Dave Bowman

Every 7 Seconds

That's supposedly how often men think about sex - every 7 seconds. I'm not sure if it's every 7 seconds, but I know us guys think about it...A LOT! So this week in Part 4 of Ultimate Fighter we're tackling sexual temptation, another cage fight we need to win.

Why would we teach something this uncomfortable at NHC? Simple...every time we teach on the subject of sex and sexual purity things happen. Marriages get stronger. Singles get empowered to date in Godly ways. Families get protected. Repentance happens which leads to freedom.

And all of that, and more, will happen this weekend at NHC. So get yourself here. Get your friends here. Get your kids here. Just get here and let's pray for God to do some awesome things! See 'ya Saturday at 6:00 or Sunday at 9:30 & 11:00!

Why Do You Do It?

“I wouldn’t want to do what you do. I honestly don’t know why you do it.” I don’t know how many times I’ve heard similar comments.

Why do I do what I do?

Simple.

    - I believe we will all die – some sooner, some later – but we all die
    - I believe when we die we go to one place or another – heaven or hell
    - I believe the only way to heaven is by putting our trust in Jesus
    - I believe we need to tell as many about Jesus as we possibly can

That’s what I believe. That’s why I do what I do. Why do you do what you do?

Quote Of The Day

First rule of decision making: More time does not create better decisions.

                                                                                    - Seth Godin -

Weekend Rewind

• This was one of those weekends that just flat, wore me out! I’m not sure what it is about the Ultimate Fighter series, but I feel like I’m preaching harder than I have for a long time. It just feels like there’s so much on the line with this series and that God is doing so much through it.

• Had several guys tell me that my story sounded just like their story. Never ceases to amaze me how many of us guys are carrying around the “father wound.”

• I know I say something like this every week, but Jon and the band really nailed it again this week. Pulling off Where’d You Go was a real treat and was so different from what we usually do musically. Great job guys!

• And….people got saved at NHC again this weekend! I’m not sure what the numbers are as of this weekend, but we’re well over 150 since Easter. Wow!!! Only God!!! God is definitely doing something through this series, so GET YOUR FRIENDS HERE NEXT WEEKEND!!!

• On another note, our Community Group kicked into gear again tonight. Great to be back together with our group. And that reminds me – IF YOU’RE NOT IN A GROUP GET IN ONE…NOW!!! Seriously, you don’t know what you’re missing when you’re not in an NHC group. Stop by Next Steps and they’ll help you get linked up.

• Did I say, “GET YOUR FRIENDS HERE NEXT WEEKEND,” yet? I did? Just a thought.

• Hitting the golf course tomorrow for the first time since last November. That’s a serious lay-off for a committed golfer like me but I’ve had some problems over the last few months with a bad thumb. Seems to be healed up now, so I’m getting back in the “swing” of things. (I know, that was a really lame joke.)

• That’s it. I’m fried. I’m done. I’m out. Later.

The Fight Continues This Weekend

Ultimate Fighter continues this week! So far in this series we’ve seen over 150 people make commitments to Christ, and I’m expecting that number to get even bigger this weekend!

In this series we’re talking about how to be more like Jesus, THE Ultimate Fighter of all time. And we’re talking about the cage matches that every man has to fight. This week we’re climbing into the octagon again for another battle – the battle to heal from one of the greatest wounds we suffer…the wound we receive from our fathers.

So GET HERE THIS WEEKEND! Spring break is over and this would be a great weekend to invite a friend to NHC…or bring back that friend that you brought on Easter weekend. Get them here because people are going to get saved this weekend at NHC!!!

Saturday 6:00 PM
Sunday 9:30 & 11:00 AM

P. S. If you’ve missed any of Ultimate Fighter you can check out the videos here.

Need Some Hope?

Get some at NHC this Thursday night. We are linking up with over 6000 other churches and potentially over 1 million people nationwide for a live simulcast of Dave Ramsey's Townhall For Hope this Thursday night at 8:00. Dave's financial advice is some of the best you'll get, so don't miss this opportunity!

Weekend Rewind (On Monday!)

I’m a day late but hopefully not a dollar short…

• I’ve been waiting for spring break to hit us. This was the weekend. Seemed like we had key players out all over the place this weekend. But the good news is our teams always seem to step it up when that happens.

