Church is only half of God’s story for you. The other half is on the mission field right outside the church doors – where God expects you to live what you’ve learned while you were inside.  Week after week in church, so many Christians get built up on the wonders of Jesus and all His glory, but then that’s it. It stops there. The purpose of the Church is to equip you for what you need to do, which is hold Jesus up for all the world to see, not keep Him concealed or tucked away neatly within four walls.

The one question we need to ask ourselves after every message we hear in church is, “How can I take what I learned in here, out there?” As each of us increasingly acts on what we know, the Church body begins to reflect what it was always intended to be – united in thought and purpose (1 Corinthians 1:10 NIV). How are you doing on your part in this? If you’re connected to a church that feeds you well, how much do others on the outside reap the benefits of your fulfillment?

Many of us know why the Church exits. We understand that worship, ministry, evangelism, community and discipleship are basic purposes of the Church that train us to make Jesus known.  It’s great to be passionate about hearing His Word, but let’s be just as passionate about doing it. God has given us His Church to help us be successful.

Listen to Pastor Johnson’s teaching on the purpose of the Church here.

As we pursue Jesus, I believe one of our most consistent prayers right now should be for a true revelation of how radically powerful He is. When we get a deeper understanding of Jesus’ power, nothing in us can stay the same. Everything about us shifts as we become convinced that there really is more to Jesus than the images we’ve confined Him to.

All too often we know Jesus as our Savior, but we don’t bow to Him as the all-powerful Lord of our lives. Do you see Jesus as more than the baby in a manger, the humble one who died on the cross, or your forgiving best friend who you can always count on? Do you sometimes secretly regard Him as a weak entity who was beaten, bruised and killed, and in need of your worship? He doesn’t need us. We need Him. His name is the Word of God and He is the Word Made Flesh.

This weekend, Pastor Johnson painted a very clear picture of our Mighty Jesus, laying out implications of His radical power and how we can live by it. This message will stir you into truth about the Great I Am who is Lord over all. Click here to experience it.

Sept. 14, 2011 – The stage explodes in an eruption of color, and color seems to be the very theme for the night – from the lights on the stage, to the people in the congregation, to the spin Pastor Johnson put on the stories from the Bible, encouraging you to imagine yourself in the shoes of the people from the pages of scripture from which he speaks. ‘Colorful’ seems to be the word to describe the entire evening of September 14^th. This is Fusion, the young adult ministry of Victory World Church, and this night not only marks Fusion’s 10-year anniversary, but also the first time they’re holding service in V1, the main auditorium. It is a night of celebration.

You can feel the intensity as these young people usher in the Spirit of the Lord. Yes, He is ALIVE and roaming this building tonight. He’s alive in the lights that show every spectrum of the rainbow on the stage, alive in the chorus of the songs shared by the men and women gathered with their hands raised in praise, and alive in the sermon… especially when Pastor Johnson asked the question from Ezekiel 37 –“Can these dry bones live?” – then took his time and carried us further into the scripture. By the time he spoke the words that seemed to breathe life, you felt as though you had been on Ezekiel’s journey. If there are any dry bones in the house tonight, they are ready to arise and walk. In this powerful message, Pastor Johnson was delivering meat to a Spirit hungry crowd.

When the service ended, the diverse crowd obviously revealed that Fusion is not just enjoyed by young adults. One of the parents, Elaina, explains why she continues to come to the Fusion services:  “I like the way Pastor Johnson speaks. He talks to you gently, but at the same time he doesn’t sugar coat anything.” Another parent jokingly says her daughter drags her to the Fusion meetings.

There are a couple of things that are certain – the crowd will keep coming back, and the crowd will continue growing. With this much passion in a Wednesday night service, it seems that God himself has breathed new life into us all.

Dry bones CAN live.

Fusion young adult ministry meets weekly on Wednesdays at 7:30pm in Victory World Church’s main auditorium. It’s a riveting God experience. Join us. 

