Hey everyone!
What a blast this new year has been so far! We as a team have had ups and downs; highs and lows. But God is constant and still very much in control!
We started out the year in Laurinburg, NC. We went into this first summit with expectation of some possible resistance because of things that had been going on in the church the previous year. The pastor and church had been under very heavy attack by members that did not like where their godly, Spirit-led pastor was leading the church. There had been quite a bit of resistance, even to the point of taking a vote on firing the pastor. The vote did not pass and the pastor courageously stayed to lead this body of believers as the Lord had called him to do. The summit started out slightly slow due to weather difficulties. It snowed about 8 inches on Monday night so we did not have services Tuesday or Wednesday evenings. This was slightly discouraging to our team because we had geared up and we were ready to see God work and move in extraordinary ways in this church! However, once we got geared back up on Thursday night, God showed us that He does not need our timetable or our schedules. He works outside of them! He started a healing process in this church to rid them of the hurt and the pain left from members who had caused so much turmoil and resistance. To cap it all, on Sunday the majority of the church laid hands on their pastor and prayed for him all together, sharing God's love and continuing the healing/forgiving process!
We then traveled a little south to Elgin, SC. The church in Elgin has had Life Action teams a couple of times in the past, but this time they were wanting God to do a work in them that would completely change them and leave them broken before him. I grew to love this church a whole lot! I started out this summit, personally, struggling with sickness that had not completely left my body before going back on the road from Christmas break. It started to flare up at the end of the summit in NC and proceeded to get worse. As a team, we wanted God to change this church and so we began crying out in prayer for the people there. As the Summit went on, I continued to get sick. However, in our weakness He is made strong and God started to move mightily in this church! He awakened families to their need of him. He broke fathers over their failure to be the spiritual leaders of their homes. It was incredible! Towards the end of the summit, about the time when it was getting for me having to go home due to being sick, God had the men of this church pray over me. Now, we are not talking about wimpy, weak prayers or prayERS. We are talking prayers of POWER and CONFIDENCE in their God. They laid hands over me and cried out for our Jehovah Rapha (Healer) to heal me and make me whole again. God heard their cry and healed me the next day! Praise His name!
Going off of that incredible experience, we traveled on to St. Mary's, GA. Now St. Mary's is the second oldest city in our nation (the first being St. Augustine, I believe) and when the first Sunday rolled around, we discovered that this church was a very tradition-rich church. That is not a good thing, by the way. There were quite a few areas that stood out that God would have to break this church of if He was going to move in a fresh and reviving way. We had some resistance with music at first as well due to some who were just not open and receptive to change. However, through all of this, God still moved in a powerful way as He always will with people who are willing to be broken before Him! One thing that will always stick out in my mind from this church was the opportunity that the Lord gave us as a band to minister to the resident praise band at this church. The Lord gave us the opportunity to share our hearts with them and vice versa. It was a simple conversation that stretched into an hour and a half. We were able to share some things that God had been teaching us and they were able to share ways that God had been growing them. It was so very encouraging and uplifting for both bands that were involved and I believe that God will use that to help their church be more open and ready for change especially in the area of music!
We then pulled away from the coast and drove over to Dothan, AL. I know what you must be thinking and we were thinking the same thing. "Wait, haven't we been in Dothan before?" Yes it is very true. And not just once. As you can see from previous posts, we have been in Dothan, Alabama 4 other times! Count them: FOUR! But we were so very excited to come back. You see, we believe that God specifically placed us in Dothan 5 times so that when He started something there, it wouldn't be about Life Action OR about one particular church. He placed us there so that when He started to move mightily and extraordinarily, it would be solely about Him and His glory! And boy did He move at this fifth church. Dothan is a special place and we, as a team, were excited to go back. You see, we have spent hours upon hours on our face crying out for this particular city. We wanted God to do something BIG. It was so exciting being there. The church was growing and each service we had a packed out house! But get this: there was no air conditioner at all. Zero. Nada. Nothing. Yet, people returned each night ready to seek His face. You see, when people truly seek God, it doesn't matter whether they are physically "comfortable." It does not matter what their schedules are. Schedules get thrown out the window. Our american view of "comfort" does not matter. They want to seek the Lord and see Him move in their lives and in their church! Probably one of the most incredible things that happened took place when people were asked to give testimony to what the Lord had begun and done in their lives throughout the summit. First person up was a man who not only gave testimony and asked for forgiveness, but he also stopped right there and prayed for himself and the other men in the church! That started a flood of men coming to give testimony. We, unfortunately, do not normally see men coming up to give testimony. That is usually due to our pride and "egos" as men. However, this body of believers, decided to break the mold! They decided to humble themselves and seek forgiveness. They decided to actually be REAL men and be the spiritual leaders of their home! Praise the Lord!
