Faith in Action Prayer

I pray for New Season's next steps in ministry as it considers how to follow up on the Faith in Action experience.

24 more days until Faith in Action Service Day!

Faith in Action Prayer

I give thanks for all God is doing and will do through this campaign and beyond, in the church and in the community.

25 more days until Faith in Action Service Day!

Faith in Action Prayer

I pray for the church's relationship with its ministry partners, giving thanks for their contribution to people's well-being.

26 more days until Faith in Action Service Day!

Worship Matters

In all the talk about worship "styles" and the friction and fracture caused by different worship styles in the same church, it is necessary for pastors, worship teams, lay persons and others to spend some time thinking and reflecting theologically on the purpose of worship.

Before congregations go like a bunch of lemming off the cliff and into the peaks and valleys of what is called "contemporary worship" they do well to look again and reflect from a biblical and theological perspective about what worship is about. In a work by Cornelius Plantinga Jr. and Sue Rozeboom’s called Discerning the Spirits: A Guide to Thinking about Christian Worship they refer to this theological work as “discerning the spirits”: “…what we clearly need is a particular gift of the Holy Spirit, namely, the ability to discern spirits- to identify them, to tell them apart, and to disentangle them from the Spirit of God” (1).

As many new churches seek to make worship relevant, meaningful, and experiential, it must be recognized that expressions of worship cannot be divorced from the cultures in which they are practiced. However, not all in culture is worthy for worship and it is imperative for the church, with the help of the Holy Spirit, to discern what spirits are of God and what needs to be disentangled from the Spirit of God.

Instead of jumping on the anything but 19th century pipe organ sucks view of worship, or the let's play AC/DC and show video clips from Spiderman 3 to illustrate Gospel truths bandwagon; pastors, worship leaders and those charged with leading God's people in worship do well to ask some hard question before diving right in.

Questions like- What is the purpose of worship- to glorify and exalt God or to help people come to faith? Can't it be both? Do we do what we do to be "cool" or do we do it because it helps persons become worshippers and bring glory to God? Who is the "audience" in worship? Do we seek to please God first or people first? It is worth pondering.

Faith in Action Prayer

I pray for those outside the church who are invited to participate in Faith in Action- that they feel welcomed and useful, that the joy of service is contagious, that they "catch" the Good News of Christ by seeing it in action; that they work well together- and have fun!

27 more days until Faith in Action Service Day!

Faith in Action Prayer

I pray for the volunteers participating in Faith in Action- that they deepen their faith and grow in Christ's love as they discover new ministry interests and make new friends; that people would see Christ's love through their faith in action; that they work well together- and have fun!

29 more days until Faith in Action Service Day!

Faith in Action Prayer

I pray for the service projects- that they would go smoothly and safely, and that God would bless the church to be a blessing to its neighbors near and far. (Genesis 12:2)

30 more days until Faith in Action Service Day!

Faith in Action Prayer

I pray for those who will use the devotional during the campaign - that God's word would be living and active (Hebrews 4:12), leading people into growing fellowship, spiritual insight, and steps of faith.

31 more days until Faith in Action Service Day!

Faith in Action Prayer

I pray that church leaders would have vision and discernment in making ministry decisions for Faith in Action and beyond- that the church would be led to do God's will in God's way. (Colossians 1:9-10)

32 more days until Faith in Action Service Day!

Faith in Action Prayer

Today I pray for those who are planning and executing the logistics of the Faith in Action campaign at New Season Church. Give them wisdom, endurance, faithfulness, teamwork and a sense of humor. Amen.

33 more days until Faith in Action Service Day!

Faith in Action- Spiritual Preparation

I continue to be exited about our Faith in Action series and campaign coming up. If you missed the post about what Faith in Action is all about then you can go here.

Prayer is at the heart of Faith in Action. In prayer, we join ourselves with God's work of transformation in our community, and we ourselves are transformed. Prayer empowers us to do good works, guides our ministry decisions, gives life to our witness and renews our hope. Therefore we will prepare for God to work through Faith in Action before, during and after through prayer.

Beginning today and continuing until November 18th when we cancel church and go serve I will be offering a prayer here on the blog. I invite you to take a moment each day to pray the prayer. Along with the prayer will be a countdown.

Nolan Update

Baby Nolan is now 11 days old! Time flies. He is doing really well and doing all the things little babies are supposed to do. He did have some jaundice issues but that has all cleared up now. Thank God for the miracle of life!!

Nolan Phillip Almy

Here is Nolan Phillip Almy born on October 5, 2007 at Memorial Regional Medical Cener in Mechanicsville, VA at 4:00 PM weighing 7 lbs. 14 oz. and measuring 21 3/4 inches. And yes that is a Red Sox hat he has on. He came out with it on and and his first words were "Manny, Manny" and "Big Papi!"

Relationship Rescue Messages

Please find below the first three podcasts for the message series "Relationship Rescue" at New Season Church. To listen now, click on the links below.

Back to the Basics

Getting Along with Obnoxious People

Marriage Maintenance

Series

Relationships– we all got ‘em, we all want’em, what do we do with them? This series explores how to establish, maintain, grow and heal the different relationships we have with people by applying practical wisdom from the Bible.

Subscribe to this podcast via Apple iTunes by following this link.

Get Apple iTunes for PC or Mac here.

