Message 6-28-09 Fearless1 – Gideon

Check out part one of our new series, “Fearless”. I’m teaching this series Sunday mornings, 10am, at Bellevue Grace/The Uprising.

more about "Message 6-28-09 Fearless1 – Gideon", posted with vodpod

Sunday’s Message: What Are You Devoted To?

We had a really good turnout this past Sunday at The Uprising.  Awesome worship by Gary Slayton and Pastor David.

The message dealt with the question…where is your devotion…your passion?  Watch…

Have You Met a “Ronnie” in Your Church?

It’s been said that the church is full of consumers. “Ronnie” proves it. This short video was created after listening to hundreds of pastors tell their stories. It seems that every church has a few “Ronnie’s” attending – at least for a short while. Sadly, I know we’ve had our fair share!!

done

Know Some Hypocritical People?

Sunday’s message…final installment of “Difficult People”. This time I talked about dealing with hypocrites…

more about "Know Some Hypocritical People?", posted with vodpod

Words of Wisdom from Madea!

Tyler Perry is at his finest when he plays the part of “Madea”, an aggressive, grey haired, bespectacled family matriarch.

If you’re like me, and have had the experience of people breaking your heart by up and leaving you, whether in a marriage, business, church, friendship…then you need to hear this bit of wisdom from Madea!!! It’s OH SO TRUE…

Greedy Needy

This past Sunday we discovered what it’s like to be “Greedy Needy”.Take a look…

more about "Greedy Needy", posted with vodpod

Difficult People Week 1 Video

Here’s week one of our new “Difficult People” series. This one shows us how to deal with those who are “Overly Critical”.uprisingchurch.orgjoecase.comSpecial thanks to Pastor Craig Groeschel for sharing this message with us.

more about "Difficult People Week 1 Video ", posted with vodpod

Featured in Twitter story on FOX 17 Nashville

Watch the full story…

One Abundantly Significant Life!

Here’s the message from this past Sunday’s finale of the series, “THR3E”…

more about "One Abundantly Significant Life!", posted with vodpod

New Message Series Coming Sunday!

A simple guide to dealing with the needy, manipulative, hypocritical, and overly critical people that drive you crazy every day. Starts Sunday, May 3rd at 6:30pm at UpRising Church.

Back to “Bi-Vo” FEEDBACK

The other day, I shared what I would call a “venting” post (“Back to Bi-Vo”) about my needing to consider a possible return to a bi-vocational status, meaning doing other work that would help pay the bills at my house. I got some amazing response from folks I wanted to share in one post below.

First, let me say that I did leave out one rather glaring statement regarding my discussion of people who have left UpRising Church over the past couple of years (thanks Anne for your comment pointing this out!). In fact, I DID indeed go to each person (who would allow it) and talk to them…seeking forgiveness for anything I had done to hurt their feelings, but explaining that I must stand firm on the vision God gave me. That’s a very humbling thing to do. Some receive it…some don’t.

I want those who have left the UC for any reason to know that I still love them and would do whatever I could to help them. I want people to know it’s NOT about Joe Case…it is ALL ABOUT JESUS at UpRising Church! I would not have it any other way!

Now that that’s cleared up, let me share some of the very encouraging comments I received from Twitter, Facbook, blog comments and email…plus a passage of scripture that really fires me up (at the end of the comments)…

From Twitter…

“You don’t know me but I have been fed by watching your weekly video.  I am so sorry you had to write this.  Unfortunately, with change, the church always splits for some reason.  I hope your able to get another gig and support your family” – Bruce B.

“Thanks for being an honest and transparent man. you’re a great friend, better father and dad, and even better man of God. you rock!” – Matthew C.

“Read your blog post on bi-vo. obviously god is blessing and remember that none of this has caught god by surprise. press on joe!” – Paul T.

Hey Joe, will be praying – guys like me even halfway across the country appreciate you! Harold G.

Thanks for the post, Joe. Praying for you and your family today. @moviepastor is a great example of what God can do ‘part time’. Tony W.

