Mike Edmisten Follower of Jesus. Husband of Nicki. Father of Ryan & Brock. Communicator of the Word.

God Moments

Man, you talk about a God moment yesterday!

I walked into the church building early yesterday morning. Brian was already there. He came into my office and said, "Something big is going to happen today."

I gave him a blank stare and said, "What?"

He said, "I woke up this morning and felt God saying, 'I'm going to do something big in this church today.'"

I just said, "Ok then."

I wanted to believe him. Truthfully, I'm not sure that I did. Boy, was I wrong!

At the end of our second service yesterday, J.W. Cassell came forward to profess his faith in Christ. We're looking forward to baptizing him next week. (He wanted his daughter to be present.)

It's no secret that J.W. came to our church with a lot of doubt and a heavy dose of skepticism about Christianity. It took a while, but through the ministry of our church and the relationships he has made, J.W. found his way back to God. It doesn't get bigger than that.

But it doesn't stop there…

When everyone was dismissed and heading home, another ACCer, Jason Taggart, came up to me. His eyes were moistened with tears. He said, "I was praying for God to do something big today."

Are you kidding me?

But I'm not done yet.

This morning, one of our elders, John Bach, told me that he's been praying for J.W. during every single service at ACC over the past few months.

You want a God moment? You want an answered prayer moment?

We saw it yesterday, ACC! God moves when his people pray!!!

Baby Steps

Our four-year-old son, Ryan, goes to camp for the first time today. It's not an overnight deal or anything. Just a few hours. Ryan is going to Day Camp at Woodland Lakes Christian Camp.

It doesn't sound like a big deal. But any parent can tell you that, when it's the first time your child has done something like this, it is a big deal. It's one of those baby steps that remind parents how quickly their child is growing up. And while the parent would rather keep the child home, they know that these baby steps are crucial to the child's maturity.

One little step like this doesn't seem terribly significant in the grand scheme of life. But the cumulative effect of a lot of baby steps is incalculable.

That is true in our physical lives, and it's also true in our spiritual lives.

What baby step can you take toward spiritual maturity today? It may seem like a small, insignificant thing…do it anyway.

A thriving walk with Jesus isn't usually characterized by a handful of major leaps. More often than not, the most mature believers have a faith walk that is marked by countless baby steps.

Hi, I'm Larry. This is my brother Darryl, and this is my other brother Darryl.

Still one of the funniest lines ever in a TV sitcom.

This past Sunday night, I was one whipped puppy. L-O-N-G day. So I hit my recliner, and to my delight, I ran across a rerun of Newhart. I hadn't seen the show in at least a decade. Probably longer, since the show ended in 1990.

I have an eclectic sense of humor. Some would see it as odd or lame. I choose to view it as refined.

Newhart is slow moving and simple. The star, Bob Newhart, is drier than your grandma's meatloaf.

And the show it is flat out funny.

For our next vacation, I think I'll book a room at the Stratford Inn. (If that doesn't make sense to you, then you haven't seen enough Newhart.)

Horizon Update

I'm serving on the Oversight Team of Horizon Christian Church, a new church plant in Northern Kentucky. Wanted to give you a little update on how things are progressing.

The church was dealt a pretty serious blow recently when the local school system denied their request to meet in a school auditorium. That one hurt, because it seemed to be the last viable option for meeting space. Huge props to Joel and the entire Horizon staff for not giving up! They just intensified their search.

Joel called everybody…and I mean, everybody. He went so far as to call local stores to see if they had a storage room that the church could meet in! That's the life of a church planter. Chasing down every potential lead, regardless of how radical or ridiculous it may be.

I'm really excited that God seems to have directed them to a viable meeting space (that isn't in a closet at Kroger!). It's not a done deal yet, so I can't tell you where it will be. But at the moment, it seems feasible. The space isn't perfect, but church plants don't reside in the realm of "perfect." They reside in the realm of, "How can we creatively make this work?"

Please keep praying for Horizon. It's getting exciting!

My Tongue Hurts…

because I was biting it so hard!

Recently I left the office to work on my sermon (I'm a moofer), and as I was studying, I overheard a conversation that made me want to scream! Two ladies were talking about church.

One lady had left a particular church because "it just got too big." Her counterpart agreed, saying that she really liked her current church because it was "just the right size." She said, "I know everyone on a personal basis. I like that." The obvious implication was that if her current church experienced any kind of significant growth, she would be none too happy about it.

ARRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (That was the scream that was happening in my head.)

It took every ounce of self-restraint I had not to interrupt their conversation! I wanted to say, "Are you aware that the church is supposed to grow? Don't you rejoice when people find their way back to God through the ministry your church? Doesn't that excite you? I understand that it's nice to know everyone, but isn't there something more important at stake? Even if church growth makes you uncomfortable, isn't that better than never leaving your comfort zone while scores of people around you go to hell? And when did the purpose of the church shift to keeping us comfortable in the first place?"

Yeah, it's probably a good thing that I kept my mouth shut…but it certainly wasn't easy.

Heroes – Week 1

Our Heroes series got off to a slammin' start this past Sunday! I've been looking forward to this series for a while, and God is already blessing it like crazy.

So good to go back to the classic stories of Scripture, like Daniel in the Lions' Den. These stories prove the power of the Bible to me all over again. Some people were impacted by the story of Daniel because it was the first time they've ever heard it. Others were impacted by it all over again, even though they have known the story from childhood. Only God could write a story like that!

It was also really good to preach again. I was off for two straight Sundays, which was great. But it was also great to be back in the saddle again (cue Roy Rogers).

Sunday was just an overall stellar day!

Lincoln on Character

“Character is like a tree, and reputation is like a shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.” — Abraham Lincoln

Death by Meeting

Got a long day on tap today? Betcha I can beat it.

I've got a meeting at 6:00 am and another one at 6:00 pm today.

6:00 am – ACC Elders meeting

6:00 pm – Horizon Christian Church Oversight Team meeting

And, contrary to those who think pastors only work on Sundays, I've got a full workday in-between the 6:00 meetings.

Gotta love it!

Quite a Streak

Ok, so the Reds stink. They seem destined to dwell in the basement of the National League Central Division all year.

But, here is a cool tidbit in the midst of the misery…

The Reds took two of three from the Yankees in Yankee Stadium over the weekend. Counting the two games they won in the Bronx during the 1976 World Series, the Reds won four of the last five games they played in Yankee Stadium.

There aren't many teams that can say that. :o)

And now, back to the sad story that is the 2008 Cincinnati Reds.

Do It Now

I just sent an email. Quite a news flash, huh?

It's an email that I didn't have to send. If I hadn't sent it, nobody would have said a word about it. It contained no earth-shaking, critical information. It was simply a note of thanks, appreciation, and love to some of our friends.

Before I left on vacation recently, I sent an email to our staff. It contained no last-minute "don't forget to do this while I'm gone" information. Like the email I just described, it was a note of thanks, appreciation, and love for our staff at ACC.

Maybe you're picking up on a trend here. I am re-committing myself to a "do it now" mindset. If I see an opportunity to tell someone how much they mean to me, or to encourage and thank them for what they've done for me…I'm going to do it, and I'm going to do it now.

Do you have that email that you're "going to send?"

That phone call that you're "going to make?"

That letter that you're "going to write?"

Do it now.