Faith in Action

Don't go to church- be the church! That is the message of the Faith in Action Campaign at New Season Church. On Sunday November 18th we are cancelling church and going to serve in our community. Faith in Action will continue to cement the idea at New Season that the church is not a building, it is not what happens inside four walls on a Sunday. Instead, the church is the mighty army of God! The church is Christ's hands and feet in a lost and hungry world! The church exists not for itself! The church is called to take its place and be ready to storm the gates of hell because not event he gates of hell shall prevail.

New Seasoners should be on the lookout for their opportunity to sign on to one of the service projects.

Make plans now to transform this community!!

Land in a Church Plant

We started New Season church with the intention of purchasing ten or more acres of land. We were quickly slapped down when we say how much money land cost- even land that was not in the prime areas. It is ridiculous.

So, we then thought we can maybe just exist nomadically for a while. Maybe we will never own land. Perhaps we can rent out an old supermarket that has closed down or something. We will go where God leads us.

Then, recently I was talking to someone about 8,000 sq. ft. or so in a fairly decent location (though not the best) and they want $20 a square foot. That amounts to about $160,000 a year for rent for a smaller space in a so-so location. Are they smoking crack? Hell, we mind as well just but some land at that rate.

Again, we trust where God will lead us and trust Him to open the doors that need to be opened!

Red Sox Win!

Well the Red Sox wrapped up the pennant last night by winning the AL East. The Yankees lost to the hapless Orioles in a come from behind effort capped by Melvin Mora's bunt!

I do have to give the Yankees some due as much as it makes me queasy since they have had a great run. Baseball is about momentum and I hope the Sox are getting some! Now it on to play the Anaheim, California, Los Angeles whatever they are called this week Angels!

U2 Audio Up

I wanted to let everyone know that the audio from the U2 messages "I Believe in God Do U2" is up and available for download. You can go to the New Season Message Vault and get it here. Or, simply click the links below. You can also get the text at the Message Vault as well.

We had a bit of delay in getting it up as we were in between offices during the series and did not have our high speed Internet up yet.

With or Without You

Where the Streets Have No Name

One

Relationship Rescue this Sunday

This Sunday at New Season Church we are starting brand new message series called "Relationship Rescue." The first message will be a back to the basics look at the truths about relationships as found in God's word. You won't want to miss being there. You can spread some word of mouse and send an e-vite by going here.

Hang Out with People Smarter Than You Are

One of the lessons I have learned when it comes to leadership and a being more effective church planter is that I need to hang out with people smarter than me. This is often pretty easy for me but is also crucial for me. I think hanging out with people that are smarter than you allows you to grow in knowledge, vision, and character no matter what "field" you are in. What I have found is it is best to intentionally initiate and cultivate those relationships. Don't rely on people to come to you or worse yet a denominational program.

This past Thursday and Friday I got to hang out with Mark Miller from Ebenezer UMC and with a group of people whose goal is to help our conference begin 250 new faith communities in 50 years. All of these people were smarter than me :)

Vision

As I have been reading Andy Stanley's Visioneering I have been spending some time reflecting on things I have learned about vision and have had others reinforce for me when it comes to vision...

• It is true without vision, the people perish. It is equally true, especially in the church planting world, that without people the vision will perish. Thanks Jim Griffith.
• In the initial stages of starting a church vision is overrated. The only vision that matters is your vision as the church planter given to you by God that you have discerned through searching the scriptures, prayer, and seeking godly counsel from others. There is no need to debate the vision God has given for a church with the team that assembles. In fact, if you have people that are constantly wanting to debate the vision God has given you then ask them to leave as perhaps they are not called to be part of the vision God has given you.
• One has to be mean about the vision. Thanks Shawn Lovejoy. Not mean as in "mean and nasty" but mean as discriminating in the ministries, programs, teaching the church does- does it help to fulfill the vision?
• Vision has to be verbalized, written, and presented time and time again.
• It is easy once a church has begun public worship to begin to lose its vision. This is the enemy's work.
• Vision largely remains the same, the methods used to accomplish the vision can change. For example, if you envision a church that is for people not yet in the church and you are using radio ads on the Alternative Rock Station and you have seen no results you might instead do a servant evangelism project whereby you are polishing people's boots at a club.

Waiting...

This past year we had our house renovated and had to move out for about 7-8 months. During that time we had moved into an apartment. One of the advantages to moving to an apartment was that there was high speed Internet available which we took full advantage of. We also had high speed Internet at the New Season Offices until we moved offices and found out the Verizon did not provide DSL to where we moved. It was a frustrating few weeks when we had moved backed into our office and had moved the New Season Offices when all we had was dial-up. I felt like just banging my head against the wall repeatedly. What did we ever do before? Thankfully, we have been able to get broadband at the office and will be trying satellite at home.

I am convicted though about how our world, and my own little world, wants everything quickly.

• We don't like to wait too long at traffic lights.
• We like food served in less than five minutes.
• We want our money instantly out of ATMs.
• Our communication happens in seconds via email and texting.
• We get PO'd when they do not open more registers at Wal-Mart when there are more than three people in line.
• We try to schedule our flites so we do not have to waste time and wait for connections.

But, how does that affect us spiritually? I find myself expecting the same thing from God- quickness. Give me the answer now Lord. Bless me or these people now Lord. Lead me now Lord. There is an old saying that talks about "waiting on the Lord." Interestingly, the disciples waited three days on Jesus to be raised from the dead. They then went to Jerusalem to wait for the gift of the Holy Spirit. There is a lot of waiting going on there.

Perhaps some time the answers to our prayer is to wait.

• Wait for the right mate.
• Wait for the next promotion.
• Wait for the next group of people to be reached for Jesus.
• Wait as your child grows up and matures and then they will make good decision.

