Wonder... Awe..... Amazement by the greatness and supremacy of Christ are excellent descriptives of our journey through Colossians 1.15 - 23. I really love that we are studying of His supremacy. What I love, even more, is that God continuously reveals His supreme life and His creative handiwork. Personally, these are beautiful descriptives of the Seagle family journey as we welcomed Ella Rebecca to our home. Ella joined the Seagle family on 7/11 @ 11:07. Sus loves numbers and Ella hit a walk-off HR in the birthing numbers realm. Wow, do I love my wife! Wow, I never cease to be amazed by the love of our God and the love that He gives in abounding goodness. I cannot fathom having more love for my kids.... then, He favors us with another glorious child and my heart bursts with love and joy. Welcome Ella! Thank you, Christ. Yeah, she is beautiful and I am praying for her heart to be aflame for the supreme One!

I think that I have been so hesitant to wrap up 'Supreme'. Honestly, I think that Paul's teaching in Colossians 1.15 - 23 are hinge to our faith expression. Paul is inviting us into true recognition of Supremacy. He is calling us to recognize that the only great good on this planet is Christ. Christ supreme. Christ satisfying. Christ abounding. Christ. May the echo of our lives and of our church be the great goodness of the King of Glory. May we be so well-known for knowing Christ well and of making much of Him. We closed the series by profiling the gloriously obsessed. I am praying that our fellowship will fit the profile of the Christ-obsessed.

Because Jesus Christ is supreme, this glorious obsession is for those who want more Jesus. It is for those who are bored with what American (better said, 'southern religion') Christianity offers. It is for those who don’t want to plateau. It is for those who would rather die before their convictions do. It is my hope that the picture painted in the Scripture of a supreme God leaves you with a longing for more God, even if you are surrounded by those who have enough God. Following Christ isn’t something that can be done halfheartedly or on the side. He is central and supreme His life shapes what we do and who we are. His passion and his life reign supreme over us. I never want to stop in my relentless pursuit of Christ. I long to share that unimpeded journey with an amazing group of Christ-followers. I love the church! I cannot think of a better way to venture through life, than in giving much glory to God and to watch as He uses us, together, to express His life and His hope and a taste of eternity on this journey through the temporal. Christ supreme.... Christ supreme.... Christ

By Grace... For Glory,

Mark

I love these kids! I thank my God for you guys!!

I love EBC! I love watching as Christ leads His church. Honestly, VBS is one of my absolute favorite weeks of the year. It is so fresh to see:

- Hundreds of kids on the campus discovering, in a sweet way, wonder and awe of our God

- I love listening to hundreds of kids sing, together, "Here I am to Worship!'

- I love watching our student band lead our kids in worship

- I love Bill and Ted! Dude!!

- I love the incredible number of adults who show up and show off Jesus Christ.

- I love hearing comments like, "I've never seen anything like this... it's amazing!'

- I love having kids walk up to me and tell me, "Pastor Mark, I just made Christ my forever friend!"

- I love thinking about the rejoicing in heaven as salvation springs up from the ground

- I love being totally wiped at the end of the week, but loving being weary for His glory

- I love that the baptismal waters will flow with life-change in the next few weeks

- I love watching the church in action.

- I love that Christ is leading His church. He is doing a great job!

The summer is moving forward and the next venture will take the EBC family into Brazil and England and Port St. Joe. Christ lead! Supreme God, move us!!

This past weekend, there are a couple of statements that are sitting in my core. 'Christ cannot be exaggerated.' I really like that idea. We simply cannot make too much of Christ. It's impossible. Yet, I sure want to be a part of the church that gives its best shot at matching His magnitude! (Can't do it, but let's try anyway!!). I want to love Christ, not for what I gain from Him, but for who He is. I really want to be in love with Him. I want to be surrounded by Christ-followers who are in love with Him as well. That could be radical and world-transforming, which sounds much like Christ's plans for His church!

Go ahead, attempt to exaggerate Christ this week.

By Grace... For Glory,

Mark

On the Way! I am so loving as I watch God move our students along the Way. I love watching them as they are disturbed for the glory of God. I love hanging out with students and hearing them challenge me along the Way. I love hearing their stories and I really love watching them increase the story and fame of God as they challenge each other to be on the way. I love that their passion for the renown of Christ filters to many of us, who are a generation above them on the Way.

I was sitting in a prayer-encounter with our worship team this past week. It was utterly fresh to come together, across the 4 teams, and to seek the face of God. Carrie has died. We are missing our team leader. We gathered and we prayed and we invited God to reveal His presence. I gave a simple assignment before arriving that evening. I asked that each of us on the team(s) bring some truth from the Word and that we wash one another in His truth. Amazingly, one of our students opened the time by reading from Joshua 1. She said to us, 'where did God's people go when their leader had died? What did they do?' Then, she answered it by reading as Joshua picked up the mantle of leadership and challenged them to 'be strong and courageous... to not fear and to not be dismayed, but to trust that the Lord our God is with us!' What an incredible night of centering on our God. I love our praise team. I love our students. I love our God! I love that He is the sole supreme King of glory and that we follow Him. I will miss Carrie very much! Perhaps, the greatest honor that we give to her life of worship is to follow her in great pursuit of Christ.

So, as we move along the Way as a fellowship, I sense a clear call of God toward Him... toward His purposes and His passion. As we study and weave our way through Colossians 1 and as we realize that we are a part of this glorious movement called the 'church', we are also realizing that Christ is our leader. He is the head. He is the beginning. All of what we do and all of who we are is for His glory and for His supremacy. Because that is true, God is calling our fellowship to an ever-deepening place of prayer. He is calling us to seek His face. Stir Holy Spirit! Supreme God, move us.

Ian challenged our students to pray a simple prayer...'Supreme God, move us.' Move us more deeply in the Way. Move us, when we are in the midst of sin, away. Move us, as we see need, to be the way. Supreme God, move us! That is my prayer for our fellowship, as God plants an ever-deepening hunger for His life and His way in our hearts. I am praying that we are moved after the heart of God so that we will be moved for the heart of God. Pray...Seek....Live.....Become.

Supreme God, move us.

By Grace.... For Glory,
Mark

Jesus leading the church. Can you imagine? How would we live, move, and have our being, with Christ leading? What would we do? Who would we be? Would our lives and our 'church' and this movement be defined by 'Christ-only'? Really, would there be such 'awe' of God and wonder for Him birthed out of our fellowship? Could we find ourselves immersed in the inexplicable, apart from Christ?

What if.... What if, as a 'church' of called out people, we believe that Christ lives, moves, breathes and displays His glory through us. What if we really do release a taste of heaven on this planet? What if we fall madly in love with Him and His Word and His life? What is our reason for existence is to reflect Him? What if we do? What if......

Jesus Christ, supreme in the church.... supreme in His people. Supreme.

Mark

I'm pretty excited about:
- 96 kids rolling in who know The Way and who are disturbed by the Way
- Hundreds of kids hitting VBS this weekend
- Christ leading our fellowship

What if He does..... What if......

God is choosing to do pretty audacious things through the life of Emmanuel. I love the church. I love that Christ is our leader. I love that He is the head. I love that we simply need to watch for Him at work and to join with Him in this worldwide endeavor that He is bringing into fruition. He fully intends for every tribe, tongue, nation, people, on the earth, under the earth, in the sea... all peoples... all creation declaring His power, dominion, glory, honor, and fame forever and forever. Amen! I am asking God to mobilize the Emmanuel Fellowship into that song and into the everlasting story. I am asking our God to impassion our hearts for His eternal song!

