11/26/07 UPDATE
I hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving! Ours went well, even though our kitchen sink stopped up during the preparation of the meal. We had to wash all the dishes in the laundry room sink! Fun stuff. We did get a little snow last week, which was a new twist for Thanksgiving. It was also Jacqueline's birthday, so we had a festive day all the way around.
Our crowd was down yesterday, as expected. We had 21 (16/5). The holidays are going to be challenging, but I think they will go well. We are planning a church-wide dinner on the 16th. We're also working to help a local mission as they collect gifts for families who could use a little help over Christmas. We'll be trying to collect sippy cups to be part of a package for the toddlers. Last year, this ministry, Mission for All Nations, ministered to 300 families which had 750 children. The initial response to the invitation seemed to be good.
We're also focusing on the Lottie Moon Christmas offering. I gave my usual challenge - try to give the same amount to the offering that you spend on your family for Christmas. I'm not sure how many have responded through the years, but it has been a good principle to keep our family balanced at Christmas. We figure that Jesus is the point of the holiday, so shouldn't he receive the majority of the focus.
One concern is that through this we discussed our connection with the Southern Baptist Convention. I know this is a concern for a few people, mainly because they don't know what a Baptist is other than some of the goofy stuff they hear on tv. I'll be talking through it with some people in the coming days, so pray for us in that respect.
We had another encouraging discussion with a church from Kansas last week about the possibility of parnership for next year. We'll be meeting in the coming weeks to discuss it - do we feel led to partner together? How will it work? At what level will they be involved, etc.? Please pray for guidance as we talk through it.
I also received a bill for my Doctor of Minsitry work last week. I'm at the point where I have to pay $500 every six months to extend it. I'm trying to get focused on that and see if I can get the thesis completed in the next year. It will be really trying to add that to the plate, so I'm not sure if I can/will/need to do it at this point. Will you pray for guidance for me?
Lastly, but most importantly, I want to ask you to pray for Jacqueline this week. She will be undergoing her third surgical procedure of the year on Wednesday (28th). This is the most invasive of the three and she is concerned about it. Please pray for her health and quick recovery. Also pray for us as it always adds more stress to the mix when mother is out of commission.
Monday, November 26, 2007
Monday, November 19, 2007
11/19/07 UPDATE
Same story, different week. Really busy. We'll see how it turns out.
Yesterday we had 24 (20 adults and 4 kids). We had a lot of regulars who were out. It was also the first Sunday that we haven't had a first time guest. We are entering a difficult time with the holidays and the cold, so pray that God will continue to develop the church, draw new people, and give me wisdom in involving everyone.
The big news of the week was regarding Jacqueline. She found out that she will need to have a hysterectomy (sp?) on 11/28. She had a procedure done earlier in the year that didn't work, so this is the next step. Please pray for her during the surgery and for her recovery afterwards. I think they are calling for 4-6 weeks recovery time. Also, pray that everything will work out so that they can do the surgery on the 28th and won't have to put it off.
I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving!
Same story, different week. Really busy. We'll see how it turns out.
Yesterday we had 24 (20 adults and 4 kids). We had a lot of regulars who were out. It was also the first Sunday that we haven't had a first time guest. We are entering a difficult time with the holidays and the cold, so pray that God will continue to develop the church, draw new people, and give me wisdom in involving everyone.
The big news of the week was regarding Jacqueline. She found out that she will need to have a hysterectomy (sp?) on 11/28. She had a procedure done earlier in the year that didn't work, so this is the next step. Please pray for her during the surgery and for her recovery afterwards. I think they are calling for 4-6 weeks recovery time. Also, pray that everything will work out so that they can do the surgery on the 28th and won't have to put it off.
I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving!
Monday, November 12, 2007
11/12/07 UPDATE
This week was insanely busy and really up and down. The good news is that it was more up than down.
One good note is that I had several very good and productive meetings. One was with a guy who is not part of the church, but showed real interest.
The biggest bummer of the week is that the prospective worship leader we were praying for decided that God was leading him to pursue another opportunity. It really sounds like a great opportunity for him, but it was a bummer for us. The "Who will lead worship" question has really been weighing on me. I'm trying to get a schedule put together for several months, but haven't been able to do it. As a result, I've been going week to week. I spent almost all week calling everyone I knew to lead worship and couldn't get anybody who was available. In case you don't know, that is extremely stressful. Finally, on Thursday night, I secured someone to lead for us. Again, God provided, but He and I definitely define "on time" differently.
Wednesday night we had our first Bible study. We had three other ladies, Jacqueline, and myself. I left a little down because it was one of those times that I didn't feel like my teaching was really connecting. Everyone said it was good and helpful, but I'm not so sure. Continue to pray for out meetings on Wednesday night.
Leighton turned 5 on Friday, so I took the day off to hang with him. We did the traditional Chuck. E. Cheese trip followed by McDonald's. it was a fun day for everyone.
Sunday was our lowest attendance so far. We had 29. There were a lot of "regulars" who weren't there. The good news is that there were two first timers and one family of "not in awhilers." Set up went really well, since J'line and I took time to organize the trailer and all our stuff on Saturday.
Two very cool outcomes: One, the speakers we have were buzzing really badly. It was very distracting and frustrating for me. Afterwards, a guy told me that one of the speakers was blown - not good. however, he said, "I was sitting there listening to it and it was starting to irritate me, but I felt like God wanted me to give you a set of speakers that I have to replace them." That was very good news.
Two, I got a call from a guy who has led worship for us a few times. He said to pray for him because they were strongly considering joining our congregation because they really believed in what we were doing and how we were going about it. He said that it wasn't contingent on leading the worship or anything, he just wanted to help. Please pray for them to know for sure what God is saying to them.
This week was insanely busy and really up and down. The good news is that it was more up than down.
One good note is that I had several very good and productive meetings. One was with a guy who is not part of the church, but showed real interest.
The biggest bummer of the week is that the prospective worship leader we were praying for decided that God was leading him to pursue another opportunity. It really sounds like a great opportunity for him, but it was a bummer for us. The "Who will lead worship" question has really been weighing on me. I'm trying to get a schedule put together for several months, but haven't been able to do it. As a result, I've been going week to week. I spent almost all week calling everyone I knew to lead worship and couldn't get anybody who was available. In case you don't know, that is extremely stressful. Finally, on Thursday night, I secured someone to lead for us. Again, God provided, but He and I definitely define "on time" differently.
Wednesday night we had our first Bible study. We had three other ladies, Jacqueline, and myself. I left a little down because it was one of those times that I didn't feel like my teaching was really connecting. Everyone said it was good and helpful, but I'm not so sure. Continue to pray for out meetings on Wednesday night.
Leighton turned 5 on Friday, so I took the day off to hang with him. We did the traditional Chuck. E. Cheese trip followed by McDonald's. it was a fun day for everyone.
Sunday was our lowest attendance so far. We had 29. There were a lot of "regulars" who weren't there. The good news is that there were two first timers and one family of "not in awhilers." Set up went really well, since J'line and I took time to organize the trailer and all our stuff on Saturday.
