We’ve been a multi-site church for over 4 years now and it has been an exciting and challenging approach to reproduce congregations in other NW Georgia communities. I am a huge believer in church planting and the reproduction of healthy congregations. The simple mathematical fact is the current number of churches cannot keep up with the growth of the population and lostness of the U.S.
While there is a great effort to plant churches in our major cities and their suburbs, smaller towns are frequently not targeted by church planters. Some statistics show that smaller towns are nearly as unchurched as major cities. Additionally, small towns face serious “Gospel obstacles” such as legalism, traditionalism, ritualism, and “easy believe-ism” that potentially deceives people away from their real need of a saving relationship with Christ. Because our mission is to help reach and disciple people for Christ from here to the ends of the earth, we envision multiple sites being an ongoing part of our strategy and efforts to bring glory to Christ by fulfilling the Great Commission.
Here are some lessons we’ve learned along the way both from experience and from other churches:

We start sites as a mission of the church but expect sites to transition to being ON mission. New sites start with lots of support from other campuses as part of the church’s overall strategy for missions. Over time the site transitions to an army for the Gospel in its specific community.

The goal is not to multiple preaching points or worship centers but a vibrant congregation of Christ-followers who form a “bridge” to connect others to life in Christ. In other words, it is not just about convenience and hearing the same sermon or experiencing worship; it is about being the church in a community.

Stay where you are; serve where you live; be Christ in your own community. The simple fact is most unchurched people will attend a church service close to where they live. The simple fact is the longer we drive to go to church, the less likely it is than an unchurched person will come with you. Christians are more effective worshipping and serving where they live.

Video teaching is not an issue, unless that is all there is. A church is so much more than the sermon and the preacher, but if a multiple site (or any church for that matter) is only ministering through the sermon and preacher, then the impact will be limited and less effective.

Christians must be challenged and led to think beyond their preference, convenience, and comfort. Multiplying sites and churches is not easy but it is worth it and it is necessary (see 1st paragraph). Christ commanded us to “ripple out” from where He sovereignly places us (Acts 1:8; Acts 17:26). This is an issue of leadership and vision that comes from Christ Himself.

Worship is the fuel and the goal. As we worship Jesus, our hearts begin to break for people who do not know Him. True worship fuels us to “go”, to sacrifice, and to point others to Christ (see Isaiah 6:1-8). The goal: His glory through more worshippers. The more who worship Him, the more glory He receives … and His glory is our ultimate mission!

When we experience rapid increases in attendance like the past 2 weeks, it can create problems … good problems — there are people everywhere! We pray for problems like this! We want MORE people in church because that means MORE potential for God to be worshipped, Christ to be followed, and people to be loved. However, we need your help to make sure we stay prepared for what God has planned. So here’s what I’m asking:

1) Pray. Pray that God’s presence is known through our services into people’s hearts.

2) Put guests first. In Chatsworth, one extended family could not sit together because there were not enough empty seats!! We’ve had to add extra seats to Stage 123 the past two Sundays!!
Rock Bridge, you are bringing people to church with you … AWESOME!!

• So be alert, be helpful to others, and be willing to …
  • Sit closer to the front to make it easier on guests who may arrive later because they are unfamiliar with parking, children check-in, campus layout, etc
  • Sit somewhere differently than your preferred seat
  • Attend another service time or venue that might be less crowded

3) Follow-up with guests. I received an email this week from a church member who mentioned 4 new families to Rock Bridge and wanted to make sure we were following-up with them! That is dedication to connection, and connection is our mission!!

If someone comes to church because you invite them then please encourage them, thank them, and as they are ready point them to next steps of salvation, small groups, serving, membership, First Wednesday, etc. etc.
Let’s all of us help connect people from all walks of life to life in Christ!!

4) Keep inviting. If someone you invited has not responded yet, don’t give up … keep inviting and keep praying. Ask God to give you boldness and opportunities to point people to Christ and bring people to church. God loves to answer that prayer!!

For the renown of Jesus Christ in NW GA!!

