Archive for December, 2006
What A Day!!! December 20, 2006
Holy cow…the past few days have been one amazing ride…I don’t know where to begin…but I’ll try…
God has been rocking my world lately…and He chose to fill me with creative ideas on Monday morning–AT 1:30!!! Literally…I was awake from 1:30 to 3:30 this past Monday just thinking about leadership, teaching, and a host of other things!!! Who needs sleep, right?
THEN I got to staff meeting…and I was WIRED! Our senior management team agreed to go in together in order to purchase some sleep medicine for me because I was SO full of ideas…and I had to overcompensate for the missed sleep with large amounts of coffee. :-) I think they were all ready to shoot me!
On a serious note–we spent hours talking about the vision of NewSpring Church and giving each section a grade. We acknowledged that there are some things that we are doing really well…and then there are some things that need to be IMPROVED on in a dramatic way…and we are going to be attacking those areas with pit bull intensity!
Yes…we’ve came a long way…but there is so much more to do!!! One of the things I have been praying for is that we will never be satisfied with the way things are. There are so many things we can improve on…and we know it. (The danger is when a church thinks it is perfect and does not need to work on anything…if that is the case then you can be sure they have one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel!)
And then yesterday–DANG!
Let me back up and let you know that I have been working on the Christmas Eve message since October. I am serious about every message that I speak…but I especially want to nail Christmas Eve because there will be so many people who attend that do not know Christ.
Well…Tuesday is the day that I usually get out the manuscript that I prepared for that week and begin to go through it. (I am generally about 3-4 weeks ahead) So…yesterday I got out the manuscript–spent about 30 minutes wrestling with it…and then the Holy Spirit spoke to me and said, “You won’t be giving that message this weekend.”
I freaked out! I thought maybe I had a case of really bad gas and that it would soon pass away…but it didn’t. I kept looking at the message…and the more I looked at it the more I could not even begin to think about preaching it.
So I said, “Ok Lord, if this isn’t it–then what.”
A verse of Scripture immediately popped in my mind. I turned there…and in 15 minutes I had jotted out an outline. I called in Shane, our Creative Arts pastor, and ran the idea by him…and he LOVED IT! And so I spent the next hour really developing it and praying hard!
Folks–keep something in mind–THIS IS NOT NORMAL FOR ME!!!
Needless to say…I am PUMPED about the Christmas Eve service…but especially the message because it is SO fresh! WOW…God rocked my world yesterday morning…and I am convinced that people are going to receive Christ when they hear what He has to say this weekend.
WOW…God is SO good! I would say this as a small piece of advice to speaker. Prepare ahead…we do! Today I developed the concepts for the January 28th message…but ALWAYS be open to the Holy Spirit…and when He says change something–change it!!! Yes, God is honored by our preparation…but He is also honored when we listen to Him.
OK…that is enough rambling for today. WOW…I am PUMPED!
Top 20 Reasons To Be At NewSpring’s Christmas Eve Services December 19, 2006
I put together this list with the help of our AWESOME staff…here we go…
#20 – Have we ever let you down when we said, “You don’t want to miss this…”?
#19 – Your kids get to scream, run around and use up energy BEFORE Christmas
#18 – No Handel’s Messiah–Hallelujah!!!
#17 – You never know what is going to happen…2003 it was Perry from the ceiling, 2004 in the golf cart, 2005 the shopping trip with the elf…what will 2006 be?
#16 – We have the Griswold family Christmas tree in our atrium! Seriously–it’s flippin’ HUGE!
#15 – We will let you keep the nifty NewSpring pen…just this once! (OK, just kidding…AND…this might be a great time to return all the pens you have “accidently” taken!) :-)
#14 – There will NOT BE an interpretive movement done to the song “Christmas Shoes!”
#13 – This is the FIRST Christmas Eve service in our new building…and you’ll be the only dork in your neighborhood who missed it if you are not here!
#12 – Live elf wrestling!!! (Just kidding!)
#11 – The lead singer in the band is soooooo cute!
#10 – We’ll shoot your eye out if you don’t come!
#9 – Your kids will not have to wear your bathrobes in order to be a shepherd…instead they will have their own creative Christmas service where they learn to appreciate not what they WANT for Christmas, but rather the gifts we can receive through Christ.
