Set List 12.20.09

Here is the music that we used for 12.20.09 - "Christmas 101" - Week 3:

[Opening Song]
G - Jingle Bells
D - Deck The Halls

[Worship Set]
C - Joy To The World
E - Go Tell It On The Mountain
Em - We Three Kings Of Orient Are
G - Away In A Manger
G - We Wish You A Merry Christmas

This morning Steve preached the third message in our series "Christmas 101: Lessons from the first Christmas". The message today was on The Wise Men and the Scribes.

I hope everyone has a save and happy Christmas season. Remember that for the next two weeks we will not be having Reveal. On the 27th we have one service at 10AM in the Worship Center. On Jan 3rd we will be having breakfast at 9:15 in the Worship center followed by a service at 10AM. Looking forward to seeing everybody in the new year.

Dream Big...Pray Bigger!

Will

Set List 12.13.09

Here is the music that we used for 12.13.09 - "Christmas 101" - Week 2:

[Worship Set]
Bb - O Praise Him - David Crowder
D - Beautiful One - Tim Hughes
D - Born In Bethlehem - Third Day
C - O Holy Night - Third Day

[Closing Song]
Bb - Silent Night - Gruber/Mohr/Young

This week Steve spoke on the shepherds and their part in the Christmas story. It was a great talk and opened up some new thoughts on the shepherds.

We also played one of my favorite new Christmas songs - "Born In Bethlehem" by Third Day. This song is currently in second place in my favorites list behind "A Strange Way To Save The World" by 4Him.

We closed the service with a Will Beaty arrangement of "Silent Night". (For those of you musically inclined, all I really did was take a song in 3/4 and put into 4/4 by holding certain notes a little longer.) I thought it went over pretty good, once everybody got the grove down and realized it wasn't the traditional version.

Next week is the last REVEAL of 2009. Dec. 27th and Jan 3rd are going to be special "One Service" days at 10AM in the Worship Center (a.k.a. Big Church). Also on the 3rd at 9:15AM we are having our traditional church-wide breakfast before the service so come and eat and enjoy the fellowship before the service.

I hope everyone has a safe a enjoyable Christmas season.

Dream Big...Pray Bigger!

Will

Set List 12.06.09

Here is the music that we used for 12.06.09 - "Christmas 101" - Week 1:

[Opening Song]
G - O Come All Ye Faithful - Third Day

[Worship Set]
E - Angels We Have Heard On High - Third Day
E - May The Few - Shane Barnard
E - Cannot Say Enough - MercyMe

[Closing Song]
E - I Still Believe - Jeremy Camp

This was a great week as we kicked off the Christmas season with our new series "Christmas 101: Lessons from the first Christmas". Steve did a great job explaining the angels and their part in the story.

We also had lunch after service. One of our small groups through Reveal graciously provided the side dishes and the church provided the chicken for what was a great time of food and fellowship.

Dream Big...Pray Bigger!

Will

Sunday @ Reveal

Yesterday, we kicked off the Christmas 101 series with a message from Steve. We also had lunch following Reveal so I missed most of the worship gathering getting ready for that. We did show one video during the gathering that a couple of people asked about. It was called "Retooning the Nativity" and here it is.

We had a great time at lunch. I left around 2:15 so that I would have time to get ready to participate in the Live Nativity at Christmasville and there were still a lot of people hanging around in the cafe. Thanks to Allison Platt, Dale and Stacy Cooper and Trevor Ashe for helping get everything set up and for serving. Thanks also to the people that brought side dishes for lunch. It's great to have people who are willing to be servants!

-- Peace, Jamie

Christmas 101

On Sunday, we kick off our Christmas 101: Lessons from the First Christmas series. Steve will be taking a fresh look at the story of the wise men, the shepherds and the angels and what we can learn from their experiences from the first Christmas. Hope to see you Sunday.

-- Peace, Jamie

Sunday Recap

We had a special guest for Sunday. Enrique Ramirez, the pastor of La Red, spoke at Reveal. Enrique is a Hispanic church planter who was born in Mexico. He and his family moved to Rock Hill in January to plant a network of Hispanic churches in the area. Their first church began meeting at First Baptist in October on a monthly basis and will begin meeting weekly in January. His text for Sunday's message was Joshua 1:6-9.

Here are some of the highlights:

• Joshua did not have an easy job. He was following a charismatic leader and he would be leading a stubborn people.
• What made Joshua successful?
• First, he stood on the promises of God. God's promise to the Hebrew nation did not change just because Moses had died.
• When we don't stand on the promises of God, we are not satisfied with anything and we will blame others for conflicts and tough times.
• Joshua was able to stand on the promises of God because he took God's word seriously.
• Second, Joshua stood with the presence of God.
• Third, he remained faithful to God's word. He did not turn to the right or the left.
• Finally, he was successful because he started the process. He did not get discouraged. Instead he took action because he believed that God was with him.
• Enrique closed by reminding us that the greatest promise we have is God's presence in our lives.
• How does that promise change how we live our lives?

Enrique did a great job. Spanish is his first language so preaching in English was a somewhat new experience for him. We are already making plans to have him back at Reveal and possibly do a joint Reveal/ La Red worship gathering.

We had a good crowd Sunday even though a lot of our regular attenders were out of town. This Sunday we kick off our "Christmas 101: Lessons from the First Christmas" series. Steve will be back. Following Reveal this Sunday, we will have lunch in the Apex. Hope you'll join us.

-- Peace, Jamie

Set List 11.29.09

Here is the music that we used for the week 11.29.09

[Opening Song]
B - Let God Arise - Chris Tomlin

[Worship Set]
B - You Never Let Go - Matt Redman
B - Glory To God Forever - Steve Fee
C - It Is Well With My Soul - Bliss/Spafford

[Closing Song]
G# - Let My Words Be Few - Matt Redman

We had a great treat today. Enrique Ramirez, our Hispanic church planter, spoke today on Joshua 1:6-13. Even preaching in English, Enrique gave a great message on being "strong and courageous".

Hope everyone had a great T-Day and is recovering from the carbohydrate hangover that we all inevitably have after eating for three straight days.

Next week, we are starting our new series "Christmas 101: Lessons From The First Christmas" and we will be having lunch together in The Rock after the service. Looking forward to seeing everyone there.

As always, part of Fred McKinnon's Sunday Set Lists.

Dream Big...Pray Bigger!

Will

Bohemian Rhapsody

I hope you had a great Thanksgiving. For your entertainment, here's a video that I found last week. Enjoy!

-- Peace, Jamie

Thanksgiving

It's late Wednesday afternoon and the office is almost deserted. So I thought I would take a minute to share some things for which I'm thankful.

I'm thankful that against all of my desires I ended up at Baptist College of Charleston in January of 1988. Seven months later I would meet the girl who in a moment of blindness agreed to go on a date with me. Thank you, Baptist College. Thank you, Marjorie.

I'm thankful for the two daughters that God has blessed me with. They are best friends with each other and the joy of their mom and dad's life. Thank you, Elizabeth and Victoria.

I'm thankful for my bed. I've tried to remember to say that to myself every night this week. Thank you, Rooms to Go.

I'm thankful for parents who gave me a Christian heritage that has enhanced my walk with Christ and who continue to give me a model of Christianity to this day. Thanks, mom and dad.

I'm thankful for a church that is willing to take risks and think outside the box so that ministries like Reveal can exist. Thank you, FBC Rock Hill.

I'm thankful for Honey Nut Cheerios. They taste great and lower my cholesterol. It was the best use of a coupon by me this year. Thank you, General Mills.

I'm thankful for DVR. Nothing else needs to be said. Thank you, Comporium.

Above all else, I am thankful that my Savior Jesus Christ did not give up on me. But gave His life as a sacrifice for my sin to give me hope and joy and peace and the opportunity to be a part of His plan.

Tomorrow millions of people will gather around tables filled with turkey and dressing and gravy and sweet potatoes and mashed potatoes . . . Well, you get the picture. In the midst of the food, the football, and the fellowship, be mindful of the things and the people and situations in your life that are there only by the grace of a loving Father.

Happy Thanksgiving!

-- Peace, Jamie

Links

Sometimes I let links that I want to share with you pile up and I forget to pass them on. Since it's a short week and a lot of people are off tomorrow, here are a few links for you to read during your down time over the next few days.

