What is God doing at PF Church?

Last Sunday I was blown away. It was Sunday second service as I shared my message on the grace of God. At the end there were so many that responded that I could not count them all. The amazing part to me was the crying out to God without restraint. People responded with great emotion as I came to the decision time. I shared the challenge of salvation but then I shared how God loves them -- something began to happen. I then shared my story of how God healed me with His grace and truth from a graceless experience of an alcoholic father. Several people began to sob with un-controlling emotion as God’s healing grace was there to touch many lives. I am blown away as I sit back and see God’s amazing grace at work. How has God’s grace touched you?

MY LITTLE GIRL?

My daughter is graduating from College tomorrow. Can you believe it? Yes I know I am getting old and she has grown up way too quickly. We are on our way to Mpls. to see her walk the line and declare another great accomplishment in her life. This will be a marking point in her life and I am extremely proud of her. She is a woman of God that has a huge heart for children or really anybody. We have always said, Alyssa is a beautiful girl inside and out. One thing I know is God is not finished with her yet and the best is yet to come. Graduation is just a launch pad to send her off into this great world ready to make her splash and impact. One thing I know - You better watch out world, because she will make a royal splash! I love my daughter and am extremely proud of her. When she walks across the stage I will be the dad cheering and tears will be flooding up in my eyes as I think, that is my daughter and God is going to use her in a great way in the future. I love you Alyssa!

Gas Buy Down Outreach - Powerful Experience!

PF church sponsored a Gas Buy Down this past Saturday. We had cars waiting 2 blocks down the road in both directions. There were 19 of us and we served 157 cars and pumped 1,937 gallons of gasoline. The power of influence when you show God’s love in practical ways is huge. There were people who shared how their life was filled with stress and wondered if God could help them with the challenges of their lives. Also, one man shared about his father who was an alcoholic and he needed God to help him deal with it. It was well worth the money and time invested in the event. This past weekend 3-4 families came to our church because of the outreach and loved it. I am thankful for the great team who showed up and served their community; their light was contagious. They were showing God’s love in practical ways.

A Thanksgiving I can't keep quiet about

On Thanksgiving Day, the turkey aroma just gets those mouth watering juices flowing and the stomach rumbling, but somehow I need to think about what I am thankful for and the list is so long that I can’t possibly name them all. The distraction of the smell makes it difficult but let me give you a few. We have just made a move from Rogers, MN to Sheyboygan, WI, which is a 6-hour drive, 350+ miles but it was a move that was created and orchestrated by the Holy Spirit and was made in heaven to bless the socks off of the Apple family. We could not be more thrilled for the executive team and people of PF Church. What a joy to get to know so many wonderful people who have such a heart for God and a passion for the church!

We left a great number of friends in Rogers at HighPoint church, yet wondered what would this next step be like -- we have been blessed way beyond our greatest imaginations. Turkey aroma might have affected my thought patterns but there is no way I would pass up a chance to thank the leadership and people of PF Church for allowing us to serve them. We are looking forward to an adventurous journey with our new congregation and wonderful friends as we love God and love others together.

NO NEGATIVE IN THE HEART OF A LEADER!

Save us from the pain of the brain drain of leadership issues. Leadership stuff can drain the energy from your emotional tank if you are not careful. Someone said, “A leader should not allow negative things to take up space in their lives.” Scripture shares - Proverbs 4:23 – “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the well spring of life.”

If we want to achieve God’s vision it is essential that we get rid of negative energy asap. There a lot of things that come into our path draining us from being fully energized and dedicated to pursue the vision. These items can be anything from sickness, to conflict, to hurting feelings, criticism and the list goes on and on. If you want to reach your potential in leading others, it is a must that you do not allow negative things it to exist in your heart for more than 24 hours. We need to get rid of it pronto. How do we get rid of things that drain us, stuff that crushes our spirit or negative energy?

First of all, we have to ask the biggest question of all - can I repair it? Is there something I can do to straighten out the issue? Then we need to ask if there is any possibility of changing the situation to keep from this happening again . Last of all, if that does not work, then we need to resolve it by letting it go. It seems that sometimes we have to resolve that there is nothing we can do but call up God to assist us in letting it go. I realize that this step or really any of the steps are not easy things to do but the key is release the brain drain issue and get on with the vision God has called you to. There is a tendency to just ignore or pretend this issue will go away but prolonged energy drains and reduces effectiveness and the suffering will continue to increase in intensity. Scripture says, “A prudent man sees danger and takes refuge but the simple keep going and suffer for it.” Prov. 22:3 – “Don’t bury your head in the sand – kick out the stuff that drain you before your emotional tank shows up empty.” When it is empty it has gone too far and damage has happened, therefore, DO something Now!

What could you give to Jesus this Christmas?

We have just launched a special Jesus offering for Christmas this past weekend. The challenge this Christmas is to give your best gift to Jesus. It is exciting to see what God will do when we believe... We are hoping to fund the following projects: We are going to raise $5,000 for a well in India – We are going to raise $1,000 for in-ear hardware for a language translation system – We are going to raise $5,000 for Benevolence ministry for our community – We are going to raise $5,000 for an Orphanage ministry in Venezuela – We are going to raise $5,500 for a video projector for our children’s ministry – We are going to raise $14,000 for 2 projectors for our sanctuary. The total amount needed to be raised is $34,500. Kickoff was last week and runs throughout Christmas. Don’t miss a great opportunity to give your gift to Jesus at Christmas time. Let it be the best gift ever…

Way too much better than great!

I met a friend on a YWAM missions trip to Monterrey. She taught me this mantra: “Way too much better than great.” Everywhere we went as we would see God do incredible things, she would lead us in this mantra that God is “Way too much better than great.” Here we go - I love the church I am pastoring. I am in the world’s greatest church ever. Words cannot express what my wife and I feel about Praise Fellowship Church. It is way too much better than great! We are so pumped about the staff, board, people, youth, children, services, people who are new and people who have been at the church forever. What a blessing! I can’t believe how blessed we are to be able to serve in such a great church. Today we saw 20+ people make a decision for Christ. It is always cool when that happens. We are fulfilling the plan of God for the reason why the church exists. We have seen 100 people make decisions in 6 weeks. Wow – can you believe that? That is way too cool to see how God is orchestrating this whole deal. His favor is on the church and the leadership. All I can say it is because of what God is doing it is…way too much better than great.
If you are part of Praise Fellowship Church let me hear what you think about our faith community. Let me know what you think?