Update

Wow... Its been a long time.
So here we are. Amber and I are in cheyenne. We have finished getting our apartment looking like its livable. We absolutely love it here. I love my being a part of element church and working for Jeff. Jeff truely is amazing and gifted of God, I have learned and enjoyed so much from being apart of his life. Element Church is beginning. Its great when vision starts to unfold. When what has been in your heart for so long starts to take shape.

Amber, today actually, has started working at a great dental office here in cheyenne, actually one that was not hiring until they saw here resume (what a suprise)! She is so excited cause this is where she wanted to work. It reminded her of Eagle Summit in Buffalo.

I will start posting more consistently from here on out.


For the Lamb's reward,
Adam

I had a feeling about you guys

I love our God. I love how His people are everywhere and we can just sense things about eachother in the spiritual realm with out even knowing eachother. This weekend Amber and I led worship for a World Hope conference in Buffalo Wyoming which went really well by the way for all of you that were praying, thanks. So in the afternoon before rehearsal Friday, I went and sat down at Deerfields coffee shop and was going to work on my set list, drink a Peach smoothie, and hand out relaxing. When Amber and I got there we were greeted by the 26something year old manager who just seemed like a really cool guy. After a few questions we discovered that we were both christians but not only that, we were both youth pastors. He said "I had a feeling about you guys", crazy. I love that. So that sprung all sorts of conversation for the next 1 1/2 hours about music and youth stuff and life and culture. We both were so identical in hobbies and other things it was crazy. Anyways I locked in a gig with him at his coffee shop, and a couple potential things with worship, which was pretty cool and was able to encouraged eachtother in some things. We knew similar people which helped with the concert stuff. He is new to the area and doesn't know anyone really, so he is going to get connected into our ultimate frisbee games we do every sunday as well as getting connected into our college ministry here. I love meeting people and helping them get connected like this, especially in the public places.

* also a side note: we had a hangout night last night over at some friends house with a bunch of friends in Buffalo and Amber invited her co- worker and husband who have been very dissatisfied with life and opposing to the gospel and church. They have been saying weird things lately like "I want to read the Bible", or "I don't feel alive inside", so we have got her reading the Bible which she has been doing faithfully daily for like 2 weeks straight and also she has been reading Purpose Driven Life, and says "I can't put it down". Don't know what God is doing here but they don't have a lot of friends in the area and they never come when we invite them to stuff, but they showed up last night and stayed late and had a great time, I hope this is the beginning of great things to come. Isn't God good.

I just love how God works, nothing profound that I am writing just was thinking about this and how much I love to be a Christ follower and see how he connects all his people. I love meeting new people and it really sparked a fire in me for whats going to happen in cheyenne. Its going to be a lot of coffee shops and meeting new people, some believers and some not, but just meeting people and thats what I love.



for the Lamb's reward,
Adam

culture relevance and biblical depth

I have read a lot of blog's today, its jeff's fault. For the last year I have been thinking and processing this thought. In August last year I went to Belize for a mission trip. I know that all of us when we get out of our comfort zone and do missions or something we come back all fired up about what is important. Then often times it fades till the next time. Anyways, this thought hasn't faded from my mind. One night after our youth service here in wyoming, I was thinking about how cool and creative it was, how much fun the kids had during the game, how powerfull our time of worship was, and I really felt like the kids had connected with the message. And I remember thinking about the kids in Belize who had no youth pastor, no worship leader (they worshipped with cd's), no fun games, and no fancy lights or comfortable chairs and yet they connected with God. So I thought what would happen to our youth group if we took all the posters down, took out the sound system and just had the guitar and vocals, took away the projector and creative videos, and took out the comfortable couches. What would happen after a few weeks, the first few weeks the kids would love it cause its different, something we have never done. But after a couple weeks they would stop showing up. Now maybe they wouldn't but I did have to think would they really keep coming. Are they coming to connect with eachother and God and really listen to the message and small groups, or do they come just for all the fun, glitz and glamour. Now listen, I am not pushing for a dull boring service, cause you have to connect with them where they are. Kids and for that matter all of us want to have a good time. But sometimes in our entertain me generation I wonder if we just come to church to be entertained or do we come to connect with God. Now understand that I believe every culture is different, we couldn't take american ways and expect some remote tribe in africa to respond to our style, we have to learn their culture. And so this is where our culture is, lights, loud music, rock worship, creative videos, creative stage set up, relevant topics, donuts and coffee before service. So to reach our culture this is where we have to go, but I just want to know that we remain biblically sound and deep. I know a lot of people who loose focus of this and are concerned week to week with being culturally relevant and being the coolest new thing out there, with our 6 different services all with a different style, all that but let biblical and relational depth fade. I am not saying to do away with all this, and not to be culturally relevant. Trust me I love the New Life Church style and the Desperation Conferences, but the flashy experience isn't going to keep me on fire for ever. It will be a relationship with Christ that is vibrantly growing day by day that keeps me on fire.

I met a young pastor who told me I needed to watch mtv at least 1-2 hours a day to know what was relevant among teenagers today. lol. Hogwash. I think thats crap. This is the kind of heart I am talking about.

I am all about being professional in presentation and doing it well cause otherwise you risk being a distraction.

Anyways there is a balance and I just found myself asking and checking am I connecting and really hepling these people connect with God or are we just entertaining them on a weekly basis. Cause in the end I want people that are experiencing the depths of God and not just surface christianity.


for the Lamb's reward
Adam

I love to worship!

The other night my wife and I were driving home from Gillette after visiting some family. On the way home she was working on a resume and so I decided to grab my ipod and see what I was in the mood for. I cycled through all my normal rock stuff I listen to and landed on some old Dennis Jernigan stuff (if anyone even knows who that is these days). lol. Anyways I was inspired by some of my old favorites and there driving home with the sun going down, it was a beautiful moment. I love to worship God. I love that it doesnt have to be Saturday to do it, I love that the songs don't have to be the right style, I love that it doesnt have to be perfect, I love that I don't even have to sing, but my soul can just connect with God. I love that. So from there I found some United, then Desperation, and just worshipped my heart out and felt so revived. I needed this. I love that we can worship God where ever and when ever, for example Grant's most recent post. I felt so alive and thats what I love about worship, its not that its just about music although that is my favorite element in worship, but I can connect with the heart of God and be fueled to fight the fight. Ahhhhh! Yes, I am getting excited just typing this. Anyways just thought I would share.


For the Lamb's reward!
Adam

Transition

Like I said in a previous post, Amber and I desire to leave well and to transition smooth. Please pray that God would give pastor Tony and I the wisdom in finding the next guy as Youth Pastor. Ideally I would love for him to be here for the last couple of weeks that I am here so I can hand off the baton so to speak. The reality is, that is probably not going to happen (not saying God can't if he wants) so just pray that we would be able to find someone quickly after I leave. We have some leads but nothing solid right now. I know that if God has called us on then He has someone else moving in. We trust that and hold to that, but we have to be faithful on our part to and do some of the work in finding him. So just pray for the process and the wisdom to do it right.





...for the Lamb's reward

Adam