More than Enough

This is a picture of our group at the dedication of one of the houses we built last week. Caleb and I walked into the house and I said, "This is it. This is the house of a family of six. This is it - 12 feet by 16 feet. This is it, a little bit bigger than your bedroom at home. It helps us to put into perspective what we have and what we need." Later I asked Caleb what touched him the most about the trip. He said the house dedication.

This week I have been spending a ton of time and energy getting ready for the launch of our next capital campaign. This weekend we are going to introduce the leadership team to the congregation. I know people will be asking a lot of tough questions about money. They will turn on the television and listen to the media talk about a recession. They will look at their expenses and their debt. The evil one will seek to confuse and will try to deceive.

I am here to tell you this will be a watershed season for the people of Charter Oak Church. Without a doubt this capital campaign will be unlocking the future for us in so many ways. I believe people are going to trust God, many for the first time, with everything that they have. I believe people will give sacrificially because they are putting their faith in the providence of God and not in their possessions. I believe this campaign will grow our faith more than anything else we have ever done. Without God, we will fail. I believe with man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.

We're Back

We are back from our mission trip to Jamaica. For the last week our family has been serving in Harmons, Jamaica. We helped to build two houses and two foundations for the next team to build upon. We built great relationships with some people who need to know the love and grace of Jesus.

It seems strange to me to say that our family went on a mission trip. It says that our every day living here in this region isn't missional when the reality is, we are always on mission - in Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria. Why does it seem so much more important to say I have been on a mission trip? Yes, I was in my Samaria, but that isn't the only place Jesus calls his disciples to be on mission. We are to be on mission here in the region around Charter Oak Church.

If you are reading this and you are a part of the Charter Oak Church family then you are on mission right where God has you. If you are a student, it is in school. If you work outside the home, it is at your job. If you work inside your home, it is your home. For all of us, it is our family, friends, co-workers, and neighbors. Remember, your life is very short, a breath, a mist, then it's gone. Do what God wants you to do and say what God wants you to say. You are on mission wherever you are.

Missional Work

I am leaving on another mission trip to Jamaica this weekend. This time I have an incredible twist to my trip. I am going with Kelli, Caleb, and Abby. I get to slip on the hands and feet of Jesus with my wife and kids. Wow! This will be Kelli's first trip since the first time she went down to Jamaica when we first met. Caleb and Abby have been saying good bye to me many many times over the years as I left to go to Jamaica. Now they get to go too. I love it!!

If you look at the map on the left, look for the town - May Pen. We will be about 30 minutes away in the middle of the mountains. Please pray for us.

Book #4 - Confessions of a Pastor

Last night before watching Lost, I finished reading my first book by Craig Groeschel, Confessions of a Pastor: Adventures in Dropping the Pose and Getting Real with God. This was an important book for me. I was initially interested in reading this book because of the title and all of the junk that all pastors deal with that just comes along with our jobs. Every pastor deals with it differently, but I find myself wired up very similarly to Craig. He is way ahead of me in every area - especially leadership, but I do think we have many things in common. After reading this book I would say I know we have a lot in common. This should be required reading for all pastors.

Worship and Sunday School Stats

Here are the statistics for worship and Sunday school in January:

January 5/6 (I preached)
641 in worship (.8% decrease from 2007)
257 in Sunday school (7.5% decrease from 2007)

January 12/13 (I preached)
744 in worship (.7% increase from 2007)
279 in Sunday school (11.8% decrease from 2007)

January 19/20 (I preached)
687 in worship (.6% decrease from 2007)
260 in Sunday school (13.1% decrease from 2007)

January 26/27 (I preached)
685 in worship (39.6% decrease - Children's musical in 2007)
283 in Sunday school (17.4% increase from 2007)

Responding to God

I was just doing a little reading and I came across this question that in essence asked, "How do you live out your relationship with Jesus?" There were three options - worship - obey - witness. It was really looking for a singular answer. I know we all live out of each of these at one time or another through the day or week. But if you had to answer that question, what would you say is your primary way of living out your relationship with Jesus: worship, obey, witness?

The 2 Hour Delay

All of the local schools around Charter Oak Church are on a 2 hour delay. Typically, I take that as good news because I go into the office at my regualr time, but I know things are going to be quiet for a little longer. Not today. I'm taking a 2 hour delay also. I have been working such long hours this week that I am just going to read and drink coffee until my wife and kids wake up, then I'm going to have some fun with them. Today I am rejoicing over a 2 hour delay. I'm taking it as a gift from God. Enjoy moments like these.

30 Days to Live - Final Part

This weekend will be the final part of our 30 Days to Live series. We are going to finish with a very important topic - bringing reconciliation to our relationships. Because we are human, we do things and say things that we regret. We just do it. We need to bring healing to those broken relationships so that we can be in right relationship with God. If you know someone who is struggling right now with a broken relationship, invite them to join you in worship at Charter Oak Church this weekend.

Titus 3

As I was studying Titus 3 today I was struck by how emphatic Paul was in writing about the importance of our actions. Verse 8 says, "I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good." If we are followers of Jesus we must be careful (attentive, purposeful, intentional) about devoting ourselves to doing what is good. Devoting doesn't mean we just do it when we feel like it or when we get around to it, but doing it now - as if we have 30 days to live.

Then Paul finishes the letter to Titus with these words, "Our people must learn to devote themselves to doing what is good." We must learn this. The people of Charter Oak Church must learn to devote ourselves to doing what is good. It will be a learning process. What is doing good for you today, will change over time. You may not see the good that God wants to do in and through you right now because of where you are spiritually. As you grow, then you will see the new places that God wants you to join Him where He is already at work. This isn't about checking something off of a to do list, this is about an ongoing partnership with God to live beyond yourself.

If you have a chance today, read Titus and ask God what is the good thing you need to devote yourself to doing.

Book #3 - Leading with the Heart

The Chair of our Church Council handed me a book the other day that he thought I might enjoy reading - Leading with the Heart by Mike Krzyzewski, the head basketball coach at Duke University. He thought I would like it because I went to Duke and because it contained so many of the things he and I have been talking about the last few weeks in the development of Charter Oak Church's staff as a team. Stan, you were right.

I really enjoyed this book and it will stay on my shelf for a very long time. I think I really enjoyed the chapter called "Celebrate Tradition" the most. It's probably not what most people think it is, as I hope to have a very long tenure at Charter Oak Church I want to set us up for long term success, while I am here and long after I am gone. Coach K has done that at Duke in a very unique way. I really learned a lot from this book on leadership and basketball.

30 Days to Live at Work

The filter we are putting on our lives at Charter Oak Church is - How would I live my life differently if I knew I only had 30 Days to Live? Today I want to write about how I would answer that question in regards to my life at work. Here's what I have been processing...

• I would continue to work at least for the first two weeks because I spend more time with the staff of Charter Oak Church than anyone else in my life besides my family. The staff here is a very important part of my family.
• I would tell people the truth more clearly - I wouldn't play games and worry about whether or not they would be angry at me over what I said and leave the church. I would speak the truth in love.
• I would preach one more time and just share why I am looking forward to going home to spend eternity with Jesus. I would ask every person who is connected to Charter Oak Church and my circle of friends to bring at least one person who doesn't know Jesus to be there so I could have one last chance to help people find their way back to God.
• I would preach in jeans and a t-shirt.
• I would make sure that whoever was going to follow me as one of the pastors at Charter Oak Church was set up to succeed.
• I would hug everyone.

