New Life Christian Church at Westmoreland

Soggy Holy Ground

2009-11-13T06:39:00.000-08:00

I've had a little over a year in this job now. Kinda getting used to God waking me up in the middle of the night. Usually I have a pretty good idea what I'm supposed to be about when He interrupts what I think is supposed to be sleep time. Not always, though.

It happened again about 5:00 a.m. Wednesday morning. It was pretty clear I was supposed to be up and at 'em working to finalize the sermon for Sunday. Once that was finished, I knew I was supposed to crank in hard on the leader training presentation for Saturday. So, I'm feeling pretty good about being obedient and all. I'm sitting in what used to be our dining room--now a makeshift study--writing away. Pretty sure I'm doing what God wants me doing.

Wrong.

About 6:45 a.m., I hear a sound. It's like the sound of many waters--there's scriptural reference for you in there. But it sounded like these were many waters INSIDE. It had been raining outside for two straight days, so water sounds were common. But this sounded different. Now, my wife will tell you that there are two things I do not think should be running loose in a house. One of them is insects. The other is, well, you know---H2O.

I listen for a few seconds, and the sound does not go away. I start a search. Could it be that God has gotten Jackie up at 6:45 and she's showering? Jackie's a slow-waker-upper, so it's unlikely in the stupor she's in when she first gets up that she would have gone from sleep to shower this quickly. But I check. Nothing there.

I check the garage, where we had a water leak last year. Nothing there. I check out the back windows and walk around first floor. Nothing.

I go to the basement. . .and step into a couple of inches of water. The analyst in me figures "This may be where the sound is coming from." I turn the corner and there it is. The main water line is busted. Good news is that I've figured out where the water pressure we don't seem to have in our kitchen sink is concentrated. Yeah, water's shooting out like a fire hydrant--not the ones in DC that don't work, but a functioning one.

Things get wacky for a while as I'm trying to remember where the main water valve is and shut it off, try to find brooms and rags and towels, and, well, you can imagine.

Hours later, with the clean up basically in hand, Jackie and I sat, exhausted, and reflected. What if God hadn't awakened me? What if that water line had busted at 2:00 a.m. and run all night? What if it had happened when we were away for a vacation or something? Yeah, we were inconvenienced a little, but it could have been so much worse. And before our time was over, we were rejoicing about the water in the basement and how wonderful God's timing was in it all and how the best thing that could have happened was for that water line to bust open. It was weird. It was wonderful.

I went back to the basement. Still some puddles here and there, but I saw it differently this time. This was where God did something. This was where He intervened. This is where He revealed a weakness, caused a disturbance, forced a response, but He did it with grace, minimizing the damage in His love, like a surgeon. Then it hit me. This is how He deals with me all the time.

And during that time with Him there, I saw what was true all along--that the wet concrete floor wasn't just a basement. It was holy ground.

Maybe God's messing around in your life today, too. Do you see it as an inconvenience, or a chance to touch and be touched by the maker of everything?

God's good. Happy slogging.

Dwaine Darrah
McLean Campus Pastor

Life Interrupted

2009-10-21T07:55:00.000-07:00

Weird night at lifegroup. Prayers going up for travel mercies for one of our number attending funeral in Atlanta and for another traveling to California to be with mom with stage 4 colon cancer and for one of our guys in pain who is awaiting knee replacement surgery and for a new couple in need of jobs.

And then. . .well, then something happened I didn't expect. One person shouted out a praise for having gotten cancer. She's just coming off chemo. But she talked of how cancer for her was a blessing, that it forced her to focus, get her priorities in line with God's, and that she's seeing God at work in new, more vivid ways. Ok, after that, it was hard to ask for prayer for my hangnail.

But this dealing with seeing God at work in the interruptions of life popped up in our scripture for the night--Acts 16. Paul and Barnabas determine to visit all the churches they started on their first journey. They can't even get packed before they split up over who would come with them. Rats. Interrupted.

We're sure Barnabas is doing great work, too, but the Holy Spirit zeroes in here on Paul. As he's about the work, we're told that he is forbidden by the Holy Spirit from going to Asia (verse 6). Rats. Interrupted.

Then Paul intends to go to Bithynia, but, again, the Holy Spirit did not permit it. Rats. Interrupted.

We don't know why or how the Holy Spirit communicated this. Did Paul fall ill? Could they not get correct change for the subway? Easy at this point for Paul to go "God, what's the deal? You are standing in the way of my well-conceived travel plans." Sounds like he didn't do that, since he then gets a vision to go to Macedonia and obeys.

Paul eventually ends up in Philippi, where there is this hilarious story. Paul and his troupe on the Sabbath decide to go down to the river for a little peace and quiet, "supposing there would be a place of prayer" there. They supposed wrong. Instead, there were a bunch of women yacking it up. Rats. Interrupted.

Instead of rolling their eyes, they sit down and start talking to the women. One, Lydia, overhears, gets saved, and then her whole household gets saved. And the gospel is off and running in Europe!! Who'd have thunk it?

So, here's one for ya. Are you actually about the business of God's work and purposes? Do you have a plan to be a minister of the gospel and are you pursuing it? As you pursue it, are you open to the Holy Spirit altering those plans without becoming bitter and thereby missing God's purposes? Yeah, some exciting things can happen. You get a promotion, you get engaged, you get some blessing. But God often directs through inconveniences. The loss of a job, a broken down car, a serious illness, a betrayal, or some other huge disappointment. Do you stop in those times to listen, to see what God might be up to?

He's probably leading you to your Lydia.

But we'll miss that if we're bummed that He interrupted our plans. But isn't that where we spend too much of our time? I mean, seriously, when's the last time you shared your faith outside the church walls? Is it really that there's just a lack of lost people out there, or are you just not listening?

Ok, I'm done. You can go back to what you were doing now. Sorry for the interruption.

Dwaine Darrah
McLean Campus Pastor

Inching Along

2009-09-30T16:36:00.000-07:00

Lifegroup Tuesday. Acts 13. Came across an intriguing fella named Elymas. The description of him was clear, but it appeared to make no sense.

He was a false prophet.

He was a sorcerer.

He was a Jew.

Like the aptitute test that asks "Which of these things is not like the others?" these three descriptors do not go together naturally. Why? Well, the Old Testament clearly states that if you were a Jew, you were not to be a false prophet. The result? Big rocks dropped on ya. How about if you thought sorcery would be a good career choice? Result? Big rocks dropped on ya.

And that got us to thinking about how this could happen. Does a good little Jewish boy just wake up one day and think to himself "Yeah, today it's gonna be sorcery and false prophesying. That's the ticket." And then we asked, "Does the high school teacher arrested for having child porn on his computer just wake up one day and go there and, like, get nabbed right out of the chute?" Probably not. In fact, 15 years ago, if you had told that high school teacher, fresh out of college, that he'd lose his job, his family, his reputation, and his friends doing child porn, he'd have told you you were nuts.

No, the path was probably long and twisting. Long because it took a whole lot of steps to get there. Twisting because each step had to occur with the final destination concealed. Had he seen it coming, he might have changed course. Makes sense. Proverbs tells us that it's the little foxes that ruin the vineyard, not one big fox. Lots of little things add up. Add up for good or for ill. Romans tells us that ending up in a good place is the result of little steps, too--little steps of faith that build on each other.

So, what to do? We sought to evaluate our lives right now. Where are we, in little things, in seemingly inconsequential things, in "what's the big deal?" things, taking little steps leading to righteousness? And where are we, in little things, in seemingly inconsequential things, in "what's the big deal?" things, taking little steps that are taking us to utter destruction currently hidden by the twists in the road?

For some, it was the need to bow a head and pray publicly for that meal in the restaurant. For others, it was talking to that family member who asks the question that forces us to profess what we really believe about Jesus. For me, it was not just saying I'd pray for ya, but actually stopping and doing it. Or, seeing the need of a brother in pain and stopping from my so-called busy schedule to hang out with him at the doc's. A lot of the time, I'm impatient for the big rush, the major accomplishment. But today. . .today some mighty good stuff flowed from what would appear to be just dinky little things.

