our guests on Christmas Eve

Father I pray that our guests on Christmas Eve would continue to feel your presence and allow you to draw them into fellowship with you. Let your Word dwell in them richly and Holy Spirit, draw, draw, draw them to yourself through that time they had in your presence. Don't let the accuser and liar steal away that seed, or bring confusion to it. Cause their steps to be ordered toward you every day. Bring them back this week and cause many of them who are not attached to a church, to become attached to Freedom Valley.

And bless those who brought them to know how to minister to them and encourage them. Help them see you at work in that bringers so that they too get hungry to feel you at work in their own hearts more.

And thank you again for trusting us by bringing them.

praying about being a good Father-in-law

The Heartland song that I heard on my road trip today said it best, and left me remembering, praying, and appreciating God so much today. I really love my daughter's fiance, and look forward to him becoming a son to me. Aaron Pringle is a good man and someone I appreciate very much for character, vision, and integrity. He treats my daughter very well and makes her very happy. Together, they make a good team. I am excited about their future!

But read this, and tell me the words alone don't rip out your eyes when you think of your kids...

Look at the two of you dancing that way
Lost in the moment and each others face
So much in love your alone in this place
Like there's nobody else in the world
I was enough for her not long ago
I was her number one
She told me so
And she still means the world to me
Just so you know
So be careful when you hold my girl
Time changes everything
Life must go on
And I'm not gonna stand in your way

But I loved her first and I held her first
And a place in my heart will always be hers
From the first breath she breathed
When she first smiled at me
I knew the love of a father runs deep
And I prayed that she'd find you someday
But it still hard to give her away
I loved her first

How could that beautiful women with you
Be the same freckle face kid that I knew
The one that I read all those fairy tales to
And tucked into bed all those nights
And I knew the first time I saw you with her
It was only a matter of time

But I loved her first and I held her first
And a place in my heart will always be hers
From the first breath she breathed
When she first smiled at me
I knew the love of a father runs deep
And I prayed that she'd find you someday
But its still hard to give her away
I loved her first

From the first breath she breathed
When she first smiled at me
I knew the love of a father runs deep
Someday you might know what I'm going through
When a miracle smiles up at you
I loved her first

Blessing for those generous givers

Father, I pray that every one of those ministries and individuals that gave so generously to Freedom Valley would be mightily blessed! Let them see your great faithfulness and blessing, and how you honor those who honor you.

I pray that Freedom Valley would develop skill and excellence at raising up people who can handle great wealth and be entrusted by God with great increase. Let abundance come in waves, and our ability to make a great difference be increased by it.

so much to appreciate

I find it so overwhelming to thank God. Where to start? There is so much to say, and to appreciate.

Last night my oldest daughter, Candace announced that she and Aaaron Pringle are getting married! I am very happy about this and look forward to figuring out how to be a Father-In-Law. I hope I can be as good at it as my Father-In-Law is to me. I also hope that I am better at it than I was at getting used to haviong my daughter date in the first place. I am notr proud of how I acted in that role at first.

Christmas Eve services were so cool. Blow out crowds at Hanover and at York Road. In fact, York Road was way too full. We set up every chair and brought in more stacks of chairs, finally giving up and just allowing the poor late comers to just stand. I felt sorry for them, even while feeling happy to have that problem.

It was so good to have the Keith and Karen Welsh family back. God, in His never ending mystery, for some reason did not allow us to support them financially this past year. But this year will be different I think. I love Him for allowing us to help. I think a lot more people will spend eternity in heaven becauyse of their work, and I get a little of that credit.

This week I spent a whole lot of time thinking about how one year ago I had my last conversation with my good friend Malcolm Workman. I must have reviewed that last conversation in my mind a hudred times since that. I wish it could have gone differently. I wish I could have thought of an other way for it to turn out. I guess I am still waiting for my ridiculously gracious God to bail me out of this one some how. Not that I deserve it. Just that it is what He does so much. And it would be so cool if He did it again. I think He probably will.

And this year, I cannot stop thinling about how good God has been to me. I love my job. I have an incredibly gorgeous wife, who is my best friend. My kids are my friends too, and most importantly, they love God, sometimes more than I do, maybe. I wish I had grown up as good as they seem to be growing up.

Freedom Valley people are sowonderful and kind. They have blessed me in more ways than are fair. They take care of each other so beautifully, and follow me so kindly. They put up with my faults with a lot of patience, and allow me to grow at my own pace. I see so much Jesus in them, and hope they sometimes see a little of Him in me.

I was going to get around to some more prayer requests here, but it seems wrong right now. There is just so much to thank God for right now, I probably ought to stop there, just appreciating how much he has done for me already. Maybe tomorrow I can start asking for things already, if I remind myself often enought that He likes it when i ask for things so that I can use it for His glory.