I am excited about the church, because God is choosing to use us in the lives of kids and students in beautiful ways....He's using us to posture almost 100 kids at camp this weekend so that they can deepen in the Way of Christ.... He's using us to step into the lives of hundreds of kids on "Outrigger Island" (VBS) in a week or two.... to step into small groups through the summer and to chase Christ as we grow in His common interests.... to carry the name of Christ into Port St. Joe; Brazil; England and to Crestview. Amazing! Did I mention kid's heading to camp in July, and having Captain Jack Sparrow introduce them to Jesus Christ? Crazy good summer.

All of this is beautiful and what makes it beautiful is that Christ is the great and glorious transformer. He changes lives and circumstances and hearts in the middle of circumstances. He flips cardboards! The video, this past weekend, was astounding for me. I thought about the multiplied times that Christ has shown Himself and when He has changed the cardboard of a particular moment so that He found much glory in me as I found much satisfaction in Him.

So, what's your cardboard testimony? How is God changing your life? If you didn't get to watch the video this weekend in Encounter, check it out at http://youtube.com/watch?v=RvDDc5RB6FQ .

I love you guys. I love Christ. I love that He loves His church and I really love that He leads it. I love that He brings us into His amazing and transforming story. Pray... Expect....Seek....Dream... Glorify!

By Grace.... For Glory,
Mark

This past weekend was glorious. 4 times, we packed our worship room and we said 'goodbye' to Carrie. I will miss her. I will miss her love for worship, serving, creativity, encouragement, her voice, her worship, her amazing strokes of the keyboard.... I will miss her friendship and her love for God and for social justice and for His glory and for the needs of those around her. I will miss working together and dreaming together and thinking that God just might use us (EBC) to impact this world and to elevate the name of Christ.

Colossians 1.18 reads that Christ is the head of the church.... the sole purpose of the church is to make loud declaration of the supremacy of Christ. I watched the church this past weekend and we were loud and beautiful and glorious and Christ received SO much glory. You fed and loved and served and played and showed up and sang and cried and you made loud declaration of God's great glory in the midst of pain and sorrow. It was beautiful! I love you guys and I love being a part of this amazing deal called the 'church', which has the incredible role of lifting and lifting and lifting the supremacy of Christ. Christ supreme. Christ alone!

Jeff, Carrie's hubby, wrote the most amazing note Monday morning early. I thought that you would enjoy... Here it is:

Mark,

Please forward this to the staff and praise teams. Thanks man!

I have to tell you (again, I know) I love Carrie and am so thankful and blessed to have had her the time we did. One thing that is particularly cool about the blessing she heaped on us is our involvement with EBC. I didn’t want to come here when we moved back to Florida. We had established relationships at 1st UMC, her parents went there and I just wasn’t comfortable with all of EBC’s “wackiness”. It took one service to see Jesus present and one service to see what being here meant to Carrie. Getting to lead with Johnny was the second biggest reason Carrie wanted to be here; the first, Christ! Emmanuel Baptist very quickly became our home! Thank you!

Carrie cherished her “job” and the people she “worked” with. The depth of her faith was just expanded immeasurably by you guys and gals, ALL of you! I almost found myself jealous of her time with Mark. Her friendship with you is priceless! Carrie lived to sing and do music! The fact she got to do it with these teams of EXCELLENT and still growing musicians was most special to her. Carrie loved you ALL!

What all of you (staff and praise teams) did for her/us yesterday was awesome. It so much more than just about Carrie; just what she would want! People were touched by God yesterday and you all lead them to Him! Whether it was on the stage, a hug, spooning food, or just being a welcoming church to everyone; just what Carrie would want. Thank you!

Carrie loves you, I love you, Nate, Xander, and Maggie love you and we so very much THANK YOU for all you did! It was just what Carrie would want!

Jeffy

I love you guys! Enjoy this week and may God find much glory in and through you.

By Grace... for Glory,

Mark

Two things really struck me this past weekend. I am small. Really small. God is huge. Really, He is truly Supreme. Louie said something profound that has left me shaking my head at my own sinful pride. He said that I have a huge propensity to shrink down God to my level and to elevate my own life to His. That is sin. Sin makes that which is small big and that which is Supreme, small. Crazy! How can infinitesimal me attempt to make the story of God anything but the sole pleasing, God elevating story that it is? In light of the sheer awe factor of God, how could I do anything but lift His... His fame... His character... His life higher and higher? How could I do anything less than become smaller in order to elevate His greatness? I truly want to spend my life making much of a great and glorious God.


The vastness of God blew me away and I tasted a bit more of His supremacy this past weekend. But, the intimacy with God was so needed and has had such an impact on me. He holds us together. A protein molecule, in the form of a cross, is holding me together. Yeah! God is truly vast and huge and incomprehensible and big and magnanimous and any other adjective that connotes "AWESOME." Yet, He is also intimate and deeply acquainted with all of my ways. I am thankful for the intimacy that I have with this incredible God.


Christ is truly holding many of us together. Yesterday, Jeff called me to tell me that Carrie will leave this earth in a few weeks. I was not ready for that call. Jeff and Carrie are friends..... you know, the 'we share life and have kids and coach ball teams and laugh and cry and pray and do small group and actually work together' kind of friends. I wasn't ready for the doctors to tell me that her brain cancer was back. I really was not ready to hear that she had a short time to live. Less than 15 hours later, I was on the way to the hospital to say goodbye to one of my best friends. I love Carrie. I miss her. I am held together. Thanks be to God that He holds us together.


Isaiah 40.27 - 31 are verses of refuge in the past few days. I am leaning into God for strength. I am weak. I am standing in Him and His glorious might sustains, holds, and strengthens. I don't have a fraction of the answers about why this went down with Carrie. Yet, I have no doubt about Who Carrie celebrates and the reality that she is leading the worship parade in the presence of the living God! I can only imagine.....


I love you, Carrie. I thank my God for your partnership in the gospel. I miss you! Jeff, you have taught me much, over the past months, about how to serve one's wife at the deepest point of life. Thank you! I am committed to talk with God often about you.... about Nate, Xander, and Maggie. I am committed to tell them stories about their mom. I hope that we get to share much more life together.


God's glory alone.

Mark

Musings from the past week:
- Colossians 1.15 - 24 is finding much fertile soil in my heart and mind. According to Scripture, we simply cannot fathom the profundity of God's greatness. Yet, I want to give chase. I want to know Him and to seek Him and to discover more of Him and to be found in Him. His supremacy is consuming. I am enjoying studying and meditating upon Christ supreme. I am enjoying the Word studying my heart even more. What I really love is the way that the third service ended yesterday.... singing "How Great is our God" and asking, 'what if we seek to discover His greatness together?!' What if....

- A quote by Sproul continues to sharpen me. He wrote that, we are never touched and impressed with a conviction of our insignificance until we have contrasted ourselves with the majesty of God.

- My Bible Fellowship wrapped up our first trek through Yahweh (the Study) last night. I love my group! Really, I looked around the room a few times and I was so thankful for the friendships that God has given Susan and me. We read huge portions of Scripture via the story of Joseph. Rather than engage in much discussion, we simply read and considered the profound sovereignty of God in the life of Joseph. I felt 'bathed' in the Word when I left. I walked out challenged to trust God, regardless - good, bad.... I walked out thinking, what others often mean for harm, God will work for His great good and His glory if I will submit my life to His hand. My running thought is, what if I believe that God is with me today and that the circumstances around me don't surprise Him? How would I respond. How will God gain glory?