Of all the qualities of becoming a disciple, I believe being “Evangelistically Bold” is one that makes many of us the most uncomfortable. How do we change that? How do we actually get comfortable telling others about Jesus? First, I believe we’re thinking too hard about it and making it more complex than it really is. If we can keep it simple, we’ll make major strides in this area. I’m sure of it.

For starters, the term “Evangelism” is simple at its core. It basically means to share the Good News. No preferred methods. No schooling required. No formal titles needed. Just make it known.

Also, when we personalize it, it gets easier. Jesus has done something in your life. Don’t just keep it to yourself. Share it, somehow.

Another way we complicate things is by thinking too much about how the news of Jesus in our lives will be received. We’re taking on too much. It’s not our responsibility to make people get it. God just commands us to tell it—and it’s not only a select group of us who are charged with this command, but all of us who accept Him as Lord.  In Pastor Johnson Bowie’s words: If you’re saved, you’re sent!

Nobody hides it when good things happen to them. The natural reaction is to let somebody know about it. Isn’t Christ moving in your life good news? What’s stopping you from sharing Him? If you’re fighting fear, doubt or any other negative emotion, pray and ask God to help you get over things like pride, people-pleasing and laziness.

This weekend, Pastor Johnson gives us three action items on how to become evangelistically bold. He breaks it down in simple terms and makes it memorable for easy recollection. Praying and persevering in these three areas will help you get more comfortable with sharing Jesus or keep you on a steady track if you’re already there. Listen here.

God is so much more than an idea. Do we really get that? I know we’re Christ followers and all, but do we truly believe that God is God—the Beginning and the End of everything? The prophet Elijah not only believed it, he also lived like he believed it.

There’s a divine mandate before each of us believers, and it’s the same that was presented to Israel in 1 Kings 18:21. “Elijah went before the people and said, ‘How long will you waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him.’”

Elijah provokes us to make a decision today—live for God or live for Satan. It’s that cut and dried. We can’t hang out in the middle and have some of both. It must be one or the other. This seems to be an obvious choice for those of us who proclaim the Lord as our Savior, but so many Christians are siding with Satan everyday because they give way more of themselves to the things of this world than they give to God. It’s not an outright denial of Christ, but it’s an absolute pull away from Him toward the other side.

Elijah’s charge to us is this: “If God is really God, then live for Him like He’s really God.”  How different would our lives be if we never lost perspective of who the Most High God is? Pastor Johnson’s message this week about the bold, no-nonsense Elijah is a gut check for us all. When you need a reminder of who God is to fire you up, get you straight, or just help you take command of your day, this is the message to do it! Click here to listen.

Victory @ Hamilton Mill welcomed home church members as services resumed in their newly renovated building on July 10, 2011.

An exhilarating feeling overcame you when you walked through the doors, and everyone appeared to have permanent smiles on their faces. Campus Pastors Johnson and Summer Bowie said Victory @ Hamilton Mill packed up and moved out of their building approximately seven months ago, and renovations were underway. In the meantime, services transpired at Mountain View High School, and for seven months faithfully, the designated areas at the high school were set up for every service. When services concluded, everything was once again packed up. Although the high school was a great temporary place for fellowship and growth, the campus pastors and their congregation were ecstatic about being back at home.

Evidence of excitement was expressed throughout the facility. Pastor Dennis and several pastors and leaders were present in support of VHM’s first service back home. Joy filled the lobby and the surrounding rooms as the sound of laughter and chatter echoed throughout the upstairs, as well as downstairs where kindergarten, 1^st – 5^th, and 212 fellowshipped. Just minutes prior to worship, the sanctuary was nearly full, as 212 joined us. Worship was led by Todd, Montell and the VHM band. Many hands were raised, people were clapping and everyone appeared to be rejoicing. Every song was relevant to the occasion.

