Sunday Splash!

* Stellar service today!
* The song service today was powerful! Doug Flores and the team engaged us all in heart moving worship!
* We are so blessed to have such a wonderful combination of incredible musical and vocal talent on our platform at the same time!
* Today we saw three people step forward and cross the line of faith and begin a relationship with Christ!
* Again there were several new faces today in the building!
* We experienced another outstanding week of ministry at SC!!
* I heard that our student service "Fusion" on Wednesday was great! Shari taught about "Facebook" and adding Christ as your friend. Nice!
* Yesterday our children's ministry participated in "Rescue Miami" an outreach to share the life changing message of hope to others. Pastor Kevin reported that 17 people who were far away from Christ made decisions to follow Him!


* Seeing Christ change lives never gets old. NEVER.
* Announced today our Big Audacious Outreach to the Business Community surrounding Sunset Chapel on Tuesday July 21!!
* I hope you will all become passionate about reaching other's for Christ!
* Remember to keep this as a prayer point in the coming days. Next Sunday we will be signing people up to help in various areas of this outreach and we will take our first "Evangelism" offering!
* This could be one of the most important investments you ever make at Sunset Chapel!
* Have you come across a new and innovative way to engage and reach people for God? If so, let's talk! Together we can maximize our efforts by constantly looking for ways to attract people who are far from God.
* We got a city to transform!
* SC Thank You! Thank you for allowing God to use you to accomplish great things!
* Thank you for loving Jesus so much!
* Thank you for allowing me to serve you!

Sunday Splash!

* What a weekend!
* I don't know what words to even use to describe how I feel about this day.
* I am so delighted to be in this season of ministry.
* I am also truly humbled to have the opportunity to serve as the lead pastor in this great church.
* Having the Peninsular Florida District Superintendent-Rev. Terry Raburn with us today was such an honor.
* His message on" Unfinished Assignments" struck a chord with us all and it should refuel our passion for Christ!
* None of us present today will ever forget the powerful conclusion to the service as he challenged us individually and corporately as a church to move forward as a church.
* If you missed today's service you can listen to the entire message online on the church website! Special thanks to Denis Wagovich and Terry Blankenship for making this possible!
* Each of us should do our best to introduce people to the extravagant love of God. Hopefully we will take advantage and snag some of the opportunities that Christ presents us with in the coming week.
* Let me brag on our worship team! This weekend they were simply off the charts! Their rendition of "Lift His Name On High" with a Caribbean flavor was amazing! Didn't you enjoy John Kricker and Michael Mlacker? They really kicked that song up a notch with their brass sounds! Be sure to let Doug Flores know how much you appreciated his talent as a worship leader too.
* I am so proud of everyone serving in ministry here at SC!
* We are anticipating a great summer at Sunset Chapel.
* This past week I've downloaded so much in my conversations, experiences and meetings.
* Week after week I have been able to get into a variety of environments and meet people of all ages and backgrounds.
* Many times I have discovered, we have to get out of our normal life patterns, change our perspectives and just listen to what is going on in other people's lives.
* I am convinced that with all my heart God is going to impact and transform lives during this summer season.
* I want to encourage you to invite every breathing person you know who is far away from God to be with you this coming Sunday!
* God is up to something BIG!!! More details will be posted later this week and announced next Sunday in the service.

Sunday Splash!

* Simply a great day at Sunset Chapel!
* The worship team was outstanding! Also Jason Gregori was exceptional as our worship leader today!
* They really nailed the song "How Great is our God". As people responded during the worship set connections with Christ were occurring all across the sanctuary. Fantastic job team!
* BIG THANKS! to Terry Blankenship and Oscar Fernandez for spending hours at SC on Saturday to help make our sound system better!
* I'm still processing Dr. Gary Kellner's message. It was simply AMAZING! He is a very good communicator. It was simply the best teaching on "Transitions" I've ever heard. I think that God is going to develop a strong relationship between us and I am looking forward to partnering together with him on some really cool projects in the future.
* Haven't seen the final numbers yet but I noticed several new faces today! It's really cool to walk up to people and introduce myself for the very first time. I hope this happens weekly as God adds to the Sunset Chapel family!!!!
* I'm convinced more than ever that God is going to make Luke 14:23 happen in the Miami area.
* I'm really excited about what God is doing at SC. The moments around the altar today were incredible and life-giving!! One of the real highlights of the day was the second altar call (that's right! We had two today!) several people responded to "the squeeze" of God's hand to develop a stronger connection with the Lord! Totally Awesome!!
* Let me tell you that I am so thrilled with your response to a much needed renovation project we presented to every one today. Already $650 came in, we only need about another $50-$100 and the project will be a done deal! PTL! I am so proud of you all for responding so well.

