Master Plan

I had a hard time sleeping last night. We had our second meeting with the architect who's helping us develop a master plan for our church's building and property and I'm pretty excited about some of the things he presented to us. He gave us some amazing ideas about how to solve some of our existing problems with our building.

I love looking into the future at what can be if we trust God to get us there. It's definitely going to take a miracle to pull off any building plans, but the God I know is a God of miracles.

Summer Ministries

I remember when our church used to, pretty much, take the summer off. We did Vacation Bible School for kids and camp for youth and that was about it. That’s not the case anymore. Summer still has a relaxed feel to it, but we are plugged in to a lot more ministry than we used to be between June and Sept.

Summer is also a time when we are getting ready for our Spring and Winter events, projects, and ministries. Staff and leaders are meeting and planning and beginning to talk about some of the things that will be coming up in the months ahead.

Between what we are doing now and what we are planning for the Fall, things can get a little confusing. So let me see if I can clear up some of the confusion that I’ve heard of. Hopefully I won’t muddy the waters further. Please read the entire article.

Sports Camp – We are in the middle of sports camp this week and we’ve had around 50 kids attend. A large number of those kids don’t attend church at FCBC and many don’t attend church at all. Several years ago we made the decision to do sports camp rather than VBS because we felt it would be a better tool for reaching unchurched kids and presenting the Gospel. Sports Camp has helped us reach that purpose AND it’s been a great way to disciple kids who have already made a commitment to Christ.

Kenya Trip – We have an ongoing partnership with Nairobi Gospel Centre in Kenya. Our partnership includes training local pastors and leaders as well as helping NGC with anorphan care initiative. The team that is leaving next week will be training pastors in two areas: sports camp and basic children’s ministry.

The sports camp training will take place in Nairobi and Mombasa. The team will be working with Uncharted Waters (they do our own sports camp) to train several hundred pastors to lead a sports camp in their own communities. The children’s ministry training will take place in Nairobi. The team will be using training material produced by Kids At Heart Ministries to teach around 100 children’s pastors some basic skills for children’s ministries. We’ve led two similar trainings in the past.

We will also be providing NGC with one of the best resources we have – our Children’s Pastor.Elise will be staying an extra week in Nairobi to coach their team as they lead a Vacation Bible School. This is something they have asked us to do and we are pleased to support them.

Dominican Republic Trip – This was a last minute opportunity that we decided to go for.It’s a construction trip to help finish the third floor of a school. A couple from our church went to the DR earlier this year to distribute Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes. This is NOT an OCC shoebox trip. We will be taking another one of those in March.

The church that our team worked through has been building a third floor for their school and the trip this summer will help the church finish the project. The trip is Aug 7-14 and is relatively inexpensive. If you have a current passport and want to participate, let me know.

Back Packs for FACETS – We launched this ministry this past Sunday. For the next couple of weeks we will be collecting financial donations and school supplies for FACETS. We will also be helping FACETS with their Back to School Parties for the children of low-income families in Fairfax County. At the parties, the kids, with the help of adults, will pack their new backpacks with the school supplies they will need for their particular grade. If you have questions about this ministry, post a comment.

Water Wars/Operation Christmas Child Prep – On August 22 we will be having our annual “Water Wars.” Simply put, it’s a big water gun fight between our kids and adults. It’s a great family event and a wonderful opportunity to invite friends and neighbors who are looking for a church that knows how to have fun.

This year we are combining this event with some ministry preparation for Operation Christmas Child. The team will be getting info out soon about what kind of prep work we will be doing.We are NOT collecting ANYTHING for Operation Christmas Child at this point. We are simply doing some early prep work. So join us early for the OCC ministry prep. Or join us later for food and fun.

As I said, our summers are not what they used to be. It’s exciting that we can be a church that is able to slow down, relax, and get some rest in the summer while at the same time doing some great ministry in our own community and oversees.

