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Facebook App to get CCC News

In addition to the text that will tell you about the Big Idea, CCC's Tom Greever has also created an application on facebook to get Community Christian Church news. I will file that under "cool" too!

Get a Text Message of Big Idea

File this under "I think this is cool"; Community will send you a text message letting you know about the upcoming Big Idea at the beginning of each series.  If you want in on this cool technology just text the word 'bigidea' to 313131 and your are ready to go.

Basic Expectations & Missing Puzzle Pieces

The last couple days I spent with our Campus Pastors and Champions on a planning retreat.  There were a couple times that I looked around the room and couldn't help but notice what an exceptional group of leaders we have at Community.  God has really blessed us with a depth of high capacity leaders.  Most of the two days was piecing together a plan for the 2008-09 ministry year.  A big part of the discussion was the coming church wide initiatives.  Much of the vision for the coming year will be determined by the Campus Pastors for their campus.  We also discussed BIG IDEA's for the coming year; common understandings of what we are calling "10 Campus Constants" and "Visible Red Tape".  Some of this needs more discussion before I can post it, but I will.  But as I walked away I truly felt like we were putting into place the kind of structure that will allow us to very soon expand to 20 locations in Chicago on our way to 200 sites in our city.

One of the key conversations was also laying out measurable basic expectations for a campus.  These are not all the expectations and we certainly are counting on each campus pastor to go beyond the basics; but here they are:

• 15% growth in attendance
• 10% of your attendance in baptisms
• 75% of your adults/students in small groups
• 50% of your adults/students are 3C's
• 100% of budget

Purpose Driven Summit - One Stop Summary!

Last week I spoke at the Purpose Driven Summit and had a great time.  If you are looking for the best summary of all that happened at this event, my friend DJ Chuang has it at Learnings@Leadership Network. So click over to the article PD Summit and P.E.A.C.E. Plan and from there you can get the inside scoop on everything that happened!

Creating Culture, Not Just Imitating Culture

If you got a moment check out my blogging mentor's post on Keeping A Pulse On Culture. I ran into Scott Hodge at MY Starbucks when he was working on this post (which may explain why he gave me some link love!?!)  But there is some great content and I totally agree that we need to be creating culture, not just imitating it!

Wanna Twitter?

A few months ago I started twittering. What?  It's like a mini-blog that allows you to post quickly throughout the day and to easily follow others too.  Now some of you are thinking, "doesn't this guy have anything better to do?"  Good question; but new technology fascinates me. and I like to stay on the edge if possible. If some of you who are a part of Community or NewThing and are interested in twittering, let me know. I'd like to see if this technology really enhances community or not. And if you are interested in following my twitter, click HERE.

Why Blog?

Ever once in a while someone (most often my wife) will ask me, "why do you blog?"  Well, this time the question came from Church Solutions Magazine.  They not only asked me the question, but they listened and then wrote a whole article on  the topic titled, Pastors Blog To Stay Connected. So, if you are are a reader and want to be a blogger OR if you are someone who is trying to figure out how to get the most out of your blog - check out this article.

100,000 and still rolling...

A little less than a year ago I was thinking about dumping my 1994 Toyota Paseo.  Thanks to a friend at Community he was able to get it running again and I'm still in business with my "junky car". 

So here is the update:  my red '94 Paseo just turned over 100,000 miles and the first rust holes above the tires just showed up!  The good news it is still running and my goal is to double that!  (Miles, not rust.)

Guess What Andy Stanley Is Reading?

While I was at Saddleback last week I ran into my twitter buddy Carlos Whitaker from NorthPoint Community Church who was interviewing me on ustream.tv.  During the interview Carlos asked me about The Big Idea and then he told me that Andy Stanley and his team at NorthPoint will be reading The Big Idea together as their next book study.  How cool is that?!?  If you haven't got your copy of The Big Idea, click HERE.

Interesting Findings About Community Christian Church

 

My friend Warren Bird and his colleague Scott Thumma from Leadership Network were in town a couple weeks ago to do some research on Community Christian Church. After talking with a number focus groups they gave me a brief verbal summary and then posted a short article on Learnings @ Leadership Network.  Here are a few observations about Community:

EVERYONE BELIEVES IN HELPING PEOPLE FIND THEIR WAY BACK TO GOD
One of the things they told me was that they had rarely been around a church like CCC where everyone gets the mission. They said person after person said, "it's about 'helping people find their way back to God'".  They said not only did people repeat it, but they prayed it.  It is good to know that our heart all still beats for the same thing - "helping people find their way back to God."

