nycmills

Girls Night Out

2011-11-29T07:50:00.000-08:00

Young Life Chelsea recently had our first Girls Night Out. Read about it as on of our volunteers shares:

"Wow. Friday night was definitely a hit. Not only was it a blessing to me to be able to hang out with five middle school girls and just love on them, but as the evening wore on and the girls got a little more comfortable with each other and us, I could tell that they were having an awesome time as well! When the evening was almost over, one of the girls even came up to me and was telling me how much fun she was having and how the next event we needed to get nail polish and paint each others nails.

The evening started off at the Gallery Church. As we were waiting for all the girls to come, we played Apples to Apples and another ice breaker game. Around 7pm we left to go eat at Schnippers. I was able to sit with the girls and just get to know them a little better. I learned a lot too . . .specifically about Justin Beiber. For those of you who have middle school girls, I am sure you know about this singer. I didn't know anything, but I can't say that anymore : ). After dinner we went back to the church to decorate hair bands and clips. This was a hit. The girls got so excited with all the fabric and beads that they could decorate with. I think the most creative headband was one decorated with skittles. It was quite colorful!

I can't tell you how thankful I am for your prayers and support. The evening was such a success. The Lord definitely blessed this evening and the time we had with the girls. I am super excited for the next event and I know that the girls are as well! It was an awesome oppurtunity to reach out to these girls and show them that they are loved and cared for! As a middle schooler, I never had an female adult who I felt comfortable around to hang out with and open up to. I am excited for the opportunity that Christ has given me to make a difference in the lives of these girls. Thank you so much for your prayers and support."

Brenda; Young Life Chelsea Committee

See Young Life NYC

2011-10-26T13:36:00.000-07:00

Catching Up!

2011-10-03T13:48:00.001-07:00

I realize I didn't blog any this summer, so let me catch you up! God did some pretty amazing things!

We kicked off this past summer with another one of our super competive basketball tournaments. Each of the the tournaments we've scheduled have been a huge success with the kids. This one however was OFF THE CHAIN! We had the largest group of teens, younger kids, and families to come out to the event than we have ever had. I'm sure part of the reason is we turned it into a block party. At one point in the day we had over 300 people from the neighborhood involved in this event! Teens played and/or watched basketball; kids got their faces painted, created art-work and played water-balloon toss; families played RockBand and Wii on two giant TVs. It was a blast! We truly made an impact in the Chelesa Park neighborhood, and continue to do so, through our Young Life initiatives. Because of Young Life, Chelsea Park is discovering there is a God who loves them and it is reflected in His people!

We were also able to take over 200 teens from NYC to our summer Young Life camp! During this camp teens got to go tubing, zipping on zip lines, rock climbing, mountain bike riding and much more! They also got to hear the gospel, many of them for the very first time. We were able to give these kids the best week of their lives and to share with them how to have the best life imaginable. A life in Christ. Over 40 teens came to know the Lord that week!

This has left me super excited as fall and the school year is here. God has given me a fresh vision for this year and a really committed team. I will be telling you more about it in the days to come. So stay tuned.

Words of Life

2011-05-27T10:44:00.000-07:00

On several occasions I've had the awesome opportunity to teach a bible lesson at our weekly Young Life Chelsea meetings. Usually Young Life clubs include a message each week during many of their gatherings, but since we're still going through our formative stages I am still earning the "right to be heard." Truly thankful for even having a place to meet, trying to teach a lesson while in the middle of a busy Manhattan McDonald's doesn't lend itself to listening and learning. Recognizing this, our goal has been to create an environment that will build relationships that eventually lead to Christ. Soon we will have our own place and we should be able to teach more often!

Even with all of these limitations, the few times I have actually gotten to share the Gospel it has been amazing! We have been working through the Lord's Prayer and almost all the kids are giving me their undivided attention. This could just be out of respect as we have certainly poured a lot of ourselves into them over the past several months. However, I certainly think its something much deeper than that.

Recently, I was working through the part of the prayer where Jesus teaches us to say, "Give us this day our daily bread." I was making the point to them that Jesus provides for all of our needs and reinforces that fact by referring to himself as the "bread of life." This happens right after the feeding of the 5,000 in the Gospel of John. So in making that point I said, "Have you heard of the story where Jesus feeds 5,000 people with only a few fish and loaves of bread." They all just stared at me! Well... one of them who happens to go to a Catholic school piped up and said he had. All of the rest said they had never heard of the feeding of the 5,000! Simply amazing!

I'm starting to catch the magnitude of what is going on through Young Life Chelsea. We have about 15 kids every week and for all of their relatively short lives they have been... dead. Now, more than likely for the first time, they are getting to hear the words of life as we share the Gospel! Can you believe it, we're doing mission work with unreached young people in the middle of a Manhattan McDonald's!

Can you picture yourself where you had never actually heard any of the Bible before? Would you be dialed in as you hear the gospel for the first time? These kids are! And we get the privilege of being the ones who share the words of life with them.

Pray, Pray, Pray

2011-05-18T13:56:00.000-07:00

Got some things for you to pray about:

- Pray for our Young Life Chelsea Bowling Day on May 28th.

- Pray that we have the opportunity to meet more parents of teens in Chelsea.

- Pray for our Young Life Chelsea basketball tournament / block party on June 28th.

- Pray that I can get at least 2 kids to get to Young Life Camp with me this summer.

- Pray that we find a private location to meet for Young Life Club in the fall.

- Pray for that we see salvation through Young Life Chelsea as teens come to know Christ!

We have been packin' um in at McD's and teaching the teens about prayer!

WE BELIEVE IN IT!

Momma's Day @ YLC (Young Life Chelsea)

2011-05-04T12:23:00.001-07:00

This Sunday is Mother's Day. So, we helped the teens at Young Life Chelsea honor the mother-figures in their lives. By the way, we had five new kiddos. McD's (where we meet right now) was definitely the place to be last night!

First we started the evening playing the card-game "Mafia." What kid doesn't like "Mafia"? The hard part was keeping them honest. Always hard to do in any game with teens. Either way, we had fun with it!

After the game we made sure they knew about Mother's Day this coming Sunday. We led them in an activity where they filled out cards to their mothers. Each of the cards contained a dessert recipe the teens could make for them as well. They wrote in the cards as they listened to a pretty unique but fitting rap song from a kid in Brooklyn.

God has given us a great group of teens to minister to in Chelsea! However, I know that youth ministry is more than working with teens. A large majority of youth ministry has to be focused on ministering to parents. Pray that God would give us opportunities to pour into the lives of parents in Chelsea. Pray that parents of teens in Chelsea would draw near to the cross of Christ.

The above picture is a picture of my momma. It is also Momma Mills' birthday on the 5th of May. Be sure to wish this beautiful woman a Happy Birthday!

Feeling Like a Champion @ Lake Champion

2011-04-27T12:35:00.000-07:00

I have had the opportunity to get away from the city for the past couple of days. It has been refreshing and extremely educational. I am at Lake Champion attending the Multicultural Retreat for Young Life staff who work in urban settings. Being taught about how to do ministry in our setting and hearing the stories of others in the trenches like me has provided so much fuel!