Liked it enough, I'm thinking about trying a little step of faith again tomorrow. Who knows where this might lead?

Could be bailing someone out of the adult detention center who's taken too few of them, I suppose.

Dwaine Darrah
McLean Campus Pastor

Boldness Revisited

2009-09-23T08:56:00.000-07:00

I was out in Indiana a couple of weeks ago. Didn't want to be there. Oh, I like Indiana just fine. All the family is there. But I was in town to do the funeral for Bill, my brother-in-law. Tough stuff. But I find it's easy when I'm doing my "minister" thing to spot the moments for boldness, for speaking out. Like, we couldn't stay with family members because other family was packed in there, so we stayed with John and Jeannie, long-time friends of Bill's. I'm sitting at midnight at the computer working on the funeral message when John walks in and tries to look over my shoulder at what I'm writing. After just standing there for a while, he just says, "Well, I know I'm going to hell." You don't have to be brilliant to know "Hey, here's a opportunity for boldness."

At lifegroup yesterday, we were kicking around Psalm 139 and Ephesians 1 and talking about boldness. Here's another reason to be in lifegroup--my understanding got broadened as we kicked this around. It struck us that boldness might not look the same for everyone. Depending upon how God has fearfully and wonderfully made us, it might look like a funeral message, but it also might look like cooking a meal for a neighbor. It might look like letting someone in front of you in traffic, especially if you've got a fish on your rear fender. It might look like asking if you could pray for someone at work whose family member has taken ill. It might look like offering to babysit a neighbor's kids so they can go out and talk. It might look like paying for another couple's meal that you don't know sitting across the room at a restaurant, or maybe a huge tip to bless the wait staff. Maybe it looks like raking a neighbor's leaves or cutting their grass. Maybe it's saddling up to the outcast at work that no one else likes and being a friend.

Maybe it's not always talking, but maybe it's doing life in a way that will make people ask you what the deal is with you, make them ask why you're different, why you're being nice to them. And when they do, you can talk then.

Ephesians tells us that we've been saved, we've been wiped clean, we've been given the Holy Spirit for a reason, for a purpose, to accomplish an end. And that end is, amazingly, not so we can just do our thing and "be happy.' It's all for the purpose that we would be "to the praise of His glory."

Changes things a bit when you walk out the door in the morning if you consider that your purpose today, no matter what the day holds, is to testify to the glory, the beauty, the majesty, the might, the awesomeness of the One who made you. That testimony can be as varied as the stars, as God has put you together uniquely.

Want to go to sleep tonight fulfilled? Live, exist, operate to bring praise to His glory.

Oh, and have a nice day.

Dwaine Darrah, McLean Campus Pastor

Who You Talking To?

2009-09-02T13:41:00.000-07:00

It's Tuesday. It's lifegroup. It's God using His word to give us a little shot across the chops.

Acts 11. Yeah, we were there last week, but at least we're in the second half of the chapter. Now, Peter has just reported to the folk in Jerusalem about this Gentile fella, Cornelius, who has gone and done the unthinkable--accepted Jesus Christ and received the Holy Spirit without becoming a Jew first. How dare he. And even though the Jewish Christians seemed to offer no resistance to Peter's account, it does not seem that they really got what was going on. Why do I think so?

Well, in the very next verse, verse 19 actually, it says that, as the Jewish believers were scattered from Jerusalem because of the persecution there, they ended up in various places--Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch--and purposed to talk to no one except other Jews about Christ. No way they were going to reach out to those dirty Gentiles.

This cycle was amazingly broken by Jewish believers from Cyprus and Cyrene. Those ne'er- do-wells show up in Antioch and started sharing the gospel with the Greeks (a highly classified euphemism for "non-Jews"). Not only that, but a bunch of these "Greeks" accepted Christ, causing such a ruckus that the folk in Jerusalem hear about it and send Barnabas to check it out.

Now, Barnabas is very impressed by what he sees, but he appears very concerned, too, that these new believers might be tempted back to their old ways. Good reason to be worried. Worship of Venus and Apollo in that area included some serious sexual depravity. We found it interesting that, rather than go and report back to Jerusalem what he had seen, Barnabas goes looking for Paul. That verb "look for" doesn't do justice to the sentiment here. It really means that he went searching frantically, like you would if your child got separated from you in the mall. Its the same verb used to describe Mary and Joseph's search for Jesus when he was left behind in Jerusalem. You get the drift. Barnabas was absolutely determined to get Paul, bring him to Antioch, and have him teach these new believers.

There's a lot to glean from this account, but one thing we were challenged with is whether we come to church on Sunday determined to speak only to "jews", i.e., the people we already know, our friends, people we're comfortable with. I read a list of some new people who've been coming to the McLean campus over the last couple of months to see whether everyone in the group knew them. We didn't. So, we challenged ourselves to be about the business on Sunday mornings of reaching outside our circle of friends and to meet anyone whose name and story we don't know.

McLean is a pretty friendly campus, but keeping it that way requires reminding ourselves from time to time what we're all about. How sad would it be if someone walked in who didn't know Christ and is able to walk out not knowing anyone else in the room, either.

So, the goal is to remember this not just next Tuesday, but on Sunday morning at 11:00. Should be fun to see what happens.

By the way, these guys make lifegroup a highlight of the week!! If you're not in one, how much you are missing!!

Dwaine Darrah
McLean Campus Pastor

Give It a Rest

2009-08-26T06:29:00.000-07:00

Give It a Rest

This blew me away at lifegroup last night. Hacking through the 1st half of Acts 11. Peter returns to Jerusalem after the Gentile, Cornelius, has the Holy Spirit fall on him and gets baptized. He is immediately set upon by Jewish Christians for daring to mingle with a Gentile. So, Peter recalls the whole story, and it says at the end of his telling of it, his critics "quieted down."

What we found interesting is that this same Greek word is used in Luke 14. Jesus is out walking around on the Sabbath, following by a bunch of lawyers and religious leaders looking for Him to make a mistake. Jesus sees a man suffering from dropsy in front of him. He turns to the religious types and asks them whether it is lawful to heal on the Sabbath. The scriptures say that they kept silent. "Kept silent" is the same word as "quieted down" in Acts.

In Luke 23, after Jesus' crucifixion, the women saw Jesus' tomb and how His body was laid. And they returned and prepared spices and perfumes. And on the Sabbath, it says, they rested according to the commandment. The word "rested" is the same word translated "kept silent" and "quieted down."

Putting these all together, what do you get? Maybe resting in the Lord has a lot more to do with shutting up for a change. Before the God of all the Universe, the Creator of all things, the One who sees the end from the very beginning, the Merciful and Just God who knows us better than we do, perhaps we'd be wise to be as savvy as the Pharisees and just give it a rest. Realize we have nothing to say that really matters. There's no defense we can make. No excuse that works. No argument that sounds wise. No plans or strategies that impress.

Maybe we should just give it a rest. Maybe if we shut up, He'll have a chance to talk to us. Maybe He'll tell us what to pray for. Maybe He'll tell us how to pray for it. Maybe He'll rip our hearts open, as He did mine last night, and show us areas of us He doesn't yet posses but wants to.

So, for 13 minutes last night, we just allowed Him the opportunity to have His way, to have the floor, our hearts a quiet pool to stir with his finger. To be truthful, we didn't find it easy. Maybe the joy of transforming lives will give us perserverance. So, we're writing down what we heard. Our boldness move next week is to share that.

Dangerous stuff. Feel feel to try it.

Dwaine Darrah
McLean Campus Pastor

On That Day: A DocuDrama

2009-07-09T11:50:00.000-07:00

Stephen and I have a lot in common. We grew up in the same town. Went to the same church growing up. Came to believe in the same Jesus. Saw the same miracles.

Died on the same day.

That day began like most others in Jerusalem. Job was going fine, had my health. I also was a new Christian. In fact, my whole family had come to know this Jesus guy and call him Lord. And He was changing us from the inside out in amazing ways. And the teaching. . ..AWESOME. Best sermons on the planet. The church was happening, man. We were seeing incredible things. Like, some days, thousands of my friends and neighbors became followers of Jesus. It was pretty sweet.

