Church Requel Blog - Writings of Mark Pierce

Video Stories For Baptisms

Later today I have the privilege of helping two more people tell their stories of how they came to faith in Christ. On July 1st Church Requel will baptize at least 3 folks who want to publicly affirm their new Christian lives. Though it is not a requirement for baptism, I have found that many people like to record their video story to be shown to our congregation before their baptism. These baptism services are some of our most popular worship services at Church Requel. Here are 4 reasons why baptism video stories work so well for us.

1. People love to hear the real stories of real people told in their own words. Pastors, you may be eloquent, but let's face it: our congregations hear from us all the time. There's something powerful about the authentic story coming from the story teller's own lips.
2. People love to tell their own stories. The story people know best is their own. Give them the chance to tell their story and most of the time they will take you up on it.
3. Video recording works well. Once people get over the presence of the cameras and microphones, they relax and just talk. The advantage to them is that they don't have to talk in front of a lot of people. And they always have the chance for a redo if they don't say want they want to the first time. The advantage to the pastor is the magic of editing - you can cut to the time frame you have available. And knowing the length of these video stories really helps when planning the service.
4. Video stories fit well in the spirit of 21st century baptisms. The whole idea behind historic baptisms was to publicly affirm a person's decision to follow Christ. Showing a video interview puts words and pictures and story behind the baptism. After we show the video story, the person who told his story walks out to the baptismal in the front of our church. There is even more meaning attached to the baptism for those watching; they feel like they really know the person being baptized.

Here is one example of a baptism we had last year. Frank Rutkowski came to faith in Christ during a home visit I shared with him in January 2011. He told his story on video one week later and was baptized a week after that. Sadly Frank passed away six months later, but his story is preserved for his family and friends. Frank also gave me permission to share his story with anyone who could be helped by it before his death. Below are two videos. The first is Frank's video story. The second is his and Theresa 's baptism at Church Requel.

Frank's Story from Mark Pierce on Vimeo.

Frank and Theresa's Baptism from Mark Pierce on Vimeo.

Nondenominational Second Largest and Fastest Growing

When a small group of friends joined me in my living room on Sunday mornings for church two years ago, and we talked of what kind of church we might start, nondenominational was our default choice.  None of us belonged to any particular denomination.  We all believed, however, that we belonged to Christ's church.  So, for us, nondenominational was simply an accurate albeit nondescript descriptor.

We no longer can fit inside a living room; rather we meet Sunday nights at another local church building.  Since those early days, we have learned that we are part of a much larger movement of "Nons".  (See State of Christianity in America.) My friend, Chuck Clevenger, emailed me another article this morning.  This one entitled, "Where Have All The Presbyterians Gone?" is from the Wall Street Journal.   Journalist Russell Moore notes:

According to the Baylor Survey on Religion, nondenominational churches now represent the second largest group of Protestant churches in America, and they are also the fastest growing.

There was a time when people chose a church on the basis of beliefs and doctrinal statements.  Now there are much more pragmatic decisions:

More and more Christians choose a church not on the basis of its denomination, but on the basis of more practical matters. Is the nursery easy to find? Do I like the music? Are there support groups for those grappling with addiction?

In other words, people choose a church like they do everything else in life: on the basis of what works best for them.  Sadly, we have a word for this.  It's call consumerism.  We could despair about this fact or we can admit that this is the culture we live in and respond to it in a Christ-like way: with faith, integrity, love and preparation. 

At Church Requel our aim is to be a community loving God and loving people.  Each week we take an honest look at what the Bible teaches us.  We work hard to meet the needs that people have for community and for support.  And we rarely, if ever, talk one way or the other about denominations.

CR Board of Directors Provides Leadership

Board Meeting days are usually my longest days of the month.  Of course it is senseless to complain since each of our leaders are also providing a couple hours (or more) of their own time and effort away from their own families AFTER they each have worked an entire day themselves.  Yet not a single one of them ever provide a glimmer of complaint or hardship - each demonstrating great grace, love and support for me and for one another.

Tonight we dealt with no fewer than a dozen different items of business.  My role of pastor also includes chairing these monthly leadership gatherings.  I do my best to think through our agendas ahead of time, providing our board members not only with an orderly docket, but also with motions written out except for key variables that can be filled in by our decision makers.  I run the meeting with a nod toward Robert's Rules of Order while also providing room for natural conversation.  My aim is to keep us focused on our agreed upon goals, while also providing for fellowship and good will.

