Tag Archives: Church Growth

Faithco Events and Updates:

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I am excited about the things that are happening at Faithco.  Here’s a quick look at last week and some upcoming events here at church:

1.  Pulse youth continues to grow; Kimmy Huxford delivered a great message to the youth about God’s grace and how it cleanses us.   Pulse is always a blast, and the food is always great!

2.  I spoke at our Discovery 1 session.  We are talking to 5 new families who are exploring church membership, church volunteerism and service, FRIENDS connect groups, and all the other topics of Newcomers and Discovery123.  People continue to join our church.  A healthy church is a growing church.

3.   I kicked off a new series called INTERVENTION.  This series explores how God sends people into the lives of others to confront them where and how they need to be confronted.  Last weekend we discussed how Abigail intervened in David’s life and kept him from murdering an innocent man.  This was a powerful message; I recommend that you check it out at www.faithco.tv if you were gone on Sunday.  Also, don’t miss the next parts of the series.  I believe they will be powerful messages.

4.  Things to remember:

  • August 31 –Baptism Celebration –Always a great time!
  • Sept 11-12 Next Generation Power Team — This will be something different.
  • FRIENDS Connect groups are gearing up for the new season; make sure you get connected.
  • Building Faith, the campaign for our new campus is on schedule.  Remember, we receive a monthly offering for commitments on the first Sunday of each month.  Be a part of the campaign by committing to give monthly.  No pressure…. just think about it.  It’s a good cause.
  • That’s it.

Faithco Updates:

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It has been a busy Summer at Faithco.  I can’t believe Summer is almost over.  Here are some of the happenings here at FCO for the past week:

1.  Pulse Youth ministry has a new worship band.  The prospects of the the up and coming singers and musicians are exciting.  I’m glad to help with the training.   Also Vanz (my daughter) spoke in the last Pulse gathering;  I was proud.

2.  The iServe series has got a lot of people stepping forward to be counted on for His service.   I believe iServe was one of the most powerful message series we’ve ever taught at FCO, and we are already seeing results.  The series may be over but the ripple effect continues.

3.  We dedicated 8 babies yesterday!  WOW!  Dedication of babies simply means as parents, we are committing to raise our children to live for God.  So many new babies; I’m glad we are on our way to building a new campus –we are out of space in every kids area.

Upcoming Events:

This Wednesday we kick off our quarterly Newcomers’/Discovery Series.  If you know someone who wants to get to know more about our church, invite them and/or come with them.  It’s a great learning environment with food and childcare.  This series ends with Baptism and Communion.  Don’t miss these intimate times of celebration and worship.  I believe we get so many complements on these two worship gatherings because this is one of the few “small church” things we still do.  I can’t really explain it, one has to experience it to get what happens at Baptism and Communion gatherings.

September 11-12 the Power Team (the guys that break and bend things) will be ministering at our church.  Big event.

Next FRIENDS of Summer will be September 18 –I think it is the Olympics theme.

FRIENDS ministry new season starts at the end of Summer, or at the beginning of October.

New Sermon Series in 2 weeks –It’s called:  Intervention – -You like it?  Basically, it is about bible characters who’s destructive paths were interrupted by a God sent person (I hope that makes sense).

that’s it

You don’t have to be baptized.

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Throughout my years in ministry I’ve had many people ask me if baptism was required for salvation.

From what I’ve read in the bible, I do not believe baptism is a requirement for salvation.  Romans 10 says to believe in one’s heart and to confess with one’s mouth that Christ is Lord brings salvation to the sinner.  One example in the bible could be the thief next to Jesus who was saved because he believed.   Obviously he was not baptized, but Jesus told him “you will be with me”.   No, I do not believe that baptism is a requirement to be saved.

However, I do believe that baptism is a response to being saved.  For years, I’ve been giving invitations for people to come to Christ and many people have raised their hands and prayed to give their lives to Christ.

I’ve found that there is a difference in the commitment level of a person who raises a hand or speaks a prayer, and the commitment level of a person who wades down into a pool of water in front of an audience of friends, family, and some strangers.

Here’s the point:  people who get baptized mean it.

Isn’t this is the point of baptism? To publicly identify a person as a new creation in Christ.  Doesn’t it say to all who are witnessing a person being baptized:  ”I am a follower of Christ, I’m new, I belong to God”?  I believe that it does.

So here’s the deal:  Although it might not be a requirement for salvation, it is however the natural response and the next step for the person who has come to Christ.

By the way, I get the privilege of baptizing at least 9 people tonight.

What are your thoughts on baptism?

This Past Week at Faithco…

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Here are a few things I felt were worth mentioning about last week at Faithco:

1.  Our Newcomers (which proceeds Discover 123) was last Wednesday, and had a few new families who have recently began attending our church.  It is always a treat to meet the new people of our church.  Newcomers is a place to learn about Faithco, connect with the leadership team, and connect with other new people.  I believe everyone who attends our church should go to Newcomers.  To learn more about Newcomers, or to sign up, contact Landon (landon@faithco.org).

