Pour Some Sugar...!

COTH (Concert on the Hill) 2014 has made its appearance and like VBS now blesses us with more energy and momentum for a season of "God-serving" to come!  This year's concert was AWESOME!

Although I'd like to say the awesomeness of COTH was such because the COTH band played Def Leopard's "Pour Some Sugar on Me" (as my blog title would suggest, in reference to one of my favorite big-hair-band songs), the day was awesome for far more substantial reasons.

In addition to the great music, games, emcee, food, weather, attendance, and general spirit at the event, one of the best contributors to the awesomeness of the day was the sea of green t-shirts and others who offered their leadership and volunteership for the event.

As we approached the COTH day, many asked if I thought we'd have success this year.  Although the heat, potential rain, difficulties with scheduling and promoting, and a mountain of details all threatened the event, I continually responded out of optimism with the following nugget of truth and hope:

• It's up to God what happens, but I know this for sure.  We have poured a TON of sugar leadership into this year's event.  And where there is leadership, there is likely to be big things happening!

You may be wondering what does leadership have to do with things?  Everything.  Jesus' ministry was backed by leaders called disciples.  The early church was started by leaders called disciples.  The early church grew by recruiting more leaders called ministers.  The Christian movement became a reality because of committed leaders called evangelists, pastors, teachers, etc.  Growth and success in spiritual regards nearly always correlates with growing leadership.

In addition to the church at large, Horizons sees this all the time.  Want to grow VBS?  Sure, invite more kids, but also invite more leaders.  Want to grow a garden for mission purposes at Horizons?  Sure, plant more plants, but also invite more leaders.  The Steering Team has become an astonishing nexus of direction, wisdom, and excellence over the last two years.  Why?  Not only because we've asked the right people, but because we've also invited each member to pour themselves into particular focuses such as stewardship, vision, and leadership.  We've already seen tremendous results, even before proposing specific solutions.  Why?  Because we poured leadership into each of those areas.  

In general, the more leadership God blesses us with at Horizons, the more ownership, passion, energy, prayer, commitment, and support we'll have.  It's a beautiful thing to see, and it's something that clearly leads us closer to becoming devoted followers of Christ!   Thank you leaders!!

More to come!

Jason <><

4 to Life!

Sarah and me taking advantage of a reception photo booth 

This last weekend marked the final wedding of four in a row and several in a summer.  It's been great.  Sarah and I make an event out of each, pray for the couple, join them at their reception for the food and festivities, and do whatever we can to help each couple get on their feet with faith at their sides.  Plus, as I mentioned last week, if the scene is right, we dance!

So what's the best part about being the presiding pastor at a wedding?  There are two huge blessings:

1. I get to be up close and personal with what the Spirit is doing and how grace is working in the couples' lives I've come to love during our time together.  Sure, more often than not, their faces still looked wrinkled and nervous as they listen to the words of the ceremony, but the intensity of being in front of those many people on such a big day gives little indication of the emotions and truths welling up within them.  I get to see underneath into the more realistic emotions of excitement, eagerness, gentleness, and joy.  I get to feel and sense the Spirit wrapping around each couple.  I get to remember all the grace that has already been poured into each couple's lives.  I get to remember how GOOD our God is.
   
2. The second is in the phenomenon of how God chooses to grow us.  Little sense does it make in our world to grow stronger by giving your meals to others.  From a physical perspective, that doesn't really work.  But in a spiritual light, that IS how it works.  When I first meet with a couple, I remind them I've only been married two years and that I know little more about marriage myself than what a fortune cookie might (I enjoy my humor).  While God certainly has given me several gifts for teaching about the art of marriage, the best part is how much Sarah and I learn and are reminded of as I or we pour into these couples.  The more weddings I am part of, the more Sarah and I grow and learn.  If we're telling others to live in certain ways, we also need to pick up these practices.  James reminds us "My brothers and sisters, not many of you should become teachers, because we know that we teacher will be judged more strictly" (James 3:1, CEB).

And so, while Sarah and I may not have the perfect marriage (yet!), we are reminded, on a weekly basis, what we should be striving for, how we should hold ourselves to caring for the other, and just exactly where Jesus is and needs to be in the midst of our relationship.  