Consequently tonight we dealt with a dozen different items of business for Church Requel.  While not all of our meetings are always unanimous in every issue, tonight's decisions were all unanimous.  Here are some of the decisions we made tonight:

• We approved our sermon series for this fall.  After we finish our Philippians series in a couple weeks, we'll begin the Modern Parables series.  We agreed to purchase six short films from ModernParable.com and use these short movies to supplement the sermons in six evening services at Church Requel the last Sunday of September and every week in October.
• We also decided to conduct a Belong sermon series for six weeks in November and December.  We plan to conclude this series with our first new members to join Church Requel on December 12th.  I am particularly excited about this - I'm looking forward to belonging!
• To prepare for the Belong sermon series, we decided to meet together in two weeks for a special board meeting to focus on the issues of baptism and to begin writing our core values statement.
• We made some decisions that impact me personally as the pastor.  Sadly, because our finances are so tight right now, we cannot afford to send me to seminary this fall quarter.  We'll look at it again for the Winter quarter.  I could feel the collective disappointment of our leadership team with this hard choice.  I want to continue my education and I know our church wants to support this educational direction. 
• We also approved a week's vacation for me in October.  I'm really feeling the need for this - I haven't taken any vacation time yet this year.  I've noticed lately how tough it is for me to keep up the creative work week in and week out.
• We finalized the music ministry requirements for people who desire to serve as worship leaders within our church.
• We decided to hold a Pot Luck dinner before our evening service on October 24th.
• We also decided to support our local Child Evangelism Fellowship in their COINS 4 KIDS fund raising efforts beginning September 26th.  I was particularly proud of our leadership tonight as they saw this as an opportunity to be a small part of God's Kingdom in our local community.  I know Dale Baer, director of CEF, from our monthly brown bag lunches with other evangelical pastors.  It will be a joy to be supportive of him as he and other local pastors have been so supportive of me and Church Requel.

There were other things we dealt tonight, but those were the big items.  If you happen to see Steve Thoman, Mark Shaw, Jonathan Pierce or Shaun Jourdan, let them know how much you really appreciate their leadership efforts on behalf of Church Requel.

Church Requel July 2010 Board Meeting

I met last evening with Steve, Mark, and Shaun on my patio for our Church Requel July Board of Directors meeting.  (Jonathan couldn't make it last night.)  We prayed both at the beginning and at the end.  We reviewed the agenda, which I had set earlier in the day.  We then reviewed our minutes from June as well as our June financial statements.  Mark Shaw (our secretary) and Shaun Jourdan (our treasurer) did a beautiful job having everything prepared in advance!

Most of the decisions had been made and discussed at our third week social meeting in June.  Last night was more a matter of formally approving our decisions for the record.  Specifically we:

• approved the expenditure for a second lighting tree.  Now instead of having one light tree with two spotlights in the center, we'll have two lighting trees each set up on the sides of the chapel.  This is a much better arrangement for our new location at Ontario Christian Fellowship.  It allows us to leave the center aisle open.
• approved the expenditure for a modular platform, which we will set up weekly at OCF.  Steve is hard at work building 4 foot by 4 foot, wooden, carpeted platform modules.  We will be able to mix these to create different setup arrangements to our front platform.  Temporarily we are using a borrowed platform, but we will need to return this.  It is also very heavy to carry up the stairs each week.
• approved the purchase of a mobile and black metal book display along with an initial expenditure for resource books and Bibles to sell at Church Requel.

I also left the meeting with a short list of things to get moving on.  First, I was reminded that we want to get our people to record Philippians onto CD.  I've let this job get behind a bit and need to get moving on it.  Second, we need to get our online giving and credit card account going.  Most people don't bring checks and cash to church these days.  It will also be helpful for people to make decisions to buy books from the bookstore.  Finally, we need to obtain some temporary signage to use in front of Ontario Christian Fellowship on Sunday evenings. 

So, another board meeting is behind me.  The meeting lasted only an hour and twenty minutes, but everyone stayed for another 40 minutes just enjoying one another's company and the brownies that Mary Kay had baked for us.  We also talked about what we wanted to do for our social gathering on July 22nd.  We decided to meet out at Steve's place with our wives and enjoy a BBQ.  

A board meeting or a get together with good friends who lovingly share one mind and one purpose?  Fortunately for me our Church Requel leadership meetings are both!

Patio Office, Worship Planning and Toy Story 3

It's Friday morning so I must be at Panera Bread.  Wait, let me snap a picture with my new Evo.  Yep, that's me this morning sitting in my favorite booth.  Classical music is playing inside and the sun is shining bright through the windows outside.  It's going to be a GREAT day!

Yesterday, after a really long day on Wednesday, I got up bright and early and worked hard straight through until 3PM.  Then I cut out early and took my daughter, Jennifer, and her daughters, Sicily and Violet, to watch Toy Story 3.  What a great movie!  Yes, the Pixar visual magic was as stunning as always, but what made this movie so wonderful was the fantastic story telling.  The movie viewer easily identifies with life as a toy.  But also she will be drawn into the very human emotions of life change and the loneliness that often comes with change. 

