philbennett

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02:41:32 pm on November 26, 2012 | 0 | # |

It’s That Time Again…..

It’s that time again, yes indeed it is. I hope your Thanksgiving was good, and a rich time with family and friends. As usual, there are always so many things to be thankful for, even in tough times. It is always good for me to try to slow down a bit, clear my head, and focus on being grateful.

As we move into the Holiday Season, I want to once again throw out my yearly challenge –
Let us celebrate the birth of our King with unruly, unexplained, unusual, vicious acts of kindness…
a smile; a 5.00 gift card to a friend, casual acquaintance or maybe a total stranger; cookies to a neighbor;
make peace with someone who needs it; give something away. Feel free to add your favorites.
We can choose to make this time of year special, to acknowledge that there’s always hope for better.
And remember, we still celebrate the greatest event of all time, God coming to earth. And in that we gain all that was lost..

Grace.
Hope.
Peace.
Life.

So let’s get out there and share the Good News.
Lay it out there where they can’t miss it.
Love them till it hurts.

And I pray that this holiday season will be your best ever, filled with the presence, knowledge and love of God all around you, yours, and all those you know.
Get out there and get em’.

02:34:57 pm on October 22, 2012 | 1 | # |

It’s Time to Step Up…

Hi ! Phill Bennett here. Hope your fall is getting off to a GREAT start !

As you may know, we’ve gone through some changes here at Belmont and I’m sure we’ll go through more as time goes by. Such is life on Planet Earth.
But one thing that hasn’t changed is our desire to serve the homeless community here in Nashville through our commitment to Room in the Inn.
Most of you know what Room in the Inn is, but just in case you don’t, here’s the quick overview….

From November 6^th through March 26^th Belmont Church will host Room in the Inn every Tuesday night in the Fellowship Hall. We’ll have different groups of people – some community groups, some others – who will provide a hot meal and a friendly community setting for 14 men who live on the streets of Nashville. We also provide showers and warm cots for the cold winter nights. We’ve been involved with Room in the Inn for well over 20 years and it remains one of the best ways we know to serve folks in our community who need a helping hand.
So how do YOU fit in?? Well, there are several ways you can get involved with this ministry:

1)    If you are part of a community group, you and your group can sign up to host one night and supply the food and friendship:

2)    If you are NOT part of a community group, you can still hook up with others like yourself and take a night to serve:

3)    OR you can volunteer to join with a community group when they do their night…they’d LOVE to have you with them !

In Matthew 25:40 (the parable of the sheep and the goats) it says –

“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

This is one of the ways we can step up and show the real, practical love of Jesus for some folks who could really use it. And we are getting ready to get it done.

So don’t wait, just call Pam Cavala (256-2123, ext.219) and take your place.

It will make all the difference in someone’s world…..and it will change yours….

01:53:40 pm on July 30, 2012 | 0 | # |

It’s That Time Again…

That’s right – it’s time for the Belmont Blast ! If you’ve been at Belmont for a while and have been to one of these great end of Summer events, then you already know it’s one you don’t want to miss – water, sun and fun for the whole family.

WHO’S INVITED: You, your family, your friends, and your neighbors
WHAT: The Belmont Blast / Family Fun Day
WHEN: Sunday, August 12^th. Gates open at 11:00 AM and the event ends at 5:00 PM
WHERE: YMCA Camp Widjiwagan
                3088 Smith Springs Rd
                Antioch, TN 37013

Directions From I-40 East – Exit at Stewart’s Ferry exit 219. Turn left at end of exit ramp.
(Stewart’s Ferry will turn into Bell Road) Go 4.6 miles to Smith Springs Road. Turn left on to Smith Springs Road. Go 1 mile to 4 way stop. Go straight through the 4 way stop. Go ¼ mile to Camp entrance on left.

So what IS Camp Widjiwagan, you might ask?
Camp Widjiwagan is a summer camp located on the shores of Percy Priest Lake, in Antioch Tennessee, just 20 minutes from downtown Nashville. The camp sits on 320 acres and 4 miles of shoreline at the Joe C. Davis YMCA Outdoor Center.

