Jehu Hernandez

What a great day we had today at Solid Rock! We had water baptisms in both services. I believe this is the only time I've ever baptized only men. That's awesome! Tonight was the conclusion of the One Prayer series. We were blessed to watch a sermon by Steven Furtick of Elevation Church in Charlotte, NC. His message was great--a very timely message delivered under a great anointing. God is great, God is good! We had a great time of fellowship tonight with the Sel and Esperanze Trejo after the Evening Service. Esperanza was the first person who was saved when we planted Solid Rock 20 years ago. She was the first person I baptized. Tonight, it was my privilege to baptize Sel. Have a great week, Rockies! I'll see you at InterMission this Wednesday at 7:00 pm.

...that phrase from Amos 4:12 is the first thing that came to mind when I heard about the sudden death of Michael Jackson late this afternoon. Combined with the death of Farrah Fawcett this morning and Ed McMahon earlier this week, this has been a sobering last few days. I never really followed Michael Jackson's career, except when he was in the news for his record-breaking music or his eccentric behavior. I was always aware, however, that he and I were almost exactly the same age, so that gave me reason to stay mildly interested in his life. His death is a reminder that life is fragile, and that we must be spiritually prepared to meet our maker. Are you ready?

I had a great Father's Day because I spent it with the kids. The girls cooked a great lunch--beef tips over rice! And we got to hang out for most of the weekend! It was great! We're having water baptisms next Sunday! That's always one of my favorite services. Celebrating changed lives! This morning's One Prayer service was by John Siebeling of The Life Church of Memphis: God is Unshakeable. Great message! One more week of One Prayer . The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; The LORD turn his face toward you, and give you peace. Numbers 6:22-26 Have a great week!

I learned a couple of weeks ago that there are insurance companies that are now offering blogging insurance. What? Really? Why? So I asked myself, "Why would I need blogging insurance? In case somebody sues me for a lack of blogging activity?" Actually, there are issues (such as copyright and defamation) that are surfacing as areas of concern. If nothing else, the availability of blogging insurance is a reminder that everything we put on the internet is open to scrutiny.

We've heard a lot about empathy in recent weeks with the nomination of Sonia Sotomayor for Supreme Court Justice. In nominating her, President Obama stressed that he was looking for a judge who demonstrated empathy. Most conservatives have reacted against that qualification, but Joel Belz presents an interesting angle in the latest issue of WORLD Magazine. He says, in part: ...we conservatives are silly when we disparage the role of empathy in the pursuit of justice. If by no other principle than that of the Golden Rule, we should take empathy seriously. And those of us who tend to call ourselves both conservatives and Christians have special reason to take empathy seriously. The writer of Hebrews makes a point of reminding us that "we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find...

I'm totally excited about this weekend's One Prayer message! We will watch a video of Dino Rizzo from Healing Place Church in Baton Rouge, LA preaching a message titled "God is Here and Anything Can Happen!" I can only tell you that I was truly blessed when I previewed it. Can't wait for Sunday!

We had another great Sunday at Solid Rock Church. Both services today were characterized by people seeking God whole-heartedly. That's very encouraging! I bought a new phone yesterday. I did something I've never done before--I stood in line for two hours waiting for the Sprint store to open so I could get a Palm Pre. I was there a little after 6:00 and I was the second one in line. Got beat by a guy who was there at 5:15. The good news is that I got the Pre, and I made some new friends standing in line for two hours. I've started jogging again, finally. Although my surgery is a distant memory, I've got other aches and pains. But I'm determined to exercise again. We started the One Prayer series today. I'm really looking forward to seeing the video messages. My biggest problem is deciding which one to show because there are so many good ones. I'm praying that God will show me what we need to hear. Bed time! Gotta get up early for my morning jog.