Two very cool outcomes: One, the speakers we have were buzzing really badly. It was very distracting and frustrating for me. Afterwards, a guy told me that one of the speakers was blown - not good. however, he said, "I was sitting there listening to it and it was starting to irritate me, but I felt like God wanted me to give you a set of speakers that I have to replace them." That was very good news.
Two, I got a call from a guy who has led worship for us a few times. He said to pray for him because they were strongly considering joining our congregation because they really believed in what we were doing and how we were going about it. He said that it wasn't contingent on leading the worship or anything, he just wanted to help. Please pray for them to know for sure what God is saying to them.
Sunday, November 04, 2007
11/06/07 UPDATE
This has been a very busy but productive week. The greatest thing was that Leighton trusted Christ as His Savior this week. He has been asking about it for a while and seemed to be ready. It was an exciting event.
I committed to blogging entries for a 40 day journey through the Bible for church. It has been a great opportunity to get me journaling again, but has been a major time investment. God has been at work in me as I've done it. Please pray for those in the church who are on the journey with me.
We had 36 people at church today (28 adults, 8 kids). It was a great service. I think the coolest time came afterwards. We met them right after we moved to Omaha and bumped into them a month or so ago. He said that they might come but we hadn't heard anything. After church, J'line told me that she had specifically prayed that they would come this Sunday. That was a rather random idea since we had seen them several weeks before. I had completely forgotten about it. I responded by telling her that Saturday night I had been praying for a lady who had come once. I got through praying and checked my email. There was an email from her. I also told her that I had prayed that someone would come from the mailers we did back in September. We had a new guest today and I asked him how he heard about us. He said, I got your postcards several weeks ago and just hadn't come, but i decided to check it out. I relate all of this just to share that we had a really cool time discussing all of these events and realizing that God does hear us and answer our prayers.
Another answer to prayer is that I made several contacts with prospective worship leaders last week. They seemed to come from everywhere - a local college, personal references, and one guy was surfing the internet and sent me an email. Continue to pray for us in that area.
This week is going to be really busy and I could very much use your prayers. I have several meetings throughout the week for various reasons. One in particular is a meeting with the husband of a lady who attends the church. Please pray for God to guide our time together.
We are also having a Bible study on Wednesday night. I am very much not prepared for it. Pray that God will be present and guiding our time together.
This has been a very busy but productive week. The greatest thing was that Leighton trusted Christ as His Savior this week. He has been asking about it for a while and seemed to be ready. It was an exciting event.
I committed to blogging entries for a 40 day journey through the Bible for church. It has been a great opportunity to get me journaling again, but has been a major time investment. God has been at work in me as I've done it. Please pray for those in the church who are on the journey with me.
We had 36 people at church today (28 adults, 8 kids). It was a great service. I think the coolest time came afterwards. We met them right after we moved to Omaha and bumped into them a month or so ago. He said that they might come but we hadn't heard anything. After church, J'line told me that she had specifically prayed that they would come this Sunday. That was a rather random idea since we had seen them several weeks before. I had completely forgotten about it. I responded by telling her that Saturday night I had been praying for a lady who had come once. I got through praying and checked my email. There was an email from her. I also told her that I had prayed that someone would come from the mailers we did back in September. We had a new guest today and I asked him how he heard about us. He said, I got your postcards several weeks ago and just hadn't come, but i decided to check it out. I relate all of this just to share that we had a really cool time discussing all of these events and realizing that God does hear us and answer our prayers.
Another answer to prayer is that I made several contacts with prospective worship leaders last week. They seemed to come from everywhere - a local college, personal references, and one guy was surfing the internet and sent me an email. Continue to pray for us in that area.
This week is going to be really busy and I could very much use your prayers. I have several meetings throughout the week for various reasons. One in particular is a meeting with the husband of a lady who attends the church. Please pray for God to guide our time together.
We are also having a Bible study on Wednesday night. I am very much not prepared for it. Pray that God will be present and guiding our time together.
Monday, October 29, 2007
10/29/07 UPDATE
Last week was the boy's fall break. I felt like i had been "shorting" them lately, so I took several afternoons for family excursions. We let each of them pick something to do, so we ended up going to Arbor Day Farms (a big tree farm with all kinds of educational, kid-friendly stuff), the movies (we saw Ratatouille - i don't have a clue how to spell it), and ate at Pizza Hut.
Friday night we had concert at Scooter's. A couple of my friends came and played and we invited the church out. I was pretty pleased with the turnout. It helped us get to know each other a little better.
Sunday was about the same numbers-wise. We had 3 first time guests, which was really good. i also announced an introductory Bible study and almost everyone wants to participate. I also passed out a 40 Day Bible reading plan that gives a good overview of the Bible. I'm going to be posting some thoughts about it on my other blog - http://leecordell.blogspot.com/
Another cool thing Sunday was that our church went international. One of the ladies has a sister from Scotland. She's attended the last two weeks and leaves this week to go back. She took a T-shirt and asked if she could put something in her church's newsletter about us. Now I can write about our ministry exploding around the globe!:)
I met with the guy we're praying will help us with worship twice last week. He has three opportunities and said he would be fine with either of them. He just wants God to show him which one He desires. Please pray that God will do just that (and selfishly I have to add that it would be us)!
Please pray for:
A worship leader.
Mission teams to assist us next summer.
God to continue drawing people to the church.
That we will have wisdom as we seek to connect people with the church.
Last week was the boy's fall break. I felt like i had been "shorting" them lately, so I took several afternoons for family excursions. We let each of them pick something to do, so we ended up going to Arbor Day Farms (a big tree farm with all kinds of educational, kid-friendly stuff), the movies (we saw Ratatouille - i don't have a clue how to spell it), and ate at Pizza Hut.
Friday night we had concert at Scooter's. A couple of my friends came and played and we invited the church out. I was pretty pleased with the turnout. It helped us get to know each other a little better.
Sunday was about the same numbers-wise. We had 3 first time guests, which was really good. i also announced an introductory Bible study and almost everyone wants to participate. I also passed out a 40 Day Bible reading plan that gives a good overview of the Bible. I'm going to be posting some thoughts about it on my other blog - http://leecordell.blogspot.com/
Another cool thing Sunday was that our church went international. One of the ladies has a sister from Scotland. She's attended the last two weeks and leaves this week to go back. She took a T-shirt and asked if she could put something in her church's newsletter about us. Now I can write about our ministry exploding around the globe!:)
I met with the guy we're praying will help us with worship twice last week. He has three opportunities and said he would be fine with either of them. He just wants God to show him which one He desires. Please pray that God will do just that (and selfishly I have to add that it would be us)!
Please pray for:
A worship leader.
Mission teams to assist us next summer.
God to continue drawing people to the church.
That we will have wisdom as we seek to connect people with the church.
Monday, October 22, 2007
10/22/07 UPDATE
Thanks for your prayers last week. It was a pretty good week.
On Tuesday, I attended the Kansas-Nebraska State Convention. I'm not a "convention" guy. I only went because they wanted me to introduce myself. It turned out pretty well though. Our convention is small enough that you can meet and get to know people. For example, I was walking down the hall and hear someone say, "Hey, Lee." I turned and it was our Executive Director. He took me and introduced me to several people and we talked for probably 30 minutes. That doesn't usually happen at conventions when you're a nobody.
