I have been married to my best friend Casey for 10 years. We have two beautiful girls Charli and Chloe, and I love being a dad. We started Foundations Church Sept. 7, 2008, I love our church, I love our people, and am blessed to be the lead pastor. Believe, Belong, Become.
1. Friday Night Campout- our Community Group went and camped out at the Kunkel's house this Friday night. They have a great setup for what we did thank you so much for letting us camp at your guys house. I had so much fun camping for Charli's first time! Defenetly made some meomories.
2. OU beat Baylor, but I have a bad feeling about the OU/ Texas game. I have hope though!
3. Cookies and Salvastano's - Casey made cookies on Saturday! She makes the best cookies hands down, and then we had some Salvastano's pizza! I am excited just thinking about it right now, it was so good.
4. Saw 9 people give their life to Christ this weekend! God is just doing something so special and amazing at Foundations right now.
5. We had one of the best services we have had as a church. If you weren't there make sure you download the podcast, because this is what we are all about. The Great Comission not the The Great Omission.
6. Had one of the most relaxing afternoons and evenings I have had in a long time on Sunday. Loved just hanging out with my family and watch football. It was nice.
7. Really want our church to be one that our actions match our words, and that we love people enough, and have so much passion we will let our lives become uncomfortable. Download the podcast.
8. Have 6 people signed up to take the plunge this Sunday! If you want to go public with your relationship with Christ and get baptized show up on Sunday with a bathing suit, dark shirt, and towel. Be there by 10!
9. I am realizing more and more obedience is better than sacrifice. Want to make sure I don't just hear what God is saying, but that I am doing what HE is saying too.
10. I love our staff! I really do, I love every person who has come along us to build a church that is about Christ and people. We are so blessed for such a young church to have such an incredible staff! I love these men and their families. Thank you guys for moving and serving. Thank you too church for honoring our staff and appreciating them yesterday as a church. Glad we have a church that loves their staff.
I hope you have a great week this week. More than that I hope we put into practice what was preached on Sunday! IF you weren't there download the podcast! We are going to reach the greater Tulsa community no doubt about it.
I read about The Great Commission today and something hit me right between the eyes. WE are suppose to fulfill it. Now I know this doesn't sound ground breaking, but stick with me here. I know for me and for many other people we think the church will fulfill The Great Commission. That people will hear about Christ because they see a billboard about Foundations Church or get a mail out,see us wearing our Foundations T-Shirt or receive a hand out card and they will come to church and know who Christ is from this. And if we aren't careful we can depend solely on these means to help fulfill the Great Commission. (now understand advertising is great and we need to do anything we can to reach people for Christ, so we will keep doing billboards, mail outs, and any kind of creative advertising we can.)
However, we as individuals are called to fulfill it. We have to realize the greatest response to going to church and to knowing Christ, is because we took time to invite someone to go to church with us. It is about each one of us taking responsibility to fulfill The Great Commission. We can't depend on a t-shirt or billboard to do it for us, we have to take ownership of it. Your friends, neighbor, co-worker, family member, is a ton more likely to come with you to church because you asked, not because they get a piece of mail about Foundations. I am challenging myself and whoever is reading, we as individuals need to do our part in fulfilling The Great Commission. It will probably inconvenience you a little, make you a little or a lot uncomfortable to invite someone to church with you, but this is what we are called to do. I never read in the bible that Christ came so that we could be comfortable, no Christ left us with the charge of The Great Commission which will make you uncomfortable if you are going to help fulfill it. So the only question left to ask is this... who are you bringing this week, who are you asking to come with you? We are going to have a great service this week, don't miss it make sure you get here. I hope you have a great rest of the week, and we are going to pack out the auditorium this week, help us do it.
I don't think anyone knows just how important the staff is at Foundations Church. We have an awesome staff at our church. I love that all of them, every single one of them has a "whatever it takes" kind of attitude. If it takes setting up and tearing down every week to have church, they will do it. If it takes moving to Tulsa, working an outside job part time so that they can help build a church and be on staff, they will do it. If it is getting up early or staying up late to make sure a task get done, they will do it. Every week they show up and simply do whatever it takes to help make this church grow, reach people, and be effective.