Waiting is hard. Yet, it is something God wants us to do because despite all our pda's, Blackberry's and Google Calendars the God who made and owns the universe also owns time and that is a good thing. Here is a good quote.

A. B. Simpson once wrote: "There are some spiritual conditions that cannot be accomplished in a moment. The breaking up of the fallow ground takes time. The frosts of winter are as necessary as the rains of spring to prepare the soil for fertility. God has to break our hearts to pieces by the slow process of His discipline, and grind every particle to power, and then to mellow us and saturate us with His blessed Spirit, until we are open for the blessing He has to give us."

Robert's First Day of School

Our oldest, Robert, had his first day of school this past Tuesday at Bowling Green Primary School. We put him on the bus bright and early at 7:30 AM. Diana and I did pretty well (well she got teary eyed and cried a little bit while I was my regualr stoic calloused self:) Robert looked real cute waving to us out the bus window. He did real well and did not cry and sat right behind the bus driver.

As any good obsessed parent would do in sending their first child off to school we followed the bus. The bust took like an hour and fifteen minutes to get to the school! We got there before the bus and were there when he got off the bus. He was doing fine until he saw us and started to cry. We brought him to his classroom and got him situated and left.

He apparently calmed down pretty quick and had a great day. He has been doing really well and seems to enjoy it. Diana and I are so very proud of him.

I continue to pray for him and one thing God has tuaught me in all this is my need to surrender, even the cocoon I try to put around my son. For the Heavenly Father is the one who will ultimately keep watch. Those are far better hands and protection than mine!!

Mad Props

Mad props and a huge shout out are well deserved by two guys and their spouses from New Season. We moved office space a few weeks ago to an old haunted house (not really but it looked like it).

Brett Barker and Robert Herron scraped the house by hand removing the three hundred year old lead paint from the outside. They then painted the whole house. It was a huge project taking many hours and I am most grateful to them. I know I speak for the rest of the New Season community as well. And, not only did their spouses allow them to be way for such long periods of time they came and helped with yard work. Thanks Melissa and Kathy!

As we have made this move we wanted the space to reflect well on the church and be well kept. These folks and others helped make that happen. Thanks everybody!

U2 Message Series

We have just been having a lot of fun with our message series that uses U2 as a jumping off point to delve deeper into the Bible and our faith.

Recently, Amy Umble, from the Free Lance Star newspaper in Fredericksburg did a story on it. She did a great job covering it and provided some great resources for readers to explore further the connection between U2 and faith.

Here is a link to the article.

Gratitude

I try to be a courteous driver. I let people in when they are trying to get out onto the road. If a person has their directional on and wants to switch lanes in front of me, I let them. When merging with other cars I follow the "every other car" rule of merging. What ticks me off though is when people do not say thank you. Here I am doing something nice for them and they do not have the courtesy to say thanks. That's ridiculous. Even worse than not saying thanks is when the person just looks at you as if it was their right to be let in/ out or whatever!!

I have to ask myself though do I have to be thanked? Is my being kind to someone contingent on being thanked? I think of Jesus who cleansed ten lepers and only one came back. The Bible never says he "unhealed" the other nine that were ungrateful. The God who sends rain and sunshine and blesses even the wicked does not get thanked by the great majority of people. His love is not contingent on being thanked.

I am not God, but I am called to reflect God and be Christ-like. That means I have to love without any expectation of gratitude. Darn this following Jesus thing!! :)

Diana is 31

Today, my beautiful wife and life partner turns 31! I still remain her elder as I will be 31 until December!

I first met Diana when she was 18. According to my bad math skills that's 13 years now!! Diana and I met at Randolph-Macon College in Ashland, VA. Her cousin was my freshmen year roommate. Diana also started at RMC the same time we did. So she hung around with us and the rest is history as they say.

Happy birthday Diana!!!

Masks

Why is it that we human beings feel the need so many masks? Why is it we have to pretend to be somebody we are not? Why is this so especially in the church?

In the church we have had to pretend "I have it all together" when in reality we are going crazy. We have pretended "My marriage is always rock steady" when in actuality it is on the rocks and you are just staying together for the sake of the kids. We have feigned that "I am happy" when we are torn up inside. We have fooled people into believing that our family is altogether when we are more like the Osbournes than the Cleavers.

Thankfully, in Christ there is an alternative. In relationship with Christ we can be who we are. There is no need for masks when we are in relationship with Christ. We do not have to pretend to be somebody we are not or put on aires to protect people's perceived perceptions of us. Instead, because he loves us as we are with all our warts, pimples and wounds we can be authentic. Christ never leaves us where we are and in him a marriage is strengthened, sadness is turned into gladness, and families are held together even in their dysfunction. Even if we would want to put on a mask and seek to fool God about who we really are or what we are really feeling it would be of no use. He knows out thoughts and our hearts.

That is not a scary thing, but good news actually. Because it means he knows all that about us and still loves us and through his life, death and resurrection loves us more than we can ever know.

Personal and Social Holiness

This past Sunday we talked about the difference between personal and social holiness. We believe in both. Followers of Christ are to hold both in tension and our faith is dead when we have one and not the other. Incidentally, we see many churches that are so focused on one and not the other. Some churches are exclusively concerned with the number of notches they can put on their belts for the number of people saved. Don’t get me wrong- it is awesome for churches to help people accept the saving work of Christ. Then there are other churches that are not much more than an extension of the United Nations humanitarian efforts where they are so concerned for the poor and hungry and meeting physical needs they reject the spiritual needs of the people they are trying to help. Don’t get me wrong followers of Christ must do these things as well. It is a matter of balance.

