summer attendance

We were discussing in our staff meeting this morning how this summer's attendance is doing incredible. We are slightly lower than before summer's numbers, but we have an enormous amount of first-time guests. What that means is that when school gets back in and everyone is back from their vacations we are going to see another major jump in average attendance!
Seats in the 2 prime times (9:45am and 11:00am) are going to be at a premium.
Here's what I'm asking you to consider. Consider attending either the 8:30am or 6:00pm services.
I realize that not everyone can make that shift, but if you can, it would free up some seats for guests at our 2 prime times.
Our new building should be ready for us to occupy in March, so it would be a temporary shift.
We are experiencing some amazing momentum this summer, so make sure you don't miss out on what God is doing.

An incredible day!

Today was a phenomenal Sunday at Foothills for many reasons.
First it was fun to bring the message after two weeks off. The second reason is that I believe that the Lord did an amazing work in so many lives. I could sense the Holy Spirit at work bringing freedom for so many people today. In case you missed it, we are in a message series called "Livin on a Prayer". We're looking at some famous prayers in the Bible. Today I talked about David's prayer. Just 3 simple words, but so profound.... "I have sinned" David after a year of misery and trying to cover up his sin, gets confronted by Nathan the prophet and admits, I have sinned. Those 3 little words don't sound earth shattering, but they set David free from his gulit, shame and bondage. Those same 3 words are just as powerful today! There are so many people who are enslaved because of their past mistakes, but God stands and waits for us to just come to him and confess and receive His freedom.
No matter what you may have done. No matter how much you may have blown it, there is forgiveness at the cross of Christ.
One more thing, don't forget to pray for our teenagers who left for Bigstuf camp in Panama City (pray for the adult volunteers too!)

Inspired

I was totally inspired while I was on vacation. I was inspired by how orderly my Dad's garage was. Everything had a specific place, everything was put up where it was supposed to be. So yesterday I stopped by Home Depot and bought some shelving units, and some plastic storage containers and starting wading through the accumulation of junk in my garage. I threw away some things. I moved some things to new places. I got rid of some cobwebs. And now my garage has order! I feel so much better.
Spiritually speaking that's what we need to do every so often; take a close look at our lives, and start getting rid of some junk and get things in order. It feels so much better than allowing spirtual junk to accumulate in our lives.
What are some things that are in your life that you need to throw out?

What I did on my summer vacation--part 2

As promised, here are some pictures of some of the fish I caught down in Florida.
The snook were caught in Sebastian Inlet (3 of us caught between 15-20), and the little shark was caught off the beach in Jensen Beach.
One of the things I miss the most about Florida is the great fishing. There are so many options. You can fish in freshwater, the intracoastal, off the beach, or go offshore.

What I did on my summer vacation

This past Sunday we got a chance to visit Life Church's Wellington, Florida campus.
They are in a series called "At the Movies." I was very impressed with how creative the Wellington Campus presented the movie theme. This particular campus chose the Pirates of the Caribbean theme. They had volunteers in costume. They gave out their bulletins at a ticket booth. They gave away popcorn, candy, hot dogs cokes, etc
The band did a nice job, and the people were friendly. They were having some lighting problems, but other than that it was smooth.
The message was via video but it wasn't distracting. It would take some getting used to, but apparently it wasn't deterring growth because they had a decent crowd (we were at the 9:30am service. I was told that the 11:00am was better attended)
I spoke briefly to the campus Pastor who gave me a little of the church's history before hooking up with Life Church.
They did a very good job of branding the Life Church name. Although they were meeting in a High School, they did an amazing job of decorating.
Overall a great experience.
As we move toward the future here at Foothills Community Church we are looking at some possible locations for a second site.

Back to reality

Well, I'm back at the office this morning after being gone for 2 weeks. So far this morning I have been trying to play Catch-up. It is a tribute to the staff you have, when you can come back from vacation and things have not missed a beat. If anything, they are going better.
This past Sunday our Pastor of Connections, Brian Marshall spoke on the prayer of Nehemiah. We had 7 first time salvations and several recommitments! Our attendance has been extremely strong and there are lots of new people every week.
We had a blast on vacation. Got to spend time with my parents and nephews, as well as my wife and kids. We fished, golfed, hung out at the beach, fished some more, ate way too much, swam in the pool, and fished some more (I'll try to post a couple of pics this week.) I feel so refreshed.
There are many great things that we have planned for the weeks ahead. So make sure you don't miss out!

A few thoughts

We went to Christ Fellowship Church last night. They always put together such a great service. When we're in Florida many times we will attend church on Saturday evening instead of Sunday morning.
Even though this is the area of the country that I grew up in, and spent most of my life in, it is still amazing to see how unchurched this region is. (unless you have lived in an area like this, it's hard to understand) There is such a huge need for more church plants to begin to reach this area. I understand that Christ Fellowship will be launching their fourth site in the Palm City/ Stuart area. Very cool!

I have been praying for Scott Chatfield this week. He will kick off a new series called "Livin on a Prayer." Scott fills in for me many times when I'm out of town. I am fortunate to have the right staff around me so that when I'm away, I don't have any worries. Not just on Sunday mornings, but throughout the week. (I only called in to check on things once this week!)

I always get so refreshed when I get away. I can hardly wait to get back! I have so much to share with you!

back in FL

Well, we are back in Florida again. It's always alot of fun.
Today we went to the beach and fished. We caught a ton of fish and then came home and had a fish fry. My Mom makes the best fried fish I have ever eaten!
There is something very cool about taking some time for R&R. I highly recommend it.
Last Sunday our services went really good. Our attendance has been very strong even in the dead of summer. We also had lots of Spiritual decisions!
Oh, one more thing. I understand that we should start seeing more progress on our construction real soon. Hopefully they will be pouring some concrete in the next week or so.

You just never know

Although I didn't watch her on Larry King, I read some of what Paris Hilton said in her interview.
First, although she didn't feel like she should have been incarcerated, she said that she believed that God had a reason for putting her there.
When asked how she spent her days, she said she meditated, read letters from fans, talked to other prisoners through the vents, wrote in her journal and read the Bible.
Have you ever noticed that God loves us so much that He will allow us to be put in situations where we have no place else to look but up.
I am not a Paris Hilton fan. in fact, she could be one of the most overrated people in the world, but I do pray that she would reach out to Christ. Not just in a jail cell, but now that she's out.
Are you going through some sort of difficulty? Turn to the One who gives comfort.

I miss my wife

I miss my wife. She is out of town at Children's camp, as a chaperone.
I definitely outkicked my coverage when I married my wife Liz. She is THE most godly person that I know. She loves Christ with every ounce of her being.
She is also on staff here at Foothills. I can honestly say (very unbiasedly I might add) that she is the best Children's Ministry Director anywhere---Period!
She is also the most patient person I know----she puts up with me (nuff said)
She is also very beautiful (On the outside, and on the inside).
But best of all she is my wife, and I love her.

A little crazy

I've been laying a little low lately when it comes to blogging. Mostly because my life has been very hectic for the last few days. I won't go into all the details, but they say sometimes in life you feel like the dog, and other times you feel like the fire hydrant. Right now it's the fire hydrant!
One thing for sure that helps me is to know that the Lord is still in control. He is at work behind the scenes and working things out.
I am very excited about is this weekends message, 'The Ticket Booth"
Make sure you bring your friends. Oh yeah, you may want to arrive a ilttle early because lately we have been having some big crowds (Isn't that cool---packed out in the middle of summer!)

Why?

There are a lot of things that make me want to ask, why?

