CAN I GET A WITNESS? - The BodyShop Part 6

So often in our spiritual lives we talk about what we want God to do for us; but did you ever think about what you can do for Him?  Did you know that you hold the key to God's heart?  And that you have the ability to put an everlasting smile on His Face?

How?  The key to any father's heart is his children.  And as members of Christ's Body, we have the opportunity/responsibility to be witnesses of God's love to the world around us.  And that's what evangelism - the 5th and final pillar of a healthy church member - is all about.

God isn't looking for salesmen; He's looking for witnesses.  Check out the video above to find out what it means to be a witness and what we need to do to accomplish.

PUT YOUR MONEY WHERE YOUR MOUTH IS - The BodyShop Part 5

What is undeniably the one characteristic where our lives differ the most from that of the early church?  Is it prayer?  Or fasting?  Or witnessing?  NOPE!  Check out these passages from Acts 2 and Acts 4 and see for yourself:

“And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers. Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need.”   Acts 2:42-45

“Now the multitude of those who believed were of one heart and one soul; neither did anyone say that any of the things he possessed was his own, but they had all things in common. And with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And great grace was upon them all. Nor was there anyone among them who lacked; for all who were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the proceeds of the things that were sold, and laid them at the apostles’ feet; and they distributed to each as anyone had need.”  Acts 4:32-35

The answer is GIVING!  But not giving the way we do it - a "tip" we put in the donation box once every few months.  No way.  The early church was known for its lifestyle of SACRIFICIAL GIVING - where each one "sold their possessions and goods" and laid the proceeds at the feet of the apostles.

Sounds crazy doesn't it?  But maybe it's not.  Check out Part 5 in The BodyShop series as we continue to look at what it means to be healthy member of the Body of Christ.  I guarantee you won't want to miss this one!

GROWING OLD VS GROWING UP - The BodyShop Part 4

"God uses COMMUNITY to lead us to MATURITY."

God's plan for humanity has always been clear - that we "may GROW UP in all things into Him who is the head—Christ” (Ephesians 4:15).  As any parent, God isn't content for us to merely be born into His family; He desires that we would grow and reach the point of maturity.  His desire is that we wouldn't just grow OLD, but that we'd grow UP as well.

How does that maturity happen?  I believe that a major portion of the process takes place in the context of community.  Without community, you'll never reach the level of spiritual maturity that God desires for you life.

How can I say that?  Check out Part 4 in The BodyShop series as we continue to look at the different markers that make for a healthy member of the Body of Christ.

LET'S GET TO WORK - The BodyShop Part 3

God gives power to the Church.  The Church gives power to the members.  The means by which this power is distributed is called LITURGY.

That was the main message in our 3rd message in The BodyShop series as we continue to look at the different markers that make a healthy member of the Body of Christ.  This week's topic...LITURGY, our communal response to God.

We talked about WHAT liturgy means (much more than a just bunch of prayers said in a church building on Sunday mornings).  We talked about WHY liturgy is something we should desire to be part of (it gets results, it brings joy, it prepares us for heaven).  And at a very practical level, we discussed HOW we can get the most out of liturgy (hint: it requires more than just showing up).

So check out the message above and hopefully it'll open your eyes to a new level of worship and prayer as a member in Christ's Body.

MANY MEMBERS, ONE BODY - The BodyShop Part 2

We began our exploration of what does it mean to be a "healthy" member of God's Body on earth by delving into the topic of COMMUNITY.  Community is one of those things that every church talks about but very few church members actually find.  It's one of those church "buzz words" that just sounds good and looks nice on our websites.

But is that all community is?  Just a buzz word?  Or is it something that we can actually find in our church?  And if so, what do I need to do to find it?

Those are the questions that we discussed this week in the 2nd message of The BodyShop.  We talked about what community means and where it comes from and why you can't be a healthy member in the Body of Christ without it.  Check out the video above and hopefully it'll open the door for you to deepen your relationships with the fellow members in the Body of Christ.

