Yes – don’t faint – you are seeing the Gamecock logo on my Blog. Let me explain. On the way home tonight I was listening to our local Sports Talk radio station. There was a sports writer on that covers Gamecock football from the Post and Courier (got to be the worst job in the world!). They were actually talking about the SEC and what a great year Georgia has had. The sports writer was asked if he thought South Carolina could finally have that same kind of year next year – competing for the SEC, a 10 win season, and a BCS Bowl birth. He said, “Are you asking me if they can or if they will?” He was pressed a bit and then said something that made me think about the church. It went something like this, “It’s never happened before and so I guess until it happens, I just can’t see it.” He also said that Steve Spurrier is always saying something like this, “Why not South Carolina? Why not here?”

What is the Ol’ Ball Coach and the sports writer talking about whether they realize it or not? Vision. One can’t see it and because he’s never experienced it, doubts it can happen. In fact, he’s just sitting around, watching and waiting to see if this thing works. If it doesn’t, he’ll probably say, “I told you so.” If it does, he’ll jump on the band wagon. The other understands that one of his primary roles in turning the ship around is to get people believing that it can happen – to cast vision.

I’ve been talking about God’s Vision for our church a lot lately. I’ve talked about a healthy, growing church of 2000 people. Can you see it? Do you believe it can happen? Or because you can’t see it and have never experienced it, do you doubt it can ever happen at Coastal? And instead of jumping in wholeheartedly, wiling to do whatever it takes, are you simply waiting and watching to see if this thing works. And when it does (because it will), then you’ll jump on board. But every bump in the road in the meantime, you’re ready to complain, doubt, and criticize. Let me save you some time – yours and mine. Go ahead and leave now. I’m serious. We don’t need people who leave the stadium early in the fourth quarter when they think the game is over. And we also don’t need fair weather fans who jump on the band wagon when this thing takes off – because it will.

Let me ask you something – why not here? Why not at Coastal? I see it! I really can! Can you? We’re a great church, with great people, with a great vision from God, and most importantly, we serve an awesome Savior! People need Jesus! And we are a church that is overflowing with Him and His power! Who are you praying for? Who are you inviting to Coastal? Seriously, answer those two questions right now! I can’t wait for Sunday! See you then!

(I almost found myself rooting for Gamecocks a little bit tonight. Well – at least that would make it a better rivalry!)

Several weeks ago, during our “Simple Church” series I had a new person admit to me that during one of my messages his first thought was, “This Pastor must be lazy.” On the outside, when I first heard his comments I’m sure I looked very inquisitive and interested in his thoughts. Truthfully, on the inside I had thoughts of, “What!? Are you crazy? I’ve been called many things over the years – lazy is not one of them. Even the people who have left our church with their panties tightly in a wad over something and who have a long list of names for me, none of them are lazy. Let’s go outside and I’ll show you lazy!”

What brought about his thought? Here’s some of what I said in that message: I talked about the importance of being connected in the community of a Small Group and my role as Pastor. According to Ephesians 4:11-13 my primary job is to prepare God’s people for ministry. I am not supposed to do all the ministry. I am to equip God’s people – you – to serve. Now, that doesn’t mean that I get a pass as far as serving is concerned. It doesn’t mean that I don’t take up the towel and basin and wash people’s feet. It doesn’t mean that I don’t get my hands dirty. It simply means that the church functions best when I am fulfilling my role as spiritual trainer, not everyone’s personal partner.

In my message I said that in many churches people see the Pastor as the person who is personally responsible for everyone, all their needs and their spiritual growth – where I run around individually training everyone, where I know each person individually, your family, your extended family, and even your pets. I said that If you want that – you’re in the wrong place. That’s why most churches in America never grow beyond 150 people, because people think that the Pastor is their own personal trainer and partner.

