Sorry but I just had to put that as the title. So what am I talking about it? Well you can go to http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1117710275 and see Jessica, Patriot, Azlan, and myself in something that I find hilarious. I am serious. It is that funny. I do warn you though, it is addicting.
By the way, thanks to Joclyn Sutton and Andrea Goslee for sending this to me. I really did laugh out loud.
November 30, 2007
November 28, 2007
Sign Wednesday: Mega Churches
I found the next 2 signs to be very interesting. They are very similar in nature and goes to speak a lot, I believe, about the growth of Mega Churches. The first sign is a map of the fastest growing metro areas in the United States. Here is the graphic/sign:
The dots represent cities that have at least a population 20,000 people in April of 2000 and have seen significant growth since then. Now take that sign and compare it to the second sign. The second sign is that of Mega Churches and their location and concentration in the United States. This sign is from the New York Times. You can click on it to make it easier to see.
Does anyone else notice that they are basically the same image? What do you think this tells us?
Here is what I think:
If you want to have the best possible way of having a church plant succeed then start one in an area that is seeing incredible growth. Of course this is not a guarantee but your chances are much better. My former pastor, Ed Young, would say that most of this is dumb growth and you can't really count it. I mean there are more Mega Churches in Dallas/Fort Worth than there is in Lexington, KY because there is simply more people. It is easy to get caught up looking at churches in metro areas that have millions of people that live there and are averaging 12,000-30,000 in average weekly attendance. These churches are successful and are reaching a great mass of people. I think it would be more interesting though to find a church that is not in a growing area but is growing like crazy.
The dots represent cities that have at least a population 20,000 people in April of 2000 and have seen significant growth since then. Now take that sign and compare it to the second sign. The second sign is that of Mega Churches and their location and concentration in the United States. This sign is from the New York Times. You can click on it to make it easier to see.
Does anyone else notice that they are basically the same image? What do you think this tells us?
Here is what I think:
If you want to have the best possible way of having a church plant succeed then start one in an area that is seeing incredible growth. Of course this is not a guarantee but your chances are much better. My former pastor, Ed Young, would say that most of this is dumb growth and you can't really count it. I mean there are more Mega Churches in Dallas/Fort Worth than there is in Lexington, KY because there is simply more people. It is easy to get caught up looking at churches in metro areas that have millions of people that live there and are averaging 12,000-30,000 in average weekly attendance. These churches are successful and are reaching a great mass of people. I think it would be more interesting though to find a church that is not in a growing area but is growing like crazy.
November 27, 2007
I wouldn't. . . unless . . .
How many times have you said, I wouldn't. . . I couldn't. . . I shouldn't. . . and then you go ahead and do exactly what you said you wouldn't, couldn't or shouldn't do? Doesn't the word unless have a lot to do with it. I know that I have said that I wouldn't stand in line for 2 hours to save $10, I mean unless my wife, my brother, my mother, and other family members wake me up at 3:45am the day after Thanksgiving to go shopping. That's right, yours truly, has been doing the Black Friday shopping for years now. I always said that I wouldn't, couldn't, and shouldn't but when you save $250 on a printer that you had to hunt all over Office Max for after they told you they were sold out but you didn't believe them and found one hiding in the front of the store. There is some gratification behind the whole thing. By they way, if you have never gone Black Friday shopping then here is a nice video to show you what it is like:
It can be nuts. So nuts that police get involved and have to mace some people. True story from a local Wal-mart.
Anyway, this post is not entirely about Black Friday. It is about the motivation behind people doing stuff. I know that I have had people tell me that they wouldn't want to teach in the elementary ministry or hang out with students. They say they aren't very good with kids and they don't want to have to spend the time it takes to learn a lesson. They say I wouldn't, I couldn't, and I shouldn't. Until one day when one of their best friends ask them to be a co-teacher with them. Then all of a sudden the word unless comes into play. I then check back with the person who said they wouldn't teach and now they wouldn't miss it for anything. You see people really do need motivation. People need the unless factor. For me I can't think of a better way to get more volunteers in your ministry then to have the people that are serving ask their friends to join them. I also can't think of a better way for stores to have a great sales day then to have all toys 50% off.