On Wednesday, I got up at 4:00 am to board a plane for TN. Jack and Roberta, J'line's dad and step-mother, purchased a new van for us (in Destin, FL of all places). We wanted to buy one down south because it saved us several thousand dollars and it hasn't spent the last 5 winters in the salt. It turned out to be a great deal, but I had to fly out and drive it back. I arrived at 4:05 am on Thursday morning extremely tired. Again, it was a situation where God provided for us - between selling the Jeep and the generous gift of another couple, we were able to pay cash for it.
Sunday went well. We had 35 in attendance. Setup went more smoothly than it ever has - especially since we had a guy come early to help and bring tons of "gadgets" to help in the process. We saw some changes in the congregation too. Until now, people come in like they are going to a movie. They all select their seat and stare dutifully towards the front until we get started. This Sunday, I noticed people mingling and talking. It's starting to feel like a church. We've got a consistent group that shows up and God is really working among them. We've got to work to invite and bring in new people, but the progress so far has been really encouraging.
The best thing of the day was the worship leader. I haven't been in a service before where the worship leader created a buzz, but he did. The Spirit really moved as he led us to worship God. His name is Jason Hinze. You can hear him at http://www.myspace.com/jasonhinze (if you're interested). He and another friend of mine are doing a concert for us at Scooter's this Friday. We're hoping to use it as a time for everyone to hang out and get to know one another.
This week, please pray for:
Our gathering this Friday - that a lot of people will show up and that it will enable us to build relationships.
A worship leader. Pray that God will clearly call the person who is to help us.
God to continue drawing people to Himself.
That we will enjoy the boy's fall break from school.
Thanks for your prayers last week. It was a pretty good week.
On Tuesday, I attended the Kansas-Nebraska State Convention. I'm not a "convention" guy. I only went because they wanted me to introduce myself. It turned out pretty well though. Our convention is small enough that you can meet and get to know people. For example, I was walking down the hall and hear someone say, "Hey, Lee." I turned and it was our Executive Director. He took me and introduced me to several people and we talked for probably 30 minutes. That doesn't usually happen at conventions when you're a nobody.
On Wednesday, I got up at 4:00 am to board a plane for TN. Jack and Roberta, J'line's dad and step-mother, purchased a new van for us (in Destin, FL of all places). We wanted to buy one down south because it saved us several thousand dollars and it hasn't spent the last 5 winters in the salt. It turned out to be a great deal, but I had to fly out and drive it back. I arrived at 4:05 am on Thursday morning extremely tired. Again, it was a situation where God provided for us - between selling the Jeep and the generous gift of another couple, we were able to pay cash for it.
Sunday went well. We had 35 in attendance. Setup went more smoothly than it ever has - especially since we had a guy come early to help and bring tons of "gadgets" to help in the process. We saw some changes in the congregation too. Until now, people come in like they are going to a movie. They all select their seat and stare dutifully towards the front until we get started. This Sunday, I noticed people mingling and talking. It's starting to feel like a church. We've got a consistent group that shows up and God is really working among them. We've got to work to invite and bring in new people, but the progress so far has been really encouraging.
The best thing of the day was the worship leader. I haven't been in a service before where the worship leader created a buzz, but he did. The Spirit really moved as he led us to worship God. His name is Jason Hinze. You can hear him at http://www.myspace.com/jasonhinze (if you're interested). He and another friend of mine are doing a concert for us at Scooter's this Friday. We're hoping to use it as a time for everyone to hang out and get to know one another.
This week, please pray for:
Our gathering this Friday - that a lot of people will show up and that it will enable us to build relationships.
A worship leader. Pray that God will clearly call the person who is to help us.
God to continue drawing people to Himself.
That we will enjoy the boy's fall break from school.
Monday, October 15, 2007
10/15/07 UPDATE
Yesterday was our lowest Sunday in a while. We had 29 (24 adults and 5 children). It was a bad Sunday in Nebraska - the Huskers lost, REALLY BAD so everyone goes into this depressed funk. I write this with all seriousness, there is no joking at all involved in the previous sentence. On top of that, it was gloomy and raining. Nothing went like it was supposed to, everything was running late. We couldn't get the computer and projector to communicate, so we were about 10 minutes late getting started. It was just a wierd day.
Even with that said, God was at work. I asked people to stick around and help us tear everything down and load it up. We had several people who did, which showed that they are committed. I talked with several of the couples and got to know them a little better. One of them has a job where they do book fairs and have to load and unload tons of books. They were giving me some really helpful advice for getting our stuff together in a way that we can cut down on the time it takes to load/unload. That probably seems trivial to you, but its huge to us since i spend about 4 hours doing that on Sundays!
I had coffee with a prospective worship leader this week. Actually, i didn't know he was a prospective leader until he contacted me. We had a great conversation and i think there are many common areas of philosophy about ministry, etc. He has been offered a job by one of the mega churches in town, but seems to be genuinely seeking a place that will be a church family for he, his wife, and their soon to be born son. Please pray for us this week regarding this possibility. We both want to know clearly where God is leading, so ask Him to speak to us. Honestly, I know we have nothing to offer like the other churches who have offered him jobs. If he were to join us, it will be because God spoke to him and only due to that fact!
I will be travelling a lot this week. It is related to a praise that I'll let you in on next week. Please pray for my protection and that God will speak to me during all of the "alone time."
I'm also meeting with a family that has been visiting the church. Pray that God will guide our discussion, give me an opportunity to share the gospel, and that they will receive it.
Yesterday was our lowest Sunday in a while. We had 29 (24 adults and 5 children). It was a bad Sunday in Nebraska - the Huskers lost, REALLY BAD so everyone goes into this depressed funk. I write this with all seriousness, there is no joking at all involved in the previous sentence. On top of that, it was gloomy and raining. Nothing went like it was supposed to, everything was running late. We couldn't get the computer and projector to communicate, so we were about 10 minutes late getting started. It was just a wierd day.
Even with that said, God was at work. I asked people to stick around and help us tear everything down and load it up. We had several people who did, which showed that they are committed. I talked with several of the couples and got to know them a little better. One of them has a job where they do book fairs and have to load and unload tons of books. They were giving me some really helpful advice for getting our stuff together in a way that we can cut down on the time it takes to load/unload. That probably seems trivial to you, but its huge to us since i spend about 4 hours doing that on Sundays!
I had coffee with a prospective worship leader this week. Actually, i didn't know he was a prospective leader until he contacted me. We had a great conversation and i think there are many common areas of philosophy about ministry, etc. He has been offered a job by one of the mega churches in town, but seems to be genuinely seeking a place that will be a church family for he, his wife, and their soon to be born son. Please pray for us this week regarding this possibility. We both want to know clearly where God is leading, so ask Him to speak to us. Honestly, I know we have nothing to offer like the other churches who have offered him jobs. If he were to join us, it will be because God spoke to him and only due to that fact!
I will be travelling a lot this week. It is related to a praise that I'll let you in on next week. Please pray for my protection and that God will speak to me during all of the "alone time."
I'm also meeting with a family that has been visiting the church. Pray that God will guide our discussion, give me an opportunity to share the gospel, and that they will receive it.
