Sunday Nite Speak!

* Good nite tonight... Steve Layne did an awesome job! Hit the nail on the head, he did... the guy's a phenomenal preacher! Great way to celebrate TWO YEARS OF MINISTRY: Steve spoke from Joshua 1... BACK TO THE FUTURE - looking back on the blessings of God, but moving forward to what He has in store for us! Look back, but don't stay behind!

* Thought the worship was good... man, I am DRAINED, though! FOUR MONTHS of double duty has really taken it's toll. Pastor D is depleted... for real. I'll be taking it relatively easy over the next few weeks, though. Guest speakers coming in... hopefully, guest musicians, too! Great to know there are guys connected to me who love this ministry and want to help out!

* My friend Shawn McBride was in the house tonighte... what an encourager! He's a BIG PROPONENT of churches loving hard on their pastor (and no... I didn't tell him to say ANY OF THAT, lol!) So, he came up and gave a few words and a "brief" challenge to the church... good stuf, Pastor Shawn! And Mosaic... you guys STEPPED UP WELL!!! Good gracious modacious! Thank you SO MUCH for being so generous! What Shawn said was true... Pastors are human, too, and need to sometimes see/hear/feel love from their people. You showed that today... thank you.

* Well, I will be taking a MUCH NEEDED blog break... I shall return soon in a week... or two. ;-)

Sunday Nite Speak

* Tonight was a good nite... a very apropo message on temptation. Very CONVICTING message (for me), and seemed to really touch several people.

* Why do so many of us take paths we KNOW are wrong... get to the destination we KNEW we'd get to... and WONDER HOW WE GOT THERE? But we should've seen it coming from a mile away!

* Proverbs 27:12 has totally rocked my world!!!

*One of the most important things to understand about temptation is that it's much more than what we just see in front of us!

* BIG UPS to Brian and Christina... two UMD students who've been coming regularly to Mosaic DC for the last month. Christina became a Christ-follower last year, and Brian just started following Jesus last month! They both were baptized this morning at Christina's home church in Belair, MD!! YAY, GOD!!! :-) Keep rockin' it guys... I'm proud of you!

* Speaking of BIG UPS: a MAJOR SHOUT-OUT to my man Darrius Heyward-Bey, wide receiver from UMD who got drafted by the Oakland Raiders in the first round (7TH PICK!!) of the NFL Draft! That's HUGE!! Proud of you, D!! Just remember us little people (especially Pastor D, lol!) :-D

* Got to see my good friend Savannah tonight... who bought out a friend she recently met while working out. Said she thought Mosaic would be a great fit for her... her friend seems to think so, too... Now, that is TOTALLY awesome when people who aren't even members or attenders of your church are pointing people to your church! YAY, GOD!!!!

* My Cowboys didn't make a huge splash in the draft, at least not in the first two rounds. But, holy moley!! They ended up with 12 picks, which is the MOST in the NFL since 1994, when the draft expanded to seven rounds. Dallas stockpiled on picks who could make an immediate impact on the special teams. Most fans aren't excited... but I think this was an excellent draft for them!!

* Okay... so next Sunday marks MOSAIC DC's 2-yr Anniversary!!!! YAY, GOD!!!!!! Wow... this time has gone by really fast! My good friend Professor/Pastor Steve Layne will be our guest preacher... I am SO LOOKING FORWARD to that!!!! We're not having a major celebration this year... but would love to see you if you're not doing anything at 5:30 this coming Sunday, May 3.

* OMG(osh), I will be 41 next week... I'm getting ancient!

Sunday Nite Speak!

* Great night tonight at the Gathering!
* Saw a bunch of new faces in the crowd... YAY, God!
* We had a "miniband" tonight: guitar, bass, drums, vocals... but we rocked it (or so I was told)! God is amazing!! Robert, Jose, and Brandy... you guys KICKED it tonight! I appreciate so much working with you... you make my job alot easier (prob'ly b/c I make yours so much harder, lol)! Love you guys...

