The Hippest Church in Town is Not What Your Child Needs

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Something exists in the heart of children to watch their parents do what they cannot do yet.  They stand in awe at early ages of what their parents can do.  I desperately want my children to stand in awe of the way I live for God.  I don’t care if they are impressed by the house in which we live, …

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God Did NOT Tell You to Do THAT

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Recently, I was made aware of a situation involving fellow ministers of the gospel.  Someone told me a piece of a conversation, and before I jumped to any conclusions, I decided to go to the source directly.  Sure there had to be a reasonable explanation or a miscommunication, I assumed all would be cleared up with one simple phone call.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t cleared up.  Justifying his thought process, he explained to me what went down between them.  I thought that a brother confronting him would be enough to show some type of remorse, but that’s not what happened.

Actually, he informed me that God told him to do what he did.

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The Call

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What a great day at North Side!  As we focused on Jesus’s saving nature and the fact that he still calls out disciples for his work, we got a chance to Skype in with one of our own serving on the mission field, Kim Tomlinson.  Serving in the American Samoa, Kim is reaching many families for Christ.  By her saying yes, she was not only obedient to Jesus’ call, but she served as such an inspiration to our church.  Kim’s Facebook status: definitely worth it to stay up from 130am-430am here in Samoa to be able to skype with my church family in Greenwood 🙂 🙂 So thankful to have an amazing church family that supports me 🙂  

This is a picture of the baptism service she talked about yesterday – I hope her description impacted your worship yesterday like it did mine!

Today, we worshiped to:

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“Why Isn’t Your Name on the Cover?”

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As Courageous has been making headlines around the country for the success in the box office, I have been rejoicing at all that God is doing through it.  I’ve kinda been surprised that my small role in the ministry aspect of it has caused me to be interviewed by a few different sources.  The Bible Study book that I worked on is available now, but the whole kit with the DVD and extras won’t be available until Feb. 2012.

In a phone interview last week, someone had already picked up the book and asked me this question: “Why isn’t your name on the cover?”

As you can see by the picture, the  leaders for Sherwood Baptist Church and Sherwood Pictures names are on the cover, and this inquiring mind on the other side of the phone wanted to know where mine was.

Well…

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Preachers’ Kids

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Our culture has a stereotype of pastor’s children that is the complete opposite of this biblical expectation.  When people mention a “preacher kid,” they are normally referencing some rebellious hellion bent on tarnishing his father’s reputation in the community.  This stereotype reveals more than an unfortunate circumstance, it shows unbiblical perspectives and qualifications present in the church today.

Repeatedly, many preacher kids reveal a father who took care of the needs of everyone else except for those living in his own house.  In attempts to appease this member or that family, he neglected his own wife and children.  As the years went by, not only does the minister’s family resent the man of the house, but they also resent the church and many never return once they leave home.

Your pastors need to care for their own children more than they care for your children.

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Songs of Our Faith – Track Listing

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We are so excited as recording is picking up pace around here.  North Side Worship is in the recording studio again working on our next worship project entitled: “Songs of Our Faith.”  This collection of worship hymns is full of wonderful lyrics pointing the church to Jesus!

The concept art is coming together.  The band is putting together some unbelievable music.  The vocalists are pushing themselves more and more each week.  The arrangements are more complex than anything we have ever tried to pull off.

We are planning on releasing the CD on Sunday, November 20th at 6pm.  We are in the initial plans of this worship event, and we hope you can come out.  We have some really special stuff planned.

So do you want to know what hymns made the cut?

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Prepare the Way for the Lord

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I was so thankful that my buddy, JW, got to lead us in worship today at North Side!  We did a highlight for our Sonshine ministry at North Side, and Greg Thompson and JW helped us be mindful of how God is using all of North Side.  After the video, they both shared, JW prayed and then led in worship to “I’ll Fly Away.”  Awesome time!

Today, we worshiped to:

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Why Many Student Ministries Are Failing

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Since the inception of student ministry (not that many years ago), the growing belief is that parents should aid and assist the student pastor to evangelize and disciple the students.  By serving in either assistant teaching roles or crowd control, parents are expected to help the student pastor in his ministerial work focused on their children.  I cannot begin to tell you how many parents describe that situation and say that the student pastor spiritually “raised my child.”

If we were to follow the biblical example, we would reverse the trend.  Parents should not aid and assist the student pastor.  The student pastor should aid and assist the parent to evangelize and disciple one’s own child.

