1. Parades: Our small town LOVES parades. If you are in a similiar situation, think about asking the parade director if you can sponsor the treat bags. Our floats always throw out candy and you can give everyone attending a bag with your church name on it and a flyer with basic church information. This is a great way to get the word out about your church to the families that normally attend parades.

2. Sponsor breakfast at a local school: Pick a school that is close to your church (or one where you have several teachers working) and ask the principal if you can provide breakfast for the school staff one morning every couple of months. Along with the donuts, bagels, or whatever you choose, include a sign saying “We love our teachers.” Leave the tracts at home. For this outreach idea, the goal is to simply love those teachers and show that you are a generous church. The key to this is to offer breakfast on a semi-regular basis. Doing it once and then forgetting about it won’t stick in the minds of the teachers.

The reason that we’re doing this is because most teachers have families. BAM!

(Another option to provide Chick-fil-a box lunches. We get ours for $5 per box.)

3. Facebook Ads: Target Facebook ads to women between 22-40 who have “children” or “mother” in their profile. Facebook gives you a lot of flexibility to target ads to your region. We’ve done this and have had great results with “likes” and website hits. Time will tell if these actually turn into visits.

After finishing two seasons, I will say that I’ve learned a couple things from Don Draper and the Mad Men crew.

1. Thinking you’re isolated means you will be isolated. Don Draper believes that he is alone. He lives like no one understands his situation. His efforts to suppress his past prove pointless. He willingly pushes away his wife, kids, friends, and co-workers believing that they don’t truly get him. We can be like Draper sometimes in how we approach biblical community. Let’s call this “young married couples class syndrome.”  It happens more than you think and can lead to feelings of extreme isolation. Here is how it goes down: A new couple visits an already established young married couples class. They mistake the environment for youth group. You have your “jocks” a.k.a “younger married man with kids” in one corner and the “my wife is the hottest” in the next. The middle school kids are the young married couples who live in the bliss of having no children. Segregated groups just like high school. Being new, you quickly run through the checklist. Kids? Check. Few gray hairs? Check. Family Pet? Check. Ok…we can hang out with these people. You make your way up to their tables and make small talk. After a couple moments talking about the funny things your kids said or the fact they pooped in the pot for the first time, you realize the distance. “They” seem to have it together. “We’re” not a part of their group. You begin to feel isolated and think about having an affair with the youth ministry. OK, this may be a little dramatic, but I’ve been there enough times to know I’m not alone.

After watching season two of Mad Men, I left feeling sorry for Don. He’s loved by his family, looked up to by his colleagues, admired by friends, and yet he feels isolated. What he doesn’t realize is that he’s got it all even though he thinks he has nothing. It’s truly a sad state to exist. As believers, we need to embrace the communities that God has placed us. Grace should abound, cliques should be surrendered, and the kingdom of God should reign.

2. We’ll always be chasing something until we realize Christ is all we need. The cast of Mad Men are constantly looking for completion. Women, booze, promotions, social events, and money can’t buy completion. Christians are searching and our journey can be just as complicated. All we need to  realize is that Jesus is all we need.

Consider this, “See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority.” Colossians 2:8-10

Have you learned anything from Mad Men? 
Have you experienced “young married couples class syndrome?”

Now we’re taking advantage of being able to attend church. It’s fantastic.

One of the observations that I’ve noticed is that a lot of pastors preach for an hour or more! Don’t get me wrong, I love a good sermon just like anyone reading this blog, but an hour is so far removed from my previous experience it’s shocking. When I was preaching every week, we only had 20-25 minutes set aside in the service for me to preach. A long sermon might have been 30-35 minutes but never an hour (or more.)  Here are some things I’m thinking through…I would love your input too!

1. When I preach, do I want my voice to be heard or His?
I have to confess here, I actually like to hear my voice when I preach. Sometime I think to myself, “wow–that was good!.” WRONG! It’s sinful of me and I need his grace and love to stop. My worth comes from HIM and not what/how I say it. If you’re like me, we need to remember that.  As pastors, we need to really careful of who is speaking when we preach.

2. Am I going long because I like to preach, hear my voice, or I’m forcing something? Is the length of my sermon determined by the Holy Spirit?
We’ve all been there…

3. Am I taking an hour to say something that can be said in 20 minutes?
Guilty. I’ve preached and heard sermons where the content could have been said concisely and BETTER in 20 minutes, but for some reason (pride, being unprepared, etc) it took an hour to say it over and over again. I don’t want to be that guy. Please don’t be him either! If you need an hour, take an hour. If you don’t, please don’t force me to sit through it. I don’t want to be tempted to read the Bible on my phone check twitter while you’re talking. I’ve been that guy and it’s time I reform.

