by David Docusen | January 20, 2017 | Uncategorized
I have never been more uncomfortable, and I have never felt more alive. As it turns out, God is using tension to show me something rather beautiful in the midst of brokenness.
Two years ago, I got a call from my friend, Darren, which completely changed the trajectory of my life and ministry. Darren is a longtime friend that seamlessly transitions between his passion for entrepreneurship in both the business world and non-profit space in our community. “I’ve got a property that I want you to look at for your church. However, it’s not where you have talked about wanting to be in the heart of Uptown Charlotte. It’s just West of the city. There’s a businessman, Casey Crawford, that has purchased a 40,000 square foot property and he’s turning it into a non-profit hub, but they also want a local church in there that has a heart for the community.” I agreed to check it out.
Two years later, we are actively involved in the West Charlotte community, having renovated an 8,000 square foot portion of this warehouse into five classrooms and a 300-seat multiple purpose venue. Our church uses this on Sunday mornings, but in reality, that’s not the main event. Life is being lived in collaboration with people seven days a week in this building. The kingdom of God has no logo, and no church has a holistic grip on the fullness of the Church (the body of Christ). However, I’m grateful our church family gets to play our part in the beautiful symphony that he’s conducting in West Charlotte.
Each day, our building is full of kids from Ashley Park PreK-8 School, which is recognized as the highest poverty school in North Carolina. High school students from the community have been employed through UrbanPromise Charlotte to tutor, mentor, and befriend elementary school kids that are working hard and laughing along the way.
The Harvest Center (one of our partners in the building) has become a lighthouse for our homeless friends in the community that arrive on campus looking for a hot meal and leave realizing that there is hope for their future through Jesus.
Each Wednesday, our venue is full of friends from across the community that choose to pray together from 12pm-1pm. Pastors, non-profit leaders, business folks, and Jesus-loving men and women from our community gather and pray for God to establish the beauty and peace of his kingdom in West Charlotte as it is in Heaven.
In the past two years, I’ve never seen or experienced a more beautiful expression of the Gospel.
I am going to start processing some of what I’m learning in this space. Even though this blog has my name on it, I’m only one small piece of a great story, and I want to share this story with others. I’m praying that you’ll be encouraged to embrace the tension in your own life in regards to the division that has come across racial and socio-economic lines, both in Charlotte and around the world. After all, we’re not as different as we may have been led to believe.
I am so grateful that Darren called and that Casey bought this building. I’m overwhelmed in the best way that we were invited to the party. We all get to play our part, no matter how unqualified we feel. I feel that every day, and my life is better because of this tension. I have never felt more uncomfortable, and I have never felt more alive.
I hope you’ll join us on this journey.
by David Docusen | March 16, 2016 | Uncategorized
I get bored really easily. Conversely, I’m like many of you – drawn to the excitement of vision and new things. However, I’m realizing that most of my life is played out in the “in between moments.”I can’t think of many deeply meaningful things in my life that have come to pass quickly. Marriage. Kids. Friendships. Vision. I’m learning to simply be patient, and let God uncover the layers that I don’t even know exist in these areas of my life. Many times, these layers are uncovered in seasons of routine, day after day, learning to love God and each other well.
Do you feel bored in the monotony sometimes?
Ever wish that there was something more exciting?
If you do, welcome to the club. However, I think that the times of monotony are actually a gift from God. When we are in seasons of routine, this helps us to identify our own decision-making and patterns that will also lead to spiritual growth, and growth in our relationships with others. These seasons can be really challenging, because we are drawn to vision, the new and exciting. It’s a lot easier to celebrate the beauty of God when we’re seeing things come to pass that are fun and exciting.
Your disciplines are magnified when you are in seasons of monotony. You’re able to see how and where you’re spending your time. We learn to praise him simply because it’s Tuesday, and he’s allowing us to have another “day of meetings,” or whatever your Tuesday may hold (Tuesdays are my meeting days).