Today, I want you to look for the unless factor. I want you to think about the unless factor. When you find it, people are going to have a hard time saying I wouldn't, I couldn't, and I shouldn't.
It can be nuts. So nuts that police get involved and have to mace some people. True story from a local Wal-mart.
Anyway, this post is not entirely about Black Friday. It is about the motivation behind people doing stuff. I know that I have had people tell me that they wouldn't want to teach in the elementary ministry or hang out with students. They say they aren't very good with kids and they don't want to have to spend the time it takes to learn a lesson. They say I wouldn't, I couldn't, and I shouldn't. Until one day when one of their best friends ask them to be a co-teacher with them. Then all of a sudden the word unless comes into play. I then check back with the person who said they wouldn't teach and now they wouldn't miss it for anything. You see people really do need motivation. People need the unless factor. For me I can't think of a better way to get more volunteers in your ministry then to have the people that are serving ask their friends to join them. I also can't think of a better way for stores to have a great sales day then to have all toys 50% off.
Today, I want you to look for the unless factor. I want you to think about the unless factor. When you find it, people are going to have a hard time saying I wouldn't, I couldn't, and I shouldn't.
November 22, 2007
Today I am Thankful for. . .
. . .how much grace God has shown me over the years
. . .a loving wife that shows it in more ways than I can express
. . .2 boys that are absolutely adorable even if they didn't sleep last night
. . .a family who stop anything to help out anyone in need
. . .a church that believes in me and my ministry
. . .friends that laugh at my stupid jokes and give to charities that they don't know much about
. . .readers that keep coming back for some strange reason
. . .pumpkin pie and pineapple stuff
. . .technology that improves my day and it is getting better
. . .creativity from people like you that inspire me
Today what are you thankful for?
. . .a loving wife that shows it in more ways than I can express
. . .2 boys that are absolutely adorable even if they didn't sleep last night
. . .a family who stop anything to help out anyone in need
. . .a church that believes in me and my ministry
. . .friends that laugh at my stupid jokes and give to charities that they don't know much about
. . .readers that keep coming back for some strange reason
. . .pumpkin pie and pineapple stuff
. . .technology that improves my day and it is getting better
. . .creativity from people like you that inspire me
Today what are you thankful for?
November 21, 2007
Sign Wednesday: Since we're getting political
This goes along with my theme this week. I don't know why I chose politics for Thanksgiving week but the New York Times had a great post about political signs and I thought you should enjoy it as well. The 14 illustrations are by Ward Sutton. Thanks to Jonathan Cliff for sharing it with me.
November 20, 2007
Let's get Political?
No, this is not a political blog and no, I am not going to tell you who you should vote for, especially if you don't live in the U.S. This blog is about ministry, marketing, technology, and family but today I want to focus and highlight one of my friends.
His name is Phil Heimlich and he is running for Congress. Specifically he is running for the House of Representatives to win the seat for the 2nd District of Ohio. I have known Phil and his family for over 2 years now. You will not find a leader who is as strong yet humble as Phil. I have been impressed by his faith and his willingness to stand up for it. Many times I have sat back and wondered if politicians really do have faith or if they are just speaking about it because it is the right thing to do for the campaign. I am glad to see that this time it is for real.
Why do I tell you all this? Because this week of Thanksgiving reminds me to be thankful for who God has put into my life. Because to many times I think we can look at the leaders of our country and get frustrated. We can feel like there is no hope for our nation. I hope Phil does win and not just because he is a friend, but because he could bring a little bit of that hope back.
On a side note. . . His dad is the one who created the Heimlich Maneuver. Yes I laughed the first time I heard that too. And yes we do joke around the dinner table about calling him if someone is choking. The nice thing about Phil is that he would joke about it too.
