Seeing that it is well beyond midnight now and officially July 31st, I just wanted to take this opportunity to wish a HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my favorite little boy in the WHOLE WIDE WORLD!  My son, TJ, turns ONE today!

I can’t even begin to describe how much this little elephant-riding, mommy-loving boy means to me.  One year ago today God gave me a little deeper understanding of how much He sacrificed at the cross, a deeper understanding of the Father/Son relationship, and a deeper understanding of how much I could love a little baby that I didn’t even know yet!

God has used TJ to provide joy through some tough, transitional times in my life over this last year and I look forward to what the next year (and the ones after that) will bring as my little boy becomes a man!  My prayer is that God will keep TJ safe and healthy, and that He will draw TJ to Himself and use him in a mighty way!  I can’t believe he’s a year old already.

I don’t get to preach very often in the evening times these days, but tonight I got to speak at the Extreme Games in the Park in Latrobe, PA (for Living Water Community Church).  I had a great time sharing with the youth and adults in attendance, but I had forgotten how jacked up I get after preaching! 

It’s 1:15 AM and I have yet to wind down.  It’s a great opportunity to do some studying and preparation for a couple of upcoming preaching opps I have.  That’s the only downside of having so much family in town — the quiet study/prep time is at a premium. 

Anyway, it was a good day and tomorrow’s gonna be even better!

I just realized that its been about a week since I posted.  Life has been very good, just busy.  My nephew Jonathan has been in town and then my sister and her other 3 kids joined them here on Thursday night.  Thursday afternoon Amber, Jonathan, and I went kayaking on the Allegheny River in downtown Pittsburgh.  What an awesome experience (and shoulder workout)!  I love this area!

We spent part of the day Friday in Latrobe, PA (home of the Steelers’ training camp).  My two nephews were in a football camp that afternoon and the Steelers had a night practice that evening.  This marks the first training camp I think I’ve been to since I stopped playing football myself.  I’m torn about this: there’s a part of me that really wanted to be down there knocking heads…. but there’s also a part of me that was awfully comfortable sitting on the sidelines watching those guys sweat   While we were there, a newspaper photographer snapped a pretty sweet shot of TJ and the Steelers mascot and put it in the paper Saturday: here’s a link.

I preached at Charleroi Baptist Church (south of the city) yesterday and I’m preaching at Extreme Games in the Park - put on by Living Water Community Church in Latrobe – three nights this week.  I love all of these speaking opportunities, but I’m also ready to be back with my ICC family on August 12th again!

Last night, Amber’s father, stepmom, brother, and sister all came into town for a couple of weeks.  What’s the big deal for all the family in town, you ask???  Tomorrow is TJ’s 1st Birthday!!! 

The strategy we’re employing to start up ICC (monthly services this summer, kickoff weekly services September 16) has been really good in many aspects.  One of those good aspects is that I have a lot of free Sundays to preach at different churches.  I am passionate about church planting and know beyond a shadow of a doubt that this is what God has created and called me to do.  However, I am also passionate about the Church – new churches, old churches, cutting edge, traditional, modern, post-modern, mega-, micro-, etc. — even though I get frustrated with all of the above sometimes.  The key is being Christ focused and missional.

To that end, I am getting to experience more different types of churches during this phase of my life than ever before.  In the month of July I’m preaching every Sunday at a different church in the Pittsburgh metro area.  Additionally, I get the chance to preach at an outreach event for a friend’s church 3 week nights next week.  Normally, the “preacher boy” moniker is reserved for guys much younger than me, but since God called me to preach in my late 20’s I’ll borrow it for this station of life.

I love the process of digging into God’s Word and letting Him guide me in putting together His message for whatever group of people I get to share with.  Please join me in praying that I give God every opportunity to wear me out doing what He’s called me to do for His Kingdom.

Last month my niece Christina came over from New Jersey and spent some time with us.  We had a great time with her.  This weekend, my nephew Jonathan (Christina’s brother) came over and he’s with us for a while.  We’ve been having fun so far.  He went with me Sunday as I preached at this church.

Then we met up with most of the rest of the family and went to the Pirates game.  It was great.  I’m normally wiped out on Sunday afternoons after preaching, but that was just what the doctor ordered.  Baseball – especially on TV – normally bores me to the point of comatose, but I like the atmosphere of the ballpark and it was a perfect fit for my drained mind on Sunday.

Yesterday I shifted my day around a little bit and played tennis with Jonathan at the park nearby.  We’re going to try to drown some worms this afternoon (also known as fishing). 

I am perhaps the world’s worst “relaxer”.  Although I’m not always productive, my brain tends to always be on church planting no matter what I’m actually doing.  For that reason, I appreciate these God-honoring “distractions” (not really) that force me to push away a little bit and focus on having some fun.  And if I’m honest, I have to say that I always come back to the office stronger than if I never left.

