Your Road to Community

Georgia vs. Georgia Tech... even in church!!!

mike@hcclifegroups.com — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 05:00:00 GMT

Who says football fans can’t come to Saturday Worship?

Camille Raymond (GA. Tech) & Charlotte Heavin (Georgia) photo furnished by Donna Mitchell, proud grandmother of Charlotte.

Our First Community Breakfast

mike@hcclifegroups.com — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 05:00:00 GMT

The second Saturday of every month Feb. - Nov. our Men's Ministry hosts a Men's breakfast. We have had an incredible line up of speakers this year from a local elementary school Principal to the COO of Chick-Fil-A to a former CEO of several major airlines.

Today we launched our first "Commubity Breakfast" and we invited men & women to come hear Cindy Horneman. Cindy has a great testimony and is truly a real life miracle.

We were blessed to have several ladies join us today and one of them wrote the following. Saying it better than I can, here is what a Mary Jane Holt wrote about our breakfast today.

“You don’t wake up one morning and say, ‘I want to be a drug addict, a stripper, a prostitute.’ You get there one choice at a time. There are approximately 6000 strippers in the metro Atlanta area. And there are hundreds of strip clubs where they dance,” said Cindy Horneman.

Then she added, “I am often asked, ‘who are these girls?’”

Cindy was visiting Heritage Christian Church in Fayetteville, GA. There to talk about the Victoria’s Friends Ministry, she looked out at her audience and asked, “How many of you have daughters, granddaughters, or nieces?”

Nearly every hand went up.

Then she told us, “These girls are daughters, granddaughters and nieces. They are somebody’s baby who will do just about anything to obtain love and acceptance.

Cindy knows… because she was somebody’s baby who grew up in an environment of rules and regulations without relationships – one setting, of many, which she believes leads to rebellion.

Her personal desire for unconditional love led her down streets lined with drugs, alcohol, strip clubs, abortion clinics and many years of profound misery until she finally came down one day from a crystal meth high to find herself near death.

She recalls being terribly paranoid and delusional at that point in her life, but somehow she made her way to a man who had formerly worked at a strip club. She’d heard that he had recently become a Christian. When she sought him out and pleaded for help, he simply asked, “Do you want to change?”

“Yes,” she said.

“Then this is how you do it,” he told her, “you simply ask Jesus to come into your heart and help you.”

She did, and He did, and thus began her journey hand in hand with the ultimate professional Redeemer!

As I listened to Cindy I was reminded of the word “power” which comes from the Greek word “dunamis” (I believe it is the word from which we also get the word dynamite).

Dunamis means miraculous power and usually implies a miracle. Here are just a few of the places this word is used in the New Testament:
- Romans: 1: 4, 16, 20
- Romans 9: 17
- I Corinthians 1: 18, 24
- I Corinthians 2: 4
- I Corinthians 5: 4
- I Corinthians 15: 24, 43
- Ephesians 1: 19
- Ephesians 3: 7, 20
- II Thessalonians 1:11

That is the kind of power you witness at work when you are in Cindy’s presence. She is a redeemed miracle. Recently, after she told her story on The 700 Club, 678 people phoned in to ask how to receive Christ into their hearts.

They wanted to be changed the way Cindy had been changed. When you hear Cindy speak, she makes you know you are redeemable, too!

There are none among us who do not long for unconditional love. Both sexes, all races, all ages - we desperately want to be loved. Sadly, like Cindy, many of us will do just about anything and go almost anywhere in search of that love.

It has been a while since I have told my readers there is only one source for that love.
Today, I tell you once more that Jesus is IT. He is The Way, The Truth, The Life, The Healer and yes, the one and only Redeemer.

All other sources that we may turn to eventually will fail us. Our thirst will not be quenched. Our hunger will not be satisfied. Seeds may be sown, cultivated, watered and band aids may be applied by well meaning, caring people who cross our paths from time to time, but ultimately it comes down to a one-on-one with Jesus.

The opportunity to hear Cindy allowed me to gain confirmation about something I have struggled with in recent days. In my efforts to take my workshops into federally funded organizations, and into the public workplace, I have to try hard to keep Jesus out of them. If I do mention Him, I have to talk about other religions, too.

No more will I seek to dilute the power of Jesus Christ. I no longer want to dance around the true needs of my audience. I will never shove Jesus at anybody. Neither will I refrain from telling how He has redeemed me, and daily quenches my thirst and satisfies my hunger.

