Journey partnered with 7 Project this week in an outreach to area teenagers. 7 Project is a national youth ministry sponsored by the AG Fellowship. We had an amazing time at the NorthShore Harbor Center on Friday night. We were honored to partner with Alan Chapin and other Louisiana youth ministries. Thanks to Big Al (the rapper/worship leader) and Chad for bringing the message. Also many thanks to our Student Ministries team and all the Journey family who worked so hard to make the night a success. Pictures below…

   I asked Pastor Sidney to bring the message today. He did a great job. I really enjoyed being on the front row and experiencing the service. Sid preached part 4 to Rhythm : over-coming your emotions. He taught how to win over anger. Great job Pastor Sid. Pastor Ken baptized 5 new believers today. I love it when people make a public confession of their faith.. pics below…..

   Sweetest taste on Earth. I have been longing for a flat of the best strawberries in the world. They grow in the self described “Strawberry Capital of the World”- Ponchatoula, LA.
A ‘flat’ in the strawberry vocabulary refers to a 12 pint box that is designed for stacking and shipping. I awoke on Saturday morning with strawberries on my mind. I even thought of making the one hour drive to Ponchatoula to buy some. But I found some in Slidell. Sweet.
    The latest book that I’ve been reading is called The Gospel According to Starbucks. In this book the author talks about summing up your purpose in life in 3 words. That is a tough assignment. Can you sum up your life in 3 words ? It’s been on my mind all weekend. 3 words. Maybe 50. 25. A dozen if i tried real hard. There’s so many good choices. Like read, pray, think, dream, inspire, serve, connect, teach, love, feel, sing, dance, rest, touch, create, build, passion, well you get the picture.  Jesus said he came to this world to “save the lost”. What a mission statement. Those are three powerful words.
   Jesus understood who he was and why he was here. That really takes the confusion out of life. Jesus thought on these terms. Save the Lost. Maybe to narrow down your life to 3 words first you must know who you are and why you are here. Do you ? Three words. Wow!
   Okay here’s my three. This list is after a weekend of thinking so it may be subject to change. Tough choices, but these are the three words that I have chosen. Reach-Give-Go. Reach refers to my relationship with God and other people. Give is about leaving this world a little better than I found it. And Go speaks to the adventure of life. REACH. GIVE. GO. I think that’s why I’m here. That is a sweet taste. Better than strawberries. Sweetest taste on earth.

   Last night (Friday March 23) I attended the annual Speed The Light banquet. It was held in Alexandria, LA. Speed The Light or STL is the student-initiated ministry that buys vehicles and equipment for AG missionaries around the country and in over 200 nations . Since 1944 STL has raised over 200 million dollars for the Great Commission. Its amazing that youth groups around America could raise that much money. Four of us from the Journey staff made the trip. We enjoyed a nice meal and caught up with some old friends. We support STL because it helps fulfill part of our Mission Statement. “Reach Out”. You can find out more about STL at www.speedthelight.ag.org . I also posted some pictures below….  

   We are winding down from hosting Gary Chapman at Journey Fellowship Church. Dr. Chapman brought his A Growing Marriage Conference to the North Shore today. It was an awesome event. Thanks to all the volunteers who served to make it a great time. We were all blessed. You may remember his bestselling book,”The Five Love Languages”. He wrote it in 1992 and it has sold over 3.5 million copies to date. i’ve posted some pictures below.

   I took these pictures on Friday March 9th around 5.30 pm. The land clearing is looking beautiful. There is even a John Deere on the grounds. Does my redneck heart good : ) 
Our plans have been submitted to the State Fire Marshall and as soon as they are stamped we should be applying for our building permit. HotDog ! Check out the pictures below….

   Journey was on the road again this Sunday. We met in the Slidell City Auditorium in Old Towne. The North Shore Harbor Center had a Trade Show so we were bumped out of the building. But it was a blast…Thank you all for being so flexible. Fusion joined us in the main service. Pastor Sid and I did a skit together to open the message. He was hilarious! One day we will look back at these road trips as “the good old days”. I love this church. Check out the pictures below.

   Our patio was full last night. We hosted a bar b que at my house for 50 of my closest friends. The mens ministry of Journey (Band of Brothers) had a kick off party at my house. It was awesome. We even had a baptism in the pool. Congratulations to Michael on your new life in Christ. Next month we are having a crawfish boil at my place for the guys. April 5th at 7pm. Check out the pictures below.

   During the last two days I spent quality time with some of the coolest pastors from the Gulfcoast and Greater New Orleans. Gateway Church from Dallas,TX sponsored the retreat. It was good to connect with some of the other churches that were affected by Katrina. Many in attendance lost nearly everything to the storm, but I didn’t hear one complainer in the crowd.  Resurrection Life from Picayune led in worship. My friend Allen Hickman was there, he’s the pastor at Resurrection. The band was awesome. Thanks Todd, Stephen and Evan. I’m posting some pictures below.  I  was really inspired by the Pastors at the meeting. Clark Whitten taught an incredible message on grace. He’s the Senior Pastor of GraceChurch in Winter Park, FL. Thanks for the encouraging words Clark. I made some new friends: Larry and Leslie Rocque from Joy Fellowship, Dennis Watson from Celebration Church in New Orleans, and David Meeks from Picayune. Among many others. I also caught up with some old friends, Steve and Missy Farmer from Gulfport. We used to serve on staff together many years ago.  It was great seeing Pastor Frank Bailey from Victory Fellowship. Although Frank is only ten yeaars older than me ,  I remember listening to him on the radio when I was a new believer. Thanks for inspiring us all through the years Frank. Also special thanks to Pastor Linda and Gateway Church. We had a blast….

    Are you taking the journey down Route 66 ? Thats our one year plan to read thru the Bible. I’m staying about a week ahead by listening to my GoBible during my workout. It fine to sign up anytime. Send me an email at pastordoug@jfcemail.com to request your copy. Start when you get your plan and read thru the Bible in one year. On a personal note Leviticus was a tough read. Almost done with the third book of Moses. Read on…..