Archive for October, 2006
Some Thoughts On Staffing… October 23, 2006
I was overwhelmed yesterday at church. I am not saying that in a figurative sense…I was literally overwhelmed with emotion during our second service. I stood at the window and watched the cars and people flood in and thought, “I never imagined things being like this–thank you Jesus.”
We began our relationships series yesterday…you can download the message here if you would like. For those who do not attend NewSpring Church…we have two Sunday morning services and one Sunday evening service–HOWEVER–our Sunday evening service is identical to our Sunday morning service. (I guess I could have just said we have three identical services on Sunday…but I just woke up–so bear with me!)
Anyway, after our first two services I came home and Lucretia had gone to Taco Bell for me (yummy). She asked me, “How did it go this morning?” (She comes to our evening service. Someone once asked me why she doesn’t attend all three services…I responded by asking them why they didn’t attend all three services!!!)
When she asked me I told her, “It went…WONDERFUL!” I could not get over how well things came off yesterday. Usually there are several things we deal with that make life a little crazy; however, God’s favor was on us yesterday…it was one of the best days we have ever had in my opinion.
I told ‘Cretia yesterday afternoon that I was so proud of our staff. Everyone…not just one or two people, but everyone. People were knocking the ball out of the park all week long…and we saw it all come to the forefront yesterday. Who would have thought we would have had 7,295 people at church in October?!?!?!
Three things I want to say about our staff that I think make them the most awesome staff in the world.
#1 – They Each Have The “Whatever, Whenever” Attitude - If a church is going to be successful in reaching people for Christ then it cannot afford one single staff member who says, “That’s not my job, find someone else” when asked to do something.
I can say this about our staff–we have “get it done” people. Yes, we have a large church, which means that we have a large staff–BUT–we have NOT allowed our staff to become departmentalized, thus competing with other “staffs” within the church.
On Sunday’s people show up and it is game time. Each staff member is willing to do whatever it takes, whenever it needs to be done…and all to make the name of Jesus famous.
#2 – Excellence Is Not Just A Saying With Them–It Is A Consuming Passion – The staff I am privileged to serve with is PASSIONATE about excellence. None of the people on our staff are content with half way doing ministry and then praying and asking God to make up the difference for their laziness and lack of planning.
In order for a service like yesterday to come off like it did–literally hundreds of hours are invested in making it right. And it takes lots of people willing to work together and unwilling to compromise the passion of excellence.
I have always said that the church is the only place in the world where non-excellent work can be done, and then when it all falls apart someone says, “Well–at least they tried.” In most cases that is simply not true…or either the person did try–but with little or no effort. The church has things such as God’s presence–God’s power–the Holy Spirit–you know, awesome stuff…and because of that we should work harder–not be lazier.
I think one of the reasons the world has surpassed the church in the “ministry” it provides is because the world packages its message in excellence–while too many churches are content with half baked, watered down presentations of the Gospel. Our staff is more passionate about our product (Jesus) than MTV or Disney is about their product–and we are seeing the results.
#3 – Our Staff Knows How To Relate To People Who Don’t Know Christ – As I said earlier–we have a large staff…and only have one seminary degree among us all. (And it’s not me!)
God has put together a unique bunch of people here at NewSpring…people who know how to relate to people who are far from Christ.
I believe for far too long Christians have practiced the idea of isolation…that in order to be godly we need to withdraw from the world…thus withdrawing from the people in the world and telling them to either “get right or go to hell.”
I heard someone say once that is it possible for someone to be born into a Christian home, attend a Christian school…and then a Christian college…go to a seminary–get a masters and then eventually a PHD…begin teaching at a Christian college or seminary…and all this time NEVER have to encounter someone who is far from God.
I am not against Christian education…all I am saying is this…10 years ago I will bet you that less than five people on staff at NewSpring EVER thought they would be working at a church. We have people from so many backgrounds…the insurance industry…a convenience store owner…a Michelin employee…school teachers…two former flight attendants (which is awesome if we ever want to pass out peanuts!)…people who worked in banking…someone who worked at Target…a couple of engineers (nerds!)…college students…and a lot more.