The Biblical model is for Pastors to teach and motivate and inspire in the large gathering and then for the Body of Christ to help each other live it out in community. I care about you – I really do. That’s why I pray and lead and serve. But I can’t care for every one of you. If this church’s growth is dependent on how many people I know – this is it – we’re done. I talked about how people come to church and then miss a few weeks and get upset when no one calls to check up on them. If you think that my job is to come when ever you call or call whenever you don’t show up and be your personal trainer and your spiritual police, you’re in the wrong place. And if you think that’s what you pay me to do – keep your money and go somewhere else.

There have been times in my ministry where I pridefully did all those things – took care of everyone. I took pride in working harder and longer, earlier and later than anyone. I would even be critical of larger churches and other Pastors, saying things like, “I bet that Pastor doesn’t do everything I do. I bet he doesn’t care for people like I do. I bet those people don’t personally know their Pastor like my church does.” God forgive me for my pride. I repent. No more. If lazy means saying no, then call me lazy. If lazy means taking a day off once a week, then call me lazy. If lazy means putting the needs of my wife and children above the church calendar, then call me lazy. If lazy means taking a vacation and missing a Sunday, then call me lazy. If lazy means not dying early of stress, hypertension, and high blood pressure, then by all means call me lazy.

We have a vehicle for love, care giving, shepherding, teaching, and discipleship. It’s called being connected in the community of a Small Group. If you miss a Sunday, they’ll know you’re not there. If you’re in the hospital, I’ll bet they’ll come and visit you. They might even bring you a meal or two.

The new guy did tell me that at the end of my message, he understood what I was saying. It made sense. He even came back and volunteered. I was talking about all of us, everyone, being the church. Are you connected? Who are you loving, serving, and caring for? Who are you living out your faith with? I am learning that at times it seems easier to do it yourself. However, it is smarter, better, and Biblical for me build teams and equip others to serve.

Well, the Thanksgiving weekend is coming to an end. I really enjoyed the long weekend with my family. We relaxed, laughed, played, watched the previous seasons of the Office I hadn’t seen (my new favorite T.V. show), and ate way too much. I was really looking forward to today – just something special about getting together with my church family over a holiday weekend. I love hearing about everyone’s Thanksgiving, travels, and family stories. The weekend wouldn’t have been complete without it.

Yes, we were down in attendance today, but several things stood out to me. First of all, the picture is the new backdrop that Nancy & Linda did for Coastal Kidz’ new series, “On the Trail.” They did a great job! And speaking of Coastal Kidz – I am so proud of Erika for stepping up today and leading the Team! She is normally Jennifer’s assistant, but on Friday we found out that Jennifer was possibly having contractions and might not make it through the weekend (we’re praying for you and baby – can’t wait to hear!). She had plenty of help, but on short notice, Erika led the Team and did a great job on our first Sunday of Coastal Kidz having a full service and the first Sunday of the new series!

Gerri, who leads our Communion Ministry, really took to heart my challenge to be a Team Player and a Team Builder. I saw her walking around with her schedule, talking to new people, casting vision, and challenging people to join her Team. Keep up the good work Gerri!

And yes, I did wear a Clemson shirt today and yes I made Karen wear a Clemson hat. Actually, she was a good sport! I know at a lot of churches the Pastor wearing a team shirt might be sacrilegious, but we’re not a lot of churches. Everyone knows I wear Clemson shirts all the time and we have a lot of fun with it at Coastal. Don’t worry, I know it’s just football, and no – I don’t worship Clemson.

One rather funny highlight to me was the coffee today. With our new Welcome Room in the process of completion, we’re going to be creating more of a real cafe atmosphere. So we decided to upgrade our coffee. For years, like hundreds of churches and your local mechanic waiting room, we just had a couple of coffee pots of coffee. Typically, I would make the coffee around 7:45AM and we would drink that same coffee up until about 10:30AM. Not really being a coffee connoisseur (like my good friend Buck), I never gave it a second thought. Well, today all that changed. We went to a Bunn Airpot coffee brewer and 3 Airpots. We even had 3 speciality coffees! For several caffeine addicts (Jeff & Prisca), you would have thought they had gone to heaven! They were a little extra jittery today. Now when we start serving Diet Mountain Dew, then we’ll talk.