I'm reminded of the fact that as a pastor I have the privilege to tell the greatest story ever told.  I dare not slack off and not do my very best to share the gospel message as well as I can.  I actually love the creativity that comes with my role as a pastor.  It gives me great joy to think, plan, write, and research to make each Sunday evening as memorable as possible.

Along those lines, I met with Nate yesterday afternoon as I do every Thursday.  We worked on the worship services for the next month - reviewing the next two weeks in detail.  We have some great things lined up for this Independence Day weekend.  (I'll fill you in on those details in a separate post.)  Suffice it to say here that things are going really well.  I'm incredibly impressed with Nate's organization.  He, Luke, and Jana practiced last night and are ready for a fantastic Sunday.  Yes... I said Jana!  Who knew that she could play the keyboard!  That's right, we're dusting off that most expensive instrument we purchased nine months ago and will enjoy it this weekend!

The weather this past week has been so delightful that I have avoided going down into my basement office.  How could I walk down into that dark cave of an office (as nice as it is) while the sun shines with practically no humidity, modest temperatures and a nice breeze?  The patio office has come back in a big way.  With laptop, cell phone, and an armful of Bible commentaries I have thoroughly enjoyed working outside this week. 

Speaking of an armful of books, the Big Brown Truck (UPS) stopped in front of my house yesterday.  The first delivery for the Church Requel bookstore has arrived!  I can't wait to open those boxes and dig into the new books we'll begin selling this weekend.  But I'm being disciplined.  Write my sermon first.  Then open boxes later.  Better get crackin' on that sermon or those Amazon boxes may never get opened.  'Til next time, Mark.

Books, Movie Clips, and Planning Sheets

"Books, Movie Clips, and Planning Sheets" - a most eclectic title to a blog post, but it best describes my day yesterday - a day that started early and didn't finish until 8:30 last night.  I didn't even stop for supper - Mary Kay said she could see I was "in a zone" and didn't want to disturb me.  I suppose after 31 years together, she knows me pretty well.

First, let me tell you about the books.  Steve Thoman, one of our leaders, came up with this great idea for a Church Requel mobile bookstore.  We purchased and Steve assembled a four-sided, black metal, book display case on wheels.  We'll be able to roll it out into our lobby on Sunday nights. 

Our first thought was that it would be a great place to display our past sermon series on CD.  But when we put up the sermon CD kits on the display, it was obvious that we needed lots more resources. 

So yesterday I sat down at the Amazon storefront and thought through all the important books in my own life.  We ordered 25 different books, including several Bibles, a Bible handbook, and many Christian discipleship and Christian living titles.  The cost was over $300.  I kept telling myself that we would eventually recoup this from people buying the books.  And I thought of the joy and growth that our parishioners would be able to experience as a result of reading this outstanding works.

I showed the list to my youngest daughter, Jillian, thinking it would be good to get both a younger perspective as well as a female perspective.  I'm so glad I did.  She gave me 5 more titles I hadn't thought about.  (What would a Christian bookstore be without Brennan Manning's Ragamuffin Gospel?)

After working on the weekend program I began working on the  July Planning Sheets - a job that would take another seven hours.  Nate Williams, our worship leader, and I have been working on trying to get ahead in our thinking and planning.  I know this begins with me and getting my sermon outlines together weeks ahead of time.  This, in theory, would give Nate time to think through the music that we will use in our services. 

Nate has done a really great job of organizing the Music Ministry group in our Online Community.  We have a dozen people now who are part of the Praise Team.  They can now log in to their online group and see their worship music schedules - both the songs as well as who is scheduled for the weekend - for the next four weeks.  Not only that, but Nate has embedded YouTube videos of each song so that musicians know the arrangements.  In many cases Nate and Dave Johnson - another one of our guitarists - have recorded and uploaded their own videos complete with special chord instructions!  (Check out the RequelPractice channel on YouTube!)

So what, you may ask, took me seven hours yesterday?  I took Nate's online work and my sermon outlines and wrote out our sermon planning sheet - as best I could think it through - for each of the 4 weekend services in July.  Along the way I emailed people asking them if they would like to participate in various ways on the tech team, praying, and reading Scripture.  And now each service is pre-programmed into our ProPresenter software, the program we use for all the video and some of the audio for our services.

I also went shopping for our videos.  One of my resource websites is the awesome Worship House Media store.  I'm not sure how many people know about this, but every three or four weeks Collide Magazine and Worship House partner up to create a video podcast, and near the end they provide a discount code - usually 30% off!  Needless to say, I watch this video podcast faithfully and write down the code.  It can only be used once.  So, the more I can plan ahead our video needs, the more our church can save.  Yesterday this code was worth $23 to us!