The thing I see in common with all of these people is that they KNOW how to connect with people who are unconnected with Christ…they have friends and family members that are far from God…and they CARE about people and want to see them meet Jesus. They do not isolate themselves from people who don’t know Christ…they have friendships with them…and are continually investing in their lives and inviting them to church.
I have always heard John Maxwell say that the teamwork makes the dream work…and so…let me just say to the staff that I work with…guys & gals…the dream is working!!! God’s dream…the dream to reach an entire community through a church…the dream of seeing people who were far from God meet Jesus…the dream to see marriages restored…the dream of seeing the poor served…the dream of seeing kids love coming to church…the dream of seeing teenagers on FIRE for God…the dream of seeing those who had been shunned by the religious community now included into fellowship. It’s working!!!
And yes–it is God…yes, He is at work…yes, He is blessing.
BUT…it’s God working through you!!! I love you guys…and I love serving with you. This is NOT a Perry thing…it’s a God thing…and each one of you are necessary to make this happen. It is the greatest privilege in the world to serve with you guy and gals…we have seen God do so much…and the best is yet to come!!!
The Spider In The Shower October 20, 2006
Most of you know I hate spiders…
HATE THEM!
Seriously…if you are wondering if there is a God in heaven…throw a spider on me and you will find out. (By the way…if you decide to do this…I will not be held responsible for any bodily functions that I lose control of or any words that may come out of my mouth!!! AND…I hope you have a will!!!)
Now you have got to keep that in mind as I am developing this story…
One Sunday morning I was in the shower and just happened to look up–and there it was–a spider–just sort of hanging there in mid-air–looking at me.
I froze–what was I supposed to do? Here was the creature that was about to bring about my demise. I had to make a move…so…I took a swing…
AND MISSED!!!
Now he was really ticked off and began lowering himself towards me. So I did what any man would do in that situation…I screamed and began swinging at this thing with both hands. And…I hit EVERYTHING in the shower (shampoo bottles, etc.) except for the spider.
Literally, this thing kept dodging my punches…it would just hang in the air…I would swing…miss…and then it would just come towards me even more.
I was about to surrender defeat until I slowed down and realized something…this was NOT a spider…it was a fly.
I had freaked out and nearly messed all over myself over a fly. A FLY!!! I broke out in laughter–I could not stop…I am laughing now just thinking about it.
So why in the world would I tell you this story? Simple–I know people who think a certain way…that way of thinking is NOT true…but because they don’t know truth that feel trapped in a terrifying situation and are having a very wrong reaction…when in actuality if they knew the truth they could calm down and move on with life. What are some untruths?
Well–we’ll be talking about them in this new series beginning on Sunday entitled, “Lord of the Rings.” There are so many myths today regarding sex, dating, marriage, divorce…you name it. And…as I said yesterday the church has chosen to remain silent on the subjects. (Except for the ones that are loud and yell at people!!!)
AND…because of these myths people are doing crazy things…jumping from bedroom to bedroom in an attempt to heal pain in their lives…calling divorce lawyers because they think it is the only way out…seeking to BE SERVED in marriage rather than seeking TO SERVE…dating someone that isn’t godly, but they sure are cute, and rationalizing that “I can save them”…thinking that something as awful and painful as an affair could “never happen to this marriage.”
YES–these are things that people deal with–EVERY DAY!!! And so for the next several weeks we are going to take a look to see what Scripture says about these issues…and how Jesus is so much smarter than Dr. Phil and Oprah.
See you on Sunday–bring several friends. AND DON’T MISS THE OPENING SONG!!!!
Even Stupid People Can Do Good Things… October 19, 2006
I dropped by the FUSEBOX last night…our youth ministry center at the mall. It was the “sex talk” night and Alden Ellis, our middle school pastor did the talk.