EVERYONE IS TRAINING AN APPRENTICE
Another observation that they made about CCC was that person after person told them that everything they do must be reproducible and that came through apprenticeships.  One person told them something we have said many times, "God is not going to send us more people than we can take care of".  Someone else said, "I've almost always had an apprentice leader in everything I've done here."  Good to know we are still focused on reproducing!

EVERYTHING IS PORTABLE
They observed that virtually everything we do is portable. They noticed that even what we do in our permanent facilities are flexible and portable and function more like a community center.

If you want to read the entire article, click HERE.

The Big Idea Autographed for Rick Warren

As long as I have dedicated this whole week to Rick Warren I thought I might as well add one more to my Rick Warren collection.  On Thursday night about twenty of us got together at a local establishment for dinner with Rick.   After dinner he told us that he held the record for the largest library of books autographed by the author.  Then he pulled out a couple books, including The Big Idea; tossed the book to me and said, "hey Ferguson, sign this for me."  And here is the pic to prove it!

Rick Warren - Our Global Mission

• When Jesus gave us the great commission and told us to go into the whole world.  When Jesus said that they weren't capable of going into the whole world.  But today, we are the first people to live in a global world.  You and I can go anywhere in the world within 24 hours.  We are called to be world Christians.
• You don't have an option - the great commission is your mission.  God wants to expand your vision and your mission.

GOD IS CALLING US TO A GLOBAL VISION

• Isaiah was depressed and discouraged and feeling like he had no purpose.
  • But I said, "I have labored to no purpose;
           I have spent my strength in vain and for nothing.
           Yet what is due me is in the LORD's hand,
           and my reward is with my God."  (Isaiah 49:3,4)
• God responds to Isaiah's discouragement by saying, "I'm going to expand your vision."
  • "It is too small a thing for you to be my servant
           to restore the tribes of Jacob
           and bring back those of Israel I have kept.
           I will also make you a light for the Gentiles,
           that you may bring my salvation to the ends of the earth." (NIV - Isaiah 49:6)
  • God said, "But that's not a big enough job for my servant—
       just to recover the tribes of Jacob,
       merely to round up the strays of Israel.
    I'm setting you up as a light for the nations
     so that my salvation becomes global!" (Message - Isaiah 49:6)
• You don't have an option - the great commission is your mission.  God wants to expand your vision and your mission.

FIVE GLOBAL GOLIATHS - the five giants that are problems around the world.

1. SPIRITUAL EMPTINESS.  When there is spiritual emptiness it results in conflict.  Hurt people hurt people.
2. SELF-CENTERED LEADERSHIP. There are two kinds of leaders:  selfish leaders and servant leaders.  We each need to decide what kind of leaders we will be.
3. EXTREME POVERTY - 1 billion people live on less than a dollar a day.  People in Rwanda live on 16 cents a day.  They grow coffee in Rwanda that they sell to Starbucks, but a person in Rwanda can't afford to buy a cup of that coffee - something is wrong with that.
4. PANDEMIC DISEASE - This year 500 million people will get malaria this year.  We found the cure to this 100 years ago during Teddy Roosevelt's administration.  This needs to change; we need to care.
5. LACK OF EDUCATION - You can wire the entire world with the internet but it will be of no help to people who can not read or write.

THE PEACE PLAN:  WHAT JESUS DID!

1. JESUS PREACHED RECONCILIATION.  Reconcile with God and reconcile with others - that is very simply what Jesus preached.
   
   • II Corinthians 5:18-20
   • Ephesians 2:16
2. JESUS EQUIPPED SERVANT LEADERS.
   • Jesus loved everybody, led the one hundred and twenty, discipled twelve, mentored three.
   • "it's not going to be that way with you...become a servant." - Matthew 20:25,26
3. JESUS ASSISTED THE POOR.
   • There are more than 2000 verses in the Bible that are about the poor
4. JESUS CARED FOR THE SICK
   • More than one third of Jesus ministry had to do with health care.
5. JESUS EDUCATED THE NEXT GENERATION
   • In almost every nation of the world missionaries started the first schools and hospitals.  Why?  Because we have a healing and educating faith!

