Day 1: Ready, Set, Change!

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That's right, change-- a 6-letter, sometimes dirty word that most people don't want to hear. But stay with me. I'm getting ready to talk to you about something that will, if you let it, literally change your life FOREVER in the most amazing, expansive, fulfilling way you could EVER imagine.

But first, a little history.

99 Days is something my church started last summer when we decided to take the 99 days from Memorial Day through Labor Day and turn them into something cool. The idea was to do something--anything--that you had always wanted to do, always dreamed about, and dedicate yourself to doing a little something towards that every day for 99 days.

We had lots of people join in and do some really great things-- work on starting businesses, learning how to play musical instruments, become better fathers & husbands-- it was all great stuff.

As soon as I heard about this campaign and started thinking about what my 99 days was going to be about, God planted in my spirit a desire to read through the entire bible in 99 days. "Whoa-- are you KIDDING ME??? That thing is like, thick and stuff. You want me to read ALL of it??"

I quickly proceeded to start coming up with basically anything else I could do with my 99 days, believing there was no real way I could actually read through my entire bible in such a relatively short period of time. But, God was relentless with me and filled my thoughts and heart with nothing but diving into His Word and seeing what could happen.

So I did it. I jumped in, made a plan, and made it happen. I read my bible in 99 days, cover-to-cover, and it has completely changed my life and the way that I view EVERYTHING: God, people, family, friends, relationships, the church-- I really do mean everything.

Anyone that has spent any time with me over the last year can testify to this change in me. It is significant and real. So, as I have been getting ready to jump into 99 Days again this summer, I really want to do this again. But this time, I want you to come with me. That's right, I know you can read-- that's really the only qualification necessary. This is an invitation to join me this summer in seeking God through daily, consistent time in the Word and in prayer.

If you were anything like me last summer, you are, right this second, probably thinking of a million excuses not to do it or why you think you can't do it, but let me just stop you right there-- I've got lots more to say.



A MAJOR revelation that has permanently burned itself into my spirit is the idea of order-- of getting things in the proper place and order in your life and letting your life flow out of this order. For Christians, Christ-followers, believers, or whatever you want to call us, I have come to the amazingly simplistic realization that the first order of business of your entire life starts with your own, personal relationship with God.

Let's sit with that for just a second.

Step back with me and let's evaluate, together, on where this is for you. Answer these basic questions for yourself right now and be honest:

Do you feel close to God right now? Why? Why not?

Would you say that you spend a significant amount of time with God on a consistent basis?

If your answer is unsure or "no" to the last question, then what would you say is your primary source of direction for your life right now?

Please don't misunderstand-- this is not about feeling guilty about the status of your relationship with God. This is about stopping, taking a moment to reevaluate where you are and what your doing and then refocusing your direction. This is about recognizing that everything, everything, everything, EVERYTHING (is this clear, yet?) flows out of your personal relationship with God. Everything!

See, one thing I'm really tired of is the Church, believers, so-called Christians blabbing about changing the world and then, when you get into the heart of the matter, aren't even getting the FIRST and most important step correct! As the body of Christ, this is killing us! That is one of the main reasons why the world thinks the Church and Christians are a joke-- total fake hypocrites. Most people don't think that about God, but rather, about the people who claim to love Him and follow Him and put Him first in their life. That is not the perception we want as individuals, but it takes a life on purpose to do something about it.

Yes, there is more to the Christian life than your own individual, personal relationship with God-- I get that, believe me. That is the first step, though, and you're fooling yourself if you think you can have the rest of it without getting that right first.

So what exactly does this entail-- this personal relationship with God? What does it mean? What do I have to do to have it? This is the best part-- it's incredibly simple. Notice I didn't say "easy." I said simple, as in, not complex. People mix those up way too often. Developing this relationship with God is as simple as developing any other relationship that you prioritize in your life: if you say you love your spouse and you talk to them once a week, is that love? If you say you care about your kids and you consistently break your word to them, is that a relationship that will flourish and grow?

It's about time. Consistent time. Consistent time in the Word, consistent time in prayer, consistent time in worship, consistent time with other believers, consistent time pouring yourself into the House of God--the Church. It is that easy. Spend time with God on a regular basis and He will radically alter and bless your life in ways beyond your comprehension.

Still doubting? That's perfect, because this summer, that means you will REALLY be blown away when you see what can happen when you dedicate yourself to daily time with God.

I really want you to join me in this--don't worry about if you'll make it all the way through your bible or not, that is really not the point. Of course, getting all the way through is the goal, but the real point is developing the habit of getting into God's Word, allowing Him to reveal Himself to you, and cultivating a HUNGER for knowing Him.

Really, truly, that is the heart of it all right there-- beyond knowing your life calling, achieving dreams, walking in blessing-- all of those are an extension of what God is really after: you KNOWING HIM. That's what reading your bible does. That's what prayer does. That's what worship does. That's what time with other believers does. That's what time at church does. They all are pieces of a giant puzzle that individually, are fantastic things, but when you step back and look at the whole picture, you realize that it is all about knowing Him and making Him known.

This summer, I want to help take you in that direction.

And don't over-spiritualize this by pretending that you need to "pray" about doing this-- that's just being silly. Don't get me wrong, I love prayer and it is very important, but we as believers need to stop wasting time over-analyzing what God has already been very clear with us about-- I think God is ready for some of His people to stop hiding behind an attitude of false holiness and prayer and to start actually DOING something. God has already been extremely clear to us: He wants a personal, genuine, deep and meaningful relationship with you and reading your bible is a crucial part of that. It's just that simple.

So this summer, every day for 99 days, join me in reading your bible every day and letting God change you in amazing and wonderful ways that will revolutionize your world. Walk through this with me this summer and I guarantee you will be a different person at the end of this 99 days!

So, as I feel God sharing and revealing different things through my reading this summer, I'm going to write about them and post them on this blog and talk about them in the podcast (don't worry-- they won't be nearly this long!).

Let me clarify though, I'm not a pastor or trying to teach you about the bible or claiming to be any kind of spiritual authority or bible scholar-- I just want to share what I feel like God is sharing with me and I want you to do the same: post comments, tell me about your reading, what's happening in your prayer times, what God is saying to you... I want to hear all of it! Anyone can post a comment on the blog-- it can even be anonymous if you want and you don't have to sign-up or have an account or anything.

I just think it's a beautiful thing when believers can come together and share what God is doing in their life and what God is speaking to them!

So join me on this 99 days journey... it's going to be a great summer!