Advent Meditation

As Christmas approaches I've heard some really sad stories this year. I know of at least three marriages that are right now in the process of dissolving and some children will not have both parents at home with them this Christmas, maybe never again. I have friends whose family members are battling cancer and having surgeries for life altering illnesses. I have seen friends and acquaintances that are lonely this year and it seems that the holidays only amplify that sadness.

As I hear these stories and get into my car to go to work or the store, I flip on the radio and listen to the beautiful songs of Christmas, most with joyful, triumphant sounding lyrics and upbeat tempos and I wonder how these two realities can exist together, side-by-side. One story filled with grief, and yet the other with one of utmost hope and peace.

Then I am reminded that it is this very, very real world that Jesus was born into. He came on purpose to a broken, lost, sad world, desperately in need of a Savior. He came not as God riding in power on a White Steed to rescue the world from pain and heartache and war and fear, but instead, He came as one of us. One of us. The power of one of His names is most important this time of year: Emmanuel, which means "God with us."

He did not wave a magic wand and make it all go away, but rather He became one of us to walk with us in the midst of the pain and heartache, war and fear. This is the message of Advent, of Christmas, that God is not a distant, non-involved God who created us and walked away, but rather in great love and sacrifice to Himself, came and lived among us to reveal the Heavenly Father who desires to walk alongside us everyday.

He came into that depressed, war-torn, hopeless world to give hope, to show love, to be God among us. Today, He is still with us, now He lives in our hearts by His spirit to give hope, to show love and be God once again among us…but He does it through each of one of us. We call ourselves "His Body." Why? Because through our hands we can give help, through our hearts we can give love, through our spirits we can share hope. It is Him in us who does these things.

Can we let Him shine bright through us this Christmas? Find someone you can bring a smile to, share a laugh with, give some hope and joy. Let Him love them through you. May you be the Christ child coming to someone this Christmas.

Maybe you haven't met Him yet. Maybe you've not let Jesus walk alongside you yet. Maybe you are one of those who is lonely and sad, wounded and hurt this year. This Christmas, I ask you to simply invite Him to show Himself to you. Praying is talking, so simply talk to Him. I believe as you open your heart to Him, Jesus will become more real to you than you can ever imagine and even in the midst of pain and heartache and loneliness, you will find a reality of joy and peace that is beyond our understanding.

every week...

We're meeting every week now!

We apologize for not being up to date on this website, but that will change! We promise.

But like I said, we're meeting every week now! Each Saturday at 6:30 PM.

It has been a great experience being able to meet each week to worship in a space that is designed for conversation and friendship. Our space is in the Genesis UMC facility, which used to be a coffee shop. So it is a natural environment to sit around table and talk about the message, share a cup of coffee and catch up with friends on the same journey of faith.

Come by and see us sometime. And stay tuned for more updates through this site.

Also, if you would like you can follow renovate on twitter: @renovatefaith
And become a fan of renovate on Facebook. Click here.

Where the Wild Goose Calls Us...

We, at renovate, are doing a book study on "Wild Goose Chase" by Mark Batterson. It's a great study, bouncing off the premise that this life is to be an adventure, lived out by following the "Wild Goose" - a name the Celtic Christians used to call the Holy Spirit. But too many times, the church and religion places us into "cages" not unlike that we find in zoos, where animals who were meant to live free and wild are held back and forced to accept life in routine and "normalcy."

As we are reading through this book, we've learned about how responsibilities, routines, and other things like assumptions can keep us from following the Wild Goose. But there are ways out of the cages. One of those ways out is to turn our eyes outside ourselves and begin to engage others through acts of service and meeting needs.

In Isaiah 58, we see God challenging the ideals of the religious, turns away their worship and shows them what brings him pleasure.

“This is the kind of fast day I’m after: to break the chains of injustice,
get rid of exploitation in the workplace, free the oppressed, cancel
debts.

What I’m interested in seeing you do is: sharing your food
with the hungry, inviting the homeless poor into your homes, putting clothes
on the shivering ill-clad, being available to your own families.

