Archive for the ‘Church Planting’ Category

Walking in Memphis

Yesterday we loaded up the staff team from Freedom and headed to west TN for a couple of days.

It’s a strategic location from the standpoint that the dream to begin a church in Acworth started from a house in Millington, TN.   We are going to be loaded down for the majority of the time we are here, but we’ve worked in a little R&R as well.  Very little :)

I absolutely love our team, the people at Freedom Church, and those whom we are striving to reach.  The next 6 months are going to be insane.  Scary actually.  Can’t wait to get back and fill you in…

So ya wanna start a church…

I was reading through Michael’s book, and realized that my friend Tadd and I both had former blog posts that made cameo appearances.  Here’s what I wrote:

Church planting is a cool thing to do.  I agree with that 100%; however, if you are thinking of planting a church, you better have a more definitive reason for doing so than that.

Planting a church because it’s cool? – buy a new car…
…because it is exciting? buy a skydiving session and go jump out of an airplane…
…because you hate the one you’re in?   find a new one and invest your life there…
…because you want to be the “lead” pastor?   get over yourself, repent, and make sure there is more to it than that.

We need more churches and we need more church planters.  Just make sure that it’s not your faulty motives masquerading as a calling from God.  Make sure you were called to do it.   Then, answer the call – just make absolutely sure that is what you are answering.

Power

I pray every day that Freedom Church would continue to become a powerful church.  A church lacking power isn’t an accurate picture of the character of God.   Jesus didn’t come come to this earth, die, and rise again so that His church could limp along until His return.

God is fully capable of making the extraordinary ordinary.  Leaders of every background, denomination, style, etc. are seeing God do what many had classified as impossible.  How?

Here is something that I’ve come to realize:  Vision is vital, but power comes through prayer.

Vision and strategy are important, but prayer produces the power that can shake a city, state, nation, and world.  My tendency is to spend disproportionate time on vision and strategy – while praying that God blesses the “work” we have done.

I need to stop praying “for” the work and realize that prayer “is” the work.

Looking Back

Recently, I listened to a portion of a message that I had given in one of the first few weeks at Freedom Church.

It was NOT what I expected.  You ever done something in the past – remembered it being pretty darn good – and then realized that it wasn’t quite as good as you originally thought?  That’s how I felt the other day.

It freaked me out a little bit, but I told some people in the office that I hope this trend continues – in every area of my life.  I am a work in progress – not just in communication, but as a husband, father, Pastor, leader, and friend.   I want to continue getting better – which means I will have to get use to looking back and laughing at who I use to be.

I don’t mind changing – it’s staying the same that would scare me to death.

Series Preview

The next several weeks are going to be incredible!  We nailed down the direction of the next few series at Freedom and here is how things are shaping up beginning a few weeks from now…

Awakening – 3 week Series

Rebel – 5 Week Series

2 Standalone messages

Old Time Religion – 4 Week Series

All about Me – 3-4 Week Series