Long story short–there were 210 high school students there…and 10 accepted Christ. Alden did an outstanding job of hitting the real issues that teenagers struggle with…and it was TENSE in the room.
(For those who want to know–YES, he really did talk about sex. YES–in church! The church has been way too silent about the subject for far too long…and culture has been outspoken. So…culture is having the say in how our society views sex and instead of correcting their view by teaching Scripture to them we have yelled at them and forced them into isolation!!!)
Sorry about that rant…moving on…
Being with our high school students last night reminded me of my days in youth ministry. I was so stupid…it is a wonder I survived.
There was the time I arranged the food fight…a GREAT IDEA…and we had the largest attendance we had ever had at any youth function. However, the food fight took place in the church graveyard. NOT a great idea. Yeah…I got raked over the coals for that one by the pastor…but I still laugh every time I think about it. I really did think it was a good idea…oops.
And then there was the time I taught the kids to do the electric slide. Once again…we were building community…it was awesome…everyone was having fun…we were in the fellowship hall of a Baptist church…and then…the deacons walked in. Needless to say I immediately got to attend my first deacons meeting and was told to never do that again. (Remember…I came from an unchurched background…no one told me “the rules!”)
Oh yeah–the first time I spoke on a Sunday evening in the first church I served I said that the problem with Christians is that they sit on their butt and don’t do anything. I learned that night that you cannot say “butt” in a traditional church on a Sunday night…that will land you in yet another deacons meeting. And then afterwards many of those same deacons will step into the parking lot, light up, and tell dirty jokes…but anyway… :-)
And I could NEVER forget the minor feud that was always taking place between the senior adults and the youth in the last church I served…and it all had to do with the church van.
The rule was if you used the van you had to clean it up and fill it full of gas. Good rule…and I always followed the rule…always. However, there were times after the senior adults used it that “the rule” wasn’t followed. I would bring this up and…uh, lesson learned–NEVER tell the senior adults they have done something wrong!!! :-)
And then if they used the van and it had not been cleaned and filled full of gas–they would blame the youth…even if we hadn’t used it.
So after we had taken a mission trip to Florida I decided to make sure the van was both full of gas and clean…and this was the beginning of a huge boo boo on my part.
Filling the van up full of gas was not a problem. BUT…cleaning it…I went the extra mile. I sprayed the entire van down, inside and out–and then I put armor all on everything…the tires…the SEATS…the FLOOR. I am serious–that van looked the best it had ever looked…and I was so proud of myself.
Little did I realize that the senior adults had a trip scheduled to the mountains a few days later. They could not stand up on the floor without sliding all over the place…and when they would go around a curve they would all slide from one side of the van to the other.
Once again I was “talked to” to make sure I didn’t do that on purpose. I told them I wasn’t smart enough to think of something like that…and they all agreed…so I didn’t get into trouble.
The thing is…I served two amazing churches before starting NewSpring…and learned so many valuable lessons that equipped me to do what I am doing right now. I will always be grateful for my days at Griffin and also my days at North Anderson…the people in these churches loved me enough to let me screw things up…and for some reason kept believing in me…even when I made mistakes.
I would not trade those days for anything. I grew…I learned…I was stretched…and when I began to pastor…I had paid the price to learn some hard lessons.
To be really honest–I felt way over my head in those days…and I still feel the same today. Someone asked me once, “Do you find yourself more comfortable today as compared to when you first began ministry?” I replied, “No…I am not as comfortable…when I first began ministry I knew everything, now I know nothing. When I first began ministry I prayed more for good luck…now I pray because if God doesn’t intervene whatever I am doing is not going to work.”
I was stupid in those days…but even stupid people can do good things. I love where I have been, where I am right now…and especially where I am going!!! Thank you NewSpring for allowing me to serve as pastor…it’s an honor…and I can’t wait to see what God does around here next!!!