• Tony Morgan talks about clutter.
• Perry Noble asks you the question that changed his life.
• Rustin Klafka (yeah, gotta love his name) encourages you to do more than just point people to Jesus. (Seriously, this is a pretty awesome read.)
• Looking for a new office? Here you go.
• This guy had the pleasure of speaking to Clemson's FCA last Thursday. But something was amiss.
• Finally, Mark Batterson, author of In A Pit, With A Lion, On A Snowy Day, wants us to read Scripture in a new way.

I hope the links will keep you occupied until Sunday. Don't forget that Enrique Ramirez is preaching this week at Reveal. You don't want to miss it.

-- Peace, Jamie

Sunday Recap

It looks like it's been a while since I've posted anything on here and even longer since I've posted anything other than recaps. There will be a couple of posts forthcoming this week. Until then, here's a quick recap of yesterday at Reveal.

Steve gave me the opportunity to speak at Reveal this week and since it is the week of Thanksgiving, I used the time to focus on living a life of thanksgiving. Here are the highlights:

• Colossians 2:6-7 says that our lives should overflow with thanksgiving.
• What happens when our lives overflow with thanksgiving?
• Proverbs 11:24-25 gives us a good picture of the life that overflows with thanksgiving.
• Living a life of thanksgiving requires accurate vision.
• We have to see things differently than the world sees things.
• Commonsense says that the way to wealth is to save, spend wisely and invest.
• The Bible says the way to wealth is to give freely.
• Of course, the God's definition of wealth is completely different than the world's.
• Wealth does not equal money.
• We have to see how blessed we are. I used this clip from The Blind Side and asked the question, "Do you see your bed as a blessing?"

• Living a life of thanksgiving will lead to giving.
• The little translation of the first part of verse 25 is "The soul of blessing gets fat."
• When we become a blessing to others, our lives do not just illustrate the grace of God to others it also enriches and satisfies us.
• Living a life of thanksgiving is rewarded.
• I closed with another clip from The Blind Side that illustrates how our lives are changed when we give our time, our gifts, our possessions, our lives for others.

-- Peace, Jamie

Set List 11.22.09

Here is the music that we used for 11.22.09:

[Opening Song]
B - Glory To God Forever - Steve Fee

[Worship Set]
Bb - You You Are God - Walker Beach
E - Open The Eyes Of My Heart - Paul Baloche
D - Rescue - Jared Anderson

[Message]
Jamie Burdette

[Closing Song]
D - You Are My King (Amazing Love) - Billy Foote

We started off this week with a new song by Steve Fee. We used the short chorus that he used at Catalyst 09 to kick it off.

"There is no one higher, no one greater, no one like our God
There is none more able, Christ our Savior, Great and Glorious."

I thought that it went well. The congregation seemed to pick up on it quickly.

I put in two songs this week that are "memory" or "go-back" songs. Just like places can have memories associated with them that make the location seem more holy or special, songs have the power to carry that same emotional connection. "Open the Eyes of My Heart" and "You Are My King" are two songs that have been around for 10+ years and people have had time to connect to them.

I thought that overall worship went very well today.

As always, part of Fred McKinnon's Sunday Set Lists.

Dream Big...Pray Bigger!

Will

Set List 11.15.09

Here is the music that we used for 11.15.09 - IMPACT:

[Opening Set]
C - What This World Needs - Casting Crowns
C - God of This City - Bluetree

[Closing Set]
E - 'Til I See You - Joel Houston
E - Beautiful Scandalous Night - Daugherty/Hindalong
B - Calling Out To You - Tommy Walker

This week was our IMPACT conference (i.e. Missions). What a great weekend (well really Wed through Sun) of talking to missionaries from all over the world. It is so encouraging to hear stories of how God is working in every corner of the world.

Lori and I also had the pleasure of hosting a missionary this year - Tom Holloway. Tom serves in Slovakia.

Although this was a crazy busy week with something almost every night, we had such a great time.

As always, part of Fred McKinnon's Sunday Set Lists.

Dream Big...Pray Bigger!

Will

Set List 11.08.09

Here is the music that we used for 11.08.09 - "Marriage For Dummies" - Week 9:

[Worship Set]
G - Hallelujah (Your Love Is Amazing) - Brown/Doerksen
G - All We Need - Charlie Hall
Bb - Everlasting God - Brown/Riley
Bb - How Great Is Our God - Tomlin/Reeves/Cash

[Closing Song]
E - Open The Eyes Of My Heart - Paul Baloche

I was not at church this morning because I was on a retreat at Pawley's Island with some of the couples in our Sunday School Class. Instead, Dave Kerns led in Reveal. I was told that he did a fantastic job.

This week is going to be a crazy one with our yearly IMPACT Conference starting on Wednesday. IMPACT is our churches yearly missions conference. We have several missionaries coming for the week and we have events all week long for them. This is a great time for our members to get to learn from and talk to these missionaries.

As always, part of Fred McKinnon's Sunday Set Lists.

Dream Big...Pray Bigger!

Will

Sunday Recap

Yesterday, we wrapped up our Marriage for Dummies series. It was a very good series that gave us some awesome insight into what God's plan is for our marriages. Steve was back at Reveal. His sermon focused on taking care of our spiritual lives and keeping our hearts focused on our spouses.

Here are some of the highlights of the sermon:

• Divorce is always a result of us allowing our heart to be something that God did not intend.
• Unless we are intentional, our marriages will become dull, lifeless, and boring.
• Marriage is ALWAYS a work in progress. He shared the story of a lady whose husband had an affair after 40 years of marriage to make his point.
• Feelings matter but should not be an excuse to avoid the responsibility of intentionally nurturing our relationships.
• Actions drag feelings along and not the other way around.
• How do you sustain love? By acting in loving ways.
• Wives - develop an inner beauty that exceeds your outer beauty.
• Husbands - pay attention to your attitude.

He ended that sermon and the series by asking some pretty good questions:

• Do I cherish my spouse?
• Am I honoring my spouse?
• Am I acting in a loving way to my spouse?

It was an excellent sermon series. If you missed a sermon, you can go to www.marriagefordummies.net to catch up.

Also today, Dave Kerns filled in for Will who was away on a retreat with some of the couples in our church. Dave did a great job as always leading us to worship our God through music. It is great to have people like Dave who can fill in so capably.

Next week, we will focus on missions as a part of our Impact Conference. Hope you will join us.

-- Peace, Jamie

Beauty Will Rise

Steven Curtis Chapman has been around for a long time. There's a reason why - he makes great music. His newest CD came out yesterday. It is filled with the introspection that you would expect from a father whose adopted daughter died tragically just a few months earlier.

In the music, SCC grapples with questions that anyone who has experienced such devastating tragedy would ask. Amidst the lean, acoustic and mellow set are lyrics that express grief and anguish but ultimately profess faith in God and hope in Him.

Enjoy!
Jamie

Beauty Will Rise - Steven Curt...

Sunday Recap

It was not a normal week at Reveal. With Steve fighting off bronchitis, I had the opportunity to speak yesterday and focused on the power of our words. Using James 1:19 as a backdrop, I compared the words that we speak to a tube of toothpaste. Yep, that's right, a tube of toothpaste.

Here are the highlights:

• I used this clip from Everybody Loves Raymond to point out that we all say things we wish we could take back.

• While the word immoral brings with it images of sexual sins, addiction and the like, it also applies to the abuse of others with the words that we speak
• Like toothpaste, we should be careful that we don'.t let too much come out at once. We have to guard the words that we speak.
• Before you speak, ask two questions. One, Would I want someone to say that TO me? Two, Would I want someone to say that ABOUT me?
• Remember that what you say can never be put back in. Gossip that is spoken can't be taken back. Neither can the lies that we tell or the insults that we dole out or the angry words that we speak.
• Because there will never be an invention that will permanently keep us from mis-speaking (Duck tape was mentioned as a possible solution but I think that would only be temporary), we will always have messes to clean up.

After Reveal, we had pizza from Domino's in the cafe area and had a pretty good turnout. It was great getting to interact with some new people as well as re-connect with a few people that I haven't had a chance to sit down with in a while.

