Our Grand Opening!

Tomorrow is the official Grand Opening of Grace Bible Church Honolulu! After months of planning and preparation, the “eve” of the “big day” is finally here!

This week, Gregg was sharing with me his heart for tomorrow’s services.

Frequently, when our children have had a big birthday celebration, we’ve ended their “big day” a little unsettled. We invest so much time and energy to make the event fun and engaging that we neglect to pause, honor and enjoy the child for whom we’re giving the party.

Gregg’s hope and desire (and mine, too), is that in the midst of celebrating the opening of this church, amidst all of the fun, food and activity, that we wouldn’t fail to honor and enjoy the One for whom we’re doing this.

Tomorrow, and every Sunday for that matter, we’re really celebrating Jesus. He makes this possible. It is Jesus for whom and by whom the church exists.

You’re invited to join us tomorrow! We’re going to have a great time. Gregg will be sharing “In the Real World, the Church Really Matters”. There will be special guests sharing, lots of food, and even a bounce house and shave ice for the children. (Last time, we had the shave ice machine, my boys overdosed and ate at least three each and got sick).

To the next step in our journey . . . hope to see you there!

Same Old Boring Stroke

Yesterday, Justin and Jordan started tennis lessons. They received tennis rackets for Christmas (2008), and have been hitting balls against the garage door for over a year. Armed with rackets, they headed to their lessons and began to learn the basics of tennis.

Last Sunday, Pastor Steve shared about an experience that his boys had with a tennis coach. Let me attempt to explain it to you.

He said that their coach would drill them on the “same old boring stroke” and encouraged them not to come up with something new, fancy, tricky or spectacular. Just the same old boring stroke, executed strong and well.

The church can host a lot of events and do a lot of things, but if we neglect the necessary and foundational things—the  “same old boring stroke” (not really boring, but you know what I mean)—we will fall short of what God desires for us to be.

Every believer should be a disciple and make a disciple—nothing fancy, tricky, new or spectacular, but the essential ingredient to demonstrate God’s love to a needy world.

Same old boring stroke executed strong and well, and the world will never be the same.  

  

Keep Running!

Note: For this post, I unashamedly offer this one excuse: I am a mother talking about her children.

Last weekend was packed with sporting activities for our family. Jessie’s ballet classes started again and the boys are immersed in soccer and football. Justin scored two incredible goals during his soccer game; Brandon scored a touchdown and forced an interception; and Jojo, in his flag football debut, scored two touchdowns!

During halftime at Jordan’s game, we asked him how it felt to run the entire length of the field and score his first touchdown. He replied, “Good, except I forgot to ask my coach where the end zone was. I didn't know where it was so I just kept running.”

Jordan took the ball and ran. As he looked back, he saw the other team was still chasing him and his parents were still frantically yelling, "Don't stop!"; so he kept running.

Years ago, Justin had a soccer coach who would tell him, “If you move the ball down the field, good things will happen”.

A big determinant in our success will be our ability to persevere and fight through difficulty. I believe that if we refuse to quit, if we’ll continue to move forward and keep running this race, we’ll experience the fullness of all that God has for us.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. (Hebrews 12:1)

One Mission

We’re just one week away from officially planting Grace Bible Church Honolulu. It’s been an eventful few months and the excitement continues this weekend as we host Every Nation’s President, Steve Murrell.

Gregg and I are so thankful that he and his wife are here to stand with us as we begin this new adventure. Over the years, Pastor Steve has been a mentor, an inspiration and encouragement to us. We’re looking forward to hearing his wisdom for our and church this Sunday.

If you’re anywhere near Honolulu this weekend, come join us as Pastor Steve shares with us about having One Mission.

Our mission at Grace Bible Church Honolulu is to lead people to become fully devoted followers of Christ.

Sounds good. But how do we practically do it? We'll explore that tomorrow. Hope to see you at church!

Do They?

Let me ask you a couple of questions. These are some things that I’ve been considering myself this week.

-What difference does the presence of Jesus Christ make in your life?

-What are some distinct differences between living the Christian life and allowing Christ to live his life through you?

Our lives should show the world what Christ is like. It should attract others to him. God wants people to see Christ in you everyday.

At work.

At home.

At school.

Even when we’re tired.

Even when we’re hurting.

Even when we’re treated unfairly.

Do they?

To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. (Colossians 1:27)

My Daily Challenge: Balsamic Chicken with Creamy Pesto Sauce

I found this recipe in one of my Rachael Ray cookbooks. She posts the recipe as a 15-minute meal. I haven’t been able to complete it that quickly, but it is fast. My whole family enjoys it and the presentation is beautiful. In fact, my children said that it looks like something you would order at a restaurant.

2 T. balsamic vinegar

4 T. olive oil

Salt and pepper

4 small chicken breasts

About 6 cups of spinach

Juice of 1 lemon

2 T. butter

2 T. flour

1 ½ cups chicken broth

1/3 cup half & half or cream

¼ cup store bought pesto

Parmesan cheese

In a bowl, combine the vinegar, 2 T. of the olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. Add the chicken and turn to coat.

Heat a large skillet over medium high heat with 1 T of the olive oil. Add the chicken and cook for 5 minutes on each side.

While the chicken is cooking, in a large bowl combine the spinach, lemon juice, a drizzle of olive oil and salt and pepper to your taste.

Remove the chicken to a cutting board. Add the butter to the skillet, and when it has melted, add the flour and cook for a minute or so. Whisk in the chicken stock and cream and bring to a simmer to thicken. Remove from the heat and stir in the pesto.

Slice the chicken and arrange on dinner plates. Pour the pesto sauce over the chicken, then top with the spinach and Parmesan cheese. Enjoy! 

One Missing Piece

Several years ago, I bought a 1000 piece Thomas Kincaide puzzle. Every Christmas since, I’ve dusted it off, opened it and attempted to assemble this incredibly difficult puzzle. And every year, I fail to finish it . . . until this year.

After hours of work, days of neglecting housework and feeding my children cereal, I finished! Well, almost. One darn piece was missing.

Thankfully, after searching around a bit, I found it and officially finished the puzzle.

It made me think of Gregg’s message yesterday, The Power of One Life. He talked about the value of one person’s life—their potential to make a powerful difference in the world.

Even before God fashioned you in your mother’s womb, He knew you. You are valuable to God. Before you did anything, accomplished anything, achieved anything, you had value to God. God has a unique purpose for your life!

As I looked at my puzzle that was missing one piece, I was reminded that every life is valuable to God and necessary. Just one person living separate from God’s created purpose, makes a big difference.

God knows you intimately and designed you for a specific work. It’s a work that stretches beyond your own life and invites you to share with God in his compassion and concern for the people in your city.

Don’t be that random puzzle piece that’s hiding on the floor somewhere. Allow God to use your life to create something beautiful.