After worship, Pastor Johnson led us into prayer and 212 ministries were dismissed.  Although some space became available, it wasn’t enough for everyone waiting to be seated. Pastors Johnson and Summer said they didn’t anticipate the attendance to be greater than it was at the high school. Pastor Johnson had even considered having just one service for the first week, because the 300-seat sanctuary was large enough to accommodate the 250 adults in attendance at the high school.

The quote “if you build it, they will come” immediately came to mind when Pastor Johnson disclosed that 322 were in attendance at the 9am service, and 548 attended the 11am service. Both services combined totaled numbers that nearly doubled the amount of people attending services at the high school.

The launch is surely making a huge impact in the surrounding communities and everyone is pumped up about the future of VHM. Pastors Johnson and Summer shared that a woman approached them at a local restaurant and inquired when VHM would be open for services. Also, while shopping at a local store after Vic Kid’s training early Saturday, one of the elementary teachers was approached by a woman who noticed his Victory shirt and expressed how excited she was about VHM. Vic Kid’s volunteers showed they too were ready for VHM’s first service back home. Thirty seven people RSVP’d for the training event and more than 50 attended!

Victory @ Hamilton Mill is definitely back in their building…and everyone is charged!

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We want to hear about what God has done in and through you at Victory. Whether long or short, complex or simple, your story is worth hearing, and there are others who need to hear it. Won’t you please consider sharing your story with us? If you’re willing to do so, please click the Share Your Story quicklink above, write your story, upload a nice photo (if you can) and click submit. It’s that simple. Now, don’t be shy. God’s given you a story for a reason! Share it today!

As God finishes the work He has started in us, how do we help the process along? How do we stay connected to the presence and power of God and not let it get choked out by the worries and cares of this life?

We become good soil—that person in whom the Holy Spirit takes root. We move beyond the point of believing and receiving God’s Powerline, the Holy Spirit, and we actually live it out over time, not just for a season. It’s called the Holy Spirit life and it’s the life God calls us to—one filled with signs, wonders, unity, community and more.

If we want to consistently produce this kind of fruit, it will definitely cost us something. The Holy Spirit life requires devotion and diligence, but living it is really simple.

Click here for the full message about how to live a life exploding with the Holy Spirit.

This past weekend, Pastors Johnson & Summer Bowie we wound up our FAQ’s of Family Life series with an engaging and challenging message about parenting. Over last few weeks, we’ve received a large number of questions about parenting. And so, before we finished this series, we wanted to address some of these most frequently asked questions:

• What’s the most important thing to know as a parent?
• How can we raise kids that are strong in faith and character?
• What if father and mother disagree about how to raise them?
• What if my child is in rebellion or “out of control”?

Parenting is no minor task. It’s not something we can afford to do by just “winging” it. We’re aiming to have kids who serve the Lord, who love God, who know how to live in this world, who are successful both in the world and also in God’s Kingdom… and ultimately, children who raise their children to do the same. Our children are the future pastors, teachers, prophets, evangelists and apostles who will influence the course of this nation and world.

So, we’ve made a list of 10 things to INTENTIONALLY do to build strong children and raise up the next generation. Here they are in brief:

1. Teach them to love God and cherish his Word
2. Train them in godliness
3. Don’t be afraid to discipline
4. Develop deep personal relationships
5. Encourage them to honor and respect authority
6. Teach them to forgive others
7. Challenge them to stand for what is right, not what is popular
8. Disciple them to embrace a strong work ethic
9. Direct them to fulfill their God-ordained purpose
10. Inspire them to love all people

Obviously, that’s the simplified version. Make sure you watch the video to get all the details. Whether you’re a parent, grandparent, hope to be a parent or know a parent, there is wisdom and insight in this message that you and the children in your life will benefit from.