A couple of weeks ago I decided to buy a new Bible, because my old one had seen better days. So I went to the bookstore and found a New Living Translation (N.L.T.), which has been my main preference for several years. Because it is the translation that I preach from, many people at Foothills have also purchased one to be able to follow me when I read. It seems that in the last year or so there has been an update done which basically means that there are 2 versions of the same version. Confusing huh?

My initial reaction is to ask, "why?" I mean why name it the New Living Translation? Why not name it the New New Living Translation? Or the New and Improved Living Translation or the Very New Living Translation? Come on Tyndale Publishing, help a brother out!

What do they expect me to do, say to everyone each time I get up to preach, "Now today I will be reading from the New New living Translation, not the Old New Living Translation.
Is it just me, or doesn't that make you ask, Why?

War, What is it good for?

I have been studying the book of 1 Kings, and today one of the things that jumped out at me was a statement that Solomon made about his father David in Chapter 5. He says that David was not able to build the Temple of the Lord because of the many wars waged againgst him.
As I thought about that statement I thought about the local church these days. If statistics are accurate, around 80% of churches are not growing. One of the reasons is that there is too much fighting going on inside the church to build it. There are a lot of Pastors out there that have a great vision from the Lord to reach the community and thus "build the church", but many congregations will wage war against the Pastor to prevent him from building it.
This comes in various forms, usually it has something to do with Change. Maybe the Pastor tries to change the music style, or read from a different translation of the Bible, or move the pulpit or sell the organ or cancel a dying sacred cow program, or change the structure to allow for more growth or add another staff...... whatever. The backlash from these things can be WAR against the Pastor.
Churches do not grow when there is internal turmoil. I have been in churches that when you enter the doors you can "feel" the disunity. It's nearly tangible. Generally a congregation that is in the "battle mode" will have very little laughter, joy and enthusiasm. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that when a guest walks in, they probably will feel that vibe and decide to never come back.
I am so thankful for Foothills Community Church! There is such a spirit of love and unity. The excitement and energy when you walk through the doors is tangible. People look forward to coming together to worship corporately. There are no wars raging, no internal battles. The result is growth!! God is building HIS Church and the gates of Helll cannot prevail against it!!

Monday meetings

Every Monday around here is meeting Monday. Sometimes it feels like "Death by meeting", but I honestly believe that one of the things that builds team, and challenges us to take it to the next level are our meetings. They are not always fun, they are probably too long, I probably talk too much, but I thoroughly enjoy hanging out with our staff-team. As our staff grows, I am trying to restructure our meetings, because not everybody needs to be at every meeting.
A typical Monday meeting generally contains evaluations from Sunday's services, time to hear the success stories of transformed lives, shoring up any areas that need attention, and a lot of laughter. Once a month as a staff, we study and discuss a book that stretches us. Right now we are going through "The Starbucks Experience."
One of my last meetings of the day is our Creative Team meeting. These are a lot of fun. Some days we laugh more than we work. People ask us all the time, how we plan for upcoming messages and series and the creative elements; Well, this is where that takes place. We spend a lot of time brainstorming and usually the ideas begin to flow. One of the keys to a great service is in the planning. (Some people may ask, "doesn't all the planning prevent the Holy Spirit from working? Actually, NO. I believe the Holy Spirit is at work in our advance planning. There is nothing spiritual about not having a clue what you are going to do until you show up on Sunday---actually, that's pretty stupid!) We discuss message ideas, songs, video ideas, etc. and then finalize who is responsible for certain items and pray that it all comes together!!
Of course I am simplifying it, but you get the idea!

What is a real man?

Ask that question to ten men, and you'll get ten different answers.
In 1 Kings 2, King David in his last moments of his life called his son Solomon to his bedside and shares with him what it means to be a real man. "Take courage and be a man. Observe the requirements of the lord your God, and follow all his ways. Keep the decrees, commands, regulations, and all laws written written in the Law of Moses so that you will be successful in all you do and wherever you go."
According to David, to be a real man---a successful man, follow God. It almost sounds too simple doesn't it? And yet that's what we need to do.
As we approach Father's Day this Sunday, let's model real manhood to our families.
And don't forget to be at church Sunday, because we're going to unwrap this principle a little more!

You can't please all the people all the time

On any given Sunday we probably have at least 30 1st time guests at Foothills. Some have just moved here from somewhere and are searching for a church. Some come because they are seeking answers to life. From time to time we have people who visit Foothills that come from another church in the area because they hear the buzz about Foothills in the community.
Some of the 1st time guests don't enjoy their experience, but most do.

One of the things that never ceases to amaze me are the people who come from another church that LOVE what we are doing for a while. Then something happens. After a while they will say things like, "I really love Foothills, but I really think it would be better if we had Sunday school, or Awanas, or a choir or a little less volume, or.... (you can fill in the blank), like my old church."
My first thought is, If you really liked your old church so much, why did you leave?
As Foothills has grown we are being more focused about the vision God has given us. We have made a strategic decision to try to do what we do better, and to not try to be everything for everybody.

The reason Chik-fil-a makes such good chicken sandwiches is because they know who they are. They won't sell you a taco, or pizza, or a burger. They made a decision to do what they do better than anyone else, make chicken sandwiches. My guess is that if they tried to offer everything for everyone----they wouldn't do any of it very well.
There is nothing wrong with Sunday school, Awanas, choirs or whatever, but in order to be who God has called us to be, we will stay a little more focused. Will some people leave because we don't have those things? Yeah, but that's OK ---but I believe more will stay because of that decision

I'm back!

We just got back from a week down visiting family in South Florida.
We celebrated my in-laws 50th wedding anniversary. It was kind of like a family reunion, which can be pretty wierd when you haven't seen people for 10 or 15 years and you can't even recognize them.
It is a long drive down there. We made record time coming back. We made it in 10 1/2 hours.
I heard that it was an incredible Sunday at Foothills! Scott Chatfield spoke in my absence and I hear he did a phenomenal job. Then Sunday afternoon we had a baptism party on Lake Keowee and baptized 44 more people!! (that's 156 baptisms already this year!!) I hate that I missed it, but it's good to know that things keep on rolling even when I'm out of town.
I need to finish unpacking, so I'll fill in some more details later.

I love Summer

Summer is definitely one of my favorite times of year. I love warm weather. I love taking vacations. I love the laid-back feel of Summer.
One thing I told my staff this past Tuesday was, "we are not going to go on vacation as a church." What I meant by that was, sure everyone at church including the staff needs to get rested up, take a vacation, etc. but we are still going to put our best foot forward every week.
Every Sunday will be someone's first time at Foothills, and we are going to do our part to make their experience the best hour of their week.
Having said that, we understand that there are certain straegic times during the year when you have attendance spikes, so we program stronger during those times. Like Easter, Christmas, the start of the school year and after the New Year.
If you attend Foothills, why not make it a point when you're in town this Summer to be at church, to continue giving regularly, and to find a place where you can volunteer.

Summer Schedule

We made an executive decision in our staff meeting to go to a summer service schedule.
To give our Staff and volunteers a little break for summer we decided to temporarily cancel our 6:00pm service.
Beginning June 17th we will be offering 3 services instead of 4. The times will be 8:30am, 9:45am and 11:15am.
We will resume the 6:00pm service on August 5th.
If you are one of the people who comes to the 6:00pm service we apologize for any inconvenience, but when we began the 6:00pm service last September we knew that it was going to have a lot of wear and tear on staff and volunteers. People have stepped up to the plate and have served faithfully without any complaints. So we wanted to say thank you, by giving everyone a few weeks to catch their breath. Until then plan to catch one of the other 3 services!