Meanwhile my Young Life Chelsea volunteer team rocked it last night at club in NYC without me! When I say rocked it... they had over 15 kids attend club and did a tremendous job running everything without me! I feel like a champion because I am surrounded by a volunteer team of champions that are making ministry happen in the Big Apple (even while I'm by the big lake).

I'm telling you, this is exciting stuff and if you haven't been tuning in... make sure you do now. This stuff is about to explode! I feel confident that we will soon see kids introduced to Jesus and then be able to help them walk in their faith!

Pray for us:

- Pray that we will find a place to meet for our weekly club meetings (McD's ain't gonna cut it much longer).
- Pray that volunteer workers will continue to see themselves as missionaries.
- Pray that I am able to bring at least 2 teens back with me to Lake Champion for Young Life summer camp.

I Could Really Use A Wish Right Now

2011-04-19T18:58:00.000-07:00

Young Life Chelsea kicked off a weekly club meeting four weeks ago and it has been amazing to see God up to some pretty cool stuff! A month in and we have established a weekly connection with a core group of teens and a great group of volunteer leaders. I am overwhelmed to be a part of this journey.

Tonight we met and had an incredible club! We had cheeseburgers and shakes, played the game "Apples to Apples", and talked about Jesus teaching us how to pray.

We played the song "Airplanes" by B.O.B. and Haley Williams while they wrote down three wishes they would want to wish for. We then shared with them that Christ wants to meet their needs and told them that prayer is an opportunity to bring those to Him. It was incredible as a few of the kids knew the "Lord's Prayer" and even recited it for us!

God is moving, and I am so thankful that you are a part of this journey. Please continue to pray for us and support this ministry. You rock! Young Life Chelsea is rocking! Jesus rocks! Can you tell I am excited?!

Young Life: New York City

2011-04-12T21:21:00.000-07:00

Birthday Gift!

2011-04-06T05:12:00.001-07:00

If you are thinking about getting me something for my birthday then make a one-time donation to Young Life Chelsea! Ministry needs that your gift would go to:

- bibles for teens in NYC
- resources for our weekly evangelistic meetings
- space rental for our weekly meetings
- a new laptop for ministry purposes (mine is dying)
- sending teens to Young Life camp

Make checks to: Young Life Chelsea
Memo line: YL128
Mailing Address: Young Life Chelsea - Gallery Church
1160 Broadway 5th Floor
New York City, NY 10001

If you are interested in providing an ongoing donation then e-mail me for more information: [nycmills@gmail.com].

Thanks for a great birthday!

It's Time!

2011-04-05T20:01:00.000-07:00

I have put off blogging for a bit as I have been rocking a few things. However, I am jumping back into the blogging world. I'm going to be more regular with you - so be excited! So, let me update you on the big things that have happened in my life since I last blogged.

I have been working as the worship director of Gallery Church since August and I love it! I am blessed to have some talented and committed people around me as I lead the music, media, and sound teams. Pray for continued direction and leadership with these teams and the worship at Gallery Church!

I have also been working for City Uprising since the beginning of the year. It has been a privilege to give direction to and lead the worship experiences thus far and I look forward to those upcoming with City Uprising.

Lastly, I and my team officially launched Young Life Chelsea two weeks ago! It started with a bang as we had a good core group of neighborhood kids attend with strong adult volunteer leadership from Gallery Church. This was only able to happen as several of you have been praying, and supporting this ministry financially. Your continued prayers and financial support are greatly appreciated.

I am just overwhelmed at what God has been up to in my life! It is crazy to think that over a year ago I moved here without much direction but to get up and "Go." I quickly found a job serving tables, and slowly but surely God opened doors for me to drop the apron and step into full-time ministry. It is great to be serving Christ and His church here in NYC. I look forward to sharing the journey with you.

2010-11-23T14:34:00.000-08:00

Young Life: New York City

I’m writing with great excitement and humility about what God has been doing in my life! At the same time, I am asking that you also support me as we together work to impact the lives and families of those who live in New York City for the Gospel!

The Calling
As many of you already know, God gave me a passion for ministry in NYC more than a year ago. In November 2009, after several months of both prayer and seeking the wisdom of godly people in my life, I left Nashville, TN and moved to NYC. I didn’t have a clear understanding of what I would be doing specifically, but I had a clear understanding of the most important part: God was calling me to take the Gospel to the people of NYC.

After living in the city for a year, the “what” has finally become clear. I would like to share this “what” with you and ask for you to prayerfully partner with me in a significant way. In doing so, I am asking you to stretch yourself with me for the sake of the Gospel.

The Mission
The mission that God has called me to serve is two-fold. First of all, I have recently transitioned into a part-time role as worship director at the Gallery Church. This is the church that encouraged me to come to NYC and with whom I have been training for ministry in the city. I’m enjoying this great and humbling new responsibility, and I ask that you pray for me as I serve the Gallery Church in this role.

Second of all, Young Life has asked me to serve on their staff and start a new club for teens that will be connected with the Gallery Church. Young Life is a Christian student ministry that seeks to act as a bridge between the “secular” and the “sacred.” In other words, some students might not readily come to a church service, but through Young Life, they can hear the Gospel through an outreach ministry designed with them in mind. Young Life truly seeks to meet students where they are and build relationships with them at their schools and on their turf. Through this ministry, the church is strategically mobilized to take the message of Christ into the community. Even though this ministry focuses on teenagers, it does not end with teens as entire families are often won to Christ!

Critical Part You Can Play
I need you to prayerfully consider helping me in the following important two ways:

1. Please volunteer to be part of my critical prayer team.

2. Become a financial partner with me today! In addition to the part-time salary that I’m making at Gallery Church, I still need to raise $36,000 a year to effectively run a Young Life club in the Chelsea area of Manhattan as well as cover my living expenses. It is very expensive to live and minister in Chelsea — the average rent for a studio apartment is $2,000 a month. Both my living expenses and Young Life’s ministry budget are included in this goal of $36,000.

On its own, $36,000 seems like a large number, but if broken down and shared, it immediately becomes manageable. If 20 people receiving this letter commit to sending me $150 per month for the next year (through next Oct.), I will accomplish this goal! I have listed some additional contributory scenarios below:

• 20 people giving $150 per month for the next year
• 200 people (every person reading this letter) giving $15 per month for the next year
• 1 person giving $1,000 per month, 10 people giving $100 a month, and 100 people giving $10 per month for the next year

Please understand that if you’re unable to make such a long-term commitment, I’d be grateful to receive any type of financial support that you are able to give, whether it’s a one-time gift or a lesser amount each month. Many times, the smallest of gifts is the most sacrificial. Also note that your financial sacrifice will be completely tax deductible.

