Travis Johnson

Thinking More about the Church

This is a BIG week for us.  This is the first time we will add a service, but not the last.  Some of the great things that have happened so far from the addition of this upcoming worship opportunity is:

• We have multiplied the hospitality and Kids Life teams significantly.
• We are providing another option for people.  The 9 am service will help a lot of people make it to church who can't currently because of work and other responsibilities.
• It has already allowed people to step up into service by attending a service and serving in a service.  Thank you guys...this is great for the mission of Jesus and a great decision for you!
• It has opened up service opportunities that to some seemed full.  Since, it is impossible to imitate Christ if you are not serving Him and others, this was critical. 
• We have had to revamp the way we do setup and it has gotten 1000 times better.  We have a crew of night owls that meetup at the theater at midnight to bring the auditorium together.  They're insane!  And, I don't think they'd want to do it any other way.  The hospotality and Kids Life setup teams have gotten incredibly fast and have built a real sense of belonging.  I'm amazed.

I can't wait for Sunday.  I have a day off coming this week.  But, I feel like I won't be worth anything I'm so preoccupied with Sunday!  I expect to see people making decisions to follow Christ that will last.  And, that just fires me up.  Anyway, before we even get to what happens on Sunday, I see a lot of great things happening in the life of of church as a result.

Thoughts on the Church

• Some people think the Church is an event.
• Some people think the Church is a living organism on mission for Christ.
• Some people think the Church exists to anesthetize us from our dysfunction.
• Some people allow the Church to drag our dysfunction into the daylight and watch it shrivel in the light.
• Some people embrace the idea that we are all equal.
• Some people pray to God how thankful they are that they aren't like the guy praying next to them.
• Some people ask God "what can I get away with and still follow Christ?"
• Some people forsake everything to follow Him.
• Some people experience redemption and want the world to know the same.
• Some people have a cultural church experience yet have never humbled themselves before the Creator.
• Some people find forgiveness and then run away to throw in prison those who owe them something.
• Some people are forgiven of much and demonstrate forgiveness to others.

The Church is a beautiful thing!  It is redeemed by the grace of God.  It is dispatched by the Christ of our salvation.  It is empowered by the Holy Spirit.  When I look at myself, I can't believe that I have privilege of being a part of this Body.  Truly amazing!

A Slap in the Face as You Leave

This past week, we did Disney. My wife set us up to do a time share. You get a 90 minute spiel and free tickets. First, let me tell you its not worth it unless you are wanting a timeshare. You are better off spending your money on the tickets.

During the mostly pleasant presentation, I told the sales professional that was working with us that we wait 24 hours on major purchases like cars, real estate, and other big purchases. There wouldn't be a "yes" today. That didn't go over well. After being told by her boss that I lacked the ability to make a decision, I told him he lacked the ability to close deals and demonstrate the art of finesse and an appreciation for potential clients.

After telling the original presenter I was appreciative for the good presentation, she said I basically slapped her in the face. I guess the presentation was only good if I purchased under pressure. I guess the only value I had for them was my money.

According to her, 1 in 4 people purchase. That means 3 in 4 say "no." Also, based on my experience, I guess 75% of the people who receive presentations leave with a bad taste in their mouths. 3 in 4 people probably tell their friends not to do business with Westgate. I do look forward to hanging out in my parent's timeshare this summer (Bluegreen).

I think that when relationships and business deals go in a direction we would rather not see them go, we should have enough grace to leave the door open and enough wisdom not to scorch the earth. Eventually, the negative buzz will catch up with you. Scott Hodge and Craig Groeschel have some related advice for pastors right now...good stuff that we should consider when dealing with people who say no to our ministries and leave.

Online Social Networking Tools for the Church

From Leadnet and Stephen Shields, research on Online Social Networking Tools for the Church.

Christ Fellowship Homestead Here to Stay

We pray for God's Kingdom to come to Homestead.  One of our "sayings" at Life Pointe is that we want to "make it hard for people to hit hell from Homestead." So, a few months ago when Christ Fellowship opened their first extension campus outside of Palmetto Bay right here in Homestead, I couldn't have been more excited.

A couple weeks ago, I heard a rumor that CF wasn't going to be at Waterstone in the fall.  I was really disappointed.  So, I emailed Jeff Reed to find out what's up and heard their awesome news. Eric Geiger writes about it here as well.  Bottom line is it was a total rumor.  In fact, they were being given almost five acres ($6,000,000+) on the Turnpike!  It was given to them by the Miami Baptist Association. 

Dude, I'm just about ready to be a Baptist!  I already really dig Ed Stetzer.  You know...for 5 acres in Miami-Dade, I think I might even be willing to become a Fundie!  Anyway, great news for Christ Fellowship...great news for the Kingdom of God in Homestead!

People that don't dig it but still get the point

Gary posted a great entry about a family that visited Ridge Stone and wrote him a letter.  Basically, they said the church wasn't for them.  But, they did get what was going on there in Canton for their community and for the Kingdom and they offered to pray for the church.  Check it out. 

Its funny, I got a call today from someone today that had checked us out a few times and said the same thing.  I really like these guys and I really wanted to pursue them.  But, I have made a covenant with myself not to try to convince churched people that Life Pointe is the place for them.  The bottom line is that I want the people in our church buying in to what we do and loving it naturally.  If I have to convince people to like what is going on here to get their involvement or worse...their money, we are off mission and off task and out of focus.  That isn't what the Church is about.

