Archive for January, 2007
Top Ten Things Running Through My Mind Today… January 31, 2007
#10 – There is snow on the ground in NC right now…AND I hear it may snow in the upstate tonight! WOO-HOO!!! I LOVE SNOW…except when it comes on Saturday night or Sunday!
#9 – Tony has been fun to room with on this retreat…he does not snore, which is awesome because on my two previous trips I have roomed with Jason Moorhead and Shane Duffey…who caused minor earthquakes in the hotels we were in because of their snoring!!! I seriously do not see how the women they are married to get ANY SLEEP!!!
#8 – This Sunday at NewSpring is going to be incredible! We are literally going to do something we have NEVER done before…and I honestly believe it will be one of “those services” that people do not forget!!!
#7 – Speaking of this Sunday at NewSpring…remember we will not be having the 6:00 service for THIS SUNDAY NIGHT ONLY…we are asking everyone from the 6:00 service to go to 4:15 and pack it out! THEN the next week we will resume our normal schedule.
#6 – A week from today is our next “First Wednesday” service!
#5 – We have set some HUGE goals on this retreat…HUGE! Folks…God is ALL over our church right now, and our best days are ahead of us. I will be sharing these goals on Sunday, April 1 in a message that will be…uh…”unforgettable!”
#4 – Roseangela, the young lady who sang with us on Christmas Eve (O Holy Night & All I Want For Christmas), will be singing with us this weekend. (Actually she will not be singing with “us,” Lee kicked me out of the band…he said that in order for it to go to the next level that I needed to quit singing!!! I am not bitter–really!)
#3 – I am pulling for the Colts in the Super Bowl this weekend!!!
#2 – I believe that we are going to see hundreds of people come to Christ at NewSpring on Sunday, February 11th. Trust me…DO NOT miss that Sunday…and go ahead and begin inviting people to that service…the Gospel is going to be presented in an UNFORGETABLE way!!!
#1 – I get to see ‘Cretia today–YEAH!!! I have missed my wife…and tomorrow night is “date night!” I don’t care if there is snow all over the place–we are going out to eat…even if we have to go the Waffle House!!!
The Pastor’s Wife January 30, 2007
I am currently in NC on a management team retreat and I just hung up the phone with Lucretia. I LOVE these retreats…we get tons accomplished and today was no excepetion; however, I HATE NOT BEING WITH MY WIFE!!! I left her this morning and it was TOUGH. She’s the most incredible lady in the world…and there is NO ONE who I would rather spend time with than her.
Which brings me to a question to the pastors who read this blog…hey dude–how’s your wife?
Lucretia and I have an awesome relationship…but it takes work–lots of it. We are NOT perfect…but here are a few things I do to keep our marriage where it needs to be.
#1 – I Make Date Night A Priority!
Guys…it is up to you to MAKE date night happen–period. And don’t hand me that weak stuff about not having time…she’s your WIFE…MAKE TIME!!! Take her out to a restaurant where you don’t have to order off of the dollar menu and talk to her about HER!
And pastors–please–leave the cell phone in the car!!! “But what if my people need me?” Uh…what about your wife needing you. If “your people” can’t do without access to you for a few hours a week then you have some pretty pathetic people…OR you are a pretty pathetic leader because you have taught them to depend on you!!! (Which is what some pastors want because they need to feel needed!)
One more thing…I know some are going to be tempted to e-mail me and tell me how this is going to change for me when ‘Cretia and I have kids…SAVE IT…she’s always going to be my FIRST priority. Wait and see!!!
#2 – Ask Her What She Needs From You
I know so many pastors who will download messages on marriage, read books on marriage–even attend conferences about marriage…BUT they will never ask their wife to define what they perceive as being success in marriage.
Let me be clear…I love and admire Dr. James Dobson…but he does NOT define what success is in marriage, my wife does!!!
At least once a month I ask ‘Cretia questions about how I can be a better husband and how I can make her feel more loved and appreciated.
#3 – Protect Her From The Church
Pastors…GET THIS…she is YOUR WIFE–NOT the CHURCHES!!! She married you–she did not marry your church…and this should be reflected in the way you take care of her.
For example–Lucretia comes to ONE of our FOUR services…that’s it–just one. I once had someone ask me why she didn’t attend all four services…and I proceeded to ask them, “Why don’t you? You need it more than she does!”
