Awesome Weekend

it has been an awesome weekend. the service had 70 people in attendance and i gave a talk on Jesus @ the wedding feast. for real, it was laid out beatiful by the Holy Spirit. Just amazing what can happen on Sunday morning.

last night i met with the leadership team of 25 people and we laid out a sweet two week plan to launch this church right! you will see us at the events that are posted on the facebook page.

can’t believe that we all get to do this with our one life.

praise Jesus.

_ros

Highlights From Embrace Preview Service 8/16/09

In church planting there are plenty of ups and downs. Though it sounds unusual they can be experienced all in one day. However, as of late, we are experiencing a wave of faith sharing, relationship building, and church/community congruence. This past summer has been a refocus for us to exactly how God desires to build Embrace Church. We have continued with our community service through avenues such as our community garden, passing out bottled waters in the hot sun, Embrace concerts at Al’ s Bar, community dinners, free coffee hours, and supporting local businesses by purchasing their gift cards to use as “acts of kindness” for folks in our community. What started out with a few young professionals has blossomed and grown to bring more of what the kingdom of God looks like. We are growing and have seen almost 100 people at our past Sunday morning service, along with 2 professions of faith. The past few months we have had 6 people come to know Christ and numerous rededications. After the service we had an Embrace cookout at Phoenix Park where we fed nearly 200 people! Many of them come to Embrace and we are so thankful that are homeless brothers and sisters feeling welcome and participating in the life of Embrace. We are excited at the ways God is working and how He is building His Kingdom right in the downtown!

God Moments

I haven’t written in a while even though there has been much that has happened in the life of Embrace since Easter. Last night I had a God moment. It came at an unexpected time and place. Brady and I were stopping by Redbox to pick up a movie because I got an itch to watch the Soloist. It was late and didn’t make much sense to go when we did however Brady agreed so we rolled up to the McDonalds on S. Limestone. After picking up the movie a man approached us. He came walking fast toward us. “Dwayne” was asked if he could wash our car windows for some change. I didn’t mind. As “Dwayne” was cleaning I asked about his story. “Dwayne” started to tell me about being homeless, new to Lexington, and how nobody wants to hire an ex-con. “Dwayne” told me he couldn’t go back to the Hope Center for at least another week in a half because he got kicked out for about a month because of a discretion he had with another housemate. Brady and I gave him some change, went through the McDonalds drive thru, and gave him a clean pillow/blankets that I just so happened to have in my car. I invited “Dwayne” to our Friday night dinners and he was thrilled that we played cornhole. “Dwayne” had his hands full and as he was about to walk away he dropped a few things he was holding. I helped him pick up his belongings and as we were on the ground he looked up and noticed I was wearing an Embrace shirt. “Dwayne” told me with a grin on his face, “that’s my church!” I was blown away. I asked him, “What do you mean it’s your church?” “Dwayne” said, “I went there a few weeks ago and really enjoyed it.” The Sunday that “Dwayne” came was the first Sunday I had missed since January because I was filling the pulpit at Christ Church and my friend Blake Brodien was preaching for me. I smirked back at “Dwayne” and told him, “I’m the pastor at Embrace.” We both laughed together and the three of us had a prayer. Over and over again “Dwayne” hugged Brady and I and told us how much he loved us. I’m blown away at these God moments and glad I got to share them with others.

Adventures In Easter Egghunt Planning

We have been blessed to have Jordan step up and volunteer to be our children's director.  Jordan has a wealth of experience and her desire to reach young children for Christ is inspiring to others and myself at Embrace.  Jordan agreed to spearhead our Easter egg hunt but she got more than she bargained for, her along with everybody else.  After spending a few weeks advertising the event at Woodland Park I was notified we had to find another location.  As we started praying an opportunity opened up for us as the Dunbar Community Center on North Upper St.  Around the same time the director of the center, Bob Owsley was also praying that somebody would host an Easter Egg hunt for his kids because they had gone through major budget cuts.  Bob was just as excited as we were about the Dunbar Center being our new location.  It was right where we needed to be, especially since the area is such an underserved part of Lexington; an area that doesn't care if we bring a petting zoo, bouncy house, and other fun things.  We only had a few days to get the word out about a change of location.  With everything we went through we still had 200 people show up which was awesome.  Everybody had a great time and we were equally as blessed watching the festivities. We passed out information on Embrace and welcomed parents as they came in with their children.  I think this can be the beginning of partnership we develop with the Dunbar Community Center. 

Embrace Concert at Al's Bar

Life is about taking risk and one person said, "there are no rewards without taking risks."  If you know me, you know I'm crazy enough to take risks.  I have always been a risk-taker.  As the pastor of Embrace we want to be the type of church that is willing to go where the people are and if that means sponsoring a concert with a secular band in a bar then so be it. 

We had two local acts, Goldenrod and Matt Duncan, along with a 15 member pop band from San Francisco, Still Flyin.  When people came into Al's Bar they were shocked there was no cover charge and even more shocked how a church was sponsoring the concert.  It was a great night for music and talking to many of the people at the concert.  It not only helped us with our visibility but also our accessibility to the community.  I was given the privilege to talk briefly in between acts, which was a cool experience.  I kept it short because I knew people weren't there to hear me.  I believe this will be something we do more often and will continue to try new things in the way of our outreach to the city of Lexington.

Jesus Loves Me!

Starting off Embrace we don't have many young families so when they come through our doors we get excited.  Jordan, Christy, and Angie have been praying for the day when our children and nursery area are filled.  As Ronnie and Morgan have been bringing their son Lucca our workers have had a great time with him on Sunday mornings.  I was joking with Ronnie and Morgan about starting a Lucca fan club because all of our Embrace girls brag on him all the time. 
Jordan was telling me about a conversation she had with Ronnie.  Ronnie was telling her that Lucca, whose only 2, has been saying to them, "Jesus love me."  Ronnie and Morgan hadn't taught that to Lucca and it dawned on them that it was the children's workers at Embrace.  To me this is an awesome testimony of not only the dedication of children's staff but also the ways that God sometimes works in subtle ways.

Bullhorn

A few months ago I applied for the Path1 media grant which is a grant given to new churches from the United Methodist Church.  I was notified that we were awarded the grant and the proposal was one of the best they have ever received by a church plant.  The next step was to find a marketing agency to help us with event planning and promotion.  Around that time I met a new couple at Embrace, Ronnie and Morgan with their little son Lucca.  After service Ronnie and I met for coffee where we talked about Embrace.  Ronnie told me how he works for Bullhorn Marketing and so I decided it would be a great idea to partner with them and give them our business.  We have been so blessed getting to know people through Bullhorn.  Ronnie, Brad, and Griffin have a vision to help the city of Lexington.  It has been a pleasure working with them and trust that it's just the beginning of our partnership.