Hey, it's been a while since we've posted anything to the Love Granbury site...not that we haven't been "loving Granbury" for past six months...to the contrary...that's one of the reasons we haven't made any posts is because it was an enormously busy summer and fall! So many awesome things have been going on in the world of servant evangelism...or lifestyle evangelism...or outflow...or whatever you choose to call the act of the church getting outside the brick and mortar and into the community.
This past Saturday was a great example of that as we did what has become our annual December service project - free gift wrapping at the Walmart Supercenter here in Granbury. We were doing free gift wrapping and giving away free hot chocolate and coffee to all the last minute shoppers ar the Granbury Walmart Supercenter. It's always great to see the looks on people's faces when you tell them that what you're doing is absolutely free...no strings attached! A big "thank-you" to Damon Johnson at Walmart for allowing us to take over the front of his store for a few hours on Saturday.
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Teaching Our Children Well
The old saying goes that "children live what they learn and they learn best what they experience." Indeed, if you think about it, life's most important lessons are best learned experientially. There are just some things you can't learn through classroom theory. You simply have to get out and get your hands dirty. This fact occurred to me again this afternoon as I watched our middle school students pull out of our church parking lot today to head off to Mission Arlington for their summer mission trip. They will spend the week helping those in the greater Arlington area who are in need. They'll be doing everything from helping serve meals, picking up donated food, clothing and furniture items, to general maintenance work. They will also be putting on two VBS sessions each afternoon for children living in low-income apartment complexes. Some of them will experience things this week they've never experienced before. Some have seldom, if ever, been outside the very sheltered world of Granbury, Texas, and many have never experienced being around abject poverty and all that goes with it. The lessons they will learn this week will stay with them for the balance of their lives and it will impact them in ways that will change how they see the world. My 19 year old daughter went to Mission Arlington in her 7th grade year and it had a lasting impact on her. She has turned out to be one of the most loving, caring, compassionate and empathetic young adults I know of, and I credit much of that to what she experienced at Mission Arlinton on her first mission trip. Even as a 7th grader, it was easy to tell that that mission trip changed her. As a parent, when you ask your teenager how a youth activity went, you're generally lucky if you get much more than, "fine" or "it was okay." The night Courtney came home from Mission Arlington, she started downloading everything and she didn't stop for several weeks. Every time she had the opportunity, she was telling someone about the different children she had encountered during that week. I have no doubt that this years group of middle school students will come back changed as well. My prayer for them this week, along with the obvious prayer that God will minister His love through them to all the children He brings into their path this week, is that God will change their own hearts...that their hearts will be broken for others and filled to overflowing with God's unconditional love. Please join with me in praying for our students and the wonderful adults who have taken time away from thier busy schedules to serve with them this week.
Sunday, May 4, 2008
More KE08 Testimonies!
I continue to hear from people all over town about their wonderful impressions of the Kindness Explosion 08 event a few weeks ago. I thought I would share just a few of them with you here on the Love Granbury blog:
...a huge word of appreciation for "Love Granbury" today, Sat., I was just downtown, and the young people were handing out water/beverages and the neat red cards to everyone....what a neat and special idea and the young people were so precious......I am savoring my water! Thanks for this endeavor and what a positive influence for our community as well as the many visitors who were wandering the square. ~ M. Bingham
Just a quick note to affirm Love Granbury. As I sat with other event participants in worship this weekend, I couldn't help but think that the annual March For Jesus event is coming soon, but we have chosen not to organize that locally this year. It's funny, the major theme of March for Jesus was always a "church without walls." I sat there and thought, Love Granbury has taken up that mantle to bring together the community of Christ in Hood County...I believe it is going to ignite in our community...this is a new day and WHAT A DAY IT IS! ~ J. Phillips
Love Granbury deserves two thumbs up! Our church is already looking forward to April 17-18, 2009! It will only get bigger and better each time! ~ K. Coleman
WOW! I'm sorry we were so late to sign up, but I'm so glad we did. We will be one of the first to sign up next year!!!!!!!!!! ~ K. Deel
All any of us can say is that God is GOOD, and we give Him all the honor and praise and glory for He alone, is worthy!