If you are not careful the church will develop expectations about your wife–expectations that are NOT based on Scripture but rather on what the former pastors wife was like. And pastors…if you don’t guard her…then no one will.
She should be as involved in your church as she wants to be…and should NEVER feel pressured into doing ANYTHING. Here’s why–YOU are her #1 ministry…you should be her #1 priority…and if she is doing that well then she isn’t likely to have the time to do a ton of other things.
I will say this–NewSpring is AWESOME at not placing STUPID expectations on ‘Cretia…they know she’s NOT going to play the piano or knit choir robes…but she is going to be my wife, something only SHE can do, and because she does what she does…I can do what God has called me to do.
#4 – Always Talk About Her In A Positive Light
One of the things that HACKS me off more than ANYTHING is when I consistently hear pastors bash their wives while speaking. If a pastor does this then you can bet your bottom dollar than he is an insensitive jerk that needs someone to take him out behind his church and beat the crap out of him! (Yes, I mean that!!!)
I talk about Lucretia…and MOST of the time it is in a positive light. The few times I have mentioned something that she did that could have been taken as me “cracking” on her…I have always asked for her permission before I shared the story.
Pastors…once again, guard her!!! If YOU talk bad about her–guess what, other men in your church will begin to talk bad about their wives as well because of the way you modeled it for them. STOP IT!
#5 – Pray With Her At Night Before Going To Sleep
I can honestly say that I have NEVER gone to bed mad at Lucretia…and for ONE simple reason…I pray with her every night before turning in. I don’t know about you…but I can’t pray for someone who I am angry with! So…we made the commitment from the beginning of our marriage to pray together every night…and IT WORKS!
Those are some things that I do to guard my relationship with Lucretia. Pastors…keep this in mind…she needs to be your priority!!! I have seen churches turn on pastors…and then they turn to the one they have neglected for years and she has nothing to offer because she is completely empty. DON’T MAKE THIS MISTAKE!!!
SO…need to call your wife?
Sunday Night Reflections January 28, 2007
I have a confession to make…today was one of those days I felt like I could not have preached my way out of a wet paper bag. As a speaker there are days when you feel like you are “in the zone,” and then there are days when the zone is somewhere OUT THERE…and you are nowhere near it. (Every speaker has felt this way!)
Why did I feel this way? I think for two reasons…
The first is the fact that I had WAY little rest this weekend. I spoke for the South Carolina Baptist Conventions college weekend & had a blast. I love hanging out with college students…and I was able to meet Caedmons Call for the first time. It was so much fun…BUT…the service didn’t end until around 10:45 last night & then the crew & I had to drive back from Asheville.
So…I got in bed around 1:00…BUT…because I drank SO MUCH COFFEE to try to stay awake–guess what I did all night long? YEP…I pee pee’d!!! :-) I am not trying to be gross…but there was one point in which I considered just sleeping in the restroom for the rest of the night!!!
My alarm went off at six this morning and I felt like death warmed over!!! AHHHHH! BUT…and I mean this…I rolled out of bed PUMPED because I love what I do…I love the church…I love the people I work with…and so excitement was in my veins…until after the first service!!! THAT is when I felt like someone had hit me in the face with a bag of bricks!!!
We all have days like that…and that is when, as pastors, we are challenged to reach way back and give it all we’ve got…combine that with the fact that we have some VERY generous people at NewSpring who will forgive me if I’m a little “off” on a Sunday and it’s all good.
The second reason days like today happen…and this is THE main thing I took from today…is that sometimes GOD reminds us pastors that…if it were not for Him…we could not even blow our nose!!! I needed the Lord’s strength today to get me through the services…and He is SO AWESOME! Thank You Jesus for what I get to do…and thank you for the strength to do it…
A Few More Random Things…
#1 – Pray for our senior management team at NewSpring…we are heading out of town on a planning retreat in which we will be developing a three year strategic plan for what we believe God wants to do here at NewSpring Church…these things PUMP ME UP…I can’t wait!!!
#2 – Sign ups for our conference are going AWESOME…if you are considering heading this way in March–DO IT…and pastors, trust me…bring as many leaders as you can with you!
#3 – NO…Lucretia and I do not know whether or not the baby is a girl or boy yet…we will know in about a week and a half…I promise I will tell!!! To be honest…I am not sure what I would prefer yet. It would be SO much easier for ‘Cretia if it were to be a girl…we already have a name picked out THAT WE AGREE ON. BUT…a girl would MESS ME UP!!!!
