How God Used My Illness as my Cure

August 22, 2014

Sickness is one of the very few things in life that can push you face down into the mud—even when you are already on your knees. I distinctly remember my doctor scribbling something in my patient folder, then gravely lifting her head and giving me a clear diagnosis. I was 23 and optimistic about treatment; 10 months later, I went into remission.

During the recovery process, I learned that enduring any kind of illness is truly a journey. Some ailments may be cured through a regiment of fluids, chicken soup, and aspirin. Others require a more intensive, long-term treatment plan. Unfortunately, I experienced the latter.

The illness spared me no mercy: my body and mind were both diseased. Yet in the midst of my struggle and on the path to recovery, I also discovered my soul and spirit were just as ill. I knew better than to question God about my circumstances, so I didn’t. I simply expected to get better and trusted that God would bring me through the fire. What I did not expect was that the heat of the fire would melt away my spiritual bondage and renew my mind, soul and spirit in a powerful and dramatic way.

LIVING YOUR STRENGTHS Part 1 - The Power of the Right Fit

August 18, 2014

God didn't create you to be GOOD at everything, but He did create you to be GREAT at something.

That's the premise of the latest series at The Well called LIVING YOUR STRENGTHS. The idea is that yes, you can do whatever you want it if you try hard enough - but that doesn't mean that you can do it WELL. Based on the highly renowned Clifton StrengthsFinder ® assessment, the Living Your Strengths series will help you identify your God-given strengths and how to use them for your growth and for God’s glory.

God created us all uniquely – with different strengths – in order that the Body of Christ would be complete. The Church - including YOUR church - needs everyone’s strengths in order to be operating at full strength and fulfilling God's mission in the world.

How Could Robin Williams Be Depressed?

August 15, 2014

The news of the passing of Robin Williams took the world by surprise. How is it possible for one of the most iconic and brilliant comedians of our childhood to commit suicide? How could someone who brought us so much JOY, have so much hidden PAIN? When the explanation is "he had depression," we sometimes can't help but trivialize it by pointing out irrelevant things like..."But he had it all!", "He was so funny!" or "He was so involved in charity!"

There are realities that the death of Robin Williams will hopefully force us to face.

THE DANIEL PLAN, Part 6 - Winning with Hand You're Dealt

August 12, 2014

The sixth and final message in THE DANIEL PLAN series and this may have been the most eye-opening, life-changing of them all. The message was titled "Winning with the Hand You're Dealt."

Life is kinda like a game of poker. We're given a certain set of "cards" that we didn't choose. We didn't choose when or where we were born... we didn't choose our parents or how they treated us... we didn't choose our physical weaknesses or limitations. There's a lot of things that go into us that are beyond our control.

The easy thing to do is to complain about it and wish I had a different set of cards; the right thing to do is to make the most of the hand I've been dealt.

That's the subject of this week's message. If you struggle with a poor self-identity or thoughts/feelings of anxiety, fear or guilt, then you MUST listen to this week's message to see how God wants to transforms those "cards" into a winning hand.

Enjoy!

THE DANIEL PLAN, Part 5 – God's Power in Your Life

August 4, 2014

Look who's back! After a month long hiatus from preaching, I made my return yesterday for the 5th message in THE DANIEL PLAN series. And what I noticed is that when you try to keep a preacher's mouth shut for 4 weeks, then you don't know what's gonna come out when it opens!

And that's what happened yesterday.

The message above is one of those "from my heart" messages that I really want the whole world to hear. It's about how to live a life of blessing and how to be used by God. It's about how to dream BIG and how to turn those dreams into reality with the power of God.

It's a message that I'd love you to listen to and apply in your life. Enjoy!

THE DANIEL PLAN, Part 4 – We're Better Together

July 28, 2014

Community - one of the most overused words in churches everyone. Everyone talks about it, but so few actually experience. Is it possible to live healthy lives without it???