Teamwork!

At SC we are working at transitioning from a church locked into a pattern of irrelevance within our community, to an exciting contemporary church communicating God's Word to people at every age level. Status quo is unacceptable. Our ministry team and lay leaders are committed to leading towards change without comprise. Together we promise to keep our eyes on God and stay the course! God's presence and truth has the power to transform lives, set people free and give hope. Realizing that one person cannot accomplish this alone I am greatly encouraged that others are enthusiastically getting involved as "Catalysts for Change" creating excitement and momentum for this positive transition to occur. I look forward to seeing you and your guests this Sunday. I promise that if you join us, you will learn something that will impact your heart and change your life!

Sunday Splash!

This morning I stood before the wonderful people of Sunset Chapel for the first time as their new Lead Pastor. Swirling inside me were feelings of anticipation, excitement and nervousness. I quickly realised I was experiencing a new beginning in an amazing environment that I never dreamed or expected to be in. It all just seemed too good to be true. God was revealing to me in that moment that He wanted to use us in this wonderful place and that forever our lives would be changed. So we begin today taking what we have learned in twenty seven years of full-time ministry and begin to wholeheartedly live it out before you.

* Today was definitely a solid day at Sunset Chapel.
* Doug Flores and the worship team did an unbelievable job taking us into the presence of the Lord!
* I must mention how grateful I am to the "Upper Room" and their church staff for loaning us two outstanding musicians this weekend to help make our first service together totally amazing!
* Special thanks to "Junior" and "Will" for blessing us with their talents this morning!
* We had 135 in worship today! It was an incredible start to our new ministry at SC.
* It was so fun to speak to such awesome group of people who assembled together in our sanctuary!
* I am grateful to the church board for the tremendous reception they hosted after the service to welcome us to SC. It gave Shari and I the opportunity to interact with others and get to know them a little better. We we're very blessed! Thanks Francis, Tammy, Lorraine, Luis, Terry and Sterling!
* We are still getting positive feedback as a result of this mornings powerful communion service. It was phenomenal to see entire families and individuals all over the auditorium praying for each other! It was one of those God-moments that help to bring clarity and direction into our lives and to our whole church family!
* I hope everyone has a blessed week!

Ministry Update

Since being elected as the new Lead Pastor of Sunset Chapel on April 26, 2009. A lot has transpired. We were busy initially packing and cleaning our house in the Cleveland Ohio area getting it ready to sell. We then made the move to Miami this past weekend and found a two bedroom apartment to settle in as we wait on our house in Ohio to sell. I am asking all our friends to consider praying for us each day. Here are some things we need to happen in our lives..

1. Our house to sell. We have worked diligently to prepare our house to be on the market and we are now allowing God to write his story! Please pray that it will be looked at and that an offer will be made soon. If it sells for what we are asking, it would be a huge release and allow us a fresh start without any financial burdens in the Miami area where we are discovering the cost of living is much greater.

2. That God would find favor upon us this coming weekend June 7. We pray that as we begin this new adventure in ministry that the core group at Sunset Chapel will see with clarity God's vision and plans for the church unfold before them as we work together to accomplish His purposes in the Miami area.

3. Pray for our family. This has been a difficult transition for many reasons. Many friendships, memories, and moments in ministry too soon will become distant. Separation from many whom we had become extremely connected to and loved in our previous church has been hard on our hearts. We ask for prayers for our sons Calvin (Tenn) and Randall (South Carolina) as this is our first time to experience an empty nest. Both boys are living great distances from us. Pray also for inner peace to grow within us as we move forward in obedience to God.

4. Pray that we will begin to meet new people and that we adapt quickly into a brand new culture. Pray that God opens new doors and prepares the way in front of us.

We will need these prayers daily. I will keep you updated, so check back often to see what great things God is allowing to happen in our lives. I believe that God will do some amazing things and He will stretch our thinking on what He wants to see take place at SC and in this fantastic city! Without a doubt I know that God will refine me and the church during these first few weeks and months. I believe we will all be surprised and we will enjoy together what unfolds before us! This first week is all about getting a glimpse of the area, the church and the numerous people who make up this awesome community of believers! Stay tuned!!