I'm Alive

I'm Alive. Just thought I would let the blogging world know. Sometimes its good to remind yourself and others of this simple, over looked fact. What better truth to celebrate during a Thanksgiving holiday than the truth that each and everyone of us has life. Perhaps this is where things could turn spiritual and I could talk about my life in Christ however I will save that for another time...probably two months from now at my current pace. For now, I live, and that will have to be enough.

34 days

34 days. thats how long it has been since my last post. i must admit, i've been kinda jadded by the blogging world; especially the church blogging world. i'm not the kind of guy that sticks to a set schedule (obviously). for me, blogging is something that helps me clear my head, re-focus my thoughts and if i'm lucky, maybe have a positive effect on someones life. because i can't stick to a routine, blogging and the new religion of twitter just are not things that get me going. this weekend, i hung out with come of my cool friends who are very much a part of the first twitter church in the clogging community. they can keep a schedule. not only are they active in their post, they faithfully read the posts of others. so while i was playing with a friends iphone (b/c i'm a not a tech geek either and don't have my own) i noticed some of his twitter prophets. while reading the post of some of the pastors he reads, i almost busted at the seams with laughter. some of the things these guys say...or yell. later there was a conversation about a group of pastors yelling at another pastor beacuse of something he said, did, or didn't do. for a second, i wasn't sure if i was reading a pastor's blog or a script for mtv's "the hills."

anyways, i'm not attacking this new phenomenon, just saying that its not always for me and i quickly grow weary of it. maybe i'm too lazy, but for now lets just say i'm too busy. i will post when i post and that will have to be enough. if i wrote something daily, i would probably sound like spencer myself...

blur

we're back in atlanta which is bitter sweet. we love our home but miss our kids. two uncles died this week. one, my great uncle who was a father figure to my mom and another who i did not know well but my father did. another great uncle is very ill and is not far from the end. i might have to help get him back to florida this week. we are all very sad. the past few days have been a blur. more to come when i can get to it.

hit or miss

so i have been rather hit or miss with this blog over the summer. while i set out to write twice a week it seems that my plans have become every other week. whatever, nothings ritual and while my blog may not be at the top of anyone's roll, its what i have needed.

today is my last monday in here in muscle shoals, alabama. God has really worked in amazing ways this summer. i count it an honor to have been apart of what he has done through this ministry and look forward to great things ahead. with that said i am ready to come home to atlanta. i am ready to finish school, and i am ready to get back into my normal routine. while this summer has been a lot of work, it was also a God given break from our crazy fast-paced schedule we call our life. for this, i am thankful. while i am ready to come home, i woke up said this morning. last night i dreamed about our last day here and it was so hard to say goodbye. i hope that when the day comes we have the strength and the grace to depart with smiling faces and happy hearts.

RECAP:
last night we watched the last part of "hope for when life hurts the most" by louie giglio. the second part went over much better as the kids really grasped the message. i even worked in the the famous quote from the movie forest gump "
shit happens."

not quite sure what were going to do this wednesday night. we have watched nooma 1-5 and think about doing something different. i might show the bullhorn nooma...any ideas?

friday night is going to be awesome. local musician shane baker (www.myspace.com/shanebakermusic) and his band are coming for a back to school concert/worship event. were showing the francis chan "just stop and think" video which should be perfect for the night. we have encouraged kids to invite 10 people and to bring at least 1. please pray that this is a success and that lives are changed.

saturday night is our goodbye party...

sunday night is our last night is alabama. i am speaking on reaching for the stars and fulfilling all of your wildest dreams. we're also using a canvas for some artistis expression time. shane baker will be back to lead worship.

please pray for us as this is our last week and want to go out it a bang. pray that God uses us to rock this town for his glory. also, pray for our future after muscle shoals. if you know us and know our situation, you know what i mean.

by grace,

alex

sunday night emotional basketcase

so last night was awkward. everything from the gathering to the pool party afterward was weird. first, i made to mistake of changing my sunday night gathering plans right before the service started. we had planned to show the second part of louie giglio's message hope for when life hurts the most. for the most part, our kids have enjoyed this video series however many of our older students were out of town this week so when i saw that most of those there were in middle school, i changed the plan. this was a big mistake on my part and began the awkwardness. i decided to just have a time for sharing and field any questions the kids might have about christianity or following christ. for the most part, there was silence.

the night rebounded a little when two visitors came in 15min late. knowing that it was then too late to play hope(45min long) i decided to pop in francis chan's mini video "just stop and think." this is a 15min non-threatening presentation of the gospel that went over very well in the group. even our guest who I’m pretty sure were not believers were receptive and participated in the discussion to follow. while there was still a bit of silence in the overall post-viewing discussion, the night ended well.

