The coolest place to be

Do you like concerts... the lights, the music, the atmosphere, the excitement? How would you like to go to a live concert every week? How cool would that be? Now add to the concert an unquenchable thirst to reach out to people that no one else accepts or wants, how awesome would that be? Now add the desire to please no one but our almighty God, and you have my favorite place to go, NewSpring Church! For years, David and I prayed for God to lead us to a place where Jesus is truly the only King and where absolutely any- and everyone is welcome. When He brought NewSpring into our life, He answered our prayer in an amazing way! NewSpring is like no church I have ever experienced! Let me just say that again... NewSpring Church is like NO OTHER church I have ever experienced! Remember, I grew up in church, in the so-called "Bible Belt" of the United States. I have been in plenty of churches, but never have I been in one that I truly felt was what the New Testament describes until now. Our pastor, Perry Noble, is a young man but by no means a novice of the Word of God! He loves the Lord and has a passion for reaching people who have been hurt, abandoned, and even thrown away by traditional churches. He preaches Truth, ALL OF IT, but without the judgments and conditions found WAY too often in other churches. This is (in SO MANY ways) what David and I had prayed for!

And before you ask, yes, NewSpring has a wonderful youth ministry... actually two youth ministries! For the children ages 6 weeks to 5th grade (11 years old), they are divided by age and/or grade level. I'll give you some details from the Greenville, South Carolina campus. Each room is awesome in its own rite, and the children's ministry leader, Pudge Huckaby, is also a young man who strives only to be what God has called him to be-- a remarkable leader and role model for our children while guiding them to an understanding and love of Jesus Christ! The older youth (middle and high schoolers) are led by Davey Blackburn. He is another young man, with a heart for God and a passion for young people. The youth of today are the leaders of tomorrow, and at NewSpring, they are truly a top priority!

Check out the websites, join us Sunday. We'd love to have you with us! The ground is level at the foot of the cross, and you are truly welcome at NewSpring! Come just as you are, and let God rock your world!

Free-IQTest.net

Free-IQTest.net - Free IQ Test


I took this just to see what it was, and I actually left 3 questions blank because I was just too tired to think them through and had no scratch paper. Take your time, and use some scratch paper. Then let me know how you did! Have fun!

In Awe of God

I just read my pastor's latest blog. Ten years ago, our church did not even exist. What started ten years ago as 8 college kids in a living room is now 2 (soon to be 3) campuses, sold out to reaching the world for Jesus Christ! This past Sunday, we had over 10,000 people in attendance between the 2 campuses. People are hungry for the Word!

My question is this... do we limit God by our disbelief? Too often, we fall into the "That can't happen" mindset when God said He will blow our minds with what He will do if we just get out of the way. Sometimes we need to stop thinking what "can't be done" and just start doing what God leads us to do.

I challenge you to just sit and meditate on the awesomeness of our almighty God. Just look out your window, in a mirror, at your children, at the night sky, at the ants... Just take some time today to reflect on all God's power and majesty. Then thank Him for loving sinful men. Praise God for His unfailing love, grace, and mercy!

May God forgive our unbelief and help us trust His strength and majesty in all we strive to accomplish for His sake!

A must see for every American

A friend just sent me this video, and I truly believe every American needs to watch it. If you call yourself "Christian," then you REALLY need to watch it. It is graphic, but it is needed.



Now, say a prayer before you comment and before you consider any political position or candidate. I have to ask, how can anyone support murdering children, especially if that person claims the name of "Christian"? I just do not understand.

Choices...

I just read my pastor's latest blog, and I must share a quote with you.

"We must remember that it should not be our goal to win arguments and distance people…but to work through the tension and allow God to use us to break down walls that people have built up."

