Sound is all around us. The noise of the freeway buzzes by, the wind in the trees, the meow of my cat. None of it is particularily beautiful or meaningful. It’s just noise.

And then there’s rhythm. The definition of rhythm is “sounds in a pattern”. What an interesting concept! The same sounds that are always around us, put into a pattern, becomes beautiful music.

I think that our Christian life is the same way. A pattern of obedience produces beautiful music. So often I see people sacrifice obedience for what “feels” good or what is just the easier road to travel. The problem with your life when you aren’t obedient – in EVERY area – is that you become just a bunch of random noise rather than beautiful music.

So, look around your world. If you are in distress, ask yourself what area or areas aren’t your being faithful in? Get yourself in alignment with what God wants from you and the noise will begin to turn into music.

How do I possibly sum up a day like today? There are way too many variables to give it one word! Today was our three year anniversary celebration and we know how to celebrate!

Here are my highlights:

Troy Jones, our friend and mentor, called at 6:58 am to wish our church a happy birthday. A little thing that made a big difference. He pastors a church of about 2500 in Renton and yet we were important to his morning. Believing in people is powerful.

Delaney’s two best friends from preschool came and I didn’t even invite them specifically! It was SO fun to see them all together at church. I screamed like a little girl when they walked in the door. Thanks, Pastor Kim, for investing in my daughter and her friends!

We baptized 8 people and heard each of their testimonies. What an incredible experience! Congrats to Helen, Alex, Matthew, Rachel, Ryan, Jack, Amber, and Erin. We are beaming with pride because of your stand for Christ! You are each so deeply important to my life.

We had 215 people at church today! Our highest attendance previously had been 176 (on Easter). That’s alot of growth and I am EXCITED about it. Included in that number were some faces that I hadn’t seen in a while and that was really awesome.

Tonight 20 people got plugged into a small group! Congrats to those of you who are plugged in and those of you who just got some great people in your group. And big props to the Men’s Group that picked up nine men…which is especially interesting, since there weren’t nine men in the room to sign up. Wives were signing up their husbands via the phone!

Mackenzie gets a lot of press time on my blog. She’s about 8 and just adorable. Today she brought me a 25 cent ring that I wore all morning. I’ll keep it forever. Why? Because the last three years were for families just like hers. They didn’t have a church background and now they are like family to us. She reminds me weekly that my measure of importance is in the eyes of a child. I’m not here to impress dignitaries. I here to make a child feel the love of Jesus.

We have a great team! Thanks to all who helped in big and small ways to make today a success.

You may have noted that I felt like God said 300 people will attend on this day. I was apparently wrong, but I’m still convinced that God spoke to my heart. That number and that dream forced me to invite people and encourage people that I wouldn’t have done without that prompt in my spirit. And I also know that there are always things that my eyes cannot see. Who was invited that God knows will come, but it just didn’t happen today? The reality is that we had just shy of 100 more people in our church than last week. That’s pretty significant when you know that we had 215 today. It’s an astronomical jump in one day and is nothing short of a miracle. I might be wrong about the specifics, but don’t let that overshadow the move of God that we were a part of today. Praise Jesus!

God has a way of keeping us grounded. I ended a long and important day with Delaney saying, “Mom, look at all of the caterpillar poop.” She had in front of her a container where she collected all of the droppings from her “pet”. What else could there be in a day?

Here’s to another three years!

We are quickly approaching our third anniversary of starting North Creek. I believe that looking back at what God has done is one of the most important practices you can have in your life. So often we feel like God isn’t in the picture, but if you take the time to sum up where you are at, God becomes really clear in hindsight!

Here are my favorite highlights of the last three years. They are perhaps the most humbling things in my life. I just cannot believe that God has allowed me to be a part of this journey. I hope that you feel the same way.

After this weekend, we will have baptized over 40 people in three years. What a reflection of success! That is why we do what we do. Each person reflects a changed life.

We have had a couple dozen people go through Starting Point. Some have decided to serve Christ and some have walked away. Although that saddens me, I feel a great peace in my heart about it. Our only job is to tell people and live it out in our own lives. God is the one that saves people. He’s not done with anyone, yet. We did what He asked of us and He will finish what He started.

Our team is the most important thing in my world. We have a great, talented, devoted, generous, and truly unstoppable team around us. I do not take that for granted. I dream for their lives and what they can be in the future. Greatness is upon them and they have the character and obedience to be used by God in astounding ways. I hope that North Creek continues to be a part of each of their stories! What I have learned about them in three years is that each of them is deeply gifted in areas that I did not expect. I just keep getting surprised by their latest step into being even more amazing than I previously thought.

You can LOVE your church. I hate to admit it, but I have been in way too much “church drama” in my life. I was surrounded by conflict, bitterness, unforgiveness, gossip, and tearing down. I began to wonder if Christians were just hurtful people and ministry was for those that God felt could handle torture. I needed that to be wrong and the good news is that the last three years have been pure joy!

I’m really not sure how we have made it financially as a church. This is the part of the journey where I see God’s hand the most. We did not want to do fundraisers and travel around asking other churches for money. We just wanted to jump in and hope that our attenders would give. So far, so good! Thanks, God!

Mark and I are the most blessed pastors ever! The people at North Creek are like family – the really good family that you always wished you had. Sometimes I feel like people don’t believe us when we say how much we have loved planting a church. But if they met the people at our church, they would know that every word is true. Thank you for making this adventure the best of my life.

My daughter Delaney has a habit that is very interesting. When she gets corrected, she throws her arms over her ears and pretends not to listen. This breaks my heart! It’s so difficult for me because I know that what I’m telling her is important…it may hurt to hear, but it’s still important.

Sometimes when she does that I just stare at her and think, “I bet we do this to God all of the time.” When He corrects us, we don’t know what to do, so we cover our ears and pretend it isn’t happening. After all, if you didn’t hear it, it doesn’t count, right?

In order for us to be the best people that we can possibly be, we’ve got to be teachable. When the rubber hits the road and we are corrected, our response needs to be with open ears and open hearts…even when that is the most difficult posture to maintain. Growth and pain just go together sometimes, but it’s all worth it in the end.