For that I'm thankful for each wedding, each opportunity.  And now as I come the the end of a busy wedding season, I say triumphantly, here's to four more added to our life!

More to come!

Jason <><

Dancing Pastor

I imagine someone might have said before that there's a lot to be learned by the way someone dances.  No doubt that's true.  Sarah and I have been to two weddings in consecutive weekends that have revealed as much as could possibly be said about a dancing pastor and his wife.  Just yesterday a local report was shared from an eye witness with the other men in my HOME Group during my absence.  Afterward I heard about it:  "Whoa, Pastor Jason!  I heard you have a couple moves on the dance floor!"  Oh my...

For the record, I like to dance.  I may not know how to dance.  But I dance.  It's the movement and the freedom that prove to be the most rewarding.

Sarah also likes to dance.  She's quite quick to learn a new dance, but I wouldn't say she enjoys the same "freedoms" I experience.

When Sarah and I dance together, it's typically an exchange of "C'mon Sarah, let's move and have a blast!" or "Just be free!" and "Jason, what in the world are you doing??" or "I don't think anyone should see their, or "a", pastor moving like that!"  It's a wild and fun ride, as opposites attract and interact even on the dance floor.

So there we are, out on the dance floor, just as we are in life and in faith, bringing each other into the best parts of our lives.  Sometimes we find ourselves on the other sides of the opposites game, and I'm the one helping draw the line of sensibility.  Regardless, we do the best we can to honor the nudge to be free and also the gentle reminder to be wise from each other.  It's a beautiful thing, and it creates some life-long team practices for us.

But as for the dancing itself:  no it'll never get any better, and yes, to one degree or another, I keep dancing, and signing, and making variably funny comments, and loving life.  Amen!


More to come!


Jason <><

That VBS Chicken!

Every year we debate about the presence of the infamous, villain chicken who threatens to stop VBS.  Valid complaints of the chicken scaring some of the kids and the lingering question of what purpose does the chicken serve continue to surround the existence of the "Evil" Chicken.  

Sarah and I were talking about it the other day while laughing about what the chicken does for the kids.  As soon as a still frame of the chicken would show up on the screens, the kids would boo incessantly.  The night the chicken was posed on the roof looking into the atrium, droves of kids ran to report their spotting and urgency for us to get the chicken.  What we marvel the most about however is the chicken has no real power and has never posed a real threat to the children.  Yet they despise it adamantly.  Have we inappropriately demonized the chicken?


On the other hand, I can see what the chicken represents--and it is far more real.  Each year as VBS comes around, life at Horizons begins to roar.  Energy is high, passion is soaring, hearts are reignited, and Jesus' name is shared.  From a spiritual perspective, Satan deeply opposes this energy and this proclamation of the gospel.  We see much of this opposition, I believe, in the small details that fall apart and threaten to disrupt our efforts--anything from illnesses to minor injuries, schedule conflicts to differences between leaders, to negative energy in general and fatigue.  

In this sense, there is a presence lurking through VBS attempting to bring it to a halt.  I'm thankful for the many, many prayers so many were lifting up during the week that we be protected.  There is no doubt that Horizons' VBS was once again successful beyond what we could anticipate.  This is attributed to the powerful presence of the Holy Spirit surrounding and strengthening our efforts.  It is God's Spirit that leads leaders, that heals differences and bodies, that works all things for good.  

Let us be thankful, and let us continue to pray against the "evil chicken" trying to stop VBS and other Horizons efforts to share Jesus life--life abundant!  


More to come!!

Jason <><

The Heart of VBS (2014) - Final Night

I think many of us can still feel the beats of the opening music, can still hear the shrill of excited screams, and may still be wiping some of the splattered slime from our VBS shirts from a week of awesomeness at Horizons.  This final blog from Troy Knox reminds us of what we did it all for and how it fills our lives!  Enjoy!

"What a weird church

Leading a bunch of antsy elementary students around to learn about God is weird.

Singing is weird.

Dancing is Weird.

