I heard a great analogy today that has kind of messed me up a little bit! Check it out…

When a Chess Master has a student who needs to learn the game of Chess, the best way for the student to learn the game is to remove the Queen. The Queen is the most effective and dangerous piece on the board. It can move any direction as far as it wants. Inexperienced Chess players overuse the Queen and by relying on it too much, they lose. So Chess Masters teach their students how to play the game without the Queen, so that when the Queen is added back in they are prepared to use it as a dangerous tool rather than the only piece they can think of moving. Then they will be an unstoppable Chess player.

In the Church, we have a Queen – Sunday mornings. In many cases we have made Sunday mornings our only tool that we know how to use. It is on Sunday mornings that all repentance, discipleship, evangelism, worship, fellowship, service, stewardship, and anything else should be done. Sure, we may throw in a small group here or a missions project there. But let’s be honest – it’s all about Sunday.

Now don’t get me wrong, I’m a HUGE fan of Sundays. We invest a lot of time and resources into making Sundays the easiest and best opportunity for someone far from God to find Him, or for those who know Him to worship and grow closer to Him. But here’s the what if: what if we learned how to do all of that without our Queen? What if we pretended we didn’t have Sunday mornings and had to reach our world for Jesus?

If we learned how to do that, and THEN added in our Queen of Sunday mornings, we would truly be unstoppable. So OneLifers, I have a challenge for you. Do you wait for Sundays to be your only opportunity to serve, worship, give, evangelize, disciple, or fellowship? Or are you using all the other pieces on the board – Monday through Saturday – to do that, too? The answer is obvious!

I hope you’ll join me in removing the Queen from your mindset for just a moment to evaluate. Then add it back in, and let’s take this city for Jesus using all the tools that we can!

When it comes to patriotic holidays, we usually don’t make much of a fuss about them at OneLife. While I’m sure it sounds too apathetic and unappreciative of the sacrifice our veterans have made (which is not the case at all!), I simply don’t believe Jesus died on a cross so we could march flags down the aisle and shoot streamers in the air while singing about our country. So on days like the Fourth of July and Memorial Day we always take a moment to pray and thank God for the freedoms we have, and then we focus the rest of our service on Jesus.

But this Sunday is different. In fact, I believe it is so different that it is a once-in-a-lifetime kind of Sunday. Could it have been God’s plan all along that the 10th Anniversary of the worst terrorist attack in American history would fall on a Sunday? Definitely! (Acts 17:26) And more than ever a focus on Jesus and what this day represents intersects perfectly.

So this week, on September 11, 2011, we will worship Jesus like we do each Sunday. Then we will devote the sermon portion to this monumental day for several reasons:

• People have questions. This is a relevant issue that still has people asking “why?” The attention that the 10th anniversary brings is raising many of these questions again.
• This day of tragedy reminds us all that life is fragile. In the last 10 years we’ve all faced our own personal tragedies. What does the Bible say about this?
• The past 10 years have brought great healing to our nation, but the healing that Jesus can bring is even greater! We’re going to find out how that can happen in all of our lives.

I’m actually really excited to use a story about Jesus to bring some answers to tough questions this Sunday! No flags down the aisles, no dramatic videos of collapsing buildings, and no sensationalism. Just Jesus, hope, and healing.

Be there, and don’t come alone!

The Vols will be 2-0, the sun is supposed to make a re-appearance by then, and I hope to see YOU at OneLife Church! All of that happens this Sunday, and here’s four reasons why you CAN’T miss it!

1. This Sunday is OneLife’s second birthday. That is HARD to believe! Time flies when you’re having fun.
2. This Sunday is also the 10th anniversary of 9/11. We’ll be talking about how that day changed everything, and our response to it now changes everything.
3. We have only three more Sundays at Powell High School, and we’re building momentum like crazy toward the move to our new facility. Come be a part of history!
4. Why wouldn’t you come?! Make gathering to worship a priority – not just something you do when there’s nothing better on the schedule! (Hebrews 10:25)

This is the most exciting season I’ve ever experienced in the past two years of OneLife Church. The energy and excitement we’ve experienced as we build toward transitioning to the Jubilee Banquet Facility have been phenomenal.

While we can’t plan a move of God, we sure can be prepared for one to happen! And that’s what we want to do. So we are asking all OneLife volunteers or anyone who wants to become a volunteer to not miss the following dates. Put them on your calendar and make sure you are there! Because if we are going to experience a move of God, we need to get ready for it.

September 11 and 13, 6:30 p.m. – We are asking all volunteers to pick one of these two nights to attend Jubilee Volunteer Training. With a new facility comes new set up, tear down, and volunteer roles. Come meet with your team at the new facility and learn everything you’ll need to know as we make this move. Help us plan by signing up online here! Childcare is provided both nights.

September 27, 6:30 p.m. – Open House and Night of Worship. Come check out the new facility just like it will be every Sunday! We’ll also have a time of worship led by the OneLife Band, prayer time to dedicate the new facility to God, and communion. Every OneLifer will want to be there! We’ll also ask teams to meet in their respective areas at the conclusion of the evening to learn more about how their areas are set up and help tear down.

September 29, 5:30 p.m. – You can call it a “dress rehearsal” or a “dry run” but this will be our last shot to get ready for the Grand Opening! Dinner will be provided when you arrive, and we are asking all volunteers to come practice setting up your area with your team so we can be ready for the big day.

October 2, 9:30 and 11 a.m. - Grand Opening! We’ll need all hands on deck as this is sure to be our biggest day of the year, welcoming hundreds of people to our new home. This will also be the first day of our new service times – 9:30 and 11 a.m.

Don’t miss a single minute of this awesome time at OneLife! For more information about the move, visit www.onelifeknox.com/move.

This past Sunday was simply amazing. Having our church united for one service, packing out the auditorium, and blowing the roof off in worship was by far one of my favorite memories over the past two years.

So let’s not stop at just one Sunday!

After praying and meeting to hash out the details, we’ve decided to continue in one service at 10 a.m. for our final five weeks at Powell High School. This will give us a chance to continue building momentum as we head toward changing facilities on October 2. We will resume two services that day at Jubilee Center with new service times of 9:30 and 11.

That means over the next five weeks you better come early and you better get someone to come with you so they can experience what God is doing at OneLife!

For more information about the move and to watch the service from this past Sunday where we announced the move to Jubilee, check out this info page.