A friend of mine recently introduced me to the site GodTube and I was pleasantly surprised to find such a community of believers online?  I felt as though I might be the only one in the world that had never heard of Godtube (now known as Tangle) before - so I’m glad to share the information with you in case there is someone else out there that hasn’t heard of it either!

The site really is comparable to most other online social networks - but with a strong Christian foundation; without being cheesy!  There are a variety of videos, songs, blogs, posts, pictures, and more all in an effort to share the the goodness of God with the world (while providing a few laughs along the way too!)  What I found most innovative was the “Prayer Wall”.  People from anywhere in the world can post their prayers on this wall so that others can be praying for them.

I would be enthused if my child came home everyday wanting to see what was new on GodTube!  I wonder what the world would look like if everyone put God first?

Check out Godtube & share your thoughts.

Nina

What a concept! To love someone as much as I truly love myself, WOW! That would be quite a feat. When I consider the number of times a day I think of myself, put myself first and just plain do what I want; I must really love myself a lot!  To love someone, no everyone, that much is overwhelming!  It’s enough to make anyone want to give up; until you really take a look at what it REALLY means to love. I think love is as simple as a smile to someone when you running late for work or holding the door for someone as they come into the mall. To love others as we love ourselves can be overwhelming, if we let it be or it can be very practical, if we allow it to be.  True love is caring enough to stop thinking about yourself for a moment and think of someone else - anyone else.  I challenge you to love someone- anyone, everyday this week as you would love yourself. It may be as easy as helping carry something for someone when they need help or it may be as complex as giving a ride to someone who would  normally take public transit. WOW! True love, what a concept!

Well this is my first official blog - so I’ll start by saying “Hi!”

This week I had the opportunity to participate in one of the Learning Group sessions that launched earlier this month.  As a parent of 3 children (one of them being a pre-teen boy with raging horomones) I thought it would be a good idea to get some Value Packed Parenting advice on the art of child-rearing.  My husband had attended the first session and offered some encouraging feedback, so I figured it would be best if I joined him the next time around - which was exactly what I did!

Not only was it great to get some positive guidance from Dr. Kevin Leman what I enjoyed the most was the open discussions with the other parents present. It was inspiring to realize not only can I learn from others in the group but parents are learning from me too!  The experience confirmed that no one (except our Lord & Savior) has all the answers - but we all have some valuable insights to offer each other - and we can only try and do our best everyday.

I’m looking forward to our group meeting next week, and anticipate that it will be just as rewarding as the last one.  I’ve decided that every week if I can take just 1 tidbit of information away, that my husband and I can begin to apply together, than we’ll be just a little bit better off than we were the week before.

To be really truthful I think the most enjoyment comes from spending time with other adults building a real sense of community, while discussing something relevant to all of us is the rewarding part of the evening. Learning how to be a better parent is just an added bonus!!!

Those are my thoughts, if you have any suggestions feel free to share.

Nina

The Abbreviated Version

I don’t know what else to call it except for what the title says, “Prayer Birthing.”  This experience has left me exhausted and yet overwhelmed by the answer that I received in intensive prayer.  I guess prayer birthing is a statement that can explain what has just occurred in my life over the past 12 months.

The word prayer has a whole bunch of ideas associated with it, but most of us understand what prayer is all about.  It’s a means of communication to God whether you’re looking for an answer or just trying to convey your thoughts to Him on a daily basis.

The though of birthing for those of us who don’t give birth (all men included) comes with a whole new set of understanding and possibly a weak stomach for others.  My definition for this purpose is simply the delivery of a promise.

Now for what I’m attempting to explain here prayer birthing is simply a need that has been presented to God which has gone through a period of time then finally a delivered promise comes forth.

So let me explain to you my most recent prayer birthing experience.  It has been over a year now since we have been searching and praying and seeking God to provide us with some direction and answers in regards to church strategy.  Part of the answer for our growth strategy is that God would provide some new staff members to help us strengthen our efforts in the community.

This may sound like a simple task- go and find someone that will fill the current need, there, done!  Problem is, there is no one qualified in my opinion to help us accomplish what needs to be done in our unique setting in the city of Toronto.  We looked high and low, (and sometimes felt very low), we looked north and south, and finally went east and west, then that’s where it happened, east.

So for a number of months now we have been in contact with a young couple with a passion to reach people with the message of Christ in the city of Toronto.  This couple does not live in the immediate area, in fact they are currently residing in Hong Kong (far East).  This task to be honest seemed kind of daunting and a bit challenging to take on- however, we have found the right fit!

After meeting with our new friends Junn & Tet for three weeks in the summer of 2008 we knew and they knew this was a God appointment.  The fun part occurred in acquiring the visa paperwork that is required.  After doing everything the officials told us we must do in order to process their paperwork we applied and then were rejected- my heart dropped!

