2010: No Resolutions ... Simply A Prayer

How many times have you made New Year’s resolutions? How many times have they fallen by the wayside, say, by Groundhog Day? I know ... I’ve been there.

I saw statistics that showed 40 to 45 percent of Americans make resolutions each year. Of course, some of the most common resolutions are: eat better, lose weight, begin exercising, stop smoking, get organized, get out of debt, etc. Intentions are great and then you slip just a little and ... a well-intentioned diet is hijacked, like this one:

Breakfast: 1 half grapefruit, 1 piece of whole wheat toast (no butter), 8 ounces of skim milk, coffee (black)
Lunch: 4 ounces of lean broiled chicken breast (skin removed), 1 cup of steamed zucchini, herb tea (no sugar), 1 Oreo cookie
Afternoon snack: the rest of the package of the Oreo cookies, 1 quart Rocky Road ice cream, 1 jar of hot fudge
Dinner: 2 loaves of garlic bread (heavy on the butter), 1 large sausage & pepperoni pizza (extra cheese), 2 large milkshakes with whip cream, and for dessert 3 Milky Way candy bars and an entire frozen cheese cake

The impact of one Oreo cookie! Amazing...So, the treadmill becomes a place to hang clothes on, the clutter begins to pile up again and out come the credit cards. Yikes!

In resolution-keeping, I read that 75 percent of folks make it past the first week and about 46 percent make it past the first six months. So, maybe these resolutions aren’t important enough to us? Maybe we think we can continue to get by living however it was we were living that led us to make the resolution in the first place? Maybe we’re letting one little cookie divert our commitment?

I don’t have resolutions this year, really. Ever since my cancer diagnosis and healing, I’ve been eating better and staying fit. I have to say, I feel great! But I do have a prayer for this year...I pray that I will be faithful...faithful to my Lord and Savior and His Word. I pray for a clear, uncompromised obedience to the Word of God; I pray for a courageous, confident faith in the Son of God; I pray for the complete surrender to the Spirit of God.

And I pray that you will make it your prayer as well.

Happy New Year!

Another National Title

Congratulations to the Prestonwood Christian Academy’s Competitive Cheerleading Team for winning its sixth national championship!

What a great way to cap off the decade, having won titles in 2001, 2004, 2006, 2007 and 2008.

Prestonwood Move in D Magazine 35th Anniversary

Prestonwood is in D Magazine! In the newsstands now is an issue celebrating the magazine’s 35th anniversary.

The cover story is “The 35 Biggest Moments in Modern Dallas History.” And the magazine's editors selected Prestonwood's move to Plano as one of those moments. So a few weeks ago I was asked to write about that watershed moment in the history of Prestonwood.

Here’s an excerpt, and a link to the magazine above, but go pick up a copy!

I shudder to think what would have happened had we stayed where we were. We would have limited the church’s potential and the possibilities for it to fulfill the Great Commission. The Prestonwood family didn’t resist—we believed, we trusted, and God provided for us every step of the way.

I am grateful for the privilege of being the pastor of this great church and to be blessed with the opportunity to reach this region and the world for Christ. God is not finished with Prestonwood. He brought us to Hebron Road for a reason. In the Bible, the word Hebron means “face to face with God.” I’ve sensed that we’ve come face to face with God in this place.

Christmas at Prestonwood

We experienced a lovely Christmas Eve with wonderful Candlelight Services at Prestonwood.

What a beautiful sight it is to see thousands of candles aglow! (Included is a photo of my beautiful wife, Deb, singing “A Thousand Candles.”)

And to make it even more special, snow began falling on Christmas Eve so we woke up to a White Christmas...

Truly a Christmas to remember...

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

From my family and the PowerPoint family, we pray that you and yours will enjoy a Christmas like never before, one where you deeply experience the true meaning of this blessed season...celebrating the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. A baby born in a manger so long ago is God's gift to me and you--His very presence among us. I pray that you will share this gift so that the miracle of Christmas will be realized in the lives of many, many more. Merry Christmas!