By the time I turned off the computer I had exhausted my brain cells and was really hungry!  But I felt like we were more on top of things than we've been for a very long time.  This is a great feeling since we're just one week into our new location.  So much of my time and effort this past month has been focused on the move.  It was wonderful to get back to the creative side of my pastoral job.

What I Learn from Seth Godin

I make Seth Godin's blog part of my regular reading schedule every day.  It's a simple blog filled daily with Seth's marketing tips motivated by love and passion rather than profit and business.  This morning's thoughts from Seth grabbed my attention:

This is perhaps the greatest marketing strategy struggle of our time:

Should your product or service be very good, meet spec and be beyond reproach or...

    should it be a remarkable, memorable, over the top, a tell-your-friends event?

The answer isn't obvious, and many organizations are really conflicted about this.

I know that the moment I walk down the path of talking about Church Requel's weekly services in terms of a "product or service" I take the risk of offending those who think such considerations are too pragmatic or as "tickling the ears" (2 Tim. 4:3).  In the same way that Delta Airlines' first priority must be the safety of its passengers, my top priority as a teacher must be Biblically-based and doctrinally-sound teaching.

However, it would be foolish not to consider the fact that Church Requel is new and still relatively unknown in Mansfield.  But frankly, even if Church Requel were the best known church in town, I would still want the Sunday evening experience to be "a remarkable, memorable, over the top, tell-your-friends event."  What are some of the ways that we can make Sunday nights at Church Requel something really special?

• Make the services highly user-friendly.  Station greeters at all the doors.  Make certain greeters are friendly and desirous of helping people find their way around.  Work on signage, especially for restrooms and directions to children's areas.  Provide a written program with not only a welcome message, but some helpful instructions about what is coming up. Make creative use of projected, visual images and messages.
• Define our language.  Every church, religion, business, and organization has its own vocabulary... and nothing says "you don't belong" more loudly to an outsider than when the special lingo is thoughtlessly thrown out.  Vocabulary and language is not a bad thing - it's a special gift from God.  We aren't afraid to use our words.  We just won't be so rude as to not explain what we mean when we use them.
• I teach and let God preach.  The Bible is quite clear that the Holy Spirit convicts and rebukes the world.  He really doesn't need my help.  So I work really hard at having a conversation with those who come to the services.  I want them to think of me as someone sitting down at the kitchen table and talking to them about something I have just learned myself. 
• Authenticity breaks barriers.  No pedestal sitting here.  I am on a faith journey myself.  I want to invite others to share the journey.  So let's not be afraid to admit that we struggle with the same issues as everyone else.  The glory is all about God and what He has accomplished in our lives.
• Write my sermon twice.  Let it percolate a while.  By this I mean that I attempt to get the basic outline and teaching put together as early as possible.  Then I store it up in the subconscious and let it roll around in my mind.  I find it remarkable how often I will find special ways to bring out the message of the sermon through illustrations, stories, quotes, movie clips, and examples.  

We have been strategic about choosing Sunday evenings rather than Sunday mornings.  I want people to walk out of the Church Requel experience stepping a little higher than when they came in.  I want the Sunday night message to still be at the forefront of someone's thinking on Monday morning.  I want Church Requel to make a difference in the way the people of Richland County relate and interact with one another.  None of these wants will ever be achieved if we just "meet spec."

It's About Life Change, Stupid!

Students of political history will remember the Clinton campaign phrase from 1992: "It's about the economy, stupid!"  Likewise, for the last decade many in the contemporary church world have worked under the stratagem, "It's about the weekend, stupid!"  Even though some churches would argue that this is not their philosophy, one only has to look at where the vast majority of their resources are spent to know that whether it's stated or not, it's really all about the weekend.

On Monday, Catablog interviewed Tony Morgan, Director of Ministries at West Ridge Church near Atlanta.  Anyone who has followed Tony over the years knows that he is outspoken about the leadership environment of the mega-church environment.  Last March Tony wrote Killing Cockroaches: And Other Scattered Musings on Leadership. In Cockroaches, Morgan argues that church leaders don't have to do everything,  The key, he writes, is to play to your strengths while building a team around you to make up for your weaknesses.

In Monday's interview with Catablog, Tony talked candidly about the very consumer driven culture of the weekend service in many American churches today.  He admits that outward focused churches must start with the consumer mindset, but it must not stop there.

If the weekend service experience isn’t intentional, people who are still consumers will not stay engaged. We can present the Gospel, but they won’t be there to hear it. We can challenge people to become fully-devoted followers of Christ, but they won’t be there to hear that challenge.

That said, there’s a danger if we assume the weekend service is the only component of a discipleship strategy. Primarily, that’s an issue because it’s not God’s design for spiritual growth. Corporate worship and teaching is one component, but it’s not the only component.

