We're On The News!

Pastor Steven was interviewed this morning on Fox Rising. We are blessed with such an enthusiastic and awesome pastor!! Lets so out and egg this city! Get ready for a life changing Easter Sunday!

Just a side note: I love that guys bow tie! :)

Amazing Weather, Amazing People

The weather has been just AMAZING! I'm so glad the nice sun and warm weather is back in season. Those snow days were getting kind of old! Speaking of good weather, this weekend I headed up to Crowder's Mountain for a hike with some amazing people. Amazing weather and amazing people, what more could you ask for!? Anyway, we had a blast, burned some calories, and got a very rewarding view 1,200 feet up! Here are a few pictures from the hike:

  

Hope you have a wonderful week! Enjoy the weather while you can!

Conquest > Comfort

I'm currently on day 15 of the Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren. It has been so insightful and uplifting while I am struggling with where God is currently wanting to take me. If you don't know much about the book its a 40 day journey, you read a chapter a day and each day focuses on another aspect of growing your relationship with God and seeking where and what He wants to do in your life. Day 10 really spoke to me. The verse for that day was Romans 6:13, "Surrender your whole being to Him to be used for His righteous purposes." Easier said than done, right? You bet! This passage from chapter 10 just spoke directly to me...

"Abraham followed God's leading without knowing where it would take him. Hannah waited for God's perfect timing without knowing when. Mary excepted a miracle without knowing how. Joseph trusted God's purpose without knowing why circumstances happened the way they did."

By far the hardest times for us to step out in faith are when everything just seems so unknown and questionable. Knowing God has called you to do something great, but not knowing exactly what or when or how can really get you down and tire you out! As hard as it is, we have to continue to surrender our lives to Him daily, to trust that He can see the whole plan, the parts we can't. If things are confusing and stressful about where God is taking you, you're guaranteed He'll see you through, if you continue to trust Him and submit to His will and not your own.  God led Abraham, Hannah, Mary, and Joseph all through, and He will see you through as well! My pastor once said, "Don't give in to a life of comfort, when you could live a life of conquest for the glory of God!

Too Good to Pass Up

This made me laugh out loud when I read it today in Leadership Journal, so I thought it was just too good not to share. You'll have to understand a little Facebook lingo though.


Signs Your Church is Social Media Savvy.....

• Instead of handshakes, greeters offer pokes.
• Name tags have been replaced by current mood indicators.
• The sermon text is limited to 140 characters.
• Most common question: Did I go to high school with you?
• The Invitation: Will you make Jesus your BFF?
•  ;D is the new Aaronic Blessing.
• Leaving for another church: "unfriending".
• You call the Bible "Faithbook".

This will keep me laughing for a while, I don't know about you. 

Egg the City

So news is out, we're doing it. Yep, we're egging the city of Charlotte. Elevation Church will have our Easter Worship Experience at Time Warner Cable Arena in downtown Charlotte. We are hoping to pack it out with 10,000+! But the best part is, we're trying to get everyone who comes to bring at least one item, a toy, clothing item, canned food item, to donate. If 10,000 people come, then we'll have 10,000 items to help reach our city. We're going to egg the city in Christ's love! If you didn't get your eggs with your tickets in them last weekend, you can still get a ticket here. GET EXCITED!

Isaiah 40: 4-5

Please excuse the poor speech skills, God's still working on me. : )

Isaiah 40: 4-5 from Kim Wheeler on Vimeo.

Cast Your Past

I'm going to be honest and say I've really been struggling lately. God is opening doors and shutting other ones. I'm in that pruning stage, where God cuts away things in your life that pull you away from Him; things, people, and places that will eventually lead you other ways and into hurt and pain. While it's hard to let go of a lot of those things, I try to stay reassured by God's promises, "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."* I know these things are being pulled away and I'm being stripped down bit by bit for a reason, to prepare me for where He's taking me, but it's still hard to let go. God really spoke to me last week through this idea: 

What's in the past is in the past. It's what you do with your past that determines your future. 

It's an easy concept right?  Easier said than done. I have trouble letting go things of my past sometimes. People that meant a lot to me at one time, dreams I once had, and things I loved to do. But there are also the things in my past that I want to get as far away from as possible that still come up in my thoughts. I've gotten a lot better at not dwelling on the past, the what ifs and the if onlys, but occasionally they come sneaking up on me again. While the concept's an easy one that I've heard so many times, I never really took the time to fully understand it. You can't change the past, so why dwell on it. You can ruin your future with wasting your time thinking about if you did something different or if you only did this or not did that. It's done, it's over with, we have to move on. The only thing you can change is how it will affect you and your future. Don't focus on what you could have been, focus on who God is preparing you to be! He is so much bigger than anything in your past, no matter how big or small. He is so much bigger that your past addictions, group of friends, ideas, or actions! He conquered the grave! I'm sure He can conquer even the biggest troubles of your past, the things you can't even bare to touch. Entrust it all to Him and be reassured in His promises that He will give you rest and carry all your burdens, old or new. Cast your burdens on Him, cast your past on Him, and He will lead you home.


*Jeremiah 29:11