Fun Family Reunion (Pics)
Got to spend some time this weekend with my Francis family peeps in LaSalle Parish. Roasted Hog, Good Music, Inflatable Water Slide, fun rope swing, plenty of catching up, and a little Skyping with cousin/soldier in Afghanistan. Fun Day.
“I was in prison and You came to me” Matthew 25:36
One of the goals for our current church plant in West St. Tammany Parish was to develop a sustained discipling presence at our local jail (which houses over 1,100) and to connect with their families on the outside. We have been able to walk with a group of guys through Celebrate Recovery, we’ve began a Sunday AM worship gathering at the Jail complex, we hope to launch a state approved Faith based recovery program this month, and we have seen several families of inmates plug in with Bridge Church. I have personally enjoyed being involved in these ministries and seeing the transformation in lives of men on the inside. Why? Two reasons at 10pm on Thursday night:
- The goal is community transformation. To transform a community requires a willingness to go to the dark corners with the light. What good is it, if our church grows, but the community continues to deteriorate. Reducing recidivism and bringing hope to the inmate is one way for churches to push back darkness in our communities.
- The heart of Christ – “I was in prison and You came to me.” Christ’s example to us was, whatever it takes, and that’s how he desires for us to live.
Last weekend, Bridge Church, sponsored the first ever Family Day at a local Work Release Center. It was great to see the second part of that goal coming to pass as we connected with families of inmates. It was also great to see members/partners of Bridge Church giving themselves in service to the prisoner.
Here’s part of a recent letter received at our church, written by an inmate in a local jail:
“Thank you for your part in bringing something so goo to a situation that is mostly filled with loneliness and loss and despair.”
“It is lonely here as a Christian and you coming here and bringing the Spirit you have is bitter sweet. It just magnifies the lack of it in so many others we are forced to live with. So, thank you for the time you spend with us.”
Glad to be part of a church that reflects the desire of Christ – “I was in prison and You came to me.”
Fall Ministry/Church Planting Conference Opportunities in the Southeast:
- Ridgecrest On the River, New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, Sept 11. Focus is on Sunday School, but this year James Welch will be leading breakouts on Church Planting.
- Live Sent, Lakeland, FL, Sept 17-18 Speakers: Alan Hirsch, Jason Dukes. Cost: $25.
- Catapult Conference, Mobile, AL, Sept 22-24. Speakers: Alan Hirsch, Reggie McNeal, Mike Slaughter, Music by Derek Webb. Cost: $150.
- Principles of Church Planting and Church Revitalization Workshop @ NOBTS, Oct 18-22. Taught by Damian Emetuche. Oct 21, Gary Irby from Seattle Church Planting, will be teaching on Partnership Development, Legal & Financial issues in Church planting, Planting Opportunities in Seattle, and Q&A time. Register through the New Orleans Seminary to receive credit for the class.
- Replicate Conference, NOBTS, Oct 29-30. Speakers: Bill Hull, Tony Merida, Chuck Kelley, Tim LaFleur, Don Wilton. Cost: $59, $29 for students.
- Annual SE LA Church Planting Celebration Banquet, Friday, Nov 12. Time and place TBA.
- Exponential Conference, Orlando, FL, April 26-29, 2011. Current Registration: $99. Never too early to start prepping for the National New Church Conference in April.
Are there others?
What’s Worse than a Cat 4 Hurricane? #Katrina
In reflecting upon Hurricane Katrina, many of us realized that though our lives were devastated there were many positive effects. I can’t count the times I’ve heard from people that Katrina helped them and gave them a new outlook on life. Many admit that Katrina was an eye opener. What’s worse than a Hurricane Katrina? Sin and selfishness.
- Katrina opened my eyes to the needs around me. Sin and selfishness blinds me to the needs around me. Many people realized for the first time that they could help others and that there was joy in helping others.
- Katrina opened my eyes to my need for God. Sin and selfishness blinds me to my need for God. God’s address is at the end of our rope. Katrina brought many Gulf Coast residence to the end of our ropes. Some for the first time. That’s the beginning point for building a healthy relationship with God and others.
- Katrina brought me closer to God & others. Sin and selfishness distances me from God & others. We now know our neighbors and realize that we need them and some of us even realized that we like them!
The good news is that we don’t have to go through a Cat 4 Hurricane to have our eyes opened. We can humble ourselves, come to end of our rope, AND let go and find ourselves close to God, close to others, and making a positive difference on those in need around us. God provided a way for us to know this life through Jesus Christ (1 Peter 3:18). He suffered for us (1 Peter 2:24), taking our pain and guilt and death. My eyes have been opened as I’ve looked to Him (2 Corinthians 4:6).
Bridge Church’s First Building
Our first building is now operational. It’s not your traditional first phase building for a one year old church. It’s actually a residential mobile home located in one of the largest mobile home parks in St. Tammany Parish. Our church will not meet their regularly, but will use it as a base of ministry, allowing two ministry minded students to live there instead. As they, do life together with the park, we’re believing that Bible Studies, Worship Gatherings, ministry to families, and to those in need will blossom in the coming weeks and months.
