Exponential

I just got off the phone with some of the guys with the Exponential Conference.  Some pretty great stuff is being cooked up for this year…particularly those of us that indulge in the blogging arts.  They were telling me that quite a few of the tracks are beginning to sell out…I’m glad the staff and I are already signed up.  By the way…did you know that they are doing a track for the wives.  I’m really digging that…it’s something I wish was around when Denise and I planted Compass Point.  Anyway…get signed up…I’ve heard the “inside” plans…you will not want to miss this conference!!!

Halftime

I’m 42 years old today…halftime. The game has been sweet up until this point…but the second half is going to ROCK!!! You ain’t seen nothing yet….God has given me some pretty incredible plays for the third and fourth quarter!!!

These words keep running through my mind today….

So understand
Don’t waste your time always
Searching for those wasted years
Face up… make your stand
And realize you’re living in the golden years

 

A free copy of Fusion by Nelson Searcy to the first one that names the song and band…

I Got Tagged

My friend Adam Mayfield tagged me today…and thinks I won’t follow through with it.  It’s my birthday…so I might as well have some fun.  The tag goes like this…

• Pick up the nearest book of 123 pages or more (no cheating!)
• Find page 123
• Count down five sentences
• Post the next three sentences
• Tag five people

The book is “Patoral Ministry: How To Shepherd Biblically” by Dr. John MacArthur (it’s sitting on my desk right now).  Dr. MacArthur is talking about the requirements for pastors/elders as found in 1 Timothy 3 and the tagged sentences are:

God’s logic for these high standards moves from the lesser to the greater.  If a man cannot lead the little flock of his own family effectively, he certainly cannot fruitfully undertake leadership of the larger flock, the church. “But if a man does not know how to manage his own household, how will he take care of the church of God (1 Tim. 3:5)”

I’m still thinking about the five folks I’ll be tagging…but rest assured I will be tagging five others. 

How We Roll: Two Assumptions

In our three short years of ministry, we have discovered at Compass Point the only people looking for community, purpose, better life management and “feel good” Christianity are…Christians. We have discovered that the “unchurched” or “disconnected” are looking for the God…and God alone. Time and time again we are reminded of that. Not just because we are seeing fruit in what God is leading us to do…but because we talk to many folks within our community that would never identify themselves as Christians. Because of this, the leadership at Compass Point clings to two assumptions when planning and implementing what we do:

Assumption #1 - Disconnected people come to church because the Holy Spirit is already at work in them. If God is already speaking to them…then all we have to do is be sensitive to His leading in the steps we need to take. The last thing we want to do is mess up God’s plan for someone’s life because we were locked into set systems and practices. That doesn’t mean that we don’t have a system in place for discipleship…but it does mean we don’t have a set system for the “salvation experience”. On my best day in the pulpit all I can do is plant seed. Each person comes to the Father by Jesus Christ through the individual way the Holy Spirit speaks into their life. The best we as pastors and Christians can hope for is that God will use us somewhere in the process. When a ‘disconnected” person walks into Compass Point we listen…and train our flock to listen…to God for the next instructions…if there are any. At the end of the day He doesn’t even need us in the process…but it does tend to rock your world when He allows you to be.

Assumption #2 - Disconnected people are coming to church because they are looking for authenticity. We have discovered that “unchurched” people aren’t looking for sensitivity…they are looking for authenticity. In the 21st Century “seeker-sensitive” will kill you…it is a dinosaur of a concept. While I can only speak intelligently about the needs of the “disconnected” in Lakeland, Florida…we have found that disconnected people want to hear the authentic preaching of God’s Word and be involved with authentic friendships…not just someone trying to get a notch in their “evangelism belt”. It may not be that way elsewhere…though in talking to other pastors…I feel that it is. “Unchurched” people don’t want a “mamby pamby” message about how to love your mother-in-law in seven easy steps…they want to hear about a God that doesn’t tolerate sin and the Bible without cultural filters. “Disconnected” people aren’t looking for a cookie-cutter approach or corporate system for how to get involved with a small group…they are looking for some one to befriend them and then ask them to join in.

Anyway, this is the two assumptions we have concerning “disconnected” people that join us on Sunday or any other time throughout the week. It is also just one of the ways we roll at Compass Point.

