History in the Making

Recon on a local church

Last minute, we decided to extend our stay in Va Beach so I could do recon at Forefront Church, the gutsy, no-perfect-people-allowed church where Vince Antonucci pastors. Best take-away from the morning was signage ~ I dropped my Google map on the floorboard several miles away and followed at least 15 Forefront signs right up to the front door of their school location. Un-stinkin-believable.

This church has got to have the lowest barrier-to-God factor of any church I've seen. Highly, highly intentional about reaching people far from God... which comes across in their videos, vocabulary, and even their music. No Chris Tomlin or Crowder here. All original music which was pretty raw and stripped of Christianese. I think every worship leader should see what they're doing in this area.

There were no greeters because Vince believes that unchurched people like their churches to be as accessible as malls. Mission accomplished ~ not one person said anything to me. Not a criticism though ~ the place was packed. But my personal conviction is that people shouldn't have to take the initiative in getting plugged-in. Welcoming environments is a core value of our church ~ so it's purely subjective.

Vince was out-of-town [not a surprise on a holiday], so the youth intern spoke. I can't say enough about their ability to stay focused on reaching people far from God. The service felt very Young-Lifey to me, very basic Christianity... [the first 15 minutes of the message was about doo-doo]. But it was awesome to see so many obviously unchurched people sitting around me. You know you're reaching your community for Christ when the service smells like beer. =)

If the next step in their strategy ~ to disciple new believers ~ is as effective as the first step ~ reaching them ~ this church will be an unstoppable force.

Blast from the Past

Visiting Virginia Beach this week, we got to spend some time with our good friends Brian and Nicole Baller who got married out of a divine arrangement. Nicole was Ainsley's roommate in college and Brian was a good friend from my collegiate ministry days. Brian ~ currently a fighter pilot ~ is being transferred overseas, but will live in our area near Washington DC beginning this summer for nine months of language training.

Nicole was a catalyst for History Church... she dove up to northern Virginia 5 years ago to introduce us to her good friend Kath ~ who became our first core group member.

The History of our Mission Field

My father-in-law gave me an incredible book for my birthday called Reston Town Center, which covers the 16-year history of our mission field ~ an award-winning, urban/suburban, downtown environment near our home. Interestingly, the founder Robert E. Simon [R.E.S-ton] bought the 6,000+ acres in Fairfax County, which later became Reston, in 1961 with the proceeds from selling Carnegie Hall in New York City. The Washington Council of Churches bid to put three church buildings in the downtown area years ago, but failed in their attempts. Our church's goal is to move into the Town Center by Easter... which will be quite a significant and historical accomplishment in this community's development.

Barack-attack

Currently listening to Barack Obama read his book "The Audacity of Hope" on audio CD. Impressive.

The slow rise of Lakewood

I'll be posting a review of the book 'The Rise of Lakewood Church' soon, but just read that John Osteen led Lakewood for 13 years with fewer than 200 people. Tall trees require deep roots.

My philosophy of church marketing

We're entering 2007 with some exciting marketing plans for our church. My philosophy in a nutshell: We want to be known, but there are some things we don't want to be known for. It's not a moral guideline; it's a stylistic one. Maybe even a personal one. It would be the same if I were a business owner ~ I'd rather start a Martin+Osa than a Wal-Mart. I'd rather run away with Cirque Du Soleil than the circus. But look at how beautiful the body of Christ is when it's manifested in different forms ~ John Piper's church is much different than Bill Hybels' church, which is much different than Greg Laurie's church, which is much different than Max Lucado's church, and so on. I love how God has uniquely gifted, wired and positioned our church in northern Virginia to reach people for Christ.

Warehouse space for worship gatherings

My good friend Robb Overholt pastors Epic City Church in Va Beach, which just chunked the suburban life and moved to downtown Norfolk to get closer to people far from God. Rob and his wife Shaula found warehouse space for worship gatherings in the art district, which they've begun converting. It's a radical overhaul with huge potential. Photos courtesy of Shaula's blog.

Highlights of 2006

I've been reflecting on 2006 for the past few weeks and jotted down some of the highlights... and lowlights:

- Launched our new preschool environment
- Ains and I put a contract on a townhouse for Sept 2007
- Doubled the number of our church's small groups
- Blizzard snowed out our comedy night outreach
- Celebrated 6-year wedding anniversary
- Wyatt broke his arm and turned 2
- Ains and I became 100% completely debt-free
- Spoke to church planters at SBC convention in NC
- Saw the birth of our second son Dylan in Sept 2006
- Enjoyed assessing SBCV church planters every month
- Found a professional bookkeeper for History Church
- Our amazing worship band emerged under Matt's leadership
- Lost half of our church leadership team to attrition
- Attended Buzz, Catalyst, and Nat'l New Church Conference
- Tacked on a Disney vacation at the Nat'l conference
- Experienced the Timothy Barnabas and Real Evangelism Conf
- Hired our 3rd staff position for the summer
- Our sound team reached a new level of excellence
- Witnessed God's miraculous provision in a financial crisis Oct 2006
- Ains and 2 friends launched RestonBaby.com
- Announced exciting plans in store for History in 2007
- Had our highest attended service Dec 24, 2006

Christmas in Pennsylvania

Spent the first half of our week in Pennsylvania with my fam. Headed to Va Beach during the latter part of the week...

