EdYoungBlog

Beyond the Walls

What They Don't Talk About in Seminary

U. B. U.

Just released my first rap video at C3 2010! U. B. U.

No Secrets

We sometimes need to be reminded of why we do ministry.  The calling on my life was given to me when I was 21 years of age.  There were no words that any individual could have given me to persuade me to enter the ministry, or to stay out of the ministry.  When God tugged at my heart to follow Him into full time service for His kingdom, it was only because of His call.

To this day, I look back over the 28 years of ministry, and without a doubt, if my ministry work was for anyone one or anything other than God, I would not do it.  I serve an audience of One.  With that being said, I want to share with you some recent media attention that Lisa and I have received.

A local reporter has spent what seems to be a great deal of time investigating me concerning my integrity as the leader of Fellowship Church.  We have not seen the piece that was aired, nor will we give credence to it by watching.  We do know that the report is scathing and creates the idea that I, along with my wife Lisa, have been dishonest in our business dealings and with our use of Fellowship Church as a means of obtaining personal wealth.

The reporter sent an email request for information, but refused to give us any details or information that he obtained from an anonymous source.  He only said that he has spoken with former staff members about us. But we have no verification of who he has spoken with.  We do not know his source(s) and it is irrelevant to us.  What we do know is that this report was made based on fragments of information gathered out of context and anonymously, and that it disregarded documented information that the Board of Directors for Fellowship Church is privy to and that is known by legal counsel and accounting audits.

The piece insinuates that I keep secrets from the congregation of Fellowship Church and that I use Fellowship Church to create personal wealth. Let me say very clearly, Lisa and I have no secrets. 

My life is lived in an aquarium, and I am not ashamed of that fact.  Do I share every detail of my life with the congregation of Fellowship Church?  No.  But it isn’t because my life is secretive.  It is because there are details that the proper people know, hold me accountable to and make the decisions based on what is best for Fellowship Church and its ministries.

I have never claimed to have lived a perfect life. I do, however, claim to live a life of integrity. I don’t make that claim lightly. 

Before God, the Board of Directors and the legal and financial accountants have governed the workings of Fellowship Church and its staff.  We operate in a manner that is “worthy of the calling of Christ Jesus” and have no apologies, nor would we change anything that we have done on behalf of the unbelievable ministry of Fellowship Church. 

Ironically, the reporter told a Public Relations spokesperson for Fellowship Church that this story was set to air during sweeps week, as it will be of high interest. 

Well, every week is sweeps week for Fellowship Church. And we will continue to do ministry with those who are far away from God in mind, and we will work tirelessly to make sure that the message of Jesus is at the forefront of everything we do.

The past 20 years have exceeded anything we could have ever imagined. Yet, at the same time, we truly believe the best is yet to come! We hope to see you this weekend as I begin a brand new message series called "Influence”.

It's for everyone...and their iguana!

We'll see you here!

Hope 4 Haiti Initiative

The past few days have been a whirlwind of activity, and I wanted to update you on what we are doing to help the victims of the earthquake in Haiti.

In our continued efforts, we have formed a valuable partnership with Convoy of Hope—a humanitarian organization that already has established facilities and personnel on the ground in Haiti. Because of the generosity and support of the people of Fellowship Church, we have already been able to contribute significantly to this organization.

Also, as a result of Fellowship Church’s influence through C3, we are leading a global effort with other churches to gather and deliver supplies directly to the island.

Just 36 hours after the earthquake struck,

C3 sent our first airplane of much needed supplies to the island.

And through the community of churches in C3 and your support, we will continue to gather supplies at our Miami campus and get them to the people of Haiti. You can help make this happen! And I encourage you to do all you can for our Hope 4 Haiti initiative.

This is a difficult time for thousands of people. But this is also a time when we can work together to show Christ’s love to the people of Haiti in a very real and tangible way!

Reaching Out

Over the past several hours, I’ve been praying for the people and thinking about the situation in Haiti. And as I reflect on the devastation and destruction that so many people are experiencing right now, I can’t help but see an opportunity for the Church to reach out and make a difference!

Right now, details are still coming in from the Red Cross about specific physical needs and how we can help. But as those details become available, we are opening up our Miami campus as a collection point. I encourage you to contribute what you can to what they need. If you are outside of the South Florida area, you can help by texting HAITI to 90999 to donate $10 to relief efforts.

This is a difficult time for thousands of people. And I encourage you to pray for all those affected by this tragedy. But this is also a time when the Church can truly assist and, in a very tangible way, show the world what following Christ is all about!

Stay tuned for more updates here and on my Twitter and Facebook as well.

Do You Ever Have the Itch to Baptize?

This past Sunday we had an amazing number of people make the decision to follow Christ. I watched as hundreds of people flooded the altar areas of our different campuses. And as they were standing down front, I suddenly got an itch to baptize. I hadn’t planned it. We didn’t know it was going to happen. But it did. And it was amazing.

Quickly, our team got everything together for that spontaneous baptism (our staff motto is: I’m always ready to do anything, everything or nothing!) And after preaching, I ran up to my office, threw on a pair of shorts and a tee shirt, and bolted to the baptismal area.

While running out of the building (out of excitement), I cut through one of our flower beds (ignoring signs), bounded down the hill and began to baptize. What an incredible experience! Tears of joy, laughter and applause cut through the crisp fall air as so many young people at the zenith of their lives went public with their decision to follow Christ and do a 180 in their lives.

However, several days later, I began to have a horrendous itch on the back of my legs that looked strangely like poison ivy. I thought, “Where did I come in contact with this demonic plant?”

Then it hit me like a ton of bricks. It was in the flower bed (that I shouldn’t have cut through)! I walked away from this ordeal with itchy legs and two powerful reminders.

First: always follow the itch to baptize!

So many of the church numbers lists are focused on attendance. But really, we should follow the number of baptisms. This is what it is all about. It’s great to know who’s showing up. But the bigger question is: who are you reaching?

The second moral: stay out of the flower beds!

In other words, God has a path set for you and he's posted signs along the way. Walk where you are supposed to walk. If we walk on HIS grass and stay out of HIS beds, we won’t have to deal with the poison ivy that may be there, the poison ivy we were never intended to deal with in the first place!

"The Today Show" ... Yesterday

Lisa and I had the opportunity to be on The Today Show yesterday to talk about the important role women play in churches. And I said, I think the role of women is the soul of society!
 

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Back to the Basics, Again

I posted this video for the first time about a year and a half ago. But I think it's always important to remind ourselves of why we do what we do. It's all about getting back to the basics, again.