Our Mission

Psalm 27:3-5 (New International Version
3 Though an army besiege me,
my heart will not fear;
though war break out against me,
even then will I be confident.
4 One thing I ask of the LORD,
this is what I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life,
to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD
and to seek him in his temple.
5 For in the day of trouble
he will keep me safe in his dwelling;
he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle
and set me high upon a rock.

Our mission at The Lift is simple. To declare the beauty of the Lord! In word, and in deed. I have spoken before that your orthodoxy (what you believe) and your orthopraxy (what you do) must line up. If you say one thing, yet do another, you are blowing smoke and lying to yourself. I desire to live what I preach. Declaring the beauty of the Lord in my attitudes, and actions. May I ask a question of you that I ask myself? Where do you run in the day of trouble? If it is not in to His tabernacle (the presence of God) then how can God keep us safe? And conversly, how can we declare the beauty of the Lord when we do not show that beauty when we are facing difficulties? One thing I know for sure, people watch how you react to stressful situations. Many times I believe God for the big things, yet get all fleshed out in the small stuff! Shame on me!! The Bible says that he who keeps his mind stayed on God (keeping Him mindful and in the center of your thought life) will be in perfect peace. That is truly beautiful. With the economy acting all crazy, and gas lines in Nashville likened to the eighties gas shortages, we need some beauty in our lives. We need peace. My encouragement to you today is to find peace and hope in Jesus Christ. He is the answer for all your problems, and will truly bring peace during life's storms. Jory

Our

Psalm 27:3-5 (New International Version
3 Though an army besiege me,
my heart will not fear;
though war break out against me,
even then will I be confident.
4 One thing I ask of the LORD,
this is what I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life,
to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD
and to seek him in his temple.
5 For in the day of trouble
he will keep me safe in his dwelling;
he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle
and set me high upon a rock.

Lift Info Update

Just a small update on how things are going. We are still waiting on God's timing for a full launch of the church in the Midtown area of Nashville. God is calling folks from other areas of the country to move here to assist. Praisn' God for that! Also, I will introduce more officially our Children's ministry Pastor, Billie Thompson at a later date. She is awesome. It seems that as we launch God will have provided an entire staff (non-paid, by the way) to start with. Many people that I have interviewed and all of the studies that I have done both academically and on the side, is that three problems occur when launching a church work. Everyone I speak with wishes that they had had more leaders to launch with, more solid direction, and more money. I believe that we have clear direction and focus on what needs to be done. I believe that our organization is moving in the right direction. However, it is the cash flow that is the biggest lack at this time. I do know that in God's time He will provide! Our first priority financially is the purchase of quality a/v and sound equipment. These are important components to empower the vision for downtown. Keep praying with us that funding will come in and we can move on. Love ya guys, Jory

Above the Turmoil

While on a cross training weekend with the Columbus, Ohio Police Department, I had the opportunity to go on duty with the sky patrol division, or what I will call "chopper cops". These folks are great, and in my opinion, have the coolest job in law enforcement. During a normal shift, these cops go on many calls offering air support with high powered lights, and ifra-red cameras. Scene after scene we would offer support for the "ground troops". You would see Police Dogs, and Officers everywhere, with shotguns and rifles and pistols out, looking for the bad guys. Mass chaos seemed to be happening down below, though we could not hear all that was happening. We were a part of the turmoil but we were above it all. Our perspective was much different. We could see the whole scenario, not just parts of it, yet were not affected by the chaos.
Life happens! Is your life out of control, or are you experiencing mass pandemonium in your life? Christ wants to give you a new perspective on the situation. You may still be in adversity, but if you stop, and ask Christ to help you in your time of adversity, He will give you a new view of it. Through Christ, you will be able to rise above the turmoil. If you would like to share about a time that God has given you one of those moments where you were above the turmoil, write us. If you need help, feel free to e-mail me or give me a call at 615-859-4408. We will be happy to pray with you. Pastor Jory

9/11

I know that the date is not 9/11, but I have been pondering the event that happened a few years back in rememberance of the day the towers fell. I can only imagine what it must have felt like in contrast to Pearl Harbor being destroyed by at that time another enemy of America. I was with the police department at the time, and happened to be in dispatch when the buildings were hit. It was tragic!
In view of this event, I want to ask you a question. Has an enemy crashed into your "tower" and destroyed it? Has something come in to your life and stole your dream, or crushed a part of you that seemingly can never be rebuilt, because the damage is so devastating? Has your life been "crashed" in to? What ever your tower, I want you to know that Jesus cares about the hurts in your life, and he wants to rebuild the desolate places in your life. If you allow him to, though there seems to be way to much rubble, and destruction, He will restore that 911 in your life. No, you might not get your marriage back, or the job you lost, but God will open doors and heal the hurt. In New York, they had to go all the way down and replace everything from the foundation up. That may happen in your life, but if your foundation is the Lord, He will build something that all will be impressed with, and you will not be dissapointed. If you need help after a 911, give me a call, and we will seek the advice of the Master Builder. Jory