Steven Gibbs

Sunday Night Ramblings

Good stuff today as we ended the WHY> series. Had a few things going on:

• Mark Brown was great today leading worship. Maybe we can get him up a little more in the future.
• Our next series is going to deal with 2 topics that everyone struggles with.
• Our Segue Live! Tours are filled up for the upcoming weeks. That’s exciting to see so many new people getting plugged in.
• I’m ready for my family to be home!
• I love our band. Those guys are tight.
• Spoken word element at Stonecreek – that’s a first for me. I got a lot of positive comments, and it’s funny most of them came from our crowd over 50.
• It was great to be back today. When you come back you realize how much you miss it.
• Splash! theater opens this week. Our kids are going to love it.

Our plan is to bring John home this week. I’ll keep you posted. Thanks for praying. I’ll have an update on his eating progress tomorrow.

Sunday Night Ramblings

Just a few thoughts from the weekend and the series.

• I need a disclaimer from my last post. Many people were baited into believing I lost my mind. I hope you read the end (smile). I didn’t expect people to take it so seriously.
• I’ll post the story I read during the offering in tomorrow’s post. It was incredible, and evidence of what God is doing at Stonecreek.
• Don’t forget your One Life. We have 2 weeks left in the series. It’s time to invite them. In 2 weeks, they MUST be there. Let’s make it happen.
• I hear they have good chili in Cincinnati, I guess I’ll have to find out.
• I met 2 new families from Longwood, Florida that were unrelated. How random is that?
• Our Splash! team rocks. They were all in their places early. Any other ministry area listening?
• I love the way our church laughs. It’s a great sign of health and a great comfort level. I hope we’re always a place that has fun.
• Man Laws this Thursday.
• Brandon and Shanna Christensen made it to Guatemala. Continue to pray for them as they serve in that country with Hope for Atlanta.
• The Splash! theater opens in a couple of weeks. Be sure to go and check it out.
• Be sure and check out the new environment we’ve created for our adult Newcomer’s Class down the Nursery hallway.

High Rolling

The strongest evidence for me of the Bible’s validity is in a balance of all of the evidence. I am confident because of the manuscript and historical evidence. What I appreciate more, however, is the evidence I see of changed lives.

My life has been radically changed as I read and study Scripture. I have had several turning points in my life, and all of them have been guided by Scripture.

I see it in people who attend Stonecreek. They come for the first time, and don’t even own a Bible they can read. They take one of our free Bible’s with them, and then life change takes off. We hear stories of marriages restored and purpose found by people who read God’s Word.

Don’t take it for granted. It’s an incredible treasure. However, it’s only decoration if we don’t read it. It has no power. It’s only more paper and ink.

Not The Silent Type

Alright, today’s post is for YOU. Answer some (5) questions through the comment box.

1. How many times a week do you read your Bible?
2. What translation of the Bible do you use?
3. How much help has the Bible been in your life?
4. What would encourage you to read the Bible more?
5. How many free Stonecreek Bibles do you have?

Let me know.

Not The Silent Type

We take for granted the treasure we have in the Bible. God has given us the Bible not as words He spoke, but as words He speaks. Big difference. God has given us the Bible to speak to our lives today.

Too many times we take this for granted. Maybe we treat it as a crystal ball in an emergency when we need help. Maybe we try to read it then get too busy watching the Falcons or going shopping. Maybe we see no need at all.

God has given us the Bible to give us words of life. Words that bring help when we don’t have anywhere to turn. Words to help us make better choices. Words that tell us to get our act together.

Take the time and make it happen. Read your Bible. Start with 10 minutes/day. Then make a commitment to read for more time than you read the newspaper or your favorite magazine. I'm confident God will use it to change your life, so email us your story.

Not Enough Canvas

Today’s reading asked us to pick which characteristic of God is most fascinating. I’d have to go with gracious. Face it, there are times when we all do things that are, quite frankly, stupid. We say something that we regret or we get impatient with nothing. We are selfish with something that doesn’t matter, or indignant when someone else makes a mistake. God is patient, and slow to anger.

He has every right at times to thump us on the head. But he doesn’t. Oh yeah, he brings us in line. I love teaching about the grace of God. I love bringing hope to people. God is not a God of shame or guilt, but grace. What a phenomenal message.

Let me assure you, our culture needs this. Anytime someone makes a mistake, suffers from an addiction, commits a sin, they feel guilt and shame. Guilt and shame are a chokehold that strangles life out of so many people. How many times have you felt guilty or embarrassed about something this week? I’ll bet at least once. And you understand grace.

