Wednesday, October 31, 2007

The New Building

I have been out to the new building we have been checking out three times in the last four days. The last tow times I have taken tape measures and last night I took a couple of guys from our team and we have been trying to figure out a way to make the building work for us. We've been measuring and taping off where we'd put classrooms, the stage, and chairs. The hard part about this decision is that every way we have tried it's really borderline as to us actually being able to make it work and even if we can make it work would it work well enough to allow us to grow in a healthy manner attracting new people.

The more I look at this the more I believe the answer is no. The space is just too small. It would work well for the amount of people that we currently had but wouldn't allow for us to grow beyond five or six new families.

There are some other issues that need to be considered as well. Going to this location would have been a huge change in our outreach. As of now we'd been targeting people in the Holland Maumee, and South Toledo areas. Those days would have been over and we'd have had to start reaching out to Swanton and Monclova townships. That's not a bad thing, but no one from our core group lives out that way so we are asking a group of people from one community to minister to a group of people in another community. It can be done, but at times there can be a mismatch.

It would have also been a lot to ask people to drive out there more than once a week for church functions like band practice, small groups, and youth group.

At the end of the day on this one we have to look at the evidence and be confident knowing that as God closes one door he begins the process of opening another one. For now we are going to learn to be content with the YMCA and we are thankful that we have a great temporary home for holding our worship services until God provides the next location.

Monday, October 29, 2007

Sunday mind dump

Wow what a crazy busy week last week was. Much of the stuff still has yet to be decided but it is exciting at the same time. So here are a few things bouncing around the ping-pong table inside my head today.
  • Had a great visit with the Lifechurch.tv network church that April and I saw last Sunday in Champaign Ill. It was a very cool thing and might really work well for us. April began to see what I see in terms of the possibilities that a partnership might bring for our church.
  • Saw the building our by the airport for the first time. I wasn't blow away but there would be some things that would be nice about it. We are going to go through the processes of figuring out if it'll work. There are two central issues. First, there are some cosmetic problems which are an easy fix. The bigger issue is that the building is on the small size, by the time that we built walls for classrooms we might not have enough space for a main sanctuary.
  • One of the cool things about the church we saw in Ill is that they actually set up in warehouse space. Their layout was perfect and they really did a killer job of making it look really good. That got me thinking about the possibility of doing that here. Retail space is 4 times more costly than warehouse space. I have done some looking and there are some warehouse spaces that would work well for us.
  • I am really looking forward to the next few services. We are going to cover the topics of addiction and pornography. We have a guest speaker at each of the next two services that's going to tell us how their lives were almost destroyed by this stuff. It'll be cool, really cool.
  • I have been thinking of some ways we can use technology to help us with growing our people. I am not quite ready to share it yet but it'll come soon. Lets just say I am really pumped about it.
I can't wait to see everyone next weekend for part two of My Secrets: Addictions. Be prepared to be amazed by some of the stories that you'll hear. If you have some one in your life that struggles with ANY kind of addiction do whatever you have to do and get them to church next Sunday!

Saturday, October 27, 2007

Busy Weekend!

This is going to be a busy weekend for April and I. In a few minutes we are getting ready to head out for band practice. Then right after band practice we are heading out for the open house at the potential new building. Then right after that April and I are getting in the car and heading to Champaign Ill to visit with another church that is a part of the lifechurch.tv network.

We really like the stuff that lifechurch.tv does and we have kicked around becoming part of their network for while now. We are just getting to the point where we are wanting to go and physically see how things are done.

Becoming a lifechurch.tv network church could be a very cool thing for us as it would allow is to do many of the things that larger churches do really well using technology in teaching. But, it would allow us to keep the personal touch of a smaller church. This is a very exciting time for me as a pastor because I am looking all across the country and seeing the role of a pastor begin to change from being the person who taught on Sunday morning, to the pastor being an equipper that has a more personal place in the lives of his church members.

That is an exciting thought!

Stay tuned, as God sorts all of this out for us, we'll be able to paint little better picture of what he is doing in our lives and in the life of Real Life!

Friday, October 26, 2007

New location new opportunities

The YMCA has been a great place for us to start off as a church. They have been very kind to us. We get to use the building on both Saturday for setup and practice and Sunday for services for a fairly reasonable price. The problem is that that we still have setup and tear down and that process is hard on our gear and hard on the people that do the set up and tear down. No one complains about it and in fact, the process has taught us quite a few things about our people. But at the end of the day, the YMCA is not in the church business and we are.

On Saturday we are going to check out a new location for us to hold services. It's a place that needs quite a bit of work in the cleanup and making pretty department. The great thing is that the place would be ours (at least for a year at at time.) We'd be able to some things in their that we just can't do at the YMCA. It would give us a place to call home.

The other great thing about this location is that is in the fastest growing part of the county and there isn't much in the way of other churches out there. That means we'd have the chance to make a real impact in areas previously neglected by other churches. This really is an exciting time.

