blog

The Divine Beginning

Thu, 29 Apr 2010 01:55:00 GMT

It's the final stretch of this Divine Experiment. Undoubtedly it has been a challenging & rewarding time for you and your family. Hopefully, by 'making room' in your life and schedule for more of God your perspective has changed and you see that maybe you have been a little too caught up in the whirlwind of life and this break from business as usual has served as a wake up call. Wow that was a lot of cliches all at once. Things are definitely going to be different at the Dodzweit house and the TV & computer will enjoy specific nights off every week. I encourage you to evaluate what permanent changes need to remain and commit to stick to them. It's not just enough to empty either. Make sure you replace the space with good things. Don't take a break from Facebook only to spend the extra time on Myspace. Read scripture, or read a book to your kids or pray. Looking forward to seeing you on Sunday.

Pastor James

Hold Fast....D.E. Day 11

Thu, 22 Apr 2010 22:26:00 GMT

If there has been one thing reminded to me during this time it's where obedience is there is also opposition. So a glimpse into my world this past weekend: my a/c went out in the house, my dog had an interesting movement all over the laundry room (let your imagination run wild and that would only be the half of it), and then my car was broken into. Wow, what a weekend! I feel like someone should write a country song about my weekend. So that was some of the opposition for me. If you have been on this journey with us then there is probably no doubt you have experienced some opposition. The goal of the Divine Experiment is to make more room for God in our lives and deepen our relationship with Christ. So on the flip side of all of this opposition I have experienced a deeper measure of God's grace to get through the oppositions I have faced, I can hear His voice more clearly, and there is a deeper grounding in my life. Hebrews 10:23 says, " Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful". My heart prayer is as we seek Him we find Him. God is there, hold fast. Whether you are in the midst of opposition or just coming through it, hold fast. You are making progress. God is refining us through this 21 day journey. It will be worth it because He is faithful!

Still Moving Forward,

Pastor Jaime

Keeping it Real....D.E. day 3

Thu, 15 Apr 2010 01:15:00 GMT

So there has already been some awesome fruit from this journey from the connecting moments I am having with my kids to incredible God conversations we are having as a family. But just to keep it real for a moment, I am having some American Idol and Biggest Loser withdraws, seriously. But I guess if there wasn't some pain involved it wouldn't really be a sacrifice, right?. All in all I really am enjoying this journey. One more thing I am seeing, or should I say hearing, is God's voice. Removing the clutter is making His voice much clearer and I am so grateful for that! So how are you doing? What is God doing in you and through you? Leave some comments.

Pressing on to day 4,

Pastor Jaime

The Divine Experiment Day 2

Wed, 14 Apr 2010 00:17:00 GMT

Update from the Dodzweits . . .

So it has been a day and a half since we embarked on our 21 day divine experiment and I anticipate great things. After church Aidan and I went fishing along with 2 of his friends and had a great time and caught 5 fish! We went again yesterday and caught 5 more. No complaining from him about no Wii! I'm excited about tonight's devotion as we tackle humility, have story time and play board games.

Its not too late to start the experiment. Pray and ask God how you can 'make room' in your life and family for Him and start now. You won't regret it. Leave some comments and let us know how it's going.

Pastor James

If We....Will He?

Sun, 11 Apr 2010 17:59:00 GMT

2 Chron. 7:14- If my people who are called by my name with humble themselves and pray, seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, forgive their sin & heal their land.

We invite you on a journney.....well, more of an experiment to discover how will God respond to us if we commit ourselves whole heartedly to Him? If we set aside distractions, and focus our time and lives on Him and his word how would God respond? What would He do? Over the next 21 days of this Divine Experiment we will be blogging and hoping you will join in on the conversation where we will be asking WILL HE....IF WE?

You a Musician?

Wed, 13 Jan 2010 02:52:00 GMT

Hey, musicians of Grow Life. You're very quiet! I don't know many of you, and this is my cry for your silence to be broken! Let me tell you about our vision, what's going on with the worship team, you and how you may be able to fit into all the mayhem.

