Tuesday, April 29, 2008

amazing 2 days at ORANGE...

It has been an amazing 2 days so far at the orange conference (http://www.theorangeconference.com ) this week. Yes, it is called orange and the idea behind the conference is that 2 combined influences in a child/teens life is greater than either one alone. we families and the church link arms in helping kids see and embrace Jesus Christ the influence is stronger than either one alone. If you ever get a chance to be a part of this conference it is so worth your time. Listen to how RETHINK describes the conference...

100 years from now the only thing that will matter in someone’s life is their relationship with God.

Those of us who host and participate at Orange are committed to systematically evaluating why and how we do ministry. We make an assumption when we create a conference for Christian leaders, that those who attend really are CHRISTIAN LEADERS. Therefore they want to have an honest discussion about how to reach and inspire the next generation to BE the church. They don’t mind if we engage in a healthy debate about the methods and practices of the church. As long as we are all driven by an UNCOMPROMISING MISSION to influence children, teenagers, and families to grow in their passion for Christ, then we should fight hard for the best ways to do just that. If that discussion is filtered only through conventional models or led by self-promoting entities then it doesn’t create the kind of authentic experience that challenges us to RETHINK what we do and implement the necessary changes.

There is just too much at stake to sugar-coat, water-down, or tip-toe around the issues.
That’s why we invite a special breed of leaders to speak at Orange.That’s why we value unfiltered debate.That’s why we ask hard questions.


Just amazing...I have sensed God presence here in this place in so many ways. Every session and every breakout is packed with people hungry to see this generation come to Christ. There is no fear of asking questions or rethinking how we do ministry here and there are over 48 denominations here gathered. Preschool, Children, Youth leaders all together hungry for God to use our churches to lead this generation to the cross. There is nothing we can do in our own strength, God must lead the way and together over 5,000 of us have begged God to show us the next step. There are so many thoughts that have surfaced for me, and so many moments this past week where my heart has screamed YES as the speaker spoke...

Reggis Joiner, helped us look at Luke 15 and ask our selves are we loving those away from God, prodigals, like the loving Father in the story or like the older brother. Go read that...think about it in terms of our churches. Loving father mindset or older brother? Jesus in this chapter is addressing the judgement of the Pharisees as they were mad that Jesus was eating with sinners. read it and think about it.

Francis Chan, helped us examine if our churches really look like the church birthed in the book of Acts. Do we make excises for our churches and dismiss the power of community and the Holy Spirit because of our American context. Can our churches look more and more like a place Jesus would be welcome in? Are we willing to embrace the risk having God lead us to live more and more like his Son?

Donald Miller, helped us look into the life of a leader, a servant leader. Jesus modeled this idea. Jesus influenced so many but LEAD a few disciples. Jesus allowed people to participate in God's mission to bring redemption. He helped those around Him be a part of God's plan. Will we really know the people we lead, will we help people do more than they think they can for the Kingdom? Will we dream and lead with out fear?

It is sweet to worship with so many people hungry to see God move in this generation right now with all their hurt and pain. it is wild to ask question and dream about what can be. It is great to get away and dream and refuel!

Monday, April 14, 2008

God of this City...great song, great idea!

If you have not heard the new Passion CD, go out and get it or download it. Tomlin sings a song on the cd called God of This City, it is amazing. We have been able to sing it a few times at GCC and people have really connected with the idea of the song. I find it wild to be living in a city and watch God turn my heart toward the city and the people who live here. We are a corporate sponsor of Rivers and Spires (www.riversandspires.com) a city festival here in our town. I was in a meeting today about the festival and looking around at the folks in the room. We were from all walks of life and all different types of organizations all working together to make sure this festival happens and it a blessing to the city of Clarksville. We all cared about one thing, the good of the city. Of course my heart wants to see people all over the city encounter Jesus Christ but I also want the best for this city. I want and need to understand what people care about in Clarksville. I am hoping that people here in this city will understand that the church can bring hope to city, help to the city, and people that are ready to serve. I hope we will serve asking nothing in return. I hope we will serve and display the hope of Christ through every aspect of our lives. Maybe people will see Jesus really have changed our lives, He is real! In the end, if we serve our city will be a better place to live. As we serve others we will care about the things that people here care about. This weekend we are going to be camped out with about 100 GCC volunteers in the teen area of the festival. It is going to be amazing for us to be right in the middle of this thing serving others. I have to say I am stoked about the folks that are serving. God is doing great things in our city, we get to be a part of God's movement here. Go God!

Friday, April 11, 2008

merge, summer, life with the girls...

This Blog thing...wow...i treat this like an online journal. as many of you know I talk a ton about my family, Jesus, church, Grace Community, and openly dream a little on here. If you read this I am sorry for the randomness of my brain. I do this for me so through the years I can look back and see how God has been stirring in my heart. I am not perfect, and do not have it all figured out so with that said, welcome to the mind of Bayne. it can be scary...

April is here...not the beginning the MIDDLE of April. Is it not crazy how fast time flies when you get older? I remember how slow I felt time went when I was in school. Some Saturdays could feel like they went on forever. Some weekends seemed like they would last forever. Now I am a dad. Wow, time just seems to fly. My oldest girl, Kozbi, is starting Kindergarten next year. Kelyn turns 2 in just a few days. Chelsea and I have been married for 12 years, that is wild! I have been back here in Clarksville for a year now. Time goes by so fast. The only thing I am sure of anymore is to live every moment for God's Glory. God made this thing called life anyway, maybe when I live each moment to the fullest, slow down and value each minute, try to live like Jesus showed us, maybe time will slow down a little. Well the Bible does say that life is like a "vapor" so time will always slip away and move fast but I just want to seize all of it I can for as long as God lets me.

We just finished an event with relevant called MERGE. The idea behind the weekend was that teens would spend a weekend together in small groups, staying in homes, led by their lifegroup leader. This was our first retreat like this with our teens at GCC...it was based around an event many of you have been a part of called Disciple Now but instead of bringing people here to lead our students our adults who have been leading our small groups all year led the groups at merge. Sure we did several large gatherings where a band and speaker led but once again God seemed to work the most in the group times. Discipleship and growth seem to explode when people work through the Bible, Faith, their life in a small setting built around relationship. Each large group session was amazing last weekend and each time we encountered truth from God's Word but growth happened when small groups met! It seems in our environment that we all make progress on our journey with Christ when we work through it with other people. It is not just my faith it is our Faith...questions can be asked...our struggles become know and we find out we are not alone. Teens need community, they need a place to belong, they need a place where it is ok to question, dream, discover truth with others. I was so stoked because it happened last weekend at Merge. What I experienced last weekend is what keep me focused. To see teens embrace Christ, embrace community, to connect is amazing. I am amazed that I get to spend my time working with families at Grace Community. It has been a great year!