Monday stuff

** Started our new series, Crossing Jordan yesterday. I got a chance to talk about something most people don't like to talk about---Change!

** I did a very unscientific survey yesterday. I asked these questions. How many of you don't like change? How many of you do like change? It was split about 50-50.
Then I asked, how many of you think that change is basically bad? How many think change is basically good? The results were amazing. 100% of the people thought that change was basically good. (Which means even among people who don't like change, they recognize that change is good!)

** Kind of weird yesterday I talked about the Batman ride at Six Flags yesterday in an illustration. Then I heard about this. Please pray for the family of this teenager.

** Over 80 of our students and volunteers are in Panama City at Bigstuf camp, and a bunch of younger kids are in Alabama at camp this week too.

** I hope to get a chance to hang out with some church planter friends tonight for dinner.

Thursday thoughts

** Getting ready to kick off our new series this Sunday called, Crossing Jordan. The message this week is called "On The Brink Of Greatness"

** Son Sports wraps up this evening. It has been a huge success. Lots of kids and lots of people volunteering.

** Had lunch with my friend Jason Wilson today. Jason is the Executive Pastor for this church. I also got a chance to give him the tour of our new building.

** Speaking of the new building. It's getting very close (Looks like the first service will be on July 27th)

** Had a great meeting meeting with our Toccoa Campus Pastor, Shannon Chiles today.

** We will be doing 2 informational meetings for our new location in Toccoa. All of you who have expressed interest, or are just curious are invited to be a part of these meetings. The first one will be on July 14th at Foothills at 6:30 pm. The second one will be in Toccoa (location to be announced) Sunday July 20th at 6:00pm. Stay tuned for more details.

** My broken thumb is almost better! I may try to play basketball next week. (On Monday it will have been 9 weeks since I broke it)

Mansions

When I was down in Florida last week, I had my nephew snap a picture of this house (Yes, it's a house even though it looks more like a condo). I have no idea who the owner is. I have no idea how many square feet it is (Probably more than 20,000). I have no idea what it looks like inside.I have no idea how much it cost to build (definitely out of my price range!) All I know is that it is an amazing oceanfront mansion.

I doubt that any of us will ever have a house like this here on earth, but for Christ-followers Jesus is preparing a place for you that will make this place look like a shack!

leadership traits

One of the traits of the leaders that I know is their willingness to grow.
They never get to the place where they think they know it all. I have been to lunch with some leaders of churches (many much larger than Foothills) that are just as interested in asking me questions as I am to ask them questions.

Let me give you an example of this. Once I was having lunch with my friend, Perry Noble (this was when Newspring was still meeting at Anderson University)and I had just been to one of their services a couple of weeks prior to our lunch. Perry asked me what I thought of their services, so I shared a few thoughts. Then he asked me if there was anything that needed fixing, so I mentioned that I had trouble finding my way around because there were not enough signs. He took out his notepad and jotted it down right then. It was obvious that he was concerned about it, and to my knowledge, they added some signage. This isn't unusual for Perry. Every time we get together he is in the learning mode. Perry is one of the sharpest leaders in the country,who pastors one of the largest Churches in SC but he always is seeking ways to grow and learn.

I had lunch recently with another friend that asked me to watch a DVD of his Church's services and give some feedback. Why would anyone subject themselves to critique? because this Pastor is interested in becoming the best Leader/Pastor that he can be. That's a sign of a great leader--- a willingness to grow. (Whenever another Pastor asks me to listen to one of their messages and give feedback, I respond by saying, "I would be happy to do it IF I can be totally honest with you")

Whenever I encounter a person in leadership who is not teachable, I think to myself that their days as a leader are probably numbered.

What are you doing to grow yourself as a leader?

Kristen's blog

Many of you know that my Daughter, Kristen and my granddaughter, Mia are in South Africa. She is now blogging so if you're interested you can check that out and stay up to date with her. Thanks to all of you that support her in prayer and through your finances!

Son Sports

We had a great kick-off to our Son Sports kids program with over 200 kids last night. It looked like they were having a blast!

It's not too late to join in the fun. Come to Foothills at 6:30 to get registered.

In case you aren't sure what Son Sports is, this might explain it.

Thanks again to all of you who are volunteering your time to invest in a young person.

Big week

** We had another great day at Foothills yesterday. Normally during the summer our attendance is down 10-12%, but we are actually still growing. Once school starts back up and everyone gets back in their normal routine, you can tell.

