Ministry – Page 13 – John Markum

Baptism Crazy!

Posted on May 14, 2011 by johnmarkum

In case you missed it, Edgewood had an incredible Easter this year! We had 4 worship experiences, with 1,880 people in attendance. Many people gave their life to Christ and many others came back home. In staff meeting this week, we were discussing the wave of momentum that has been upon Edgewood, and as a result, we have baptisms scheduled every week for at least the first 3 weeks after Easter, and maybe as much as 5 weeks straight! And we’re not doing 1 per week to stretch it and make ourselves feel big and important; 2 weekends ago, we baptized 5! Last weekend we baptize another 7 to 9! Within 6 weeks after Easter, we will see a total of 20-30 people go public with their faith through baptism!

I’ve said many times before, but there is no place like Edgewood! It is amazing to experience God’s hand of blessing and power on our church and to see lives being impacted as a result of it all. It never gets old! To everyone in our church family: DO NOT TAKE THIS FOR GRANTED! Let us celebrate all that God is doing and be active in reaching more people for the Kingdom of God. When we see God change a life, it is nothing short of the miraculous, and we must never get to a place where we treat the extraordinary as mundane.

If we give God our praise for all that He is doing, and do our part in leading people to Him, then 20+ baptisms in 6 weeks is just the beginning!

Let’s turn these cities upside-down with the Gospel!

Blessings,

John

10 Reasons I love Edgewood:

Posted on May 11, 2011 by johnmarkum

Every generation is passionate about reaching the next generation. I’m reminded of this every week, by the older generations that speak life into me here.
My pastor (Pastor Brown) is a leader worth following. He sets the bar high for my generation of pastors, and he genuinely loves his church and staff.
Saturday nights at Edgewood (The Awakening) are intense! I love the worship, and all the new people making Edgewood their church home on Saturdays.
The youth of Edgewood are amazing! I make it a point to get to know these people since they are one day going to be in our college ministry. If they have anything to say about it, their generation is not a lost cause.
The legacy of a 100+ year old church. A heritage is about preserving what you have. A legacy is about building from your past.
Lay Leaders. Nothing is more inspiring to me, than the hundreds of people who don’t get paid for it, but pour their heart and soul into the work that God is doing at Edgewood. Whether it’s leading worship, greeting, working with the children, or serving “behind-the scenes,” each of you are living the gospel.
Ignite Singles. What started off as 9 willing and able individuals, now consists of 50+ people passionately becoming more like Jesus and reaching their world for Christ. You are the reason Tiff and I came to Edgewood in the first place. We love all of you!
The staff. Our diversity in ages, backgrounds, personalities, and perspectives makes us a well rounded team. I’ve grown so much as a pastor and leader by working alongside these men and women.
My kids LOVE IT here! Our children’s workers are first class, and Sheila Kuriscak does an amazing job leading them!
I get to see God move powerfully every week through our people. That alone, makes every tough day seem minor. Watching people respond to the leading of God = priceless.

I love you, Edgewood!

Blessings,

John

Earth Day vs. Good Friday

Posted on April 22, 2011 by johnmarkum

Earth Day: A day that is intended to inspire awareness and appreciation for the Earth’s natural resources.

Good Friday: A religious holiday commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus Christ and his death at Calvary.

This year, Earth Day falls on the same day as Good Friday. An interesting coincidence to be sure. Some who maybe be prone to believing in a general conspiracy might assume that this was done on purpose to somehow attack the Easter season. Frankly, that just isn’t true. Earth Day happens to always fall on April 22, and has been since it was started in 1970. It just so happens that this year, April 22 landed on Good Friday, which is unusually later in the spring than normal. So no conspiracy.

The coincidence of this year’s dual holiday does, however, cause us to consider some points. While Earth Day is focused on saving the planet, Good Friday reminds us that God saved us. Clearly, what Good Friday stands for is far more significant than that of Earth Day. God cares far more about people than planets, and more about souls than recycling. And I long to see the media reflect that, as opposed to the barrage of commercials and spotlights on saving the Earth, to the complete, politically-correct, exclusion of the death of our Savior for the sins of all mankind.

With that one statement, I know many of you are cheering and some of you are about to find a new blog to follow. Before you go though, at least acknowledge that I did not say Earth Day was unimportant, or that taking care of our planet is a waste of time. Because quite fairly, God gave us this planet. He charged us to have dominion over it. He instructed Adam in Genesis 2 to “keep” the garden of Eden. In other words, maintain, conserve, and cultivate. God did create this earth. And God never gives resources without responsibility, and He never gives responsibility without resources. So God expects us to make the best of the natural resources He’s given us.

We should be concerned about oil dependency, pollution, sustainable food sources, smog, eroding farm lands, and deforestation. We are called to be good stewards of the planet God has given us.

In the big picture, it’s all about Jesus. Jesus dying for us on the cross and rising again the third day. Jesus living a sin-less life in our sinful place. Jesus dying to redeem a broken and dying planet. Jesus rising again to bring us new life. If you are a follower of Jesus, then you know the significance of what today is all about. But taking care of our planet is not in contradiction to anything we believe. In fact, quite the opposite.

Blessings,

John

P.S. – “The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof.” I Corinthians 10:26 ~ Thanks, Andy! 😉