There are well over 2 million teenagers that live in New York City. However, there are very few churches providing them with relevant and strategic evangelical ministry. Would you consider helping — through prayer, your finances or a combination of the two — to reach teens and their families for the gospel in NYC? By doing this, you can greatly impact our world. NYC youth are the future of this city, and this city shapes the future of our country.

Thank you for taking the time to read this blog and prayerfully consider how you may support this ministry. If you are going to support me please email me and let me know of your support. If you are planning to support me financially I will respond to your email and let you know how to do so. You are truly needed in this work. Be sure to also let me know how I may be praying for you as well.

Chris Mills
nycmills@gmail.com
www.nycmills.blogspot.com

Young Life Chelsea + Gallery Church

2010-08-20T13:08:00.000-07:00

931 0391 from Freddy T. Wyatt on Vimeo.

I am excited about this new partnership of ministry! Let me know if you want to help out. nycmills@gmail.com

Junerrific!

2010-07-10T15:03:00.000-07:00

June was extremely busy and totally amazing! I barely had time to breathe, but the ride was out of this world! I usually take the time to try and make my blogs sound more professional, but because of all that has happened I will only be able to hit you "headline style."

SBC: ORLANDO AND NYC
I began June by going to the Southern Baptist Convention in Orlando. I was asked to be one of nine delegates our church took this year. While at the convention two really big things happened. First we had the official launch of sendnyc. Many of the people who attended were able to catch the vision we have of planting 100 churches over the next ten years in NYC. I am eagerly looking forward to seeing what God has in store for this ministry as we work toward that goal. Secondly, the convention passed the Great Commission Resurgance's proposal. If you don't know much about this particular proposal let me sum it up by saying it should translate into several wins for us here in NYC. The SBC will now be in the postion to send us more funds and resources to do ministry here in the Big Apple!

PARENTS IN THE CITY
Once I got home from the convention I was greeted by my parents who were already in the city! We spent the next few days hanging out with some friends - enjoying one another and the city. I even put mom and dad
to work as they helped with a prayer walk for an upcoming ministry event I was leading. A few days later my sister joined us in NYC and it was good to have the whole family in town at the same time.

OVER 50 KIDS COME TO TOURNEY
Kim was able to stay several more days after mom and dad left and helped me and City Uprising with a mission project. We had several events during the week that were designed to propel the church and prosper the city. One of these events was a 3 on 3 basketball tournament that I put together to jumpstart my Young Life ministry. We had over 50 neighborhood kids to show up at this event. It was a great start to our Young Life ministry in the Chelsea area of Manhattan!

God is moving, and it is good. I hope July allows me a little more time to breathe. None-the-less, June was junerrific!

Would you like another mimosa?

2010-05-18T10:55:00.000-07:00

The Salt website is now live! Visit it today to learn more about the Salt Space, and to read blogs similar to mine:

“Would you like another mimosa?” It was obvious my unexpected offer surprised her. Realizing her confusion I let her know, “You get two drinks with each brunch entrée so I was wondering if you wanted your second mimosa now.” She nods, and I now recognize that the look on her face has changed from confusion to inquisitiveness.

She asks me, “Where are you from?” I have heard this question many times before as each week I serve tables at a local neighborhood bar in Murray Hill. I begin to explain to her that I am from Nashville and that is why I have just a hint of a southern drawl in my voice. She laughs and begins to ask me more questions. These are the type of questions that always end up allowing me to share my story.

I recently moved here from Nashville, TN as a minister who has a heart for the people of New York City. I had visited NYC on several occasions before but it wasn’t until six months ago that I actually packed up my bags and made the move permanent. Since then I have begun serving in a local church, waiting tables in a neighborhood restaurant, and have recently began an outreach program to young adults in the Murray Hill, Chelsea, and surrounding neighborhoods. These activities have given me even a deeper passion and concern for people in the area that I have gotten to know. I have met people of all walks of life - artists, actors, shop owners, businessman, bartenders, and nannies. As I meet them and hear their stories it becomes even more apparent why God has placed me in New York City. He has given me a passion and need to help these people and at the same time meet their needs in a significant and intentional way that leads them to the Gospel.

I have recently partnered with the Salt Space and have found it to have a great vision for meeting the people that live in these surrounding neighborhoods. SALT is an art venue that seeks to provide for peoples needs in order to be able to give back to the community. It is faith-based in its nature as it works with the Gallery – a local church that meets at the Salt Space. I am really excited to see how my gifts of ministry and passion for the people in Murray Hill, Chelsea and the surrounding neighborhoods can come together in service with the Salt Space. It is my heart to meet the needs of the people within this community and the Salt Space provides me a great opportunity and venue to meet the people who comprise this community.

After sharing my story I then asked the woman why she was in New York City. She began to tell me that she moved here because she wanted to chase her dreams of becoming an accomplished jazz musician. After talking about jazz music for a bit I told her about the Salt Space. “You know I’m not just a server at a restaurant. I also work with an outreach center that is looking to provide different programs in the community. There have even been several who have suggested hosting jazz shows and I’m thinking you might be interested in possibly helping in that area?” She smiled and we swapped emails. As I was beginning to leave when she stopped me and said, “Thanks. This means a lot. I have been looking for something like this. And wow, here it is right in my own neighborhood.” She continued to smile and asked, “Can you also tell me more about the Salt Space.” I replied, “Sure, but let me first grab that mimosa for you!"

Youth Ministry in the Big Apple

2010-05-06T19:57:00.000-07:00

Before I was called to come to New York City I was first called to be a youth minister. While that calling is very specific, I do understand my calling to be one that is pastoral in nature. It just so happens that since God has gifted me to work with students that I often found myself led into that area. Other areas that He has led me into on a consistent basis has been music/worship as well as communication/preaching/teaching. When I received a clear call to New York City it appeared to be definitely a break from the normal mold and pattern of God's calling in my life.

So I moved to the Big Apple on November 1st and I haven't looked back since - except to tell the people back home that I love them and to watch the Tennessee Titans or Vandy basketball and football games. It is now six months later and I am still, if not more, passionate about my calling to move to this city and do God's ministry. I am eternally thankful for all of you who have supported me and those that continue to support me with your finances and prayers. They are definitely needed and truly felt. My heart is overjoyed each time I think about the sacrifices each of you have made.

With that being said, it looks like God is now beginning to give me some definition as to "what" ministry He has called me to do here to NYC. I have been working with Young Life over the past few months and this is allowed me to do youth ministry with students on a weekly basis. I have recently been asked by Young Life to start a Young Life Club in the neighborhood in which our church meets. My church, Gallery Church, is primarily composed of young adults and we do not have any consistent teenagers who attend to speak of. So this project will obviously be an outreach project! This excites me!

We are already making plans on of how to get to know our neighborhood and neighbors by building relationships. My Young Life role will have me making relationships with teenagers. I have found that I can be pretty good at that and God has given me a heart for it. As we begin to reach out to these teens just think of the ministry that we can have with them and the opportunity to meet their families and parents! My work with Young Life will also be supported by Gallery Church and the end goal is to get these kids and their families involved in the local church.