“Just read your blog with a heavy heart. You will be in my prayers.  Blessings Joe.” – Rick W.

“I understand.” Gary B.

From my blog…

“Joe, I know that you going bi-vo was a very difficult decision for you but I want you to know that I continually pray for our church and exspecially you and Pam. I really enjoy Uprising and do not plan on going anywhere else. I know that God has given you a vision that He will make come to pass in His timing. Do not give up! I love you and Pam. My family are hard core servants of Jesus Christ and we have grown so much since we first started attending Uprising (before it was Uprising) and we believe in the vision that God has given to you. Hang in there Jobee..!” – Elaine M.

“I just want you to know you are doing the RIGHT thing!! God honors those doing HIS work, continue to do your best for Him! He will prune those away who are troublemakers so you all can/will grow. Don’t allow the bumps in the road to throw you off the course God has set before you. I admire what you’re doing…keep up His work!  I pray a financial blessing over you, the church and your church family. I know this is a tough decision, but hang in there, God is NOT through with you or this church! He will open the windows of blessing, He will open doors no man can close, He will prune your church (and the troublemakers), so that it will grow!! You are doing the RIGHT thing.”  – Michael D.

“Wow, my heart goes out to you. My church is in a similiar position as yours (people leaving & our pastor just went bi-vo).
Pastor Joe, I encurage you to dance your dance. Obviously you don’t take it lightly but focus on who you’re trying to reach, not keep.
We’re an Air Force family and we’ve been in several churches that were member or deacon led. After getting into a pastor/staff led church, We don’t ever want to go to another style. Too many cooks and all that. Peace to all of you.” – Eva M.

“We’re always thinking about you and, knowing the history, I know God has great things planned for such great hearts. Love ya’ll and being one of those that was led to baptism through Uprising, I could never thank you enough for having the patience to stick with it through these hard times. As you said, God always has something in mind and I know this process will only make everyone stronger!” -  Stephanie S.

“Oh man…my prayers are with you. Keep you head up, you guys have a great thing and people will one day see what amazing things you are doing through God. You are loved my friend.” – Joseph D.

“It’s not easy but I know God won’t fail you as you seek His direction at this difficult time. My prayer is that He will turn this test into an opportunity for you to touch more lives with His love and bless your new co-workers, even as you have blessed old co-workers in the past. Only the best to you, your family, and UpRising Church.” – Todd B.

From email…

“I understand the hardship my friend.  However, being a bi-vocation minister has its advantages.  First and foremost, it keeps us connected to the world we’re called to minister to.  The apostle Paul chose to be bi-vocational.  Although, he stated that he remained in this position so that he could “boast” of making his own way by demanding nothing from the people he ministered to, I believe he did it to stay connected to those very people since he was called to preach to the “gentiles”, so called at that time.  I chose that same path many years ago and it has been very difficult at times.  However, it is a blessed path.  Be encouraged and take joy in the fact that it is GOD who leads you down this path.  Proverbs 19:21 “Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.” I’m here for you.  Let’s continue to do this with a pure heart and let GOD take care of the rest! Keep in mind…There will be those who may look down their nose at you and boast of their own ministry and the fact that they thrive and draw their income from that ministry.  However, “Pride comes before a fall.” God Bless!” – Gary S.

“Tough Email to write indeed, Joe, I can’t and won’t speak for anyone else, only myself. I’m sorry that I haven’t been there much since the first of the year with either my presence or my giving. My sincerest apologies. I’ll do better.  As for the tough decisions and pastorship that I’ve seen over the past year – You’ve done well.
* You’ve preached Jesus as my only hope, savior, source of
all love, light and truth
* You’ve advocated and exampled community outreach and service
* You’ve challenged me in love, especially given my shortcomings
* You’ve encouraged me when I was down
Yes! I’ve been attending 1 year – it’s my UC birthday this month  Pulpit’ing isn’t just all throwing candy. Thank you for being a faithful deliverer of our Lord’s grace, strength, light, and love. I’d like to continue attending, please! All through Jesus, for His Glory.  It’s all His. Love ya, Bro.” – J. T.