Of course, we will have and do have people who don't necessarily prefer our style but who serve enthusiastically because they want their kids to love church or because they are all about mission and their personal preferences take a back seat.  I love that heart.  Even more, I love it when people have a strong understanding about the mission of Jesus and they see the Church as more than just a place to get spiritually fat.

Coaching Network

I just found out that I got accepted into a pastor coaching network led by Nelson Searcy, pastor of The Journey Church in Manhattan.  I'm really looking forward to it.

7 Areas to Measure Your Church

Church Relevance shares "7 Areas to Measure Your Church" lifted from an article in Christianity Today.  They are:

1. Sensing the presence of God. “Experiencing the supernatural dwarfs everything else as people rate a church’s atmosphere.”
2. Others-centered. “An others-centered church is immediately interested in new people, what they need, and how the church can help.”
3. Understandable terminology. “Healthy churches tend to speak in terms everyone can understand.”
4. People who look like me. “Our level of comfort can be high or low depending on how quickly we find someone else who looks like us.”
5. Healthy problem handling. “What makes a healthy church is not the absence of problems. It’s how problems are handled.”
6. Accessibility. “High ratings go to churches that are ‘barrier free’ in every sense of the term.”
7. Sense of Expectancy. “Most healthy churches are hopeful churches.”

Excellent stuff.  I have a few responses:

1. A person with an experience is hard to convince that an alternate truth exists.  That's why first impressions are so important.  It is also why the church needs to leave room for God to have unscripted moments with people seeking God.  If we are so consumed with professionalism and first impressions, we can script a Holy God out of our ceremonies. 
2. Jesus interested in us---> us consumed with ourselves seems to be the mistranslation that has rendered the modern American church powerless.
3. Si.
4. I agree with one caveat.  This should not be an excuse to create a homogeneous church.  We highly value diversity.  Within a diverse church, it is important that people are able to connect with people in similar life stages and interests.  But, encouraging people to surround themselves with clones of themselves is not a Biblical mindset.
5. According to Ken Newberger, avoidance is the primary way conflict is handled in the church.  Run toward problems and deal with them early on before they become major issues down the road.
6. I would counter by saying that zero barriers are effective for exploration and connection.  High demand/high involvement promotes community, stickability, and maturity.
7. I've been in churches where people obviously "attended" solely out of a sense of obligation.  The church was basically dead and didn't know it.  Expectancy was nowhere around those places.

Hispanics Changing the Face of Christian Worship

Mark Rodriguez, the worship pastor at Calvary Chapel Miami Lakes, just up the road from us was interviewed by the Miami Herald for an article about Hispanics experiencing God outside the confines of the Catholic Church.  Its a good article that also talks about the growing influence of Hispanic Pentecostal Churches like El Rey Jesus and Alpha and Omega.

The big news?  People are breaking away from the expectations of others, finding Christ for themselves and learning to experientially follow Him.  That's good news for Miami.

The Pastor's Wife

Today, when I was at Baptist Hospital visiting David, I ran across this great article.  You've got to read it.  In a lot of churches, the pastor's wife is treated like an employee, pope-lite, pastor's secretary, a staff member, another pastor, a saint, Mother Teresa, or some other distant, yet ever-available counselor.

Check out how it is with my wife.  Of course, since, I am her husband, my opinion is the only one that counts.  :)

Kelly is...

• My smokin' hot wife.  I got the hots for her long before she was a pastor's wife.
• A really great mom.  She takes care of our girls.  Next to taking care of me (her lover, best friend, protector, etc...), she does nothing better than being a mom.
• She's a Christ follower pursuing Jesus down the same exact path as other followers of Christ.

What does that mean? It means that she has permission to be a regular person.  I looked for the girl that would make me happy for the rest of my life.  Though Kelly is gifted and has a ministry calling, I wasn't looking for a ministry partner to build a church with.  I wasn't looking for someone who always looked like she just stepped off of Little House on the Prairie, someone with Tammy Faye's hair, or someone who listened, smiled, and nodded like some kind of mindless mannequin. 

I liked the fire in that girl, her love for Christ, her physical beauty, and her generous spirit.  I also liked the fact that when I dished out sarcasm, she dished it back.  She didn't need me.  But, I had to have her.  I liked that she didn't have to have a guy to make her whole.  She was a heck of a woman and I wanted her in my life...forever.

One time BK (before Kelly), someone tried to set me up on a date with someone they thought would be a good match for me (because she could play the piano...every preacher needs a wife that can sing).  I told them that the only way I would date a girl that ugly is if she was absolutely filthy rich.  Besides, it would be cheaper to hire a staff member to lead worship than to marry a chick because she has a good voice (weird, eh?).

All of this also means that I will forever reserve the right knock anyone out if they ever take out their frustrations with me on my wife.  Of course, that hasn't happened at Life Pointe.  But, when we were starting out, I seriously thought about waylaying one cat for something he said to my wife.  If it ever happened again, I wouldn't think twice about my response.

I think pastor's wives are pretty cool people.  They are a lot more awesome when they escape the pressure to live up to everyone's expectations.  I could say some stuff about Preacher's Kids.  But, I'll save that for another day!  ;)