I'd be surprised if anyone actually read this far in this rambling thing. But if you did, I pray a blessing on you for caring.

call to humility

We need a fresh spirit of humility and servanthood. Please pray that God will find us quick to humble ourselves under His mighty hand, and allow Him to exalt us in due season.

This weeekend, I am asking for God to help us reach those who seek Him in the Christmas season, and to attact some of them to become part of us permanently. We are asking for growth and effectiveness in ministering Jesus to those who seek Him.

I am also Asking God to send us someone who desires to give $5000 to help us finish the renovation of the sanctuary, and $20,000 in year end giving of other kinds to catch up on our pay for staff, some of which have only been partially paid this year.

fine tuning Hanover

Father, today I really need to hear from you on how to go to a new level at Hanover. You have helped us do well, but we need to do a lot better. I am asking you for at least 150 people a week there, and effective disciples being formed.

In addition, I am asking you God for about $5000 more dollars to finish our sanctuary renovation project.

Thank you for so generously providing and giving us so many opportunities to try so many things and reach as many as we have. But if you don't mind, I'd like to find ways to reach many more and contribute much to our community and our nation.

Help us reach this culture with your message, Oh God. Help us turn people from self destruction, and learn skills that even help others reach their communities more efectively.

I need to update this thing

Prayet team,
This blod should be helpful to me, but somehow I just do not get it updated often enough. I'd appreciate your prayers on that.
And also, financial breakthrough for Freedom Valley. We need at least $12000 a week these days, and 1500 in attendance weekly.
Thanks for praying!

Khachatryan and Kirakosyan have returned home

Last evening as I returned Pastor Karen Khachatryan and Hayk Kirakosyan to the Dulles airport, we moved forward toward a plan for a future missions trip to Armenia.

As you probably know, we are entering into a church planting phase with them, hoping to add energy and efficiency to what God is already doing there through those excellent churches. Pastor Karen has already planted 9 churches, and their momentum is growing!

We are talking about going over there somewhere around August 10-20 2007, to help them do the first ever Youth Camp for Armenia. I have asked Souled Out to lead this effort, and they are excitedly considering it.

There is another missions trip being planned for Ghana, Africa June 17-27, 2007. This one will be led by Keturah Lewis, who has been there before. There is room for about 12 on this one as well.

Please pray with us that God will open the windows of heaven on us and allow us to minister there with excellence, and that each person who goes will be able to raise about $2500 each for their trip, and ministry expenses.

God is doing great things, and we get to part of it!!

what a month!

October 2006 goes down as a month of exciting things. It seems like everyday we are making great progress. This past weekend for example, many people were baptized in the Holy Spirit, for which I am so grateful to God. Last weekend we worked on a plan to plant many more churches in Armenia and surrounding countries. Again very exciting. Earlier we have seen major progress toward several new Master's Commission's here in Central PA.

And so many more good things happened.

Please pray with me that God will continue to move among us, healing hearts and lives, and setting people free. Pray that we will be good stewards of his great grace, and that we will grow in skill to lead His precious people. Also, pray for my leadership team, which has been mercilessly attacked in their marriages, finances, and health.

We have an upcoming Friend Day. Pray that hurting people all over the county will get an invitation to church somewhere.

my Armenian brothers are coming!

I got good news! Pastor Karen (pronounced Car-en) Kachatryan and Hayk Kirakossyan are coming to the US for a visit! October 19-31, they will be with me every day. These are great men of God who will serve us well for encouragement, annoited preaching, and the cross-cultural insight. God has knit our churches with their in so incredible ways in the past few years, and we look forward to many more. Pray with me that we find the best ways to relize their value and friendship through this time!

great things are happening again

Again, I feel more thankful than needy. God is pouring Himself out on us again and things are exploding all over! It's been a long tough year, but I feel like the corner has finally been turned, and we are well on our way.

Today, for example, started with some huge battles, but ended with some huge victories.

God help me rest well tomorrow. I can hardly wait to get my motorcycle to the car lot and get it all taken care of. Help me find a buyer quickly and get that money sowed into missions where it will do some real good. While I rest, talk to my spirit about that sermon and help me think it through well so that people can really benefit.

sad Amish families

Yesterday i learned that my good friend, Sam Zook lost two nieces in that schoolhouse murder incident among the Amish. I can hardly think about anything else. If I lost my daughters to something like that...

Last week I felt led to offer my motorcycle to God as a sacrifice for missions. I also felt that the Holy Spirit said I should not do this privately, but publicly declare and demonstrate God's supernatural provision in it, so that i can become a much better missions giver. I am very excited about this and looking forward to what God will do. I am asking God to use me to give more than $50,000 to missions in the next few years instead of living a more comfortable life myself. I am eager to watch God work and make that all possible.

