right now, we’re working through the details of what Freedom Groups is going to look like in the coming, days, weeks, months and years. it’s all very exciting – basically because i love trying to figure out logistics of stuff, but also because people’s lives will be changed through Freedom Groups!

hold on Freedom Church! we’re taking groups to a “whole ‘nutha level”! (i can’t believe i just said that…)

keep checking back here for more updates as we get closer to March.

saturday
+ Callie and i went to a friend’s house to watch the UGA game.
+ i saw a grown man hurdle another grown man
+ Miami played very well
+ Robert Marve showed some really good potential
+ the U needs some receivers that can actually get open and catch the ball!!
+ SEC officials should not call out of conference games in an SEC stadium

sunday
+ GREAT day at FreedomChurch
+ more people signed up for Groups yesterday!
+ at least 3 people gave their lives to Christ!
+ we wrapped up “No Freakin’ Way” and start “Jesus” next Sunday!
+ baptism is coming up soon which is always a great thing!
+ my naps were good yesterday
+ i can’t wait for next Sunday at Freedom!

2. Miami kicks off their season next Thursday against Charleston Southern and UGA faces off against Georgia Southern next Saturday. COLLEGE FOOTBALL IS BACK!!

3. Callie and i are headed up to Missouri next weekend to visit some of her family and she’s also in a wedding. we’ll be heading out Thursday morning – making a pit stop by Knoxville (i have to deliver some laptops to our Knoxville office for work) and then up to Missouri. we’ll be back on Monday. it’ll be my first Sunday not at Freedom since we launched back in January. i have a feeling i’ll be having some major withdrawls…

4. i’m hosting a College Football Pick’Em league on FoxSports.com this year. if you’re interested in participating, let me know because games start next Thursday! email me at eric@freedomlive.net and i’ll send you the info…

also, FreedomGroups launch this Sunday at FreedomChurch! if you want to be a part of a group, make sure you’re there on Sunday!

we’ve been praying for God to bring us 350 people this Sunday, but now we need to pray for the 350 people he’s bringing us. pray that they won’t have any hang ups or stalls that would prevent them from coming Sunday morning. pray that they would be open to God doing something in their lives and hearts that would bring them closer to Him. pray that our partners will show God’s love to our new guests at “the gate” – before they even have a chance to hear the band or listen to Pastor’s message. pray for our band to draw people in through the music and set up the Pastor’s message. and pray for our Pastor that God would speak into hearts as he speaks into the ears.

i know i’ve said this before but, i can’t wait for Sunday!!

2. FreedomGroups begin in less than 2 weeks and i am very stoked about that as well. we have a great group of leaders to start off with and we are only going to get better.

3. Michael Phelps is a stud. plain and simple.

4. my Pastor went up to Anderson, SC this week to learn from this guy. i can’t wait to hear what he learned!

plus, Callie and i are getting married in 134 days and we could be in the best shape of our lives when we get married because of P90X. that wouldn’t be so bad.

2. FreedomChurch is going to be crazy in the next couple of days. this week, Pastor JR is bringing a really great message that i’m looking forward to hearing.

next week, we’re planning on having 350 or more people attend FreedomChurch

the week after that, FreedomGroups begin. there are some HUGE things coming down the road for FreedomChurch. i wish i could spill the beans but i don’t even have any beans to spill right now!

3. college football season is oh so near. the summer doldrums are over. football teams across the country are practicing in the hot summer sun. student-athletes are being taken to the hospital. if this, this, and this doesn’t get you ready for college football, i would like to punch you in the throat. however, i’m not going to do that because my fiancé doesn’t like college football and i don’t want to punch her in the throat.

4. i don’t have a #4 today. i’m that JACKED UP about college football starting. Miami opens their season August 28 @ 7:30pm against Charleston Southern while UGA opens their season August 30 against Georgia Southern. i can’t wait!!