The Vision

I believe God has created us to worship. The more I seek to learn of His charge to us, the more I learn that we are commanded to worship, not asked. Psalm 2:11 says, "Worship the Lord with reverence and Rejoice with trembling." It is a strange way to imagine rejoicing with trembling, but this is the calling of His followers. From twirling as a child does to lying flat on the floor acknowledging God's Almighty Power, I pray that as a church, we can learn together how to love Jesus in unabashed worship... that we together will learn what it is to passionately Praise and Worship our Father.

Musicians (Players)

If you are an experienced musician (playing an instrument), then I'd like to discuss with you where we are today.

We currently have an urgent need for a Bassist.

Beyond this, I would like to create redundancy in all the roles of the team. This could be anywhere from Drummers, Guitarists (any kind), Keyboards and more. I feel that we need to have more musicians because a rotation and/or substitution is a needed thing for us musicians to have room to breathe and worship freely. This means, I'm inviting you to talk to me even if you think we have the position filled.

Here's the charge to you. I don't ask that you be perfect. I ask that you love Jesus. This isn't cliche no matter how you read it. To prove this, read it slowly... you're requirement is that you love our ... OUR Jesus. Yearn for Him. He's our Saviour, and if we can't truly worship Him as He requires, then we are unfit to lead others. Our job as the worship leaders in the church is to be the examples of worship. My desire is that we repent of our hearts to just showcase talent, but that we lead our church to the Cross every Sunday.

If this hasn't scared you, and you are ready to hear more, please contact me athbutler@growlifechurch.com.

Singers

If you're a singer, let me tell you right now, that I am inexperienced in writing complex vocals with multi-part harmonies, and my true desire is not to showcase talent but to lead our church to the Cross. I invite you to trust the greater vision that worship is not based on our abilities to perform but our abilities to lead. Being musicians, it's understood that we all get a little possessive of our talents at times, but if you are truly ready to seek worship and trust a sometimes awkward leader, then please feel at peace to approach me.

If you are a singer interested in hearing more about the needs of the team, please contact me athbutler@growlifechurch.com.

Everyone Else Musical or Non

We need to be a worshipping church that understands talent is not the only, or even primary, characteristic to worship. It is about the ability to abandon one's self in humble and exuberant praise. Therefore, understanding the priority of heart over talent, I invite you on this journey with us and the rest of our church as we seek a truer worship.

Thanks for listening. - Hugh Butler

Life Groups

Sun, 04 Oct 2009 12:08:00 GMT

This past week we began our journey together with our Life Groups. It's a small beginning with huge implications. We are already getting reports of some really cool things happening but I'm sure this is just the beginning. If you have something to share comment below and let's include everyone in the journey.

It's Alive

Wed, 13 Jan 2010 02:59:00 GMT

For the most part our website will remain full of information about things like service times, events, message series, our story, and our Life group ministry. But this part of our website, well, this part is ALIVE. It's a blog within our website. That means from time to time we will post new thoughts, events, talk about the service or whatever random thoughts come to mind. But it's not just a place for us to ramble but to interact with you. On this blog you have a voice to. Leave us a comment and let the conversation roll. There is a chance we will discuss deep topics revolving around God and our relationship with Him. Then there will be other times, not all the time, but we might just bring up random things or "off the cuff" topics. Every once in a while we need to laugh. Here's to life in you and on this website. Let the conversation and fun begin!

The Grow Life Team

Men's Breakfast

Wed, 13 Jan 2010 02:59:00 GMT

There is a Men's group that meets every Wednesday morning (a 6:00AM to be exact) for breakfast at the Breakfast Nook located just north of County Line Rd on Land O Lakes Blvd. This is an open group with no registering or advance notice needed.

This group meets at the following address
1532 Land O Lakes Blvd #A
Lutz, FL 33549