'Homeless' Documents America's Forgotten Kids

Here's a link to a video that one of our ministry leaders posted on Facebook. Our church is gearing up for an annual ministry we do to help kids from low income families get ready for school. Basically we collect school supplies and backpacks and then throw a back to school party for the kids. At the party, adults get to help the kids pack the supplies they will need for their specific grade. A lot of the kids we meet are considered homeless; most of them live in hotels.

The video is a promo for an HBO documentary that airs tonight (July 26). I actually have a free subscription to HBO for the next month so I will be able to catch it. The documentary profiles the homeless kids and families of Orange County, CA, BUT these kids and families are in all of our cities and towns.

I've been to Orange County and have friends who live there. It's basically Fairfax County with palm trees. We have some of the very same problems as they do when it comes to homeless families.

Here are some stats from the video that were hard to hear:

• 40% of those who are homeless in America are families.
• 1 in 50 kids in America are homeless.
• The average age of the homeless in America is 9 years old.

I'm thankful for groups like FACETS in Fairfax County to help us help homeless families. I'm thankful we have a church that cares enough to get involved. I'm thankful we have people leading some of our ministries to the homeless who understand the need, some of them first hand.

If you live in Fairfax County, get involved with one of the many organizations, non-profits, churches and ministries who are working to solve this problem. If you live somewhere else, look for a place to plug in; if there's not a place, create one.

'Homeless' Documents America's Forgotten Kids

Pray and Play Retreat

Our staff is heading down to Lake Gaston, NC tomorrow for our annual Pray and Play Retreat. We take our entire staff plus their families and for four days we play and pray together.

There will be lots of boating, tubing, skiing, card games, kayaking, movies plus some great group devotions and concentrated pray.

I haven't made the commitment yet, but I'm thinking about completely unplugging for the four days.

Change of Pace + Change of Place = Change of Perspective

As I write this, my children, and many of yours are finishing their last hour of school for the year. Summer is finally here. It seems like this was a particularly long school year. But now it’s time to slow the pace for a couple of months.

I have a friend who’s a pastor. He has an equation that he uses in his personal life. It goes like this: change of pace + change of place = change of perspective. It’s a formula that I’ve used myself to evaluate where I am and how I’m doing in life and what God has called me to do and be.

As we head into summer, this is a great time to put this equation into play in our lives. Most of us will get away in some way this summer; a week’s vacation, a weekend get away, time off from work at home, a mission trip, you name it. Let me encourage you to take those opportunities to look for a change of perspective in some area of your life.

Here’s a few questions that have helped me discover some life-changing lessons as I gained a new perspective. They might be helpful to you:

• How am I doing spiritually? Am I growing the way I want or should? If not what needs to change? Do I need to add any spiritual habits to my life?
• How are my relationships? Is there healthy communication? Do we have healthy disagreements? Is there a relationship that is missing that I need to pursue this year?
• How is my work life? Do I find fulfillment in what I’m doing? Am I allowing God to use me at work?
• How is my relationship with my church family? Am I serving out of my SHAPE? Is there a next step of commitment that I need to take?
• How is my pace of life? Is it balanced? Do I need to slow down (do less)? Do I need to speed up (do more)?

A change of perspective may come with some challenges. I might have to give something up, or I might need to add something. It may challenge me to think or act differently. And there could be some risks involved.

But here’s what I’ve found over and over and over. When I have a change of perspective about things in life, it leads to growth. It makes me a better husband, father, friend, neighbor, leader, Pastor – a better person.

Change of pace + change of place = change of perspective. Go after it this Summer and see what God does.

Think Orange

I’ve just started reading a new book that I'm pretty excited about. I’m actually going to blog through it as I read the ten chapters. The book is called Think Orange: Imagine the Impact When Church and Family Collide... by Reggie Joiner.

You might ask, “Why orange?” Here’s basically what Reggie says about why he chose the color orange. Orange is a secondary color, created when you combine two primary colors – red and yellow. Orange is the outcome of taking two influences and combining them to create a vibrant effect that you couldn't get otherwise.