I thank you all for your prayers, love, and support!! It means so much to me and keeps me going here on the road for sure. Candies Creek, I am encouraged to hear what is going on in preparation for the summit in about a month! I'm so excited to finally be coming home! Continue to seek the Lord for brokenness and repentance in your own lives. Remember that the Red team does not bring revival with us when we come; nor do we take it with us when we leave! It would be the most amazing thing for us, as a team, to come and just take part in revival already happening at Candies Creek before we get there! I love you all!
Reid
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Dothan, AL
Hey everyone!
For the past 6 or 7 weeks I have been here in Dothan, Alabama watching as the Lord is moving in people's lives! He's been moving in mine too!
We started this time in the "peanut city" at Cloverdale Baptist Church. The Lord had already been moving there as we arrived because the church had been praying before our arrival. We have found that prayer is the key to revival in our lives and in our churches lives. We have to be in desperate prayer if we want to see God do an incredible work! While we were at Cloverdale, the men of the church started a noon-time prayer meeting. They took their lunch hour every day to meet at the church and seek God's face for themselves, their families, their church, and their city. There was a growing attitude of worship as well! The time at Cloverdale started with many closed mouths and crossed arms during the music time. However, by the end, people were freely expressing their worship and adoration to God! What a wonderful sight to see, believe me! God also did a HUGE work in me during this Summit and blessed me GREATLY! I can't wait to share it with everyone!
Next we drove down the "Circle" to Bethel Baptist Church. Bethel is one of the larger churches that we have been to this semester. At Bethel, I was able to be in the prayer room. WHen we, as team members, are on the prayer rotation, we go to the prayer room during the Main Session and prayer over prayer cards that you, as church members, write. I love being in the prayer room because the Lord really does a mighty work if we, as His people, are faithful to call on His name! Each time I've been on the prayer rotation, God has encouraged me by showing me those prayers answered on the same prayer cards; sometimes the very next night! How incredible is our God?! The Holy Spirit really moved in the lives of the kids in Happy Heart City and Base Camp during this Summit. On the Saturday that we do Home Life Cafe, the Base Campers spent over an hour praying for themselves and crying out to God! Believe me, they were not wimpy prayers either! They prayed about what their God is greater than and then broke out into singing "Our God" by Chris Tomlin at the end. Could you imagine if all of God's people would pray just like that?! Revival would break out everywhere. The biggest impact that the Lord made while we were there was on families and the children. A huge amount of families have begun doing family worship in their homes! What a blessing!
Third, we drove down 231 to Ozark, Alabama, which is right on the outside of Dothan. We were at Ridgecrest Baptist for this summit. This summit started out similar to Cloverdale in the sense that the people of God had a hard time worshipping Him during the music. It always breaks my heart when God's people can't express their love and adoration for HIm or respond to His Spirit's prompting. At this point in the year, we as a team were feeling some of the wear and tear of carrying heavy burdens for each church that we minister to. We also felt quite a bit of spiritual warfare; not just here in Ozark, but the whole time we have been in the Dothan area. In a way, however, it's exciting because it means God is up to something and Satan doesn't want HIm to succeed (even though Christ has already won it!!) Because of our somewhat tired state, some of the team began to get sick, and eventually it caught me. I was out for the last few days of this Summit because of sinus problems, a sore throat, and fever. BUT GOD!! Let me tell you, He still moved! He still worked! At the end of the Summit, there were 6 to 7 couples who said that this time spent with God was the thing that saved their marriages. Hallelujah! They said that divorce was always on the table, but now it's not at all. God is awesome! Obviously, that is where Satan is attacking heavily in the American church. Ours included, Candies Creek. God also encouraged me when I couldn't sing or be around most of the team because of my fever. He drew me closer to Himself and Grace, praise the Lord!
We are now back in Dothan at Rehobeth Baptist. We are two days into the Summit and already God is working. Even more so than either of the churches above, this church seems to almost refuse to sing. Please pray that God would continue to break my heart for those people! And pray that God would break down walls and barriers blocking them from worshipping Him. This Summit is only an 8-day so we don't have as much time as we normally would to get into lives, so pray that the Lord would do that for me and the team.
Thank you all for your love and support!! I wouldn't be here traveling around if it weren't for you all behind me praying for me. I know that and I am extremely grateful for each and everyone of you. I'm still out here, driving from city to city, praising the name of the Lord, and ministering to His people. I love EVERY minute of it!!
I love you all,
Reid
For the past 6 or 7 weeks I have been here in Dothan, Alabama watching as the Lord is moving in people's lives! He's been moving in mine too!