If you haven’t ever made it to the Blast, here’s a bunch of reasons to make this year the year you come….

Picnic Areas – just bring your own picnic lunch / drinks and enjoy!

Kiddie Pool – a world –class pool for the little ones and their parents, absolutely great.

2 – Count em’, 2 – 150 foot Water Slides – a great place to challenge friends to a friendly race, or just experience the thrill of the ride.

Alpine Climbing Tower – rope up and see if you’ve got what it takes to get to the top.
(And then back down, of course…)

Lakefront Beach – the beach offers swimming, canoeing, kayaking, two 150′ Wet Willy Water Slides (as mentioned above), and the ever popular Blob.

Banana Boat Rides – a fast, fun and furious trip around the lake on the Banana Boats.
You’ll need to get there early; these spots fill up really fast…

There are also Tennis and Basketball courts available.

Here’s the best part – it’s ALL FREE ! And it’s a great opportunity to invite your friends and neighbors to come out and enjoy the day with you and yours and the Belmont Community !

     So please come out and join us – we’d LOVE to have you with us!
P.S. – Water Guns are optional, but greatly encouraged……and you have been warned…

12:19:11 pm on July 30, 2012 | 0 | # |

It’s That Time Again…

That’s right – it’s time for the Belmont Blast ! If you’ve been at Belmont for a while and have been to one of these great end of Summer events, then you already know it’s one you don’t want to miss – water, sun and fun for the whole family.

WHO’S INVITED: You, your family, your friends, and your neighbors
WHAT: The Belmont Blast / Family Fun Day
WHEN: Sunday, August 12^th. Gates open at 11:00 AM and the event ends at 5:00 PM
WHERE: YMCA Camp Widjiwagan
                3088 Smith Springs Rd
                Antioch, TN 37013

Directions From I-40 East – Exit at Stewart’s Ferry exit 219. Turn left at end of exit ramp.
(Stewart’s Ferry will turn into Bell Road) Go 4.6 miles to Smith Springs Road. Turn left on to Smith Springs Road. Go 1 mile to 4 way stop. Go straight through the 4 way stop. Go ¼ mile to Camp entrance on left.

So what IS Camp Widjiwagan, you might ask?
Camp Widjiwagan is a summer camp located on the shores of Percy Priest Lake, in Antioch Tennessee, just 20 minutes from downtown Nashville. The camp sits on 320 acres and 4 miles of shoreline at the Joe C. Davis YMCA Outdoor Center.

If you haven’t ever made it to the Blast, here’s a bunch of reasons to make this year the year you come….

Picnic Areas – just bring your own picnic lunch / drinks and enjoy!

Kiddie Pool – a world –class pool for the little ones and their parents, absolutely great.

2 – Count em’, 2 – 150 foot Water Slides – a great place to challenge friends to a friendly race, or just experience the thrill of the ride.

Alpine Climbing Tower – rope up and see if you’ve got what it takes to get to the top.
(And then back down, of course…)

Lakefront Beach – the beach offers swimming, canoeing, kayaking, two 150′ Wet Willy Water Slides (as mentioned above), and the ever popular Blob.

Banana Boat Rides – a fast, fun and furious trip around the lake on the Banana Boats.
You’ll need to get there early; these spots fill up really fast…

There are also Tennis and Basketball courts available.

Here’s the best part – it’s ALL FREE ! And it’s a great opportunity to invite your friends and neighbors to come out and enjoy the day with you and yours and the Belmont Community !

     So please come out and join us – we’d LOVE to have you with us!
P.S. – Water Guns are optional, but greatly encouraged……and you have been warned…

02:52:47 pm on June 18, 2012 | 0 | # |

Come On, Take a Chance…

I just wanted to write a few brief words today, jumping off of the excellent message Andy Olson shared yesterday (Sunday, June 17^th ). If you didn’t hear it, you need to go listen to it. If you did hear it, you need to take it to heart and start applying what he told us.

That we need to the most open, welcoming people that our visitors have ever seen….