See, it is not enough to just have your heart right. Yes, that is important and we are saved by grace through faith, yet that faith is to be lived with a conscience that lies beyond just one’s inward spiritual dimensions. Yes, we have to pray, grow in a vital personal relationship with Christ, practice the spiritual disciplines, but we must also love our neighbor, care for the poor and feed the hungry. Yes, we have to seek to partner with the Holy Spirit to see people come to faith but we also have to be concerned with the redemption of our communities, our society and the world.

Personal and social holiness is a both/and not an either/or.

New Office Space

I am real excited about the move in our office space at New Season. We are moving from our space in a professional center that does not get much traffic to a house we will use for office space that is right on a main road. We will go from about 6 cars a day seeing our sign to about 6,000 cars. I am thankful for this opportunity to raise awareness of New Season Church.

The new office space is an old house that needs a lot of work. We have two guys that have been busy taking off old paint off the exterior to get it ready for painting this weekend. There is a woman from our church who is going to paint some of the inside. This coming Saturday we are going to clean up the yard as well.

We want the space to reflect well on who we are. We recognize that our office will be a first impression for many.

School of Congregational Development Day 1

Thursday was the first day of the School of Congregational Development. After persons who were not already here made their way here the School started in the afternoon with a time of worship and welcome.



Kirbyjon Caldwell from Windsor Village was up first and spoke about vision and call. This was the first time I have heard and see (because no one just "hears" Kirbyjon you also "see" this guy preach/speak). Kirbyjon shared some ways to either enhance or kill your vision and call. He used Genesis 13 as his text. He said all must ask- who are you following, God or people? You have to have a compass. You have to have capital. You have to have consecration- have your plans been to the altar? And then there is capacity- have you run out of space? Conflict- how will you manage people's perception of your increase? And then composure- since you are called why are you trippin'?



We then broke out into ministry tracks. I am here to learn more not only about being effective in starting New Season but also in the capacity of being a member of the Task Force 250 of our Annual Conference as we seek to develop a plan to begin 250 new faith communities in the next 30 years. Therefore, my track is called "Developing an Annual Conference Strategy." While I am a little out of my league among the others present in this track (District Superintendents, Conference Church Developers and Bishops who are in the track) the track has been interesting.



Bishop Scott Jones of the Kansas area shared about the need for a systems approach in developing a Conference strategy. Craig Miller then shared what some of the elements are of an Annual Conference strategy. One really good part of each session in the ministry tracks is that we then have time to process with other people from our Annual Conference where we are in/ where we need to be in light if what we have heard.



In the evening we returned and began with worship and heard a message from Andrew Conrad pastor of Congregational Care at COR. He talked about new beginnings. Andrew is also a blogger and you can read his blog here. For Plenary #2 where we heard from Tom Butcher from the Executive Office of New Church Development of the General Board of Discipleship. Tom shared about the work of the Path 1 team and the denomination wide plan for beginning new churches.

Following Tom was church planter Steven Blair who shared how his church, FirstLight, was ministering in a postmodern/ postchristendom world. Steven has a heart for his generation and a passion to be engaged in ministry that is relevant and reaching people.

Free Trip to Kings Dominion

I am real excited about the Free Trip to Kings Dominion servant evangelism project we are undertaking. Yeah, we are giving away a free trip to Kings Dominion theme park to kids ages 5-17 in the neighborhoods surrounding the school we meet at (Lee Hill Elementary School). We are particularly targeting the often neglected areas of our mission field. We just wanted to do something in the community to say thanks to the community for their support and to demonstrate the love of Christ in a simple way.

Here's the details. We are going Friday August 17th. We will leave from the school parking lot at 10 AM and return by 5:45 pm. The trip is open to 5-17 year olds. People will have to call the church office or register online to go. We will need a permission slip and a the covenant of conduct sheet signed. We are looking for people to sponsor a child for $32 and to serve as chaperons. If you would like to do either then shoot me an email.

Vacation

I just finished up a week's vacation with my family in Myrtle Beach, SC. It was good to get away and good to get back. We had a really good time. The most eventful part of the trip was our three year old Jack jumping backwards off the side of the pool and cracking his chin on the concrete. This required a four hour emergency room visit and four stitches. This is four stitches and a broken leg and Jack just turned three a couple of weeks ago. Lord, help us!

This Thursday I am heading back out to attend the School of Congregational Development at the UM Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas. There is a good group going from our Conference and should be a time of learning and sharing ideas. We are seeking to learn some things to help us come up with a strategy for beginning 250 new faith communities in the next thirty years.

Connection Cards

Churches that are trying to connect with first time guests and have any assimilation plan at all typically use connection cards. At New Season, we call them Guest Registration Cards. I have found there are a couple of schools of thought out there when it comes to connection cards.

The first school of thought is the one I started out in. This view says have some form of a connection card whether that is a tear off on the worship program or a card in the back of a pew or an insert in our worship program. During an announcement or welcome time ask EVERYBODY to fill out a card. The idea is that you are being sensitive to your first time guests by not making them feel like they are the only ones filling out cards. I have found this method gets you a higher rate of return on the cards.