For more information about Cindy’s work, check out VictoriasFriends.com. You might also want to visit wellspringliving.org or just check in with me at maryjaneholt.com.

Mt. Kilimanjaro - The Summit

mike@hcclifegroups.com — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 05:00:00 GMT

The entire team of 9 men reached the Uhuru Peak at 7:10 AM on September 2, 2008 after starting the final stage of the climb around midnight. Completing a 7-hour extremely dangerous climb, far more dangerous then any of the team anticipated it being, and the most difficult, physically and mentally challenging thing any of them had ever done.

The final climb was brutal on them, disoriented from lack of oxygen and physically exhausted, the reached the peak, took one picture, then started their dissent back down to 12,000 feet.

Greg has much more to the story that he looks forward to sharing with us all, but said that if it were not for the group he was with he does not feel he would have made it to the peak.

The call came in as they had just gotten back down the mountain and were at the state park. They were all looking forward to their first shower in 6 days.

They were all exhausted after being up for 30-some hours straight with very little food and experiencing mountain sickness, but they reached the goal they had set out for.

Their guides were incredible, working with them to keep them focused, encouraging them along the way and ultimately kept them going when they were thinking of turning back.

The reached the summit as a group, just another example of how “doing life together” results in us doing far more than we ever could expect to do alone.

Praise God for these HCC men achieving what they set out to do, and doing it safely. Continue to pray for their travel safety until they are back home at Heritage.

Thanks, Greg for the updates, it’s been a lot of fun experiencing this with you.

Mt. Kilimanjaro - Day 4

mike@hcclifegroups.com — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 05:00:00 GMT

Today Greg’s call came from 15,520 feet from Kibo camp, the final camp before summit. The call came in at 3:30 Tanzania time and they were set to start their final climb to summit at 5:30 PM our time.

The entire team is doing very well. Today Greg was suffering from a bad headache, but the other team members picked him up, some by helping carrying his load, others by providing great medical advice. The experience of others coming to his assistance was both powerful and humbling.

The Heritage team of Eric, Ed, Chris and Greg have done well to this point. They are excited at the thought of reaching the summit at approximately 3:00 AM Eastern Time Tuesday, September 2.

As before, the transmission with the call was broken, but what a wonderful picture that Greg has painted with his calls. I feel that we have been with the team each step of the way.

I can only imagine how they feel at this point. Tired from the trip, with the end in site, yet physically exhausted. With a small group of supporters they will summit as planned. They have each climbed on their own, but in one way or another they have utilized the presence of their small group to reach the summit. This reminds me of our lives, how we each step our own path, but we need others to keep us on track, to keep us focused, to help us achieve the end that is in sight.

I cannot imagine doing this alone, life that is, why would anyone try to reach the destination that Christ has planned for us alone? If you are not in a small group I have to repeat what Steve Clarke pointed out on the video yesterday, why not? Why not, take off that mask, open up your mind to a new experience, sign-up today. It will be the journey of a lifetime

Stay tuned… more updates tomorrow.

Mt. Kilimanjaro - Day 3

mike@hcclifegroups.com — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 05:00:00 GMT

Greg’s call from Day Three came through. We were not able to get a Day Two update, so Day Three was combination of the two days.

They anticipate peeking approximately 33 hours from the time this message was called in. That should be approximately 12:00 AM Tuesday, Tanzania time.

He was calling from their camp at 12,000 feet high. The first night they camped at 9,000 feet.

He was happy to report that all is well! They had hiked to 14,000 feet to see Zebra rock and then back to 12,000 for the night. A team member has been battling sickness, but happy to report that team member is doing better.

It has been a great team effort to this point particularly with their team of Porters. A sad moment was during their hike from camp 1 to camp 2 they past by three memorials to Porters who had died. These Porters had been carrying loads that were too heavy, rain set in and they succumbed to exhaustion and hypothermia.

This memorial really points out the importance of us needing other to help carry our loads at times. Galatians 6 tells us to carry each other’s burdens and that we should yoke up with Jesus and let Him help share the load. That was very clear to them today as they hiked past these memorials.

At the end of the daily hike they were entertained by their Porters who shared some traditional African singing and dancing, they enjoyed the performance and felt that their spirits and morale had been lifted. He mentioned the blessing they have with their guide Freddie and all the assistant guides that are helping them on this hike.

