Tony Morgan is a dude I met a while back online. He actually had us put in an article for the Wired Churches newsletter before we even launched RSC. The article was about staff values. I remember how jacked we all were around the office to see our name being sent all over the country even if they did get our name wrong. The called us Stone Ridge Church.
Anyway, he hit a homerun today with this post on keeping his attention with your preaching. Check it out here.

We have had the youth group from Thomas Road Baptist Church in this week for a mission trip. Mission Teams are the way to go if you are a church plant. These kids have been GREAT!!!! We have worked them like dogs and they still keep working. Mission Teams are a great resource for church plants. Youth groups are looking for places to go during the summer so why not have them come to your place. This week, the youth group did doorhangers basically every day, they helped at a huge event in town we sponsored called Big Day Out at the skate park, they performed in neighborhoods, and they ran our VBS. The great thing is it cost us nothing and our people got some much needed rest.

I have to admit I was nervous having a group down from Jerry Falwell’s church. But these kids have been great. Jerry gets a bad rap, but the dude is getting it done in Lynchburg. Tadd grew up there and his dad is the youth pastor, so it was a natural fit for them to come down. After our awesome Sunday this last week, these guys just kept the Big Mo going.

It is important to let the mission team know exactly what your church is about and your vision. But if they are down with that, then bring them on. Who ever turned down free labor?

Terry Storch was the first blog I ever read. I was hooked instantly. Well, I didn’t realize how many people read Terry’s blog. He gave me a shout out today and every pastor I know, now knows I have a blog. I have received e-mails all day from guys I know. Not that it is a big deal, but now I have just be careful what I say.

Man, thank the Lord for Bloglines. I am discovering new blogs I like every day. It is almost getting out of control how many great blogs are out there. How do you guys (and gals) decide which ones to read with so many different ones out there?

We started VBS tonight. The guys did a great job and the crowd was great. We wrote our own stuff and it was tight, however this will probably be the last year we ever do VBS. Why? Because as I looked around tonight and talked with visiting parents, a few things became very obvious.

1.) VBS draws Christians. Nothing wrong with Christians but they are not our focus.
2.) VBS costs money that I would rather spend elsewhere. I have no problem spending money, trust me, we are a toy driven church but, if we are going to spend it, it will be on things that bring in unchurched people.
3.) It is a lot of work. Nothing wrong with work but I could have used all the time and volunteers on something that would have impacted our community better.
4.) VBS is lame. I don’t care how you slice it and dice it, it is still VBS. We had videos, live band, etc. but it wast still VBS.

Here is the point: Do NOT continue to do something if it isn’t helping you fulfill your mission. I don’t care how long you have done it, who gets mad, etc. If it doesn’t work, kill it.

There is no shame in trying something and it not working. The shame is in trying something and then letting your pride stop you from stopping it.

Grace Church is pastored by my good friend Roger Blackmore. Grace is a pretty new church getting it done in a area that is a spiritual desert. Church planting is hard. Church planting in New York is insane!!!!! The thing I love about Roger is that even though he is older then dirt, he is just getting started. They are meeting in a movie theatre, they are growing, they are mission freaks, they are building their first building, and they are even doing a Gen-X service in another theatre!

Roger is a great guy and is one of those guys you just want to learn from. He is the yoda of church planting.

If you are in New York, you must check out the original Church At The Movies.

Good thoughts from my boy Preston on being part of a team. I believe in the team approach to ministry with every fiber in my body. It is the only way to do church. I did the lone ranger thing once and God would have to drag me kicking and screaming back to do it again.

We just brought P-Porter on full time and I am stoked about it. He is moving into a key role here at the Stone and I am excited to see God use him.

For some reason I get asked this question a lot from planters through e-mail, so I thought I would answer it here. First let me say, we have had VERY few problems from our people since starting RSC. Matter of fact, we have almost had no problems. I think this is because we are focused on unchurched people and they don’t know they are supposed to create problems.

I think the one thing we have been questioned on the most and even have had people decide RSC was not the place for them is over the issue of leadership. RSC is a staff-led church. I make no mistakes about that and that will not change. I do have a group of men in our church we call an advisory team and we meet once a month. They are simply a group of men in our church I met with once a month and keep them updated on staff, finances, big decisions, and I get their advice on different issues. I like to say they are guard rails, not guard dogs. I am not even sure the people in our church know who they are and there is no reason for them to know.