Christmas Day

Christmas Eve Service

It's hard for me to take photos at History services these days. Otherwise, I'd love to show you our ministry environments from last night's Christmas Eve service...

Our teams did an unbelievable job creating a welcoming environment for guests ~ including luminarios lining the sidewalks... digital signage out front on a 50" plasma... a hot chocolate station with an assortment of goodies to add to your mug... Christmas cookies spilling out of opened Christmas presents at our hospitality table... a live, video feed of people entering the building on our big screens in the service... and the most amazing music set we've ever had. I got video of the service and will try to post some if I can figure it out...

This turned out to be the highest attended service in our church's history ~ and with no advertising at all. It was completely word-of-mouth. I'm so proud of our folks for bringing tons of guests...

Most importantly, we got to present the story of Jesus in the most compelling way we know how... which is what it's all about. I praise God for how he's taken History Church from a meager, little, home Bible study to an exciting place for people to find Christ.

Photos of the Worship Band

I loved Matt's post yesterday with photos of our worship band. I can't tell you how long I prayed for this amazing team to emerge. We hobbled through the first few years with hired guns... but at long last, God brought this fun-loving gang to History. Each one of them is so talented musically that they can play different instruments; and they each have a strong walk with Christ ~ they're really seeking Him. This must be some sort of an attempt a Christmas card... =)

On Self-Awareness

Starbucks' Howard Schultz describes how the Beatles quit touring in the late 60s because they sounded so bad musically. Apparently, while all those fans were screaming at the top of their lungs, the Beatles couldn't hear themselves play. Over time, they got worse and worse. Moral of the story: don't focus on the praise for where you're at if you want to get better at what you do.

On Communicating

I think if we as pastors spent more time on introductions and conclusions, we probably wouldn't dump so much in the middle trying to come up with a point.

Writing your First Book

Scott has a great post today on writing your first book. Aren't bloggers just wannabe writers without the endurance or the audience. =)

Best of 2006 Series: Top 10 Books

I'm starting a series of posts that recap the past year for my family, our church, and my personal life... starting with best reads. I've read at least 52 books, but here are 10 that made the most impact on me:

The E-Myth
I was behind the eight-ball on this one, but I read it at the beginning of the year, and its message is still reverberating with me. Innovate until you find what works, then lock it into a managed system. Build organizational charts that suit the mission and fill it!

Communicating for a Change
I don't subscribe to Andy Stanley's particular outline for speaking, but I think it's important to have one. Keep it focused on one, main idea and say nothing else. I like it.

Confessions of a Reformissionary Rev
You cannot not read this book if you're a church planter. Mark Driscoll is one of those guys who comes along once in a century and leaves a movement behind him after he dies. Of course, he's human too. =)

In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day
Mark Batterson strikes a chord with dreamers everywhere to take action! I know many people who have been impacted by this book. Wish it debuted in hard cover though.

Pour Your Heart Into it
One day, Starbucks will wake-up to the fact that church planters are their biggest customers. CEO Howard Schultz tells the company's story in this quotable book. Schultz is such a strong leader for a chief barista.

Simple Church
Thom Rainer and Eric Geiger affirm the need for a simple, purposeful system for making disciples in today's churches. Cut the fat. If it doesn't fit the mission, scrap it.

The Man who Heard Voices
The story of M. Night Shyamalan's tumultuous experience producing the movie Lady in the Water. Shyamalan's genius and self-doubt really come out in this well-written book by Sports Illustrated's senior editor.

Beyond the First Visit
Gary McIntosh informs us that people don't come back to unwelcoming churches. Trouble is, every church thinks they're friendly. Gary gives us a good, swift kick in the posterior with this no-holds-barred book on creating a welcoming church.

Chazown
Craig Groeschel is just one, likeable guy. He's real; he's transparent; and God's all over his church. This is sort of a 'Dream Giver' book without all the fairies and goblins. =) j/k. Great read.

Miracle in the Andes
I couldn't put this book down ~ about the Uruguayan rugby team that crashed in the Andes mountains and ate each other to survive. Stunning, captivating book with tons of leadership principles by survivor Nando Parrado.

Runners up:  Some second-time reads this year: Mere Christianity, Speak Like Churchill, Stand like Lincoln, and Courageous Leadership by Hybels

Innovative Churches

Outreach Magazine lists their 25 most innovative churches in the country... along with their 25 prettiest church planter wives. These lists are getting way out of hand. =)

Kedging the Anchor to Grow

The other day, I asked the owner of an appliance repair company how he decided when to add another service van to his fleet. I expected him to say "When we get more service calls than our current vans can handle."

Instead, he said, "Whenever I decide it's a good time to grow, I buy a van and let it sit in front of our offices. It makes me so sick that we're losing money on it that I work harder to drum up business."

This goes out to all the lonely people...

Everywhere I've gone this week, I've run into people who used to attend our church over the past 5 years, but left for one reason or another. Unless it was a vision-conflict, I wish they'd come back ~ they were a more meaningful part of our lives and church than they think they were.

Signing of the No Gifts Treaty

Ains and I signed a no-gifts treaty with each other this year in favor of buying a Sony MiniDV Handycam to capture these significant years of our kids' lives. We've found ourselves saying, "We've got to get that on film!" over and over... until we realized, dang it, we could do something about it. Our three month old Dylan now laughs when you tickle him, but there's no one around but us to see it! I'm actually working on a screenplay right now with Wyatt for his upcoming dramatic performance. =)