Hopefully, Steve will be back and ready to go next week. We will be wrapping up the Marriage for Dummies series next week.

-- Peace, Jamie

Couple Talk 11.01.09

Score Your Romantic Love:
On a scale of 1-10 (with 10 being very high and 1 being very low) each of you score the level of romantic love in your marriage (as you perceive it.)

1___2___3___4___5___6___7___8___9___10

Reflection:
How do you feel about your scores? Why?

What habits/routines do you have individually and as a couple that keeps the romantic love healthy in your marriage? Write them down.

What habits/routines do you have individually and as a couple that hinders romantic love in your marriage? Write them down and discuss them.

Your Most Important Emotional Need:
Willard Harley ("His Needs Her Needs" and "Fall In Love Stay In Love") identifies the ten emotional needs that are common to most couples. Five of them are more important to the typical man and five different ones are more important to the typical woman. While the list is not absolute and men/women may feel a need from the opposite list, the groupings hold true for most men/women. Here is the list:

His Needs:
Sexual Fulfillment
Recreational Companionship
Physical Attractiveness (in his wife)
Admiration
Domestic Support

Her Needs:
Affection
Conversation
Honesty & Support
Financial Support
Family Commitment

When these needs are regularly met by our spouse, romantic love remains strong. When they are ignored, romantic love dissipates.

Discussion Questions:

• What are your top three emotional needs?
• Do you know what your spouse's top three needs are?
• What are you doing to intentionally minister to the top three emotional needs of your spouse?
• Are you ministering to you spouse's needs in a way that makes them feel happy or in ways that make you feel happy? Let your spouse share with you how you can make them happy.

Growing Romantic Love:
What specific actions can each of you take to allow romantic love to flourish in your marriage? What specific actions can you take as a couple? Will you?

Set List 11.01.09

Here is the music that we used for 11.01.09 - "Marriage For Dummies" - Week 8:

[Opening Song]
B - Hold My Hand - Hootie & The Blowfish

[Worship Set]
D - Everyday - Joel Houston (Lincoln Brewster Version)
D - I Am Free - Jon Egan (Promise Keepers Version)
A - Mighty To Save - Reuben Morgan
A - Nothing Compares - Third Day

We had another good crowd this week at Reveal. It is so encouraging to see new people coming to church. Tommy did the lead vocals on "Hold My Hand" and did a great job.

Steve Hogg, who is still recovering from bronchitis, preached the 9:15 and 10:30 but Jamie preached in Reveal this week.

We also had lunch (pizza) and it was good to see people mingling and talking after Reveal.

As always, part of Fred McKinnon's Sunday Set Lists.

Dream Big...Pray Bigger!

Will

Couple Talk 10.25.09

Read:
Proverbs 31:30

Brag on Her:
The above verse tells us that a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. Husbands, share with your wife something you appreciate about her spiritual life.

Husbands, share with your wife some of the other things you appreciate about her. The subject is wide open. Just spend a few minutes bragging on her.

Husbands, share with your wife what you would miss if she was no longer with you.

Both of You:
Take a moment to see your wife or husband the way you imagine God sees her or him. What does God see in them that you don't give them enough credit for? Share your thoughts with each other.

Discuss when you tend to give each other your undivided attention. If this doesn't happen often enough, discuss ways to schedule more time for each other.

Tell Her:
Husbands, share with your wife the area or areas where you would like her to give you more support or help. This may not be easy for some guys, but give it a shot. Trust that your wife loves you and wants to support you. Remember, she can't read your mind anymore that you can read her mind.

Pray:
Discuss what you think God may want you to pray about as a couple. Then go ahead and pray about it.

Set List 10.25.09

Here is the music that we used for 10.25.09: "Marriage For Dummies" - Week 7

[Worship Set]
E - Famous One - Tomlin, Reeves
E - Doxology - Crowder, Ken
E - Jesus Lover Of My Soul - Ezzy, Grul, McPherson
E - The Wonderful Cross - Tomlin, Reeves, Mason, Walt, Watts

[Closing Song]
E - Beautiful Scandalous Night - Daugherty, Hindalong

Steve Hogg was sick this week so we didn't do the scheduled "Marriage For Dummies" talk. Instead, Pastor Larry Sizemore, our Pastor to Adults, preached instead. He spoke on Luke 14:16-24 - The story of the man who threw a party but everyone who was invited turned down his invitation.

We changed up the way that we did worship this week. Normally, we have the full band and it is rocking, loud and upbeat. But this week we all sat on bar stools across the stage and did a acoustic style set. It was great to change it up and worship in a different way.

We had a lot of new faces in Reveal today and I hate that I didn't get to meet them all. Overall, it was a great day and I am looking forward to all that God is doing here in Reveal.

As always, part of Fred McKinnon's Sunday Set Lists.

Dream Big...Pray Bigger!

Will

Catalyst - Malcolm Gladwell

Since Will gave a brief recap of Andy Stanley's first session at Catalyst, I thought I would continue by giving you a recap of the second session featuring Malcolm Gladwell. While much of the focus of Catalyst is aimed at churches, Catalyst is designed as a conference aimed at leaders of any type of industry and they usually try to bring in speakers that reflect that. Malcolm - a journalist, author, and pop sociologist - is considered by many inside and outside of the church to be at the forefront of thinking about culture and its influences on society.

Malcolm tackled the issue of mistakes that leaders make. Using the story of the Battle of Chancellorsville and General Joe Hooker, he illustrated one of the biggest mistakes that leaders make. Even though Hooker and the Union army far outnumbered Lee and the Confederate army, the Confederate army ended up defeating the Union army in large part due to mistakes that Hooker made.

The night before the battle began, Hooker made the infamous statement that "God Almighty could not keep us from victory." It was Hooker's hubris that led him to make tactical mistakes that led to his army's defeat and ultimately his removal as leader of the Union forces.

Gladwell pointed out that most leaders fail not because of incompetence or a lack of knowledge. People who are incompetent or ignorant rarely ascend to leadership positions. Most leaders fail because of an over-confidence in their knowledge or control of a situation.

Ironically, during times of crisis, many people want leaders who are bold, daring and decisive. However, the greatest need during a time of crisis are leaders who are humble and willing to listen to others.

-- Peace, Jamie

Sunday Recap

This was week 6 of our Marriage For Dummies series and Steve dealt with two needs of husbands and wives. The first part of the sermon dealt with a wife's need for spiritual leadership from her husband. The second part of the sermon dealt with man's need for sex. Here are some of the highlights:

• Men WILL set the spiritual tone for the family.
• 74% of children attend church when both parents are active. Only 39% will attend if only the mom is active. 66% will attend if only the dad is active.
• "Sex for men is like talking is for women with respect to feeling loved, cared about and special." Dr. Laura Schlessinger
• "Wives might be able to better understand this if they think about how they would feel if their husbands didn't want to talk or listen to them." Emerson Eggerichs
• If sex is a problem in your marriage, what can you do? Talk about (seek counseling if needed) and be willing to learn (read)
• The biggest obstacle to a great sex life can be time, especially after children come along.
• "The sexual relationship progresses or regresses in direct proportion to how much attention you give it." David and Claudia Arp

Steve has recommended a lot of books during this series and quoted from them a good bit today. Here are some of the books that he recommends.

• No Time For Sex by David and Claudia Arp
• Love and Respect by Emerson Eggerichs
• His Needs Her Needs by Willard Harley
• The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman

As Will pointed out, Sunday was a crazy day at Reveal. There are four people trained to work in the media booth and none of them were able to be here. That left me to try to figure out lights, sound, and presentation. Additionally, we dismissed middle school-age and under just before the sermon because Steve wanted the freedom to say things about sex that needed to be said. So we also had to make sure we had extra adults to assist with that. All in all, it was a very good week at Reveal.

Next week, Steve will talk about two more needs of husbands and wives. We're getting to the end of the series. If you have missed any messages to this point, go to www.marriagefordummies.net to catch up.

-- Peace, Jamie

Couple Talk 10.18.09

Spiritual Satisfaction
Do you feel God is satisfied with where you are in your spiritual life right now? Share with your spouse your thoughts about yourself and some changes that could help you to grow spiritually.