I find it amazing how quickly church planters give the power of thier vision away to a “board.” It is so important especially in the early days to be able to make decisions in a split second. There have been times where if I had to call a board meeting and get permission then we would have missed out.

Our staff are actually the people doing the work so I feel they are the best qualified to make the calls in their area of ministry. We know the people and the pulse of the church. People will very quickly try and get you to turn into their vision of what a church should be so it is important to keep the decision process in your hands.

Is there some danger in being staff led? Sure there is. If you get ego-driven people who won’t listen to advice, then there could be danger. There is also danger in being board led, elder led, or deacon led. I would rather take my chances on the people actually doing the work.

That said, I think a good leader will heed the advice of this mentors and leaders and make a decision not based on ego but on what is best for the church. Remember, God gave you as the planter the vision. I know other people say they have the vision but the bottom line is if RSC closes down, I am the one with my name on everything and I am the one taking the risk. The same is true for you in your plant.

I know there are a lot of different views on this and a lot of different examples of churches doing it in different ways. No matter what the method or what you call it, here is something I am confident about: No matter their structure, if they are a growing, healthy church, then the pastor and staff are free to lead it.

Like it or not, if you are pastoring a growing church, you will be continually raising money. It is part of the gig. We just came out of our first real attempt at raising funds for our first move. To be honest, I had never done this before and really didn’t know what I was doing but, I think I learned a great deal from doing it. I need to write these down for the next time so I might as well write them here. These are just very random thoughts and are in no particular order.

1.) Cast vision, not need – You have heard this before and it is true. No one cares about needs, but everyone is looking for a vision to buy into.

2.) Don’t apologize for having to raise money – We have become so worried about talking about money that we actually get up and apologize for doing it.

3.) Be Specific about the amount needed – Don’t sugarcoat it. Let the people know the amount where God can use them to meet it.

4.) Don’t be afraid of the big ask – Don’t be afraid to ask the people to give. It is hard and it stinks but your vision depends on it, so do it.

5.) Let the people know that every gift is needed, big and small – Sometimes people won’t give because they can’t give a lot. It is all the smaller gifts that actually enable you to hit your goal.

6.) Help your people to realize they ALL can give – Equal Sacrifice, Not Equal Gifts. Hammer this point home.

7.) Be open and ready to answer questions – Most people could care less but there will be some people who are shocked at how much it costs to do church.

8.) Continue to cast the vision in the following weeks – We dropped the ball here. We cast the vision and the people were jacked but we dropped the ball in the following weeks and lost a little bit of momentum.

9.) Don’t ask your people to do what you are not willing to do – Make sure you and your staff are leading the charge in sacrificing to give.

10.) Realize those you think will give big, probably won’t – I am learning that those with money are the very last to step up and give. They will give and it might even be large but they will not sacrifice.

11.) Realize the small gifts make the goal, not the big ones.

12.) Look at who gives – This lets you know who is on board not by the amount but by the sacrifice.

13.) Let your people know how proud you are of them – No matter the amount, praise your people. They deserve it.

14.) Let the people know this is only the beginning. Let them know that growing churches raise money and you are going to be growing.

Alright, today was a big day for us at RSC. As you know we are moving into the movie theatre in town in August and along with a move comes the simple fact that it costs money. We had a need to buy staging, more sound equipment, lighting, more preschool stuff, signs, etc. Being a new church, we have never really tried to raise money so I wasn’t sure how it would go. Add on to the fact that over 70% of our adults were unchurched when they started attending, I really wasn’t sure how they would react. Add on the fact that we announced it three weeks ago at the start of the summer when all our people where on vacation, I REALLY didn’t know how it would go.

Well today, our people hit a GRAND SLAM! We had over $22,000 come in this morning and I am sure a lot more will come in through out the week. That might not seem like a lot to some of you but that is huge for a 10 month old church plant.

We had 348 people in church today, our people were jacked!!!! I preached on Dancing Alone and used a clip from Napoleon Dynamite. Our people loved it.

I have learned a lot about raising money over the last month and I will share later my thoughts on that.

Bottom line is this: Those you think will step up big won’t. Those who shouldn’t step big because you know they can’t afford it, will.

Well, I am wore out and I am going to bed with a smile on my face, thanking God that I get to pastor this group of people.