Do this and the lights will turn on, and your lives will turn around at
once. Your righteousness will pave your way. The God of glory will secure your
passage.Then when you pray, God will answer. You’ll call out for help and
I’ll say, ‘Here I am.’ A Full Life in the Emptiest of Places

“If you get rid of unfair practices, quit blaming victims, quit
gossiping about other people’s sins, If you are generous with the hungry and
start giving yourselves to the down-and-out, Your lives will begin to glow
in the darkness, your shadowed lives will be bathed in sunlight.

I will always show you where to go. I’ll give you a full life in the
emptiest of places— firm muscles, strong bones. You’ll be like a well-watered
garden, a gurgling spring that never runs dry. You’ll use the old
rubble of past lives to build anew, rebuild the foundations from out of your
past. You’ll be known as those who can fix anything, restore old ruins, rebuild
and renovate, make the community livable again." Isaiah 58:6-12 (The
Message)

We find that God equates service to others as service to Him. Why is this, I wonder? I believe it's because God is fully engaged in what is happening in the plight of mankind. He loves his creation and desires the best for man. And his plan is to use us as his hands and feet.

What things make you sad or angry? Where do you see injustice and explotation? Can you make a difference in the life of those around you? Where you can help your neighbors? These may be indicators of the things you are called to help solve. Maybe you can save a life, through a friendship, a listening ear, giving to a cause, donating time and energy to an outreach ministry, going on a mission trip.

Let me challenge us to begin to see our world, really see. If we have to, we may have to take off the religious glasses and see it for what truly is around us. Ask God to show you where you can make a difference. Declare a fast, that you will find a need and fill it and give God the opportunity to use you as his hands.

Then the promise of God will begin to be fulfilled in our lives...healing will come, the "lights will turn on" and our lives will be full of adventure as we chase the Wild Goose! My favorite quote of all time is one by Gil Bailie: "Do not ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive and go do that. Because what the world needs are men who have come alive."

Let us hear the call of the Wild Goose calling us out of the cages of religion and find out those things that make us truly come alive and make a difference in our world.

worship @ renovate

Our next public service is this Saturday at 6:30 PM! We are so excited to see what God is doing in the lives of our friends as we share in this journey together.

This month our focus is "Connecting Lives to Christ through Worship" and we will be exploring what worship is, why it is we worship and how we worship. We also will be celebrating communion together as a community.

Please come and join us at renovate! God is in the renovation business.

imperfect

Old preacher joke (many of which I've been guilty through the years):

"If you find the perfect church, don't join it! The moment you do, it will no longer be perfect!"

Sounds funny, somewhat insulting, but very truthful. Except that we'll never find that perfect church anyway, so the point is moot. But still many of us that have been Christians for many years have sought to find that "perfect church." You know, the one that has the best praise and worship. Not too loud, not too long, and definitely not too much talking during the music set. A pastor that is young, hip, mature, sensible, has a perfect family, drives a new car and has the best clothes...and doesn't take a salary! (another bad pastor joke!)

But finding a church that is perfect is like breaking a glass and trying to put all the pieces back together again and make it look as if it was never broken. It can't be done, because we all bring our brokenness to the table. But that is what it's supposed to look like. Never once do we see things be perfect in the New Testament church either. There were problems from the get-go!

Still, in spite of these obvious flaws, the church still turned the world upside-down. 2,000 years later, we're still involved in this incredible community we call "church."

One of my favorite verses in the Bible is Isaiah 42:3 -

"A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness he will bring forth justice;"

The Message Bible renders it this way:

"He won't brush aside the bruised and the hurt and he won't disregard the small and insignificant, but he'll steadily and firmly set things right."

Have you ever felt like the bruised reed or the burnt out wick? Know that today God promises he won't let you break or be "snuffed out," but that he will steadily and firmly set things right.

Church can have its share of heartache. And mostly, it because it's made up of us imperfect people. I hope that we can learn to own this fact, own our imperfection and begin to move beyond it.

If we can accept ourselves as we are, then maybe we can learn how to accept others as they are. Jesus said that we're to love one another as we love ourselves. Maybe the problem is that we haven't learned to love ourselves first. Maybe that's what is holding us back.

Love is what holds a community together, which is what a local expression of the Church is-a community of people who love one another and strive to live this journey of life for Christ together. And love though it accepts you where you are, it nudges you, pushes you, stretches you to become better than you are. It loves you enough to take you further than you ever believed you could go and dream and believe and live.