Spiritual Leadership
Several issues cause some men to think that they can't be spiritual leaders for their family. Just know that it does not mean you have to be a great teacher. In fact, most of us are not teachers. Neither does it mean you have to be a better communicator than your wife. It does mean you will have a genuine, growing relationship with Jesus. It means you will serve Jesus and openly live for Him. It means you will study the Bible and talk openly about your faith. It means you set the tone for your family and lead by example. Share with your wife your thoughts about the following:

• Things you currently do to show your commitment to Jesus
• What you would like to do, but may be afraid to try of feel you don't know how to do them
• Ways your wife can encourage or help you be a spiritual leader

Expectations
Each of you has expectations for your marriage. Using a scale of one to ten, with one meaning "you definitely do not understand my expectations," indicate how well you think your spouse really understands what you expect and need in the following areas. Make sure you understand each other and then agree on steps to better meet each other's expectations for each area.

• Intimacy and closeness
• Romance
• Sexual fulfillment

Comparing Notes
Take a few moments of alone time for each of you to write your answers to the following questions. Then come together and discuss your answers.

1. What are the positive aspects of your love life?
2. What changes do you need to make as a couple so your love life can be fresh and growing?
3. What do you want your love life to look like in ten years? What will you do now to begin moving in that direction?

Help Needed
If you would like the Pastor to recommend a counselor or book to read, email him at steveh@fbcrockhill.org (Emails sent to this address go directly to the Pastor and will remain confidential.)

Set List 10.18.09

Here is the music that we used for 10.18.09 - "Marriage For Dummies" - Week 6:

[Opening Song]
A - Keep Your Hands To Yourself - Georgia Satellites

[Worship Set]
D - We Have Overcome - Israel Houghton (Elevation Worship Version)
Bb - O Praise Him - David Crowder
B - Jesus Paid It All - Grape/Hall/Nifong (Kristian Stanfill Version)

[Closing Song]
B - Calling Out To You - Tommy Walker

This weeks sermon title was "What Husbands and Wives Need: Sex and Spiritual Leadership" so we thought that it would be kinda humorous to play "Keep Your Hands To Yourself" as the opener for a talk on sex. I mean it's not every Sunday that you get to play your favorite 80's tune in church. It went over great! Exactly what I had hoped for.

Overall, this was a good weekend of worship even though for me it was extremely stressful. Steve White, our choir director, was at a wedding this weekend so that meant that I had to lead worship in the 9:15 Traditional Service this week. It also meant that I had to wear a suit and tie - which for those of you that know me only happens for weddings, funerals, and 9:15 services! I also decided this time to not use my guitar at 9:15 like I did last time, which made me a little more uncomfortable. But it went off well.

In 10:30, things were very normal and I thought that worship went off well. The audience was engaged and the team did a great job.

In Reveal however things got off to a rough start. Normally I am done with the 10:30 service by about 11:00 and have time to prep things and get my mind switched from one set list and band to the other. But because I had to lead the invitation song this week in Steve's absence, I didn't get into the other service until 11:45. To compound this problem, La Red (our new Hispanic Service) kicked off Saturday night and the sound board was still set up for them. So I was kinda running ragged trying to get the sound board ready (especially since we didn't have a sound tech for Reveal this morning!) We finally got going, but my in-ear monitors were pegging out on the box and it made everything muddy so I just took them out and played with no monitor.

It continues to amaze me how God seems to really show up in times like this though. Even though I was very stressed and my mind was running crazy from 3 music sets with 3 different bands, God showed up in a powerful way during the singing portion of worship this weekend. Praise Be To God! Because I know that it wasn't me.

As always, part of Fred McKinnon's Sunday Set Lists.

Dream Big...Pray Bigger!

Will

Catalyst Videos

Will shared with you some of what Andy Stanley said at Catalyst which was absolutely incredible. I wanted to share two videos with you. The first is a quick, funny video that involved 12 inches of water in an inflatable swimming pool. We had a great view of 'the leap' and I wasn't sure whether to laugh or cheer so I did both.

Professor Splash Breaks World Record! from Catalyst on Vimeo.

The second video is longer (almost 20 minutes) but it made 13,000 people cry in unison. Will said he had seen something like this happen before. It was a first for me. Let's just say that this video took 19 years to make and is well worth the 20 minutes of your time.

Catalyst 2009 Compassion Moment from Catalyst on Vimeo.

-- Peace, Jamie

On Your Mark

Andy Stanley kicked off the Catalyst Conference with a great talk on Joshua.

His two key verses were Joshua 23:8 and Joshua 5:13-14.

He talked about how Joshua's life hinged on the event before the battle of Jericho when he meets the Angel of the Lord (5:13-14). Joshua is out surveying the city before the attack and meets the angel with his sword drawn. Joshua asks a question that most of us would ask: "Are you for us, or against us?"

The angel has a great answer: "No."

Here are some blurbs from Andy's talk about this:

• "God is not coming to be a part of our story, He is asking us to be a part of His!"
• "Wrap your identity around who you are for, not who is for you."
• "Whose side are you on, not whose on your side."
• Charles Stanley - "God takes full responsibility for a life wholly devoted to Him."
• Charles Stanley - "My responsibility is to be obedient to God and to trust Him with the consequences."
• "God has designed, created, gifted and positioned you!"
• "You have no idea what God wants to accomplish through you."
• "Our mark isn't worth our life"
• "Living to make my mark is to small a thing to give my life for."

Dream Big...Pray Bigger!

Will

Couple Talk 10.11.09

Words have power for good or bad, and we are responsible for the words that come out of our mouth. When we're upset or having an argument with our spouse, we must be especially careful. Below are some questions for you and your spouse to answer/discuss to see if you are on track with God's plan for your speech.

Each of you are to choose the response you think best describes yourself and your spouse. Then discuss your choices.

1. Are you quarrlesome? Do you have a need to prove you are right or have the last word?
__Never __Seldom __Occasionally __Often __Habitually

2. Are you hot tempered and defensive? Do you get angry easily?
__Never __Seldom __Occasionally __Often __Habitually

3. Are you reluctant to admit when you're wrong?
__Never __Seldom __Occasionally __Often __Habitually

4. Do you make assumptions about your spouse and assign motives to what they do?
__Never __Seldom __Occasionally __Often __Habitually

5. Do you hold grudges against your spouse and bring up past hurts when discussing a new issue?
__Never __Seldom __Occasionally __Often __Habitually

6. Do you use sarcasm and negative humor to put your spouse down?
__Never __Seldom __Occasionally __Often __Habitually

7. Do you use harsh words that cut and wound your spouse?
__Never __Seldom __Occasionally __Often __Habitually

8. Do you fail to listen? Do you jump to conclusions before you fully hear what your spouse is saying?
__Never __Seldom __Occasionally __Often __Habitually

Set List 10.11.09

Here is the music that we used for 10.11.09 - Week 5 of "Marriage For Dummies":

Eb - I Run To You - Lady Antebellum
E - Undignified - Matt Redman (David Crowder Version)
G - Born Again - Third Day
D - Hope Now - Addison Road
E - I Still Believe - Jeremy Camp

I was off the stage for the second week in a row. This time because our staff went to Catalyst in Atlanta. While there Jamie and I visited two churches, Perimeter Church on Saturday and 12Stones on Sunday.

I was told that Allison and Tommy did a great job leading the musical portion of worship Sunday! So many thanks to them for their hard work. I am looking forward to being back in Reveal this week after two weeks off.

As always part of Fred McKinnon's Sunday Set Lists.

Dream Big...Pray Bigger!

Will

Lines

This has been a wild week. I spent the first two days doing five days worth of work so that I could spend the next three days at Catalyst Conference in Atlanta. Spending time listening to Andy Stanley, Louie Giglio, Chuck Swindoll, Francis Chan and more great speakers was tough but someone had to do it.

For those who hear my sermon in August about my extreme distaste (e.g. hatred) for anything resembling a line, I thought you would enjoy both my tweet and my picture of the 'line' to get into the conference on Thursday morning.

I don't like lines, but I especially don't like lines that have no semblance of order to them. The lines at Catalyst were the definition of unorganized lines. I called them blobs.

Anyway, Will and I haven't posted much this week because we've been busy being inspired and challenged. We will not be at Reveal tomorrow but will be capably replaced by others.