There will be more information to come about this particular area of my life. If you're interested in knowing more about all of this please drop me an email at nycmills@gmail.com. Many of you already knew my heart about coming to this city, but you didn't really see any specific details about "what" I would be doing and "what" in particular God was calling me to do. That is now beginning to come into focus and I am pumped! Who knew the hand of God would include bringing me to this great city to do things like youth ministry?! But God knows, well before I was called to New York City I was first called to be a youth minister.

"SALT" meets "NoMad"

2010-04-16T08:31:00.000-07:00

What strides would a local church take to meet the needs of others within their own community? More specifically what would it look like for churches within NYC to reach the needs of others within their community so as to create opportunities for deeper spiritual needs to be met? These questions have been giving shape to the Gallery's thoughts on outreach and it is certainly exciting stuff!

The Gallery Church meets on the fifth floor of a building that the church has designated as "SALT". It is located at 1160 Broadway and finds itself in an interesting part of Manhattan. As of late the particular area where the church is located has been dubbed "NoMad", as reported in a "New York Real Estate" article. The article goes on to say that "NoMad" stands for "North of Madison Square Park". Why is this important? If you didn't already know, Manhattan is so culturally diverse that when you walk just a few blocks in any direction you might find yourself suddenly in a completely different culture and in a completely different neighborhood. Therefore, as neighborhoods come into existence they are typically given it's own name in order to give some distinction to the different areas of NYC and Manhattan.

So this gives us as a church some direction for ministry. It is not just about simply doing ministry in NYC. It's about strategically using the resources that God has given us to do ministry in the city, especially when it comes to doing ministry in our "NoMad" neighborhood and the others neighborhoods that are close to "SALT". Property is an obvious commodity in the city that has millions of people in just a few square miles. Therefore we want to use this commodity, the "SALT" space, to meet the needs of the community as much and as often as possible. Our services take place on Sunday's but we are praying about the possibility of using "SALT" as a true community center with the intention of meeting the community's needs all week long!

So who actually lives in NoMad? What needs do they really have? How as a church can we reach out to them with this space that God has given to us? The answers to these questions will hopefully and prayerfully be met in the days, weeks, and months to come. Please pray for us as we begin this journey. To find out more about "SALT" and/or "NoMad" click on the hyperlinks which are highlighted. Also pray that God will continue to reveal ways in which we can continue to meet the needs of our community - however great the strides might be.

Men's Retreat

2010-03-23T09:05:00.001-07:00

Went on an amazing retreat with Gallery Church this past weekend. Read about it on this new website and blog from our pastor and other people in our church. Just click this link:

"the city resource"

Heart

2010-03-16T21:14:00.000-07:00

The heartbeat of City Uprising is to "propel the local church and prosper the city." It is an "intensive worship and service experience" put on by sendnyc and the hosted by different groups like the Gallery Church. Both of which I am heavily involved with. Therefore, I recently had the privilege of being a part of City Uprising New York City 2010.

For a little over three days college students, young adults, and college leaders served NYC along with Gallery Church. I had the opportunity to lead a team of students who went to Madison Square Park, the closet park to the building in which our church meets. These students were truly amazing as they used their guitars, drums, and voices to entertain people who were relaxing in the park! This gave us a tremendous and special opportunity to hand out cards with invitations to an Easter gathering at Gallery Church. To my surprise we were well received and were hardly ever turned down as we handed out these invitations to Gallery Church. I am convinced God was with us the whole time we were in the park. The total number of invitations handed out by both teams exceeded 4,000! That is not to mention all the Bibles that we placed in hungry people's hands as well.

One gentlemen we encountered had rededicated his life to Christ that morning before his day had even started. He told God, "If you want me to truly follow after you, you are going to have to show up." God did show up, in the form of one of our team members who handed him an invitation to Easter at the Gallery Church! He told us that is exactly what he was looking for and subsequently came back to our church that afternoon just to make sure he knew where it was. The following day he was at the church again with his family wanting to attend worship at City Uprising!

Over the next few days the attendees of City Uprising cleaned up local community centers, helped serve at other local area churches, made numerous key connections, and even served in the HIV community by providing hundreds of free HIV tests. City Uprising New York City will take place again from June 27th - June 30th. Make sure you and some of your friends register and come help us "propel the local church and
prosper the city." Make sure to bring your heart as well!

Community of the Inconvenienced

2010-03-02T22:56:00.000-08:00

Take the average stadium and fill it to capacity with people. There are people in every seat, people on the playing field, and even people in the in the aisles. Then give an apple, or any object for that matter, to an individual and ask them to deliver it to the person sitting in "Seat 45 Row 3 Section F". They would have a difficult time moving through the sea of people to accomplish their task. This is very
similar to the way it is in New York City.

You have 8-10 million people living within a few miles of one another. To be specific Manhattan itself is only 22.7 miles from end to end and is home to a whopping 8 million people! Sure we have subways, buses and even taxis but with the such a large population in a tiny area it can take you up to an hour or more to travel on the the island for shopping, to get a haircut, or even to go to work. Obviously, there are millions of other people who also have to go shopping, get a haircut, or go to work. In other words, you're not the only one who has to carry the proverbial apple to some person in some random section of the stadium. Interestingly enough, everyone else in the stadium seems to have a similar objective.

Lately I've been pondering this drastically different way of life I have become a part of. In a lot of ways it is truly inconvenient to do life in the city. The average New Yorker has to plan out their day significantly more than a person living anywhere else in the world. There is no quick run down to the Wal-Mart or neighborhood Target. However, if you do make a Target run you have to keep in mind how you will be getting everything you purchased back home without paying for an expensive taxi ride. On a side note, I have quickly learned that New Yorkers are really not rude. Just don't get in their way or slow them down. The sidewalks in New York City are like highways to everyone else because most of us in the city don't have cars. Our legs are our wheels. Cut someone off and you might get honked at, or in NYC - chewed out.

We have tried to counter-act this inconvenience with convenient services like grocery delivered to your door, laundromats that wash and fold your clothes for you, and "Chase Banks" on every corner. These are all services that I have taken advantage of, but they still do not eliminate all of the New York City inconvenience out of everyday life.

I paint this picture for you so that you might better understand some of the difficulties we as believers face in "church-planting" in this unique stadium called New York City. Unlike other parts of the country, church attendance is just not easy. It can be quite an inconvenient activity. For most, it takes at least an hour to get to church for a two hour worship service mixed with some "fellowship," another hour commute to get lunch with friends from church afterwards, and then an hour commute back home. The typical Sunday morning for most Americans has taken over 5 hours in New York time and that's just if you only go to the morning service!

So I ask for your prayers. Bottom line, God truly needs to burden the heart of the people of New York City so that they would be willing and wanting to get past any inconvenience they may experience when going to His church. New Yorkers really need for God to show them clearly that church should be an integral part of their life, that their life can only be what it was designed to be by making a commitment to a local church. I'm sure you can relate to the inconvenience that going to church can sometimes play in your own personal life. But understand it's even more significant and magnified for the general New Yorker.

