New Series Starting Sunday: “Going Green”

Come out this Sunday as we begin a new series about money.
You don’t want to miss it!

Q & A: Round 7 (Jason Kimbrow)

27. Do you ever get burnt out with ministry and pouring into others? How do you get refilled?

I do get dry sometimes. Tiredness, experiencing a failure, someone disappointing me, not see the fruit of my investments, or overworking are a few things that burn me out every now and then. I refuel by getting away with my family, spending some quality time with God, hanging out with my best friends, and taking days off to do absolutely nothing but watch The Office (exaggeration but it does help).

28. What’s the most awkward experience you’ve ever had around “weird” Christians?

I had a preacher slap me with his Bible before. Just kidding. I can’t remember my most awkward experience.

29. My boyfriend and I plan to get married but aren’t even engaged yet. We are having a hard time staying pure. Should we get married sooner?

Well, neither of you want to marry someone who isn’t disciplined and marriage isn’t something you jump into because you can’t stay pure. But you don’t want to burn with lust either. The Apostle Paul discusses this in I Corinthians 7:8-9. I would get some strong accountability right now! Because marriage involves sex but isn’t about sex so you want your relationship to be a relationship. You don’t want it to be based on sex.  You want it based on God and serving one another. Get some help and you may want to even consider breaking it off for a season if you can’t stay pure.

30. If you have the lost the flame that had at one time for God, how do you get it back?

Get around the right people. Once you’ve done that, you need to meet with every person you respect and ask them how they do it. Also, make sure you are serving in a church somewhere. Obviously, reading the word and prayer are great disciplines to do daily.

31. Why didn’t The Newlyweds show workout?

Uhhh…it did work out. Their marriage didn’t work out but the show did. How could you?….

32. When you are praying about future decisions, how do you know when it’s God and when it’s just your own thoughts?

This is hard to figure out. Instead of trying to explain it I would just point you to a message I gave during our Symphony series last semester. Click here if you have iTunes. It’s Part Four: The Movement of God.

Q & A Round 6 (Garrett Matsuyama)

25. Should all Christians do overseas missions?

Great question. When Jesus left his disciples, he left them a task that we call the Great Commission:
Matthew 28:18-20 “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
This is the biblical basis that God desires his Word to go out to all nations. And until every nation has heard, (which has not happened yet) there is still work to do. There are several different perspectives on what role the American church should play in missions. To disciple all nations in today’s world could be as simple for us as reaching out to the international students that live at our own campus, ready to be reached and looking to learn about our culture.

In my opinion, i think everyone should experience an overseas mission trip at some point in their life. For two reasons: God’s heart is for all nations. He wants everyone to get a chance to hear the Gospel. The other reason is that it will literally change your life. When you see God move in another part of the world, and you see people that are in need in a way you can never imagine experiencing, it does something to you. You come back more thankful, more inspired, and more open to how God might use you here.

26. Being involved in many ministries at New Life is a great way to grow in your faith, but what if with all these things I’m involved in aren’t helping me as much i thought they would? How do i take a step back and reanalyze my walk with God?

Sometimes, even as a pastor, we can get so busy trying to do things for God, that we forget to be with God. This can end up hurting us more than we realize. To step back i would encourage you to maybe consider why you do all the things you do. Ask yourself: Am i trying to do all of this to earn points with God? Am i trying to make him love me more? If the answer is yes, than it’s possible you may want to make room to develop your personal time with God, even if it means dropping a “good thing” that you are doing. Sometimes we forget that we are worth more to God than what we can do for him. You don’t have to earn points with him, he just wants your heart.