The Power Of God Through Pete And Perry

This Sunday Compass Point baptized two people. Both of them had been far from God and had given up on church. One was a youth and another was Pete. On Sunday afternoon…as I was looking through the photos shot of the baptism…I keep hearing the words of Steven Furtick during his Evolve breakout session…”can we please stop throwing out numbers at conferences…these are people we are talking about…not a number…they matter to God!” With that in mind I thought I would post to my blog about Pete’s life and conversion. Then the Holy Spirit ran with the ball…and things exploded!!

Perry Noble picked up on the story…which I’m grateful for because he and NewSpring played a BIG part in Pete coming to Christ. From there others began to read about Pete and post about him on their own blogs. People from as far away as Australia and as close as Orlando were talking about Pete…and sending people to this site. On my best days I only have about 300-400 hits…yesterday there were over 2,300. Eventually it pushed ChrisElrod.com into the #2 spot of the “Fastest Growing WordPress Blogs”…and then something totally unexpected happened…people far from God began to drop by, send me emails and leave comments.

Most claimed to be atheists…some just wanted to challenge the idea that Pete was going to Heaven…some began to question why they wouldn’t be going to Heaven. The were a few from other parts of the United States…one from New Zealand…and one from right here in Lakeland. I answered the Lakeland man’s email…yesterday afternoon we met for coffee…Sunday he’s suppose to come to Compass Point. I never cease to be amazed just how mighty God is!!!

Pete…

This is Pete.

Pete has smoked since he was teenager.

Pete struggled most of his life with alcohol.

Pete used to shoot people when he’d get angry.

Pete spent 15 years behind bars.

Pete has cancer…a bunch of cancer.

Pete has been given only a few months to live.

Pete has a tattoo on his leg that says “Hell Bound”.

Pete won’t be going there.

Pete came to know Jesus two weeks ago.

Pete was baptized today.

Perception Is NOT Reality

This week I heard another “expert” in church growth using the asinine phrase “perception is realty”. Perception is not reality…it is only perception. Einstein’s “Law Of Relativity” (not to mention God’s Word) pretty much squashes the whole “perception is reality” myth. Perception is strictly your take on something from the point from which you view it. The reality of what you view remains unchanged…as it is reality unobstructed (duh)….you only see it differently because of your point of view. That does not mean that your view is correct…it just means it’s your point of view (much like this blog post). To get a true sense of reality you must be close to what you are viewing…or your perception will be flawed.

If someone is far away from God…and His Word…then their view is going to be vastly changed from that of someone that is close to God. The view doesn’t change the reality…of Truth…the perception is not the Reality. To suggest that we allow the perception of those far from God dictate the direction of the Church…instead of following the reality and Truth of God’s Word…is a dangerous and flawed concept!!!

My Two Hats

In my calling I wear two hats.  One hat is that of a shepherd…one that leads, guides and helps the sheep.  It involves going after the one that is lost…provide comfort for the one that is distraught…and actively love the one that feels that there is no hope.  The other hat I wear is that of a preacher…one that must bring forth the Word of God without compromise.  It involves teaching the truths of the Bible without cultural interference…a desire to confront sin where ever it may lurk…and a willingness to live or die by the Scriptural revelations.  Half of the sheep want me to wear only one hat…half of the sheep want me to wear the other.  The God that I serve…the Maker of this universe…the Creator of Truth…the One that called me…wants me to always wear both.  Some days that is difficult…but it is what is needed in today’s society!!!

“The times demand Christian courage. These days, courage means that preachers and Christian leaders must set an agenda for biblical confrontation, and not shrink from dealing with the full range of issues…” - Dr. Albert Mohler

Random Thoughts, Quotes And Link Overload From “Evolve Conference 2008″

These are just random thoughts, quotes and links from my time at “Evolve 2008” this week.