...a huge word of appreciation for "Love Granbury" today, Sat., I was just downtown, and the young people were handing out water/beverages and the neat red cards to everyone....what a neat and special idea and the young people were so precious......I am savoring my water! Thanks for this endeavor and what a positive influence for our community as well as the many visitors who were wandering the square. ~ M. Bingham
Just a quick note to affirm Love Granbury. As I sat with other event participants in worship this weekend, I couldn't help but think that the annual March For Jesus event is coming soon, but we have chosen not to organize that locally this year. It's funny, the major theme of March for Jesus was always a "church without walls." I sat there and thought, Love Granbury has taken up that mantle to bring together the community of Christ in Hood County...I believe it is going to ignite in our community...this is a new day and WHAT A DAY IT IS! ~ J. Phillips
Love Granbury deserves two thumbs up! Our church is already looking forward to April 17-18, 2009! It will only get bigger and better each time! ~ K. Coleman
WOW! I'm sorry we were so late to sign up, but I'm so glad we did. We will be one of the first to sign up next year!!!!!!!!!! ~ K. Deel
All any of us can say is that God is GOOD, and we give Him all the honor and praise and glory for He alone, is worthy!
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Servant Evangelism Tip For The Week - Starting Small
So once you catch the vision for bringing the Good News of Jesus Christ to the world, it's common to assume the way to begin is to try to do "something really big for God!" That's certainly the "American way," but in our experience, bigger isn't always better. We recommend doing something profound: Start small. Remember our motto: small things done with great love will change the world. Small seeds grow into tall trees, and they're small for a reason - to take greatest advantage of the tiniest of openings and opportunities.
Contrary to what you may have been led to believe by television and the movies, changing the world is a pretty simple and humble process. Though it's serious business, it's often really fun, too. You don't have to write a best-selling book or become a missionary to some far away foreign land. World-changing opportunities will present themselves when you step out your door. One group of Christ-followers we know had a simple idea as they watched people walking down the boardwalk at the beach in Santa Cruz, California. They'd noticed lots of people uncomfortably brushing the sand off their feet as they walked along and wondered, "Didn't Jesus teach his followers to serve by washing feet?" One of the group members relates this story from their experience:
"Our church friends said, 'No one is going to let you touch their feet! You guys are crazy!' But they couldn't have been more wrong.
We set up at the Beach Boardwalk in Santa Cruz about 1:00 in the afternoon. There were just a handful of us. We chose a spot right at the entrance to the beach. Our supplies consisted of two fold-up chairs, two plastic containers, paper towels, liquid Dial soap, a five gallon jug to haul water, and a heart for the lost.
Our opening line went something like, 'Hi, would you like to sit down and let us rinse the sand from your feet?' We had very few refusals! In fact, we were so busy that we actually had people lined up! We took about three minutes with each person. We silently prayed as we worked, but when asked, about 95% of the people let us pray out loud with them. There were many heart touching encounters that day, but there was one I'll always remember. One gentleman from Asia kept calling one of our team members "Jesus." When we tried to correct him and explain who Jesus was, he replied, 'I know who Jesus is, and you are just like him.'
We all knew that if we showed up and were faithful, Jesus would show up, too. And let me tell you, seeing people on that beach through Jesus' eyes was absolutely amazing!"
Maybe this story doesn't sound particularly earth shattering, but we think it's exactly how God likes us to go about changing our world. This little group of board walk foot-washers was responding in the spirit of Jesus to a simple need they had observed. In fact, what they did calls to mind Ephesians 5:1-2 which tells us to, "Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God."
When we think of Jesus giving himself up as a sacrifice to God, we're likely to focus exclusively on one event that took place on the cross and forget the lifetime of service that preceded it. Jesus was "giving himself up" all the time. From the moment he awoke in the morning, to the time he went to sleep every night, his was a lifestyle dedicated to serving the Father by serving others.
