I’m so proud of our Renaissance Church folks for how they gave, served, and ministered to over 100 folks over Thanksgiving.

We delivered all the groceries for a complete Thanksgiving feast to the homes of families who needed a helping hand for the holidays.  We also delivered a lot of warm smiles, and shared a lot of hugs.  We were able to pray with almost everyone we served. Our volunteers did a great job ministering to our new friends.

Renaissance Church kids hand-decorated gift bags to distribute to the children of the families we served.  There were all kinds of cool things inside the bags, but I think the best part was the love that was conveyed on the outside.

Thank you to everyone who took part!

Some wonderful volunteers

A young man was going down from State College to Happy Valley, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead.  A football coach happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side.  So too, an athletic director, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.

A “good Samaritan” was no where to be found within the athletic department in Happy Valley.  For it appears they loved the praise of men and the reputation of their football program more than they loved their neighbor.

Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”    Matthew 22:37-39

The part of this whole story that is so flabbergasting to me is not the heinously evil nature of the crimes committed by one man.  Sadly, we all knew that human beings were capable of such depravity.  No, what punches me in the stomach and drives me to my knees is the failure of otherwise good, moral human beings to do something about it when they had the opportunity.  They saw the unspeakable injustice, and they essentially crossed to the other side of the road to avoid having to deal with it.  And other young men were victimized because of their lack of action.

Before we “cast stones” at those men for their tragic moral failure, horrific as it is, Jesus reminds us that we should always be willing to see where we come up short as well.  “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?” (Luke 6:41)

Questions we all need to be asking ourselves:
Do we hate sin and injustice?  Wherever we see it?
What are we willing to do about it?  What does God want us to do about it?
Are we willing to ‘pay the price’ to love our neighbor, even if it costs us?
Because that’s what it means to “love your neighbor as yourself.”

May God bless and heal the victims of this terrible tragedy and their families.
God, please help me to be willing to pay the price to love my neighbor, just as Jesus paid the ultimate price for me.

"Some real Renaissance men"

What great time we had at Church@theLake!  The weather was beautiful, and everyone had a blast relaxing, swimming, and canoeing.

We shared a nice meal together, and then listened to the Word of God, along with some great worship led by Marla and Anitra.  Perhaps the highlight for me was getting to baptize two more precious folks.

To see a lot more pictures, visit our Renaissance Church group on Facebook.  (And if you haven’t joined our group, why not do it now?)

We were about 80 people, and such a beautifully diverse group (including people who hail from 5 of the 6 inhabited continents!)

Did you attend Church@theLake?  Leave a comment below and tell us what you thought.

Listening to the Word of God after lunch

Baptism… it sure brings up a lot of questions, doesn’t it?  In this space, I’ll try to address a very important one:  Why should I get baptized?

The first reason is obedience.  Jesus commanded his church to “make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19)  In the book of Acts, the church followed this pattern:  the good news about Jesus was proclaimed; those who repented and believed in Jesus were then baptized.  So, if you’ve made a decision to follow Christ and put Him at the center of your life, trusting in Him for your salvation, you should get baptized.  For many, their baptism serves as a “stake in ground” that serves as a reference point for their faith – a physical act that marks their decision for Christ, and salvation received by grace through faith.

Baptism is also a public ceremony that declares your identification Jesus Christ, and symbolizes your allegiance with Him in His death and resurrection.  Our Christian faith is not meant to be a “personal matter” to be kept secret. Rather, we unashamedly identify with Christ’s death and resurrection, and testify to the new life that we now have in Christ.  By going down into the water we are symbolizing the “death” of our old self.  Coming out of the water represents our new life in Jesus Christ.

Now let’s deal with a couple of common misconceptions:

1.  Baptism is not a means to join a church.  I’ve heard stories of people moving to a new church and being asked to get baptized again… simply because, “Well, you haven’t been baptized by us.”  Baptism is not about church membership.  It is, in part, a ceremony to celebrate new membership in the Church, the Body of Christ universal.  But there’s no need to get baptized again because you have changed churches.
2.  Baptism is not the means of salvation.  It is a beautiful visual picture of your salvation.  You should get baptized when you become a Christian, as discussed above.  But it is not absolutely necessary.  The thief who died on a cross next to Jesus apparently repented of his sin and trusted in Christ, but he did not get baptized.  And yet, Jesus said to him, “Today, you will be with me in paradise.”  (Luke 23:39-43)

Got more questions about baptism?  Or about becoming a Christian?  Ask them here by replying to this post, or email me directly.

I hope you had a wonderful Independence Day weekend.  Our family had a wonderful time.  We sat on a blanket in a park and listened to the Charlotte Symphony, and watched the fireworks that followed.

