Dara and I enjoyed an entire day with just us and the kids. Such a great day. We spent the whole day hanging around the house, playing with the kids, talking, laughing and enjoying each other's company. It's been a pretty crazy past month. This was a much needed family day. There is nothing more peaceful in my life than spending quality time with my wife and kids. Great day!

I'm spending some time at home today working/watching the kids while Dara connects with one of her friends for a while. It's so funny working from home. I can go from one moment studying the deep truths of God to the next moment breaking up a toddler skirmish over who gets to pick their morning snack first. Such is the life of a church planting daddy! Wouldn't trade it for the world!

We had a great gathering last night at our house with our Center City family. God has blessed us with a phenomenal group of people that we love dearly and share a common vision and direction. I shared the vision and direction of Center City that will never change. We talked about the Center of Center City. There are amazing symptoms of being a Christ follower. Love. Generosity. Compassion. Community. Accountability. The list goes on and on. However, none of these are the center of who are are as Christians. And none of these are the center of who we are at Center City Church. These are all...

I got a text message the other day that sent shock up and down my spine. "Mary just cut her hair."Our little princess (the one with the long, curly hair that had never been cut) decided to take a pair of scissors and cut her hair off just below her ears. It wasn't a great haircut. We tried to rescue it at a hair salon, but kid cuts just aren't all that savable. Oh well, she's still adorable. That wasn't quite what we expected for her first haircut, but it is memorable!

We took the kids shopping the other day and had a blast as a family. Upon returning home, we looked into the stroller and realized that one of our kids had taken a baby toy from Old Navy and put it into Baby Ben's seat. We strolled away with it - and effectively stole a $5 item. Petty theft. By one of the Docusen kids.We should probably return that soon.

Proverbs 21:5 - Good planning and hard work lead to prosperity, but hasty shortcuts lead to poverty.As I have prayed for the vision and direction of Center City Church, I keep on feeling the same thing. Slow and steady. Focus on the foundation. Focus on the people God has brought together. Don't worry about three steps ahead. Focus on today. I feel such a counterintuitive call as I lead Center City Church. Our team knows how to advertise, market, create buzz, create amazing websites, etc. But the more I pray, the more I feel like God is continuing to call us to a slow and steady approach to...

We are so excited to have our full team in Charlotte for the first time! We are having our second gathering for Center City Church tomorrow night at 6pm in our basement and I'm going to be sharing the vision that God has placed in our hearts. Our house is packed this weekend. We have thirteen people staying in our home including all of us adults and our kids. People crammed into every room and taking up floor space with sleeping bags 🙂 Clark, Salina and Salem came in last night from Atlanta. Jerred and Randi drove up from Orlando tonight. Malcolm just arrived on a cross country flight from...

I just got my new computer delivered today!I'm so grateful for so many people that blessed me in such a big way. Our core team, another sister church and a friend in Orlando that works at Apple came together to round up enough money to get me an amazing Macbook Pro and surprised me on my birthday. Every time I look at this computer I am reminded of people that love and care for me. Not only did they meet a practical need, they blessed me with more than I could have imagined. So grateful.

I need to slow down and smell the proverbial roses. I started to realize this week that I was feeling a ton of pressure. I was constantly racking my brain trying to figure out the next step and where Center City is supposed to go. I was feeling pressure to lead everyone in the right direction and make sure that I knew the plan A-Z so I could communicate the vision to our team. That's when I realized that absolutely NO ONE on our team is pressuring me. None of our financial supporters around the country are pressuring me. I started to try to figure out where this pressure was coming from and...

Today my big sister celebrates her __th birthday!!! I admire, respect and look up to my sister in so many ways. She gives her life for her family. She loves and provides for her children with commitment and loyalty. She is one of the strongest women I have ever known. She is smart, successful and passionate about life. Most of all, she loves God in a way that produces a genuine and engaging joy about her that is contagious. There are so many qualities in her that I hope are evident in my life. Happy birthday to my Sissy! After all the fights growing up (with the scars to prove it), we have...