Thank you Shannon, Fish, Sammy, and Jonathan for taking this leap of faith and chasing down this vision with me. There is no way we could do all we are without you all and your spouses. God is really doing something very special, and He is using you to do it. To Sandy and Alyssa, thank you for moving with your husbands, and all the time and effort you put in too. This week we are going to be honoring our staff in service. We, as a church, are going to take up a 2nd offering for all our pastoral staff, for Pastor Appreciation month. The second offering will go entirely to our staff. None of it will go to Casey and I, just to Shannon, Fish, Sammy, and Jonathan. Let's show them how much we appreciate all they do. I hope you have a great rest of the week, and can't wait for Sunday. Bring someone with you this week, invite someone to come, you won't want to miss this Sunday.
A little late on the blog this week, it has been busy lately. So here is what has been happening this past weekend:
1. Ladies Trip- A group of our ladies went to Beaver Lake this past weekend. They took the opprotunity to get away and relax, talk, and getting to know one another. From what I heard they had a great time, so glad they did this, and took time to create community.
2. Mr. Mom- I was daddy without a break for 35 hours straight, and I had a blast doing it. We went to the aquarium, had movie night, ate pizza, went to the park, played in the house, cleaned, changed diapers, it was exhausting. Gotta to give it up to all the mom's out there, you all are amazing and have one of the most demanding jobs ever.
3. 13- we had 13 people raise their hand for salvation this past week. The last few weeks God has been doing some amazing things in the lives of people coming. We have seen 8, 9, and now 13 people raise their hands over the last 3 weeks. Keep inviting your friends, coworkers, neighbors, family, everyone to experience Foundations. It's about seeing lives changed.
4. The Sooners lost! It took me about 2 hours to unwind from the loss and finally be able to go to sleep. Right now I have a love/hate relationship with football.
5. Disney on Ice- Casey and I took our girls to Disney on Ice this past Sunday Night. It was priceless to see their faces while the program was going. Simply priceless, we had a great time.
6. Volunteer of the Week- Darryl Watkins. Darryl does such an amazing job outside greeting every week. Thank you so much Darryl for the time and energy you put forth.
7. This week we will be talking about how to have a great career. Don't get it backwards anymore, come and hear this message, it will help you out.
8. The Plunge- we have 5 people signed up so far for the Plunge on Oct. 18th. If you want to get baptized make sure you sign up this week. Go public with your relationship with Christ!
I hope you have a great week, God really is doing some amazing things in the lives of our people. Make sure you are getting involved and apart of what God is doing at Foundations Church.
1. Friday, we had a family day. We woke up ate breakfast, then we went to the zoo, the weather was incredible. Dropped Charli off at Pre K and then took Chloe home for a nap. That night we went to Ted's to eat Mexican food then to the park to play and then it was bath time, finishing with bed time. It was one full day, but it was a great day as a family.
2. Birthday Parties- On Saturday morning we had the chance to go to some of our close friend's birthday party for their son. I didn't get to stay long but my kids had a blast and it was a great party. These people really aren't just great people but great parents. The dad dressed up like Spiderman for his son, jumping on things, shooting silly string everywhere! Now that is a great dad.
3. Golf- That is correct I got the chance to play golf this Saturday. There was a mission's golf tournament in Edmond that my dad, myself, Steve N., and Darryl W. all got to play in. It was a lot of fun, I haven't gottten the chance to play in a while and it was for a great cause. Loved getting to hang out with my dad and Steve and Darryl too.
4. Volunteers of the Week- Lee and Charlotte Ott. This couple started our new believers class called The Slab. It is a 5 week class, we had 6 people attend and they simply did a great job. I heard all kinds of great things from the 6 that attended. Thank you Lee and Charlotte for taking our church to another level. This is a class that is very much needed.
5. Sunday was a great, great day. We have a ton of momentum going right now, there are some exciting things happening and getting ready to happen. We had 9 people raise their hand for salvation, and just a great service.
6. It starts in the parking lot. I want to say a huge thank you to all of our greeters. All of you do such a great job at truly welcoming people. The biggest reason people say they come back to our church is because they say it is so friendly. They are greeted outside, at the door, and then again before they get in the auditorium. You all are doing a great job, thank you for all you do.