- I love kids! I received an e mail from one of our teachers and she had given her 1st graders a writing prompt. She prompted them with, More than anything else, I...... Amelia, an EBC kid, wrote that she longed for everyone to know God better. Then, she gave some terrific reasons as to 'why'. What about me? you? More than anything else, I.....

Christ supreme. Christ glorious. Christ in and through us, our sole hope of glory. What if we, together, give chase to His greatness lived through our lives. After all, we were made by Him and we were made for Him. Yeah!

By Grace... For Glory,
Mark

This past weekend:
- we celebrated 'dangerous' women. It was wildly beautiful to listen as a mom and daughter shared of their Christ adventure, followed by every woman in our fellowship standing and declaring of their passion to live dangerously. Check out the Dangerous Woman's Creed/ Prayer

Dear God, Please make us dangerous women. May we be women who acknowledge our power to change, and grow, and be radically alive for God. May we be healers of wounds and righters of wrongs. May we weep with those who weep and speak for those who cannot speak for themselves.

May we cherish children, embrace the elderly, and empower the poor. May we pray deeply and teach wisely. May we be strong and gentle leaders. May we sing songs of joy and talk down fear.

May we never hesitate to let passion push us, conviction compel us, and righteous anger energize us. May we strike fear into all that is unjust and evil in the world. May we dismantle abusive systems and
silence lies with truth. May we shine like stars in a darkened generation.
May we overflow with goodness in the name of God
and by the power of Jesus. And in that name and by that power,
may we change the world.

Dear God, please make us dangerous women. Amen.
Excerpted from Lynne Hybels’ book Nice Girls Don’t Change the World

- Speaking of 'dangerous women', it was shocking to have Bonnie pop into the office last Tuesday. She is elevating the fame of Christ in W. Africa, so what in the heck was she doing knocking on our staff team door?!? Bonnie is taking a few weeks of sabbatical before heading back to W. Africa for another year. She is so fresh in her journey with Christ... praying, seeking, living, and displaying His radiance. I love Bonnie and I thank my God for her! I love that she simply follows Christ, wherever that road may lead. She teaches me to be a Christ-follower. I'm glad!

- Supreme could be a new series of thoughts in our worship Encounter or the central passion of our hearts or the profound word that describes the only Word... Jesus Christ. I so deeply long that we seek Him... the Supreme One. Jesus Christ. Glorious One.

Jesus tells a story about our response to His supremacy. The Kingdom of Heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. -- Matthew 13.44

May our lives be marked by the Supreme King of Glory. Enjoy this week.

By Grace... For Glory,

Mark

Yesterday, we celebrated our graduates and their next step on this adventure in Christ. It was so stinkin' fresh to watch faces scroll across the screen and the song wail about being 'counted in' on this worldwide move of God. When I came to EBC, these Sr's were in the 1st grade. Yep, that really humbles me a bit. But, what is so cool is to see their faces and know that I had the thrill of sitting with many of the families as their kid embraced the story of God. Other faces popped across the screen who I know have already given their lives to Christ and to His heart for the nations. I love our students. I love their heart. I love that Christ loves them. I love that they love Him back!

As we were celebrating Seniors, my heart was also breaking for a family in our fellowship who are saying 'goodbye' to their 20 year old son/grandson/ nephew. An inexplicable gunshot wound carried him away from this earth. The void is palpable. Words are few. Prayers are many. What a dichotomy within worship.... wishing, with such passion, for the future of a bunch of seniors. Aching, with sorrow, for the unanticipated loss of an amazing kid. Life. It's challenging.

Maybe my favorite part of the Weekend speaks to both these situations. I am so deeply thankful for the Emmanuel family. In our years in this fellowship, we've walked in some pretty incredible highs. Intense lows have also made their way into the equation of our life. What we are most deeply grateful for is the deep sense of commitment that we share within the family of Emmanuel. I am not sure that we would make it without this fellowship. I love that we are devoted to one another. Our devotion to one another is birthed out of our intense devotion to our God in prayer, study, needs being met, and simply experiencing the journey of life together, in Him. That is good, in the midst of good and bad.

So, I'm asking God to compel us to wrestle with Him. To actually see Him face to face and to live to tell about it... about Him... about His wonder.... about His grace... about His magnitude.... about His life... about His worth..... Him. When we see Him face to face, all else fades!

I love you guys!

By Grace... For Glory,

Mark

A few random thoughts from a week in the life of EBC:

Yesterday, I was sitting in a room with a couple and their three children who are giving their lives for the Kingdom in Brazil in the Amazon basin. Aaron sat in the front of our worship room and he wept for the sake of the gospel and the people that he deeply loves in NW Brazil. I love his heart. I love that God is inviting us to strategically partner in this area of the world. I am really thinking that this partnership is bigger than us. I am highly confident that it is not bigger than our God!

Walking through Colossians is incredible. Attempting to recognize the gravity and worth given for me is absolutely awesome. God has provided me with a glorious rescue. Yeah, it’s good to be free. As we talked about Lazarus, it is truly joy-filled to be called out of death. But, in Christ, it’s even better than that… Christ doesn’t just invite me to step out of death, but He brings me more and more and more alive. Christ invites me to remove my grave clothes and to run free in Him. I am continuing to allow the unfathomable work of the cross settle into my life, my heart, my minutes, my days. Daily, I have the thrill of tasting more of life and more of Christ. What a gift. Grace amazing!

As I type, I’m on the road to ATL to hang out with our family ministry team. Over the next few days, we will think “Orange.’ We will think about merging the family (red = heart) and the church (yellow = the flame), which creates a beautiful orange. We long to paint our families orange… our kids orange… our church orange as we leave greatest impact for God’s great glory. It will be a fun week.

This past weekend, I had the chance to sit in a room with a bunch of folks thinking about spiritual formation. It was so stinkin’ good to consider how to make much room for Christ to be Himself. This ‘roundtable’ was in Tallahassee and I had the chance to facilitate with a group of people from all kinds of places, with one commonality – elevating Christ. What a great discussion. Beyond that, I sat at Dick Howser stadium with my 6 year old son and watched the ‘Noles play Miami. Sadly, UM won but I still felt like I really won by getting to hang out with an amazing little dude who happens to be my son!

Hey, I love you guys and I love sharing this huge God journey with you. I am amazed by what God is doing in our fellowship. May he be free to be Himself in the life of our church.

By Grace… For Glory,
Mark

Prayer releases the Christ-life. I love prayer. I love the joy of entering a conversation with the creator of the universe. I love knowing that we step, with confidence and boldness, directly into the presence of God via prayer by the grace of Christ. So, we've asked our fellowship to engage in a highly intentional prayer for one another.

For the next month, choose two or three people and pray Colossians 1.9 - 14 over and into their lives. Jot them a note.... drop a text.... an e mail.... post on MySpace or Facebook.... give them a call. Simply take a few moments, over the next month, to let the few that you are praying for know specifically what you are praying for them. Use Colossians 1 as a great guide. This could be fun and profound! Prayer gives birth to the ridiculous!

This past weekend was crazy beautiful. For those of us who ventured through all 3 services, we had the thrill of watching 15 baptized as followers of Christ. Life change.... immersion in Christ. Baptism is such a beautiful and symbolic moment. The reality and truth that we are fully covered by the grace of Christ and we will never escape His presence is awesome. Watching someone explode from the water with the trust dripping from them that anyone in Christ is a new creation. Old is gone. All things are new.

