Friendly Fire and Buffalo Wings

Last night a few of Nate's friends got together for his "bachelor party". Yep, he's getting married on Sunday afternoon and so a friendly game of paintball wars was in order. Two teams of us went at each other with these high-powered paintball rifles (man, those little orbs can hurt!) From Left to Right in the above picture is Levi Lusko, Dave Row, Rick Chapin, me, Drew Newman, Nate, Daniel Lusko and Kevin Miller. I know--we all look like convicts from the local prison in our jumpsuits, but hey, its better than getting whacked with wet green pain all over your clothes! Afterwards we went out and ate chicken wings per Nate's request, had a spot of evening coffee and then prayed for Nate and Janae's marriage and lives together. Great times, though its hard for me to believe that he grew up so quickly.

Crusade in Taipei, Taiwan

A year ago I was in Hong Kong with Franklin Graham for one the the largest crusades ever. We had to use overflow venues throughout the city to accommodate the crowds that were coming each night. My job was to preach at the altar call time in these venues and personalize the appeal to come to follow Christ. Heres a couple of shots sent to me today from a Billy Graham crusade director. This next week Franklin Graham will be in Taipei, Taiwan for a crusade there. Please pray for him. I obviously won't be there since I have a very special wedding to officiate--my son, Nate and his bride-to-be, Janae.

Billy Graham--legend and legacy

I'm speaking at the COVE this week near Asheville, North Carolina.
This is the Billy Graham Training Center and the place is a part of
the legacy of a man who has been a family friend as well as an
inspiration. His passion to reach people and train them lives on.
Gotta go now--my session starts in just a bit!

River Session #3

River Session #3
The River Sessions are a series of informal conversations with my friend Brian Nixon, whereupon I expand on my Calvary teachings.

The intent of the conversations is to give an up close look at my additional thoughts concerning the sermon, going into more depth and attempting to give a little more insight.

Think of the River Sessions as you being able to ask me a few questions – in a more casual setting – after the weekend service.

River Session #2

The River Sessions are a series of informal conversations with my friend Brian Nixon, whereupon I expand on my Calvary teachings.

The intent of the conversations is to give an up close look at my additional thoughts concerning the sermon, going into more depth and attempting to give a little more insight.

Think of the River Sessions as you being able to ask me a few questions – in a more casual setting – after the weekend service.

Faithful!

Reading through Colossians this morning and something struck me right off the bat. Paul addressed his thoughts, "To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ who are in Colosse." That little phrase "and faithful brethren" caught my eye. There are saints (every believers according to the New Testament is given this title) and then there are those "faithful brethren" who are among them, but are distinguished from them. What could this linguistic distinction refer to? Simply that there's a difference between one who believes in Christ and one who belongs to Christ's cause; there are many who consent to being a follower of Jesus, but then there are a few who are committed to becoming mature, discipling others and spreading His Kingdom. There faithful ones are pretty easy to recognize and they are a delight to be around. I'm blessed that I have the privilege to work around and fellowship with a whole bunch of these folks. I walk by their offices at church daily. I pass through the prayer room after services and see them praying and counseling. They're passing out bulletins or holding the door open for folks or even directing traffic and helping out with security. Moreover I run into faithful brethren all around town, whose face beams the love of Christ and who love to talk about the Lord. I live a blessed life because of the presence of many faithful followers of our great God and Savior.

Stay Alert!

Lt. General Jerry Boykin, myself and Kamaal Saleem




This weekend gave us a good shot of "caffeine for the soul" with the "Alert '08" Conference at church. With Kamaal Saleem giving his testimony of how God radically saved a man out of radical Islam to General Jerry Boykin, founder of Delta Force telling us of the real and present danger of this battle and the need to engage in spiritual warfare, we are all deeply challenged. All 3500 who packed the church facility at this morning's event were blessed by the variety of speakers and timeliness of this prophetic update. After lunch, Dr. Tim LaHaye spoke clearly and passionately about the alliances of Iran with Russia but not merely to stimulate a sensationalistic endtime fervor. His real zeal was to see if the Lord would draw people to Himself. He definitely did as the front of the church was full of those who came to commit their lives to Christ. I spoke to one young woman from Espanola who made the long drive today after hearing about it on the radio. She came forward in response to the altar call and drove back home a new creation in Christ. Great times! What a fabulous church to be part of with so many committed followers of Christ who bring friends and family to hear the gospel at such an event.



Dr. Tim LaHaye still going strong at 81!

River Session #1

The River Sessions are a series of informal conversations with my friend Brian Nixon, whereupon I expand on my Calvary teachings.
 
The intent of the conversations is to give an up close look at my additional thoughts concerning the sermon, going into more depth and attempting to give a little more insight.
 
Think of the River Sessions as you being able to ask me a few questions – in a more casual setting – after the weekend service.
 
In this first installment, I’ll talk about heaven and eternity.

Musings From Florida

Pedro, Jo-Jo and Frank Harrison


Pedro and I in front of Alabama Jacks: a bikers lunch haven



The last week has been a flurry of ministry activity as well as an opportunity to connect with old friends and make a few news ones as well. Lenya and I traveled to Florida first of all to help out the newly re-organized "Promise Keepers" in their re-entry into large scale events. Coach Bill McCartney has just recently been asked by the Board of Promise Keepers to take the helm of this organization that is directed at helping men lovingly lead their homes and impact their communities.

My Saturday was spent speaking at a marriage conference in the morning at Calvary Kendall (Miami area) and then the four services on Saturday and Sunday for the same church. My buddy Pedro Garcia pastors here and mixes his unique gift of evangelism with an intensity in teaching and exhortation. He loves God and loves his people and the flock is a great group of folks who are making a positive spiritual difference in this part of South Florida.


A friendly manatee stops by for a drink of fresh water



My Wednesday morning was a fun break from the series of meetings with a Harley ride down towards the Florida Keys and a lunch stop at Alabama Jacks. I joined Pedro, Jo-Jo, Frank Harrison (The CEO of Coca Cola) and his assistant Aaron on a two-wheel spin through the countryside filled with white cranes, and blue skies splashed with marshmallow clouds. After a Mahi sandwich and an short encounter with a manatee we rose back to get ready for Wednesday night services.

My buddy Bob Coy asked my to speak at his Wednesday night service at Calvary Fort Lauderdale and then the adult singles group afterwards. This church has been a lighthouse of consistent teaching and evangelism for well over two decades. The ministry of Calvary Chapel Fort Lauderdale is reaching out to the world and Bob Coy and his team are exceptional servants. I really had a wonderful time this week and now we're looking forward to the weekend in Albuquerque with TIm Lahaye and Lt. General Jerry Boykin for our prophecy conference.

The nicest day on this week of marathon teaching was today, Thursday. Lenya and I were able to relax and walk, eat, talk and shop together all alone--a real joy for me!


Worship Service at CC Fort Lauderdale



Bob Coy REALLY excited about his salad!!!