* Worship Set:
- Here is Our King (Crowder)
- Run (Hillsong)
- Everything Glorious (Crowder)
- Enough (Tomlin)
- Amazed (Brewster)

* Hey, this coming Sunday... tell all your friends... we're having a special praise, prayer & celebration service. There wll be MUSIC... we will WORSHIP... we will PRAY... we have hear what God is doing in the lives of others... and we will CELEBRATE! We have a GREAT KING who is worthy of our praise and adoration... and we're gonna do that like we've lost our minds! :-)
* If that last entry "scared" some of you... don't be alarmed, but answer this question: why is it that we can get loud and crazy at a sporting event, but we SIT QUIETLY on Jesus? I don't know, I'm just wondering!! ;-)
* Well, EXTREME is now over... finished the series tonight, with Extreme Satisfaction... from John 7:37-39. AWESOME TIME!!
* Even when we allow our souls to become dry and parched, the Fountain of Living Water makes Himself available to us... without price... and we can drink to the FULL!! That's just too freakin' awesome for words...
* Breakfast bar metro outreach... people are getting excited about it... got another email from someone wanting to get involved! YAAY, GOD!
* Almost teared up when Dennis Rodman got the axe on Celebrity Apprentice... Christ came to redeem men and women like Dennis, and the Church should be passionate about reaching them! The question is, "Are we??"

Sunday Nite Speak!

* Today TOTALLY ROCKED!!!
* I preached this morning for my buddy and former professor, Steve Layne, at the church where he pastors, Life Church. It's always an honor to preach there, because I know the type of preaching those people are used to. Steve is one of the sharpest, most effective teachers I have ever met. He's not even 40, and has been a Bible professor for longer than I have been in ministry. AND... he's cool. ;-)
* It was great seeing some good friends at Life, as well. Walter and Annette, Marcus and Ebony... you're in a great place, with a pastor who's the Dude of dudes! ;-)
* Had an awesome time at the Gathering at Mosaic DC tonight... my church is bangin, man!
* Three up, one to go... we're almost finished the EXTREME series... if you haven't made it out yet, you need to come through THIS WEEKEND! Let's PACK THE HOUSE Sunday... friends, family, co-workers, neighbors, aliens from another planet... LET'S END THE SERIES WITH A BLAST!!
* Thought the worship went really well tonight! The band has been doing an awesome job, with really only minimal practice because of everyone's schedule. Here was the set for tonight:

- O Praise Him, Crowder
- Run, Hillsong
- Everlasting God, Tomlin
- From the Inside Out, Hillsong

* Tonight's message was a little difficult for me... not sure why. We talked about Extreme Kindness, and looked at 2 Samuel 9, from the account with David and Mephibosheth. It's a beautiful depiction of "extreme kindness/grace" shown to a totally underving (and unexpecting) person... and mirrors the love and kindness shown to us by our awesome God.
* I think I got the point across tonight... but one thing I've learned from my man Francis Chan is to be transparent when preaching: if you don't have the thing worked totally out... but you know you're being obedient in preaching it anyway... be honest. Tell your people. "Hey, I'm still working through this... but I'm expecting God to show up tonight anyway." And He did! In spite of me, He did. And I love it when He does that. :)
*
* My man Steven Furtick had a GREAT POST about the difference between FRIENDS and fans. I've been talking about this for some time now... there's a huge difference between people who love you for you, and those who love you for what you do. Honestly, we need both... but when things get THICK, I want a friend that I can count on.
* Well, that's it for now... until later,

Pastor D

Monday Mind Dump...

* Great time at the Gathering last night!
* One of the most exciting things, for me, is to see newer attenders bringing their friends! That is just freaking amazing to me!
* We continued our EXTREME series with EXTREME DEVOTION: Profile of the Obsessed. I stole the sub-title from a chapter of Francis Chan's book... and we looked at one of the most "Jesus-obsessed" people we see in the Scripts: Mary of Bethany. She's my mentor when it comes to devotion to Christ... I learn alot from her (she really is a beast... see also this passage)
* One of the things I like most about Mary's example is that she teaches us to choose WHAT'S BEST over WHAT'S LESS. That's not just a "catchy phrase"... some of us tend to make a habit of settling for less than God's best in our lives, and end up wondering why we're always in crisis mode! Mary demonstrated in reality what this guy did in one of Jesus' stories... I love it!!!!
* One of our college students gave her life to Christ at last week's gathering... and she came back out last night, all the way from Baltimore... even though she's on Spring Break! She's becoming obsessed with Jesus... and I love it!!!
* Worship was good last night, too... here's the set:

- Your Grace is Enough (Tomlin)
- Let God Arise (Tomlin)
- God You Reign (Brewster)
- Amazed (Brewster)

