“Nobody Better” is one of my favorite lines of encouragement to use.  I’ll often yell to my son when he’s up to bat, “there’s nobody better!”  I’ll tell members of my staff when they are preparing for a big Sunday, “there’s nobody better!”  Sometimes I’ll even encourage myself before walking on the stage to teach, “Stu, there’s nobody better!”  Now what does that mean? Does it mean there’s not a more talented ballplayer, staff member, or preacher?  Absolutely NOT!  Certainly there’s somebody out there better…but I’m convinced there’s nobody better than you to be doing what God has called you to do right now in this moment.  There is “nobody better!”  So…

- step up to the plate with confidence
- swing for the fence with determination
- prepare like it all depends on you
- deliver like you’re the best in the world at what you do

And remember, you are uniquely positioned to positively impact your world.  There’s nobody better than you to do that.

Most of us are our own worst critic!  We are harder on ourselves than anyone else is.  We expect more of ourselves than anyone else expects of us.  And when we don’t perform like we want to perform, we feel more disappointment than anyone else feels.  That’s why I want to offer you a new perspective today: YOU’RE DOING BETTER THAN YOU THINK YOU ARE! You might not be the best yet.  Sure, you have some room for improvement. There are always avenues for additional growth.  But come on, embrace it: you’re doing better than you think you are!  If you told your kids you loved them yesterday, or said a prayer on the way to work this morning, if you put in an honest eight hours for your boss, or you made a good decision about how to spend your money this weekend, then you’re doing better than you think you are!  Stop beating yourself up!  Stop wallowing in the shadows of other’s successes.  Stop wasting your life wishing you had taken a different route or made a different decision.  You’re doing better than you think you are.  Keep it up and I guarantee you that tomorrow…you’ll be doing better than you think you are!

The best gift a child can give to their mother is the gift of a wise choice.  Proverbs 10:1 says, ”A wise son brings joy to his father, but a foolish son brings grief to his mother.” Mothers carry the burden of a child’s foolish decisions.  Mothers feel the hurt and pain of the consequences that result from a child’s bad choice.  Even long after a child moves on from a poor decision, a mother’s heart tends to dwell there.  That’s why the best gift you could ever give your mother is to make wise decisions with your life.  Here are a few critical decisions that will “BLESS” your mother:

- Be wise with your relationships!  When choosing friends, dates, and even a spouse, consider the “mother test.”  Would mom approve?

- Be wise with your money!  Only buy what you can afford – avoid DEBT!  Look for a good deal.  Your mama didn’t raise a fool!

- Be wise with your words!  Mama always said, “If you don’t have something nice to say, don’t say anything at all!”

- Be wise with your time!  Prioritize your time according to your values.  If you value family, make time for them!

- Be wise with your actions!  If your mom were in the back seat, would you drive like that?  If your mom were with you at work, would you laugh at that joke?  If your mom were sitting beside you on the couch, would you watch that TV show?

I think you should send flowers for Mother’s Day.  I think it’s a great idea to take your mom out for dinner.  Mother’s day cards and chocolates and spa treatments are great gifts.  But the best Mother’s Day gift of all is given through the way you live your life!

Here are 5 things I want every person at WEC to know today:

1 – Sunday was incredible! You may not realize this, but what happened on Sunday isn’t NORMAL! 153 people went public with their faith on Sunday! 75 of them became Christ followers on Sunday and immediately went public with their faith! WOW! God is doing something that is amazing and He is involving us in it! I hope you’re not missing it! I hope you’re not taking it for granted! And I hope that you are thankful for YOUR CHURCH!

2 – This Sunday is the finale of our TENSION series and it’s Mother’s Day! Don’t miss it! Bring your mom and come to church. Something is happening this Sunday that has never happened before – and I’m telling you right now, you don’t want to miss it!

3 – Camps are filling up fast! The best investment you can make in your child (3-5th grade) or student’s (6-12th grade) life is the investment of Summer Camp. If you haven’t registered them yet, do it today while space is available! Summer Camp is a life-changing experience for kids and students and will propel them forward in their spiritual growth.

4 – If you give financially to this church…thank you! If you don’t currently give financially…what are you waiting for? It’s through your generous giving that we’re able to do things like spontaneous baptisms and summer camps! Every dollar given is another opportunity to change the way people think about church! Your investment IS making a difference. Sign up for online giving to make consistent contributions easier! On Sunday, a man who was obviously homeless attended our Hampton Campus. He enjoyed the doughnuts and coffee and the hospitality of our volunteers. Because it was a baptism Sunday, our bathrooms were stocked with deodorant and combs/brushes. This man who carried all of his earthly belongings in his pockets and on his back very humbly asked if he could have a can of deodorant and a comb. Of course, we were happy to give him those. As he left at the end of the service, he dug in his pocket and pulled out a $10 bill. He approached a volunteer and asked for two $5’s in exchange for his $10. And then, he GAVE 50% of what he had. That homeless man gave $5 back to God. When you give like that man, it breaks the power of greed in your life and it honors God!