We lost our connection at this point, but the call was a blessing and brought to life the climb they are on together. It is a true example of why we need small groups and why we do small groups at HCC.

No one should be alone in their climb, be it Mt. Kilimanjaro or the climb of life that we attempt each and every day!

Stay tuned… more updates tomorrow.

Mt. Kilimanjaro - Day 1

mike@hcclifegroups.com — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 05:00:00 GMT

Greg’s first call came through today at 5:30 PM. It was 12:30 AM on August 29 in Tanzania.

He called from the lodge they are staying and reported that the group of 9 hikers arrived safely from various places, including Dubai, Amsterdam, and South Africa. There was a time of sweet fellowship to reacquaint with old friends, meet new friends and think about the goal ahead… to reach the peak of Mt. Kilimanjaro.

The climb will start approximately 9:30 AM on the 29th with their English-speaking guide named Fred.

From a small group perspective, Greg spoke of the excitement of getting ready to work toward the common goal with people you just met and how excited he was to tackle the mountain.

I can’t help but think about our own small groups that will soon be starting and wonder how many people, and maybe even a few leaders will feel like they are climbing a mountain simply by attending or leading a group for the first time?

If that is you, let me encourage you to stay the course. Remain focused, and keep the end in mind. Just like Greg will be reporting over the next few days, it will be a tough climb but you can do it.

Stay tuned for daily updates. Please continue to pray for these 9 hikers as they scale Mt Kilimanjaro over the weekend. Continue checking here, feel free to comment, journal your prayers for them, we invite your comments. They will all love to read them when they return.

Come on, be part of this, let’s make it a church-wide event. Let’s all let Greg, Ed, Chris, & Eric from know that we were with them every step of the way!

Stay tuned… more updates tomorrow.

Elders pray over small group leaders!

mike@hcclifegroups.com — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 05:00:00 GMT

Last night we held our first small group ministry night of prayer of the semester and what a powerful night it was!

Those in attendance we honored and humbled by our Elders who prayed over each of our leaders, prayed for each group and for those looking for community through small groups.

I feel so blessed to serve as small groups minister at a church where the leadership believes so strongly in small groups that they took time out of their meeting to pray with our group leaders.

Thanks to our eldership, our church leadership and to our group leadership who took time out of hectic schedules to be part of such a powerful time of prayer.

For those that could not make it, we will meet again, be watching our small group calendar of events for details.

For now, I ask you plan to attend our leader breakfast Sunday August 24 at 8:00 AM, room 109 of the Brick.

See ya Sunday.

The July session of leader training is in the books....

mike@hcclifegroups.com — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 05:00:00 GMT

The July session of leader training is in the books. It was a fantastic month as we averaged almost 20 people per week! Overall 79 people attended the 4-week session and here is what Walle Waters had to say about the sessions “We have just finished a 4-wk Small Group Leadership Program, and I feel this was a very beneficial training program. I truly believe in continual improvement, especially when it comes to teaching, mentoring, and counseling in small groups. This program should be taught as a refresher course at least twice a year along with the main Leadership Conference at Heritage. Thanks for a very intelligent and rewarding 4 week session.” Another attendee said “I enjoyed the last four weeks of training and found it very effective in not only helping me to understand the objectives of the small groups, but also to prepare for things that will most likely take place in the group as it develops. All nice things to hear, but more importantly, nice things for the small groups ministry team to hear.

Bill Degner & Steve Clarke both volunteer their time on this team. They need to hear these things as they pour it out week in and week out and do a fantastic job. I make a point to show my appreciation to them but when our leaders speak words of encouragement about the projects they lead, it goes a lot farther than anything I can say or do.

We have a great team, we, as a team, are growing in relationship, growing in Christ, praying for each other, and keeping each other accountable… sounds like a small group to me!

Hey, just a reminder, small group sign ups are going on right now. If you go to the sign up page of our new small groups web site click here to sign up and even pick your group. The small group staff is hard at work getting all the group information finalized and orderly. We will make that information available on-line as soon as we have it. For now, if you are already in a group and planning to return to the same group, we still need you to sign up. We want to make sure everyone at HCC is accounted for and shepherded so we need you to sign up.

If you are new to our small groups and are not sure what group to visit, let us know that when you sign up and our team will assist you with finding a group that best fits your current stage in life.