What about you? If you knew you had 30 Days to Live, how would that be manifested at your job?

30 Days to Live with My Family

The filter we are putting on our lives at Charter Oak Church is - How would I live my life differently if I knew I only had 30 Days to Live? Today I want to write about how I would answer that question in regards to my life with my family. Here's what I have been processing...

• I would speak Kelli's love language all the time we are together.
• I would not hurry through dinner - it would be an event worth staying at the table for. Plus I would be in the kitchen with Kelli preparing dinner.
• I would read more to my kids. I am reading the Little House series with Abby and the Narnia series with Caleb. I would read every night and longer.
• I would be fully engaged when I am with them, not half listening while watching tv.
• I would make sure that they knew how much God loves them and I love them.

What about you? If you knew you had 30 Days to Live, how would that be manifested in your relationship with your family?

30 Days to Live with Jesus

The filter we are putting on our lives at Charter Oak Church is - How would I live my life differently if I knew I only had 30 Days to Live? Today I want to write about how I would answer that question in regards to my life with Jesus. Here's what I have been processing...

• I would start my day the same as I do now - in prayer, but I would be more open to the prompting of the Holy Spirit to talk to God throughout the day, especially at work.
• I would drink more deeply of the Bible. I wouldn't try to read through the whole Bible in those 30 days, instead I would go deeper with specific scripture passages.
• I would worship daily - I would turn up the music, I would sing loud, I would pour my heart fully into the praise of God.
• I wouldn't let the things that don't matter get to me. I would seek first the Kingdom of God.
• I wouldn't take my relationship with Jesus for granted - I know I am going to heaven and I don't have to "do" anything more, but I would be more open to where I see God at work and I would listen more openly to the prompting of the Holy Spirit. I know I miss many opportunities everyday to abide in God's presence.

What about you? If you knew you had 30 Days to Live, how would that be manifested in your relationship with God through Jesus?

Titus 1:10-14

As I was studying Titus this morning I was struck by Paul's strong words against people who teach wrong doctrines and lead people into error. The note in my Study Bible really spoke to me about keeping my eyes and ears open to what people in leadership are doing. Here's what it says...

You can recognize false teachers because they will

1. focus more attention on themselves than on Christ
2. ask you to do something that will compromise or dilute your faith
3. de-emphasize the divine nature of Christ or the inspiration of the Bible
4. urge believers to make decisions based more on human judgment than on prayer and Biblical guidelines.

That's a pretty good filter to put on leaders - how we live our lives points to what we believe.

The Rigor of an Ordinary Week

Today is January 20th, but I feel like this month has slipped by. I haven't had a "normal" week yet. I am looking forward to the rigor of an ordinary week. Every week so far this year has been shortened in some way. Last week our Senior Management Team was on a retreat together. The week before it was something else. Why is it that life goes by so fast?

Right now I am teaching on the weekends a series called "30 Days to Live." We are putting a filter on our lives because of the busyness of our lives - we are asking what would we do differently if we knew we only had 30 days to live? It is giving me some great perspective - eternal perspective and I hope it is helping the people of Charter Oak Church as well. So this week, I am looking forward to the rigor of an ordinary week and I am going to try to blog each day on some thoughts about the filter of 30 days to live.

Post #300

Since this is a monumental moment in my blogging - post #300, I thought I would share a post from Jon Ferguson that I read this morning that was really great. It's called "You Know You're Not Leading When..."
You know you are not leading when . . .

• You wait for someone to tell you what to do rather than taking the initiative yourself
• You spend too much time talking about how things should be different
• You blame the context, surroundings, or other people for your current situation
• You choose not to speak the truth in love
• You are more concerned about being cool or accepted than doing the right thing
• You seek consensus, rather than casting vision for a preferable future
• You aren't taking any significant risks
• You accept status quo as the way it's always been and always will be
• You start protecting your reputation instead of opening yourself up to opposition
• You sleep a little too sound
• You procrastinate to avoid making a tough call
• You talk to others about the problem rather than taking it to the person responsible
• You don't feel like your butt is on the line for anything significant
• You think what you say doesn't matter
• You ask for way too many opinions before taking action

This is a great leadership filter that Jon gives to us. This is definitely going to be a part of my leadership development process.

Leaving for Retreat

Our Senior Management Team is leaving for retreat in 15 minutes. It is snowing outside and we are headed for the mountains! This is going to be great. If you have a few moments, would you please pray for our team and for God's anointing to be upon us. Thank you.

Book #2 - The Church Enslaved

In order to be faithful to my decision to do more reading on racial and justice issues, I just read The Church Enslaved: A Spirituality of Racial Reconciliation by Tony Campolo and Michael Battle. I read this book with a small group of pastors. We spent a few hours yesterday discussing the book and what it means for us to live into racial reconciliation. The discussion was much better than the book. It was obviously written for seminary students. It was interesting that the African American pastors in my group thought that what the authors were recommending was pretty watered down. The value for me was the questions I asked myself through reading the book and then discussing it with fellow pastors. Community is good!

Worship Stats for December 2007

Here are the statistics for Worship and Sunday School in December 2007:

December 1/2 (I preached)
697 in worship (2.8% increase from 2006)
283 in Sunday school (1.1% increase from 2006)

December 8/9 (I preached)
1123 in worship (1.9% increase from 2006) [Cantata]
165 in Sunday school (23.6% decrease from 2006)

December 15/16 (I preached)
661 in worship (2.7 decrease from 2006)
269 in Sunday school (3.9% decrease from 2006)

December 22/23 (I preached)
709 in worship (4.4% increase from 2006)
165 in Sunday school (no Sunday school in 2006)

December 24 (Dave & I split preaching)
1244 in worship (10.4% increase from 2006)

December 29/30 (Dave preached)
660 in worship (2% increase from 2006)
165 in Sunday school (7% increase from 2006)

We finished the year with an average attendance of 724 (19.1% increase from 2006). In the last two years that means we have grown 39.9%.

Book #1 - The Starbucks Experience

I am starting 2008 in the right way - by reading about one of my favorite companies. The Starbucks Experience: 5 Principles for Turning Ordinary into Extraordinary by Joseph A. Michelli is a great book for pastors and church leaders to read.

Starbucks took a very simple, ordinary product - coffee and turned it into an extraordinary drink and experience that has changed the way people think about coffee and the customer connection.

I think of the value of this lesson for the church today. Most people see the church as a very ordinary option in the vast array of things to do and be a part of. What would happen if we decided that we would get back to the Acts 2 model of the church and we saw the Bride of Christ fully revealed in the world today? I think it is possible and it must be done.

Guest Blogger

Here is the latest post from the blog our Pastor to Student Ministries - Mark McMahon...

70 minutes at Charter Oak Church
There is a student in our ministry whose parents attend a different church in our community...No big deal, it's actually somewhat common considering the fact that our church is one of the few in our community that has an active student ministry. That being said, this student's parents decided to come check out one of our Christmas eve services because the times of our services were better suited to their holiday plans than their "home church's" services.