Proverbs 16 is one of my favorite chapters of the Bible, and it reminds me to just chill out, be patient, and allow God to do what he’s going to do, even if it takes longer than I would hope. Here’s a few verses to chew on today:
**Proverbs 16:1 – We can make our own plans, but the Lord gives the right answer.
**Proverbs 16:3 – Commit your actions to the Lord, and your plans will succeed.
**Proverbs 16:9 – We can make our plans, but the Lord determines your steps.
**Proverbs 16:32 – Better to be patient than powerful; better to have self-control than to conquer a city.
These are all great reminders that we have our timeline for things, and God has his. When things don’t come to pass as quickly as you want them to, be reminded that boring seasons of monotony are laying foundations of faithfulness for the next seasons to come.
I needed to this today.
by David Docusen | December 30, 2014 | Uncategorized
Sara is one of my favorite writers…she posted our story on her blog today. Big honor to share that space with her.
by David Docusen | December 6, 2014 | Uncategorized
Today was one of my favorite days.
I spent the day with my family. All day. Dara, Max (10), Mary (9), Jack (7) and Ben (5). Max and Ben had basketball games. Friends and family joined us. Jack exploded in his first real game ever. He scored 14 of his team’s 20 points. Max played a solid game, hitting the only two shots he took, while playing great point guard and leading the team well. Ben and Mary played on the sidelines, stopping every once in a while for a hug.
Two of our friends (and leaders in our church family), Ryan & Calli joined us for all the festivities. I watched as they watched our family, with wonder in their eyes. Almost like they were observing our family while letting their imagination run wild. You see, they are pregnant with their first child.
I remember that look in mine and Dara’s eyes almost twelve years ago when we were first pregnant with Max. I smiled today. All day. God has blessed our family with love, joy, hope, and peace (all rooted in Jesus). And it struck me – this is community. This is family. This is what a church family is all about…enjoying life together (centered around our love for our Savior). Ryan and Calli (pictured below), you guys brought me back a dozen years today. You’ll be the ones sitting there in a handful of years, cheering your kids on. And, knowing you guys, you’ll have a young couple with you…watching as you beam with pride as little Superstar Fawcett hits his/her first fadeaway jumper.
I love my family. I love our community. I love Ryan and Calli and their baby we’ll meet soon. And I long for everyone to know this joy that we have found (all rooted in Jesus). So grateful.
by David Docusen | November 17, 2014 | Uncategorized
**Luke 11:1 – Once Jesus was in a certain place praying.
As he finished, one of his disciples came to him and said,
“Lord, teach us to pray…”
I have decided to make a detour in my scheduled preaching calendar this week at Center City Church. For the past week, I’ve been fascinated by this request that one of the unnamed disciples made of Jesus: “Lord, teach us to pray…”
This is a topic that is probably assumed more than it is taught in our current church culture. Just like this disciple asked of Jesus, I believe that there are many people that long to talk to God, but for a variety of reasons, never seem to fully engage in conversation with the creator of their souls.
I DON’T KNOW WHERE TO START.
I remember seeing my wife, Dara, at an event in 1999 at her church in Concord, NC. I thought she was absolutely beautiful, but I was intimidated to even begin the conversation. I didn’t have a good opening line to spark compelling interaction with her, so I didn’t say anything at all. That turned out to be my loss, because it was another year before we saw each other again and I missed out on chatting with the most intriguing woman in the world.
I think, for similar reasons, many people do not even engage God in conversation because they feel like there are some sort of unspoken or unwritten rules (or spoken and written rules they they have yet to encounter) that would give them appropriate conversation starters with the creator of the universe. There are no such rules, but God does give us a great conversation starter in Luke 11:1-4:
Jesus said, “This is how you should pray:“Father, may your name be kept holy.
May your Kingdom come soon.
Give us each day the food we need,
and forgive us our sins,
as we forgive those who sin against us.
And don’t let us yield to temptation.”
I DON’T KNOW WHAT TO SAY.
I will never forget meeting Hulk Hogan and Brutus the Barber Beefcake when I was six years old. They were World Wrestling Federation megastars in 1985 and I was completely in awe. Their action figures were probably packed in my carry on bag that day. I had to say something to them, but what? I finally got up enough courage to speak and out came, “Are you Hulk Hogan?” He looked straight into my terrified soul and simply said, “Yes.” All of my childhood dreams were confirmed at gate 8C as we awaited our shared flight to Detroit, MI.