#8 – It will be FUN!!!!
#7 – We guarantee you’ll like at least one song, no matter how old, hip, or square you are!
#6 – You are not required to wear a Christmas sweater or a santa tie.
#5 – Because people are GOING to meet Jesus…and you can be a part of that IF you INVITE someone TODAY! (GET PEOPLE HERE!!!)
#4 – I hear there are going to be toasted marshmallows–seriously!
#3 – You won’t have to smell the live nativity…or worry about the donkey freaking out and tearing up the stage…NO…there will be no donkey…or hobbits!
#2 – It will be the most AWESOME experience you have ever had at church on a Christmas Eve
#1 – We understand that Christmas is all about JESUS…and HE will be lifted up in a radical way!!!
Don’t forget–Saturday at 4pm & 6pm…and Sunday at 9:15 & 11:15…and for this week only there will be NO Sunday night services!!! BUT…we will have one next week on New Years Eve…more on that later!
Sunday Night Reflections December 17, 2006
I am sitting here on my couch, watching “Return of the King” with Lucretia…and I was just thinking, I am really glad there are no hobbits around today! I believe they would get picked on and made fun of…and they have some really ugly feet.
It has been an awesome weekend.
This past Friday and Saturday I had the privilege of being involved in the wedding of Jared and Jennifer…two people on staff who do an excellent job, love Jesus AND love one another. Weddings are so much fun because you ALWAYS get a sermon illustration out of them…and THE MOST FUN part of the wedding is watching the groom when he sees his bride for the first time. I thought Jared was going to pee his pants…I have NEVER seen him smile like that.
The wedding was beautiful…the only thing that was really wrong with the wedding was the flower they put on me. Don’t get me wrong–it was beautiful…but it smelled like a cat tee-tee’d on it…and I had it there for the entire ceremony. As soon as it was over–I found a trash can. (And for those who think that the couple might be offended at me saying that…Jared agreed that my flower smelled like poo!)
Every time I do a wedding it reminds me of when ‘Cretia and I were married…I was standing at the front of the church…the doors opened and there she was…in white–and she was THE MOST BEAUTIFUL thing I had ever seen!!! Nearly every man I speak to says he remembers the day when he saw his bride coming towards him…WOW…I am SO glad I married ‘Cretia.
I also got to go to a pig pickin’ on Saturday night! WOW…that’s fun! Everyone needs to go to a pig pickin’ at least once in their lives. They had a bluegrass band there as well…and YES…I LOVE bluegrass, especially Nickel Creek!
Today at NewSpring was AWESOME! It is so amazing to see how far God has brought us in just one year. Today we focused on being thankful to God for all He has done for us. Many times we go focused on what we WANT that we forget to thank Him for all He has given…causing us to stress and worry about things. If you want...you can download the message here.
We launch our new website on Monday…you can go to www.newspring.cc to check it out–for some reason I am having trouble linking it here, but there is video streaming and everything…let us know what you think.
I am still watching “Return of the King,” not only am I glad there are no longer any hobbits…but the orks really freak me out as well. I am glad they are not around any longer–because if I walked into Chic-fil-a and saw an ork…I just might freak out!
Sorry…back to my blog post.
I KNEW IT WOULD HAPPEN!!! Thank you Scott for the peanut M&M’s…you are the man. Scott, a guy at NewSpring who has been around since the Sullivan building (150 people) read this post last week and bought me a bag of peanut M&M’s…he is now my friend for life!!!
Don’t miss Christmas Eve…more on that coming later in the week…but PLEASE make plans to be here…and PLEASE invite as many people as you can. I promise it will be the best one we have ever had!
Two more things…
If you are a Calvinist OR you know of one…you have GOT to read this…it totally cracked me up–the comments are the best!
Steven Furtick hit the ball out of the park with three posts on questions someone needs to ask before planting a church.
That’s about it…it was a good weekend…oh yeah, the Cowboys won–they beat the Falcons, which made Shane very sad…but me very happy!
See you this weekend…or here tomorrow–whichever…and if you see any hobbits or orks…keep them away from me…like I said, they freak me out.