It was a great day around EBC. I love Christ. I love His rescue. I love being in worship with a whole slew of people who revel in our rescue. I am praying that God will continue to awaken us to His presence and His holiness and His power and His life. As we awaken, may we be used to awaken others to the wonder of our God.

Enjoy today.

By Grace... For Glory,

Mark

What a great week around Emmanuel. I love receiving e mails and hearing about God at work in the lives of families. I love knowing that our families are experiencing the Word together and the Word is SO alive and it is shaping and changing families.

You should meet Hailey... She is so stinkin' cute and her mom sent me the greatest e mail about her. The fam is memorizing Colossians together, and Hailey was stepping up to the plate on the first two verses. Here is the e-mail that I received: wanted to share a conversation from our dinner table. Hailey, our 5 year old, was quoting Colossians 1:1-2. I, Paul, am writing this letter. I am an opossum of Jesus just like God said. Our brother Timothy helps me write. We are sending this letter to our brothers and sisters in Orlando. At which point I said, “he’s writing to a church in Colosse. That’s why it’s called “Colossians”. Hailey said, “I know but I like Orlando. That’s where Disney World is and where Miss Danielle lives! You belong to Christ : ) This ranks as one of my favorite e mails of all time!

What a thrill to celebrate 6 people baptized as a symbol of their abandon and immersion in the Christ-life. I love LOVE baptism! We will celebrate this weekend with another dozen or so people being baptized. I love life-change and Christ and His radical revolution of our lives! I love the image and truth of the baptism celebration.

From the teaching Sunday, I am not surprised that I am decaying. (2 Cor 4.16) My hair grows in places its not supposed to and doesn't grow where needed.... my knees hurt... my daughter thinks that I'm too 'gray'.... my hands are wrinkly....... On a more serious note, as I make my way through this journey called life, it is so painfully clear to me that our outer bodies are decaying. I am disturbed by the decay of sickness and poverty and struggle and disease and pain and death. I love that there is an inner part of me that is being renewed every day and that will never stop growing and becoming and changing and, ultimately, being revolutionized by Christ in me! As I decay on the outside, I have the thrill of knowing that my inner core is exploding with more of Christ and more of life and more passion and purpose. I will never stop growing in my core. That is beautiful!

I am praying that we are a group of people who are well known for sharing an interior beauty. Our outside is such a small portion of our story, because our inner core is becoming more and more like Christ and that there is this sense of awe by the love and hope and passion that emanates in and through us. I love and long to be a part of a movement like that. May we invest more time on the strength of our inner core than we do on maintaining that which is decaying.

I hope that you guys have a massively great week. Enjoy Christ.

By Grace... For Glory,

Mark

It was good to be away last week. It's good to return home. I love driving back on Hwy 90 at Midnight last Friday and rolling up on the EBC sign. As I pulled into the city, I had such a rush of thanksgiving and love for what God is up to in our little hamlet. A few amazing things happened this past week while I was away.



- a new friend of mind, who has recently embraced Christ, is on day 5 of addiction recovery. She was so pumped to tell me about her steps during Weekend Encounter. Yeah, I love that Christ is an amazing redeemer.

- I love listening to worship back at home as I ventured away for the weekend. Our students are simply amazing and leading us in worship. It is beautiful for me as I am led to the cross by the generation behind me. I thank God for Doug Whitaker. He challenged our fellowship from the Word and left me with the desire to experience Christ. (and also to eat a bit of cheesecake!) We have an incredible staff team at EBC. Simply amazing!

- a team of 15 went to New Orleans and changed a home.... a life... restoration happened. It was beautiful! We partnered with Operation Noah (www.namb.net/noah) and I expect that we will partner quite a bit more. Check out our team.... they changed a bit of the world last week!

I'm still a bit challenged by the idea that I am biblically compelled to live a life that is congruent with the worth given for me. I have no idea how to pull that off. I love that Jesus will strengthen me and fill me and live through me. I find it a weighty responsibility to live worthy of this amazing gospel. The running passion of my heart is to hear the words of Christ, as I enter eternal glory, 'well done, you have been good and you have been faithful with all that I gave you.' Those words, flowing from the lips of Christ to me, are consuming and hope-filled!

I hope that your week is filled with the desire to pursue Christ... to know Christ.... to experience Christ...and to spill His life onto the lives of those around you.

By Grace... For Glory,
Mark

A few reflections on Easter 2008...

- It's a historical reality, Jesus is alive. After all, we do have a date on our calendar celebrating a religious holiday. Easter holiday is a beautiful reality. Even more, Jesus is alive today. That is a profound present reality. Jesus is alive IN us. Now, that is a world changing reality!

- 4 of 5 wells that we contributed to at Christmas are now complete. Can you imagine villages in Nigeria, Kenya, Zambia, and Uganda drinking fresh drinking water because we know that Jesus is alive!?!

- The music, yesterday, was so amazing. We had an intensely cool moment in one of our services. I call it a 'holy roar'. I was not sure whether we were going to stop cheering and it was loud and impassioned and the central figure in our cheering parade was Jesus Christ. I liked that moment alot!

- I had a few dozen conversations after services.... many of which described the profound work of God in each person's life.

- I loved the teaching moment in our middle service. Janae stood with me during my entire teaching moment. Janae loves God. She worships like crazy. She sings with passion. Her faith is So sincere. Janae has "Downs'. She teaches me what it looks like to love God with unfettered abandon. Janae has not one care about what those around her are doing, thinking, or singing. She worships for an audience of One. I want to be more like her!

- People were sitting in the foyer and on the floor in our first two Encounters. It was beautiful. You know, I'm actually thinking that it would be a pretty great heart-hope to gather with Easter anticipation and Easter 'crowds' weekly. Jesus is equally alive today as He was Sunday. I love that about Him.

- I love EBC. It was fun to hang out with you guys and celebrate the historical, present, and 'alive in us' Jesus Christ.

- The story of Christ cannot be abbreviated!! He is supreme in the beginning and He will be supreme as He leads the resurrection parade. He is beautiful!

- Here is what I believe... Greater things are still to come and greater things are still to be done in this city! Let His glory and His fame and His passion and His life arise in and through us.

Happy Easter. Happy Easter tomorrow. Happy Easter every day. Christ is alive! As a Christ-f0llower, He lives in you. Allow His life to flow through you. Change the world!

By Grace... For Glory,

Mark

Honestly, I found it practically impossible to separate the lyrics and the songs and the teaching as we ventured through worship yesterday. Once again, I found myself radically attracted to the grace of Christ and to His work, on my behalf, at the cross. It was so refreshing to be reminded that it is 'not by works of righteousness, but by His mercy that Christ saved us.' (Titus 3.5) My best works that are 'right' and good are so trite in compare to the magnitude of His mercy. My right is abbreviated; short; finite; impure; and simple. His mercy is unabbreviated; eternal; infinite; and His mercy holds the radical capacity to actually create a rightness or righteousness within me. I love that truth. It is really not about my works of rightness and all about His mercy, which paves the way for His salvation. Salvation spring up from the ground.....

Yesterday was good, because....

- I was able to share in my own journey to a highly sacred and life-changing place. Camp Willow Run is a place that God radically used to shape my life and understanding of grace and mercy. Thank you for

stopping in with me there. I hope that you have a 'place' that marks you in His mercy and His grace. You know, that place where you discovered a taste of the depths of His grace. That sacred space in your life that leaves you never to be the same. Thanks for letting me share my spot with you.