GLORIA

We recently experienced our annual Christmas presentation at Prestonwood, which drew more than 20,000 folks from throughout the area. Like last year's Gloria, it was a gorgeous celebration. In fact, if you'd like to see what I'm talking about, you can catch last year's presentation on a station near you... I've listed the dates below:

December 24, 2009
Church Channel … 6:30a - 7:00a CT
CW Waco, TX … 7:00a - 8:00a CT
Family Net … 7:00p - 8:00p CT
KONG Seattle-Tacoma, WA … 10:30p - 11:30p PT
Daystar … 11:00a - 12:00p CT
Daystar … 8:00p - 9:00p CT
KBTX-CBS Bryan, TX … 11:30a - 12:30p CT
KMOV-CBS St. Louis, MO …11:30a - 12:30p CT
KYTX-CBS - Tyler, TX … 11:30p - 12:30a CT

December 25, 2009
WFAA-ABC Dallas, TX … 12:00a - 1:00a CT
Daystar … 12:00a - 1:00a CT
KREM-CBS Spokane, WA … 12:30a - 1:00a PT
KWTX-CBS Waco, TX … 1:00a - 2:00a CT
KTVB-NBC Boise, ID … 5:00a - 6:00a MT
Family Net … 1:00p - 2:00p CT
KTVB-NBC Boise, ID … 2:00p - 3:00p MT
Church Channel … 3:00p - 3:30p CT
MYTX - Tyler, TX … 7:00p - 8:00p CT
KCEN-NBC – Waco … 2:00a - 3:00a CT
KCEN-NBC – Waco … 6:00a - 7:00a CT
KBMT-ABC Beaumont … 6:00a - 7:00a CT
KJAC-NBC Beaumont … 6:00a - 7:00a CT
Daystar … 5:00p - 6:00p CT

December 26, 2009
Inspiration … 8:00p - 9:00p ET

A Trip of a Lifetime

During the wonderful Christmas season, my thoughts always turn to the birthplace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Deb and I have been blessed to visit Israel various times. And I can tell you that I have come away feeling incredibly grateful for the spiritual heritage we discover each time we visit. I’ve always said that a trip to the Holy Land is like a front row seat to the Bible.

We’re taking this journey once again June 17–27, and we’d love for you to join us. We’ll walk where Jesus and His Disciples walked. We’ll taste, smell and experience this amazing place in ways that will transform the way you read and study the Bible. This is truly a remarkable time of growth and spiritual renewal.

On this visit, we’ll visit the land of the Bible east of the Jordan River. We’ll travel to Petra, the rose-colored city carved out of red sandstone and considered one by many as of one the eight wonders of the ancient world. Did you know it was lost to civilization for centuries until rediscovered in 1812?

This is truly a trip of a lifetime!

I’ve included a couple of links that will help (Marriott Dead Sea Resort in Jordan and www.bibleplaces.com.) To register, visit discoveryministries.com/ministry.

Friendly Rivalry

I know what you’re thinking, “Jack, this is sounding an awful lot like a sports blog.” Well, I know...But, let me blog just one more item! I mentioned during services last weekend that we have an incredibly talented boys basketball team at Prestonwood Christian Academy. The cool thing is, many of our members have children who attend Trinity Christian Academy, another fine Christian school about five miles south of us.

Trinity has long had a great sports program, and last year PCA and TCA squared off in the boys basketball state championship. It was a great game and TCA captured the title...

So, everybody around these parts was pumped yesterday when the two teams met up again here. It was standing-room-only. I was excited to able to attend and watch these young guys play so hard. This is for bragging rights, you know! Anyway, PCA pulled out a squeaker, 38-37.

I’m looking forward to watching these two great teams continue this friendly rivalry in the coming years.

PCA FOOTBALL RECOGNITION

This past weekend in our services, we recognized the PCA football team, state champs for the second time! I hope you'll take a moment to view the clip below.