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Family Worship Guides

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I mentioned last week that I was making a big announcement during my message on Sunday, Sept. 25th.  I told the church that God had blessed me by leading worship and preaching at North Side, but I felt God was leading me to do something else.

I felt like God was leading me to lead worship in the homes of our church.  As we focused on family discipleship the last few weeks, my big application was for the leader of the home to begin leading the family in worship before they came to the church house each Sunday.  My commitment in the deal is that I will provide a worship guide each week by Thursday on the City so that they can lead their family in worship sometime before Sunday morning.

Last week was the first week I provided a worship guide.  The picture above is us taking our boys through the guide in our own home.  Since we were studying John 1 the next day in church, we spent some time focusing on that Jesus is the light of the world.  As we took our boys through some dark rooms in our house guided by a flashlight, we talked about how Jesus shone his light into this dark world.

I made the worship guide, but I also had to adapt some things to make it work in my home.

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Honor Begins at Home

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Honor Begins at Home: The Courageous Bible Study Member Book guides the participant through this compelling Bible study based on the movie Courageous. This 8-session study will take individuals and small groups deeper into biblical truths for a godly family, exploring topics such as redeeming your history, walking with integrity, winning and blessing the hearts of your children, and more. Every …

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Honor Begins at Home

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What an incredible weekend!  With a limited number of theaters showing the film Courageous, it was the top 5 movie in the box office this weekend!  That is unheard of!

If you got to see it, you know the range of emotions you experience during this roller coaster ride.  It is absolutely powerful.  We watched it with a Friday night showing at 7:00 that North Side rented out.  It was great to watch it and experience it with my church family.

Many of asked about the Bible study I worked on.  You can purchase “Honor Begins at Home” with LifeWay stores now.  It is an 8-session study that highlights principles in the book.  You can actually download a copy of one week’s lesson for free here.

But there is a slight catch.

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In the Beginning Was the Word

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Wow, what a stellar day to be a part of North Side!

We kicked off a new series today studying the Book of John entitled, “Knowing Jesus.”  To start things off, we celebrated some baptisms.  We sang “Come and Listen” as our candidates told why they were being baptized.  My favorite part of the day was watching fathers baptize their children!  Doesn’t get better than that for me.  Coming off the “Courageous” series, movie release this weekend, and our 1st family worship guide, it was incredible to watch!

Today, we worshiped to:

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Go See Courageous This Weekend

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I’ve shared a lot about my involvement with the Courageous resource, Honor Begins at Home, which will be available next week.  I can’t urge you enough: go see this film this weekend.  It is a powerful movie that could change your home, church, and community if the principles are applied. I am posting a clip below from the film.  This …

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Moving

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Our family has been in the process of moving homes this week, thus the blogosphere will be missing me most likely. While we are excited about God’s timing and provision, we are reminded yet again: a house is only a house.  It’s temporary.  The people in it matter more than the decorated walls.  The true beauty is the internal quality …

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The Family Altar

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It was an emotionally charged Sunday at North Side.  In our 2nd week of Courageous, we discussed “The Family Altar.” I had a pregnant lady in our church say that she was emotionally exhausted from the service and she needed to lay down.  I felt the same way, and I had no baby weighing me down!  It was an intense …

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Zuckerberg, Lucas, and You

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Something is wrong with the world as we know it.

Facebook has changed yet again, and the Facebook community is in a tizzy.  Disgust and outrage fill status feeds, news reports, and paper headlines.  How dare Mark Zuckerberg keep changing a good thing?

Within days of the Facebook mutiny, global Star Wars fans are distraught that George Lucas has changed scenes yet again in his recent Blu-Ray versions of the Star Wars saga.  Tinkering with some effects is one thing, but when he started changing details in the story lines reopened the scab for those still upset that Han Solo was “provoked” by Greedo.

So, let me get this straight.  Most of the world is hooked on Facebook.  Created by brilliant college student, Facebook is the way people attempt to share life these days and is the most visited website in the world.  It has literally changed how people function in our society.  And we are mad at the guy who made it because he changed it?

George Lucas, who single handedly changed the movie industry, wrote a script that millions of fans have memorized.  When he decides to enhance a story that he wrote, we get mad at him for changing what we like as if he has no rights to the story.

The outrage this week reminded me how we think we are the center of the universe.