7. Community Group- We had our community group and it was a lot of fun. We had the chance to go out on a date night with a lot of other parents, and talk and get to know one another. I really look forward to these times and enjoy getting to hang out with my friends. Hope you are involved in a community group.
It was a busy weekend, but a great one. I really hope you have a great week. Make sure you invite someone to come with you to church next week. Have a great one.
Prayer- if there is one thing I am learning more and more is how crucial prayer is. Every week on Wed. mornings the staff of Foundations Church meet together at one of our houses, we come together and pray. What do we pray for? We pray for one another's needs, we pray for the church, for life change, for dreams to become a reality, finances, health, and the different needs that are put on the communication cards. I am realizing more and more how crucial prayer is for my life.
One of my favorite quotes is from Mark Batterson "Work like it depends on you, and pray like it depends on God." I love this, and if there is one thing I am learning more and more, is that I can't do anything apart from God. Foundations Church wouldn't be here for a week much less a year if not for the help of God. I am praying big prayers for my life, my family, Foundations Church, the staff and people of Foundations. But the crazy part of my prayers is I truly believe with everything in me they are going to become a reality. I want to encourage and urge you to pray. Man start praying, and don't pray hollow prayers, but pray big prayers and believe (this is called faith) that they are going to happen. I don't know what you are facing, I don't know what mountain is in your way, I don't know the amount of stress you are dealing with, but I do know prayer works. Let me give you some things to join me in prayer about for Foundations Church: life change, growth, finances, that people connect. This is just the beginning for this church and I can't wait to see all that God does, it is going to be awesome.
I tell you the truth, my Father will give you anything you ask for in my name.
John 16:23
If you believe, you will get anything you ask for in prayer.
Matthew 21:22
Let's believe and ask together and see what happens. I can't wait! Have a great rest of the week, I mean it!
1. We began our new series KROW- sometimes you get it backwards and it was a great start to our series. I really think this is going to be a very effective series to help people where they are in life.
2. Volunteer of the Week- Our staff. All our staff this past weekend worked so hard! Many of our staff is volunteer right now, and they work harder than any full time staff I know. These guys and their families are just doing a phenomenal job every week. Thank you guys for all your help.
3. Canvasing- We continued our 2nd week of doing doorhangers to 7 different neighborhoods. I am so thankful to everyone for showing up and helping us get the word out about Foundations Church. Great things are happening.
4. We had one of our biggest services yet. A ton of new faces and we are so glad they came. Keep inviting your friends to come with you.
5. We had 8 different people raise their hands for salvation this Sunday! I love seeing life change happen every week, it is so exciting to be a part of.
6. Celebration Bash- We had a great time on Sunday Night at our Bash. We celebrated our 1 year anniversary as a church with inflatables, food, drinks, movies, and of course smores! Hope everyone had a great time and that you and your kids survived the stickers!
7. Football- Was a crazy week of football. Loved seeing OU look so good, and you have to give it up to Landry Jones, mustache and all! It was just as great to see USC lose too! Sorry if you are a USC fan.
8. I was absoultly dead tired Sunday Night after all the events were over. Thanks to everyone for bringing food, drinks, and helping out.
I love and am so excited about where our church is heading. Let's keep going, greater things are still ahead and have yet to come. I hope you have a great week!
Monday night at my house was a huge evening for us. Every night I try to be home to always play with the girls, but even if I have to work late I try to get home in time to put Charli and Chloe to bed. Well every night Casey and I read a story to Chloe and sing to her, and then pray for her and she prays for her friends before we put her to bed. For Charli, we read a little girls devotional book that her Aunt Mimi bought her that she loves, and then I make up a story (Charli calls it a tickle story, because I tickle her face while I make up a story) and then we pray for her and other people she wants to pray for too. It is a very special time to me, and is one of the highlights of my day.
All that to tell you on Monday night Casey was reading through the devotional book to Charli, and at the end Casey felt like she was suppose to ask Charli if she wanted Jesus to live in her heart. Charli said yes! She said yes and it is the biggest decision she will ever ever make in her life. Oh there will be some important decisions ahead in her life...college, who she marries, what kind of person she is going to be, but there is never going to be a bigger more important decision that she will make. I am so excited for her, and it reminds me that we have as parents have to be the biggest influence in our kids lives. I know this time I have with my girls with them being little is going to pass by so quick, so I want to make every moment count. I am thankful that Casey had this chance every parent dreams of, and I am so excited and proud of my little 4 year old Charli for making this huge decision. She said yes. (All this is being typed as I cry at a Starbucks and I think everyone thinks there is something seriously wrong with me!)