What do you think? Speak up pastors! I would love to hear your thoughts…

Workshop 1: (Artie Davis-The Sticks) 

The Word of God tells you what to do. The voice of God tells you how to do it.

Everyone needs a “Now how?” Just because you did it one way years ago, doesn’t mean that method will work today.

The main question: Is your church CRAVEABLE? 

What was Jesus like? People wanted to be WITH JESUS.

When was the last time people were knocking down doors to get into your church/small group?

Our problem is perception.

See | Hear | Experience =’s perception

The church has great intentions, but we’ve lost sight of perception. I can tell people all day long what I want them to experience, but if that isn’t reality, your intentions don’t mean anything. Experience trumps intentions.

How do we fix this? 

We need to change what people see, hear, and experience.

Craveable Church Framework: 

Our command: “Go and make followers of all people in the world. Teach them to obey everything I have taught you.”

Jesus says, “I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. (Matthew 16:18)

Church is divided into three categories: ME | WE | US

ME: We’re supposed to help people FIND, FOLLOW, BE LIKE JESUS (GETTING IN, GROWING UP, GOING OUT)

WE: Action creates perception and gets a re-action

US: Actions: LOVE, ACCEPT, TRUTH

What’s our culture, community, context?

Session Three: A (Dan Smith) 

Porn gives you the taste of variety which your wife doesn’t/shouldn’t offer.

1 Corinthians 6:12-20, “We need sexual heroes in Corinth” // We are living in modern day Corinth.

Session Three: B (Brian & Amy Bloye) 

2 Corinthians 11 :3

How do moral failures happen? 

-You become a business partner with your spouse.

-Something emotional disconnects

-Ministry was over marriage

What are some common claims of the deceived? 

-Typically someone close to them.

-Deception

-Secrecy

 Who is susceptible to moral failure? 

-Visionary

-ADHD

-Risk takers

-Workaholics

-Competitive

-Driven

-Confident (but really insecure and slightly narcissistic)

-Passionate over knowledge of scripture

-Lack of discernment in personal life

Always remember that satan is coming after you. He wants to destroy you.

We won’t live in purity automatically. We need to be deliberate.

How do you prevent moral failure?

-We have to recognize that this is a Jesus issue. We take the focus off of Jesus and place it on ourself. The purpose of church planting isn’t so we’re

worshipped for success. We can’t handle being worshipped…Jesus is the only one that can.

-We are either pointing people to Jesus or us.

-Question: Is Jesus enough? [What if your church plant fails, people don't recognize your ability, etc.]

-Colossians 9:9-10 (Paul says that he is secure and that his self worth is only set through Jesus.)

-Jesus IS enough.

We have to count the cost and embrace wisdom

-Proverbs 5:1-9/13,14

-The key: Humble yourself, fear the Lord

-Ephesians 3:16

We have to admit that something is broken. 

               It’s time for us to repent. 

“When giftedness outweighs your character implosion is on its way.” -Justin Davis

“God can only resurrect what has died.” -Trisha Davis 

Hebrews 12:10

Workshop 2: (Hugh Halter- The Tangible Kingdom) 

Christ gave us the keys to the kingdom, not the church. The church comes out of the kingdom. We need to be messianic evangelicals. (Former: Messianic Jews/Messianic Greeks)

Main thought: God never asks us to plant church, grow churches, or be professional. God commanded us to make disciples. “Go and help people live the life that Jesus lived.”

DNA of the kingdom:

COMMON:

-Prayer (for God’s kingdom to come to earth/Lord’s prayer)

-Meet together

-Teaching

-Deep connection with the Holy Spirit

INCLUSIVE:

-The early world was freaked out by our inclusiveness.

-Needed to create someplace to “belong.”

BLESSING:

-Genesis 12 (first missional scripture)

-Shalom: Peace by upon you/May God’s ways touch down/ example: Have food to live…

2:1:1 Paradigm 

2: Meet together twice a month

1: Throw a party once a month

1: Serve once a month

This is all about finding a structure to deliver the Gospel. Traditional church model unintentionally creates pharisees.

