mattmehaffey

Living Life without Limits

God created us to live life without limits but too often we settle for so much less. This Sunday, The Pursuit begins a 3-week series designed to challenge us to break free from mediocrity and step into a life of no-limit living.

February 1 - Loving without Limits
February 8 - Living without Limits
February 15 - Leading without Limits

Want to check out The Pursuit?  Click here for helpful info. 

Lesson from Le Tub

Monday night, Janie and I ate at the world famous Le Tub restaurant in Hollywood, FL.  A few years ago they jumped into the spotlight when "The Oprah" declared them to have the best burger in the U.S.

It definitely is worth checking out if you are in the area (the ambiance alone is a unique dining experience).  A brief paragraph in the handwritten menu caught my attention.  

"We are a small restaurant.  We do not serve fast food.  We do regret that we may not be able to accommodate you as quickly as you'd like.  But we will not let the wildly increasing demand affect the quality of our cooking. Please enjoy yourselves."

A great reminder from an unexpected place that staying on mission is crucial to The Pursuit's future.  Perhaps I'll scribble the following in our menu/programs from here on out.

"The Pursuit helps people find their way back to God.  We are not here to make Christians feel comfortable.  Sorry, we will not scratch your itch to 'go deeper' (if you had the depth you claimed to have you would be focused on helping people find their way back to God too).  There are way too many people far from God in South Florida and we aren't guaranteed another breath so get busy being the Good News of Jesus."

Star Wars Humor

If you are a Star Wars fan, you will find this video hilarious.  A girl tries to retell the original trilogy without having seen it.  

Star Wars: Retold (by someone who hasn't seen it) from Joe Nicolosi on Vimeo.

Happy Birthday to The Pursuit

I am still trying to catch my breath after an unbelievable day at The Pursuit.  I am so honored that God has chosen me to lead this church.  I absolutely love the people who have made the commitment to be a part of this movement of God.  Today, The Pursuit turned one-year old and we celebrated everything God has done over the past year.

One of my favorite parts of the day was overhearing so many people reflect on shared moments that occurred over the past year at The Pursuit.  We have been studying the life of Nehemiah over the last 4 weeks.  The vision of rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem first belonged to Nehemiah but the vision HAD to be owned by many other people for the job to be done.  I can still remember the time when the vision of The Pursuit started with me but how much more fun it is now that it belongs to many, many more people. 

Here's a brief video that Alex created that we showed at today's Celebration Service:

The Pursuit is 1 Year Old! from Alex Diaz on Vimeo.

Here are some pics from The Pursuit's 1st Birthday Celebration. 

The Pursuit Turns One!

This Sunday, January 25 after Celebration Service, we are going to celebrate The Pursuit's 1st birthday.  This is a milestone in the lifespan of every church. 

A year ago I had no clue who God would bring to be part of this with us but now I am so grateful and honored to stand with so many people who want to be Good News to South Florida.

We will be grilling out some good food at Chapel Trail Park tomorrow starting at noon if you want to stop by! 

Skype Shower

Janie is in Chicago on a Fishhook business trip this week and is crashing at the home of our dear friends, Sam and Renee.  Last night they Skyped me and threw us a mini-baby shower.  Janie opened up a huge bag full of books, clothes and toys for Chase.  Thanks for your friendship and generosity, you guys!

Satellite Pic of Inauguration

Check this out.  Looks like the "front lawn" of the United States has a serious ant problem.

New Picture of Chase

Janie and I are hard at work getting everything ready for our upcoming home study on January 31.  Early this morning we got our blood tests and then went to the police station to get fingerprinted for our criminal background checks.  (I had to get one for the state of Kansas because I lived there between the years of 0-4.  I hope the time I stole that kid's bottle doesn't come up.) 

In the midst of our tasks this morning, we got a little reminder of what we are doing all this for.  Thanks to our friends at The Home of God's Love for the new photo of our little guy. 

By the way, apparently Chase is on Twitter.  He is already showing aspirations for greatness.  Looking forward to your updates young man!

The Leader Within

I enjoy reading autobiographies or biographies of great leaders.  Since last year was an election year I found myself studying past U.S. presidents: George Washington, John Adams, and Harry S. Truman. 

One of my favorite stories is of George Washington as he traveled from Virginia to Boston to lead the militia against the British.  He made a brief stop in Philadelphia to meet a lawyer named Joseph Reed who would serve as his guide the rest of the way.  Reed, having a wife and children back home, was supposed to drop the General off in Boston and go back home but he ended up staying for months.  He was so overwhelmed by Washington's character and leadership he later said, "I thought myself bound by every tie of duty and honor to comply with his request to help through the sea of difficulties"  (check out 1776 by David McCullough pg. 44 for more).

One of the best memoirs of an extraordinary leader comes from a place you might not expect.  The Bible. The lessons on leadership from the memoirs of Nehemiah (aka the book of Nehemiah) are worth checking out. 

During the month of January, at The Pursuit Church, we are going through a 4-week study on the book of Nehemiah and looking at how we can become people of influence. 

If you live in the Miami/Ft. Lauderdale area ... stop by on Sunday at 10:30 a.m.  I'd like to meet you.  Click here for directions.

Chase's Fan Club

Yesterday, I had the privilege of connecting with some new friends on Facebook.  Both families recently returned from Taiwan after picking up their children from The Home of God's Love.   They also have spent time with Chase and even sent us a couple new pictures!  Janie and I are extremely jealous that they have had the opportunity to hold our baby boy but we are so grateful to them for sharing their experiences with us.

"Hi there,  you don't know me but my husband and I have adopted 2 precious children from the Home of God's Love in Taiwan. We just got back with our second, a son. He is 7 months. Anyhow, I helped take care of Chase when we were there in early December.  He is such a doll and very sweet tempered.  You guys are very blessed to have him and vice versa.  I can't wait for you to get him.  If you have any questions along the way, please don't hesitate to ask us."

"In the beginning of November, we went to Taiwan to pick up our son. When we went to his AIT appointment in Taipei, the lady from the Ray of Hope brought Chase to us to take back to the Home. He was soo tiny and absolutely adorable!! Ted (the founder of the orphanage) had to meet someone halfway back to the Home to get some additional paperwork for another adoption case, so we took Chase with us when we went shopping at the big Market in Taipei. My husband held Chase most of the time while us girls shopped for souvenirs! He is such a content baby! Sooo sweet! Later, when Ted came back, we went downtown and had the famous potstickers for lunch. Chase was so good during our lunch. I think he slept mostly, but also had a bottle while we were there. On our way back down to the Home, we all took turns holding Chase (yes, they don't use many car seats there!), and we even made a bottle for him while driving :) We would love to stay in touch with you as you are going through the adoption process. If you ever have any questions, please feel free to ask. We've gone through this twice now, and would love to help others."