Food!

I meet once a month with a small group of pastors. We meet in Kinston because it’s the centrally-located city in between Jacksonville, New Bern, Clayton and Greenville. We meet for fellowship, prayer and, of course, food.

At our September meeting, we discussed our concern for our denomination, and we decided to do something about it. One of my friends said, “Hey, on the Fridays that we don’t meet, let’s fast and pray about our concern and petition God to intervene!” That sounded like such a great idea, and we all agreed to do it.

Then came the next Friday… Read more »

Intentional for 10: Week 7

As you’ve probably discovered, some of the disciplines are more challenging than others. Some disciplines, at different times, get right to the gut level of what it means to sacrifice and persevere. Click here to share if this has been the case with you and your journey? But not to be discouraged in any way, God doesn’t waste any genuine effort. Need more inspiration or challenge? Here are ten more prompts for all the disciplines: Read more »

Jesus’ take on freedom

Doesn’t everyone want to be free?

Over the last few weeks I have been repeatedly reminded of how precious freedom is. The anniversary of the Berlin Wall’s collapse reminded me. Talking with a friend who lives in an oppressive region of India reminded me. Reading about Christians who have been jailed for their faith reminded me. Talking with a person who was recently arrested reminded me.

As far as I can tell, everyone wants to be free. Read more »

Intentional for 10: Week 5

After 4 solid weeks of implementing ten disciplines, do you see any fruit? Do you feel as though you’ve gone deeper with Jesus in a whole new way? Is God’s Word coming alive and fresh? Your journey, even though you may not feel that it’s compelling, can be an inspiration to so many others. Please take a minute to share even just a couple sentences of what Intentional for 10 has meant to your spiritual journey over the last four weeks.

And in true fashion, here are ten more prompts for all the disciplines: Read more »

Hole in One!

My disc golf small group meets every Sunday afternoon in the back parking lot. We have about 30 people signed up, so each week we have a fair number of men and women come out and play.

Sunday was a special day. I started us with our regular devotion time. We are in the process of naming each one of our golf holes with scripture. This Sunday’s reference for #6 was Genesis 1:31, “God looked over all he had made, and he saw that it was excellent in every way. This all happened on the sixth day.” Our sixth basket is the one that you can see from Old Firetower Road near the gravel road entrance. It’s an average length throw for a right-handed disc golfer. Everyone knows that with a good toss, there is a chance for birdie.

I ended up in the last group this week. Our group of six included a husband and wife team, a couple of newer players, and another guy who has been in our group since we started it last year. When we reached the sixth tee, it was John’s turn to throw first. Most of us were talking and not really paying attention to John’s throw until we heard his disc hit the chains. John yelled, “I think it hit the chains!” You can’t see the basket from the tee on #6; it’s hidden by the pine trees. So, we all ran to look and see where John’s shot landed. Read more »

Sacrificing to the Finish Line

“Just a half-mile to go; you can do it!”

That’s what I was saying to myself over and over again last Saturday morning. I was part of the Good Samaritan 5K and pushing hard as I approached the finish line. I had intentionally been running faster than my normal, 55-year old pace, and my whole body was feeling it. My heart was pounding, my stomach was turning and my brain was questioning this painful strategy. I briefly thought about slowing and coasting in, but people were cheering me on. I was able to finish with a sprint!

Three years ago, Covenant began a 3-year race called His Heart, Our Dream. It was a broad-based project endorsed by all core leaders and has been financially supported by many households. The primary goal was clear to us all: expand our facilities so that people we had not yet met would have a place to worship and discover Jesus’ redeeming love. Read more »

Intentional for 10: Week 4

One of the Intentional for 10 disciplines is “sacrifice.” This weekend, Branson will be sharing in detail about the upcoming special offering on Dec 19/20. As part of this segment, Branson would like you to share with us how you and/or your family is engaging this special, yet sometimes difficult, discipline so that we may share it and inspire others in their intentional walk with Christ.

Tell Branson your journey with sacrifice here.

And as expected, here are ten more ideas to assist you in this Intentional for 10 journey: Read more »