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

Love U – Week 1 Recap

I LOVED being at church yesterday. We kicked off our Love U series and God did some flat out incredible stuff. He worked in our people AND through our people.

I subscribe to the idea that you pray like it depends on God and work like it depends on you. Our team did both of those things as they prepared and led the service. Every second of the service yesterday was specifically crafted around a simple theme: Love God.

Jesus told us that the greatest command in the whole Bible is the command to love God (Mark 12:28-31). And we used every second we had yesterday to communicate that truth in a powerful, memorable way. We juggled the order of the service, split the sermon into two segments, hand picked every word in every song…we even used a song by Rascal Flatts yesrerday. Whatever it takes to help people grasp God's truth.

But here's a little secret…this type of planning happens every week at ACC. Every service is specifically crafted. Every second of every service is specifically designed to help people experience God and His truth in a fresh, powerful, exciting, memorable, life-changing way.

Pray like it depends on God. Work like it depends on you.

Love U

Kicking off a brand new series at ACC this weekend called Love U. This is really a back-to-the-basics series.

Jesus said that the two greatest commands are these: Love God and Love Others. Everything else is small potatoes. If we get these two right, everything else will fall into place.

Can't wait to get this series started! Come to ACC this weekend and enroll in Love U.

Would a Leaky Roof Pump You Up?

Probably not.

But it really got a buddy of mine all jacked up…for good reason.

I'm working with a new church plant in Northern Kentucky called Horizon Christian Church. They suffered a big time blow over the past weekend thanks to a leaky roof.

I'll let Joel tell you the story himself.

Joel Young – The Perfect Illustration

That is how a serious follower of Christ reacts to a leaky roof! What some people would see as a setback, they see as a set up. I know that God is setting HCC up for some amazing things!

Q&A

At times, it seems like the church is very good at answering questions that nobody is asking. We are absolutely determined that ACC will not be that kind of church.

We're going to feature a teaching series called Q&A, beginning on March 15. This four-week series is as simple as it gets…all I'm going to do is answer questions that you have asked. That's it. You ask. I answer.

Do you have questions about God? The Bible? Marriage? Relationships? Things you see in contemporary culture? Life in general? This series is for you.

You can begin submitting your questions online right now. Click here and then let your questions fly.

A couple more things…

1. All questions will be kept confidential. I will not release the name of anyone who submits a question. Everything will be strictly confidential.

2. There is no way I can answer every single question I receive. I will probably try to answer a few here on my blog that I couldn't get to in the series. But there is just no way I can answer every single one. Don't let that stop you from asking, though. I'll do my best to get to as many as possible.

Let the questioning begin.

Q&A series

A Cool Verse for a Snowy Day

It's snowing again in Cincinnati, which has many people grumbling and complaining. Thought I might interject a little different spin on today's weather. Whenever I see a snowstorm, this verse inevitably comes to mind.

“Come now, let’s settle this,”
says the Lord.
“Though your sins are like scarlet,
I will make them as white as snow.
Though they are red like crimson,
I will make them as white as wool." (Isaiah 1:18, NLT, bold mine)

Favorite Super Bowl Commercial

I thought this year's game was great. I thought the commercials were very disappointing. Especially considering that NBC charged $100,000 per second for these ads. No, that's not a typo.

But they weren't all bad. This one made me laugh out loud.

This was actually created by a couple of guys from the Cincinnati area. Pretty cool.

What was your favorite ad this year? And which ones made you cringe?

For me, any of the Go Daddy ads fit into the "make me cringe" category.

Winter Rolls On

In case you missed it, Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow today. Six more weeks of winter.

Make Your Blocks

Great game last night. Ok, I admit that I was pulling for the Cardinals all the way. I've always liked Kurt Warner. But I do give the Steelers credit. Perfect pass and perfect catch when it counted.

But as I was thinking through last night's game, I keep remembering so many plays where one person could have changed the outcome of the game.

For example, remember the interception and the 100 yard run for a touchdown by James Harrison (the longest play in Super Bowl history)? If any one of the Cardinals would have made the tackle (several had a shot at him), he wouldn't have scored. The first half would have ended. The Cardinals likely would have won the game.

But instead of one Cardinal player making a tackle, every Steeler that was around the ball made his block. Every player did his job. Touchdown. Ball game.

Everyone is focused on Santonio Holmes, Ben Roethlisberger, etc. But had all the lesser-known players not made their blocks, everyone would probably be talking about Kurt Warner, Larry Fitzgerald, etc.

In a very real way, this is a microcosm of life in the church. A few people usually get noticed. Normally that's the people onstage. But if everyone doesn't do his/her job, then everything grinds to a halt. The church's ministry doesn't fire on all cylinders. The Kingdom of God suffers.

Last night's game is a great reminder to keep going. Keep doing your part. Don't back down. Even if no one else sees what you're doing, God does.

Always remember that the team needs you. Keep making your blocks.