The second school of thought was suggested to me by my coach Jim Griffith. Jim suggests that that you do all of the above but that you don't ask everybody to fill them out but as you welcome first time guests you use the language, "If you are a first time guest with us and would LIKE TO REGISTER YOUR ATTENDANCE with us this morning we invite you to use the tear off in your worship program." The difference here will come in the quality of the card you get back. You will not get as many back but they will be "qualified". What I mean is that these are the people who will in actuality be saying "Hey notice me, send me a letter, give me a call, bring a gift by my house etc." Or, they are are at least open to that. Using this method persons do not feel compelled to fill out a card because the pastor said so. Moreover, the person who has filled out a card using the first method I described may have very well decided in the next three minutes that they are never coming back to your church again for whatever reason.

It seems to me that both these methods can work. What I like about the the second method and why I have chosen to use it at New Season is that allows a guest greater latitude to be anonymous if they so choose, or to be noticed. When people, even persons with no church background, put their address down, they have a reasonable expectation that they will be contacted.

Here is what our card looks like. It is a tear off in the worship program.

What About Angels?

Please find below the podcast for the fourth message "What About Angels" in the message series "Heaven Only Knows" at New Season Church.

To listen now, click on the podcast icon below.

What About Angels

Series

Everywhere you turn there are popular books movies and TV shows about heaven. But do they really answer the important questions? Is Heaven a real place? What will it be like? And, what does it take to get there? Heaven is mysterious, but instead of wondering or worrying about what happens after this life, come explore some answers with us at New Season Church this week. All are welcome (no halos required)!

Subscribe to this podcast via Apple iTunes by following this link.

Get Apple iTunes for PC or Mac here.

Battersonisms

Mark Batterson is the lead pastor, founder and guru of National Community Church in Washington D.C. Mark is one of the sharpest people I have read and you can glean from him yourself from his blog here.

As I have read Mark for a while now he always seems to have this knack for coming up with pithy little sayings that hit the mark (no pun intended). In a recent post here about churches using theaters as meeting places and about the need to be kingdom minded instead of fiefdom minded Mark points out: "I've learned that there are two very different approaches to ministry: my kingdom come and thy kingdom come." That sums it up well- "my kingdom come versus thy kingdom come."

That, friends is a Battersonism. I do not know if Mark makes these up himself or steals them from others but they are great sayings that help define a missional mindset. Some other Battersonisms I remember off the top of my head include:

Criticize by creating.
Everything (they do at NCC) is an experiment.
Irrelevance = irreverence.
There are ways of doing church that have not even been dreamed up yet.

And many more I am sure!

8 Years

8 years is the number of years Diana and I have been married. We have known each other for 13. She spent quite a bit of time relentlessly pursuing me:) We celebrated our anniversary July 10th with a special dinner at Brocks in downtown Fredericksburg- we had a gift certificate. No, I am not cheap I did get her a pregnancy massage at Ambiance Day Spa. Diana is a beautiful, intelligent, compassionate, and patient person. I am blessed to have her as my wife and my ministry partner.

I have noticed that every church planter has the best wife in the world. That is because we all do. Not only does it take a special woman to be pastor's wife it takes an extra special woman to be a planter's wife (spouse). It is so important to make sure the spouse is on board when planting because of the stress of the situation, the chaos, and the uncertainty. It is not for everybody. When Diana and I came to Massaponax she was getting ready to start her own orthodontic practice (including building her own building), we had just bought our first home, we were getting ready to have Jack, and yeah we were starting a church.

It takes a committed and virtuous woman to be part of all this. I am glad I am married to one!

Smoking Section

Shawn Lovejoy had a great post on Sunday about the "Lost Parties" they are doing at Mountain Lake Church. You can read it here. This is one example of what has been called "hanging out in the smoking section." That is just a way of saying hanging out with people most followers of Christ would never hang out with- you know "those people" who sit in the smoking section. It seems to me as Shawn rightfully points out in this post that Jesus hung out in the smoking section (with sinners, tax collectors and prostitutes). I think he said something about coming not for the well but for the sick.

When I was seeking to find out all I could about the Massaponax and Greater Fredericksburg community when I first got on the ground to plant New Season Church one of my weekly stops was on Fridays at 3:30 p.m. to the bar at Pancho Villa Mexican restaurant for an O'Douls of course:). This was my sitting in the smoking section so to speak to get me out of my "Christian" bubble (surrounded by people who talk, think and act like me ((no I don't have fish on my car by the way))). There I was able to hear the stories of people who were just living and often struggling with life. I was able to engage a segment of the mission field I could not engage in meeting with school principals, civic and community leaders, and other church leaders.

The question for all followers of Christ is where will you sit in the "smoking section?" The studies say after becoming a follower of Christ you lose your non-Christian friends in two years. Wow!! You know mama said not to hang out with people who sat in the smoking section but Jesus said to indeed hang out and love them.

Servant Evangelism Idea- Flag Give Away

Each year there is a short and sweet July 4th parade in downtown Fredericksburg early in the morning on July 4th. For the past two years we have gathered early before the parade to hand out free 4" X 6" American flags to people on the parade route. Everybody wants a flag at a parade right! This is an easy and fun event and the people who give away the flags really enjoy sharing God's love in a practical way.

All you have to do is search the Internet enough ahead of time to find the best price on flags. Once your flags come in put a label on them. We used regular address labels that we stick on the stick of the flag that say, "God Bless America- from your Friends at New Season Church www.NewSeasonUMC.org." We then put a bunch of flags in plastic grocery bags, meet at a central location and hand out the flags.

New Season Bloggers

Becky and Brad Kocher have a family blog they have set up to tell about their life and most of all about their precious little guy Aidan. He is a cute kid and you gotta love the red hair! Check out the Kocher's Blog Here.