If you want to know more about Phil or about his campaign then you can visit his site at www.philheimlich.com. If you drop him a note, tell him I sent you. I think he will get a laugh out of it. So here is to you my friend, I pray for you and your family often and I hope God blesses you and your campaign.
His name is Phil Heimlich and he is running for Congress. Specifically he is running for the House of Representatives to win the seat for the 2nd District of Ohio. I have known Phil and his family for over 2 years now. You will not find a leader who is as strong yet humble as Phil. I have been impressed by his faith and his willingness to stand up for it. Many times I have sat back and wondered if politicians really do have faith or if they are just speaking about it because it is the right thing to do for the campaign. I am glad to see that this time it is for real.
Why do I tell you all this? Because this week of Thanksgiving reminds me to be thankful for who God has put into my life. Because to many times I think we can look at the leaders of our country and get frustrated. We can feel like there is no hope for our nation. I hope Phil does win and not just because he is a friend, but because he could bring a little bit of that hope back.
On a side note. . . His dad is the one who created the Heimlich Maneuver. Yes I laughed the first time I heard that too. And yes we do joke around the dinner table about calling him if someone is choking. The nice thing about Phil is that he would joke about it too.
If you want to know more about Phil or about his campaign then you can visit his site at www.philheimlich.com. If you drop him a note, tell him I sent you. I think he will get a laugh out of it. So here is to you my friend, I pray for you and your family often and I hope God blesses you and your campaign.
November 19, 2007
Thought of the day
If you live young enough to fail then you might just be old enough to succeed.
--Matt McKee
--Matt McKee
November 14, 2007
Sign Wednesday: Chris Brown and Elmo?
Here is a little music video about signs that cracked me up. Enjoy.
November 13, 2007
My feed is fixed for real this time.
I hate to admit this but I was wrong. There I said it and you can't make me say it again. I tried fixing my feed one other time, on my own, and it failed. How do I know? Many of you e-mailed me and said that it is still broke. By the way, thanks for the heads up. So what did I do? I went to the professionals at Feedburner and let them do the dirty work. You will notice a new subscribe in a reader button on the right side of this page. If you want to know what I am thinking about ministry or what I find interesting about marketing and signs then please feel free to subscribe. The guys at Feedburner tell me that it will work now and I trust them. I also tried it out for myself and for rizzle it worked. Did I just say for rizzle? You can tell I am happy.
Sometimes in life you have to let the professionals handle things and you can't always do it yourself. I wish most people at church got this concept. If they did, then that would be a great day.
Sometimes in life you have to let the professionals handle things and you can't always do it yourself. I wish most people at church got this concept. If they did, then that would be a great day.
November 12, 2007
Senior Pastor Support and Building Plans
How much support do you get from your Senior Pastor? Does he talk about your vision in his sermons? Does he give you face time on the "main stage"? Does he believe in what you are doing?
I would have to say that I have an incredible Senior Pastor when it comes to supporting my ministry at Horizon. I am not just saying that because he reads my blog. More than likely he won't read this post and that is fine by me because of what went on yesterday at church. I will get there but first let me fill some on you in on somethings:
Last week, November 4th, our church started the official building campaign. If you didn't know we bought a golf course about 18 months ago and on October 1st of this year it stopped being a golf course and became the future home of Horizon. It is 154 acres with a 12 acre lake and a river that is part of the property line. It is a beautiful piece of property. I will post some photos soon just so that you can see it. As you can imagine this is not going to be a small project that we are undertaking. Most of the property will be used for community recreational space but we will be building a church as well. Speaking of building a church. Here is the initial building layout. This is the first story and there will be a second story to most but feel free to comment on what you think of it.
This is going to be a God sized project for our church. The architects have told us that this building will cost around $40 million. Before we officially started the campaign we have raised $20 million. Unbelievable for a church our size. Needless to say but I am very excited about this building. Not just because I get rear projection screens the size of walls in my theater spaces in my elementary and student ministry that will allow me to project sets instead of print backdrops, but because lives will be changed in this building and on this property. More post will be written about the building and its design but onto the point.