5 – I LOVE MY CHURCH!

I’m going to go “old school” on you this week!  I’m sure not everyone is going to agree with me on this one, but I’m just wondering…what’s up with Skipping Sundays?  When I talk to my friends who are Christ Followers, it seems like many of them are happy and content if they’re attending church 50% of Sundays.  When we run the analytics and look at the data on our kids’ attendance at Waters Edge, it’s clear that 50% of Sundays is a lofty target for most families when it comes to church attendance.  On rainy days or extremely pretty days, we’ve learned to expect a drop in attendance of 10% or more.  It just leaves me wondering…what’s up with Skipping Sundays?  This week I want to tackle some common reasons why we skip Sundays.

REASON #4: We Underestimate The Value For Our Children.  Our kids learn and live what we model for them as parents.  Sporadic church attendance translates a loud and clear message to our children about the value they should place on their relationship with God, spiritual growth, and participation in the Body of Christ.  It’s crazy the things parents will do for their kids.  We will endure baseball practice in the rain, dance recitals that last for hours, and school plays that bore us to tears.  As parents, we do these things because they have great value for our children.  I believe many parents greatly underestimate the value of regular church attendance for their children.  The lessons they learn, the influences in their life, the habit of placing God first in the week, and the takeaways for spiritual growth that all take place on Sundays at church are the most valuable things we can offer our kids.  I believe that we need to re-prioritize Sundays for our kids.

On the practical side:  I know that with sports activities, Sundays can be a challenge!  The rule of thumb in our house (and should be for your house) is church BEFORE sports.  That means we prioritize and say “yes” to church attendance and may have to say “no” to sporting attendance.  Fortunately at WEC, we have multiple campuses and multiple services.  My son plays baseball on most Sundays but because we have 7 different services to choose from, he never misses church. Teach your kids to say “yes” to the most important things FIRST!  If they can learn this as a kid, imagine how much of a difference it will make when they are an adult.

I’m going to go “old school” on you this week! I’m sure not everyone is going to agree with me on this one, but I’m just wondering…what’s up with Skipping Sundays? When I talk to my friends who are Christ Followers, it seems like many of them are happy and content if they’re attending church 50% of Sundays. When we run the analytics and look at the data on our kids’ attendance at Waters Edge, it’s clear that 50% of Sundays is a lofty target for most families when it comes to church attendance. On rainy days or extremely pretty days, we’ve learned to expect a drop in attendance of 10% or more. It just leaves me wondering…what’s up with Skipping Sundays? This week I want to tackle some common reasons why we skip Sundays.

REASON #3: We Are Not Connected. I’ve found that those who “skip Sundays” are lacking a connection. When you’re connected through volunteering, it’s HARD to skip because you have a role to play and someone is counting on you. When you’re connected to a group of friends and known by others, it’s hard to skip because someone is looking for you. When you’re not connected, sleeping in or running errands or doing chores on Sunday can quickly become the priority over attending church. Perhaps you feel like just a face in the crowd, like no one will notice or miss you.

This is just one reason why it’s so important to connect! At Waters Edge it’s relatively easy to know and be known…join a team and join a group!

I’m going to go “old school” on you this week!  I’m sure not everyone is going to agree with me on this one, but I’m just wondering…what’s up with Skipping Sundays?  When I talk to my friends who are Christ Followers, it seems like many of them are happy and content if they’re attending church 50% of Sundays.  When we run the analytics and look at the data on our kids’ attendance at Waters Edge, it’s clear that 50% of Sundays is a lofty target for most families when it comes to church attendance.  On rainy days or extremely pretty days, we’ve learned to expect a drop in attendance of 10% or more.  It just leaves me wondering…what’s up with Skipping Sundays?  This week I want to tackle some common reasons why we skip Sundays.

REASON #1: Our Lives Lack Margin.  Margin is that extra space on the edge of the paper that no one dares to write in…but it’s the space in our lives that we fill up until there’s no “extra” left.  For a lot of people, Sundays are the ONLY “down” days.  Hectic work, social, and kid schedules fill our time and drain our energy Monday – Saturday.  Sunday for most is a “catch-up” day.  We sleep in, do household chores, make a grocery store run, and crash!  In the midst of our margin-less life, we sometimes find that it’s just easier, healthier, and more productive to skip church on Sunday in order to prioritize other things.

Here’s what we fail to realize…Sunday church attendance and participation actually creates MARGIN!  When you put things in proper order, it creates the right amount of space that you need.  Try it for a month of Sundays.  Prioritize your church attendance and watch what happens.