The service itself went well. Our band has really made an effort to work on transitional times. We do need to continually work on those same times with our sound and technical teams. Very few people realize how much effort and intention those ministries require. And we have definitely come a long way. People notice when something goes wrong, but take it for granted all the other times. I never want to allow the small things to keep me from worship, but I never want us to think those things don’t matter either. Like everything else, it is a work in progress and we are growing.

My message today was from 1Timothy 6 about how to live grateful lives in a greedy world. It was a very timely message for this time of year. It was all about our attitude toward money, possessions, and things. I talked about learning to be content, not putting our hope in things, and enjoying & employing everything God gives us for His glory.

Loved the short video from last week’s “The Church Has Left the Building” service. Only 6 weeks until we go to two services! Next week we begin our Christmas series, “Unwrapping Christmas.” Well, that’s it for today. I’m hoping we’ll need some volunteers for painting this week. I’ll let you know!

Wow! I just knew we were going to give that game away! We just couldn’t put them away. But like they say, “A win is a win!” It might have been ugly (very ugly), but I’d rather be 9-3 than 6-6. Now – let’s go Bowling and win this year! I just hope I have a voice for tomorrow! And sorry Karen – I won’t be wearing that Carolina hat! But, I might just be able to find a Clemson one for you – that is, if I remember to mention the game tomorrow!

When I think about Thanksgiving, this passage always comes to mind:

Luke 17:11-19, “Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice, ‘Jesus, Master, have pity on us!’ When he saw them, he said, ‘Go, show yourselves to the priests.’ And as they went, they were cleansed. One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him — and he was a Samaritan. Jesus asked, ‘Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?’ Then he said to him, ‘Rise and go; your faith has made you well.’”

“Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine?” – haunting words from Jesus. It’s sad to say, but sometimes it seems as though the statistics haven’t changed that much. Which group would you be in? Would you be with the nine, the majority, who wanted and received a great blessing from God, but didn’t give thanks? Or would you be like the one, who knew he had been greatly blessed, who recognized it came from Jesus, and who personally made the effort to thank Him?

One line from an old chorus (Give Thanks) we used to sing says, “Give thanks, because He’s given Jesus Christ, His Son.” I can think of no greater reason to be thankful. How are you expressing your thanks? I’m sure the nine lepers were glad they were healed, but remember, only one actually made a physical effort to express it. When we gather together to worship God on Sunday mornings and God asks, “Where are the others? Weren’t they all blessed?” which group are you in? When we remember the sacrifice Jesus made on our behalf by taking the Lord’s Supper and God asks, “Where are the others? Didn’t my Son die for them all?” which group are you in? When we take up our offering to reach our community and world for Christ and God asks, “Where is the rest? Haven’t they all been blessed?” which group are you in? When ministry opportunities arise and God asks, “Where are the others?” which group are you in? When God sees so many people who need someone to build a friendship with them, to reach out to them, to invite them to a church or a Small Group, and yet He sees only a very few doing it and He asks, “Where are the others?” which group are you in?

Let’s be in the group that expresses our thanks with every aspect of our lives. And let’s be like the one who was healed who “praised God in a loud voice” and who “threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked Him.”

Father thank You for loving me and saving me in spite of who I am! Thank You for Jesus! Thank You for Your grace and patience. Thank You for the best life I could ever imagine. Thank You for my beautiful wife Janet. She is my best friend. She is the best wife and mother I could ever imagine. In her, You gave me more than I could ever ask, dream, or imagine. Father, thank You for Lydia and Christopher. Seeing them grow to know and love You and others is the joy of my life. I am so proud of who they are and who they are becoming. Thank You for some of the best friends a guy could or should ever have – friends that I could call at 3 in the morning and they would drop everything and be here. Thank You for Coastal Community Church! It has been the adventure of a lifetime and the best is yet to come! Thank You for allowing me to preach Your Word, shepherd Your flock, lead and serve Your people, and cast Your vision. I am Your unworthy servant. Thank You for the hope of heaven. I can’t wait for the day when You call me home or when the sky splits, the trumpet sounds, I bow my knee, cry out, “Jesus is Lord,” and get to see Jesus face to face! And thank You that in the meantime You allow me to share Jesus with the world around me!