I am sure there are several people that think I am weird all of the time but I am particularly weird one week out of the year - VBS week!

When else can I wear neon outfits, face paint, silly wigs and large hats and fit right in? It is so much fun to watch the kids singing and dancing their hearts out and hearing the sincere and innocent answers as they are asked about things like "God sightings".

The emphasis for this years VBS was weird animals and the fact that it is okay to be different or "weird" in your relationship with Christ.  I love the fact that I attend a church that not only allows but encourages me to be weird. I am also particularly proud of the fact that Horizons church itself is "weird". We had over 500 kids at vacation bible school; Bob, Karl, and John got slimed and crew  leaders chugged blended up happy meals all in an effort to make VBS fun, who does that??

Horizons does.

Thank God for all of the wonderfully weird people at Horizons. I am already looking forward to VBS  2015!

Troy Knox"

More to come!

The Heart of VBS (2014) - Night 4

Ever wondered what it's like to be in the VBS band?  Today's blog comes from the Worship Team's bird's-eye-view of what a sea full of God-struck children and adults looks like!  Do you have a VBS perspective or small story?  e-mail derek@horizonschurch.org to share


"It's all about perspective.  The worship team gets a unique perspective during VBS in a blast of 5-10 intense minutes twice a night of pumpin' thumpin' hoppin' get-on-your-feet-clap-your-hands insanity that we call worship music.  Our perspective gives insight into all of the emotions of VBS during the most jam-packed times - opening and closing.  We see everything from the kids who are on their feet screaming at the top of their lungs, to the kids who don't quite know what to think about this "weird" stuff, and even those who shrink away in fear from how much energy is zinging through the air. Then there's the strange old guy who sings 3 octaves lower than the rest of us with his pants backwards.  Maybe that's what those kids were crying about.  We enjoy the chance to get a little crazy :)

The best part for us as adults, though, is that we are reminded to approach God with the same faith and innocence of a child.  We get to break free of our inhibitions (in some of our cases, more than we should), and experience the awesome power of God through the eyes of a child.  Not only is this the best week of the summer for these kids, it is for us too.

Thanks for letting us be part of this crazy experience! - The Worship Team

Lauren Mize
Resource Teacher
Huntington Elementary"


More to come!

The Heart of VBS (2014) - Night 3

Today's thoughts come from a preschooler volunteer Alicia McCune about how VBS transforms adults hearts just as much as the kids'.  Enjoy!

VBS 2014

When I was asked to blog about VBS so far, to be completely honest…I really wasn’t feeling it. Somewhere through the rush of the day, my heart had hardened and felt heavy. It felt like I was going through the motions, struggling to get amped up to lead my “shorter friends”, the preschoolers, in songs.

Taking few seconds in the bathroom, I prayed that my heart would lighten and for God to lead me through the night. I needed His words, not my own.

I headed back into the worship center where the worship team was already bringing the house down, always my favorite part of a VBS night. As I stood in the back and looking around the room full of kids a thought took over my head.  We are planting a seed or maybe nurturing what God has already started. We are laying the foundation of faith. Who knows where a child’s life may take them or where the path may go, but VBS is laying a foundation of faith for them to fall back on when life gets hard.

Leaving the worship center and trucking it back to the room that’s now become a second stage for Dance USA, another thought hit me. When I think of all the volunteers that it takes to run a night of VBS, everybody has their niche.  Everyone has a role that they fill, or a gift that they bring that helps make the night successful. Maybe it will take a few years to figure out where your spot is at VBS, but know there is a spot. Derek and Liz maybe second-guess my role when the Congo line gets crazy but feel this is a good fit.

As the evening came to a close, one last thought came: When it’s all we can do to just show up, it seems that’s all God needs… He takes it from there. With every beat of the songs we sing and get crazy to, he finds us where we are at and through everyone coming together he lifts us up. As the music started last night, the worries and stress of the day faded, it was replaced by love and energy. It’s tangible every night, permeating the week of VBS.  Each night it’s as if we are letting go of ourselves and getting more of our God in. I really dig it J

God bless VBS :-), Alicia

More to come!