That people will see that we are serious about being followers of Jesus when we do…

That we can build a real, no kiddin’, we’re not joking here COMMUNITY, where folks can find their place…

That when we do, we’ll see the Kingdom come in our lives and the lives of those around us…

That God will give us the 20 seconds of courage we need – and probably a lot more…

It’s not that hard, we can do it.

Let’s get it on. I can’t wait to see what happens.

03:35:22 pm on June 4, 2012 | 0 | # |

Fixing a Hole

A Brush With Kindness – report from the front….
If you attend Belmont Church or just keep up with what’s going on around town, you may have heard of a Habitat For Humanity project know as “A Brush With Kindness”. The event was held last week from May 31st – June 3rd.
So, I just spent last Friday and Saturday having quite an experience. Folks repaired old wood and trim on the house. They leveled and put in new gravel on the driveway. A crew came in and put a new roof on the house. They put up a new mailbox. It was just a beautiful picture of a community coming together to help someone who really could use the help. It was Kingdom moment, no doubt about it. If you weren’t there, you really missed it.

BUT…I have GREAT NEWS !!! We’re going to do it again later this year, and I want to both encourage and invite you to set aside a couple of days to change someone’s life in a very special way.
Oh – one more thing – it will change YOUR life, too. No doubt about that either.
I guarantee it.

02:31:47 pm on March 26, 2012 | 0 | # |

A Brief Message to Us All from Elissa Wade

I am breaking with my usual somewhat wordy and verbose plogs to cut to the chase as we enter Holy Week, and celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus. I am very excited about our “Renewal Initiative 2012”
which you have seen around Belmont and heard about in our assemblies.

Here it is in case you need it…

1. Renew Prayer Life

– Pray for revival within our church and community
– pray every day for people you know that don’t know Jesus

2. Renew Personal Evangelism

– build relationships with those that Jesus misses

– invite those people you are building relationships with and praying for to church, outreach,
or community group

3. Renew Power for Spiritual Life

– strive to be aware of spiritual realities and be Spirit-led

– re-engage in spiritual disciplines and pursue spiritual gifts

4. Renew commitment to Radical Generosity for the Gospel

– give generously to support the ministry of the Word and pastoral care to our community

– support Isaiah 58, Faith Promise and other special offerings

I want to close with a paraphrased quote from one of my all-time favorite theologians,
Elissa Wade (daughter of Brian)….and I recommend we all take her advice.
“Renewal Initiative 2012 – read it, believe it, do it, good night people! ”

I’m in. How about you ?

04:52:45 pm on February 27, 2012 | 2 | # |

Lent, 2012

Lent – (Latin: Quadragesima, “fortieth”) is the Christian observance of the liturgical year from Ash Wednesday to Holy Thursday.
     “The traditional purpose of Lent is the penitential preparation of the believer – through prayer, penance, repentance, almsgiving, and self-denial. Its institutional purpose is heightened in the annual commemoration of Holy Week, marking the Death and Resurrection of Jesus, which recalls the events of the Passion of Christ on Good Friday, which then culminates in the celebration on Easter Sunday of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
     During Lent, many of the faithful commit to fasting or giving up certain types of luxury as a form of penitence.” – (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia).

For me, growing up as a young Catholic schoolboy, Lent was a time when we were all expected to pick something we liked a LOT and avoid it at all costs for 40 days. The reasoning behind this was that it would make God happy, since He would realize that we were really trying to be good boys and girls. Of course we would think of all kinds of things to give up; things we didn’t like anyway were favorites (“I’m giving up spinach” or “I’m giving up eating vegetables”, you know, stuff like that.) We were just so witty. We‘d usually settle on candy or a T.V. show or making up our beds or whatever.
     Ahhh, the sweet ignorance of youth.
The great news, as I learned later, was that God loves us so far beyond any of that.

Now here it is, Lent 2012. While I am not the young boy anymore, I still find myself wanting to somehow let God know that I’m trying….as if HE doesn’t know that already, like I have to prove it yet again. As I look around at the world I live in and at all the things I could give up for Lent, or try to do for Lent, I don’t know where to start – you know the stuff – coffee, rich foods, T.V. (He probably doesn’t want me to do that…), movies, candy, ice cream, the list goes on and on…add your favorite.