Happy Memorial Day

We live in the greatest Country in the World! We have freedoms people in other Countries only dream of. I am grateful for all of the men and women who have laid down their lives to protect our freedoms.
I am doing some relaxing today. Just spending some time with my family. Actually this whole weekend has been relaxing. Yesterday our Pastor of Student Ministry, Scott Chatfield did a great job giving the message. I was on a crazy schedule because it was the first Sunday of 2007 I was not speaking. I try to speak about 40-42 Sundays a year, so I will be taking more Sundays off.
When I am on an extended speaking schedule of more than 10 weeks in a row, I feel creatively challenged and need to step back and catch my breath. My friend Perry Noble told me that he heard that the adrenaline rush of speaking one time on Sunday takes about 8 hours to come down off (multiply that by 4 times because of our service schedule and you kind of get what I'm talking about.) If you've ever been driving your car and had someone suddenly pull out in front of you, and you barely missed getting in an accident----that's the same kind of adrenaline rush. It takes hours for you to settle down.
But, I am feeling rested up and am so excited about this weekend's message I'm doing called, "The Tunnel of Love." It will be alot of fun, sharing with couples about how to put a little romance back in their marriages! The feature song is going to be great. Don't miss it!!

Great time

I just got home from a Pastor's Roundtable with a group of about 10 Pastors at Newspring Church in Anderson. We had dinner together last night, then spent all day today hanging out and learning from one another. It was a great time. I met a lot of new friends and got to see some old friends.
There is such a benefit to me personally to rub shoulders with guys who are committed to reaching their communities for Christ. I left inspired, challenged, and grateful that I was able to be there.
Thanks Perry, and Newspring for making it happen!

The eyes have it

I read a quote this morning in a devotional that I have really been thinking about. The writer said "When something concerns us, what's our perspective? It's not WHAT we see, but HOW we see it that reveals our attitudes."
Have you ever noticed how two people can look at the same thing, but see two different things? It's not a vision thing it's an ATTITUDE thing.
One person sees the obstacle, while the other sees the opportunity. One person sees danger while the other person sees adventure.
Think about David facing Goliath. Everyone else saw a giant that would surely whip their behinds, but David saw an obnoxious guy that actually looked pretty small in comparison to God.
The Nation of Israel saw the walls of Jericho as an impenetrable impossibility, but Joshua saw them as God-sized probability.
Many times we face obstacles or things that scare us to death. If we will learn to see things from God's perspective rather than our own, we'll be a lot better off!

What is something you have been looking at through your human perspective that looks pretty impossible? Maybe a financial obstacle, or a relationship obstacle, maybe you're a Pastor and you are struggling with seeing your church grow or you are having battles with people who won't let you lead. In your human eyes, from your perspective it looks impossible. Let me give you one word of encouragement---- PERSEVERE!

Yesterday was intense

Yesterday's message was one of the most difficult ones I've done in quite some time. I spoke on the topic of Adultery. It must have struck a nerve, beacause we sold out of the CD's by the end of the second service!
When you address a topic like that, no matter how you word it, it's still very intense. I approached it from the angle of how to avoid an affair. I felt like what people needed was not more knowledge or information on adultery. For that matter people don't really need more convincing as to whether it's right or wrong. What we really need to hear is, HOW do I keep from ending up in an affair?
If you missed it, you can hear the message at our website.
Foothills Community Church is committed to helping families. For that reason there are many times that we have to discuss topics that are uncomfortable. If a message like yesterday, can prevent one person from committing an act of infidelity against their spouse, than it's worth it.
If you are in the early stages of an affair; You're getting emotionally attached to someone from the opposite sex that is not your spouse, wake up! You are headed toward disaster.
If you are in the middle of a full-blown affair; Run away as fast as possible. Get counseling with your spouse. Keep distance from that other person. Change jobs, change zip codes, do whatever is necessary to save your marriage.
If you are the victim of a spouse that has committed adultery with someone else; Get some counseling. Allow God to heal your wounds.
If you are the one that has committed adultery, and you are living with the guilt; Seek the Lord's grace, forgiveness and healing.

Let me end with some good news---- there are many couples who work throught the pain and betrayal and have wonderful marriages.

My Bible

I am getting to the point where it's time to get a new Bible. Mine is falling apart. I have glued and re-glued it back together as many times as I can. This Bible is not even that old, but it's seen better days. I wish I could still use a really small one, but my eyes won't let me.

Speaking of old Bibles; There is just something special about all of my Bibles. I picked up a Bible off the bookshelf the other day that I have been using in my quiet time this week. It was the first Bible I ever owned. My wife gave it to me many moons ago. I wish I could tell you how many moons ago, but the cover is missing, and the beautiful inscription my wife wrote to me with the date was on the inside of the cover.

As I have been thumbing through the pages of that old Bible, I have read some of the notes in the margin that I wrote. I have seen many underlined or highlighted verses that God was speaking to me at that time about. I remember how back then I devoured God's Word with intensity. I couldn't get enough of it. And then I was convicted. I was convicted because although my new Bible is worn out too. It is worn out for different reasons. It is worn out because of Sermon preparation. It is worn out because I use it many times in a more academic way these days. I used to read my Bible with desperation for God to speak to me---many times now, I read my Bible with desperation for a sermon.
Last Sunday I spoke about priorities. I am going to once again make God's Word one of my top priorities.

Here is one of those underlined passages from my old Bible that speaks to this:

"How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word. With my whole heart I have sought you; Oh, let me not wander from your commandments! Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin againgst You."

Ultimate

I look forward to Tuesday evenings. Tuesday evening is our weekly Ultimate game. If you've never played, you are missing out on some great fun and exercise. Basically Ultimate is kind of like soccer, only you use a disc (frisbee). It is non-stop running and throwing and catching.
The only down side to it, is that I'm usually the oldest guy out there (unless Pastor Brian shows up!) The average age excluding me is probably 20. So needless to say, I have my work cut out keeping up with the young pups.
It is supposed to be a non-contact game, but last week one of the guys caught an elbow to the eyebrow and I believe ended up getting a few stitches. Last year we had a guy break his foot.
The most frustrating part of playing is realizing I have lost a step in the speed department, and a couple of inches in the vertical leap department over the years. I am sort of in denial about it though. It's all good!
If you are free at 6:00pm on Tuesdays, come by the church and give it a shot.

Is God your #1 priority?

Well, when you got your day started did you remember to consciously remind yourself and acknowledge to God that He is #1?
If you weren't at Foothills yesterday, that was the challenge; to make sure that God was our #1 priority. There are alot of things that will try to bump God further down our priority lists. Urgent things---good things, but only one thing can be #1.
The benefit to this is that our lives will be a lot less stressed out. There will be order instead of chaos. Jesus promised in Matt 6:33, that if we will seek first His kingdom, and His righteousness all these other things will be given to us as well.
Why not pause right now, and tell Him that He's #1
By the way, our services were really great yesterday. We had our Parent Child dedication service at our 8:30 am service. There were around 30 kids and their Parents all lined up across the stage (on the stage and in front of the stage---it was so cool!) Way to go Parents! Thanks for your commitment to raise your children in a home that elevates the name of Jesus!

Another great story

I love to hear stories of life change. I don't think I could ever get tired of them.
I received an amazing story from a young lady about our spontaneous Baptism service on April 15th. Do yourself a favor and read it. I'm sure you will be inspired. I know I was!!

In case you missed it, we baptized 111 people that day!! You can view the video here.