We started this time in the "peanut city" at Cloverdale Baptist Church. The Lord had already been moving there as we arrived because the church had been praying before our arrival. We have found that prayer is the key to revival in our lives and in our churches lives. We have to be in desperate prayer if we want to see God do an incredible work! While we were at Cloverdale, the men of the church started a noon-time prayer meeting. They took their lunch hour every day to meet at the church and seek God's face for themselves, their families, their church, and their city. There was a growing attitude of worship as well! The time at Cloverdale started with many closed mouths and crossed arms during the music time. However, by the end, people were freely expressing their worship and adoration to God! What a wonderful sight to see, believe me! God also did a HUGE work in me during this Summit and blessed me GREATLY! I can't wait to share it with everyone!
Next we drove down the "Circle" to Bethel Baptist Church. Bethel is one of the larger churches that we have been to this semester. At Bethel, I was able to be in the prayer room. WHen we, as team members, are on the prayer rotation, we go to the prayer room during the Main Session and prayer over prayer cards that you, as church members, write. I love being in the prayer room because the Lord really does a mighty work if we, as His people, are faithful to call on His name! Each time I've been on the prayer rotation, God has encouraged me by showing me those prayers answered on the same prayer cards; sometimes the very next night! How incredible is our God?! The Holy Spirit really moved in the lives of the kids in Happy Heart City and Base Camp during this Summit. On the Saturday that we do Home Life Cafe, the Base Campers spent over an hour praying for themselves and crying out to God! Believe me, they were not wimpy prayers either! They prayed about what their God is greater than and then broke out into singing "Our God" by Chris Tomlin at the end. Could you imagine if all of God's people would pray just like that?! Revival would break out everywhere. The biggest impact that the Lord made while we were there was on families and the children. A huge amount of families have begun doing family worship in their homes! What a blessing!
Third, we drove down 231 to Ozark, Alabama, which is right on the outside of Dothan. We were at Ridgecrest Baptist for this summit. This summit started out similar to Cloverdale in the sense that the people of God had a hard time worshipping Him during the music. It always breaks my heart when God's people can't express their love and adoration for HIm or respond to His Spirit's prompting. At this point in the year, we as a team were feeling some of the wear and tear of carrying heavy burdens for each church that we minister to. We also felt quite a bit of spiritual warfare; not just here in Ozark, but the whole time we have been in the Dothan area. In a way, however, it's exciting because it means God is up to something and Satan doesn't want HIm to succeed (even though Christ has already won it!!) Because of our somewhat tired state, some of the team began to get sick, and eventually it caught me. I was out for the last few days of this Summit because of sinus problems, a sore throat, and fever. BUT GOD!! Let me tell you, He still moved! He still worked! At the end of the Summit, there were 6 to 7 couples who said that this time spent with God was the thing that saved their marriages. Hallelujah! They said that divorce was always on the table, but now it's not at all. God is awesome! Obviously, that is where Satan is attacking heavily in the American church. Ours included, Candies Creek. God also encouraged me when I couldn't sing or be around most of the team because of my fever. He drew me closer to Himself and Grace, praise the Lord!
We are now back in Dothan at Rehobeth Baptist. We are two days into the Summit and already God is working. Even more so than either of the churches above, this church seems to almost refuse to sing. Please pray that God would continue to break my heart for those people! And pray that God would break down walls and barriers blocking them from worshipping Him. This Summit is only an 8-day so we don't have as much time as we normally would to get into lives, so pray that the Lord would do that for me and the team.
Thank you all for your love and support!! I wouldn't be here traveling around if it weren't for you all behind me praying for me. I know that and I am extremely grateful for each and everyone of you. I'm still out here, driving from city to city, praising the name of the Lord, and ministering to His people. I love EVERY minute of it!!
I love you all,
Reid
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Sulphur, LA
Hey everybody!
Yes, I know it has been ages since I have updated. I am truly sorry for that! I have been extremely busy, although that is no excuse.
We left First Baptist Sulphur a week ago today. God did some truly incredible things! I have never experienced anything like it and I praise the Lord that He allowed me to have even a small part in it. What happened at Sulphur is something that, truthfully, can only be explained by God and His hand at work among His people.
We got there on Friday and met our Host Families for the duration of the Summit. I had the wonderful privilege of staying with a pastor and his family. They were such a blessing! This church had bathed the time leading up to the Summit in prayer and we could sense the Spirit already at work in His people. The Senior Pastor was a man ready for God to break into the church and change the "norm" that seems to infect the church across America. All of these things prepared and paved the way for God to do something incredible at First Baptist Sulphur.