We as New Yorkers will often go out of our way for something that we perceive to be important to us. So pray that God, Christ, and the things of Christ would become an important necessity for the people of this great city. After all, we as New Yorkers can always seem to find a way to get up on a Sunday morning, dress in our favorite outfits, commute and show up early and then stay late to spend time with friends as we fill up the stadium for a New York Jets game - many times even to capacity.

Religion is Power

2010-01-15T10:40:00.000-08:00

The poster read, "Religion is Power." I stood there beside this poster waiting for my train and before I had time to even think about what it was actually saying a young man about my age passed by me and said to his friend, "Look at that propaganda." He was noticeably a bit unsteady on his feet from more than likely a night of drinking and thought the poster was put up by an evangelical Christian group looking to make make their best shot at what we refer to as "witnessing." However, this was not the type of propaganda he actually thought it was. It was an advertisement for a movie that is hitting theaters today, "The Book of Eli." A movie that deals with the devastation of the world and a hope for mankind during a post-apocalyptic world in year 2043. Whether he meant to or not, this random passer-by I do believe represented a mind-set of those that are put-off by the idea of organized-religion, Christianity, and certainly the church. As for me, I can understand where many of those feelings come from.

First, let me say that I am and will always be an advocate for Christ and His church. Secondly, I love people and would not want to do anything intentionally that would seem in any way to be unloving. However, I feel that some have misunderstood what the local church, or organized religion is all about. Hopefully to that end I will endeavor to address some important questions or at the least get some positive discussion started through this post. Obviously through the course of this post whenever I reference "religion" I am referring to the "Christian church." I certainly realize there are many other religions out there, but it wold take much too much time for me to cover all of them in my discussion. So this blog will be limited to Christianity and the Christian church. Please understand that in many ways I am still on a learning journey with regards to many of the aspects of my Christian walk. Also, I will be the first to admit that in some cases I may need some adjustment to my thinking and reasoning, and I will humbly say that I believe I am moldable.

Many in our culture feel that the church is out-dated. Moreover, some feel that it is or can be a very cold, harsh, judgmental, and controlling institution. Unfortunately, I would have to say I understand why they might feel that way. The church can be that way, especially when it is not acting as a church should act. What you see then is a church serving itself and doing whatever it can to make itself look good. I'm not going to go into specific examples here, but each of you can probably think of your own personal example. It's this type of attitude within the church that causes people to walk past a movie billboard such as this and say the things this inebriated young man would say.

Fortunately, the church, Christianity, and the Christian religion can be very powerful and relevant in a great and marvelous way! The way that Christ intended it to be and died for it to be. Think of the power the church could have in impacting lives for good when and if it sees its role as a servant to people in such a way that it simply glorifies Christ. Think of the healing that can take place when believers come together and strategize about how to effectively reach out to those who are in need. For example, I would hope that organized religion would find it extremely hard to be hateful or indifferent when it comes to the current disaster that has befelled Haiti. 55,000 people have died and thousands more are without food and shelter. This it a time when the power of the Christian church (organized-religion) serving others is more than welcomed, it is needed. So we need to make sure that we do not miss this opportunity!

Lastly, it is through the Christian church, the bride of Christ, the local gathering of believers that the powerful gospel message is preserved, nurtured and best understood. As the church embraces the power it has to help others it should also do so with the understanding of the ultimate power it has to deliver a message that sets people free from sin and its enslaving power.

It is my hope that I, and others that are a part of the church that Christ died for, do not misuse its power, but instead recognize the impact we could have in the lives of others. If we were to embrace this power correctly maybe the next guy that walks past a movie poster would smile instead of scoff when he reads that "Religion is Power." For when it comes to the religion of Christ and his church there is power. Wonder-working power!

Tuning into Haiti

2010-01-13T18:55:00.000-08:00

As the world continues to tune in and listen to the myriad of news reports about the devastation caused in Haiti by the worse earthquake suffered in 250 years, many in Flatbush, Brooklyn have already spent untold hours frantically dialing all the phone numbers they know to check on family and loved ones back home.

I cannot begin to imagine what my Brooklyn neighbors from just down the street are going through during this time. I believe I know what pain, loss, and uncertainty feels like, but this event has been catastrophic and the people of Brooklyn's "Little Haiti" can do little now but wait. Waiting to hear if their loved ones are safe and doing okay.

I have not been able to be around the internet that much, as I have just recently moved to my new apartment in Brooklyn. Even so I have already found myself surrounded by such great need that I had to find a way to write. I'm asking each of you to pray for and to consider giving to the relief work in Haiti.

FIrst, you can visit the website for Gallery Church and under online giving set up an account and give money to the Haiti relief work. You can do so by indicating Haiti in the memo and 100% goes straight to the relief work there. Secondly, you can make a $10 donation to the American Red Cross by texting the word "HAITI" to 90999. I will also be venturing into Brooklyn's "Little Haiti" tomorrow and seeing what needs they have there. This area has the largest population of Haitian descent outside of Port-au-Prince. While there I may be made aware of more ways for you to be able help, so I will keep you posted.

Please take some time out of your day and think about what these people must be going through. Then ask yourself what you can do to help as you tune in.

Christmas in New York

2009-12-31T12:31:00.000-08:00

There is nothing like a "Tender Tennessee Christmas." However, this year the Mills family learned that "New York is a Christmas Kind of Town!" On Christmas Eve my parents and my sister, Kim, flew into New York
City and then arrived at our Manhattan apartment right before lunch. The next several days of their stay was assuredly fast-paced, extremely eye-opening, thoroughly exciting, and yet refreshing all at the same time.

After their arrival I allowed them to unpack and get adjusted to where everything was in the apartment. Mom and dad stayed in the master bedroom as they are obviously the "masters" of our family. My sister slept in the children's room, since I was already occupying the guest bedroom for that past two months since my arrival in New York City. After unpacking and doing a little grocery shopping at the neighborhood grocery store we set off for the subway station just down down the street and we 'trained it' downtown to Manhattan Times Square. As they came out of the tunnel their eyes grew as big as the surrounding Times Square neon-lights that greeted them. After walking around taking in the sites for awhile we decided to eat dinner in Times Square. The dessert was a trip to the top of the Empire State Building for a spectacular night time view of the city for over 20 miles in every direction! Mom couldn't get over the fact there were lights as far as you could see, and you could see forever.

The next day we opened Christmas presents, ate dad's "famous french toast," and then headed into the city for a special Chris Mills guided tour of many of the hot spots in the city. We saw Central Park, Rockefeller Center, St. Patrick's Cathedral, Trump Towers, 5th Ave., Chinatown, Little Italy, the World Trade Center site, and Greenwich Village. We made sure to work in a very special stop at The Gallery Church. That evening we stopped at the local "Titans Fan Club" bar to watch the Titans game with other Titans fans. I just wish the game would have went as well as the day's tour did.