Just thought you would want to know – Clemson won the 5th Annual Clemson/Carolina Lowcountry Blood Battle by a score of 258 pints to 254 pints. It marks the first time Clemson has won! I believe it’s a sign of things to come for Saturday!

Okay, not really – but I did give blood. The truth is I am so competitive when it comes to the Clemson Carolina Game that when I heard that Clemson was down 10 pints (pints – not points) in the Annual Clemson Carolina Red Cross Blood Battle that I stopped by the Red Cross to give blood on my way home. I know – I’m sad. But as an added bonus I got a cool t-shirt! Actually, the nurse who drew my blood was such a positive advocate for giving blood that I felt guilty that it took a gimmick to get me in the door. She talked about the huge need all year long and the lack of donors. She said she was glad to see the large numbers of people who showed up, but hoped that at least one out of five would return. Okay, okay Nurse Wendy, I know where I’ll be January 15th (my next available date to give blood)!

While I laid there on my back, I thought about church (I’m weird that way). We pull out the stops and do whatever it takes to get people in the door. Sometimes it might even seem a little gimmicky. Sometimes we give away stuff. But, who knows – what if just one out of five returns? What if just one gets the message and we save a life?

Back to the Big Game. I can’t wait for Saturday. Now that the ACC Championship is out of our reach once again, all I have left is the State Championship. I want revenge! If Clemson loses I think I’m supposed to wear a Carolina hat this Sunday that Karen gave me for my 40th birthday this year (definitely a gag gift!). The worst part of the game with Boston College last Saturday? The B.C. player that sacked Cullen Harper in the closing seconds and put our kicker out of his field goal range – guess what his name was? ROLLINS! That’s right! ROLLINS! I’m still sick about that. He will not get an invitation to our Thanksgiving dinner!

I know at a lot of churches the Prayer Team is simply a way to spiritualize gossip – you know, “Have I got something for you to pray about!” Not so with our Prayer Team. Now in some ways, we’re all on the Prayer Team – as a Christian (1Thess. 5:17, “Pray continually.”), as a member of Coastal (Membership Covenant: “I will share the responsibility of my church . . . by praying for it’s growth.”), and as a part of a Small Group. But the Prayer Team at Coastal is a special bunch of people who when they say, “I’ll pray for you,” they mean it.

Let’s be honest – sometimes as Christians we throw around so casually phrases like, “Keep so and so in your prayers. . .” or, “I’ll be praying for you . . .” that they’ve lost their meaning and their power. We never think about it again. It’s just a part of Christian jargon, Christianese. I’m guilty as anyone. What I’m trying to do more and more of lately is simply pray with people right then and there in that moment – whether it’s in a hospital room, a parking lot, or over the phone. But what I inevitably do is call Prisca who leads our Prayer Team.

They are a group of about 12 faithful men and women who feel an extra burden to pray, behind the scenes – for our church, all it’s Ministries, outreach, and growth, for me, my family, and my leadership, and all the requests that get turned in on every Connect Card each weekend. I honestly don’t know how I would make it without their prayers and support. I mean that.

Well, today I want to brag about one of them going the extra mile. As most of you know, on Tuesday mornings, I lead a before school Prayer Group for the Faculty and Staff at Oakland Elementary School. And every Tuesday, after I get back to my office, the first call I make is to Prisca to pass on the prayer requests from Oakland. Last week one of the teachers brought up a family in her class that was struggling financially – a single mom (widowed) was having a hard time making ends meet.

This week I showed up to our group and the teacher started thanking me for what someone from our church had done. I had no idea what she was talking about. Evidently, someone from our Prayer Team called up that teacher, got more information about the family and gave them gift cards to Food Lion and Wal-Mart. It touched that woman in ways hard to express. It also touched the teacher. She told our entire group about what someone from our church had done. She was bragging about Coastal! I didn’t have to say a word! I was so proud!