For me, it serves as a statement about our philosophy of ministry. A more incarnational approach, taking church to the community instead of demanding that they come and find us. Multi-housing ministry experts tell us that if a church simply does outreach to a multi-housing complex, it can expect to reach 4% of the population. But if a church actually takes church to property they can reach 30%. So far, our church through outreach has had 2% of the population of this park attend our services. Through our first phase building, I’m praying for 30% +.
Thanks to our partnering church Fairview Baptist in Coushatta, for helping us obtain the mobile home.
Measuring Success in Church
How do you measure success? Standard measures for success in church life is “How many? How much? How often?” That is, how many showed up, how much did it cost, how much was given, and how often did they return. Reggie McNeal’s latest book Missional Renaissance: Changing the Scorecard for the Church is about shifting measurements and posture of the church to reach new generations. Here’s a list from Eric Swanson of different measurements for success in church life that sets my imagination running wild:
- The number of cigarette butts in the church parking lot
- The number of adoptions people in the church have made from local foster care
- The number of pictures on the church wall of unwed mothers holding their newborn babies in their arms for the first time
- The number of classes for special needs children and adults
- The number of former convicted felons serving in the church
- The number of phone calls from community leaders asking the church’s advice
- The number of meetings that take place somewhere besides the church building
- The number of organizations using the church building
- The number of days the pastor doesn’t spend time in the church office but in the community
- The number of emergency finance meetings that take place to reroute money to community ministry
- The amount of dollars saved by the local schools because the church has painted the walls
- The number of people serving in the community during the church’s normal worship hours
- The number of non-religious-school professors worshiping with you
- The number of people wearing good, free clothes that used to belong to members of the church
- The number of times the church band has played family-friendly music in the local coffee shop
- The number of people who have gotten better because of free health clinic you operate
- The number of people in new jobs thanks to the free job training center you opened
- The number of micro-loans given by members in your church
- The number of churches your church planted in a 10 mile radius of your own church
Read the whole article here.
What are some other measures of success that you would add to this list?
Reflecting On One Year of Bridge Church
This week we marked one year of Bridge Church in West St. Tammany. 83 Worship Gatherings, 4 Faith in Action Sundays, $25,000+ for missions and ministries, 20+ decisions for Christ, and 1 incredible start for a faith family gathered to give ourselves away for the sake of our community and world.
Two questions we asked at the outset in seeking to plant a church in West St. Tammany was, “where is this community in need of transformation” and “where is the church not present and how can we engage that population segment in our community?” (see my post on good questions for Assessing the Need for New Churches in the South). With that in mind, here are a few highlights for me that I hope propel us into the future:
1. St. Tammany Parish Jail / Set Free Fellowship – One of our goals was to have a sustained discipling presence at our local jail, home to 1,100+ men and women in need of the renewal, recovery, and restoration. As with most local jails, a majority of our inmates are local and a majority will be neighbors again within five years. This year, we were able to walk with 30+ trustees through Celebrate recovery and we launched a weekly Worship Gathering called Set Free Fellowship, that meets at the Work Release Center every Sunday morning. Next month we will launch Celebrate Recovery for around 160 inmates. We’ve also been able to connect with several families on the outside with the possibility of seeing entire family systems transformed forever.
2. Oak Villa Mobile Home Park – The largest Mobile Home Park in West St. Tammany is home to 400+ residents. Some with critical needs and many more without resources to meet basic needs. We started in January ’09 by building a relationship with the management of the park, taking food to the very neediest, and throwing block parties for kids and families. We’ve also, built wheelchair ramps, provided rental assistance, conducted home Bible Studies, and held Back Yard Bible Clubs. Multi-housing ministry statistics show that by simply reaching out to a multi-housing complex you can reach 4% of the population, but by taking church to the complex you can reach 30%. So, this week we will get the lights turned on to a Mobile Home provided by one of our partnering church, Fairview Baptist in Coushatta, in the hopes of reaching 30%+. This week we also have the honor of seeing six individuals from the park celebrate new life in Christ through baptism.
3. Intentional Engagement at local Festivals – Almost every weekend in Southeast Louisiana is an opportunity to throw a party or festival. And thousands gather regularly at Festivals in all of our Northshore communities. In October, Bridge Church gave up a Saturday and Sunday to serve the Madisonville Wooden Boat Festival, by painting faces, taking souvenir pics, hosting entertainment in the children’s area, and even moving our Worship Gathering to the Festival on Sunday in order to be ready to serve. We’ve also incarnated at the Columbia Street Block Party, holiday events at the YMCA, and a few other community events. This has been a great, unique, memorable way to meet a lot of unchurched people, build relationships with community leaders, get some name recognition buzz in the community, and have a great time as a group. I’m so committed to this we’ve even considered requiring a face-painting and balloon animal class for membership in our church.