What We Value Part Two December 15, 2006
OK…so far we have covered the following…I value dessert (I am thinking it is about time to hit Sullivan’s) and NewSpring values…
- Jesus (Just in case you are wondering…I say “Jesus” a lot instead of “God.” The term “God” has became so generic in our culture…it can mean just about anything…but when you say the name “Jesus,” well…there is NO doubt as to who you are talking about there!)
- The Bible
#3 – We Value Evangelism
I am an evangelist at heart. Nothing, I mean NOTHING stokes me up more than to see someone’s world get turned upside down for Christ.
Unfortunately I believe the Great Commission has turned into the Great Omission in many churches in America today. It’s sad–but I know many churches that simply do not care that people are dying & going to hell–and call me crazy…but that BOTHERS me…there are times at night when I literally can’t sleep!
So…when we began NewSpring Church we wanted to create an environment where people could meet Jesus instead of meeting the pastor. We wanted people to know more about Scripture than Robert’s Rules of Order. We wanted an environment where people were concerned about the condition of someone’s heart and NOT the condition of their wardrobe. We wanted what we believed the Bible describes the church to be in the book of Acts…a place where screwed up people come to meet Jesus.
If you look in Scripture when Jesus called the disciples He said, “Come follow me and I will make you…” Now, if you’ve ever read Scripture or sang songs in Sunday school you know the rest of that verse, “…fishers of men.” Notice He didn’t say, “Come follow me and we will go to a Bible study.” Or, “Come follow me and let’s protest the lottery.” Nope–His focus was on reaching people…and because THAT is THE example He set–the church should follow it.
I believe it is unfortunate when a church is reduced to a mere country club that has a cross and a steeple. Come on now…the only reason you would get offended at a statement like that is because I just described your church.
We are called to reach people!!! We are called to get outside of our world and into the worlds of people who do not know Christ. We are called to not only like the people who are like us…but the people who are nothing like us.
When we began NewSpring I wanted a place where you didn’t have to be perfect to walk through the doors. I always tell people, “This is NOT the perfect church…I am NOT the perfect pastor…and if you are perfect then please leave because if you hang around here we will screw you up!”
I wanted a place where people could come and meet Jesus and be changed. And so because of that–we value evangelism. So far this year we have seen over 900 people receive Christ…and we are believing that number will exceed 1,000 after our Christmas Eve services.
AND…we have taught those who attend NewSpring that evangelism IS inviting people to church–IF your church preaches about Jesus! There are many right now that KNOW you need to invite someone to our Christmas Eve services…DO IT…because when people come to NewSpring on Christmas Eve they will hear the message about Jesus…and their lives COULD BE transformed! It takes all of us working together to make evangelism work.
We always ask in membership class, “Why did you attend NewSpring for the first time?” I would say around 99% say that they came because they were personally invited by a family member or friend…in other words–they were “evangelized!”
That was God’s goal all along…and still is today…people reaching people. SO…at NewSpring we create an environment where someone is not embarrassed to invite a friend or family member–we talk about Jesus…and through this process Jesus changes lives! It’s something that we are incredibly dedicated to…you should see what we have planned for 2007!!!
What We Value Part One December 14, 2006
I value dessert! Seriously, I try to include it at every meal. I am trying to think of a way to make it a part of breakfast. You see–if you value something…it consumes you and becomes a part of who you are and what you do.
It’s the same with a church. What (or who) a church values will show 100% of the time. If the church values a certain style of dress…it will show. If a church prefers a certain style of worship…it will show. If a church values a certain type of theology…it will show. When something is valued it is never hidden.
So that got me to begin thinking about what we value here at NewSpring Church. What are the things we talk about all of the time? What are the things that we are living out as a church and are challenging all who attend here to live them out as well? I came up with a list that will take today’s post, tomorrow’s post–and quite possibly Friday’s as well. Here we go…
#1 – We Value Jesus Christ
Let me be very clear…our church preaches that Jesus Christ is the only way to heaven–the ONLY WAY! We do not believe that you get to heaven by being good OR by being sprinkled as a baby OR even by listening to ONLY Christian music and attending ONLY “G” rated movies.
Jesus Christ said in John 14:6 that He is THE way, truth and life–not A way, truth and life…OR one of the many ways, truths and lives…but THE–notice the singular context. NOW…either He was a cocky & arrogant idiot–or He was telling the truth…and based on the whole empty tomb thing–I’m going with Him telling the truth.