The person from our Prayer Team did what they did not for applause or to get noticed, but simply because they love and they listen to God. Prayer is the most important action, the most important work. We forget that. But prayer also always leads to loving action and loving works. They go hand in hand. I’m not going to single this person out, they wouldn’t want that. Instead I want to thank the whole team for their example and faithful service to the King, His Kingdom, and our church. Thank you Prisca, Jeff, Matt, Kathy, Teresa, Pat, Mary, Dan, Jeremiah, Christy, and Nancy (mom). You are my Aaron and Hur (Exodus 17:10-13). I love our church and I love our Prayer Team!

When we got home tonight I had an awesome message on our answering machine. Beth, one of my favorite people at our church (I know, I’m not supposed to have favorites), called to thank me for today! Let’s just say that Beth has had a rough year. On top of several challenges, her dad passed away last December. For many people, the holidays are not the “happiest time of the year.” I’m sure Thanksgiving and Christmas will be difficult. But on her message she talked about how great it was serving others today and for a couple of hours she could give of herself and it was just what she needed. As she spoke I couldn’t help but think of Luke 9:24, “If you try to keep your life for yourself, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for me, you will find true life.” In fact, I was bragging on Beth to several people today. She is a worker bee! She and Rebecca (another worker bee) didn’t stop working in those flower beds. In fact, I even called Beth “Mother Earth” today because every time I saw her she was on her hands and knees digging in the dirt (not because of how old she is compared to me). So Beth – thank you! Thank you for your encouragement, your hard work, your servants heart, your sense of humor, and your willingness to give your life away for Jesus to find real life! You make your Daddy proud – both of them!

Well, the church left the building today! We served and loved God by serving and loving other people. We got together at 9:30AM for just a couple of songs and Communion and we were out the door before 10AM. We sent several vans of volunteers, shovels, and wheel barrows to the Crisis Ministry Homeless Shelter to spread mulch, sort donations, and clean. And then another group of volunteers walked across the street to clean flower beds, plant flowers, and paint the sign at Oakland Elementary School.

The morning started very strangely for me. I showed up at our building at about 7:45AM to find that someone had vandalized one of our sheds. My first thought was, “This is great – on the day we’re leaving the serve the community, someone from our community steals our lawn equipment again!” But none of our lawn equipment is in that shed and all they did was rip off the wood from the door frame of the shed. Honestly, I think they took one look inside the shed, could barely move around, and said, “Wow – this is a lot of junk,” and took off. They did pick up a few of the bales of pine straw that we were going to be using today and dump them somewhere else – weird. But the better locks that we installed were still intact.

Truthfully, my first thoughts were not very pleasant or Pastor-like. Becoming more and more like Jesus, you see, is harder than it seems. The Holy Spirit convicted me and I found myself thinking – on that first Christmas morning, did God say, “This is great – on the day I leave heaven to serve the community, someone from that community plots my son’s death!” On that first Easter, did Jesus say, “This is great – on the day I give my very life to save this community, those who call themselves part of my community have abandoned me.” No, they didn’t. They served, gave, and loved – in spite of our sin. Romans 5:8, “But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.” You see, while your Pastor was “digging deeper” to plant a few pansies, God used this day for me to go a little deeper in His word. After all, that’s what maturity is all about – right? And the deeper I dig, the further I realize I have to go in becoming more and more Christlike.

I was a little disappointed in the number of people that showed up today. Our attendance was definitely down. I’m not sure if it was the earlier time or quite frankly, if it was just that we were going to be working. I hope it’s not the latter. But you know what, I’m not going to focus on that, because I was so proud today of those who were there and served. I’ve said it a lot lately, “We don’t go to church. We are the church. And we are on a mission.” Today, in a small way, we put that into practice. Our mission is to love people to Jesus! Here are just a few pictures of the volunteer work at Oakland. I’ll be adding more from Crisis Ministry Homeless Shelter when I get those pictures. Click here, or on the pictures below to see the rest. I love you Coastal!