NO! Check out week 4 of THE DANIEL PLAN as my good friend Michael Guirguis talks about the importance of community and why it is essential for a balanced, healthy life. And make sure you stay tuned till the very end of the video for a memorable ending to this week's message.

And come join us for The Daniel Plan - either in person or by following along at TheWellAtSTSA.com - and find out what it means to "glorify God in your body." Enjoy!

THE DANIEL PLAN, Part 3 – Goal Setting

July 21, 2014

One of the most important steps in making any significant life change is the process of SETTING GOALS. And that was the topic of this week's message. Check out the Week 3 message in THE DANIEL PLAN - delivered by my good friend Peter Karras - and learn why it's important to set goals and how you can increase your chances of success by setting godly goals for your health.

Come join us for The Daniel Plan - either in person or by following along at TheWellAtSTSA.com - and find out what it means to "glorify God in your body." Enjoy!

Changing Your View of Your Spouse

July 16, 2014

Your spouse is NOT your enemy. Your spouse is God’s gift to you. You and your spouse were made to be dangerous for God.

Those three statements summarize the main lessons that I took away from this past weekend’s Weekend to Remember conference that Marianne and I just attended. As promised, this week I’ll be sharing different lessons that we came away with from the conference.

But first, let me tell you how the conference started for me. It started with a strange encounter with some very different people. Last week, I blogged about how we are all different and we must learn to appreciate our differences. Well, God put that to the test this past weekend.

THE DANIEL PLAN, Part 2 - Principles for Lasting Change

July 14, 2014

Week 2 of THE DANIEL PLAN and now we're getting into the good stuff. Special thanks to our special guest speaker this week - Steve Messeh - who talked to us about his experience with The Daniel Plan and the key principles needed to ensure lasting change. In addition, you want to make sure you get to the end of this video and see what his wife Nadia had to say about her experience with the program as well - truly a life transformation!

Come join us for The Daniel Plan - either in person or by following along online - and find out what it means to "glorify God in your body." Enjoy!

The Three Phrases of Pope Shenouda

July 11, 2014

Have you ever been so down and frustrated that you knew you were angry, but you weren’t quite sure who you were angry at? Just sort of angry at ‘life’ in general? I know I’ve felt that way before – especially during the time I was admitted to the ICU.

I felt hopeless and tired. I remember how weak I was; how pathetic I felt. I felt frustrated with life and wanted it to end. I didn't know if God was ever going to get me out alive, and at times, I actually didn't want to be alive. I was angry with myself. But more so, I was angry that life had been so harsh on me. I didn't understand why this was happening. All I knew was that this was the 'last straw'. I was breaking down, losing hope, and losing faith.

During that time, my parents would often comfort me and support me with three quotes from the late Pope Shenouda III (1923-2012). I’ll never forget those three statements that my family always said when they came to see me: “'this too will end soon”, “God is here”, and “all is for the good”.

Three short statements, but the power and hope they instilled within me was incredible.

THE DANIEL PLAN, Part 1 - What Does God Say About My Body

July 7, 2014

“Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.” 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

THE DANIEL PLAN kicked off this weekend and our first message was all about God's view of our bodies. I know it doesn't sound very spiritual, but what you do with your body really matters to God. Our bodies are more than simply containers to hold our spirits; they are part of who God created us to be and therefore how we treat our bodies matters to God.

Are You Vandalizing God’s House?

July 2, 2014

What would you do if you saw someone vandalizing your church? Imagine arriving at church and seeing a group of children from the Sunday school program practicing their finger painting skills on the walls of the sanctuary? Or seeing who can hold the most number of lit candles in one hand while running around the church? Or trying to answer the age-old question of “what happens when you throw rocks at stained glass windows?”

What would you do? Would you just stand by and watch? Would you allow someone to desecrate and vandalize your place of worship? Wouldn’t you say something? Or even more, wouldn’t you do something about it?

