This Sunday we kick off a two-part series around Thanksgiving. I know it’s a day we celebrate once per year, but thankfulness is also the soil that grows excellent things in our lives. Come and join us at 10:30 AM on November 22 and November 29. And in the meantime, start counting your blessings.
The Soil Of Thanks
November 19, 2009 — Craig T. OwensHow Do You Study?
November 10, 2009 — Craig T. Owens
In our Impact youth service, we’re exploring the study of the Bible. To help me with a little “sermon prep,” can you please comment below to tell me how do you study your Bible:
- Do you highlight?
- Underline?
- Write notes?
- Read a chapter at a time?
- Systematically go through the Bible?
- Read from the same translation every time?
- Write in a journal?
- Memorize verses?
Anything you would like to share would be very helpful.
Heart Healthy
October 9, 2009 — Craig T. Owens
It’s amazing how many parallels there are between the health of our physical heart that pumps life-carrying blood and the health of our spiritual heart that circulates life to our inner man. I’m going to be exploring what makes a healthy heart (both kinds of heart) as we launch a new 6-part series this Sunday called Heart Matters.
Whether you are having heart trouble now, or you want to maintain a healthy heart for the years to come, this will be valuable insight for you. Join us at Calvary Assembly of God at 10:30am on Sunday mornings. It will be a great investment in your heart’s future.
Fall Down Attitude
August 25, 2009 — Craig T. Owens
This Sunday at Calvary Assembly of God we start a brand new series called Fall: We all fall, but falling doesn’t have to be fatal. If we have the right attitude about it, the times that we fall can be some of the most instructional times of our lives.
A man with a great fall down attitude was Thomas Alva Edison. Check out these snippets from this inventor’s life:
“If I find 10,000 ways something won’t work, I haven’t failed.” —Edison’s answer to a newspaper reporter’s question about how he felt about his 10,000 failed attempts to perfect the incandescent light bulb
“Son, there’s great value in disaster. All our mistakes are burnt up. Thank God we can start all over again.” —Edison, at age 67, speaking to his son Charles while they were watching his laboratory being destroyed by fire
“I’ve had a lot of success with failure.”
Falling down doesn’t have to be fatal. With the right attitude, falling down can be one of the most instructional times of our lives. Come join me on Sunday morning at 10:30am to hear more about the attitude that makes success out of failure.
Here Comes The ♥♥!
July 31, 2009 — Craig T. Owens
Thanks to everyone who gave me some input on what they ♥ about their church. This Sunday I am starting a new series at Calvary Assembly of God called I ♥ My Church. We’re going to look at a church that everyone in town was buzzing about. And except for the religious stick-in-the-muds, the buzz was positive.
I believe we can be that church today. If you’re in the neighborhood, I’d love to have you join us over the next four weeks as we learn how to become that church about which everyone in town says I ♥ My Church!
The Sermon That Didn’t Happen
March 9, 2009 — Craig T. Owens
I planned, prayed, studied, prepared, tweaked, refined, practiced, and finalized my message for Sunday morning. We’re in a series called Tell Me A Story, where we’re looking at the great truths Jesus revealed in the amazingly-simple stories He told.
Yesterday we were going to look at a story that is so simple, it’s told in just one verse (Matthew 13:44). The kids drama team from The Rock had a very humorous skit ready to help me illustrate my message in a fun way. And I was fired up to share with our church the simple, yet profound, truths the Holy Spirit had spoken to my heart from this story.
Then something happened.
The Spirit of God moved into our service in such a powerful way that we couldn’t continue as planned.
At the close of our worship time, I felt like God was calling us to simply stay in His presence, so we continued to worship. Then God spoke to us through a prophetic word that was right on the mark. I encouraged the congregation to remain in an attitude of prayer as we just waited in God’s presence. Without hesitation, people came to the altars, kneeled at their seats, or stood in God’s presence.
No formal prayer. No stirring music. Just the sweet sound of spiritually-sensitive people sobbing in God’s presence. It was powerful! Another word was given—this one very challenging and exhorting.