That being said, I got a phone call from the mother of that student earlier today. She thanked me for the hospitality that was extended to her while she and her family were worshipping with us. And then...THE BEST PART...she thanked me for introducing her to Jesus! She said to me, "I've spent 53 years at that other church, and all it took was 70 minutes at Charter Oak Church to really find Jesus."

Please note that I am not trying to make Charter Oak Church sound superior to any other church out there. I am merely quoting something that was said to me that I've known for a long time...and that is the fact that Charter Oak is a place where people from all walks of life can come to find their Savior. I believe that is what a church is supposed to be, by the way. Call it a hospital for sinners, the bride of Christ, a gathering of the faithful. Regardless of the titles you use, God's church has, at its core, a call which defies denominationalism and exceeds the expectations of institutionalized religion. God's church, at its core, has a call to love...no matter what...and love with Christ's love.

So say what you want about my church. I'll be the first to admit that we haven't got it all figured yet. But for at least one person last weekend God chose to attend a divine appointment that was hosted by Charter Oak Church, and that, my friends, is why we do what we do.
Praise God!

2008 Book List

Here is my first attempt at making a reading list for 2008. These are books on my "short" list. There are two without links because they will be released some time during 2008. I know there are other books that I will read that I currently have on my book shelf. These are the ones that I will be buying some time in 2008.

1. Bring Out the Best in People by Aubrey C. Daniels
2. The Power of a Positive No by William Ury
3. Leadership on the Other Side by Bill Easum
4. The Dip by Seth Godin
5. Board with God by Shawn Dunn
6. The Starfish and the Spider by Ori Bradman & Rod Beckstrom
7. This Beautiful Mess by Rick McKinley
8. The Three Signs of a Miserable Job by Pat Lencioni
9. Beyond Megachurch Myths by Scott Thummar & Dave Travis
10. Overcoming the Darkside of Leadership by Gary McIntosh & Samuel Rima
11. Made to Stick by Chip Heath & Dan Heath
12. The Forgotten Ways by Alan Hirsch
13. Chazown by Craig Groeschel
14. Confessions of a Pastor by Craig Groeschel
15. Going All the Way by Craig Groeschel
16. Sex God by Rob Bell
17. Through Painted Deserts by Donald Miller
18. To Own a Dragon by Donald Miller
19. Let Story Guide You by Donald Miller
20. The Blogging Church by Brian Bailey and Terry Storch
21. Making Vision Stick by Andy Stanley
22. Creating Community by Andy Stanley
23. Choosing to Cheat by Andy Stanley
24. Go Big by Bill Easum
25. unChristian by David Kinnaman
26. Confessions of a Reformission Rev. by Mark Driscoll
27. Go Put Your Strengths to Work by Marcus Buckingham
28. Wide Awake by Erwin McManus
29. The Barbarian Way by Erwin McManus
30. Breaking the Missional Code by Ed Stetzer

Merry Christmas

I hope and pray that you will experience the miracle of Christmas today, tomorrow, and every day of your life. May you receive the greatest gift ever given. May you live for the One who was born of a virgin, lived life to the very fullest, was betrayed, tortured, crucified, died, and on the third day rose from the dead that you may spend eternity with God.

He is JESUS!

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Everything Changed

"The Adoration of the Shepherds" by Rembrandt.

In the midst of the darkness God sent his Son Jesus as the hope of the world. His light beats back the darkness of sin and brings salvation to all who will follow as his disciples.

Rembrandt doesn't paint Jesus as an angel with a halo. He is a human baby. Rembrandt doesn't follow the other Renaissance painters and have the light of heaven shining down on Jesus. Instead he has the light coming from Jesus.

The ladder and the roof's crossbeam foreshadow the coming cross for Jesus. It is difficult to see it in this picture, but there is a rooster near the ladder - betrayal awaits this child when he becomes a man.

That first Christmas - everything changed. Alleluia!

Book #19 - When Necessary Use Words

The year is coming to a close and I am trying to finish up my reading list. I know I won't read everything I wanted to for 2007, but the last week of the year I am on vacation so I will be able to put in more dedicated reading time.

Anyway, I finished reading my 19th book of the year - When Necessary Use Words: Changing Lives Through Worship, Justice, and Evangelism by Mike Pilavachi. I was challenged earlier in the year to read a little bit outside of my "normal" reading patterns. I was specifically challenged to read about justice issues and racial issues. I picked up this book in order to be faithful to the reading about justice issues.

This is the line that really grabbed hold of me - "Sometimes we have to be good news before we earn the right to preach good news." That's good stuff.

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve at Charter Oak Church this year is a great opportunity for you to invite your friends, neighbors, family members, and co-workers. People are more open to an invitation on Christmas Eve than any other time of the year. Our worship times and styles are...

5:00 - Traditional Carols and special music by children's choirs

7:00 - Traditional Carols and special music by adult choirs

9:00 - Contemporary Music

11:00 - Traditional Carols and Communion

Last year the 7:00 worship service was completely full and the 5:00 worship service was just about full. If you are bringing guests, please come at the time that is most convenient for them. If you are not bringing someone, it would be great if you attended one of the later two worship services.

Christmas Eve is a time of rejoicing and worshipping the risen Savior. I am looking forward to seeing you here!

Imagine this...Christmas Love instead of Stress

This is the podcast of the third part of the Imagine This...Christmas series.

Click here.

Book #18 - Reveal: Where Are You?

There has been so much buzz about the study that was performed at Willow Creek Community Church that I decided I had better read the book written by their executive pastor Greg Hawkins. The book is called Reveal: Where Are You? By the way, you can't purchase the book anywhere except from Willow, at least I couldn't find anywhere.

First of all, let me say how disappointed I was that the book cost $12.99 and the amount of information could have fit into a 20 page .pdf. Instead it is a 100+ page book that is mostly white and very little type. It is a huge waste of resources.

But once I got past my disappointment in the design of the book, I really enjoyed the content. Willow Creek knew they needed to ask some really difficult questions. They didn't just beg off because they are seen as "successful." Instead they went deeper and asked questions we all need to be asking about our church.

The thing that I really liked was that Willow Creek didn't stop by surveying their congregation and six other congregations. They used that information to help shape a new strategic plan for their congregation going forward.

As Charter Oak Church begins the process of forming our strategic plan in 2008, this book is extremely helpful to me and will be for the process. If you are ready to ask some tough questions and really get to the heart of where your church is, then read this book and put it into action.

Just as a side note...when I went on to Willow Creek's website I found out that the name of their sermon series this Advent is "Imagine." Our series title is "Imagine this...Christmas." I couldn't believe how close they are. I would love to be able to take credit for the title of our series, but it came from Cindy Jonczak. Maybe Willow Creek called her too - it wouldn't suprise me.

Rain!

I never thought I would be so happy to see rain on a Sunday morning, but that is what we have and I am excited. With all the sensationalism lately with the weather, I thought that the world might just be ending this weekend. All kinds of reports about ice, sleet, freezing rain, and snow. I woke up this morning and it was 38 degrees. I was cracking up because everyone who was reporting the weather said today's high is 36 degrees. They don't even want to admit that it is warmer than it actually is.

