History in the Making

Big Bucket Thinking

In preparation for our Easter Sunday relaunch, Matt and I had been debating which auditorium size to use for our first service. It didn't take us long to claim the largest one. I really believe that faith isn't really faith until we act on it. Realists are never rewarded in ministry.

Nelson Searcy describes in his book Launch how the Billy Graham crusades can predict with remarkable accuracy how many people will come forward at the end of the message. It's dependent on the number of decision counselors they can recruit to pray with new believers. God fills the buckets we put out for him. How big is yours?

Pros and Cons of Portable Venues

Found this list of pros and cons for various portable venues for churches at Portable Church Industries' blog.

Pros of Using a School
Location
Stature in Community
Diverse Room Size Availability – Both for Adults & Children
Electrical Capacity

Cons / Capacity in a School
Elementary Schools Maximum Capacity is 200
Middle Schools Maximum Capacity is 400
High Schools’ Maximum Capacity is 600-1600

Pros of Using a Movie Theatre
Political Stability (no “board” to deal with)
Large Video Screen
Well Recognized
Seeker Friendly
Drinks / Beverages Allowed in Worship Area
Large Parking Lot

Cons of Using a Movie Theatre
Lighting
“High Traction” Flooring
Limited Electrical Capacity
Children’s Ministry Challenges

Pros of “Other” Venues
Can Attract Non-Traditional Seekers
Can Attract “Gen-X”
Can be Emergent-Church Friendly
Can be Suitable for Artisan / Experiential Worship

Cons of “Other” Venues
Can Have Lack of Clarity
Can Have Limited Sightlines & Access
Can Have Limited Options for Children’s Ministries

Just saw the logo tonight...

Just got back from my meeting with Josh at Barnes-our-place-for-meetings-Noble. The logo is flat-out killer (watch for the unveiling on Sunday, both at History and here on the blog)... Now that Josh has got it in the bag, the website is on its way.

And we have lift-off...

Chuck Musellwhite just launched his church on Sunday and blogged about it. Church planting is still flowing through my veins because my heart leaps when I read stories like this. Awesome.

It's a winding road, but thank God for the trail markers

Planning for our relaunch in Reston Town Center is like knowing you've got a first-time skydiving lesson in a few weeks. It's exhilerating, but scary. It's the unknown. Love this passage from Joshua 3:3-4:

"When you see the Covenant-Chest of God, your God, carried by the Levitical priests, start moving. Follow it.... You've never been on this road before."

I don't want to depend on them, but I appreciate the little affirmations that God provides along the way, just to let me know that we're on the right path. Here are a few that happened today...

1. Oak Brook Church, which is adjacent to the Town Center generously offered to let us use their facility for worship band practice on Wednesday nights. Matt's wife Tricia is especially appreciative.

2. Regal Cinemas just sent us a check for $850 from a credit balance left over from meeting at their Fairfax theater 3 years ago. They're unknowingly helping us move into Reston Town Center's movie theater.

3. Starbucks just happened to make a bunch of extra breakfast sandwiches during my study time late this afternoon... and offered one to me for free. (okay, that might be a stretch, but I'm claiming it anyway.)

4. Mike Hurt, who is leading the campus expansion for Mclean Bible Church became one of the one hundred... along with Anthony and Bethany Hoang, who were so vital to our church in the early years.

Status on the One Hundred Project

I am in awe of people's generosity toward our One Hundred Project. We are down to 58 opportunities left, and I can't believe how God is affirming this vision. What's crazy is that almost half of these people have never met me or attended History Church in their lives. They're simply people whose hearts God has touched for this special purpose. My adrenaline is starting to pump as we approach the half-way mark, and I'm continuing to pray for God to help us reach our goal. Reston will never be the same.

Small Groups, Sherpas and Mountain Peaks

Our small group semester begins in February, and I couldn't be more excited about this one! We use the metaphor of mountain climbing teams to describe our small groups. Our leaders [sherpas] guide people up 5 mountain peaks: growing believer, servant, steward, witness and teammate. Most semesters, our sherpas have their pick of any curriculum that fits one of these peaks, but sometimes we all do the same thing.

This semester: we're all going for how to study the Bible under the category of "growing believer." Can you imagine what would happen if everyone in our church decided to get in the Word each day and seek out meaning for their everyday lives? It would blow the doors off our church... not to mention dramatically change people's lives!

Logo unveiling coming soon

I'm looking forward to seeing the final stages of our new logo design on Tuesday night. God has blessed our church with an abundance of designers, and they're collaborating to create one spectacular logo for 'Reston Community Church.' The Reston Town Center has an impressive skyline, which we're integrating into the design.

After struggling for five years with a thin-stroke typeface for History Church ~ making it difficult to use on signage ~ my major requirement was bold and manly. =) It should be highly readable at 45 miles per hour. I wanted it to look more like a sports team logo than a church logo... and Josh came through in a big way! I'll post it as soon as we unveil it to the church on Sunday...

Floating inspiration (aka: now THAT's a light bulb!)

I don't know how, and I don't know when... but we're definitely using [these] at some point in the future. =) I discovered this while looking for unconventional lighting sources for our children's areas in the theater. A little much for that purpose, don't you think... =)

Dave Ferguson's "The Big Idea"

I just finished reading Dave Ferguson's soon-to-be-released "The Big Idea." Honestly, I wondered how he was going to fill an entire book with how to simplify our messages down to one basic concept. But it has turned out to be the most comprehensive manual on multi-site strategy I've ever read, including Multisite Revolution.

