Tomorrow is the day I have been waiting for. I will wake up at 3:30am and head to the airport, to then sit on a plane with a ton of groggy people. Alright there's a catch. When I land I will be escorted (ok, really my parents are just picking Heather and I up) to Disneyland! O, the wonderful land of Disney. What makes this place the self-proclaimed "happiest place on Earth". Why do millions of people flock to Anaheim, CA every year to visit a place that is ran by a mouse? Is it the lights? The music? The overall experience? The fact is, it's all of these. People love Disneyland because the park settles for nothing short of spectacular. Everything they do is top of the line. They have set the standard for a great experience and people expect the best.
Shouldn't your church do the same?
Why do people get sick of church? Now I understand that a church is not like Disneyland, but in a way can't the experience be just as breathtaking? Why does church have to be a dry, religious experience? If life change is truly happening it shouldn't be boring. Church should be a place where visitors and regulars alike come expecting a great experience.
This requires the church to dream big. It requires leadership to be full of fresh ideas with hearts that require the best! The church should push to be top notch. Everything they do should be of the highest quality possible. Even if something doesn't go as planned, the heart behind the event should be for perfection. With this attitude the church can and will be an exciting place to be. People will love the atmosphere and in turn take the excitement beyond the walls of the church. Don't settle for anything short of wholehearted. Push yourself to help your church be breathtaking.
Expect Greatness,
Shane
Shane Sanchez
Mirror-"Something regarded as accurately representing something else."
This seems like an obvious definition but think a little harder. The first half of Hebrews 1:3 says "This Son perfectly mirrors God, and is stamped with God's nature..." When I read this it seemed pretty simple. We all understand that Jesus is the Son of God, but that's not what it's talking. It says he "perfectly mirrors God". Jesus is a spitting image of his Father. He is God in flesh. 2000 years ago when he was born, when he spoke, and when they were nailing him to the cross they were looking into the face of God Himself.
That made me think...who do people see when they look at me? Do they see an 18 year old student who spends too much time on his facebook and trying to get the latest updates for his MacBook and iphone? Or do they see a man who would give up his time for anyone? Do they see someone who is selfish and would rather spend money on new clothes or the latest technology? Or do they see someone who would give everything to invest in the lives of those who have nothing? Do they see Christ or do they see my sinful nature and selfish pride? Christ gave everything and requires only our commitment to Him. I want people to see Christ in me and I want to be able to look in the mirror and know that His likeliness is staring back.
It's not about how good of a person you are or the causes you associate yourself with. It's your heart. It's what only God can see and what you have hopefully given completely to Him. It's about your reflection, it's about who you see in the mirror.
So just one question: Who's staring back at you?
Clean Your Mirror,
Shane
This seems like an obvious definition but think a little harder. The first half of Hebrews 1:3 says "This Son perfectly mirrors God, and is stamped with God's nature..." When I read this it seemed pretty simple. We all understand that Jesus is the Son of God, but that's not what it's talking. It says he "perfectly mirrors God". Jesus is a spitting image of his Father. He is God in flesh. 2000 years ago when he was born, when he spoke, and when they were nailing him to the cross they were looking into the face of God Himself.
That made me think...who do people see when they look at me? Do they see an 18 year old student who spends too much time on his facebook and trying to get the latest updates for his MacBook and iphone? Or do they see a man who would give up his time for anyone? Do they see someone who is selfish and would rather spend money on new clothes or the latest technology? Or do they see someone who would give everything to invest in the lives of those who have nothing? Do they see Christ or do they see my sinful nature and selfish pride? Christ gave everything and requires only our commitment to Him. I want people to see Christ in me and I want to be able to look in the mirror and know that His likeliness is staring back.
It's not about how good of a person you are or the causes you associate yourself with. It's your heart. It's what only God can see and what you have hopefully given completely to Him. It's about your reflection, it's about who you see in the mirror.
So just one question: Who's staring back at you?
Clean Your Mirror,
Shane
Shane Sanchez
Ok, ok, I'm not sharing my political values with the world by titling this post "change". Instead I want to talk about something most people have an extreme phobia of. This morning at my home church our lead pastor announced one of the most exciting ideas at our church since we stopped using hymnals. Now don't get me wrong there is nothing wrong with singing songs that our Pilgrim ancestors used to sing but there is something very wrong when a church gets comfortable. That is a scary place to be as a follower of Christ. Today our pastor announced that we would be eliminating our Wednesday night events and instead having our Sunday Night Experience. Everything that we offer on a Wednesday night and much, much more will be offered during SNE starting in January. Now before you curse us and tell your friends that we must not be Pentecostal, this came just as much as a shock to me the first time I heard it. Then I began to think and came to the conclusion that this is brilliant. This is what our church has needed for a long time. A shake up isn't always a bad thing. Changes are a measure of just how far we have sunk into the La-Z-Boy we label as "Christianity". Shouldn't we want to shake things up from time to time? Isn't that what Christ sole purpose was: to change the destiny of our lives by saving us from an eternal death? So, next time, before you decide to lose taste in something that has "changed", maybe you need to check how long you have been staying in the same place while everyone around you has been moving forward. We must be people that strive to not only experience life change, but change the lives of people around us!
What are some changes that you marked off as "pointless" too quickly?
Live Changed,
Shane
What are some changes that you marked off as "pointless" too quickly?
Live Changed,
Shane
Shane Sanchez
This is it. My first chance at showing the world how and what I think on a daily basis. I have always been somewhat intimidated by the blogosphere and it's many citizens but I think I'm ready to take on the challenge. I want to express myself. I want you to know what the Creator is doing on a daily basis in the life of an ordinary student with extraordinary dreams.
Interactive: I want to know what is going on in your life.
Resourceful: I will share the knowledge that I am gaining from the leaders and influential people in my life.
Driven: Let me know ideas and choices you've had/made that will positively influence the ones I will have/make in the future.
Encouraging: We are surrounded by a world that is in constant conflict. The news, the radio, the grocery store parking lot; everywhere we look there is conflict. I plan on breaking this norm. I refuse to live a life short of God's never-ending joy.
A Good Time: It's not all business, this will be a place for fun.
Be Revamped,
Shane
Interactive: I want to know what is going on in your life.
Resourceful: I will share the knowledge that I am gaining from the leaders and influential people in my life.
Driven: Let me know ideas and choices you've had/made that will positively influence the ones I will have/make in the future.
Encouraging: We are surrounded by a world that is in constant conflict. The news, the radio, the grocery store parking lot; everywhere we look there is conflict. I plan on breaking this norm. I refuse to live a life short of God's never-ending joy.
A Good Time: It's not all business, this will be a place for fun.
This is revamp.
Get into your comfy chair,
with your tall foo foo drink,
open your laptop,
and
enjoy.
Get into your comfy chair,
with your tall foo foo drink,
open your laptop,
and
enjoy.
Be Revamped,
Shane
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