I would like to make a special note to my former church family (you know who you are).

I have heard of rumors circulating that my family and I left the church mad and upset. I’ve also heard rumors that I accused the church of being irrelevant and outdated. I would like to personally assure everyone that is not the case. I love my former church and still consider you to be partners in ministry and family…everyone of you.

Leaving was a difficult decision that was made after much thought and prayer. My one and only reason for leaving was to follow the calling God placed on my life. I continue to hear stories of wonderful and amazing things going on with you.

I would like to extend an open invitation to anyone who would like to sit down and talk about any questions you may have. Please contact me so we can get together and discuss any thoughts and concerns you may have. I do not want rumors and accusations hurting the ministry that God is doing in the church or this community.

I love you all and wish God’s best for the church, its leadership and this community.

Love in Christ,
Chris

Do you go to church?

I’m not asking if you go on Christmas and Easter, but do you go regularly?
If so, then why? If not, then why not?

Leave comments and let me know. Be honest. Don’t hold back. I really want to hear what you have to say.

2 broken axles on the boat trailer.
Several hours waiting on Sean to find new axles with no success.
A few minutes on the phone with James asking if he would take us fishing on his boat.
2 days of work that James couldn’t get out of.
An offer for us to borrow his boat.
A great lunch at Chick-fil-a.
A stop at Walmart.
1 missed turn picking up the boat.
An unexpected reunion with an old friend.
1 more stop at Walmart.
A gas stop.
A bait stop.
Clear sky’s.
Calm water.
Fish in the boat.
Great conversation.
Early morning return.
Awesome trip.

That about sums it up.

Some people leave on a jet plane. Today, I am leaving on an old boat.

I am meeting up with Barry, one of my oldest and best friends to do some fishing. I have known Barry since I was 13 years old and we have been on many fishing trips together. The great thing about these trips is I never know what to expect. We fish off of old boats and usually break down at least. Sometimes we get the boat running well enough to get back home, sometimes we don’t. Floating in the Gulf of Mexico on a broken down boat is a great faith building exercise.

Today will most likely be no exception. We are going out on a boat that hasn’t run in three years…until this week. I can only imagine the spiritual lessons God has to teach me over the next day and a half (Oh yeah, we plan to be back around lunchtime tomorrow…overnighter).

So, goodbye…for now at least.

I went outside tonight in my flip-flops and sat on the porch in a chair that faces west. As I sat down I caught a glimpse of the sunset and I thanked God for the beauty of His creation. The sky was shades of blue and pink and gray. As I began talking with Him, I felt a distance between us.

God feels far away from me sometimes. I spent a few minutes thinking about this, wondering where the distance comes from. While I thought about this I decided to take a walk. I walked to the front of the house and took a left. Not a right, a left. Going right leads to all the things I know – familiar things, comfortable things, routine things.

As I began walking – to the left – in a less familiar direction, it felt like I was getting closer to the God of all creation with every flip of my flops. I began to smile. As I enjoyed my walk, I talked to God about all the things going on in my life right now.

I am learning to be a better husband. I am watching my little boy grow up. I am making new friends and growing closer to old ones. I am starting a church. As I seek God, the things that really matter are rising to the surface of my life. Things that I used to put on the back burner of life are moving front and center and God is throwing things into the mix I never expected. As these things become more central to my life, I realize they are the things that bring fulfillment and purpose to who I am.

As parts of my life progress to new levels of significance, other areas begin to fade. Things I once held dear, I now find holding me back and weighing me down. Not because they are necessarily bad, but because they aren’t best. The problem is that I find comfort in many of these things. I often cling to them like my little boy clings to his favorite blanket, begging for it not to be taken away.

If I hold on to the things that are comfortable instead of stepping out with reckless abandonment it becomes impossible to keep up with God’s leading. My relationship with God gets distant because I can’t keep up with the life that God has for me while I am clinging to my comfortable routine. It’s like I’m running a race with a suitcase. And I’m not talking about one of the new fangled bags with wheels on the bottom, oh no, I am talking about one of those big, awkward, plastic, hard-shell cases that weighed 20lbs before you put anything in it. If I am carrying that kind of baggage with me, I certainly won’t win the race…I may not even be able to finish. I’ve got to lay it down.

