My journey with Newspring began four years ago.  I’ll never forget coming across PerryNoble.com and being blown away by what I read.  I kept thinking to myself, “can he really say that?”  I found the Perry was saying what everybody else was thinking but afraid to say.  Needless to say, a curiosity was birthed inside of me to learn more about Newspring Church.

Within a few months my executive pastor and I managed to line up a lunch meeting with Perry in Anderson.  I’ll never forget what he said to me when I asked him about his boldness on stage.  He said, “the moment you begin to censor your words because of your critics you are done!”  That day I felt as if I was given permission to be ME…to say what God had put on my heart and to say it in a way that I WOULD SAY IT!

Fast forward through many trips to Anderson, multiple unleash conferences, and a pastors coaching network and somehow a friendship began between Newspring and Lifepoint.  There is NO Way I could adequately thank Karla, Jason, Joel, Lee, Ken, Brad, Shane, Lindsay, Margie, Coleen, and the rest of the crew for what they have meant to me and my team!  You guys are amazing and I am honored to serve alongside such incredible servants!

My experience preaching the Word of God at Newspring was an honoring one.  The nerves were definitely flowing!  I didn’t sleep much on Saturday night.  But the God who is rich in mercy stepped in and gave me everything I needed.  Throughout the course of the day I preached to over 9,000 people and saw 74 make decisions to begin a relationship with Jesus! Here’s a few random thoughts on my time at Newspring:

• The Newspring Team is over the Top.  I have to say thanks to Ben Coleman for filming a video on Saturday to send back to my Lifepoint crew.
• I couldn’t tell if my insides were rumbling from nerves or if it was just the bass rocking my world.
• I was excited about preaching on such a big stage until they told me that I couldn’t walk off the mat.  (apparently, walking off the mat=walking out of the camera which appears that I got raptured for all the campus’ watching via video)
• Yes, Perry made fun of me.
• Yes, he poked fun at my last name.
• Yes, my last name means cabbage.
• As it turns out, Pete Wilson and I are in a running for the best looking pastors in america award.  I think you can vote for me on facebook.
• You can tell that the Newspring team are really great friends.
• The 6 o’clock service definitely lived up to the hype.
• I was honored that my staff drove down after our 11am service to support me at the 6pm service.
• I had lots of friends praying for me and I REALLY appreciated it!
• I ate more food in two days than I have in the last two weeks!
• Hanger Steak and Peanut Butter Pie from Sullivans…HELLO!!!!!!

Thank you Newspring for setting an example for churches to follow.  Thank you Perry for being an authentic leader who pushes me to be a better pastor!

Thank you for an experience that I will never forget!

You can watch the message here.

Don’t tear down the fence until you understand why it was built. At the same time, relentlessly question the logic, “that’s how we have always done it.” What worked in the past may be outdated and could hold you back in the future.

Q?  What is one area of your organization that is ineffective?  If I were to walk into your department tomorrow without any emotional attachment to the traditions that currently exist, what changes would I make?

If you want to kill momentum, then insist on doing things by yourself. Momentum grows through team victories in which numerous people can claim to have played a role. The level of celebration on a team depends upon the level of participation.

Q?  What is one area that you are tempted to “go for it by yourself?”  Who are 2 people that you need to invite into the process?

An organization picks up steam when its leaders point to a better tomorrow. Momentum breaks down when leaders preoccupy themselves with the past. Or, as I’ve heard quoted, “Losers yearn for the past and get stuck in it. Winners learn from the past and let go of it.”

Many people have powerful dreams. However, most don’t realize that the viability of their ideal tomorrow is based on what they do today. The difference between a dream and wishful thinking is what you’re doing now. Practice today what you want to be tomorrow. If you do it well enough, someday you may arrive at your dream.

Q?  In one sentence, what are you dreaming of?

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It is never the size of your problem that is the problem. It’s a lack of momentum. Without momentum, even a tiny obstacle can prevent you from moving forward. With momentum, you’ll navigate through problems and barely even notice them.

As a leader, your responsibility is to understand momentum, to get it moving for your organization, and to sustain it over time. Momentum can be tricky to comprehend, though, often appearing elusive and intangible.

#1–

Momentum breaker – double-mindedness
Momentum maker – focus

By creating and following a clear and focused vision statement, a leader develops momentum. A leader drains away momentum by shooting at nothing or attempting everything.

Movement causes friction. When you paint a target for your team, you’ll likely encounter resistance. As a leader, you can’t restrict yourself by living inside of someone else’s comfort zone. Great accomplishments require leaders to fix their gaze beyond what’s easily attainable.

Q?  What are the top 3 things that you/your organization need to focus on?  What do you need to eliminate in order to bring focus and clarity?

——–

Pastor Jeff,

My name is Emily, and I was saved on May 23, 2010 at Lifepoint Chruch.  I received the welcome letter a few days later and have been struggling with what to write since that time.  I don’t really know what it was that made me put my faith in Jesus that day, but something was tugging at my heart and I knew it was what I needed to do.

I don’t know what to tell you and your staff about my life.  I grew up in Maine, and was neither Catholic, nor Methodist so I never really found a Church to call home (Churches are one or two per town in Maine instead of one or two per block like here in the Bible Belt!)  I come from a broken family, once comprised of a hard-working, loving mother, and an alcoholic, depressed, selfish and manipulative father along with their two children, is now two adult children- myself, happily married college student building a life and faith in God with my husband, my brother (who is the spitting image of my father, substance abuser, manipulator etcetera.)  My mum, still a hard working, loving mum, and a man who although biologically is my father, is a complete stranger to me, I have no idea where he lives and haven’t talked to or seen him for over half of my life.