That's the kind of imperfect church I could live with. How about we make an imperfect church together?

how does your friendships inform your faith?

That's the theme of our next service this coming Saturday, June 20th, at 6:30 PM.

So how does friendship help your faith grow? A part of our mission statement says that we desire to connect lives to Christ through friendship. We believe that even though we have personal relationships with God, our relationship with God cannot remain or grow as only personal. We are designed to be in relationship or as we like to say, in community, with others.

In community, we find that God uses others to help us develop and grow in faith. In community our character is sharpened and our spirituality is encouraged. In community we find our lives enriched and our understanding of Christ enhanced.

So, again, what has friendship done for your faith? Any stories? Feel free to share.

rebuilding faith

Well, our second night was a great success. I'm so thrilled at what God is doing here at renovate.

We had fantastic worship led by friends of ours, Jordan and Sarah Hoffmaster. In our second set of worship, Jordan sang one of his original songs, inspired by our first service, called Rebuild Me. It was incredible.

We were able to share with new visitors our style of worship and several said they want to return and hang with us again.

Check out an article our newspaper wrote up on me and the church in our "Faith Journeys" section last Saturday here.

I am working on a link for uploading my teaching notes. So check back for more updates.

Thanks so much for your prayers and love and support!

Saturday Night

Our second service is this Saturday!! Yes!

We'll post an update on our first service soon, but suffice it to say, we had a blast!

If you are in the area, come and visit. I'll be teaching on "Rebuilding Faith."

Our friends Jordan and Sarah Hoffmaster from Southridge Church will be our guest worship leaders. You will love the worship.

Come out and invite a friend to come with you.

We will be meeting in the Genesis UMC facility, behind the Video Warehouse off Morgantown Ave in Fairmont. If you need directions, email me and we'll get you some right away!

Hope to see you there!

Mission Statement

renovate:

renovating church, rebuilding faith, and connecting lives to Christ through friendship, worship, and meeting needs.

Fat Tuesday

Fat Tuesday. Mardi Gras. Pancake Day.

Traditionally this is the day before the fast of Lent begins, which starts tomorrow with Ash Wednesday. Unfortunately, some of have devoted this day, the day before, to celebrate all the worldly things they like to do before having to “give it up” for 40 days of Lent leading up to Easter. But let us not focus on our faults and favorite sins today, but prepare our hearts for a journey.

Lent is historically a period of time which is set aside for repentance. For centuries, Christians were baptized on Easter, so this fast before was to prepare one’s heart and soul for baptism. But what is it that baptism represents?

It is representing that in yourself you are dying to your desires, and taking on Christ’s life. It is symbolizing your participation with Christ’s death, burial and resurrection, claiming you believe and place your faith in what he has done on your behalf. This is why when one is baptized, they are laid back into the water, allowing the water to cover them as though they are lying in the ground, dying to self, and brought back out of the water, as though raised to a new life.

But it is more… Paul said you are baptized into Christ. It symbolizes the joining of a larger community. You become connected with others who represent Christ on the earth today. It’s throwing “your lot” in with others of like mind and like heart. It is no longer being an island to yourself, but finding purpose and relationship, inviting you into a family you’ve never met and caring about people who need your care. What stirs the heart of Christ, now stirs yours.

Baptism isn’t about the water, or dunking, or sprinkling, it’s about belonging. It’s about belonging to something bigger than you or me. It’s about becoming something bigger. Let this Lenten season be not just a focus on penance for sin, but be a preparation for something bigger…a baptism anew, into the family of God with fresh eyes, that on Easter we will be resurrected to new life as well and be able to draw new travelers into the journey of resurrection with us.

a word...

A dear friend just brought us a poem that the Lord gave her for renovate at the beginning of the year and just hadn't been able to get it to us until now. As you read it, I think you will hear the confirmation of all that we said in the last prayer event.

A new day has dawned, a corner is turned.
A time to bring forth of all you have learned.

A path lies ahead that is steady and sure,
With roots that run deep and fruit that endures.

It's a land of much beauty, grace and delight
Full of rich treasures, teaming with light.