“This kind can come out by nothing but prayer … “ [Mark 9:29, HCSB]

Then we all confessed why we fail to pray as Jesus taught: busyness, fear of disappointment, selfishness, dullness, lack of love, impure motives, uncertainty about God … it was convicting and powerful at the same time.
We even recounted God’s favor and blessings on our church and asked ourselves, “What if we prayed as Jesus taught?” WOW! The fact that God ordains prayer as a primary means of accomplishing His will is mind boggling and mysterious, yet exciting and joyous. The fact that we could be missing aspects of God because we fail to pray … it all drives us back to prayer.

So we resolved/repented together to “stop” praylessness and to pray like little children.

My sons ask relentlessly and boldly. They ask with expectation. They ask persistently. And even when we say “no” or “not now”, they accept my explanations, and then ask for something else. Their asking is a sign of their trusting; their asking is a sign of their relying; their asking is honoring to Beth & I as their parents.
No wonder God wants the faith of a child … and perhaps, the “prayerfulness” of a child too.

Ask. Listen. Seek. Hope. Expect. Ask again … and again.

“So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him.”
[Luke 11:13, NLT]

9.  You invited a BUNCH of new people last weekend — we had record attendance for non-Easter services!
Now what?! Keep inviting, invite people BACK with you, tell them about small groups, 1st Wednesday, membership, serving on a team, etc. Don’t let up because God’s Word PROMISES to fulfill its purpose.

8.  Joy Switch Part 2 is this week! We will be in Philippians chapter 1.

7. You don’t have to miss church if you work or are going to be out of town on Sunday! Why? Rock Bridge PM!

6.  We invested > $42,000 in local, national, and global missions this week!

5.  We’ve got some incredible videos, testimonies, and applications planned throughout Joy Switch … don’t miss church ’cause you don’t know what you might be missing!

4.  Our church is reading the Bible together for 25 devotional readings during Joy Switch. There is power in focus & unity AND there is great power in God’s Word. Like our eyes, the Bible helps us see, perceive, and enjoy spiritual beauty.

3. We are making progress to reach our goal of 125 small groups by 1/25; but we are not letting up!  If interesting in groups, email groups@rockbridge.cc

2. I love my church.

1. The tomb is empty!

Renewed and rekindled efforts to “reach people”
Reaching people was the first core value we came up with as a church in 2002. It is why we exist. It’s why we don’t have dress codes, confusing worship services; it’s why we started Rock Bridge PM; it’s why we have multiple sites; it’s why we invest in local and global missions; it’s why we want to multiply and create new small groups (new spaces for new people); it’s why we have multiple service times; it’s why we have host teams/coffee teams … it’s also why Jesus came and what He commissioned the church to do.
**Would you pray for God to use you to help connect one person to Christ and His church in 2012?**
As long as one person does not know Jesus or have a church family, our mission is incomplete.

Intentional Efforts to Increase Serving in our Church
We are saved from our sins and saved to serve God. We want to make serving part of what it means to be a member of Rock Bridge. We want people to enjoy the significance of being used by God for His purposes. Don’t be deceived into thinking God can’t use you or that it is “someone else’s job”! We need passionate and committed people to make Rock Bridge happen. The Gospel of Jesus Christ creates those servants (see Ephesians 2:10) and the Church’s job is to mobilize them for significant service!
**Look for an announcement soon about “SERVO-LUTION” and we plan to strategically simplify and improve serving/volunteering.

10-year anniversary
We reach double digits this year!
We anticipate an all-campus worship service to celebrate and mark this time!!

New teaching translation for our church.
For 10-years we have used the New International Version (NIV) 1984 translation as the primary Bible for teaching. The publishers of the NIV have since come out with two revised translations: the  TNIV and the NIV 2011. The NIV 2011 is about 5% different than the 1984 translation. Changes in translations come as scholarship improves the understanding of ancient texts, archaeological findings provide more clarity, and technology enables greater collaboration among translators. Additionally, translators seek to ensure translations are able to be understood by people in today’s world.

The challenge for our leadership and staff is that many of us are uncomfortable with some of the translation decisions made in the newer NIV versions. So when someone asks what type of Bible we use and then go buy that Bible, they get typically the 2011 NIV since the 1984 NIV is becoming less available and they also get a translation that is not as close to the original, inspired texts as we would hope. However, we do appreciate and value that there are now improved translations available since 1984.
We also remain firmly committed to the inerrancy of the Bible in its original manuscripts and value teaching from a translation that is as close as possible to those inspired texts but is also easy to read, understand, preach from, and memorize.

