Yesterday was an another amazing day at Cedarcrest Church! It is so exciting to see tons of new people coming to check out Cedarcrest. This is an exciting journey!

Of all the great things that happened yesterday what stands out to me most is the student area. This ministry is literally exploding! We had 85 students show up yesterday! Unbelievable! Scott Gormly, our student pastor, is the man! God has his hand on Scott’s life and is using him in incredible ways to connect students to the undeniable love of Christ. It has been incredible for me to see what God has done through Scott in just two short years. Before Scott came to Cedarcrest two years ago a high attendance Sunday in the student area was a whopping total of 5 students. God is moving through this ministry in incredible ways!

Gormly thanks for all you do! I love seeing your passion for students week in and week out! Mad props!!!!

Our staff team at Cedarcrest is amazing! We have the greatest staff in the world. I love my job! It is an honor to serve the Lord with this amazing crew that is so passionate about spreading the good news of Christ.

Friday night our staff presented our budget proposal to the Cedarcrest Elder board. Our new budget year begins October 1st. This is a huge step for us since this will be the first year we are finacially independent and fully resposible for our budget.

This was a great expereince for me. Our staff was a little nervous to present their portion of the budget, but they did an incredible job. I am so thankful to work with a staff that takes seriously the responsability of fincacial stewardship. Everyone was prayed up and well prepared when they made their presentations. Our staff is passionate about the ministry God has called us to! It was exciting to think about the ministry opportunites that lay before us as we prepare for a new budget year. I can’t tell you what a privilege it is to work with our staff at Cedarcrest!

After the staff presented the elders took some time to discuss the budget and then committed to pray about the budget for a little over a week before a decision is made on how much to approve. This team of guys is amazing. I am so thankful to have a team like this that is willing to take time to pray and seek the Lord’s will for our church before any major decision is made. Our elders are passionate about seeking God’s direction for Cedarcrest! Please be praying for us over the next few weeks as we prepare to bring the new budget before the church for approval. This budget will be a huge step of faith, but each step of faith we take provides an opportunity for God to do what only He can do!

One of the things I love about the word of God is how often it gets in my face and steps on my toes. I need to be confronted with the truth! Today is one of those days where my toes are hurting! In preparing for this Sundays message the word of God has truly confronted me! I love to preach when I have been confronted because that usually means their is somebody else who also needs to hear this!

The message on Sunday might make your toes a little sore, but we need to hear it! I realize this is not the best sales pitch to encourage you to come to Cedarcrest this week, but rest assured if you toes get stepped on, you are in good company! I am so thankful that the word of God does not pull any punches but tells us exactly what we need to hear. The best definition I have heard of the truth is, “Truth is what God says, regardless of how you feel.” It would sure be easier to only look at the parts of the bible that make us feel good, but then we would miss out on the truth we need to hear. Remember, God has given us the truth because He loves us and even though it may sting a little when we hear it, it always points us to the best possible way for us to live.

I look forward to seeing you on Sunday. I will be the one who is walking with a limp!

All I can say is we have an Amazing God! Yesterday was a day that I will never forget! It was so exciting to see people flooding into Allatoona High School for our first Sunday in this great location. We had over 700 people in worship plus several hundred kids enjoying opening day! God is so good!

Our volunteer teams at Cedarcrest were unbelievable yesterday! It is a privilege to serve with you in ministry. I am totally blown away by your passion and excitment to serve. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

I cannot wait to see where God takes us from here! This is an exciting ride! I love being the pastor at Cedarcrest!

The weekend is almost here! I can’t wait to see what God has in store for us this Sunday as we have our first services at Allatoona High School! You do not want to miss this Sunday. We have some very exciting things planned for opening day! I hope you will plan to stay after the services to join us for a Grand Opening Celebration as we enjoy our new home at Allatoona. We will have food, games for the kids and a few exciting suprises. Don’t forget to bring someone with you to join in the fun!

See you on Sunday!

It is with great joy and anticipation that I write to you prayer and fasting at this exciting time in the life of Cedarcrest Church. I believe that God has great things in store for Cedarcrest and we desire to seek His face in this time of transition to Allatoona High School. We would love for you to join us in prayer and fasting today as we pursue God’s will for Cedarcrest.

Fasting provides us an opportunity to diligently seek the Lord through prayer. It is a discipline of the faith that is seen throughout scripture as a tool to draw believers into a deeper communion with God. When we abstain from food we are making a commitment to focus on the Lord through fervent prayer. As we go without food we are intentionally seeking God’s will for the direction of our church. I pray that your faith will be enriched through this experience and that God will reveal to us His plan for the future of our church.  Jesus gives his followers clear direction about fasting and prayer. Matthew 6 provides guidance as to how followers of Christ should fast.