Well, mostly sweet. Up to that day. Should have seen it coming. Just wasn't looking. Man, they got Stephen the same way they got Jesus. Had some dudes invent lies about what he was saying, stirred up a mob, and just murdered him. Not cool at all. So, I think it's right that Stephen gets written up in the bible. What he laid on the religious leaders in his defense was for the ages.

Me? I don't make it through the day, either. I'm just a footnote, like everyone else who bought the farm on that day when all hell broke loose against the church.

I had a lot of questions, for sure. You would have, too. I mean, to stop breathing on that day was not in my five-year plan. I double-checked. Not there. There were still more people with whom I wanted to share the gospel, more things to learn, more changes to make, more tithes to give, more impact to have. Dying on that day? Just didn't seem to make a lot of sense. Why did this happen? Why would God allow it? Does He know what He's doing? Is He really in control? If not, can I trust Him?

Things happened so fast after Stephen's death that I didn't have a chance to get good answers to these questions. The mob just turned immediately on anyone who was a Christian. It looked like leaving town would be the only option, but we didn't have time to pack before they dragged us off.

So, here I am. Looking down on the earth I used to walk, trying to figure it out. I've got this incredible eternity to look forward to. Not particularly bitter. Just wanting to make sense of why I was at all. What purpose was there in my life down there, and what good did I accomplish? I was only a Christian for a couple of months. Seems like such a waste.

But sitting here, I'm reminded that Jesus told us we would be His witnesses not only in Jerusalem, but in Judea, in Samaria, and in the remotest parts of the earth. While I thought I'd leave Jerusalem someday and spread the gospel, seems God's idea was that I was to serve as the catalyst for others to make that journey. Wasn't easy to accommodate, but it seems I was supposed to die there in Jerusalem. It wasn't some fluke, an accident. My death forced those whose job was to move out and spread the gospel to get on with it.

Ok, I'm still pretty sure I would have written a different role for myself in this saga, but I'm getting it that God knows exactly what He's doing. I also got it just how much of my relationship with Jesus revolved around my expectations of what He'd do for me, how He'd make me happy, and how He'd give me this or that thing or experience, how He'd make me notable or great or something. You know, I thought my mindset was eternally focused, but in reality I had way too much stock in life down there. Maybe I'd have seen things more clearly if my life revolved less around my happiness and more around seeing how every situation was an opportunity to give Him glory.

So, for those of you still down there, maybe you're wondering about hard times, illnesses, disappointments, whatever. Maybe there's something bigger afoot. Are you looking for it? Maybe it's not going badly. Maybe it's just going godly. And, on that day--you know, when you get here--it'll be fun to compare notes.

Want to read some more about this stuff, cull through Acts 1:1-8; Acts 6:1-8:4.

And That's the Truth

2009-07-01T12:24:00.000-07:00

What is.

That was my answer. And it was my answer every time.

I don't know where the kids' fascination with the concept originated. A story read to them? Sunday School? Discussions about lying? Who knows. I just know that at some point they asked the question, "Daddy, what is truth?" My response was "Truth is what is." They thought this was so amusing that it became a ritual. Any time they had friends over, they'd drag 'em to me and say "Daddy, tell Billy what truth is." And they wouldn't stop until I'd say "The truth is what is." Then they'd run off howling. Yeah, I've got weird kids.

At first glance, you'd think that everyone was as interested in truth as my kids were. I mean, juries want you to testify and tell the truth. It's important enough that you have to swear to do so. More than 15 countries have instituted truth commissions of one kind or another to get to the bottom of some issue haunting their past. One of Malcolm X's exhibits is title "A Search for Truth."

I've found, however, that sometimes, we're not that interested in the straight up truth, because it can be hard to swallow. My sister-in-law is wanting truth to go far away right now. It's not because she's a bad person. She just wants to suppress the truth because she's in pain. My brother-in-law's been battling cancer, and the doctors are now saying that even though it's in remission right now, it's still there and will take him within 5 years. She doesn't want "what is." She wants something else.

Sometimes, even when you want to deal with the truth, it seems beyond your grasp. Ask someone addicted to drugs or alcohol or sex or whatever. They know it's killing them, destroying them. But suppressing the truth persuades you to do it again, expecting somehow that it'll turn out alright this time.

And then there's me. The Bible tells me straight up in the early part of the book of Romans that when I decide to do my own thing, believe something that God doesn't believe, that I am suppressing truth. Oh, sure, I'm not gonna call it that, but I want what I want even though God tells me it's bad for me. But I suppress that, choosing to believe a lie--that somehow my good will result from it--to justify my own selfishness. The BIble even goes so far as to say that I can be so blinded by my selfishness that I can't even think straight. I know this is true. I've done it more times than I care to remember. I can con myself so well that I forget I'm conning myself and believe this thing I know is bad for me is actually good for me.

The Bible makes a pretty bold claim. Not only does Jesus have the skinny on some truth. It goes beyond that to say that Jesus is actually truth. Jesus Himself says that. And it that's true, then if I really want to know the truth about what will bring me happiness, or the truth on how to find meaning for my life, or the truth about what I'm doing that's working for my good or ill, or the truth about how to understand my own heart and my own desires, or the truth about how to make sense of the stuff that just seems to happen all around me, then I'd better get to know Jesus. Not know about Him. Not memorize facts about what He did, where He went, what He said. Really know Him.

Realizing this has made me zero in more on walking and talking to Him like the real person He is, rather that studying about Him like He's some great art work or something. And it's made all the difference.

Reflecting back, truth really is "what is." But what really is, is Jesus.

No lie.

Dwaine Darrah, McLean Campus Pastor

Great Expectations

2009-06-19T11:41:00.000-07:00

Last week at lifegroup, we challenged ourselves to be more bold. This week, we all wanted, of course, to forget that we had prayed about that and to just keep on plowing through Acts. I mean, it's all about getting more Bible facts in our brains, right?

Sadly, reminded that the Bible tells us not to be like people who look in mirror and then forget our appearance when we turn away, we went for it. We went around the room to tell what happened. All I gotta say was that it was AWESOME!!!! I'll mention no names to protect the innocent, but here are the stories:

One guy teamed up with another Christian at work to start having lunch with this particularly troubled person no one wants anything to do with. When they raised the idea of getting together with this person to a couple of other non-Christian colleagues, it's caused all kinds of discussions to break out.

One gal told of a young couple who are sort of distant relatives by marriage with whom she's had some recent conversations. The young woman just told her that her boyfriend is moving and has asked her to move in with him in the new location. The way she mentioned this, it was almost like the young girl is inviting a conversation on the topic. So, doors are opening.

One guy had a conversation with a neighbor. As soon as anything about church was mentioned, the neighbor clammed up. So, we kicked around ideas for helping jump start the conversation again.

One gal is moving toward getting into a crafting club to meet people to start conversations.

One guy noted that his neighbors, who have been separated on and off for years are back together. He is determined to strike up a conversation with them this week.

One gal, who was an a vowed atheist before accepting Jesus, has singled out a close friend who is still an atheist, to bodly reach out to.

Some points worth noting. Doing this together was incredibly encouraging. The people in the room are just like me - just people living life, working, eating, sleeping, having the same pressures I do. There was a "we're all in this thing together" feel in the room.

I left feeling like I could do this! I could persevere! These guys have my back!

I also found the accountability rewarding. To have people who know you and love you anyway holding you accountable feels a whole lot different than having it done by some impersonal "boss type." It was a lot of fun.

Finally, it was incredibly helpful. As we shared, others threw out ideas that might work, things that might be said to break through the barriers. And the real benefit was that these comments came often from people with backgrounds similar to those some of us were trying to reach. They had insights into how those people think and how they would respond that I did not.

In the end, I left more equipped for the task this week, feeling like I was part of something much bigger than me, and encouraged that I was not in this alone.

If you're not in a lifegroup, all I can tell you is that you are missing out big time.