4. Intentional Engagement in “Pure Religion” – James 1:27 defines one aspect of pure religion as taking care of widows and orphans in their distress or caring for those who can’t care for themselves. As a young Pastor and Christian for 20 years, I’ve learned that getting involved in ministry to others is a must for developing as a disciple and making disciples. Also, I’ve learned that in every community there are those who can’t help themselves and won’t ask for help. We’ve sought to create a culture of generosity and service through responsiveness to the needs of those who can’t help themselves. I’ve taught our team that the filters for our decision making will be: 1) Proximity to the needs of people, 2) Responsiveness to the needs of people, 3) and radical, sacrificial generosity as a normative practice. These ideas have led us to budget a large sum for Faith in Action projects, to partner and get to know leaders of community organizations that help the neediest, and to not simply look at the bottom line, because helping those who can’t help you in return will not always bring an earthly profit. This year, we’ve paid for bug service for an elderly man that was overwhelmed and had respiratory problems. We’re working on a plan to get a new gas line and heat for an elderly widow whose gas system has been condemned by the city. And individual members of Bridge Church are finding ways to engage through volunteering at local non-profits or using their job to meet the needs of those in need.
Looking forward to year two and beyond. Thankful for partners in ministry and our new faith family on the Northshore.
“Dad, what does this mean?”
So, Jackson’s turning 8 this week! He’s a ferocious reader and appears to have a photographic memory, so I’ve proposed a discipleship challenge for he and I this year. We’re going to read through the New Testament together and memorize one verse per week from the Topical Memory System. Harmless enough. We kicked off this week at the beginning in Matthew 1, New Living Translation. He’s reading along to me, pauses, and says, “Dad, what does this mean? – ‘he did not have sexual relations with her until her son was born’ (Matthew 1:25). I think we will continue our pilgrimage in a different translation. It’s hard to see the little guys grow up and start asking harder questions.
Filed Under, “Don’t Be This Stupid”
The leadership blunders of Ahab may seem far removed and unlikely for you and I, but actually they’re not. I’ve been reading/studying through the kings of Israel this year and finding much instruction in the messed up ones as to what to avoid as a spiritual leader. Lest I fall, I’m staying on guard for these in my life:
Idolatry: Ahab ignored the Word of God and turned to idolatry – 1 Kings 16:29. His desire and worship was divided and weighted toward self and other gods. Reminder for me as a church leader that success and growth can be an idol. Worship Jesus only. No evidence that his heart changed even when God showed up and demonstrated that his other gods were bogus – 1 Kings 18. Question: Is my heart wholly God’s or am I pursuing idols of my own making?
Unwise Associations & Lack of Teachability: Ahab demonstrated an absent of wisdom in relation to the people he gathered around him, which is most evident by his marriage to the manipulative, Baal worshipping Jezebel – 16:31. But also, prophets in his court were only rewarded by saying what Ahab wanted to hear and eventually were just handed over by God to a lying spirit. Honesty and honest counsel were not desired or valued by Ahab, so he didn’t notice. He did notice when someone disagreed with him or made him look bad, even when it was for his good. Question: Am I able to hear honest counsel and do I value those who will say the hard things to me in regard to my leadership and organization?
Blindness: Ahab blamed others when things went bad for the nation – 1 Kings 18:17-18. During a season of drought brought on because of his disobedience, he pointed the finger at the messenger, Elijah, instead of considering his part in the divine intervention regarding the nations idolatry and distance from God. Question: Am I blaming others for what I could have controlled? Am I blaming others instead of working toward solutions?
Covetousness: In greed, Ahab coveted another man’s possessions and success, even when he himself had far more than this one man – 1 Kings 21:4. Like a child, he pouted and only found relief and contentment after learning of the man’s deceitful demise and death. Question: Am I coveting the success of another instead of planting for success in my own vineyard? Is there anyone that I am passively wishing evil for?
Passivity: Ahab allowed himself to be incited by his evil wife, Jezebel – 1 Kings 21:25-26. Instead of leading and doing the right thing, he allowed himself to be led into some of his stupid mistakes by others. As leaders, who we listen to and trust is most important. Passivity is the attitude that comes with lack of concern and self-centeredness. His passivity allowed him to look the other way while Jezebel plotted murder. It also led to a smile when the person that stood in the way of his own desire was unjustly killed. Question: Am I leading or being incited by the most vocal around me? or by the desire for “success”?
Product: One of the scariest quotes about being a parent and leader to me is: “You teach what you know, but you reproduce who you are.” Ahab reproduced what he was – 1 Kings 22:51-53. Question: What is the product of my life? What are others becoming because of my influence? How will my actions today affect the next generation?
11 Years of Favor From the Lord
“He who finds a wife finds a good thing & obtains favor from the LORD” http://esv.to/Prov18.22.
Today’s our 11th Anniversary! Thanking God for much favor, for a great wife, mom, partner in the Gospel, and best friend.
Lane Corley 