Can God Be A Pain In The Butt? October 18, 2006
OK…this is awesome! I had this thought in my quiet time yesterday–that God can be a pain in the butt to those who are most opposed to Him…that you do not have to fight His battles…that He’s a really big God and can take care of Himself. This all came from I Samuel 5:1-12.
See, here is what happened…the Israelites were getting their rear-ends kicked all over the place by the Philistines. SO…they had this idea, “Let’s take the Ark of the Covenant into battle–then we will win.” (Basically they were attempting to use God as a good luck charm–which always turns out bad!)
Well–they lost–BAD…and the ark was captured. End of story, right? I mean, the Israelites, God’s chosen people had not only been defeated…but the one object that represented the presence of God had been taken from them. It seemed that God had been soundly defeated by the pagans…and all hope was lost.
Keep in mind that the Israelites continued to go on with their daily lives…trying to get over the fact that God had been taken from them. Meanwhile in Asdod the Philistines put the Ark in front of their “god” and the next morning their god had fallen on its face in front of the ark. And so they put their god back on the wall…and the next day it fell–arms and legs coming completely off. (Hmm…God was at work, proving to the pagans that He was the one TRUE God…and the Israelites were unaware.)
Then–and this is FUNNY–the Bible says in I Samuel 5:6 that the Philistines were effected with tumors. The footnote in my Bible says, “tumors in the groin.” Actually–most scholars actually agree that these “tumors” were hemorrhoids. OUCH!!!
So the Israelites are freaking out about how God has been taken away…all the while God is doing a work that they are unaware of–and all of the Philistines are running around trying to find some Preparation H. So…the people in Asdod sent the Ark to Gath…and the Bible says in I Samuel 5:9 that God struck that city with Hemorrhoids as well. (You’ve GOT to think He was smiling during all of this!)
Finally they sent the Ark back to the Israelites–they had endured enough–God had literally been a major pain in the butt to all of them…and they definitely got the point.
What does this mean for us today?
Some reading this may have friends or family members who are far from God–and they think that there is no way that they will ever come to Christ. My advice–pray for God to begin to do undeniable things in their life. He did among the Philistines…they could have tried to dismiss what was going on…but God would NOT be ignored…and one can only withstand so much burning and itching! (God ALWAYS knows EXACTLY where to hit us & get our attention!!!)
There have been several times I have prayed, “Jesus, only YOU can get their attention…hit them where it hurts–rock their world…and then give me the opportunity to share with them when they are the most receptive to You.” Don’t get me wrong…I have never literally prayed for God to strike someone with “tumors in the groin.” How He chooses to do this is up to Him…but I have seen first hand that often times pain is a tool that God uses to draw people to Himself.
Pray for God to get their attention…and be aware that He is probably already at work in some way in their life…God often works in ways that we cannot see…just like the Israelites could not see this. So–pray hard and BE THERE when this person comes to you to discuss the “pain and discomfort” in their lives.
We can’t always see God at work–but we can know that right now He is at work at and around that person that we care about the most–and we should pray and partner with Him to do all that we can to make that person aware of who Jesus is. And trust me–when a person is in pain–they will listen!!!
Dancing In My Kitchen! October 17, 2006
I danced in my kitchen this morning…
Seriously–while the majority of the people in this part of the country were sleeping (5:30 AM) I was dancing.
NO–Lucretia wasn’t in the kitchen dancing with me…the only reason she would be out of bed at 5:30 is if the house were on fire…and even then only if the fire were really hot!!!
It was just me–dancing…AND clapping…and wanting to shout…but I didn’t because I didn’t want to wake ‘Cretia.
So why was I dancing?
Simple–there was a text message on my phone from a staff member that simply said, “Just wanted you to know that Sara accepted Christ tonight!”
WOW–I am nearly in tears as I write this. Many of you have NO IDEA how much this means to me. I, along with several staff members have been praying for Sara to accept Christ for years…and it happened last night…and I found out this morning…and even though I have Baptist roots–I danced!!!