What in the world is going on?  Didn’t you approve this God?  What about all the time spent in prayer, did it not mean anything?  These are just some of the thoughts that I had when this happened.  After catching my breath and seeking legal counsel, we recognized this sort of thing was to be expected as we realize that what we are doing is bigger than any one of us, but this is God’s deal and He’s going to make it come to pass.  Anyway, sometimes easier said than done.

So after spending some time in prayer, I really felt God speaking that this process was going to be similar to a birthing process (oh great I get to give birth, thought that was just for women).  The answer to our prayers was given, we just needed to wait until the mature time to see His answer come to fruition.

It’s been 12 months since our first discussion with Junn & Tet, and they have finally been approved to come to Canada!!!! Hooraaaaay!!!  We are anticipating their arrival very soon and look forward to what God has in store for us as a revolutionary group of people trying to impact the world we live in with God’s transformational power.  (that’s a mouthful!)

Please continue to keep the DeLeon family in your prayers as they seek to serve Him and humbly do what God has called them to do in the city of Toronto.

Prayer Birthing, not an easy task but then again who said it would be easy?

Do you have a prayer birthing story to share?  Go ahead and post a comment.

Dave

Read Dr. David Yonggi Cho’s book: The Fourth Dimension on this concept of prayer birthing.

So last week I gave everyone a bit of homework.  The goal was to go home and look for instances in your life where you could grow in peace.  I thought this would be especially appropriate as we head into this crazy month of shopping and Christmas bedlum.

Yesterday, Evelyn Mason, an amazing woman and an advisory board member emailed me her peace story.  I thought it would be good to share with you.  Hopefully, it will inspire you (as it did me) to live with enough courage to ask God to help you live with the peace He wants to give you.

MY PEACE STORY (By: Evelyn)

As you know, I have always loved public speaking. In fact, it is what I excelled at most in school. The thought of preparing for and presenting in front of an audience thrills me to the core. For years, I would painlessly walk in front of a crowd and start yammering. But, somwhere over the last couple of years, I began to learn what the phrase ‘crap your pants’ really meant. My body would start to react oddly before I would make a presentation. I began to feel deep anxiousness before presenting - NOT peaceful at all. It confused me that something that came so natural to me…was now something that took so much more energy, a few trips to the washroom and a lot of self talk to get me ready for.

Last week, I had a presentation for work. A really big presentation in front of the entire marketing department (which, at my level in the organization is a pretty big deal). I started to mentally prepare myself weeks ago. But, as per the ‘new’ usual…I started to feel very anxious as I practiced in my bedroom the night before. I was stumpling over my words, breathing deepling, feeling nausiated and sick to my stomach. I thought… this is not right. God gave me this amazing opportunity…AND the skills to be successful at this.

So I reread a very familiar verse - this time with some new outook. Philippians 4:6-7. ??6 Do not be anxious about anything , but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Which normally, I would just read the parts highlighted in blue above, skipping over the most important step…my part in the deal!! ??”…but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.“

Right then I realized that…this opportunity was a blessing from God…and of course he wanted me to succeed. And this feeling of anxiousness wasn’t something that came along with the deal. I didn’t have to feel sick with anxiousness. So I thanked God for the opportunity, took time to pray about it…and THEN I felt his peace. But I somehow knew that from that point up until my presentation - i would have to actively choose to walk in that peace, because the same fears still existed…the enemy still wanted me not to succeed. But I had to do my part…and trust God. The next morning…I felt a comfortable and healthy nervousness I should feel…and my heart and mind was definetly guarded from negative thoughts/feelings that would lead to anxiouness. The presentation went well…and it was clear God was with me all alone the way.

So whatever situation you may be in today - maybe the key is just to ask God for peace…Go ahead -  right now - wherever you are, ask him for peace.  And then believe him for it.  It’s as simple as that.

Jess

 I’d like to thank my producer, the director, the songwriters, the craft service department (that’s the caterer)….a bunch of really important people- but most of all I’d like to thank God.  

It went something like that as I watched the American Music Awards last night and it got me thinking.  

First of all what does this mean to most people?  Who is God, why are you thanking Him and what does He mean to you?  Maybe I’m reading too much into it- but I know why I’d thank Him so let me share with you my top 8 reasons (in no particular order). 

I’d like to thank God because of:

1. A million second chances

2. A beautiful family

3. Amazing wife & best friend

4. Incredible church family

5. Health & Safety

6. Opportunities to use my gifts

7. Opportunities to Share my life story with others

8. My new haircut

(who knew that a simple “test post” on Facebook by Jess about my upcoming haircut would create such a stir).

There you go, that’s my short list.  What are your thoughts? Send me a comment, send me a video.