How many times do we avoid inviting someone to church or sharing something with them out of fear of rejection or of a tense moment in conversation? People are important to God, and we must reach out to them for His sake! If Jesus loves people enough that he suffered and died for them, can we not endure a tense conversation or two if it plants a seed in a lost soul? God promised that His Word will not return void (Isaiah 55:11). God loves people and wants to have a personal relationship with each and every one of us, but He did not create a world full of robots. We all have choices to make; the most important choice we will ever make is what to do with Jesus Christ (Romans 10:9-13). We, who have already accepted Jesus, must be willing to reach people no matter what. So what if that means a tense moment of time? When eternity calls, will we have anyone in Heaven because we shared Jesus with them, or will Hell have to expand its boundaries because it is overpopulated with people we refused to share God's love with?

To quote Perry again, "We must be willing to get UNcomfortable for the cause of Christ." People are important to God (Luke 19:10), regardless of who they are or how they look. Are they important to us, ALL of them?! Remember that none of us are good enough to get into Heaven, short of God's unmerited grace to us. Who are we to pick and choose who is good enough to have the gospel? Far too long, "Christians" have judged people on outward appearances. If you find someone who you think is unfit for your church or for God's love, please send them to me. My husband and I have a burden for people who have been tossed away, hurt, abandoned, and ignored by the church or self-proclaimed "Christians." If you don't want them, please send them here. I know my God wants them, and my church will love them and welcome them too.

One last quote, this one I've heard my entire life: "The ground is level at the foot of the cross." In case you've never heard it, this means that Romans 3:23, Romans 6:23 and John 3:16 apply to us all. Neither I nor you can earn a place in Heaven, so why should we expect others to change before coming to Christ?

Just ponder what has held you back from sharing Jesus. Is it pride, tension, or judgment? Whatever it is, is it worth a human being's soul going to Hell to keep you comfortable?

Prayer Request and Praise

Please put JoAnn W**** and her family on your prayer list. She went into the hospital on June 2, 2008 to have an aortic aneurysm repaired. The surgeon accidentally nicked her esophagus, but that wasn't found until a couple of days later when her chest cavity was filling with food. They had to go back in and completely remove her esophagus and the upper portion of her stomach. Now she is being fed via a feeding tube in her small intestine, and she has a bag attached to her throat to catch saliva. She will remain hospitalized for another 4-6 weeks. Then she will be sent home for 3 months. After that, she will have to have another surgery to stretch her stomach up to take the place of her esophagus. Her husband is by her side 24/7 and has left his business (He was a small business owner.) to stay with her. Please pray for her and the family.

Now for the praise... My niece, who has chronic Crohn's and is having double cataract surgery at just 16 years old, found out today that she has been accepted into a medical scholarship program that will pay for her to have the highest quality lenses implanted that she otherwise could not get due to the financial situation. The doctor told her she may not even need glasses at all after he inserts these lenses. She is excited!

Weight Loss Timeline Pictures

After fighting with this blog, I think I finally have the pictures up... I will update the pix from-time-to-time, and you can follow me on my journey from May 2008 to May 2009, 213 pounds to (Lord willing) 113 pounds. Here goes...


May 18, 2008 YUCK!!!

July 7, 2008 (not started weight loss yet)

August 7, 2008 (16 pounds down)

August 22, 2008 (18 pounds down, 92 more to go) two days before my birthday

On my birthday, I wore a dress I had not worn in SEVEN years! Can you believe I forgot the camera?! UUGGGHHHH!!!! Oh well, I praise God for helping me this far and will update the pix as time goes on. I cannot wait to finally feel like me in my own skin again!

My inspiration:

Romans 12:1-2 (NIV)
¹ Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship. ² Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will.

A Living Sacrifice

Back in July, I had a life-changing epiphany. I am posting here an email I sent my new pastor. It explains the title of this post and much about me and this page. I will also post follow-up pix if I can figure out how to get that feature to work.

First, the email:

On Fri, Jul 18, 2008 at 11:05 PM, Linz wrote:

Perry,

No, we have never met, but I just want to let you know that God has used you to get my act back on track! My husband, David, and I are the couple that saw the Greenville campus sign months ago after moving to Greenville last October. We had prayed for God to lead us to a place that would preach Truth without all the legalism of man-made doctrines. NewSpring was His answer! We followed online since February, awaiting the opening of the Greenville campus. We had emailed about volunteering and stayed in contact with Catherine Powell via email. When we found out that we could not be of much help without becoming members, we signed up for the first membership class in Greenville. I got more from that class than I would have ever expected!