“So sorry to hear that it has come down to this decision but I believe that God has his hand on your work. He certainly has used you to encourage me during our difficult times. If there’s anything I can do, don’t hesitate to ask. Glad to hear that the church will keep going. I’m hoping to stop by for a visit once my work schedule gets straightened out.  Love ‘ya bro!” – Jonathan H.

“Praying for you joe!” – Anne J.

“Cheryl and I are praying.: – Ron E.

“I won’t be going anywhere Joe. We will be fine, and make it through.” – David M.

“Sending my love to both you and Pammy and I promise you’re gonna see my face again!” – L.M.W.

“Praying for you! You’re the man. Stand Strong Bro.” – Michael R.

From Facebook…

“I’m sorry, Joe.  I know this isn’t what you wanted, but we do what we have to do.  Here’s hoping it’s temporary.” – Beth W.

“Prayers for your family and your congregation.” – Jeanne S

“Joe – you have my prayers and thoughts thru the transition.  You are a good man! Stay strong in the joy of our Lord.  it would be great to see your smiling face on TV again!” – David H.

“Joe, you will continue to be used by God!  God may be wanting to use you to impact someone’s life at a tv station.  Keep seeking.” -  Eddie P

“Stay strong Bro!  Praying for you.” – Robert P

Thank you SOOOOO much for the wonderful support. God may very well intervene and allow me to stay fulltime. But, if not…I’m willing to do what I have to do.

Again, let me say that we WILL continue to meet as UpRising Church every Sunday evening at 6:30 in the Bellevue Grace Church building, 7301 Hwy 70S in Nashville. We’ve got a LOT of work to do!!

Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain. — 1 Corinthians 15:58

Back to “Bi-Vo”

This is one of those posts I had really not wanted to ever write…but, here it is.

After much prayer, I am returning to the status of “Bi-Vo” Pastor. This means “bi-vocational”…in other words, I need to do other things during the week to make the necessary income to help provide for my family.

UpRising Church has taken a TON of hits…some of them can be blamed on the economy. But many of the hits came from “people”.  Yes, people. People who, for one reason or the other, disagree with some decision I have made over the past couple of years. Even though I may have sweated and shed tears…and sought God’s will through much prayer over a decision, many have chosen to walk away…many angry.

You see, our church was founded on the Pastor-staff led method of governing. Therefore, all major decisions wind up in my lap…a responsibility I have never taken lightly. I know that I will have to stand before God and answer for every decision made at and for UpRising Church. Those people who disagreed with me won’t stand and answer for those decisions…BUT…they WILL have to answer for their actions because of their response to these decisions.

Many churches are what we call, “congregationally led”, meaning there is a committee and vote for everything all the way down to the kind of toilet paper used. As a matter of fact, in many of these churches the pastor has to ask for a vote to go to the bathroom to use that toilet paper! (Only a slight exaggeration!) In these kinds of churches, you find pastors only staying about 18 months on average before they get fed up and move to another church or leave the ministry all together.

In our type church, you see the people who can’t have their “say-so” leaving about about that same rate…after about 18 months. WHY??

I truly believe it all comes down to selfishness…people want THEIR way, or they’ll hit the highway. This is true in either the pastor/staff led or congregationally led churches.

In our case, we’ve had people to leave over some of the most elementary things. I could cite many, many examples…but only one really hurt me to the core.

One guy recently left saying he didn’t feel God was blessing UpRising Church, and didn’t see how He would.  WOW…that was like telling me my child was ugly and would never grow out of it!!

Somewhere between 30-40 people have come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ in our two years of existence in Bellevue. Marriages have grown stronger…one suicide I know of was prevented.  I would say there have been a number of blessings!! What is his definition of “blessing”…do we have to have a 1,000 member church with $1 Million a month coming in??

I would say the enemy knows what God wants to do through us, but has worked overtime to see to it that we couldn’t. However, I know that God is greater than the enemy. And “greater is He who is in us than he who is in the world!”

I praise God for what He has done, is doing and WILL do through this ministry!!