I'm so thankful that it is raining today.

Imagine this...Christmas Joy instead of Stuff

This is the podcast of the second part of the Imagine this...Christmas series

Click here.

Unspeakable Joy

This weekend at Charter Oak Church - The Christmas Cantata - Unspeakable Joy

In a world whose headlines scream of war, disease, homelessness, crime and financial disaster, where is the hope, the healing? In a world awash in worry, doubt, dread, and loneliness, where is the word to life the weary heart?

"The angel said to them, 'Do not b afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of a great JOY which will be for all the people." Luke 2:10

Good news of a great joy! This joy, this bounteous, contagious, and overflowing joy is what has been captured in the musical "Unspeakable Joy". It is the joy of Christmas. The joy of knowing the One who was born at Christmas. It's the joy of each believer discovering the love of Jesus Christ for himself, for herself.

What will make this work a Christmas favorite is the way the theme of "Unspeakable Joy" is so warmly woven throughout the musical. The story of the stable and the star, the angels and the shepherds, the baby on a bed of straw, is delivered with the power to amaze us with its mercy and fill us with a joy unspeakable.

Job Opening

We have an employment opening at Charter Oak Church for an Office Manager. I have copied the short version of what the responsibilities for the position are. If you are interested please give Cindy Jonczak a call at the church or email her at cjonczak@charteroakumc.org.


Office Manager is responsible for overseeing all the office functions of the church. Ordering supplies, managing office equipment, preparation and publication of all communications including the weekly worship folders and monthly newsletter, maintaining and managing the church's database, scheduling and calendar management.


The Office Manager is responsible also for the front desk including answering phones, greeting visitors and being a presence as the first voice and face of COUMC.
Volunteer team development and leadership as needed including training and overseeing a receptionist staff.


Skills necessary for the position are: Proficiency in Microsoft Office including Publisher. Organization and attention to detail, people skills and ability to recruit volunteers and manage their schedules and tasks. A detailed job description will be available upon request.

Podcast of Imagine This...Christmas - Peace

This is the podcast of the first part of the Imagine This...Christmas series.

Click here.

Book #17 - Rules for Revolutionaries

This weekend I finished reading Guy Kawasaki's book Rules for Revolutionaries: The Capitalist Manifesto for Creating and Marketing New Products and Services. Guy was with Apple Computers very early on and has become a guru on thinking differently in the marketplace. He is at Garage Technology Ventures now. What most people don't know is that Guy is a follower of Jesus. He "steals" biblical words and infuses them into the business world.

There are three sections to this book - Create like a god, Command like a king, and Work like a slave. I really liked this book a lot because I read it through the eyes of someone trying to change the culture of a church and possibly a denomination that is used to doing things the way we have always done them. Guy writes the book for people in those positions in business, but I filtered it through the Church. Good book for revolutionaries.

Imagine this...Christmas

This weekend we kick-off a brand new series called "Imagine this...Christmas." It is so easy to get caught up in all of the chaos and craziness of this season. However, we are supposed to be using this time to prepare for the coming of Jesus.

What would happen if we tried to imagine living into the real point of this month? This week we will look at moving from the chaos put on us by culture and living into the peace of Christ.

This is a great time to invite those people in your circle of influence at work, school, or your neighbor. People are more open to attending a worship service during Advent than any other time of the year. Take a risk and invite someone to join you this weekend in worshipping God at Charter Oak Church.

Different Way of Thinking

As I work through Dallas Willard's book The Divine Conspiracy, I am struck time and time again with a different way of thinking about God, the Bible, and my role in the whole Kingdom of God. Here's what I was reading this morning that really grabbed me...

"A short while ago the Hubble Space Telescope gave us pictures of the Eagle Nebula, showing clouds of gas and microscopic dust reaching six trillion miles from top to bottom. Hundreds of stars were emerging here and there in it, hotter and larger than our sun. As I looked at these pictures, and through them at the past and ongoing development of the cosmos, I could not help but think of Jesus' words before he left his little band of students: 'In my father's house there are many places to live. I go to get some ready for you.'"

My small thinking of what Jesus is preparing for me and for you has just been blasted out of the water!

November 2007 Worship at a Glance

November 3/4 - Dave preached
694 in worship (8.4% increase from 2006)
279 in Sunday school (2.2% increase from 2006)

November 10/11 - Mark preached
718 in worship (19.9% increase from 2006)
256 in Sunday school (.7% increase from 2006)

November 17/18 - Mark preached & Youth Musical
1038 in worship (63.2% increase from 2006)
163 in Sunday school (57.6% decrease from 2006)

November 24/25 - Dave preached
694 in worship (2.4% increase from 2006)
256 in Sunday school (18.5% increase from 2006)

Our year to date average attendance is 21% higher in 2007 than the year to date average attendance for 2006. That's 40% growth over the last two years!

Keep inviting your friends, neighbors, co-workers, and family members. They matter to God!

Book #16 - Mavericks at Work

Over Thanksgiving I finished reading Mavericks at Work: Why the Most Original Minds in Business Win by William C. Taylor and Polly LaBarre. I loved this book because it pushed me to think - really, really think about being different. In a world of churches that all look exactly the same, and is often more interested in copying other churches, how can we stand apart and do only what God is calling us to do at Charter Oak Church? What would happen if we started thinking differently about how we fulfill the call God has placed on our hearts? What if we believed - really believed - the transformational truth of Jesus Christ was to be made available to all people no matter what? What if that call burned passionately within us to the point that it was the only thing we could think about?

These are the questions that began to form in me as I read this book. Good stuff.

Gospel of Sin Management

As I was reading The Divine Conspiracy by Dallas Willard this morning, this really jumped out at me.

"The current gospel then becomes a 'gospel of sin management.' Transformation of life and character is no part of the redemptive message. Moment-to-moment human reality in its depths is not the arena of faith and eternal living.

What right and left have in common is that neither group lays down a coherent framework of knowledge and practical direction adequate to personal transformation toward the abundance and obedience emphasized in the New Testament, with a corresponding redemption of ordinary life."

Day 6 - Thursday

Thursday was a big coffee making day! Our team ordered over 150 pounds of coffee that was grown in the Harmons community. Part of Wednesday and all of Thursday, and in to the night, was devoted to making coffee. A group of Jamaican men cooked the coffee right in front of us as we finished up the last details of putting the green house together. You have no idea how good roasting coffee smells! A group of ladies from Charter Oak Church helped to cool, bag, and sew on the labels of the coffee.

The final details were also being completed on the house we were building, a group went to the local elementary school and actually taught because a couple of teachers didn't show up for work, and the medical team open the clinic at the Harmony House for the very first time.

After lunch, everyone went to the house dedication. We all climbed up to the top of the mountain and dedicated the house to the glory of God and handed over the keys to the owners. We presented them with a Bible, a bag of rice to share with their friends, a flashlight, and a weather gizmo that would warn of coming storms. (The house we built was to replace the one the family lived in that was destroyed by a hurricane.) This is a picture of Woppy, the owner of the new house. BTW, that night we celebrated his birthday and my birthday.

