I am sure this true for anyone in ministry, but at a church like Revolution where the large majority of people were out of church before attending, I have learned that I can’t ride the roller coaster because it will wear me out.  The highs and low of Revolution are hardcore and it is hard for me not to be vested in the lives of our people.  I joke that I am pretty non-pastoral, but the truth is I have a huge pastors heart….in my own way.

Just this week, these are some of the highs and some of the lows:

Highs:

• One of our addicts is doing so well in recovery he got to come home for the weekend
• Another one of our addicts relapsed a year ago in a BIG time way and this weekend is sharing his story of rebounding from that and God doing awesome things in his life
• We closed a deal that is 100% God and is going to enable us to reach more people in Cherokee County and this time the deal is actually DONE before I told you about it!
• Thad sold his home in S.C.
• Got a ton of awesome e-mails from people regarding last week’s message
• RECORD crowds last month
• Another one of our addicts (man, we are the addict church) was back in church this past week after going through hard times.  Loved seeing him!

Lows:

• One of our addicts relapsed
• Dealt with a couple that I love as much as ANY couple in our church in regards to physical and emotional abuse.  HARDEST thing I have ever had to do.  Lost sleep over this one, but I believe God is going to do awesome things through it
• Guy disappeared and his wife got a letter in the mail the next day saying he would be “gone” by the time she got the letter.  Why?
• Thad sold his home so we are stuck with him. (Just kidding)

Thanks for the prayers!  God opened the door for us today in a very cool way and I am excited about what the future holds for Revolution!

What was the deal?  You’ll have to wait until Sunday, June 1st to find out.

BTW, since any time I have a big announcement people assume we are moving out of the theater, I will go ahead and tell you that ain’t it.

Appreciate your prayers as we have a very important meeting at 10 today that could result in some very cool doors being opened for us.

I’ll keep you posted.

I have had this thought for a couple of weeks and really wasn’t sure how to write it out, but let me try and write I am thinking. In the last 6 weeks we have made a lot of changes at Revolution in regards to people’s roles. We have moved several of our staff around into positions they were better suited for, positions we had holes in, and positions that would enable us to reach more people. We have also moved around a ton of our volunteers into different roles. Again, this was to put them in position they were best suited to serve in and to enable us to take the next steps as a church. Not only have we moved around some staff and volunteers, but I myself have changed my role here at Revolution. I realized I was becoming a huge bottleneck in many areas and I stepped aside and am allowing our incredible team do what they are here to do and that is lead. Transitions are never easy and I’d be lying if I said I have enjoyed everything that I have changed. However, I understand that Revolution is NOT about me and I have made the necessary changes in my role to allow us to continue to grow and reach more people.

We are already seeing the results of these moves as we are having the largest crowds we have ever had, putting on some of the best services we ever have, and there is a buzz in the church that is insane. Changes are life. The day we stop changing is the day we will start dying. As things grow, as new people come on board, as individuals figure out their calling and passion the simple fact is that leads to change.

I have sat back over the last month and observed how people handle change and I have learned it really boils down to what you love. What you love determines how you respond to change. Some people love the position they hold at Revolution and some people love the vision of Revolution. There is a huge difference between the two.

Those who love their position won’t make it through transitions and change. Now, I am not saying you shouldn’t be sold out to the area you serve in because you should be sold out, passionate, and consumed with the area of service God has given you. However, if you love the position more than the vision, you won’t navigate through times of change. When you love the position more than the vision you can’t see the big picture, you can’t see how the church is improved by the changes that are being made, you can’t see that someone else might be able to do your job better and more effective. All you see is YOUR desires, YOUR wants, and what makes YOU happy. When you love the position more you take it personally when you are asked to move to another area. Instead of seeing vision all you can see is YOU are being punished or how YOU are being effected.

When you love the vision over the position, all that changes. When you understand that everything we do at Revolution is about reaching those that are far from God, you could care less where you are asked to serve because it doesn’t matter. When you love the vision over the position all you care about is seeing those far from God come to know Him. Whether it means you are in the band or you are a greeter, you could care less because you know every move that is made is to further the vision. When the vision comes first, you don’t take things personally. You rejoice in changes because you know it is enabling us to reach more people.

We have volunteers at Revolution who have had 10 different areas of ministry and don’t care because they understand the vision. They just want to be part of making it happen and if it means they are carrying crates after the service, they are happy to do it. We have also had volunteers who loved being in charge, loved being in a “cool” position, and loved getting credit and praise from everyone. When those people are asked to change areas just once, they pout and take their ball and go home.

A church cannot, will not, and isn’t able to grow if it is full of people who love position over vision. I have watched over the last few weeks those who have moved around on our staff, with our volunteers, and even myself and I have never been prouder of Revolution as I have watched. For every one person who has loved position first, 25 have loved vision first.