I know it's possible that you are just growing and growing, and starting conversations with your unchurched neighbors, and leading people to Jesus all the time. But I know it's more likely that you aren't.

We're gonna be talking about what it means to be on Jesus' team on Sunday at McLean. Team certainly implies connecting. Why not check out the lifegroups, make the time, and be there.

Oh, and you can study up on Jesus' team in Matthew 10 if you want a leg up for Sunday.

Generating a Little Fear

2009-06-18T15:07:00.000-07:00

It's the day after the white supremacist, the Jew and Black hater, opened fire at the Holocaust Museum in DC. I'm in DC today helping my daughter with the twins. As Jackie and Amy head to the grocery store, I decide to walk to McDonald's, two blocks away. Amy's not happy. That location is notorious as a center for drugs and gangs. I'll have to walk by the place where, in broad daylight a few weeks ago, a young kid was shot dead. I'm a man, after all, and thus too stupid to know anything. So, I walk. But, I gotta say that I was on high alert and the eyes behind my Oakley's didn't miss a thing. I soldiered through because I was hungry, pressed ahead despite the risk. Got my burger, walked back the two blocks, and downed it safely.

Reminds me a smidge of lifegroup this week. It's the early chapters of Acts. Peter and John heal a lame guy, and the crowd goes wild. But the authorities don't and haul them off to jail for the night. All the brass gather the next morning, which, for all Peter and John knew, could be their last. They give an impressive testimony that Jesus Christ was behind the miracle. Unable to crack these guys, worried about the crowd reaction, and reconciled to the fact that an actual miracle had occurred, the brass let Peter and John go, ordering them to not mention Jesus' name again. Implicit in the order is "Or else." Peter and John say "No way, dudes" and head off to meet with the church.

What happens next is interesting to me, because in the face of the threat, the whole church unifies behind this prayer, and I'm paraphrasing: "Help us overcome our fear and testify boldy of You, Jesus." And to the thousands already saved since Pentecost, multitudes continued to be saved.

So I'm thinking, maybe we're not afraid enough yet to pray for boldness. Maybe that's why we've not filled our auditoria yet to the brim. The church in China, under attack and underground, is and has been experiencing exponential growth for years.

So, I'm thinking, can we get a proper fear going without having to rely on the government to persecute us? Can we be fearful of our family members spending an eternity in misery? Can we be fearful of our friends spending an eternity in misery? Can we be fearful of our neighbors spending an eternity in misery? Can we be fearful of Americans spending an eternity in misery? Can we be fearful of the nations spending an eternity in misery?

Can we be fearful of people living lives of misery and purposeless right here on this planet? I mean, fearful enough to get on our knees and pray for boldness to testify of Jesus Christ?

Our lifegroup took on the challenge this week, with a commitment to hold ourselves accountable. I've got to go into that room next Tuesday night, and as the pastor, I'd better have a story. And the pressure just got worse. One guy in the group told me the very next day of a "boldness" story. Geez, who'd have thought they were all serious???

So, ok, I'm not afraid for my life, but I'm hoping the fear of being embarrassed at not living the life I say I believe in will propel me to my knees and that the Holy Spirit will lead me into action. Cause it'd be cool if this turns out not to be just a fad, but a lifestyle.

Coming Attraction: Transformers

2009-05-14T11:47:00.000-07:00

I saw the Star Trek movie this week, and I only have one question.

William Shatner? Where were you, dude?

Oh, and a comment.

Uhuru and Spock? I don't think so.

But enough about the main attraction, how about one of my favorite parts of every movie experience... the coming attractions!

This time it was all about the new Transformers flick. I am glad they're making a sequel; perhaps the director will have gained familiarity with the concept of character development.

Still, it got me thinking.

Some of the cars and trucks and bulldozers transform into good guys; some transform into bad guys.

It is what's going on in the deepest part of the machines that determines everything. Same with us, it seems.

In Ezekiel 7:19-20 it talks about how it's possible for us to transform things beautiful into that which is abhorrent.

Doesn't have to be that way. Check out Romans 12:2. It's possible that we can be transformed from the inside out in a way that proves just how good and perfect and pleasing God is.

Is it an unfair question to ask you to ponder which path you're pursuing? Look back 5 years. What do you see?

To encourage you, we'll be hearing from two people on Sunday who will tell us their stories of transformation on the second path. No, they're not angels. Just imperfect people like you and me, still a work in progress, but who are finding hope and joy we all want.

Tired of just hearing all about what God could do? Come and see what He has done and is doing!

It'll bless your socks off--good thing we're an informal bunch, eh?

11:00 a.m., Sunday at 1988 Kirby Road, McLean.

Help from the Other Side?

2009-04-28T13:06:00.000-07:00

Everywhere you turn, there's another news story that suggests God is getting beat down.

From the porn movie broadcast at the University of Maryland, to the 10 Commandments being removed from government property, to redefining what a marriage is. There was even criticism of Rick Warren's prayer at Obama's inauguration (how dare he mention Jesus!).

You'd think that all of America had come to the same conclusion--God isn't.

Despite this, Americans have this fascination with the spiritual? It's everywhere; not just on Oprah.

Ghost Town - a jerk dentist survives a near-death experience and see ghosts.

Ghost Whisperer - Jennifer Love Hewitt's character aids troubled spirits.

Supernatural - two brothers hunting demons.

Medium - Allison Dubois helps the police solve murders through visions and contact with the dead. Interestingly, this week, she concludes that her gift was given to her by God.

We could go on (Touched by an Angel, Joan of Arcadia, Ghost, The Others, Sixth Sense, A Haunting in Connecticut, The Gift), but you get my point!

Oh, there's also a great book on the supernatural. It's called the Bible. It's author might know something about this subject.

Now, the story it tells doesn't read anything like what we're getting from Hollywood.

But, hey, if you think Hollywood has a bead on all things spiritual, I've got a bridge in New York I want to sell you.

Want to compare Hollywood's take with God's? Visit us at 11:00am this Sunday at 1988 Kirby Road, McLean, VA.

It might make your head spin--but probably not 360 degrees.

Want to ponder in advance? Try Galatians 5.

The Big Question: What's Next?

2009-04-23T12:58:00.000-07:00

I spent a chunk of this week comforting a woman whose mother died.

She knew her mom's time was drawing to a close; and had known it for months.

A hospice was overseeing her mom's care. You don't get that unless the medical professionals think you have less than 6 months left.

She died quietly, at peace, at home, last Sunday morning.

As funeral plans shaped up, the one big concern has focused on answering questions from the grand kids.

Two boys, ages 10 and 14.

Interestingly, they are the same questions a lot of us have.

Is grandma just floating around up in space?

Is she still hurting?

Will we ever see her again?

How will we recognize her?

Will she know us?

We could make up stuff to try to comfort folks, but it turns out that God has given us His thoughts on the subject.

So, we're going with His thoughts, incorporating them into this week's message--part of our series on answering key questions that people who don't follow Christ ask about Christianity.

Death is something we're all gonna face, sadly. But maybe it doesn't have to be that sad.

Maybe we can look to going through this thing we'd rather not with a little hope. a little confidence.

It is what we're going to talk about this Sunday, at 11:00am at our 1988 Kirby Road, McLean location.

Why not drop on in? We're dying to meet you.

Getting what is coming to you

2009-04-16T06:55:00.000-07:00

In the classic black-and-white gangster movie, particularly those starring Edward G. Robinson (man, they are the best ever), you hear this recurring line:

"I want what's coming to me."

The other person ominously promises:

"Yeah, you'll get what's coming to ya."

The first guy is expecting a payoff or something, but alas, he always gets whacked.

So, sometimes "getting what's coming to ya" isn't that grand.

Here's an example:

It's 15 April, TAX DAY. I just hit the send button. But I didn't really want what I had coming to me. But I got what was coming to me. POW!!! BLAM!!! SHOT DEAD!!!

So, when I think about taxes or anything else, really, I think I've landed on something.

I'd like not to get what's coming to me.

I'd like to get something better.