Monday, October 08, 2007
10/08/07 UPDATE
Yesterday went really well, we had 36 (26 adults and 10 kids). That is the most kids we have had yet. Of the adults, 10 were first time guests.
I had a great conversation with one of them. At the welcome time, she told me, "This is the first time I have ever been in a Christian church, so it's all new to me. What's your role here?" Just to understand what she meant, the Catholics here refer to themselves as Catholics and Protestants as Christians. She was raised Catholic and it "just wasn't working." She got our card and came. We had a great conversation after the service about the gospel. I'm finding that we are encountering a lot of Catholics who are dissillusioned by their church experience and are really hungry for the gospel.
Another great trend is that we are giving away Bibles like hotcakes. Based on conversations with some of the people, they are reading them too! I ordered another case yesterday. Just a tip, I'm finding that people go crazy over free stuff. It doesn't matter what it is, if its free, people are interested. We have a free resource table with T-shirts (i've gotten reports of people seeing our shirts at the gym), "How Good is Good Enough" by Andy Stanley, and Bibles. We're also making sure that when we go out in the community, we give the people something. Sometimes small (a battery), sometimes big (block party).
My biggest request for prayer is regarding people to help. Basically, my family and another one are doing all of the set up/tear down work and it gets taxing. Juanita has yet to sit in on a service because she's working in the nursery. We could really use some help, so I'm going to be asking some of our regular attenders to get involved this week.
One side note, Josh and I were taking down the signs after the service and we probably didn't have the best attitude about it, since we were hot, tired, and hungry. As we were taking one down, a guy walked up and asked us what time the service was because he and his wife wanted to come. We had a good talk and as we drove off, Josh said, "I guess that's why we do this, huh?" The work sometimes seems menial, mundane, and taxing, but its all a part of introducing people to Jesus and you just can't beat that.
Pray for us this week as we try to follow up on all of the contacts we have made in the last few weeks. Also, pray for the seeds that have been sown to bear fruit.
In addition, I'm meeting with a prospective Worship Pastor on Tuesday. Pray for God to clearly guide our discussions and show both of us if we are to team up on this work.
Yesterday went really well, we had 36 (26 adults and 10 kids). That is the most kids we have had yet. Of the adults, 10 were first time guests.
I had a great conversation with one of them. At the welcome time, she told me, "This is the first time I have ever been in a Christian church, so it's all new to me. What's your role here?" Just to understand what she meant, the Catholics here refer to themselves as Catholics and Protestants as Christians. She was raised Catholic and it "just wasn't working." She got our card and came. We had a great conversation after the service about the gospel. I'm finding that we are encountering a lot of Catholics who are dissillusioned by their church experience and are really hungry for the gospel.
Another great trend is that we are giving away Bibles like hotcakes. Based on conversations with some of the people, they are reading them too! I ordered another case yesterday. Just a tip, I'm finding that people go crazy over free stuff. It doesn't matter what it is, if its free, people are interested. We have a free resource table with T-shirts (i've gotten reports of people seeing our shirts at the gym), "How Good is Good Enough" by Andy Stanley, and Bibles. We're also making sure that when we go out in the community, we give the people something. Sometimes small (a battery), sometimes big (block party).
My biggest request for prayer is regarding people to help. Basically, my family and another one are doing all of the set up/tear down work and it gets taxing. Juanita has yet to sit in on a service because she's working in the nursery. We could really use some help, so I'm going to be asking some of our regular attenders to get involved this week.
One side note, Josh and I were taking down the signs after the service and we probably didn't have the best attitude about it, since we were hot, tired, and hungry. As we were taking one down, a guy walked up and asked us what time the service was because he and his wife wanted to come. We had a good talk and as we drove off, Josh said, "I guess that's why we do this, huh?" The work sometimes seems menial, mundane, and taxing, but its all a part of introducing people to Jesus and you just can't beat that.
Pray for us this week as we try to follow up on all of the contacts we have made in the last few weeks. Also, pray for the seeds that have been sown to bear fruit.
In addition, I'm meeting with a prospective Worship Pastor on Tuesday. Pray for God to clearly guide our discussions and show both of us if we are to team up on this work.
Monday, October 01, 2007
10/01/07 UPDATE
Man, I'm beat. Last week was a great week, but an exhausting one too. We hosted a mission team from Mt Zion Association in Jonesboro, Arkansas for the third time. They came up last fall to prayerwalk and then this summer to help with block parties. This time they came up to share the gospel. They brought about 1,500 9 volt batteries with them. We gave them out with a booklet that said "Lifesaving Tips" and had several tips for maintaining your smoke detectors (one of which was to change the batteries, which is why we gave them out). On the inside, it gave tips for saving your soul and shared the gospel.
They visited over 2,000 homes and gave this gift and tried to share the gospel. There were tons of interested people and some great feedback. Two people prayed to receive Christ and a lot said that they wanted to check out the church.
Additionally, one of the guys on the team is a professional photographer. He shoots a lot of sporting events. He came out on Saturday and took "action shots" of Jackson and Andrew's soccer games. The whole point is that I'll give all of the parents a cd with pictures of their kids as a gift from the church. It will give us just another "in" with people.
While he was shooting Andrew's game, I walked over and he was talking with a father from the other team. He had asked Ric for some pictures of his daughter. We started talking and it became a God encounter. I shared the gospel with him and all I did was answer the questions he asked. I couldn't have written it up any better, with one exception. As I finished talking, the game ended and his kids started dragging him off. He told me he'd give me a call because he was very interested. Please pray for him and the many other people where the gospel is taking root. Pray that God will give a harvest from the sowing that took place this week.
Yesterday went pretty well. We had 43, but 12 were from the mission team, so we really had 25 adults and 6 children. We're having a lot of people return for a second visit or more, which is great. We also had 5 first time visitors. Of those, 2 also indicated that they prayed to receive Christ. I'll be following them up this week, so pray for them to grow in Christ.
Man, I'm beat. Last week was a great week, but an exhausting one too. We hosted a mission team from Mt Zion Association in Jonesboro, Arkansas for the third time. They came up last fall to prayerwalk and then this summer to help with block parties. This time they came up to share the gospel. They brought about 1,500 9 volt batteries with them. We gave them out with a booklet that said "Lifesaving Tips" and had several tips for maintaining your smoke detectors (one of which was to change the batteries, which is why we gave them out). On the inside, it gave tips for saving your soul and shared the gospel.
They visited over 2,000 homes and gave this gift and tried to share the gospel. There were tons of interested people and some great feedback. Two people prayed to receive Christ and a lot said that they wanted to check out the church.
Additionally, one of the guys on the team is a professional photographer. He shoots a lot of sporting events. He came out on Saturday and took "action shots" of Jackson and Andrew's soccer games. The whole point is that I'll give all of the parents a cd with pictures of their kids as a gift from the church. It will give us just another "in" with people.
While he was shooting Andrew's game, I walked over and he was talking with a father from the other team. He had asked Ric for some pictures of his daughter. We started talking and it became a God encounter. I shared the gospel with him and all I did was answer the questions he asked. I couldn't have written it up any better, with one exception. As I finished talking, the game ended and his kids started dragging him off. He told me he'd give me a call because he was very interested. Please pray for him and the many other people where the gospel is taking root. Pray that God will give a harvest from the sowing that took place this week.