Sojourners- Spiritual disoriented God seeker, travelers

Living the “missionary flow”

THINK LIKE A MISSIONARY

Great beginning question: How long have you lived here?

1. Phase one- Engage culture: 

(Friendship) Jesus was a “friend of sinners.” He did that by eating with them. We must be friends with the culture. We need to be missionaries.

(Story) You must learn the stories of the areas and people.

   3 Primary contexts 

-Coffee everyday

-House (Beings outside)

-Kids in sports

Don’t have an agenda…have a huge hope. Pray!!!

We don’t convert, the Holy Spirit converts

12-18 months for a conversion

2. Phase two- Form formal community

The three circles

-Don’t say that you are having a Bible study (non-Christians will be wary) say that you are talking about “Life & God.”

3. Phase three- Congregationlize the church

www.Missio.us

Workshop 3: (Mark Batterson, The Circle Marker) 

Joshua 3:5, 1 Chronicles 7:14

When we hit our knees, God extends his hands.

Good ideas don’t change the world. God ideas change the world.

The only way we know what God wants is to spend time with Him (i.e. His Word/Prayer)

Joshua 3:8- My job as a leader: Stand in the river. Get your feet wet. Go first.

It’s not: Get Ready, Set, Go. It’s Go, Set, Get Ready unless you see a red light.

We want a sign that is so clear that we don’t need faith to proceed. That doesn’t happen because God wants us to have faith.

Session Four: A (Shaun and Tricia Lovejoy) 

Lessons on Church Planting and Marriage

1. Intimacy is worth fighting for.

-Fight for date night, movie night, family night, etc.

2. Have a last 10% family. (Don’t speak 90% and hold back 10%. Don’t save that last 10% for yourself–give it to your family.)

3. There’s only one enemy in your family–satan. (1 Peter 5:8-9)

4. The family is a partnership.

Remember what it’s like to be married and be partners.

Session One: (Wayne Cordeiro)

Learn how to: Self Correct

-Learn how to scrub your heart. Refocus.

-When the Holy Spirit corrects you in private, repent in private or you’ll one day end up repenting in public.

-”The devil knows the Bible better than you do.”

-One of satan’s tools is that he withholds consequences for sins. He waits to attack us. Ecclesiastes 11:9

One of the ways to self correct: Stay in the word. The Holy Spirit knows everything that we will face and he will prepare us by using scripture. 

Learn how to: Suffer

-Suffering will change you, but not necessarily for the better–that’s our choice.

-1 Peter 4:19

Learn how to: Lead yourself to Christ

-Remember the Gospel

-Jeremiah 15:19

Press through the sifting. Don’t make decisions during it.

Session Two: A (Jud Wilhite)

Everyone will love you until you begin leading. 

2 Corinthians 5:1-15

1. The gut check- How are you living your life? Doing it on your own, pretending you aren’t?

2. Stay a little crazy for God- Causes you to rely on God.

-If no one things that you are crazy for God, then you probably aren’t doing anything.

3. Be Compelled by Christ’s love

Session Two: B (Charles Jenkins) 

Satan doesn’t want us to become was Jesus wants us to become.

Embrace the SHAKEUP- It’s going to happen. Satan doesn’t want us to succeed and he wants to sift us. Junk will happen. The ride will get crazy.

Embrace the SHAKEDOWN- Satan wants the worst of us to be seen. God wants people to see the best of Him.

Embrace the SHAKE OFF- Sometimes you need to shake off people and their statements.

Session Two: C (Darrin Patrick) 

Hebrews 11/12: FAITH & CALLING

For the joy that was set before him he endured the cross. The tomb is empty. He has called me.

The town that we’re planting a church in doesn’t have a Starbucks. We have one coffee shop and it isn’t what you would think of when you hear those words. No wifi. No comfy seating. It’s a pour your own coffee type of place.

The other day, I was looking for someplace to work so I didn’t have to sit at my kitchen table. I asked a couple local friends and the best suggestion that they could come up with was Chick-fil-a (ours has free wifi). While I was sitting there enjoying a nice drink at the Chick and a little work on a freelance design project, it hit me–sometimes I think we miss the point. We want so bad for something to be true that we begin to see pieces as if they belonged in our puzzle. We force them into position.

Why do we love coffee shops? If I asked a group of 100 people that question, I’m sure I would get 100 different answers. What about church? Why do you love your church? I bet your answer has something to do with God, people, and growth (in that order). Do we plan that way?

