Discussing "It": Chapter 1

In August, I read the book "It" by Craig Groeschel. Twice in one a week. I'm on my fourth time through it. We're reading it as a staff and I given copies of It to all my small group leaders and other leaders here at Woodside.

I thought it would be fun to discuss it, chapter by chapter, here on my blog so that everyone from Woodside who is reading it can participate in the discussion.

So let's jump into IT!

If you're reading the book along with us then you already know what IT is... so I won't even bother to try to explain IT. The book does a great job of that. But what is it about IT that got me so passionate about IT. Well... if I can be brutally honest... this summer I was beginning to wonder if I was losing IT.

Our summer was hard. Both Danielle and I working. The lost of Danielle's dad. No vacation time except a two short days after the funeral. I was exhausted, frustrated and feeling quite alone. I was questioning God. Why send me somewhere to lose IT??? Why put us through stuff to lose IT??? That just didn't make any sense.

Finding and reading IT was God's perfect timing for me! This book, as well as a lot of prayer and looking at the Bible, really rekindled my passion for IT and to see IT move in powerful ways here at Woodside.

Chapter 1 is a nice short one. The big take away for me was this quote:
Instead of passionately caring about people who didn't have Christ, members started to gripe about how the church wasn't all that they wanted it to be. Instead of people sacrificing for the cause of Christ, people appeared to be consuming, not contributing.


This is my biggest fear for Woodside, and something that I pray about every day!! I pray that we would never become a place that we're more concerned with how we do church services then seeing people come to a saving faith in Jesus! I pray that we would never become a place where we love the teaching of the Bible more then we love God! I pray that we would never because a church that we love our programs more then seeing the kingdom of God being impacted by churches all around us!

I pray that we will be a church full of IT and that everyone around us will feel IT! I pray that we will never lose IT!

So... what about you? If I look at the discussion questions on page 18, do you feel like your part in our ministry here has IT? What factors do you believe contribute to it?

Oh... if you're interested in jumping in the discussion, pick up the book and join in. If you're at Woodside, I still have 9 copies of the book left. Grab me in the hall and ask me for one :-)

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