2.  Pulse Youth continues to grow.  Butch reported to me that they had over 60 kids here on campus last Wednesday.  That’s huge.  The content of their gatherings is life changing.  They are talking about relationships, sexual purity and temptation, and other related topics.  I know it is life changing stuff because my kids come home every Wednesday night after youth and tell me how they were impacted.  Thanks to God for youth leadership that cares enough to teach where kids are.  You can check out and follow Pulse on Facebook.

3.  It was a big Sunday last weekend!  We called it the “Big Reveal Sunday”.  The whole idea was to show everyone what we all committed do to over the next 3 years towards our Building Faith campaign.  If you want to see these numbers and commitments, you can go to www.faithco.tv to watch the worship experience.  Seriously, if you were not at church this weekend and you consider Faithco your church, you really need to watch the message.  If you are in a hurry, skip to the end where I show everyone what we are committed to do.

that’s it

This Past Weekend…

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Our Easter, Resurrection Sunday was one of the best we’ve ever experienced at Faithco.  Here are just a few of the highlights:

  1. First of all, at least 25 people came to Christ in our adult and kid’s worship experiences.  People becoming followers through our church is a gift from God.
  2. The 8:00am worship turned out to be one of the best Easter ideas we’ve had,  I was surprised with all the people who showed up.  I didn’t know we had so many early risers.  The early service had a great feel.
  3. Our volunteers served with such excellence.  So many people got up very early to serve in 1, 2, and even all 3 services.  Some of our people worked all week-long to make the campus look better for this special weekend.  A great church has great people who display great service for his house and the community.  I am truly blessed to lead such a special servant minded church.
  4. The Praise Band was off the chart yesterday.  Man, they really blessed me.  Every now and then, we get Deana (my wife) on the band; she’s always a treat.
  5. Our Creative Media team brought out some great video.  Thanks to Bobby and all those who work so hard week-end and out, we are blessed with many visual effects.  Yesterday’s message would have been totally different without the video at the end.  You guys are the best!!
  6. All the rain was a blessing, but it was a challenge for our Easter egg hunt.  Still, our Faith kids team of volunteers made it happen by hunting inside.
  7. I had someone come up to me at the end of worship and thank me for the message on Christ’s resurrection.  She said many churches don’t teach on the resurrection on Easter.  My response to her was “hmm”.  I was so surprised by her statement that I had nothing to say.  What church doesn’t…..I’m not going there.

I know I’m missing something.  It was such an incredible day and so much happened.  It amazes me how fast the biggest and one of the most significant weekends of the year for the church goes by.  I’ll spend a couple of days basking in all the good things that happened; we will discuss it for about 30 minutes in this morning’s leadership team meeting, and I’ll get a few comments on Facebook.  Then, we move on and start looking at what’s next for Faithco.

He always has more and better for your life and his church.

That’s it.

This Past Week…

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I believe February was probably the busiest month of my life.  Between flying to Utah to finalize our church design and my wife’s surgery, I’ve been stretched.  However, all the great things that God has done is keeping me charged and excited.  Here are a few of those things:

1.  We are beginning a 60 day season of giving.  About 30% of our church has committed to the Building Faith Campaign.  Over the next 8 weeks, as our people become more aware of what we are doing and how they can contribute, we will definitely see that number grow.   I can’t tell you how excited I am to see what is going on in our church.

2.  The new campus design is a big hit.  I think we exceeded expectations with the help of the BGW architect team.  This structure will be a dream come true.

3.  People continue to come to Christ through our worship experiences.  I don’t care if it is 1 or 20 on a given weekend.  I never get used to it, and I never take it for granted.  It’s always fresh and amazing to me when someone lifts his/her hand and receives Christ.

If you don’t follow us on facebook, you can find us at Faith Christian.  Also, go to our website (www.faithco.org) and sign up on CCB if you would like weekly updates and messages sent to your email.  I get them and they are pretty informative and encouraging.

Okay, that’s all I’ve got.

Why Faithco Doesn’t Cancel Church for Snow Days

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I sometimes get questioned about our “No Cancel” policy that we have for our weekend worship.  The last few Sundays we’ve had some pretty bad weather, so I thought I’d talk about why we decided to keep church open regardless of the weather -especially snow and sleet days.

First , I feel compelled to say that I don’t require anyone (including our leadership team) to drive to church on snow or sleet days.  I tell them, “If you can go, then go, but don’t risk your life or your family’s to come to church”.  I leave this decision completely up to individual judgment, and I don’t pressure any of our team or volunteers to attend on these bad weather days.   Knowing this, let me tell you why we don’t cancel church although most churches do for bad-weather days.

First,  many of our people get out in bad weather.  My mother is 64 years old.  I tell her to stay home when the weather is bad and most of our people around this age do stay home.  However, the median age of our church is around 28 years old… maybe even younger.  Many of our younger people don’t stay home; they get out even in bad weather.  We stay open for the younger people who would come regardless.