The "Call" to ministry

We hear the phrase, "I was called into ministry", but what does it really mean?, and how do you know if you have really been "called"?
First of all the term, "Call" is pretty mysterious sounding. It is not something audible to the ear, but it is more audible to the heart. It's probably more of a "sense."
Basically what someone is saying when they use that phrase is that they believe that God has actually prepared them and set them apart for some ministry opportunity.
Here's where a lot of people get in trouble. They say, "God has called me to become a Pastor."
But in many cases it wasn't a call from God, it was a desire on their part that they confused for a call.
Here is a couple of scriptures to show a call versus a person's own desire.

Jer. 20:9 But if I say, "I will not mention Him or speak anymore in His name," His word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in, indeed, I cannot.

1 Cor 9:16 Yet when I preach the gospel, I cannot boast, for I am compelled to preach. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!

Here are 4 ways to know if you are being "Called":
1. You can't NOT do it. (see scriptures above)
2. You will make whatever sacrifice necessary to follow
3. You will have a passion to do whatever it is you're being called to do that will cause you to constantly think about it. You will wake up in the middle of the night thinking about it. You will wake up in the morning thinking about it. You will go to sleep thinking about it. You will dream about it.
4. The passion will only increase with time (If it fades out, it was probably just your desire, not a true calling)

Moving some dirt

Since yesterday all I have been hearing around here is BEEP--BEEP--BEEP. It's that awful sound of tractors backing up. And yet it is music to our ears!!
In case you haven't driven by here in a couple of days, they are moving a lot of dirt in preparation for our new facility. We definitely need more seats. But as exciting as it is going to be having a new bulding to meet in, building buildings is not our mission!!!! Building PEOPLE is!!!

Another thing to remember, is that we are constructing a building, not a Church. The church is not bricks and mortar (or in our, case steel and screws) The church is the people.

I think that distinction needs to be made, because I hear people in the community say, "so you all are building a new "Church". I sometimes say, "no we're the same church, we're just building a new building."

A lot of churches have emphasized their buildings so much, once they finish constructing it, the people feel like they have arrived---that they have achieved their mission.
Our mission is to reach people for Christ, and until every person knows Christ personally, our mission is not over!!

Hard to imagine sometimes

It is mind boggling to think about what God is doing here in smalltown USA!
Seneca, SC is no booming metropolis. It is not really near any large city. It has a population of less than 8,000 in a county with around 70,000. Oconee County is about 75% rural. There are probably 200 hundred churches in the county.
It is probably one of the least likely places people would think of when it came to a major movement of God---and yet that's what is happening here at Foothills Community Church!!!
I can't explain it. I can't take credit for it. All I know, is that I want God to keep on doing what He's doing.
On any given Sunday we will have 2% of Oconee County at one of our services. We are seeing people becoming followers of Christ every week. We are seeing lives change literally before our eyes. We are seeing people who have not darkened the doors of a church in decades become fully engaged Christ-followers. We are seeing people come to the reality that their time, talents, and treasures are really not theirs, and offering them to Christ.
There are many weeks that all I can do is shake my head in amazement as to what He is doing. And yet with all of that I truly believe that the best is yet to come!!
If you are a person that calls Foothills your church home I want to encourage you to continue to build relationships with people who are far from God, and point them to the savior. Continue to invite your friends to Church. Continue to live out your faith.
If you've never come to Foothills yet---what are you waiting for?

Honored

I was honored to be invited by my friend Perry Noble, to be a part of a Pastors Round Table group that will be meeting later this month. I can't wait! I must say, when I saw the list of the guys who are coming, it was a little intimidating. These are among the most influential churches in America. Some of these guys I have admired from a distance, and now I will get to hang out with them----how cool is that?!
I hope I don't say anything embarassing! (That's been known to happen on occasion)
It is so refreshing to hear what the Lord is doing across this Nation. I look forward to sharing the story of what is happening at Foothills Community Church.
I love this church!

no more Games

That's right---no more Games. The message series, that is. This Sunday we are wrapping up the series called, "Games".
This week we'll be talking about the game Sorry. We will be relating the game of Sorry, to Peter's denial of Christ. If you've ever royally messed-up and have struggled with believing you can be forgiven, make sure you are at Foothills this Sunday!!

It's not the size of the dog

It's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog. That is a very true statement. I just read an incredible story of a Jack Russell Terrier that fought off 2 Pit Bulls to save five children. Unfortunately for George (the Jack Russell), the Pit Bulls got the best of him and he had to be put down by a vet, but man, you talk about laying down your life for a friend!
George had heart. Heart is another one of those intangibles that is hard to factor in, but when someone's really got it -- all bets are off. Heart makes the impossible possible. It shifts the odds. Heart changes everything! R.I.P. George!

The power of friendship

I just got back from lunch with one of my best friends in ministry, Eddie Cox. Eddie is the Lead Pastor of Marathon Community Church in Easley, SC. I have known Eddie for about 10 years. I met him about 4 or 5 months after he planted the church. Under Eddie's leadership they have grown to about 2,800 in attendance.
We don't get to spend alot of time together, but when we do get together we just pick up where we left off the last time. Eddie and Marathon have been a huge encouragement to me as we planted Foothills. In fact, just last week, Sean, Marathon's lighting Director came over and helped us for several hours. (He wouldn't even let us pay him)
Ministry can be lonely at times. And believe it or not, sometimes the only guys who really understand the unique pressures of being a Lead Pastor are other Lead Pastors.
If you are a Pastor and you don't have friends in ministry----then make some!

Competitive

My family likes to play games. Backgammon, Monopoly, Texas Hold-em, Rummy, Uno.... You name it, we probaly have the game. I have a confession to make. I don't like to lose. Actually, I Hate to lose! ( I want to clarify--I am not a sore loser. I just don't like to lose. If you beat me---I'll shake your hand. And then challenge you to play again!)
I have always been super-competitive. I can make a competition out of anything. I even compete against myself. Can I mow the lawn faster this week, than I did last week? Can I catch more fish today, than ever before? Stuff like that.
If I ever play a team type sport, I will be the guy that ALWAYS knows the score.
If I am playing some team sport, and I have teammates that aren't giving their all----or even worse, don't care if we win or lose, I can't handle that.
You probably are thinking that I should get therapy. (I probably should) But I have tried to take my competitive nature and leverage it for the good.
I have found after talking to tons of church planters, that a competitive nature may be one of the #1 qualities for success. And it is by far the least talked about. The people who are competitive will rarely quit. They will hang in there and keep swinging long after everyone else has given up and gone home. This may not sound super-spritual, but competitiveness can be a curse OR a Blessing! God can use everything about us. He created us the way we are. Don't apologize for it. Anyone up for a game of Rummy?

It's a small world after all

Had a great time with Jay Hardwick at lunch today. It seems that me and Jay have traveled in some similar circles at different times. As it turns out, Jay spent some time with our Pastor of First Impressions, Brian Marshall 10 years ago! I am really excited about how the Lord is using Jay and his team at Catalyst Church.
Jay shared something that someone told him once, he said we can either leave an Impression on someone or have an Impact on someone. I like that. Why settle for an impression when we can have impact!

Had a great time this weekend meeting Steve Stewart who pastors Church in the Farms, in Jupiter Florida. Steve came to a couple of our services on Sunday (while he was here we asked him to be our secret shopper, and he made lots of notes) Then he stuck around on Monday and came to our staff meetings and our creative meetings.
Church in the Farms is very near and dear to my heart, because it began in my living room in 1994. Steve has been there 2 years and is doing a great job. It was my first time meeting him, and we really enjoyed having him.
I love spending time with fellow pastors. There is kind of a band of brothers type feeling. You just understand each other.
I'm looking forward to having lunch with another Pastor, Jay Hardwick from Catalyst Church, this Thursday. They are getting it done in Greenville, SC.