SO…because we value Jesus–we talk about Him–A LOT!!! I honestly believe that if churches would spend MORE time talking about Jesus and less time talking about politics, boycotting Disney and debating theological sticking points that have caused divisions for hundreds of years…that TONS of people would enter the kingdom because we are focused on the RIGHT THING–JESUS!
You see–the Republican part did not change my life…nor did avoiding seeing “The Lion King,”…and although he wrote some pretty good stuff, John Calvin hasn’t really ever done a thing for me either–he’s DEAD. (WOW–that ticked some of you off!) Nope–Jesus Christ rescued me from a lifestyle that was sending me to hell–he power washed my soul and made me into a brand new person…and so it would be an insult to Him to allow ANYTHING or ANYONE else to dominate what I talk about…or who this church talks about.
It’s all about Jesus–it has to be.
It blows my mind when I ask people how you get to heaven…the number one answer is “be a good person.” But that is so wrong–it’s through receiving Jesus…THAT is what people need to hear because I am convinced that we can teach people all of the right answers and they will still go to hell because they know everything except that JESUS SAVES…and that’s IT!
We value Jesus Christ…He will always be the center and focus of each and every ministry here at NewSpring Church.
#2 – We Value The Bible
I make fun of the rumors that fly around our community regarding NewSpring. ONE such rumor is, “I won’t go to that church because they don’t teach the Bible.” If someone says that it simply tells me one thing about that person–THEY HAVE NEVER BEEN.
As the pastor–I believe the Bible is the total, infallible, inerrant Word of God. I do not believe that some sections of it are mere allegories…I believe Jonah was literally swallowed by a big fish (never says whale), I believe that God put an interstate highway through the middle of the Red Sea, I believe that Jesus walked on water…and I believe that Jesus rose from the dead…and all because the Bible says so.
People can argue about Scripture–what they believe about it–but the bottom line for me is that IT WORKS!!! And not just for me…but for everyone who takes the wisdom found there and applies it. I have NEVER had a person approach me and say, “My life was great until I began reading the Bible…and since I began reading it and applying it to my life–all heck has broken loose and my life has taken a turn for the worse.”
NO–it’s actually quite opposite. The Bible works because the Bible is true–period.
I can promise you this…there will never be a Sunday that God’s Word isn’t declared. I would say about 80% of the time I preach line by line, verse by verse…and I explain what the Bible says and means in a way people can understand. I just don’t think God meant for the Bible to be as flippin’ complicated as some people make it out to be!!!
So what is our job here at NewSpring Church…to take God’s Word and show people how to apply it to their lives right here in 2006. I do not desire to give amazing history lessons because I have discovered that most people could care less how many tons of gold it took to build the temple because their marriage is falling apart, the kids are failing school, and only God knows where the money is going to come from to pay the bills.
And THAT is why we do what we do–so that people can hear the Bible preached…and then take the lesson home and APPLY it to their lives. For far too long people have gone into churches and “connected” through rituals…but then they leave and are the same person who went it…nothing changes because nothing was learned.
But when God’s Word is taught in a way where people can understand–LIFE CHANGE takes place!
And now on to the third thing we value…tomorrow…
Peanut M&M’s December 13, 2006
Have you ever had this urge…a craving…and you can’t figure out what the heck is going on?
It’s happening with me!!! I am on this peanut M&M kick…and I can’t stop. I have eaten more peanut M&M’s during the past 72 hours than I have in the previous 72 months.
Don’t get me wrong…I haven’t went out and got a pound and then proceeded to eat the entire bag. I have had about two handfuls per day. BUT–up until last week I could have cared less about those stupid things.
I think it was while I was in Michigan a guy was talking about peanut M&M’s…then someone offered me some…I ate them…and BAM–that was IT!!!
That has happened to all of us, hasn’t it? We are just going along in life and all of a sudden something catches our attention…and then BOOM–we are hooked.
That reminds me of a conversation I had yesterday morning with a friend who told me about a man who began coming to NewSpring during our “Lord of the Rings” series. He got the “controversial” direct mail piece in the mail and decided to try out our church…and he’s hooked! Through that series God saved his marriage…and now he doesn’t miss a Sunday.