It isn't one big moment in your life - one big act of service - that will change the world. It's the little things. The everyday things. It's the way you live your life moment to moment, day to day...today.
From the book, "Outflow: Outward-focused living in a self focused world" by Steve Sjogren and Dave Ping.
Contrary to what you may have been led to believe by television and the movies, changing the world is a pretty simple and humble process. Though it's serious business, it's often really fun, too. You don't have to write a best-selling book or become a missionary to some far away foreign land. World-changing opportunities will present themselves when you step out your door. One group of Christ-followers we know had a simple idea as they watched people walking down the boardwalk at the beach in Santa Cruz, California. They'd noticed lots of people uncomfortably brushing the sand off their feet as they walked along and wondered, "Didn't Jesus teach his followers to serve by washing feet?" One of the group members relates this story from their experience:
"Our church friends said, 'No one is going to let you touch their feet! You guys are crazy!' But they couldn't have been more wrong.
We set up at the Beach Boardwalk in Santa Cruz about 1:00 in the afternoon. There were just a handful of us. We chose a spot right at the entrance to the beach. Our supplies consisted of two fold-up chairs, two plastic containers, paper towels, liquid Dial soap, a five gallon jug to haul water, and a heart for the lost.
Our opening line went something like, 'Hi, would you like to sit down and let us rinse the sand from your feet?' We had very few refusals! In fact, we were so busy that we actually had people lined up! We took about three minutes with each person. We silently prayed as we worked, but when asked, about 95% of the people let us pray out loud with them. There were many heart touching encounters that day, but there was one I'll always remember. One gentleman from Asia kept calling one of our team members "Jesus." When we tried to correct him and explain who Jesus was, he replied, 'I know who Jesus is, and you are just like him.'
We all knew that if we showed up and were faithful, Jesus would show up, too. And let me tell you, seeing people on that beach through Jesus' eyes was absolutely amazing!"
Maybe this story doesn't sound particularly earth shattering, but we think it's exactly how God likes us to go about changing our world. This little group of board walk foot-washers was responding in the spirit of Jesus to a simple need they had observed. In fact, what they did calls to mind Ephesians 5:1-2 which tells us to, "Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God."
When we think of Jesus giving himself up as a sacrifice to God, we're likely to focus exclusively on one event that took place on the cross and forget the lifetime of service that preceded it. Jesus was "giving himself up" all the time. From the moment he awoke in the morning, to the time he went to sleep every night, his was a lifestyle dedicated to serving the Father by serving others.
It isn't one big moment in your life - one big act of service - that will change the world. It's the little things. The everyday things. It's the way you live your life moment to moment, day to day...today.
From the book, "Outflow: Outward-focused living in a self focused world" by Steve Sjogren and Dave Ping.
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Another Testimony from KE08
This from Michael S., one of the participants from KE08:
Last weekend we did several service projects around all of hood county. We were at the schools, churches, other big businesses, parks, ball fields, and communities. We passed out water, food, healthy kids fliers, car washes, cookies, we helped do yard work, bagged groceries, pumped gas, etc. We were all over the place doing so many things and helping out so many people. I have been involved in every Love Granbury, when we do the monthly ones and i was involved last year in the really big one that we did. But this year more churches were involved and thousands of people were affected by our efforts.
That is nothing short of God's handiwork because there is absolutely no way that we could have accomplished all that we did on our own. God was and is moving in Granbury, He was with us on Saturday and provided in abundance so that we could accomplish the task that He had set out for that weekend. My group was in for the long haul and i really appreciate them for that. Love Granbury was scheduled to be over at 2:00. We grabbed a quick bite to eat then we were back to work. After the official Love Granbury was over we worked on a lady's yard, trimming bushes and hauling off a massive tree branch that had fallen in her yard. When we finished there we went on to another lady's house and she needed her yard mowed and weed eated, so we jumped on that. We worked until it was time to go to the church for the evening service and finally made it back home to get cleaned up. Love Granbury was very successful and i look forward to all the other projects we will do in the future.