If you're reading this late on Saturday night or early Sunday morning, enjoy Reveal. We will be back next Sunday.

-- Peace, Jamie

Couple Talk 10.04.09

Read: Ephesians 5:33

Discuss:
God tells husbands to love their wives and then tells wives to respect their husbands. Why do you think God gave different commands to husbands and wives?

Communication:
It is important that we talk to each other about our relationship. But doing this is not always easy. Men and women tend to communicate differently, and this often leads to miscommunication and hurt feelings. Sometimes we communicate our feelings in very negative language, causing our spouse to become defensive. The issue we mention may not even be the real issue. We even attack each other and assign motives. Try this exercise:

Ladies, think of something your husband did that made you feel unloved. Share it with him this way..."I know you love me - but when you did (name what he did) - it made me feel...I don't think you intended it that way, but this is how it made me feel."

Men, think of something your wife did that made you feel disrespected or like you could seldom do anything right in her eyes. Share it with her this way..."I know you love me - but when you did (name what she did) - it made me feel...I don't think you meant for me to feel rejected...but this is how it came across to me."

Discuss:
God created women to need love and affection. He also created men to need respect and admiration. Yet often we don't know how to express love or respect in the way our spouse needs it. We may think we are expressing love or respect, but our spouse doesn't see it of feel it. Talk about the following questions so you can better understand how to show love and respect to each other.

• Husbands, how do you currently try to show your wife you love her?
• Wives, how do you currently try to show your husband you respect him?

• Husbands, what can you do to show your wife more love? Ask for her suggestions.
• Wives, what can you do to show your husband more respect? Ask him for suggestions.

Celebrate:
Men - share with your wife some of the reasons you love her and what you think makes her a very special person.

Wives - share with your husband some of the reasons you respect him and what you really appreciate about the person he is and the things he does.

Weekend Recap

It was an exciting weekend. I had the privilege of heading down to Camp Longridge for an overnight trip with the students from First Baptist. I think I tweeted this at some point on Saturday. I was indeed reminded what I loved most about student ministry and at the same time reminded what I don't really miss about it.

The Friday night - Saturday event was a good get-away. We got to focus on worship as well as spend some free time on Saturday hanging out by the lake at Longridge. With no cell service, it was easy to feel disconnected. I think that most of us would benefit from unplugging more than we do. As we approached civilization and cell service returned, my phone buzzed for a few minutes catching up on all the text messages. Don't worry, I'm not that popular, most were scoring updates from the Gamecocks and Tigers games.

Sunday at First Baptist was another exciting day. I spent most of the morning getting things ready for lunch at Reveal. But I did get the privilege of baptizing two people at our 10:30 worship gathering. Our attendance was down some on Sunday but we did have some new faces at Reveal. This allowed a lot of our regular attenders to spend some time after Reveal eating lunch with some of our guests. There was a good vibe going on in the cafe as we ate, talked, and hung out. Lunch is becoming an integral part of Reveal, even if it does mean missing the first 100 laps of a race.

Next week we will continue our Marriage for Dummies series at Reveal. Will and I will be out of town this week. We will be in Atlanta visiting a couple of churches in the area after wrapping up Catalyst on Friday night. I look forward to hearing some great things from Reveal!

-- Peace, Jamie

Set List 10.04.09

Here is the music that we used for 10.04.09 - Marriage For Dummies - Week 4:

[Worship Set]
Majestic - Lincoln Brewster
Awesome Is The Lord - Chris Tomlin
Holy Is The Lord - Chris Tomlin
You'll Come - Brooke Fraser

[Closing Song]
Beautiful The Blood - Steve Fee

We had guest band leader today - Matt Garner. He came down from Kentucky to lead for our Youth Retreat this weekend and stayed over to lead at church this morning. It was great to have a week to just sit with my wife and worship and not have to worry about things going smoothly and stuff.

We had lunch this week after Reveal and it was great to chat with some new people and catch up with some familiar faces.

As always, part of Fred McKinnon's Sunday Set Lists.

Dream Big...Pray Bigger!

Will

Lunch

Just a reminder that we will be serving lunch in the Cafe immediately following Reveal this Sunday afternoon. We will have BBQ with sides. There is no charge for the meal but we will have a basket for donations to help defray the cost of the meal. Take the opportunity to invite someone to join you at Reveal this week.

-- Peace, Jamie

Sunday Drive

I bet your Sunday wasn't as exciting as Joey Logano's. I am proudly a NASCAR geek and this happened during Sunday's Dover race. OUCH! The fact that no one was seriously injured in the wreck says a ton about the safety of those cars. My favorite Logano quote after the wreck was, "It was an exciting ride. You won't find any roller coaster that will do that." To that I say, "Thank goodness."



-- Peace, Jamie

Belle Mitchell

If you were at REVEAL on Sunday, then you heard me talk about Belle Mitchell. She is the youngest daughter of our Youth Pastor, David Mitchell.

Last Thursday (9/24) she went to see a neurologist for some strange symptoms that she was having and they admitted her to Levine Children's Hospital in Charlotte. The initial MRI results showed that she had a mass on the left side of her brain. The decided to operate on Monday morning (9/28).

The surgery went well yesterday, but unfortunately, the tumor was malignant and there are spots on her spine. It has not yet been determined if those spots are cancer. Belle will be having another MRI this morning (Tuesday). Her team of doctors will be meeting Wednesday to decide on treatment options.

Please pray that she responds well over the next 48 hours from the surgery.

Pray for her recovery from cancer and for her parents, David and Kelley, to experience God's peace. Also pray for her siblings (Taylor, Emily Beth & Jack).

You can follow the updates on Belle here.

Dream Big...Pray Bigger! (Especially in Belle's situation)

Will

Sunday Recap

Every Sunday seems to be busy these days. But yesterday may have been one of the busiest. Left the house yesterday morning at 8:30 and didn't walk back in the front door til almost 10:00 last night. Here are some of the highlights of yesterday's Marriage for Dummies worship gathering at Reveal:

• We kicked off the worship with a video from Worship House Media called "Now Is the Time." I thought it was a great intro to the gathering and got a lot of positive feedback from it.
• The band had a great worship set planned that wrapped up with a version of "I'll Stand By You" which I first remember from The Pretenders but was later covered by Carrie Underwood.
• We made a transition from music to message with a video that Hunter Platt did using the Plain White T's song "1,2,3,4." (See below). As always, he did a very good job, although he did get the length of my marriage wrong. For the record, Marjorie and I have been married 19 years, 9 months, 11 days, 21 hours and 10 minutes as I type this.
• Steve sermon focused on why men and women need each other using Genesis 2:18-24 as his text.
• "God was hands-on in Adam and Eve's relationship. He wants to be hands-on in our marriages and relationships."
• "Most of the problems in marriage are caused because we make marriage about 'me' instead of about our spouse."
• "If you care about your spouse, you don't use or deny your spouse out of selfishness or ignorance" - Willard Harley, His Needs Her Needs
• "Marriage is a relationship of mutual ministry."
• Steve also used Harley's book His Needs Her Needs to highlight the five most important needs of men and women in relationships.
• Men's five greatest needs - sexual fulfillment, recreational companionship, attractive spouse, domestic support, admiration
• Women's five greatest needs - affection, conversation, honesty, financial support, family commitment

We had another great Sunday at Reveal. Attendance has been very good this month which has led to some awesome times of worship. Next week, we will continue our Marriage for Dummies series. If you need to catch up, check out www.marriagefordummies.net.

-- Peace, Jamie

Couple Talk 09.27.09

His Needs
Sexual Fulfillment
Recreational Companionship
Attractive Spouse
Domestic Support
Admiration

Her Needs
Affection
Conversation
Honesty
Financial Support
Family Commitment

Get Started: Each of you take a moment and pick the two needs in the above list that are most important to you and explain why to your spouse.

Affirmation: Share with your spouse what he/she does that meets any of the needs listed above.

Sunday's Sermon: Pastor Steve mentioned during the sermon that marriage is a relationship of mutual ministry, in which each spouse has an unqualified commitment to be an instrument of God to meet the other one's deepest personal needs. What does this mean for you and how do you feel about it? Do you agree?

Learning: Share with your spouse the one need from the above list that you wish he/she did more to meet. Discuss the ways he/she could meet that need.

