WithoutWax.tv by Pete Wilson

Broadcasting Volunteer Gala LIve!

Pete Wilson — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:44:53 +0000

I’ve got a BIG announcement this morning. We’ve decided to broadcast our annual Volunteer Gala which happens tonight LIVE. Trust me when I say you won’t want to miss watching how we celebrate our volunteers here at Cross Point. It’s one of the most unique celebrations I’ve ever been a part of.

We’ll be going LIVE around 7:15 cst, so grab some popcorn and get ready as we pull out all the stops to honor the thousands of volunteers that make Cross Point so special.

I’ve embedded the channel here so you can come back here and watch it. You can also go HERE for a much larger picture and more room to chat with others.

How We Live

Pete Wilson — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 03:42:40 +0000

Like so many of you I watched in horror as the news about the shooting at Ft. Hood started to spread. Apparently an Army psychiatrist allegedly opened fire at Fort Hood, Texas, killing 12 people and wounding 31 others.

The event was a violent reminder that none of us get to choose how we die in this world, but we do get to choose how we live.

Hope you’ll take some extra time to pray for the families impacted by the shootings.

My Favorite Night Of The Year

Pete Wilson — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 14:07:08 +0000

There are many different events we put on as a church. My favorite, hands down, is our Volunteer Appreciation Banquet. Once a year we roll out the red carpet in an attempt to find a way to say thank you to the thousands of volunteers that make Cross Point Church the special place it is. I was blown away to hear that this year we mailed out invitations to 2000 households. I can’t tell you how humbled I am to get to serve alongside such an amazing group of people!

Every year the gala is full of some unexpected moments which make the night. These unexpected moments usually include some kind of self disparaging humor. The past two years we’ve opened the event by spoofing Back To the Future and Top Gun. If you haven’t already seen these videos I thought you would enjoy them!

If you’re a Cross Point volunteer we’ll see you tomorrow night! Can’t wait to celebrate you guys.

Cross Point “Top Gun” Volunteer Appreciation 2008 from Cross Point Church on Vimeo.

Cross Point “Back To The Future” Volunteer Appreciation 2007 from Cross Point Church on Vimeo.

The Greatest Of All Illusions

Pete Wilson — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 12:27:33 +0000

We’re in a series entitled Faith, Hope & Love at Cross Point where we’ve been looking at how God uses our faith to increase our intimacy and trust with Him. As usual I’ve found myself in the middle of struggling with the very topic I’m in the midst of teaching about.

I’ve got a situation that is driving me absolutely crazy.

I want answers.

I want explanations.

I want guarantees.

I want control.

And yet what God wants is for me to simply trust Him.

Over the past two days I’ve felt God saying, “Pete, take your hands off of this. Stop trying to control and maintain what you cannot control and maintain.”

I bet there are a lot of you who are just like me. We have fallen victim to faithless lives because we’ve bought into the illusion of control.

And control IS the greatest of all illusions.

Should Churches Monitor Staff’s Twitter?

Pete Wilson — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 13:12:41 +0000

Kansas City Chiefs running back Larry Johnson has been suspended and banned from all team activities while NFL is investigating his shameful use of gay slur when he questioned coach Todd Haley’s football credentials in an exchange with one of his followers on his Twitter account on Monday (October 26). The NFL commissioner, Roger Goodell, said his twitter comments violated the league’s personal conduct policy

Johnson’s agent Peter Schaffer alleges the game check and other lost revenue would amount to a penalty of about $600,000 for the former two-time Pro Bowl player. Ouch! That will make you think twice before twittering next time won’t it?

This brings up an interesting point. I wonder how many churches monitor their staff’s twitter accounts? I wonder if any churches have twitter policies in place that dictate what they can and can’t say on twitter? If they twitter something inappropriate are they going to dock them their next 15 years of salary?

Maybe the deeper question here is do you think churches have the right to monitor their staff’s twitter?

While I don’t really “monitor” our staff’s tweets, I do follow them. It’s a great way for me to keep up with some of the smaller details of their life I might miss otherwise. Here’s a list of several of our staff who twitter. You should follow them. They’re a lot of fun.

Darin Richardson

Jarrod Morris

Why Men Don’t Listen

Pete Wilson — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 13:38:01 +0000

I don’t think any of us would argue that there are monumental differences between men and women. Anyone who’s been married longer than seven minutes can probably make a laundry list of differences. I read an interesting article HERE last week which talked about some of the neurological differences between men and women. The article states…

The male brain also produces less serotonin and oxytocin than the female brain. Serotonin helps to calm us down and oxytocin helps us with bonding behaviors.

So what does all this mean? I don’t have a CLUE since my brain is clearly missing a few essential ingredients.