Dave

I really love Christmas.  It is perhaps my favorite time of year.  In general I am not that much of a nostalgic person - but during Christmas I love every cheesy ritual and tradition I can get my hands on.  And I am trying hard to make my family love the season as much as I do.  

So tonight was the night we put the tree up - I had been watching the weather channel for about a week straight and it said it was going to be lightly snowing on Wednesday night - so wanting a picture perfect decorating party - I made an executive family decision that November 19th would be an excellent day to begin the advent season.  

We started off the way every Christmas decorating party begins in our house - playing Mariah Carey’s Christmas at full blast - which I believe is the best Christmas album ever made in the history of mankind (okay - this may be debatable but really how can you compete with her version of “O Holy Night”) 

Then we put the ornaments on - which are a hodgepodge of ornaments that I have been collecting my entire life (many of them are so old and ghetto you can’t exactly tell what they are supposed to be anymore - but I am too sentimental to get rid of them - so I just tell my kids that they are “surprise” ornaments). Then we turn all the lights off in our house and sit around the tree and talk about what Christmas means. 

Everything was going so well - just like a Christmas Hallmark movie (I even asked Dave to get the video camera out - so I could remember what a perfect family I have) until we decided to sing a family Christmas carol.  Amira and Julian decided it would be fun to dance and that’s when everything kind of went south.  Amira started doing twirls when she sort of went out of control and sat on a branch of the freshly decorated Christmas tree.  All I heard was crack and crash - a horrified scream from my daughter and a little two year’s voice saying, “She’s bum is stuck on the tree.” 

When we finally got her untangled from the branches and calmed her down - she looked at me and said - I’m sorry I wrecked Christmas mom, I’m so sorry.”   My heart nearly broke in two.   All of a sudden I realized how easy it is for rituals to overtake true meaning.

As I sit here tonight and think about my life in it’s entirety I recognize that Christmas isn’t the only time I do this.  There are all kinds of things in my life that I must continually assess to make sure that I am living with meaning and not just useless tradition.  Here are some examples: 

• sometimes I say “I love you” without really thinking about what I am saying. 
• sometimes I sing worship songs without really engaging in worship. 
• sometimes I pretend to be listening when I’m really somewhere else in my mind. 
• sometimes I pray prayers giving things over to God - without really releasing anything at all.

So this year I have a ghetto tree.  And every time I walk by it - I’m going to remember that it’s not just the tradition that makes this season special - it’s meaning and memories we make in the midst of it.  It’s not just rituals that make my faith come alive - it’s engaging with the true person of Jesus. 

You probably aren’t crazy like me - you probably haven’t started decorating yet.  But maybe there are a few rituals that you could turn into real meaning this week. 

Thoughts? 

jess

So I have a confession to make if you haven’t already noticed, I’m a bit of a neat freak, and somewhat of a control freak.  Yes, it’s true.  I like everything in its place, and there is a place for everything.  I’m teaching my 4 year old daughter to clean up after her play time, and to put away her toys when she’s done playing. My son, well he’s 2 now but he’s learning and I’m very impressed by his instinct.

Now if you speak to my wife we have different opinions on this sometimes and it can cause a little ‘friction’ if you know what I mean.  I see the chaos as an opportunity for it to be taught to become organized.  My wife sees chaos as a lesson in creativity.

Truth is, there isn’t one way of seeing things, everyone has a different perspective.  

As I lead this incredible church in it’s formative years, there are a variety of challenges and incredible miracles that I witness daily.  But sometimes I get stumped!  I don’t know what to do.  I can’t see past the chaos and the brokenness (shhh don’t tell anyone!).  This is when I begin looking around and try to figure out what makes sense, what ideas I could employ, what new methodologies or systems could I put in place to organize all the chaos and take over the reigns.

I guess what I’m learning as I hear God’s voice speaking, is that there isn’t only one way of doing things that would please the Father.  I’ve just got to be honest about doing what He is asking me to do and be ok wth it.  I’ve got to let go of the control and if that means a little bit of chaos then I have to trust that God knows what He’s doing.

Have you had any similar struggles? How have you dealt with the organized chaos in your life?

Dave

Okay - so a few hours ago I read this article from CNN on churches and security measures.  Now hear me - I am all about security and making sure that there is an adequate amount of thought given to risk management, but I am also of the opinion that this can go too far.

In reading this article a few thoughts went through my mind:

1) In a culture of fear how should the church respond?  My initial thought is that by locking the doors and hiring security companies - we only promote fear - which the Bible is clear- doesn’t come from God.

2) It’s obvious from this article that lots of people don’t feel very safe at church.  How can we make sure that people feel secure without the prison atmosphere?

3) I wonder how someone totally foreign to church would feel if we took on security detail like this?  Would they really feel safer - or would it just confirm the belief that a lot of nuts are attracted to church?

Jessica

Thoughts?