Gilbert Thurston

Random Thoughts About Life, Ministry and Whatever Else Happens to be on my Mind

Random Thoughts

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On this “Whatever Wednesday” I thought I’d once again just give some random thoughts that are going through my mind.

  • I hurt my knee at some point in the last few days but I’m not sure how…can barely bend it.
  • Getting old sucks.
  • On a positive note, it’s a good reason not to go out and shovel snow!
  • My heater for my Koi Pond burnt out so I’ve been having to go out and chip ice ever few hours until the new one arrives.
  • I have 2 key meetings today regarding ECTV.
  • One is about a potential new location for us and the other is about some strategy stuff.  Please pray both go well.
  • Can’t believe how much interest yesterday’s post about the Richard Sherman controversy got.
  • Just to be clear…the point of the post wasn’t to condone his behavior…the point was how quickly American’s reacted to his reaction and how we must be careful of that or we end up becoming guilty of the same kind of rants he displayed.
  • Lisa made fudge yesterday for the snow day….mmmm good!
  • I spent a good chunk of yesterday preparing the 2013 giving statements that we are required to give to anyone who financially supported us last year.
  • So thankful for the hundreds of people who gave so our little church plant can try to make a difference here in Harrisburg and beyond.
  • Especially thankful for those who don’t even attend our church but so believe in our mission of “Helping people taking life-changing next steps in their journey towards God” that they give to support us.
  • Here is a link if you’d like to join them in partnering with us.
  • Yesterday I ordered 3 books for the price of two.   They are “The Creative Habit”, The Willpower Instinct” and “The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs”.
  • Almost all books anymore I do on Audible.
  • Ok, just had to take a break to go out and shovel snow…Lisa decided to head into work so  I needed to clear her a path and uncover her car.
  • Not sure what is up with my knee but it hurts something fierce.
  • And with that…my mind isn’t thinking of anything else…so I’m out.

Random Thoughts I’m Having Today

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This is a “Whatever Wednesday” so I thought I’d just get some random thoughts out that are rattling through my mind….

  • Had a good time away Monday and Tuesday with some other pastors dreaming about what a collaborative church plant might look like.
  • My role is to do some demographics research.  This is actually something I really enjoy doing so it should be quite easy.
  • We went on Monday night and played Laser Tag together.  It was a ton of fun but we were all drenched with sweat by the time we were done 4 games.
  • It was only afterward that we noticed the sign, “No Running”.
  • See just goes to show you even pastors need grace in following the rules.  🙂
  • I was the high scorer of the night!!!
  • See just goes to show you even pastors battle with pride.
  • On a more serious note I was thankful for hour long conversations that I had with both George Spangler and Steve Dunn.
  • Both listened well and then helped to advise and counsel.  Thanks guys!!!
  • Tonight I’m meeting with a great friend, Doug Coldsmith, who is visiting from out of town…can’t wait!
  • Last night I had a meeting about a potential new meeting location for ECTV.  Please be praying that all goes well.
  • Tonight is the start of another season of American Idol.  Can’t wait to see the chemistry between the new judges.  I think it will go well.
  • I’m really frustrated with the Orioles right now.  After the excitement of making the play-offs 2 years ago it seems like they are losing steam.  PLEASE sign someone already!
  • Lisa has been sick for over a week now…she finally went back to work yesterday but she’s still hacking pretty good.
  • To help her rest well (not hear my snoring) and for me to not catch it (hazardous to my job), I’ve been sleeping on the sofa for the past week…My back hurts.
  • We had 2 different cold weather issues effect our water system at the house.
  • Anyone know a good plumber?
  • I’ve enjoyed getting back to blogging…if you have ideas or questions you’d like me to address, please let me know.  Again the days are by categories.  Ministry Monday’s (anything related to ECTV or churches in general).  Topical Tuesday’s (my comments on things in the news)
    Whatever Wednesday (self-explanatory)
    Theological Thursday’s (answering your theological questions…which by the way has been the most popular days so far)
    Funny Friday’s (stuff that makes me laugh)
  • Again would really appreciate you letting me know what topics, questions, thoughts you might have so the blog is truly something we enjoy together.

I’ve Put This On My Bucket List

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I saw this climb on Mt. Hua Shan the other day on Facebook.  Trust me you’ll want to click the link…you won’t believe why people do this.   Below is 2 videos that give you a bit more perspective. The first is a bit longer but shows you how crazy it is, especially when many people are doing it.  The 2nd video was produced for a TV show, so it’s well done, but misses one part of the adventure.

So how about you…would you want to do this?

And another…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyJecIoyv78

The Blog is Back!

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When I started this blog back in 2007, I posted nearly every day for a couple of years.  About 2 years ago I got burnt out on it and began dramatically decreasing the number of posts with last year seeing only 4 new posts in total.

Well it’s time to fire it back up!  I’ve been thinking over the past few months about how to do it and what it would look like and here is what I’ve come up with.  Each day will have a different theme that will be spread out amongst many topics…

Ministry Monday’s-  Here I will talk about church related stuff.  This could be specifically about ExponentialChurch.tv where I pastor or it could be just something random that could help all churches in general.

Topical Tuesday’s- On this day I will comment on something that is currently in the news.

Whatever Wednesday’s-  On this day I’ll talk about whatever I want.  If there’s something I need or want to get out there but it doesn’t fit on any of the other days, here is where it will go.

Theological Thursday’s-  On this day I will answer questions about the bible, God, Christianity, etc.  I’m always getting asked interesting questions, so here is a chance for others to hear the answer(s) as well.  If you’ve got a question you’d like me to consider answering, you can email me here.  I will not use your name so feel free to ask anything!

Funny Friday’s- One of my personal values is to laugh everyday.  So on Friday’s I will share a story, clip or link of something that has made me laugh over the previous week.

So there you have it…a little bit of something different everyday.  I won’t feel obligated to post everyday so if I miss some here and there, don’t freak out.

With all that said, today is Whatever Wednesday so I’ll keep this one nice and short…

If you didn’t like the outcomes of 2013 and are hoping for better ones in 2014, it will involve you making better decisions.  Better decisions only come when you have better thinking.  To me, better thinking comes from reading God’s Word. So if you have never read the bible, make 2014, the year that you do so.  Now keep in mind that it isn’t 1 book, but rather a collection of 66 books, so I recommend you DON’T just start from the beginning and go to the end.  Rather start with the New Testament book of Matthew and proceed throughout the entire New Testament.  Then you can go back and read the Old Testament.

Have a Happy New Year everyone…hope you enjoy the new format to the blog!