Free Hugs

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I definitely need to work this into a sermon on the importance of loving those around us!

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Wellness Journey Update

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  In early April 2020, I decided to take better care of my health. Actually, the decision was made on January 1st, 2020. It just took me time and a month of lockdown in my basement to get me to do something about it. My focus was to care for myself physically, emotionally/mentally, and spiritually. In the first year of the journey, I saw some significant changes. I dropped nearly 60 pounds of weight, reduced back pain, and began sleeping through the night for the first time in my adult life! I also did some great work with my Christian therapist to strengthen my mental health. I began deepening my walk with Christ through strengthening devotions and intentional mentoring. As I experienced these blessings, my hope was to pass along these blessings to others. I became certified as a DDPY Fitness Level 1 Instructor and a FastTrack coach.  While there were blessings, there were also challenges. Particularly in the area of whether my involvement in particular exercise programs was ...
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Sabbatical Planning

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  I'm BACK!! What a season of ministry this has been! Over the past year, I have talked with many leaders from churches, para-church ministries, and businesses, and many say the same thing: "I'm still recovering from the craziness of the pandemic four years later!" Does this resonate with you? It definitely has for me! While this past year has seen some INCREDIBLE moves of God and great blessings, it was also filled with many challenges, divisions, spiritual attacks, and a lot of weariness. Thankfully, God has given us many spiritual disciplines to help us overcome this weariness in our souls: Sabbath and Sabbatical. In October 2023 the craziness of the pandemic in the life of our church and family finally caught up to me. I was tired. More tired than I had ever been. Every decision in my role at the church felt heavy and filled with doubt. While my spiritual life was deep and I felt very close to God, a nagging voice would speak into my thoughts that it was time to t...
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Practical Atheist

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Over the past few weeks our church has been doing a preaching series called Practical Atheist. This is based on the book The Christian Atheist by Pastor Craig Groeschel. I've been blown away by how God has worked in the hearts of so many people over the past few weeks. Mind you, I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Pastor Craig's ministry has had such a huge influence on my personal walk with Jesus so just is just a continuation of that blessing. This week we're probably going to hit the hardest topic for me to preach on, I Believe in God but I Pursue Happiness at All Costs. I'm going to be using Jesus' parable of the sower and look at how our pursuit of happiness causes us to miss out on truly how God wants from our lives. This topic hits me right between the eyes as I'm being open and honest with God about what allow to be entertainment or how I go about trying to be happy. Do I allow myself to be entertained by sin? Do I pursue the world's view ...
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