Throughout the week, spontaneous times of prayer broke out, relationships were healed, marriages were restored, sins were repented of, and lives were changed forever! The senior pastor called all of the church members to pray everyday at noon. He challenged them to pray that God would break them of their complacency and apathy. He told them to pray that they would be broken of sin in their lives and in their church. Church members got up in front of the church and asked for forgiveness. People that had been contemplating divorce reconciled and allowed God to restore their marriages. Children, while in their clubs, broke out in prayer meetings. They were praying for their parents in the sanctuary and for themselves, that they would see and experience God. Most importantly, God was there in that time at Sulphur. He is still there! He is continuing to move and work in that church even after we are gone!
You see, Life Action Ministries does not bring the Holy Spirit with us when we get to a church. Nor do we take Him with us when we leave. There is nothing special about us. We are just people that followed His calling on our lives to carry this message and burden for an apathetic American church. We have seen Him do incredible things even in our very first Summit. I am extremely excited about what He is going to do the rest of the year! I am praying and seeking Him for bigger things!
Candies Creek, are you willing to seek His face for what He wants to do in our lives in April? Are we going to pray and seek Him wholeheartedly, knowing that He is going to change lives? And when God does move, do we realize that we can't go back to what we were before? Do we realize that it would be worse for God to move and we go back to the "norm" afterwards than if He didn't move at all??
I love you guys. Again, I apologize for being so late in posting! Thank you for your patience. And thank you for all the birthday wishes for tomorrow! It means the world to me!
Reid
Yes, I know it has been ages since I have updated. I am truly sorry for that! I have been extremely busy, although that is no excuse.
We left First Baptist Sulphur a week ago today. God did some truly incredible things! I have never experienced anything like it and I praise the Lord that He allowed me to have even a small part in it. What happened at Sulphur is something that, truthfully, can only be explained by God and His hand at work among His people.
We got there on Friday and met our Host Families for the duration of the Summit. I had the wonderful privilege of staying with a pastor and his family. They were such a blessing! This church had bathed the time leading up to the Summit in prayer and we could sense the Spirit already at work in His people. The Senior Pastor was a man ready for God to break into the church and change the "norm" that seems to infect the church across America. All of these things prepared and paved the way for God to do something incredible at First Baptist Sulphur.
Throughout the week, spontaneous times of prayer broke out, relationships were healed, marriages were restored, sins were repented of, and lives were changed forever! The senior pastor called all of the church members to pray everyday at noon. He challenged them to pray that God would break them of their complacency and apathy. He told them to pray that they would be broken of sin in their lives and in their church. Church members got up in front of the church and asked for forgiveness. People that had been contemplating divorce reconciled and allowed God to restore their marriages. Children, while in their clubs, broke out in prayer meetings. They were praying for their parents in the sanctuary and for themselves, that they would see and experience God. Most importantly, God was there in that time at Sulphur. He is still there! He is continuing to move and work in that church even after we are gone!
You see, Life Action Ministries does not bring the Holy Spirit with us when we get to a church. Nor do we take Him with us when we leave. There is nothing special about us. We are just people that followed His calling on our lives to carry this message and burden for an apathetic American church. We have seen Him do incredible things even in our very first Summit. I am extremely excited about what He is going to do the rest of the year! I am praying and seeking Him for bigger things!
Candies Creek, are you willing to seek His face for what He wants to do in our lives in April? Are we going to pray and seek Him wholeheartedly, knowing that He is going to change lives? And when God does move, do we realize that we can't go back to what we were before? Do we realize that it would be worse for God to move and we go back to the "norm" afterwards than if He didn't move at all??
I love you guys. Again, I apologize for being so late in posting! Thank you for your patience. And thank you for all the birthday wishes for tomorrow! It means the world to me!
Reid
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Last Week!
Hello to all!
This week has been a very good one! It hasn't been especially draining and we feel like we have gotten quite a bit accomplished! Praise the Lord. I thank Him for the strength that He has given me to get through this time here in Michigan. It has been a long 6 weeks but it was definitely worth it.
On Sunday, our team went to the church in Buchanan. Our band played/sang and our children's ministers got to do clubs with the kids. It was a nice preview and glimpse for how a Summit will potentially play out. Everything went great! The music went well and I believe the Lord really used it and the message to reach the hearts of the people. We tore our equipment down immediately after the service very smoothly and without problems. Praise the Lord!
Starting on Monday, we had practice each morning and each afternoon to solidify all the work that we have done the past few weeks. Practice went well all week long and we were able to get even more work done. Each evening we had a different type of session to further our knowledge of what goes on at a Summit. On Monday and Tuesday evenings, the session was about the two clubs that we do at every church. They are kids clubs for little ones and 2nd through 6th grade. They are called Happy Heart City and Base Camp, respectively. We were shown how a lesson would play out and what all the different rules were. It was fun and interesting!
