I love this Church!

I was thinking about something that Rick warren said when I was in Atlanta at the beginning of the month. Talking to a generation of Church leaders who have characteristically become very negative about the Body of Christ (seeing little in its existence that is redeemable, complaining about its voice in the world, etc.), Rick Warren asked a vital question: How can you say that you love Christ, and in the same breath say that you hate the Church?

The truth is that the Church is the Bride of Christ. Warren pointed out that love for Christ and dislike for the Church is like saying that you love me, but you can't stand my wife. To be honest, you and I wouldn't have many conversations after that... at least not ones where you left undamaged.

I love this Church.

I love both the Body of Christ and New Hope Community Church. I am not blind - I know that both have their flaws. The Body historically has a sorted history and may have some things that we need to clear up... and some times when we (as the Bride) have been unfaithful to our spouse (but, that's a post for another time). New Hope has its fair share of issues and problems, but to be honest, I think that we see them and are actively working to correct them. The truth is, that every Church (and I do mean EVERY church) has its share of issues... its almost like each church is run by and filled with flawed, broken people.

Honestly, think about some of these things that are amazing about New Hope Community Church:

• We are OK with flawed people. I love the fact that the seats are filled every Sunday morning with people who are struggling to choose who will be Lord of their life. I love the fact that there is an AMAZING DIVERSITY of people in our Church. People who grew up in Church and are just now finding relevance in Scripture sitting next to people who are just now beginning to ask questions about God. I love the fact that we love people exactly where they are but love them enough to refuse to leave them there. How cool is that?
• We have a ROCKIN' worship band! (by the way - I was talking with Rod Eckley this past Sunday and was expressing to him how great things sound when I realized that I no longer have to stop focusing on God to tell that what the musicians are playing/singing is really stinkin cool!) You guys are awesome and the greatest thing is that you give an opportunity for nearly a thousand people approach God every week - what a great thing!!!! THANK YOU ALL!
• We have a killer Children's ministry! My daughters look forward to Church more than just about anything that we do in a weeks time. I remember when I was their age trying to convince my mom that I was sick so that I could stay home. The only convincing that we have to do to get the kids to Church is my poor wife trying to get them into Church clothes (we hate "tights") (not really sure why we still dress them up like that for church?)
• We know where we are going! These past few weeks of core value sermons ("Next Steps") has clarified a ton for me as a leader here at New Hope. I mean, I knew what our core values were and I could even define them, but hearing them fleshed out in our building (TOGETHER) has been huge for me. I see a clarity in our future that can't be overestimated. Now, we have a lot of work to do (I think George has identified more things for us as leaders to work on that he has things for the people in the seats), but I love that we know what we value and where we are headed... that puts us ahead of probably 90% of Churches.
• We have a Senior Pastor who seeks to honor God and recognizes the vital need for integrity. I have said this a million times, but there is comfort in knowing that I will not wake up and read about George Kreger in the newspaper! we all need to pray more for George - its tough being the main man in charge of an organization and staff this size... that's a lot of responsibility.

There are so many more things that I love about New Hope (like the Student ministry ROCKS!) but there isn't space here (or tolerance on the part of readers).

But here is one more thing that I love: We know we aren't there yet. Nobody around here is so enamored with things that they cannot see the significant flaws - - nobody has such an inflated view that we can't see the need for change and revamping. The best thing about New Hope is that there is very little that is sacred when it comes to programs and approaches... if it's not working and you can identify a better solution, let's start moving that way. I have worked in Churches my entire adult life and I know how valuable it is to be able to move when we need to.

In the end, it is very easy to focus on the negative when it comes to Church (either the larger, global Body of Christ or this local one). The truth is, that it is too easy. We too often let people focus on the negative without helping them see the potential for change and possibility. New Hope has such amazing potential, but to be honest, it isn't in the talent of the staff or the grandness of its structures - it is in the LIVES OF ITS PEOPLE! Our greatest potential lies in the potential to see lives changed!

By the way... if that step on your toes when it comes to your church, then maybe your feet are in the wrong place (Phil 2:14-18).

When nobody is around

It's amazing how things change when you know someone is watching.

You know - I might be perfectly willing to belt it out to my favorite songs when I am in the car by myself or what about when we dance, head bang and play air guitar when nobody is home? (or at least I hear that people do those sort of things... not me of course... just someone I know).

What I am getting at is that the presence of people around me motivate me in different ways. I put more thought behind things depending on who is listening (for example, students on Wednesday night are a lot more forgiving than adults on Sunday... evidenced in the amount of time spent in preparation... and the amount of butterflies)

Tonight, I was at my good friends "the Frames" when it came to my attention that more than my wife and I know about this little blog. Now all of a sudden I feel like I was dancing in the living room only to turn around and find out that my friends were watching.

As I thought about it, it led me to think a bit about integrity (also a topic that I was just talking with Merrill about tonight).

Here is the thing...