So I have been awake since 3 this morning. I just can't sleep I am way too excited about this weekend. Most of you know it is Foundations Church 1 year anniversary. I am so thankful as I look back on all that has happened, God has been so amazing to this church. We have a great staff, an awesome congregation and things are going great. I woke up this morning looked over my sermon, fine tuned it, and spent a lot of time in prayer. This Sunday is going to be one of the most memorable days at Foundations, so make sure you invite everyone you can, and make sure you are there! Can't wait to see all that God is going to do, I love early mornings. Have a great weekend and Go Sooners! (I am a true fan)
The whole staff came together at my house yesterday to participate in a free online conference called the 9's. It was a really great time for our staff to hear from other leaders around the country and challenge us to do what we are doing better. However the biggest thing I took away from all of it was this...God has created me to be me. Sounds simple, and it is very simple to say, but sometimes it is very hard to live out.
Somewhere in life, the different jobs, the different leadership you are under, the different expectations, the different experiences, all of these can make you start being someone you aren't. You start being someone everyone else wants you to be and told you that you need to be. Yet the whole time God is going, don't you remember you were made fearfully and wonderfully? As I read the bible I never see Moses trying to be Abraham, or David trying to be Moses, or Elijah trying to be David. No these men learned from ones that had gone before them, but they were definitely themselves. I think the truth is all these men never would have accomplished all the did, if the whole time they were trying to be like someone else. We as a result have to be comfortable in our own skin, and just be us. For me that may mean some people think I am obnoxious, too hyper, too emotional, too nice, too outgoing, too loud, whatever. But I am realizing more and more God can do a whole lot more through me, if I will just be me. I think the God things that are going to happen in my life and yours, are going to happen when we stop trying to be like others and impress others and we just start being ourselves. I hope that helps some of you today, if it doesn't it helps me just to type it.
This weekend is going to be awesome. It is our 1 year anniversary, so make sure you don't miss and invite everyone you can. Also don't forget about our bash this Sunday Night! This is going to be a great weekend don't you miss it! Have a great rest of the week.
Casey and I were gone this past weekend, celebrating our 11th year anniversary. Can I say the past 11 years have flown by, I feel like we have just graduated college not too long ago. I am so lucky to have the perfect mate for me, and Casey is just a phenomenal person all the way around. She is more amazing as the years pass, and I am so glad she said yes to me 11 years ago. I love the way she loves and treats me, love how great of a mom she is, she is always supportive, does all kinds of behind the scenes work and doesn't want any credit, her quirks. I love her and me and the girls are lucky that she is ours.
We never would have been able to get away and relax and refresh, if it wasn't for our amazing staff. Thank you to all of our staff and their families. All of the staff do such a great job of loving what they do, and doing it with passion and excellence. I love our staff and our church would stink without them. They are such a huge and big part of this church. Thank you to all of you for chasing after the vision!
This is such a great and busy week. We (Foundations Church) is turning 1 this Sunday! We have officially going to turn 1 this week. Make sure you are there, invite your friends, co-workers, family, and neighbors. This is going to be an awesome week at Foundations, in fact this whole fall is going to be incredible, so don't you dare miss and make sure you bring people with you. Don't forget about our Sunday Night Bash at the warehouse starting at 6 and going to 9. Have a great week and can't wait to turn 1 with all of you!
Foundations Church is now on Billboards! We have rented 12 billboards all around Tulsa, from Downtown to Brookside, Midtown, Bixby, and South Tulsa. We are really really wanting to saturate Tulsa, and let all of the metro area know that Foundations Church is here. We have several different goals that we hope these billboards accomplish for us, so please be agreeing in prayer with us about these things:
1. It draws people to a relationship with Chirst
2. It let's people know that Foundations Church exist
3. It gets people who are looking for a church into the doors of Foundations.
4. It gets people who aren't looking for a church into the doors of Foundations.
5. It helps us get the word or a buzz out about our church.
Really great things are happening in our church, keep praying for God's hand to remain on us. I hope you have a great rest of the week.
