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Issue #378
5/13/2009
What it takes for God to use you
by Rick Warren
God uses all kinds of vessels – big ones, little ones, ornate ones, and ordinary ones. But he will not use a dirty vessel. If we want to be useful to God, we have to come clean with him on a regular basis. In this issue, we’ll walk through six steps to a ministry that God will bless. [more]
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Saddleback Resources

Saddleback Resources


Celebrate Recovery Kit


The Purpose Driven Church Conference on DVD

 
 

  
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

The Seduction of Ambition
by Lance Witt

There is a creative tension in each of us. On the one hand, we long to make a significant difference with our lives. On the other hand, ambition hijacked by ego can leave a wake of destruction in its path. In this issue, Lance Witt offers practical ways to help ensure your soul stays healthy. [more]

Whole Church
Mel Lawrenz (Jossey-Bass, 2009)  

Tired of watching your church fragment into a million pieces? In this book Mel Lawrenz shares a remedy – engagement. He tells how churches can focus on four different engagements: with God, with God’s people, with the community, and with the world. Lawrenz doesn’t just tell you about these engagements. He provides practical, doable ideas to move your church toward them. Whether your church is fighting fragmentation or not, this is a must read. Every church should be involved in these four engagements. And Lawrenz’s practical solutions will help you do that.

 
   


"The pastor of a church sets the tone and atmosphere of the congregation. If you are a pastor and want to know the warmth of your church, put the thermometer in your own mouth." - Rick Warren


"People who conceal their sins will not prosper, but if they confess and turn from them, they will receive mercy." - Proverbs 28:13 (NLT)

"If we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin. If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness." - 1 John 1:7-9 (NLT)


Saddleback Worship Conference, June 24-26 - Learn. Participate. Experience. The seventh Saddleback Worship Conference will be one of the best. Rick Warren, Rick Muchow, and Francis Chan will be among the featured speakers. After the conference, stay for the weekend and look behind-the-scenes at Saddleback’s worship ministry.
Out of Ur blog - Managed by the editors of Leadership magazine, this blog touches on all sorts of ministry and cultural issues from a pastor’s perspective. Dave Gibbons, John Ortberg, and Bob Hyatt contribute among others.
United Methodists: Church Is a Verb Not a Noun - The United Methodists are launching a new ad campaign designed to reach the unchurched who want to engage the world.
BMEN on Mission - Sign up for a free, online missions learning newsletter for men. Each weekly newsletter includes a missions article, a personal development article, missions learning meeting plans, urgent missions needs, and missions-related prayer requests. It may be something to point your men to on Father’s Day. Sign-ups and archives are also on the site.
The Heart of Texas - When tragedy hits the heart of a small community in Texas, its townspeople see what can happen when God’s grace and forgiveness triumph. This site gives info on showing this powerful true story at your church.


Skimming – part two - Pete Scazzero

Closing the people gap through real koinonia – part one - Mel Lawrenz

Do you know your church’s unique shape? - Will Mancini

How to let peace rule - Mary Southerland


According to Feedingamerica.org, 18 percent of American children under the age of 18 live in poverty. - (Source: www.feedingamerica.org)

“To a man with an empty stomach, food is God.” - Gandhi

“No man can worship God or love his neighbor on an empty stomach.” - Woodrow Wilson

“The only difference between a rut and a grave is their dimensions.” - Ellen Glasgow

“The call of God does what the call of man cannot. It raises the dead.” - John Piper

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