You can't separate integrity from authenticity.

Think about it... integrity, at its' core is my being the same person in front of people as I am when I am alone. For me - that is my working definition of integrity... I want to be the same person no matter where you run into me. I have tried my best in these years of ministry to not set myself on a pedestal - partially because that will cause people to think one particular way of me (also part of the reason I fight people calling me "pastor Jeremy")... the problem isn't the pedestal... the problem is when they really get to know me - it won't be long until they find out that I am just a guy who is on the same journey with God that they are... at times running... at times stumbling... at times being dragged kicking and screaming (more often the latter than the former).

So where does that leave us? Whether you run a church or a business or a family, be authentic. Let your friends see the same broken, growing person that your clients see. Let the kids see the same struggling, submitting person that your boss sees. The truth is that we all have a built in BS detector... in the end, we can all tell when we are faking it... and if we can't, then that junk has a way of surfacing over time.

I want to be the same person that I am on the stage as I am in conversation... but I will still try to shelter you from the Jeremy I am when I work on my car... nobody deserves that guy!

Even negative momentum is momentum

Last night I started reading through Ezra... totally out of character for me, but I really want to start stretching my relationship with God.

While I was reading, I remembered a statement that Andy Stanley said at the DRIVE conference in 2005... "even negative momentum is momentum." What he was talking about was difficult to understand at the time. It's difficult to imagine that somehow a problem in an organization is going to help things keep moving forward. It seems to me like when there are problems, they detract from the progress that we are making. The honest truth is that I figured it was true because Andy Stanley said it and he is like a leadership genius in my book... I just didn't know how to make sense of it.

Last night I got a little glimpse of how that statement could be true.

Ezra 1:7 says that "Moreover, King Cyrus brought out the articles
belonging to the temple of the LORD, which Nebuchadnezzar
had carried away from Jerusalem and had placed
in the temple of his god."

It amazes me. God can redeem the crappiest situation. Even when a loser of a king steals all of the articles of value from the temple intended to worship God, He chooses (in His time) to set the wheels of time in motion to play out for His glory. King Cyrus took those valuables and replaced them in the new temple... why? not because he thought they looked nicer in there... not because he wanted some attention... ultimately he put them in the temple because God orchestrated it. Think about that.

GOD HANDLED EVERYTHING FOR HIS GLORY IN HIS TIMING.

How often do I get frustrated because God isn't doing what I want when I want? When problems arise (and they always do when you work with people), I need to keep my eyes on this reality. Even negative momentum is momentum... God may be up to something for His glory that I can't see right now. He is in the business of redemption... and He is very good at it.

Decision Time

It seems like I learn best from mistakes. It's not that I want to make them so that I can learn from them, it just seems like I need them to learn.

Recently, I have been learning allot (interpretation: I have been screwing up a lot lately).

As a leader, we are pulled so many ways when making a decision.

• We have faithfulness to the "mission" (that might be a statement, the Kingdom, or just some intrinsic value that we hold),
• We have the people we lead (their feelings, their opinions, etc)
• We have the ultimate good of the organization.

Sometimes, 2 of them are pulling the same way... the other seems like it pulls the opposite way just to make things difficult.

Here was the lesson I learned... maybe you wont have to make the mistake to learn it now (good luck with that)

Make decisions FOR the people in your organization...
make decisions WITH key leaders.

So often we can get bogged down trying to make decisions that will please our constituency - THAT NEVER WORKS!

A friend (who at this very moment I am grieving his moving) once said to me... "choose who you will lose" what he meant was that to choose to please the people you have will likely cost you the people you are trying to reach - to choose the people you want to reach may lose you the people you already have. We need to ask ourselves "who are we hear to reach?"

But at times, we get overzealous with the power entrusted us.

We make decisions FOR our organizations and roll over some of the key people and ideas that keep us heading in the right direction.

Think about this: What if a decision seems right to me, but lacks ultimate wisdom in direction, timing or execution?

The answer to this issue is surrounding yourself with key leaders who will provide a sounding board for your decision making process.

There are a couple of key terms in there. KEY - then need to be people who BUY IN to the mission and vision of the organization. They can't be people who are just loud with their opinion. LEADERS - they need to be people who aren't afraid to make waves. It is of paramount importance that these people be willing to stay the course even if it costs you momentum, people or even money.

Here are some questions for thought and discussion:

• How intentional is your mission/vision?
• Are you actively protecting the mission, or do you allow fragmentation because you lack the guts? (if you don't have the guts, how can you expect the people you lead to?)
• Who are the KEY LEADERS in your life and mission? Will they speak the truth? Have they "bought in" to the mission or are they leaders because you don't have the guts to take them out of the circle?
• Is is ok to "make do" with a less than competent leader in a key role until the right time comes along to replace him or will that hurt in the long run?
• What is your grid for decision making (who has a voice, how is it processed/communicated, when (how quickly) is it made)?