I have struggled with my weight for many years and have even been diagnosed with a metabolic disorder. I have long since used the diagnosis and our lack of financial ability to purchase my meds as excuses to be overweight (not to mention having 3 children). Deep down, I have been miserable! My weight became a wedge between God and me, David and me, and even at times my children and me. David repeatedly told me that my being unhappy was no excuse to bring everyone else down too. The truth was that I hated myself! I want to be an example to my children and to others. I want to be the wife that my husband can be proud of. I want to be able to brush my teeth with my eyes open instead of squeezed shut to keep from seeing my fat jiggle as I brush! The problem with all these desires was that I did little or nothing to make any real changes while being ever so grateful that my husband was loving and faithful in spite of my globular appearance. Then, at the membership class, Howard read Romans 12:1 about offering your body as "a living sacrifice-- holy and acceptable to God" as an act of worship. In all my years of being in church, I had never had that verse jump out at my like it did that night. I marked it in my class notebook, and I came home and read the whole chapter. I prayed and asked the Lord to help me. I cut out the candy I had been eating, and we started taking the kids for walks in the evenings. Okay, so pat myself on the back, right? Nope!

Then came opening Sunday at NewSpring Greenville. I went through my closet, feeling fat and globular. I finally found something to wear that would have to do, knowing that no one even cared how I looked but me. Still, I was obsessed with my fat. The music was great, and Tom did an AWESOME job with one of my favorite songs, Chris Tomlin's "Amazing Grace." While I was singing along, I felt God tell me to trust Him, and He would free me from my chains. When you started speaking, I did not understand how that sermon was going to free me from my chains, since my problem wasn't sexual. Still, I listened, waiting for my freedom. Then you told the story of being in 10th grade and committing to a diet. When you said you stuck to your decision to drink a Diet Coke when everyone else went for a DQ Cyclone, I felt my chains fall off! That was what I needed, as strange as that sounds. I needed something to compare my temptations to, something to give me the oomph to stick to my decisions. I came home and told my husband that he is my DQ Cyclone. ;-) He eats M&M's like they are an essential food group, and fried foods quite often. I told him that I was going to make some drastic changes, and I needed him to be my support and encouragement. Then I pasted Romans 12:1-2 as my desktop background on my laptop. I am printing the verse and taping it to my refrigerator door, my cabinet door, and both bathroom mirrors. I have limited myself to 1000 calories per day, and I bought a beginner's workout video that is broken into 10 segments of 5 minutes each. I managed 20 minutes two days ago and 40 minutes today. I have cut out eating after 6pm, which used to be one of my worst habits. Now, if I get hungry or feel the munchies coming on, I grab a bottle of water, read those verses, and say a prayer.

I love WLFJ, and I received an email yesterday about the HisRadio Music Boat Cruise next May. I forwarded it to David, and now we have a deal. If I stick with this commitment from now till the end of September, we will pay for the cruise. If I lose my 100 pound goal by May, then we go on the cruise. If I give up, then I have to give the tickets away. This is a HUGE incentive for me since our money is beyond tight, and we have not had a vacation since our first anniversary, 14 years ago, not one single day! We now have 3 children; I am a full-time nursing student; and David works 3rd shift weekends at Wal-Mart Distribution Center. We have very little free time or money, but thank God we still have each other!

I just wanted to let you know that God can and does use your most off-the-wall comments to reach people. I cannot be "holy and acceptable to God" in my current physical condition, so I MUST stick with this commitment! Please keep me in your prayers.

In Christ,
Lindsey Horn

Okay, so now you know my back story. I have "put feet on my prayers" and have lost 20 pounds and I don't know how many inches. However, since David no longer has a job, I doubt we'll be going on the cruise. No matter, God's will and my commitment have not changed. By May, I should be down to 112 pounds and God, David, and I should all be happy! ;-)