Sunday is Not Game Day

This is a continuation of a series this week about why Project Church isn’t your typical church plant.  Check out yesterday’s post in case you missed it.

Difference #2 - It’s not about Sunday

My friends in ministry like to refer to their weekend services as, “game day.”  I can see where they are coming from.  In general, it is a pastor’s primary opportunity to speak to their entire church and to maybe reach someone who far from God.  To my pastor friends, every Sunday is Super Bowl Sunday and I admire that passion and commitment.

But this brings up the question: What is the playing field?

For the typical church plant, Sunday is game day and church is the playing field. The rest of the week is spent trying to make Sunday great.  Trying to get people to the big show.  The people of the church will often follow the leadership and make Sunday the big day of their week too (and primary means of worship).

But I’m afraid that if we church planters (and pastors) focus all of our attention on our weekly gathering,  we’ll send the signal that it’s all about Sunday.

It’s not.  It’s about every day (including Sunday).

For years people have gone to church on Sunday, put their church face on, and then lived a completely different lifestyle the rest of the week.  The church has often fed that ugly monster by doing the same thing.  The result is a bunch of hypocrites whose lives look no different than the unchurched person next door.

But what if the church changes the signals it gave? Instead of making Sunday the big day what if we made every day the big day?  How would that affect our structures, our leadership, our budgets, our ministries?

I don’t have all the answers to those questions but I can tell you this: For Project Church, the playing field isn’t the church service, it’s the real life relationships beyond the weekly gathering.  That’s where the rubber meets the road.

Relationship with Jesus. Relationship with spouse. Relationship with kids. Relationship with friends and family. Relationship with peers. Relationship with neighbors. Relationship with the world. Relationship with one another. I could go on but you get my point.

Relationships are the playing field- not the big show.

Sunday is not game day- every day is.

Worship is a lifestyle- not an event.

We can’t just say it with our words- we need to lead it with our church.

Tomorrow, I’ll share some thoughts on destinations and journeys.

Tags: Church, Church Planting, missional church, pastors

Influential Pastors Over 50

“Respect your elders.”  I remember my Paw-Paw telling me that growing up.  He was the one who made sure I said, “sir” or “ma’am”  or else I’d get a little whack upside the head (in love of course).  I loved that man.

Today, I’d like to honor some other gentlemen by listing 10 pastors over the age of 50 who have influenced me.  These mighty men are still kicking butt with no appearance of slowing down any time soon.  In fact, I think they are all just hitting their stride.  What a great example for young guys like me who are just getting started.

This is a diverse list of men who vary among theology, approach, and personality.  There are some guys named in this list I don’t always agree with.  But they all love Jesus and have influenced me one way or another.

Here’s the list in no particular order:

John Piper | Pastor | Bethlehem Baptist Church | Minneapolis, MN
The Influence: To love God and not waste my life.
I once heard Piper exclaim that he is never going to retire and he challenged those who waste the last 20+ years of their life playing shuffleboard instead of doing something meaningful.  After hearing that, I decided that I too will never retire.  In addition to being an inspiring pastor, Piper is a strong theologian. I read everything I can from him (see desiringGod.org) and reference his work often when I’m wrestling through something I’m not sure of.  I love his burning passion for Jesus. He is a legend in our time.

Tim Keller | Pastor | Redeemer Presbyterian Church | New York City, NY
The Influence: Have a Gospel-centered theology AND missiology
Perhaps the most brilliant man on this list is Tim Keller.  If you haven’t read his latest book, A Reason for God, you are really missing out.  Incredible.  Keller has been instrumental in shaping my missiology without losing grip of the centrality of the gospel.   How many people get invited to speak about Christianity at Google?  Keller has (view it here) and knocked it out of the park. Jon is right, Keller is the Professor X of the church world. As well as a gentleman and a scholar.

David Foster | Pastor | The Gathering | Nashville, TN
The Influence: Reject religion and passionately follow Jesus.
Dr. Foster is the renegade in this list.  In fact, he wrote a no-holds-barred book titled, A Renegade’s Guide to God. I have a bit of a maverick streak in me and Foster appeals to it yet challenges me to live an authentic life following Jesus. Gotta love that.  Foster is a church planter too.  He launched the Gathering not too long ago and it’s been fun to watch.   Follow David Foster’s journey on his blog.  You won’t regret it.

