- What a great day!
- Last week I told everyone NOT TO invite anyone today but didn’t tell them why.
- It immediately became clear today why I said that…for some it happened sooner than it did for others…more on that in a second.
- So what did we do? Well it was called “No Show Sunday” and the premise was this…
- What would church be like if none of our normal 43 volunteers on a Sunday morning showed up.
- In other words, without telling them why, I gave everyone who serves the week off and then between myself, Bill and Chelsea (all staff)…we did everything (Chad our other staff person was away).
- But when I say everything, we only did the very minimum’s.
- What this meant was no signs, nobody opening doors, no greeters, no ushers, no children’s ministry (yep that was interesting have all the kids in with us), no cafe, none of the little extra touches we normally do to spruce up the theater, no lights, no projection (ok we did use an old transparency projector. You can see what it looks like here on the blog…wow it was horrible!), no full worship team (just Bill on keys), no stage set, no bulletin…well you get the idea.
- There were multiple goals for the day…
- First that people realize what we do and the incredible things that God is doing in our midst is not a 1-man show. As I said, “Yes I may be the big mouth but it takes dozens of people doing their part to pull off all God wants us to do”.
- Second that those already serving would realize how valuable they are and would be honored.
- It was awesome the ovation they got and we were honored to treat them all to lunch afterward at a local restaurant. It was expensive but they are worth 100’s of times what it cost…it truly is a team effort at ECTV.
- In total 56 of our people who serve showed up and it was my honor to be able to personally go around and thank each of them for the various things they do.
- Third that those not already serving would be inspired to start. As I also said, “It’s not that we NEED you to, it’s that we WANT you to so you can experience what all the rest of us are”.
- I think all of the goals were achieved!
- You can listen to my message here.
- Really though this was a message that was more felt than heard.
- I was amazed how many people picked up on no directional signs being anywhere on Valley Road.
- It was almost comical watching people come in the wrong doors from the outside. Our team does such a great job of welcoming and then directing traffic that most people don’t even realize it. It was funny time after time watching people come through the center doors and then looking around like, “Where am I?”
- For those that did come in the usual set of doors it was also funny to see them immediately turn left to go get something to eat in the Cafe and then the shocked look on their face when they realized nothing was there.
- Another big shocker was how many people later commented to me how much they miss the little touches we do in the restrooms to make it first class.
- Some of the things I didn’t even know we do, but again it just proved that it’s not all about me and the staff and that the “little things” sometimes make the biggest difference.
- Ok let’s cover some other quick stuff from the day.
- It was nice being able to sleep in a little later than normal.
- I busted my head on one of the railings this morning and was pretty woozy…as I write this at 5:30 in the evening I still have a headache.
- Bill and I decided to set things up early to make sure we had all our bases covered since we weren’t using our normal equipment.
- Everything set-up quickly which meant we had 1 1/2 hours to kill.
- Nice of Andy to bring us some coffee cake.
- We sat around waiting for Chelsea to come in and then the 3 of us just sat there taking turns going, “This is so weird”.
- We always start the Expereinces with a countdown and today was no different…except it was my fingers shining a shadow on the overhead projector.
- Bill did a great job leading worship by himself…it was hilarious when he played and sang the beginning of the old, cheesy Eric Carmen song, “All By Myself”. His wife Meghan gave him the idea which was awesome!
- All in all the worship time was pretty good energy and participation.
- My message was the longest I’ve done at ECTV but there was a lot that needed to be said…and also included something I would rather not have had to announce…
- Effective March 11th, Chelsea will be leaving our staff.
- Please check back on the blog tomorrow and I’ll be posting much more about this.
- Until then know that while this was sad to announce, Chelsea and I are both excited about the future of ECTV and our Children’s Ministry.
- It was so great the sustained standing ovation that Chelsea got from everyone…it was well deserved!
- Having been in her shoes a couple of times, I know how draining of a day the announcement of your departure can be, but she did great.
- Again check back tomorrow for more from me and a letter from Chelsea as well.
- Then on Tuesday I’ll post more info on what the plan is from here on out.
- If you’re dying to know I did talk about it in the message so again here is the link.
- Speaking of kids, all of them were in the Worship Experience with us and it was basically what I figured it would be…controlled chaos.
- We had more people up and down today than we’ve had in the previous 15 months combined…a lot of that I could tell was kid related.
- For the most part I was able to block out the crying and other general noises from the kids as I was speaking but I could see that others were being distracted by their own kids or others.
- So thankful for those that serve our kids each week in a fun environment that allows them to learn about Jesus in age appropriate ways…it’s not only good for the kids but also for the adults so they can worship and learn without distraction.
- I haven’t gotten the final count yet but it would appear that a couple dozen people signed up to begin serving in various roles we have both on Sunday’s and during the week.