NOW, JESUS WANTS US TO DO WHAT HE DID!  P.E.A.C.E.

• P - Promote reconciliation.
• E - Equip servant leaders.
• A - Assist the poor.
• C - Care for the sick.
• E - Educate the next generation.

"Ordinary people empowered by God's Spirit, doing what Jesus did, together, wherever they are."

P.E.A.C.E is not a trip, but a lifestyle

• Personal peace - your mission to your personal world (your Jerusalem)
• Local peace - to your area (your Judea & Samaria)
• Global peace - to the rest of thew world!

7 PILLARS OF THE P.E.A.C.E. PLAN

• P - PROMOTES, PLANTS AND PARTNERS LOCAL CHURCHES.
  • First and foremost the P.E.A.C.E. plan is about reclaiming the primacy of the local church in global missions.
  • "it takes a church to grow a village."
• I - IMITATES JESUS MODEL.
  • "don't take a purse" - Don't throw money at the problem; that is not the answer.
  • "don't take a staff" - Staff is a symbol of power.  When you go in do not go in with a power play; go in as a servant.
  • "eat what is set before you" - You adopt to the local customs and local flavors.  Don't ask them to become like you; you adapt to them.
  • "find the man of peace" - Every village will have a man or woman of peace.  You find a person that is open and influential.  When Jesus sent them out in twos there were no believers.  So the person of peace may not be a believer, but they are open and influential.
• L - LED BY AMATEURS
  
  • Amateur literally means "out of love"
• L - LINKS THE PUBLIC, PRIVATE AND FAITH SECTORS
  • 3 legged stool:  public, profit and parish
• A - ATTACKS ALL FIVE GIANTS
• R - REORGANIZES EFFORTS THROUGH A NETWORK
• S - SHIFTS TO SUSTAINABLE FUNDING

Take-Aways from Business Leaders Panel

Brett Eastman interviewed a panel of business leaders and they gave the following advice to pastors and church leaders:

• Cast a vision that goes beyond the four walls of your church.  This is a big world with big needs and we have tons of resources and education.  Cast a vision for how we can solve the problems of this world with the resources we have.

• Get to know us as men.  We need to hang out together.  We are intimidated by you just like you are intimidated by us.  But we have a lot in common - pastors are CEO's of their "business" just like we are the CEO's of their businesses.

• Don't forget that men have a hole in their soul.  We can mask our hole with wealth, success and perhaps friends.  You helping that business guy to fill that hole will get that business leader working with you.
  
• Form an "advice squad" of business leaders.  Keep this a loose coalition of business leaders who meet regularly and ask them, "what do you think God would have this church do?"  Don't make this about the budget or a building plan.

Conference Channel Hosting WhiteBoard

Just because I'm in SoCal doesn't mean that I have to miss the WhiteBoard Conference taking place back on the east coast.  Thanks to the genius of Todd Wilson you can now check out WhiteBoard on Conference Channel.  The amazing technology of Conference Channel will allow you to watch the conference, catch behind the scene video interviews, twitter and interact with people while sitting in front of your computer in your underwear.  So, click HERE and enjoy!

Interviewed on ustream.tv

I was just interviewed by Carlos Whitaker and Mike Foster on ustream.tv at Saddleback.  If you are interested, check it out!

Rick Warren - Preaching On Purpose

RICKS THOUGHTS ON "PREACHING ON PURPOSE"

• Nothing is a more powerful force in your church than the preaching.
• God's purpose is to make us like Christ. (II Corinthians 3:18)
• God wants to bring conviction and change our conduct and character.
• "...that the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.:  II Timothy 3:16,17
• Teaching the Bible is not about is not ultimately producing maturity; it's about ministry and mission.
• Application is what is lacking in most teaching.
• Our preaching needs to "build bridges" from the scripture to life.

