One, two,…

 

Tuesday I had the privilege to seize another opportunity to be a part of another level that God has called Elevation Church to take. The THR3E event was incredible! Like every Sunday, the church just showed up and then God showed out! There is no way to pull off something of that standard of excellence without God completely in control. I have been at a loss for words now for a couple of days. However, I do feel the need to share one of the many take-aways from the event.

Pastor Steven said that God’s will is not up for debate. This really hit home with me as I have been seeking direction for my future. It makes me think of the times in my life that God has placed opportunities before me and I would talk myself out of it before it had time to surface. As a follower of Christ you will always be challenged and stretched beyond your means. If not, then the impact that God wants to do through you will be limited and opportunities will be lost.

All that has happened at Elevation Church in the past THR3E years is in result to the leaders and volunteers putting things aside and working for one vision. When you focus on God’s vision you will see more clearly, when you focus on your own vision you will just walk astray. 

So, as you go through trials or times of uncertainty I challenge you to stop and listen to what God is saying. Move forward and hang on for dear life. Overcoming your fears and doubts will prove that you trust God and truly desire what He wants in your life. Are you living your life according to what God wants you to do? Are you reluctant to make a bold step of faith even when God has already showed you? If you are struggling with these questions I challenge you to move beyond the barriers of mediocrity and step into the abundant life where God has been waiting for you all along.

Come and see what He has done…

 

The past couple of Sundays have been overwhelming. It is overwhelming every week but these past couple of weeks have hit close to home. It started off with good friends and family showing up at Elevation Uptown for the first time and then experiencing a transformation from myself and close friends of  being obedient when God speaks. I want to start by saying how proud I am of the people in my life that have stepped up and stepped out. You know who you are and I am thankful for you being so bold and allowing God to work in your life. The best is yet to come!

Next, was the launch day of the Uptown Elevation Party Bus! This was freakin awesome! Elevation Church decided that if students had transportation to and from the bars then why didn’t they have a way to Church on Sunday morning? It was breathtaking to see this bus pull up filled with students for some coming into Elevation for the first time. I love this church for many reasons. I would have to first say because of the mission “so that people far from God will be filled with life in Christ”. This is not an understatement. This church is the real deal. One hundred percent God made with God’s ways. I have been coming to Elevation Church for close to 2 years and reaching people and witnessing life change for the glory of Jesus Christ is what it’s all about.

 If you come you will first realize that it is very different than the “normal” church. We are not normal. In fact, we never want to be. A direct quote from Pastor Steven on Sunday “Mediocrity is mass produced, destiny is custom-designed.  You must be the best you that you can be for His glory.  It is not until you embrace your uniqueness that you can embrace your anointing…God is not going to use you because you are like somebody else.”

If you are ever in the area check this place out. Come and see what He has done.

STEVENISMS

Here are some quotes that I wrote down while listening to Pastor Steven preach at Newspring on Sunday.

“Its hard to worship the son of God when you have seen Him in diapers”

Pertaining to Perry Noble “He preaches God’s word like a madman”

“You can only receive someone on the level that you perceive them”

“We have a Ricky Bobby understanding of Jesus”

Our problem “You see yourself towards your condition not position”

“What you see is what you get”

Volunteers are “connectors to the current of the power of Christ”

“I was a youth pastor when I was 16 years old”

“Don’t you dare look at Jesus as just your homeboy”

“For some of who have been around the longest, it’s the hardest to see what God’s doing that’s new and fresh”

“Its hard to see Jesus when you have been overexposed”

STEVENISMS

Pastor Steven has been on fire as usual. Since we are in the middle of this very important series on “The Real Change”, I thought I would share some valuable / insightful / inspiring quotes. I hope this will bring a wave of refreshment to your life. Oh yeah, if some of these don’t make much sense then you should click here. 

 

“There should be no mystery in money”

“Not because of trials but out of trials”

“Sermons initiate hope, decisions change your life”

“Space between hope and change is pain”

“Pain is Gods portal to change”

“To know Gods will is to do Gods will”

Getting married on the spot!

Check out this unique story HERE. This is another example that with every number there is a life change. I pray that this will never get old. To all the glory be to God!