* Yes... I'm a Chris Tomlin and Lincoln Brewster junkie. :)
* The band continues to do an amazing job with limited rehearsal time... you guys make me proud week in & week out!!
* Over the last month or so, we've had a number of deaths of family members of our Mosaic crew... remember those who are still hurting from the loss of loved ones.
* Even in the midst of sadness, though, God tends to bring about joy... in the midst of death, God brings life... and we're excited for Malcolm and Crystal Ceasar, who brought Myles Xavier into the world on yesterday!! YAY, GOD!!! Keep MC and Crystal in your prayers, as they adjust to their new addition! :)
* Yesterday was time for another celebration, as my mom celebrated her 65th birthday! Yay, God!!
* Be praying for Kelly Woody, our Mosaic staffer who is over in Malawi, Africa until next month, working with True Love Waits, Intl. Pray for her success in ministering to the people there, as well as helping out with leadership development.
* We'll be gearing up for another baptism next month... if you're interested, please contact Pastor D soon! Or let your Connection Group leader know, and they'll get the information to the right place...
* Next Sunday night: EXTREME KINDNESS - YOU DON'T WANNA MISS THIS!! If the first two messages have rocked your socks at all, this will leave you shoeless!! (I'm not really sure at all why I just wrote that, but it sounded good, lol!) But seriously...don't miss this and don't come alone! Take a friend out to an early dinner, and then bring them to the Gathering!
* Challenge for the day: practice choosing WHAT'S BEST over WHAT'S LESS... don't settle for less than God's best in your life today!

Sunday Nite Speak

* Ok... we had a great service tonight. Loved the vibe!
* I... LOVE... OUR... BAND!! Really... they're not professional musicians... but they give their all, and I love it. Great chemisty... and great sound. But, I'm biased. ;-)

* Worship set for tonight:

- I Will Remember You... Brenton Brown
- Your Grace is Enough... Chris Tomlin
- God You Reign... Lincoln Brewster
- Lord You Have My Heart... Delirious

* Started our new message series, EXTREME, with a message on Extreme Faith... from 2 Kings 4.1-7. Had a great time... very engaging tonight (maybe props helped, lol).
* I was mega convicted as I message prepped this past week... will share over the next couple of days.
* Told the congregation tonight about something I'm believing God for (about Mosaic)... took a HUGE faith step in sharing it. Might get laughed out of town at the end of the year. :) But I don't care... sink or swim for me, baby! And don't worry... I'll fill you in soon. ;-)
* We had a person make a commitment to follow Jesus tonight... YAY, GOD!!! :)
* BIG UPS to Brandy Stewart (bass/vocals) and Daniel Park (keys) for helping out. We'll be seeing more of them... as well as some new faces on the stages before the end of the month, hopefully! Anybody care to guess? ;-)
* Hoping the weather will be favorable this week... we're picking back up with our Metro Outreach, handing out free breakfast bars to people headed in to work! I look forward to seeing some of you out there with me this week... Wed & Thurs 7:15-8:30am at the College Park station (in front of the steps leading down to the train). Oh... we usually do breakfast afterwards, for those who can hang. No pressure. ;-)
* It seems like it was just yesterday that I knew every person at Mosaic... more and more, I'm getting names wrong, and confusing faces... but that's all good - shows that we're growing. And that's an awesome thing! ;-)

Sunday Nite Speak!

* GREAT service tonight... we were up over 100 people...YAY, GOD!!
* Had 5 people baptized... and the church went berserk (after a little coaching, lol) after each one came out of the water! It was AWESOME tonight!
* One of the guys baptized even invited his teacher out!!
* Thought the worship was pretty good... could always be better (but I'm pretty hard on myself). Here was the set:

- Beautiful One (By the Tree)
- I Will Remember You (Brenton Brown)
- Everything Glorious (Crowder)
- From the Inside Out (Hillsong)