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Help the Vias Get Their Daughter Home!

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In college, I was blessed to find many friends that became family.  Two of those were Josh and Tasha Via.  The Vias have led worship at North Side before, so that’s where some of you might remember them from.  They are wonderful worship leaders on and off the stage.  They have 3 wonderful children, 1 bun in the oven, and …

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Redeeming Your History

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What a great day at North Side as we kicked off our 2 week Courageous series.  In addition to a great prayer time for our Africa team, we had a wonderful worship time together.  Taylor did a great time of focusing our prayers for that team and the unreached people group.  The worship team did great today!  So much energy, passion, and skill.  They led me to the throne – it was fantastic!

Today, we worshiped to:

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“You’re a REALLY Big Bear!”

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Psalm 107:33 He turns rivers into desert,
springs of water into thirsty ground,
34 and fruitful land into salty wasteland,
because of the wickedness of its inhabitants.
35 He turns a desert into a pool of water,
dry land into springs of water.
36 He causes the hungry to settle there,
and they establish a city where they can live.
37 They sow fields and plant vineyards
that yield a fruitful harvest.

38 He blesses them, and they multiply greatly;
He does not let their livestock decrease.

43 Let whoever is wise pay attention to these things
and consider the Lord’s acts of faithful love.

After reading a book about a family of bears one day, my firstborn came up to me and said, “Daddy, I’m a little bear, Mommy is a big bear, and Daddy, you’re a really big bear!”

In addition to his comments causing me to diet the next week, I also realized the power that perception has in the eyes of a child.  I’m a tall dad.  My toddlers think I am ginormous.  When a balloon escapes their grasp and heads towards the ceiling, they came looking for me.  When they want to soar above the crowd, they come begging to sit upon my shoulders.  Contrastingly, when they are in trouble, I can tell that our height difference also causes them to sit up a little straighter when I walk in the room.

Don’t read anything more into that comment.  The fact is they are small, I am big, and that causes them sometimes to have a reality check.  I believe that’s one of the reasons God makes babies so small (in addition to wanting women to survive labor).  He wants children to have a healthy fear of their parents.  The problem only comes when they think they are my size.

Our problems come when we think God is our size. 

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Don’t Drop Your Kids Off at Church

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Parents have often developed misplaced priorities when it comes to their children. Many children in America are so busy with numerous activities that their spiritual lives are unfortunately neglected. Our approach is to drop our children off at the best church in town which we qualify by which one has the hippest youth minister, most attended programs, and the nicest …

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New Book on the Way…

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Only a couple people have known that I have been working on a new book, and I am happy to tell you that it is almost complete.  The next book is entitled: Don’t Drop Your Kids Off at Church: Bring Them Home to It.

Many of you know that I graduated with a doctorate from Southern Seminary in December 2009.  My work centered around parents being the primary evangelists in their children’s lives.  After completing that mammoth project, I was encouraged by my supervisor, Chuck Lawless, to make the material palatable for people other than my doctoral defense team.

Due to this emphasis, God has used the work to impact North Side but was one of the main reasons I was asked to complete LifeWay’s Courageous Bible study “Honor Begins at Home.”  Here’s the premise of the book:

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What They Don’t Teach You in Seminary

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I haven’t been a very consistent blogger this week.  I apologize.  It’s been a crazy week of ministry thus far.  On weeks like this, you realize all the things they don’t train you for in seminary.

Here’s some of the things I have dealt with this week:

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What Do You Wish 2012’s President Would Bring to the White House?

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We’re still a long way off from the election, but the news coverage is already constant.  With the Republican debates going on, President Obama making attempts to salvage the economy, and everyone having an opinion about both, a lot is being promised. At the end of last night’s debate, Wolf Blitzer asked a unique questions: “If you were elected as …

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The Keys to the Kingdom

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We had a great day as we wrapped up our “Intentional Discipleship” series.  It’s been amazing to hear the stories of people who are taking the job of disciple-maker very seriously.  I love hearing about all the different ways people are investing in others!  We’ve also been amazed at how well family worship has been and how much our children have been getting out of the new schedule.

Jeff’s message was so great.  I loved the emphasis he put on keeping the Sabbath and maintaining rest.  It is definitely something we have to be on the regular to watch out for.  Phil Zigos did a wonderful job leading a prayer time for America on the 10th anniversary of 9/11.  We also were able to ordain Dan Flint into the ministry and pray for our mission team leaving next week (Jeff Lethco, Jukie Leary, and Martin Ridgeway).  Love the prayer focus today!

