10-24-10 Reflex...

So yesterday was the day. We issued, yet again, another radical call to follow Jesus by calling people to come forward out of the crowd and be baptized in our worship services. All in all, I think we baptized 158 people yesterday @mountainlakechurch! Praise God through whom ALL blessings flow.  Here are a few reflex for me:

• The message and baptisms from BOTH services willl be posted HERE later 2day.
• What we witnessed yesterday was like a scene out of the New Testament!
• Thanks to Eric Echols and Blake Stanley, whose backs and arm are sore today after baptizing 156 of the 158 baptisms!
• Thanks to John Shepherd, Spiritual Formations Pastor, and Wendy Poole, her Life Group, and our baptism team who helped make yesterday a HUGE success!
• We baptized 89 people in the second worship service alone! 
• We lost so much water with so many people being baptized in the second service that Dixon Poole had to take the stage with the water hose and start refilling it WHILE we were still baptizing! THAT'S a TON of baptisms!
• We turned two of our hallways coming out of the Auditorium, my office, and other backstage rooms into changing rooms for this day. We needed every ounce of that space!
• 158 people still hold alot of water when they come out of it! The stage was soaked. The hallways were soaked. My office was soaked. The restrooms were soaked. The lobby was soaked. Eric & Blake were soaked. That's a good baptism day!
• Baptized a young man who attends my Life Group.  He had never been in a Life_Group before a couple months ago. He's been coming to our church for five yrs. God uses relationships in small groups!
• We baptized a man who once told me one he loved our church; but he'd be baptized over his dead body. He must be dead because he got dunked yesterday!
• We baptized probably a dozen people over 6o yrs of age! I love it when God teaches old dogs new tricks! Thanks for modeling the way, Seniors!  
• My Middle School daughter, Hannah (who's already been baptized), told me later, SHE sat in our crowd and cried tears of joy as she watched all the people being baptized. Wow. Faith impacts faith.
• 158 people gave evidence of the fact that God directly spoke to them.
• 158 people proved they care more about what God thinks than what others think.
• 158 peopel proved they mean business in following Jesus.
• 158 people proved they are not ahamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ!
• 158 people impacted my life and and they will impact the the lives of thousands of other people through their obedience. 
• The fact that God would use me to be part of this is a testimony of His amazing grace. To GOD be the glory.
• So glad I got ackowledge publicly how much I love my wife. So glad she got to witness some fruit of our labors once again. I love you, Tricia.
• Game changing day @mtnlakechurch.