Pray with my daughters as they decide what to do with their lives. God is really challenging them to great things these days, perhaps even world missions. What an honor to have a call like that on their lives!

the Amish-school shooting lose to my home

Prayer team,
Please pray for the Amish families whose daughters were lined up and executed by a gunman today- about a mile from the Amish-Mennonite school I attended. I believe some of those murdered and injured kids were probably daughters of my school mates, although names have not yet been released. I feel so much sadness for my Amish friends and community.
And pray for the safety of all of our schools. The last few days have been horrible here in the USA, with so many school shootings. Our kids need our prayers of protection.
On another note, this weekend is Friends' Day at Freedom Valley. We are asking God to bring us people who are searching and ready for a relationship with their Heavenly Father, and eternal life. We want to be part of making it hard to go to Hell from our city!

this weekend

Please pray with me as I start a new teaching series this Sunday, called The Ultimate Ghost Walk. I can't wait to see people fall in love with The Holy Ghost and all that He offers. this week I want to talk about some of the surprising things the Bible says or does not say about Ghosts.

missions, changed lives, and callings

I am just so pumped about the ability to make a difference around the world through misisons. Johannes Amritzer, (by the the Holy Spirit) lit my fire deeply about what we could do to bring the gospel to those who never heard. I cannot wait to give myself and my money to these kinds of world changing opportunities. Pray with me that God would use us to reach people who never heard!

wow

Thanks everybody for praying for me. The past few months have been tough but they seem like ancient history after Sunday night. God met me and told me the battle was over... and alot of other stuff. I feel so free, it's like I got saved again, which is exactly what happened. God is so good to me.

Please pray for my children as they sift through some great life choices right now-among them doing missions work. I am very excited about it all.

And pray for wisdom to handle the generous outpouring that God is bringing. I feel it and see it everywhere already. Much, much more is coming and I pray that i can handle it better than I ever have.

fresh ideas, vitality, effectiveness

Today I am praying about the following;

1. I have a close friend struggling with his wife's desire to divorce

2. A staff member is struggling with the demands of a growing family and expanding vision.

3. We are searching for key ways to serve our church better and grow more.

God is so good to me

Sometimes I feel completely wrong for asking God for one more thing after all that He has done for me. He is ridiculously and unfairly good to me and I don't even understand it. But He told me to ask anyway, so I ask.

He is healing me. Today I actually couldn't wait to get to work- a feeling that was once common and daily, but recently has been pretty rare.

I need so much more wisdom to lead. I am asking God to give us the ability to make each worship service and each small group event so full of God's heart and so healing to His people that the Holy Spirit can send us the hurting, people who feel lost, and those who search for meaning in life.

Thanks for praying with me...

cool stuff on a hot day

It was awesome again to see all those kids all over the church property learning together, laughing, and (hopefully) making strong commitments to God. Lots of those families are new to us, and I am hoping that some of them partner up with us to followJesus. Way to go Rick and Alicia and that huge, wonderful team of volunteers. They show up cheerfully in the blazing heat to make a difference in the life of sports minded kids.

I also loved sitting in on (6 minutes of) Adam Ritter's sermon. He is becoming a real man of God and I love the prospect of partnering up with him to affect lives for eternity through our student ministries and Gettysburg Master's Commission. He's the real deal and an anointed communicator. I love that awesome youth ministry these days!

I personally have so much to learn about leadership. Recently I have become painfully aware at how our ability to affect our counties with the gospel is so hampered by my smallness. Please pray that God will open my mind and teach me so much more about leading people to their Creator-God.

thank you God

I had a breakthrough today for which I am very thankful to God. It was less difficult to put on joy today than it has been and I want to take time to appreciate that. I also want to thank God for a great time with my family on vacation this week, for a 4 wonderful kids and an incredible wife.

This evening, I am praying about the possibility of new leadership getting involved in the recording studion, and reclaiming lost ground in that ministry. I am asking God for help to get an addition built on our house, and for blessing and protection for my son away at Student Council Leadership Camp.

Thanks for praying my friends! I love you guys.

the sports camp outreach is awesome

Tonight I am so thankful to God for the first night of our Mega Sports Camp. Alicia and Rick Roth are doing great with this thing, and we are off to a good start. This has great potential to bring a lot of kids to Jesus and strenghten their faith while teaching them some skills. This is great!

in case you wonder if you found the right place, here's a pic of me

Okay, so it's a scary pic, but here it is.

about the move

I just moved my blog from MySPace to this space. Welcome and thanks for praying for me!

Things I am praying about today:

1. Unity and peace for staff and leaders

2. Financial abundance for Freedom Valley

3. Confidence to believe even when I don't see it happening in the natural.