Today, we worshiped to:

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“So, How Did the Change REALLY Go?”

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In the recent weeks, I have learned that there have been 3 people very interested in the changes going on at North Side.

  1. North Siders – This group has been interested in how all of it would look when the dust settled and the new day was here.  What would worship be like?  Where would their families go?
  2. Other Greenwood Churches – We also have heard that it’s been quite the conversation among other churches, and even in some churches, people have attempted to lure people to their congregation because their worship style was something they would enjoy better (that’s on both the contemporary and the traditional side).  I guarantee if someone leaves one church because of music and find refuge in another, those are the type of members who leave the 2nd church one day as well.  It’s like young ladies who feel like they have to advertise to get a man.  Whatever it takes to get him will be what takes him one day.  The same is true with churches.
  3. Other Church Leaders – Along the way, I’ve been contacted through this blog, Facebook, or email with questions how we are going about these changes.  It seems there are a lot of churches who desire unity as well.  Many congregations are tired of the church buffet lines, but we served as the “guinea pig” to many of them.  If it works here, maybe it could work there too was the thought process.

So, I posted on Sunday that Sunday was a great day, and it was.  I believed it was going to be a great day, but I didn’t think it could have gone that smooth.  But many people emailed me on Monday morning and said, “OK, you can tell me, how did the change REALLY go?”  As if Sunday everyone would be all smiles, but then Monday morning, our inboxes would be overflowing with hate mail.

So, how did the change REALLY go?

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Courageous Opening Weekend Showtimes

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I was thrilled to find out the other week that the movie Courageous will be showing on opening weekend in Greenwood!  For those of you who follow my blog, you are aware that I have been blessed to be a part of writing a Bible study to accompany the movie entitled “Honor Begins at Home.” Since so much of the study has critical clips to the movie, it won’t be released until after opening weekend.  You can see an early sample of the curriculum here.

We just got information concerning how churches, ministries, or groups can get bulk tickets at a great rate.  You can purchase Courageous tickets for opening weekend now.  If you buy 20 or more, you can get them at the very low price of $6.50 a ticket.  You can then turn and give them away or sell that at your church or ministry.

Showtimes:

  • Friday, Sept. 30th – 1:00, 4:00, 7:00, 10:00
  • Saturday, Oct. 1st – 1:00, 4:00, 7:00, 10:00
  • Sunday, Oct. 2nd – 1:00, 4:00, 10:00 (7:00 is already sold out)

We have some tickets at North Side for the Friday night showing at 7:00.  You can pick them up while they last at the bookstore for $6.50 a ticket.  If you are another church leader, find a time that works for your crew, and go pick up some tickets for that time slot.

Here’s the synopsis of the movie:

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College Discipleship Groups

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  What a wonderful weekend with the North Side family!  We were blessed to have a bunch of college students worship with us yesterday from Lander, Erskine, Piedmont Tech, Presbyterian College, and much more.  It was a blessing to connect with so many of them at our lunch yesterday and our dodegeball tournament last night. We want to make all …

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Cherish Your Marriage Vows

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On July 12, 2004, I spoke some serious wedding vows to my bride.  Unfortunately, those vows are often forgotten once the marriage ceremony is over for many couples. This summer, we have been married 7 years.  For Amanda’s birthday, I decided to get our vows framed, something she always said she would love to have.  I did some research and …

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Following Jesus

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The day so many of us have been praying for and planning for finally came.  We did something that most church growth experts and consultants say should never be done.  With what we did today, we should have had a church split or people walking out in disapproval.

Instead, we worshiped as one family.

Today, North Side united 3 services into 2.  We got rid of 2 styles and united under the heading of “worship.”  We united families instead of segregating them.  And while I believe that God has been honored with our church before, I think this was another level of obedience and worship that we engaged into today.  I’ve heard plenty of encouraging words from this morning, but even if those weren’t there, God was honored and our church worshiped today in spirit and in truth.

Today, we worshiped to:

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Reminders for Sunday’s New Schedule

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Just a reminder about Sunday’s new schedule at North Side.  We have worship and discipleship groups for all ages at both 9:30 & 11:00.  Get there early to make sure you and your family are in the right spot at the right time.

