Touring and Sharing

A few times a week, we have seminary and church groups from all over the country and the world coming to Prestonwood for tours and to visit with staff about our ministries.

We had a group of about a dozen today from Bujeon Church in Busan, South Korea, the second largest city in the country with 3.6 million people. With our weekly PowerLunch going on today, they were also able to enjoy a meal and hear a powerful message from guest speaker Chad Hennings, former U.S. Air Force pilot and three-time Super Bowl winner with the Dallas Cowboys.

Many times, while I’m out and about on the campus, I’ll run into these groups, and I’ll tell you, it’s a privilege and an honor to have them here. Just a few weeks ago I met a group of about 30 students (in the photo) from Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Seoul. They were headed to Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and were also going to tour churches in California, Massachusetts and New York.

To be able to share information about what we do here and how we do, anything that can help them reach the millions in their home country who do not yet know Christ, is indeed a blessing.

Haiti Post Script

God is moving in Haiti. Christian groups truly have been the hands and feet of God since the earthquake struck the island country. I read this morning a story about religious leaders uniting in Port-Au-Prince yesterday for a national day of mourning on the one month anniversary of the earthquake...The awesome element was not that voodoo priests and Catholics and Protestant ministers came together...The final two paragraphs in the story are what moved me:

Since the quake, some voodoo followers have converted to Christianity.

"The earthquake scared me," said Veronique Malot, 24, who joined an evangelical church two weeks ago. "Voodoo has been in my family, but the government isn't helping us. The only people giving aid are the Christian churches."

NBA All-Star Game Chapel

When Cowboys Stadium hosts the NBA All-Star Game on Sunday, it will be the largest gathering ever for a basketball game. More than 90,000 are expected. Wouldn’t it be awesome to have a crowd like that for an event where God is the focus?

I’ll be there on Sunday ... not for a revival ... but I will be leading Chapel for general managers, coaches and their invited guests. It’s a wonderful opportunity to share the Word of God with people who will have the largest platform (figuratively and literally since Cowboys Stadium is a jaw-dropping 3 million square feet!) in the world on Sunday night.

Please pray that the message I bring will touch the hearts and lives of those who will be attending...

"White As Snow"

It’s snowing again ... and I don’t believe I’ve ever seen a more beautiful snowfall in the Dallas area since I’ve been here.

I drove onto the campus this morning and saw the unbridled joy of our Prestonwood Christian Academy students playing in the snow. And then, while studying, I looked out my office window (photo above) at the beautiful snowfall and started to think about how God’s grace and mercy remove all sin and guilt and cleanse us "white as snow."

What an incredible image! Standing outside as the snow blankets us, renewing us...And what a powerful message! We are washed and removed of our sin and shame. That is a message we simply can’t share enough.

I truly believe God has blessed this church because we have been faithful in sharing the Gospel, whether here or abroad.

Since I arrived here at Prestonwood in 1989, I have leaned on Ephesians 3:20–21: Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever.

He has done exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think...And His mercy and grace continue to rain down on us like gorgeous snow...

A Heart for Haiti

I wrote earlier about various ministries we’re supporting that are helping the people of Haiti recover from the earthquake. I mentioned Samaritan’s Purse, the international Christian relief organization led by my good friend (or cousin, as we call each other) Franklin Graham.

I’ve traveled with Franklin before for Operation Christmas Child and I can tell you God truly has given him a heart for the hurting, the poorest of the poor. I am so grateful for what Samaritan’s Purse does in times of need. And the need is still dire in Haiti. (As the photo from Samaritan's Purse illustrates.) More than 200,000 are dead and about 300,000 were injured, and countless are homeless and sick from diseases that have come as a result of the earthquake.

Samaritan’s Purse is still on the grounds, not only tending to the physical and medical needs of the people, but the spiritual as well...You can help, through prayer and by donating money to help fund their ministry work.

Here's a great video from Franklin that I think says it all...

There's an App for That...