Something I didn't deserve.

Where do I get some of that?

Good news is that there is some of this out there - It's called grace.

And God's sending some of it your way.

Hear all about it Sunday at 11:00am at New Life Westmoreland (1988 Kirby Road, McLean, VA).

Want to ponder the thought in advance? Check out John 6:29.

Rebel Yell

2009-04-09T18:09:00.000-07:00

Bernie Madoff...

Governor Spitzer...

Michael Vick...

Kobe Bryant...

NBA Referee Tim Donaghy...

A-Rod...

Marion Jones...

Tonya Harding...

A couple others????

Living large and in charge! On top of the world! Masters of our own fate!

They don't answer to nobody, right?

The rules? They're for the little people.

We're never gonna get found out. We'll beat the odds. 'Cause we're different. We're unique.

They are rebels and proud of it.

Uh, that is, until they're not.

So, what if your rebellion doesn't make you unique, special, or different at all? What if you're just another link in a long, long, long--dare I say it again?--long chain, who'd make it work, get away with it, never get caught?

Well, striving to be a rebel pretty is familiar turf for God.

Join us Sunday for just one thought from Him on the subject.

I know you don't have time for two thoughts. But one? You've got time for one thought, don't you? Promise you'll have plenty of time the rest of the day for your rebel thing.

11:00am at 1988 Kirby Road, McLean, VA this Sunday.

Want to read an exciting reality adventure on being a rebel? Check out II Chronicles 36.

Who Made Up All the Rules, We Follow Them Like Fools*

2009-04-03T07:46:00.000-07:00

*(First line of "They" by JEM)

Jenny was late! She was late! For a very important date!

This would be the perfect job, she thought. Only 15 minutes from home. Except now she has to make up the minutes lost searching for the keys. But how?

The complete answer never came, because the rolling stop through the intersection got her introduced immediately to a member of the motorcycle police force.

Fuming while waiting and waiting and waiting and waiting to get the bloody ticket, she reflected that this didn't seem fair.

She had, after all, stopped at that same sign hundreds of times in the past. Why doesn't she get some credit or something for all the times she obeyed the law? But, NOOOOOO! One violation, and BOOM, she's nabbed.

And then it hit her. The law is not her friend. It's never sitting there on the books to tell her how wonderful she is. Nope.

It's just sitting there waiting patiently for her to mess up. Just biding its time until she screws up just that one tiny bit.

And then Jenny reflected on the stuff she'd been hearing at church lately.

Hmmm... I wonder if that's what the pastor meant when he said we can never be good enough to make God happy by just following all the rules. Maybe God's rules are like this stupid stop sign. Only good for one thing--to accuse us when we violate them.

Because, oh yeah, she had violated a few of those God rules, too.

"Well, if the rules aren't the way to make God happy with me," she thought, "then what is?"

We hope Jenny is with us Sunday, when we explore that question. You might want to give a listen, too.

If you're inclined, read through Exodus 20.

Or hear the answer at 11:00 a.m. this Sunday at 1988 Kirby Road, McLean, VA.

Town Hall for Hope - April 23

2009-04-01T12:38:00.000-07:00

Cleaning Up

2009-03-26T11:03:00.000-07:00

We've all seen the pictures, haven't we?

The aftermath of a hurricane, or a flood, or a tornado that rips through a town. Everything is destroyed, covered in gooey muck, and washed away.

We see that imagine and think, "What if that were my home? My town? My mess? Where would I even begin? It's too massive to even come up with a game plan for cleaning this up!"

Truth is, you'd tackle the clean up just like those people. One board at a time, one branch at a time, one step at a time. Messes this big don't get cleaned up in a day or a week.

But then we go back some time later and are amazed to find that things are restored, homes rebuilt, the piles of debris are gone. Life has returned to some semblance of normalcy.

We've talked last week about why the world is in such a mess. And we found that it's not God's fault. It's ours. So, when God looks down and sees this world we totally messed up, it might have looked impossible, might have looked hopeless, might have looked irredeemable.

He could have just built a big wall around this world and starting up something new on some other planet.

But that's what separates God from the rest of us.

The mess we couldn't fix, He did. Want to know about his strategy?

Amazingly, He started just like we do in cleaning up after a tornado - with one branch, one board or, in this case, one man.

Genesis 11-15 might be some interesting reading in preparation.

Sunday at 11:00am, to hear more about the biggest clean up job in history.

New Life on TV!

2009-03-26T10:58:00.000-07:00

In an effort to get a little website traffic and name recognition, New Life will be airing a series of "Random People" commercials on many of your favorite TV programing!

You might find these commercials on during programing on Comedy Central, TBS, and NBC so keep a look out!

The videos are 15 seconds each and very funny, so please let us know what you think!

What is wrong with the world today?

2009-03-19T11:17:00.000-07:00

We first heard the news from my wife, Jackie's hairdresser who told her that the woman was brain dead.

It was pretty depressing that the accident had happened in the first place, but even more so that we were informed by a hairdresser! I was an intelligence analyst in the CIA; I'm supposed to know things!

So, it probably wasn't true.

I mean how could a hairdresser know about things that weren't even in the paper yet?

Then sure enough, I pick up the paper today to see that, yet again, hairdressers are pretty much clued in to everything.

Natasha Richardson, esteemed stage and screen actress, wife of Liam Neesom, dead at 45 from a fall on a bunny slope.

That's right... a bunny slope.

Somehow, we just know, don't we, that this isn't right?

We know Liam knows it isn't supposed to be this way. We know Natasha's two kids know it isn't supposed to be this way.

How can we make sense of something like this?

And for those who believe in God, there's this tendency to look toward the sky and ask: What are you thinking? Are you even thinking? Are you aware of what's going on down here?

Good questions, but are there good answers?

We'll give it a shot Sunday at 11:00 at 1988 Kirby Road in McLean.

The topic? Why is the World So Messed Up? Perspective is everything.

To get a head start open to the first story in the Bible - Genesis 1.

Or, if nothing bad has ever happened to you or anyone you know, feel free to take a pass on this one. I'm sure we'll do a message on "Being in Denial" soon.

Does It Really Take a Village?

2009-03-11T18:12:00.000-07:00

Everyone's terrified of the monster lurking right outside the house, in the dark, now tromping on the front porch, now rattling the door handle.

Everyone knows it's there, and you want to shake with fear, but you know you have to remain absolutely still and try not to breath.

Honestly, if you could stop your heart from beating, you would; because surely it can hear you and OH MY GOSH, YOU ARE GOING TO DIE TONIGHT!!!

OK, so this isn't really everyday life, rather a scene from M. Night Shyamalan's movie, The Village.

If you wanted to see it, you already should have (it came out in 2004 for Pete's sake!), so let's blow the ending, shall we?

THE WHOLE THING'S A SCAM!!!

Well, sort of...

There is a monster. But it's the leadership of the village, who has invented this whole "religion" to keep the sect together. And they are not above killing someone to keep the charade alive.

You know, this sounds far fetched, but it's what a lot of people think of Christians who yap on about how the Bible is God's Word and use it to keep the people in line.

I mean, after all, we all know the Bible is full of errors and contradictions, right?

And that supernatural stuff? What's the deal with that? Great for a Tolkien fantasy. But, come on, it's the 21st Century already! Get a grip!

Hey, here's a thought. What if you're wrong? What if you're actually in the village, and you're being scammed?

What if the Bible really is God's Word and can be trusted? Couldn't be true, right?

Nah, cause some nutty professor told you otherwise when you were in college, and we know that all professors have all the truth on all things and never make mistakes and never mislead anyone... right?

So, here's our deal.

We're not looking to prove anything to you on Sunday. Just want you to think for yourself.

But, hey, if that's too scary for you, just join the people from the movie and stay in your village, man.

If not, come to ours - 1988 Kirby Road, McLean, VA, at 11:00am this Sunday.

The sun will be up, so it'll be safe to go outside.

For folks who want to ponder, read 2 Timothy 3:13-17.

Craft Fair - This Saturday, March 14!