Here’ some additional notes for you to remember:

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“We Said We Would Never Visit North Side…”

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Yesterday, I talked about how North Side is experiencing incredible growth even during a time of transition.  Normally, you are supposed to lose people when you make changes to your church, and in reality, we are gaining people.  Lives are being transformed by the gospel.  People are being baptized.  All ages are signing up for discipleship groups and service groups.  It’s been amazing to watch!

I wanted to tell you one story that we have heard through this time of change.  A couple recently moved to Greenwood who had been church leaders in another state.  As they began their time of searching for the right church, someone invited them to come to North Side.  They checked out the website, asked some questions about the church, and told this person they wouldn’t come.  They had doctrinal stances they had to ensure which our church met with no problem.  But they had one other criteria as far as looking for a church that was a non-negotiable for them.

Do you know what the one criteria they had that was hindering them from coming to North Side?

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Aren’t Churches Supposed to Lose People When They Change?

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When I was in seminary, I was taught that before you ever make a change in your church, you need to calculate how many people you would lose if you changed.  An honest look at how those departures would affect attendance, volunteers, and especially budget should give you an indication of whether or not you should change.

North Side is in the middle of a change (if you haven’t heard ;)).  We are going from 3 worship services to 2.  2 worship styles to 1.  We are having a simple flip-flop schedule with worship and discipleship groups for all ages at both 9:30 & 11:00.

We decided to change for 2 basic reasons:

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Values of a Disciple-Maker

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Cannot begin to put into words what is happening at North Side in these days.  This morning, I was reminded of how focused, committed, determined, passionate, and sacrificial our church is becoming.  God is on the move, and it is amazing to watch!

We continued in our “Intentional Discipleship” series today as we talked about the values of a disciple-maker.  My notes have that someone who is serious about making disciples is someone who commits to authority (God’s Word), intentionality, maturity, and accountability.  People are stepping up to make disciples – not more programs, but to get into the lives of people and see multiplication rather than just addition.

It was great to surprise Stan Ligon today.  As Jamie Parler and Stan shared a testimony about the power of small groups, we wanted to thank this disciple-maker by allowing some of his guys to say thanks over a secret video.  It was pretty awesome to watch Stan talk about how much he needed these guys then followed by the guys saying how much they appreciated and needed him.  Kingdom living!

Today, we worshiped to:

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Bad Church Sign: No Way Out

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This week’s bad church sign (thanks Easler for sending this one to me) states: “HELL ONE WAY IN  NO WAY OUT WELCOME” How would you improve this sign’s message?

Sunday Best (Does God Care What I Wear to Church?)

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Everybody knows that when you go to church on Sunday you are supposed to wear your “Sunday best.”  Right?  I always heard that you dress up in your nice clothes on Sunday morning because God deserves our best.  So find the most expensive, formal attire and wear that on Sundays because it honors God. Does it?  Have you ever wondered …

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Consistently Inconsistent

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Psalm 92:10 You have lifted up my horn

like that of a wild ox;

I have been anointed with oil.

11 My eyes look down on my enemies;

my ears hear evildoers when they attack me.

12 The righteous thrive like a palm tree

and grow like a cedar tree in Lebanon.

13 Planted in the house of the Lord,

they thrive in the courts of our God.

14 They will still bear fruit in old age,

healthy and green,

15 to declare: “The Lord is just;

He is my rock,

and there is no unrighteousness in Him.”

Consistently Inconsistent

I am one of the most inconsistent people you will ever meet.  I will bowl great for three frames, and then I will reside in the gutter the rest of the game.  That’s not entirely true.  I will reside in the gutter of the lane next to me for the rest of the game.  At New Years, I will begin a steady diet and exercise routine that lasts until someone brings out the meatballs.  I will start a span of regularly responding to emails, and then I will have a setback and not reply to anyone for six weeks.  I crave consistency.

In my spiritual life, I am even worse.  On a mission trip, I will turn into super-evangelistic boy on the field only to revert to an unashamed coward when I return home.  My devotional life will get intense after a convicting sermon only to last until the guilt finally wears off.  An answered prayer turns me into an intercessory advocate until I stop seeing immediate results to my prayers.  I want to do better.  I honestly do crave consistency.

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Praise Break (Snoopy Style?)

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A friend shared this video with me the other day, and I thought you would enjoy it.  I’m pretty sure I’ve been to this church…

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