Congrats
Posted by Dave Clayton on 02/27/2009
Today was a big day for three men in the Ethos Church Family. Terry Birthrong, Joseph Anderson, and Matthew Jackson all graduated from the Nashville Rescue Mission today. All three of these men have been a valuable part of our church family for the last couple of months. If you see them on Sunday Night, make sure you take a moment to congratulate them on this major accomplishment.
Let’s make sure we cover these guys in prayer as they take the next step in life.
One Day at a Time
Posted by Dave Clayton on 02/26/2009
When I got home from work yesterday, I found myself suddenly bombarded with stress. It had been a great day at the office, but before I knew it, I found myself overcome by worry regarding the things I needed to get done. As I sit here this morning reflecting back on how I felt yesterday afternoon, I can’t help but think of Jesus’ words in Matthew 6 where he says:
“Don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” - Matthew 6:34
I wonder how different my life would look if I took these words of Jesus seriously? What if we didn’t worry about tomorrow because we knew that…
1.) We aren’t even guaranteed there will be a tomorrow
2.) Jesus says when tomorrow gets here we will find things to worry about then as well
3.) And God simply tells us he will give us strength to get through each day
As I read this verse, it seemed as though God was saying “Just live in the present David. You do such a good job dwelling on the past, and worrying about the future, but I want you to live in the moment I have given you — not with reckless abandon, but with purpose.”
I am going to try to take Jesus really seriously today. I challenge you to do that as well. Have a great Thursday.
Foot in Mouth
Posted by Dave Clayton on 02/23/2009
It is amazing how often I put my foot in my mouth. If I had a dollar for every time I have said to Sydney “I really wish I wouldn’t have said that” or “How was I supposed to know she wasn’t pregnant” or “who knew they had just broken up” — I would be a rich man.
I hate when I do that.
I was thinking about this today, and started thinking about James 1:19 where James says:
“My dear brothers, take note of this: everyone should be slow to speak, quick to listen, and slow to get angry.”
I can think of dozens, maybe even hundreds of situations that would have turned out differently had a paused for a moment and taken a minute to listen instead of opening my big mouth. I have often spoken during the heat of the moment, and then spent the next several days cleaning up the mess my mouth had made.
I was thinking about this today as I was wrestling with a couple of frustrating situations. I really just wanted to call someone and talk about it immediately, but decided it would be wise to simply pray, think, and listen to the opinion of others.
I’m glad I did. The situation was not nearly as bad as I had once thought it was. The thing that had caused me to become so frustrated was little more than an inconvenience.
Next time you are frustrated by something you hear. Next time you are caught up in a difficult situation. Next time you are ready to give somebody a piece of your mind…pause for a moment, reflect on the words of James, and allow God to speak through your silence.
After all, we just might be the ones that need to listen.
Fuzz Mustache?
Posted by Dave Clayton on 02/21/2009
Hello everyone. I’m sorry for the lack of updates this week. The week has been crazy — wonderful, but crazy. I’ve been getting a lot of questions in regards to our upcoming series that starts tomorrow night in Thessalonians. I’m about 99.9 % sure those questions have come from the title of the series “Fuzz Mustache.”
Good. That is the point.
As Jason, Brandon, and I were laying out the plans for this series we decided to come up with a title that would help convey the heart of this letter from Paul while simultaneously creating a sense of curiosity in people.
Still confused? Still curious?
Good. I hope you can be with us tomorrow night as Brandon kicks this series off. I really think this book has the ability to change our lives if we will let it. Invite your friends. See you tomorrow.
Labor of Love
Posted by Dave Clayton on 02/11/2009
Hello. Happy Wednesday. I wanted to make all of you aware of a wonderful way you can help make a difference on a global scale this Friday Night. On Friday Night, Feb. 13th, a non profit called Exile International will be hosting a benefit at the Cannery Ballroom. In short, the folks from Exile International provide a variety of services to help children that have been captured and forced into guerilla warfare. This is an amazing ministry, and if you don’t have plans for the weekend I highly encourage you to make plans to attend. There will be live music, salsa dancing, and a silent auction. All proceeds go directly towards making a difference in the lives of these children soldiers.
Also, if you would be interested in helping volunteer for this event please email Bethany Haley (bethanyphaley@gmail.com). They especially need people to help the bands load in. Have a great day!
Baptism
Posted by Dave Clayton on 02/08/2009
Guys I just wanted to share some great news with all of you. Tonight after worship, Allie Wasmer gave her life to Christ. It was amazing to be there with several of her closest friends, including her sister, as she went under the water. As I am writing this, I am so full of excitement and energy just knowing that God is rejoicing over our new sister. Thank God tonight, pray for Allie, and tell your friends of all the great things God is doing. Good night.