My guess is that if you saw someone vandalizing your church, you wouldn’t stand for it. I know I wouldn’t. The church is the House of God and therefore must be treated with dignity and respect. We can’t allow anyone to casually mistreat God’s House and degrade its value in such a manner. Right?

That’s what we say, but I promise you, THAT’S NOT WHAT WE DO!

“Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)

This weekend, we are kicking off an exciting new series at The Well called THE DANIEL PLAN. The Daniel Plan is revolutionary, six-week program that focuses on healthy living. The program is based on five essentials of long-term health: Faith, Food, Fitness, Focus and Friends. The goal of The Daniel Plan is to promote healthy living in these five areas and to provide the practical tools needed to maintain it.

But wait a minute… does God really care about how we treat our bodies? Isn’t it our spirits that matter more? It sounds awfully unspiritual and worldly and SECULAR to talk about healthy eating and exercise at church doesn’t it?”

I couldn’t disagree more.

Taking care of your physical health is not ‘unspiritual’ or ‘worldly’ or ‘secular’ (whatever that means). In fact, I could argue that the most spiritual thing that some of us could do today is invest in our physical health.

Why? Because our bodies are the place in which God dwells. Not caring for our bodies is showing disrespect towards God’s home…His dwelling place. We agreed that we’d never allow anyone to desecrate the Church because it is God’s home, so why would not care equally as much about our bodies, since God calls that His home as well?

“Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.” (1 Corinthians 3:16-17)

Get rid of the idea that the body is bad and we shouldn’t care what happens to it. Nothing could be further from the truth. Both your body and your soul were created by God to form the complete YOU. Neglecting either component for the sake of the other is wrong. We need to care for BOTH.

So with that said, I invite you all to join us for the start of The Daniel Plan beginning this Sunday. It promises to be a life-changing journey because we won’t just talk about diets and exercise and all the other stuff we’ve heard before and never been able to keep up with. Instead, we’ll focus on God’s plan for our bodies and God’s power to make it happen.

And we’ll do all that in the context of community (through Life Groups) – because we know that there is a special power there we do it together. Studies for this program show that overwhelmingly, people who do the Daniel Plan TOGETHER report remarkably higher results than those doing it alone. That’s a FACT!

So if you're in the Arlington area, I invite you to join us this Sunday at The Well for the start of The Daniel Plan. If you're not in this area, you can check out The Daniel Plan: 40 Days to a Healthier Lifeyourself and get a group together to do the program with wherever you live.

Either way, it’s time for a little fixing-up on God's house.

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to OFFER YOUR BODIES AS A LIVING SACRIFICE, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.” (Romans 12:1)

GOD IS JUST - Part 4, Can You See HIM Now?

June 30, 2014

"Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why are those happy who deal so treacherously?” Jeremiah 12:1

If you've ever asked yourself that question - why does it seem like the good guys always finish last and the bad guys always seem to win in life - then you need to listen to the latest message in the CAN YOU SEE HIM NOW? series. This week's topic might be the most hotly debated because in it, we discuss the age old question, IS GOD FAIR/JUST?

Say what you want to say, we all know there are times when we look up the sky, shake our fist and question His fairness. That's a natural part of life. But in this message you'll see why God is just and how that justice works in our day to day lives.

GOD IS SOVEREIGN - Part 3, Can You See HIM Now?

June 23, 2014

Want to know the secret to a life of less stress and more peace? The secret to lowering your anxiety and increasing your faith? It's not as complicated as you might think. It all comes with knowing the truth about God's SOVEREIGNTY.

That was the subject of yesterday's message - the 3rd part in our latest series, CAN YOU SEE HIM NOW? Understanding what it means that "God is sovereign" will transform your life like nothing else.

Don't believe me? Check out the message above and see for yourself.

A Lesson on the Worthlessness of Worrying

June 20, 2014

Tests, assignments, deadlines, speeches!! The list goes on and on for a student like me. God knows I try… try to do well, try to please my parents, try to excel in what I’m doing with the hope of one day doing a job that I “love.” Oh and yes, I forgot to mention I try not to worry too! Yes, all these things God knows… but it was one day when He showed me just how much I did NOT know.