* Short message tonight, with all the baptisms... just a very clear presentation of the gospel... a simple lifting up of Jesus!! And I believe He was honored BIG time!
* Romans 3:21-24 rocked my world this entire week! Not that I didn't know it before... I did. But, just reflecting on what John Piper said about it being the most important passage in Scripture, just gave me a deep-seated passion to really highlight that tonight. If man's greatest problem is that he isn't right with God because of sin, then wherever the answer is to that problem might be of the utmost importance, right? I would think so! Thus, this passage... and, man... it rocked my world!!
* Our newest worship team edition, Brandy Stewart, led Hillsong's At the Cross before the message... GREAT JOB! Brandy (who is also a student teacher for my son Shawn's class) is helping us a couple times a month. She actually leads worship at a church in No. Virginia... but I'm praying, lol! ;-)
* Tonight really was a fitting finish (try saying that 10x's fast!) to my crazy week!
* Saw He's Just Not That Into You last night... THAT (no laughing!) was an awesome movie! My sis-in-law, who's my movie buddy, says that it made women look pathetic... idk about that, but it was good. I could definitely see that again (I said, no laughing!!)
* Can't wait to see The Watchmen on Friday nite!! Hoping to go with some Mosaic peeps... should be good times!
* Ok... next Sunday, we start our EXTREME message series... stay tuned this week for more details! ;-)

Sunday Nite Speak!

* Okay, short post (hopefully) tonight!

* Pretty decent worship gathering... some new faces!

* Also had two new faces in our band! Brandy (bass) and Daniel (keys), nice to have you both tonight!

* Worship Set:

- Everyday (Hillsong)

- Blessed Be Your Name (Redman)- Everything Glorious (Crowder)
Grace Flows Down (Passion)

* Message: Risky Business... brought "closure" to the INFLUENCE series. Was supposed to finish a couple of weeks ago, but got sick.

* We had several commitments/recommitments tonight... YAY, GOD!

* A guy I met in a local grocery store almost 2 years ago made it out to church tonight... AND he brought a friend! They both said they'd be back next week! You never know what God will do with a seed given to Him!

* Next week, another baptism! Amped at what's happening... exciting times!

* Preached this morning in DC... tremendousy beat right now.

* Headed to bed... cya! ;-)

Sunday Nite Speak!

* Tonight was strange.
* First of all, we had TOO MUCH going on. My bad. Shoulda streamlined this week.
* Secondly, our worship wasn't where it normally is. That was my bad, too. We had a guest worship leader, but I should've communicated with him more about our environment/flavor.
* I'll be back leading next week. :-)
* Great baptism service, though! Justin's testimony was on point... and dude invited a rack of people!
* I think the message was clear and to the point: here's what baptism is, and here's why we do it. Who gets to get in the water... and why!!!
* In fact, it was SO clear, that I think someone got offended and left in the middle of the message! That was a FIRST for me... pretty sweet, I must say! :-)
* I really don't know what the couple left... but it was pretty much in the middle of me talking about what baptism is not... who doesn't get to get in the water!
* But, I also have to say, that even though I was clear... I think I was pretty graceful. Didn't "beat up" on Catholics... or even Presbyterians, lol! (JUST kidding, my Covenant friends!)
* We have another baptism in two weeks... that is just going to be OFF THE CHAIN!!!
* Can't wait to preach again next week... I love speaking to our people!
* I spoke this past Saturday morning at a Singles' Breakfast at The New Macedonia Baptist Church in DC... where Patrick Walker is the Senior Pastor. Rick (that's what his friends call him) is one of the best visionary leaders I've ever met... LOVE that guy! He entrusted me with his leaders, a couple of years ago, to come in for about a year and do some small group consulting (one of my passions) and we got their Small Groups Ministry off the ground... great to see them still flourishing!
* This coming Sunday morning, I speak at Central Union Baptist Church in DC... can't wait for that! Pastor James Lee and I went to Bible college together... he's a tremendous teacher and an awesome man of God. We're gonna have a great time together!
* The one thing I love about having evening services is that it gives me the opportunity to minister elsewhere at times... can't do it too often, because Mosaic is still my top priority... but it's good to be able to share with others, as well.
* Keda and I saw Taken last night... GREAT MOVIE, a must-see! ;-)
* We also ate at Carrabbas... omg(osh)! That food was off the chain!! Had never gone there before, but I'll definitely be visiting there again!
* Well, our Connection Groups are doing great... we've got almost 75% participation! That is SWEET! In a college town, it's hard (no matter what my friend Nelson Searcy says, lol) to get 100%, because the students are so busy on campus... and many have their own campus ministry groups they meet with. But seeing that the nat'l average for small group participation is somewhere around 30%, I ain't complaining! ;-)
* I had a great time this week down in Tampa/St. Petersburg with Nelson and the Sr. Pastors Coaching Network that he leads... good stuff, learning a lot... we'll be seeing the fruit from this for years to come, I'm sure!
* Nelson is a TREMENDOUS leader... if you're a pastor or church planter, and are not familiar with his ministry, you'll do yourself and your church a HUGE favor by checking him out here.
* Forgot to mention tonight: my main man Chris Li is leaving for CHINA this Tuesday!! He'll be studying there for 6-12 months... and we're gonna miss him BIGTIME! (not quite as much as his fiancee', I'm sure) Chris has been very active with the Media Ministry, and is a budding leader. PLEASE PRAY FOR SAFE TRAVELS FOR HIM... and that God will protect him and grow him while he's there. If you're a Mosaic-ite, drop Chris some love on his Facebook wall, y'all! :-)
* Mosaic... I LOVE YOU GUYS!!!! Thanks for giving me the awesome opportunity to serve you!!!!