1. The Compass Point staff and I had a blast…came back with a BUNCH of in-jokes…and discovered that we need an RV for the church.
2. The Mountain Lake team never ceases to amaze me with their professionalism, hospitality and servant’s hearts.
3. It’s great to finally be at a place that we come back from conferences and only tweak what we are already doing…not totally revamp everything.
4. The Compass Point staff got fired up and I got my toes stepped on BIG TIME during the main sessions. I’ve got to be a better leader…get back to the things of God…and let some of this administrative stuff go to the ones God has called to handle it.
5. Just being around the staff of guys like Shawn Lovejoy and Steven Furtick…seeing how they interact…conduct ministry together…was worth the price of admission.
6. Shawn Lovejoy’s main session ROCKED my world…and helped me zero in on some areas I need to get worked out in my own life…and leadership.
7. Steve Furtick’s breakout session made me want to crash the gates of Hell with a squirt gun. We are getting more clay pots ready for the oil (you had to be there).
8. David Putman can actually pull off the whole “road hog biker” thing!!!
9. Had a blast getting to know Chris Rosebrough of Extreme Theology.
10. “Our systems looked stupid when we were running 40 people. People would laugh at us back then…no one’s laughing now!” - Steve Furtick
11. My staff would leave me for Dave Anderson and Gary Lamb in a heart beat (don’t even think about it guys)!!!
12. I feel a little bit better about getting beat by Jay Hardwick in Guitar Hero after he won the whole thing.
13. Telling a room full of pastors how to reach today’s culture with the Gospel…while never even once mentioning the Word of God or a passage of Scripture in a 45-minute breakout session…just leaves you irrelevant in the “World of Elrod”!!!
14. “Self control is about getting under God’s control” - Shawn Lovejoy
15. I wish I had the eloquence and vocabulary of Mark Batterson. That dude is the walking example of an effective communicator.
16. I love hanging out with Tadd Grandstaff and Scottie Pollard.
17. “Courageous leadership is not the product of “cut and paste”…it must be born from the inside out!” - Steve Furtick
18. God gives me dreams from seeing other people’s dreams in action!!!
19. I got to be at Jason Salamun’s first tasting of Waffle House. That dude is going to serious make some impact for Christ in the Rapid City area!!!
20. Somebody PLEASE go over to Mark Love’s blog and comment. It might inspire him to post something more than twice a year!!!
21. One minute I’m talking to Patrick Gillen and the next minute he is becoming a father. Weird how one day can go.
22. It always blows me away seeing how God to can use such diverse methods and people for His kingdom!!!
23. My conversations with Scott Whitaker are never long enough. The guy seriously stretches me.
24. I finally got to finally meet Chris Reeder and his wife Susanne. They are like one of the coolest church plant couples I’ve ever met. I look forward to hanging out with them in the future for a longer conversation.
25. “Don’t let the arrow of criticism pierce your heart until it passes through the filter of the Scriptures” - Mark Batterson
26. Made plans to hook up with J.R. Lee and Michael Lukaszewski for some one-on-one time.
27. Being around great pastors…helps to create great pastors.
28. Found out that Furtick reads my blog…gee…no pressure there.
29. I still have a week’s worth of processing to get everything I discovered at Evolve out of my head…onto paper…and into action.
30. Paul Peterson is going to rock Cincinnati for Christ…that guy is so ready…I wish I had been as prepared as he is when Compass Point was planted.
31. I am totally JACKED UP for Unleash next month!!! See some of you there…

Our New Office

If there is one thing I have learned in three years of church planting…it is wait upon the Lord.  He has so much more in mind for us that we can’t even fathom.

For several years we have wanted to get into some type of office.  Just by the very nature of our leadership structure and style…we don’t really use an office for more than meetings and study.  There have been some offers from local businesses over the years for office space but it was almost always too expensive.  We just kept praying…and waiting…being open to God’s providence when He was ready to deliver.

This morning we began to move into our new office.  We are actually sharing it with an innovative energy company .  Okay…in all honesty they own it…but are sub-leasing parts of it to us.  We have one large office with a shower, a conference room, a large fully functioning kitchen, a foyer/receptionist area and a HUGE mail room that doubles as an assembly area for printed projects.  The whole place is wired with wireless T1 lines (as in faster than DSL), a rather extensive phone system and we have access to a MONSTER color copier/publishing machine (the freakin’ thing does binding).

What is the price tag for all of this?  $100 a month.  I kid you not!  God knows our needs so much better than we do.  I’m glad we remained patient…followed God’s leading…and waited for Him to deliver in a BIG way!!!