Rick Warren | Pastor | Saddleback Church | Lake Forest, CA
The Influence: Leave a legacy and care about the world around me.
Even if you don’t dig church, you’ve probably heard of Rick Warren.  If not, you may have heard of his book, The Purpose-Drive Life. It sold a few copies.  Many people seek fame and fortune and settle on it.  But not Warren.  He uses the momentum and influence he’s been given to make a difference in the world. Whether he’s investing in local churches and pastors or helping with the AIDS crisis in Africa, Warren has not drifted from his desire to see the world become a better place.  He’s a generous man and has been known to have lunch with Average Joe pastors and I even heard he gives away 90% of his income and doesn’t accept a salary from his church.  You can’t help but respect Rick Warren.

Wayne Cordeiro | Pastor | New Hope Christian Fellowship | Oahu, Hawaii
The Influence: Spend time with God every day.
Cordeiro is a breath of fresh air.   He has such a great energy and optimism. I can see why his church is growing and growing.  Several years ago, I was introduced to his simple approach to devotions.  I’ve seen many similar models, but for some reason this is what has stuck with me.  It’s called S.O.A.P.  Read Scripture. Observe what God is saying. How does it Apply to your life.  Pray about it.  The key to it all is to journal. Good stuff and it’s what I recommend to people when they want to spend time with God.  Thanks Wayne.

T.D. Jakes | Pastor | The Potter’s House | Dallas, TX
The Influence: Empty yourself and trust God will fill you back up.
From about age 18-20, I rarely went to church. But I often turned on the TV and watched Jakes.  The dude is the hardest working preacher I’ve ever seen.  The man poured himself into every sermon he preach.   You get the feeling that he preaches as if it’s his last sermon ever.  And he does it with loads of charisma and a ton of sweat.  I love it.    He even blogs - sometimes.

John MacArthur | Pastor | Grace Community Church | Sun Valley, CA
The Influence: Love and know thy Bible.
MacArthur knows the Bible inside and out.  Think of the smartest Bible person you know. Go ahead.  Odds are, that person probably reference John MacArthur and his commentaries and books.  He’s crazy smart and I think he knows it.  Just being honest.  However, I respect a man who has such a high view of Scripture. For young guys like me, it’s something to emulate.   The cool thing is much of his work is available on-line for us to learn from.

Larry Osborne | Pastor | North Coast Church | Vista, CA & beyond
The Influence: Rethink the way we do church and take risks.
Osborne and his church were innovative before innovative churches were cool.  He’s a pioneer in the multi-site movement and big on healthy churches and small groups.  He’s a leader’s leader. I once read something from him where he challenged leaders to build the church they would want to go to.  That’s always stuck in my head.  And now that we’re a month of from launching the first venue for Project Church, I resonate with it more than ever.  I’m excited to see what Osborne and his team at North Coast do in the future.

Bill Hybels | Pastor | Willow Creek Community Church | South Barrington, IL
The Influence: Care about people far from God and be a courageous and humble leader.
Hybels gets picked on a lot for being the “seeker-sensitive” guy and for the results surrounding the recent Reveal Study.  However, I respect him for both.  He had the guts 20+ years ago to give a rip about people far from God and have a church environment that proved it.  Also,  he and Willow Creek did what too many churches won’t do- ask the tough questions about their church.  They did so with Reveal and were humble enough to share the results with the rest of the Church.  That’s bold leadership with a humble heart.

Andy Stanley | Pastor | North Point Community Church | Alpharetta, GA
The Influence: Make vision stick and keep things simple.
It turns out Andy Stanley turns the big 5-0 this year so he makes the list.  There’s much to appreciate about Stanley.  But his biggest impact for me has been his wisdom surrounding vision and making it stick.  I don’t think a single book he’s written hasn’t had at least a section of it devoted to vision.  He regularly states that vision begins with a burden for what could and should be.  He has a knack for saying something profound in simple ways.  That’s the mark of an effective teacher and outstanding communicator. Andy Stanley is both.

Who would you add to a list of influential pastors over 50?
(Note: Negative comments about these men will not be posted.)

Tags: andy stanley, bill hybels, Christianity, Church, david foster, God, Jesus Christ, john macarthur, john piper, larry osborne, ministry, pastors, religion, rick warren, T.D. Jakes, Tim Keller, wayne cordeiro

Perry Fires Me Up

Perry Noble writes a great post today about passion.  This guy is like the coach who always seems to give the motivational speech at just the right time.  I love Perry.

If you don’t know Perry, you should.  He’s the pastor of one of the fastest-growing churches in America, NewSpring Church in Anderson, SC.   He’s one of the best communicators I’ve ever heard, one of the most inspirational leaders I’ve ever seen, and of course, one of the most passionate pastor’s kicking it today.  Most importantly, he loves Jesus and it shows.

It’s men like Perry who inspire me to plant a church.

Check out his blog.  Read it long enough and he’ll fire you up too.

Tags: Cool People, newspring church, pastor, pastors, perry noble, perrynoble