2 Big Questions

This past Sunday I challenged people to ask themselves 2 critical questions every day of their lives. Question 1: Will I make time for God to use my life today? Question 2: Who will be in control of my life today?
The whole premise of the message was, that if we will be available, and allow Christ to have control of our lives, He will give us divine opportunities to touch people's lives.
My wife was talking to a friend and she was so excited, because she had an incredible divine appointment on Sunday after church. She said that she normally would have missed it, but she was paying attention spiritually. She was riding down the road and she saw an elderly woman in her 80's walking down the sidewalk. As she drove past, she sensed that she needed to turn around and offer her a ride. The lady was walking to the grocery store, so she drove her there, and then she gave the woman her phone number and told her that if she needed a ride sometime to give her a call.
God used her life because she was available---- are you?
There is nothing more fun than being in a situation where you know without a doubt, that God has soveriegnly arranged it.
Have you been asking yourself those 2 questions this week?

Men's retreat

I got a chance to go to our Spring Training Men's Retreat this Friday and Saturday. We had a great turnout. Our Men's ministry leader, Bobby King and his team did an incredible job! We had all kinds of guy stuff to do---Skeet shooting, paintball, ATV riding, Horseback riding, a Texas Hold-em tournament and plenty of food. It was nice to spend some time with my youngest (14 years old) son, Cole. They grow up way too fast.
Also, a big thank you to Clemson Tigers Head Coach Tommy Bowden for coming out on Saturday evening, and bringing a couple of players, Willy Korn and Xavier Dye. Then on Saturday, 3 more guys from the team came and hung out with us.

Finally!

Well he's finally gone. If you have tuned into American Idol this year, you know that this has been a big joke. I'm not sure which was worse, his hair-do's or his voice. Anyway, he's off the show! All I can say is goodbya Sanjaya!

Good News travels fast

We are hearing so many cool stories about what happened at Foothills Community Church this past Sunday! (110 people baptized) One person told me that he had 6 people leave messages on his phone Sunday after the morning services telling him he better make sure he gets to the 6:00pm service --because God was doing something incredible.
There have been emails of people celebrating a loved one's salvation (that they have been praying for years about) and then their obedience to follow in baptism.
I have heard stories of the buzz in the community of conversations around the water cooler that were about what was going on at Foothills.
The list goes on and on, so what we are going to be doing (hopefully by the end of the week) is having a link on our website (www.foothillscc.org) to a place where you can leave your story about your experience last Sunday.
All honor to God!!

Pray

By now I'm sure everyone has heard about the tragedy at Virginia Tech. A gunman kills 32 people, then himself. Another 15 people injured. They say it's the worst mass killing in our history.
Senseless. That's the only way to describe these type of things.
My neice is a student at Va. Tech. Fortunately she was not one of the victims. But there are a lot of people that are grieving big-time today. Parents, brothers, sisters, cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, and friends.
I have two thoughts about this tragedy. First, PRAY. Pray for all of the people that will have to deal with this tragedy first-hand. God is still on the throne. This did not take Him by surprise. And although God did not cause this tragedy, He can and will be there bringing comfort and peace. Psalm 34:18 says: The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; He rescues them those who are crushed in Spirit.
Second, Tell your kids that you love them today!

Unbelievable!

There are no words to describe what we experienced at all 4 of our services today. The only way to describe it would be to say that God showed up and did what only He could do----touch people's hearts.
We have been telling everyone to be prepared, because we were going to be doing something we have never done at Foothills. What was the great mystery? A spontaneous Baptism service!
When the dust settled we baptized 110 people!!! Let that sink in for a minute. 110 people publicly declaring their faith in Christ.
I have never been in a service that was more moving. And the cool thing was, that God moved in every one of the services. I have never seen so many people in tears as they watched person after person going under the baptism waters. I am in awe of God.
We also set another non-Easter attendance record. I believe we had 1,623 people show up today!
Probably the coolest thing was at the 8:30 am service (which by far is our most conservative service), I hadn't even given the invitation when a man ran down the aisle and literally cannonballed into the pool. He couldn't wait. Everyone thought that he was a plant--but he wasn't!
Foothills family, all I can say is, hang on!!

Excitement in the air

We are putting the final touches on the service for this weekend. I have been telling everyone to put on their seatbelts because we are going to be doing something at Foothills that we've never done before. There is something very exhilirating about doing something that if God doesn't show up, we're in big trouble.
It's been really funny watching people trying to figure out what it is that we are going to do.
Anyway, mark your calendars for April 15th. You Do Not Want To Miss It!

Easter Update

So here are the official numbers from Easter. Attendance--2,000 on the button! More importantly we had the biggest spiritual response we have ever had, we had 18 people receive Christ, and we had 106 people make recommitments! That is amazing. 124 significant spiritual decisions. Now comes the hard work---follow-up.

Whew!

What a day we had yesterday! We're still tallying up everything. but it looks like we had 2,000 people yesterday at our services. It was really amazing.
I can't say enough about our staff and volunteers. There were probably a couple of hundred people serving. Some actually volunteered at all 5 services.
It's hard to believe that yesterday was also our 9th birthday as a church. What an amazing journey we are on. On our first Sunday 9 years ago we had 70 people show up. Yesterday, 2,000!!--ONLY GOD!!
Our new building is going to be so helpful for us to be able to keep reaching people as space is becoming an issue.

This is hilarious!

Over the years there has been alot of mis-information about Foothills Community Church. Things like, "they don't teach from the Bible", or "they don't talk about sin or Hell", you know, just the normal stuff that people make up because they are a little insecure or jealous.
But I heard about a rumor that someone heard about Foothills Community Church. This person heard that if you join Foothills, you have to take a vow to never drink any Pepsi products again!!!!!
Are you kidding me?? Someone actually believes this?? Just for the record---I drink 2 diet cherry Pepsi's everyday.
Can you imagine the membership covenant: I willl protect the unity of my church, I will participate in the ministry of my church, I will only drink Coca-Cola products!!
Where do people come up with this stuff?? Hilarious!!

The steel has started to arrive!

We just had 3 semi truckloads of steel delivered for our new facility. I have no clue how many more truckloads they are going to bring. The only problem is that they haven't started the grading and earthwork yet. Oh well, at least we won't have to wait for the steel to be delivered.
This is starting to get really exciting!

Easter is coming

Easter is just around the corner. We will be starting a new message series called "Games."
You don't want to miss it----and don't forget to invite your friends! We expect to have over 2,000 people attending one of our 5 Services on Easter Sunday (April 8th)!
Then the following week (April 15th) will be something we've never done at Foothills---NEVER.
By the way we will also be celebrating our 9th birthday as a church. Time really does fly when you're having fun.

What a great day

Yesterday was incredible! Our services were off the charts, and then last night we had our "Only One Life" fellowship banquet. Let me explain this as best as I can. From Jan 2006 thru March 2006 we did a building/spiritual growth campaign called "Only One Life". It was designed to raise the funds to construct Phase 2 of our facility. It ws a huge success. We had over 2 million dollars pledged. But since last year we have grown a lot, so we decided to do a one night banquet to let the newer people know how they could be involve. We had dinner catered which was served by some of the students in our youth ministry (way to go all of the people who volunteered to serve the meals, watch kids and set up tables, etc!!) after that we watched the video of the new building and cast the vision of Foothills, and why we are building this new facility. We did not ask people to give anything last night. You read that right, we did not ask anyone to give anything last night! We asked them to give-----but ONLY after they went home and prayed about it and then had a family conference. We set April 15th as the date for the new pledges to be turned in. I have no idea what will be given, but I am trusting God to do beyond whatever I would dare to ask or hope (Eph 3:20)
By the way, we hope to see some construction started in the next 30 days.