Being with our three kids reminded me how thankful I am that we were born in this wonderful country with such a godly Christian heritage.  But there is still much work to be done for the Kingdom of God.  So many of our friends and neighbors still need to know Jesus Christ!

Last week I attended the Multiplying Churches Globally seminar hosted by missions agency Reach Global.   I enjoyed meeting a bunch of people who are deeply devoted to Jesus and committed to making Him known in every corner of the world.  Since I’m not a foreign missionary, I got asked “Why are you here?” a few times.  Answer:  To become more effective in making Jesus known in my little corner of the world:  Charlotte, NC.

It’s been wonderful to see our young church growing recently.  Yes, we have been growing in numbers, but the kind of growth I’m most excited about is the way we are growing in community. Life Groups are a great way to experience this aspect of church life that Jesus spoke of frequently to his disciples.

People from different backgrounds are discovering that special sense of unity that comes when we worship together, share life together, and serve one another in the name of Christ.  It’s beautiful.  I love it.  I’m thankful that I get to be a part of it.

A Christ-centered spiritual community is not exclusive, like a club, but rather open.  We not only welcome newcomers, we seek them out! We want others to experience the blessings of a life-giving community, and especially the joy we are finding in a relationship with Jesus Christ.

During a time of prayer in one of our recent Life Groups, a young woman who had recently become a Christian shared, “I don’t really know how to pray.  I don’t know what to say.”

Have you ever felt like that?

God doesn’t need us to speak to Him in fancy words.  He loves it when we call out to Him.

My 6 month old daughter started saying “Da-da” recently.  Let me tell, it melted this daddy’s heart. I didn’t correct her pronunciation, or rebuke her for not being eloquent enough.  No, I was thrilled.  Those two little syllables got my attention because they came from my precious daughter!   One word from her, and I’ll give her anything she needs!

John Wimber used to say that one of his favorite prayers was, “HELP!”       Been there, done that.

If it comes from the heart, our heavenly Father hears.  A few simple words touch His heart.  He’s a proud Papa, who loves us dearly.  He understands our weaknesses.

As we grow in our relationship with God, we’ll probably start sounding a little more “grown-up” when we pray.  Just know that wherever we are in our walk with God, it delights Him whenever open our hearts to Him in prayer.

At Renaissance Church, sharing the message of God’s love is something we love to do, especially with those who are going through hard times.  That’s why I loved our recent Thanksgiving outreach.

Volunteers delivered turkey and groceries to 16  families for Thanksgiving.  That’s over 90 smiles that were a little brighter because of the love of God demonstrated in a practical way.

We love the personal touch we can offer through this form of service:

1.  All the families we served were connected to us through relationships of people associated with Renaissance Church.    We get to know people on a personal level, because we hear their stories of hardship.  And there is the possibility of further relationship.

2.  Delivering the food to the home offers dignity, love, and a personal touch to those receiving.

3.  Opportunities for ministry abounded.  We prayed with almost every family.  Many Bibles were distributed.  Kids from church even included hand-made cards in the basket of goodies.

4.  It’s true: ‘Tis the greater blessing to give than receive.  Those who served and gave were deeply impacted by the experience.  I know I was.

Even in difficult economic times like these, we have so much for which to be thankful.  At the top of that list is the fact that God loves us so much that He gave His  Son Jesus for us – that we might have life.  At Renaissance Church, we’ve been proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ to our neighbors here in Charlotte, and many have responded.

An act of practical loving kindness speaks volumes.  And nothing is more practical than offering a helping hand during the holidays to people who really need it.  This Thanksgiving, we want to help out as many needy families as we can by supplying them with a free turkey and groceries.  It’s a small gesture, but believe me, it will make a big difference to the recipients.

We need your help.  We have THREE QUESTIONS for you:

1.  Do you know someone who could really use help this Thanksgiving? Maybe a family that has been struggling to make ends meet because of losing a job, or unexpected medical bills?  If so, would you please contact us?  (We can only serve families in the Charlotte metro area.)

2.  Would you volunteer to help us with this outreach? We need people to help us with deliveries, help schedule the deliveries, and help buy the groceries.  If you can help with any of that, please call or email us.  (See right panel for contact info.)

3.  Would you give $20 to help a needy family this Thanksgiving? Or maybe you are able to provide food for several families?   Your gifts to Renaissance Church are tax-deductible.  To give, you can drop a check in the mail, or in the offering at church. Make checks to out Renaissance Church and send to PO Box 49523, Charlotte, NC 28277.  Please include a note that you are giving towards the Thanksgiving Outreach.  If you prefer, you can donate to Renaissance Church through paypal.

Thank you so much for helping!  May God bless you this holiday season!