…reflection, stillness, time with family and friends, and quiet moments.  The offices are busy with activity again as Stefani, Brenda, myself, and Susan are working.  Previous three days have been EXTREMELY quiet with some folks taking advantage of spring break with their families.  Becca and I decided to keep things close to home.  I’ve had a quiet office week (in and out) with some advanced planning for upcoming youth groups and Sunday School lessons.  Have also had some relaxing times with Becca and the dogs watching movies, cooking some great meals, and visiting with her parents (we cooked them dinner and relaxed at THEIR house last night).  My head had been spinning over the last 6 weeks as there had been so many things going on (trip to MN, Youth Sunday, Preaching, Youth Groups, New Series, and lots of contact work with kids).  My nights at home seemed to be dwindling and Spring Break (for others) wasn’t coming fast enough.  It is upon us though and the week has been glorious.  Great quiet times at  my office couch, great time in the Word and in Prayer, and fantastic coffee with Starbucks new Tribute Blend!  Often we hear people say, “I need a VACATION!”  I felt I was yelling, “I need a SLOWER WEEK!”…and I got one.  Thank you Knox & Loudon County schools for providing me exactly what I needed.  Praying for you all today as you enjoy your time off or your slower schedules.  Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

I’m sitting in the office right now making some final tweaks to my sermon for Sunday.  Has been a long week of reading and preparation…definitely has been a SLOWLY but SURELY process in how it has come together.  It is always a challenge for me when I’m teaching on something so significant from the Gospels with multiple accounts of the happenings.  Each can be fascinating with some referencing things that the other Gospels left out.  I’m excited to share with you all in about 48 hours what the Lord has put on my heart…which will definitely include just a little bit of laughter!

In honor of my slowly but surely process this week I wanted to shout out our family friend on the PGA TOUR, Ben Crane, as he released his latest CRAZY VIDEO this week on his website.  The video itself was debuted on the Golf Channel with Rich Lerner and is hilarious.  So, watch it below, Ben Crane on SLOW PLAY, and laugh a little bit today.  See you all in church on Sunday morning!

Quick reminder here on Thursday morning about our new series beginning this weekend at FFUMC…24 hours that changed the world.  Yours truly will kick off the series from the pulpit as our lead pastor catches a little rejuvenation time with his family.  We are going to spend 6 intense weeks walking through the 24 hours leading up to the Crucifixion of the Christ!  This Sunday we will begin our journey in the Upper Room looking at the last supper….you don’t want to miss it!

I know that it is SPRING BREAK…but if you are in town come on over for a great start to Lent.  And remember…it is also DAYLIGHT SAVINGS…so make sure you SPRING FORWARD on Saturday night!  See you all in church.  Take another look at the preview to get pumped up!  I get excited every single time I watch it.  Praying for you all today.   Peace.

Those words come from a childrens song I remember singing at Community Bible Church in Mt.Vernon, Iowa.  It tells the story right now here in East Tennessee where the RAIN WON’T STOP!  I had been excited in the last couple of weeks to get out and walk with my dogs more and to WALK my golf rounds.  There is not much of either happening right now as it has essentially been raining non-stop (minus a 24 hours break) since Saturday.  Suppose to continue through today and part of tomorrow.  I’m suppose to golf with some friends on Saturday morning…wondering how wet it will be 48 hours after all this is over?!

The rain though can be a great thing.  We’ve had a crazy winter here in East Tennessee with more snow than people can remember for decades.  The cold air and the white fluffy stuff kept on coming…so for the precipitation to be falling in liquid form to me signals the coming of spring!  I can see green grass starting to grow in patches and some plants are starting to sprout in our front yard landscaping.  It also provides a great atmosphere for studying.  There is nothing happening outside but cold wet mud…so it is much easier for me to stay indoors and be productive.  That is a great thing this week because I’m preaching on Sunday!  We are kicking off our Lenten series, 24 Hours that Changed the World, this Sunday in church.  Brewster is out of town for spring break so I’m going to get us started rolling down the tracks towards Easter Sunday.  Excited to bring the Word and to talk about the LAST SUPPER, a meal that definitely defined Jesus and can define us as Christians!  Will be looking at the Last Supper from Mark’s Gospel with a couple of hops over to John to check out some other cool happenings in the UPPER ROOM.  I know that many of you will be out of town for Spring Break, but if you’re not, make sure that you are in the house Sunday morning!  I’m praying for you all as we move closer to the kick-off & I am hopeful that you will hear the Word in a new way  on the 13th, a way that will alter your way of living and cause you to think!