The principle behind the book is about two entities partnering to make a greater impact or to create a better solution. In practice the book explores the possibilities of what can happen if the church and the home combine efforts for the sake of impacting the next generation.

Reggie writes:

“I am not suggesting that the church and the home merely need to work concurrently and effectively in order to accomplish more…Working on the same thing at the same time is not as effective as working on the same thing at the same time with the same strategy. When you creatively synchronize the two environments, you get more than just red or yellow – you get Orange.”

Here's why I'm excited about this book and the work Reggie and his company have done.

A few years ago, a name was coined by those working education to refer to some of the parents they were encountering. The name was "hover parents." Basically, it describes parents who have a desire to be hands-on in nearly every area of their kids lives, especially their primary education.

The phenomenon took local schools by storm. All of a sudden they didn't just have parents showing up for sporting events to cheer for their kids or getting involved in the PTA. They had parents showing up in the classroom on a regular basis to volunteer. Teachers became inandated with Emails from parents wanting to give input about their kids' education. It created a unique problem for schools and teachers.

That same phenomenon, "hover parents," has reached the church.

Now, while many schools, administrators and teachers viewed it as an intrusion, I think church leaders should see it as divine intervention. A growing number of parents are no longer content to drop their kids off at Sunday School and leave the spiritual growth of their kids up to the local church. They want to be spiritual leaders in their kid's lives.

I'm one of those parents. Nothing gave me more pleasure than baptizing my own son or sitting with my wife and son while our daughter gave her heart to Christ. I love watching my kids grow in their faith and knowing that I am helping to shape that.

I'm also a pastor. And I love watching the church be a part of shaping the lives of kids and standing with parents as they raise spiritual champions.

But back to Reggie and the book. Here's why I am excited about this book. Left on it's own, the "hover parent in the church" phenomenon will cause nothing but frustration for both parents and church leaders. I've already seen some of that frustration in our own church and in other churches around us. The frustration of knowing the goal and seeing the potiential but not knowing how to get there.

But Reggie's company, The Rethink Group, has created some strategies to help churches and parents come together as two leading influences in kids lives to create a vibrant effect that you wouldn't get otherwise - Orange.

Here's an excerpt from the Rethink website:

Children and student ministry brings pressure. It can frustrate and bring joy.
It stresses and exhilarates. It makes you want to share victories and scream for
help. You’re here because you’re looking for answers. OK, you found us. Breathe.

We believe we have answers for you. They are in the form of a ministry strategy that, if you let it, can revolutionize the way you approach children and student ministries—even the way your church functions as a
whole unit.

I'm looking forward to "thinking Orange."

One of My Favorite Places

One of my favorite places is Fairfax Corner. In the warmer months our family will sometimes walk there from our house (about a mile) and get some Ben & Jerry's Ice cream.

Fairfax Corner is a town center complete with residential space, shops, an awesome movie theatre, restaurants, coffee shop and a fountain that is not only a piece of art but is designed for kids to play in. And did I mention the Ben & Jerry's?

I love Fairfax Corner because it's where worlds collide. Everyone from every walk of life is there, from kids to teenagers, to young adult and on up to older folks. On top of that, people from every place in the world are there.

I'm usually there at least twice a week. On Mondays I drop the kids off at school and then walk the dog over to FC. It's sort of a magical time because there's no one there at 9:00am. It's just workers getting ready for the crowd. Kind of like being on the beach early in the morning. It's a great way to start the week.

I'm also there on Thursdays. I don't work in the office on Thursdays; too many distractions for my ADD mind. So I work at Fairfax Corner, getting ready for Sunday and future messages and series. It's a great office.

One of the things that always comes to my mind when I'm there is how it would be a great place for a church. There's already a crowd. Great places to eat after worship. And what better place for a modern worship service than a movie theatre? Just a thought.