Sabbath
Posted by Dave Clayton on 02/07/2009
It’s the weekend. Turn off your phone. Get away from the email. Quit reading this blog. Spend time resting. Spend time enjoying life — friends, family, a good book, a cup of hot chocolate. Spend time in the word. Make it a point to thank God for being in charge today. Take comfort in the fact that even when you quit working, the world will keep spinning because God is control.
Pray for Our City
Posted by Dave Clayton on 02/06/2009
One of my favorite passages in scripture is found in Jeremiah 29. The people of God have been begging God to bring them out of exile, and God sends them a prophecy that surely caught them a bit off guard. Through the prophet Jeremiah God says:
“Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there, do not decrease. Also seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.” – Jeremiah 29:5-7
I can’t imagine how disheartening it would be to have God answer your prayer for freedom the way in which he answered the people through Jeremiah. Not only did God say no to their request for instant freedom, he said settle down, meet a girl, get married, have kids, and grandkids.
In other words, God said…”You will live the rest of your life in this city — whether that was in your plans or not.”
It made me think, how do I respond when God answers my requests by saying no? When he says no, do I still trust and believe that He is good and in control?
I love the last part of verse 7. Right after God has given the unpopular news, right after he has made it clear that the people will spend the rest of their lives in this foreign city — God says pray for the city. Pray that it prospers.
Isn’t this the essence of our lives? We know this is not our permanent home. Life here is not always a walk in the park. Our surroundings don’t always match up with the life we have begged God to give us.
So how will we respond? Will we complain or will we settle down, build houses, and pray for our city?
Jesus in the Streets
Posted by Dave Clayton on 02/05/2009
Once a month, all of our house churches push pause on our weekly meetings and instead of meeting in a home we spend time just being the church. It is really inspiring to see all of the creative ways our house churches choose to serve the people of our city. Last night hundreds of you rolled up your sleeves and shared the love of Christ with people you have never met in most cases.
I thought it would be good to share a few of the things you guys did. After all, if you are involved in a house church, you are probably only aware of the way your house church served. Here are just a few of the ways you guys served:
* Made a meal and ate dinner with the men in a Half Way House
* Set up and played cards with the shut ins at Carestone Retirement Home
* Wrote encouragement cards to your friends and family members that don’t know Jesus
* Passed out blankets, hand warmers, and coffee to the Homeless Community
* Gave manicures and pedicures to the women living at Mending Hearts
* Made soup and visited elderly shut-ins
* Spent a week helping serve the needs of one of our Ethos Family Members who has been down on his luck
* and much more…
Proud of you guys. Keep being the church.
A Story from Katie
Posted by Dave Clayton on 02/04/2009
If you have been around Ethos for any time at all then you have probably met Katie Stevens, Lindsay Preston, and Matt Preston (note they are brother and sister not married). If you don’t know them, you can usually find them somewhere around the welcome table greeting visitors as people arrive, or during worship standing towards the back, playing with kids that aren’t theirs. If you haven’t gotten the picture, they are amazing people. This week, they really taught me a lot about what it means to just be the visible presence of Jesus right here in Nashville. I asked Katie to send me an email describing their day on Wednesday and asked her if I could post it here. I have changed some of the names involved, but I still think you will be challenged to live out the gospel after reading this:
——— (Katie’s Email)————————-
Today was an incredibly overwhelming day for Carol and her family. Lindsay, Matt, and I went with Carol and her two sisters to court to possibly testify to the fact that Carol is a fit mother and is making every effort to provide a safe home for her children. I completely underestimated the importance of our presence.
We were immediately introduced to her lawyer, a case worker, and the director of DCS (child services). They talked to us privately about what we thought about Carol and what we felt like the best situation was for the boys. The Director of DCS said that he believed we were good people and that he could trust us. It was really neat. Carol’s court date got postponed until May, but we were all asked to meet in a conference room with Carol’s family, her lawyer, the folks from child services, DCS, and the children’s lawyer.
God was so apparent in that room. We were such a large part of the discussion, as was Ethos. The Director of DCS kept asking us questions about why we were supporting Carol and her children — giving us a great opportunity to explain that we love her and we help her because of our faith.
Everyone seemed shocked. (It was so unusual that the children’s lawyer said that she was suspicious of good people and that they usually want to kidnap the children that they get close to!!) The Director of DCS said that it was very rare for a church do something like that and that as long as he’s worked for DCS he’s seen very little support for stuggling mothers and families. He told us that he wanted to call us and to give us more people to support — an absolute unexpected blessing.
We were given an opportunity to share God’s love today in a completely unforseen way. I am so encouraged by his great power and hopeful that through all of this, God will show Ethos many more people to support and to love.
