The Beckley Sessions

I have to admit that I am a slacker. I was reading Kevin's blawg (as he likes to describe it) and he was promoting David's future project.

David is our Chief Musician/Worship Leader at StoneBridge. He's not only our worship leader, but he is our graphic designer, future web designer, and a small group leader. In my opinion, he is an amazing singer with the talent to make it to the Big Leagues!

If you are looking for someone worthy of support, please support his new album! With that being said, David, you can expect a donation from me...maybe a $1.00...just kidding!

Building Bridges

When we first moved to Morgantown we used the motto, "A Bridge To A Better Life."For some reason I was thinking about that the other day. In essence, what we were saying to a lost and dying world was, "Your life is not any good, try ours!"

For those of us who are Christians, we know that our life AC (after Christ) is a ton better than BC (before Christ), but trying to convey this to people without a relationship with Christ is like trying to sell Ocean Front Property in Arizona. For the most part, they just don't get it!

I told someone the other day that I sometimes feel like a "Used Church Salesman". "Try our church, we meet in a Theatre." "Try our church, we have Small Groups." "Try our church it is really friendly." "Try our church we are an authentic group of believers striving to carry out God's love to the people of Morgantown and the World." All of these things are TRUE, but what we need is a good dose of the Great Commandment and the Great Commission.

Rick Warren said, "A church that is committed to the Great Commandment and the Great Commission will grow a Great church." I like that! We are striving to Build Bridges in our community. Lately, God has burdened me to reach a certain group of people on campus. I'm telling you that if God will reach a few of these students, it is possible for our church to turn the campus of West Virginia University upside down!

Russ Sums Up The Day

Check out his blog here.

Waiting On The World To Change

Far too many churches (including StoneBridge) are waiting for the world to change, but we are not actively involved in changing the world. What changes the world? Is it a cold cup of water in Jesus name? Is it a hot cup of Joe on a cold wintry day?

The book of Acts begins with this verse, 1:1, "The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach,"

A couple of the key factors are seen in this verse concerning changing the world. The way we change the world is by what we do and what we teach! Only Jesus Christ can truly change the world, but He has chosen people to carry out His plan. This plan is quite complex for most of us. I think the reason it is confusing is because we see other churches growing, and we wonder, "What's wrong with us? Why aren't we growing?" I am reminded of what Nelson Searcy said in his CD, Breaking the 65 Barrier. He said, "The question is not 'Why', but 'What'." What are we doing to break the church growth barriers? If we are not growing, it doesn't always mean that we are not doing, but we had better examine our schedules, our witness, our quality (in the worship service), and most of all our prayer lives. Prayer is the outlet that gives us the juice to do what we were called to do!

We must constantly remind people what God wants them to do, and if we are going to tell people what they are supposed to be doing, we had better be doing as well. We must be in the trenches with our soldiers. We must be willing to get our feet wet and our hands dirty. As Chris Farley used to say, "Who's with me?"

The Last Day Of January

Today was spent in Panera Bread discussing new ideas for ministry, plus making preparations for our Baptism service this coming Sunday. I am so stoked about baptizing Diane, Steven, and Christa. Last year, we had a total of two baptisms, so, with that being said, we are definitely striving to be more missional this year!

The first four messages of 2007 were:

1. The Biblical Basis of Baptism.


2. Addicted to the Ministry.


3. Diving Lessons.


4. Developing a Persistent Prayer Life.

I had such a good time preaching this series. I believe God used it to challenge and convict our people. January was a good month for StoneBridge. I am looking forward to what God has in store for our church in 2007. Pray for us!

This Sunday!

The world will not change, until we are willing to be World Changers!

Exciting Things Happening At StoneBridge

So far, So God! I believe Mark Batterson said that one time. So far, January has proven to be fruitful. God continues to bless us with people who are excited about following Jesus. The first Sunday in January, I preached a message on The Biblical Basis of Baptism. I felt like it was one of the best messages I had done in a long time. After the message, a young mother requested to be baptized. I was pumped! We had two baptisms the entire 2006 year.

Then, Russell called me to tell me that two (possibly three) college students wants to be baptized. Thank you, Lord. I have been so burdened about this need. I believe it is important for people who have professed Christ to make a public profession of their faith, by entering the waters of baptism. We have set a goal this year as a church to see 75 people saved and 24 baptized. Now, before I get hate mail (just kidding), I would love to see 75 people saved (if not more) and 75 people baptized, but the reality of this is not likely because each year we host a Sports Camp where several kids accept Christ. Most of these kids are either churched or have no church background. So, following up with these unchurched kids has not been productive even though we try to follow up with every person who accepts Christ as Savior.