Then I felt the Holy Spirit stir my heart. I opened my Bible to the one verse I had prepared to share. But when I opened my mouth, God gave me an entirely different message. I only spoke for a couple of minutes, and without a formal dismissal I simply called people back to prayer.
And our people prayed. And prayed. And prayed. For a long time members of our congregation simply waited in God’s presence.
The Holy Spirit did a deep and personal work in many people’s hearts yesterday—including mine! I cannot wait to see what changes come about as a result of our unplanned time with God yesterday. I’m so glad that my sermon didn’t happen!
Understanding Misunderstanding
February 6, 2009 — Craig T. Owens
Miscommunication is nothing new. From the dawn of history, people have always struggled to understand exactly what the other person was saying to them. That’s because we all have our own “accents”—our own way of getting our message across.
This is hard enough when trying to discuss something like politics, relationship likes/dislikes, or even movie preferences. But what about when you’re trying to communicate something intangible? Like your personal faith.
Most Christ-followers communicate their faith with the same “style” that they communicate their menu preferences, political persuasions, or music choices. But there is an added element of misunderstanding built in to the spiritual dimension. Even Jesus’ own disciples said “Huh?” many times to Him.
This Sunday, we begin a brand new series in our 6:00 PM service simply entitled Huh? We will be learning some very practical ways to communicate our faith to others by learning their unique communication style. If you have ever felt that you’re just not getting through, feel free to join us.
League Of Extraordinary Christians
January 18, 2009 — Craig T. Owens
Good friends of ours, Jeff & Becky Kennedy, were at church this morning. Jeff brought us a challenging word entitled “The League Of Extraordinary Christians.”
I love the narrative in Acts 4:13: When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. Peter and John were ordinary men who walked with Jesus.
By ourselves, we are ordinary; Jesus is the extra.
Extra Time With Jesus + Ordinary Me =
Extraordinary Christian
Ordinary people don’t change their worlds. Ordinary churches don’t attract hungry, hurting people.
But extraordinary people and extraordinary churches are world changers!
I desire for 2009 to be an extraordinary year. I desire that people take note that I have been with Jesus.
Are you ready to spend that extra time with Jesus? Are you ready to be extraordinary this year?
All Means, Um, All
November 20, 2008 — Craig T. Owens
We started a new Sunday evening series called “All.” At least that’s the abbreviated title—the full title is “all the church taking all the gospel to all the world all the time by all the means necessary.”
Jesus said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:18-19). I am more and more amazed and disappointed in how this gets watered down…
- “All the church can’t mean me because I’m nothing special.”
- “All the gospel only means the part about ‘getting saved,’ right?”
- “All the world is only for people who are called to be missionaries.”
- “All the time is just for special ‘evangelical outreaches.’”
- “All the means is just whatever happens in a typical church service.”
I checked Webster’s Dictionary and all means “wholly, entirely, completely.” I even checked my Greek Bible dictionary and discovered that all means, um, “all.” I think the problem comes from another word in that verse: therefore. If I don’t believe that I belong to Christ, then I’m not operating in all of His authority. If I’m not operating in His authority, I will more than likely find all the excuses I can to avoid being a part of the all Jesus intended.
Thank-Fullness Challenge
November 18, 2008 — Craig T. Owens
The Challenge: Write down 50 things for which you can give thanks
We began a new series on Sunday called “A Season Of Thanks,” by seeing how we have the ability to program our reticular activating system in our brains to allow in what we choose. If we are truly overflowing with thanks (thank-fullness) then we will see more things for which we can give thanks.
Here’s the challenge. We handed out the Full of thanks worksheet you see here, and I challenged everyone to write down 50 specific things for which they are thankful. I’ll admit to you that I had only filled in 23 blanks before my pen started slowing down, and by 36 I thought I was out of things for which I could give thanks. But then a quick look around and my pen started moving again and I could finish up all 50 blanks. I have so much for which I can give thanks!
How about you? Can you fill in all 50 blanks before Thanksgiving Day? Feel free to comment on what number you slowed down.
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