There is a myth that goes along with a large church…and that myth is that the pastor is impersonal and does not care about the people…all he cares about is numbers. And–just to be honest–that is a lie from the pit of hell.
Every pastor of every large church that I know LOVES PEOPLE…and they are consistently inviting people to church and sharing their faith. I can tell you of individual people that have came to this church and accepted Christ that God used me in getting them here…and I can’t get over it each time it happens.
But taking it a step further…numbers represent people–and although I do not know each person–they MATTER. Each person that accepted Christ a few weeks ago…that was somebody’s mother, somebody’s father, or son, or friend…or co-worker. THEY MATTER…and to the person or the church that says that numbers do not matter I would simply recommend reading your Bible!!!!
I can’t get over seeing individual people getting connected to Christ…it jazzes me up…it’s why I do what I do! People matter to God–and the church that is not concerned about people meeting Jesus needs to shut the doors or either sell their building to a restaurant–at least that way the people who come into that establishment will receive some type of nourishment.
People meeting Jesus…THAT FIRES ME UP!!!
And let me say something to church planters…or people who think they may want to start a church one day.
I reserve Thursday’s to meet with pastors/church planters. Lindsay, my assistant, schedules these lunches for me and the discussions I have are usually very interesting.
However, I’ve got to say this…the ONE THING that has always bothered me…I mean seriously made my blood boil is when a church planter/pastor comes in and, when I ask him to tell me about his church he automatically begins to tell me about the building they have acquired OR the massive sound system they have purchased.
OR…I ask them why they are planting the church and it turns out that they are just po’d off at their former church and, as a result, plant a church simply to be “anti” whatever they came out of!!!
Church planters–pastors–let me be very clear. The building is important…we happen to have been very blessed with the building we are in. (And keep in mind we were averaging over 4,000 before moving into permanent facilities–for those who say they can’t grow because they happen to be in rented space–STOP YOUR CRYING…GET TO WORK!!!)
AND–the sound system–the lighting…all of that is cool.
BUT IF YOU ARE NOT DOING WHAT YOU ARE DOING BECAUSE YOU WANT TO SEE UNCONNECTED PEOPLE GET CONNECTED TO CHRIST…it’s just not going to work.
You have to get past having the cool church with all of the bells and whistles and focus on having the church where people want to invite people…and when people get there–THEY MATTER, they are served, they are made to feel important…the message is to where THEY can understand it. PEOPLE!!!
I love it when I ask a church planter why he is about to do what he’s doing and he says, “Well, I have this friend named Tim…and he is unchurched…and needs Christ…and there is not a church for Tim and/or anyone like him…so I have this burden & can’t sleep at night because people like Tim need a place to go to church and eventually meet Christ.”
That’s why we do what we do here at NewSpring…so people can meet Jesus. And when they do–we dance–we celebrate–we rejoice! I am just as excited about Sara meeting Christ as I was when 412 people accepted Him several weeks ago!
NewSpring–let’s keep investing in people and inviting them to church…and when they meet Jesus–let’s continue to dance.
It’s Sunday Night…And My A-D-D is KICKING!!! October 15, 2006
So…I have several thoughts…here they are…in no particular order…
The fair is in town here in Anderson. It happens once a year and I am being reminded of the fact that it is in town right now because they are shooting their FLIPPIN’ FIREWORKS and MY ENTIRE HOUSE IS SHAKING!!!
WOW…glad I got that off my chest…
On to another thought–I love studying theology. STOP LAUGHING…I am serious. I am passionate in my pursuit of studying Scripture and reading books/listening to speakers that continually stretch me…AND I often listen to people that I know I will disagree with…just to challenge myself.
And…I love to discuss theology; however, I refuse to let my theological beliefs end a friendship–and I refuse to never be more passionate about theology than Jesus.
Wanna know why? It’s best summed up in this cartoon posted by my buddy Bob–seriously, isn’t that AWESOME?!?!?!