Love Granbury, however, was not over on Saturday. Helping out people and meeting them where THEY are and bringing Jesus to them is something that we should do on a daily basis. There will always be more people in need than there are people to help. I am very excited to see what God can and will do in Granbury, Texas, but it is up to us to be faithful and accomplish the task that Jesus sets out for us on a daily basis.
Last weekend we did several service projects around all of hood county. We were at the schools, churches, other big businesses, parks, ball fields, and communities. We passed out water, food, healthy kids fliers, car washes, cookies, we helped do yard work, bagged groceries, pumped gas, etc. We were all over the place doing so many things and helping out so many people. I have been involved in every Love Granbury, when we do the monthly ones and i was involved last year in the really big one that we did. But this year more churches were involved and thousands of people were affected by our efforts.
That is nothing short of God's handiwork because there is absolutely no way that we could have accomplished all that we did on our own. God was and is moving in Granbury, He was with us on Saturday and provided in abundance so that we could accomplish the task that He had set out for that weekend. My group was in for the long haul and i really appreciate them for that. Love Granbury was scheduled to be over at 2:00. We grabbed a quick bite to eat then we were back to work. After the official Love Granbury was over we worked on a lady's yard, trimming bushes and hauling off a massive tree branch that had fallen in her yard. When we finished there we went on to another lady's house and she needed her yard mowed and weed eated, so we jumped on that. We worked until it was time to go to the church for the evening service and finally made it back home to get cleaned up. Love Granbury was very successful and i look forward to all the other projects we will do in the future.
Love Granbury, however, was not over on Saturday. Helping out people and meeting them where THEY are and bringing Jesus to them is something that we should do on a daily basis. There will always be more people in need than there are people to help. I am very excited to see what God can and will do in Granbury, Texas, but it is up to us to be faithful and accomplish the task that Jesus sets out for us on a daily basis.
Monday, April 21, 2008
Catching the Vision
So I guess when Micky asks me to post...that means I am supposed to write something. Love Granbury at Lakeside was such a great experience this year because it went across all age lines. We had our little guys in preschool all the way up to our senior adults working that Saturday. And I am excited to say that the excitement is spreading around our church. We are hearing from adults from all age groups who want to be involved and are sad they missed out on such an incredible weekend. our adults are already signing up to be involved with the May Love Granbury. And we can't wait to see how God uses the seeds that have been planted.....God is good. Keep serving! You never know who needs to hear God loves them today....and that His love is free!
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Servant Evangelism Tip for This Week
Hey everyone, starting this week, we will be posting a new servant evangelism tip on the Love Granbury blog and web site each week. These will be practical, helpful little tips that will assist you with integrating the "servant evangelism" model into your church's regular, ongoing outreach ministry. If you come up with an idea for an outreach, please feel free to post it on the LG blog and share it with all the rest of us! Here's this week's tip:
Learning to work together, even on a small job -- can help a group become closer. Get your small group involved in a hands-on project. The project might be in the home of one of your group members, or it might be at your church or another location where people are in need of some volunteer help. Here are some tips:
Consider the skill level needed for the job -- is it laying tile, changing or fixing a faucet, hanging window coverings, painting rooms with decorative techniques, or refinishing wood floors? If it's beyond the average person's skill, arrange for a specialist to teach on the topic and demonstrate the methods involved. Check local hardware and home improvement centers to see if you can find someone willing to teach your group.
Determine what materials your church will provide and what group members need to bring. Make sure any supplies and tools are on hand.
Present a short devotional on Nehemiah 2:17-3:5 either before or after your project. In the face of oppression and ridicule, Nehemiah led his people to rebuild the wall around Jerusalem. They depended on God to give them success. They dedicated their work to the Lord, and tackled it together. Help group members understand that even when they face adversity in life, relationships, or marriage, they can depend on God to give them success. Encourage them to approach the home improvement project with Nehemiah in mind, remembering that God called them to work together.