- It was fun to eat a filet and enjoy that meal with you : ) It is even MORE fun to delight ourselves in the riches of foods as we feast, together, in Christ. I long, at my core, for the self-discipline to set aside the trivial in order that I pursue and live for the eternal. As I taste more and more of Christ, my taste buds will never be the same and they will not settle for trash.

- I got to hang out with multiple families who are thinking about identifying their lives with Christ and His work in this fellowship (Starting Point). I love Starting Point!

- A friend of mine ran a marathon in Korea. He finished and sent me pictures. Way to go, Guy!!

- AND, yesterday paved the way for an entire week of considering the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. I love Easter week!!

It is so sweet to enjoy this journey in Christ with you guys. I hope that your week is a feast in Christ. I am asking God to diminish your hunger for the trivial and to leave you famished for His Word and His life and His truth. May you have the self-control to feast on His truth!

He's alive and His life, released in You, brings the full-measure of His life wherever you go. Enjoy Easter.

By Grace... For Glory,

Mark

"Grace is the central invitation to life and the final word. It's the beckoning nudge and the overwhelming, undeserved mercy that urges us to change and grow, and then gives us the power to pull it off." -Tim Hansel

"Your grace is enough for me..... - Tomlin

I love Paul's hope and passion for us, as Christ-followers. He invites God's grace and His peace to rule in our hearts. Grace is our God exerting His holy influence in and through us. Grace is our God infusing our lives with His greatest purpose and His grace allows us to live for His greatest glory in this earth. We have to 'link' our lives to God's grace so that He links His life to ours. His life, poured into ours, is a profound and prolific link!

Grace is amazing.

Grace is beautiful.

Grace sustains.

Grace empowers.

Grace enables.

Grace saves.

Grace redeems.

Grace provided our yesterday.

Grace guides our today.

Grace secures our tomorrow.

Grace amazing take me home.

Grace is enough.

As Paul opens a letter to the church at Colosse, he longs for them to experience the holy infusion of the presence and reality of God (grace) and to recognize that they are eternally seated with Him in the midst of His holiness and His life surrounds and envelopes them (peace).

I have so much peace when I know the rest of the story! I have SO much peace when I know who I am and whose I am and the eternal ramifications of those truths. Being the avid 24 fan that I am, it is always good when Jack Bauer and Jesus can weave their way into a worship encounter. Honestly, as I watched Jack in season 3 and the peril that he was under, I knew that he had no shot at making it out alive. None!! Now, I netflix the 24 series...I'm just not committed enough to the 'tube to actually DVR or TIVO or purchase whatever the latest deal is to watch TV. So, I make life easy and watch shows WAY past their time. As I watched Season 3 of 24 and I was sweating Jack's physical safety, it hit me like a ton of bricks..... THERE ARE 6 SEASONS! He's going to make it!!!

I know the end of my story in Christ...not all the in-between until the end, but I know the end! I know that I will surround the throne of Christ and that I will join with every tribe and tongue and nation and people and that we, together, will make much of His supremacy. When that truth really settles in my heart, mind, soul, and strength I have peace....... Not fleeting peace, but peace that is visceral.

Your grace, Jesus Christ, is enough for me!

Enjoy today. Feel free to comment.

By Grace.... For Glory,

Mark

God is holy. His holiness evokes awe, wonder, fear, passion, intensity, worship, and followship. His holiness is awesome. As we venture through Colossians, I find it utterly crazy that Paul calls the church at Colosse (and you and me) 'holy'. We are a holy people who represent the wonder of God in this planet. The greek word 'hagios' is used to describe the holiest of holies and the manifest presence of the living God throughout the Old Testament and it is also used to describe us (Christ-followers!). We are 'holy' or 'set apart' or 'saints' for the display of the living God. I Corinthians 3.16 asks a radical question: 'Do you not know that you are the temple of God?' Do you get the ramifications of being the temple of the living God? They are huge! Honestly, I think that I 'know' that I am His temple and I hold this magnanimous treasure in a jar of clay, but my actions and my passions don't often reflect that knowledge. What a challenge to live as who I am... Holy and faithful, so that others might discover the source of my holiness and faithfulness - the exalted, Jesus Christ!!

This weekend, so many amazing things happened. To name a few:

- Our bikers parked bikes in Daytona and represented Jesus Christ in beautiful ways

- I watched several families drawing on the "Journey" wall. I watched their kids draw and I wondered about the impact of our decisions made today on generations to come

- Speaking of, Lilly hugged me Sunday night and she told me that she had invited Christ to be her forever friend. Lilly's mom had tears running down her face and Mr. Pat was walking on air. What a night!

- A friend told me that she has taken huge strides in overcoming her addictions. Beautiful!

- Multiple people are all over memorizing Colossians. That is huge!

- Another small group leader shared of 3 in her group embracing Christ.

Yeah, it was a good weekend. May we recognize that we are the temple of God. Like the church in Acts 2, I am praying for a sense of 'awe' and wonder from those who watch us and catch a glimpse of the living God. After all, we are 'holy' because we are His!

Feel free to comment. Enjoy this week.

By Grace... For Glory,

Mark

One of my favorite moments, from our Encounter yesterday, was sharing about The Journey Home. To look back seven years and remember that Dan, Ryan, and I stood on a corner and looked back at a bunch of trees and prayed for God to go amazing things as we built future space on our campus. The dreams that we shared, in that prayer circle, were huge. We had thoughts about our kids embracing Christ... the adults that would occupy that building.... the things that God wanted to do. We felt like we were dreaming "God-sized' dreams. We definitely were not lacking in our faith or hope for what we wanted God to do in our fellowship.

It's just a great reality that God always wants to do more than we can dream. I mean we dreamed of kids engaging Christ. But, with 50ish kids (0 - 12th grade) at our church at that time, I don't think that we remotely thought that 220ish kids (k - 5th) would gather on our campus each week! That building that we prayed for... well, it was used for adults for a little while. Now, it's become a building committed to kids and God is using that space to change the lives of children and their families. God felt free to blow away our greatest prayers and dreams and I really, really love that about God!

So, we will go 'On Location' this week. Get this... each of us will stand, with our family, and look out at land and dream of what God will do with the space that we are building. I know this about our church. We are filled with amazing people who believe huge things about our God. As big as we dream, I have no doubt that God will far supersede our wildest expectations. Can you possibly imagine what God will do in the life of our fellowship in the next seven years? I want to be right in the middle of God's move as His presence flows through our fellowship. I love God!

In light of dreaming about our building, I love this sentence even more. As I was teaching this weekend, this thought was given as the closing challenge. A wise man invests in the eternal and squeezes in the temporary. - Ortberg What a great sentence! What an even greater challenge. I am praying that our fellowship will be a group of people who pour our lives out for that which is eternal and squeezes in the temporary.

I love you guys and I love being on journey with you in pursuit of the eternal. Enjoy this week. Dream.... Live..... Go..... Be.

By Grace... For Glory,
Mark

This week, I am actually hanging around the reality of what I am known for. I actually plan to ask a few people. I want my kids to tell me what they 'know' that I'm about. I wonder what my neighbors think of me. What about the people who are around me all day. I wonder what Susan thinks about me. I want to remove a bit of mystery and ask.

I also want to talk with God this week and ask Him what He wants me to be known for in this earth. Then, I want to become quite intentional in building the disciplines into my life that will make much room for Christ' character to actually flow through me. As Paul wrote in I Cor 9.26ish, I want to 'run straight for the goal that I am after with purpose in every step.' This impassioned pursuit of Christ isn't random. It is an ongoing heart-hope that I not disqualify the beauty and wonder of who my God is by my poor reflection of Him. So, I will get after it in pursuing Him with my heart, soul, mind, and strength.

