Not exactly sure what heaven is going to be like, but I believe we experienced a little bit of it this week in Florida. We had such gorgeous weather that our kids were going crazy at pool all day long, and I was working my sunscreen at SPF 85 and still got roasted! The best part of the trip without a doubt was the precious time we had with family and friends. We are blessed to do life with some amazing people. The kind of people with which you can totally be yourself—where you have nothing to hide, nothing to prove and nothing to lose.

We hung out with the Mawaes & the Rizzos during the first part of the week. Kevin grilled some burgers the first night on a gas grill by the pool and I thought he was going to burn the entire complex down!! It can be dangerous when you get a man of his caliber in charge of gasoline and fire!

During the end of the week, we hooked up with the Gremillions and the Pratts. They’re some of the coolest people we know!! With all of our small kids it felt like Kindergarten Cop meets Daddy Daycare for vacation! Blair Gremillion was pushing his daughter, Sheldon, in figure 8’s thru the fountains at Destin commons. We all had a blast and laughed the entire week!

Submerge 2008 was slammin! With 600+ kids in attendance from 4 different churches (Bayside Community Church, Celebration Church, The Ark Family Church, and HPC), this was not your typical summer camp experience. The students were pumped up on major adrenaline, little sleep, and dangerous levels of sugar & the Holy Spirit. When you step into an environment like that there is only one outcome…spontaneous combustion!!!!

Seeing the next generation going all out for their Savior was awesome! As these students worshiped with great expectation and genuine repentance, we saw an incredible move of God! Many were filled with the Holy Spirit and on the final morning of camp, many students made the decision to go public with their commitments and were baptized in the Gulf.

A huge shout out goes to our Refuge Worship Band, who hit a home run during the weekend! The new worship project from HPC, EPIC Worship, was pre-released at camp; we are so excited about the songs of the next generation! Also, to all of our Next Generation Pastors who poured their hearts out delivering challenging messages, giving their all to their students, and serving round the clock to prepare for this amazing experience! The Kingdom was advanced and the Next Generation is growing STRONG!

Submerge 2008 Recap from Healing Place Church on Vimeo.

Father’s Day weekend was quite unique this year. I treaded into some brand new territory as a dad; Alexa participated in the Miss Pre-Teen America Pageant. This was a huge honor for her because she was nominated by her school to become 1 of 97 other contestants from around the Greater Baton Rouge Area whom demonstrate excellence in character and scholastic achievement. I’ve never been a pageant dad, so I had no idea what to expect. Needless to say, we experienced 3 very long days of primping, programming, and pageantry. Though the whole experience was a bit exhausting, I couldn’t have been more proud of Alexa…at the end of the weekend she received a trophy for “Outstanding 9 Year-Old”.

As I reflected on the weekend, I thought through the roles and responsibilities I carry…I love being a pastor, it is cool to be an author, it is fun being a conference speaker, but my favorite title for sure is…Dad! Like most dads, I’m absolutely crazy about my kids. There is no handbook, tutorial video, or seminar that can fully prepare you for fatherhood, but I’ve been blessed to have an amazing example. Now, I pass down the values and tools my father invested in me. What an amazing gift it is to be a father!

Mr. Ed took me on tour of our new sanctuary last week. All I can say is breath-taking!! It is so exciting to see it beginning to take shape. It is much bigger than what it looks like from the outside. It will finish at 127,000 square feet & every inch will be used for the glory of God! Wow! In my mind I saw 100’s of babies being cared for in the nurseries, kids learning about Christ in children’s church, teens pouring in for worship service, college students drinking coffee in cafe, families being connected to house of God & altars packed with young & old getting freed from addictions– being totally transformed by God’s love.

As I stood on top of the roof (nearly 60 feet high) I could see Highland Road from I-10 to Airline Highway! Proverbs says that where there is no vision, people perish. I believe that if there is a strong vision, then people will flourish!

This weekend I had the opportunity to experience a really unique expression of Christ’s love in Salt Lake City, Utah. The State of Utah is comprised of 65% Mormon belief, only 3% Christian (with about 2% being Catholic) and the remaining 65% completely unchurched. Salt Lake City itself is over 95% Mormon. This is such a strong challenge because it’s much more than a religion; is a lifestyle. The Genesis Project, positioned just north of Salt Lake City in Ogden, is a very distinctive group in the middle of this rough environment. Their story is really pretty amazing, they are actually a merger and blending of 2 churches to form one. Pastor Jeff Hummell and Pastor Matt Roberts both serve as lead pastors with totally different styles of preaching but they are working towards one goal. Their church launched Easter of this year in a coffee-shop and their first 10 weeks saw 120 new believers come to Christ! At the time of my visit they are seeing over 400 in attendance every week, through their Friday night outreach service or their more traditional Sunday morning service.

Saturday night I got to hang out at their break-dance contest, I saw more piercings, tattoos and mohawks than I’ve ever seen! Really cool event though, had people traveling up to 8 hours to come be a part! Their church is raw, rugged, real, and totally refreshing for the state of Utah. In a culture that is used to legalism and trying to earn God’s favor, the message of grace, freedom, and experiencing Jesus come as a stimulating and exciting change of mindset. Major props to Pastors Jeff Hummell and Matt Roberts!

One cool story heard this weekend was of a young couple in their church, Seth and Amy Camarillo.  As newlyweds, Amy proposed a date night at their local coffee shop in an effort to attend the service there. When the service started as they were enjoying their coffee, her husband was mad as he realized he had been tricked and proceeded to stare down the pastor. But through the message God got a hold of his heart and he ended up giving his life to Christ during that very service! They now serve as leaders in the church. Awesome!

Before heading home I got to get a little adventurous and try one of only 3 indoor skydiving facilities in the country! If I learned nothing else this weekend, I know that when God created me, he meant for my feet to be planted on the ground! All in all, it was a really awesome weekend with some great new friends of the faith!