• The band was ROCKIN’ this weekend. I swear, I think they get better and better every weekend, if that’s possible. Hugh put a Hootie kind of twist on That’s A Man and it was solid! And then the women’s version of the chorus was a riot. I love it that we can laugh and have fun in church.

• UNBELIEVABLE TENSION IN THE ROOM THIS WEEKEND. In all three services.
Felt like I needed to bring it on the subject of fighting for our families, so I said some pretty hard things but I was actually trying to strike a balance between being hard and being encouraging. One thing I don’t like is how churches usually handle the topic of men. If you notice, when Mother’s Day rolls around the messages are always about how great moms are, but when Father’s Day comes the message is always, “Dad, you need to get your act together!” I believe men need to be encouraged, not just yelled at. But there are times when you’ve got to say what needs to be said. This was one of those times.

• Let me say it one more time, guys: How are you leading your family? Away from God or towards him?

• Adam prayed in the third service that we would rock God’s face off. First time I ever heard someone pray for that!

• And once again, lots of people praying to receive Christ! That never gets old.

• Time to start praying for our next series, So You’re Dead…Now What? It starts the weekend of May 16,17 and I’m already praying for tons of our friends and family members to come and get saved. (I’ve asked for a stage prop for the first weekend that I never thought I would ever use on stage! You gotta be here to see it!)

• NHC, I say this all the time, but I love you guys! I love what God has called us to do and I can’t wait to see what he’s going to do next!!

Wimp Or Warrior?

Ready for Ultimate Fighter Pt. 2? This weekend we'll be talking about the cage match that we have to fight for our families. Make no mistake, guys, we have to win this fight!

Be sure to join us Saturday night at 6:00 or Sunday at 9:30 or 11:00. Bring a friend and let's throwdown with Wimp or Warrior! (Just in case you missed the promo video, check it out!)

Dave Ramsey Live

A few years ago I heard about this guy named Dave Ramsey who had written a book called Financial Peace. Being interested in stewardship, I picked up a copy of his book and was blown away by his story. This book wasn't written by some financial guru who had degrees in economics. It was written by a guy who had made millions, lost it all and learned Biblical stewardship in the process.

Fast forward a few years and Dave Ramsey is now the host of a nationwide radio show, New York Times best selling author and host of his own show on the Fox Business Channel. And now Dave is hosting a free, live event that we are hosting here at NHC on April 23rd at 8:00. It's called it’s called the Town Hall for Hope. The concept is a nationwide town hall where Dave Ramsey will answer questions and reassure the American people that there is hope in the midst of our struggling economy.

Here's the best part of all - it's FREE!! (Check out this video)

Vital Info:
When - April 23, 8:00 PM
Where - NHC auditorium
How much - FREE!!!

It's Crowded In Here!

“A large crowd came to him and he began to teach them.”
                                                                                            -Mark 2:13-

Want to do an interesting Bible study? Just check out how many times the gospels refer to the idea of crowds gathering around Jesus everywhere he went. I recently did that with the book of Mark. Twenty four times Mark refers to large crowds that just seemed to appear whenever Jesus was around. Seems kind of like a pattern doesn’t it? Whenever Jesus is around, crowds show up.

Guess what? A crowd showed up last weekend! Since then I’ve talked with several pastor friends who have asked, “What did you do?” I haven’t been quite able to answer that question yet. I mean, we did the usual things we do for a big day. We prayed. We prepared. We advertised. We invited. All the things we’ve always done. And crowds have come before. But not with the results we saw this weekend.

So here’s what I’m thinking. You’ve heard me say it over and over – we’re about one thing here at NHC – JESUS! We worship Jesus. We preach Jesus. We encourage others to surrender to Jesus. It’s all about Jesus and Jesus draws a crowd.

People often look at churches like ours and say that people come because of the style of music, the way we dress, or worse things like we’re watering down the gospel or that we’re weak on sin. But I think they’re missing something. All over the country this past weekend churches like ours experienced a surge in attendance with thousands of people receiving Christ. Maybe, just maybe they came for a different reason. Maybe they came because they somehow got the idea that they might meet Jesus there.

Today I’m praying for even bigger crowds! I’m praying that we have more traffic problems. (I’ve been telling you to get here early!) I’m praying that Jesus is always found at NHC in such a way that people know they can find him here. Thank you Jesus for drawing a crowd!!