The next few days were a mix of shopping, me having to fit in a couple of shifts at Choice, a short but interesting tour of Brooklyn, the Broadway play "In The Heights," and a "quick" visit to Jersey to spend some family time with some of my dad's side of the family. The play we saw, "In the Heights", was tremendous! We all had a special attachment to it because it was set close to the area of town in which we were sleeping each night. The trip to New Jersey was a chance to meet some of dad's family that I have never met and an opportunity to see an uncle that I had not seen since I was a kid.

This was truly a very special Christmas for the Mills family. Somehow we were able to pack quite a lot into five days in the city. Both, my parents and my sister, left thinking that they would really need another vacation to rest after spending their Christmas vacation in the "City That Never Sleeps". I was not as tired as they were but I am looking forward to possibly traveling south for the holidays next year. "New York is a Christmas Kind of Town" but I might be ready for a "Tender Tennessee Christmas" next year.

Millions of People

2009-12-16T08:37:00.000-08:00

Eight (8) million people live in NYC! That fact significantly contributes to it being unquestionly diverse, undeniably interesting, and forever entertaining. However, at the same time it can be so fast-paced and competitive it can become a lonely place for some as they try to find "their place" within it. The common thread for survival appears to be to find an area of the city in which you seem to gravitate towards and then make that your NYC. In other words make NYC appear smaller so it fits into your life.

Now that I have been here for several weeks let me tell you a little bit about "my NYC." I have not yet gravitated towards a specific area of the city but I have been able to connect with some really cool people in the meantime. These people have each played an intricate and important role in helping me to transition to the city and to feel very comfortable here. I thank God for each of them.

For those of you who may not know I currently live with they Wyatt's. They are a great family and have gone out of their way to support me by offering me a bedroom within their New York City apartment until I can get my feet under me. In doing so I have been able to reconnect with Freddy who was one of my closest friends from seminary, Susan his wonderful wife, and Jack (soon-to-be 3), Elliot (1), and Lilly (1) who are a crazy threesome of kiddos that I have become something of an uncle too. I love this family and even if I wasn't living with them I would certainly find time in my schedule to spend some time with them.

Mickey Micklos is a great guy that I met while attending Gallery Church. I actually met him at dinner on my first night in the city and shared a cab ride with him and Freddy later that evening. Mickey is a film student graduate and is in the city to pursue his dreams and passions of becoming a film maker. He is gifted beyond his years and is still finding his way much like me. He has a few weeks of a head start on me in NYC and has proven to be a great guy to experience the city with. A great new friend!

I also am getting to know Katie Gray Landham and her sister Emily. We actually grew up together in my hometown of Hendersonville back in Tennessee but unfortunately we did not know each other very well, if at all. We of course knew similar people and this "hometown" connection is what led to our re-connection here. Katie Gray makes me laugh and it has been fun to talk about Christ with her, play rummy with her and Emily, and to watch their dog Pip. He is a new puppy for the Landham sisters and it has become a great side job for me to be a puppy-walker. I'm pretty dang good at it too!

So that is some of "my NYC" experience as of the moment. I hope in the near future I will be figuring out which area of the city I would "like to gravitate too." However, it has been these people and several others that have made it an easy move to such a fast-paced, competitive, diverse, interesting and entertaining city. And even though I have around 7,999,900 more people to meet in the future, the ones I have mentioned are certainly some of the best!

Christ and the Church

2009-12-10T12:09:00.000-08:00

I can't seem to wrap my arms around what it takes to have a quality prayer time. I even struggle sometimes to be consistent with what we as Christians refer to as a “quiet time.” In all honesty I even feel a little awkward at times when I try to communicate that God has “spoken to me” as some believers are able to do, as if He is someone they go on walks with, play golf with, or just call on the telephone. With that said, the most meaningful part of my Christian life is the intimate relationship that I have with God through the life and movement of a consistent commitment to the church.

I firmly believe that when we, as believers, are found to be sold-out to the church we become closer to reflecting the heartbeat of what is the “love of Christ.” This truth has certainly hit home with me recently as I have entered into a season of my life where upon moving to New York I am getting to know a new body of believers and establishing for me a new church home. I am working to show grace and give priority in my life to people that I am still getting to know. To me it is certainly not just another gathering of people in a room. It is the church – A body of believers gathered together to be the church.

As we, the Gallery Church, learned during our recent sermon series, “The Bride of Christ,” Christ and the church are so vitaly interwoven with each other. So much so, that when you closely look at the Bible and see Christ, you cannot do so without recognizing His love and sacrificial commitment to the life of the church. We looked at the powerful words contained in Ephesians 5 and saw Christ and the church sitting there right in the middle of verses often used for marriage and relationships. We see that Christ “loved the church and gave himself up for her, so that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish” (25-27). Did you catch that? He’s not just talking about doing some nice things for the church, or even trying His best to make the church look beautiful. Paul is actually saying that Christ is giving up his LIFE for the church! The question then becomes, “If I’m to be like Christ, in what significant ways do I really need to sacrifice for the sake of the church?”

I’ll admit it is tough to commit to the church in our culture where so many people are “finding God” or “spirituality” without ever finding the church. People are assuming the church is just another man-made institution that should be put securely back on the shelves with other relics. However, we as Christians need to follow Christ's example and give to the church as if we were giving our lives. And who knows, if we do this consistently we may then be able to one day speak about God speaking to us in a way as if we just got done playing golf with him. And maybe our “quiet times” will become more consistent and our prayer life would improve. Whatever our indivual situation may be, we as believers need to be found as ones that have committed to wrapping our arms around what Christ died for – the church.

Pray that God would strengthen your and my commitment to the local church today !

Thanksgiving

2009-11-30T08:15:00.000-08:00

10 Things I Am Thankful For From NYC: (in no particular order)

1. The baffling grace and mercy of Christ that leads me into a life that makes sense.

2. The job that I have at Choice Kitchen and Cocktails. Even though it is not many shifts at the moment, I know over time I will get more.

3. New friends in NYC. Church really is a good idea. More than that, this is what Christ gave his life for!

4. I got to attend two great parades! The New York Yankees Championship Parade and the Macy's Day Parade.

5. I ate 2/3 of a napkin on accident and didn't get sick (ok this merely made it on the list b/c we have a pic of it).

6. Family who loves me and I them, and friends that keep in touch (even when I'm bad at it).

7. I am thankful that I feel safe enough to fall asleep at times on the subway trains (I'm thankful for this even without the pic... the train rocks me like a baby).

8. Financial and prayer support.

9. The Wyatt family for letting me live with them in NYC while I get my feet on the ground (I am listening to my two 1 year old roommates cry it up right now).

10. The number 10.

19

2009-11-24T07:35:00.000-08:00

"19". That’s how many days it took for me to finally find a job. I'll have to say it was an experience. I do want to say a special thanks to all those who have been praying for me in my transition and recent job search. I know that my joining the ranks of the employed is directly because of your faithfulness to prayer and God’s faithfulness to each of us.