Yesterday went pretty well. We had 43, but 12 were from the mission team, so we really had 25 adults and 6 children. We're having a lot of people return for a second visit or more, which is great. We also had 5 first time visitors. Of those, 2 also indicated that they prayed to receive Christ. I'll be following them up this week, so pray for them to grow in Christ.
Monday, September 24, 2007
09/24/07 UPDATE
Things have been rolling along here in O. Last week, we had my parents and a couple that are friends of theirs come up for the "Grand Opening." They also brought with them $2,605 that their Sunday School class had collected to buy a trailer for us. We purchased one for $2,550. Joe and Dad continued working on it throughout the week to install shelves at the front and additions to the ramp to make it easier to load. We had our first test run yesterday and it worked great. We have two carts and one shelving unit that store all of the stuff we need, so we can just roll it out on Sunday. Before, we had to store it all in our garage, pick up the trailer, load it on Saturday, unload and set it up Sunday morning, tear it down and load it in the trailer, unload it in our garage, and return the trailer. At this point, any step that you can eliminate is a huge relief for us, so this was a tremendous help.
Yesterday went well. We had 32 (26 adults and 6 children). Of those adults, 9 were first time guests. Every one of them came as the result of our mailings (last week 7 came as a result of the mailings), so they are working. We had a total of 12 new guests last week and all but four of them have come back or connected with the church. That means that we're doing a pretty good job of keeping those who come. If we can continue that formula, it will work out well - attract a lot of new people and retain most of them. We have to build a core large enough to provided infrastructure to handle new people and i think we're doing that.
One bummer from Sunday is that we did lose one couple for the rest of the year. Jeff has deployed for the remainder of the year and Kelly is going to join him. They'll be back in January, but they will be sorely missed until they return.
This week we will be continuing our outreach. We've used about any and all available means so far and most of them have worked pretty well. One big lesson I've learned - if churches would quit sitting around and debating what will work and what won't and start DOING something, they will find that God blesses just about all of it. There's no "golden bullet" that is the answer, but you will reach a few people with everything you do. Add a few people often enough and you've got a lot more than when you started! But i digress. . . we have a mission team from Arkansas coming up tonight through next Sunday. They are focusing on going door to door with the goal of sharing the gospel with people. Please back us up as we carry out this work. Pray for God to open the hearts and minds of the people we will visit. Pray that the people He is drawing will be home. Pray that we will be given an opportunity to share the gospel. Pray that it will bear fruit. IT'S ONE THING TO PLANT SEEDS, BUT PRAY FOR A HARVEST THIS WEEK! We are praying that people will make the decision to pray to receive Christ and get involved in the church. Pray also that we will be protected from Satan's attacks and that he will be bound from blinding people to the gospel.
Things have been rolling along here in O. Last week, we had my parents and a couple that are friends of theirs come up for the "Grand Opening." They also brought with them $2,605 that their Sunday School class had collected to buy a trailer for us. We purchased one for $2,550. Joe and Dad continued working on it throughout the week to install shelves at the front and additions to the ramp to make it easier to load. We had our first test run yesterday and it worked great. We have two carts and one shelving unit that store all of the stuff we need, so we can just roll it out on Sunday. Before, we had to store it all in our garage, pick up the trailer, load it on Saturday, unload and set it up Sunday morning, tear it down and load it in the trailer, unload it in our garage, and return the trailer. At this point, any step that you can eliminate is a huge relief for us, so this was a tremendous help.
Yesterday went well. We had 32 (26 adults and 6 children). Of those adults, 9 were first time guests. Every one of them came as the result of our mailings (last week 7 came as a result of the mailings), so they are working. We had a total of 12 new guests last week and all but four of them have come back or connected with the church. That means that we're doing a pretty good job of keeping those who come. If we can continue that formula, it will work out well - attract a lot of new people and retain most of them. We have to build a core large enough to provided infrastructure to handle new people and i think we're doing that.
One bummer from Sunday is that we did lose one couple for the rest of the year. Jeff has deployed for the remainder of the year and Kelly is going to join him. They'll be back in January, but they will be sorely missed until they return.
This week we will be continuing our outreach. We've used about any and all available means so far and most of them have worked pretty well. One big lesson I've learned - if churches would quit sitting around and debating what will work and what won't and start DOING something, they will find that God blesses just about all of it. There's no "golden bullet" that is the answer, but you will reach a few people with everything you do. Add a few people often enough and you've got a lot more than when you started! But i digress. . . we have a mission team from Arkansas coming up tonight through next Sunday. They are focusing on going door to door with the goal of sharing the gospel with people. Please back us up as we carry out this work. Pray for God to open the hearts and minds of the people we will visit. Pray that the people He is drawing will be home. Pray that we will be given an opportunity to share the gospel. Pray that it will bear fruit. IT'S ONE THING TO PLANT SEEDS, BUT PRAY FOR A HARVEST THIS WEEK! We are praying that people will make the decision to pray to receive Christ and get involved in the church. Pray also that we will be protected from Satan's attacks and that he will be bound from blinding people to the gospel.
Monday, September 17, 2007
9/16/07 UPDATE
Yesterday went great. We only missed our goal by 210, but that was ok. That was our "God created, virgin birth, resurrection of Jesus, and Oh, yeah, Redeemer had 250 on their launch Sunday" goal. We had 40 people (30 adults and 10 kids) and it was an exciting time. We had the most "newcomers" we've had yet and most of them had positive feedback, stayed to help tear down, and said they would probably be back. There was someone there who had heard of Redeemer in almost any way imaginable - personal invitation, block party, mailer, I even paid a couple of people to come:). We had people who took steps to get more involved and filled some huge gaps that were needed.
I included some pictures from the service yesterday so that you could get a feel for it. There is a second post below with more pictures. We are meeting in the cafeteria of a Middle School. One thing to notice is our children's ministry. My parents came up for this service and I have them both working in a children's class. In fact, Jackson is even helping with the toddlers. From what the teachers tell me, they really want him and Andrew to help, because they are a big assistance.
I also included a picture of our "fellowship" time. This has really gone well the past two weeks and you can start to feel things "coming together" among everyone. We're now meeting every week and you can feel momentum building. It is starting to actually "feel" more like a church. It's really exciting.
This week we have another mailer going out to 10,500 homes. Pray that it will be received well and that people will come as a result. The following week, we have a mission team of 13 people who will be going door to door. In addition, we have several people who are praying about committing to the work. They are genuinely seeking God's will about it, so pray that they will have clarity.
Yesterday went great. We only missed our goal by 210, but that was ok. That was our "God created, virgin birth, resurrection of Jesus, and Oh, yeah, Redeemer had 250 on their launch Sunday" goal. We had 40 people (30 adults and 10 kids) and it was an exciting time. We had the most "newcomers" we've had yet and most of them had positive feedback, stayed to help tear down, and said they would probably be back. There was someone there who had heard of Redeemer in almost any way imaginable - personal invitation, block party, mailer, I even paid a couple of people to come:). We had people who took steps to get more involved and filled some huge gaps that were needed.
