I hadn’t heard much from Rob Bell and the folks at Nooma in awhile, so I checked their site to see if there were any new releases. Turns out they’ve got a new one that was released last week. As always, the message is right on target. How many of us are so caught up in the busy-ness of life that we spread ourselves so thin that, instead of being excellent in a few areas, we become mediocre in many. There are so many opportunities to do good, but if I do all of them, could I actually be doing more harm than good?

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yawaoBPVweE&hl=en]

Just woke up from a nap. I slept in intervals last night; 30 minutes of sleep, then awake for an hour or two. Needless to say, I was a bit tired when I got home. Just wanted to post a little blog today because it’s Father’s Day. Unlike most of the guys I hang around, my relationship with my dad isn’t all that great. We get along alright, but considering that we haven’t seen each other in almost twelve years, our relationship is not where it should be. So I’m listening to Brent’s message this morning and my first thought was, “Great. My father left when I was four, so I haven’t exactly seen a good example of being a good husband and father.” But as Brent continued in scripture, he pointed out that in Ephesians 5:25-31, Jesus is supposed to be our example.

I know. Duh moment.

And I’ve read enough books to know that as well. Sex God, The Radical Reformission, Vintage Jesus; they all make this point concerning being a good husband and father.

But the statistics are still there. Fifty percent of marriages fail, and those whose parents are divorced are fifty percent more likely to go through at least one divorce themselves.

I don’t like those statistics. Not for anyone, but especially not for me.

Which is why I love what Brent said about legacy. He talked about how his grandfather decided that even though no one in previous generations gave a crap about legacy, he was going to be the one who changed that, even if he didn’t reap the benefits in this life. And because of his grandfather’s decision; because his grandfather took the road less traveled decided to follow Jesus with everything he was, to be a Godly husband and father; because he thought of his family and future generations instead of himself, his son, grandson (Brent) and now his great-grandchildren have a legacy. When people meet Brent and find out he’s J.A.’s grandson and James David’s son, they are impressed. Even though they don’t know anything about Brent, he has he grandfather’s and father’s legacy and reputation. And what Brent said was that for those who have not had a good legacy passed down through the generations, it is up to us to change that. So while I may not have much of a legacy from my father or those before him, I’ll be damned if I don’t leave one for my children and grandchildren and so on. Wouldn’t it be great if 250 years from now, my great-great-great-great-great-great (you get the point) grandson introduces himself to people and they say, “You’re a Jones? You come from good stock.”

I guess you could this is my declaration.

J

Today has been a long day. But it was fun and has been very informative. Brent and I met up with Ameen, our rep from Portable Church and hung out most of the morning at Starbucks where Ameen went through a detailed printout of what it’s going to take to launch Four Points Church the way we want in September. Sounds great, right?

Then we get to page 27.

The last page.

Yeah, it’s a tad over budget.

Okay, it’s double what we had originally hoped.

The funny part was, it was all stuff we had requested; Ameen did not add anything. He didn’t upsell us or hide anything in the multitude of paper; it was everything we asked for. It’s just that when you actually put it all down on paper, it can add up fast. So pray for us to have wisdom in making decisions in what to keep, what to cut, assuming we cut anything. Obviously, if God isn’t in this, we could raise a million dollars and fail miserably. However, I know God is with us, so I know He is going to do something great. Just keep us all in your prayers because things are moving so quickly and it can get a bit stressful at times. It’s so amazing to see what God has done just in the last ten months, I can’t wait for September 14 to get here.

J

Met up with Brent, Dan and Jess this morning at Pickets Mill Elementary School for day one of our consultation with our rep. from Portable Church Industries. We did a walk through of the facilities and decided the pros and cons of the different areas accessible to us on Sundays. The main services are going to be meeting in the school’s gym and the kids church and classes are going to be in the cafeteria. The cafeteria has a built in stage which will be perfect for worship and then they can split off into groups and have age-appropriate Bible teaching, crafts, etc.

As for the gym, it is HUGE. Plenty of room to grow and we’ve got a lot of cool ideas for things like a cafe, lounge, etc. to all be in the gym. 

Anyways, gonna hang out with the consultant tomorrow too, so we’ll see how things are progressing in 24 hours.

J