after the gathering we went to a pool party at the chairman of the personnel committee's house. this started out great until the guy got a little weird. once he got me alone, he rather abruptly told me that our services would not be needed after august 10th and that the church has decided to "go in a different direction." now let me say this, august 10th was a date that i gave when allison and i accepted this position and i had not planned on staying past this date. it is kinda sad though to know that you do not even have that option. i mean, we fell in love with these kids and really feel like we built a little something while we have been here. it is hard to walk away from a project in the middle of its creation. it will be tough to watch someone else come in a change things back to the 1980's southern baptist way of doing youth ministry. i fear that this church will let its student fall through the cracks as they seek someone from the inside to lead the group until they hire a fulltime pastor.

allison and i both know that we are not a long time fit for this church, really, we've about hit our end as it is. but to watch how this church treats its next generation makes me sick. they don't want a leader to challenge them, they want a babysitter. i know every youth pastor says this about every youth group but i have never met such a great group of kids. the leadership in the group is amazing. they need mentors not entertainers. this group could change their town with the right encouragement and leadership.

please pray that allison and i are able to leave with grace. i know that a good leader knows when he is not in charge and keeps his mouth shut but its really hard for us. we love these kids and this town and believe this church could radically change both if they wanted to. pray for a revolution. pray that they don't go backwards. pray that we can trust the work we have done to God.

alex

trees and cookies: the purpose of life

last night we showed the rob bell nooma titled trees (003). it has been really cool to watch the students as they break out of their traditional church models and begin to experience real christianity. at the beginning of the summer, these videos really freaked the kids out and now they are begging for more.

our post-viewing conversation went in the direction of what one should do with their life in order to be used by God. there were many traditional answers like read our bibles, go to church and "witness" to others but for the most part, it seems that these answers were no longer good enough. these students are ready for a change. they are tired of the same answers and they are sick of doing things the same way. they want something real. senseing this, i followed the spirit and took a chance. we then changed directions and offered this as the meaning of life. to live.

pretend that God created each of us like one bakes cookies. we all come from the same dough and we're made up of the same stuff yet God gives each of us something different. i think traditional christianity would claim that God has a cookie cutter that is the christian mold. he takes the dough, and makes all christians look and act a certian way and if someone doesn't look or act this way, they must not be a true christian. i think this is one of the greatest tragedies in christianity today, the idea that we all have to fit into some kid of pre-cut mold or box. the reality is this, God has zillions of cookie cutters, and we each get our own. while we all come from the same stuff, God makes us all different and gives us different passions and gifts. the point of the christian life and life in general then is to seek and listen to God, for He will show us our passions. once we know our passion, what makes us happiest, we can give it all we got knowing that God is glorified in us when we are doing what we were created to do. God gets glory when we live life as our own unique person created by one mold which was broken after God created us. know one else can be you in this world, let your life shine with glory.

BIG UPDATE!!!

so its been almost two weeks since my last post so we're going to have to play catch up. to stary with, we just got back from our middle school camp to atlanta georgia and it was absolutely amazing. my good friend Ryan Fitzgerald was our worship leader and he did a great job! i spoke for the wednesday and friday night session and we had a couple of special guest on thursday. it was encouraging to me to hear that most of our kids rededicated there lives for christ on the nights i spoke. its really cool to see how God can work through you, thats totally His doing and not mine!!! our theme for the week was "renovate" and the message was that God is the author of a grand story, and somewhere along the way, we tried to write our own. in stead of writting us our of His story, God fixed the problem through Jesus and "renovated" our lives. it was awesome to see our kids experience the true grace of God for the first time. the kids were also able to expereince the majesty of the great city of atlanta as we went to whitewater, the world of coke, the cnn center, centennial olympic park and the georgia aquarium. it was truly an exciting trip and the kids did not want to leave.

keep praying for allison and i as we continue to share the grace of God to the students of muscle shoals alabama. we only have 4 weeks left in our original agreement as we are finding ourselves torn between two worlds. one is atlanta, our home and what we believe to be the best city in the world. the other is here in muscle shoals, the sleepy, quiet little town with great people and amazing kids. it will be hard to build something and then have to hand it over to someone else. also, as church politics continue to drive the church's search for a new pastor and youth pastor, it will be difficult to leave these kids without a leader. please pray that God will show us what is right.

alex

indescribable

sunday night we showed the louie giglio talk "indescribable" for our evening gathering. if you haven't seen the message, i highly recommend it as it is one that has changed the way i see God. the whole point of the message is that God is much greater and we are much smaller than we could ever have imagined. this is not to say however that God does not care about us or that our troubles are not important. the most powerful aspect about louie's talk is that he shares the truth that while not even the universe can contain the majesty and greatness of God, he still chooses to pursue us. while God is above all, he longs to be in community with us. once the message was over, i took the stage for closing thoughts and i which was met with silence. almost every student was looking at the floor or off into a vast void of nothingness. scared to death that they were just bored to death for the past 44min i quickly rambled to find words. perhaps they were not ready for this i thought, maybe it was too long, maybe teenagers just don't yet understand. in the midst of my worries, a girl looked up at me and in the most pure and understanding way said "that was awesome!" what a breath of fresh air, they got it! after that, others entered into the coversation, some cried, others simply sat in awe. it was a really cook experience to see that regardless of one's age, the truth of God's glory and his desire for us is always relevant.