I included some pictures from the service yesterday so that you could get a feel for it. There is a second post below with more pictures. We are meeting in the cafeteria of a Middle School. One thing to notice is our children's ministry. My parents came up for this service and I have them both working in a children's class. In fact, Jackson is even helping with the toddlers. From what the teachers tell me, they really want him and Andrew to help, because they are a big assistance.
I also included a picture of our "fellowship" time. This has really gone well the past two weeks and you can start to feel things "coming together" among everyone. We're now meeting every week and you can feel momentum building. It is starting to actually "feel" more like a church. It's really exciting.
This week we have another mailer going out to 10,500 homes. Pray that it will be received well and that people will come as a result. The following week, we have a mission team of 13 people who will be going door to door. In addition, we have several people who are praying about committing to the work. They are genuinely seeking God's will about it, so pray that they will have clarity.
Monday, September 10, 2007
09/10/07 UPDATE
This week saw my last trip to NYC for the coaching network. The network has been of great benefit to me. It was great to meet in a group of guys who all understand what we are facing. I still remember our first meeting when one guy asked, "What do we do about being afraid?" There was nervous laughter all around the room, because we all understood. This time, a guy asked, "What do we do if this thing flops?" That's kind of like the elephant in the room for church planters - it's always a possibility that you don't want to think about.
The service yesterday went pretty well. The numbers were down a lot, but other than that, it was a great Sunday. We only had 21 this week, so it was a big drop. However, we had some really positive things happen. One couple asked how they could help and also brought a friend to the service. Another lady took steps towards being a part. Probably the most encouraging thing was that I asked them to welcome one another and it became a time of protracted conversation. That is good because we are in a setting where nobody really knows anyone else, so this was a positive. I also preached a challenging message on the fact that we are a church for the people who remain on the outside, not to meet the needs of those of us on the inside. It seemed to resonate with everyone.
Our biggest challenge is simply people. We need people to work and serve. Several of the ladies on the Launch Team have not even attended a service because they're watching the children.
We also need people to attend. We have two mailers that are going out (whenever the Post Office chooses to deliver them). We are hoping for these to draw several people. In addition, we'll be working to contact anyone that we know to invite them to come. Everyone present yesterday got 10 invite cards to pass out. Essentially, we are doing any and everything we can to invite people for next Sunday. Please pray that God will use these efforts to draw people to Himself.
Another big challenge remains finding a worship leader. Please pray that God will direct us to the right person.
This week saw my last trip to NYC for the coaching network. The network has been of great benefit to me. It was great to meet in a group of guys who all understand what we are facing. I still remember our first meeting when one guy asked, "What do we do about being afraid?" There was nervous laughter all around the room, because we all understood. This time, a guy asked, "What do we do if this thing flops?" That's kind of like the elephant in the room for church planters - it's always a possibility that you don't want to think about.
The service yesterday went pretty well. The numbers were down a lot, but other than that, it was a great Sunday. We only had 21 this week, so it was a big drop. However, we had some really positive things happen. One couple asked how they could help and also brought a friend to the service. Another lady took steps towards being a part. Probably the most encouraging thing was that I asked them to welcome one another and it became a time of protracted conversation. That is good because we are in a setting where nobody really knows anyone else, so this was a positive. I also preached a challenging message on the fact that we are a church for the people who remain on the outside, not to meet the needs of those of us on the inside. It seemed to resonate with everyone.
Our biggest challenge is simply people. We need people to work and serve. Several of the ladies on the Launch Team have not even attended a service because they're watching the children.
We also need people to attend. We have two mailers that are going out (whenever the Post Office chooses to deliver them). We are hoping for these to draw several people. In addition, we'll be working to contact anyone that we know to invite them to come. Everyone present yesterday got 10 invite cards to pass out. Essentially, we are doing any and everything we can to invite people for next Sunday. Please pray that God will use these efforts to draw people to Himself.
Another big challenge remains finding a worship leader. Please pray that God will direct us to the right person.
Tuesday, September 04, 2007
09/03/07 UPDATE
Sorry we're late for both of you rabid readers:)
Last week was really fairly uneventful. We're focusing on our upcoming service Sunday which is our last "monthly" service. The 16th will be our "grand opening."
hopefully, we'll have a mailer going out to 10,400 homes this week and another next week to invite people to the services. about half of these people have already been contacted, and many recognize our card, etc. I'm really praying for people who have been "intending to come" and haven't to get a reminder and come in. I'm also praying for God to draw others who might be hearing of us for the first time. My prayers right now are focused on God drawing in those he wants in the church. We've done our best to prepare, pray, and be ready. Now it's up to Him to send the people.
Please pray for us as you think about us this week. Pray especially for God to send people.
Sorry we're late for both of you rabid readers:)
Last week was really fairly uneventful. We're focusing on our upcoming service Sunday which is our last "monthly" service. The 16th will be our "grand opening."
hopefully, we'll have a mailer going out to 10,400 homes this week and another next week to invite people to the services. about half of these people have already been contacted, and many recognize our card, etc. I'm really praying for people who have been "intending to come" and haven't to get a reminder and come in. I'm also praying for God to draw others who might be hearing of us for the first time. My prayers right now are focused on God drawing in those he wants in the church. We've done our best to prepare, pray, and be ready. Now it's up to Him to send the people.
Please pray for us as you think about us this week. Pray especially for God to send people.
Monday, August 27, 2007
08/27/07 UPDATE
It's hard to believe that we are less than 3 weeks from our public launch service! Last week, we asked everyone on our prayer team to commit to praying for us daily and sent them a guide to help in the process. On one day, we asked for God's provision of all that we will need for the launch of the church. On another, we asked for Him to draw lost people. We saw specific answers to both of those requests last week.
We've been asking for provision (specifically, for financial resources) for several weeks now - both for us personally and for the church. God has really been moving to provide those in the last week or two. A few weeks ago, I had a local church give us several pieces for a sound system. Then I found out that a Sunday School class in Alabama was working to give us a trailer. Last week, things really took off.
On Monday a pastor returned my call from the week before. He said, "You won't believe me, but God woke me up in the middle of the night to remind me to return your call." We talked and they committed to partner with us financially.
On Wednesday, I got a check in the mail from another local church. They had told me that they would be partnering with us from August through the end of the year, and possibly longer. When I opened the envelope, it was four time the amount I was expecting. When I called to thank the pastor, he said that we would be receiving that each month through the end of the year! At that point, we'll reevaluate and see where things stand.
Finally, I received word that one of our parnters will be re-commiting to provide us with health insurance and some personal support for six more months.
All of this is really exciting because we were really up against a wall. It would be nice to think that you can start a church with no money or resources, but it just isn't possible today. It is really encouraging to see God work through His people to bring things about. These gifts will allow us to purchase some desperately needed equipment, contact 10,000 homes twice about our launch, and relieve some stress around here!
My prayers are really focused on reaching people now. It's been great to see new faces each week. Now, I'm praying for a large turnout of people on September 16th. I've been praying for 60 families that we have contacted this summer and who have expressed an interest in the church. Last night we had one of them come to our cookout! I'm praying that we will see many more and that they will meet Jesus and become part of the church.