BTW, did you know Brad coaches baseball and is a very successful baseball coach?
Check out the awards he has won...

(From Becky)
Brad coached another successful season of Spotsy High baseball and was the recipient of 4 prestigious awards. He won:
--High School Coach of the Year (voted on by his peers at Spotsy High)
--District Coach of the Year (voted on by the other district coaches)
--Regional Coach of the Year (voted on by the other region coaches)
--Free Lance Star Coach of the Year (voted on by FLS staff based on stats, expectations, etc...)

Way to go Brad!!

Our Country Tis of Thee

This past week I was reminded of what a great country we live in. For all of our shortcomings and foibles we remain the greatest country in the world and the greatest country of civilization.

In some circles such a statement has become taboo because it would be viewed as ethno-centric or nationalistic. However, unlike the "blame America first" crowd which blames the U.S.A. for all the ills of the world, I can make such a statement because my priorities are straight. I am first a follower of Christ- then a proud American. It is important not to confuse the two.

C.S. Lewis perhaps put it best in his book Four Loves...
"We all know now that [the love of one's country] becomes a demon when it becomes a god."

Love of country can become a demon if we set it up as an idol. When we get God first though, there is nothing wrong under the sun with loving one's country.

Third Great Awakening

Many, including me, are praying for a Third Great Awakening in our world. This will be different than the previous Great Awakenings in the history of America as it will be a global awakening.

What will also be different is that it will not be primarily in the West. I have come to believe the next Awakening will be an Eastern and Southern event. It will come forth out of places like China where faith is burning in small groups where Christians are persecuted. Or, how about the great work occurring in the Philippines. It will come from places like Africa where the church is growing like in the Book of Acts. Thank God for these movements of Christ in our world.

We have witnessed, most among the oldline churches, many people afraid of this movement of God because in typical modernist fashion it has been turned into a dualistic debate between liberals and conservatives (the flourishing churches in other parts of the world are typically more conservative and thus kept out of denominational structure and leadership by the typically more liberal oldline leadership in the West for fear that these developing churches might threaten protected theological positions). We see this in both the UMC and the Episcopal Church.

We do well to recognize that our unity comes in the statement that "Jesus is Lord" and not through any named theological camp be it liberal or conservative.

Heaven Only Knows

Please find below the first two podcasts for the message series "Heaven Only Knows" at New Season Church.

To listen now, click on the podcast icon below.

What is Heaven Like?

Do All Roads Lead to Heaven?


Series
Everywhere you turn there are popular books movies and TV shows about heaven. But do they really answer the important questions? Is Heaven a real place? What will it be like? And, what does it take to get there? Heaven is mysterious, but instead of wondering or worrying about what happens after this life, come explore some answers with us at New Season Church this week. All are welcome (no halos required)!

Subscribe to this podcast via Apple iTunes by following this link.





Get Apple iTunes for PC or Mac here.

A Eucharistic Understanding of Evangelism

Here is a video I have been working on that is a sacramental view of evangelism. Enjoy!

Volunteer Appreciation Lunch

This past Sunday at New Season we had our Volunteer Appreciation Lunch to thank all the people who help to make New Season a church that "helps people become all that God intends them to be." We brought in a caterer and feasted on herb roasted chicken, scalloped potatoes, green beans, and more.

As any church planter knows, volunteers are critical to beginning a new faith community. It is of utmost importance that they are thanked, feel appreciated, encouraged, equipped and know why they do what they do. In addition to our Volunteer Appreciation Lunch here are some other ways we thank our volunteers.

1. Say it. Say it again. And then say it again. Always thank those who give up their time and use their gifts to further the cause of Christ.

2. Send a thank you card. A good practice to get into is to send a thank you note to at least one person/ family once a week to thank them for what they do and more importantly who they are.

3. Splurge on them. Put a Starbucks gift card in your note or some other gift card- especially for those who rally step up.

4. Recognize groups of volunteers- those who sing or play instruments, the people who load and unload your truck/ trailer, children's ministry people etc.

5. We have not done this one yet but it is one on our radar to show a brief video during our offering to highlight ministries people carry out in the church and to make a connection between our giving and our service.

Wisdom From a Old Dead White Guy

William Booth- Methodist and founder of the Salvation Army

A Spiritual Battle Cry
While women weep, as they do now, I'll fight;
while little children go hungry, as they do now, I'll fight;
while men go to prison, in and out, in and out, as they do now, I'll fight;
while there is a drunkard left, while there is a poor lost girl upon the streets, while there remains one dark soul without the light of God,
I'll fight-I'll fight to the very end!

Handle with Care: Because Parenting is the Most Important Thing You Will Do

Please find below the podcasts for the message series "Handle with Care: Because Parenting is the Most Important Thing You Do. at New Season Church.

To listen now, click on the podcast icon below.

Handle with Love and Discipline

Special Instructions for Moms

Special Instructions for Dads

Series
Some days it’s a walk on the beach; other days, you’re caught in an undertow. How can we shape our children’s character so that they stand strong against the sometimes-crashing waves of life? Whether you’re a confident parent or if you’re struggling, this message series was designed to help you make your family the very best it can be.

Subscribe to this podcast via Apple iTunes by following this link.

Get Apple iTunes for PC or Mac here.