I am not sure if we'll even take the building but the mere fact that we have a chance at it is a miracle in and of itself. We'll be out at the place on Wilkins road from 1-2 for everyone who'd like to come and check it out. If we make this move, we want it to be something that as a church we are pretty much all comfortable with. There is a strength that being in unity brings to a church and now is the time for us to be thinking along those lines.

Sunday, October 21, 2007

Sunday mind dump

I have decided I am stealing the title for this blog from another blogger I read. I just love the idea of being able to come dump out the things that are currently playing ping-pong in my head! Read and enjoy. If something I have written is about you, then let me thank you in advance, or if it's negative and it's about you, then go ahead and plug your ears while saying "not listening, not listening."

I am so proud and honored to lead the group of people we have here at Real Life! Every week someone does something that is just so cool and it just makes me light up. I thought it might be nice to clear out the brain after Sunday services.
  • My Secrets started off really well. A whole bunch of people came up to me and told me how much they needed to hear that. In my mind, I am hearing a bell ring on the God scoreboard.
  • Sometimes our people just blow my mind as to how generous they are with their time and talents. They don't even know how important they are to to me and this church but they are we wouldn't make it without them.
  • Planting a church is hard work. The only way you will make it is if God has really called you to do it. Sometimes you measure success in terms of numbers. It's not always the best way, but you do.
  • Sometimes God shows you how he measures success and numbers aren't that big of a part. He looks at the heart. I see huge amounts of success when I look at the hearts of some our of folks. They care so much about others is it is scary because they set the bar really high for me as a person.
  • God blesses what he chooses to bless. Our job is to do what we need to do to be a part of what God is blessing.
  • We have a lot of decisions to make over the next few months. Where to move as we outgrow the YMCA, how and who we are going to try to reach next, and looking for a more permanent worship leader and children's pastor. God will provide everything we need provided we stay connected to him as our one and only source.
Church planting......what a rush!!

Saturday, October 20, 2007

Great set up today

We had a great set up today. Being a portable church is never easy. Every time you set up you face new challenges and issues. For us, we can never allow not having a seven day a week church home to become an excuse for not bringing our best to God. The new testament church didn't have buildings for over 200 years and they managed to not only sustain growth but change the face of the planet. If they can do it so can we, we're serving the same God after all! In fact, we should have it a little easier than they did. They risked being killed for believing, us not so much.

I am really looking forward to tomorrows service. This next series is going to be a huge step for many of our people. If you haven't yet come to check us out I'd highly suggest this series is a great time. Tomorrow we are going to tackle the subject of lying. Let's face it, we all do it, or have done it. We all need this message. Sadly, most people are not only telling an occasional "white lie" but they are living a lie.

Don't fall into that trap. Tomorrow we learn how to unload the burdens we carry around due to our lies.

Thursday, October 18, 2007

Why church people are not friendly.

First off, let me say I love all kinds of people. Whether you go to church or not. I am just a common kinda guy. In fact, as I write this post I am sitting here in my Michigan shorts eating a bowl of cheerios and thinking about taking a nap. Thats just how simple I am. I like football, music, and comedies. I am as simple and predictable as they come.

So why are church people not friendly. First off, because the people that visit our churches tell us we're not. Visitors can look around and they can see that we love each other because we share a warmth and fellowship with each other that is obvious to anyone looking. That is very different than creating a culture of friendliness. Every church I have ever been a part of thought they were friendly, in reality not much about them actually created a warm and friendly environment.

So then why do people think that we are unfriendly. Because most of us haven't learned how to relate to people that are not yet part of us. We ask shallow awkward questions that make a person feel like an outsider. We might say "So is this your first time here?" or "You're new here what do you think so far?" or worse yet "you look new, let me introduce you to the pastor!" not that I am a bad guy mind you, but really? Who wants to be taken before the pastor?

So how can we actually go from thinking we are friendly to being friendly. Well first, we can start by actually knowing how to have a conversation with someone that makes them feel valuable. Instead of saying "you look new." You could always say "Hi, my name is Jeff, I don't think we've meet yet." Instead of pointing out that a person is new we are introducing ourselves.

So being the practical teaching pastor dude that I am I wanted to pass along some helpful pointers for starting conversations with people that you don't yet know. Again, I am a simple guy, I didn't come up with this stuff our church planting coach, who is far more creative than I am passed them along to me. Here is a great tool that is easy to use and remember ask about H.E.L.P.
  • Home: Where are you from and how did you arrive here?
  • Employment: What do you do for a living?
  • Loved ones: Ask about their families.
  • Pleasures: Ask what they like to do for fun.
Our goal is not to interrogate people it's to make them feel comfortable. We make people feel comfortable by making them feel important. A person makes up their mind about a church within the first 10 minutes of their first visit. If we don't care about them, we'll never be able to reach them.