Morgan goes on to list four strategic "next steps" his church currently offers, including online assessments, daily devotionals, group connections, and life care support. 

At Church Requel we are at a very early stage in our development, with only four months under our belt since our first public service.  But I think this advice from Tony Morgan is worth remembering.  We are never going to fully accomplish our mission of being a community loving God and loving people if our entire focus is on the weekend. 

Pastor Mark Driscoll of Mars Hill Church in Seattle is famous for (among other things) talking about the need for both the air war and the ground war. Strategically the church needs a fantastic weekend experience where a new person can come and hear the gospel of Christ in a most engaging way.  Everything that goes into that weekend experience would be considered the air war, similar to "shock and awe" in the Iraqi war.  But the war cannot be won without troops on the ground.  There needs to be a follow up, a means of engaging people one-on-one in discipleship.  Church Requel will succeed in its mission only to the extent that we can do both well.

2009 Donation Receipts Available Online

Are you looking for a receipt for your giving to Church Requel from last year?  There are several ways that you can receive this receipt.  First, for our regular attendees, your giving record is available in our Online Community website through CCB.  Just log in, click the “My Profile” tab, click the “Financial” tab, then click “Giving Statement.”  If you need help or a username and password, let me know.  

Second, if you want your giving statement, but would prefer not to get it online yourself, just let me know and I'll get it right out to you.  You can email me (Mark.Pierce AT ChurchRequel.org) or call me at 419.564.1525.  I promise I'll get it right out to you!

Is Dropping Facebook Really the Best Solution?

This morning's cover story article from USA Today suggests that some people are dumping social networks like Facebook and Twitter to reclaim both their time and their privacy:

"As the social networking train gathers momentum, some riders are getting off.  Their reasons run the gamut from being besieged by online 'friends' who aren't really friends to lingering concerns over where their messages and photos might materialize. If there's a common theme to their exodus, it's the nagging sense that a time-sucking habit was taking the "real" out of life."

Even with 400 million users on board, there is something to this notion of people dropping out.  In my own case, my youngest daughter, Jillian, perhaps one of the most social people on Planet Earth dropped Facebook a couple years back.  (That was about the time I got on the Facebook train.  But I'm sure that was only coincidence!)  In addition, some of those closest to me, my brother Todd, my best friend Roc, my remarkably ever-youthful Dad never signed up for the social network hoopla to begin with.

But those of us concerned with making an impact for Christ in our world and in our neighborhoods should not be quick to abandon this most useful tool.  With all the flaws that come along with Facebook and the like, there's plenty to like as well.  I now have the ability to stay in touch with my parishioners in a way that was unheard of even 5 years ago.  For example, a quick perusal of my Facebook account this morning reminded me that one of our church attendees is celebrating a birthday today.  (Heather, again Happy Birthday!)  And I can't begin to tell you how many people will choose to send me messages through Facebook instead of looking up my email, or God forbid, actually call me.

Some will be quick to conclude that such "messaging" is the very definition of less faceless friendships.  But I welcome it with open arms and am thankful for the opportunity to be more connected.  I know I have opportunities now through social media technology that I never would have had otherwise. 

Social networking is as old as mankind.  It's only the technology that's new.  And like any new technology, we need to learn the rules about how to use it well.  Sites like Facebook are not going away any time soon.  Why else would Google want to get into the social networking business?  

So what should pastors and church leaders do?  Two thoughts come to my mind as I wrap up today's post.

1. Continue to participate in social networking sites, but don't push anyone else to do the same.  As a leader - lead by example.  Set personal limits in terms of time and participation.  Let others into your life and show them what a growing life in Christ looks like.
2. In addition to joining public social networking sites, offer a private, church-only social networking site to your parishioners.  At Church Requel, we have done this through Church Community Builder.  As wonderful as the public sites like Facebook and Twitter are, there just are some things that are better when offered privately within the church.  Examples of this include small group connections, event calendaring, and online giving.  One of my first decisions as pastor of Church Requel was to sign up for CCB.  I'm convinced it was also one of my best decisions.

90 Minute Setup in 90 Seconds!

Ever wonder what it looks like to "set up" Church Requel every Sunday. After 6 weeks we're starting to get it down. But we could always use another hand. Check out the video below.

CHurch Requel Setup from Mark Pierce on Vimeo.

Completing Another Long Church Requel Day

I'm sitting here in my chair wondering where the day went today.  I was up before 6AM and haven't stopped since!  I worked some on the Church Requel church web site.  (In case you're wondering you're not reading the church web site right now; this is my blog.  The www.ChurchRequel.org is the address for the church.)  I wanted the church site to match the billboard advertising and the sermon series we are launching for this weekend.  You can see the new front page above.