The assimilation process of seeing people move from unchurched, saved, baptized, and a fully developing follower of Jesus Christ is difficult, and the reason I think it is difficult is because we make it difficult. We do not plan for growth. We do not remind people of what they are supposed to do. If we want to see people assimilated in our churches we must constantly remind people of what a disciple looks like. We must remind our people about the mission of the local church. It is to reach people, make more and better disciples who in turn will reach people and make more and better disciples.

One Year Anniversary

Our "Chief Musician", David Story, celebrated his one year anniversary with StoneBridge yesterday. We celebrated his arrival last night by watching the first half of the Colts game. The Colts were taking a good ole fashion whoopn' in the first half, so most everyone decided to head to the house.

I got home from the party, tucked the kids in bed, turned on the tube, and the Colts were tied with the Patriots 28-28. I couldn't believe it. After the Colts went ahead of the Patriots I got on the horn to call David. When he picked up his phone he yelled "Touchdown!" What an amazing comeback for the Colts. I am proud for David, Matt (another Hoosier in our church), and for Tony Dungy.

Happy Anniversary David!

Go Deep

Sunday starts a new series for the 2007 Church Year! I have entitled this series Go Deep! The main idea behind the series is to get people thinking about baptism, discipleship, and fellowship within StoneBridge Baptist Church.

I am excited to see how God is going to use this series of messages to impact the lives of people. I am excited to share with people the need to Go Deep with God.

So far (like most years), I have started the year out strong in my Bible reading. One of the things I am doing is reading three to four chapters a day in the New Testament. If I will continue this, I will be finished with the New Testament by the end of 90 days. This is exciting. I thank God for the New Year, because it gives me a fresh start at going deeper with the Lord.

If you have not started your daily Bible reading, I want to encourage you to find time each day to read three or four chapters. It really isn't that hard to do. It takes about 17-20 minutes per day. Come on, YOU CAN DO IT!

If you are an audio learner, you can go to Audio Bible to listen to Alexander Scourby read the entire Bible.

Whatever you do, do it all for the glory and honor of Christ. Peace!

State Of The Church Address

Thanks to the people of Wikipedia: The State of the Union Address is an annual event in which the President of the United States reports on the status of the country, normally to a joint session of the U.S. Congress (the House of Representatives and the Senate). The address is also used to outline the President's legislative proposals for the upcoming year. It has occurred in January except for six occasions in February since 1934. The 2006 address took place on January 31.

This coming Sunday I have entitled my message: The State of the Church Address. I want to report on the status of StoneBridge and give a brief overview of where we are going in 2007. It is my prayer that God would direct my thoughts this week as I prepare for this message and try to relay to our people the vision God has given to our church. We have had a great year. God has blessed our numbers. We have averaged in the fifties and sixties since July, and have been breaking monthly financial averages. God is good!

One thing I envision for 2007 is for our church to make more and better disciples. I am burdened about the number of people who have not been baptized and discipled through our efforts at StoneBridge. I believe we have done a decent job of getting people to come and see, but making disciples has been a weak point for us. I pray for God to multiply our Small Groups, LTGs, and Baptisms. I have even been thinking about the possibility of starting another service in August 2007. With these dreams comes laborers. We will need our people to take more responsibility in 2007. They are awesome people, and I know they are up for the challenge.

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve in Morgantown should be interesting. StoneBridge is reenacting the Christmas Story (the real one) with toddlers as the characters! I'm lovin' it!

Put Me In Coach

Last night after playing some round ball, I received opportunity to pray with three other men. It was refreshing!

One of the men (who attends StoneBridge) is a new Christian. God has been working in his life for the past several months. In his prayer last night, he related life to playing Basketball. It was an awesome prayer! He started out by saying, "Dear God, you know I'm not very good at this, but I want to try to make an analogy in my prayer." He continued, "Life is a lot like playing basketball. The first quarter, I didn't do to well. The second quarter, I did a little bit better, but I was still struggling. Now, it's half time, God, and you are the Coach. Help me to listen to your instructions, and help me run the plays which You have designed for me. I hope I can have a better 3rd and 4th Quarter. In Jesus name I pray, Amen."

