intervention

November 19th, 2008 by Nate

Earlier this year I had the privilege to be apart of the the 5 year anniversary celebration of Fusion Church. Jill and I helped launch Fusion back in 2003. The experience had much to do with who we are and where we are today. As part of the celebration, we got together one saturday night and a dinning establishment we frequented back in the day. Eric Lerew, the lead pastor, encouraged every one to tell the stories of Fusion Church. He said that our stories were one of the most important parts of this young community of Faith. For literally hours we laughed, cried, and shook our heads at what God had done over the last 5 years. It was a night that I will never forget. To be honest it what pushed me over the edge to quit the job that I had and pick up my family (again) and move to KC. Because I knew the best stories were yet to come.

Here we are 8 months after the launch of Restore Community Church and it has been incredible. But the reality is that many who are a part of the Restore Community today, don’t know the whole story. There are those who have never been to Restore, but have supported it in countless ways, who don’t know the whole story. So 8 months into the life of Restore… we told the story. As I put this video together I shook my head again and had to push away from the computer a few times to just thank God for how he has orchestrated something very special. But, I also had a sense, again, that the best stories are yet to come.

The Story of Restore from Restore Community Church on Vimeo.

November 17th, 2008 by Nate

Last night we played indiana jones at the Williams house. Ethan was indiana jones, I was the giant boulder that was chasing him, and Abbey was bat in the cave. (this was his idea) We took a picture after I was out of breath. Yes…the fireman’s hat is supposed to be a fedora, in the never ending imagination of my son.

November 13th, 2008 by Nate

This week I have been reading about the church in the bible. It is part of the restore reading plan for the series, the story of everything. I am reminded of why I do what I do. I love the church and truly believe it is the hope of the world. We (the community of Christ followers around the world) are God’s plan A to restore hope to the world through Jesus Christ. God doesn’t have a plan B that I can find anywhere, because he believes in you and maybe he even believes in me. All that to say that we have another opportunity to be the church this Saturday. Restore has it’s monthly reachout even called Servefest. It is an opportunity to come together and be the church through various opportunities to serve.

Every time I go, I get this inescapable sense that this is what church is. It connects people in community. It meets needs in our area. It shows our neighbors that we believe in what we say so much, that we do more then talk about it. You can get more info at servelovechange.org See you there!

November 9th, 2008 by Nate

Last week I heard an NFL analyst refer to Brett Farve as the quarterback in the NFL with the shortest memory. While I have never really been a Farve fan and certainly not a packers fan, it got me thinking. Farve is one of the best that have ever played the game. The soap opera that surrounding his retirement last summer might have tainted his legacy, but his statistics speak for themselves. Farve holds just about every record in the league for quarterbacks. Not only does he hold the record most passing touchdowns and passing yards, he also holds the record for the most interceptions. He rockets the ball into some tight places where most NFL quarterbacks are much to sensible to take those kinds of chances with there quarterback ratings. Not Farve… And it costs him… big. So, big that he has thrown more interceptions then anyone else is in the history of the NFL. But that isn’t the end of the story is it? Because when he gets his chance he straps it on and makes the same impossible throws, but this time he completes the pass, (holds the all time passing record)
he throws the touchdown, (holds the record for most passing touchdowns)
he throws three touchdowns, (holds the record for most games with 3 touchdowns)
and he wins the game.

How is that possible what is the difference? Well, the analyst I was listening to, seemed to think it was… his ablilty… to forget. That last awful pass that he threw to the wrong team, he doesn’t remember it. That incredible touchdown pass that ended in a lambeu leap, not even a recollection. He simple has no memory of his failures and successes on the field. There is plenty of time to analyze and learn from them later. But for now… forget it.

Why am I talking about this? Are you still reading? You are? Good. As a leader, father, communicator, and someone who is following Christ; this idea of forgetting is becoming an important practice for me. Here is the reality… I focus way to much on my successes and I definitely focus to much on my failures. What if I could learn those lessons and discard them from memory? What would change? Well, I wouldn’t rest on my past successes and get too comfortable, for one. I certainly wouldn’t be paralyzed by fear of failing again either. Forgetting would free me to strap it on and take the next step in my journey. Listen, I know… this is a recipe for disaster. I will throw more then a few picks. There will be moments of complete frustration. But I will also see my share of wins. Ultimately, I will advance in my journey rather then sit idle, over analyzing… well… everything.

I will advance in my relatioship with my kids, because how I screwed up yesterday or how I did a great job last week will be out of mind.
I will advance in my relationship with my wife, because my list is gone and I will be in the present moment.
I will try harder the on my next sermon, because my attention won’t be on what was said about the last one. (good or bad)
I will be ready to take the next step in my journey of following Christ because I not focused on the steps or mis-steps that have already been taken.
While I’m on it, I will be ready hear from God today because I wont be beating myself up or patting myself on the back for my failure or success of doing it yesterday.

Life becomes very much alive as a gunslinger, forgetting what is behind and moving towards what is ahead. I think Paul said that somewhere. I think he knew what he was talking about. He knew that advancing meant forgetting. There is no way that it can ever, ever be dull to forget. In fact it takes courage to forget. What about you?
Do you need to forget?
What do you need to forget?
Are you ready for the ride?

November 7th, 2008 by Nate

Had the opportunity to give the message, talk, preach, or whatever you want to call it at Restore a few weeks ago. We have been posting the teachings online on our vimeo page. Vimeo really is a great resource, we are able to post the bumper, teaching and campuse pastor moment from the morning… all in HD. We are also looking into a video podcast in itunes. The whole point of posting these teachings is to eventually create an online community where people gather to celebrate and of course, to help people find their way back to God. This is a step in that direction. This morning in particular was a lot of fun, I got a chance to do my favorite thing, helping people see the real Jesus more clearly.

Teaching: The Story of Everything- Jesus from Restore Community Church on Vimeo.

November 7th, 2008 by Nate

I have been working on a video project for this weekend all about the story of restore. In my research and gathering of what I needed for the project I ran across this article in the Christian Standard. These words literally changed the destiny of my family and I.

In early 2007 my wife ran across this article through a post on Dave Ferguson’s blog. (Yes, I admit this was before I read blogs… sorry Dave.) She read this article and called me at my office at Faith in Summerville, SC. I read the article about a new church starting in the Northland of KC and immediately emailed Dave. He forwarded my Email to Troy and the rest is history.

I can’t put into words the power that these words have had for me as someone who was in search of the next step that God had for me. I was at one of those points in my life where I knew there was another step but unsure what it was. I can also tell you that this is no accident stumbling upon this at this specific time. Once again I find myself seeking God for the next step for us, its nothing as dramatic as moving across the country. For me this was an emotional reminder of just how powerfully we were drawn to be a part of Restore. What a great reminder to always be ready for the next step that God has for us. Are you ready?