Random Thoughts - On a Friday

Well- Sunday I was tired and I said - I'll blog on Monday.
Well - now it's Friday and my mind-dump might just go on for a long time

Here we go!

• Response time during this "Facing the Family Challenge" series has been incredible! Love serving communion and being able to interact wih individuals - "There is NO condemnation for those who are in Christ"


• Did I speak over 40 minutes on Sunday and we still got out on time ?(well - on time for the 2nd service!)


• Community Groups are on the grow - each week we've been adding a few more people -if you've not attended one - this coming week will be another great opportunity.


• Wed was service night for community groups - thank you to the 20 people who came and sorted and packed up all the "stuff" that has been donated for benevolence at Oasis - you made a difference - we love your passion.


• We've lived in AZ since 97 and this is the first time we've had scorpions - I do not like scorpions!


• This past weekend we divided into more classes in KidSplash. We now have infants through 2 yrs/3-5 yr olds/ K-2 and 3rd-5th grade. Pastor Susan is committed to age appropriate teaching and this new breakdown will allow us to more effectively meet this objective. Way to go Susan!


• I continue to be excited that families are "getting it". Our lives are not perfect but we are learning what the "green zone" looks like and with God's help we are striving to have healthy families that are being transformed by the Grace of God!


• Does this $700 billion buyout just fry your brain or what? I guess I am just not smart enough to understand global economics. I'm praying that these politicians are getting good advice because it is going to be a big deal for our futures. God have mercy.....


• I now have over 325 friends on Facebook - are you one?


• Twittering is now a daily thing for me - afraid of what that might mean? Click http://twitter.com/oasislifeScott to find out!


• I am psyched for this weekend as we have Pray For Maricopa at 8:30 on Saturday morning. God be pleased as we come together in unity to pray for our city, our state, our nation, our churches, our families, our schools and our futures.


• Can't wait to talk about establishing a spiritual foundation in the family this week! This may be the most important week of the four in "Facing The Family Challenge"


• I love Oasis! You are awesome and I love doing life together

I think that is it for today! Be Blessed- pastor Scott

Oasis Sunday Night Reflections

It's hard to believe that another week has flown by. Here are a few things I'm reflecting on tonight:

• I'm so blessed to be church planter and pastor along with my wife Caryl. She is incredible and today she kicked off our new series " Facing the Family Challenge". She hit it out of the park and the reponse was awesome.
• I love the days that we offer "response time" with the stations. It is awesome to see 100's of people up in a service and responding.
• I love to administer communion one-to-one or to families in our response time - it is so personal and I love to express that "there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ!"
• Thank you Greg Surratt for the inspiration to set up the response time and response stations!
• This past week had me in a fog and not terribly productive. I'm praying for a completely new perspective and ability to be focused and make lots of progress this week.
• 4-yr olds have a hard time telling you what is wrong when they are sick.
• Praise God - Susan Hull, our children's pastor came successfully through her kidney stone surgery and we look forward to having her back in action next week as we divide KidSplash into 4 age groups next week.
• Welcome Selina Wagner to the world - I was so blessed and excited to meet you. Daniel has become an awesome friend and it is great to have them as neighbors.
• My birthplace - Galveston TX - took a beating this week from IKE and we pray for the recovery efforts there and the ongoing work in Baton Rouge - go HPC !
• We continue to host Legacy Traditional School's middle school in our space during the week! Thank you to everyone who helps to transition our building on Friday & Sunday nights. This is a win-win for all involved.
• My D-Backs can't seem to string together more than one win in a row!- I still have faith.
• God has awesome things in store for us at Oasis! Let's give him the room to work in our lives and I pray you'll be in the house for the very important messages that are on tap for the next few weeks.
• We love being the pastors of Oasis Life Church - you are awesome and we appreciate all that you do to make Oasis such a welcoming and friendly place!

Families in Crisis

Tonight as I sit down to catch up on blogging - I'm reminded of why I'm a church planter. I love to know makes people tick. I love to see lives turned around. I love to see people who were skeptical about God realize that He is real. I know Jesus is the answer and I love when through relationship, teaching, life and the power of the Holy Spirit - people get it.

Still - why are families disintegrating? Why does divorce affect even 1 in 2 families in the church? Can we reverse what has been set in motion now for so many years? Is there hope to turn things around? Can we find healing even if our family has already been torn apart?

This Sunday we begin a new series, "Facing the Family Challenge". This hard hitting series looks at the roots of divorce, the effects of divorce on children, spouses and even those who are not in the immediate family.

What would it cost to stay in a relationship and find help? If this is not possible, how can we find healing and minimize the damage?

If you've not faced divorce, then you've probably had some other challenge in your family. We all have them, we all face them. I hope you'll join us for this series and learn how we can face the family challenge.

Wow! I forgot what it was like to get away!

Just finishing up a 9 day VC with the family! Since we launched Oasis we've not been away for more than a few days!

There is so much to blog! So much to catch up! Tonight I just wanted to post a picture of my immediate family and say "I love you!"