Like Paul, I want to be known for linking my life to Christ. In fact, I don't really care if I am known. If, by some amazing act of God's grace, I might get in on making Him well known and elevating His glory and highlighting the magnitude of Jesus Christ and speaking much of Him and His majesty and His wonder and His awe and His supremacy, I think that I will fade and His greatness will rise to the top. Is it possible that I could be known for knowing Christ and making Him known??! If so, that would be fresh!

Studying Colossians together is going to be a sweet pursuit into Christ's supreme nature. Two challenges are out there as we venture through this letter:

1 - Read the letter of Colossians in its entirety each week. Yeah, we are going to dig into a singular verse or two each week, but it's really a letter. So, as we dig in and micro the letter on Sunday AM, you'll back up and read it as a whole during the week. That will make for a powerful combination.

2 - Let's memorize the book on this journey! Can you imagine memorizing the entire Letter to the Colossians!?! Can you imagine all of us doing that together!? I know it's a big deal. I am quite confident that the Holy Spirit is itching to partner with you in memorizing the Word. I think that God thinks that this is a great idea!! Tackle Colossians 1.1 this week. Just start there....

I love journeying through Scripture. I love that God has given me the great thrill of sharing in that journey with you guys! I love that God has full intention of growing His character in us. Let's have full intention of allowing Him to do just that. Enjoy this week.

Feel free to comment by clicking below.

By Grace... For Glory,

Mark

Being rich toward God means making that which is temporary a servant to that which is eternal. - Ortberg I think that I will think about that thought for quite awhile. Christ, as He is so good at doing, has created another intersection for me. Honestly, I don't consistently enslave the temporal for the eternal. I find myself chained to temporary circumstances, issues, things, decisions and temporary circumstances often determine my view of the world. Wow, do I ever want to enslave the temporary to the eternal. The scope and impact of a life that is chained to the eternal and enslaving the temporary is unimaginable. May I be rich toward God! May we....

As I was teaching Sunday, the most interesting part, for me, was the idea that I truly do love God. Really. I love Him and I long to love Him with all heart, soul, mind, and strength. Yet, with all those desires, I make Him 'counteroffers' as it concerns giving Him myself. I counteroffer His desire to know me and guide me and live in me and live through me with my busyness or my scattered thinking or my sin. I don't know why in the heck I counteroffer God in His desire to know me well and His invitation to know Him well, but I do it frequently. I want that to change. I will think much about counteroffers and I will, hopefully, begin to offer me... just me as a living sacrifice and I know that God will find that to be a holy and pleasing offer.

Deuteronomy 30.19 seems to give me a good bit of guidance in this desire to know and love Christ. I love the way this section of the Word says to me, "hey, this is not a grand mystery! Day in and day out, there is before me one intersection after another.... I can choose life and blessings or death and curses. It's that simple." As I venture through down the path of this day, I choose life... in the big deals of the day, but also in the hundreds and hundreds of decisions that I will face. I choose life. I choose Christ. I choose to love Him. I choose to free Him to free me to become more like Him.

Today, it's been set before you... Choose life! Choose Christ!! Have a great week. I cannot wait to begin a study of the Book of Colossians. Yeah! This venture through the Word will be good.

Free free to comment. Enjoy today.

By Grace... For Glory,

Mark

Jesus invites. If anyone desires to relentlessly, habitually, and passionately come after me, let him deny his small goals, selfish ambitions, poor definitions and let him discover the fullness of who He is by boasting only in the complete work of the cross of Jesus Christ. Invite Him to follow me (Jesus), never moving away from a conscious, purposeful awareness of who I am and what I am calling you to become.

- Jesus

I cannot imagine a life that is not in constant pursuit of Christ. I cannot imagine a life that is not defined by the truth of who I am in Christ and the unimaginable ramifications of being filled with His life and His grace and His covering and being utterly, fully, totally complete in Him. As I was talking about Christ and our lives defined by Him, I was lost in the wonder of allowing Him to define me. If that, alone, was what Christ does for me it would abounding and enough. Yet, as I 'take up the cross' and all that the cross entails, I find that Christ does define me. I also find that I am covered by Him. I am covered by His grace and His unimaginable love. Christ steps into my life and He removes my sin and my shame and He grows me in the grace and knowledge of who I am in Him. He writes His life and His truth and His ways and His plans and His purposes onto my life and I am captured by His grace.

As our band was playing that the grace and the cross of Jesus Christ 'covers me', I felt like we were in a sacred moment. What a thrill to represent a taste of what Christ has done for us. He covers our sin and shame by His grace. He writes His wonder, beauty, and majesty over our sin. We are new. New creations. New heart. New life. New definition. I love Jesus Christ. His grace is amazing.

I love you guys. Enjoy this week. Boast only and loudly in the cross! Jot a comment if you like.

By Grace... For Glory,

Mark

Replacing lies with truth... Discovering our true identity.... being defined by our Creator. One of the processes of spiritual growth is replacing the lies of poor definition (being defined by circumstances; words spoken into one's life; successes; failures; painful moments; great moments; promotion; job loss... this list could be endless), with the truth of who I am in Christ.

I know that I am accepted, free, rescued, adopted, a friend of God's, loved, redeemed, sealed by the Spirit of God, seated in Heaven, filled with hope.... the truth of who I am in Christ can be discovered over and over as I weave my way through scripture. I am free... free from condemnation; free to serve; free to join God in His amazing work of freedom and reconciliation of men, women, and kids to Himself. I am free (and constantly being freed as I discover who I am in Christ) to become... to release the possibility of Christ magnifying and amplifying His life through my own. Beautiful.

Speaking of beautiful, it was amazing to experience the freeing, redeeming work of Christ in the lives of our students this weekend. Grace Campus Ministry (from Auburn U) brought truth to our campus. They brought the freeing truth of identity in Christ to our student ministry. They brought their hearts, passion, and love for Christ and poured it into the hearts of the EBC students. It was a remarkable weekend of worship, fun, laughter, and a release of passion for and toward Christ.

Last night, I sat in the room with our students and listened to them share their hearts. We have incredible (I MEAN INCREDIBLE) kids @ EBC. They shared stories... they encouraged one another.... they challenged one another.... You know, the coolest part of last night was that it was not an emotion fest. Our kids were impassioned, but also intensely practical. They are leaders!

As the pastor sitting in the back of the room, I honestly asked God to pour His maturity into my life so that I a might lead/ guide these kids well. I also listened to them and realized that I love being a part of the Emmanuel family. Do you know how beautiful it is to learn from students? I am challenged to be a man after God's own heart because I have a generation behind me who will not be silent about their faith. Yeah!

We are becoming. A part of the process of becoming like Christ is doing that in context of a family. I love the Emmanuel family.

So, props to Ian and Theresa! Amazing weekend. Props to Grace Campus Ministry and the band from FBC, Opelika. Ridiculously good weekend. Props to Jesus Christ. You came in Spirit and Power. Thank you!

Enjoy today.

By Grace.... For Glory,
Mark

Biblical Community is absolutely beautiful. Really, to consider Matthew 16.24 and Christ' radical call to His glory and followship of His fame is daunting to say the least. Jesus doesn't exactly invite us into a lightweight faith. Actually, He invites us to relentless pursuit; utter loss of self-centered ambition; and dying to personal gain with the hope of truly living for ultimate gain.