Thursday night was dinner at a Jamaican's house. We were divided into groups of about 5 or 6 people and were sent to have dinner in the homes of some local Jamaicans. The food was sent by Won by One to Jamaica ahead of time. The host family prepared the food the way they wanted to and then we all ate together. The group of people I was teamed with went to the home of a single mom with one teenage son. She had a small house that was constructed a few years ago by Won by One to Jamaica. The Americans sat at a kitchen table, but our host had to sit on her bed because there wasn't enough room for her at the table and she refused to let us squeeze her in. The food was very good and it was awesome to spend some quality time building a relationship with her. She was laughing when she found out that I am a pastor. She said, "I always get the pastors!"

After dinner we had a powerful closing time that brought closure to our time in Harmons.

Day 5 - Wednesday

Day five we continued to work on the green house, building the walls of the house we were carrying all of that maul up to, other odd jobs, and the medical team also saw between 125-150 people in the morning. We worked until about 1:00, took a break for lunch, then we headed off to the Infirmary.



Every time I have been to Harmons and have gone to the Infirmary, it has been the most intense part of the trip for me. The Infirmary also called the Poor House is where people are placed that have no one to take care of them. It is a very large, one level structure made of concrete block painted white. It is very institutional looking. Most of the people are either elderly or mentally unable to take care of themselves.



We were there to spend time building relationships with people who don't have anyone else in their lives. Some on our team sang songs with the residents. Some read scripture. Some prayed. Some even handed out candy (that was very popular). As I watched our team serve "the least of these" my heart was filled to bear witness to the fact that they were way outside their comfort zone and right in the middle of God's will.



I spent my time with two elderly gentlemen. Talking about the love and grace of Jesus and reading scripture with them. I was blown away by how much they knew by heart. I don't really know if I added any value to them, but I know that they did to me. I was blessed to sit with these two men for the cause of Jesus.



Wednesday night was ladies night. They invited the local Harmons women to come and be pampered by the ladies from our group. Men were not allowed. It was a great opportunity for our ladies to build one on one relationships as they did their hair, nails, etc.

What I learned on Wednesday...

1. It is very hard to really get out of our comfort zones, but it is when God takes over and we live right in the middle of his will - there is no better place, scary, but good.
2. When a group of God's people live in this zone of the unknown and allow God to work through them, the potential is limitless.

Op-ed Piece in the Post Gazette

Here's a link to an article written by a woman who is a relatively new member of Charter Oak Church. My favorite line in the article is "Underneath the shiny surface, what the people at my new church do right is Jesus."

Check it out here.

Book # 15 - Resurrecting Excellence

I am very shamed to type that I finally finished my 15th book of the year - Resurrecting Excellence: Shaping Faitrhful Christian Ministry by L. Gregory Jones and Kevin R. Armstrong. I have been asked to join a Leadership Incubator for our denomination and this was the required reading. The book was fine. It isn't something that I would read on my own. I liked the section on the intersection of our faith and what that means for me as a pastor. Here's the quote...

"Resurrecting excellence in ministry happens in intersections, and the pastor leader is not simply a crossing guard. The pastor is an artist of the intersection, seeking connections among the often paradoxical dimensions of life - ancient texts and current dilemmas, inner experience and public responsibility, what has been an d what yet might be."

Even though I haven't finished any books lately, I am reading four books right now. I am almost finished with Mavericks at Work (love it!) by William C. Taylor and Polly LaBarre. I just started reading Rules for Revolutionaries:The Capitalist Manifesto for Creating and Marketing new Products and Services by Guy Kawasaki. I am also reading The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcom Gladwell. And I have committed to taking a year to read The Divine Conspiracy: Rediscovering Our Hidden Life in God by Dallas Willard as an act of faithful discipleship to take my spiritual journey to another level. I hope to get the other books finished by the end of the year.

Day 4 - Tuesday

On Tuesday I was assigned a new project once again. This time Rusty and I were given the task of building a green house. This was such an incredible project. The green house we were to build really is very different than the ones that are built in the US. In America, green houses are constructed to keep the heat in. In Jamaica, we were building a green house to keep the heat out. The material we used was a white mesh that would reflect the sun and let the wind pass through. One other very important component - we had to build it so that when a hurricane or tropic storm hit the island, it had to be able to be torn down quickly.

Here's the really cool part of this project. The green house will be used to grow tomatoes and peppers to be sold at the high end restaurants in the resorts on the north shore of Jamaica. Won by One to Jamaica will employ single moms (who typically are the last to get employment) to raise the crops and do all of the work within the green house. The proceeds from the sale of the vegetables will be divided up to pay the single moms a living wage, pay for the running of the green house, and to do more ministry in Harmons. What a great vision to impact a region!

After working all day our team came together to talk about what God thinks about the poor. It was a great conversation.

What I learned on Tuesday...

1. Cast a big vision and empower people to complete it. The green house project will have far reaching implications for a long time.
2. I'm still afraid of heights. I hated being up on top of the green house.
3. Listening to everyone's thoughts on the poor really opened my eyes to how people think and it caused me to think theologically about where I really am on my understanding of the poor and what is God's call upon my life and Charter Oak Church in response to that call.

Day 3 - Monday

We carried maul all morning long! It was my job to shovel the maul from the huge pile along the road into the burlap bags to be carried up the hill to the house site that we were building. It was some where between 90 and 95 degrees that morning.

We stopped for lunch and I was given a new assignment - build a wall at the Harmony House that would close off a space that was going to become the storage area for their coffee production. Just as we were starting to get to work - the power went off and stayed off, all afternoon and into the evening. We started up the generator and had to share power with a couple of other people who were also working at the site. It wasn't exactly the fastest work, but we make good progress.

Monday night was men's night. We played dominoes with the local men, both teens and 20 somethings. I had never played before, so I received a quick lesson and then went to playing. We were paired up - one American and one Jamaican against the same team set up. Our team won the first game, then we lost the next 15. During those games, I finally learned the strategy, I guess I'm a slow learner. Then our team won the next 15 games. It was a great night to get to know a couple of Jamaican guys and to build a relationship with them.

I Broke It

Here's a picture of the x ray of my broken foot.

Day 2 - Sunday

Did you know that roosters in Jamaica don't know the difference between dawn and 3:00am? It's true. Did you also know that dogs don't like to be awakened in the middle of the night? They don't and they let everyone know about it. I'm very thankful that I took ear plugs.

Sunday we began our time in worship with Mark and Emily. This past summer Mark and Emily moved to Harmons to live for as long as God wants them to be there. They are a young couple who love Jesus and love the people of Jamaica to such an extent that they left everything in America behind to follow God's call upon their lives. That's some serious faith!

After worship our team took a walk around Harmons. For people who had never been to Harmons before, this was a major shock as they witnessed the living conditions of the people of this small community. We talked to people living on the side of a mountain. We handed out candy to small children. It was our first time to have our hearts touched by the great need we were sent to aid and to start building relationships.

After lunch, the medical team began sorting all of the meds we brought down and the rest of us went down the road about a mile to start hauling maul. I'm not sure if that is the correct way to spell it or not, but it is the sand-like substance that is used to mix with cement to build the house we were task with for the week. We carried 10-20lbs bags of maul with out team for about 3 hours in the 90 degree weather. The work was at hand! We carried these bags about 300 yards - all up hill. There was one hill that was probably at least a 45 degree slope. There was a second hill that we could not scale, someone had to stand at the bottom of the hill and throw the bags up about 20 feet to the top. It was intense work. But good to work out the kinks of the long flight the day before.