Yesterday our Senior Pastor let us do a children's worship service for the first half of the adult service. That's right. . . My team got to bring all of the elementary kids into the adult auditorium and do our thing. It was great to see the excitement of the parents watch their kids have a blast. It was great to see the kids really get into it. After we did our 20-25 minute large group time for the church our Senior Pastor got up and basically preached the vision of the children's ministry. It was a huge day for my team. It was a huge day for our parents. It was a huge day for our church.
By the way, I did lesson 5 of the Super Sports Spectacular series from Elevate. It worked out great because I got to teach the kids and adults that they should be serving and helping those around them. When you are given this kind of time by your church you better be intentional.
To sum it all up. . . Yesterday was incredibly fun and did more for the children's ministry then anything else I could have done alone. Thanks to our Senior Pastor, Chad Hovind, for believing in what I do and supporting me in such a huge way. I really do appreciate it.
I would have to say that I have an incredible Senior Pastor when it comes to supporting my ministry at Horizon. I am not just saying that because he reads my blog. More than likely he won't read this post and that is fine by me because of what went on yesterday at church. I will get there but first let me fill some on you in on somethings:
Last week, November 4th, our church started the official building campaign. If you didn't know we bought a golf course about 18 months ago and on October 1st of this year it stopped being a golf course and became the future home of Horizon. It is 154 acres with a 12 acre lake and a river that is part of the property line. It is a beautiful piece of property. I will post some photos soon just so that you can see it. As you can imagine this is not going to be a small project that we are undertaking. Most of the property will be used for community recreational space but we will be building a church as well. Speaking of building a church. Here is the initial building layout. This is the first story and there will be a second story to most but feel free to comment on what you think of it.
This is going to be a God sized project for our church. The architects have told us that this building will cost around $40 million. Before we officially started the campaign we have raised $20 million. Unbelievable for a church our size. Needless to say but I am very excited about this building. Not just because I get rear projection screens the size of walls in my theater spaces in my elementary and student ministry that will allow me to project sets instead of print backdrops, but because lives will be changed in this building and on this property. More post will be written about the building and its design but onto the point.
Yesterday our Senior Pastor let us do a children's worship service for the first half of the adult service. That's right. . . My team got to bring all of the elementary kids into the adult auditorium and do our thing. It was great to see the excitement of the parents watch their kids have a blast. It was great to see the kids really get into it. After we did our 20-25 minute large group time for the church our Senior Pastor got up and basically preached the vision of the children's ministry. It was a huge day for my team. It was a huge day for our parents. It was a huge day for our church.
By the way, I did lesson 5 of the Super Sports Spectacular series from Elevate. It worked out great because I got to teach the kids and adults that they should be serving and helping those around them. When you are given this kind of time by your church you better be intentional.
To sum it all up. . . Yesterday was incredibly fun and did more for the children's ministry then anything else I could have done alone. Thanks to our Senior Pastor, Chad Hovind, for believing in what I do and supporting me in such a huge way. I really do appreciate it.
November 7, 2007
What do you do when . . . ?
This morning on my way to work I was listening to Mike and Mike in the Morning on ESPN radio. I do this every morning but this morning they asked a question, that became to real in my world. The question was, "What do you when you know someone is or has done something wrong?" To me I took this question to, "How do you minister to someone that you know is or has done something wrong?" Now I know we all do wrong and we all sin, but what do you do when you find out a very close friend will be arrested next week because of a wrong decision? What do you do when you know that another one of your friends is doing illegal drugs? What do you do when you know that someone close to you is not being honest in their business? What do you do when sin really gets in the way? These are not rhetorical questions. These are the questions that people are asked everyday at work, at home, and even to themselves. In Mike and Mike's case it was talking about baseball players that know other players that are doing HGH. In my case, it is the people I minister to at my church.
