BREAK OUT

If you know me and have been around Christian Life you know that I’m a fan of Joel Osteen and Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas.  We’ve known of Lakewood back when his father, John Osteen, was pastor and ever since the transition to Joel as pastor years ago I have prayed for Joel and watched God exponentially expand his ministry.  Each weekend tens of thousands pack out the Lakewood campus and tens of millions tune in to their weekly TV broadcast.  

While the numbers who attend are quite different (to say the least), Christian Life and Lakewood are very similar in many ways.  Our histories are alike, our services follow the same flow of ministry, and we share the same core convictions and beliefs including the power and Baptism of the Holy Spirit.  

Through his preaching and writing Joel is committed to casting a wide net to see many come to know the love and life transforming power of Christ.  This week Joel releases his latest book, BREAK OUT: 5 Keys To Go Beyond Your Barriers And Live An Extraordinary Life. I’ve had a chance to review the book packed with illustrations and Bible stories designed to take you to the next level in God.  This five part book include sections entitled:

• Believe Bigger
• Consider God, Not Circumstances
• Pray God-Sized Prayers
• Keep the Right Perspective
• Don't Settle for Good Enough 

We want to do something we’ve never done before.  We are going to give away a free copy of BREAK OUT to every family who visits our church for the first time.  And if you invite and bring someone to church, we’ll give you a copy too.  We were able to secure copies of Joel’s new book at a very low cost so we want to sow a copy to anyone who comes to check out what God is doing at Christian Life Church.  So, PRAY that many will come and be blessed.  INVITE someone to church.  And BRING someone next weekend to hear about the Good News that we have in Christ!

Integrity

But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says.

James 1:22

Our team has returned from Russia after a week of ministering with Mission Possible (MP.org).  The trip was packed with powerful ministry on the streets, in the shelter homes, and in the churches.  Countless lives were impacted, including our own.

My relationship with Missions Possible began in the early 1990’s when I was asked to write some curriculum for the International Education Fellowship.  This is MP’s school to educate pastors for planting churches after communism crumbled in the former Soviet Union.  Since then tens of thousands of leaders have gone through the IEF courses and thousands of churches have been birthed.

Beyond working with pastors and churches, Mission Possible has reached out the “least of these”.  MP and its teams are working tirelessly to help children and families lost in crisis and poverty. You can see the impact Mission Possible is making by visiting www.MP.org.

For a number of years I have served on the board of Mission Possible.  I have heard the stories, know just about everything bring done through the various ministries, and have even acted as a spokesperson in various media outlets.  I knew and spoke a lot about the organization.  But after this trip, I have experienced first hand the ministry taking place.  The whole ministry seems bigger, better, stronger. Now its real to me. Its not just something I’ve heard about, its something I’ve seen and experienced.  

What are you doing to experience God?  You may know a lot about Him.  You may even talk about Him with others.  But what are you experiencing first hand that makes God seem bigger, better, stronger in your life?  Step out in faith.  Take a risk.  Get involved.  Make it real this week!