Sunday we'll be talking about changing life's questions.  I found a couple good videos for our Sunday evening.  First I found a video where a young man, who had been up the entire night before, missed the very first question on "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire" show.  And then I remembered the classic scene from "Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy" where the people wait 7 1/2 million years for the Deep Thought computer to answer the question of life, the universe, and everything.  It's pretty funny if you haven't seen it.

I invested about 5 hours in deep Bible study of the last section in Mark 10, when Jesus heals the blind beggar Bartimaeus.  I must admit that I greatly enjoyed my time alone in God's Word today.  With the new church starting up and all the things I've had to tend to, I haven't been able to enjoy as much Bible study time as I'd like.  Today was pure gold for me!  I can't wait to share what I discovered Sunday evening.

Tonight our board of directors came over.  We have two meetings each month.  On the first Thursday of every month we conduct a business meeting.  Tonight we enjoyed a time of fellowship and mutual support.  They wanted to know all about the Catalyst Conference from last week.  I enjoyed sharing some of my experiences.  I brought home many resources and passed them out to the guys tonight.  They seemed appreciative.

We did make two decisions.  One, we decided to sponsor a child through Compassion International.  This will be our first commitment from the Matthew 25 Fund.  What a joy to know we are going to make a difference in one child's life!  Second, we decided to continue our $10 per day online advertising through Facebook.  The campaign there seems to be working well so far.

Tonight I will rest my head and will quickly fall asleep knowing I gave it my very best shot today.  And I'll wake up refreshed and ready for another Church Requel day!  Thanks, everyone, for your kind prayers and thoughts.  They are much appreciated!

Pastor of New Church Wears Many Hats

As the pastor of a new church, I wear many hats.  Today is one of those "many hats" days.  I feel a little bit like the fellow at the left trying to keep his balance while balancing all the hats piled up on top of one another. 

Don't misunderstand me.  I'm not complaining.  Actually I like the variety of tasks.  So far today, I've worked a little bit on my sermon for Sunday, did a walk through of a potential locale for our public launch, met with our treasurer (Shaun) for a couple hours, and met with an engaged couple who have asked me to officiate their September wedding.  The many hats are fun - wearing only one would be just too... boring!

Last night Mary Kay and I took a Myers Briggs Personality Profile quiz together.  It's funny, no matter how many times I have taken this test over the last 30 years, my results are always the same: ENTJ.  Here's the summary of my personality:

You are frank, decisive, and assume leadership readily. You quickly see illogical and inefficient procedures and policies, and develop and implement comprehensive systems to solve organizational problems. You enjoy long-term planning and goal setting. You are usually well informed, well read, enjoy expanding your knowledge and passing it on to others. You are forceful in presenting your ideas. Famous people with your same ENTJ personality include: Franklin D. Roosevelt , Harrison Ford, Steve Martin, Whoopi Goldberg, Sigourney Weaver, Margaret Thatcher, Al Gore, David Letterman and Jim Carrey.

I don't know how much like these famous people I am, but the other stuff definitely describes me well.  I notice that they didn't provide the negative personality issues that also describe me.  So, in the interests of "fair and balanced," let's also include the fact that I can become bored with repetitive tasks, sometimes I don't listen as well as I should, and I have to work really hard to be as empathetic as any pastor should be.    But on days like today - a "many hats" day - being an ENTJ is a good thing!

Church Planting Books Fail to Inspire

Yesterday, on my day off, I picked up two books on the topic of church planting:  Planting Missional Churches by Ed Stetzer and Launch: Starting a New Church From Scratch by Nelson Searcy and Kerrick Thomas.  Even though it was not a working day I thought it would be worthwhile for me to get inspired and maybe pick up some good ideas for our own new church launch.

Admittedly, I haven't finished either of the books yet.  And I'm convinced that both books are well written by experienced authors, who have much to offer.  I'm sure I will pick up some good ideas.  But I must admit that both failed to inspire me.

At first this really bothered me.  After all, I'm an avid reader.  Reading usually does inspire me.  Books have changed my life so many times.  But, in this case, I was left flat. 

After I thought about it for awhile, I realized that these books could not accomplish what God has already accomplished in my heart.  I'm already so inspired, so excited, so transformed by the mission we have at Church Requel - that no other book could ever add to the vision we already have.  Church Requel is new.  It's different.  It's special.  It's a vision that God has given to a small group of people in Mansfield, Ohio to reach people for Christ in Mansfield, Ohio.  While I'm not opposed AT ALL to using good ideas that have worked in other places, we already have so many great ideas.  My primary goal now is to accomplish the ideas we already have.