After dinner, we had team building and then we turned up the music in the courtyard and spent the rest of the evening getting to know the locals. What a great day!

What did I learn on Day Two?

1. No matter how hard the work - when you are working with a team of people, it is always much, much better.
2. I love Jamaican food.
3. Our experience in Jamaica was well put together by Won by One to Jamaica.

Day Two complete.

Day 1 - Travel

We met at 3am in the parking lot of Charter Oak Church to carpool to the Pittsburgh Airport. When we arrived at our gate, I was extremely surprised to meet a very good friend of mine, Rusty Orner, from when I was serving as a pastor in the Du Bois area. The day was starting off in the right way.

We flew from Pittsburgh to Houston, Texas. It was a 3 hour flight and they actually gave us real food on the flight! Way to go Continental!

We had a quick layover in Houston and then on to Montego Bay, Jamaica. It was a three and a half hour flight so we had real food again and then we were able to watch the latest Harry Potter movie.

When we arrived in Montego Bay, we went through immigration and then on to pick up our luggage. One small problem, our luggage didn't make it. It took our team two plus hours to get all of the paper work filled out. Without luggage it was very easy to go through customs!

After all of the airport stuff we met Josh, Henry, Lloyd, and Leslie the team of leaders from Won by One to Jamaica and the other half of our mission team from the Kansas City Area.

We all jumped on to one of two buses and we started the four hour drive through the mountains of Jamaica to get to Harmons.

We arrived without any problems and we started to unpack and get settled. My head hit the pillow at about 11pm and I was one tired puppy.

What did I learn on Day One?

1. A simple meal on an airplane makes a lot of people happy.
2. Customer service or lack thereof can make or break a company or church's reputation.
3. There's nothing better than good friends.

Day One complete.

Jamaica Recap

Unfortunately I was not able to blog while I was on my mission trip to Harmons, Jamaica. The power was spotty and the Internet connect that was at the Harmony House was by satellite and it rained every day. So over the next few days as I re-enter the American mindset, I will try to capture what happened while we were on our trip.

Audacious

I just read this blog and I had to copy a section for you to read. Check this out...

Audacity is a practice, not a quality
There are fewer prerequisites for achieving your goals than you might first think.

You don’t need to be a great writer, or an expert at creating posts that get Dugg. You don’t need to have a network of influencers, or dozens of killer posts, or years of experience, or formal credentials.
In fact, I’m beginning to think that audacity is the most important habit a blogger can develop.

If you’re not afraid to be rejected, you keep putting your hand up. If you’re not afraid to be ignored, you keep putting yourself out there. If you’re not afraid to be criticized, you do exactly what you want. If you’re not afraid to make contact with someone more successful than you, you’ll create your own opportunities.

Whenever you find yourself thinking: “I’m just not good enough,” replace that sentence with “I’m just not being audacious enough.”

The best thing about audacity is that it’s not a quality you either possess or you don’t. It’s not the same as beauty, or a gorgeous singing voice.

Audacity is a practice. Do audacious things, and you become audacious.

The audacity of… failure
Part of being audacious is being ignored, or rejected, or brushed off, or criticized. You will sometimes fail. You’ll certainly make mistakes. I’ve experienced all of those things, and if you’re audacious, you will too.

Thankfully, both Albert Einstein and Michael Jordan (strange bedfellows, no?) have a few words of wisdom on that point:

“I’ve missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”– Michael Jordan

“Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new.”– Albert Einstein

Communication

I was watching the end of the World Series, the analysts were breaking down the final game, then A-Rod's agent made the announcement that A-Rod would not be returning to the Yankees next season. The ESPN baseball analysts were livid to say the least. They could not believe that such an announcement would be made on such a historic night as Boston winning the World Series.

As I listened to them and as I heard the anger in their voices, I was reminded of how important communication really is. It is very important to get information out to people, but the when and the how are sometimes just as important if not more so. A-Rod's announcement could have been done any time over the next 10 days, but they choose, for whatever reason, to do it then. Strange, but true.

How often do we think through the process of communicating information? I think it is important to communicate the right information, at the right time, for the right reason. It should be clear and concise. Simple is better. How many times would a problem have been resolved if we just communicated in that manner?

Going To Jamaica

This Saturday morning I am leaving with eleven other members of Charter Oak Church on a mission trip to Jamaica. We will be building a house and doing medical work (well, I will be building a house and definitely not doing medical work, we are trying to add value, not hurt people).

The group we are going with is Won by One to Jamaica. The leaders of the group are the same people that led the group to Jamaica back in 1989 when I first went to Jamaica and met Jesus and Kelli. Josh and Erin are awesome followers of Jesus and I look forward to serving with them again.

There is a tropical storm getting ready to hit Jamaica, so please pray that we will not be delayed and there will not be any problems due to the storm.

Staff Must Ask

I was reading an article by Bill Easum this morning, you can read it here. The part of the article that really resonated with me was the "staff must ask" section. Here are the questions...

Staff must ask, not "What must I do today?" but "Who will I mentor today?" not "What is my job?" but "Who will I discover?" not "How much can I do?" but "How many others can I equip?"

Those are great questions. It is so easy to get caught up in the doing of church that we miss out on the opportunity to partner with the entire Body of Christ to fulfill the call of God upon our church. What would happen if we really started asking ourselves these questions? What would happen if we insisted that both paid and unpaid staff asked these questions?

Climbing the Ladder

This morning I was re-reading a section from Marcus Buckingham's book First, Break All the Rules. He wrote that the vast majority of employees today have a drive to be at the next rung up on the ladder. He asks a great question though - why? Why would someone want to go up to the next level when he or she is doing the current position with great excellence and getting a great deal of satisfaction from doing it? Why would someone want to go into the unknown - wouldn't know if he or she could do the position with great excellence, wouldn't know if he or she would get a great deal of satisfaction?

Why not set people up to succeed where they are for a very long time? Here's a quote from the book from an employee who had this happen to him...

"I love my role. I'm the best in the company at it. I am making a lot of money doing it. And I am having more of an impact than I ever thought was possible in my life. So I said to my boos, I said, 'your one objective with me is to see to it that I am never promoted again. If you can do that, you have me for life.'"

How does this apply for you - at work, at home, in school, in sports, at church?

How are people equipped to serve?

I was reading an article by Alan Nelson earlier this week. You can read it here. He asks the question about how people are equipped to serve. He has four phases of spiritual development and personal growth. They are Education, Inspiration, Application, and Manifestation. Here's the quote that has really got me thinking this week:

"Most Christians are far more informed and inspired than transformed."

I'm thinking that when I stand before the people of Charter Oak Church and preach I am providing the pathway for education and inspiration to occur. It is up to each person to take what I am saying and bring the third phase - application. But it is the last phase, manifestation, that takes both of us to accomplish. Manifestation doesn't just bring ministry by addition, but by multiplication. It is taking what is learned, becoming passionate about it, then applying it to your life, and then finally living it in such a transformational way that others want to do the same thing.

