matt's thoughts

its in there somewhere...

I've never been very great at memorizing Scripture...or anything for that matter. (I am famous for forgetting peoples first names, and lyrics to songs.)  That said, there a few chunks of Scripture tucked away in my heart from seasons of...well inspired memorization. 

I have been reminded lately of the value of those nuggets.  There has been a great deal of stressors in my life lately, and as I have felt overwhelmed...I found that words from Scripture would find their way to the forefront of my mind and heart, even without effort...as if God were standing right in front of me speaking truth. 

I think its easy for us to forget that this is a way, (perhaps the preferred way?) that the Holy Spirit so often wants to whisper to our hearts.  He wants us to hide His word there and allow Him to bring it to the surface at just the right moment. 

So...I think I'll throw a few more nuggets in the ole' noggin'.

speaking of miracles...

the One Hundred Campaign has been amazing!  The response has been unbelievable, and we are almost at the halfway mark...just 56 opportunities left!  I love getting together with Ben during the week and hearing more stories of God providing for our church through this.

I can't wait to see the fruit of all of this investment, and I can't wait to see us reach the home stretch...

rising from the depths

Ever since I have been here in Reston our worship band has been rehearsing in our basement.  We live in a townhouse.  I have two small children.  My bass player's amp goes to 11.  :-)

My neighbors have been so gracious to allow us to make lots of noise each week, and my children have learned to sleep through vibrating floors...but alas the time has come to rise from the depths of our basement and to another location.

We've been praying for another somewhere else to rehearse, and this week God answered our prayers.  Another local church...just a couple miles from our house has graciousely offered us time and space in their building...at no cost to us.  I can't tell you how amazing this will be for our team!  It is such a gifted group that has been in need of space and time for creativity for too long. 

I'm so pumped when I see God moving in really tangible ways like this!

WiFi at Chipotle!

my burritos will never be the same!

and here they are

slippers to cure cancer.  who said getting the mail wasn't fun!

fun just down the stairs

it is the end of the day...my wife just got the mail and the following exchange occured,

wife: "you got something funny in the mail!"

me: "what is it?"

wife: "it is a package addressed to you that is squishy and from the cancer society."

me: "?"

wife: "it says it has something comfy for your feet inside."

...so off i go to find something comfy for my feet...that will apparently cure cancer.

email woes

been having some email troubles the past couple of days. sorry about the bounces for those of you who have written.  if you are trying to get in touch with me, use this address until i get it straightened out:

matthew.c.morgan@gmail.com

The Snow Finally Came!!

This was my youngest daughter's first experience with snow (besides coming home from the hospital in it).  My oldest didn't like it so much.  She loves playing in it...but hates that it falls in her eyes...such a romantic she'll grow up to be. :-)  This is our trek in the snow...we headed down the street to visit Ben and his family and ended up hanging out, eating and watching football.  I love snow days!!

got skillz?

I have an amazing team of setup and tech guys that I work with every Sunday morning.  I love that days that could be long and stressful, are more often filled with fun and joy.  The two guys in this video, Phil and Andrew are two guys that are some of the most tireless servants at History.  They consistently go over and above...and occasionally bust a move. 

Noah on Waiting

9 months and some change.

That's how long Noah was in the ark. (Gen 7:11, 8:13-15)  Anyone who has had a child knows that 9 months creeps by pretty slowly. 

I've been reading in Genesis lately and I was really struck today by this account of time passing in the story of Noah.  The numb er that sticks in my head from the Noah story is 40 days and 40 nights...then Noah does the thing with the dove and shortly there after dry land!  Not so much...9 months...9 months in a hot crowded smelly ark, when only 40 days were actually spent in a storm.  As I read through the text I was struck by the repetition of the phrase: "he waited."  And then when the time was right God said, "come on out," and there was tremendous blessing for Noah. 

There are so many times when I have gone through "storms" in my life, my expectation has been that when the heat is off, or when the torrents of rain are over, God will intervene and at that moment everything will be back to normal or even better.  But when God's blessing or provision in the way that I expect is delayed, does that mean He has checked out or isn't involved in my life?

What would have happened had Noah prematurely open the door of the ark?  Perhaps a different epic drama for Leonardo Dicaprio to star in...

There is a such a value in not running ahead of God...even when the sky says that everything is alright.  Can you imagine Noah staring at a Sunny sky and asking why they were still cooped up in that boat.  We need to learn the discipline in waiting, listening and allowing God to open the door and say..."the time is now."  There is much to be learned in the waiting...

As the account of Noah continues after these 9 months two things immediately follow: worship and multiplication.  When we go when God directs...when we step out of our cover that had kept us safe in the storm when God says now is the time.  The results will be awe inspiring...we will be drawn to worship and the natural result of our lives will be multiplication.