- Doing what we did was a big risk but it would appear well worth it.
- Oh yeah forgot to mention we had one of our largest crowds ever. Add on top of that all the kids in with us and the theater really felt full.
- I kept apologizing to guests afterwards but they all said they understood the point and would be back during one of our “normal” weeks.
- Next week things will be back to normal…but two things will be a bit different.
- First for anyone interested, we’ll be sharing communion together at 9:10am in the lobby.
- Afterward you’ll be able to see what one of our normal team meetings is like.
- Second, all are invited to Infinito’s on Union Deposit Road at noon for a chance to eat and hang out with one another.
- Ok think I’ve said enough…have a great week!
Inside Today’s Experience
- Very happy with today!
- 3 more people started a relationship with Jesus.
- Many people commented how much they needed to hear and now apply the message I did on having proper priorities when it comes to how to spend our time.
- As Chad said earlier in the week, today was reset day as far as attendance goes since the last two weeks were holiday weekends.
- We had a really great sized crowd…hope to keep it going.
- Alright as for the other details of the day…
- Nice to be back on a normal schedule and without a lot of extra stuff.
- Band was done set-up and warm-up early (actually normal time) but after the past few weeks it seemed way early.
- During set-up, Lisa called me and said her car broke down so I had to run out to get her.
- Once I got there though it started working again…it’s been acting weird the last few weeks so we’ll have to take it in this week for “repairs”.
- The band started today with a cover of Coldplay’s song “Paradise”. As always they did awesome but I know Bill was glad to not have to do any more Wooooo’s…especially that high.
- Speaking of, he said something awesome during his prayer that Spirit spoke to me about. He said that “today was going to be a day where people go God’s way full-heartedly”. It hit me in the moment that yes as a result of each message people either go FULL-heartedly or FOOL-heartedly.
- Aren’t you glad we have a choice!
- Speaking of choices, the message today was about making sure as we start a New Year that we don’t misuse our time chasing our things but instead prioritize our relationship with God and family.
- The gist of the message was that someone is going to feel cheated, but we get to choose who or what that will be.
- For the first time ever, I accidentally forgot to put my phone on vibrate and it went off during the sermon.
- You’ll just have to listen to the message to see how I handled it. 🙂
- Love hanging out in the lobby and hearing people’s stories afterwards…God is doing some amazing stuff in our midst!
- Next week we start the “Little Faither” series on how to overcome worry.
- Here’s a Facebook invite you can share.
- Also as I mentioned today the invite cards got delayed in shipping.
- If you want some when they come in this week (and you haven’t already let us know), email me and I’ll make sure they get to you.
- One of our core values at Exponential is that we must all become World-Class inviters.
- Please help to do your part to make sure your family members, friends, neighbors and co-workers come out for this series!
- This is such an easy series to invite people to since everyone wants to overcome worry…don’t waste this golden opportunity.
Inside Today’s Experience
- Great day!
- Had to start the morning out scrapping the ice of the windshield and wearing my beanie…definitely the coldest Sunday morning we’ve had so far this “winter”.
- Had to use the quotes because I know some of you would correct me and say it’s not yet winter…ok but did you really expect me to say it was the crispest fall morning so far. Yeah right.
- Oh wait I did just say it…
- OK here’s the deal…it was cold this morning.
- Anytime we start a new series it’s always an adventure since we have no way to have tested the new stage design up until that time.
- With this one Bill built 4 “candy cane” looking contraptions with multiple color Christmas lights strung between them.
- What’s cool is we can control each color independently…which is harder than it sounds.
- In fact it required 8 extra extension cords since you can’t put them into a power strip and then to the lighting control…each one needs to run separate.
- All that to say…we had to send Gayle out on an extension cord run since we were short a few.
- Amazingly we were short even with taking 6 of our normal lights out of the equation altogether.
- We’ll add them in over the coming weeks.
- So set-up and practice were longer than normal this morning.
- Another factor was that Steve our drummer missed practice on Thursday night…something about getting engaged or something. 🙂
- Congrats Steve & Kelsey!
- In any case, the band did a great job pulling it altogether.
- However, the crowed energy was down today…not sure why.
- Again using a however…on this day last year we had one of our worst days we’ve ever had…so today was light years better.
- Chad did a great job preaching the first message in the Party series.
- His message was about getting an invitation and not being left out.
- You can listen to it here.
- Since he preached that allowed me a chance to walk around a see some other things I normally don’t get to.
- I twice stopped by and watched Chelsea and the kids in the theater next door.
- Awesome to see them worshiping, having fun and learning about Jesus.
- Also spent some time in the nursery/toddler area where one of our normal toddlers was crying hysterically.
- I tried picking her up and holding her but to no avail.