Early Christmas Present

Merry Christmas to me and all other Texas Rangers fans! Nolan Ryan's group gets exclusive negotioning rights to buy the team... Whew! Tom Hicks sure dragged out the process... I'm just glad he made the right decision not to alienate all of Rangers Nation by picking one of the other groups that likely would have meant the end of Nolan's tenure in the front office. So now we wait for MLB to put its stamp of approval on this new ownership group.

And then ... we'll anxiously await the greatest player ever to put on a Rangers uniform to work his magic off the field as the owner...

Glorious Christmas Season

She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins. --Matthew 1:21

In the busyness of the season, it’s easy to lose sight of how truly incredible the miracle of Christmas really is

Think about it. Jesus bridged the gulf of sin between God and mankind (you, if you’re a believer) by taking the form of man.

The story of Christmas is the Greatest Story Ever Told because Jesus came to bear the devastation and pain of our sins. It’s unimaginable, but true!

Christmas is about redemption. It’s about hope. As the verse above says, “He will save his people from their sins.”

When you get a glimpse of what Jesus came to do, you can recapture the wonder and awe of this Christmas season.

Because Christ came, we can be filled with joy, hope, and peace! And that is Good News worth celebrating!

Special Friends...Special Night

One of the greatest ministries we have at Prestonwood is the Special Needs Ministry. This, along with our Prestonwood Pregnancy Center, is what I call a “Jesus Ministry.” Last night I was blessed to attend the annual Special Needs Ministry Dinner. This is the fourth time we’ve held this and we had our greatest turnout with nearly 350 in attendance.

I’ll tell you, I was so honored to be there. I met families who said how much this ministry has meant to them. And just seeing the joy on their faces touched my heart.

On any given Sunday, we have about 100 families taking part in the Special Needs Ministry. It is a great joy to welcome with open arms special needs children and adults who many times have been turned away at churches that were not able to meet their needs.

This truly is a special ministry.

LIONS TAKE STATE!

Congratulations to our Prestonwood Christian Academy football team for winning the TAPPS Division II State Championship! Our boys saved the best for last, playing a great game to defeat Argyle Liberty Christian 35-17 this afternoon in Killeen.

PCA wasn’t expected to win; but our team showed the heart of a lion, never slowing down, never giving up.

I am so proud of Coach Chris Cunningham and the entire staff and team for their perseverance and hard work the entire season, but especially for playing the game the right way … and giving all glory and honor to God.

What a wonderful way to end the season and what a great example this team has set for our younger kids. Thank you, Lions, for an amazing season!

Powerful PowerLunch Fall Season

This week we closed another great season of PowerLunch at Prestonwood. For those of you who live in the Dallas area and have never attended, I’m giving you ample notice ... mark your calendar and come out next season because we got a great lineup of speakers already!

We’ve been hosting PowerLunch as long as I’ve been the pastor of Prestonwood. It’s a lunchtime gathering we have every Tuesday in the Student Ministry Building. I invite guest speakers who have a powerful message. And I’m telling you, during our 12 gatherings from September to December, we had some amazing speakers that drew nearly 8,000 people. The great thing was that so many of the people on any given Tuesday were first-time attendees.

We heard the amazing story behind the I Am Second campaign from Nathan Sheets and Norm Miller. Michelle Aguilar, the winner of the The Biggest Loser: Families (sixth season) talked about the great challenge she endured, both physically and emotionally. Nearly 1,500 came out to hear Anne Graham Lotz, Billy’s daughter, who blessed us with an incredible message. Emmy-Award winning broadcaster Deborah Norville talked to us about “respect.” And then there was Ron Hall and Denver Moore, who were returning to PowerLunch for the third time... They were just as great this time around. It was just a remarkable season ... and I can’t wait for the next one, which kicks off Jan. 12.

Do me a favor, click here to check out the lineup of speakers so far... And, if you scroll down a little, click on “Replay Fall 2009” and you can read what our speakers had to say.