I used a free little app called poladroid to edit the photos.

Bay will be open from 9a to 9p today thru thursday for assembly, so come by, bring your family and help us build some bikes.

If you want to purchase a bike or 6 for our community stop by our site and make a donation. Thanks.

Oh and its pretty funny.

“Everythings amazing right now, and nobody’s happy.”

So true.

Whats amazing about your life? What are you thankful for?.

Last year we really picked it up a notch, Merry Christmas Baldwin County graduated from just toys to bikes. We were able to give away 1100 bikes, and this year we are going even bigger. 1600 bikes. Thats right, 2 full 18-wheeler trucks full. And they are in boxes, so we get to put a ton of bikes together. (Here’s the video from last years assembly night)

Ok yea, thats a lot of bikes, but its so much fun to be a part of giving someone the Christmas they’ve dreamed about. There are so many hurting people in our community and its such a blessing to be a part of their Christmas story. Last week, I got an email from a lady that stumbled on MCBC through my blog, and this is what she wrote:

I live in Baldwin County and I recently became unemployed and now I am not able to afford to get my 3 beautiful children Christmas gifts. I have never been in this position before and my heart is broken. My husband has a job but it just barely pays the bills and keeps food on the table. I am helping my 20 year old daughter take care of her 2 yr old daughter. My son-in-law died in 2007 and we are all working together to make it through. My daughter also needs your help. If its not too late to receive your help please email me back with what I need to do to give
our children a Christmas. Thank you.

This is just one story of the hundreds of people that will line up on December 13th as early as 2a.m. to receive gifts that they didn’t think they would have otherwise. This is my favorite thing we as a church do every year. Unplug the stage lights, kill the sound system, shut down the computers… this is it. This is what we are here for.

Check out this years promo…

If you’re in need this year and want a little more info about MCBC, or if your interested in supporting this outreach then visit our site here.

If you’ve been involved in MCBC in the past, let me know, tell me what it means to you?

When I woke up this morning, I realized that what I was needing is a new fresh perspective. After growing up in a ministers home, and then becoming a pastor the journey of following Christ gets harder. Not easier, as you might expect, but crazy difficult. It’s so easy to fall into a rut, and blame my short-comings & frustrations on the Church, or a pastor, or anything else for that matter. But really its me.

I know this sounds bad, but a lot of mornings I don’t feel like loving God, or maybe I just forget to. Who knows, maybe I’m distracted/frustrated/tired/numb/complacent/burnt-out, but whatever the reason, I need a fresh taste of who God is how much he loves me.

When I got to the office, Francis Chan’s Crazy Love was staring back at me. Begging me to dig into it, no daring me to dig into it. At this writing I’ve only read 1 chapter, but I already know this book is just what I need - not a small kick in the pants, but a reboot of my mindset, a revitalizing of my perspective of just how big God is. 

None of us are exempt. We all at some point need to be reminded of the His crazy love for us, and have our crazy love for him reignited.

If you are dealing with some of the same things, please be honest and let me know. I’d love to know that I’m not alone here.

If you go to youtube and read the notes the girl apologizes for saying that David Cook doesn’t shave… thats funny.

h/t: los

Last week, a young lady from our community was abducted, possibly raped, and murdered. Bri was 21, and she had been missing for 2 days before the Search and Rescue Teams found her body, and her immediate family were all part of that team. (read more here)

I know this is a heavy post, but my heart is heavy right now. My heart is broken for the Parish family. Up until about 3 years ago I was the youth pastor at Bay, and Bri was one of my kids. The Parish’s were founding members of our church until they moved out of state a few years back. This is truly a loving and amazing family. 

Tonight I walked through the Wake, hugging necks and shaking hands, and I was amazed at the people lives that had been affected by Bri and her passion for life. I’ve never seen so many cars lined up outside a funeral home to pay their respects. This young lady was truly loved. 

It’s been a year or so since I’ve seen Bri, but the thing I remember most about her is that giddy, silly and even goofy personality that would come out and make everyone laugh. She always had a smile on her face, which was so contagious. 

I could give a lot more detail, but I honestly don’t think its necessary. I’d just like to ask for your prayers for this family during this time. I can’t imagine what they are going through right now, the questions they have for God, and the turmoil they feel that the man responsible hasn’t been caught yet. Please take a moment and lift them up and ask God to fill their hearts and minds with peace.

Also, tomorrow is the memorial service and I believe that there will be a lot of young people there, and they will also be looking for answers. Please pray that this celebration of Bri’s life has a lasting effect on their hearts.

h/t: brent