Taking a Sabbath

I was really moved today as I begin my Sabbath. I'll tell you why in a minute.

Not long ago, I changed my day off to Friday, so that I could kind-of take 2 days in a row off, like normal people. Also like normal people, it doesn't exactly work like that. Most weeks (OK, pretty much every week) I work on one of those days. Last week, I worked Friday because I was gone Monday through Wednesday at a conference and there was simply too much to do.

But today, as I began my Sabbath, I wanted to read the thoughts of a few friends who think deeply, whom I trust, and who make me better. One of them is Beth Brawley Stoddard. If you have not read her post about Sabbath from earlier this week, I strongly encourage you to do that. It will move you, too. Click here and it will take you there. You can also go to graceeveryday.blogspot.com

So, now I'm off to do some fishing with my good friend Jeff Boggess. Jeff is the Senior Pastor at Atlee Church in Mechanicsville and you might remember that he spoke at PCC in August. But today, Jeff and Brian are not working, we're not pastors, we're just friends...and we're just fishing.

Thank God for the Sabbath.

May we all learn to take one every week (me included), the way He intended. Amen.

Notes from yesterday with Scripture References

I promised to get you the scripture references from yesterday, along with some notes:

• Jesus' call to 'follow me' comes from lots of places. I referred to some in Matthew: 4:19, 8:22, 9:9, 19:21,16:24.
• I referenced Nicodemus, who you can read about in John 3 & 7
• I began by talking about Bill Hybels. Several folks asked about him, you can find out more by clicking here. You can get the 'from Here to There' presentation that he did on DVD (it costs $25) by clicking here.

• Here are the 5 stages of maturity that I developed:

1) Life is about what I want.

2) Life is about what is happening around me.

3) Life is about what Jesus can do for me.

4) Life is about what I want to do for Jesus.

5) Life is about what Jesus wants to do through me.

The destination goal for our spiritual journey is #5.

Hope this helps.

A GREAT Day for PCC

Today was a fantastic day for PCC. As I sit and reflect on this day, let me share with you some of what I experienced:

• I had pancakes! The Macedonia mission team is raising money for their 2011 trip, and did a pancake fundraiser at the Powhatan Campus. I ate 2 before the first service...and 2 more before the 2nd one. Extra running tomorrow...but it was worth it!
• We had great services at both campuses and all 3 services. I don't teach the kind of message I taught today very often. I really enjoyed the change and I think God did some amazing work in some lives today. The music was AWESOME and some budding new musicians got to use some of their clearly God-given gifts. It was a great day at both campuses!
• We finished up 101 today. A big group of around 25, several people and families joined the church.
• And, of course, whenever we do a baptism it's awesome. I didn't get the final count, but it was something like 40 people who were baptized today. As we were leaving the water, Beth said to me, "It never gets old, does it?!" I couldn't have said it better. (I did miss Angie in the water today. It's been a LONG time since I did a baptism without her...but she has a great excuse! :-) )

God is doing something phenomenal at PCC. Lives are being changed. People are being transformed. And we get to be a part of it all...Wow!

What we do matters.

3 Events You Don't Want to Miss

• Lots of folks are asking lots of great questions about where PCC is headed. Whether you are a committed member of our church or someone who is still checking us out, I would strongly encourage you to come to the Powhatan Campus on Sunday, September 26, at 6pm. We'll have a great time of worship, share communion together, and we'll hear about where God is leading PCC. I'll also do some question and answer time. It will be a GREAT evening that you don't want to miss!

• This Coming Sunday (Sept 19), we will have our September Baptism. 4pm at the James River at Cartersville. If you would like to be baptized, it's not too late to get on the list. Please call the church office at 598-1174 or contact me or Sammy Frame at sammy@pccwired.net. This is an event that the entire church is encouraged to attend, and there is a sizable group that is going to be baptized. Come celebrate with us!

• Finally, there are still 2 spots available for the Marriage Retreat. You can find more info by clicking HERE. But we need a commitment and a deposit asap if you want to go.

New Rallying Cry at PCC!

Several weeks ago (August 8 - 11) the entire PCC staff spent an exhausting 4 days and 3 nights on retreat. PCC's staff retreats provide a concentrated time for team building, renewal, and strategic planning. As people highly invested in our church, our staff believes it's important that you be kept "in the loop" and "up to speed" on the future direction and current decision-making at PCC.