Learning to work together, even on a small job -- can help a group become closer. Get your small group involved in a hands-on project. The project might be in the home of one of your group members, or it might be at your church or another location where people are in need of some volunteer help. Here are some tips:
Consider the skill level needed for the job -- is it laying tile, changing or fixing a faucet, hanging window coverings, painting rooms with decorative techniques, or refinishing wood floors? If it's beyond the average person's skill, arrange for a specialist to teach on the topic and demonstrate the methods involved. Check local hardware and home improvement centers to see if you can find someone willing to teach your group.
Determine what materials your church will provide and what group members need to bring. Make sure any supplies and tools are on hand.
Present a short devotional on Nehemiah 2:17-3:5 either before or after your project. In the face of oppression and ridicule, Nehemiah led his people to rebuild the wall around Jerusalem. They depended on God to give them success. They dedicated their work to the Lord, and tackled it together. Help group members understand that even when they face adversity in life, relationships, or marriage, they can depend on God to give them success. Encourage them to approach the home improvement project with Nehemiah in mind, remembering that God called them to work together.
KE08 Wrap Up
What a glorious sight it was last Saturday during the Love Granbury Kindness Explosion - 10 different churches outside their walls taking God's love into their communities, many of them working together in the same neighborhoods. It truly was an amazing day.
One of the most amazing things about servant evangelism is how common, ordinary items or acts become extraordinary when offered out of a heart overflowing with God's love. It's so cool to watch as a hot dog, a cookie, a bottle of water, or a bag of chips transforms before your very eyes into a tangible expression of God's love! In the same way, a simple act like pumping someone's gas and washing their windshield becomes a holy moment in time. We live in such a "nothing for free" society, that when faced with the prospect of getting something for nothing, many people become highly suspect. It's not at all unusual to hear phrases like "what's the catch" or "why would you do that"? Even after you tell them that what you're doing is completely free, many people still want to know if you're accepting donations! When it finally starts to sink in that they are about to recieve something for nothing, simply as a way to show them God's love, you can almost hear the door to their heart creek open ever so slightly. What a holy moment indeed!
Those moments were in abundant supply all over Hood County last Saturday. We may never truly know on this side of eternity how many seeds of God's love and kindness were planted by the Body of Christ this past weekend, but what we do know about is phenomenal! Here are the overall stats as we have them:
Over 500 people participating representing 10 different churches
Approximately 1,350 hot dog lunches (w/chips and drinks) given out
28 vehicles washed
1,676 bottles of water handed out
Over 500 cookies home baked and distributed to local businesses
12 widows home worked on
Pumped gas/washed windshields for approximately 300 people
Distributed approximately 3000 Healthy Kids Summer Lunch Program flyers door-to-door in all of our Healthy Kids neighborhoods as well as at the Granbury City Park and at Granbury Middle School.
All this done free of charge, no donations accepted, no strings attached...all to show God's love in a tangible way! And remember that with each contact, whether it was from handing someone a free hot dog, a bottle of water, washing their vehicle or pumping their gas, each person was handed a "kindness card" with the simple message that what we were doing was a free gift...just like God's love is free! What a simple, yet profoundly powerful message!
As we talked about at the Saturday evening celebration service, the way to truly make Kindness Explosion 08 a real success, is for each of the participating churches to make the commitment to integrate some form of "servant evangelism" into their normal routine of ongoing ministry. Whether it's monthly, semi-monthly, quarterly, or whatever, there's simply nothing more powerful to a watching world than our churches getting outside their four walls and into their communities to share the love of Christ through servant ministry with no strings attached. To God be all the honor and glory!