I don’t normally share this sort of thing, but today I feel like laying it out there.  My family and I have been under attack for over two weeks now.  We’ve had some kind of a bug that we’ve been passing back and forth with no real relief in sight.  We’ve had some knock down drag out arguments (I know, pastors aren’t supposed to admit this sort of thing).  We’ve been fighting feelings of doubt and insecurity (again, a big no-no in preacher-world).

Today has been one of those days that reminds me all over again what God wants to do in and through Iron City Church.  A reminder of what all this struggle is about.  A reminder that God is still in the business of redeeming lives for eternity:

First, I met for lunch with a man who attended ICC for the first time on Sunday.  He’s been out of church for a loooooong time and decided to check us out because of our “More Jesus, Less Crap” signs.  His wife has been a believer for a long time, steadily praying for and trying be a light for her husband.  Today, after a good deal of discussion and sharing between he and I, this guy bowed his head in Subway, repented, and handed over the reins of his life to Jesus Christ!

Thank you GOD for this new life in Christ — Your Kingdom has been expanded by one and this guy can sleep with eternal security tonight, thanks to your grace!  I can’t wait to see what you are going to do in and through this life in the coming weeks, months, and years.  This is the first known salvation decision (of many to come) made as a result of the ministry of Iron City Church. 

Then, this evening we had a comeback event — a gathering of folks who were interested in learning more about ICC.  We had a good time tearing up some hot dogs and hamburgers and then got down to talking about God’s vision for ICC.  At the end of the night, I invited those present to sign on to the launch team and commit to helping us get this thing kicked off successfully and sustainably on September 16.  And we added 5 more people to the team.  We’re up to 35 people on the launch team as of now!

Thank you God for everything YOU are doing here and what is to come — strengthen and guide us as we continue to charge the gates of hell to make disciples and make THE NAME OF JESUS FAMOUS in the Pittsburgh metro area!!

I’ve been reading through the Psalms again lately and every once in a while God just uses them to shake me up and smack me around a little bit. 

Today I was shaken by the image that David paints in verse 1 of Psalm 63.  This is how it feels sometimes to me in the midst of spiritual warfare.  In spite of the fact that I have Living Water available, why is it that I feel at times like my soul is thirsty in a dry land? 

The journey of planting Iron City Church is one of faith, one that takes total focus on the God who is providing for my every need and guiding my every step.  When I take my eyes off Him and begin to look at all the question marks, the closed doors, and the daunting tasks is when my soul begins to dry out and thirst.  And if I’m obedient, its that same thirst that draws me back to the source of my hydration.

Thank you God for your Word and for this particular image, painted in words to illustrate how deep my need is for you.

Can’t believe its Tuesday and I still haven’t updated from Sunday.  Sunday was awesome!

We had a few key families out and our overall numbers were a little bit down, but it was an amazing day:

• Setup went smoother than ever — everyone was ready 30 minutes earlier than we had planned
• The band rocked things out — they started the day with the song “Beverly Hills” by Weezer to introduce the topic of materialism
• I preached from Mark 10 (the rich young ruler) on the topic “More than Stuff” — how easy it is to let stuff complicate our lives and make us miss out on a relationship with Christ.  Rather than focusing on getting and keeping stuff to provide a sense of security, we need to focus our attention and energy on the only thing that brings true security.
• We had 13 first-time guests from various sources.  It was exciting to hear some of their stories: how and why they came to check us out, life situations, etc.
• We also had some new births in Christ, which we’re following up on this week — more about this later!

All in all, Sunday was a great day!  We’ve been busy following up with folks so far this week.  Join us in praying that God will continue to send the people He wants involved with us and that we’ll make good use of everyone and everything He sends as we all grow in community!

Sunday is our next monthly service and I’m pumped.  I’m pumped because:

• I get to meet and get to know whomever is going to venture out once again to check out this crazy thing called Iron City Church
• I get to hang out with our launch team in full effect, serving like crazy because they’re sold out to be a part of what God’s doing
• I get to hear what the band has been working on for Sunday.  They’ve indicated to me that they are going to bring it this week like never before
• I get to stand up and share the message that God has laid on my heart from His Word.  There is nothing like doing what God has created and called you to do
• I get to see what the devil has been so upset about these last couple of weeks.  He’s been on the attack big time and that’s a good sign to me . . . I know he’s already been beaten and these are just his pathetic efforts to try to keep us from doing what God has already set before us.  Nice try, but we’re keeping our eyes on Jesus and staying focused on the vision He’s given!

If you’re in the Pittsburgh metro area and don’t have a place to go to church on Sunday, get up and come see us - wear what you want, we’ll bring the coffee!  You are definitely in for an awesome day!

I had the opportunity on Tuesday to knock off a little early, leave TJ with my parents, and take the wife out for the night.  Tuesday (July 10) was her birthday and we had a blast.  We got a nice hotel room on the north shore (near PNC ball park) with a view of the skyline and just basically enjoyed a night together with nothing else to think about but each other.  I thank God everyday for again demonstrating His grace by allowing me to share this life with someone as godly, gorgeous, and giving as Amber!  I love you babe!