2009-03-11T18:03:00.000-07:00

This Saturday, March 14, New Life Westmoreland will be teaming up with the Avon Foundation Walk for Breast Cancer to host a silent auction event to raise money for the treatment and research of Breast Cancer.

The event itself, a craft auction and sale, starts at 1:30, with the silent auction portion ending at 3:30. For a list of all items that will be auctioned off click here.

In addition to the silent auction, there will be a bake sale and some local crafters selling items.

For any additional information please email Leigh Robinson at m.leigh.robinson@gmail.com

Summer Camp for your Preschooler

2009-03-11T17:47:00.000-07:00

Kirby Kids Early Childhood Education Center, located at New Life Westmoreland, just launched their new website - www.kirbykidspreschool.com

In addition, the website is now offering information for their 8 week summer camp program for 2009.

This program will include 3 sessions (2-3 weeks each) between June 29 and August 20, 2009. The sessions will focus on "Discoveries of out World," "Space Adventures," and "Underwater Exploration."

Currently this program is limited to preschoolers from ages 3 (potty trained) to 5 years.

For additional information or to download the summer camp application, visit their website or contact the director Terry Finks at 703-534-0006 or terryfinks@gmail.com

Financial Peace University

2009-03-11T17:38:00.000-07:00

New Life Westmoreland's first class just graduated from the Financial Peace University, and we are all ready to kick off the series for a second class!!!

This series highlights tips and secrets from financial genius Dave Ramsey.

The kick off session (which does not obligate you to complete the series), will be Sunday, March 22, at 5:00pm. The course will be held at the residence of Paul Gardiner (resident finance exert) - 12705 Nathan Lane, Herndon,VA 20170.

This session is geared for people who want to learn more about the course, and decide if they are interested in the full course.

The course is free, and the materials are $99 and include CDs, books, and forms.

The full course will begin Sunday, March 12 and will run each Sunday for 12 weeks at 5:00pm (with Holiday breaks pending). For more information you may email Paul at paul@makingmoneysense.com.

Part 3 of the Financial Series - Wealth Building!

2009-02-26T12:59:00.000-08:00

So, I'm watching The Duchess the other night.

Don't gag, guys. Chick flicks are a way to your woman's heart.

And don't worry. I'm not going to spoil the ending for you. But the movie opens with the Duke staring out a window at some children playing. Later in the movie, after much has happened, he's standing in the same place, looking out the same window, watching children play. And after gazing for a few moments, he utters a cry from the heart, a statement something like this:

"Oh, to have the freedom to experience that much joy."

And, with the weight of the world and the consequences of the choices he has made on his shoulders, he slowly turns from the wind

ow, turns his back to the camera, and drags his body and his load down the hall. Rich enough to have everything he wanted; impoverished, having nothing he needed.

Not to be too heavy here, but this is not the life God intends for you.

Is there a way to achieve clarity on what to invest in to prevent a forlorn looking back 10, 15, 20, 30 years down the road? What could life be like if we purposed to be free to experience much joy?

We'll dig into this as we conclude the riveting series on Surviving the Financial Crisis this Sunday at Moland.

See ya at 11:00--and come early for some coffee, tea, hot chocolate, and munchies.

If you want to get a jump on where we're going, check out Matthew 6:19-23.

Surviving the Financial Crisis, Part Deux!

2009-02-19T11:46:00.000-08:00

On the sidewalk, Inspector Clouseau is approaching a man walking a dog coming the opposite direction. The man stops to peer in a shop window. Clouseau, intrigued by the dog, stops and asks the man, "Does your dog bite?"

"Why, no, my dog does not bite," is the response.

Clouseau reaches out to pet the dog, retracting it quickly as the dog, snarling, bites his hand.

"I thought you said your dog doesn't bite," puzzles Clouseau.

"That's right, my dog doesn't bite."

"But, I don't understand. The dog just bit me."

"Oh, this isn't my dog."

OUCH. Confusion over ownership. It bit Clouseau.

He's not alone. Getting a grip on how to survive the financial crisis besetting the world right now may come down to understanding who owns what. Turns out the responsibilities are different if you own the stuff or if you are managing it for someone else.

Sunday at 11:00 we'll have Brett Andrews, New Life's senior pastor, with us via video for a chat on getting the proper perspective on ownership. Maybe if we get it, we can avoid having our hand chewed off.

Hang out in Luke 16 for awhile if you want to ponder ahead of time.

Financial Crisis Series Kicks Off

2009-02-12T06:05:00.000-08:00

A week ago, it was 10 degrees when I got out of bed. I bundled up best I could to brave the frigid air for the 20 seconds it would take me to retrieve the morning paper. The first seven or eight seconds weren't too bad, I thought. But, by the time I hit the front door on the return trip, the cold seemed to be penetrating my bone marrow.

And then I wondered: "Man, how do the homeless survive on nights like this? Someone should really do something."

But I warmed up quickly and sat down with a cup of joe to read all about the good news. There was this story and that story, but the one that stayed with me was about this photo exhibit of teens in Fairfax County in need of parents. The article didn't have any of the photos, just descriptions of kids in need of parents.

And I wondered: "Man, someone should really do something."

And as I turned these things around in my head, I wondered "What would prevent us from being involved in this stuff?" And it hit me. Yeah, we're the richest nation on earth, and we'd like to help and all, but, sorry, about that. We've already spent it on us. In fact, the statistics show that not only have we spent what we have on us, we've spent what we don't have on us, too. Debt, man, is killing us individually--and now it's killing us as a nation collectively.

Is there a better way?

Is there a more fulfilling way?

Is it possible that God might have given us some understanding of how to do this money thing.

I mean, we've done it our way, and we're basically toast. We've listened to the "experts", the best minds the world has to offer, and what's it gotten us. Here's what: 7 our of 10 families in the US live paycheck to paycheck. No margin for error whatsoever. Maybe we at least need to check out what God has to say about this stuff.

The first of three messages on this financial crisis is this Sunday. Paul Gardiner, a pastor person with street cred on money issues, is introducing us to a different way of thinking.

If you want some place to park yourself in the Bible in preparation, try Malachi 3.

Better sex for $5?

2009-02-03T18:15:00.001-08:00

Did you miss the last 3 weeks of church?

That means you missed out on a hot topic... SEX!

But don't worry!

If you were out of town, can't roll out of bed before 11:00am, or just think our chairs are uncomfortable it is not too late to hear the messages that were preached over the past three weeks.

3 CDs with the Sex Sermons, preached by campus pastor, Dwaine Darrah, will be sold for $5!

Interested? Just email us at newlifewestmoreland@gmail.com

Free babysitting for a Valentine's Day Eve date night!

2009-02-03T18:09:00.001-08:00

After our December 13 kid-free shopping day's vast success, we have decided to do a similar event to help our parents in the community!

This time - Date Night!

Just in time for Valentine's Day, get a head start with this Valentine's Day Eve date night.

We will have caring volunteers there to entertain your kids from 6:00pm - 9:00pm on Friday February 13, 2009; plus there will be a nursery with care givers and open arms for your babies!

To RSVP or find out additional information and fill out a registration form please email us at newlifewestmoreland@gmail.com.

Wipe That Holy Scowl Off Your Face, Man!!

2009-02-03T17:58:00.000-08:00

"No talking in class!" were the words that penetrated his inner ear as the ruler across the back of Brian's hand simultaneously punctured several tiny blood vessels.

He wasn't sure what stung more...
The actual pain carried reflexively to his brain?
The embarrassment of the pummeling in full view of his friends?
The suddenness of the judgment carried out with way too much vim and vinegar.

Maybe it was the that frown of disapproval. It was as if it was from God Himself.

He didn't like it then, when he had to be in school, and Brian was determined he was never going to have feel like that again. So he avoided God, church, nuns, and anything else whose sole existence was to make him feel small and judged.

Now, Brian's making his way in the world today, and it's taking everything he's got.

How different he might feel if he realized that the God he imagined isn't necessarily the God described in the Bible.

Given Brian's experience, it might be hard for him to fathom that God is actually a party animal!