- So I put her down and quietly slipped away before anyone noticed I had left. 🙂
- It’s always good to have days like today where I can walk around evaluating things without the “pressure” of knowing I have to preach.
- Got some things we need to work on but for the most part we’re light years ahead of where I thought we’d be at this point in our now slightly over 1 year of existence.
- God has and is so good to us!
- Lisa has been out-of-town all week-long so afterward my mom, dad, sister and I went to lunch together.
- To the best of our recollection it was the first time in about 20 years since it was just the 4 of us together to eat.
- Not sure why but I took a longer nap this afternoon than a typical Sunday.
- That shouldn’t have been…I didn’t really do anything today.
- Lisa flies back tomorrow…can’t wait to see her!
- Next week we’ll continue the Party series with a message I’m doing called, “Bust a Move”.
- Once you’re at the party, it does you no good to stand against the wall…time to get out on the dance floor.
- What’s that have to do with the Bible and your life?
- You’ll have to join us to find out.
- Don’t forget to mark your calendars for Saturday, December 24 & 31 at 10am which will take the place of our normal Sunday morning Worship Experiences.
Thanksgiving 2011
Hard to believe but this is now my 5th year doing these posts ( 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010). As always here are the things I’m thankful for in this past year.
- Jesus- Well who else did you expect at #1? As every year passes, I realize more and more how ugly, sinful and broken I am inside. Yet Jesus loved me enough not to just be my friend, but to die for me so that my relationship to Him could be even greater. I don’t deserve a love like that and so my only acceptable response is to offer a life of sacrifice back to Him.
- Lisa- Again who were you expecting? Before each of my bi-monthly calls with my church planting coach (thankful for Vince’s friendship as well), I have to fill out a form reporting on various areas of my life and ministry. One of the questions is, “How is your marriage”? Recently during a time when I was feeling a bit down and depressed, I wrote for this question, “No matter what else is going on, this is the one area that I can count on to be great”. Trust me, Lisa has far more to do with that than I do. Every year I can’t imagine our marriage getting any better but yet it does…wow I’m such a lucky man that God gave me such a Godly wife. Her passion, hunger for growth and servant spirit are truly an inspiration to me.
- My immediate family- I’ve seen my mom, dad, sister and niece as much in the past year as I probably did in the 10 years prior to that. The irony is I had to move further away from them for it to happen. Regardless, one of the highlights of my week is knowing that I’ll get to see them on Sunday mornings. I’ll see them again today and tomorrow and I’m sure there will be times that we pick-on each other but underneath it all is a love and a bond with and for one another that can not be broken no matter how many miles the highway may now separate us.
- My cousins- This year has also given me a few times to reconnect with my cousins that I grew up with. Life and circumstances have kept us a part for many years but I’m looking forward to hopefully more opportunities to hang-out and reconnect.
- My long-term friends- Andy, Gayle, Bill and Nicole. It’s been an interesting year and not at all how I had envisioned it but yet these 4 at multiple times and in many ways continue to be there for and with me. Words can’t describe how grateful I am for the 10+ years they’ve put up with me.
- My new friends I’m developing- Some of these are at church but many of them are from the community. As I mentioned in our current series, one of the problems many pastors have is waking up one day and realizing you don’t have any significant relationships with people who are far from God. So this year I have been intentionally going out and building new friendships. Not only have I been having fun meeting new people and hanging out, but a few I can see as becoming close friends. Most significantly I can already see the difference I’ve been able to make in people’s lives.
- My staff- Chad, Bill and Chelsea. To be quite honest, I’m in way over my head with this whole church planting thing, but these 3 make me look a lot better than I am. I’m so grateful God has brought us together as a team and can’t wait to see how God will use us to further His Kingdom. It’s an honor to be able to lead them and I pray I do it well.
- That ExponentialChurch.tv survived it’s first year- I wish this were hyperbole but it’s not. Most church plants die within their first 3 years. We’ve got one of those under our belts but we’re not out of the woods quite yet. However, as I already mentioned we have a great staff that’s sold out to seeing God’s Kingdom advance. More importantly we have many others who serve week end and week out because they realize that life is not about them but in helping people far from God come back into a relationship with Him and then grow to become more like Him. Thanks to all for an incredible year where we’ve now seen over 120 people come into a relationship with Jesus…but remember…the best is yet to come!
- Lisa’s business/God’s blessing- In order to start ExponentialChurch.tv, we had to sacrifice a lot to move here to Harrisburg. One such sacrifice was I voluntarily took a 23% reduction in salary. This meant the possibility that Lisa might have had to get a job (which would have been a huge sacrifice on her part because of health issues). However, despite it all we continued to tithe and trust that you can’t out give God. Sure enough He began to bless her business ,which for years had pretty much always made the same amount of money. All of the sudden…through no real effort of her own, she has been swamped with work which has allowed her to stay at home!