Speaking of God’s faithfulness, without question He completely prepared the way before me prior to my coming to New York – to include the job I have now. A few months ago while I was still in Nashville I was working at Rippy’s when a couple came in for lunch. Casually I asked them where they were from and they told me New York. I immeadiately began to tell them about my impending move to New York in a few weeks to do ministry work. He was genuinely excited and began sharing with me all about New York City. At the end of the meal he gave me his card and said, “My son owns three restaurants in New York, so when you get to there and need a job, give me or him a call.” Amazing!

I got in to town and gave his son a call. However, at the beginning it was virtually impossible to get anything worked out as we played phone tag for forever it seemed. In the meantime I put together my resume and applied at over thirty other restaurants in New York. Yes I did say the word resume. I found out that you absolutely need one of those things in New York to apply for a servers gig. That exercise resulted in me hearing the answer “no” in a multitude of different ways. The most common being, “Sorry, you don’t have any New York experience.”

However, God came through again and I finally connected with the man’s son. He set me up an interview with a manager and I went into the process with a resume and a big smile. Turned out the manager didn’t need my resume, he hired me on the spot! Maybe, it was the big smile?

Since then I have worked three shifts and I recognize it can easily be a great place for me to meet people, connect, and network. On top of that I get to make some money there too! So after nineteen days I served my first table at Choice Kitchen and Cocktails. It was a party for a baby shower in our private area. How many people were in this party? Silly question,19 of course!

Go Green! (an apology)

2009-11-09T11:02:00.000-08:00

This is a formal apology to all my environmental followers. It has unfortunately recently come to my attention that I have been involved in certain situations where I have supported and may even contributed to activities that might be considered offensive to you. Please know that I am truly regretful and remorseful for any pain that I may have caused my "green" friends, especially those that have such a passionate heart for the many trees of the world.

Yes it is true! I was at the Yankee ticker tape parade this past week. Regretfully I did cheer for the MLB World Champs as tons upon tons of paper were being tossed out of windows and rooftops of many downtown office buildings. While I didn't personally participate in the actual misuse of these resources that nature has so graciously bestowed on us, I did however stand idly by and do nothing to prevent it from happening or even clean it up afterwards.

It is also true that I have been recently applying for several, no many, jobs. In doing so I have dropped off quite a few resumes in the hands of many, many potential employers. Sadly, I have not even checked to see if I was using recycled paper or not. This fact in hindsight was not my best decision. However, I do feel as though it is vitally important that I do continue to hand out my resumes.

With that being said I hope that you will still keep up with me and follow my blog. The Internet is a quite environmentally sound option for communicating. Hopefully the bottom line is that I have obviously admitted to my mistakes and will more carefully consider my options in the future. Unfortunately I cannot promise I won't be at the next ticker tape parade for the World Champion Yankees when they win the 2010 World Series, but I might lend a hand and actually pick up some of the ticker tape confetti and then place it in a recycling bin. And who knows... after I have actually found a job I might just go out and plant a tree. Okay lets be honest, that probably won't happen. Go green!

The World Series

2009-11-02T11:31:00.000-08:00

Johnny Damon hit a two-out single off Brad Lidge in the ninth, swiped two bases on one play and scored the go-ahead run on A-Rod's double for a 7-4 N.Y. win and a 3-1 Series lead Sunday night. What the Yankees have been able to do over the last three games has been more than just a simple turn around. After the first game was won by the Phillies in N.Y. sports heads began saying that the Yankees were close to done and certainly a step behind the Phillies. Now, as the whole world watches, this series has obviously taken a dramatic turn.

I was able to watch the ninth inning of the Yankees game from the comfort of Freddy T. and Susan Wyatt's apartment. Shortly before that I was watching the beginning of the game at a Wildwood, a local BBQ joint in downtown Manhattan, with several of my new friends from the Gallery Church. Most of you know by now that yesterday I relocated from Nashville to New York to start a new series in life. For me, my world has quickly and drastically changed.

At a young age I knew that God was calling me to full-time ministry. My idea of this meant that I would be doing youth ministry somewhere at a church in the south. So I went to seminary and studied what it took to be a youth pastor and my first job after graduating was just that. Three years later God has obviously redirected my plans! Never in my life would I have thought that I would be in NYC by the time I was 30 doing ministry as a church-planter. To this point I still don't even know what it takes to do church planting or if I have the skill set for such a challenge. But I'm willing to give it a shot as surely God has led me here. If there is one thing I am comfortable about at this moment is that I am surrounded by some great people here as I worship at The Gallery Church. I look forward to being intimately involved in the life of the church and soaking up whatever God desires for me to learn.

Thank you to all the people that are praying for me and also those who have committed to giving to me financially. Without you I could not be embarking on this new series in my life. Please stay tuned to my blog as I truly want you and anyone else in my world to know what God is doing and what I am up to. Look forward to sharing more with you very soon. Go Yanks! For the record I have been a Yankees fan since I was a kid. Some things never change.

New York City and The Gallery Church

2009-09-23T19:16:00.000-07:00

The Mission
During the July 4th weekend I had the opportunity to go to NYC. While there, I was able to reconnect with a dear friend, Freddy T. Wyatt, who is the Teaching Pastor at the Gallery Church of Manhattan. As I began spending time with Freddy just catching up, it became obvious God was up to something else quite unexpected as we chatted. Freddy began to tell me about the ministry he was involved with and the church's strategic plan to reach people for Christ. As he talked, and just by being there in the city, I began to realize how much of an impact NYC has on the world and it is in a strategic position for God’s global purposes. As Freddy began to share his heart and his burden for NYC, and more importantly the people that live within it, I began to notice that my heart was becoming overwhelmingly burdened as well. Since then Freddy and the Gallery Church have shared with me the following sobering statistics:

• 20+ million people that live in the NY Metro Area,
• 8.5 million people that live in NYC,
• 66,000 people that live on every square mile in Manhattan,
• 170+ languages are spoken in NYC,
• 40% of Brooklyn is foreign born.

Once the weekend was over I traveled back to Philadelphia where I was working as a summer camp staffer. I had told Freddy that I felt burdened for the people of NYC and passionate about the ministry that Gallery Church was undertaking. I told him that I was considering the possibility of coming back to NYC as a missionary and helping with the church's mission, but that I just needed some time to think it over and ask God if this was His will or mine. After another trip back to NYC and the Gallery Church, and getting to participate in their worship service, I now find myself with a definite answer from God.

The leadership at The Gallery Church has now invited me to move to NYC for a season of assessment and training for urban church planting. The Gallery Church is a Southern Baptist Church that was launched in late 2006 as part of the North American Mission Board's initiative "New Hope New York" They have a vision to see a church planting movement in New York as well as other strategic world cities. My assessment and training time will likely run anywhere from 6 months to a year, beginning this November. During this time, I will be working a secular job while serving in The Gallery Church in any way that I can, from leading worship to cleaning toilets. It is critical that I learn the rhythm and culture of NYC while being assessed for readiness and trained for future urban church planting myself. A website that you can now visit with lots of information about strategic nature of NYC and the vision for church planting movement can be found at www.sendnyc.com.

