http://www.churchatcharlotte.org/site/index.php?/blog/stirred/ en info@churchatcharlotte.org Copyright 2011 2011-09-19T21:17:17+00:00 http://www.churchatcharlotte.org/site/index.php/blog/entry/stirred/grace-is-enough-thank-goodness/ http://www.churchatcharlotte.org/site/index.php/blog/entry/stirred/grace-is-enough-thank-goodness/ I needed grace this morning. I forgot a meeting with a friend. It left me feeling awful and as I placed a call to apologize I realized what I was hoping for was his extending grace to me, which he did. I still feel bad hours later but I am humbled by his willingness to be gracious. It was a reminder and gave me a taste of my Heavenly Father’s grace poured out in Christ. If I didn’t have that I would truly be in a desperate place. I learned a fresh lesson today about grace and I am thankful. 2011-09-19T21:17:17+00:00 http://www.churchatcharlotte.org/site/index.php/blog/entry/stirred/humbled/ http://www.churchatcharlotte.org/site/index.php/blog/entry/stirred/humbled/ I just returned from a short trip to Costa Rica, meeting with some partners and friends who we are working with. It happens almost every trip i take to one of our focus countries and this trip was no exception - I come home humbled. The believers I met amazed me with their simple and deep faith, their willingness to pursue Christ and the joy they share with each other. “Lord, help me to live more faithfully for you.” 2011-09-15T17:18:29+00:00 http://www.churchatcharlotte.org/site/index.php/blog/entry/stirred/magnificent/ http://www.churchatcharlotte.org/site/index.php/blog/entry/stirred/magnificent/ “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word.” - Hebrew 1:3 This verse is a magnificent picture of the majesty of Jesus. It points to the great truth that Christ is the central point of all the Father’s revelation to us. He not only reflects and completely represents the Father - his word is life giving and final. What if today we spent time reflecting on Jesus, who is our savior. 2011-02-16T13:40:35+00:00 http://www.churchatcharlotte.org/site/index.php/blog/entry/stirred/heading-there-this-weekend/ http://www.churchatcharlotte.org/site/index.php/blog/entry/stirred/heading-there-this-weekend/ This coming weekend we are in the meat of chapter two from Colossians. I was reading the passage from the Living Bible and found my heart resonating with the way it phrased verses 6 and 7. I hope this will stir your heart to rejoice in all that Jesus has done. “And now just as you trusted Christ to save you, trust him, too, for each day’s problems; live in vital union with him. Let your roots grow down into him and draw up nourishment from him. See that you go on growing in the Lord, and become strong and vigorous in the truth you were taught. Let your lives overflow with joy and thanksgiving for all he has done.” 2011-02-14T17:44:11+00:00 http://www.churchatcharlotte.org/site/index.php/blog/entry/stirred/hope-for-a-friday/ http://www.churchatcharlotte.org/site/index.php/blog/entry/stirred/hope-for-a-friday/ On this Friday morning I want to share a source of hope with you. It is found in an unlikely place, the Book of Micah: “But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.” The truth of Micah rings true not only then but today, not only on a Friday but everyday. Hope emerges when God becomes the focus of my attention. It many times rises in antitheses of my current circumstances and it stands alone. I want to say with the hymn writer - my hope is in the Lord. 2011-01-28T14:21:55+00:00 http://www.churchatcharlotte.org/site/index.php/blog/entry/stirred/above-all/ http://www.churchatcharlotte.org/site/index.php/blog/entry/stirred/above-all/ Wonderful words from the heart of the psalmist David - “The Lord has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all.” In the midst of an ever-changing world I find hope and comfort that I worship a God who is on his throne, has never left his throne and who’s kingdom is above all others. I know we fear at times where the world is headed yet I believe it is God who will write the future and bring all things to his intended end. Take hope. 2011-01-26T16:24:28+00:00 http://www.churchatcharlotte.org/site/index.php/blog/entry/stirred/i-need-grace/ http://www.churchatcharlotte.org/site/index.php/blog/entry/stirred/i-need-grace/ I was reading in the book,The Valley of Vision, this morning and was struck by this phrase: “I am sinful even in my closest walk with thee, my heart is an unexhausted fountain of sin ... flowing on in every pattern of behavior.” That reality is difficult to think about but also drives us to a deeper dependence on Christ and his grace. The battle we face is a daily struggle and we are foolish if we think ourselves capable of winning on our own. Oh how I need his grace. 2011-01-25T12:54:55+00:00 http://www.churchatcharlotte.org/site/index.php/blog/entry/stirred/stuff1/ http://www.churchatcharlotte.org/site/index.php/blog/entry/stirred/stuff1/ It was my good friend Walt Wiley who once titled a message “Stuff”. When you think about it, for a simple word it is very descriptive. I am in a setting this week where I am examining the issue of stuff. The reality for me is, stuff holds far too much of my heart. I suspect this will be a battle I face for the rest of my life. What I long for is a deepening hold of God on my heart and the loosening grip of stuff. How are you doing with the stuff in your life? 2011-01-24T13:20:34+00:00 http://www.churchatcharlotte.org/site/index.php/blog/entry/stirred/never-clear-cut/ http://www.churchatcharlotte.org/site/index.php/blog/entry/stirred/never-clear-cut/ One thing I have noticed about life, it is seldom clear cut or black and white or nice and neat - you use whatever cliche you want. Many times it feels like packing a suitcase, going to close it and something is still hanging out. The same can also be said when trying to understand how God is working. Paul says in I Corinthians that he is going to stay longer in Ephesus. Why?  ” Because a great door for effective work has opened to me…” which to us make sense. He goes on “...and there are many who oppose me.” As i read those words, it feels like the shirt hanging out.  God may open doors but clothes still hang out of suitcases.  2011-01-17T13:46:06+00:00 http://www.churchatcharlotte.org/site/index.php/blog/entry/stirred/different/ http://www.churchatcharlotte.org/site/index.php/blog/entry/stirred/different/ If you were to come to our home you would think you lived in two different worlds, depending on which window you looked out. Sit in our kitchen and look out toward the back yard and it still looks like it did last Tuesday. The snow covers the ground and the sheet of ice remains on top. Go to the front of the house and look across the street to my neighbor’s yard and you see grass. The difference - the sun. The change that occured is where the sun hit and transformed the landscape. The same truth is there for our hearts, until the Son hits our lives transformation will never take place. We all need to allow Jesus to shine on our lives and melt, then mold our hearts. 2011-01-16T12:44:59+00:00