Have a great Ash Wednesday…if it’s raining, get to work.  If it’s not, take a personal day and enjoy the sunshine!  See you all soon!

I bumped into a church member at Panera Bread a few weeks ago.  She said that it was a God thing that i walked in the door because she was sitting there thinking about me.  She asked if she could visit  with me for a quick minute.  “Of course!” was my response.  She asked how I was doing, how I was feeling, and how she could support me.  In that moment I remember feeling very drained.  I thought about my time away from the office and realized how it had been shrinking.  My Friday’s and Saturday’s, typically reserved as days off, had been filled lately with ministry events (Basketball games, school concerts, Christian concerts, etc.).  I had only in that month began to struggle for the first time in a while with filling my schedule to the point of overflow.  It is hard sometimes to turn down offers to watch kids play sports or to see them in their school play.  But sometimes no is the appropriate answer in ministry.  I know that I can take care of myself by taking off.  Galatians 6:9-10 says, “Let us not become weary in the doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.  Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.” In order for me to be able to live out these scriptures in Galatians I have to take care of myself by taking off from ministry.  We must be willing to refresh and rejuvenate in stillness, solitude, and surrender to God outside of our pursuit of others for the Kingdom.

I looked at this older (notice my word choice…..oldER…not old….OLDER) member of our congregation, humbled by her concern for my spirit, and I responded sincerely.  “Ask me if I’m taking my days off.  Ask me what I did over the weekend to relax.  And ask me how I’m doing in my walk with the Lord.  And thank you so much for caring.”  It was an awesome moment…made even more awesome by the fact that she continues to ask me every time that she sees me, “Mark, how were your days off this week?”

My calendar has been filled lately with events, even on the weekends.  Friday night was Winter Jam at Thompson Boling Arena from 5:00pm until after Midnight.  Last night was the Farragut High School Musical, Grease, for most of the night.  Great things…but on the weekend.  I’m now compensating for those weekend off day events by taking some time during the week.  I don’t want to lose my spirit and my passion for others.  I don’t want to STOP taking advantage of those opportunities to pursue people for Christ.  So I’m going to continue to work hard and to do a better job of taking care of myself by taking off.  How about you?  Any solitude lately?  Any activities in the outdoors that you adore lately?  Any time off lately?…I mean REAL TIME OFF and AWAY?  Something to think about!  Praying for you all today!

                      Perhaps the most exciting moment of my entire life was when I prayed with my mother to receive Jesus Christ into my life as a young boy.  I remember what I felt in that moment as Jesus came in.  I felt that I had somebody with me.  I felt excited.  I felt like I had a new friend.  I felt new on the inside.  I knew that I was changed!  Jesus is definitely the most important person that I have ever let into my life.  The memory of that moment in the back of my family’s wood paneled oldsmoblie station wagon is still rich and full, like an italian roasted french pressed cup of coffee, and I am so thankful to my mother for continuing to paint the picture of that momen for me as I grow older.  Revelation 3:19b-20 says, “So be earnest, and repent.  Here I am.  I stand at the door and knock.  If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.”  Such a perfect picture of the moment when Jesus and I sat down to our first meal together.  We’ve been spending time together ever since.  Certainly there have been seasons of of struggle as our relationship hit dry spells.  Other times have been full and sweeet as our relationship blossomed and developed. 

                  I have learned though that it is not only my relationship with Jesus Christ that sustains me today.  People continue to play a huge role in my growth and development as a follower of Jesus Christ, as a husband, as a son, as a brother, as a friend, and as a man of God in full-time student ministry.  One of my life verses as a young person growing up in Eastern Iowa was Proverbs 17:17, which says, A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity!”  When I mention the word, friend, you probably have a number of names that immediately pop in your head.  You probably think about some people in your life who you trust, people who have been there for you, and people who build you up and encourage you.  Others of you may think about people who have left you when you needed them most.  They have left you with a feeling of abandonment and sorrow.  They have caused you to close up and to not let other people in.  You think of the people in your life who have not loved you at all times and have not been there for you at your crucial junctures of life.  I can relate to that feeling of losing a friend.  In high school I lost my best friend who was my accountability in Christ and my favorite person to hang out with.  He chose a different path in life, one that shocked me.  It was also a path that left the Lord and me out.  I still deal with intense feelings of loss from that broken friendship.