A haven of safety for those who are scarred,
A place where they're welcomed just as they are.

A home for the weary, where they can find rest
And won't be condemned when they've failed a test.

An oasis of sorts in a land that is dry,
Where I'll cradle the lowly and lift them on high.

A city of refuge to many - a port,
To others - a schoolyard, to some - a resort.

Some tender shoots will require much care,
But strong trees they'll be and much weight they will bear.

The blessings of unity will rain down as showers.
A deluge of mercy, wisdom and power.

Each step of your journey has been by design
I've called you and chosen you, handpicked you as mine.

For my heart beats with passion for the wounded, the lame
The burdened, the hurting who still bear my name.

A new love for others will spring forth from within.
You'll open your arms to those covered in sin.

The "could haves" and "should haves" with which they've been bruised
Shall be buried forever as you walk in their shoes.

For I never "look down" though I'm so far above,
But I walk alongside and I cover in love.

I've called you to be those who will show me as such,
A God who comes near and is willing to touch.

There is no provision that I'll not create,
To reach those for whom I've designed renovate.

New dreams I will give you, new doors will unlock.
New strength will infuse you, in new realms you'll walk.

The trail I've blazed will continue to shine
Brighter and brighter in 2009.

It's Go Time

Last night, we had a renovate prayer event in which we participated in three prayer stations focusing our hearts and prayers on the future of renovate and the path forward. Afterward, we spent some time sharing with each other what we heard from God. Here are some of the things we heard:

Bec - “Welcoming others with open arms...”

Dave - “We are finished with the 'brokenness' of ourselves. It's time to rebuild. Identity (our previous church plant from a few years ago) had to die, so renovate can be birthed, but will always live in us.”

Kareen - “Community means that we need to trust each other completely. There is beauty in all of this. Everyone is a masterpiece even if we don't see it. This is our masterpiece.”

PJ – Felt like he was visiting the grave of Identity, but was stepping over it. Coming to the grave, but moving on, moving forward, leaving the past behind.

Brian – 1 Corinthians 1:3-11 - “Comfort – we have been comforted so that we can comfort others who come to us.”

Stephen - “Time to move on; prepare, start doing things. Saw a pitcher pouring out. We need to start pouring out, but at the same time remembering to continue being filled up so we don't dry out/burn up.”

Bec – (Referencing the painting we all took part in at the preparation stage) “There is a vibrant, red-orange circle in the middle. We need to keep ourselves centered in God.”

Kareen – (Referencing the painting also) “I can see dark and light at the same time in the painting. There is light in all the dark times for us to find.”

Jennifer - “It's time to step out of our comfort zones and try new things. Each one of us have new things to do and to try.”

Stephen and Kareen both felt drawn to the front of the building to look outside of the church and to pray.

Brian wrote some things down for us:
“God has said, 'Do not wait on the perfect time for things to come. God is NOW and IS perfect.”
“Just as something like a small outlet on the wall can keep the music from playing...our church is still perfect without it.” (By the way, that was a test!)
“Don't worry about the little things that may not fit right away.”
“This 'church' is and will be built on trial and error.”

David also felt that those of us who were a part of Identity had been discovering our identity and that without us finding our identity we could never have “renovated” anything.

Needless to say, it was a great, productive night. To sum it up, I think God is saying to renovate:
It's time to go!

Why Do We Need Another Church?

Tonight during our lead team meeting PJ (Pastor John Carnes) asked us a very thought provoking question: "Why do we need another church in Fairmont?" What a great question. Why DO we need another church? I guess the real question is why are we doing this? Several of us go to other great churches in the area on Sunday, so why bother? Well, I know that for me renovate is a chance to do church differently. I believe we all bring unique experiences and backgrounds to this adventure. I hope that renovate will allow us to share these experiences with others who, like us, are looking for something different. We want to serve our community; we want to be another instrument in the symphony of God in Fairmont. We believe that our unique style will serve to help people discover God in new and exciting ways. Ways that will complement the work that God is already doing in other churches in our area. PJ summed it up for us when he said that we believe that renovate is what God is asking us to do. If I didn't believe this I wouldn't bother. Please keep us in your prayers as we travel together this road of adventure!

Much Love
renovate Blogger Dave