One of the most amazing things about servant evangelism is how common, ordinary items or acts become extraordinary when offered out of a heart overflowing with God's love. It's so cool to watch as a hot dog, a cookie, a bottle of water, or a bag of chips transforms before your very eyes into a tangible expression of God's love! In the same way, a simple act like pumping someone's gas and washing their windshield becomes a holy moment in time. We live in such a "nothing for free" society, that when faced with the prospect of getting something for nothing, many people become highly suspect. It's not at all unusual to hear phrases like "what's the catch" or "why would you do that"? Even after you tell them that what you're doing is completely free, many people still want to know if you're accepting donations! When it finally starts to sink in that they are about to recieve something for nothing, simply as a way to show them God's love, you can almost hear the door to their heart creek open ever so slightly. What a holy moment indeed!
Those moments were in abundant supply all over Hood County last Saturday. We may never truly know on this side of eternity how many seeds of God's love and kindness were planted by the Body of Christ this past weekend, but what we do know about is phenomenal! Here are the overall stats as we have them:
Over 500 people participating representing 10 different churches
Approximately 1,350 hot dog lunches (w/chips and drinks) given out
28 vehicles washed
1,676 bottles of water handed out
Over 500 cookies home baked and distributed to local businesses
12 widows home worked on
Pumped gas/washed windshields for approximately 300 people
Distributed approximately 3000 Healthy Kids Summer Lunch Program flyers door-to-door in all of our Healthy Kids neighborhoods as well as at the Granbury City Park and at Granbury Middle School.
All this done free of charge, no donations accepted, no strings attached...all to show God's love in a tangible way! And remember that with each contact, whether it was from handing someone a free hot dog, a bottle of water, washing their vehicle or pumping their gas, each person was handed a "kindness card" with the simple message that what we were doing was a free gift...just like God's love is free! What a simple, yet profoundly powerful message!
As we talked about at the Saturday evening celebration service, the way to truly make Kindness Explosion 08 a real success, is for each of the participating churches to make the commitment to integrate some form of "servant evangelism" into their normal routine of ongoing ministry. Whether it's monthly, semi-monthly, quarterly, or whatever, there's simply nothing more powerful to a watching world than our churches getting outside their four walls and into their communities to share the love of Christ through servant ministry with no strings attached. To God be all the honor and glory!
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
We Welcome Just Like Jonah!
Love Granbury is excited to announce that the group Just Like Jonah has committed to being with us as worship leaders for both nights of the Kindness Explosion, April 11th and 12th. You will not want to miss hearing these guys as they lead us in worship!
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Fairview Baptist Announces their KE08 Project
Fairview Baptist Church has announced their service project for the KE08 coming up on April 11-12, 2008. Fairview will once again be making the Volaro Convenience Store/Gas Station at the corner of Old Cleburne Road and Hwy. 377 (across from Walmart) a full service gas station complete with gas jockies and windshield washers from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM. The group from Fairview did this last year and had a blast...so much so they want to do it again this year. This was one of our favorite projects last summer for KE07. Great job Fairview!
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Service Projects for KE08
Good evening to all our Love Granbury participating churches! Please remember to be thinking about what you want your service project to be for KE08. We need to have this information by no later than 3/14 so that we can shoot the project preview video during the week of Spring Break. Thanks and have a blessed day tomorrow!
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
We Welcome Two New Churches to Kindness Explosion 08!
We are very pleased to announce that Harvest Church and Generations Church have joined us for the Love Granbury Kindness Explosion 08! Please join us in welcoming these two great congregations to KE08!
KE08 Point Person Meeting
This is just a friendly reminder about the Love Granbury KE08 Point Person meeting tomorrow at 12 noon at the First United Methodist Church (our host church this year). Lunch will be provided by FUMC and this will just be a short informational meeting for your designated point person, whoever that might be.
If you were no able to make the initial meeting two weeks ago, that's not a problem. Come on and join us tomorrow at noon and you can get all the information you need about this year's Kindness Explosion Servant Evangelism Outreach.
Thanks and I look forward to seeing all of you tomorrow at noon.
If you were no able to make the initial meeting two weeks ago, that's not a problem. Come on and join us tomorrow at noon and you can get all the information you need about this year's Kindness Explosion Servant Evangelism Outreach.
Thanks and I look forward to seeing all of you tomorrow at noon.
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