God recommending that His people enjoy themselves, engage in all kinds of festivals, dance, and sing, and, pretty much have a blast!

Not the God you've experienced? We didn't think so.

For a closer look at God's real view of partying, replete with plenty of Bible verses to back this up, Tim Jones will be joining us this Sunday.

To read ahead and get some sense of where this is going, you might check out Leviticus 23 or Deuteronomy 15 and 16.

But, we guarantee you'll hear some things you're not going to expect--because Tim is not only a preacher man, he's a comic genius.

1988 Kirby Road, McLean--11:00 a.m. this Sunday (Feb 8).

See you there.

Can we talk. . . .about SEX?

2009-01-15T11:02:00.000-08:00

You've walked past a magazine rack, right...
Barnes and Nobles?
Borders?
Wegmans?
7-Eleven?

Why is it that Cosmo a year ago had "6 sure-fire ways to please your lover"?

Esquire a year ago gave guys the "secrets to making love"?

And both are running articles this year that promise the same!

Oh, and would you believe they ran similar articles in 2007, 2006, 2005, and so on?

Isn't there, like a 5-yard penalty for false advertising or something?

Maybe they're clueless.

Maybe you're ready save the $5 you would be spending on a magazine and explore why we seem to be having more sex and enjoying it less.

How about breathing New Life into your Sex Life?

Better sex in three weeks. That's our promise.

And unlike those other guys, we'll deliver the goods.

Check out the first of a three part series on, you guessed it - SEX!

This Sunday @ 11:00 a.m., and be ready for words you've never heard from a pulpit!

His way or the highway?

2009-01-08T11:31:00.000-08:00

WAY!!

No WAY!!

WAY!!

No WAY!!

Ok, enough of that, but it does get us into the topic of one of the big questions out there. I mean, we've heard from all kinds of religious types on whether Jesus is the only WAY.

Is he, or not? And what's he the only WAY to?

I mean, where's he going with this thing?

Maybe we can figure this out if we look at what He actually said.

Not just what somebody's telling us he said.

Maybe that'd get us somewhere.

Think about it, everyone on a trip takes a look at the map occasionally to see if they're going the right WAY.

Maybe you could use a spiritual GARMIN check.

We sure do, and we're doing it Sunday at 11:00.

If you don't know the WAY to get there, just check the directions

WHATCHA DOIN' CHRISTMAS EVE?

2008-12-18T10:49:00.000-08:00

We've got Christmas spirit, yes we do!
We've got Christmas spirit, How 'bout you?

Feeling festive?

Maybe not... Or, maybe you've got that holiday thing oozing out every pore.

(YUCK!!!! Image-Be-Gone!)

Regardless of where you are on this continuum, New Life Christmas Eve is the place for you.

At 6:00 p.m., Wednesday December 23 (duh... Christmas Eve)

It's late enough not to interrupt your last-minute shopping, and early enough to have a great rest-of-the-evening doing whatever you want!

That's right. We're gonna be outta there by 7:00 p.m.

There'll be some singing off-key stuff, a funny video, little kids doing little kid stuff (no diaper humor here, please), some cookies and such, and a short encouraging word or two, plus one special feature...

NO SOCK MONKEYS!!!

Guaranteed fun--and you get to wear jeans!!!

IF THE QUEEN MOTHER WERE SUDDENLY STANDING ON YOUR DOORSTEP. . .

2008-12-18T10:46:00.000-08:00

You might be just a bit frantic!

I mean come on...

...WHAT WOULD YOU WEAR?
...IS SHE HUNGRY?

   ...WHAT DOES SHE EAT?
   ...HOW DO I ADDRESS HER?
   ...WHAT IF SHE SEES THAT TURKEY CARCASS STILL SITTING IN THE FRIG?
   ...DOES SHE HAVE A BIG CHECK IN HER HAND FROM PUBLISHER'S CLEARINGHOUSE?

Now, some of you wouldn't care at all. You're not gonna get lathered up by anyone from a family whose men and women look the same. Ok, good point.

For some of you, however, even the thought of drop-in by the queen--or anyone else who just pops in out of nowhere--gets your heart racing.

So, relax. Take some cleansing breaths. This isn't really happening.

OR IS IT?

Only way you'll know for sure is to be at New Life this Sunday for another installment of our "Dangerous Baby" series.

Be there!! (And if you want, wear jeans... our preacher does!!)

FREE BABYSITTING - Parent's "Holiday Kid-Free Shopping Spree"

2008-12-10T06:03:00.000-08:00

Dear Santa,

I've been a pretty good girl this year! I hear Mommy saying that a Wii was cheaper than the current price of coal Oh yeah, world peace and an end to hunger would be sweet too!

ATTENTION PARENTS!!!

Let us help you, help Santa by offering you 3 hours of shopping time while we love and entertain your kids with cookie decorating, ornament crafts, music, movies and tons of great holiday fun in the spirit of the season!

Our church is located just 10 minutes from Tysons and each parent will get a coupon folder JAM PACKED with great deals at Tyson's stores!

SATURDAY DECEMBER 13th from 9am-12:30pm

All ages WELCOME!

RSVP to newlifewestmoreland@gmail.com to secure your spot!

Registration for the event ENDS DECEMBER 10th so don't miss out!

Then, be sure to join us again this Holiday Season and on Christmas Eve with your entire family to experience the REAL Reason for the Season!

YOU SAY YOU WANT A REVOLUTION?????

2008-12-10T05:58:00.000-08:00

Maybe the Beatles coined the song...

...But they weren't the first to talk about revolution

   Before the French Revolution...
   Before the American Revolution...
   Before the Russian Revolution...
   Before cloth diapers gave way to Pampers...

(screeching of brakes)

Hey, speaking of babies, maybe you don't see the tie between revolution and babies.

But it's there... Jesus... a baby!

But this cuddly little dude packs a wallop in revolutionary ideas!

(Did we just say wallop? Can we really use that in a blog?)

While we check with the judges on that, you check out the Dangerous Baby series!

Sunday, 11:00 a.m.

Tim Jones, New Life funny guy, kicks the series off, and he may just mess with your gray matter... at least enough to challenge your assumptions of who Baby Jesus is and what He is up to.

New Signs!

2008-12-10T05:55:00.001-08:00

Keep driving by and thinking... I thought this was the right place, but wait there is no sign that says New Life?

That is all changed now!

Last week, New Life's Westmoreland campus got its new signs, letting the community know who we are.

So next time you drive by, you will know it is us... why not stop in?

See you Sunday!

Hang 'Em High

2008-11-29T18:51:00.000-08:00

Ok, it's not a spaghetti Western, but it's got

HEART-STOPPING
CLIFF-HANGING
DEATH-DEFYING
NON-STOP ACTION

That'll keep you glued to the edge of your seats until the

ENDING THAT NO ONE COULD POSSIBLY SEE COMING!!!

(Unless you've already read all the Bible, of course)

That's right!! It's the Riveting Conclusion That's Got Everyone Planning to TIVO the Redskins Game.

ESTHER 3 - This Time It's Personal!!!!!

Exclusively Playing at New Life Christian Church @ Westmoreland at 11:00 a.m. Sunday

Stand-up Comedy in Church?

2008-11-18T13:22:00.000-08:00

Ever wonder what kids in Pittsburgh and Indianapolis have in common?

All we're gonna tell you is that it involves dried corn and Halloween--two topics that don't normally go together.

But that's ok, because the preacher man this Sunday at Westmoreland is the not-so-normal Tim Jones, New Life's stand-up comedian.

Somehow, it'll all make sense, and he'll even relate it to something from the Bible in the uproarious Part Deux of our series on the book of Esther.

Come early, you won't want to miss the opening monologue (or a cup of Joe!).

New Life Westmoreland in the News!

2008-11-18T13:15:00.000-08:00

The following article was taken from the McLean Connection Newspaper:

Bringing New Life to an Old Church
In order to survive, aging McLean congregation merges with youthful New Life Church.
By Mike DiCicco
Tuesday, July 08, 2008

When Bill Daniel joined the Westmoreland Church in 1965, it was a Baptist church with about 80 members. By 2006, Sunday morning turnouts at the McLean church were around one-tenth of that number.