The other thought I walked away with yesterday was that I'm not all that excited about the concept of "launching a church."  I AM VERY EXCITED about "being the church," whatever its size or length of existence.  What got me up and running this morning was thinking about specific people and how they would partner with CR to reach our community.  I'm excited about Shaun and his commitment to help with financial organization.  I'm excited about Rich and his commitment to helping people find their spiritual gifts for service.  I'm excited about Tami and Nate and Mary Kay and Nancy and Cindy and Steve and Jonathan and Bethany and Jessica and Ron and Mary and Matt and Windi and Mark and Bonnie and Nina and (I could go on and on here... Don't want to be the Romper Room lady looking through her magic mirror - {if you're younger than 40 you may not get that last reference}).  I'm excited about some of the folks I'm talking to who have not yet partnered with us, but are thinking about it.  I'm excited about the kids who are coming (SO MANY!) and what God may accomplish through them in their lifetimes, if we do our job right.  I'm excited about our communions, our worship times, our prayer life, our fellowship, our vision casting.

I know I'm rambling - but you need to know that this new church and its new life is SO COMPELLING to me!  Reading other books about how someone else has launched a church is like looking at a still, black and white photograph compared with being immersed in a full color, 3-D movie.  I'm glad God has used other men and women in other places.  But I'm really turned on by what God is doing with my partners and me right now and right here.

Ed Stetzer: How to Plant a Church Without Losing Your Soul!

Ed Stetzer wrote an article today about how to start a church without losing your soul .  Ed starts his piece by giving an example of a successful church planter who quits after 3 years.  In order to avoid this same problem, Ed argues for two practices on the part of the church planter to avoid "a spiritually dry and disillusioned ministry."

Spiritual Renewal is the first absolute practice necessary for any church planter.  You may be surprised to learn that this can be difficult for the busy church planter. 

Finding rest in the presence of God is the only answer. But rest rarely comes when the planter's mind is a vortex of what must be done next. "Next" becomes the enemy of God's work in their lives "now." Consequently, the planter's relationship with God gradually erodes over time leaving him spiritually dry and empty.

Wow.  I can really identify with that.  Sometimes I feel like I'm nothing but an iPod continuously playing the "NEXT" track.  It can feel like a playlist with a continuous loop.  The work is never ever completely done.  There's always something more that must be done.

In addition to spiritual renewal, Ed recommends regular theological reflection as well.  This quote from Eugene Peterson's rocks my world.  I have to admit that it is so true:

The pastors of America have metamorphosed into a company of shopkeepers, and the shops they keep are churches. They are preoccupied with shopkeeper's concerns-how to keep the customers happy, how to lure customers away from competitors down the street, how to package the goods so that the customers will lay out more money.

Is Your Church "Purple"?

Is your church "purple"?  I don't mean the color.  I mean does it stand out?  Mark Batterson, author of Wild Goose Chase and pastor of an amazing church in Washington, D.C. spoke to a group of pastors this past Tuesday at The Sticks Conference.  The title of his talk was, "Trojan Horses, Purple Cows, and Broken Windows."  Mark didn't have the time to fully develop his Purple Cow theme, so he wrote it out on his blog.

Mark got the idea from Seth Godin's book, Purple Cow.  Once you've seen one brown cow, you've seen all brown cows.  But if you happened to see a purple cow, that would really grab your attention!  Applied to the church the question is, "As church leaders, what are we doing to be unique... to stand out among other churches?"  Mark writes that he has three convictions:

1) the good news ought to make the news. Brown churches sit on the sideline and invite the community to come to them. Purple churches are always going and compelling. They are making such a big difference that they become a highly visible part of their community. And people drive by the brown churches--the churches that are invisible--to go to the purple church.

2) The greatest message deserves the greatest marketing. I know that marketing is a dirty word in some church circles, but does it get anybody else riled up that Madison Avenue is far better at pedaling its worthless wares than the church is at preaching the good news? I have a problem with that. We need sanctified competitive streaks.

3) The church ought to be the most creative place on the planet. Too many churches look too much alike. We need lots of different kinds of churches because there are lots of different kinds of people. Every church has a unique churchprint and ought to be a unique expression of the gospel in their kingdom niche.

You can read the rest here.

Economic Crisis Letter at Granger

Tim Stevens, executive pastor at Granger Community Church, just posted a letter their church is sending out to all Granger members.  Tim writes that the economic crisis is only the most recent financial problem - their church has been experiencing a local economic slowdown for two years.

The letter is 4 pages long, includes cartoon graphics as well as prose, and clearly lays out the problem, what their leaders have done about it, and the specific request for help from their members.  The letter states that:

• they have frozen staff salaries,
• cut their budget 3 times, and
• not made any new hires.

I am sorry to see Granger experiencing economic woes.  I am pleased to see Tim sharing the situation, not only with their members, but with the world at large.  As another executive pastor of another church, it's comforting (in some weird "I feel your pain" way) that another church is going through the same thing we are.  We also sent out a letter to our members last month.  So far, Crossroads has responded beautifully.  I hope the same thing is true for Granger!