On Wednesday morning, we took team pictures that will be on display at the churches that we go to. So it looks like all of you CCBC people will be seeing my face around at some point! The session on Thursday evening was very different from anything that we had during the previous sessions. On Thursday night, we had a commissioning service. It was for each area of Life Action as we begin to work in this next ministry year. It was a huge blessing to be apart of! Dr. Erwin Lutzer, the senior pastor at Moody Church in Chicago, came to speak and give us a charge for the year. It was very exciting! It was also humbling to know that we are finally about to set out on this journey to see God work in His churches for the next year and knowing that I am going to be able to have a small part in that!
It is Saturday now and we have some time set aside this afternoon and evening to go to the Dunes at Lake Michigan as a team. It will be a good time to rest and enjoy this beautiful Michigan weather before we head out on the road. We leave for our first Summit in Sulphur, Louisiana next Wednesday. We will stop in Princeton, Kentucky on Wednesday night and Jackson, Mississippi (I believe) on Thursday night. I have enjoyed Michigan but you have no idea how overjoyed that I am to be able to have some REAL sweet tea, southern cooking, ride on roads that are actually well paved, and hear the word y'all.
Please continue to pray for me and our team as we minister to churches throughout the year! We know that God is doing to do an amazing work and we are expecting Him to. I want to be used in whatever capacity He puts me in! Also, feel free to keep up with all of the places that the Red team will be at this year at http://www.lifeaction.org/ and if you are nearby, come visit! I want to thank you all for your daily prayers and for the letters and encouragement you have sent me! It is so wonderful to hear from you all! I will continue to receive mail all year long at the address I put up in earlier posts. You may e-mail me as well at orangehorns24@gmail.com
Next time that I post, I will be back in the south! I love y'all!
Reid
This week has been a very good one! It hasn't been especially draining and we feel like we have gotten quite a bit accomplished! Praise the Lord. I thank Him for the strength that He has given me to get through this time here in Michigan. It has been a long 6 weeks but it was definitely worth it.
On Sunday, our team went to the church in Buchanan. Our band played/sang and our children's ministers got to do clubs with the kids. It was a nice preview and glimpse for how a Summit will potentially play out. Everything went great! The music went well and I believe the Lord really used it and the message to reach the hearts of the people. We tore our equipment down immediately after the service very smoothly and without problems. Praise the Lord!
Starting on Monday, we had practice each morning and each afternoon to solidify all the work that we have done the past few weeks. Practice went well all week long and we were able to get even more work done. Each evening we had a different type of session to further our knowledge of what goes on at a Summit. On Monday and Tuesday evenings, the session was about the two clubs that we do at every church. They are kids clubs for little ones and 2nd through 6th grade. They are called Happy Heart City and Base Camp, respectively. We were shown how a lesson would play out and what all the different rules were. It was fun and interesting!
On Wednesday morning, we took team pictures that will be on display at the churches that we go to. So it looks like all of you CCBC people will be seeing my face around at some point! The session on Thursday evening was very different from anything that we had during the previous sessions. On Thursday night, we had a commissioning service. It was for each area of Life Action as we begin to work in this next ministry year. It was a huge blessing to be apart of! Dr. Erwin Lutzer, the senior pastor at Moody Church in Chicago, came to speak and give us a charge for the year. It was very exciting! It was also humbling to know that we are finally about to set out on this journey to see God work in His churches for the next year and knowing that I am going to be able to have a small part in that!
It is Saturday now and we have some time set aside this afternoon and evening to go to the Dunes at Lake Michigan as a team. It will be a good time to rest and enjoy this beautiful Michigan weather before we head out on the road. We leave for our first Summit in Sulphur, Louisiana next Wednesday. We will stop in Princeton, Kentucky on Wednesday night and Jackson, Mississippi (I believe) on Thursday night. I have enjoyed Michigan but you have no idea how overjoyed that I am to be able to have some REAL sweet tea, southern cooking, ride on roads that are actually well paved, and hear the word y'all.
Please continue to pray for me and our team as we minister to churches throughout the year! We know that God is doing to do an amazing work and we are expecting Him to. I want to be used in whatever capacity He puts me in! Also, feel free to keep up with all of the places that the Red team will be at this year at http://www.lifeaction.org/ and if you are nearby, come visit! I want to thank you all for your daily prayers and for the letters and encouragement you have sent me! It is so wonderful to hear from you all! I will continue to receive mail all year long at the address I put up in earlier posts. You may e-mail me as well at orangehorns24@gmail.com
Next time that I post, I will be back in the south! I love y'all!
Reid
Saturday, August 21, 2010
Anyone Want Some Water?
Hey everyone!
It's been a very long week! Actually long might be an understatement. There has been lots of singing, rehearsing with the band, picking out parts, singing, singing, and more singing! However, I'm extremely blessed to be singing praises to my Lord and King all day long.
