I’ve noticed that most people who blog do not have a purpose behind it. Do you know why you do what you do? Nothing can bring focus to your tasks like knowing your purpose. If you are a blogger, what do you blog about and why? Be honest with yourself…is it all about you? (“Today I had a great piece of cake…”) Is it shameless self-promotion? Are you blogging to be an encouragement to others, or are you a self-proclaimed critic of others or their organizations? I believe we have to answer to God with how we use our time one day, so make sure you are a good steward of your time. As Benjamin Franklin said, “time is the stuff life is made of,” so make sure you do not waste your time of needless things (or blog entries), but rather, make your life (or blog) count.

What you focus on is arguably the most critical component to your success or failure…in anything. If you focus on negative aspects of your situations, they tend to increase or seem larger than they really are. If you focus on the positive sides to your situations (even problems), you tend to find solutions. Also, what you focus on becomes larger. If you focus on a problem or problem person, they tend to become magnified in your mind. For example, when Nehemiah was rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem, he focused on the wall. Some of the Israelites focused on the two guys talking bad about Nehemiah, questioning his motives, etc… The problem is obvious when some of the Israelites said, “they are all around us!” There wasn’t enough of the enemy to be all around them, but they had magnified their threats in their mind and scared themselves silly. Have you ever magnified a hurt, a painful word or accusation from another, or a problem that seems to persist in your life? It’s hard to get a handle on your problems when you blow them up bigger than they are. Instead, we should do as David did and sing with him:

"O magnify the LORD with me, And let us exalt His name together.” Psalm 34:3 NAS

God is bigger than anything you are dealing with, so focus on Him, and your problems are put into the proper perspective. Remember, the God who is so much larger than your problems is on your side!

I am excited to be attending the first-ever Spur Leadership Conference that my good friend Mac Richard will be speaking at and hosting. Mac knows a lot about leadership. He is the founding/Senior Pastor of one of the best churches in the country, and he did this in a “not-so-church-friendly” environment, Austin, Texas. He’s a a great leader, and that is why he has attracted great leaders who will be speaking alongside him, including none other than Ed Young. What excites me about this conference is that it is more about leadership than church topics only. This should reach a broader base of people, as well as church leaders. Reason for this? God does not just use pastors to bring change…He uses all leaders who are looking to Him and willing to grow. I highly recommend this conference to anyone who wants to grow and is tired of the “usual conferences.” I’ll see you there!

This week let's pray for the maximum people to join us in our prayer efforts! We are praying for over 2,000 people to join in. Last weekend over 900 people signed up to be prayer partners.

1.So, let’s be praying for another 1100 people to join us.

2. Also, pray for a worshipping community to develop, that God would really show up as we seek Him in our services.

God Bless.
Bil

I just read part of the introduction of my friend Mark Batterson’s new book, called “Wild Goose Chase.” I was actually on another friend’s blog, Buddy Cremeans, where he had It posted, and it hit me like a ton of bricks. This describes what God is doing in me, and more importantly, in our church right now! Here’s what the intro said:
“Celtic Christians had a name for the Holy Spirit–An Geadh-Glas, or ‘the Wild Goose.’ The name hints at mystery. Much like a wild goose, the Spirit of God cannot be tracked or tamed. An element of danger, an air of unpredictability surround Him. And while the name may sound a little sacrilegious, I cannot think of a better description of what it’s like to follow the Spirit through life. I think the Celtic Christians were on to something…

Most of us will have no idea where we are going most of the time. And I know that is unsettling. But circumstantial uncertainty also goes by another name: Adventure.”

Sounds like Mark has another great book coming out this August, probably as good as his last one. The thing I love about God, is that He really does have a life of adventure for us, through a life of prayer. When I say prayer, I don’t mean the 15 words you repeat before every meal, I’m talking about when God ambushes you, gets your attention, and begins to lead you by His Spirit and His word, to do things you never knew were possible, and probably aren’t, apart from Him. God wants us to go on an adventure with Him. It begins on our knees.

This morning our management staff gathered to walk/run around our facility and start our day off with prayer. It was awesome! Aside from the onslaught of mosquitoes (Lord, are they really Your creation?) It was a time for us to practice what we preach. After the prayer time, we had staff. During the staff meeting, I began to launch into our plans and then we concluded the staff meeting in prayer. After staff, my wife called to ask how it was going and I gave her a brief synopsis on staff, when she suddenly stopped me cold. She said, in effect, “Bil, those plans you made, shouldn’t you pray about those more?” Sometimes I hate it when my wife is right! (this happens to me often). Jessica was not being a “know it all” or anything, she simply knows me….I had prayed, even preached on prayer, but I was already off to the races with “my plans.”’ I immediately called several of our staff back into my office to slow my plans down and tell them that I need to pray more about everything.

Here’s the point. God has led me to have a greater emphasis on prayer, but if it does not change the way I live, plan, run staff meetings, etc….then it is only a program and not a lifestyle. Before all of this occurred I remember praying and asking God to guide my steps today; and He just did. He just kept me from making a common mistake; moving too quickly without bathing my plans in prayer until God’s plans take over. This whole new level of prayer is not really raising me up right now- it’s even better, it’s humbling me to wait on the Lord. Will you wait on the Lord with me?