                Although I pray for and hope that friends who come my way will stay around and always be trustworthy, you and I both know that it does not always work out that way.  The main reason for that is the reality of our humanity.  One of my favorite movies of all time, “RUDY,” has a scene in it where a priest (Father Cavanaugh) looks at RUDY who is looking for answers and a new path in life and says to him, “Son, in 35 years of religious study I have come up with two hard incontrovertible facts:  There is a God, and I’m not Him.”  I love this quote!  So many times we fill our lives with expectations of perfection!  We expect perfection in our studies, in our workplace, in our family, and in our FRIENDSHIPS!  We expect PEOPLE to provide a level of closeness for us that only God can achieve.  Only a relationship with Jesus Christ is perfect, for the person of Christ is without fault, error, or blemish.  People, even those who are closest to us, will let us down.  Some that will result in the loss of a friendship, others that will result in hurt and a need for re-building and forgiveness.  Our friendships cannot fill the place of Christ in our lives.  They can be Christ to us by loving the way he loved and setting a great example to follow.  But they cannot take HIS place.  There is a God, and I’m not Him!   

               I want to encourage you all today to continue to be open to letting people into your lives.  The easy thing to do is stick with what you have.  What you have right now may be a lot, and it may be not much at all.  But we have never arrived until we come into GLORY.  Our need in life for friendships, strong relationships, and encouragement will never fade.  Look first to Christ through a personal relationship with him.  Look second to HIS people.  Let people in, even when it is hard.  Resolve to talk to and allow people to see your heart.  For it is when we open up and let people in that our lives can be lifted up, challenged, and encouraged.  It is when we let people in that laughter abounds and joy reigns.  It is when we let people in that we can be changed forever.

                 

Exciting week at FFUMC as the Youth here make final preparations for leading in both worship services.  The YLT (Youth Leadership Team) has done a tremendous job in preparing for and putting together the pieces of both services.  Huge shout out today to Caroline Dyer and Kelli Reese for all of their work with their fellow youth group friends in getting things ready.  Their leadership and their enthusiasm has been a huge reason why this Sunday will be a fantastic success.  Really excited for everyone in the church to hear 4 youth testimonies, see an AMAZING skit, and to praise the Lord in worship!  Please be in prayer for all of the little pieces of this Sunday.  Pray for the remaining practices (Wednesday and Saturday), for the kids who will be up front during both services, and for those who will be greeting and facilitating many of the usual Sunday functions (greeting, offering, sound booth…etc.).  God is doing exciting things in the lives of the FFUMC youth group and many of you will get an up close look at those things on Sunday.  The theme for both services is, “Walking with Jesus Day-by-Day!”  The theme of UMYF since my arrival has centered around coming into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, living life with HIM to the fullest (John 10:10), and living life with HIM 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.  There is no time off in our journey with Christ!  Every little thing we do and every little decision we make has an impact on who Christ is inside of us.  The youth are working hard to live that kind of a SOLD OUT life for Christ.  You don’t want to miss out this week!  See you soon!  Praying for you all today!

                          One of the most powerful and emotional experiences of my life…HANDS DOWN.  Sitting in a hospital waiting room with everybody on TEAM GOSSPERMANN…and a last doctors update that everything is done, everything was successful, everything was working, and everyone was safe.  Being at the EPICENTER of where all the prayers from all over the country (world) was amazing.  The rush of emotion when the good word kept coming, the peace that came while loved ones were in surgery, the scripture reading and prayer just moments before Leslie and Scott were wheeled back, and the blessings of skilled doctors who use God given talents to succesfully complete a Kidney Transplant surgery; all provided legitimate feelings of the presence of God in Minneapolis.

                   In the Young Adult Ministry @ First Farragut we are currently in a series called, “The Perfect Blend,” helping us find a perfect blend of our faith and our everyday life.  Week 2 addressed intercessory prayer.  Intercessory prayer is prayer for others. An intercessor is one who takes the place of another or pleads another’s case. One study Bible defines intercession as “holy, believing, persevering prayer whereby someone pleads with God on behalf of another or others who desperately need God’s intervention.”   It was such a blessing to provide updates from the Twin Cities, knowing that as the updates were posted and blogs were written people were adjusting how they were going to the Lord in prayer.