** We wrapped up the David's Blog series. It was a lot of fun

** Rachel did an awesome job with "Bring On The Rain'

** Today at 6:30pm we start our Son Sports kids program. My wife Liz has done an incredible job coordinating this event. There are around 150 volunteers that will be serving this week to help us reach out to our children through sports. There is going to be hundreds of kids involved. If you didn't get your child registered, it's not too late. Just bring them to Foothills this evening by 6:15pm to give you time to sign them up.

** Brian Rhodes, our new Student Ministry Pastor begins today.

** This Sunday will be our last 6:00pm service (it's been a great run, but with the new building, we will have space once again in the morning!)

Toccoa Campus Pastor

Well it's now official, Shannon Chiles will be the Campus Pastor of our new location in Toccoa, Georgia! Shannon has been a part of Foothills since the early days. He has led worship, created videos and graphics, led a Life Group....basically about everything. He knows and lives the Foothills DNA. Shannon, his wife Amy and their 4 daughters have just closed on a house in Toccoa and will move there shortly.
Welcome aboard Shannon!

Back to work

Well, we made it back to SC today at 12:00, so I decided to head over to the office to see how things are going. I was amazed at how the new building looks with the driveway paved. It's getting very close.

While I was away I had some incredible thoughts about leadership. One of the thoughts that has been marinating in my mind is the qualities of a good leader. I thought I would share a little bit about this.

It occurred to me that great leaders are generally visionaries, and have the ability to take that vision and make it reality, but even more important than that, I believe that great leaders are agents of change. They don't just tolerate change, they embrace change. In fact I'm convinced that the best leaders actually look for things to change, not for the sake of change, but they seem to have an intuitive sense when things are in need of change. For instance Steve Jobs, Apple CEO has an uncanny ability to initiate change. Where most people wait for things to bottom out before they change, Jobs makes changes to products and services that are doing well. The new iPhone is a good example of this. According to reports, the first edition of IPhones which came out only one year ago and have already captured 27% of the smart phone market, yet rather than rest on his laurels Jobs has introduced the new iPhone which sells for $199 (about 1/2 price of the first iPhones)and has even more features. Why would he make changes when things are going so well? Simple, he's a great leader. He knows that if you ever stop to pat yourself on the back, technology will pass you by.

In the church world generally there has been a resistance to change, and the consequence is that churches are dying in record numbers. Some church leaders now see the need for change,and are reacting, but unfortunately for many of them it's a little too late. Great leaders are people who initiate change at the right time (usually when things are going well). Great leaders help people to become what they desire to become, by creating enough tension for things to change.

In a few weeks we are going to introduce some incredible change. I mentioned in this post about our 2 worship service strategy. The obvious question is with how well things are going,why change? The answer is, because it will allow us to reach even farther into our community with the gospel of Jesus Christ by offering additional choices. I am so pumped about what God is going to do here at Foothills!

all good things must come to an end

We are wrapping up our summer vacation today and will fly back to SC tomorrow.
It has been a blast! My parents are incredible hosts.

It's easy to get spoiled going to the beach everyday and doing pretty much nothing, but it's time to get back to reality. I feel refreshed and am ready to hit the ground running. I can't wait to be back at Foothills!

It is important for all of us to get away from the routine of life and unplug. So if you haven't scheduled a vacation, do it today. You'll be glad you did.

still relaxing

Vacations are great! I am officially relaxed....
Still in Florida soaking up the sun, fishing, eating, hanging out---just relaxing.

Meanwhile back at the ranch I hear things are going well at Foothills (yes I do call in and check... sometimes) I have ben told that the new building is really starting to look finished. They installed all of the new theater seating, and I believe they are going to try to asphalt the new parking lot. We are still looking good for our first service in the new building on July 13th! We are planning some really cool things for the first service, but our official Grand Opening will be August 17th (when people are back from vacations)

new staff hires

We are very excited about a couple of new staff hires we have made recently.

To lead our student ministry we have hired Brian Rhodes. Brian and his wife, Michelle are from Greer, SC, so they're fairly local. Brian will begin at Foothills in late June. Scott Chatfield, our current Student Pastor will take on a new position at Foothills as our Technical Director.


We also bringing on a second Worship Leader. David Odom will join the staff of Foothills in July. David is married to Amanda and they have one son, Noah. They currently reside in Georgia.
Beginning in mid July (when we move into the new building), Eric Peters (our current Worship Leader) will mainly be leading worship during our 9:30 am service and David Odom will mainly lead worship during the 11:15am service.