     But this year I’m not going there.
     Nope – this year I’m taking a different route.

This year I’m going through Lent just trying to hear His quiet voice, His leading, as to what I should do or not do. The truth is I think He already has me going where He wants me to go and I hadn’t really noticed it. I am doing and not doing some things in this season for a number of reasons, so I’m trusting He’s in it all, which I ‘ll realize if I just pay attention.
And I am paying attention.
     This year I think it’s not about what I do as much as where I am about doing it. Remember, He doesn’t need anything from me. But I need everything from Him.
The one thing I know is that I want to be different this year.
I want God to heal me, to change me, to renew me, to transform me…Psalm 51 says it pretty well.

^“Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. Open my lips, Lord, and my mouth will declare your praise. My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.”
                                                                                                          – Psalm 51: 10-12 / 10:15 / 10:17

I’m so down with all this.
I am so excited about all God is doing. May this Lenten season be rich and good and powerful for you as God continues to do His amazing work in, through and among each one of us.

04:15:32 pm on January 30, 2012 | 0 | # |

COMMUNITY: from Middle English comunete, from Anglo-French communité, from Latin communitat-, communitas, from communis. First Known Use: 14th century.
1. a social group of any size whose members reside in a specific locality, share government, and often have a common cultural and historical heritage.
2. a locality inhabited by such a group.
3. a social, religious, occupational, or other group sharing common characteristics or interests and perceived or perceiving itself as distinct in some respect from the larger society within which it exists (usually preceded by the ): the business community; the community of scholars.

It looks like to me that if you apply the idea of community far enough, it will eventually encompass everything and everybody in one form or another. How cool is that?

It’s REAL cool, I’d say….
There are many other ways to define community, but one of my favorites is this one –
“it’s who you do life with.”
So my question today is “who do YOU do life with ??”
Life is a lot more fun, rewarding and easier when you do it in community.

So here’s my challenge – as we begin this year 2012 if you’ve never been involved in real community, we here at Belmont want to invite YOU to consider walking out on the diving board and taking the leap! I can say with great certainty that you won’t regret it.
We’ll be offering more great ways to get connected, to get involved, and to find your place than ever before…there is something for everybody. Guaranteed.

Come bring your piece of life and join with us in all that community has to offer !

I dare you…….

Actually, I DOUBLE-DOG dare you…..

Come on in, the water is very fine !

02:20:26 pm on December 12, 2011 | 0 | # |

As I sit writing this, I keep thinking back on 2011 as it winds quickly to its conclusion, and we roar ahead full tilt into 2012. It seems that each year goes by faster than the one before. It’s been a year full of challenges, struggles, opportunities and victories, and I find myself somewhat weary and maybe a little unsettled here as it grows to a close. But I am most of all grateful for this year and for all it has brought, and all the ways it has made me grow, even when I didn’t really want to.
I really love this time of year…I can’t remember a time in my life when I didn’t. It still holds all the magic, all the wonder, all the hope, all the joy, all the excitement it had when I was just a child.
(This may be some indicator of a need for much more expansive counseling, but we’ll talk about that another time.)
For now I plan to enjoy the season and try to slow down, take a deep breath and relax a bit. Call a time out. Go to my corner and take an eight count. Whatever works. And I would encourage you to try to do it, too. I’ll be looking for the joy and hope that Christmas holds….more than presents, food, trees, lights and friends. I know it’s there.
I want to remember that this is the celebration of the greatest day of all, when God sent His son, so that things didn’t have to stay the same, so that EVERTHING could change.

EVERYTHING.
This is the greatest news of all time.

A different world now.
With real hope.
Real life.
Real joy.
Real love.
With all things made new.

As we enter this season, I pray you can and will take some time this season to rest, and refuel, and look beyond the ordinary to the extraordinary event we are all part of. And I urge you to take every opportunity to spread it near and far. Be an agent of joy and hope. Spread the Good News.

I wish each one of you the Merriest Christmas ever.
May we all remember the real story of Christmas, and may it fill us anew with joy, hope and peace.
God bless us every one.