If it is a boy…I am serious about wanting to name him Boaz!!! Pray for ‘Cretia…her heart is hard & she is NOT happy about my name selection. :-)
#4 – DO NOT FORGET that next Sunday we will NOT be having our 6:00 service…we are asking everyone who normally attends that service to come to our 4:15 service…and then we can go and watch the commercials Super Bowl! AND…this is for one week ONLY…we will resume our normal schedule the following week.
#5 – Speaking of the following week…CARS is going to be awesome…and I believe that we will see HUNDREDS of people accept Christ in that series!!!
This Messed Me Up!!! January 26, 2007
Joe, one of our pastors on staff found this video on you tube the other night. BEFORE you watch it please keep in mind that it is around nine minutes long…but worth every second. It brought tears to my eyes and raised several thoughts in my mind.
#1 – Every Week Is Someone’s First Week At NewSpring.
If you are a pastor…the same could be said about your church…that every single weekend COULD be THE weekend that THE PERSON who people in your church have been inviting and praying for show up. For some people that may be an afterthought…but I am OBSESSED with this thought. This video was proof that you never know who is going to show up.
#2 – If The Tomb Is REALLY Empty Then The Atmosphere At Church Should Reflect It!
It blows my mind that a person will go to a football game and nearly kill themselves yelling for a bunch of people they don’t even know…and that SAME person will go to a church the next day and show no emotion at all.
I once Mark Beeson, pastor of Granger Community Church, say that Christianity is THE most exciting thing that has ever happened in the world…and it has taken the church 2,000 years to make it boring!!!
It IS our job to make the environment exciting and friendly.
I can’t get these thoughts out of my mind
- Jesus is ALIVE…He ROSE!!!
- WE WIN…I’ve read the last chapter of the book
- People do not have to go to hell!!!
These thoughts govern my teaching and my leadership…which is one of the reasons I am getting away from the critics…with all that God is doing here–I simply do not have time for you. I want to see more people reached for Christ!!!
#3 – God AND The People Walking Through Our Doors Every Week Deserve Our Best!
It bothers me when a church throws some sort of program together at the last minute & then asks God to bless it…this is equal to the college student that refuses to study for an exam all semester long and then shows up to take the test and throws up some lame prayer, asking God to help him out.
I know this–Sunday at NewSpring God is going to give His absolute best. We are going to get His best attention…His best grace & mercy…His best empowerment…His best beauty…His best protection…the best of everything He has. (Yes, this is there for every church in the world!)
BUT…we should give Him our best…our best in prayer…our best in preparation…our best in the singers…our best in the musicians…our best in the parking lot…our best in the greeting…our best in the children’s & nursery area…our best in EVERYTHING!
AND…when you combine God’s best with the churches best…BAM…things happen. Churches grow when people in the church do not sit around and offer God half-hearted, watered down presentation…they grow when people KNOW that God is SOVEREIGN…and because of that very fact are willing to go all out to see as many people as possible come to Christ.
I can’t wait for Sunday!!! I promise you we will give our best. Oh yeah…just a sidenote…we mess something up EVERY week. Seriously…which is a beautiful reminder that God is so much bigger than all of us or our efforts…and its so cool to see Him work MANY times not because of us…but in spite of us!
On a different note–we have over people signed up for our conference so far…what are you waiting for? :-)
It’s Thursday…And My A-D-D is KICKING In a MAJOR Way!!! January 25, 2007
OK…this is going to be random…I have several thoughts that I want to pour out!!!
#1 – We had 20 people register for our conference yesterday…dang! Folks, I can’t tell you how pumped we are around here about this event. AND…I requested that, if they felt led, that some of my blogging buddies mention it…and they did…check out what they had to say…some are longer than others…but if you are wondering as to whether or not you should come…this is worth your time!!!
If you haven’t signed up yet–what are you waiting for???
#2 – Prayer requests…from time to time I will post prayer requests on this blog…and I have a few pretty major ones.
The first is our baby–relax, nothing is wrong…but Lucretia and I are daily praying for our child’s health…and we will find out if it is a boy or girl in a few weeks! (If we have a little girl then I am so gone, we were watching a TV show with a little girl on it the other night and I just started crying…what the heck is happening to me?)