Welcome to The BodyShop - Part 1

If rain, sleet and snow won't stop the US Postal service, then it certainly won't stop us either!  We had a foot of snow in the DC on Saturday and that stopped us from being able to meet together in person; but it didn't stop us from Church!

Because as we saw in yesterday's message, the Church isn't a place we go... the Church is who we are!  I am the Church and there is no greater honor than for me to say that and identify myself as a member of the "theanthropic" Body of Christ (big word explained in the message).

That's the point of our newest series, The BodyShop.  We'll been given a great honor in being part of the Body and every week in this series, we'll look at a different aspect of what it means to be a HEALTHY member of that Body.

Welcome to The BodyShop!

BEYOND THE KINGDOM - Build Your Kingdom Part 5

Get ready for a celebration!  It's the final week in the Build Your Kingdom campaign and yesterday's message answered the question: "WHAT'S NEXT?" Check out the video above to see what I mean.  

And keep laying those BRICKS!  The Sunday series may be complete, but the campaign to build the Kingdom in Arlington is NOT!  I'll post an update tomorrow.  But in the meantime, KEEP ON BUILDING!!!

FOCUS ON BRICKS, NOT BUILDINGS - Build Your Kingdom Part 4

ONE WEEK LEFT in the Build Your Kingdom campaign!  As we approach the end and our goal seems nearly impossible, this week we got a reminder of what a true Kingdom Builder mindset looks like.  Focus on BRICKS, not BUILDINGS. Or as Solomon put it "The horse is prepared for the day of battle, but deliverance is of the Lord.”  (Proverbs 21:31)

And keep laying those BRICKS!!!

More than Just a Building

Over the past few weeks, you've heard me talk a lot about our Build Your Kingdom campaign and about how we're trying to build a house for God here in Arlington, VA.  You may be asking yourself "Why?  Why do you need a building?  Why do you need it now?  And why this particular building?" Well here's your answer!  

Below are three videos that will answer your questions:  Our Story,Our Need, and Why This Building (this third one is the longest but it's my favorite because in it I tell the story of how we came to know that God wants this building - very personal, very moving, don't miss this one!).

Enjoy!

Read More

I (Fr. Anthony) NEED YOUR HELP

Dear loyal blog reader and friend,

What I’m about to do isn’t something that I do very often; those who know me can attest to how rare it is.  I generally don’t like asking for help (remember this post?); it’s not something I’m good at.

I don’t like asking for help because I know that everyone already has enough on their plates.  The last thing you need is some priest to leverage his spiritual authority to make you feel guilty about not doing more or giving more.  Am I right?

But that’s why I don’t want you to take this as a request for help.  Instead, I hope you see it as an invitation to be part of something great…really great! 

Read More

WHEN THE GOING GETS TOUGH - Build Your Kingdom Part 3

Discouragement: we've all been there.  We've all faced it.  We know how it feels and how paralyzing it can be.  The only people who avoid discouragement are people who never attempt to do anything hard/great in this world.

So what happens when a kingdom builder gets discouraged?  Is that even allowed?  Aren't the "spiritual" people always supposed to be upbeat and positive?  What happens when the "good guys" get down?

That's this week's topic in the Build Your Kingdom series.  Check out the video above and watch as I share how I personally went through some discouragement recently and how I dug my way out of it.  Trust me, if you're feeling down or discouraged, you MUST watch this message.

And I pray that God uses it to pick you up as He did me as well.

UNLESS THE LORD BUILDS THE HOUSE - Build Your Kingdom Part 2

"No praying man or woman accomplishes so much with so little expenditure of time as when he or she is praying."  A.E. McAdam

Part 2 of the Build Your Kingdom series and this week we looked at our most important tool when it comes to building God's Kingdom.  Not money, not manpower, not experience or intelligence... our most important tool is PRAYER.

Why?  Because "unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain." (Psalm 127:1)

In this week's message, we look at Nehemiah - a man who led God's people to accomplish an incredible feat - as a model of the kind of prayer that builds kingdoms.  We'll see what was Nehemiah's secret to success and see what four factors make up kingdom building prayer.