We started out the week on Monday by getting up early and heading back to the church that I mentioned in some of my earlier posts. We unloaded all of our equipment and began the task of setting up just like we will at a Summit. After lunch, we began practicing. This week we had a couple that was brought in to work specifically with our team. The husband is the worship leader at his church. He and his wife graduated as vocal majors from college, also. It was a blessing to have some outside perspectives come in and really give us a fresh vision for everything we are doing as a band.
Each evening we practiced until around 9 PM and then headed back to camp. They were all very long days and the amount of sleep we got compared to how hard we were working didn't seem quite sufficient. The Lord got us all through, however, with limited casualties. I praise the Lord for water and the blessing of being able to have it so readily in a bottle. I wouldn't have made it through these past 4+ weeks without that blessing. How often do we thank God for small things like that? Things as simple as a bottle of water when millions of people around the world do not even have the luxury of clean water to drink?
I was also able to claim my locker on our trailer this week. That is probably something very insignificant to all of you (and rightfully so) but that locker is one of a very limited amount of things that is going to be solely mine this year. It was one of the most exciting things that happened to me this week! The second most exciting thing would be that blessing of eating out for lunch AND dinner almost everyday. It was incredible! Who knew that Fazoli's and Subway could be so good?!
We are leading worship tomorrow at the same church that we have been practicing all week. Laine Johnson, the revivalist from our team, will be speaking as well. Please pray that God would be the only one that is seen on stage tomorrow morning. It is not about Life Action or our names being made known; it's about giving the glory to God. Pray that He will also begin to soften the hearts of the people so that they will be ready to receive the Lord's message and that they will be changed.
Thank you for all of your prayers! I'm very ready (in my head) to be on the road. Please pray that I will maintain focus this next week as our date of departure looms near. I want to be out and traveling and seeing God's people worship Him, but I also need to focus on the stuff that needs to get done in this next week. There will be lots of preparation, more practice, policy meetings, and we will also be trained for our secondary responsibilities on the team. It has been a great week and I'm excited to see what God has in store for this year!
I love you all,
Reid
Isaiah 12:5, "Sing praises to the Lord, for He has done glorious things; let this be made known in all the earth."
P.S. Feel free to e-mail me at orangehorns24@gmail.com. When I get out on the road, it will be easier for me to reply to texts and phone calls as well.
It's been a very long week! Actually long might be an understatement. There has been lots of singing, rehearsing with the band, picking out parts, singing, singing, and more singing! However, I'm extremely blessed to be singing praises to my Lord and King all day long.
We started out the week on Monday by getting up early and heading back to the church that I mentioned in some of my earlier posts. We unloaded all of our equipment and began the task of setting up just like we will at a Summit. After lunch, we began practicing. This week we had a couple that was brought in to work specifically with our team. The husband is the worship leader at his church. He and his wife graduated as vocal majors from college, also. It was a blessing to have some outside perspectives come in and really give us a fresh vision for everything we are doing as a band.
Each evening we practiced until around 9 PM and then headed back to camp. They were all very long days and the amount of sleep we got compared to how hard we were working didn't seem quite sufficient. The Lord got us all through, however, with limited casualties. I praise the Lord for water and the blessing of being able to have it so readily in a bottle. I wouldn't have made it through these past 4+ weeks without that blessing. How often do we thank God for small things like that? Things as simple as a bottle of water when millions of people around the world do not even have the luxury of clean water to drink?
I was also able to claim my locker on our trailer this week. That is probably something very insignificant to all of you (and rightfully so) but that locker is one of a very limited amount of things that is going to be solely mine this year. It was one of the most exciting things that happened to me this week! The second most exciting thing would be that blessing of eating out for lunch AND dinner almost everyday. It was incredible! Who knew that Fazoli's and Subway could be so good?!
We are leading worship tomorrow at the same church that we have been practicing all week. Laine Johnson, the revivalist from our team, will be speaking as well. Please pray that God would be the only one that is seen on stage tomorrow morning. It is not about Life Action or our names being made known; it's about giving the glory to God. Pray that He will also begin to soften the hearts of the people so that they will be ready to receive the Lord's message and that they will be changed.
Thank you for all of your prayers! I'm very ready (in my head) to be on the road. Please pray that I will maintain focus this next week as our date of departure looms near. I want to be out and traveling and seeing God's people worship Him, but I also need to focus on the stuff that needs to get done in this next week. There will be lots of preparation, more practice, policy meetings, and we will also be trained for our secondary responsibilities on the team. It has been a great week and I'm excited to see what God has in store for this year!
I love you all,
Reid
Isaiah 12:5, "Sing praises to the Lord, for He has done glorious things; let this be made known in all the earth."
P.S. Feel free to e-mail me at orangehorns24@gmail.com. When I get out on the road, it will be easier for me to reply to texts and phone calls as well.
