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Things I Am Learning (pt 2): Adaptability

February 10, 2013 in Articles, Church Planting, Jesus, Leadership, pastor, The Church with 4 Comments

It is 11:30am on Sunday morning. On a normal week at this time I’d be right in the middle of delivering the message to our 11am gathering. This week, however, I am sitting at home wishing I was with my church family and wondering how many people will show up at our gathering space this morning only to read a sign on the door saying we had to cancel services again at the last minute because of a conflict we only learned about Friday.

Such is church planting.

::CHURCH PLANTING & ADAPTABILITY::

Future church planter, you must develop the ability to be adaptable. It is a non-negotiable for church planting. You have to learn to flex at all times and in every direction. You have to be okay with switching directions at a moment’s notice. You have to be able to change the plan when it is least convenient. Continue Reading…

Planting A Church: Things I’ve Learned (part 1)

June 21, 2012 in Articles, Church Planting, Leadership, Mosaic with 10 Comments

It wasn’t all that long ago that I was wrestling for the first time with this unshakable feeling that I was supposed to start a new church. I remember the swirling cocktail of emotions that came with it – the excitement and the fear, the hope and the anxiety, and the ever-present question of, “How on earth am I going to do this?”

During that season, I consumed every bit of information I could get my hands on. I read books, attended conferences, called up church planters, and combed the blogs of those who had succeeded and failed at what I was setting out to do. Every piece of input felt valuable during that season. And I am forever grateful to those who shared with me the things they had learned along the way.

A couple years into planting now myself, I too would like to pass on some of the things we learned in the early stages of starting Mosaic Lincoln. There is a special place in my heart for church planters. My hope in the series of posts to follow is simply to help in any way I can those who are considering starting a new church or ministry, as well as those who are already well on their way.

::VISION-CASTING & RECRUITING::

When we arrived in Lincoln in April of 2010, we had shared the vision of Mosaic with just one Lincoln couple. Continue Reading…

Why We Do Covers @mosaiclincoln

April 25, 2012 in arts, Church Planting, comic relief, Creativity, Mosaic, TheMission, Videos with 8 Comments

Here is a fun little video of how we kicked off Easter 2012 at Mosaic. If nothing else, I hope it gives you a laugh or brings a smile to your face. However, I thought it might also be helpful to share a a few words on why we do things like 80′s covers on Sunday morning. Continue Reading…

Celebrating One Year @MosaicLincoln

March 14, 2012 in Church Planting, Jesus, Mosaic, pastor, Photo Blogs, Reflection, Videos with 0 Comments

You ever step into a moment that was so much greater, so much bigger than you ,and thought to yourself, What on earth am I doing here? Over the past year, I’ve found myself thinking that often. Continue Reading…

Some Things You Should Know About Your Pastor

December 13, 2011 in Articles, Church Planting, encouragement, Leadership, pastor, The Church with 5 Comments

Let’s admit it: at one point or another, we have all been critical of pastors. Sometimes it’s just too easy, isn’t it? Like the guy who insists on using antiquated language and five syllable words that haven’t been in common usage since Shakespeare, or his younger antithesis down the road who is always saying things like dude and bro in between Rolling Stone quotes. One is too hip. The other is not hip enough. Both, however, get criticized for where they land. Welcome to the life of a pastor.

It is a tall order to live up to the expectations that come with the title “Pastor,” especially with so many different opinions on what a pastor should be. I’d imagine if we took all the expectations of everyone in your church and inserted them into a job description for your pastor, it’d might read something like:

CHURCH SEEKING NEW SENIOR PASTOR. Must be highly visionary, administratively strong, theologically astute, culturally connected, strong in both interpersonal and public communication, seasoned counselor, proven track record of longevity and initiating new projects, general knowledge in marketing and good business practice, able to cast vision, raise funds, manage budgets, hire and fire, submit to authority, speak with authority, teach and preach, gifted in planning but highly adaptable, be passionate but not overbearing, strong and meek, funny but not too funny, faithful and careful, bold and calculated, not too conservative and not too liberal. Applications can be submitted to jennifer@theresnowayyoucansucceedatthis.com.
You get my point. Everyone (including you) has different expectations of how your pastor ought to be gifted and what he ought to be doing with it. And the truth is, he likely has days when he feels like he is falling short of all of them. If you don’t believe that to be true, consider these jarring statistics:
  • 80% of pastors feel unqualified and discouraged in their role
  • 70% say they have a lower self-image now than when they first started in ministry
  • 70% of pastors constantly fight depression
  • 90% feel they’re inadequately trained to cope w/ work demands
  • 50% of pastors feel so discouraged that they would leave the ministry tomorrow if they felt they had a viable alternative