What will it take for more people at Charter Oak Church to move from the education and inspiration phases to the application phase? What will it take for more people at Charter Oak Church to move from the application phase to the manifestation phase?

From Andy Stanley's closing @ Catalyst

I have been reading some posts about the variety of speakers from the Catalyst Conference. Here are some questions from Andy Stanley that have got me thinking about what we do at Charter Oak Church and why we do them.

• What are the behaviors we want our people to do?
• What is one thing we are doing to encourage those behaviors? What are we doing in the rhythm of our organization to motivate that type of behavior?
• List the things you are doing, maybe inadvertently, that encourages the opposite behavior.

If the behavior we want from the people of Charter Oak Church is to become more like Jesus is every aspect of our lives, down to the last detail. Then what are we doing or not doing to encourage that?

Just something I am pondering at the end of the week.

September Worship at a Glance

September 1/2 - I preached
588 in worship (5.5% decrease from 2006)
220 in Sunday school (9.8% decrease from 2006)

September 8/9 - Dave preached
678 in worship (16.9% increase from 2006)
314 in Sunday school

September 15/16 - Dave preached
660 in worship (15.6% decrease from 2006)[Consecration of New Building in 2006]
345 in Sunday school (19% increase from 2006)

September 22/23 - Dave preached
627 in worship (5.2% increase from 2006)
303 in Sunday school (11/4% increase from 2006)

September 29/30 - Dave preached
661 in worship (11.8% increase from 2006)
299 in Sunday school (17.3% increase from 2006)

For the first time we are having attendance numbers to compare from for our new building. We continue to see growth from the previous year, even with the spike we had last year with moving into our new building. It amazes me that we are having double digit growth and I am not satisfied. There are 33,000 people within a five mile radius of Charter Oak Church that do not have a church home. The reality is, it shouldn't just dissatisfy me, but I should be driven to lead the people of this church to bring their un-churched friends, family, and co-workers to meet Jesus.

I am very excited that we are having double digit growth. I am very excited that we received 37 new members on Sunday and over half of them were by profession of faith. I am very excited to hear the stories and to be involved in the lives of those people who are being transformed. I am very excited that God has positioned Charter Oak Church in this place and that He has placed a call upon us to help people find their way back to Jesus and to develop them into fully devoted followers. That's why we do what we do. I am very excited by what is happening, I just know that there is so much more to do.

1 Corinthians 9:24-27

Last night at the men's small group that I am in, we talked about discipline. We are reading Disciplines of a Godly Man by Kent Hughes. The scripture that really jumped out at me and has caused me to go back to it this morning is 1 Corinthians 9:24-27.

Here's the NIV version, "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.

Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize."

Paul really has me thinking about my daily walk with Jesus. Yes, I try to order my life each day around the will of God. I begin the day very early with God in prayer. I read and study scripture.

But what is really getting at me is the time in between the practicing of the spiritual disciplines. I don't want to run aimlessly. I don't want to be disqualified for the prize. I want to run in such a way as to get the prize.

I started coaching soccer because I felt the prompting of the Holy Spirit. The reason I was called to coach was to add value into the players and their parents lives. I wanted to be someone they could look up to as a great example of a follower of Jesus. But I have this problem, it can be good, but it can also be bad - I am very competitive. VERY.

I am now wondering and praying if my competitiveness is disqualifying me from the prize of being the hands and feet of Jesus in these boys' life. Yes, Paul writes to run to win. But for me, the real point isn't to win soccer games (as good as that is), the win is to develop character. I changed the win and I didn't even realize it, until maybe it was too late.

Here's something for you to think about today. What is the win God has called you to? Have you changed that win? Has that caused you to be disqualified for the prize? Can you make some changes today that will put you back on the road that you were originally called to?

October Newsletter Now Available On-Line

You can read the October Newsletter on-line by clicking here.

New Sermon Series

Here's the image for my next sermon series...

There is only one way to escape gravity: speed. To break free of the earth’s invisible arms, an object needs to be moving into the air at seven miles per second. This required initial speed is called the escape velocity.

God is the author of the cosmic creation of gravity. The force to leave the grasp of gravity is incredible. However, as the creator, God’s gravity has an even greater force. And yet we choose to resist and even walk away from God’s gravity.

This series will explore the pull on our lives in four different areas that define us as members of Charter Oak Church and what happens when the influence of God’s gravity is greater than any other pull in our lives.

5%

Continuing with this week's theme of what I am learning from other leaders, here is something I read this morning from Wayne Cordeiro from New Hope Christian Fellowship. Check it out...

The 5% only you can do
Pastor Wayne Cordeiro

As leaders, we must develop excellent skills in four areas. If you develop two or three skills, it is not enough. We need all four. It’s like the four corners of a table. If you remove one, you can still have a semblance of balance but any little bit of weight will toss you over. These four skills are:

• Organizational skills
• People skills
• Personal skills
• Communication skills

For most of us, organization is not a native talent. It’s something we will need to develop. I had to work on my organizational skills. A lot of pastors never develop this, and the result is a warped ministry. A lack of organization is what’s going to kill us unless we develop ourselves.

Psalm 50:23 says, “To him who orders his way aright, to him I will show the salvation of God.”

There has to be a sense of organization and discipline.

Eighty-five percent of what you do, anyone can do. For example, anyone can return phone calls, have a job, attend meetings and interact with customers. Ten percent of what you do, anyone with some measure of training can accomplish.
But…5% of what you do, only you can do!

Only you can be the father or mother to your children. No one else.
Only you can be the spouse God expects you to be.
Only you can keep yourself healthy.
Only you are responsible to keep yourself inspired.
Only you can decide your attitude and disposition toward life.

This 5% is what’s most important! This is what others will remember about you. This is what God holds us responsible for.

Take time to decide five or six things that are most important in your life. Here are examples from my life:

• A deep and growing relationship with Christ.
• A healthy marriage.
• A wholesome and close family.
• A healthy ministry that resources others (I am a pastor and an author)
• Keeping physically fit with a soul that’s creative.
• Taking time to enjoy life with family and friends.
• Make a list and decide what your 5% is. Yours may resemble these in part, but it must reflect what God is asking of you for this season of your life.

The 5% may also include:

• Something you need to improve.
• Something you need to develop.
• What do you need to research?
• What do you need to prepare for that is coming up?
• When was the last time you exercised?
• Do you need to get counsel from anybody? Counseling on:
  Finances
  Ministry. Do you need to get any counsel on that?
  Children. When was the last time you did anything with your children?
  People under your care. Is there anyone you need to touch base with?
  Recruiting. Is there anybody you need to encourage into ministry?
  

Remember, God will not hold you accountable for what you’ve done as much as He will hold you accountable for how much of what He has asked you to do that you have done. This 5% is the tip of your leadership.

Blogs I Read

A couple of days ago I posted that my leadership development grows daily because of the blogs that I read. The people I read each day are priceless to me. I am challenged, inspired, pushed, pulled, and often times led into God's presence. I give God great thanks for the following people and what they bring to the leadership table.

Tim Stevens - Executive Pastor at Granger Community Church. I was able to spend the day with Tim earlier this year. His stuff is always good.

