Things are progressing well as we approach the end of the first trimester. Baby Shelton is currently about the size of a large jumbo shrimp (not exactly a good description for a baby), and is “fearfully and wonderfully” being weaved together by God’s Hand. By this stage (according to our baby books) the baby has developed fingerprints, which is an amazing reminder how God uniquely shapes each one of us. Thanks for sharing in our joy!
Monday, March 26, 2007
the latest on 'baby Shelton'
Things are progressing well as we approach the end of the first trimester. Baby Shelton is currently about the size of a large jumbo shrimp (not exactly a good description for a baby), and is “fearfully and wonderfully” being weaved together by God’s Hand. By this stage (according to our baby books) the baby has developed fingerprints, which is an amazing reminder how God uniquely shapes each one of us. Thanks for sharing in our joy!
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
the latest on 'baby Shelton'
Last week’s prenatal visit went great. We had the opportunity to not only ‘hear’ the baby’s heartbeat, but to ‘see’ the baby’s heart beat. What an amazing experience watching God knit this child together! Thank you for your prayers as we approach week 12 and the beginning of the 2nd trimester.Please pray for Molly’s strength over the coming days, as well as our preparation as parents over the coming months.
the central issue
"Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life." Proverbs 4:23
Over the last few weeks, we’ve been engaged in a discussion with our Tuesday night gathering centered around the life (true, abundant, ‘better life than you’ve ever dreamed of’ life) that Jesus comes to offer us, and how that life is opposed. Why? Because there is a thief. In the same breath that Jesus tells us that He has come to offer us life (John 10:10), He also tells us that it is, and will continue to be fiercely opposed by the enemy, the thief, Satan himself.
Take a careful look around you, and you’ll see a world at war. Good things like marriages, families, friendships and whole church communities, excitement about big news and big dreams – all under attack in some way, whether through discouragement, disagreements, divisions, disappointment, etc. To put it clearer, anywhere you find something good (of God) you’ll find something opposing it in some way, whether big or small. Think about your life and the lives of those around you. Where do you see this happening?
No other topic in Scripture (Old & New Testament) is discussed more than ‘the heart.’ This seems to point to something significant that God is trying to say to us all; that our hearts are central to life and that our hearts matter to Him. It’s almost as if the words of Proverbs 4:23 sums it all up: “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.” And Jesus comes to restore our hearts from the brokenness we’re born into so that we may HAVE life. Therefore, because of the importance of your heart, you can bet your heart (the center of who you are, including your passions, desires and ambition for God) WILL be opposed.
Here’s the point: to lay hold of this life that Jesus speaks of means that you must fight for it with all your heart. Our community has not been exempt from the opposition of the thief, bringing various struggles, doubts and discouragement along the way, including frequent attacks on marriages and hearts. But as I have to remind myself of daily, this is a fight that is SO worth it, because once you’ve tasted of this life of Jesus, you want others to taste as well, and that’s why this new church community exists.
I challenge and encourage you to fight for this life that Jesus makes available with all your heart, not only for yourself, but for the sake of those depending on you. And as we continue our journey, pray that we’ll have the strength daily to focus on and claim the good of God, to fight for our hearts well as a community and to see the hearts of more and more come alive to the Good News of the Risen One, Jesus.
Over the last few weeks, we’ve been engaged in a discussion with our Tuesday night gathering centered around the life (true, abundant, ‘better life than you’ve ever dreamed of’ life) that Jesus comes to offer us, and how that life is opposed. Why? Because there is a thief. In the same breath that Jesus tells us that He has come to offer us life (John 10:10), He also tells us that it is, and will continue to be fiercely opposed by the enemy, the thief, Satan himself.
Take a careful look around you, and you’ll see a world at war. Good things like marriages, families, friendships and whole church communities, excitement about big news and big dreams – all under attack in some way, whether through discouragement, disagreements, divisions, disappointment, etc. To put it clearer, anywhere you find something good (of God) you’ll find something opposing it in some way, whether big or small. Think about your life and the lives of those around you. Where do you see this happening?