Discussion: Identify which issue listed below is the greater hindrance to you meeting your spouse's need and discuss it.

• I didn't know he/she really needed that
• I'm not convinced that what he/she says they need is a legitimate need
• I'm not sure how to meet his/her need
• I'm afraid to try...because...
• I'm waiting for my spouse to meet my need first
• I'm afraid my spouse will not return the favor and meet my need
• I'm the way I am and I'm not going to change
• I don't care
• Some other reason (what is it?)

Commitment: Based on this conversation, what will you do in order to better meet your spouse's need? Share your commitment with your spouse right now.

Celebrating: Share with each other what you enjoy most about being married to each other.

Set List 09.27.09

Here is the music that we used for 09.27.09 - Marriage For Dummies (Week 3):

[Opening Song]
G - You're Worthy Of My Praise - David Ruis (Jeremy Camp Version)

[Worship Set]
G - Nothing But The Blood - Robert Lowry
G - All Who Are Thirsty - Brenton Brown (Kutless Version)
D - I'll Stand By You - The Pretenders (Carrie Underwood Version)

[Closing Song]
E - Hosanna, You're The King - David Bell

Once again we had a great crowd in worship. Loved it. Besides having no drums in the mix for the first song, I thought that worship went really well.

Steve's messages have been great during this series. If you have missed them, make sure that you check them out on www.marriagefordummies.net

As always, part of Fred McKinnon's Sunday Set Lists.

Dream Big...Pray Bigger!

Will

Marriage for Dummies

We are two weeks into our Marriage for Dummies series and are hearing some great comments about the series. In case you have missed one of the sermons, you can go to http://www.marriagefordummies.net/ to listen to sermons.

Also, the website has an evite feature that you can use to invite your friends to the service. If you haven't checked out the web site, let me encourage you to check it out. It's a very simple site but a great way to introduce someone to the series, to Reveal and to First Baptist Church.

This week's sermon is Men & Women - We Need Each Other. Hope you'll join us and bring a friend with you.

-- Peace, Jamie

Weekend Recap

Sunday capped off one of the crazier weekends that I've had in a while. Since you've stopped by the blog, you'll be lucky enough to hear my whole story. I ended up with tickets to the Clemson-BC game on Saturday thanks to Terri and Chuck Hood. So Saturday morning at 7:30, I hopped in the car with Elizabeth, Victoria and Sara Catherine Watts and headed toward Clemson. (My directions were to drive on I-85 till I smelled and turn right on Hwy 76 till I stepped in it, but they were wrong.)

Because I had plans on Saturday night, we knew that we would have to leave at halftime. For the first half, the weather was great - overcast with a nice breeze and very little rain. At halftime, we headed to the car. It started to rain as we headed out of the stadium and was raining pretty hard by the time we got to the car. Before we got back on I-85, the game was being delayed because of the weather. Very few times in my life have I felt smarter or luckier, which means you know what's coming next.

Our Saturday night plans were to go to Heath and Joy Dick's neighborhood for a cookout. My job was to bring a cooler of ice. When we pulled up, there were lots of cars parked on the side of the road, so I decided to drop the ice and Marjorie and the girls off and park further away. In the process of dropping ice and people off, I ended up locking the keys in the van with the van running. Yep, not so smart or lucky. Luckily AAA bailed me out because the coat hanger that Heath found for me was pretty useless.

With that as a backdrop, Sunday turned out to be a great day. Attendance at Reveal was close to the highest it's ever been. There were a number of new couples and college students visiting with us. We had lunch for our college students immediately following Reveal and had an awesome time hanging out together. I capped it off with a college Bible study on Sunday night at Heath and Joy's house. Our college Bible study for the fall is based on Lee Strobel's The Case For Christ. I have read The Case For Faith but this is my first time through TCFC.

While Sunday's can be long days, it's the day that I look forward to the most. So much cool stuff happens. I get to see people that I haven't seen all week. I get to hear stories about what's happening in people's lives. I get to see how God is moving and working in different areas of our church body. Plus, I got to tell my Clemson story coupled with my locking-my-keys-in-my-van story multiple times.

-- Peace, Jamie

Couple Talk 09.20.09

Read: Genesis 1:26-28 and 1 Peter 3:7
God obviously made men and women different, even though both are created in His image. Peter tells us to live together with understanding or knowledge.

Discuss:
How well do you and your spouse understand each other? Do you think your spouse really understands you?

How are the two of you different (not just physical differences)? Make a list of the top five ways you are different.

Are these differences a source of tension and conflict? If so, why?

Do you have negative attitudes toward these differences that prevent you from blessing each other and developing the oneness that God intends?

Have you allowed conflict over these differences to harden into inappropriate attitudes and behaviors that are damaging your relationship?

List the advantages of your differences. How can they bless your marriage? How can your spouse's uniqueness bless you?

Do you celebrate the positive contributions your spouse's uniqueness can bring to your marriage, or are you more focused on trying to change one another?

Husbands, do you ever try to make your wife act more like a man?
Wives, do you ever try to make your husband act more like a woman?

Husbands, what do you do to make your wife feel like a woman? Ladies, does it work? Does he make you feel like a woman often enough? Do you have any suggestions for your husband?

Wives, what do you do to make you husband feel like a man? Men, does it work? Does she make you feel like a man often enough? Do yo have any suggestions for your wife?

Decide:
Share with each other the one thing you will do differently because of this discussion.

This discussion probably identified something each of you does that hurts your spouse. If so, ask his/her forgiveness.

Set List 09.20.09

Here is the music that we used for 09.20.09 - "Marriage For Dummies" Week 2:

[Worship Set]
D - We Have Overcome - Israel Houghton (Elevation Worship Version)
Bb - You You Are God - Walker Beach
B - Song of Hope (Heaven Come Down) - Robbie Seay Band
B - Collide - Howie Day

[Closing Song]
F# - Come Ye Sinners - Robbie Seay Band

We had a great crowd today (~85). I truly believe that people are hungry for truth in regards to their marriages/relationships and this series is giving them exactly that. PRAISE GOD!

Worship went really well today. I decided to bring back "We Have Overcome" for a second week since it was new and I think that people responded better to it this week having heard it last week. The Elevation Worship version is a great rockin' version of Houghton's tune. "Collide" was a great fit for the sermon "Men & Women: As Different as Night and Day"

As always, part of Fred McKinnon's Sunday Set Lists.

Dream Big...Pray Bigger!

Will

Forgotten God

I read Francis Chan's book Crazy Love earlier this year and enjoyed it immensely. So I was excited to see Chan had written a book on the Holy Spirit and subtitled it "Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit." The book is really divided into three parts. The first deals with how the theology of the Holy Spirit has been neglected and abused. The second deals with who the Holy Spirit is and what His role is in our lives. The third is a challenge to overcome the obstacles in our lives so that the Holy Spirit can lead us.

The book is a good primer on the theology of the Holy Spirit as well as challenging call to yield to the His leading in our lives. If you liked Crazy Love, I think you'll enjoy Forgotten God.

Here are some of the quotes from the book that caught my attention.

• The Spirit is more obviously active in places where people are desperate for Him, humbled before Him, and not distracted by their pursuit of wealth or comfort.
• We are not all we were made to be when everything in our lives and churches can be explained apart from the work and presence of the Spirit of God.
• The truth is that the Spirit of the living God is guaranteed to ask you to go somewhere or do something you wouldn't normally want or choose to do.
• The Holy Spirit does not seek to hurt us, but He does seek to make us Christlike, and this can be painful.
• A sure sign of the Holy Spirit's working is that Christ is magnified, not people.
• It is true that God may have called you to be exactly where you are. But it's absolutely vital to grasp that He didn't call you there so you could settle in and live out your life in comfort and superficial peace.
• Nowhere in Scripture do I see a "balanced life with a little bit of God added in" as an ideal for us to emulate. Yet when I look at our churches, this is exactly what I see: a lot of people who have added Jesus to their lives.
• It is impossible to live in the power of the Spirit and sin at the same time.
• I don't want my life to be explainable without the Holy Spirit.
• What disturbs me most is when we're not really bothered that God living in us has not made much of a noticeable difference.

