maximize ROI, but something is different. I have a priority to seek conversation. I am actively creating space in life to have conversations.

Today, I passed by a beauty shop - but really it is more than that. On one of the glass windows, there was a stenciled sign, "Center for Transformative Living" and with it a list of "spiritual" activities, including "Prayer meetings" I thought to myself, "Why go to church, when I can get color, cut, and prayer at the same place." I thought, "I want to meet these people." So, the Lord directed me to a little angel ornament I had in the car, with the Aaronic blessing on it "The Lord bless you and keep you." (Num 6:24). I walked into the shop, dropped the gift on the counter, and said, "I did not come for color or a cut, God said to bring you this." The lady at the counter was surprised. I turned and left to go shopping. As I returned to my car, I passed by the window again; it was clear that they were talking and pointing to me. I waved, they waved and smiled back. We have an open door to have a conversation.

In the day of Jesus, there were many rabbis who traveled the land looking for receptive disciples. How do today's rabbis travel?

To get out of the rat race, and get into the grace race, I have to change my posture, change my view, change my speed in order to see my ordinary travels as a missionary journey. Going deeper into community I get to 1) engage people where they are, 2)displaying the Gospel, 3) being real, authentic, and 4) proving the Gospel to the world.

What interests, personal passions, hobbies and activities can I share with others?

What priorities have you hidden behind to keep from being transparent? God will use your ordinary life to extraordinary things. What can you release in time to give to other people?

Think about it.

pax Christi,

Untethering Christianity from the American Nightmare

2011-03-18T20:51:00.001-04:00

We have to rescue the authentic Christian faith from the American so-called dream. We have spent decades spending money we don’t have, to buy things we don’t need, to impress people who don’t care. This week I heard a message that led off with, “We’ve been trying to keep up with the Joneses, and there’s no need to now, they are broke.”

Most of us in America have more than we want, more than we need. And there is a rapidly widening gap between "rich" and "poor". In fact there is a new poor, families with three cars and no food in the cupboard. No
matter where you are on the economic scale, the recession is affecting all of us. So how do we get Jesus back into these homes suffering from the new poverty, to learn simplicity and thrift and authentic care for each other? *called one another ministry* If we can do this, new
people will be living out Jesus while learning about him, and perhaps even
believing in Him….by creating new communities of faith around economic justice, equity and real love for one another.

This current society will only respond to a Christianity that is engaged where people are right now; we can go back to earlier models of faith expression, and bring them forward in today’s context.

One – monastic community. When we think of monks, we think of the ones who live in the cloister, the big castle on the hill, and way away from
everyone. But there were other monks, called mendicants, who lived and worked together among the people, serving and teaching others to serve. St. Francis of Assisi started an order of mendicant monks, called the Franciscans. In the 1860’s there was another group of holy people, living out Jesus in the midst of poverty, committed to God and to each
other, and shining the light and truth of God in service, proclaiming in word and deed – called The Salvation Army. In these movements, we have the ingredients to make some good, to do the most good.

Two –authentic community. Meeting needs, sharing the love of God,
actually proves the power of the Gospel, which is the power of love.
In the synagogue in Nazareth, when Jesus reads the scroll of Isaiah chapter 61, he describes mission in the most practical and simple terms.

The power of love breaks in to:

bind broken hearts -

decree freedom for captives

release from darkness for prisoners

proclaim the Lord's appointed time of favor and justice

Bring comfort for the grief-stricken

healing of dis-ease

Display compassion for those harassed and helpless…

By decreeing these truths, Jesus drops Himself (and us) smack dab in the middle of suffering humanity, and it is where we belong too, if we are Jesus-followers.

Here are some monastic, mendicant ministry models for such a time as this:

Carpooling
Saving Clubs / Coupon Clubs

Job Search / Networking
Community Bartering – trading services Power Shopping – bulk buying
Neighborhood Outreach to another block

On-the-block senior care
Community Gardening
Microenterprise
Microloans - one block to another.

Can you imagine bringing ministries like these to your block? All these involve risk, and we must defeat our culture of cowardice, in
order to be the change that we want to see in life. There is no victory without risk.

Wonder if you all have models of this kind of "one another" ministry out there. If you send in an example of “one another” ministry that’s working in your world, I'll give some shout-outs to some good models out there......at least the ones I know about. Send your comments on Twitter@TheConnectionLI

We all need each other on this one; as Maya Angelou says, “No one, oh no one, can ever make it alone.”

Have you ever experienced real community?

2011-03-17T20:33:00.002-04:00

Ever? If you have ever experienced real community, hats off to you! Kudos!! Thinking back over my life, BC as well as AC, I think I experienced real community a few times...
1- my band in college, and the folks that hung with us. Nobody went without, everybody carried their load, and the sound....it was great!
2- During our years with the Knaggs in Philadelphia, that was a special time. We saw renewal everywhere: we shared more than pulpits then. One church even made a significant contribution to another church's capital fund! When we went on mission, no matter what congregation you were from, we were all working for whatever congregation sponsored the mission.
3- My home Corps, Pittsburgh Temple, that was special. Living with my homies...that was real community: sharing pot pies, doing wash, feeding the deer rice and beans. (I'm sure there were Hispanic deer!)

What characterizes true comnunity: sharing, love, caring for each other, even caring enough to confront - everyone has a place at the table.
What scares one about true community: what if's - "what if it's not mutual?, what if I get drained by it?, etc.

I remember doing Alpha for the first time at a Corps - the hardest part was teaching "church folk" how to engage in small talk with guests.....trading Jesus jargon for, "Wow, those are great shoes, where did you get them?"

Looking at the lives of Abraham, Paul and Jesus - and how they journeyed meeting people, going about doing good, their faith was commended, but how they went from place to place, this was rather ordinary (except for the occasional theophany or miracle!) How they traveled met people, this was how everyone went about each and every day. What they said, now this is another matter altogether!

Changing our posture - looking eye to eye, hanging with everyday people.
Changing our speed - unplugging so as to listen to the voice (wind) of the Spirit.
Changing our message - never!

Try hanging with some people some time. Discuss sports, taxes, something, don't hit anyone with a bible stick. See what happens!

2011-03-11T14:19:00.001-05:00

When you think about tsunamis.....you first pray for those who have been in harm's way, then you ponder on the power. We have to be ready for the next tsunami, but one in the Spirit....