Wow! I have to start out with a blog today, thanking God, for giving us coverage in the Caller Times that we couldn’t pay for if we wanted to! God is so good to us, all I can do is thank Him. I know that as we grow, God will continue to use us if we stay humble and pray. Speaking of prayer, as I said in my messages this weekend, I want to give our new prayer partners some instructions. In case you go to this blog and are not a part of our church, you may have missed what we are up to….I challenged our entire church to pray, collectively, over 100,000 hours of prayer this year (one hour a week, with over 2,000 people participating). I have also publicly committed to praying 730 hours this year (2 hours a day). I say that not because I’m “so spiritual” but to say God laid this on my heart, probably because if you know me you know I need to pray. Here are some of our plans to become a praying church:

1. I will create a CD series of “how to pray,” that will be given to each of our 2,000 prayer partners.
2. We are constructing a prayer path around our 100 acres complete with signs for people to follow instruction on what to pray about, every 40 yards or so…This will give people the opportunity to come to the church, jog, walk, push a stroller, even skateboard around the facility and pray.
3. Every weekend, during one of the worship songs, we will invite our prayer partners to step into the aisle, and invite people in need of prayer to step out for prayer as everyone else stands and continues to sing.
4. Every staff member will now have a prayer team dedicated to lifting up their needs.
5. Our home teams will be focusing on prayer and our web and blog will spotlight each prayer need.
6. Our staff has been instructed to never have a meeting without prayer as an emphasis.
7. Our management staff has committed to meeting each morning and praying together during the work week, as well as journaling at least 5 times a week, as they go through a systematic reading of the entire Bible this year.

Those are just a few of the things we have in store. I am a numbers guy, so to me, I love to count (attendance, salvations, baptisms, etc…) This year, God put it on my heart to count 100,000 hours of prayer, and if none of the rest of our plans happen, but we were with God this much, then we succeeded. For God’s glory.

For Prayer Partners:

Thank you for your commitment to joining me in prayer. The power of prayer happens when we all focus, so here is what I am asking you to pray for during your first hour:

1. Take time to thank God for this new commitment to pray 1 hour (or more) a week.
2. Pray for the vision to happen (Fill the house, National TV ministry, 4 more campuses).
3. Pray for the resources needed, as we approach a commitment weekend, to give above and beyond our regular tithe, to see the vision become a reality.
4. Pray for me (Pastor Bil) as I am laying out the details of how to pull off our crazy sized vision.

By all means, add to your prayers whatever needs you have as well. God is a providing God and He will be glorified when we call on Him, and He answers.

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” Philippians 4:6 NIV

This weekend  we talked  about vision.  I love to talk on vision at church.  Then comes the scary part...revealing ours, and then moving in that direction.  That's why this year's series on vision is called "The Price of Vision."  Everyone has a vision for their lives, their family, their business, their community, even their physical health.  It's not a lack of vision that is the problem…it's the unwillingness to pay the price.  The price of greatness is high.  Our vision as a church has already cost me relationships, money, ego, accusations, being gossiped about, even being lied to.  The price is already being paid, so I might as well go all the way with this vision!    Here is a quote of a story I used for the message:

"About 350 years ago a shipload of travelers landed on the northeast coast of America. The first year they established a town site. The next year they elected a town government. The third year the town government planned to build a road five miles westward into the wilderness.  In the fourth year the people tried to impeach their town government because they thought it was a waste of public funds to build a road five miles westward into a wilderness. Who needed to go there anyway?  Here were people who had the vision to see three thousand miles across an ocean and overcome great hardships to get there. But in just a few years they were not able to see even five miles out of town. They had lost their pioneering vision. With a clear vision of what we can become in Christ, no ocean of difficulty is too great. Without it, we rarely move beyond our current boundaries."  (story by Lynn Anderson)

Hope that story resonates with you.  Have you gotten soft on vision?  Are you selling your future short by becoming too comfortable?  I look forward to reading your comments and contributions on this.

When is the last time you dropped everything you are doing
to pray? Have you felt a feeling of being powerless to change something
or someone, or just missed knowing that God was moving in your life?
There are seasons when we just need to seek God. To seek God for me
begins with a reminder that I am not in control, that I have the privilege of
serving God. It is a reminder that without Him, I can do nothing (John
15:5-6) and that I want no part in manufacturing a movement on my own.
Besides, what God wants to do in me is more valuable to Him than what He wants
to do through me. He does not need me to get His will done, but if
I will stay humble, admit my dependence on Him, then He gives me the privilege
to be in on what He is already doing. That’s why I pray. I need
Him…desperately. I am hopeless in my own power. Yet, I am powerful
when surrendered to the Almighty. Let’s stop the madness of our
schedules…and just pray.

I am excited to announce that our first night of the Expo Conference was a huge success! Last year we had a little under 500, and last night, even in today’s economy, we have 770 people! The crowd was fired up too! I have to admit, I was pretty nervous because I normally do not talk “business” the whole time when I teach. It was a lot of fun preparing for this, because it never ceases to amaze me how much the Bible has to say about growing a thriving business and expanding our investments. If you could not make it last night, it’s not too late! Come on out tonight (half price…$30) and listen to two great sessions left!

Session one tonight: 7:00 PM. How To Massively beat the stock market every year! a.k.a. “Super-Charged Wealth Building”

Session two tonight: 8:15 PM. Questions and Answers from some of Corpus Christi’s sharpest business leaders:

On the panel:
Joe Adame, founder and CEO, Joe Adame & Associates
Alex Harris, co-founder and CEO, Brite-Star Construction
Randall Moore, VP Island Construction Management, LP
Michael Johnson, co-founder and CEO, Esenjay Petroleum

These guys know what they are talking about! They have each started and grown great businesses, and/or invested with little to know capital and grown their portfolios into multi-million dollar holdings. Do not miss this! They will share the ins and outs, the mistakes, as well as the moves that propelled them forward. See you tonight!