HOW TO PREPARE TO PREACH ON PURPOSE

1. Study the text. (observation)
2. Find the timeless truth. (interpretation)
3. Think of your audience. (contextualization)
4. Apply the truth to their situation (personalization)

6 THINGS THAT ARE TRUE ABOUT ALL PEOPLE EVERYWHERE

1. Everyone wants to be loved.
2. Everyone wants their life to count.
3. Everyone wants Christ.
4. Everyone feels guilty.
5. Everyone is consumed with bitterness over past hurt.
6. Everyone is afraid of death.

• "A lot of times we think we are being deep and we are being muddy."
• At least 50% of every New Testament books are scripture is application; don't forget application!

10 THINGS I'VE LEARNED ABOUT PREACHING ON PURPOSE    

1. All behavior is based on a belief.  We do what we do (good or bad) because we believe something about the behavior.
2. When we sin we think that is the best decision in the moment.  When you figure out the lie behind the behavior you will be a better preacher.
3. Change always starts in your mind.
4. To help people change we must change their beliefs first.  The battle of sin always starts with helping people to see the lie they believe.  You must expose the lie.
5. Trying to change people's behavior without changing their beliefs is a waste of time.
6. We need to lead people to repentance.  Repentance is simply getting people to change their mind. Repentance is another term for a paradigm shift.  "Metanoia" means to change your mind; it is not change you're behavior.
7. You don't change people's minds; the applied word of God does change their minds.
8. Changing the way I act is the result or fruit of repentance.
9. The "deepest" kind of preaching is preaching for repentance.
10. To produce lasting life change:  enlighten the mind, engage the emotions, and challenge the will.

Rick Warren on...everything.

Got to have dinner at a local country club with Rick Warren and about 20 other pastors from across the country.  If you are into the evangelical pastor scene - it was pretty much a who's who.  Rick was the host and was the center of the conversation.  Here are a few of the highlights from that conversation:

ON BALANCE...

• I believe in rhythm and not balance.  John the Baptist was not balanced yet Jesus called him the greatest man that ever lived.
• Nothing great is ever accomplished by people who are always balanced.
• You need to...
  • Divert daily.
  • Withdraw weekly.
  • Abandon annually.

ON SMALL GROUPS...

• You don't need a lot of people, you just need a few friends.
• The key to a good small group is you need to do things outside of the group together.

ON STAFF DEVELOPMENT...

• Don't ask people to manage their time, ask them to manage their energy.
• Your staff needs to know that you know that their job is not their only responsibility in life.
• Trust is the most aspect of staff development.  You get people to trust you, by trusting them.

ON BUILDING CREDIBILITY AS A LEADER...

• You build credibility by being compassionate.
• You build credibility by being competent.
• You build credibility by being consistent.

Rick Warren - How To Last In Ministry

5 years ago Rick started praying for 50 young emerging pastors that he believed were going to make the big difference in the kingdom in years to come.  Since then, almost half of them have either flamed out or burned out.  So, how do we last in ministry?

1. ENJOY THE GRACE OF GOD.

• Driven-ness comes from a lack of understanding or experiencing God's grace.  Some people have preached the grace of God their whole lives and never experienced it or felt it.  You need to enjoy Gods' grace.
• Never confuse prominence with significance. You may never have a church of 1,000 people or you may never be on the cover of Christianity Today - but don't confuse your significance with prominence.
• If you don't settle this issue...you will not last!
• Ministry is received, it is not achieved.  God gives it to us as a gift.  We are valuable and God loves us.  God likes you!  He really likes you!
• I used to go into my kids room and just watch them sleep.  I loved them no matter how good or bad they were.  I loved them because they are my kids!  I helped create them.

2. BE AUTHENTIC.

• Obvious imperfections in the pastor can be a very good thing.  It tells people that they can be used by God.  People will think, "if God can use Rick, God can use me."
• When you live with authenticity it gets better every year; when you don't it gets worse every year.
• You can fake love for a few years...but not for long.

3. REMEMBER IT IS NOT ABOUT YOU.

• When you start to think it's about you - you get either bitter or prideful.
• The average pastor leaves the church because of seven critics.  That's too bad.  On the other hand if the pastor stays, the critics leave.
• II Corinthians 4:5 - "we are your servants."
• Lots of guys start out as servants and become stars.
• Paul says, "I do it for Jesus sake"  II Corinthians 4:5 (NIV)
• People always want the success without the suffering.
• Stop comparing yourself to others.
• If you are going to have a Christ-like ministry, you will be criticized.  The religious leaders were the one's that criticized him.  Why?  For being associated with "bad people".  Jesus was called "the friend of a sinner."
• You can be a friend of someone without buying into all that they believe.
• If you have no friends who are unbelievers or disreputable - you are not Christ-like.
• Ignore your critics and remember who you are trying to impress.