Second, many of our people have SUV’s and trucks with four-wheel drive and are looking for another reason to put this $2500 option to use.  We have an adventurous demographic of people who seek the thrill of getting out on ice to test themselves and their all terrain tires in snow.  I have to admit that I may fit into this category.

Third, since so many churches shut down on bad weather days, we usually have a number of guests who are looking for a place to worship.  I’m always surprised by all the first-time guests who come on bad-weather days.

Faithco’s average attendance usually runs between 450-525 on a regular weekend.  Two weeks ago, during one of the worst snow storms in our state history, when most churches cancelled weekend worship, Faithco decided not to cancel.  We didn’t have 4-500 people, but we did have 265 people show up that day.  I think that is pretty awesome.

My personal commitment is that if there is any way possible for me to get to church on a Sunday, I will.  Why?  Because if any person comes to church on a bad-weather day, It could be that this person really needs to hear from God.  I’m there.

Plus, I like doing donuts in the church parking lot in the snow.

This Past Week…

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I haven’t posted in a while; I took a few days off with Deana for our anniversary.  Thanks for your patience.

Here are a few notes and thoughts from this past week at Faithco:

With all the snow, we have had to post-pone a lot of our mid-week activities, but we are back on schedule with our Wednesdays.

People ask me why we don’t cancel church on “snow days”.  I’ll answer this in my next post…you will want to read it.

We are at the half-way point of the introduction of Building Faith.   Yesterday, we spoke about prioritizing our finances and making Kingdom financial investments.   I know that talking about money, tithing, and giving during our worship experiences makes some people uncomfortable.  This used to concern me.  I’ve changed my perspective; if people are uncomfortable talking about money in church, they either need to grow in this area, or they have issues with greed.  You may disagree, but it has taken me years to come to this perspective.  My experience with pastoral finance teaching has led me to this conclusion.

The Building Faith meeting with all our volunteers and leaders was as informative as it was motivational.  I can honestly say that what Pastor Terry Bates taught changed my life.  I’ll be repeating some of his principles over the next few yeas…..Yes it was that powerful!

I’m excited about the upcoming weeks and months.  I believe God is about to blow our minds as we move forward in faith and make plans to expand our church campus.

This Past Week at Faithco…

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This past week at Faithco was one of the most exciting weeks we’ve ever experienced.  Lives continue to be saved and changed through every ministry in our church.  I’ve never seen such momentum in our church community. It feels great!

Since the first of the year, Faithco has seen at least 57 people make decisions for Christ.  January isn’t over yet and we are setting salvation records for our church!  This is amazing; I’ve never seen our church this evangelistic.  Coincidentally, this coming weekend I will be ministering on the subject of evangelism.  If you were not here this past weekend, make sure you get a journal ASAP; you will need it.  Also, it is important to watch Sunday’s message to be informed on the direction we will be going for the next 3-5 years.  You can watch it at http://www.faithco.tv.

Also, you can find a three-part series of the message on our Facebook page:  http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1501677542

 

Did you know that Demita Winegardner has written her first Faithkids curriculum?  It’s called “WAR GAMES” and it is one of the best and most creative kids curriculum I’ve seen.  We’ve got some talented people using their gifts for God.

We launched our Building Faith capital campaign and it is off and running with the prayer journals and weekly challenge to fast and pray.  Don’t forget to take time to go over our weekly journal question.

It’s time to build….our church has broken the 500 barrier for 2 Sundays in a row.  Incredible!  We are still working on the design that will be displayed in detail at our Celebration Banquet on March 6.

Lot’s of great stuff are on the horizon for Faithco, and I am glad to be together with you on this journey.

This Past Week…

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Just when I think God is done showing off in our church community, He shows up and shows off again another weekend.  I know that statement sounds a little “preachy” but I am truly blown away by how God exceeds our expectations weekend and week out at Faithco.  Here are a few details:

  • Our youth group Pulse had an a great time as they gathered last Wednesday.  We’ve got some talent coming on with speaking and worship teams.
  • Landon kicked off Newcomers and Discovery this past Wednesday.  We have 8 new members!
  • We have connected with the Shawnee Rescue team to offer our support and service for some of their Wednesday lunches.  If you want to know more about how you can support the community through SRM, contact Landon@faithco.org.
  • I was blown away with our churches response to the message on fasting.  I wasn’t sure how people would react to such a sacrificial subject; however, once again our church stood together in the 7 day challenge to fast.
  • 12 people made decisions for Christ –that’s a total of 25 adults in the last two weekend worship gatherings who have given their lives to Christ!  Only God!
  • Our second worship gathering was max capacity.  It’s time to build.  We are talking about this for the next few weeks.

Finally, if you are participating in the 7 day fast challenge, I will have something to say on this post almost every day to provoke thought.  I hope you visit this blog and comment.