The second prayer request is for me to be able to sleep again…I am having really bad dreams…and so is Lucretia…and so are some staff members!!! SO…pray for all of us. God is going to do some awesome things here in the coming months…and the enemy always tries to distract us when things like this are about to happen. Which leads to…
The third prayer request is for the health of our staff…we have had an unusual amount of sickness among the staff lately!!! Pray for our health.
The fourth prayer request is for me & my pace in speaking. I will be speaking for the South Carolina Baptist Convention this weekend and their college weekend…and I am PUMPED about it; however, I will not be completing the service until late Saturday night…and then there is a drive back from Asheville and four more services on Sunday!
#3 – I watched American Idol for a little while last night–DANG! I haven’t laughed OR cringed that much in a long time. It’s funny…I don’t like it when they get into the “good people” for some reason…but I can sit and watch those bad auditions all day long…I guess I can relate to them because Lee kicked me out of the NewSpring band years ago…and I’m over it…really…I don’t hate him…I promise! :-)
#4 – THIS IS COOL!!! I received a post card yesterday from Rick Warren!!! To many that MAY not be a big deal…but you’ve got to understand…it MADE MY WEEK!!! AND…he sent me the card in response to this post, telling me that he was encouraged by it.
First of all…the fact that he read my blog is cool…and second, that he would take the time to encourage me is even cooler.
Hey Rick, if you happen to read this again…YOU ROCK! Reading “The Purpose Driven Church” is ONE of the MAIN reasons we started NewSpring Church…and through that book you have touched more lives than you will even know. If you are ever in the south…there is a redneck pastor who would love to buy you lunch…OR…I am willing to fly out there and do the same. I was born in La Mirada County hospital–no lie!!!
#5 – My buddy Steven hits the ball out of the park once again with this post. I know I link him a lot–but the brotha’ is just good!
#6 – NewSpringers…I preached on money Sunday and challenged you to contact Joe for one on one assistance…DO IT!!! Check out his website and the tools he offers! HE IS SMOKIN’ WHAT HE’S SELLIN’! This guy LOVES and LIVES this stuff…get on the phone!!!
I asked him why he thinks some people don’t want help…and he told me that it’s a pride thing…that some people don’t want to admit that there is a problem and so they think by avoiding it that it will go away! Trust me–IT WON’T–CALL!
#7 – We will continue the series “What If” this weekend…and don’t forget that NEXT weekend--that is SUPER BOWL weekend…which is NOT this weekend…but NEXT weekend...that would be February 4th…we will not be having the 6:00 evening service. WE WILL HAVE THE 4:15 service…and we want all of the peeps that come to 6:00 to our 4:15 and PACK IT OUT!
AND…we will be doing this for ONE WEEK ONLY…the next week, February 11th, we will be back on our normal schedule.
Why are we doing this? Duh…the Super Bowl…most of you want to watch it (for the commercials) AND our staff wants to enjoy it as well. SO…for one week we are going to give everyone a breather and take off a little earlier on Sunday evening.
That’s about it for now…see you on Sunday!
It’s A Funny World January 24, 2007
Rarely do I EVER post on the same day…but this you have got to see. When I announced our conference yesterday on my blog a guy e-mailed in and blasted us, saying that all that we do is take other people’s stuff and claim it as our own…
Here is his e-mail…
I just read about your conference. I think i may attend. I want to find out how
you claim to have “authentic” worship at the same time you are plagiarizing
Driscoll and Ed Young Jr and leading your congregation to believe that you come
up with your own sermons. I also want to learn about your definition of being
creative. does it mean in being creative enough to download a sermon and rework
it changing a few items and then claiming its your own? Or is it creative to
copy the latest and greatest church growth movement fads and techniques?
I can not wait to attend to hear the answers to these questions. i will make
sure i register as soon as registration opens.
you are welcome to email me these answers, but I know i can probably kiss your
rear end since i dare to question the almighty Perry Noble.
My email is (BLANK). i will hold my breath while i wait for
your response.
This is a wonderful example of a misinformed person “going off” on information in which he is clueless. We spend HOURS developing sermon ideas…and yes, we do use topics and phrases from others, but the overwhelming majority of the messages are stuff that God allows our team to develop. (If you attend NewSpring Church then you know this is true!)
Well, Jake Beaty, our Outreach Pastor, wanted to respond…so when I gave him the green light THIS is what he wrote.