-- Peace, Jamie

Set List 09.13.09

Here is the music that we used for Sunday 09.13.09 - Week 1 of "Marriage For Dummies":

[Opening Song]
D - Forever and Ever, Amen - Paul Overstreet (Randy Travis Version)

[Worship Set]
D - We Have Overcome - Israel Houghton (Elevation Worship Version)
D - A Love Song - Stellar Kart
D - Rescue - Jared Anderson

[Message]
Marriage For Dummies - Rev. Steve Hogg

[Closing Song]
F# - We Fall Down - Chris Tomlin

This week kicked off our new series called "Marriage For Dummies". We are going to try and do a secular song each week that has something to do with relationships and/or the sermon topic for the week. I am looking forward to this series. I believe that it is going to impact our church and community in a powerful way.

As always part of Fred McKinnon's Sunday Set Lists.

Dream Big...Pray Bigger!

Will

Couple Talk 09.13.09

Spend a few minutes together as a couple doing the activities described below. Begin with one of you reading aloud the following piece of prose titled "Marriage":

"When God made light, the angels drew near to let the refractions roll over their faces like a symphony. When God made earth, the poked their fingers into its moistness: they put a fleck to their nose and smiled. When God made a rose, they parted it's petals and passed it among themselves saying, 'So fragile, yet how it grasps the soul'. When God made a giraffe, they touched the strange hide and murmured to themselves that God was up to something magnificent. When God made man, each one retired to his chamber and peered into the writings, looking for some clue to the mystery. When God made woman, they came back out of the chambers and gazed, their jaws slack with awe. When God joined man to woman and said, 'Let them become one flesh,' everything suddenly made sense. And the cheering still shakes the galaxies..."

Answer This: Does our marriage make the universe cheer? Does it make me cheer? Why or why not? Talk about it!

Read: 1 Peter 1:7
Wives: Share with your husband what he does that makes you feel like he honors and respects you. Share what he does that makes you feel "put down" instead of honored. Talk about it!

Read: 1 Peter 3:4
Husbands: Part of a wife's inner beauty is her ability to be a calming and restful influence in her husband's life. Share with your wife what she does that brings a sense of peace and calmness to your life. Share with her what she does that creates turmoil and frustrations for you. Talk about it!

Read: 1 Peter 1:7
Discuss: We have the same eternal destiny and share equally in God's grace. What are we doing to support each other's relationship with Jesus Christ? Are there ways we discourage each other's spiritual growth?

Decide: What changes are we willing to make to improve our marriage?

Pray: Thank God for each other. Talk with God about the changes you decided to make. Ask God's forgiveness for actions that hurt each other. Don't forget to apologize to each other as well.

Plan: Agree to attend worship at First Baptist Church next Sunday.

The Acts 11:29 Project This Saturday 9-19-09

"A ministry that gives of our extra time, talents, resources and labor to those in need in our community."

This Saturday (Sept. 19th), we need your help. We are serving a family in Edgemoor who has a leaking roof. We need people who will follow instructions to repair parts of the roof. We also need folks who would be willing to help with cleaning in and outside the house. Also, if your gift/talent is to minister to people, we would love for someone to be available to just hang out and talk to the family members who are there. Please sign up at Reveal or email loribeaty@gmail.com to let us know your planning to come.

Who: Anyone willing to serve, and others who are gifted in construction
What: Repair a roof, serve a family and their needs, fellowship
When: This Saturday, September 19th (9:00am - 1:00pm)
Where: Meet at the Church in "the Rock" parking lot at 9:00 (possibly earlier for roofing crew)

Winthrop BCM

Life can get busy and last week was one of the busier weeks. Between getting ready for Refresh and a singles conference at Ridgecrest, I got to spend all day Thursday cooking supper for Winthrop University's BCM. Then on Thursday night, I got to hang out with and speak to the coolest BCM in the state.

For the uninitiated, BCM stands for Baptist Collegiate Ministries. It's the college ministry of the South Carolina Baptist Convention. It's a place where Christian students from all across the state and the nation can connect and grow in Christ and, hopefully, impact their campus for Christ.

This year, the leadership team at Winthrop chose Colossians 4:5 as their theme verse. I had to pleasure of speaking on making the most of every opportunity in college.

Here are the highlights of the night:

Cooking and serving supper with Heath and Joy Dick was a blast. I didn't get a chance to taste Joy's spaghetti bake but I am sure that it was better than mine. I'm glad I got a bite of my famous (at least at my house) dessert. It's oreo cookies soaked in milk and covered in whipped cream. After a couple of hours in the fridge, it's a goey, delicious mess.

The Reveal band led worship. It's great to have people who are committed to Christ and willing to give up their time to serve him. You can check out their set list here. Suffice it to say, they did an awesome job.

I committed to driving the church's van on the Winthrop BCM spring break mission trip. I wonder if anyone will ride with me after my stories from last year's trip to Baltimore. For the record the thirty minute detour in West Virginia was Ross's fault.

The talk centered on what you should do at college so that when you walk away from the campus for the last time, you've been a hero to someone. I gave them eleven ideas and challenged them to come up with their own list. Here are some of the ideas that I gave them - get involved in Student government whether by serving or connecting with the leaders and praying for them, be a summer missionary, take a road trip with a group of friends, go on an international trip (either mission or international studies), make cookies for someone (a residence hall, office, fraternity, sports team, etc), serve a staff or faculty member for a year.

All of us can come up with ideas that will help us make the most of the time that we are given. We can find people to serve, ministries to support, places to go. What is God calling you to do today to make the most of the opportunity He is giving you?

-- Peace, Jamie

Connect

A couple of weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to be in Charleston for Connect, a conference aimed at helping churches reach and keep young adults. At one of the sessions, Sam Rainer spoke about why 18-22 year olds drop out of church. Here are some of the interesting takeaways that Sam gave us.

The dropout problem begins at age 16. Spending 18 years in student ministry, this didn't surprise me. I think this has a lot to do with the freedom that comes from getting a drivers license and a car. They may already be looking for a way out of church because they are bored, are not challenged, have friends who don't attend a church, sense hypocrisy, or get busy with school, job, etc. The freedom that comes with a car allows them to make the decision to drop out of church.

Many drop out because they become tired of 'doing church.' They don't see faith as an important part of their families' lives. They are not given a reason for being at a building on Sundays other than it's what we do as a family.

Activity does not equal active. In other words, being involved in church programs and events will not keep someone active in his/her faith. It is not wrong to have students and children involved in stuff at church but it is NOT enough.

There are three markers for keeping a student active in his/her faith. The first is having a family that regularly discusses spiritual matters. The second is having a family that serves together in and through the church. The third is having a family that prays together. If a student's family is not spiritual or intact, the key is to get other adults involved in the lives of the student.

Great info and ideas. I'll share some more in the coming days.

-- Peace, Jamie

Set List 09.06.09

Here is the music that we used for 09.06.09:

[Opening Song]
G - Creed - Rich Mullins (Third Day Version)

[Worship Set]
B - Let God Arise - Chris Tomlin
B - Marvelous Light - Charlie Hall

This week, our church held a service called "REFRESH". It was a chance to look back over the last year of ministry and look forward to this upcoming year. The Reveal Band played the three songs above and then the 10:30 band played two songs and the choir/orchestra played two songs at the end.

Last Thursday Night, the Reveal Band also had a chance to lead worship for Winthrop's BCM (Baptist Collegiate Ministry) meeting. Here is the music that we used:

D - When Love Comes To Town - U2 (Todd Agnew Version)
C - Everlasting God - Brenton Brown (Lincoln Brewster Version)
E - Undignified - Matt Redman (David Crowder Version)
E - I've Always Loved You - Third Day
G - Nothing But The Blood - Robert Lowry
E - How Deep The Father's Love For Us - Stuart Townend

As Always, part of Fred McKinnon's Sunday Set Lists.

Dream Big...Pray Bigger!

Will

Refresh

Another reminder that there will be no Reveal this Sunday, September 6. We will have one worship gathering at 10:00am in the main worship room upstairs. We are calling this worship gathering Refresh. We are focusing on the 8 passions of FBC, how they have been vital to our church for the past three years and how they will help direct us in the coming year.