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Revival Week
It has been a long and intense week! I feel like I have been trying to take a drink out of the fire hydrant. I need to get alone for an entire month and reflect upon all that I've heard this week. It has been such a refreshing time and God has broken me so much more for the need of revival in our churches and our nation! While dealing with myself and things the Lord was showing me in my own life, I was also being burdened greater and greater for our church and our city.
The speakers that we were blessed to have this week were Michael Catt, Dave Butts, and Kyle Martin. They were definitely ordained by God to be here this week. If not for the whole of Life Action, then definitely for me. The focus of Revival Week is to give us, as Life Action staff, a time to be fed and poured into so that God can bring revival to our own hearts. Let's face it, if we, as Life Action, don't allow God to revive ourselves first, then how can we ask God to revive the churches we're going to and the nation as a whole?
As I stated above, God has really started burdening me heavily for our church. God is never going to use us and we are never going to be effective for the Kingdom if we don't start allowing Him to break us! We have fallen into apathy and complacency. We are completely comfortable and we're okay with that. My prayer is that God would disturb us out of this sad state we are in as a church! Lord, disturb us! You have not called us to a life of comfortableness!
In our apathy, we have closed our ears and hearts to His voice. No wonder God wont move in our church! Because we wont listen to Him! We call ourselves a praying church but we are in desperate need of prayer. We are a mission-minded church in need of a touch from God. We have absolutely packed our schedule with THINGS. They may be good things. But have we packed our schedule with too many events throughout the year that we aren't allowing God to move? Are we saying, as a church, "We just don't have time for prayer?" God could make it to where all we have is time.
I love all of you guys! This week has truly challenged me and broken my heart for the need of revival in our nation! We have to start asking ourselves these questions as a church if we want Him to move in us! If we truly want to see revival in our nation, are we willing to be broken by Him? Is He not worth it?! Please church! Seek HIs face for how He wants to move in us as Candies Creek. I pray that these questions that He has given me for our church prompt other questions in your own life. He wants to see us as a desperate people in need of Him. Only when we get to that point will He send an outpouring of His Holy Spirit and bring revival to His people!
With love,
Reid
The speakers that we were blessed to have this week were Michael Catt, Dave Butts, and Kyle Martin. They were definitely ordained by God to be here this week. If not for the whole of Life Action, then definitely for me. The focus of Revival Week is to give us, as Life Action staff, a time to be fed and poured into so that God can bring revival to our own hearts. Let's face it, if we, as Life Action, don't allow God to revive ourselves first, then how can we ask God to revive the churches we're going to and the nation as a whole?
As I stated above, God has really started burdening me heavily for our church. God is never going to use us and we are never going to be effective for the Kingdom if we don't start allowing Him to break us! We have fallen into apathy and complacency. We are completely comfortable and we're okay with that. My prayer is that God would disturb us out of this sad state we are in as a church! Lord, disturb us! You have not called us to a life of comfortableness!
In our apathy, we have closed our ears and hearts to His voice. No wonder God wont move in our church! Because we wont listen to Him! We call ourselves a praying church but we are in desperate need of prayer. We are a mission-minded church in need of a touch from God. We have absolutely packed our schedule with THINGS. They may be good things. But have we packed our schedule with too many events throughout the year that we aren't allowing God to move? Are we saying, as a church, "We just don't have time for prayer?" God could make it to where all we have is time.
I love all of you guys! This week has truly challenged me and broken my heart for the need of revival in our nation! We have to start asking ourselves these questions as a church if we want Him to move in us! If we truly want to see revival in our nation, are we willing to be broken by Him? Is He not worth it?! Please church! Seek HIs face for how He wants to move in us as Candies Creek. I pray that these questions that He has given me for our church prompt other questions in your own life. He wants to see us as a desperate people in need of Him. Only when we get to that point will He send an outpouring of His Holy Spirit and bring revival to His people!
With love,
Reid
Thursday, August 5, 2010
College Week
Hey everybody! I've had a great week this week! Lots of things to do and work at. The week started on Sunday with the Red team leading worship for both the morning and evening services. Both of those times went great! Thank you for your prayers! We were all very pleased with both services and how the Lord moved and used us during the music time. Some of the songs we led in the morning were At the Cross, Before the Throne of God Above, and Your Grace is Enough. In the evening we led the music time with songs like In Christ Alone, Praise the Father/Praise the Son, and a song called Cannons. The Lord really allowed everything to go smoothly and, more importantly, the whole time was focused and directed to Him!