Continue Reading…

“The Bible’s really not about you.” – Tim Keller

September 28, 2011 in Articles, Books, Church Planting, Jesus, Lincoln, Videos with 1 Comment

Confession: I love Tim Keller. (Ok, “man-crush” might be more accurate.) Tim Keller pastors Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City, a traditional church in many ways, but one that under Keller’s leadership has planted hundreds of churches all over the world. As a gifted thinker, scholar, pastor and writer, Tim Keller is in a very real sense, a pastor to many pastors (myself included).

Below is a short video that I think you will will find typologically beautiful and personally challenging. Many of us who have spent any significant amount of time in the American Church have been taught to understand the gospel in a way that is all about us and our personal salvation. While that is important, we often miss God’s larger vision for the Kingdom and the part we are to play in ushering it in. This hugely influences the way we read the scriptures. If we’re not careful, we can begin to buy into the idea that somehow the bible is really about “me” and “you.” But as this video beautifully illustrates, the scriptures point the way to something far more beautiful than what we see in the mirror. Enjoy. Continue Reading…

What would you do?

September 9, 2011 in Church Planting, Questions, Stories, Uncategorized with 7 Comments

Photo by Waymon Mattison Jr

Yesterday, I had a conversation with a good friend who is in a tough situation. He asked me what I thought he should do, and I’d love to extend the question to you.

THE SCENARIO: My good friend is a part of a church plant in a small, academic college town in the Northeast. As a highly gifted worship leader, he has been a part of a number of new churches in the past. And so when a young church planter who felt called by God to plant a church moved into the community, my good friend immediately connected with him and volunteered to help in whatever way he could.

The planter is a good man. Continue Reading…

Think Hard Before You Go to a Christian School

August 31, 2011 in Articles, Church Planting, school, seminary, The Church with 15 Comments

I used to work with high school students. Every fall as kids went back to school and seniors settled in to their new role atop the hallway pecking order, the issue was the same: “Where should I go to college?”

There were some, of course, who had known they would fulfill their dream of going to Georgetown since they were 10, and others who had planned on following in the Husker family footsteps for as long as they could remember, but for many, they had no idea. The pressure of choosing a school was significant, especially for those Christian students who thought there might be just one “right” choice that God desired for them, and many other wrong choices.

That was my story. As a student athlete, I knew that I wanted to compete at the highest level in a quality program. And yet, I also felt a strong sense that I would be serving in vocational ministry and thought going to a Christian school to get a ministry degree just made a lot more sense. Boy, was I wrong. Continue Reading…

Video: Rhythm

July 20, 2011 in Church Planting, fatherhood, Leadership, Mosaic, Videos with 2 Comments

Hey friends, I want to share a video with you about something that has deeply impacted my life and leadership. I have posted about Rhythm before, but this video shares more about the vision behind it and its impact on me and a few others. The video is kind of long, but if you have the time, you’ll get to hear from some very good friends of mine. (For those interested, I share about some of my own journey at about 5:25). Enjoy.

Church Planting::Count the Cost

June 1, 2011 in Articles, Church Planting, encouragement, Leadership with 10 Comments

Solitude2

My dad gave this to me a very long time ago. I must admit that for a long time, I really didn't like it. I couldn't appreciate it's drab, almost cynical outlook on the task of church planting. It rubbed my vision and my idealism the wrong way. For my dad, however, I could tell it had become over the years a deep source of solace for him during difficult times; something he returned to regularly, perhaps to remind himself that he wasn't the only one to think and feel many of these things; assuring him perhaps that he wasn't crazy. There were others who had walked a similar road and along the way, had thought and felt many of the same things he had…and amidst it all, stayed faithful, pressing onward.

I couldn't fully appreciate all that this article had to say then. And I'm not sure I can fully appreciate it now, but I am getting there. Church planting is tough. Being the lead guy is tough. Pastoring is tough. Uncertainty is tough. Having a vision so big it terrifies you and no earthly idea how to see it come to fruition is tough. It is a tough road. So future church planters, take the words below seriously. He's not blowing smoke. Church planting is tough, so you'd better know that you know that you know that you're called. Past and current church planters, know that you are not alone and you are not crazy (well, okay, maybe a little bit:).    

"Attn: Future Church Planters — Count the Cost," by Joe Boyd:

Continue Reading…

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