I enjoyed my walk with God tonight. I was reminded that my whole life is changing and as this happens there are many things I have to let go of to travel the road He has planned for me. The same way I started my walk off in a less familiar direction, I must allow God to lead me to unfamiliar and uncomfortable places. If I spend my time and energy dragging my baggage along on this trip and clinging to what I know, I will get tired very quickly and probably give up. I must give all that I am to God and run to Him with reckless abandonment.

To truly believe in God is to lay everything down and follow Him.

Noah and I got to spend the last two days together. We played and laughed and ate and watched TV, you know – guy stuff. Mama is usually around to handle all of the behind the scenes stuff, but these two days it was just Noah and I. He was fully dependant on me with no mama around for backup (poor guy).

As I think about these couple of days I realize how easy it can be to miss the best things in life. Thinking that one day Noah will no longer want to sit in my lap as I read him a book brings a tear to my eye. Knowing there will be a day when he will no longer need me to run and pick him up when he falls, breaks my heart. God has trusted Lisa and I with the responsibility to care for this amazing life and with this responsibility comes one of the deepest joys I have ever experienced. My heart breaks for any father who doesn’t take the time to experience the gift God has given him in his children.

Lisa will be home in a few minutes (which is great because we have missed her immensely) and the guy time will be over. Even though we will no longer be bachin’ it, every day with Noah is a blessing and as a father…as a daddy, I hope I always remember to cherish every moment God has given us together.

One of the temptations in being called to start a church is to focus so much time and attention on the future of the church that I miss what God is leading me to today. As I think and pray about this I realize that missing what God has for me now, ultimately leads to missing what He has for me tomorrow.

One of the top priorities of this church is connecting with outsiders – those folks who don’t care for church or don’t understand Jesus and what it means to have a relationship with Him. Although I see this as a top priority, outsiders can be easily overlooked in day-to-day life when I focus only on the future. How can I reach them if I don’t connect with them? How can I connect with them if I spend all of my time hanging out with my Christian friends in Christian places talking about what God is going to do?

I can only imagine what God thinks when Christians sit around with other Christians talking about doing what God told us to do and fantasizing about how great it will be to do those things…one day. It is great to have those conversations and think about what God is going to do down the road, but if the calling for today is missed because I am consumed with the future, the future may never come. Following God’s path for today is foundational for where He will lead tomorrow.

As I consider the importance of this church leading people into a relationship with Christ, I must remember the significance of doing that in my life. The goal of starting this church is not to transplant Christians from other churches to this church. The goal is to lead people who don’t know Jesus, into a relationship with Him. This doesn’t start six months or a year from now. It starts now.

As I consider these things, my prayer is that I will not allow my anticipation for the future to paralyze me today.

We had a great night last night at the first official core group meeting for the new church. I expected to meet for an hour or two, but we ended up going four and a half hours. We talked a lot about upcoming events, as well as, the future of the church. We had a great prayer time lifting up everything to the Father.

I am already looking forward to our meeting next Sunday night. That meeting will be another general meeting covering a broad range of topics and ideas. It is a great time to get involved if you are interested.

Please keep us in your prayers as we move forward. We have received a lot of encouragement from the community, which means so much to us. Right now we are praying about a location (other than my living room) to start meeting with the core group. We are also praying that God will continue to lead others to be a part of the core group as He sees fit. Of course there are a lot of administrative things going on which take a lot of time, so pray we will use our time efficiently as we knock out these tasks.

Tonight will be the first official meeting of the core group for the new church. We will discuss vision, priorities and ideas as well as spending a good amount of time talking to God about everything. This is an exciting time and I am anxious to see what God is going to do.

If you are interested in being a part of the group or would just like to find out more about what is going on, please leave a comment or send me an email at cyokley@gmail.com.