As you think of us this week, pray for God to open opportunities to meet people. Pray for Him to continue drawing those that we've already met. Finally, pray that all of our publicity that is going out in the next few weeks will also draw people.
It's hard to believe that we are less than 3 weeks from our public launch service! Last week, we asked everyone on our prayer team to commit to praying for us daily and sent them a guide to help in the process. On one day, we asked for God's provision of all that we will need for the launch of the church. On another, we asked for Him to draw lost people. We saw specific answers to both of those requests last week.
We've been asking for provision (specifically, for financial resources) for several weeks now - both for us personally and for the church. God has really been moving to provide those in the last week or two. A few weeks ago, I had a local church give us several pieces for a sound system. Then I found out that a Sunday School class in Alabama was working to give us a trailer. Last week, things really took off.
On Monday a pastor returned my call from the week before. He said, "You won't believe me, but God woke me up in the middle of the night to remind me to return your call." We talked and they committed to partner with us financially.
On Wednesday, I got a check in the mail from another local church. They had told me that they would be partnering with us from August through the end of the year, and possibly longer. When I opened the envelope, it was four time the amount I was expecting. When I called to thank the pastor, he said that we would be receiving that each month through the end of the year! At that point, we'll reevaluate and see where things stand.
Finally, I received word that one of our parnters will be re-commiting to provide us with health insurance and some personal support for six more months.
All of this is really exciting because we were really up against a wall. It would be nice to think that you can start a church with no money or resources, but it just isn't possible today. It is really encouraging to see God work through His people to bring things about. These gifts will allow us to purchase some desperately needed equipment, contact 10,000 homes twice about our launch, and relieve some stress around here!
My prayers are really focused on reaching people now. It's been great to see new faces each week. Now, I'm praying for a large turnout of people on September 16th. I've been praying for 60 families that we have contacted this summer and who have expressed an interest in the church. Last night we had one of them come to our cookout! I'm praying that we will see many more and that they will meet Jesus and become part of the church.
As you think of us this week, pray for God to open opportunities to meet people. Pray for Him to continue drawing those that we've already met. Finally, pray that all of our publicity that is going out in the next few weeks will also draw people.
Monday, August 20, 2007
08/20/07 UPDATE
Yesterday went really well. We were able to get everything set up in plenty of time and it worked pretty well. We had a meeting to discuss changes/improvements and the general consensus was that we could have easily handled a lot more people. Which brings us to the numbers - we had 31 total (19 adults, 2 youth, and 10 children). The good news is that all of those are locals who we may see again. We had some people who were at last month's service and some new ones. The good news is that the pool of "prospects" keeps growning. Hopefully, we'll be able to get more of them in attendance once things stabilize. I would really like to see more people attending, but I think we will see more once we begin meeting weekly.
One cool "its a small world" thing - there was a young couple that came Sunday. They are in school at Creighton. The way they found out about the church is that a young lady who was in our church in Florida (and has now moved on) was in Sunday School at a church in Mobile, AL. She found out they went to school in O and got their email. She sent it to me and I contacted them. They showed up Sunday and said they'd be back!
One concern is leadership. So far, things have gone really well, however, we have two very vital families that will be leaving after September 9th. One fulfilled their commitment to help us through the summer. The other (Jeff and Kelly) are deploying until January. Basically, everybody is doing something, so when anyone leaves, there is a hole. Pray for God to provide other leaders. He has added great people along the process and there are others who are potentials, but we need more.
The other big concern is continuing to meet new people. We no longer have mission teams to come and contact a large number of people at once. We are limited in the numbers of people we can contact ourselves. We are planning two direct mail campaigns to contact almost 12,000 homes each time, but I'm not sure if we will have the funds to do both of them. Pray for God to provide the money and for the contacts to be profitable. Also pray that He will continue drawing those that we have contacted.
Another big item last week was that the boys began school. They loved it. We haven't noticed a lot of problems with them being the "new kids" (Jackson was the only new student in his class). They've started to make friends and seem to be thriving.
Yesterday went really well. We were able to get everything set up in plenty of time and it worked pretty well. We had a meeting to discuss changes/improvements and the general consensus was that we could have easily handled a lot more people. Which brings us to the numbers - we had 31 total (19 adults, 2 youth, and 10 children). The good news is that all of those are locals who we may see again. We had some people who were at last month's service and some new ones. The good news is that the pool of "prospects" keeps growning. Hopefully, we'll be able to get more of them in attendance once things stabilize. I would really like to see more people attending, but I think we will see more once we begin meeting weekly.
One cool "its a small world" thing - there was a young couple that came Sunday. They are in school at Creighton. The way they found out about the church is that a young lady who was in our church in Florida (and has now moved on) was in Sunday School at a church in Mobile, AL. She found out they went to school in O and got their email. She sent it to me and I contacted them. They showed up Sunday and said they'd be back!
One concern is leadership. So far, things have gone really well, however, we have two very vital families that will be leaving after September 9th. One fulfilled their commitment to help us through the summer. The other (Jeff and Kelly) are deploying until January. Basically, everybody is doing something, so when anyone leaves, there is a hole. Pray for God to provide other leaders. He has added great people along the process and there are others who are potentials, but we need more.
The other big concern is continuing to meet new people. We no longer have mission teams to come and contact a large number of people at once. We are limited in the numbers of people we can contact ourselves. We are planning two direct mail campaigns to contact almost 12,000 homes each time, but I'm not sure if we will have the funds to do both of them. Pray for God to provide the money and for the contacts to be profitable. Also pray that He will continue drawing those that we have contacted.
Another big item last week was that the boys began school. They loved it. We haven't noticed a lot of problems with them being the "new kids" (Jackson was the only new student in his class). They've started to make friends and seem to be thriving.
Monday, August 13, 2007
08/13/07 UPDATE
We had a bit of a "bummer" moment last week. I had to give up one of my toys. Due to the fact that vehicles are dropping like flies in our driveway, I had to sell the Jeep. The praise is that it sold quickly and we got close to what we wanted for it. Please pray that we will be able to find the right van as a replacement. I hate buying cars because i always feel like i make a bad decision.
Two other notes of praise from last week regard other needed items. A local church moved from a movie theater into a storefront and upgraded their sound equipment in the process. They gave us several components that will really help for the next service. We are moving to a new, much larger space and need more sound. Please pray for the remainder of the components to be provided.
The other praise is that a group is planning to give us a trailer (or at least a large contribution towards one). I know that doesn't sound like a big deal, but it is. Currently, we borrow a trailer, which means I have to store all of the stuff for the service in our garage. On set up day, we have to load everything up, drive to the site, set it up, tear it down, load it back up, and unload it into our garage. This will allow us to store everything and only have to unload and load it once. That's a big deal, for which we are very thankful.
We had a launch team meeting last night to prepare for next Sunday. This will be a stressful Sunday, because it will be our first time meeting in this location. We will also have to set up on Sunday morning in about an hour and a half. Since we haven't done this before, it will be a little dicey.
Please pray for us this week:
For the service on the 19th. Pray that God will draw the people He wants there.
Direction as I prepare for two bulk mailings before the launch service on 9/16. Also pray for the funds needed.