That is why God is moving right now at Revolution!

We are filming our One Prayer message NEXT Thursday.  Something came up and we had to change the date.  We still want you to come hang with us for it, but if you come this Thursday we won’t be here.

Next Thursday, May 8th we will be filming at 7:30 p.m.

As you know we are joining with hundreds of other churches during the month of June for a sermon series called ONE PRAYER. During this series, we are going to be hearing messages from some of the greatest communicators in the country and joining with Ross Wiseman and the awesome people at Embassy Metro in Woodstock to do some outreach in Cherokee County. It is going to be fun!

The idea behind ONE PRAYER is to have different preachers teach messages sharing their one prayer for the church. Every message will star with the phrase, “Lord, Help Us…..” The pastors of the various churches will preach at their churches the first week and then show via video messages from other pastors the next three weeks. It is extra special for us because we are showing the three men who make up our Board of Overseers. After I preach the first week, we will be showing Steven Furtick on video the second week, Greg Rohlinger will be with us live the third week, and Perry Noble will be with us the last week. That is a pretty awesome group of pastors!

I said all that to say this: We have had several churches request us to film a message for them to show in their Sunday morning services and we are going to be doing this week. Thursday night we are going to record our message for ONE PRAYER at the warehouse. Instead of teaching to an empty room, we are opening up to all of you who are local. We are basically going to put on a worship service and I would love for some of you to hang out with us so I have someone to teach to while we’re recording. Tim is going to be doing an unplugged time of worship and I’ll be bringing a message on my one prayer for this church.

If want to come hang out, we’ll start at 7:00 p.m.  At around 7:15, we will shut the doors and you won’t be allowed in as we will be filming.  So if you are coming, be on time.

It is Saturday morning and I am up way to early.  Not cool.

We had a full house for our Partnership Class last night and it was exciting to put names with faces, hear how people found out about Revolution, cast vision, and the coolest thing was we had a lady enter into personal relationship with Jesus Christ!!!!!

Today I’m giving DeAnna a break (I’m not actually giving anything, she is just taking it) and I am hanging out with the kids.  I’ve been on the road so much lately that I am looking forward to the day with them.  The worst part about it is that it means I have to watch Hannah Montana later today.

Hopefully I’ll sneak a little NFL draft coverage in as well.

Tomorrow night is our next Partnership Class and without a doubt it is one of my favorite things we do at Revolution.  I love Partnership Class.  I don’t teach it anymore, but I love coming and meeting all the new people at Revolution and hearing their stories!

If you are interested in taking the next step at Revolution, this is the class for you.  We’ll share our history, our vision and what is expected of those who call Revolution home!  It probably is to late to sign-up, but who cares.  If you want to attend tomorrow night, e-mail Preston at preston@therevolution.tv and he’ll get you in.  Just drop my name, I have a little pull.

News Flash:  We have space issues.  Those are GREAT issues to have, but nevertheless they are issues.  We have been praying about what God would have us to do.  We thought launching a location in Jasper was one of the ways to free up space, but God hasn’t opened that door, so we have been seeking God big time as to the next steps.

As of today, we have 3 (possibly 4) options on the table.  They are all outside the box, don’t make sense, and seem risky and crazy, but they are all awesome ways to reach more people with the message of Jesus Christ.  I’m excited.

One thing I have learned it when God starts moving, He starts moving FAST.  It is possible we will know which option we are taking as early as next week.  I love it when God stretches me, our staff, and Revolution Church!  It freaks me out, but I love it!

I never ceased to be amazed at how awesome God is and how He shows up with the answer just when we need it.  Revolution, hang on because things are about to get interesting.

This Sunday we start a new series called Prison Break that I think has the potential to be one of the most life-changing teaching series we have ever done at Revolution.  We are going to be hitting on some topics that affect everyone no matter your social standing, your marital status, or your age.

Over the next several weeks we are going to talk about breaking free from the things that keep us from being all that God intends for us to be.  We are going to look at the topic of addictions, unforgiveness, religion and this week I am going to be talking about Breaking Free From Your Past. I have been stewing on this week’s message for a while now and I am excited about showing you what God has shown me about letting go of your past hurts, mistakes, and screw-ups.

Also this week we are ending the service in what might be one of the most powerful ways we have ever ended a service at Revolution.  You are going to hear a story of life-change from one of our awesome people at Revolution and hear how that change has affected everything he does including something very cool that he will be sharing this week.  After he is doing sharing, we are going to give you something that will enable you to be constantly reminded of the power of God’s love in regards to our past.  It is going to be awesome.  The item we are giving away is only being given away this week so if you miss church, you miss out.

See ya Sunday!