Understanding the vitality of being in community with a few and having those 'few' stand with me holds the capacity to truly mark me for His fame. More than that, I am not merely committed to Christ (although, being committed to Him is a big deal). I am also committed to a group of people who share a common passion for growth togther in pursuit of Christlikeness. As I share life with my Bible Fellowship, I truly feel a connection and a level of account to them. Not only do I want to free Christ to live fully through me because I love Him. But, I also want Him to consume me because I love my Bible Fellowship and I never want to discredit the character of Christ before them AND, I want my life to constantly push them toward Him. That is fresh.

So fresh, that I actually want to believe that I could sustain my faith in the face of great evil... much like Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah (along with Daniel). Four friends who truly get uncompromising followship of Jesus Christ (officially, God of the OT. Jesus was there, of course!). Their faith and mutual accountability drove them to live out Lordship in extremely practical ways. Further, their lives were totally interrupted by their faith in Him. Their diet, prayer, worship, choices, passion, friendship, refusal to compromise.... essentially, all of life was different due to their intersection with the living God. Biblical Community is right. Biblical Community is profound.

Believing all that was written above, I have to tell you that Sunday evening at the community center was off the chain. The Crestview Civic Center was packed with people, laughter, community, love, leadership, and the forming of beautiful Biblical Community in the life of Emmanuel. It was filled with good. It is wrought with potential. What will happen when our Bible Fellowships continue to develop a passion for the Word; others; and service together? The impact of Sunday evening was profound. The potential of what might be is beyond imagination.

I am asking God, with deep, visceral groaning, to birth His character and life within us. I am inviting Him to BE in our midst and to draw our body into His BEING. I love Him. I love our fellowship. I love structuring for His greatest glory and His greatest movement in our midst. May God shock our wildest dreams with the outworking of His presence.

Please feel free to comment by clicking below.

I love you guys.

By Grace... For Glory,

Mark

If you are going to be my disciple, you must deny yourself and take up your cross and follow me - Jesus

In an account found in John 6, Jesus has a HUGE crowd; is at the height of popularity; could, potentially, stop and build the first 'mega' church; and He has the chance to go down in history as the first to immediately launch a fellowship with 20,000 attenders. Instead, He creates an intersection (which, by the way, He feels free to do over and over as people come alongside Him in His journeys). Jesus says that the way of followship is beautiful and filled with life, passion, and purpose. Also, the way of Christ is sacrifice and suffering and abandon to personal will so that we can live for the ultimate will and purpose - the glory and supremacy of Christ in all things, for all good things glorious.

Jesus does the unthinkable and calls the crowd to radical commitment to His Lordship and to worship of Him alone. The crowd thins.... a few remain... and those few pour out their lives as a drink offering before the Lord and their lives are marked with eternal value and consequence.

I long for the Emmanuel family to intersect with the life-consuming call of Christ. If we choose to follow, the Christ-life lived through us will lend itself to more than we can ask or imagine. There will be more life...more passion... more focus..... more challenge....more fullness....more of His glory.

Jesus has a pretty simple realization. Not all will follow. That's why He says, "If".. If you want to follow, then realize that there will be no small gods on the path. There will be no finite forms of worship. No personal agendas. No wasteful idols. The road to Christ will hold only one throne and one Person worthy of our worship. To Him (Jesus), who sits on the throne; He will receive all honor, glory, dominion, and worship forever.

Sadly, it seems that many will choose a path littered with small dreams, aspirations, idols, agendas, with little to no eternal consequence.

If anyone wants to follow after Christ, the invitation involves laying down of self and picking up one's cross and running hard after Him. I long to give chase. I long to do that within a pack of followers who charge after the heart of the King. As an Emmanuel family, let's go all in together. Our answer, together, being "Yes, Lord", we will go wherever, do whatever, speak to whoever, give whenever... Our answer, before You ever ask is "Yes, Lord!" Let's go all in!

Feel free to comment below.

By Grace... For Glory,

Mark

It's the close of a year. That makes for a sweet time of reflection and also a time for ever-increasing passion for what God could potentially do as He lives through the life of our fellowship in 2008. A few weeks ago, I jotted down a few key markers on this journey in 2007. I thought that you might like to read a bit of the Christ-life expressed via the Emmanuel Fellowship.

Happy New Year! This past year has been simply amazing! We have experienced over 80 people, that we know of, embrace the story of Christ and follow Him in baptism and in life abounding, eternal, and impassioned. Amazing.

In January, 2007 we launched a 40 Day prayer vision and journey that involved kingdom impact and building more space on our campus. Since then, we have eliminated $500K of debt and we are currently paying forward on our building. It is our continuous passion to build into the lives of families and to build physical space when absolutely necessary. So, with debt behind us, the earth is moving and the future building is coming into fruition.

We have continued to ask God to strengthen our vision for families and our Synergy conference and the family ministry focus has become laser-like and simply astounding. Family impact is, honestly, immeasurable!

Likewise, our small group strategy has been prayed over in 2007 and we are at the re-birth phase of launching a strengthening small group strategy with an ever-increasing passion for the Word; others; and serving.

Speaking of serving, we’ve been invited to strategically partner with NW Brazil and to consider being the key liaison for that region of the world. That’s huge. Even more, we’ve also sent teams across America and also into four different continents in 2007. Amazing.

In 2007, Theresa, Renee, Brenda, and Chuck have joined the Emmanuel team and Doug has shifted roles and is lending guidance to our discipling ministry to adults. Bonnie has ventured to W. Africa; Andy to TN; and Diane to SC. It’s been a year of team transitions!

It’s impossible to capture, in writing, the impact of hundreds of kids/ students on camps, retreats, and in day to day growth via the life of EBC. Immense… that’s the impact in our kid’s lives.

We closed 2007 with an Advent conspiracy (it seems, as I read the above thoughts, we’ve been in a conspiracy for the glory of Christ all year!). We gave and gave and gave during Christmas. We provided thousands of bibles to our Chinese partners in the gospel; at least 4 wells in Africa; and incredible support for our missionary friends. Our giving goal was $20K… our church actually gave $47K! (Yeah, you read that number correctly!) That is a conspiracy!!

2007 has been fresh. Christ is beautiful and glorious. He is consuming.

So, we are poised to ask God to do more than we can ask or imagine during 2008. Expectations are high and anticipation is rich. It is my prayer that we make so much room for God to be Himself… to change our lives… to revolutionize this city for His glory… and to impact the nations with utter abandon. I can only imagine what God intends in the life of our fellowship this year. I love being your pastor. I love being on journey with you. I love that God will far supersede our wildest dreams for 2008. So, dream big, huge, audacious, God-sized dreams for you and for your family and for this fellowship. Then, sit on the edge of your seat with expectancy. Happy New Year! Expect… Think… Go… Live…Be!

Feel free to comment by clicking below. Have an amazing New Year!

By Grace…For Glory,
Mark

Christmas is changing the world.... God's Word, released throughout China. Water, and salvation, springing up from the ground in Africa. Missionaries, over 5500+ who have given their lives to other nations and people groups, supported financially and practically. It's been an amazing Christmas in the life of Emmanuel. I love this place. I love that God has placed me in the midst of a fellowship that is intensely in love with His life; His Word; and the full-bore manifestation of the living Word found in the person of Jesus Christ.

The advent has truly been a conspiracy....

Our goal was to distribute 835 bibles to the persecuted church in China ($5K)... We actually gave 1875 bibles to fellow Christ-followers in China ($11,250)

Our goal was to provide clean drinking water to 5000 africans (approx 2 wells) in sub-saharan Africa ($5K)... We actually gave $13K+ and we are able to place 4 well in villages in Uganda/ Zimbabwe/ Kenya/ and a village in a nation TBD.