Pray for leaders and servants to help in the work.
Pray for the Spirit to go before us, prepare the way, and give us His power.
We had a bit of a "bummer" moment last week. I had to give up one of my toys. Due to the fact that vehicles are dropping like flies in our driveway, I had to sell the Jeep. The praise is that it sold quickly and we got close to what we wanted for it. Please pray that we will be able to find the right van as a replacement. I hate buying cars because i always feel like i make a bad decision.
Two other notes of praise from last week regard other needed items. A local church moved from a movie theater into a storefront and upgraded their sound equipment in the process. They gave us several components that will really help for the next service. We are moving to a new, much larger space and need more sound. Please pray for the remainder of the components to be provided.
The other praise is that a group is planning to give us a trailer (or at least a large contribution towards one). I know that doesn't sound like a big deal, but it is. Currently, we borrow a trailer, which means I have to store all of the stuff for the service in our garage. On set up day, we have to load everything up, drive to the site, set it up, tear it down, load it back up, and unload it into our garage. This will allow us to store everything and only have to unload and load it once. That's a big deal, for which we are very thankful.
We had a launch team meeting last night to prepare for next Sunday. This will be a stressful Sunday, because it will be our first time meeting in this location. We will also have to set up on Sunday morning in about an hour and a half. Since we haven't done this before, it will be a little dicey.
Please pray for us this week:
For the service on the 19th. Pray that God will draw the people He wants there.
Direction as I prepare for two bulk mailings before the launch service on 9/16. Also pray for the funds needed.
Pray for leaders and servants to help in the work.
Pray for the Spirit to go before us, prepare the way, and give us His power.
Wednesday, August 08, 2007
Monday, August 06, 2007
08/06/07 UPDATE
I had three primary activities this week: a mission team doing a basketball camp, the coaching network, and a comeback event.
The mission team was great, once again. They worked hard, did anything that I asked them, and were of incredible value to us. They were from Oklahoma and conducted basketball camps for us in two neighborhoods. They went pretty well, although the turnout was low. We did both of them in neighborhoods where we had already done block parties. The cool thing was that I had people come up and ask "Is this being done by the church that did the party?" We did the party on June 10 and these people weren't able to come, but still remembered it. I thought that was really good.
Sunday night, we hosted "Ice Cream at the Park" for people who have come to the church or expressed an interest. We had 11 adults, which was pretty good. They were all people we know pretty well and who have helped us in different ways. It's good to see the relationships building and developing.
This week, we continue the process of trying to connect with new people, follow up with people we've already met, and plan our service for August 19th. We don't have any more mission teams coming up before the launch on September 16th, so we have to do the hard work of continuing to make contact with new people (primarily by passing out an invitation card door to door). We also have to find ways to "remind" people we've already met that we are meeting (it's easy to slip out of someone's mind, even if they are interested).
I'm also a bit stressed as we plan our service for August 19th. We have to figure out how to set up the new location, how to get it done in a very short time, and who will cover all the necessary jobs. We'll be meeting Sunday night to try and figure a lot of those details out.
I had three primary activities this week: a mission team doing a basketball camp, the coaching network, and a comeback event.
The mission team was great, once again. They worked hard, did anything that I asked them, and were of incredible value to us. They were from Oklahoma and conducted basketball camps for us in two neighborhoods. They went pretty well, although the turnout was low. We did both of them in neighborhoods where we had already done block parties. The cool thing was that I had people come up and ask "Is this being done by the church that did the party?" We did the party on June 10 and these people weren't able to come, but still remembered it. I thought that was really good.
Sunday night, we hosted "Ice Cream at the Park" for people who have come to the church or expressed an interest. We had 11 adults, which was pretty good. They were all people we know pretty well and who have helped us in different ways. It's good to see the relationships building and developing.
This week, we continue the process of trying to connect with new people, follow up with people we've already met, and plan our service for August 19th. We don't have any more mission teams coming up before the launch on September 16th, so we have to do the hard work of continuing to make contact with new people (primarily by passing out an invitation card door to door). We also have to find ways to "remind" people we've already met that we are meeting (it's easy to slip out of someone's mind, even if they are interested).
I'm also a bit stressed as we plan our service for August 19th. We have to figure out how to set up the new location, how to get it done in a very short time, and who will cover all the necessary jobs. We'll be meeting Sunday night to try and figure a lot of those details out.
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
07/30/07 UPDATE
I received some feedback from our service on the 22nd last week. I'll let it speak for itself. It's why we do what we do!
"Yes, my son and I were both there on Sunday. It was very nice. You do a great job. We enjoyed the music too. My son and I just wanted to visit, as I am Catholic and baptized my son Catholic as well. I just didn't feel very comfortable attending Catholic Church anymore, so I just stopped going. That was about 5 years ago! Now that my son is almost 4, I want us both to get back into the religious community, and eventually get my 1 year old daughter involved. (My husband will be difficult to convince.) I started researching different Christian denominations and was just getting confused, didn't know where to even start and was getting discouraged. About a week later, a lady from Redeemer [Jacqueline] came to my door with a flier for the neighborhood picnic. I took it as a sign. :) Anyway, that's how we found you and we will visit again in August and see if Redeemer is right for us. Thank you for checking in with us! Have a great day!"
"I never really liked going to church because I always felt pressure from everyone to believe or act a certain way. I liked redeemer because I did not feel the pressure I used to feel going to the different churches I have been to throughout my days. You read from the bible and explain what the meaning of what you are reading is in a way we can all understand and that is something I like. No, pressure, just straight up reading from the bible. You can't go wrong with that."
Please pray for the countless people like this that we have met this summer. They are both unchurched and God is working in both of their lives. Pray that God will keep drawing them to Himself, open their eyes to the truth of the gospel, and give them faith to respond. This is God's work!
I received some feedback from our service on the 22nd last week. I'll let it speak for itself. It's why we do what we do!
"Yes, my son and I were both there on Sunday. It was very nice. You do a great job. We enjoyed the music too. My son and I just wanted to visit, as I am Catholic and baptized my son Catholic as well. I just didn't feel very comfortable attending Catholic Church anymore, so I just stopped going. That was about 5 years ago! Now that my son is almost 4, I want us both to get back into the religious community, and eventually get my 1 year old daughter involved. (My husband will be difficult to convince.) I started researching different Christian denominations and was just getting confused, didn't know where to even start and was getting discouraged. About a week later, a lady from Redeemer [Jacqueline] came to my door with a flier for the neighborhood picnic. I took it as a sign. :) Anyway, that's how we found you and we will visit again in August and see if Redeemer is right for us. Thank you for checking in with us! Have a great day!"
"I never really liked going to church because I always felt pressure from everyone to believe or act a certain way. I liked redeemer because I did not feel the pressure I used to feel going to the different churches I have been to throughout my days. You read from the bible and explain what the meaning of what you are reading is in a way we can all understand and that is something I like. No, pressure, just straight up reading from the bible. You can't go wrong with that."
Please pray for the countless people like this that we have met this summer. They are both unchurched and God is working in both of their lives. Pray that God will keep drawing them to Himself, open their eyes to the truth of the gospel, and give them faith to respond. This is God's work!
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