I refuse to apologize!

Recently, while greeting at the best church in the world I had someone say a comment that really got me thinking. First and foremost, one of the main reasons (with exception to putting God first in EVERYTHING and experiencing and witnessing life change EVERY WEEK ) is that everything that is done is done with excellence. The church should not be sub par with anything. Serving God is a privilege and should be taken seriously.

At Elevation, serving with excellence comes with a cost, but not as costly as by not serving with excellence. Some of us volunteers enjoy clapping and yelling at the top of our lungs as people are coming into church. Throughout my experience in guest services of close to 2 years I have realized that there will be times when some people will not like certain things. (go figure, someone not liking something in a church??? Ha) Today this lady mentioned that she “did not know if she likes this”, pertaining to her being greeted while coming into church. Ma’am, I have one thing to say about that.  I refuse to apologize for honoring you and being excited about each and every person who walks through the doors every Sunday. God has reiterated to me that the reason for me being so passionate about this is because I am a witness. My life is a testimony of change, God change. The only true change that will ever be satisfying. I have had my life changed by God  through Elevation church. I see lives changed every week.

There is simply no better way to be served than to serve. There are a lot of churches in this city and if someone does not like to be honored with sincere love and appreciation then I am sure there are tons of other places they can go walk into and sit in the back and never talk to anyone, live their life without impact, work, retire and then lose it all. There is room where you can go and argue about the color of the picture frames and how thin the toilet paper is. As for Elevation, we will not step where the world has taken the church. There is too much to do. There are too many lives that so desperately need the hand of God. 

Visionary Love, Dream Sex

Today was an awesome day! We are in a series called Visionary Love, Dream Sex. God definitely rocked the house today at Elevation. Pastor Steven let the flow of the Holy Spirit come through him to present a message that most Pastors would never attempt. I feel honored to be a part of something that is bigger than anything my mind can comprehend. Below are 5 points that Pastor gave in his message on how to approach conflict in marriage. I highly recommend you to watch this sermon here. (Make sure you click on week 5 to see todays sermon. It should be available on Monday.) It doesn’t matter where you are at in life, you need to eat this up! Momma can’t cook like this. 

 

1) The success of a relationship doesn’t depend on if you fight but how you fight.

2) Conflict is the result of unmet expectations and unfulfilled needs.

3) Do not be overcome by evil but overcome evil with good.

4) Leave room for God to change the heart.

5) Make it right before the sun goes down.

What’s a shaking is definitely not a faking!

God is definetly making His claim in the city of Charlotte through my church. Sunday the front headlines in the Charlotte observer pretty much summed up the past 2 years. Check it out here. To God be all the glory!

Top 5 reasons why you should not attend Elevation Church

5) You will have 7 different worship times at 3 different campuses to choose from.

4) You will hear a message that is from a Pastor who is 28 years old, has platinum blonde hair and punches the devil in throat each week.

3) You will be in the midst of a movement centered by God.

2) You will be welcomed with sincere cheers and excitement from volunteers who care about you.

1) You will attend a Church that does not argue about the paint colors of the walls, but exists for the sole purpose “so that people far from God will be filled with life in Christ”.

600 and counting!

Over 600 people took the next step in their faith to be baptized today at my favorite church in the world. Also, to make things interesting, it was spontaneous! You can check out the video here when the Awakening series is posted sometime Monday. It was incredible to witness firsthand over 600 plus lives being changed. You may be asking why is this guy constantly bringing up the numbers? Is this church all about the numbers? Why yes! We are all about the numbers! Each number represents a significant time in each persons life when they decided to not let Jesus be the only thing that was nailed down. The nailing down of their faith to make public through baptism that they are followers of Jesus Christ. I cannot express how proud I am of each person who took that step today. Congratulations to everyone for being bold and listening to God when He speaks. My pastor, Steven Furtick, says it best with the following quote:

“If you get the impression that we’re all about the numbers, let me clarify…Of course we’re all about the numbers. What else would we be all about? The spaghetti supper? To hell with the spaghetti supper. I want to see some changed lives!”