                     My Dad taught me about the ministry of presence, not worrying about what you will say, but just simply being there.  My love for my Jesus and for all of those connected to the Gosspermann families is what led me to the Twin Cities this past week.  I will never forget what I saw, how I was able to serve, and what it felt like.  Feeling the presence of God is a radical and life-altering event.  Have you felt HIS presence lately?  Have you gone to God interceding for others lately?  Has somebody prayed for you and it forever changed you?  Drop a comment and tell me about it.  Because it is when we begin to talk and to share about how God is moving in our lives that our awareness of God in everyday life goes through the roof!  I’m praying for you all today and I am counting my blessings tbis morning.

                         I am writing this post from the bedside of Leslie Goss here on Friday morning at the University of Minnesota Hospitals!  Barry is grabbing a bite to eat so I’m standing in for a while.  She is resting comfortably, she looks WONDERFUL (she doesn’t feel that way…but she does!), and her spirits are high!  She was sitting in one of the visitors chairs when I came in this morning!  What a wonderful surprise!  I am so encouraged!  Last night in a short discussion that I had with Leslie she was adament that people understand why she did what she did.  She didn’t donate a Kidney to be a hero or to have people thank her for how wonderful she is.  She did it because of who Jesus Christ is in her life.  She did it because of her unwavering faith.  It was an act of Love that has been modeled to her by her Savior.  It was such a humbling conversation and put into perspective just how amazing she is.  I told her that although she didn’t do it to be a hero, that she was.  She is a HERO OF FAITH!  And if Leslie can follow God’s leading in her life to donate a Kidney, can’t we also follow God’s leading in the smaller things in life?  You might not be asked to donate one of your essential internal organs today, but you might be asked to be-friend a stranger.  You might also be led by God to reach out to somebody who is hurting or to give more of your personal finances to the local church or to a Christian organization.  And although personal recognition shouldn’t be our goal, being a hero of our faith in Jesus Christ, a Champion of the faith, absolutely can be!  If there was one thing that Leslie could audibly speak to every single one of you who have been praying for this entire situation, she would say to let it inspire you live out your faith in a new way, in a bigger way, in a way where the name of Jesus is glorified!

                          I’ll never forget a sweet praise song that I grew up singing at Community Bible Church in Mt. Vernon, Iowa.  It was called, “This is the day.”  The chorus sang, “This is the day that the Lord has made.  I will rejoice and be glad in it.  This is the day.  This is the day, that the Lord has made!”  I can’t get that song out of my head this morning.  I have been singing it since I woke up and had my time with the Lord.  Such an exciting day here in the Twin Cities as we celebrate a FLAWLESS day of surgery when Leslie Goss provided her brother-in-law Scott Ellspermann a new Kidney and a new life.  Every single time a doctor came to “camp Gosspermann” in the surgery waiting room we received good news.  The most exciting part of the day came when we received the last of many visits from many doctors.  He informed all of us that EVERYTHING was over and EVERYTHING went great and EVERYBODY was okay.  You definitely expect that to be the outcome, but when the reality of the good news becomes official it is extremely emotional.  The tears were flowing from all of us as we celebrated together.  Praise God for his hand of protection on our dear friends.  Praise God for the opportunity I have had to walk through this with them.  And praise God for the faith of my friend, Leslie Goss. 

                   

                                I wrote this post (and lost this post) in the Chicago Airport…silly airport internet connections.  Now that we have a solid connection in the University of Minnesota Surgery waiting room I wanted to re-write it!  It has been an amazing experience walking through this exciting event with my dear friends, the Goss & Ellspermann families. 

                                 We arrived at U of M this morning at about 5:30am.  Leslie was taken back into surgery right at 7:30am with Scott following her a little before 9:00am.  We had a sweet time of hugs, scripture, and prayer before all of the fun with IV’s began!  The scripture I read was one of great hope and encouragement.  It is a Psalm that enables us to lift our hands to God in surrender.  It pleases God so much when he sees us giving over control to Him.  The Lord knew about this Kidney Transplant before Leslie and Scott were even born…and He is in control.  As you continue to pray for the families today and wait on my updates from the Twin Cities I would encourage you to offer this Psalm up to God in intercessory prayer for all of the family.  Psalm 121 says, “  I lift up my eyes to the hills- where does my help come from?  My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.  He will not let your foot slip-he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.  The LORD watches over you- the LORD is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night.  The LORD will keep you from all harm- he will watch over your life; the LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore. 

                              This experience has already had a huge impact on my life.  These amazing people; my dear friends; their sweet love for eachother.  I will write more as soon as I know more.  Until then turn to Word of God on behalf of our friends!