On to something else…
This next series at NewSpring…WOW…hold onto your hat!!! It’s going to be called “Lord of the Rings.” (Rings being wedding rings.) In this series we’re going to be taking a look at what Scripture says about sex, love, dating, marriage, divorce, homosexuality, submission…and a variety of other topics that provide little or no controversy at all!
I said it from the stage Sunday…and I will say it again–this is NOT a series for those who have ever been a part of a church where the pastor is a pathetic wimp and simply refused to teach what Scripture says about certain subjects. We will go where Scripture goes…and I will tell you what Scripture says…it should be fun–and it WILL be challenging to everyone. (It has challenged the heck out of me in preparing for it!)
Oh yeah–there is a rumor that there is a singer who is somewhat popular on the national scene that might be making an appearance during this series. That’s all I’m saying for now…more details to come later…I will say this–it’s going to be a HUGE SURPRISE!!!
Two prayer requests…
#1 – My book–plans are being put together for me to write a book about all that is going on here at NewSpring. A publisher actually contacted me and wants me to “get on it” and make it happen. Pray that I can find time…and that I will say the right words. What’s going on here at NewSpring is so unique–we have all heard stories of churches growing from zero to over 6,000 is less than six years…but most of the places we hear stories like that are like Dallas, Chicago, and Los Angeles–and not in places like Anderson, SC. YEAH GOD…hopefully He can use this to challenge/encourage others.
#2 – A Live CD–I spoke with Lee tonight about doing a live CD. It looks like this could possibly take place within the next six months. He told me that we need one piece of recording equipment and we will be good to go. Can you imagine a live CD being recorded at NewSpring? HOLY COW! That would be off the hook!! Pray hard…and keep your eyes open!!!
One more thing…and this gets a little sentimental…but, it’s my blog–so I can…
I wrote in my journal two or three times this week, “God…am I pleasing you? Am I living the life that You want me to live? Am I leading the way YOU want me to lead.” I don’t know about you…but I do wonder this sometimes…and like I said, this has been on my mind all week long. A part of my responsibility as a leader is…well…TO LEAD. And I am my hardest critic…at times I wonder if I am doing it well. So I ask God to show me…many times He shows me things that need to change…and other times He encourages me. I want to know I am leading well…and that those closest to me love and respect me–NOT because of my position…but because of the person that Jesus is shaping me to be.
God answered me in this e-mail from Lee–thanks man, you have NO IDEA how much this meant!!!
Dude… tomorrow is boss’s day.
What can I say, you’re the freaking best. You saw something in me that you could believe in and my life has changed because of it. you’ve shown me Jesus in more ways than I can count. You’re one of my heroes, one of my greatest inspirations, and above all, you’re one of my best friends. Thanks for hiring me 6 years ago. I’m in for the long haul as long as you’re here. If you go to do something else, I’ll pack my bags. Seriously. thanks for everything.
Love you, man!
Lee
Happy Friday! October 13, 2006
A few random thoughts…
It’s snowing in Indiana…and I am jealous! I love snow–LOVE IT…expect for the fact that people here in the south think they can drive in it…and also the fact that they go buy all of the bread & milk in grocery stores!!! (Thanks for the picture Tim!)
I went to Charlotte for the Clemson game yesterday…yes, it was a blow out…but I wanted to see the Panthers stadium. PLUS I actually stood on the field for the second half–wow–it’s cool when you can hear the hits. We hung 63 on Temple–I can’t remember the last time we hung 63 on a team…
I can’t wait for Sunday…I will be hitting a topic that EVERYONE is interested in, yet few churches ever touch the topic. We will be wrapping up the MySpace series and moving on to “Lord of the Rings” the following week…a series on sex, marriage, and dating!!! (Yes, there will be a message on sex–yes, we are going to go through the Song of Solomon. No, I do not believe that SOS is an allegory of Christ and the church…and that’s all I will say about that right now!)
Have an awesome weekend–see you Sunday!