- Chuck Frank- Chuck is a long-time friend and more recently became the Director of Church Planting for the Eastern Regional Conference of the Churches of God General Conference (catchy isn’t it). It was Chuck’s email that spurred on the vision I had for Exponential originally. Over the past year he and his team have been incredibly helpful and generous in numerous ways in helping us launch. Chuck is a great cheerleader for planting and evangelism and his support this past year has been invaluable.
- Technology- It can be both a blessing and a curse but for the most part I am very thankful for all that technology allows us to do. Especially this past year I am grateful for two tools that make my life so much easier. The first is www.audible.com. Audio books have been around along time, but now with the ability to download them to my smart phone and then play back through blue-tooth on my car stereo, life is so much easier. Literally I turn my car into a mobile classroom and can usually get through 3-4 books per month just during my normal driving time. The second tool I’m thankful for is the Getting Things Done Outlook Add-In Tool. One of the audio books I listened to this past year was Getting Things Done by David Allen. His system is tremendous and when I found out there was an add-in for Outlook, it was an easy decision to spend the $70+. My life, tasks and schedule have never been more organized and de-cluttered and for that I am very thankful!
Inside Today’s Experience (1 Year Birthday Edition)
- Hard to believe but today is our 1 year birthday as a church.
- What a year it’s been…to see for yourself here’s a recap music video we put together.
- The morning seemed earlier than normal since Chad and I spent the beginning of the week at a church conference out in Vegas and my body hasn’t adjusted back to Eastern Time…so 6:20am felt more like 3:20am…ughhh.
- The adrenaline though of a big day helped to make it better.
- Set-up went well but we had a few things happen that made for a longer than normal pre-Experience time.
- First the band had to practice an additional 4 songs that they were doing for their mini-concert and I had to create 30+ slides quickly for the comedy bit Bill was doing during the welcome time.
- We had tried it during the warm-up without slides but it fell a bit flat…but during the Experience it went well with the addition of the slides…and oh yeah the noise makers certainly helped!
- Today we had balloons and a huge birthday cake (pictured in this post) in the lobby in addition to party music.
- It was really a great atmosphere and something we’ll need to replicate in some way each week.
- One problem we’ve had is getting people from the lobby/cafe area into the Experience on time. This week at the conference I heard an idea and came home and made it happen.
- Essentially I wrote a song that encourages people to get out of the lobby and into the Experience.
- Big thanks to Matt Cassidy for helping me put the music to it and for recording it.
- Best thing is I’m told it actually worked.
- Lisa said at first people were laughing but then realized, “Oh I actually need to get moving” and they did!
- While the lobby was buzzing with energy the band was doing their mini-concert which was really cool.
- We then launched into the Experience with a cover of “Lies of the Beautiful People”.
- It was perhaps the best cover they’ve done…not an easy song yet they killed it!
- Bill followed with his 1 Year Birthday Quiz which went over well…again especially with people blowing noisemakers.
- The band then did a few of their and the crowds favorite worship songs from our first year.
- As always they did a great job…special shout-out to Gayle for coming in and playing/singing despite the fact she’s been really ill all week long.
- As I got up to speak it was great to look out to a big crowd…in fact we had our largest crowd ever!
- I knew I was in trouble though because we were already 10 minutes behind by the time I started speaking…but it all worked out.
- Today we started a new series called, “Everybody’s Normal Till You Get to Know Them”. Today’s first message was about how all of us should come with an “As Is” tag. You can listen to it here.
- The balloons from the lobby were brought in and placed on either side of the stage…113 in all…1 for every person that made a decision to become a follower of Jesus in our first year.
- One of them though got loose and went all the way to the ceiling of the theater…so when I referred to it during the Experience I said about the 112 here and the 1 up there.
- I didn’t think about it in the moment but afterwards the step-mom of JT Fox said it made perfect sense to her. Why? Because shortly after becoming a follower of Jesus at Exponential, JT passed away. Wow…only God!
- After the Experience everyone enjoyed the cupcakes provided by Cindy’s Sweets and Treats. Thanks Cindy…awesome as always!
- Afterwards it as great to talk with everyone…especially those who came in from out-of-town (some hours away) just to be with us on this special day.
- Thanks to all our leaders and apprentice leaders who serve so hard and well each week…it’s been a pleasure serving with you this past year…the best is yet to come!
- Next week we’ll continue the series by looking at Jesus plan for people to escape loneliness.
- Also as I mentioned, the greatest struggle we have right now is financially.
- If you believe in the vision of what we’re doing then please support us.
- If you attend Exponential that means a tithe…for others whatever you can give is certainly appreciated.
- In year 2 we want to live up to the Exponential name and see God do exponentially more than what we saw in year 1…thanks in advance for supporting us in that.