Well, according to the article, it means men may not take in as much conversation as women do, because they have fewer verbal centers designated for it. It also means your husband will most likely want to end conversations more quickly than you do. Apparently the male brain may also rejuvenate differently than the female brain. Men like to chill out more than women do. Women may want to bond at the end of the day to rejuvenate and feel connected, because of the oxytocin found in their brains.

My advice…

Men: Scripture calls us to “seek to understand” (1 Peter 3:7) our wives. Your temptation will be to tell her why she shouldn’t feel this way or that way. You’ll want to tell her how she’s overreacting or being silly. However, your calling, is not to explain to her why she shouldn’t feel the way she feels but to simply “seek to understand” why she feels the way she feels.

How do we do this? We need to listen. Listen more, fix less. Listen more, explain less. Listen more, argue less.

Women: Clearly the lack of oxytocin leaves us somewhat relationally challenged. You guys mature so much faster than we do. Most 17-year-old females can function as adults. Most 17-year-old males are still trading baseball cards and giving each other wedgies after gym class. In fact, I’m not sure we ever catch up to your relational intelligence.

We love you. We really do. Sometimes we just need a little extra grace along the way.

Halloween @ The Wilsons

Pete Wilson — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 03:17:06 +0000

Bats, Laughs, & One Cool Costume

Pete Wilson — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 12:51:44 +0000

In honor of Halloween I’ve got a few videos for you. The first one is one of the stupidest videos I’ve ever seen but for some reason I can’t stop watching it. I saw it the other day and it makes me laugh every time I think about it.. Please know in advance there is absolutely no spiritual significance at all to this clip. It’s just stupid….and funny.

I’m trying to come up with some kind of idea to scare the kids in the neighborhood tomorrow night. I might have to find a costume like this and get up on the roof or something.

The second video I stole from Brad Ruggles. Just praying my kids don’t see this costume. It totally blows away the costumes we’re wearing tomorrow night.

How about you? What are your kids wearing?

Can Christians Celebrate Halloween?

Pete Wilson — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 12:50:59 +0000

Usually this time of year there are all kinds of debates about “should Christians celebrate Halloween?” Of course if you’re a really good Christian it seems you will simply have a “Fall Festival” where you will do exactly what everyone else does on Halloween (costumes and candy) except you’ll only invite Christians which somehow makes it okay.

Please note, I believe this is a personal decision. If you and your family don’t celebrate Halloween, then I totally respect that decision.

As you can probably tell from last years Halloween picture, we do. Our kids dress up, we carve a pumpkin and take ALL the candy we possibly can from our neighbors. You could say we celebrate Halloween but I think we celebrate our kids, friends and neighbors.

1) My kids. My kids love to dress up. Jett’s going as Satan, Gage is going to be an evil spirit, and Brewer the angel of death. Just kidding!! They’re going to be a Jester, Frankenstein, and a Skeleton. They’ve been fired up all week about designing their pumpkins and running around the neighborhood. We’re going to have a blast.

2) My friends. We usually have two other couples and their kids come over and enjoy the evening with us. We’ve actually gone trick-or-treating with one couple for 9 years in a row. It’s kind of become our little tradition.

3) My neighbors. This is an awesome chance for me to build a bridge with my non-Christian, non-church going neighbors. Think of it as Tuesday night visitation, only this time they’re coming to you. Many will drop by the house and we’ll get a chance to talk about all kinds of things that might serve as a bridge to future conversations and future opportunities to build relationships. I’m probably not going to drop a “Christian tract” in their kids’ bag, but I do want to drop a little sincere Christian love their way.

I know I’m probably opening a can of worms but what do you think about Halloween? Any exciting plans?

Right There

Pete Wilson — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 13:00:29 +0000

I was going through my pictures from last week’s camping trip when I stumbled across this picture. Brewer, my three year-old son, is getting to the age where it’s important for him to feel a little freedom. He didn’t want daddy’s help to cross the bridge. He slowly, calculating every step, moved across the bridge. I could hear the fear in his breathing pattern. He was shaky, yet determined to make it across. What he didn’t know is that at no time was he really in any real damage. I was right there ready to snatch him should he start to fall.

But here is what I couldn’t stop thinking about as I looked at this picture. I wonder how many times in my life this has been a picture of me crossing the bridge of life with God right there waiting to catch me.

Let’s just be honest here. Time and time again in your life you’re going to feel as if God isn’t showing up. You’re going to feel as if God isn’t healing, He isn’t restoring, He isn’t releasing His mighty power. You’re going to feel like He doesn’t know or care and you’ve been completely abandoned on the bridge.

Do you know what the most frequently stated promise from God in Scripture is? God promises us over and over, “I am with you.”

You may feel all alone, but please know you’re not. Despite you’re feelings He’s right there with you. He’s ready to snatch you should you fall.

Do you see yourself in the picture above?