2 Huge dates to remember

Make sure you mark your calendars for 2 big dates. The first one is April 8th. That's Easter Sunday. It will be the biggest day ever at Foothills. I will begin a new message series that day called, "Games". You do not want to miss this service. Bring someone with you to the service that does not know Christ. Get them there no matter what it takes. Bribe them if you have to!
The second important date is April 15th. It's not only important because of your taxes, but that day we will be doing something at Foothills that we have Never Done! I'm not going to tell you what it is right now, but trust me you won't want to miss that service either.

Also props to the Clemson Tigers basketball team for getting a trip to Madison Square Gardens for the N.I.T. (I know, it's not the NCAA tourney, but maybe next year.) Several of our staff went to the game, Clemson was up by like 18 points and somehow let Syracuse back in the game. It was a little scary at the end, but they pulled it out.

New stuff

Thanks to our IT guru Paul Nalley and video techie extraordinaire Ray Smith, we now have videos available of our weekly messages online!
It's amazing how many people currently listen to the messages online, but with the ability to watch the messages it should gain even more momentum.
Get the word out to everyone you know. The messages are available at Foothill's website.
You will also be able to download the message outlines and make notes, and you can even download questions for your weekly LIFE group. It's very cool.

You To Be

Well, I finally finished the series "You To Be". ( 9 weeks on the Fruit of the Holy Spirit.)
I think it was the longest series I've ever done, but I totally enjoyed it. God stretched me big-time.
I've got a long, long way to go when it comes to having this Christ-follower thing figured out, that's for sure! (Many of you have shared that this has been one of your favorite series ever.)
Make sure you come this Sunday, because I will be beginning a mini-series on fear called "Frozen In Fear." This week I'll be talking about Fear vs. Faith, and then the next week we'll talk about most people's #1 fear---Death! (and why you don't have to fear it)
And then the following week (April 8th) we'll celebrate Easter and start another series. (I'll give you the details later) Make sure you start inviting your friends---They WILL come to church with you on Easter!

Unleash takeaways

Our staff got a chance to go to the Unleash Conference at Newspring today. For me it was one of the best conferences I have been to in a long time.
Everybody on the Newspring staff that I have met (and all of the volunteers) have always been some of the greatest people around. They will bend over backwards to help other churches. I have known Perry and the gang for a couple of years, and that's the way they have always operated.
What I really enjoyed about the conference is Perry's authenticity, and his passion. He not only is a great communicator, but he also is one of the funniest people I know.
Tony did a great summary of the sessions.
Another thing that was outstanding was getting to worship with the Newspring worship team (way to go Lee!)
I will definitely be there next year.

Wide angle or Zoom lens?

Wide angle or Zoom lens?
That was basically what I asked each of us to consider this past Sunday. Everyone of us goes through life wearing one of these two lenses.
Let me explain; Some people wear the zoom lens. The zoom lens is designed to zoom in on one single object. When we have the zoom lens life, WE are the object that we focus on. The zoom lens life is self-absorbed and selfish.
Other people go through life with a Wide angle lens perspective. The wide angle lens has a wider field of vision. The wide angle lens life is what we are called to as Christ-followers. When I have wide angle living, I see that there are lots of people in the picture besides me.
If you missed Sunday, I challenged everyone to 30 days of Kindness. For the next 30 days, look for opportunities to meet a Physical need, encourage someone emotionally, and reach out to people Spiritually.
Easter Sunday is only a month away. I'm asking everyone to invite at least 5 people to come to church with you.
Remember, we will be doing 5 services on Easter. 7:15am, 8:30am, 9:45am, 11:15am and 6:00pm

IGNITE Weekend

Things around here are getting pretty exciting. This weekend is IGNITE weekend! This is one of our 2 huge events of the year for our Student Ministry. Scott Chatfield along with his wife Amy and lots of other volunteers have been praying and preparing for this weekend since last year.
I just walked into our auditorium and they built a new stage set, added a bunch of lighting and plasma screens. It looks very cool.
Scott tells me that he's expecting between 300 and 400 teenagers to show up! The theme this year is "Heroes".
We believe in providing the very best ministries possible for our Students (and children as well) Proportionately from a budget standpoint we also put our money where our mouth is. We feel like it is an investment. I also want to thank all of the adults volunteers that are going to be sacrificing their weekend for the sake of these great kids ---way to go guys and gals!!
If you're a student, its NOT TOO LATE to be a part of IGNITE. You can still register at the doors. For more info, here's a link to IGNITE

If you think about it, say a prayer for these kids this weekend.

Be careful what you preach on

I have figured out something; whatever the topic you choose to preach on, you will usually get a chance to experience it first-hand (I will be doing a message on death in a couple of weeks---uh oh!)
Sunday, we were talking about the fruit of the Holy Spirit known as Peace. The whole message was basically about not being anxious, but trusting in Christ to give us that peace that passes all human understanding. Wouldn't you know it, several members of our Worship and Tech teams were sick, so we were short handed. Then on top of that I had a sore throat. It was the kind that the more you speak, the sorer it gets. By the time the 4th service was done it was really hurting.
The other thing that was kind of strange was, that I couldn't seem to get "peace" about my message. All week long it just seemed like it wasn't clicking. On Sunday morning, a couple of verses popped into my mind that I knew I needed to share about. I still was able to use my main outline, but I eliminated a few things, and added some others. You have to understand something. I believe that the Holy Spirit works through the planning and preparation stages a lot more than He does spontaneously. It is not more spiritual for a Pastor to walk on stage and not be prepared and then blame the Holy Spirit for his lousy message. I usually spend 20-25 hours in message prep each week.
Anyway, despite all of the chaos of the morning God showed up big-time. We had another record attendance (the 3rd record in the last 5 weeks!) We had more people saved and more people become members.

Conference take-aways

We brought some of our team the the Church Planters conference at Mountain Lake Church on Monday and Tuesday. They did a great job of putting that thing together. Their volunteers were helpful; the speakers were engaging; the music was rocking, and the atmosphere was high-energy.
There were a couple of God moments that I am still processing. Both Shawn Lovejoy's and Perry Noble's sessions reminded me to protect the vision that God has given us for Foothills.
Dave Furgeson reignited my entrepreneurial spirit. Matt Carter's message stirred my heart, and Ed Stetzer's message challenged my thinking.
I didn't attend, Gary Lamb's breakout session, but a couple of our team did, and they said that Gary was bouncing off the walls!! (What's new?)
One of the absolute best parts of these conferences, is the time our team had to spend together. We commuted back and forth both days, so there was a lot of great conversation during the drive time.
The only down-side to the conference is that I'm a little behind this week on some work.
I'm looking forward to next year!

If at first you don't succeed

Last week a friend gave me 2 tickets to last Wednesday's Clemson Baseball game. I was pumped! My beautiful wife Liz and I were going to be able to spend a couple of hours together at the old ball park. It doesn't get much better than that. Unfortunately the weather turned bad. We waited for an hour or so for the rain delay, but it didn't look like it was going to let up, so we left. (They actually played the game after a 3 hour rain delay) Needless to say I was disappointed.
Well, this afternoon we are going to get a second chance. That same friend blessed us with 2 more tickets. It's supposed to be 65 degrees and sunny. We're going to give it another shot.
Life is like that many times. Our plans and dreams sometimes don't work out like we thought they would. It's pretty discouraging. It's at these times that we have to choose whether or not we will risk it again. Some people never do. How sad.
By the way, why is it that everything is so expensive at sporting events? I'm all for people making a little profit, but come on. I bought a bag of sunflower seeds. In a convenience store they cost about 50 cents ---at a Clemson game they charge 2 bucks!
One more random thought about sunflower seeds. Sunflower seeds are good, but you have to be careful where you spit the shells. Just ask the guy that was sitting in front of me during the rain delay!