I had no clue what to do next, so I looked down into my hands and proceeded to say, “Do you want my Snickers bar?” It was a huge offer from a six year old. Mr. Hulk laughed politely and said, “I’m trying to watch my figure.” Of COURSE he was trying to watch his figure! He’s a superstar that rips his shirt off and exposes his bulging muscles as a part of his profession. Even as a six year old, I felt so silly. He proceeded to sign my boarding pass (which I kept on my mirror at home for many years) and I was thrilled. I spent the next two and a half hours on that flight quietly staring at my hero that was seated two rows behind me on the plane.
God does not care if you come to him with silly requests or ill-prepared conversation starters. He just wants to talk to you. He longs to hear your voice. And he longs for you to grow more and more comfortable in conversation with him.
WHAT DO WE DO WITH THE SILENCE?
I knew that I had a keeper when Dara and I spent an entire meal without talking. You read that right. It was one of our first dates at the Cheesecake Factory in Orlando, FL and we had a delicious meal in front of us that evening. We both are huge fans of great food, and that evening we laughed as we chatted before and after the meal. But during the meal, we both just appreciated the delectable entrees prepared for us. The best part was that both of us were totally comfortable in the silence. I knew I had found someone I could spend my life with because I didn’t feel pressure to always talk.
Many times, the things that we want to bring to the conversation are focused on things that we can address. Things that we can see, feel or hear that have caught our attention. When we are comfortable with God in silence, we allow him to bring things to our attention. Many times this leads to a time of repentance for areas in our life that need to be addressed. Other times he will bring up people or situations that we would normally be too busy or cluttered to think of ourselves.
I am excited to dig into this topic a bit more on Sunday at Center City Church. I am praying that God will spark passion in our hearts to communicate with the creator of our souls with comfort and regularity.
by David Docusen | October 11, 2014 | Uncategorized
I used to think of my relationship with God in terms of a compass. I always wanted to find “true north” in my relationship with Jesus. That is an acceptable metaphor, I’m sure, but I have re-calibrated my journey this week.
Dr. Steven Fettke is one of the most respected professors in the school of Pentecostal theology. He has given over 35 years to teaching the truths found in Scripture. This week, I have had the great privilege of sitting under his teaching again as a part of the Masters of Arts in Ministerial Leadership program I am pursuing through my alma mater, Southeastern University. He introduced the discipline of purgation to our class this week. This lesson has been nothing short of perspective-altering.
If you’re anything like me, it is incredibly difficult to concentrate on the still, small voice of the Lord (as described in 1 Kings 19) when there is so much flying through your head. The discipline of purgation allows these thoughts to go through your mind, but as if they are traveling on a river. The thoughts will arise, but they will continue to carry on down the river as you practice this discipline.
Simply defined, purgation is the discipline of allowing the Lord
to purge your mind of every distraction.
Another word to replace such a lofty work like purgation
would simply be the word, centering.
Centering is the process of sitting before the Lord in utter and complete silence for a period of time before you ever pray or read. This allows your heart, mind and spirit to settle down. Dr. Fettke stated, “Many times, we want to bring our agenda to the Lord, but centering allows us to lay down our agenda and receive what the Lord’s agenda is for us that day.” He continued, “We need to realize that, many times, our agenda can be an idol in our lives because God is wanting to do something completely different in us that we would have not expected.”
I have taken the last five days and practiced this discipline in the morning and the evening. I started really slow, with my first experience only lasting two minutes (at the most). Honestly, it was uncomfortable. My mind was racing, but I continued to view my thoughts as if they were on a river, passing through and continuing on down the river. The next day, I spent more time in silence.
Today, my fifth day, I completely broke. I found myself in utter and complete shambles as the names of family and friends in our community and around the world started to come to my remembrance. Tears flowed as I realized that I was not alone in my time of silence, but an entire community was with me as I brought all of them with me to the feet of Jesus in prayer. I moved on from that time of silence and prayed for quite a while. The Lord had brought HIS agenda to me.
Would you try this practice for a few days? Start small. Start simple.
Maybe even just sixty seconds. No bringing your prayers to the Lord.
Just sit in utter and complete silence and allow
the Lord to bring his agenda to your day.
I used to think that I was continuing to find true north. Now, my daily journey is simply to find my center.