2. FreedomChurch infiltrated Elevation Church Sunday and Monday of this week and we learned A LOT. seriously, think about how much information you can process in 24 hours and then multiply that by like 800,000.

3. i totally re-worked the system for FreedomGroups in 2 days. instead of the system being 3 pages, it is now 8 pages and oh, so much better.

4. BIG changes are coming to FreedomChurch. and they’re coming sooner rather than later. i can’t tell you much about what is going on, but i guarantee it will take us all to the next level.

5. i’m testing out MobileMe for my email and iPhone right now and it seems to be working pretty well. i think Apple has worked through all the bugs they were having when they launched it and it works pretty well. i have 60 days to try it out so we’ll see if i keep it at the end of September.

6. Family Night Downtown!!! tonight from 6:00-9:00pm in downtown Acworth. it’s gonna be a great night. we’ll have jumpy things for the kids and prizes and Blake and the FreedomLive band is going to be rocking it out on stage! it’s gonna be hot! everything except what you might buy in the stores or purchase from a food vendor will be free so bring your family out tonight! do it!

that’s all i’m going to say except that HUGE things are in store for FreedomChurch. if you’re not on board yet, you better get on board because it’s going to be an amazing good time!

there’s so much stuff running through my head right now, i can’t even think.

1. FreedomChurch – and specifically FreedomGroups. FreedomGroups are coming in August and i am pumped! i can’t wait for them to get started. sign ups begin this Sunday. look for the table with the big banner standing next to it (i have a standing banner!!)

2. Family Night Downtown – NEXT friday night, August 1. FreedomChurch is helping sponsor and promote Family Night Downtown in Downtown Acworth. lots of fun stuff going on that night. check out the website for all the happenings!

3. Elevation Church – this Sunday after we finish tearing down FreedomChurch, the staff is going up to Elevation Church to meet with their staff and ask questions and learn from them. i’m so pumped! plus, since i’ll be in Charlotte, i don’t have to go to work on Monday!!

4. Birthdays – this past wednesday was Callie’s birthday and today is Adam’s birthday. Adam has been one of my best friends since about 3rd or 4th grade and he’s probably one of the coolest guys you’ll ever meet. and another cool fact, he can probably quote you a movie line for any situation you’re in. if you’re getting chased by a school of piranhas, he’ll say a line from some random movie like “King Ralph” or something. i’m serious. it’s marveling.

for the past two days, i’ve listened to a talk from Louie Giglio on the way to work. he was speaking from the passage in John 16 where Jesus said,

“I told you these things so that you can have peace in me. In this world you will have trouble, but take heart! I have overcome the world.”

i have read this passage many times and a lot of times it gets me fired up because Jesus tells us that he has overcome the world – good stuff. however, Louie brought new light on these words for me during the past two days.

sometimes we skip over the “you will have trouble part” or sometimes we think, “the trouble is going to be with my car or i’ll get sick one day”. but Jesus is specifically talking about earth-shaking, life-changing trouble. the kind of trouble that when you get out of it, you’re thankful you made it out alive because you didn’t think you would.

notice that Jesus said that we can have peace in him. a lot of times we try to find peace in ourselves – maybe we just need time to relax or get away from it all, we think. but what’s amazing is that, at the cross, we can find peace.

the cross seems like a place that is full of death and sorrow and grief. however, the cross is a place of a lot more.

the cross shows us first how much God loves us. when the world is crashing down on us, the cross demonstrates God’s love for us.

the cross shows God’s control in the midst of chaos. while Jesus was being betrayed and the crowd was deciding to choose Barabbas and when Jesus was being whipped and nailed to a cross, God was supremely in control. never once was God out of control. his will was being accomplished, even when it didn’t seem like it was.

my hope and my prayer is that FreedomGroups will be a place for people to find peace in him through others. i pray for authenticity in our groups and i pray that God will place people in the groups that he knows is right for them. in the midst of the chaos of trying to organize and get ready for groups, God is still in control and he’s going to be in control.