This year's staff retreat proved extremely productive in two very important ways. First, our staff engaged in several extremely healthy and helpful conversations that raised our sense of team, commitment, and unity. As a consequence of these focused efforts our staff left the retreat with renewed spirits and commitments. A part of those commitments included a new way of dialoguing as a team. Our staff covenanted together to clarify expectations and establish guidelines for more effective team engagement and decision-making. You can find the contents of that covenant attached to this e-mail.

Second, our team wrestled with a concept known as a "thematic goal". Coined by business, management, and organizational consultant, Patrick Lencioni (see his book Silos, Politics, and Turf Wars), a thematic goal is simply the "rallying cry" of an organizational (particularly its leadership) for a specified period of time. More carefully, Lencioni defines a thematic goal as "a single, qualitative focus that is shared by the entire leadership team - and ultimately, by the entire organization - that applies for only a specified time period" (Lencioni, p 178). It is the overriding theme of the organization that basically answers the question, "If our organization needs to accomplish one thing in the next X number of months, then what must it accomplish?" The thematic goal is the one thing that the organization must accomplish. It is shared by everyone, regardless of expertise, interest, or job description. It is time-bound (Lencioni recommends anywhere from 3 to 12 months).

The thematic goal, in turn, is clarified by "defining objectives". Lencioni defines defining objectivesas "the components or building blocks that serve to clarify exactly what is meant by the thematic goal". Lencioni recommends 4 to 6 defining objectives for a thematic goal.

The PCC Staff is pleased to share with you our thematic goal and its corresponding defining objectives:

Thematic Goal:

Prepare PCC for an average worship attendance of 1500 people in January 2011.

Defining Objective 1: Address interim financial questions

Staff Members Leading Here: Chauncey Starkey, John Starkey

Defining Objective 2: Prepare building by addressing critical building issues

Staff Members Leading Here: Dennis Green, Sammy Frame, Lori Wheeler

Defining Objective 3: Re-evaluate services, scheduling, and programming

Staff Members Leading Here: John Starkey, Angie Frame, Beth Brawley

Defining Objective 4: Prepare for leadership development and 'mid-level managers'

Staff Members Leading Here: Beth Brawley, Anna Holland, Susan Hughes, Chauncey Starkey

Defining Objective 5: Establish a clear connection pathway

Staff Members Leading here: Susan Hughes, Sammy Frame, Anna Holland

Now, as you might imagine, each defining objective suggests a long list of actions and tasks that must be performed to successfully accomplish our thematic goal. Our staff has brainstormed tirelessly and is currently working on prioritizing and strategically executing those tasks and actions to most effectively reach our goal.

If you have questions or want to help, please contact a member of the staff. You can find more information about the PCC staff by clicking here.

This goal is not about reaching 1500 in attendance. I think God is already doing that. This goal is about being ready for what He is doing...And that is VERY exciting!

(to see more about what happened on the PCC Staff Retreat, click here.)

An Awesome New Song

Andrew Peterson wrote a new song that really hits home for me. It's about a couple that gets married at a really young age, odds stacked against them, but they make a promise and they keep that promise. They get older, until they are much older. And now, on the other end of the journey, they move forward, Dancing in the Minefields.

This has to be one of the most powerful songs I've ever heard. Thanks to Beth Brawley Stoddard for getting this to me. As it hits pretty close to home, Susan and I watched it together, a few tears falling along the way. Grab a tissue and click on this:

A Special Invitation

You Are Invited!

Saturday October 2ND at 2:00 pm

Join Bob and Jeanne Pino as they renew their marriage vows, celebrating 10 years of joy together!

Here's a statement from the Pino's about this event:

"As we gather together we will give God glory, honor and praise for all He has done and all He continues to do for us.

We are in the fight of our lives as we battle brain, lung and kidney cancer, and we feel the best way to do that is to gather family and friends, renew our vows before God, and openly declare that, “It’s not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit,” says the Lord. The enemy will be defeated!

Please dress casual, bring no gifts except your joyful praises to the Lord, and bless us with your presence."

RSVP to Bob and Jeannie at beanjobs@verizon.net by 9/18/10