Evangelism Tips

Tim Hull from Harvest Church and I had a display out our Annual Conference's Evangelism Expo. Part of what we gave away were free ideas folks can use in thier local setting. Below are what we gave away with links to the PDF files. Please use as you are able.

http://newseasonumc.org/documents/newneighbors.pdf
Reaching New Neighbors- A brief explanation on how to begin to reach a segment of your mission field that is most open to attending your church for the first time.

http://newseasonumc.org/documents/websites.pdf
Websites- Less and less people will pick up the phone to call your church to get info. They will anonymously go to your website- what will they find? Or, not find? Learn basic principles about using the web as an evangelistic tool.

http://newseasonumc.org/documents/workingyourneighborhood.pdf
Working Your Neighborhood- You need to know your mission field better than anybody else. By working the neighborhood you move beyond the walls of your church to engage your community, learn from your community and raise awareness about your church- find out how here.

http://newseasonumc.org/documents/mailerspostcards.pdf
Mailers/ Postcards- Direct mail is one of the ways to raise awareness about your church in the community, invite persons to your church, and empower the regular attendees at your church to invite friends, relatives, co-workers and neighbors. You can also utilize in-house postcards for new message series you begin at your church that can empower regular attendees to invite others. Learn more here.

http://newseasonumc.org/documents/guestology.pdf
Guestology- Do you expect guests to show up at your church? How will they be greeted and treated? Offering hospitality is vitally important if you want to reach people who have never been to church or have stopped attending a long time ago. Get some pointers and stir your imagination here.

http://newseasonumc.org/documents/servantevangelism.pdf
Servant Evangelism- Sharing God’s love in a practical way is a fun, easy and faithful way to demonstrate the love of Christ in your community. You will experience more persons participating in outreach efforts and make a greater impact in your community through this low threat-high touch method of evangelism. Check it out here.

http://newseasonumc.org/documents/signdrop.pdf
Sign Drop- Do you have one of those metal road signs that is rusted out and people stopped noticing three months after you put it up. Create new awareness about your church by conducting a sign drop in your community. Don’t let the realtors, politicians and loan companies be the only ones who raise awareness, redeem this method of creating awareness about your church for the glory of God. Learn how here.

Potent Quotables

I am working my way through George Hunter's How to Reach Secular People and came across two really great quotes. Here they are...

p. 112 Christianity was lauded as a monumental movement of fishers of men and women; today we are keepers of the aquarium.

p. 113 Wesley said, "The world is my parish." We often say the parish is my world.

Not About Us

While the approval of the continuance of the work of the Task Force to make plans for the birthing of 250 new faith communities was exciting the approval of an 8 million dollar financial campaign to renovate and add onto the Virginia United Methodist Assembly Center in Blackstone demonstrated the a lack of foresight on the part of the Conference and reinforced the need for a recalibration of the missional mindset as found in people like John Wesley and Francis Asbury.

While the arguments for and against such a campaign are emotional for many, the crux of the issue has to do with setting priorities. Jesus said, "Where your treasure is, your heart is." Is our heart to be in a building or reaching people for Jesus Christ? How many new disciples were made at Blackstone last year? How many people could be reached with the good news of Jesus Christ for 8 million dollars? Is this 8 million dollars spent "on us"? Yes. How will having such a grand renovation help us in making "new" disciples of Jesus Christ?

The Great Commission says go and make disciples not build buildings for retreats. It is indeed a sad day in Virginia when we are focused on buildings instead of people.

Task Force 250 Update

The Virginia Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church unanimously approved the continuance of the work of the 250 Task Force to develop a plan to begin 250 new faith communities in the next 30 years. The rest of this year and next will be taken up with developing that plan. Before this group makes these plans it does well to keep in mind that there is a need to ask God what his plan is before we tell him ours.

Busy Couple of Weeks

I have got a busy couple of weeks this week and next. I am in the midst of taking a two week summer intensive course for some Doctor of Ministry work. The second week of that I will be going back and forth from Richmond to Roanoke for our Annual Conference. And yeah, I will be doing the teaching on both Sundays. Pray for me.

Church Planting Breakfast

This year at our tribes Annual Conference I am working to get together church planters and those interested in church planting. The response has been really great. I think this is just indicative of the larger movement in our Annual Conference that church planting is the most effective way to make disciples of Jesus Christ. This of course is part of the larger movement of the "Third Great Awakening" which will be a church planting awakening.

Details of the Church Planting Breakfast:
Tuesday June 12 7:00 a.m. Hotel Roanoke Pocahontas Room B Cost $13
Make your reservation by emailing me.

Homeless Shelter

This past Sunday I was at the homeless shelter helping to prepare and serve about 80 people with Lasagna, salad and bread. If you want to meet Christ then you need to go and be with there is need. Christ was present in that place.

The church cannot only talk about faith and following Christ but must give people real opportunities to live out their faith.

We are going back in late August, if you are interested in serving shoot me an email.

37"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'
40"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'

Blogging Break Over

I am officially declaring my brief blogging break over. Last week was a great week as I got some time off and spent time with family.

Here were some highlights from last week:

• My brother was down house and job hunting. He is moving here in the middle of June from Massachusetts and we have him all lined up for a job and he has a house to rent.
• In between looking for houses to rent we got to play three rounds of golf at Four Winds or as some people call it Four "Weeds" (Hey you can't beat the price $27 for 18 holes including the cart with no extra charge for the ten thousand may flies buzzing around your head while you are trying to swing your club. Maybe that is why I shot so poorly- nah!).
• My oldest son Robert graduated from preschool (who knew they had such things as preschool graduations!). He will be going to kindergarten next year. My how time flies!
• We had a great outdoor service for Memorial Day though it was hot. God humbled me big time as my notes got blown away (the Spirit blows where the Spirit blows) and I left my mic on during singing for one song. I think Steve Kropp intentionally let the church sing when he backed off the mic to just hear me sing and embarrass me:). We had a great cook out right after church.
• I spent some time at the Outlaws (my wives parents) for more cookouts, time with family, four wheeler rides and boating on the river.
• It is good to be back!

