It was the year 1985 and I was 14 years old. We were in our brand new car on our way to a wedding in NJ. It was a long ride and as usual, we were running late. We made it Philadelphia and I-95 became a parking lot. No one was moving…except for me. I was squirming in the back seat trying everything to keep my mind off of the fact that I had to pee. Tensions were high. Finally, I couldn’t hold it any longer. I made an announcement loud and clear! There is no more waiting…there is no more holding it. My bladder has reached the tipping point and the levees were about to give way.

My mom thought quickly(as moms do), and without any hesitation. She handed me an empty Doritos bag and said, “Here, go in this!” My sister turned her head as I began to fill up the Doritos bag. Good thing it was the family size bag. I needed every ounce I could get. I handed the full bag of warm liquid back to my mom. Wow, what a relief. Now I could get back to my Rubik’s cube and picking on my sister. We seemed to be getting through the traffic and making some progress when all of a sudden….The bottom of the Doritos bag gave out! At that moment, we realized that the glue that seals the bag was not able to withstand warm 98.6 degree liquids.  The entire bag of steamy liquid landed on my mom’s lap! On her new dress and all over the interior of our new car.

Not even a minute before the bottom fell out of the bag, the biggest worry was if we were going to make it to the wedding in time. That worry was now preempted by a different, more urgent worry. Mom’s biggest concern was how she was going to get a new dress in time for the wedding that we were already late for. Dad’s biggest concern was how we were going to get the car to the car wash to shampoo the upholstery before the wedding we were already late for. My only concern was if I was going to get a beating for my involvement in the crisis. Well, we made it through the situation. Mom got a new dress. Dad made it to the car wash. I didn’t get a beating. We made it to the wedding (albeit a little late).

Life is exactly like this. The bottom falls out when we least expect it. When the bottom falls out, sometimes you’re the one holding the bag. Sometimes, your the one handing the bag to someone else. Other times, you are in the car with someone when the bottom falls out. I’m so thankful that we have a perfect heavenly Father driving the car. He’s not just driving us anywhere. He’s driving us to the wedding feast. And don’t worry, we’ll be given clean clothes that are spotless and pure to wear at the feast! When we get there, we won’t remember the bottom of the bag of life dropping out on us. We will only be focused on the glory of the bridegroom and giving him praise forever and ever!

If you’re like me, my brain can be like a sieve when it comes to memorizing things. Memorizing scripture has been something that I’ve struggled with over the years. The truth is, hiding God’s Word within our hearts through scripture memorization is a strong weapon against the enemy. Jesus used scripture memorization as a weapon against Satan in Matthew 4. If it’s a good enough weapon for Jesus, it’s good enough for me.

I recently downloaded VerseMinder from NavPress. 

Here are some of the features of this software

…It quizzes you on Scripture using a fill-in-the-blank approach increasing the difficulty as you become more proficient
…It hides when you complete the verse and will reappear later
…It tracks progress and quizzes you on new verses as you master the old ones
…It makes it easy to follow the system but gives you the ability to add your own verses
…It provides multiple translation options

After you install the software, a pop up window shows up on your desktop as often as you tell it to. As you can see from the screenshot, it gives you a verse with a few blanks. You simply type the verse in the box below and you are on your way to memorizing the very Words of God. Arm yourself with the weapon of memorization.

I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. Psalm 119:11

If there’s one thing that I have learned in church planting, it’s the concept that…some will, some won’t.

Some will be fired up about the vision of your church…some won’t

Some will be extremely committed…some won’t

Some will sacrificially give…some won’t

Some will make a decision to follow Christ…some won’t

Some will tough it out through thick and thin…some won’t

Some will have your back no matter what…some won’t

Some will still be at your church 1 year from now…some won’t

The tendency is to allow yourself to focus so much on the some won’ts that it overshadows the some will’s.

Church planting is hard work…ministry is hard work. Remember…some will, some won’t. Always encourage the won’ts to be will’s, but if they won’t, then move on to someone that will.

One of my goals as a communicator has been to constantly improve in my communication. The message of the gospel is too important to not share it passionately and creatively. Jim Rayburn said, “It’s a sin to bore people with the gospel.”

I love Southwest Airlines. I love the fact that they give their employees creative license. You never know what you’re going to get on a Southwest flight, but it’s usually something creative.

This video captures some key components of creative communication.

Be Funny! You don’t have to be a stand up comedian, but at least try to let your sense of humor shine through.

Get the audience involved. Anytime you can bring the audience into your communication by having them participate the better.

Be passionate. If you are not passionate about what you are communicating, then don’t expect anyone else to be.

Communicate the truth. The message always remains the same, it’s how you communicate it that changes.

What are some other key elements of communicating with creativity?

There is a word that is capable of destroying your life. This one word has destroyed marriages. It has has leveled ministries. It has bankrupted people literally as well as spiritually. This word creates one of the biggest temptations known to man. This word causes you to make irrational and foolish decisions. It’s the worst four letter word that has ever been spoken but it’s the world’s favorite word. This word is a silent killer that starts it’s journey in the recesses of your mind and before you realize it it has a tight grip on your heart and your soul. It’s one of the first words that is ever uttered out of a baby’s mouth, yet God is the only one that is qualified to ever use this word. What is the word? It’s “Mine.” Seems innocent doesn’t it? We use it all the time. “My car”, “My kids”, “My church”, “my ministry”, “my money”, “my talent”, “my needs”, “It’s mine!”

God owns it all. Everything that we have, and everything that we are is because God IS! We need to transfer “Mine” into “Yours” and understand who we are in light of who God is. It’s all about Him. It’s His story!

Yours, Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, Lord, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all. Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things. In your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all. 1 Chronicles 29:11-12

In what area of your life do you need to substitute “yours” for “mine”?