4. ACCEPT YOUR HUMAN LIMITATIONS

• You are not a superstar...you are human.
• know your limits and know your warning signs.
• Phases of how I dealt with my weaknesses:
  
  • 1st - I denied my weaknesses
  • 2nd - I hid my weaknesses.
  • 3rd - I accepted my weaknesses.
  • Now - I glory in my weaknesses.
• When God makes a mushroom it takes 6 hours; when God wants to grow an oak tree it takes him 60 years.  And it will take time for God to build a church.
• While God is growing a church he is also growing you!

5. DO EVERYTHING OUT OF LOVE.

• Where do you start?  How about with your wife. Love your wife. "Guys, listen to your wife...she is the Holy Spirit."
• The people are not there for your benefit; you are there for their benefit.
• It takes unselfish church to grow.  The church that doesn't want to grow is saying to the rest of the world, "Go to Hell!"
• Every church caters to somebody - who are you catering to?

6. MAKE TIME FOR DAILY RENEWAL

• Formula for renewal:  divert daily, withdraw weekly, abandon annually.
• If you work with your mind - use your hands to de-stress.
• Daily renewal - take a day off every week.  What is your sabbath.  If you are not taking a day off every week you are breaking one of the 10 commandments. 
• II Corinthians 4:16 - "we are being renewed day by day".
• Got to have two things for renewal:
  • Plan - what is your plan for personal renewal?
  • Partner - who is it that will hold you accountable?
• Don't wait for someone to build a group who will partner with you.  Do it yourself.
• Ecclesiastes 4:12

7. LIVE IN LIGHT OF ETERNITY

• "Fatigue makes a coward of us all" - Vince Lombardi
• 3 motivation
  • internal motivation
  • external motivation
  • eternal motivation
• Only he who sees the invisible can achieve the impossible.
• "You don't determine a man's greatness by his count or by his wealth - you determine his greatness by what it takes to discourage him."
• Great people are just ordinary people who won't give up.

DON'T GIVE UP.  DON'T GIVE UP.  DON'T GIVE UP.

Rick Warren - 5 Moves for Renewal

When God wants to renew a church, a country, a movement he always takes you through five moves:

1. PERSONAL RENEWAL
It is suddenly not about religion, but it's about a relationship.  You realize that God is fond of you and you fall in love with Jesus.

2. RELATIONAL RENEWAL
After I end the war with God, I end the war with others.  These first two renewals are all about loving God and loving others.  There are two tell-tale signs of relational renewal:  First, the singing gets better.  Secondly, people hang around longer after church is over. 

3. MISSIONAL RENEWAL
The church rediscovers that it has a cause and we get all the purposes of the church in alignment.

4. CULTURAL RENEWAL
You can not bring cultural renewal unless there is already personal, relational and missional renewal.  Once that has happened then you are ready to bring cultural renewal in your church.  The preaching will change the culture of your church more than anything else.

5. STRUCTURAL RENEWAL
There is no perfect structure for a church, that is why the Bible doesn't give us a structure. 

6. INSTITUTIONAL RENEWAL
(This is an extra)  Institutions are there to preserve the change of the previous generation.  So this will be the last to change.

I'm Going to Visit Rick and 1,500 of His Friends

A couple months ago I got a text from Rick Warren saying that he wanted to talk via a conference call later that afternoon.  Myself and about 25 other pastors from all across the country got on the phone and heard Rick describe a "Stealth Conference" that he wanted to hold at Saddleback.  Well, here it a couple months later and Rick has put together an amazing line-up of speakers and invited 1,500 leaders from his Purpose Driven Network. So, myself and a business leader/friend from Community are flying out to SoCa to be a part of it.  I'm not as pumped about presenting as I am about getting to hang-out with all the presenters every evening.  That was part of the deal.  Should be fun!