Craig Groeschel - Senior Pastor at Life Church. If this guys isn't on your must read, put him at the very top. What Craig is able to accomplish is mind blowing. I don't know of anyone who has greater leadership gifts than this guy.

Perry Noble - Senior Pastor at New Spring Community Church. I read Perry to inspire me to take the next step and not listen to the nay sayers. He gives me an infusion of courage to begin the day.

Tony Morgan - I'm not sure his title, but he is a leadership giant and on staff at New Spring Community. I love the variety of his posts - he hits on so many subjects.

Scott Hodge - Pastor of The Orchard. He helps me to think creatively.

Steven Furtick - Pastor of Elevation Church. This is a new church start that is about 18 months old and broke through the 2,500 in worship barrier this past weekend. God is all over this guy. You want proof that God is working major miracles, read this guys blog.

I also read a few others who don't post daily, some of them are really good and I wish they would be more consistent, but I can't really complain since I'm not that consistent myself.

If you had one blog you absolutely had to read, which one would it be?

Just Read This Quote

Yesterday I posted that I daily read some blogs that pour into my leadership development. Here's proof of some of the really good stuff I get to read everyday. This is from Scott Rodgers...

It is from a Franciscan Benediction…
May God bless you with discomfort at easy answers, half truths, and superficial relationships, so that you may live deep within your heart.
May God bless you with anger at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people, so that you may work for justice, freedom and peace.
May God bless you with tears to shed for those who suffer from pain, rejection, starvation, and war, so that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and to turn their pain in to joy.
And may God bless you with enough foolishness to believe that you can make a difference in this world, so that you can do what others claim cannot be done.
How is God blessing you?

Proverbs 17:2

As part of my early morning time with God, I read the Proverbs chapter that corresponds with the date of the month. This morning as I read Proverbs 17, I read verse 2 and the note in my Bible that went with the verse.

"A wise servant will rule over a son who causes shame, and will share an inheritance among the brothers."

Here's the note from my Bible: "Our influence has less to do with our position or title than it does with the life we live. The key word is credibility. We gain credibility when our life matches our talk and when both add value to others. Answer the following vital questions:

1. Consistency: Are you the same person no matter who's with you?
2. Choices: Do you make decisions based on how they benefit you or others?
3. Credit: Are you quick to recognize others for their efforts when you succeed?
4. Character: Do you work harder at your image or your integrity?
5. Credibility: Have you recognized that credibility is a victory, not a gift?"

Those five questions should be asked daily by every leader.

Learning

I had to fill out a form the other day as part of my annual review by our denomination. One of the questions was about my continuing education. I knew the reason for the question was for accountability for taking classes and going to events that issued continuing education credits. I've been to many of those type events so that I could write on that form that I had done what was required of me. But to be honest, the majority of those of events were anything but educational.

I believe leaders are called to be learners. I read as much as I can. On that same form there was a place for the books we have read recently - there were six lines. Does that say that there really isn't an expectation that our leaders will be readers and learners?

One of the most productive learning things I do is daily read a handful of blogs by leaders who are ahead of me in their leadership gifting. These are men and women who are in the local church and in the business world that I learn from every day - not once a year at a conference or event, but every day they pour into my ability to be a better leader and pastor. The thing is, that kind of continuing education is not what that form is looking for. And that's too bad.

I have worked with some pastors of mega churches this year. These men took time out of their extremely busy schedule to spend time with me! Yet, this isn't what fulfills the desired input for that form. I learned more during those meetings this year with those pastors than all of the "official" continuing education events I have ever been to in my life.

If you are reading this and you are from Charter Oak Church, I want you to find ways to learn to be the very best you have been created to be. I want you to find ways to become a great leader. I want you to dare to get outside the "normal" and expected ways of doing church and instead be the church that God has called us to be in this time and in this place. And here's the thing - do it every day.

August at a Glance

August 4/5 - Dave preached
641 in worship (30% increase from 2006)
161 in Sunday school (5.2% increase from 2006)

August 11/12 - Mark preached
589 in worship (7.5% increase from 2006)
181 in Sunday school (16% increase from 2006)

August 18/19 - I preached
630 in worship (5.7% increase from 2006)

August 25/26 - I preached
603 in worship (19.4% decrease from 2006 - 1st service in new building in 2006)

New Series Kick-Off

Pastor Dave starts a new series this weekend called Relationships Interrupted: Troubled Relationships.

We are very excited about the launch of our fall season. We now have a second hour of Christian education for children at 11:00am. We have small group opportunities for adults during all three worship services on Sunday mornings. Our student ministry kicks-off this Sunday night with a vision casting message by Pastor Mark.

We have over 20 new small groups you can sign up for this weekend if you haven't already done that. As we continue to grow bigger and bigger, we want to get smaller and smaller through small groups. Next Saturday, September 15 we have a church wide serving morning that will be happening every month. Make sure you sign up this weekend.

There are so many opportunities for people to get connected to God and each other at Charter Oak Church. You certainly should not try to do it all, that's not what it's about. Instead, find those places to plug in that will help you to take your next step in your faith journey and that will help someone else take their next step with you.

We've Been Nominated

I received an email last week telling me that Charter Oak Church as been nominated for the America's Most Innovative Churches of 2008. We are #39, but I don't think they are ranked right now - just listed. I think we do some pretty cool things around here. There are two things that we have done in the last year in particular that have hit it out of the park.

Our First Impressions ministry has changed the connectional culture of our congregation. People are genuinely excited to see and talk to people. We have a parking team that is the most creative and fun loving people ever to stand on blacktop. When you walk in our doors, we have the traditional greeters who are incredibly authentic in their greeting. But after you pass the greeters we have a core of people who do something that no other church I have been in on Sunday morning do - they walk you there. What I mean is that if someone enters our church and asks for directions, we don't point - we walk you there. In the time of walking to the destination that First Impressions person will engage the person, get to know them, and often times will follow up with that person afterward. I was recently told by a new person to Charter Oak Church that the reason she came back was because of the person walking her to her destination called her later that evening to follow up on their conversation. This isn't something that we teach, it was this person being prompted by the Holy Spirit and saying yes. The First Impressions ministry has contributed in a huge way to our growth at Charter Oak Church.

The other ministry that has hit it out of the park was started this summer. We called it Sizzlin' Saturday. After worship on Saturday night we rolled out the grill, put meat to fire, and we ate. The head of our food services, Brenda, did a great job putting together a team of grill masters to pull off one of the best summers at Charter Oak Church. Attendance was up on Saturday night by nearly 70%. Yes, I said 70%. Our total increase in worship for the summer was 25%, but Saturday night was just plain awesome. Here's something that blew all of us away - it didn't rain one time on a Saturday night all summer! Sizzlin' Saturday provided the environment for people to connect and build community.

As I look at the list of the churches who have been nominated I know we aren't worshipping 7,000 or 25,000. But we aren't using that as an excuse. We are doing our best to respond when God prompts us by the power of the Holy Spirit to obediently follow His leading. If we make the final list of Innovative Churches isn't important. (I do like being on the list, though.) What's most important for us is letting people know they matter to God and we are here to help them to become more like Jesus.