Here's what I've learned---so far

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that one of the goals I have set for 2007 is to talk to more leaders that are ahead of us developmentally as a church.
I began to email Pastors of churches that i am hearing great things about. I contacted 12 so far, and have heard back from 8. That's not a bad ratio!
Today I thought that I would give the list of the 8, and then in seperate postings, share my findings.
1. Flamingo Road Church -- South Florida -- Pastor Troy Gramling
2. Westside family Church -- Kansas City --- Pastor Dave Cox
3. Radiant Church -- Arizona -- Pastor Lee Mcfarland
4. New Life Church -- Arkansas -- Pastor Rick Bezet
5. River Pointe Church -- Texas -- Pastor Patrick Kelly
6. Cornerstone Chandler -- Arizona -- Pastor Linn Winters
7. Friendswood Church-- Texas -- Pastor Rick Baldwin
8. Northway Fellowship -- New York -- Pastor Buddy Creamens

My heartfelt thanks to all of these men for taking time out of their busy schedules to speak to me.

Southern Blasphemy

Last Sunday was the closest I have ever come to getting tarred and feathered at church for something I said. What was the shocking statement that I made? Was it some blasphemous comment about the deity of Christ? Was it a sacreligious theological statement? Did I say something about someone's Momma?
No it was worse! I said that Nascar was a dumb sport!!! (In retrospect it's not the kind of statement you want to make in the South, to win friends and influence people)
When I got home from Church on Sunday, I figured I would tune into the Daytona 500 to see what the big deal was. All I can say is, I have seen the error of my ways. I actually started to get into it. I ended up watching the first half of the race. If I hadn't had to go back to church that evening for our fourth service, I might have watched the whole thing! To all my Nascar good old boy buddies, I sincerely apologize. I have seen the light! Be sure to be at church on Sunday for my Nascar coming out party.

Pass it on

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, I have had meetings with several Pastors in the last few days. One thing that I'm always reminded of, is that I usually get more out of those meetings than anyone else.
First, I get the benefit of seeing things from someone else's perspective. This always keeps me from getting too myopic.
Second, I get the benefit of sharing our story and vision. Every time I tell our story, it has a way of keeping things fresh.
Third, I get the benefit of meeting new people; and not just any people, but people who have laid it all down for the sake of a call. These men are pioneers---they are visionaries---they are men of great dreams and great faith. That inspires me!
Fourth, I get the benefit of learning. I always walk away from those meetings with more knowledge and greater understanding.
Before becoming a Pastor, I was in business. In business, there is a tendency to view everyone as a competitor. People in business are very careful NOT to tell others much information so as not to give them a a competetive edge. What I love about church is that we are all on the same team. If anything we have done, can benefit others---that's great!
I realize that God has blessed Foothills Community Church, and me as a leader. It is my responsibility to share what He has taught me with others.
If you are a church planter or pastor, and we can be of assistance, let me know. You can shoot me an email at greg@foothillscc.org

Talking Shop

For a church planter, there is nothing quite as fun as talking church. Over the last few days I have met with a few pastors and it has been great.
Yesterday evening I had a chance to talk to Gary Lamb. He stopped by for a couple of hours on his whirlwind tour of the I-85 corridor. I had met Gary briefly a couple of months ago, but this was the first time we actually got to sit down and talk church. Gary is one of those guys that takes some flak because he's not afraid to speak his mind, but he's got a genuine passion to reach the lost with the Good News. I really like Gary. He is a thinker, and he's not afraid to ask questions.
Gary and his church, Ridgestone Church, are way ahead of where we were at two years old. They are blowing the doors off of his part of the world.They are not only growing larger, but they are seeing lives changed by the hundreds!
It sounds like Canton Ga. is alot like Seneca, SC in many ways.
I have no doubt that Ridgestone will continue to grow, and reach people for Christ! Keep it up Gary.

Another record

For two weeks in a row we have set attendance records. Yesterday we had 1,400 people! The place was packed for both the 9:45am and 11:15am services. If you attend Foothills at either of these services, you may want to consider moving to the 8:30am or 6:00pm service.
I know it would be a sacrifice, but for the next 10 months or so until our new facility is built, it would free up some seats for our guests at those two prime times.
There is nothing quite as exciting as seeing God move. There is so much energy in our services it is nearly tangible. Keep inviting your friends!

Change

One of the things that I have noticed is that great churches are not afraid of change---in fact in a lot of ways they thrive on it. You can bet though that even within those churches that embrace change there are those people who oppose it. The leaders responsibility is to lead the people to change, and then through the change and finally not to get too comfortable because there is going to be more change!
I actually enjoy change. At Foothills we change a lot of things. We are in the process of changing things from a physical appearance standpoint. our lobby is being reconfigured for more room. We have changed the entrance areas to our Chidren's area (they now have a seperate entrance to expedite the check-in process). We are about to tweak that again. We create different stage designs on a regular basis, etc.
I have found that if change does not become part of the culture from the get-go, chances are that when you finally do want to change things, there will be resistance. We have all heard the horror stories about the Pastor that was fired because he moved the pulpit----how ridiculous!
It is easy to become too predictable. If people become conditioned to the point that they already know what you're going to do before you do it----it's time for change.
We are going to be messing with the order of service. We have become WAY too predictable. We want people to expect the unexpected.

Another big day

Big Mo is really rolling. Yesterday was incredible. We had another record attendance for a non-holiday Sunday. We also introduced our new worship leader, Eric Peter's. He did a great job in spite of nearly having laryngitis.
Our 11:15am service was packed to the gills. We ran out of chairs and had to bring out the uncomfortable metal chairs. If you are a Foothills person and you would like a little more elbow room, consider the 8:30am or 6:00pm services! By doing this you will also free up some seats for 1st time guests.
Our series: "You To be" has been phenomemal. Yesterday we talked about the fruit of Patience. I really hate those messages that smack me right between the eyes. I definitely need to work on that one!

What a day!!

This past Sunday we celebrated our groundbreaking. It was incredible. Despite low temps and howling winds, we had around 700 people show up and participate.
I have been to several grounbreaking ceremonies. Usually there are a lot of dignitaries and gold shovels, which is fine, but that's just not us at Foothills. We are a team. So our groundbreaking was a B.Y.O.S event (bring your own shovel). It's hard to describe the feeling of watching hundreds of families grasping their shovels around the perimeter of what will be our new building.
As I looked at the crowd, it occured to me that this was history in the making. Years from now, there will be people worshiping the Lord in that building who have no idea who I am. They will have no idea of the sacrifice that so many made so that they would have a place to worship. But the reason we do what we do is not to gain the applause of man, but to gain the applause of our Almighty God.
I am proud to be a part of a great movement of God like Foothills Community Church.

Newspaper ad

Yesterday the Seneca Journal ran an article about our upcoming groundbreaking. Although they aren't exactly the New York Times---we appreciate the pub.
Whatever you do, Don't miss this historical day. We have got a great celebration planned!
This Sunday January 28,2007 at 4:00pm

conferences

I am really excited about a couple of conference coming up in the next two months.
The first one is the Church Planters Conference at Mountain Lake Church. Even though I planted Foothills over 8 years ago, I have a real passion for Church planting and church planters. There are also a couple of sessions that really caught my eye. We are bringing several of our team to this one.