I used to pray (or something like prayer, where I would stare at the ceiling before bed and ask whoever would listen) for my family to be happy.  For my dad to not be sick anymore, and for my parents to not divorce each other.  My worldly “mind” tells me (now that I am an adult with a healthy, happy, God-loving relationship with my own husband) that my parents were not meant to be together, and are both better off apart, that God had a different plan for them.  I had a strong relationship with my mum’s parents, who went above and beyond a grandparent’s role, and took care of me while my dad was in rehab for the first and second time, as well as almost every weekend and most school vacations.   I thank God for them every day.

I remember being happy when I was young, there were always some bad days, but overall I was a happy child, teen, and young adult.  I did well in school, graduated high school in 2003, and married my high school sweetheart Marc one month later.  We have been happily married since June 30, 2003.  I have to say now, since I was saved and have become a regular member at Lifepoint, that although I was always happy, I always felt that there was something more.  I felt that things were not quite complete.  I no longer feel that way, I feel now that my heart is whole and my life is where it should be at this point because I love Jesus.  I know there is more to building my faith, and that I will grow in that forever but now I am working on understanding more about the Bible, my relationship with the Lord, and getting my faith to that RIDICULOUS point.  (Ha-ha!)

I also want to thank you.  I know that you have done what the Lord has called you to do, but I don’t know if you understand just how much you have done for so many people.  I can’t speak for anyone but myself, though I am sure that I am not the only one that can say that you and your (God’s) vision for Lifepoint, and the reality it has become, have helped me in so many ways.  I feel amazing, I feel blessed, and I feel that my life is completely turned upside-down (in a good way!)  I know now, that I belong to something, that I am not alone, and that faith is more than just hoping things will work.  Faith is turning it over and trusting God to carry out his plan for me.  When my dad left and things got really bad I learned not to trust and felt very alone for a long time.  I smiled through tears and had an enormous amount of hatred in my heart because I felt abandoned.  I don’t feel that anymore.  I know that I can trust in God and that I don’t have to be angry or hate anymore.  I don’t have to cry, and I don’t have to feel alone.  I have God, and he is good, and I know and trust that now, because of you.

Thank you for being so ridiculous,
Emily

Our Setup Team gets major props this week!

What do you do when one of your trailers with half of your church gear has a flat tire, the spare doesn’t fit, and you’re separated by 17 giant speed bumps?

You empty the good trailer, drive it to the stuck one, switch the contents to the good trailer, and get a new tire installed by the end of services.

And that’s exactly what George Kapusta, Hart Wilkie and Daryl Strickland did Sunday morning before most of us were even awake!

A big thanks also to Chris Cox and the rest of the Setup Team for not losing any ground while setting up the auditorium!

That’s momentum that can’t be stopped!

• Our Dream Team is the secret sauce that makes Lifepoint so incredible.
• Momentum was about celebrating Jesus and the incredible team he has blessed us with.
• Our band kicked off the night with intensity!
• Every single band member did a phenomenal job leading in worship.
• The energy was off the charts.
• It was awesome to brag on our team.
• Here are a few of the things that have gone on around Lifepoint lately…
• 3 students invited Jesus into their life at the last Ignite Gathering.
• We had our highest and craziest attendance ever at the last Zone…and free ice cream from the ice cream man.
• We’ve got kidz0ne workers spending time with kids outside of Sunday morning!
• We’ve seen 96 people step up and give financially for the first time in 2010.
• We are averaging between 20-40 guys on Thursday morning Lifegroup.
• We have drilled 5 new wells in Namibia.
• Someone donated $1000 so we can give away Bibles!
• Every week people are starting a relationship with Jesus!
• I had the privilege of giving away the first “BIG MO” award to Deborah Warren.  Everyone that knows Deborah knows the contribution she makes to the Lifepoint team.
• I managed to stretch my 15 minute message into about 50 minutes!  Surprise! Surprise!
• The formula for momentum is P=MV2(the “2″ should be superscript but I don’t know how to do that in WordPress)
• You can listen to the message here.
• Following my message the entire room worshiped their guts out!  Literally!  I sang so hard my abs hurt!

Last night was incredible!  Thank you Dream Team for doing what you do!

Attention Dream Team, mark your calendars for Sunday, May 23rd for the kick off of Momentum: A Dream Team Gathering.  Momentum is an opportunity for our volunteers to get together to celebrate all that God has been doing around Lifepoint as well as spend an extended time in worship.  Momentum will be an all-hands-on-deck night for our team to hang out and party it up! So go ahead and save the date!

MOMENTUM-MAY 23RD-6PM!

It is estimated that a 747 with a full capacity load needs approximately 7,500-10,00 feet of runway to achieve take off.  Anything less can be a disaster.

One of the qualities that most leaders have is the ability to spot talent in the lives of others.  Often times, we see someone who has tremendous potential and therefore we fast-track them into a position of leadership.  Let me give you a WARNING: Talent will cause someone to appear larger than life! Once fast-tracked, it doesn’t take long until the potential they displayed begins to wane, the passion begins to fade, their character may come into question, and they simply crash and burn.  We tend to blame them for not delivering on their responsibilities when the reality is that they were set up to fail from the beginning.

The problem is not the person but the runway. Many casualties in ministry could’ve been avoided if we had simply extended the runway or proving ground before we elevate them in ministry.  I believe this is why Paul tells Timothy that leaders should be closely examined and pass a time of testing before they are put into play. (1 Tim. 3)

Slow down.  Lengthen the Runway.  Watch people fly.