He tried it & BOOM–he was hooked!
I’ve always heard, “Try it…you might like it,” when it comes to trying out food. But how about trying out church?
For those coming to NewSpring (and for those at other churches) keep something in mind…people are more likely to visit church during this time of year than ANY OTHER TIME. We have an opportunity to IMPACT a community by inviting people to come and “try it” because they might “like it.” AND more than that–it is quite possible that they WILL meet Jesus Christ.
AND…through this–they may get hooked! They might have ignored Jesus and church for years…but through YOUR INVITE they could come “Jesus addicts,” wouldn’t that be awesome?!?!?!
Christmas Eve at NewSpring is going to be…different! I think it will be our best one ever. (I watched the promo video that we are going to run next week…WARNING…if you don’t like hearing what those who do not know Christ have to say about Christmas…then cover your ears because we desire for you to hear exactly what is said!!!)
My advice–get people here…invite–ask–beg–bribe–whatever. Remember…that person that you care about SO much may be just ONE INVITATION away from coming to church, receiving Christ and then being HOOKED for the rest of their lives.
Remember…the times are Saturday, December 23 and 4:00 and 6:00pm…and then on Sunday at 9:15 and 11:15am. All four services are identicle…and for that one week alone there will be no Sunday evening service so that you may attend your family rebellion reunion.
That’s about it–I’ve got to go eat some peanut M&M’s–DANG, I never realized how good these things are!!!
Excited AND Nervous! December 12, 2006
First of all–please don’t e-mail in regarding this post and ask, “Were you serious?” The answer is YES!!! Now–on to my ramblings…
This conference has asked me to come be a keynote speaker. If you are a church planter or pastor or minister or just someone who loves the church–you should come to this thing. NOT because I am speaking (more on that in a second) but because I have seen the other guys that will be speaking and I can’t wait to go and hear what they have to say. I am a student & I need to soak up as much information as possible…and this conference will provide that opportunity.
If you are going back and forth on whether or not you have the time and money–my recommendation would be for you to check out Proverbs 2:1-5…that passage rocked my world recently when I was trying to decide whether or not to go to a conference. I was seriously weighing the decision and the Lord led me to that passage…and that was confirmation that if I desire wisdom then I must search for it.
I love meeting and networking with pastors…and I have heard from a few different sources that this conference was off the hook last year. SO…come on down to the great state of Georgia (my wife is from Georgia–that fact alone makes that a great place) and lets talk about the church–I CAN’T WAIT!!! Thanks Sean for the invite.
OK…he actually invited me to speak several months ago…but I am just now posting about it because…well…I am excited!!! AND NERVOUS!
Seriously! When I spoke at the Innovative Church Conference that Granger Community Church hosted…I had to pee about 14 times the hour before I spoke. On Sunday’s at NewSpring I pace, have to go to the restroom…check my mic about 15 times…and I always…and I mean ALWAYS make sure that my zipper is up–any speaker will admit that he checks this at LEAST 20 times…a speakers worse nightmare is to begin his talk and realize that his zipper is down!!! Yes, it HAS happened to me. NO, I will NOT talk about it except to say that I am now paranoid! (I am just being totally honest!)
SO…when it comes to sharing information with church planters and pastors I am excited…excited that the tomb is empty…excited that Jesus LOVES HIS CHURCH and has called us to GROW…excited about life change. Excited about hearing stories about what God is doing all over the world.
But…I am nervous as well. Nervous because I desperately don’t want to screw anything up!!! (I have a habit of doing that.)
Some pastor may be wondering whether or not he can afford to go. Here’s my take–you can’t afford NOT to go!!! The Bible says search for wisdom…pay any price to achieve it…and trust me, after comparing this conference to other conferences…this one is a DEAL!!!
NewSpringer’s–I would DEEPLY appreciate your prayers as I have been asked to speak at this conference…and I will also be speaking to a group of South Carolina Baptist pastors in October!!! Please pray as my hearts desire is to encourage and motivate people to invest their lives and efforts in the greatest organization in the world–HIS CHURCH!
Oh yeah–did I mention that this Sunday is going to be awesome?!?!?! :-)