– Today was one of my favorite days at Calvary this year.  – We kicked off a new series called, "Postcards".  – We're teaching through the 5 one chapter books of the Bible – Today I taught 2 John. I loved studying for this message! – I usually try to keep my Sunday message around 40 minutes. I taught for 50 minutes today. There was too much to say :)  – Looking forward to teaching 3 John next week!  – Since we started Calvary 10 years ago, we've taught 27 books of the Bible. We're committed to teaching God's Word … Read More

This question shows up in my inbox every week. That's why I have 2 resources that deal with how we do direct mail AND I lead a coaching network that focuses solely on outreach and promotion.  Having said that, here's 5 things you must know if you're going to get great direct mail results:  #1 – You must know who you're trying to reach – most churches have no idea who they're best equipped to reach #2 – You must know what you're going to say to them – Most churches are not connecting their copy with the recipients of … Read More

I get this question about once a week. So I decided to write down a few thoughts that I hope will be of help to you. If you're a leader, then growing is not an option. But in the busy world we live in, it's important to find ways to maximize our time for our own personal growth and development.   So here's 6 ways I try to learn more in less time:  #1 – Set goals – When you have a goal for the number of books your want to read in a year, you'll read faster because you want to … Read More

I get this question is various forms. The question is about how to create a culture of evangelism in your church. We did not have an evangelistic culture in our church when we started. In fact, after 18 months we didn't see one person come to know Jesus. That was a wake up call for us. Then we started taking steps and eventually the culture of our church changed.  Here's 5 steps we took that changed our culture: Step 1 – Confront Reality (don't sugar coat it. Admit that things are bad and start from there.) Step 2 – Start teaching on evangelism … Read More

The biggest mistake churches make in their by-laws is giving too much control to the wrong group of people.  Too many church planters begin their churches by adopting the same by-laws their sending church had.  This can be a great blessing if you've got the right by-laws, but can also be deadly to the health of your church if they are the wrong by-laws. There's nothing in the Bible that says we should have congregational voting.  Why churches do it escapes me.     If you're a church that reaches unchurched people, here's what they are expecting: for the leaders of the church to … Read More

– Awesome day at Calvary!  – We continued our "He Said/ She Said" series and talked about the wife's role in marriage.  – Talking about submission is never an easy thing, but my wife co-taught with me today and it went great. – Carey is a really gifted teacher and everyone agreed that she did a fantastic job. – Taking next Sunday off. I need it.  – We're taking Mia and Xander to Disney World – This is the trip we were supposed to take for Mia's birthday, but had to cancel due to Mia being in the hospital. – … Read More

Easter is just 8 weeks away, so I thought I'd share a few tips for those churches that are planning on doing direct mail for the Big Day! 1. Keep any direct mail that you like. It doesn't matter what it's advertising. Great direct mail is always a source of good ideas.  2. Keep the "worst of the worst" direct mail you get. A lot of church mail tends to fall in this category unfortunately. But this file of direct mail will remind you what sins you should never commit.  3. Political mail - Some of the best ideas in sizes, shapes, and … Read More