The Critical Part You Can Play
Please prayerfully consider supporting me through your encouragement, prayers and where possible, your financial gifts. As I am working as a missionary to this church with a long-term goal of hopefully coming on board as a church-planting minister, so it will be crucial for me to have a team that will be supporting me in this start up phase and possibly even further. In this request for support I hope to meet two equally important goals.

The first goal is to have an army of encouragement/prayer warriors that will commit to praying for me during the next six months starting in November. I am asking God for an army of at least fifty prayer warriors who would see this type of support as something they would be willing to do on a weekly and possibly even daily basis. There is no doubt that this type of ministry in this particular place requires the prayers of many fellow believers.

Secondly, I am asking God to raise up at least 15 people that would be willing to partner with me by giving $100 a month over the next six months starting in November. This level of commitment would significantly help me in meeting my housing need, as everybody knows it is quite expensive to live in NYC. Unless God chooses to open up other options, monthly rent for a one bedroom studio can run anywhere from $1,500 to $2,000. This would free me up to both serve at the church part time and work part-time and/or full-time at a secular job to pay for my other bills and cost of living. Do know that if you are unable to make such a commitment I would be eternally grateful to receive any type of financial support that you are able to give. To be sure, several small donations or commitments do add up! As we all know the smallest of gifts is many times the most sacrificial. If you are able to help by providing a monthly donation or a one-time donation, understand that after my assessment and training is complete I will also be looking for future ongoing help as I would then be coming on board with the Gallery Church as a church-planting minister. However, your donation(s) now are crucial in helping me get started in this journey.

If you are able to support me in this mission through encouragement, prayer or financial gifts I would ask that you let me know that by sending me an email at nycmills@gmail.com. As part of the email please let me know how and to what degree you will be able to partner with me in this mission. I will be prompt in returning this email and telling you of next steps that you would need to take. Please take the time to pray over this request and then respond as God leads. It would greatly assist me in making my final arrangements if you could let me know of your support by October 15th.

Dreams, Planes, and A Calling

2009-09-15T07:49:00.000-07:00

Dreams are wonderful. For some reason I have discovered that I am the type of guy that can remember my dreams pretty well after I wake up. I think this is because I am naturally someone who thinks more creatively than they do logically. Whatever the case may be, I love to dream.

I was recently laying awake late at night in my bed - not being able to fall completely asleep. I kept waking up from unconsciousness after only being asleep a few minutes here and there. As I lay restlessly I heard a sound that reminded me of a dream that God has recently been placing on my heart. It was the sound of an airplane passing overhead. It was quiet and subtle but it spoke loudly to me. I listened, and in doing so I found my eyes were getting heavier and my spirit was growing less restless and before long I was finally in deep sleep. Dreaming. Dreaming of the next time I will be boarding a plane.

For those of you who don't know I will be moving to NYC in November. I am getting on a plane and flying to the Big Apple to pursue a dream; moreover, a calling. It has been quite a while since I have pursued a calling that has led me into full-time ministry. But after some healing from some circumstances and wrong decisions on my part I am more than ready for where God is taking me.

I depend on Christ in a way that I never did before. I have learned that I can't even really make it through my day the way that I should without connecting with Him. I have also learned to love people and care for them and their hurts at a deeper level. These are things that I have learned over the past few years that I have spent healing. This has positioned me well for NYC and the calling He has given me.

So what will I be doing? Where will I be living? Yes there is a plan. No I'm not just randomly going on a hope and whim. But in a lot of ways I am just "going." I know that God has called. I know that I am to GO. I will tell you more details about this move over the next few days. But for now, know that I have heard God's call so I am boarding a plane real soon in order to GO and live out a dream.

Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." Matthew 28:18-20

Dew Drop Inn

2009-09-02T13:01:00.000-07:00

Let my teaching fall like rain and my words descend like dew, like showers on new grass, like abundant rain on tender plants. Deuteronomy 32:2.

Let me begin by saying I have the best family. As I am preparing for the next step in my life they have graciously allowed and welcomed me to stay back home for a few months. We joke that it is a revolving door around the Mills house as they have had many family and friends stay as guests over the years. My parents are the type of people who will give sacrificially without little to nothing required in return. Me, my sister, my uncle and others have been blessed to be in a place that warmly shows the love of Christ. Beyond just providing a place to stay they have provided much more that I could ever begin to write.

My dad has become my best friend as we spend many afternoons together watching football, playing golf, or sharing a religious discussion. My mom is the one person in my life that completely understands me and at times knows me better than I even know myself. My sister is a true example of what it means to be a Godly woman who loves people and loves the Lord. I am blessed.

If you ever have the opportunity to be around these great people your life will be better for it. If you are a person that needs to feel the love of Christ I know that my family is one of the most caring families that you will ever meet. If you ever need someone to tell you harsh truth in love they are always willing to go the extra mile.

Who I am is greatly shaped by these people. I will forever be indebted to them as they have shown me what it means to be a man that chases after the things of God. So I extend this invitation. If you haven't already met the better part of who the Mills family is... do so. You will enjoy the experience. Who knows you might even have the chance to come over and see my mom greet you with her kind words, "Dew Drop Inn."

Ribs, Barbecue, Friends, and Family

2009-08-30T16:04:00.000-07:00

As I cheerfully bring another full rack of smoked ribs and barbecue to another table of starving country music fans I can't help but notice how everyone is enjoying each others presence. Even with "Merle Haggard" music playing in the background they seem to be focused in on each others conversation as if it has been forever since they have seen each other. I simply smile, place down their order in front of them, and ask if everything is ok. But I know even before I ask that everything is just as it should be.

Friends are great. More than that it is necessary for health to have people around you that deeply care for you. I have been fortunate enough to have many friends like this in my life. I count them as a blessing and am thankful for them and my family.

During the past weeks I have had the opportunity to reconnect with some dear friends that I have not seen it what seems like forever. I can only say that the previous distance between them has been my fault. When there is distance there is several things that are lost that only comes through the sweet connection of presence in someones life.

I am glad that I got to spend some time with these people as we have been able to discuss what God has been doing in our lives. For me, God has been working greatly over the past few years and I have been healed from some situations and wrong decisions that I had made in the past. Decisions that I was even warned about making by these dear friends to which I did nothing but ignore.

I have been able to spend some time with great people like Freddy T. Wyatt, John Mark Hutcheson, Kyle Barrett, and Dr. Cook. There are still a few more that I will be re-connecting with in the days to come. I dearly love all these people and will continue to be grateful for their presence in my life.

I have many more things that I will be sharing with all of you through this blog in the days, weeks, and months to come. I will look forward to letting all of you know about the things God has done in my life and even new places that He is leading me to. And if you are asking if everything is ok, I hope you know that everything is just as it should be. Until then know that I will be thinking of you, and praying and thanking God for you even during times where I bring smoked ribs and barbecue to a great group of starving country music fans.

2009-08-27T08:05:00.001-07:00