With ALL this said, I know that those who are coming LOVE what we’re doing, but most have been hit incredible hard by the economic crisis. One of our largest tithers, who has a business of his own, has not had any income for 3-4 months, thus has not been able to tithe.

Over the past few weeks, I have received on average about 1/4 of my salary…one week, I got nothing at all.  We have some accounts payable that we need to take care of as well. (Anyone reading this outside our church who would feel God leading you to help us out, please go to www.uprisingchurch.org and click on “Online Giving”…we would certainly appreciate it.)

I will be working at other means to support my family while continuing to pastor the UC on a “bi-vocational”basis”…what some would call “part-time”, although there is really no such thing as a “part time pastor”.  I did this for the first 9 years of my pastoral ministry at other churches. It’s hard, but can be done.

I cite Crosspoint Church in Decatur, Alabama as one such church that has thrived with a bi-vo pastor. Their Senior Pastor, Dave Anderson, did bi-vo the first few years of his work. His church struggled much like we have for a while, then he decided to go back to work and remain their bi-vo pastor. On this past Easter Sunday, they saw nearly 600 people in attendance in multiple services!! Don’t know if Dave is considering coming back full time or not…but this certainly worked for them.

I wish I was in a position where I didn’t have to rely on our members’ giving to support me as a full time pastor at UpRising Church.  With a daughter in college, my family needs both my wife’s income and an income for me to make it in today’s world.

Unless God intervenes with a financial miracle, I am looking at a possible return to television…maybe radio…maybe making my hand-crafted pens for sale once again. All of this will take a lot of time away, so I won’t be as available during the week as I had been before.  I will be focused mainly on the messages for Sunday morning and Wednesday nights. One thing I WILL NOT give up is time for my family…no compromise there.

Is UpRising Church closing???  NO…NO…NO!!  We will continue to meet as UpRising Church on Sunday nights at 6:30pm at the Bellevue Grace Church building, 7301 Hwy 70S in Nashville…continuing to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ and reaching as many as we can.

I am so grateful to Pastor David Crawford and Bellevue Grace Church for allowing us to meet in their building on Sunday nights – RENT FREE!! (Wow…sounds like being blessed to me!)

I am still believing God has some really great things ahead for us!! We are praying through some opportunities even as I compose this post.

Please pray for me and my family as we make this transition…and that God will provide a way for me to make the necessary income we need for our family.

Powerful Sunday!

We just completed week #2 in our series, “THR3E”, this past Sunday…and once again, it was powerful!

David Crawford, Senior Pastor of Bellevue Grace Church, and I have shared the stage the last two Sundays doing some “team” teaching/preaching. It’s been an amazing experience…teamwork at it’s best!

This past Sunday, we focused on “Jesus: One Touch Could Heal the Broken”. I believe a lot of broken people experienced that touch both in the morning and evening services as evidenced by the numerous folks who came to the altar for prayer and commitment.

By the way, our Praise & Worship was off the charts!! Thanks Gary, Sara, David, Ben, Ernie and Michael!

Watch the video of this past Sunday’s message right here…

National Exposure

I filled in doing weather on FOX 17 last Thursday and Friday (a job I did full time for 6 years prior to leaving to do ministry). Of course the big Murfreesboro tornado happened on Friday, and I was a part of the storm coverage.

While I was on, “Studio B with Shephard Smith” on the FOX News Channel took our coverage LIVE for a brief period of time…yep, national TV!

Our daughter and son-in-law were watching FNC at their home in Lexington, KY, when I suddenly appeared on their screen. They grabbed their cell phone and snapped a quick picture and sent it to me. Check it out…

Awesome Easter!!

It was totally and awesome Easter Sunday at UpRising Church!

We combined with Bellevue Grace to do a morning and evening service…both were off the charts!

David Crawford, Senior Pastor of Bellevue Grace and I preached at both.Gary Slayton and the combined praise teams were incredible.

I just loved the joy and passion I felt Easter Sunday!

Look out Bellevue…we’re better together!!You can watch the message below…