Hi Sam,
We wanted to respond as soon as possible since you were holding your breath. I hope you are ok and did not hurt yourself from a lack of oxygen. Plagiarizing…wow! Is this what we need to spend our time on this week with so many hurting people that need Jesus?
Just for the record, if you want to accuse us of plagiarism you should probably include Andy Stanley in your list. We use his stuff way more than Mark and Ed combined. Sam, do you ever plagiarize? I hope that you do not gain any knowledge whatsoever from commentaries, or other books (the Bible) and share those thoughts with someone else. We are greatly concerned at the large volume of plagiarism that happens to the Bible on a regular basis. Based on your definition of plagiarism I guess Jesus and the apostle Paul are guilty as well because they quoted some of what David, Solomon, Moses, and many others said without stopping what they were saying to give reference to the author, chapter, page, and copyright information to their audiences (I guess Jesus gets a “get out of plagiarism free card” since he inspired all that scripture – Imagine that a mega church that really believes God inspired the bible – can you believe it).
Would it even matter to you if you knew that Perry had a personal relationship with Ed, Mark, and Andy and they all share ideas with each other on a regular basis. I remember sitting with Ed and Perry several months ago and watching those guys come up with creative ideas by just talking about the sermon series they had done and were working on for the future. By the way I remember Ed Young saying one time that if you ever hear of a good idea steal it and make it better. There was also a guy named Solomon that said one time that there was nothing new under the sun…I’m so sorry…I think I just plagiarized both of those guys.
Sam, your e-mail is discernment______, so I hope you can discern my sarcasm. I also hope that you know that God has called you to a greater purpose than to waste your time and ours by sending us constant emails with pointless complaints in them. Please take some of your drive and passion and time in the future and use it to build up the Kingdom of Jesus and to reach out to a dying, lost, and hurting world instead of trying to criticize and complain about things that are not going to matter for eternity. In case you don’t know this…We are on the same team!
This will be the only email that you receive from us. God has called us to focus on more important things.
WOW…I love the team I serve with!!! Pastors, when people around you are as passionate about the vision as your are–then your church will go places!!!
Is It Ever OK To Use Sermon Material From Someone Else? January 24, 2007
Yes…here are five reasons why…
#1 – You Are NOT That Good!
I know that for me personally…I do not have 52 new things to say to the people who walk into the doors of NewSpring Church every week. Combine that with the fact that there are a lot of really awesome teachers out there who are saying some things that need to be heard…and there you have it. I have learned that there are MUCH better people than me when it comes to preaching and teaching…and I would be an arrogant fool if I thought that I could not use a phrase or an idea from them just because it was not “my very own!”
#2 – People Have Been Doing It For Years!
I do find it funny that the pastor who would criticize someone for listening to another person’s message and then making a point from it OR using a phrase that the other pastor used has no problem reading tons of commentaries and then using THAT information!
#3 – Jesus Did It!
In reading the Gospels I have discovered that Jesus quoted the OT…isn’t that using someone else’s stuff. OK, OK, it was HIS stuff to begin with…I just couldn’t resist. On a serious note–the Apostle Paul DID quote the OT quite a bit…and then the book of Hebrews…dang, I mean…talk about using someone else’s stuff…that guy used a lot of the OT!
#4 – It Is A Great Way To Relieve The Creative Cramp
I believe that preparing a message week in and week out can be one of THE most frustrating things a pastor can face. I have found myself on the verge of a nervous breakdown because “the message just won’t come.” BUT…I have found that listening to other speakers is an AWESOME way to generate new ideas.
#5 – It Really Does Add To The Message
As a speaker I tend to see things from one particular point of view…MINE. Listening to and borrowing ideas from other speakers allows your audience to experience things from a different perspective.
Disclaimer: I know this is coming…so I will answer the question now…no, I do not preach other people’s messages.
I do take thoughts, ideas…even phrases from them. AND…I have used outlines from other speakers…but I just can’t preach another message. Why? Simple…I can’t feel the passion about something that did not have some sort of birth in me.
The challenge when using someone else’s material is to make it your own. Tell personal stories, speak from your heart. Trust me…your audience will know if you are real are just throwing out someone else’s stuff.
BTW…we do get accused of that here at NewSpring from time to time. And…as I said…we do use other people’s ideas…but the overwhelming majority of the stuff we do comes from two things…
#1 – My personal time with God!
#2 – Our creative process (brainstorming with other people about concepts and ideas!)
Want to know more about the creative process? Make sure to come to our conference! :-)