things are going very well for this georgia boy in muscle shoals, alabama. i love the people, i love the little town, and i love the church. i am very glad that God provided this opportunity for allison and i. this are truly exciting times.

revivals and harvest sundays...

so at our staff meeting yesterday i learned that we are planning both a revival and something that is being called a "harvest sunday." i have to be honest, even as a christ follower, i was quickly turned off. my first problem is the idea of trying to produce a revival. the last time i checked, this is the holy spirit's job. if he chooses to stir the hearts of the church on the given dates that is great however i think its a little stupid to advertise to the community that a revival is coming at a set time and place. not only this, the word revival isn't a biblical word. try to find it, its not there. i think advertising for a revival is about as effective as placing signs all over town telling people to come to out and learn how terrible they are and how much they don't fit in at our church.

our harvest sunday also cracks me up. we are having a "visitation blitz" which is exactly that, visitation. yet another out dated and ineffective attempt to get people to come to church. the harvest sunday is supposed to be the fruits of our visitation blitz however when i asked what the mornign service would look like i was told "just like any other service." guess i had better prepare for another sunday of southern gospel music and irrelevant teaching. if i was unchurched or a none beleiver and was invited to this, it would almost be an insult. if there was ever a time to create a seeker friendly enviroment where everyone in muscle shoals would feel comfortable, this is it...it breaks my heart.

i can't stand to see potential in something that could change the world that refuses to do so. how long as christians will we continue to cater to ourselves, to what we prefere, or to what pays the bills. we have forgotten about those who do not know christ. we have created country club churches that are as exclusive as the golf club down the street. how long will this last? please pray for a change. the spirit is willing but the flesh is ever so weak.

Rain

last night we played the Rob Bell nooma "rain" at underground 412. the kids really seemed to enjoy the different pace and it was obvious that God used the production to speak to their hearts. it was a great reminder that while storms in this life are a given, we have a God who loves us and always knows the way home. on that note, i need to be a little theological. i really don't believe that God wills bad things to happen to us. i do not think God is a divine being who places hardships in our path to see how we react. God is good. God is love. God does not will evil but instead he redeems it. God uses the storms and evils of life to reveal to the world how much he loves us and how he will never leave our side. i'm not sure where you are in life or how you feel about God right now but chew on this for the day...

"do you think anyone is going to drive a wedge between us and Christ's love for us? there is no way! not trouble, not hard times, not hatred, not hunger, not homelessness, not bullying threats, not backstabbing, not even the worst sins. none of this fazes us because Jesus loves us. i am absolutely convinced that nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable can get between us and God's love because of the way Jesus has embraced us." -Romans 8:35-39 msg

UPDATE - high school camp and week 1

well its been a little over a week since i promised a regular updates so here we go...

last week was our high school camp at camp windermere on lake of the ozark, mo. at camp god began to move in our students lives in a powerful way. now we have all been to camps where high emotions and stuffy tradition pressure students to make fake and shallow commitments to christ that are always short lived. this camp was different. for our group, there was no official decision on any kind. there were no cards filled out or numbers sent to nashville (headquarters for the SBC), instead, i feel as if all of our students truly met with god and experienced his grace in a new and powerful way. last week felt real.

last night, we had night where students could share about there camp experience. to my surprise, 3 guys chose to share. its cool to be a part of a group where young guys are the ones standing up and deciding to be leaders. god is up to something here.

keep praying that god works in the lives of the students and members here in muscle shoals. also pray that allison and i have the wisdom and patience to lead this ministry as we are still very much out of our comfort zones especially in the realms of culture and technology.

also, in the future i will post at least every monday and thursday before noon central time. this will let you guys know how our sunday and wednesday night services go.

stay classy blogging world.

alex

a fresh start

this is the first official post on my blog. for almost two years i have teased the blogging world with various post and sites that always started with a bang yet quickly lost my interest. this will be different. this is a fresh start. this fresh start is not only a metaphor for my blog, but also my life. recently, my wife and i have accepted an interim youth pastor job in muscle shoals, alabama. in case your have not heard of muscle shoals, according ot lynard skynard, this is where they have the swampers. muscle shoals is about ten years behind my home town of atlanta, georgia when it comes to the innovations of post-modern ministry which is why this new project is so interesting. i find myself completely out of my comfort zone and as a post-emergent thinker in a traditional southern baptist church setting. while the methods here may not exaclty be our cup of tea, we have quickly fallen in love with the people and are excited to see how God choses to use our experiences in alabama. on this blog, you will hear much about our work in alabama and out life. while both of these are currently in uncharted territory, i am excited to see what God has planned. i hope you like my blog. check back often. i promise the content to come will be much more thought provoking than than what you find yourself reading now.

alex