I had a speech due for an accounting unit (can I get a BORING up in here?) the first Monday back after the mid-semester break. And – in the true spirit of university life – it wasn’t until the last weekend of the 2 week break that I gave myself a kick in the pants to actually start writing the speech.

GOD IS LOVE - Part 2, Can You See HIM Now?

June 16, 2014

What's the most talked about, but least understood characteristic of who God is? That's easy...LOVE!

Everyone has an idea in their mind about what love is and how love behaves. We come up with our definition of love and then just apply that same definition to God.

But could it be that God's definition of love isn't the same as ours? That God's love looks and behaves completely different than our love? Is it possible that we don't really know what love is the way we think we do???

That was yesterday's topic - the 2nd part in our latest series, CAN YOU SEE HIM NOW? Find out for yourself by checking out the video above. The answer might be life-changing...

Can You See Him Now? Part 1

June 9, 2014

Kicked off a fantastic new series in The Well yesterday - one that I am super excited for - called CAN YOU SEE HIM NOW? The premise of the series is very simple and is based on this one statement:

“The most telling characteristic about a man is what his view of God is. This will determine the outcome of life more than anything else.”

What's more important: the reality of who God is? Or your PERCEPTION of who God is? What will affect your life more: how God looks at you? Or how you THINK He is looking at you? You may never realize it, but believe me, the perception of God that each of us has in our minds will affect our lives in ways that we'll never realize.

That's why the goal of this series is to get rid of those pesky misperceptions that we've accumulated along the way and to see God as He really is.

The difference could be life-changing...and eternity-changing as well.

Ascension? Where’s the excitement?

June 6, 2014

“I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.” (John 14:2-3)

Growing up just like any other child, I used to be over the moon at the thought of Christmas or Easter being around the corner. You could just feel the excitement walking around in the streets.

Those who were lucky enough to come from a blessed family would be thinking of what gifts they were expecting that year. Those who came from a poor background would also count their blessings because they would at least get to enjoy that special holiday meal with their loved ones. Even the homeless had something to celebrate because they would have generous groups of people coming to visit them, usually carrying food.

Excitement filled the air!

World-Changing OBEDIENCE

June 2, 2014

This week's message was the finale in the World-Changers series and it was my personal favorite. It's a message I believe in very deeply and is at the fundamental core of who I am and why I do what I do. And that message is this...

OBEDIENCE IS THE MEANS BY WHICH GOD BLESSES OUR LIVES.

I don't know about you, but I want to be blessed by God. And I believe God wants to bless me even more than I want to blessed. So finding His blessing and finding His peace and finding His joy isn't a game of hide and seek. And most of the time, I'd say He wants to give it to me even more than I want to receive it.

But the means by which that blessing will come is OBEDIENCE. God gives us forks in the road every day and what we do at those forks will determine whether or not we find blessing.

What is Faith...Really?

May 30, 2014

"Faith is not belief, faith is behavior born out of belief....to say you believe [have faith] in the Resurrection means to say you acknowledge it mentally and then manifest that faith with action." --Fr. Anthony Messeh

One thought hit me after hearing those words: “Man, I’ve spent my whole life believing in God without ever having faith.”

Those who know me know that I am a pretty emotional person. But when it comes to matters of salvation and spirituality, I have made it more of a “study” and less of a reality. I’ve been a student in Christianity 401 – a student who had all the answers but never showed up for a lab or practicum. I’ve mastered writing the right things when I am called to circle "A, B, C, or D," but I have forgotten to choose the right answers in my day to day life.

I’ve shown up for hundreds of lectures, but never felt I could introduce myself to the Rabbi. I believe that God created the heavens and the earth, that Emmanuel came to show us the way, that He sent forth the Holy Spirit to dwell in us; but in all of my belief, in all of my logic and surety, I think I’ve missed faith.