Well, January was awesome!  We have made some changes at The Well and they have been met with huge affirmation.  Most of the changes were really just to get more people involved and give more ministry, opportunity and empowering away, but anytime there are changes some will struggle.  But we have had one great story after another roll in, about the level or excitement and life change that is happening community wide.  Here is just one excerpt from a  friend I got this week: “The Well has changed me. You need to know that. More often than not think of others versus myself and I have you to thank for that. It was just over a year ago when we had dinner at Francescas and I said to you “God moves people through you, I hope you know that”. And I believe that more than ever.” – Awesome Weller.  Then I got a phone call today and two Wellers had bumped into each other at a Wendy’s yesterday and decided to sit down and have lunch together.  Before they ate they bowed their heads and prayed.  After lunch a lady came over and thanked them for their simple gesture and confessed that it had literally brought tears to her eyes.  Not only are we being changed we are changing the lives those around us every day.  Great job Wellers!!!

I always have people asking what I have been readying and listening to, so I thought this year I would try to keep you updated on a monthly basis.  In January I started half a dozen books: The Devil and the White City (a novel), The Attractional Church, By Billy Hornsby, the 10th Anniversary Edition of John Maxwell’s 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, Lee Cockerell’s Creating Magic, 10 Common Sense Leadership Strategies, and Read all of Francis Chan’s The Forgotten God.  I also caught up on four months of Fast Company, Relevant, and Bass Masters (I never get behind on my Backpacker subscription) and have listened to a host of daily podcasts including; Andy Stanley’s leadership podcast, Leonard Sweet’s Napkin Scribbles, Catalyst Podcast, Relevant Podcast, and a number of my favorite preachers like Steve Furtick, Elevation Church, Greg Boyd, Woodland Hills, Judah Smith, City Church (Pentecostal (love it!)) and David Platt, Brook Hills (Reform) (you really want to have a messed up devotion, listen to the last two guys back-to-back) I also just finished the book Shift and am going through it with our Children’s Ministry in preparation for a major overhaul of our Family Formation process.

So there you have it.  I will finish all those this month month and just got two new books that I am excited to get into: Jeffrey Cohn and Jay Moran’s Why are we bad at picking good leaders? and David Novak’s Taking people with you.  I also just bought a book of puritan prayers and devotions, but it hasn’t come in yet, so we will see if I get into it this month or not.

Well there you have it.  That’s what I am reading and listening to.  We are just about to finish up a study on 2 Peter 1:1-15 and then will move into a study on Matthew 13 that I have been meditation on and praying through, so if you want to know where we are headed there you go.

God is good!  If you aren’t sure about that right now, well…then…just take my word for it!

Love you,

Jerry