No other topic in Scripture (Old & New Testament) is discussed more than ‘the heart.’ This seems to point to something significant that God is trying to say to us all; that our hearts are central to life and that our hearts matter to Him. It’s almost as if the words of Proverbs 4:23 sums it all up: “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.” And Jesus comes to restore our hearts from the brokenness we’re born into so that we may HAVE life. Therefore, because of the importance of your heart, you can bet your heart (the center of who you are, including your passions, desires and ambition for God) WILL be opposed.
Here’s the point: to lay hold of this life that Jesus speaks of means that you must fight for it with all your heart. Our community has not been exempt from the opposition of the thief, bringing various struggles, doubts and discouragement along the way, including frequent attacks on marriages and hearts. But as I have to remind myself of daily, this is a fight that is SO worth it, because once you’ve tasted of this life of Jesus, you want others to taste as well, and that’s why this new church community exists.
I challenge and encourage you to fight for this life that Jesus makes available with all your heart, not only for yourself, but for the sake of those depending on you. And as we continue our journey, pray that we’ll have the strength daily to focus on and claim the good of God, to fight for our hearts well as a community and to see the hearts of more and more come alive to the Good News of the Risen One, Jesus.
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
the latest on 'baby Shelton'
the lastestAs of today, our pregnancy is 11 weeks along, with a due date sometime around October 2nd. We will be attending our first Prenatal Exam on Wednesday (March 14th) to hear the baby’s heartbeat. Please pray for this visit tomorrow.
Big News from the Shelton's...
We’re proud to inform you of a new addition to the Awaken family, arriving later this year. In other words, we (the Shelton’s) are going to have a baby! We’re both so excited to share this news with each of you and have already experienced a tremendous amount of joy telling our family and our church community in recent days. In short, we ask for your prayers over our pregnancy through the coming months, as we look forward to updating you on our progress along the way (more details below)!a season of ‘giving birth’
For those of you who have known us for a while, you would have thought it would take a trip to Disney World for this to actually happen (one of Molly’s previous stipulations before starting a family). And as exciting as this has been for both of us so far, it already seems to be such a surreal experience. On February 14th, I awoke to the words, “I think you’re going to be a daddy.” I’m not sure I had more than 10 words all day – which is totally opposite to how I thought I’d react. To consider the responsibility that comes with raising a child – not to mention to responsibility of ultimately pointing this child back to his or her Creator – I’ve honestly found myself as a ‘dad-to-be’ feeling a bit overwhelmed at times. Yet, what a blessing that God would entrust and appoint parents (whether biological, adoptive, etc.) with such a great responsibility of raising HIS children.
The parallel of giving birth to both a child and a church is something I’ve obviously thought a lot about over the last few weeks. It’s something so significant, that it simply cannot be overlooked. I’ve heard from so many people, including many of you, about how exciting the coming days will be and what a tremendous learning experience this will be for us to grow personally. Yet, I’m also reminded how both are responsibilities, blessings on loan from God. And it is our deep and passionate desire to be the best stewards we can be of both, first to our child, and then to our church.
I write you today with loads of humility, as a father-to-be who has so much to learn. And I believe, as I’ve heard many times before, that the 9-months of development aren’t so much for the baby as they are for the preparation of the parents. So it is with that same humility that we earnestly need and ask for your prayers for the growth and development of our church community, our baby-on-the-way, and for us as new parents over the coming days.
Tuesday, March 06, 2007
home
“I am convinced that all of us are searching for a place called home, a place where we can close our eyes and sleep, a place where there is warmth and we are somehow unafraid, a place where we gather around the fire and the room is filled with laughter and love…Home is ultimately not about a place to live but about the people with whom you are most fully alive. Home is about love, relationship, community and belonging, and we are all searching for home.” (Soul Cravings, McManus; entry 8)
“They ate till they had more than enough, for He had given them what they craved.” -Psalm 78:29
I’ve been so encouraged recently to watch relationships with people in our church community continue to grow and deepen. Last Tuesday evening at our monthly dinner party, the atmosphere seemed to feel a lot like home – where people were laughing, eating and sharing stories together; a place where each person is accepted just as they are and where their words matter. I get excited when I see things like this because I truly believe that finding and experiencing such relationships and community in life is like coming home to a place our hearts are always in desperate search of.