Just like Gerber's "E-Myth" the beauty of Ferguson's principles come alive when a church is moving into multiple campuses. In other words, the Big Idea "prototype" can make one church more efficient, but the greatest value comes from reproducing it many times over. This takes struture, planning, and discipline ~ all of which Ferguson's team demonstrates without stripping the fun out of church.

Sure, there are some great take-aways for improving your personal communication style. But Dave and his team are the pioneers of the multi-site movement, so you couldn't find a better bible for multiplying campuses. You can join the ongoing conversation [here].

I totally would've signed up for the glee club

[watch here]

10 ways NOT to start a church, but that God can overcome even if you do

1. Start in a difficult location. [Judges 6:14]
God told Gideon, "Am I not sending you?"

2. Start with no leadership ability. [6:14]
God told Gideon, "Go in the strength you have."

3. Start with doubt. [6:18]
God told Gideon, "I will wait [for you]."

4. Start with fear. [6:23]
God told Gideon, "Do not be afraid. You are not going to die."

5. Start without people's approval. [6:26]
God told Gideon to tear down his father's altar

6. Start by questioning your calling. [6:36]
God patiently assured Gideon

7. Start with no core group. [7:2]
God told Gideon, "You have too many men."

8. Start with people who don't stay. [7:3]
God told Gideon, "Anyone who trembles with fear may turn back."

9.  Start with no resources. [7:16]
God told Gideon to fight with trumpets and empty jars.

10. Start with inexperienced people. [7:17]
Gideon told them, "Follow my lead... do exactly as I do."

Green pastures by way of death valley

It's tempting as a pastor to lead people on a comfortable path. Ahh, the love and appreciation you get. No one leaves the church. But it's ultimately not the route God wants us to take. God doesn't just lead us to green pastures. He leads us to green pastures through death valley. Take Psalm 23:

"He leads me beside still waters.... Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death"

"You prepare a table before me.... in the presence of my enemies"

If the church stays comfortable, it misses those God-moments that make the church a supernatural experience. A pastor said yesterday, "There were easier routes the Israelites could have taken out of Egypt. But they would missed the parting of the Red Sea."

Mclean Bible Church's multisite strategy

Mclean Bible Church is located down the Dulles Toll Road just a few exits from us and stands as the 29th largest church in America. They're currently running a sermon series on the church's ambitious vision to go multisite ~ launching 10 campuses that will surround the DC beltway.

They just launched their first multisite campus for their Frontline ministry near the Rosslyn metro station in Arlington. Their site states, "The lobby and auditorium filled quickly so much so that we added an impromtu second service plus we had 100 people sitting in video overflow in the lobby. This response was beyond anything we had hoped and dreamed of.  Not only did God bring people to ths service, but he brought many people (almost 40%) who had never attended a service before. This is exactly what we hoped would happen as we launched this new campus." wow.

The Noah Principle for Church Planters

Don't worry about the storms outside the ark
Worry about the woodpeckers on the inside

Props to the Baby Mommas

At History, we'd be sooo lost without our young moms. We have the most fantastic bunch of gals I've ever seen, who have young children, but serve their brains out in our church. Even when life gets overwhelming, they never let their ministry areas drop because they understand how critical they are to reaching people for Christ. I've tried to become extremely tuned-into their lives, however, so they can take breaks, step out of ministry for a while when necessary because we cannot afford to let them get burned-out. I get a front-row view of the challenges of raising kids by seeing what Ainsley goes through each week. I could never do it... let alone do ministry on top of it. These moms don't even need to explain themselves ~ we'll happily reprieve them from any duties at the first sign of exhaustion. We love them too much.

This Sunday, I'm going to have a time of appreciation and prayer during the service for all of our young moms. Outside of Jesus, they're the foundation of our church.

Taking the church into the streets

Reston Town Center was created in the 1990s to be a "Sunday afternoon place," according to official documents. The amount of people that pour into the downtown area for brunch, community festivals, coffee & a newspaper... is staggering. I've already been looking at the Reston Town Center calendar to find activities where our church can spill out onto the streets. Cold water for walk-a-thon participants, light-projected advertising for Saturday night concerts under the stars, a booth where kids can make art at the Reston arts festival... It's exciting to think of the possibilities...

Breaking Growth Barriers

Sitting in our denom's monthly church planting gathering in Richmond, where 3 different pastors are addressing 'Breaking Growth Barriers' on three different levels ~ 50, 100, and 200. It's interesting that these guys weren't the ones who started their churches, but rather came in afterward... which is critical. It takes a fresh perspective and some strategic changes that planters sometimes can't make. They're too stuck in set ways or fearful of losing people. But when they get fresh eyes and lose the fear, it's magic.

Evangelicals need a new name

Nancy Pelosi's daughter Alexandra is an accomplished documentary filmmaker who created "Journeys with George" during the 2000 presidential campaign. Now she's coming out with "Friends of God" on HBO, Thursday night at 9:00 PM. It tracks the plight of evangelicals across the country, including Jerry Falwell and Ted Haggard in a very informal, intimate videographic style. I'm sure it's not very flattering.

Never, never, never, ever quit

This just added 10 more years onto my determination to never, ever quit. And it made me love my boys more. And I'm not afraid to admit I cried. =)