I am convinced that the creators of the Bachelor stole the concept from the book of Esther. Follow me here, it's pretty obvious. The premise of the Bachelor is that a bunch of beautiful women are whisked away to a luxurious location to compete for the heart and affection of one man. The premise of the first part of the book of Esther is that a bunch of beautiful women are whisked away to the King's palace to compete for the heart and affection of King Xerxes. Esther is given the "red rose" and becomes queen. If you want to get wrapped up on a story of love, scandal, loss and marriage, I'd...

Center City Church and the PTA from Elizabeth Traditional Elementary School combined this weekend on a landscaping service project for the school. Click the video below to see for yourself! We had a lot of fun and so much was accomplished. Huge thanks to John and Ginny Gum for organizing this and working so hard. Great day![vimeo http://www.vimeo.com/23778137 w=398&h=224]

[vimeo http://www.vimeo.com/23776593 w=398&h=224]God chose to use a Jewish orphan by the name of Esther to rise to power and save the entire nation of Israel from destruction. We learn from her life that it does not matter what happened in your past. God can use you today.

We just got back from what was probably my favorite community dinner we've ever had since starting Center City Church over a year ago. Such a great evening of friends gathering and new friends being made. I love this atmosphere because it's so laid back. The concept is pretty simple: everyone brings something to eat and then hangs out for hours on end. That's all. No set schedule. No agenda. Just hanging out, enjoying each other's company and eating random combinations of food. I love this church. I love those that are connected to our church community. And I love meeting new people that are...

Photographs by the brilliant Emily Chidester:

We have an amazing group of volunteers at Center City Church. I'm so blown away that over half of our church is actively volunteering in different areas of our church. Such a blessing. We had an opportunity on Friday night to show our volunteers thank you, not just tell them thank you like we do every week. We hosted a dinner in my back yard and had a blast enjoying each other's company and showing our gratitude to each and every person that helps Center City tick each week. We love our volunteers! If you are a part of our church community and want to get involved and jump into one of our...

Click the link below to view this week's message from Center City Church on Vision & Community. [vimeo http://www.vimeo.com/23476307 w=398&h=224]Romans 12:1-8 teaches us that each one of us are uniquely gifted and mutually dependent on others. We can accomplish more together than we can on our own.

I had this overwhelming feeling over and over again while reading the creation account written in Genesis 1. My God can do anything. I had the same feeling again while reading through the miracles found in the gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John). My God can do anything. And I had that same feeling yet again last night as I prayed for our church and the vision that God has put in our heart to reach our community with the message of Jesus. My God can do anything. God will go to any distance, ignoring the normal confines of human wisdom and provision to accomplish his purposes. As the all...

I had the chance to go to the PGA's Wells Fargo Championship in Charlotte today with a good friend. While following Phil Mickelson for a few holes, he hit an errant tee shot that we literally had to run out of the way to avoid sure peril. He ended up just a few feet in front of us as he hit his recovery shot out of the rough. Easily a top five sporting moment in my life! Here's a pic I sneakily took with my cell phone. And another of his errant ball...

While catching up with a close friend today, we talked about the high value of community. The reality of having people in our world that know, love and care for each other through all of the ups and downs, successes and failures, victories and defeats, etc. He began to describe what his journey to the suburbs was like. After years of working hard, building his family and finding success in his job, he realized that his journey led him to a startling reality. "I live in a beautiful neighborhood, but there is no community here." This is yet another reminder that the pursuit of success and...