So I am really asking you, "What do you do when . . . ?
So I am really asking you, "What do you do when . . . ?
Sign Wednesday: Google Reader: A sign of the future?
I am excited about a feature that I have on this blog that I wasn't able to have on my last site. My last site was only HTML compatible and didn't integrate with java script but that is for another post. This feature is called my Shared Google Reader or what I like to call "Posts you should read from other Blogs". How is this a sign? This is a sign because it has incredible information on it that changes at least twice a week or more depending on how much good material there is out there. You see I read about 1000 posts every month and share with you the best ones through this little tool. It is an ever changing sign that can truly help you navigate your way through ministry, technology, sports, or anything else I find interesting. So if you only read my site through a feed reader then you can either come to my site once and a while or you can subscribe to my Shared Google Reader feed and see what I find most interesting around the blogsphere. Now that is what I call a very high tech sign. I can only guess that most signs in the future will look, feel, and function similar to this one. By the way, here is what it looked like when I did this post:
November 6, 2007
Happy Birthday Azlan!
One year ago today my youngest son was born. He cried and I cried. I cried because I saw him for the first time. He cried because he saw me for the first time, and said, "Come on God, you couldn't do better than that for me." Today we have tears of joy and laughter. By the way, he is a stud. Just look at the picture.
You gotta pop your collar!
You gotta pop your collar!
November 5, 2007
Oops, Let's pray
This morning I had a hospital visit scheduled at Cincinnati Children's Hospital. I was visiting a family who has a one year old little girl who is getting a kidney taken out. I have been to this hospital many times over the last couple of months to visit other families and to have surgery on my own 3 year old son, Patriot. Normally I don't ask the family where they are going to be because I can find that info at the main desk and it gives me a chance to check in as clergy. So this morning I did just that. I signed in and asked where the Byrd family was? They told me that they were on the 6th floor. Now the 6th floor is an ICU floor and I thought it strange that they were there but I thought something could have happened that was unexpected. Normally surgeries are done on the 3rd floor but onto the 6th floor I go. On the 6th floor I have to sign in again as a security measure for the ICU. I told them I was here to pray with the Byrd family. She called the parents and woke them up to tell them I was here. It was before 6:30 in the morning but I didn't think the family would be asleep. The second red flag here still didn't stop me. I was determined to pray for the Byrd family. I get to the room and find a 8 year old African-American boy with his Mom and Grandmother. Needless to say this Byrd family was not expecting me. They didn't know any Caucasian pastors and was wondering why I woke them up. I did what all pastors do in this situation. I told them that they were on my list of people to pray for today and we gathered around their son and prayed. It was as heartfelt and generic of a prayer that I could do for someone in a situation that I had no clue what was going on. As quickly as I could I said God bless and exited the room. I then went to the nurse's station found the right Byrd family and headed to the 3rd floor. I found the 1 year old little girl and prayed for her and her parents.
I still don't have a clue what is going on with the one family on the 6th floor, but I do know that both families could really use your prayers. So take a moment right now and pray that both families find a peace today that they didn't think possible. Thanks.
I still don't have a clue what is going on with the one family on the 6th floor, but I do know that both families could really use your prayers. So take a moment right now and pray that both families find a peace today that they didn't think possible. Thanks.
November 1, 2007
More gPhone buzz
I think it is interesting in the tech industry when there is not much going on that rumors of the Google Phone seem to surface quickly. Here are 2 stories from the last 2 days about the gPhone. Story one can be found here. Story two can be found here.
All I have to say is that I really hope the rumors about Google and T-Mobile working together are true. Especially since my church provides me with a phone through this carrier and I couldn't get an iPhone. Yes I am still a little bit bitter but with news like this it makes me a little bit happy.
All I have to say is that I really hope the rumors about Google and T-Mobile working together are true. Especially since my church provides me with a phone through this carrier and I couldn't get an iPhone. Yes I am still a little bit bitter but with news like this it makes me a little bit happy.
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