Thank You, Stevens Creek.

My time in Augusta is quickly drawing to a close and as our departure to Florida nears, I find myself feeling a myriad of mixed emotions. I feel tremendous excitement for the door that God has opened for a new era of ministry and I feel humble thankfulness to God for all of the blessings in my life, but I also feel sadness as I reflect on the remarkable church and wonderful friends I will be leaving behind. I know that as Christians, no "goodbye" is ever final, but I still want to take this opportunity to thank God for three of the best years of my life and to thank my "Creekers" for what has been an an amazing adventure!

To my family and friends at The Creek, Thank You! Thank you for the prayers, encouragement, love, friendship and support you have shown to my family and me. I'm a better person and a better pastor because of our time together. It has truly been an honor to be your partner in ministry, and I wouldn't trade our time together for anything. I pray God's best for you as you continue to Love God, Love People and Serve the World!

Dangerous Church

These past few weeks I have been reading through the Book of Acts, and feeling humbled, convicted, encouraged and inspired by the example of the early church and the first Believers in Christ. These were men and women so passionate about Jesus and so full of faith and the Holy Spirit that they were absolutely FEARLESS! Whether in prisons or in palaces, they were thankful; whether rich or poor they were generous; whether young or old they were on fire for God.

Fast forward two thousand years to churches in America. There are definitely still Believers with this same fearless passion for Christ, but as a whole, our churches have lost sight of the primary mission. Instead of making the name of Jesus famous in a lost and dying world, we argue instead over the style and volume of worship music or the color of the carpet in the sanctuary and we consistently place our own personal preferences over the unifying mission our Savior gave to us. We choose comfort over obedience and we play it safe when God has called us to be DANGEROUS. In short, we are missing the point!

In a few weeks, I will officially begin a new ministry as Senior Pastor of Christ's Church in Fleming Island, FL. I am absolutely ecstatic about serving at such a wonderful, grace-filled church. After much prayer about the my first sermons, I believe that God is leading me to preach a sermon series called "Dangerous Church" which will focus on carrying out the Great Commission and following the bold example of Jesus and His earliest followers. God has a huge adventure in store for us, and I can't wait to get started! For all the miraculous things He has done in ages past, I believe that He has even Greater Things in store for this generation!

Time

We always make room for what is most important to us. For instance, I have never been so full at the dinner table that I would pass up warm, homemade apple pie. As soon as I smell it, it's like a whole separte "Dessert Stomach" opens up and I've got room for pie, ice cream and even some coffee.

It's the same in our schedules. We live in a fast-paced, hectic world where our schedules can easily push away the relationships that should matter most to us. We get "too busy" for God, for our spouse and even for our kids, but we must "make room" for the people who are most important. Nothing communicates our love like our time. In fact, I believe that Time is the Currency of Relationships. When we're investing our time into a relationship, it thrives, but when we're depriving a relationship of our time, it dies. Be intentional about how you invest every minute of your day, and make room for what matters most!

Big Announcement

Dear Friends and Family,
THANK YOU so much for your encouragement and prayer. You are truly a blessing to Ashley and me, and we're so grateful you're in our lives. As many of you know, we've been praying about the possibility of moving ot Florida where I would become the new Senior Pastor of "Christ's Church" in Fleming Island (www.ccflemingisland.com) which is just outside Jacksonville. We spent this past weekend there and I wanted to give you an update of our visit and the next steps...

The church enthusiastically welcomed us and actually broke an attendance record with more than 1000 people. They are a wonderful, loving and grace-filled congregation. I believe God used this visit to confirm in my mind and theirs that He is indeed calling me to Florida. Essentially, I have been offered the position and I have accepted it, but it won't be official until I return next weekend (Feb. 7) and the church follows its written bylaws and allows the congregation to vote on my candidacy. The bottom line is that unless God supernaturally slams the door, it's going to happen. We will most likely stay at The Creek through February, and make the move to Florida the first week in March. Now, we're just praying that God would allow the details to fall into place (which He's been doing all along and I'm sure He will continue to do).

Thanks again for your support, prayer and encouragement. This is a very exciting time for us, and we're honored to get to celebrate with you.
Dave