Your God-Moment

School dance. You look across the dance floor and there he or she is. The guy or the girl of your dreams. Your heart beats faster. Your mouth gets dry. Your palms get sweaty. You want to ask them to dance but can't work up the nerve. "What if they say 'no'? I won't be able to deal. What if they say 'yes'? I can't dance!" Finally you take a deep breath and start in their direction . . . just in time to see someone else ask them first. Ouch!

It was just like the time you struck out looking. Or the time you knew the answer but didn't speak up. Or the time you wanted to volunteer but didn't. Or the time you couldn't decide on the house or the car and someone else got it. Or the time you almost said, "I love you," but instead said nothing.

Ever had one of those moments? I'm talking about a moment filled with opportunity and yet you let it slip away. Ever had one of those? We've all had them. Lots of them. In fact, many of our regrets in life come from these good moments gone bad. For some of us, it becomes a way of life. For others of us, we resolve never to let another good moment slip away.

But what happens when it's not just a good moment but a God-moment? A God-given opportunity to embrace His best for us? What happens if we let those slip away? How can we seize those when they come? That's what we're talking about this weekend at all four gatherings.

Your 4-ever

Time for a little 80's trivia . . .

1. Who sang "We are living in a material world and I am a material girl"?
2. Who sang "We are spirits in a material world"?

If you answered Madonna and The Police, you are probably as old as I am! Who had it right? Madonna? Or The Police?

If this life is all there is, if there is no life after death, if death is end, then we might as well be 'material girls' and 'material guys.' It's all about instant gratification. Self-indulgence is the name of the game.

But what if this life is not all there is? If there is life after death? If death is not the end? Then we are in fact 'spirits in a material world.' It's all about delayed gratification. Self-denial is the name of the game.

Can you imagine a scenario where someone knew that "we are spirits in a material world" but still choose to live as a 'material girl' or guy? Actually it's not hard to imagine. Deep down most of us know that we were made to last forever and yet we find ourselves driven by materialism.

Is there life after death? A real place called Heaven? If so, who goes there and why? What impact should the answers to these questions have on our lives here and now? That's what we're talking about this weekend at all four worship gatherings. Don't come alone. Bring a friend!

Mission Impossible

So Mission: Impossible III is number one at the box office. Tom Cruise returns as IMF agent Ethan Hunt. I-M-F. That’s Impossible Mission Force. I thought about that this week while reading an interview with Nicole Kidman. She called her divorce from Tom Cruise a “major shock” and said she still loves him. Then she adds, “I think a divorce, and the demise of what your family is, is a little death in itself.”

No doubt Jesus had that kind of pain in mind when He said, “What God has joined together, let not man separate.” These days – when there are half as many divorces as weddings – you start to wonder if marriage is “mission impossible.” What does the Bible say about marriage? What does it say about divorce and remarriage? What are the keys to a loving, lasting relationship? That’s what we’re talking about at all four gatherings this weekend.

Much Love

Gary Smalley said, "Life is relationships; the rest is just details." True. And it's not just the relationships we have with family and friends. We relate to the people we work with. And to the people we go to school with. And to the people we go to church with. Even in our sleep we often dream about people and our relationships with them.

No wonder the most important thing in life is to love God and others. That's what Jesus said when asked. Easier said than done though, isn't it? There are easy-to-love people and then there are hard-to-love people.

Got any hard-to-love people in your life? Do you think anyone has you on their hard-to-love list? What makes some people harder to love than others? How can we be more loving and lovable?

That's what we're talking about at all four worship gatherings this weekend!

1st Wednesday

It's that time again! At 7:00 p.m. on the first Wednesday of each month, people who attend our weekend gatherings in Cedar Park, Round Rock, and North Austin converge on our Parkfield campus for an interactive worship gathering we call 1st Wednesday. We are taking different Bible verses that say "one another" as our theme. Tonight's theme is "Members of One Another."

Our worship space will be completely transformed tonight for worship-in-the-round. We'll set up prayer stations where you can get a head start on the National Day of Prayer. Last weekend people used disposable cameras to take hundreds of pictures of themselves and others at Calvary Austin. Those pictures will be on the big screens tonight! Mix in Scripture readings, silent prayer, and Communion. And afterward, to celebrate what it means to be members of the same team, we'll be serving hot dogs, peanuts, and Craker Jacks! You don't want to miss 1st Wednesay at Calvary Austin!