Discipleship

What’s North Side’s New Schedule Mean for My Family?

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You probably have heard that we are going through some changes at North Side.  I’ve got lot’s to blog about where we are heading.  To make it simple, we are uniting our church.  3 services down to 2.  2 styles of worship down to 1.  Adding some programming so that we can have a flip flop schedule on Sunday morning which will help families worship together and grow together.

Let me talk to you concerning how this affects families with children still at home.  I was asked this weekend by a church member if the additional hour of children’s programming will be something different than the first hour.  The answer is yes!

This united schedule provides an hour of worship and an hour of discipleship for EVERY age.  Many people are choosing to spend an hour at worship and an hour at service.  Either way, there is something different.  All of the options, except for Sonshine service, will be repeated.

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The Most Segregated Hour in America

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“We must face the sad fact that at 11 o’clock on Sunday morning, when we stand to sing…we stand in the most segregated hour in America.”  -Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., spoken in 1963 Almost 50 years ago this line was delivered, and have we gotten any better?  Are more churches open to multiethnic congregations

Revival

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This summer, we are praying for a revival!

During the summer, we will be having Sunday evening services from 5:30-7.  We will be teaching through the Psalms in a series called, “Revival.” All ages will be studying the Psalms in order to revive our hearts towards God. The schedule will only have two breaks during the summer (June 19th for Father’s Day and June 26th for the Homeland Choir Concert at North Side).

Here’s the summary of the time together that will begin on May 22nd:

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College Students – Dates to Remember

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We had our last college Bible study of the semester last night.  What a great year we have had.  It’s been amazing to see these students grow in their love for the Word and the world.  I shared some dates last night that I wanted to make sure everyone knew about (actually, all of these

Robert’s Rules of Order vs. the Holy Bible (Which Guides Your Church’s Meetings?)

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I’m still in awe of a meeting we had at church last night.  A group of 100 leaders from our church have been gathering together to pray and to plan in this One Initiative our church has been going through.  Last night, we discussed some possible changes that would affect everyone.  From the report that I get from friends, if those type of changes were being discussed in some congregations, it would have gotten ugly.

Let me give you an example.

A friend called me a couple of years ago after a church business meeting.  In tears, he retold of the ungodly things stated among the people of God.  He told me concerning personal attacks that took place.  He told me of the name-calling, the cursing, and the selfishness that pervaded the entire meeting.

He asked me what I thought went wrong.

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Confessions of a Narrow-Focused Church Member

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I have a confession to make: I am a narrow-focused church member.  I look at all the possible changes at our church at how it would affect me and mine.  I judge the worth of programs based upon how they benefit me and my family.  If it can make me feel better, I’m all in.

10 Things That Will Kill Your Men’s Ministry

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Recently, I was talking to a buddy about why or why not men’s ministries work in certain churches.  I tried to condense what we talked about, so here is a list of 10 things that will kill your church’s men’s ministry:

1.  Hypocritical Leadership – You won’t find perfect men to lead your men’s ministry, but you better find men who are consistently striving towards godliness.  Men can spot fakes easily and provides easy excuses for them.
2.  Getting Too Close and Personal – You need to allow them to get close, but don’t force them to act in a manner against God-given manliness.  Your group can be spiritual without group hugs.
3.  Not Getting Close and Personal Enough – While you don’t force men to be something they are not, don’t also settle for anything less than biblical community.  They need to be close enough to push each other to love and good deeds (Heb. 10:24-25).
4.  Cliques – When men come to your church’s functions, you need to remove the clique factor among them.  Make sure to get men with the gift of hospitality (that just means they make people feel welcome) at your doors and get men connected with others in the room.
5.  Trying to Copy the Church’s Women Ministry – Just because your church’s women ministry has a hanging of the greens doesn’t mean you get your guys to decorate the church too.  It works cause it is for women.  Let guys be guys while always challenging them to be men of God.

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Small Group Values

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Following up from yesterday’s post, I want to share the 4 values on which my small group focuses.  There are many great lists out there, but this is my attempt at trying to maintain focus within the group I lead. Small group values: AUTHORITY Make sure each member knows that the authority in the study

The City is Coming to North Side

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North Side is growing.  Praise the Lord.  While we are excited about numerical growth, we also are burdened to always grow closer as we grow larger.  As we continually get busier and busier, how in the world can we truly connect people to each other in the church?

As we prayed, we believed that God led us to an answer.

The City…It’s a new communication tool at North Side Baptist Church. The City has been implemented to allow the members of North Side to connect with each other. This tool provides a unique way for members to keep up to date with each other…as well as events, happenings, prayer requests and needs of the North Side family.

It really focuses on 3 key things:

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Welcome Back Lander Students!

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So excited to see Greenwood buzzing with all the new and returning Lander students this week!  As you guys get back in the groove, I wanted to let you know about a few things for college students: RELI 101 – I still have some openings at TR 1:15-2:45 for my Religions course I teach.  Would

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