Before moving to Tennessee to church plant, I was a part of a fantastic church. I was fortunate enough to sit in on some meetings and help design a coffee shop that our church was installing in our commons area. I remember thinking that if we got that “3rd space” right, then people would feel at home and love Jesus more. I remember going into a homegoods type of store and thinking through every element we were buying. As I designed the logo, I thought “group, social, friendly, warm, wonderful, Jesus.” After the coffee shop got up and running, everything came together. The environment resembled that of any “cool” coffee shop. But, as I think back now, was I asking myself the right questions? Did I design with the right things in mind? I think I missed the point.

We try so hard for people to feel like they are a part of our family that we end up alienating them. 

Churches go to great lengths to create the perfect environment to meet Jesus and others. However, I’m not sold on the fact that we’re using the correct template.

Everyone wants a Starbucks. Everyone wants that corner cafe called “Central Perk.” We think that if we create a place like one of these establishments, then we’ll have provided all the fertalizer needed for great things to happen.

Think about this:
We tend to think of coffee shops as social. More often than not, that dream is paired with the reality of business types and freelancers working at their laptops or iPads with headphones on. That isn’t social. That’s work. What we think will bring us together with people, in fact, leaves us isolated.

Sometimes I like to think I’ll meant all sorts of new people at coffee shops. We’ll create great relationships and then one day I’ll come in and we’ll all be sitting on the “Friends” couch drinking coffee. I’m sure that happens, but we probably romanticize that a bit. I would venture to say that people more often than not come with or meet their friends at the coffee shop. The coffee shop doesn’t create friends, it hosts friendships.

We can’t force social. We can’t force community. We can’t force.

What can we do?

What if we invested as much time into building relationships as we did planning the environements or events to host those relationships?

All of my best memories with friends happened without planning. Smoking a cigar and looking up at the stars, riding around in the car with the windows down talking about God, watching our kids play, getting crazy playing a game of euchere, and sitting with the garage door open watching it rain while having a catch up talk. Those moments are precious. Those times speak to me.

I’m not against coffee shops. Actually, I long for one in my town that has the internet. I just hope that we’re not missing the point.

How do you build community?
Which gets more time–planning or building?
What’s better–a “fertilized or a natural environment?”

Myth #1: Numbers don’t matter.

The truth is–numbers DO matter. The Bible talks about numbers a lot. (Read the book of Numbers for an example.) God wants us to have healthy ministries and we cannot know what healthy ministry looks like unless we create specific goals and measure them. Measuring goals is the key. You can have all of the goals in the world for changing your church, youth ministry, community, etc., but if you can’t measure your progress you’ve failed.

Don’t be ashamed–count.

A word of caution: Don’t allow numbers to become everything. Put them into perspective of God’s plan. Just like money can be the root of all kinds of evil, so can numbers. However, money/numbers aren’t sinful within themselves.

The second myth that youth pastors buy into is that they know what’s going on in their ministry and have a good grasp of everything.

Myth #2: I have a good feel on where my ministry is at right now. 

Youth Pastors, understand something with me…your perspective is skewed. Factor in the people you talk to on a regular basis, the people you talk to that actually influence you, students you click better with, that close friend who speaks into your life, a previous conflict with a family, mistakes made, etc. All of these things factor into your personal ministry outlook.

I remember a couple times where I was talking to our staff about how I “felt” the ministry was doing really good and we were “doing good stuff” only to be told 5 minutes later that we had a major issue. Perfect example is my use of sarcasm. I was unaware for a YEAR that I was continually hurting students, parents, and volunteers with my sarcasm. People were giving me signs all over the place, but I missed it. I was in a field of burning bushes and didn’t see the sign. When the crap actually hit the fan and someone confronted me, I felt like a failure. I was disillusioned. My perspective/outlook had been skewed for a year. I saw, heard, and experienced what I wanted to experience.

After a series of confrontations and God taking me to the sarcasm woodshed for a beating, I started to set clear goals that I could measure. Without these goals and measurements, I relied falsely on my own flesh. You see where that got me? Don’t make the same mistake. Take into account your personal “feel” on the ministry, but please  don’t allow that to be your only source of information. Your spouse, close friends, mentors, and volunteers opinions should matter, but they cannot be your only determining factor.

What is a big deal for a couple people might not be a big deal for your ministry. Look for trends not “feelings.”

