Pastor's School and Campuses

God keeps refining the vision and ministry here in New York City. It's always been about the Lost, particularly among the Jewish people, but with each passing the day the strategy for carrying out this task gets clearer and clearer. God has been so good to us and the church plant here in Forest Hills, and when I think about His success so far it humbles me.

I'm sure to many our ministry looks rather dinky. We are young, hip, tech savvy, Pentecostal/Evangelical and living amongst 72,000 in a city of 9 million, yet we only draw a weekly crowd of 70. We don't have a building, a kid's church, a homeless ministry, or even a membership program. To the modern church planting and evangelical world it would seem as though we are missing something; however, nothing could be further from the truth!

When I look out on our crowd of 70 each week, I see people who only weeks ago were living in sin and an eternity away from God. Now they are not only saved, but they are striving for righteousness and living each day on mission for God. (Our people love to witness!) Each week we have new people visiting the church, and each week it's the new converts who are the most eager to welcome them in and answer their questions. The family of God is alive and well in Forest Hills, and it just keeps growing.

When I look at the success of God here in Forest Hills and compare it to that which the world calls success, they seem like polar opposites. But, I'd rather have what God is doing in Forest Hills any day, because here you can see the complete life cycle of ministry being carried out. We don't just have a crowd of people, we have a crop of new ministers being trained up and sent out each week. The fullness of the ministry is taking place; God is having His success!

As we get ready to enter in our third year of ministry this fall, I am convinced we don't need more megachurches, we simply need more churches where Jesus is preached, the Spirit is free to move and the sovereignty of God is cherished. As a result, we are now taking steps to begin an "in house" training program to raise up pastors to plant more churches here in NYC. (We already have secured our first candidates!) God is having His success in Forest Hills!!!

This Week's Recap

This past Sunday at Forest Hills Community Church, something special occurred. It is not that the Lord was anymore present or speaking this weekend than any other, it is just that it is was made manifest in a unique way. For starters, we had a tremendous worship experience. Yes, it was great that our good friend, Josh, was present to lead us, but more importantly we "lingered." There was no rush to get through worship; rather, people accepted worship for what it is and allowed God to speak to them while singing to Him. This same experience should happen every week, with or without, regardless of the worship method or style. We need to be hungry for an encounter with God.

Following a great worship set, it was time for the Word. I had 8-pages of notes and we only made it through the first page. God spoke to all of us about the importance of prayer, and then called us to do it. Prayer changes things, and God really wants to change some of your lives and perspectives on life. He called us out this Sunday morning, and we are dedicating every event this week in response. God has specifically called FHCC to pray this week, and we will obey.

It all begins Monday night with UNdone: Prayer Service at 7pm, and we spend the majority of our time praying for one another's needs and corporate worship. Following this time, we will move into our 8pm service, UNplugged. As usual, we will spend a some time in the Word, but it will be brief as the majority of the time will be focused on prayer and intercession. (Intercession is simply a term to describe praying for the needs of others. In this case, we will be praying for our city, our loved ones, and the future of the church.) You do not want to miss this opportunity for personal and corporate growth. I truly believe we are going to see MIRACLES take place.

PS> Please email your prayer requests ahead of time to Anthony: united@fhcchurch.com

Passover Outreach

This Passover season our church will hosting its first Passover Seder meal for the community. Please begin praying with us now, as undoubtedly sparks will fly.

thanks!

That was Fun

We had an awesome Sunday at Forest Hills Community Church. Once again, the attendance started off "rock bottom" with the cold temps, a holiday, and a holiday weekend, but since when has church and an experience with God been about attendance numbers?? Man, we had a blast this week as we worked through Genesis 25:7-18: the Genealogy of Ishmael.

Why, oh why, do so many preachers skip the genealogies? Some of the greatest and most powerful lessons of Scripture are given inside of these passages, because inside of them we see people. People with wild names for sure, but people, nevertheless. And if we are dealing with people, then we are dealing with individuals just like you and me. This week's passage focused on the blessings by God (Isaac) vs. blessings by the world's standards (Ishmael). So many people, including Christian, seek wealth, fame and secular favor, yet forget it is a fleeting and demonic vice capable of turning our love for God into a love for self. Ishmael was blessed with the world's greatest gift (descendants), yet he was rejected by God and lived in hostility with everyone. Isaac, on the other hand, was a mild mannered, submissive home-boy who only father 2 children and had only one wife. By the world's standards, Ishmael was the man, and Isaac was a loser. But, that is the world's opinion, not God's truth....