Best advice I can give everyone is to just get in a group… God did not intend for us to be alone, he created community and Jesus lived in community with his 12 so what’s keeping you from being in community? Go ahead, its easy click on the sign up link and go for it, you’ll be glad you did.

Wow, it has been a busy summer around the office......

mike@hcclifegroups.com — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 05:00:00 GMT

Wow, it has been a busy summer around the office. This is my summer since going on staff full time and it has been packed full of many new and exciting things.

Phil Fincher has left to begin his new ministry at Savannah, it is a lot quieter in the modular these days, I miss Phil, I haven’t really heard a good, side-splitting, funny story since his departure… maybe I’ll email him.

Dave Damron is busy not only with the Step into Africa exhibit that is coming, but also preparing for Matehaula mission trip.

We have Battle of the Praise Bands coming in August as well. You can learn more about both of these events by reading the weekly bulletin, e-newsletter or by visiting the small group web site www.lifegroups.com

The small group ministry has also been slammed. We are so excited about what God is doing with our ministry. I have a great team of volunteers working with me. Bill Degner continues to be a valuable resource in our new look ministry this fall. Steve Clarke is steady and dependable in working on and implementing our coaching program so we can better shepherd our leaders. If we shepherd our leaders, they in turn, are better equipped to shepherd their group members.

We have many new things for the fall. Divorce Care, led by James & Anne Barnard, will be our first CARE group, Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace, led by Certified Dave Ramsey Counselor, Walle Waters will be a SHARE group. We have other new groups coming that we will introduce to you when the new guy gets here. The new guy will be instrumental in helping us promote the ministry this fall. He will be at almost all our events and sign ups, he is a real people person you’ll want to meet him. I’ll keep you posted on when he is scheduled to join us.

Scott and Stacey Kellar have sold their house in Houston, TX and have purchased a house here in PTC. They will be in full ministry here in a few weeks and we are excited to have them part of our team.

Greg will soon be back from his much-deserved sabbatical and things will be more normal heading into the fall. We will have group sign ups all the weekends in August and then the “official” start of group meetings will be the week of September 7, 2008.

All in all it has been a good summer. I look forward to the fall and what it will bring.

Today's Men's Breakfast

mike@hcclifegroups.com — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 05:00:00 GMT

This morning was our monthly Men’s Breakfast. I was excited as always to see the guys, some of which I only see at this event, and spend time with old friends, meet some new ones, and hear a quality speaker.

We have had a great year this year with our list of speakers. We have stayed on the leadership track this year and today was no different.

Hollis Harris was our guest today. If you do not recognize the name, Hollis retired in 2004 after 50 years of Airline Management, serving as President, COO, and Board Member of Delta Airlines, Chairman, President & CEO of Continental Airlines, Air Canada, World Airways and Calljet.

He shared stories of 50 years of directing some of the largest corporations in our history. Hollis explained that his success is because of his priorities. He always kept God first, family second, and career third. Admittedly, work sometimes got ahead of family, but God always made it clear when this would happen and Hollis would do what was needed to get his priorities back in order.

His story is one every man should hear; neither his plans nor his faith ever wavered. If you think about the years that Hollis was leading major airlines (1954-2004) our country suffered many economic difficulties and changes.

Hollis called for his board members to pray for the company at one point. He always kept the faith and he always seemed to come out on top.

He admits his success is a gift from God and acknowledged that he can do nothing on his own, and that God owns every area of his life.

If you missed today’s breakfast, I’m sorry. If you heard Hollis Harris speak, you were truly blessed and you are better off for hearing this man tell his story.

Next month, August 9th we are honored to have David Roadcup as our guest. I hope you will support David as he comes “back home” to be with us.

It’s 4:30 on July 11, 2008 and I am posting my first ever blog

mike@hcclifegroups.com — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 05:00:00 GMT

It’s 4:30 am on July 11, 2008 and I am posting my first ever blog to the small group web site.

Wow, have we come a long way? Just a few short years ago, we communicated with all our small group leaders by phone and fax. Today we have instantaneous implementation of information by posting a blog and having you subscribe via RSS feeds. I am amazed at what we can do these days.

I am also amazed at what God is doing here at Heritage. Many of you are responding to the call of leadership and have committed to leading new groups. We have restructured our ministry to encompass a wider range of groups and we will soon be adding another person to the ministry team. More on the new guy later………