ChrisHollomon.org

I’m normally not one to be out my goals for everyone.  However, for this one I need your accountability and encouragement.  I started a couple weeks ago training to run a 5k at the end of February.  Things have been going decent I would say.  Anyway the last couple times I have gone to run at the YMCA I have seen people working out in clothes that are not meant to be worked out in.  Of course me being the workout expert that I am keeps thinking to myself, your workout will go so much better if you would come prepared to work out.  Last night as I was running and about to die, I saw a man running in his jeans and thought the same thing again.  As I sat there and thought in my head, if you would come prepared to workout then your workout would be better, God got all over me.

Chris if you would come in on Wednesday and Sundays more prepared to meet with me your worship experience would be so much more beneficial.  Wow!  How many times do I just come into worship waiting on God to do something in my life?  What would happen if I let Him do some of those things in my life before I ever came in and then saw what He really wanted to do with me that day!  How are you preparing yourself for worship daily?

We have amazing friends!  Friends who love Dawn and I! Friends who already love our son even before any of us have meet him.  The Dover/White Small Group is throwing a Super Bowl Party for Dawn and me to benefit our adoption fund.  Here are the details below.  I would love for you all to come out and help us bring our son home.

Please join the Dover/White Small Group for Food, Fun and Football to benefit Dawn and Chris Hollomon’s adoption fund.

February 1, 2009 @ 4:00 pm in the Multi-Purpose Room at First Baptist Church, Smyrna.

$15 suggested donation per adult

$10 suggested donation for each person ages 10-18

No Suggested donation for children under 10

Please RSVP with Dawn White @ dawn.white@comcast.net

We would love to see all of you there.  Bring your family or make this your small groups super bowl party as we bring home baby Hollomon!

While I was away last week at school our staff sat down to reevaluate how we would be operating in our current economy.  During this meeting our senior leadership team lead us to a decision that we will be watching our dollars extra close during the first quarter of this year in order not to fall behind the eight ball in our finances. 

I am so grateful to work with a team that took this challenge on with a sense of urgency.  I am even more grateful to be lead by a team that is proactive and responsible with our churche’s finances.  I am excited to take on a new challenge of leading a growing ministry with less money to work with which I am praying brings new creativity and new systems. 

How have you adjusted to this economy?  My prayer is that no matter where you attend church that you continue to be faithful to God in your giving.  God calls us to bring our first to Him, not our left overs.  Continue to be faithful to Him even during the hard times.  Test Him and his faithfulness and see what God decides to do in your life. 

Dawn and I have been talking about names for our son for some time now.  Knowing the name you give your child can make or break him in school for his entire life is a lot of pressure.  We are getting closer and closer to deciding on one but we have decided we are not going to go final on it till we see a picture and see his African name.

I am very excited about a name you will hear tomorrow at FBC Smyrna as we unveil our glocal idenity.  Pat has a great post here about the process our church went through to get to this point.  You don’t want to miss tomorrow morning it’s going to be a day we will never forget.

When I was twenty years old my first church First Baptist Alcoa gave me an opportunity to play student ministry for almost six months.  At the time I had been interning with Alcoa for several months when they needed someone to be their student minister and I had the opportunity to do that.  I will be forever grateful for that opportunity to do so.  During that time I had an incredible opportunity to surround myself with great volunteers who allowed me to do some thing they had never done, allowed me to make mistakes, but also allowed me to have significant ministry there at the church.

Because I had such a positive experience there and got so much experience at an early age is one of the reasons I believe I have gotten to experience some of the things I have in ministry already.  This is why we try to give our interns as much significant ministry as possible.  What are you doing to give the people you lead significant ministry?

We begin a new series this Wednesday in our student ministry called Voices.  I am pretty excited about several things we are doing in this series.  So much of what we are talking about are things I have been struggling with all my life.  During this series our student ministry staff will be blogging a daily devotional that you will want to check out at www.lifedevotionals.org It case your interested in here is a little bit about this series.

This is going to sound weird, but every one of us hears voices in our heads. It’s the voices that say, “Life would be easier if only I could or had… ” It’s the voices that whisper when we look in the mirror or compare ourselves to someone else. These voices are trying to lead each one of us somewhere, but is it somewhere we really want to go? Or is there a better voice to follow? Yes, there is a voice that has our best in mind. A voice that knew us before we uttered our first cry. A voice that is designed not to bring out the worst in us, but the best.

www.fbcsmyrna.org/studentseries

If you have read my blog lately you have seen I have been really excited about some of our students becoming leaders.  We have been doing a leadership class that has been amazing not only for our students but also for our  student ministry staff.  This morning I saw again the confidence that comes when you set students up for success in leadership. 

Sarah Tishner and David Hinson are two Max Impact students who work in Service U.  This morning their adult leader was running a few minutes late.  When it was time to head to class David looked at me and said our leader isn’t here but Sarah and I have it, no problem.  I said okay, and went to check in on them in their room in which they had the class totally under control. 

I am so excited to see what God is going to do with these two students.  We will no longer be a student ministry that has low expectations of students, but we will expect students to Do Hard Things. 

Tomorrow night we start a new series in student ministry called Remedy.  Just thought I would share what this is all about.  Canaan and Scott our interns are running with this series and to be honest I am a little jealous I am not getting to teach some of this stuff, but I know these guys will do an incredible job with it.  Here is the description about the series found at www.fbcsmyrna.org/studentseries

REMEDY (noun): the means of counteracting or eliminating something undesirable
Social Injustice is a hot topic right now. This unfairness is shown through prejudice, discrimination, oppression, sexism, homelessness, hunger, poverty, lack of education, clean water or proper medical care. Why should these things concern us? Why should we as believers stop and take notice when divisions of rewards and burdens build barriers in society? Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, Oprah and Bono are among some of the top celebrities that are creating a stir in the media with all they seem to be doing for the better good of humanity. Yet, there still seems that there should be more…

Our motivation to join in the fight to end social injustice should be activated through knowing and understanding the heart of God. Scripture shows example after example of God meeting the needs of His people both in the Old Testament and through the life of Christ in the New Testament. He does this not only to satisfy a physical need, but ultimately so that people will know HIM. Thus, the REMEDY for social injustice lies within the hope of Christ… it lies within us. Our hope is that students will begin to think outside of themselves and set up a plan of action for how they can get involved in lending a hand and making a difference.
Go to www.fbcsmyrna.org/studentseries to hear the messages through out this series.

Hello!

I hope you are about to enjoy some amazing food today.  My overeating started last Sunday with my small group.  We also had some friends over last night for a great night!

I know your wondering what are some things I am thankful for, well I’m glad you asked. 

My beautiful amazing wife.  Some how I got to marry her and I am so thankful.

The fact this is my last Thanksgiving not being a dad, so thankful for my Son.

My family, I have the greatest parents ever.

My church that I get to serve.

The team I get to serve with! 

The greatest interns ever!

My Wednesday night waffle house  tradition with Canaan.

My wife’s amazing cooking

The fact I’m getting to watch the parade today with Dawn

Most of all my Jesus

Have a great Thanksgiving

I am working on a project right now that has me really excited.  Part of this project requires me to put together some baptism video’s from this past year.  To be honest I just got done crying my eyes out.  I pray that God will never allow me to forget why we do what we do.  I pray that I never forget that the reason why God continues to move is because I get to partner with a great team of adults in order to see life change in students life’s.  If you have a chance to go to www.fbcsmyrna.org/baptism and check out some of the videos.