This past weekend, it was great to have Johnson Bowie (Fusion Pastor and Hamilton Mill Campus Pastor) speak in our services. He brought a dynamic message that was incredibly relevant and challenging – a great way to close out our Passion series! If you missed it, you should really take a little time and listen to or watch it online here! In fact, even if you were there, you might want to listen to it again…it was just that good a word! Let me see if I can whet your appetite a little bit with some of what he said…

I think if we were all really honest, we would all say that we want to be passionate people. We want to care. We want to have first things first. We definitely don’t want to be boring people. We want to be people on fire for the things that really matter. I’m not talking about being passionate about Facebook, TV or some hobby, but being passionate about the high things of life. We want to be a people who are on fire for God!

And that’s what we’re after…that we would be passionate people; that we wouldn’t be cold or lukewarm for God, but that we would be on fire! The question is, “How do we get passion for God?” People are asking me all the time, “How do I grow in my love for God?”

And my answer is always, “How would you grow in love for your wife? Or your husband?” And, usually, their answer is something along the lines of, “Well, we’d spend time together. And we’d probably go out together. And we’d probably do something the other person liked doing.” DING DING DING!

Yup, it’s really not complicated at all. If you want your relationship with your spouse to grow…if you want a new passion in your marriage…a greater love, find something your spouse likes doing…and then GO DO IT! In any relationship, the best way to grow in love is to get involved in the things that the other person loves. One of the best ways for me to show you that I love you is to learn to love the things you love.

And, in the same way, if my love for God is ever going to grow…if I’m ever going to get passionate about Jesus and His Kingdom… if I’m ever going to have a love for God that is bigger than singing a few songs on a Sunday morning… I’ve got to get to know the things He loves and go do those things with Him.

So, the obvious next question is: What does God love doing?

And, for the answers to that question, you’ll have to go watch or listen to Johnson’s message. You’ll find it here. Now, go get passionate!

This past weekend, Victory @ Hamilton Mill Campus Pastor Johnson Bowie and I swapped campuses and preached to the other’s congregation – something we’ll probably do from time to time – and it was great! I’m so excited to see what God is doing with our new satellite campus. And, Johnson gave a great message back here at Victory Atlanta. It’s a word that we, particularly those of us in the American Church, need to take hold of and put into practice. We will never be the church God intended otherwise. He’s a sample of what he said:

As a Father, our God hears the cries of the hurting and responds with deliverance, love and affection to those who need it the most. As we Celebrate Jesus this month, we can’t ignore the Good News of what we are celebrating in just a few days…that God so loved the world that he gave his only son…that he was born in a manger…that God looked down on the world and, hearing the cries and the pain and the torment, put on flesh and became Emmanuel – God with Us.

In Luke 4, Jesus declared his mission: “to preach good news to the poor…to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” We have to pick the key words out of this scripture… POOR, PRISONERS, BLIND, OPPRESSED. This is why He came. This is His mission statement. Jesus didn’t come to start a political movement, a prayer movement, a monastic movement or a theology movement. Ultimately, Jesus came for messed up people! Jesus came for the rejects and the sinners and the outcasts and the unacceptable and the unwise of this world. His mission was to seek and to save that which was lost. Jesus came for people like YOU and ME! And, he left us with the same mission.

Jesus didn’t hang out with the religious leaders too much. Instead, he was always hanging out with the sinners, with the sick, with the tax collectors, with the people religious people wouldn’t go near. Jesus came to be a friend of sinners. And, if we’re really going to Celebrate Jesus, we need to be a friend of sinners also. Remember, we don’t go to a birthday party to give everybody else presents. We go to the birthday party to celebrate the one whose birthday it is. And, as we are Celebrating Jesus during this season, it’s all about us giving Him the gift of being PASSIONATE about the things that He is passionate about. So, if He is a friend of sinners… then my gift to Him is to go and be a friend of sinners also.

What does this look like practically? Well, Johnson had some great ideas, but you’ll have to watch/listen to it online. And, I encourage you to do so – repeatedly, if necessary – until Jesus’ love for sinners permeates your heart. This year, don’t miss the whole point of Christmas. Let’s get out there and really Celebrate Jesus!

May your Christmas be full of the joy that comes from letting Christ’s love flow through you to everyone around you in authentic and practical ways!