It's Early But...

Red Sox are up by 9 1/2 over the Yankees already after sweeping a double header from Detroit!! I do not know if Steinbrenner can buy his way out of this. Not even that old washed up rocket dud Clemens can save them.

Jerry Falwell's Legacy

Much has been written and said in the last few days about the legacy of Jerry Falwell. His supporters have rightly pointed to the enduring legacy he will leave behind. His detractors have largely spewed vitriolic venom. This is sad whether you agreed with the man or not. This is sad especially coming from those who are said to be followers of Christ.

When we move on from the politics of Jerry Falwell what we see if a man who turned Lynchburg upside down. The media in its rush to sensationalize does not tell us about homes built, community services offered, and money given for all the projects of Thomas Road Church and Liberty University they instead indicate that Falwell's only legacy was the Moral Majority.

One legacy that I have not seen spoken about is Falwell's legacy as it pertains to church planting. My understanding is that Falwell was a "turn around" pastor and not a church planter per se. However, the man obviously had a heart for church planting. In the last few months I have noticed that among the landscape of church planters across the nation there are many who have had some connection to Liberty. These are some of the most effective, innovative and articulate church planters out there. And so, part of Falwell's legacy will live on through these guys and persons will continue to be touched by the good news of Jesus because of Jerry Falwell and his passion to see lost people connected to Christ. That is the kind of passion the church needs no matter what someone's politics are!

When It Comes to Borrowing from Other Churches...

When it comes to borrowing from other churches we do better to use templates (principles) instead of cutting and pasting (specific methods that may only work in that ministry context). ---Ancient Microsoft (Chinese) Secret!

Taking Shots Nothing New

As persons seek to reach people far from God through fresh expressions of the good news of Jesus Christ the good church Pharisees among us like to take their shots at the pioneers of faith. Ask guys like Gary Lamb and Perry Noble and quite a few others who have written publicly about their drubbing at the hands of some people. Anybody who has ever sought to express the age old and orthodox message of the good news of Jesus in a fresh way has been criticized often times by fellow Christ followers.

All this is nothing new under the sun though. As I have been reading through John Wesley's Journal it has been really interesting to see how people took shots at him all the time as he sought to be an innovator and bring Christ to the disenfranchised. He writes about going to a church and preaching and inevitably after every church he visits he writes, "And I was forbidden to go and preach there again."

Of course the one who took the most shots for challenging the religious establishment of his day was Jesus. It makes sense then as one follows Christ that they too will be shot at. That is what Jesus meant when he said "take up your cross." Following is not always about the benefits but also the hardships. Thankfully, his grace is sufficient. And, in the end he wins and so do we. Might those presenting Christ in fresh ways that are Christ centered and biblical for the sake of those far from God be "forbidden to go and preach there" all the more if it offends the 99 already in the fold.

Mother's Day Message

Please find below the podcast for the stand alone message I taught at New Season Church.

To listen now, click on the podcast icon below.

Mother's Day Message

Message
We went old school with this message taking on an expository format as we asked and "What does God intend mothers, wives and women to be?" That is the question that is addressed in Proverbs 31:10-31. In this message we glean principles and characteristics that describe the mother, wife and woman God intends. It is in being a reflection of the woman in Proverbs 31:10-31 that women live out God's intention and more importantly follow Christ.

Subscribe to this podcast via Apple iTunes by following this link.

Get Apple iTunes for PC or Mac here.

What Will the Church Be Known For

The modern dinosaur church of the 20th century was often known better for what it was against than what it was for. One kind of church was against abortion, homosexuals, drinking, etc. Another church was against racism, poverty, sexism, capitalism etc.

No matter the theological bent of churches in this epoch they were known for what they were against.

Can we dream a new kind of church?

A church that is better known for what it is for than what it is against (not dismissing sin or the call to holiness but recognizing our world needs to know the Christ of hope and not condemnation!).

Such a church would be for...

• People finding life in this world and in the world to come.
• Persons discovering their purpose and finding meaning in their life.
• For persons to join together in community to transform the world around them.
• People being freed from addiction, past pain, bad relationships and other maladies.
• Creating environments that creatively present the timeless truth of Christ.
• Allowing people to come and explore and follow Christ without having it all together (or pretending like they do).

More?...

Give them Jesus not the Church

There has been a wonderful second Reformation in the church in the last twenty to thirty years as persons have imagined and dreamed new ways of doing church for the sake of reaching people with the good news of Jesus Christ. I think this second Reformation is going to change the face of Christendom forever and I feel privileged and blessed to be a part of it.

The rub with all this is that we must be careful in offering our "new kind of church" or in helping people "reimagine church" or as we "re-present church" or "in changing the way people think about church" that we are always keeping Christ the focus (I am not suggesting anybody is not here just thinking out loud as much for myself as anybody else!). What we are trying to reveal to folks is the power the living Christ can make in their lives both today and for eternity. We have to watch out for substituting a model for accomplishing that goal for the goal (Jesus) itself. Fresh expressions of Christianity in the context of a worshipping community are tools to connect people to Jesus. We need not seek to convert anybody to a style of doing church as a substitute for following the Master.

In all our creativity and innovation for Jesus we must remember that it's him that should always be front and center. It is Christ and the cross that should be the only stumbling block.