This Monday started the first of five days called College Week. It is a time set aside during our training in which they bring a college professor from North Greenville University to teach a Survey of the New Testament class. However, since I've been through this class already in college, I was blessed to be put in an Advanced class. There are about 18 of us in the class and we leave camp every morning at 9 AM to go to the National Ministry Center (Life Action's Headquarters). We have class every morning until lunch and then we are free in the afternoons to practice, rest, read, etc. It has been a huge blessing just to be able to slow down each afternoon and reflect on the Lord!
We have been covering topics each day ranging from Life Action's history to Prayer. The topic we had today was very challenging! It started to answer the questions, "Why do we need revival?" and, "How do we surrender to revival in our own lives?" It really touched on some of the questions that the Lord has been burdening my heart with concerning our church and the churches of this nation.
Some of the things the Lord has been placing on my heart for our church are:
1. Are we ready to be desperate for Him? Are we to a point in our lives, as a church, where we are desperate for Him to move in us? And if we aren't, are we ready to be put in that place where we are absolutely in need of Him?
2. Are we satisfied with nominal Christianity? Are we to the point in our lives, as Candies Creek Church, where we are okay with being comfortable, lukewarm, apathetic, and stale?
3. Are we, as a church and individually in our own lives, in a daily state of surrender, knowing that God will not reveal His presence to anyone who is not completely surrendered to Him?
4. Are we being a people and a church that says, "We're not going to SEEK an outpouring of your Holy Spirit. We're content with what we can do without You, God."
We practiced some as a band on Monday night with our new drummer. That was very exciting mainly because we will now finally have a drummer who wont be leaving us in the future. We had to play with two different drummers on Sunday and it was slightly stressful. But the Lord worked it all out to His glory anyway! Tuesday evening the Red team was able to go over to the Executive Director's house for dinner and a get-to-know-you time. That was a lot of fun! We have a couple of more days this week that we will spend practicing and finishing up our class time. Next week starts a week called Revival week. It is a week that is set aside for all of the Road Teams to seek the Lord and seek revival in our own lives, knowing that revival starts in individuals. I am pretty excited for it! Michael Catt, the pastor of Sherwood Baptist in Georgia is speaking all week.
I continue to pray for each one of you daily! Thank you for all of your support, love, and prayers! I'm praying for you guys about those things listed above, even for myself! Let's be a church that seeks hard after Him no matter what the cost! Because He is worth more than anything on this Earth and any possession we may have, isn't He?! Then let's live like it!
I love you all,
Reid
This Monday started the first of five days called College Week. It is a time set aside during our training in which they bring a college professor from North Greenville University to teach a Survey of the New Testament class. However, since I've been through this class already in college, I was blessed to be put in an Advanced class. There are about 18 of us in the class and we leave camp every morning at 9 AM to go to the National Ministry Center (Life Action's Headquarters). We have class every morning until lunch and then we are free in the afternoons to practice, rest, read, etc. It has been a huge blessing just to be able to slow down each afternoon and reflect on the Lord!
We have been covering topics each day ranging from Life Action's history to Prayer. The topic we had today was very challenging! It started to answer the questions, "Why do we need revival?" and, "How do we surrender to revival in our own lives?" It really touched on some of the questions that the Lord has been burdening my heart with concerning our church and the churches of this nation.
Some of the things the Lord has been placing on my heart for our church are:
1. Are we ready to be desperate for Him? Are we to a point in our lives, as a church, where we are desperate for Him to move in us? And if we aren't, are we ready to be put in that place where we are absolutely in need of Him?
2. Are we satisfied with nominal Christianity? Are we to the point in our lives, as Candies Creek Church, where we are okay with being comfortable, lukewarm, apathetic, and stale?
3. Are we, as a church and individually in our own lives, in a daily state of surrender, knowing that God will not reveal His presence to anyone who is not completely surrendered to Him?
4. Are we being a people and a church that says, "We're not going to SEEK an outpouring of your Holy Spirit. We're content with what we can do without You, God."
We practiced some as a band on Monday night with our new drummer. That was very exciting mainly because we will now finally have a drummer who wont be leaving us in the future. We had to play with two different drummers on Sunday and it was slightly stressful. But the Lord worked it all out to His glory anyway! Tuesday evening the Red team was able to go over to the Executive Director's house for dinner and a get-to-know-you time. That was a lot of fun! We have a couple of more days this week that we will spend practicing and finishing up our class time. Next week starts a week called Revival week. It is a week that is set aside for all of the Road Teams to seek the Lord and seek revival in our own lives, knowing that revival starts in individuals. I am pretty excited for it! Michael Catt, the pastor of Sherwood Baptist in Georgia is speaking all week.
I continue to pray for each one of you daily! Thank you for all of your support, love, and prayers! I'm praying for you guys about those things listed above, even for myself! Let's be a church that seeks hard after Him no matter what the cost! Because He is worth more than anything on this Earth and any possession we may have, isn't He?! Then let's live like it!
I love you all,
Reid
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