Now that I’ve covered two of the biggest myths that I see in youth ministry leadership, I want to give you some suggestions on positive metrics you can implement today.

1. Take an attendance for 8 weeks of services 4 times a year. Measure January/February, April/May, July/August, October/November.

Separate your numbers for students/parents/volunteers attending. Look for trends like the one that we found. We discovered that every other week our numbers would take a big hit. By investigating our numbers we found out that those “low” weekends were due in large part to custody issues (kids would be out of town at their dad’s house.)

2. Measure small group attendance. 

Get a grasp on the regular student/guest ratio. Who hasn’t came for weeks? What may seem like a couple weeks to you might be a month or two.

What is the percentage of people signed up compared to normal weekly attendance?

3. Measure your volunteers. 

Are you in ratio? What is your ratio for volunteer/studio? If you don’t have one–GET ONE. This will help you build credibility.

4. Measure your outreach events. 

How many “new” people actually showed up. How many of those new people filled out info cards? How many have showed up at least once within a month of the event? It’s your responsibility to be on top of this stuff. If 98% of your “outreach” is your normal students, then you need to stop doing that outreach. It’s not working.

5. Measure the number of Salvations/Baptisms in a year. 

These numbers will tell you if in fact you are reaching new people who do not know Christ or just puffing up your youth group.

My final word: Don’t obsess over these numbers. You are not making change happen–God is. But, resist the urge to be lazy and “let things happen.” You don’t want to just say, “It’s going good.” Say, “It’s going good because our small groups are reaching new people and we’ve seen them accept Christ.”

What metrics do you use? 

Before I begin, I want to say a word to those people who think brochures are dead. Believe it or not, some people do not have a computer, Facebook, internet, or the like at home. They prefer to have something in their hands. While most people will visit your website, we need to be accessible by everyone–especially parents. 

Here are some things to keep in mind: 

1. Every ministry does NOT need a brochure. I’ll write more about this tomorrow, but I’m a firm believer that only the church and student ministries (K-12) need brochures. I believe that every church needs ONE brochure that previews everything the church has to offer. As Seth Godin says, you don’t want to give them every single piece of information in your brochure. However, I wouldn’t go as far as he suggests to leave out crucial information, but we need to realize that no one wants to read your novel.

2. Just because someone asks for a brochure to be made doesn’t mean they need it. I was notorious for telling people that I didn’t approve their brochure for their specific ministry niche. I’m sure people trashed me at the water cooler, but it’s important to maintain the integrity of your marketing by keeping it simple. When someone brought forth the need for a brochure, I first sat down with them to to see if I could incorporate their material with our current material. Team Expansion had 24 brochures when I started working there. By the time I left, we had 2!

3. Brochures are glanced at not read. I once read a study that the average time someone looks at a brochure is less than 5 seconds. Brochures take hours of work to develop and hundreds of dollars to print in quantity, so it’s natural to assume that it will be read right? Wrong. Unfortunately, the majority of people just look at the pictures and quotes. At most people may read the first sentence in each section. Keep that in mind when you’re designing. Also realize that you are more emotionally invested in your ministry than a potential brochure reader. You might want to share everything you think, do, and feel in a brochure. Save that for a follow-up conversation.

4. K.I.S.S. Keep it simple stupid.

Student Ministry Brochure:

• Introduction
• Crucial ministry information (Mission Statement, Regular program summary, & Meeting times)
• Staff/Contact Area- Be sure to include CASUAL staff pictures. Leave your Olan Mills, blowing hair, and sea horses at home. Stay away from leaning against a building or tree. Don’t shoot the picture looking down or up. Go for a natural smile. (I always ask people to giggle…then they feel funny and do. BAM…I get their natural smile.)

5. STAY AWAY FROM CLIPART. Nothing says, “look at me” like 1999 clipart. For tips on how to design better, check this out.

Resources:

Below, I’ve given you a link to download the last brochure I created for our ministry in Indiana. It’s printed on an 8.5 x 11 page and folded in half. We used our color copier in house and printed them on glossy paper.

[Download Brochure Template]

If you need a service to print your brochure, consider using www.vistaprint.com or many of the other online retailers. You can get a great deal. Also, try contacting your local newspaper. Our newspaper prints brochures upon request for a great price.

Finally, here is another great resources from my friends over at Youthmin.org on what your ministry website needs.

Do you have ministry brochures? How many? What do you communicate?