When I think about that prayer, I am stand amazed at what God can do with people. You know, I have had some pretty rough quarters myself. It is only when I listen to my Coach (Jesus) that I have an outstanding game. It is my prayer that we will all finish strong. Whatever struggles you may be facing, Coach has the answers.

One More Reason I Love Officing AT Panera

Today (feeling a little Spiritually down), I met an elderly couple named Bob and Herod. Yes, her name is Herod. Isn't that amazing? After speaking with them for a little while, I found out that they attend a Baptist Church in Reedsville, WV. They are a sweet couple! They asked where I Pastor, and I told them StoneBridge Baptist Church. They said, "Oh yeah, your church washed our vehicle (during CityReach)." She continued, "We've been talking about attending your church during the wintry months." I told them that would be great!

Then, I normally talk with a Mail Carrier each time he is in Panera. His name is Dave. He is a Sunday School teacher at a Baptist Church in Reedsville, WV. The encouragement I received today from these folks was amazing. I am thankful for the Family of God!

Farewell To Great Friends

Living in a college town has its pros and cons. The pros are: a young, vibrant, excited church. The cons are: this young, vibrant, excited church sometimes moves away.

Chris and Veda B. have been attending our church since March of 2004.

Recently, Chris accepted a job in Roanoke, Virginia. I will miss their warm smiles, laid back attitudes, genuine hospitality and love for Christ. These two folks will be deeply missed!

As a matter of fact, I haven't been too sentimental over their move until I started this blog entry. Kristie and I had a great time visiting with them today. I went to Ethan's (their oldest son) Christmas Program, then, we went to the Olive Garden for lunch.

I know that we will never replace them, but, I do pray for God to send us more willing workers like Chris and Veda. Guys, I love you, and I am thankful for the eternal friendship we have developed over the past (almost) three years. God bless you!

Someone Brought A 12 Gauge Shotgun And An IPOD To Church!

Can you believe it? Someone brought a 12 Gauge Shotgun and an Ipod to our church yesterday!

David opened up the service by saying, "This is going to be a little different service than usual. Today, we want to honor our pastors." He continued, "Two years ago, I received a call from a guy with an East Texas accent who wanted me to transfer schools. I thought, who does this guy think he is! Well, it has been almost a year now since I moved from Fairmount, Indiana to Morgantown, West Virginia. We are all here today, because the Sheffstalls and the Knights were willing to move from Texas to West Virgina."

After David's comments, several people in our church stood up and graced us with kind words. I love this place! After everyone was finished speaking, they encouraged us to come forward to receive gifts. I received an IPOD (Yahoo, Yipee...hooray) and Russell received a 12 Gauge Shotgun.

It only gets better. Not only did they grace us with words, give gifts to men, but they gathered around us to pray.

I thank God for the privilege of pastoring this church! Thank you Lord for all of your blessings!!!

Four More Sundays

We have four more Sundays in 2006 to impact lives. What will we say to influence people to move from the stands to the playing field? How will God use His message to convict, convince, and encourage us to do more for Him in 2007?

What will God do through His churches in order for our communities to take notice? Mark Batterson said, "The Good news ought to make the news."

I talked with a friend of mine today who is a pastor in Arkansas. One of the things his church is doing to make the news is an Absolutely Free Gift Wrapping Service at the local Mall. I thought that was a great way for his church to serve their community and honor Christ. I truly believe that if our churches are going to make a difference we must show Christ through our actions, and then, we'll be blessed with opportunities to share Christ.

Happy Sharing!

This Sunday

I'm looking forward to getting back in the saddle on Sunday. I will finish the Y Series with a message on Y-Church. Y Church will deal with the benefits of connecting with a local church. The Biblical text comes from Acts 2:41-47.

I can not speak for my readers, but I am thankful for the Lord's churches. When we connect to the local church, we are not just connecting to an organization, we are connecting to a family of like-minded believers who desire to sincerely worship the Lord and carry out His work!

Joining this family of believers is a privilege and honor. It is important for the leaders of the churches to challenge people to take their position in the family seriously. I have been listening to Nelson Searcy's seminar on Assimilation. One of the things he encouraged leaders to implement was the power of mobilization. He called it, "The Power of the Big Ask!" In other words, if we don't ask people to get involved in ministry, they probably will not.

I hope you all have a great Sunday!