"We were down to a membership of roughly 16, with attendance of maybe 10 on a good day," said Daniel, who is the church’s head trustee and accountant. None of those 10 were children, and three of the five couples on the membership roster were more than 80 years old. "We could see that the handwriting was on the wall," Daniel said.

His wife, Betty, said the little church at the corner of Kirby Road and Westmoreland Street was not alone, noting that her friends attending other small churches in the area were also facing dwindling membership. "A lot of churches are not doing so well, I’m afraid," she said.

FOR 25 YEARS, Westmoreland had been without a pastor and had relied upon a series of military chaplains to deliver services. The last chaplain, upon leaving in 2006, could not find a replacement and referred the church to the Virginia Evangelizing Fellowship, which recommended that Westmoreland merge with another church.

Westmoreland had long ago cut its ties to the Baptist Church and become the ecumenical Westmoreland Community Church, and one of the churches the fellowship recommended for a merger was the nondenominational, multi-campus New Life Christian Church. New Life, which has campuses in Centreville and Haymarket and recently spun off a church in Ashburn, courts younger congregants with an emphasis on informality, humor and relevance to everyday life.

A year and a half after New Life Pastor Ron Furgerson took over as the church’s pastor, Sunday morning turnouts now average between 40 and 50, with about six of the church’s new couples coming from other New Life campuses.

The two churches courted each other for months and, following a vote, began taking steps toward a merger late last year. Furgerson said the combined church will step up outreach and re-launch as the Westmoreland campus of New Life this fall.

Bill Daniel said the church now has a band and places an emphasis on contemporary music, and he said the young New Life pastors who rotate through the church "take a more youthful sort of approach to the scriptures." "While I miss some of the old hymns, I find some of the new ones to be very pleasing," he said.

"I love it. It’s a new beginning," said Betty Daniel. "It’s like making the Bible come to life in today’s world." By trying to bring clarity to the scriptures while steering clear of dogma, she said, "they make it much more interesting, and you feel like you’ve gained something when you go to church. You feel like you’ve gained some insight."

LAST SUNDAY MORNING, Pastor Dwaine Darrah was trying to convince the congregation to prepare for the afterlife, while viewing this life as temporary housing. Dressed in a gray polo shirt and black khakis, he told the congregants to imagine sinking time and money into completely renovating a rented condo. "That wouldn’t make any sense," said Darrah. "We do that all the time. We live like this is it."

He said the Bible’s attempt to describe heaven was like trying to describe life in McLean to an impoverished South American — most easily accomplished by listing the things familiar to South Americans that they would not find here, such as poverty and lawlessness.

A slide on the screen behind him read "Describing the indescribable."

Darrah asked the congregants to imagine a world where there were no more suicide bombers, divorce papers, prescription drugs, empty tissue boxes, small caskets or "anxious moments in hospital waiting rooms."

"Let’s watch this video clip," he said, and a slide quoting the Book of John was replaced by a short video of two children wandering a graveyard, contemplating death and debating the existence of God.

Most of the older members of Darrah’s audience wore ties and dresses, but some younger attendees were dressed in jeans or shorts. Behind them, a table was laid out with coffee, cookies and candy. The candy, at least, was traditional — Bazooka bubblegum and Dum Dum lollipops. Some in the audience were drinking coffee.

Before communion, Furgerson reminded the congregation that Darrah’s sermon would be available on CD next week.

"It’s very different," said longtime Westmoreland member Kay Bernell. "I think most of our older members felt this was kind of a shock to have such a change," she said. "It took a little adjustment. I grew up in a formal church setting. But I like it now. I’m comfortable with it now." The few who could not make the adjustment had left, she said, but the majority had stayed on. Bernell said she thought the church had been revitalized but was only in the early stages of its rebirth.

Cecilia Brammer was familiar with the problem of diminishing church attendance. She had come to Westmoreland in 2002 after her congregation at Chesterbrook Presbyterian Church had dissolved due to lack of membership. She said she liked the intimacy of a small church but recognized the need to attract younger members.

"It’s changed considerably," said Brammer. "In fact, when I walked in this morning, I thought, ‘You know, the church is rockin’,’ and that’s a strange word for me to use." She said she liked her new congregants and had come to enjoy the different style of worship. "The music is definitely different. Actually, a lot of the service is different than what I’m used to," she said. "But it’s inspiring. I’m not put down by it."

WESTMORELAND will be Terry Finks’ third New Life congregation in the last 10 years. When the Ashburn campus started, she had left the Centreville campus to help start up the new group. "I kind of like to help get things started, to get them rolling," said Finks, who had traveled to Sunday’s service from Leesburg. She added that the original Westmoreland group was "a wonderful group of people who are willing to do whatever needs to be done."

She said she, too, had grown up attending traditional churches, but she preferred New Life’s style. "It’s nice when you can sit with a cup of coffee and hear the gospel in a way that you can apply to your life," she said. "It’s not just tradition and rhetoric."

Finks, who has taught for about 15 years at private, Christian elementary schools, will head up the church’s new preschool, which is expected to be in session this September. The church also now offers Sunday school — one session for adults and another for children — as well as a women’s study group and a Recovery Connection Support Group for anyone with "a hurt, habit or hang-up," as it is described on the New Life Web site. Planned are a divorce support group, a marriage support group, a money management class and a parenting class.

A questionnaire will be circulated asking what other services might be needed.

"That’s what our church does, try to meet the needs of communities," said Finks.

McLean resident Frank Arter attended church at New Life’s Centreville campus from early 1997 until about half a year ago. "It’s nice for us because we live just two, three miles from here," he said of the Westmoreland site. Arter said he had been raised in the United Pentecostal Church, where services were "the same every week. I got a little tired of preachers yelling at me and using PAs to do it."

He said Westmoreland was in a "hybrid" stage, where some of the old music had been retained, as not all of the church’s original members had appreciated the rock-style New Life music. Others, he said, had been uncomfortable with the slides and preferred a book in their hands, although he said they now seemed to have come to terms with the technological shift.

"Both sides are kind of coming together into one group," said Arter. "It’s really kind of neat to watch."

Did you know that...

2008-11-18T12:45:00.000-08:00

...Westmoreland Community Church is now New Life Christian Church.

We hold these truths to be self evident that "Church" and "Fun" are words that go together

...We put out all the Politicians Gone Wild signs and the goofy videos?

...If you hate church, you'll fit right in!!

We've changed the music, are changing the environment, AND you can drink coffee and eat donut hole while we kick around God stuff.

...We have a new pastor?

Most other church dudes don't have CIA and FBI training.

...We are the fastest growing church in America?

Ok, we've grown from 8 to 40, so we're still small, but we're happening!!

...We are a multigenerational church.

We've got folks from singles to hip octogenerians!

...We have a preschool up and running on site?

The website being developed now.

...We are facilitating Dave Ramsey's course on finances?

See Dave on Fox Business Cable Channel or on his website.

...We host exercise and art classes?

Plus, we will soon have marriage and parenting classes

Still not sure, you skeptic?

Check us out at 11:00 a.m. Sunday mornings and be a part of something sweeping your community or contact me at dwained@newlife4me.com, 703-532-0161 or 571-294-8306.

I am the pastor, and I approved this message.

Dwaine Darrah

Ever feel that life is a little out of control?

2008-11-14T06:47:00.000-08:00

That things are happening to you and going on around you that mess with your life?

Get the sense that there should be an order to things but just not sure how to wrangle them to the ground?

Sounds like someone else's story!

Who? Esther! Esther who? Esther from the bible!

Out of control would describe her world, and it's pretty amazing how similar ours is today.

Plus, gals, it's a great opportunity to teach your man how to learn something from a woman!! Now that's a personal application worth the price of admission.

Speaking of that, we've dropped the cover charge for the 11:00 service, and parking is free. Come a few minutes early and grab coffee, tea, and something to munch.