Our goal was to support our full-time missionaries with a $10K offering. I cannot wait to share, this weekend, what God did through the life of our fellowship. Keep your fork.

Christmas is changing the world and the impact of our faithfulness will carry on for years and years to come. The Word is living and active. It has feet and gives chase to you; it has hands and grabs hold of you. You and I have distributed the living Word all over China. The water is physical, but the water of Life in Christ is spiritual. May thousands in Africa drink deeply and find satisfaction, physically and spiritually, in Christ alone. Finally, may our missionaries, who give their lives daily for the glory of the cross, sense our support, love, and passion for the fame of Christ as we partner with them in a tangible, financial way.

We have worshipped more; spent less; given SO much more; and loved all! Thank you.

Then, Sunday evening, we stood with a crowd of folks and broke ground on our new building. In the very near future, we will teach 250 preschoolers that they are loved by God; He is their friend; and He made them for His great glory! For generations, this building will display the awe and wonder of our God. It was a good night for many reasons....one of which is, we paid IN FULL our Field House. We enter our new building phase debt free on all other buildings. That is good stewardship. That is Emmanuel. God is glorified.

I love being on journey with you. I hope that your Christmas is amazing. Behold His glory. Behold His grace. Be transformed by His power, presence, majesty, wonder, and glory. He is good. His love endures forever.

Feel free to comment. Feel free to have a glorious Christmas.

By Grace... For Glory,

Mark

Bibles Unbound...... Clean Water. As we dive into the advent conspiracy a bit more deeply, I am still amazed and humbled by what God is choosing to do in and through us. Honestly, we placed a "God-sized" goal of 835 bibles to be sent into China. God felt free to smile and free us to send 1700+ bibles into the hands of fellow Christ-followers in China. Together, we gave more than $9800 toward Bibles Unbound! Amazing.. Amazing... Amazing!

This past weekend, we turned our hearts toward giving to the BloodWater Mission. I cannot wait to share with you what God has done through our fellowship. Keep your fork!

When it felt like we couldn't sap one more ounce of God's goodness in our weekend Encounter, Ian stood and said 'goodbye' to the crowd for the day. Tied with his 'goodbye' was the announcement that we will be breaking ground the 16th on our MUCH ANTICIPATED preschool building and family-fun area. Even better, we will break ground debt-free, God-willing. Our typical "Journey" giving in December will allow us to have fully paid off the Field House before breaking ground. Utterly and completely amazing!!

It was a good day Sunday! There are so many things that were right. Ultimately, the presence and Person of Jesus Christ was the most pervasive and amazing thing that happened Sunday. There was a palpable sense that we were experiencing one sacred moment after another Sunday. Sunday at 12:30, I was exhausted and refreshed in Christ simultaneously. What a feeling.

Perhaps the most challenging thing that happened Sunday stemmed from a biography that I am reading. The bio is about a Pastor in the underground church in China. The book is compelling. At 5:30ish AM Sunday, I was going to wrap up the book and head to EBC. As I eased into the next to last chapter, I was stopped in my tracks and left undone. He was describing a vision to impact a massive region of the Asian continent. The church in China longs to send 100,000 missionaries out of China and into the most challenging places in the world. Check out the progress @ http://www.backtojerusalem.com/

The three key components of the missionary training include: a deep biblical understanding of suffering as a Christ-follower. They are trained to live and to be willing to die for the sake of the gospel. 2) the capacity to share their faith... while traveling; at a home church; with a Hindu/ Muslim; and when in a van traveling to your execution! 3) how to escape imprisonment for the sake of the gospel....

I want to live for Christ. With all that I am, I want to live for Christ. I want to reach a point of willingness to die for Him as well. All of life for Him. All of life from Him. All of life to Him. Beautiful.

Feel free to comment. I hope that your week is lived as a conspiracy for His glory! Keep your fork, we have an incredible weekend on the horizon. See you Sunday.

By Grace... For Glory,

Mark

I really don't want to leave the goodness and all that was right about yesterday. Honestly, it was astounding to encounter the Word throughout our 3 weekend encounters. Yesterday, we celebrated the radical, eternal transformation of hearts through the sacred moment of baptism; we shared in giving in order to send 835 bibles into a region of the world that is persecuted for the sake of the gospel (Our giving was yesterday. We gave. 835 bibles will be packed and sent Tuesday night!); our kids worshipped in extraordinary ways and it is beautiful to read their notes as they gave the Word to a family in another part of the world; we explored the utter supremacy and majesty of our God. He is infinite (no limitations; no end; existing forever; unbound; never tired; never aging; never upgraded; timeless) He is God! By becoming more God-conscious and God-exalting, my worship enhances.

In the earliest of our services, we had a moment that is a bit hard to describe. I'll give it a shot and then share an e mail that I received today. A man has been worshipping with us for 27 months. He does not speak english. Our services have not been translated (his small group has, but not our services). He has worshipped with us anyway b/c he experiences the presence of God. Yesterday was his last Sunday in this country. He will make his way back to his homeland this week. So, we said goodbye and we honored him. The goodbye was crazy. I spoke and Billy translated. Billy can translate b/c he spent a couple of years on extreme teams in Peru/ Bolivia discovering and laying groundwork with unreached people groups in that region. It was a good moment! It was a moment that I will savor for quite awhile.

It got better today. I received the below e mail from Jace. I am genuinely astonished by the grace of God alive in our fellowship. Read below....

HOLA PASTOR MARK!

Brushing up on my Spanish. Hey I just wanted to share something with you from yesterday that happened in our life group. As you know yesterday was the last time for Miguel at EBC and what a blessing he has been not only to me, but to a lot of people in our church. Miguel has always said that he felt the love of Christo' (Jesus Christ)at EBC and he visited other places before he called Emmanuel his home. He has said that he knew Christ was alive in our hearts!

He didn't say a whole lot in class yesterday and then at the end whenI folded up my bible he asked if we were done. He then asked us to open our bibles to Genesis 28 verses 16-20. We read and some cried, including myself.He was telling us that he felt sad for having to leave, but that hewould be happy to see his family. He felt that Emmanuel was as the Word says "None other than the House of God". His prayer was verse 20 when Jacob prayed that the Lord would grant him protection and food on his journey back to his father's house and that He would remain his GOD.

There was a lot of silence in that room after that verse was read by Linc. Pray for his safe return to his father's house. He was robbed on his way over to the states in Mexico by the Mexicanpolice. He was the only one who DID NOT drown when him and about 14 others got caught in a whirlpool while crossing the Rio Grande coming intothe States. He said he felt the hand of the Lord pulling him ashore.I think that the Lord had a purpose for him coming to Crestview?? We serve an AWESOME GOD! Didn't mean to write you a book. HAVE AN AWESOME DAY! I PRAY for my pastor and my church staff. That was cool yesterday having Bill D translate Spanish for us. Ididn't realize he spoke Spanish until last week when he was talking with Miguel after church. Jace

I love God's presence. I am continually praying that many, MANY will find that God is our hope, refuge, presence, source and passion as we gather in this city! As a result of our passion, may others discover that He is more than enough. The Word becoming flesh and living among... beholding His glory, the glory of the one and only Who is full of grace and full of truth.

Feel free to comment by clicking below. Feel free to enjoy and revel in your God. He is good.

By Grace.... For Glory,

Mark