What about those who don’t? What do they face every day?

Don’t forget your One Life. They need grace, and you may be the best avenue for God to reach them.

What's In Your Wallet

My basic thoughts on God are that God created me and wants what is best for me. At times, that may mean discipline, my favorite, so that I do not get off track. At other times it may mean protection or provision.

At the end of the day, I have a firm conviction that God is for me, and I must respond in faith to that fact. It challenges how I see the world. It gives me clear perspective on what happens to me and around me. It changes how I relate to others.

Most of us have a description of God and we don’t even know it. We have kind of fallen into what we think about God. This can be dangerous. When stuff starts flying around us, we better know what we think about God. What is your description?

Why Post

I want to use today’s post to emphasize some of the fundamental’s of our Why emphasis.

In the book of Acts, it states the early church moved together with “one mind.” Certainly they didn’t agree on everything. Some wanted the carpet of the temple blue, other’s red. Some wanted the music louder, some not so much. Some wanted the services shorter, while other’s … never mind, no one wants longer services.

Anyway, you get the picture. So what does “one mind” cover? It is clear that the early church had one mind on worshiping God and reaching their community. Through our Why emphasis, every area of our church is on the same page, studying the same material, pursuing answers to the same questions. This has generated a lot of synergy in our ministry areas, and we have seen positive momentum since the beginning of our series.

Also, we have been challenged with our “One Life.” Your “One Life” is the person you are praying for who needs to know Christ. But it doesn’t stop there. We must INVITE. The early church exploded because people took the responsibility to invite those who needed to hear about what was happening.

If you’ve been praying for your One Life, you also need to go for the ask. Invite them this Sunday. There are some unique elements planned. There are 4 more Sundays to this emphasis for all of us, and we don’t want to miss this opportunity.

One Mind – One Life.

We also want to hear your stories. You can email them to stories@stonecreekchurch.org. I would enjoy a chance to anonymously share your story so that it can encourage others. I also don't have to share it if you aren't comfortable with sharing. Let us hear what God is doing. Please take the time and shoot it to us.

What's Your Take On God

Jesus taught that what people believe about God is reflected in their actions. If you want to know what someone believes about God, examine his or her life.

We all know people who try to appear godly, but they treat others like hell. That has been one reason so many people are turned off by so-called Christians. Put a fish on the back of your car and then “express yourself” to people in traffic. That’s nice. Why not just tell people that God hates them? Or that God is dead? Or that He doesn’t care about them? People who act in such a way deny their belief in God by what they do.

Then there are those who are truly in the battle. They want to do right, but they only make it so far. But, they are making progress. God’s grace covers them. Their actions show that they believe in God, even if they don’t get it right every time. These are the people who help others, who lead others to believe in God. They make the difference.

This is the core of authenticity. This is what God can use. Other people see this and acknowledge it as growth.

If YOU can’t seem to get it right, don’t beat yourself up. Join the rest of us who are trying. We’ll see you Sunday at Stonecreek, along with those friends of yours that see God working in your life.

God, are you out there?

The question for today’s reading brings a lot of thoughts. “When have you wondered whether or not God exists?” After a long Sunday, sometimes I tell people I’m a Monday morning atheist (smile).

At certain times in life we do struggle with this question. As we look at the bible, we see many people struggle with this question. Gideon, Paul, Thomas – and God didn’t strike them dead! It’s good to ask questions. It allows us to own our faith. Sometimes we need God to show up in response to our questions. If He doesn’t, then He’s not God.

Our belief about who God is will translate to actions. What component of your life are you excluding God? Is it your relationships? Do you trust God to bring reconciliation, or do you think it’s too far gone? Is it your finances? Do you trust God to provide, or do you say you don’t have enough to be generous? Test him out,

Look Up

So many times we influence people that we don’t even know. Whenever I am in a tense situation, I try to remember that. Today, I think I failed :).

To make a long story short, we ended up in E.R. to have John’s NG tube replaced. Not a hugely big deal. But after an hour of waiting, the nurse said the doctor was waiting for the tube to be delivered. It had been in our room for about 45 minutes (smile).

Then, the roof outside of our room began pouring water into the hallway. We had to be moved down the hall.

After another 1 hour wait, the doctor came in to insert his NG tube. Inside the tube is a wire that is removed when the tube is inserted. The wire got stuck, and would not come out. An X-ray was needed. We waited for 35 minutes. John has a tube hanging out of his nose – very uncomfortable.