When we set out on this journey several months ago, I can’t tell you how many times I was warned about the difficulties we would face when it came to carrying out our vision…one that emphasizes relationships over programs; one that is driven not by doing church, but by being church. And as we continue to build and deepen our relationships with one another, I see our love growing as we continue to move toward our mission to extend the life and love of Christ to our surrounding community.
So what’s the problem with carrying-out such a vision?
Relationships can be messy sometimes, can’t they? In fact, when it comes to offering a relationship to someone (one that includes your heart and your love), we can easily find ourselves in a dangerous place. Why? As the famous song so appropriately puts it:
Love hurts, love scars, Love wounds, and mars any heartNot tough or strong enough to take a lot of pain, take a lot of painLove is like a cloud, holds a lot of rain. Love hurts......ooh, ooh love hurts
Once you open yourself to a new relationship, you not only add the opportunity for things like authenticity, honesty, depth, acceptance and love; you also add the opportunity for hurt and betrayal. That’s the danger we face in relationships, in becoming a relational community…and maybe that’s why we sometimes find ourselves running from such things. But to run from something your heart craves (because God created us with a relational-need, to Him and to others) is maddening. It’s simply a risk we MUST take to survive and find satisfaction and fulfillment in life.
Discussing this issue with our Core Team Sunday stirred my heart to keep standing for something I passionately believe in…that relationships are what matter most to God, and though they can be dangerous and difficult to manage at times, there’s nothing our hearts need more than a place where we find ourselves unafraid, where we belong, where we can rest and feel the warmth of the love of God through the love of others.
May Awaken be such a place, where we find home in the unchanging love of God, in the fellowship of walking with Jesus and with friends, and in giving ourselves away freely to our neighbors and God’s mission to bring every heart home to Him.
“They ate till they had more than enough, for He had given them what they craved.” -Psalm 78:29
I’ve been so encouraged recently to watch relationships with people in our church community continue to grow and deepen. Last Tuesday evening at our monthly dinner party, the atmosphere seemed to feel a lot like home – where people were laughing, eating and sharing stories together; a place where each person is accepted just as they are and where their words matter. I get excited when I see things like this because I truly believe that finding and experiencing such relationships and community in life is like coming home to a place our hearts are always in desperate search of.
When we set out on this journey several months ago, I can’t tell you how many times I was warned about the difficulties we would face when it came to carrying out our vision…one that emphasizes relationships over programs; one that is driven not by doing church, but by being church. And as we continue to build and deepen our relationships with one another, I see our love growing as we continue to move toward our mission to extend the life and love of Christ to our surrounding community.
So what’s the problem with carrying-out such a vision?
Relationships can be messy sometimes, can’t they? In fact, when it comes to offering a relationship to someone (one that includes your heart and your love), we can easily find ourselves in a dangerous place. Why? As the famous song so appropriately puts it:
Love hurts, love scars, Love wounds, and mars any heartNot tough or strong enough to take a lot of pain, take a lot of painLove is like a cloud, holds a lot of rain. Love hurts......ooh, ooh love hurts
Once you open yourself to a new relationship, you not only add the opportunity for things like authenticity, honesty, depth, acceptance and love; you also add the opportunity for hurt and betrayal. That’s the danger we face in relationships, in becoming a relational community…and maybe that’s why we sometimes find ourselves running from such things. But to run from something your heart craves (because God created us with a relational-need, to Him and to others) is maddening. It’s simply a risk we MUST take to survive and find satisfaction and fulfillment in life.
Discussing this issue with our Core Team Sunday stirred my heart to keep standing for something I passionately believe in…that relationships are what matter most to God, and though they can be dangerous and difficult to manage at times, there’s nothing our hearts need more than a place where we find ourselves unafraid, where we belong, where we can rest and feel the warmth of the love of God through the love of others.
May Awaken be such a place, where we find home in the unchanging love of God, in the fellowship of walking with Jesus and with friends, and in giving ourselves away freely to our neighbors and God’s mission to bring every heart home to Him.
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