Thanks for being here !
Long post warning! Sorry it was a full day!
For lunch today my wife Cara Coffman COOKED… what an AWESOME DAY.
37 people went PUBLIC with their faith in Jesus today! I can’t stop thinking about it…
And let me put this in perspective…
Dream City Church averages around 150-165 people give or take in attendance on a Sunday.
Today, we baptized 37 people.
That means in one day, we baptized around 25% of our average weekly attendance.
That is NOT normal.
That is NOT casual.
That is not something you just clap about and move on from…We should spend this week thanking JESUS !!!
Based on normal church averages, a church our size might baptize somewhere around 8 to 12 people in an entire year IF we are working(SOME CHURCH DONT EVEN…nevermind)
A strong evangelistic church our size might baptize 15 to 20….
But 37 in one day?
That means Dream City is reaching baptism and evangelism numbers normally connected to churches much larger than us.
We are seeing the kind of Gospel fruit you would expect from a church running 500, 600, or more.
And I do not say that to BRAG...
I say that because we need to SEE what God is doing!
This is SIGNIFICANT.
For a new Church (2/12 years old)
This is not just church activity.
It’s a Gospel movement and we are all a part of it!!!
This is people going public with their faith.
This is people saying, “The old me is gone, and I belong to Jesus.”
And Dream City, we cannot get casual with this!!!!!
Because PEOPLE MATTER.
Every person who went under that water today matters.
Every story matters.
Every yes to Jesus matters.
37 people in one day is not just a number.
It is a marker…A testimony.
It is evidence that Jesus is still saving, healing, restoring, and calling people home.
And I believe we are only seeing the beginning…
Today we kicked off our NEW series…
VAGABOND
Today we talked about being STUCK IN…
SURVIVAL MODE…
I preached my guts out…I'm sore!
We can carry stuff so long, you forget it is even there.
Offense. (Some of y’all have carried offense so long it has its own keychain.)
Fear.
Rejection.
Anxiety.
Control. (I pulled out a sign that said “control” from the backpack today, and half the room said, “Don’t touch that. That’s mine.”)
Distrust.
And then one day you realize…
At first, you carried survival mode…But if you carry it long enough, survival mode starts carrying you.
That was the heart of today.
So many people miss out on the life they could have because they are facing the BLESSING the same way they faced the BATTLE.
Still guarded. Still suspicious. Still fighting.
Still waiting for something bad to happen.
Still treating peace like it is a setup.
We slip into treating healthy people like they are about to hurt us….or treating the blessing like it needs to be survived.
Blessings do not have to be fought.
Battles are fought. Blessings are received.
And some of us are so used to fighting battles that we do not know how to receive blessings. BOOM!
That will preach!!!!
The woman with the issue of blood had been bleeding for twelve years.
Twelve years of spending everything she had and only getting worse.
But what stuck out to me today is that we do not even know her name.
We know her by her issue.
That is what survival mode does...
It tries to rename you by what you went through.
But what happened to you is NOT who you are.
Your wound is not your name.
Your issue is not your identity.
Your trauma is not your title.
Jesus did not just stop the bleeding.
He restored her identity.
He called her DAUGHTER!!!!
What a moment!
You cannot enjoy the blessing while still thinking like you are bleeding.
Some people prayed for peace and then recreated the storm.
Not because they wanted dysfunction.
Because dysfunction became normal.
But Jesus came to give us life.
Not… just survival.
Not…barely making it.
Not… just spiritual Low Power Mode.
Life.
Real life.
Abundant life.
Whole life.
The worship these last two Sundays has been incredible!!!
There has been such a real presence of God in the room.
No hype.
No performance.
Just Jesus meeting people right where they are.
I didn't not see it coming...BUT since the end of January, it honestly feels like Dream City Church has EXPLODED with new families.
And I do not want us to get casual with that.
Because PEOPLE MATTER.
That is the mission.
Every chair matters.
Every family matters.
Every kid matters.
Every student matters.
Every person who walks through the door carrying an BIG HEAVY SPIRITUAL backpack matters.
And speaking of things I did not see coming…
Since February, we have had like 8 people who used to live in Crossett, Arkansas join Dream City Church!!!
What are the odds of that?
SMALL WORLD!
Apparently, you can leave Crossett, but Crossett will still find you in Alvin, Texas.
And honestly, that has been special to me.
Crossett will always be a part of our story.
Last Wednesday, I had the honor of preaching at LEVEL GROUND FELLOWSHIP in Crossett, Arkansas, and we had such a POWERFUL service.
To everyone at Level Ground, thank you for having us.
Thank you for STILL loving us.
Thank you for welcoming and for making room for what God is doing in our lives now.
And I especially want to thank my father-in-law, and friend John Calvin Martin ,and my mother-in-law and personal chef while I’m in Crossett Tammie Martin for letting me preach and for believing in the ministry on Cara's and my life.
That means more than I can probably put into words.
Random dad thought…
Saylor and I have a daddy-daughter date planned for Tuesday, and I am probably more excited than she is.
Actually, that may not be true.
That girl loves a date.
We’re gonna get French food…apparently.
And another big life moment…happens THIS WEEK!
Cara and I celebrate our 15th anniversary THIS THURSDAY.
15 years…
That is…WOAH!
ALSO That’s love, covenant, forgiveness, and pretending I know where she wants to eat…I do not.
We have walked through a lot…
She has followed me and helped me lead our life through...
Ministry…she has survived 15 years of me calling ministry ideas “quick and simple.”
Moves…
Babies…
Hard seasons…
Beautiful seasons…
Cancer…
Healing!!!!!
Tears.
Laughing until we cannot breathe.
Moments we did not know how we would make it through…
And the faithfulness of God through all of it.
I love This woman.
I am thankful for her.
I am thankful for our story.
And I am thankful that God has let us build Dream City together.
Also, thank you to everyone who grabbed an envelope for our envelope fundraiser.
That is also why our envelope fundraiser matters.
We are not just raising money.
We are making room.
Room for MORE…
…people…
…kids…
…students…
…salvations…
… baptisms…
MORE stories of Jesus changing lives.
Dream City, I love what God is doing!!!
But I also believe this is one of those moments where we cannot afford to drift.
We cannot just attend.
We cannot just observe.
We cannot just clap for the vision.
We have to CARRY it!!!
Because there are still people wandering…they have no hope! BUT Jesus is still stopping in crowded rooms for people everyone else overlooked!!!
The series just started.
And I already believe God is going to use VAGABOND to help a lot of people stop surviving and start living.
Shout out to our DAWGS Life Group Leader, Sound man and Basically whatever he needs to be for Jesus Mr. Joe McCollum for celebrating his SEVENTIETH Birthday this last week!!!!
I love my church.
The best is yet to come.
If you believe in what God is doing at Dream City Church, I want to invite you to support the mission.
Every gift helps us make room for more people, more families, more salvations, more baptisms, and more stories of life change.
People matter. GIVE HERE