This Sunday several people gave their hearts to Jesus, and many more repented of worldly fame, identity, and ambition. God worked through a Geneaology passage, because all Scripture is God-breathed! Pastor, Christians, etc: PREACH the WORD! God saves when His word is preached without compromise.

Check out the audio of Gen. 25:7-18

UNplugged Recap

What a fantastic night we had at UNplugged this week! Not only were the renovations to the campus an added benefit, but more importantly the level of dialogue was outstanding!! I am so blessed to be the pastor and member of a church where people are hungry for God and are desperate to understand and apply His word to their lives.

I had anticipated spending most of the evening talking on the salvation of Abraham after his death, but our people kept extracting more and more content from the preceding text. In short, what resulted from tonight's discussion was the following truths:

1 - The Bible is first and foremost a theology book. All of its content deals with who God is, and who we are in relationship to Him.

2 - We are saved by the will and actions of God, not the will and actions of ourselves.

3 - The salvation of God should cause us to lives of constant praise and repentance. If we have truly been elected by God solely because of His will and love for us, then we should be His most dedicated and humble servants. We must never grow tired or complacent for His love and favor, for in so doing we cast doubt upon our justification.

4 - Christians are not perfect, but they do the perfect thing: THEY REPENT!!!

What a fantastic night that ended with hours of worship in the presence of the Lord. Again, I am honored to be your pastor and brother in the family of God. I'm looking forward to a phenomenal report for those who attended to hear of what God is doing through you and who else the Lord has saved in your life.

Sunday Recap

While most of the mid-Atlantic was still digging out from a massive snowstorm, here in NYC the weather was sunny, dry and not a patch of snow to be seen for weeks. It was a great day to have church, even if it was Super Bowl Sunday.

Yesterday's service at Forest Hills Community Church was phenomenal! We had a great turnout, great worship set and sermon lined up, but what made the difference was a deliberate patience for the presence and blessing of the Holy Spirit. I simply would not allow the service to go forward until the heart's of the people were ready to receive and the Spirit of God was manifest.

Now, I know what some may be thinking at this point: "How did I know that the people's hearts were ready, and what 'sign' was I seeking to know of the Lord's presence?" These are great questions and the answers are quite simple.

#1 - The Condition of the People
Every Sunday morning at FHCC brings a host of unsaved and "culture-only" Christians, which means that they are spiritually ignorant and incapable of truly worshiping the Lord. Nevertheless, there are God-fearing Christians inside ever FHCC service and it is their heart's condition that I was seeking. Every Christian needs to be disciplined and brought into a hunger for the Lord during corporate fellowship. Church is not a game, it is a privileged obligation for every believer to worship the Lord, be brought into conformity to His image, and minister to others. Without a believer's heart being humbled before the Lord, none of these events will happen no matter how good the preaching/worship set/ atmosphere is. Sometimes pastors just need to call their people out, and that is exactly what I did this Sunday.

#2 - Manifestation of the Lord's Presence
I'm Pentecostal and Assembly of God (the two are no longer synonymous), which means that I believe that signs and wonders occur today, but they are not limited to one sole expression. To wait for a manifestation of the Lord's presence does not mean that we wait for "tongues," prophecy or someone to fall down. Rather, it means that we simply wait for anything that confirms the blessing of the Lord on the service taking place. This sign of approval can come through "tongues," prophecy, or any other outward action, or it can also come from a conviction in the heart of the leadership. (Just remember that whatever the Lord does inwardly, must be confirmed in an outward display.)

Sunday's service at FHCC was phenomenal because Christian's hungered and thirsted for God and they waited for leading of the Spirit. This resulted in not only a receptive audience, but also the salvation of new believers. Yesterday's service was awesome!

To all Christians out there: Let's always be "Spirit-led!'

Listen to Sunday's Message.

Church Construction

Three weeks ago we were hit with news that our entire storefront frame and windows would need to be replaced. This was not the fault of us, or our landlord, but simply that of nature and ground settlement. And just like events in your life, this one project resulted in the need to update several other features of the church. ("Snowball Effect")

Worry not, for God is in control and a new Campus is coming that will result in more seating space, better efficiency, and an incredible worship experience. Pray for us and all the people involved in this intense upgrade.