Saturday, October 13, 2007

Relaxation weekend

Woke up early today and did nothing! Which is a huge switch for me. Usually I am up way before everyone else in the house and I sit at my computer working. April and I have decided that this weekend is going to be a relaxation weekend and that we are going veg out as much as possible this weekend. We do have a few things on the agenda (band practice and visiting a church we've been meaning to visit) but other than that. It'll be movies and naps.

Oh yea.....don't forget about all the great football games this weekend too!

Tuesday, October 9, 2007

My Secrets: Getting Closer

I have got to say I am really excited about the next series we are kicking off called My Secrets. I just finished going through the first two messages today and they are really good. I just have this feeling that God is going to show up big time and we are going to see some great things happen. We have some cool things planned that are not a usual part of what we do at Real Life that have me really excited. We have adopted a theme song (Dirty Little Secrets-by The All American Rejects) that we are going to play every week as a kick off for the message.

I mentioned to my 14 year old that we were going to be using that song and that he'd need to practice it (he is going to play a little bass guitar with the house band next month.) As I was telling him about it he got this weird look on his face and he said "Dad you know that's not exactly a nice song for church right?" I smiled and told him of course I did and that is why we are going to be using it. We are doing a series on stuff that many people try to keep hidden from other people because if they shared that stuff they might not look so good.

I love this stuff!!

Sunday, October 7, 2007

Great Sunday

What a great Sunday service we had this week. We saw several new families come check us out and we saw a few people that came to check out our last service come back. In fact, one even brought someone which is an awesome thing!!

I am getting more and more stoked about the next series we are running. I just know that we are going to reach people big time. We're kicking off in two weeks with a message on Lying. Who of us doesn't struggle with that one??

I will say I am a little bit bumming today because my favorite NFL team got spanked!!

New toys New Series

Our new mixer came in the other day and it is pretty sweet! We can do so many more things wtih this mixer that we could never do with our old one. There's really only 1 big downside to buying a new mixer, well two downsides. First, you have to pay for it. Second, the first few times you use it can be a little tricky because you have to get all the signals and sounds going in the right direction. That might sound easy but it's kind of a pain in the butt!

Once we got the board dialed in the practice went pretty well and we should be ready for today's service. I have mentioned repeatedly how excited I am about not just this week but the next month and a half. Today's message is really good and something most every person, let alone, Christian needs to hear. For our next service in two weeks, we are starting our My Secrets series. April has been working on the song "Dirty Little Secret" by the All American Rejects. We are going to be using that as an intro all five weeks of the series. We don't use secular tunes that often so it will get people's attention when they hear it. The promo stuff is going out today and I am really excited to see how it will be received!!

We also dropped out last shipment of direct mailers this week so we should hopefully see some folks from those plus a few new folks from personal invites.

I have been sensing for the last few weeks like something big is going to happen and it starts today!! How cool is that!!

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Band practice and critics

April and I just got back from band practice tonight and I am pretty dog gone impressed. Tim's lead guitar stuff sounded awesome. John's drumming was spot on, and Tony is coming along really well on the bass. The band sounded great tonight. I can't wait for this weekend something just tells me this is going to be a great weekend at Real Life.

You know it's going to be a great day in a church when people complain. You know something is going right. In fact, we have had a couple of complaint phone calls today from people who recieved one of our flyers in the mail which tells me that something must be working to get people all upset over a picture of a turtle with the words "stuck" on it! I was actually waiting on the calls. I've kind of learned that anytime you do something like that people get upset that you made contact with them.

The funny thing is, it's usually other Christians who get offended at you mailing them something. The last time we did direct mailings we actually had another pastor call the church upset that one of his people got a direct mail card. He accused us of trying to build a church at the expense of his congregation. How sad!

I actually felt sorry for the guy. I reassured him that, in fact, we were trying to reach those without a church home and the only way we can do direct mail (effectively) is to get a card to everyone in a neighborhood. As I was talking to the guy I was thinking, if your not in the market for a new car it doesn't matter how many times a car dealer sends you an ad, you're not going to buy. If his people were not in the market for a new church, it shouldn't matter what his people were sent because they were not in the market.

I love church planting. What a ride!

Tuesday, October 2, 2007

Getting really excited

I have to admit I am getting really excited about the next few months at Real Life. We are getting ready to start the new series (My Secret) and I am just pumped about it. More than ever people are checking us out and wanting to come. We are getting ready to run some radio ads that will promo the church....This is an exciting time!

Monday, October 1, 2007

Great people make great teams!

I went to bed last night and woke up this morning just thinking about how great a team we have at Real Life. We are so blessed to have so many talented musicians, graphics people, computer techies, and teachers. If I missed something forgive me, it's early!

I just want to give a big shout out and say thank you to everyone helping out. I am so blessed to have you guys and gals. We'd be lost without all of you.

Keep up the hard work!!