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Church Pitfalls (Part 5)

#5 - I thought I knew everything - Just about every church planter I've ever met is a little cocky. Some are just confident in their calling and others are down right arrogant. I was a punk kid who thought he knew everything when I really knew nothing.

I believe one of the greatest assets of a church planter is being sure of his calling. But we can't let that cause us to get to the point where we aren't teachable. God opposes proud people but gives grace to the humble.

Hard times tend to beat arrogance out of people. Then we start to think we don't know anything. Then wisdom and maturity set in and we get develop a sober estimation of ourselves. It's a lot easier is we just start here.

If you're interested is hearing about some other Church Planting Pitfalls, check out this resource Nelson Searcy and I did on the subject.

Church Pitfalls (Part 4)

#4 - I was trying to be someone else - Here's what I didn't realize when I first started in ministry, that Jesus didn't save us to clone us. God created you to be you. When we started our church, I was 26 years old, and I was desperate to know how a Senior Pastor acted. So I did what I knew: I wore a tie every Sunday, I taught the way I was taught to, and I said "Praise the Lord" and "God bless you" in all the right spots.

What was the result? I was miserable. I hate wearing ties. I had different ideas about teaching and communicating than my instructors and all the Christianeze was about to make me puke.

So I decided to be myself. I put away the ties. I started communicating in a way that was suited to my gifts and I started talking like a normal person. In the end, I was much happier and the joy of ministry came back when I decided to be me.

If you're interested is hearing about some other Church Planting Pitfalls, check out this resource Nelson Searcy and I did on the subject. If you're a church planter interested in coaching, click here to be part of my new tele-coaching network exclusively for church planters! I have a couple of spots left.

Church Pitfalls (Part 3)

#3 - I had a hard time saying "no" - When we stated Calvary Fellowship, the last thing I wanted to do was say no when someone asked me something. What resulted was getting roped into commitments I didn't want to be part of, agreeing to start ministries I didn't feel called to, and allow people into positions of influence that had no business being there. The result: chaos.

If you're a leader, "No" is your best friend. "No" means you're clear about what you're called to do and what you aren't called to do. "No" means you'd rather please God than people. "No" means you're confident in who God has called you to be. "No" means you're willing to upset a few for the sake of reaching many. I encourage you to passionate about what you say yes to, and say "no" to everything else.

If you're interested is hearing about some other Church Planting Pitfalls, check out this resource Nelson Searcy and I did on the subject. If you're a church planter interested in coaching, click here to be part of my new tele-coaching network exclusively for church planters! I have a couple of spots left.

Church Pitfalls (Part 2)

#2 - An Unclear Vision - Churches that aren't sure why they exist tend to simply find out what another church's passion is and adopt that as their vision. The problem with trying to take someone else's vision is the same problem with as trying to date another man's wife: she's already taken.

Taking another church's vision and mission doesn't help you because it's not the mission God has empowered you to do. So you will spend your life struggling to accomplish something God has never called you to.

The solution to an unclear vision is to spend time with the only One who gives vision: God. Ask God to give you a burden and a passion and let that be what guides your ministry. James 1:5 says that if we lack wisdom, we should ask God. Nothing is better than functioning out of a sense of knowing that God has called you and what He has called you to.

If you're interested is hearing about some other Church Planting Pitfalls, check out this resource Nelson Searcy and I did on the subject. If you're a church planter interested in coaching, click here to be part of my new tele-coaching network exclusively for church planters! I have a couple of spots left.

Church Pitfalls (Part 1)

When we started Calvary Fellowship in 2000, we made so many mistakes. This week I'm going to share a few of those.

#1 - Conference "Confusion" - This is a illness that church planters (and many young pastors) get. They go to a conference and get really excited about the host church, the speakers, and the model being presented, that they go home and immediately try to change everything to match what the conference speaker was teaching. The problem is, once the next conference comes around, they go home and try to do the same thing. What happens is that after a short amount of time, the church loses its original vision and it becomes a Frankenstein church that's a strange blend of a bunch of conference ideas and church models.

What cures this illness? Getting very clear from the beginning about your vision and sticking to it. More on that tomorrow...

If you're interested is hearing about some other Church Planting Pitfalls, check out this resource Nelson Searcy and I did on the subject. If you're a church planter interested in coaching, click here to be part of my new tele-coaching network exclusively for church planters! I have a couple of spots left.

Sunday Stuff...

- It was a good day. Not stellar, but good.
- We had some power issues before the 1st service.
- We're still learning the ins and outs of the school.
- I felt great about my message today.
- I taught on godliness and what it means t live a godly life.
- We celebrated communion together. That was really powerful.
- We had a baptism in the afternoon and had a bunch of people take the plunge. That was awesome!
- I've been assessing mode lately. I'm looking at the holes in our church and how we need to shore them up as we grow before they become a hinderance.
- We need to add staff and we need to restructure some systems to keep growing.
- You've hear the saying, "Staff ahead of the growth" - it's true!
- Next week is going to be awesome!
- We're having a cook out after each service and it's day light savings so everyone will be wide awake due to the extra hour of sleep :)
- I decided to stop Twittering for now. I'm deciding if Twitter has any real benefit for me. I'll let you know.
- I spoke at a great marriage event on Saturday. Had a great time. I love seeing new churches start that are reaching people. It's very exciting!
- Big planning meeting for our staff on Tuesday. We're planning 2009. If you remember, pray for us.
- I have vowed not to eat any Halloween candy. Pray for me :)
- Even though I get tired from ministry, I never get tired of ministry. I'm still humbled that God called someone like me to serve Him.
- Speaking of tired, I'm out...

Where I'm speaking

Just an FYI - I added a new page on the blog. It has all of the upcoming speaking engagements I'm going to be involved in outside of Calvary Fellowship. I don't say yes to much outside speaking because I want to make sure Calvary is my focus, but I do agree to teach at events on occasion.

So if you want to know where I'll be, that's the place to check.

Book Reviews

Here's a couple of books I've read over the last week that I want to put on your radar:

101 Ways to Market Your Business - This is obviously a business book, but it has some great ideas that churches could use. I walked away with about 25 ideas ideas that we couple implement immediately. If you're a Pastor, this is a good book to pick up.

Speak Like Churchill, Stand Like Lincoln - I've been hearing about this book for a couple of years and I finally got around to reading it. It's 21 principles for public speaking. I found this book very helpful.

Comeback Churches - I really enjoyed this book. It's not just a book for churches that have gotten stuck, but I believe these principles can be applied to an area in your church or the church as a whole.

Happy reading!

You're always sharing Vision

You are always communicating vision in your church. It's not just the day you decide to do a "Vision Talk". I contend that everything you do in your church is speaking about what the vision of your church is.

- You communicate vision with the language in your bulletin
- You communicate vision with your appearance
- You communicate vision with your style of teaching
- You communicate vision with your signage
- You communicate vision with your follow up processes
- You communicate vision with how often you present the Gospel
- You communicate vision with your worship style
- You communicate vision a hundred other ways.

You're always communicating vision. Here's my question: What's your vision speaking?

A New Box to Check

I used to check off the box that said "25-34".

But I turned 35 today. This means I have to check off a new box.

You know the box that says "35-44".

But even though I'm a little older, hopefully I'm a little wiser :)