Are We Environmentalists?

As the pinnacle of God's creation (I know we don't always live up to the billing) we are mandated to be care takers of the rest of creation.  We truly are to live as environmentalists.  Most of us understand this premise although our lives often fall short of fulfilling this incredible responsibility.  One of the things that struck me during my time at North Point was how they use the term environmentalist in a different yet valid way.  

The leadership at North Point realized early on that they couldn't make people fall in love with Jesus.  That couldn't manipulate people into developing an intimate and contagious relationship with Jesus Christ.  They couldn't even make people believe that the Way is really the only way.  What they could do and have since followed through on is to create environments that encourage people to be aware of the Spirit of God in their midst.  They intentionally remove barriers, limit distractions and use tangible elements to inspire the people who come longing to connect with God.

North Point has zeroed in a three essential types of environments – the Foyer (entry way), The Living Room, and the Kithen.  Each of these environments plays a critical role in the spiritual formation of their people.  The Foyer is the entry point just like the foyer in your home.  These are large environments designed to change people's mind about church.  The Goal is to get people to come back and experience the next environment.  An example of the Foyer is our Sunday Celebration.

The next environment is the Living Room.  Just like in your home, this is a place where you invite people in to sit down and build relationships.  These are medium-sized environments designed to change people's minds about connecting.  The goals is that people would begin to connect and build friendships.  An example of a Living Room environment is the Restoration course that is currently taking place.

The final environment is the Kitchen.  This is where the leadership of North Point wants all of their  people to arrive.  Remember, they can't control the outcome but they can control the environments.  The Kitchen is intended to be a small environment designed to change people's mind about their priorities, ultimately their relationship with Jesus.  These are small groups where life is shared, specific learning takes place and love pervades everything.  

North Point has taken the term environmentalist to a whole new realm.  They are a church of intentional environments and have seen God use these to further his Kingdom.  

What can we learn from them.  I'd love to hear any thoughts y'all have on the topic. 

Live from Hotlanata

Brenda, John Torkelson, Mesha Torkelson and I arrived in Atlanta safely yesterday afternoon.  We haven't stopped eating since.  I now understand the meaning of southern hospitality.  We have been blessed by the Hassler family.  They opened their home to us and have been treating us like royalty.  It is such a good reminder that our faith family goes way beyond the city limits of Monticello. 

We are in Atlanta to observe and learn from a church called North Point.  Every other month they invite other churches to glean anything they can from what they have learned in their 10 years of ministry.  What has impressed me the most is their unwavering desire to create environments where people can get connected with Jesus.  We are being inspired and learning more than I have had time to process.  Thank you Quarry family for allowing your leadership to relax and refuel.

I heard good things about the service this morning.  Way to go Joel, Denny and John!  I know you were stretched today and I thank you for your faithfulness.  For those of you who missed it the message was about allowing God to lead you this summer instead of leaving him.  I want to encourage each of you to spend time with God praying about how that plays out in your life over the next few months.  It is so easy to think we can do it better than God but he is trust worthy.  If we allow him to, he will lead us down roads we would probably never choose but will experience an adventure that is beyond our wildest dreams.  We serve a great God!

Smokin’

It is good to be home. We all returned safely from Ecuador filled with awe for our God and how he moves. Like many of you we were looking forward to an incredible missions Sunday followed by another fun-packed Kidstuf. Well . . . if you haven't heard already, things have changed a bit for this Sunday. On Wednesday morning, the staff who opened the school discovered that there had been an electrical fire burning most of the night. From what I know from the staff, the fire itself was very small – a pallet of paper and a plastic pool washer, but all the smoke from the fire made its way into the ventilation system and smoked out much of the newer addition. The pool and auditorium were the hardest hit.

I'm sure you have many questions about how and where we are going to meet over the next few weeks. It looks like we will be out of the middle school for the next three weeks but we will worship together at our usually time of 10 am. The district has very graciously offered us room at East View (located on the corner of Cty 18 and School Blvd). While it is not the luxurious auditorium we are used to it will more than suffice for the time being. The classroom space we get to use is actually furnished with age appropriate toys so there is a silver lining.

I want to encourage all of us to be in prayer for the school system in Monticello and the students. This has really rocked their world. All the ceiling tiles in the building need to be replaced and everything and I mean everything has to be carefully cleaned. They hope to have 50 people working around the clock by the weekend.

When we gather together this Sunday, come with an open heart and an expectation for God to move. Things we be a little chaotic and disorganized as we figure out how to use the building but that is a small price to pay to hear the stories that will be told this weekend. The missions team is excited to share what God is doing in Ecuador. I was there and I saw God use our small team and bless our socks off at the same time. You really don't want to miss the stories and photos of this amazing trip so get to church early and grab a friend.

I am excited to be back and see all of you on Sunday. I miss you. Praise God for his greatness! A little fire can't keep him down or us apart. See you Sunday!