Refresh is going to be an amazing time of worship. Don't miss it. There will also be a picnic at the church following Refresh. For more info, go to www.fbcrockhill.org.

Have a great weekend. I will see you Sunday morning at Refresh!

-- Peace, Jamie

Links

The past two weeks have been crazier than normal and it doesn't look like things are slowing down any time soon. Here are some links that have caught my attention lately. Enjoy.

-- Peace, Jamie

Perry Noble says you're not crazy.

Ed Stetzer gives some practical advice for accountability groups.

Sam Rainer observes a new way to reach new guests.

Seth Godin tells us to get creative with our invitations.

Finally, a video to remind you to persevere.

Sunday Recap

As Will stated below, it was a crazy weekend for our pastor so I volunteered to give him a much-needed break by preaching at Reveal on Sunday. Here's what we learned:

• I HATE lines. I know hate is a strong word, but that's how I feel about lines. They make me wanna punch things.

• I will go to great lengths to avoid lines. I skip drive-thrus. I leave restaurants. I drop people off to wait in line for me. I go to Disney during the off-season. Yes, I will spend time thinking of ways to avoid lines.

• Traffic jams are basically lines in cars. I will drive an hour out of my way to avoid sitting still for 15 minutes in a car. Can't tell you how glad I am that I don't live in a city like Atlanta where traffic is unavoidable.

• I used the story of a mission trip to Zambia. In 2004, twelve of us were flying out of Atlanta to Johannesburg, South Africa on the way to Lusaka, Zambia. A strike by South Africa Airways left me standing in line at the airline counter from 6am to 1pm for four straight days. Needless to say, I was READY to leave the Atlanta airport. Once we did get on the plane, I got bumped to a first class seat for an 18 hour flight. Nice, very nice.

• My Zambia experience taught me a few things. First, the journey prepares us for the destination. Joshua spent a lot of time waiting to take possession of The Promised Land. But he wouldn't have been ready to take possession if he had not spent those 40 years remaining faithful to God.

• Second, the God of the journey is the same God at the destination. Read Revelation 21:1-7. That's the God that we serve. Too often we doubt God or place more faith in our abilities. The God of Revelation wants to invade our lives with His power today, right now. What's keeping you from letting Him do it?

• Third, God has a passionate desire to have an intimate relationship with you. Joshua 1:9 says that God is with us wherever we go. He's waiting for us to engage Him every moment of every day. Why would we pass that up? End of sermon wrap up.
  

• Pray for Steve. I know that most of you pray for your pastor everyday. Make a special time this week to pray for him to be refreshed, strengthened, and inspired. He faced a lot last week because of deaths and other emergencies.

Just a reminder that there will be no Reveal next week. We will have one worship gathering at 10:00am in the main worship room followed by a picnic upstairs.

Have a great week!

-- Peace, Jamie

Set List 08.30.09

Here is the music that we used for 08.30.09:

[Opening Song]
D - Everyday - Joel Houston

[Welcome]

[Worship Set]
Bb - You You Are God - Walker Beach
Bb - O Praise Him - David Crowder
E - King Of Glory - Third Day

[Message]
Rev. Jamie Burdette

[Closing Song]
E - Your Love Is Extravagant - Darrell Evans

Our Senior Pastor Steve Hogg had a really busy weekend. So Jamie filled in for him at Reveal this week in order to give him a break. Jamie gave a great talk about Joshua staying focused on God even during the 38 years that he spent wandering in the desert before entering the Promised Land.

We had a great crowd (~70) this week and several Winthrop students came to worship this morning which was very encouraging.

This week the Reveal Band gets the privilege of leading worship at Winthrop's Baptist Collegiate Ministry (BCM) meeting on Thursday Night. We led back in the spring for them and had a great time. I am looking forward to this so I hope that you will come out and join us. Dinner at 7pm and Worship at 8pm.

As always part of Fred McKinnon's Sunday Set Lists.

Dream Big...Pray Bigger!

Will

Set List 08.23.09

Here is the music that we used for Sunday 08.23.09 - Week 4 of Indescribable

[Opening Song]
G - Creed - Rich Mullins (Third Day Version)

[Welcome]
B - Let God Arise - Chris Tomlin
B - In The Light - Charlie Peacock (dc Talk Version)
D - Desert Song - Brooke Fraser

[Message]
Rev. Steve Hogg - Indescribable (4)

[Closing Song]
A - Mighty To Save - Reuben Morgan

This was a crazy Sunday. We had the opportunity to lead worship for the Youth Group's kick-off event called "Rock The House" at 9:15. Then I had to run upstairs for 10:30 worship. The Reveal band played "Desert Song" for the offertory special in that service and then I had to run back down stairs to prep for Reveal at 11:55. On "Let God Arise" I broke a string and played "In the Light" with 5 strings. I got a back-up guitar for the rest of the set, but then when we came up to sing the closing song, the batteries died in my microphone. Thankfully, Stacy (one of the BGV's) picked up and led out on the song so that it was not too awkward. Anyway, Steve used it as a teaching moment that seemed to go over well.

Here's the set we did for "Rock The House"

G - Creed - Rich Mullins (Third Day Version)
E - Undignified - Matt Redman (David Crowder Version)
B - Let God Arise - Chris Tomlin
B - Marvelous Light - Charlie Hall
D - Desert Song - Brooke Fraser
A - Mighty To Save - Reuben Morgan

As always part of Fred McKinnon's Sunday Set Lists.

Dream Big...Pray Bigger!

Will

Help Us Out

If you are a regular at Reveal, I have two requests for you.

1. Can you be in the Apex by 11:45? This will help guests who show up feel more comfortable in a big room. It will also be easier for us to get started on time if more people are in the room beforehand.

2. If you're not volunteering, would you be willing to help with childcare or greeting? Because of schedule changes and moves, we've lost some committed volunteers. If you can help in either place, email me (jamieb@fbcrockhill.org). We are going to have a brief meeting on Sunday, August 30 immediately following Reveal for everyone who is already part of the greeter ministry and for anyone who is interested in volunteering for it.

Thanks for listening.

-- Peace, Jamie

Set List 08.16.09

Here is the music that we used for 08.16.09 - Indescribable (Week 3):

[Opening Song]
Eb - The Solid One - Jeff Zabel

[Welcome]

[Worship Set]
B - Counting On God - Jared Anderson
G - Hallelujah (Your Love Is Amazing) - Brenton Brown
G - Indescribable - Laura Story (Chris Tomlin Version)

[Message]

[Closing Song]
C - Everlasting God - Brenton Brown (Lincoln Brewster Version)

This was a crazy day for me. I felt really out of sorts. We changed up the service order for the 10:30 service on Friday afternoon but I wasn't in the office to find out about it because Lori and I closed on our house. Then because we were moving on Saturday, I didn't have internet for the weekend. So I found out at 8:00 when I got to church that we had made some changes.

We also planned to do an extended invitation time which meant that I was not able to practice with the Reveal band much before our service. I finished upstairs at about 11:35 and ran downstairs to practice. We had to run a song that we were not planning to do because Pastor Hogg wanted it close the service with it. So I had to also change the Song Show Plus show for the morning. When I finally finished, there was about 3 minutes left on the countdown.

During the first song, I messed up going back to the intro and could find my place for about 8 bars but the band did a great job just playing along and letting me get back together. Then I dropped my pick and didn't have an extra one on the stand. Luckily, I had the welcome to kind of re-group.

After that, worship went really well, and the sermon was one of the best that I have heard from him. All three services had a ton of energy and the invitation was strong in all three services. Steve preached on the omnipotence (power) of God and then he closed the sermon talking about how when we don't have any strength, God's strength is there for us. When we are tired - He's not. When we are ready to give up - He's not! We then closed the service with "Everlasting God" which was a great fit.

A friend of mine was really struggling during the invitation so at the solo break, I went down to pray with him. I wanted the vocalists to keep the song going after the solo, but the message did not get passed to them and there was kind of an awkward stop, but we sang the song again at the very end and everything went well. I'll discuss that situation at practice on Tuesday and we'll work out some arrangement if I need to step down from singing during a invitation again.

Overall, this was one of the best services we have had a FBC since I have been here.

As always, a part of Fred McKinnon's Sunday Set-Lists.

Dream Big...Pray Bigger!

Will