Right now, we are considering switching to either the Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB) or the English Standard Version (ESV). Both are excellent, committed to staying as close as possible to the original meaning of the inspired texts, and being readable in modern English.

Missions
We continue to strengthen our commitment to local and global missions. We are in the process of searching for a Missions Pastor to help further this commitment and expand our efforts to minister to people locally & globally in Jesus’ Name.
We hope to take more trips overseas, partner to plant more churches, and look for opportunities to start future campuses in the coming year.

Radical Dependence
Finally, our resolve to live out the Core Value of Radical Dependence is as strong as every. If I survey my prayers for our church over the past several months, the overwhelming theme is that of reliance and dependence on the Holy Spirit. This dependence comes through death to self, repentance from sin, and prayer.
We are considering another 24/7 Prayer Service where prayer & worship are continual for an entire 24-hour day.
We realize that “apart from Christ” and His Spirit we can do nothing and in fact, come to nothing.

The Best is Yet to Come
I believe this with all my heart as I see in Scripture the overarching theme of hope that come from the promises of a faithful God whose love is steadfast. God is building His church, preparing His bride, saving the lost, rekindling the saved, using us as His ambassadors, and desiring us to expectantly wait, watch, pray, serve, and desire His presence.

So let’s be expectant …

Now to Him who is able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think according to the power that works in us — to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. {Philippians 3:20-21}

2) We kick-off our new year series, JOY SWITCH, this weekend!!
Pray big, pray often, and pray bold for what God wants to do through this series!
Invite someone to church with you. Invite repeatedly and consistently. Don’t give up … God doesn’t give up on us!

3) First Wednesday is THIS week!!
Start off 2012 with big prayers, passionate worship, and by remembering Christ’s death through communion.

4) Be desperate for God.
Let’s plead with God to demonstrate His power, declare His righteousness, and give us His grace this week and this year. We need Him more than ever. We need His unfailing love, His amazing grace, His mighty salvation, His holy presence … we need Him. Ask God to use you, to use our church, to use our worship services, to use your small group … to accomplish His purposes.

5) Be expectant.
Expectancy is faith in action … and it honors God. Expectant people see God’s hand and experience His presence. Abandon “do your duty”, “check the box” religion. Forsake the tradition and the ritual of church for expectancy. See Him in His Word, His people, His creation, His Son, His Cross, His Spirit … and let’s be amazed THIS week at our God!

Please use this as an opportunity to tell people about church on Thursday nights! We’ve seen lots of people be able to attend church since we added Rock Bridge PM but we still hear lots of people who are “in the dark” about Rock Bridge PM’s existence.

Here’s some reasons why we are moving from the Wink to Stage 123 on January 5th:

1-More relational. Stage 123 features a large lobby that will make meeting and connecting relationally with people easier.
2-Easier to access. The long, sloped aisles of the Wink make it challenging for some people to navigate.  Stage 123 is flat with multiple entry points.
3-It Fits the “vibe”. Rock Bridge PM is an energetic (people are more awake at 6:30 pm than Sunday am!), casual service created with the weekend worker/traveler in mind. Stage 123 is casual, comfortable, and (by design) very connected (cafe, lobby, worship space all flows & fits together). This venue lends itself to greater “intimacy” with the worship leader, teacher, and with other attenders, creating great potential for the maximum witness of Christ’s presence to occur. {The Wink is better suited for larger crowds and the use of enhanced technology.}

Rock Bridge PM was also created for …

• The person who partied too much on Saturday night and will never make Sunday AM church unless it is Easter or Mother’s Day.
• The person who has an early morning tee time.
• The person whose scheduled is predetermined by the kids’ extracurriculars and/or ESPN and the NFL.
• The person who has stereotyped church as boring, “same ole, same ole” and irrelevant.

We think Stage 123 gives us a better “shot” at helping them understand and experience the difference Jesus and His Church make … and gives YOU a better chance at offering a more desirable and acceptable invitation for people to attend a church service.

“… I have become all things to all people, so that I may by every possible means save some.”
–The Apostle Paul, I Corinthians 9:22b