The 9:30am service music will be pretty much like it is now at Foothills. Great upbeat contemporary worship with Eric leading. The 11:15 am music will be slightly different. It will be more of a modern worship feel (a bit edgier, a little different vibe), with David leading. I honestly believe we will have 2 of the most gifted Worship Leaders in the Nation!

As Foothills continues to grow, we need to add staff to keep up with the demands.
Make sure to make them feel at home!

relaxing day

We had a very relaxing day today. Went to church this morning, then out for lunch and then hung out for a while until it cooled down a bit, then headed out to do a little more fishing. Here's a good example of why I love Florida fishing!

down time

I'm blogging from sunny South Florida today. I'm on vacation and so far it has been extremely relaxing. I don't know about you, but it usually takes me a few days to start really unwinding.
I've been fishing a couple of times on the beach so far, but there's a lot of seaweed in the water, so it's been a little slow. I'm getting ready to head out bass fishing in some golf course ponds. Hopefully I'll catch a few.
Tomorrow at Foothills, Scott Chatfield will continue the David's Blog series speaking about worship from Psalm 100. If you're in town make sure to be there!
That's all for me, I hear a bass calling my name!

Son Sports

At Foothills Community Church, we have always sought to be a little different. In our area there are probably 150-200 churches. My guess is that 99% will be having Vacation Bible School, which is great! But our thought has always been to try to offer something that isn't being offered, so rather than a typical V.B.S. we are doing what we call Son Sports.

Here's a little blurb to describe what will be offered: Get ready! Son Sports is a super summer spectacular event June 23rd-26th 6:30-8:30 pm (K5 to 6th grade). Activities include basketball, football, soccer, cheerleading, arts/crafts, and an incredible magic show by BAM Magic.

Not only will there be the sports element, but each evening there will be music and a skit that conveys a Biblical truth.

If you have kids/grandkids/neighbors that might be interested, get them signed up today. For a registration form call the church office at 864-888-8008 or go to our website

If you would like to volunteer to help out let us know.

Change

Change. The very word causes some people to break out in a cold sweat. Yet change is a part of life.

While it is true that we serve an unchanging God who is the same yesterday, today and forever, this same God has made things to change. The seasons are a great example. Fall, Winter, Spring and Summer (actually for most of my life living in South Florida, I thought there was only one season). There are many examples of change. If you don't believe that everything changes, pull out your High School yearbook and look at your picture!

At Foothills Community Church we have always embraced change. In a lot of ways change has been a great friend rather than a foe. Our vision has never changed. Our pursuit of God has never changed. Out heart to reach lost people has never changed, but many of the methods have changed over the last 10 years.

As we get ready to begin a new season at Foothills (moving into a new building), we are once again facing change. In my view it will be a wonderful change. Yes, there will be the chaos associated with the initial newness of change, but overall it's going to be great. With this new change there are going to be challenges, but if we approach this with a willing heart and an open mind, it will be fine.

Later this month I am going to spend a couple of weeks helping us prepare for the new changes with a message series called, "Crossing Jordan." Until then, we're going to need a lot of help coordinating the move. So if you have some free time around the beginning of July, let us know.

building picture

I finally got a picture of the front of the new building. (They're finishing the floors, so I'll get inside pics later.)

Sunday Highlights and Monday thoughts

** We had some great services yesterday. Pretty good attendance in spite of the rain. We continued our David's Blog series, with a message called "Why Isn't Life Fair?" (By the way, in case you hadn't noticed, Life isn't fair!)

** Had some really good feedback from some people who are dealing with some very difficult times in their lives.

** Paul Carr, our Pastor of Connections did a great job speaking at our 6:00pm service on Psalm 139.

** Our volunteers are amazing. We couldn't make it without them!

** Had another Belong class yesterday (That's what we call our membership class). So far this year I think we've had nearly 200 people attend already!

** We just finished a marathon staff meeting. Part of that meeting was our calendar planning. It is very difficult to plan for the future when you are in the middle of a building project. We are hoping to have our first service in the new building on July 13th (don't hold me to that date), and then have our Grand Opening on August 17th. There are so many variables that it's hard to nail everything down, but I must admit, it's very exciting.

** We have just made another key staff hire. I'll give more details in another post.

** Have another meeting (Creative team) in 3 minutes, so that's it for now.