Matthew 6:16-18 “Whenever you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they neglect their appearance so that they will be noticed by men when they are fasting. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face so that your fasting will not be noticed by men, but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.”

Several quick observations to consider from these words of Jesus:

1. Jesus begins by saying, “whenever you fast”. This statement implies that followers of Christ should be involved in fasting. Scripture is clear that fasting is not required to be a follower of Christ; however, we see that Jesus is clear that followers of Christ should be involved in this discipline. He does not say, “if you fast,” but “whenever you fast”. While there is not clear teaching as to when the fast should take place or how often we should fast, the implication is made that Christians should be involved in fasting as the Spirit leads. As we fast, we are acting in obedience and following the example of Christ.
2. Fasting should not draw attention to an individual, but to God. We should not participate in a fast to be “noticed by men, but by your Father who is in secret.” Fasting is to be between God and us. It is a practice that should be done for the glory of God and not for the praise or attention of man. Jesus tells us that fasting provides the opportunity for us to break from our normal routine of food and focus on our relationship with God. Through fasting we are committing to put our relationship with God ahead of our personal desires and cravings for food. This discipline allows us to draw closer to God without the distractions of our desires of the flesh as we seek God’s will for our lives.
3. Fasting is an intentional decision to seek the Lord’s will for our lives. When we fast with the motivation of seeking God’s will, the “Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.” This is not to say that through fasting we can force the hand of God or make God do what we desire. Instead fasting lines us up with God’s purpose and desire for us. The reward that we receive through fasting is the awareness that God is in control and He will direct our path. Fasting helps us step back from our plans and desires so that we can follow where the Lord is leading.

May the Lord bless you as you seek His face through this fast. As we commit to seek His will through fasting and prayer we can take confidence in the fact that He will be glorified through the plans he has for us. This is an exciting time in the life of Cedarcrest Church and my prayer is that God’s will is done as we move into our new location at Allatoona High School this weekend

You can find a prayer guide to walk you through this day on the Cedarcrest website. I look forward to hearing from you about this experience as you seek God’s will in your life!

Last weekend I had the privilege of doing a wedding downtown at Piedmont Park. It was a beautiful day and a great event. I love being part of weddings because I am reminded of how exciting it is to see people who are head over heals in love. A wedding is a time of promise and excitement as the couple stands before God and the people who care about them to acknowledge that they are in love for life.

Have you fallen in love? Have you truly experienced the gift of love? There is nothing better! But sadly the state of marriage in our culture is not always a pretty picture. Something that starts out so beautiful often falls apart and leaves people wondering if true love really exists. You may be questioning true love right now.

But true love does exist! Real love is only found when we are willing to give our life away. We will never expereince real love if we live with the mindset that love is about what we recieve. With that being said there is no greater picture of true love than the life and death of Jesus Christ. He gave up everything to show us his love. He sacrificed His life for us so that we could experience His love.

If you find yourself searching for true love today have you looked at Jesus? Have you considered what He did for you to show you His love? His love never fails! He is the perfect picture of the kind of love we all desire. May you find the kind of love you are searching for in Jesus Christ!

Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you.   John 15:13-14

Yesterday was our final Sunday meeting at Shelton Elementary School. Shelton has been a great host for Cedarcrest. I am so thankful that God provided this school as the launching point for Cedarcrest. Over the last 3 years as we have met at Shelton we have seen God do some incredible things! Anyone remember the tent last summer? God has provided us with some great memories so far! I am thankful for the many lives that have changed as a result of this first chapter in the life of Cedarcrest Church.

I also want to say a word of thanks to all the people who have helped us with set up and tear down over the last three years. You guys are amazing! The hours that have gone into setting up every week are too many to count. Thank you so much for your service to Cedarcrest!

Now we are moving on to the next phase of our journey. This Sunday, August 17th, we begin meeting at Allatoona High School. What does God have in store for us next? All I can say is I can’t wait to find out! I hope you will join us for the ride! Sunday is going to be a lot of fun!

Hey internet world! I am trying my hand at being a blogger. We will see how this goes.

 I’m excited about the new cedarcrestchurch.com web site, this new blog, and the future God has in store for us at Cedarcrest Church. We’re moving to a new location at Allatoona High School next weekend. Stay tuned. There will definitely be much more to come as we journey together through this life and mission that God has given us.