1. Art Comparison- We finished our series Canvas this weekend. Had to be one of my favorite series of all time! Yes I know we haven't been out even a year, but it was just a really great series. Yesterday we talked about the harm of comparing and wishing. Be you, because you are the best you there is!
2. 5th Sunday- Last night we did worship and communion as a family at Foundations Church. We had all the kids that were 3 and up in service with us. We think it is really important for our kids to not just see us worship, but worship with us. Loved worship and taking communion as a church family too. It was a great night and really a fun night.
3. Volunteer of the Week- The worship band. You guys did just an awesome job this past weekend. Thanks for all you guys do every week. You guys get there early and stay late, and we appreciate you all so very very much. Love you guys, thanks for you time, energy, work, and heart. We really couldn't do it without each of you.
4. New Favorite Meal- Casey got me hooked on the house salad with chicken from Red Rock Canyon Grill. If you haven't had it "Oh momma, it's goooooood!" Get an order of corn bread and a small house salad with chicken extra dressing if it is to go. If I had to pick a last meal right now before I died, this is the one. Crazy thing is, it is actually healthy for you to, and not too expensive, like 8 dollars! What now?
5. The T-shirts- Our new Foundations T-Shirts were here this Sunday. I love our new shirts, love what they say, and like the look. Casey and I had our waiter on Sunday Night ask about our church because of the shirts, said he is planning on coming soon to check it out. Good things are happening.
6. Too Cold- Charli and I went swimming on Saturday and it was just too stinking cold. After about one hour of trying to get my breath back and both of us turning blue, we decided to get out of the pool. The weather is really nice, but not for swimming it is just too cold for that right now.
7. Have a busy week ahead of us. We have so much getting ready to happen as a church right now. Our 1 year anniversary is coming up on Sept. 13th, make sure you are there and invite everyone you can. We our canvasing neighborhood's and starting our Everyone Campaign on Sept.12th make sure you sign up on our home page. Got new series getting ready to happen, billboards going up, mail outs going out. Just a ton of things happening and I love it! Hope you have a great week, work hard, and we will see you Sunday!
Our first Foundations T-Shirts are here and will be for sale this Sunday. They look great and will be a whopping 10 dollars. Make sure you get yours, this is just one of the many ways we are trying to get Foundations name out in the community. Plus they are just really sweet looking shirts! If you want there is a picture on my facebook page of the shirts so go check them out.
This weekend I plan on staying at home with my family and just relaxing with them. If you were at church last Sunday you understand the hugeness of this announcement. I believe I am going to wash my car too, so we will see how all this goes. I can't say this enough, I am so excited about Foundation's Church! There are so many things happening and getting ready to happen, that it is crazy. We are on our last week of Canvas this Sunday make sure you are there, it is going to be great. Hope all of you have a great weekend and can't wait to see you on Sunday.
Today I am studying in a Starbucks in Utica. Man, I promise this is one of the coldest places I have ever been. I asked if they could change the temperature and they said no. Here is the crazy thing... everyone in the place is freezing, and the reason it didn't get changed is because the people working would get hot. They had Starbucks temperature on lock down! They wanted to make sure it benefited themselves and not the ones coming in.
I thought about this and thought about the church. How many times we can make the Sunday experience comfortable for the people always there, but not comfortable for the ones visiting for the first time. We can make checking in your children easy if you have been before but tedious if you haven't been before. We can have an insider's track in the church, but if you are new, the church can just be down right unbearable. It has to be our job, and remain our job, to keep Foundations a place that is welcoming and comfortable for people who are returning and visiting for the first time. Going to a new place can be awkward enough, and my goal is that it isn't awkward at all. My goal is that coming to Foundations Church is actually refreshing and rewarding, whether it is your first time or your 20th. Let's make sure we are constantly thinking, not about ourselves, but about those outside our doors, and those that have yet to come in.
This week we are ending our series Canvas. Make sure you are there and you bring someone with you. I say this every week, but you are the best invite anybody will receive to Foundations Church. People are more likely to come with you, than from a direct mailer, a billboard, or commercial. So go ahead and take the plunge and invite someone with you to Foundations. I really hope you have a great rest of the week.