You know you’ve arrived (technologically speaking) when you are an app. So, go to your friendly App Store on your iPhone today and you’ll find there’s an app for PowerPoint Ministries and an app for Prestonwood.

It doesn’t get much easier than that... Seriously, can you believe how easy our lives have become? The world is literally at our fingertips.

Now, that can be good and not so good...We choose to use it for good. Our mission at Prestonwood is “to glorify God by introducing Jesus Christ as Lord to as many people as possible and to develop them in Christian living using the most effective means to impact the world, making a positive difference in this generation.” If we aren’t taking advantage of the technology that our culture relies on today, we’re missing an incredible opportunity to reach countless all over the world with the transforming message of the Gospel.

Audio and video messages from the Prestonwood pulpit are easily accessible now no matter where you are. Most importantly, you can share it with those who don’t yet know our Lord Jesus Christ.

Resolution Solutions: A Healthier You in 2010

Today, the PowerLunch crowd here at Prestonwood heard from a panel about the importance of beginning a new journey to become healthy and fit in this new decade. I’ve joked that for many of us, resolutions seem to be forgotten by Groundhog’s Day (today!) So we had two personal trainers certified by the Cooper Clinic, my daughter-in-law Toby Graham, and Matt Brady, and Mike Maack, our Director of Sports Outreach here at the church...

They provided great information, like making fitness a lifestyle and a journey, not a destination that you stop working on when you reach a specific goal ... about doing simple things like finding a parking space farther away than usual and taking the stairs instead of the elevator ... about keeping cravings in check by finding out just how many calories a piece of chocolate cake has and what it will take to burn it off – before you eat it!

All this got me thinking about the benefits of exercise and some great information that Dr. Ken Cooper, a longtime Prestonwood member and founder of Cooper Clinic, has provided... Check it out below. I know it’ll challenge you to forget the resolutions and just make it your life’s journey to stay fit and healthy.

The Benefits of Exercise

Exercise:
• Makes rest and relaxation much easier
• Helps the lungs function more efficiently,

making breathing easier
• Increases the efficiency of the heart
• Lowers resting heart rate
• Helps the heart pump more blood with less effort
• Raises metabolism
• Increases muscle mass
• Reduces fat
• Increases bone density
• Delays or prevents osteoporosis
• Increases circulation
• Decreases the likelihood of peptic ulcers and esophageal reflux
• Strengthens the immune system
• Lowers risk of strokes
• Reduces high blood pressure
• Lowers the risk of breast cancer
• Reduces the risk of Alzheimer’s
• Increases life expectancy up to10 years
• Improves the memory and cognitive ability of the brain
• Increases performance and production at work
• Improves attitude at home and at work due to the release of endorphins
• Makes you feel better
• Makes you look younger
• Helps you become a better role model and leader
• Positively affects your witness for Christ as your body is God’s temple

Exercise Decreases:
• Fatigue
• Snoring
• Heartburn
• Lower back pain
• Chronic joint or muscle pain
• Headaches
• Sleeping difficulty
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Upper respiratory infections and colds
• Likelihood of diabetes
• Body weight, which greatly impacts health
• Brain fatigue
• Absenteeism
• Cost of health care
• Your portion of health insurance costs

Healthy Eating and Good Nutrition:
• Help control your body weight
• Increase energy
• Keep you in a better mood
• Promote healthier pregnancies and babies
• Improve bodily functions
• Help you sleep better and feel more rested
• Make you feel better
• Cause you to look younger
• Help you manage your weight
• Lead to better skin tone
• Keep bones healthy
• Prevent dementia
• Prevent headaches
• Prevent depression
• Prevent arthritis
• Make hair and nails shinier and healthy
• Slow aging process

Help Avoid:
• Heart trouble
• High blood pressure
• High cholesterol
• Osteoporosis

Lower the Risk of Chronic Diseases As Well As the Top Three Causes of Death
• Cancer
• Heart disease
• Stroke