Then there's another one that I am looking forward to. Our friends over at Newspring are doing their first conference, "Unleash". This one should be killer. Perry and his crew at Newspring always roll out the red carpet and do it right.
If you get a chance, plan to attend one of these. It will be worth the investment.

Looking ahead

We just finished our weekly staff meeting. One of the things we discussed was our Easter services. After some great input we decided that we are going to be doing 5 services on Easter Sunday (7:15am, 8:30am, 9:45am, 11:15am and 6:00pm)
This is going to be a really long day, but we want to reach as many people for Christ as possible, which means that it's not always going to be convenient. I am extremely excited thinking about what might happen that day!!
Between now and then you can bet there will be a lot of planning and preparation to make it happen. But in the meantime I am extremely pumped about our current series that we began yesterday called "You To Be". We'll be looking at the fruit of the Holy Spirit. Yesterday we kicked it off with Faithfulness (I know, we're not going in the right order!) This week we'll look at Joy.
Don't forget also this Sunday (Jan. 28th) at 4:00pm we will be having our Groundbreaking celebration. Be here by 4:00pm with your shovel, family and friends, as we break ground Together! Then we'll head back inside the auditorium for about 20 minutes of Praise and Worship.

You have not because you ask not

I have always tried to learn from the wisdom of others. I did that when I was in the business world, and I continue to do that in the church world.
Many people are too proud to ask their peers questions because they want to seem like they've got it all figured out. I admit that I don't know everything.
In 2007 I have made a goal of trying to talk to as many Pastors of churches that are 2 or 3 levels ahead of where we are right now. The thought is that they have already been in my shoes and probably have some valuable insight to offer. There are probably some things that have worked well, and there are probably alot of things that haven't. I would like to hear about both. I have drafted a series of questions that I am trying to get answered from these men.
In January I emailed 9 different Pastors of churches that range in size from 1,600 to over 5,000.
I have heard back from 5 of those Pastors. I have spoken to 3 so far, and have 2 scheduled for phone conversations later this month. Most guys know what it's like to be in the trenches. They remember what it was like to be where we are, and are willing to take time out of their busy schedules to help. I believe God honors that.
They have been a wealth of knowledge. I will post some of my findings at a later date.
I have challenged my staff to do the same thing in their respective areas.
I will also try to continue to be a resource for other churches that have questions for us too.

Get in the Game wrap-up

We finished our Get In The Game series yesterday. Yesterday was basically our annual State of the Church message. You can hear it here.
It is definitely one of my favorites messages to do every year. It is a chance to celebrate what the Lord did at Foothills in 2006, and where we believe He's directing us in 2007. It is so much fun to just cast the vision of the church.
2006 was a year of many milestones. Our average attendance increased 32% from 2005. We had 198 first-time salvations. We had another 207 people who recommitted their lives to Christ.
But there are a couple of areas that we want to improve on. Only about 33% of our adults and teenagers are involved in LIFE groups and only 33% of adults and teens are serving in a ministry.
Even though many churches would love to have those percentages---it's not good enough. We are trying to create a culture where when you become part of Foothills, you are expected to be involved in a small group and a minstry.
Our people are so cool. Whenever we issue a challenge--they respond. So I expect that these percentages will increase dramatically this year.
One last thing that was really incredible was when we counted up all of the people who have signed up for our BELONG (membership) class this week and last week, we had over 100 people say "I want to be a part of Foothills !!

In case you're wondering if numbers really matter...

Sometimes I read something and think.... "I couldn't have said it better myself", or "why didn't I come up with that idea?"
Well this blog post that Perry had from Clayton King is one of them. Brilliantly stated reasons why numbers truly matter.

Pet Peeves

All of us have pet peeves. I have quite a few of them. Being late is one, rude people is another. But one of my biggest pet peeves has to do with Pastors who use the "I'm just a poor little old Pastor" card.
I have noticed that many Pastors pull that card out whenever they want something, or they are looking for some pity.
If they go to a restaurant, they want a discount because they're just a "poor little old Pastor". If they buy a car they expect a better deal because after all they are just a "poor little old Pastor!"
I once met a Pastor when I lived in Florida that actually tried to get a guy to build him a pool--- for free---because he was just a "poor little old Pastor"
Give me a break. Do you really want people to pity you? I don't. I want people to treat me like everyone else. I'm not looking for handouts or sympathy.
Now, I know that many people like to express their love to Pastors tangibly by giving gifts. I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about Pastors who walk around with their hands out, and always whining about what a big sacrifice they are making to serve God. And constantly dropping hints about how they may not be able to pay their bills. QUIT IT---PLEASE!!
You are giving the rest of us a bad name.
Now a word to the churches. If your Pastor(s) is truly struggling to make ends meet because you are too cheap to pay them a good income, then shame on you. That's not even Biblical.

Alright, I feel better.

Get In The Game

We had an incredible day yesterday. Despite terrible weather we had a great crowd.
We kicked off a new series called, "Get In The Game". It is a 2 week series about our vision as a church. We are using a baseball theme, and challenging people to take some spiritual steps this year toward full devotion to Christ. In addition to coffe and donuts, we had a popcorn maker out in the lobby, with pennants , and even some bleachers on stage. During our welcome time we did a 7th inning stretch and gave out sets of tickets to Clemson's opening game of the season. The only catch was in order to get the tickets, the person had to lead the congregation in "Take Me Out To The Ballgame"---It was hilarious!
The best part however was the response to the challenge for people who have been sitting in the bleachers as spectators, to put on the uniform and commit to being part of the team. We had dozens of people sign up for our next 3 membership (Belong) classes.
Next week we'll cover the rest of the bases and have our annual State Of The Church message. That's always one of my favorite one's to do.

Ground Breaking

When we moved into our first facility 3 years ago we knew that it would be temporary. We believed that the Lord would multiply our church and we would eventually need to build a second phase. He did. We have nearly tripled in size during those three years!

To keep up with the growth we have added more services. (We currently do 4 services)
Having four services has helped by adding more space, but what we have found is that most people still prefer to attend church in our prime times (Sunday mornings 9:45am and 11:15am)

In order to continue growing we needed to add more seats in those prime times, so we began a capital building campaign last year, and had blueprints drawn up, and met with contractors and FINALLY we are ready to break ground on phase 2! To see a video you can click here

It is very exciting to think that this dream will soon be reality-----but here's the thing we must make sure we don't lose sight of; Jesus Christ didn't come to this earth and die on a cross for a Building. He came for People!
Buildings are great. But building buildings are not our goal at Foothills. Our mission is not complete because we built a new building. Our mission will only be complete when every person knows Jesus Christ personally.

What should really excite us, is to think that God has used Foothills Community Church to lead hundreds of people to faith in Christ!

By the way, We will have a ground breaking celebration on January 28th at 4:00pm, followed by a brief time of praise and worship. It's going to be incredble. Do not miss this event.

Recap of Christmas

2006 ended with a bang for Foothills Community Church. Our Christmas services were phenomenal. We had a record crowd (1,730 people) and tons of spiritual decisions. (11 salvations and dozens of people recommitting their lives to Christ).
One thing that I'm constantly reminded of is, that not only do we have the best staff in the world, but we have the best volunteers too. To be able to pull off the type of services that we have every week takes between 150 and 200 people serving. To all of you who have found a meaningful place of service and have given of your time to help people find Jesus---Thank You!!

Overall 2006 was our best year ever. Our average attendance grew by 32%. We had around 200 salvations. We had another 200 people make recommitments. We had more baptisms, more people involved in serving and more people participating in LIFE groups than ever before.

2007 is going to be incredible!