Sunday Nite Speak!

* I'd been recovering from pneumonia since Thursday, so I was unable to either speak or lead worship tonight...
* ..but I got by with a little help from my friends! Pastor Vic Simpson of Emmanuel Church in Huntingtown, MD filled in for me tonight, and did an AWESOME JOB (once again) with the message! Vic's no stranger to Mosaic... he's been out a few times now, and is always very encouraging and leaves a big impact!
* Also, my friend Matt Morgan, who pastors Reston Community Church, came out and led the worship... dude is LIKE THAT!! I'd only heard Matt once before, at the Whiteboard Sessions, and I knew I had to have him out. Glad he was able to lead for us tonight! He brought along his worship leader and a bass player, too... great worship tonight!
* Then, finally... my good friend William Brew, quite arguably the BADDEST DRUMMER AROUND THESE PARTS... well, at least, he's got MY vote! Brew and I think alot alike when it comes to ministry (he turned me on to Delirious, too), and I'm glad he was finally able to make it out to Mosaic. Brew serves as the Worship Pastor (how many drummers can do that??) at Zion Church.
* So, Vic closed out our INFLUENCE series with a message entitled, One Adventure Leads to Another... and he was ON it! God definitely spoke to me thru Vic, about letting go of my comfort zone... and trusting Him to provide. "There's no such thing as a 'comfort zone' when you're on an adventure with God!"
* Great experience tonight... thanks to all my Mosaic peeps, for stepping up to the plate today - what a crazy weekend! It's good to know that I can count on things getting done, even when things are outside the norm... even when it calls for sacrifice... love you guys!
* Feel like I'm turning the corner with the pneumonia thingy... gonna rest all day tomorrow, and then I should be alot better!
* Can't wait to fly out to Tampa on Wednesday, to meet with my Pastors Coaching Network led by Nelson Searcy! This has been a tremendous learning environment for me... I'd encourage any church planter or pastor to look into this network!
* Received a really encouraging email from this guy... his wisdom utterly astounds me at times. One only need listen to him for a few minutes to know with certainty that he spends alot of time with God. He reminds me somewhat (as far as wisdom) of THIS DUDE, who I had the privilege of having lunch with almost 10 years ago in Atlanta.
* Dr. Blackaby offered to mentor me every week as long as he could, but I couldn't fit it in my schedule. WHAT THE HECK WAS I THINKING BACK THEN???? As one author says, that one would fall under the theological category of "Don't be stupid!" (I still can't believe I turned down that offer...")
* I absolutely hate the transition between football and baseball seasons...
* Looking for ways to bless our community this month... we have absolutely dropped the ball in this area, but we're gonna make up for that!!
* Looking forward to our next couple of series... you'll be hearing in a couple of days about the next one!
* My good friend, Dave Anderson, was just in town this past week... and we weren't able to hook up. That sucks (you did try, though, D...sorry I couldn't make it happen). I really love that guy... we met at Elevation Church almost 2 years ago, and just bonded. Don't you love when that happens???
* We've got two baptisms coming up within three weeks... THAT is what I'm talking about! I'm SO AMPED about that, I don't know what to do! Can't wait!
* It will be 80 degrees in Tampa this week... and, yes, I will call Keda and rub it in. :-)
* Our youngest son, Seth, reminds me of Calvin from Calvin and Hobbs... he's not really mischievous, but he's full of energy and smiles and laughs all the time!!
* Is it okay to eat gummy worms when you have pneumonia?? :-)
*Well, off to bed... nothing but reading and studying tomorrow... YEAH, BABY!