November All Staff Meeting Today

Most of the USA this morning is focused on the huge win by Obama.  Not me.  Don't get me wrong.  I'm glad our next president was elected.  It's really the very best way to get a new president!

What I mean by not being focused on it is this:  Today is First Wednesday!  That means an all staff meeting at noon today and it means communion service at Crossroads tonight.  And that means for me as executive pastor that I have to be on top of my game today.  I cannot "slide" into this day casually or the picture above could become a reality!

This means I have to give a great deal of thought to what is going on in the church and with our staff.  As the staff leader, I set the agenda.  Hear me well - this does NOT mean I do it all.  Can you say, "impossible?"  Can you say, "foolish?"  What I do mean is that I have to know what's going on and make sure that "what's going on" is known by the whole team.  Each staff "player" is focused on his or her own gig, and that's good.  They're specialists and hard workers.  Staff meeting gives them a chance to see everything else that is going on.  It gives them the chance to experience the "team" of the staff.

Lazy Church Staff? Are You Kidding?

Anne Jackson is the blog author of FlowerDust.net.  She serves on the staff of Cross Point Church in Nashville, Tennessee and has a book coming out next year on overcoming burnout titled, Mad Church Disease.  Yesterday she posted the following post about the laziness of church staff members:

“the reason a lot of people choose to work on a church staff is because they’re too lazy or too afraid to get a job in the real world.”

wow. that was pretty harsh. i didn’t mean for it to come out so bluntly.

so at the lunch table with some friends, i backpedaled just a little bit and added,

“of course, that’s a very broad statement…not everyone who works in a church is afraid or lazy…i’m just saying there are a lot of people who take jobs in churches because a church can be a really easy place to work.”

emphasis on can be.

My reaction?  SHOCK!  On so many levels.  First, I've been on the church staff here at Crossroads since 2004 and I have NEVER WORKED SO HARD IN MY LIFE!  To put that statement into perspective, I spent my entire pre-ministry life (28 years) as someone self-employed.  When you're self-employed, if you don't work you don't eat.  With that in mind I say again - working at Crossroads is tough work.  I'm not complaining or anything... love the work... love the challenge... but long hours, short nights, sacrificed weekends, stressful conversations, great expectations, high energy, and sometimes conflicting agendas all create a job you have to love or you won't survive. 

Annual Reviews Completed Today

Today I signed off on 18 different performance reviews of Crossroads' staff members.  This is a process that has been going on for an entire month; today was the deadline for completion.  My job was to complete the directors' reviews as well as those employees who report directly to me.  The other 3 directors reviewed the staff members in their respective departments.  Today I received all the reviews and personally signed off on each one of them, usually adding my own encouraging comments to the review.

The annual performance review is not what anyone looks forward to.  I think we would all skip them if we could.  However, having gone through this exercise for the first time in my capacity of executive pastor, I believe this has been a valuable experience for everyone involved. 

One reason the annual review is so important is because it causes everyone in the organization to communicate with each other.  Unspoken expectations from employers to employees or the other way around can cause great harm in the workplace.  At least once a year we put into writing what we expect of one another and whether the expectations have been met.

Another reason the annual review is crucial is because it causes us to stop and think about what we are doing and how we are doing it.  We are often so concerned about the next urgent task to be accomplished that we fail to think about the important issues of what we do, why we are doing it, and how we are doing.  The annual review forces all of us to stop and take stock of the important.

As I was reading the reviews this afternoon, several themes were repeated over many of the reviews.  We all need to be working hard to replace ourselves; we each need to be mentoring the next person to do our job.  Leadership is stewardship - we get to do this for a season, not forever.  Are we developing someone for the next season?

Another theme I read several times dealt with the topic of communication in one form or another.  We need to communicate better with each other.  We can't say something once and expect someone else to get it the first time, every time.  We have to say some things over and over again.  This is especially true whenever we are also talking about communication with our volunteers and non-staff ministry leaders. 

In several instances I read about the need for more up-to-date job descriptions.  We have updated about half of the job descriptions this year.  But several of our staffers have been working on the basis of verbal expectations that need to be locked down in writing, both for their sake and for the church's sake.

At the end of the afternoon, when I had read my last review, I sat in my chair for a good, long while.  I recognized just how fortunate we are at Crossroads to have the dedicated men and women, who are sold out for the cause of Christ.  It's clear that their motivation is not the salary or the benefits, but that they do their job out of a passion to serve Christ and his church.  Before I left today I thanked the Lord for the privilege to lead this great team.  I truly believe that working side by side with these men and women will yield rich rewards for His kingdom in 2009!