I just got back from Expo ’05.  Let’s just say that mentally I’m wiped out.  But I was totally challenged by everything that was shared.  Let me give you a basic breakdown of what stuck out in each main session:  Session 1 – Andy Stanley: Even though I’m the president of the Andy Stanley Fan Club, let me say that he was amazing!  The guy just rocks my world every time I hear him.  He hammered the point home that people give to vision.  But people want to see the vision, but just hear words.  So the key is, how … Read More

Tomorrow I’m heading to Calvary Chapel Fort Lauderdale (My old stomping grounds) for the day to attend the Exponential ’05 conference that Generous Giving puts on.  The speakers are: Bob Coy, Michael Easley, Charles Stanley, and Andy Stanley.  It’s going to be great.  I’m looking forward to learning a great deal and I’m excited because this is so close.  I usually have to fly someone somewhere to go to a good conference, but this is only an hour away.      

This Sunday (9/18) is our 5-year anniversary as a church. It’s amazing how fast the time goes. We’re going to 2 services (9:30 & 11:00) and we’re looking forward to what’s in store. I don’t know if I still qualify as a church planter, but I still feel like one. I’ve learned so much over the last 5 years and I still feel like I have no idea what I’m doing. Some days I can’t tell if everything is coming together or coming apart. Sometimes I feel that at the same time…

I don’t know if you’ve been following the latest new trend in the blogging world, the "Pirate Blog."  But Andy Stanley’s comments about church world have been amazing.  I’ve copied (without permission, but I hope it’s OK) his thoughts on what a church’s optimal size should be & what church planters should focus on… On a church’s optimal size: "As to the optimal church size… I pretty much agree with what everyone has written. In fact, our answer to that question may seem a bit…simplistic… compared to previous entries. Our theory is that a church should be allowed or encouraged … Read More

After 9 months of writing and hard work, next week my book, Elements will be released.  Bob Coy, Senior Pastor of Calvay Chapel of Fort Lauderdale was kind enough to write the foreword.  The book is a look at the life of John the Baptist and…well, I’ll let you read it for yourself.  Check out my other site, www.fuelmg.com and you can read the introduction to the book.

No, this isn’t what happens when you serve chili in your church cafeteria!  This is what one church is doing to attract a crowd into their church.  A bunch of people have written stuff about this issue, so I thought I’d add my 2 cents into the mix.  I don’t really see this as a big deal.  While I wouldn’t do it personally, isn’t this just like having a bus ministry in the 70’s?  Churches started bus ministries so those who didn’t have vehicles or couldn’t afford gas could still come to church.  So I don’t see handing out gas … Read More

Andy Stanley brought it home during the last session as he talked about gaining and maintaining momentum. It’s amazing how simple stuff can be so profound. 3 things create momentum according Andy: #1 – Something New #2 – Something Improved #3 – Something Improving I just kept coming back to this whole idea thread that I heard over and over again that incremental change doesn’t really do much. Sometimes you just have to make a 180 to get to where God wants you. The whole experience was fantastic. I got visit Buckhead Church and spend some time with the amazing … Read More

Andy gave a great message about the importance of preaching with life change in mind. He challenged every communicator to think about 5 things before they open their mouths: #1 – What do they need to know? (Information) #2 – Why do they need to know it? (Motivation) #3 – What do they need to do? (Application) #4 – Why do they need to do it? (Inspiration) #5 – How can I help them remember? (Reiteration) He also shared about preaching a 1 point message. I adopted this style over a year ago and it has been one of the … Read More

Reggie hit another one out of the park this morning with a message on creating synergy with our ministries. Too many times, ministries have their own agenda and vision that does not line up with or support the vision of the entire church. The result is ministries competing for time, resources, space, etc… Instead, our goal should be to create synergy or focus in which all of our ministries are headed in the same direction so we can get see the most important thing take place, which is for people to grow in their relationship with Jesus. Reggie pointed out … Read More

I’m really excited about the new series that I’m starting this weekend called, “Message in a Bottle.” We’re going to explore the call that every believer has to share the message of the Gospel. God has placed His message in earthen vessels (2 Cor. 4:7), or otherwise put – A message in a bottle. I think this series has the potential to wake up some sleeping Christians to the opportunities that are all around us to be used by God to reach out to others…