We paced the halls. We talked of the balance between a good witness and being our child’s advocate. The scales tilted towards advocacy. I told the nurse that I did not understand why he was not taken immediately to x-ray. He was a priority. A tube in his throat was involved. I had to cancel my lunch appointment for crying out loud!

Finally to x-ray. In the first room, the computer stopped working. (I swear I’m not making this up). After x-rays were taken we made it back to the room. When we got to the room, I gently pulled on the wire. Guess what, out it came. We left. I think the nurse is still looking for us.

Anyway, we try to be good examples, because there are so many people who need Christ, and they are looking at all of us. We need to be aware of those we can influence. Begin praying for that one life. You may be their best chance at life.

Is He The Christ?

I just have to think it would have been cool to have been around when Jesus walked the earth. I wonder how I would have responded. I would like to think that I would have responded correctly and followed him.

How neat to have just been around as he went from party to party. He was always hanging out with people, teaching them about life. I would have LOVED seeing him turn water into wine, and then not taking credit. If I could have been a fly on the well when he met the Samaritan Woman there. How neat to see his grace extend to someone who was despised by the culture. How gross to see him spit on the ground, make mud, and place it on the blind man’s eyes. But then how enlightening to see the man wash off the mud and then he could see.

We still have those in the flesh experiences. Has it happened for you? What has been your response to Jesus?

Day 4

Questions are always good. Many people say that you can never ask a stupid question. I’m not sure that is true. I have a book on my shelf, “Questions that Work.” I haven’t read all of it, but at least I realize the value of questions…

Anyway, God invites our questions. He wants us to ask honest questions, and He gives honest answers. When we ask in a questioning tone, as in, “God, what were you thinking?” I’m not sure that gets us very far. But we can ask others questions, such as, “God, is there something I should learn through this?” I think he likes that.

Many people may want to ask us questions about following Christ. The only way they’ll ask questions is if we give them something to ask about. If someone looked at your life today, would they want to ask any questions, or would they question you?

It's Your Choice

We all make choices, every stinkin’ day. These choices affect the trajectory of our lives. Other people make choices that affect us as well. We can’t do anything about that. I can’t tell you how many times over the last couple of months that other people’s choices have had a direct impact on me – and not always positive!

However, I can choose to respond biblically. It may be someone who gets angry at me without knowing all of the facts in a situation. It may be someone who projects their biases and baggage on me. It may be a health care decision for John that may have long lasting impact. These situations are never easy to choose, but we are all faced with these difficult choices. Most of the time I want to act in the flesh. If we do that, God classifies that as rebellion.

Our reading for today asks us to choose life through Christ. To choose Christ is to make the statement that God is enough. He’s enough when I’m mad, disappointed, misunderstood, and doubted. If we hang on to Christ, that is enough. It’s all that we need.

Hang on to life through Christ. Otherwise, the death of bitterness and disillusionment will take you down.

Living Water

I’m drinking a bottle of Deer Park water as I write this. It probably came from the tap down the street, but it IS bottled.

When I get a new bottle of water, I always check to see where it is bottled. There are certain locations that produce bottled water that I don’t like. I always check the label.

Jesus refers to himself as living water. In other words, he has the ability to satisfy needs that go beyond the physical. These are the real needs of life, the spiritual needs. I have a feeling that if everyone knew where this water came from that he offered, they would rush to drink it. How can they know where it comes from? It comes with a label, just like regular bottled water. That label is you.

Who is your One Life? Who is that person that needs to understand what it means to follow Christ, to know God? Pray for them, and invite them. We are hearing the rumblings of some pretty cool One Life stories beginning to surface. Someone you know needs a new story – will you help them?

Seeking God

Today is our first day reading for our Why journey. The question posed for today is “How important is it for you to seek God?” I guess that depends on what you want.

Its not very important if:
You don’t want to have purpose.
You like being miserable.
You want the emptiness of dying lonely.
You want to be in control of everything – even your tragedies.
You don’t need any help.
You prefer temporary to lasting.
You want to take your chances.
You don’t mind heat and thirst.

Its pretty important if:
You care about why you are here.
You want more than just existence.
You like risk and reward.
You want anything added to you.
You care about leaving something that lasts for others.
You like angels with halos and wings.

Clearly, what we do about God is the single most important decision we make in life. Over these next 40 days, our challenge is to pursue this most important issue. It could mean the difference between life and death.