Hebrews 2:1 says, "We must pay more careful attention there, to what we have heard so that we do not drift away."
I was out by the Awakening Sculpture at Haines Point praying today and I found some driftwood. That driftwood reminded me of the tendency to drift. Marriages drift. Ministries drift. People drift through life. Drift often results in lost purity or lost intensity or lost capacity.
It is so easy as a Pastor to get to a place where you preach because you have to (you're on the schedule) instead of preaching because you have to (you have a word from God). It's so easy to do what you've always done. It is easy to read the word with one thing in mind--how can this translate into a message for others. It's so easy to learn how and forget why . I need to retrace my steps and be reminded of why I'm doing what I'm doing.
I think drifting is such a natural thing because it is non-resistance or going with the current. I set a personal record preaching twenty weeks in a row without a break and I feel like I drifted. I work about thirty hours on average on each message I preach so I've spent about 600 hours working on messages and when I looked up I was way downstream. And the further downstream you go the harder it is to resist the current. You just have to dig in and work you way back upstream. Here is how I'm going to do it in the month of May.
I'm going to fast Television. I'm going to fast food on Fridays. I'm going to spend an hour in prayer everyday. And I'm going to read through the New Testament in May. I'm going to go back and do what I did at first. That prescription never changes. Revelation 2:4 says, "Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first."
We've experienced so much momentum for so long that it is hard for me to adjust to the challenge of being downstream. I lost some connections. I lost some energy. I lost some focus. And before I knew what happened I had drifted so far I didn't recognize the shoreline. I feel like I'm at a place I've never been before. But I know how to get back. There is no shortcut. Just keep your head above water and fight the current and look for things to hold on to.
I think drift is the thing that kills pastors and churches and revivals and church plants and marriages. Resist the current.

I recently read Simply Strategic Stuff. What follows are some quotes, thoughts, and personal reflections.
Drift
I think one of the greatest dangers every church plant faces is drift. You lose that "pioneering" or "entrepreneurial" spirit. You settle in to "business as usual" and lose the burning passion that inspired the risk in the first place. It's so easy to do what you've always done!
Tony Morgan says, "There is never a good time to pull away from doing ministry to talk about ministry."
Measures
What you measure is what gets time and attention. Here are 7 NCC measures:
1) Attendance--are we reaching new people?2) Income--are people growing in the grace of giving?3) Baptism--are people going public with their faith?4) Missions--are we investing outside our four walls?5) # of Leaders--are we recruiting, training, and unleashing new leaders?6) % Involvement in Ministry--are people identifying and using their gifts?7) % Involvement in Community--are people connecting relationally?
I think we need to add two measures to this list. We need to measure new believers--how many people are finding a relationship with Christ and taking a step of initiative to grow in that relationship? I think one way to measure this is some kind of class or group for new believers. Another important measure is how many people are identifying NCCer as their "church home." We don't do membership, but we need a system to help people connect. One way of measuring this would be a connection class that would be our version of a membership class.
Criticism
Tim Stevens says, "I used to think that I needed to take the time to convince every critical person to see things my way. I soon learned I was wrong. I was just wasting precious minutes God had given me to invest in meaingful and effective ministry. Answering every criticism and explaining every questioned action will wear you out! I'm convinced it will shorten your life, reduce your heart for people and create a cynical spirit within you."
One of the most painful experiences for pastors is when someone leaves the church. We tend to take it personally. Stevens says, "When someone leaves, it will hurt. That pain, however, may be because you are doing exactly what God wants you to be doing!" You can't be all things to all people! Radio stations don't appeal to everyone's taste in music. We need different kinds of churches because there are different kinds of people.
Structures
Tony Morgan says, "Growing churches require different types of organizational structures and systems. The same strategy that allows a church to grow from one hundred to three hundred will not allow a church to grow from one thousand to three thousand." The key is balancing two things: order and chaos. I think NCC is more on the chaotic side and that has served us well, but we're entering in a new stage or season as a church. Morgan says, "The irony of ministries that experience rapid growth is that the strengths that led to their initial successes may actually be detrimental to ongoing growth. In other words, it often takes a different set of talents and systems to maintain growth for the long haul. Ministries must trade a purely entreprenurial instinct for an approach that also values management principles and systems." It's like that statement was written about NCC. We're at that in between stage.
One footnote: structure doesn't equal committees!
Systems
"Without systems, all decisions rise to the top." Without clear guidelines, even the simplest decisions rise to the top. I remember an incident a few years ago where we realized it was time for a change. We talked about lightbulbs for several minutes and the final decision was mine to make. And I refused to make it because it was one of those surreal moments where I realized how much time and energy I had wasted thinking about light bulbs!
The key to overcoming this is clear lines of communication and authority and responsibility--organizational charts, bylaws, position papers, policies, guidelines, handbooks. What these things accomplish is a savings of time and energy because instead of having to answer the same theological or practical questions over and over again you answer them once! Morgan says, "Create systems or policies that release decision-making responsibilities to the front lines." Structure doesn't have to create bureaucracy. Structure can actually increase freedom and range or motion. We can structure for decentalization.
Here is a key question for every policy/guideline/rule: Does it make life easier for our staff and leaders? Systems should simply life! Systems should faciliate ministry. "What minimal structure is necessary to offer wise counsel and appropriate accountability?"
The 10/10/80 Rule
Granger Community Churches preaches what they call the 10/10/80 rule. The first 10% of your income belongs to God. The second 10% belongs to your future--save it or invest it. And you should try to live off 80% of your income. I think this is a great principle for churches to practice as well.
Perception
Tim Stevens says, "Perception is reality." What a profound principle. Once people get a negative perception in their head it's tough to get it out. It becomes part of their reticular activating system. Jack Welch, the former CEO of General Electric said, "One thing I learned during my years as CEO is that perception matters. And in these times when public confidence and trust have been shaken, I've learned the hard way that perception matters more than ever." The bottom line is this: a person's perception is their reality whether it's in touch with reality or not.
Discipleship Strategy
Most churches have no clearly defined pathway of discipleship. Tony Morgan talks about his experience at Granger Community Church. "We were effectively attracting a crowd on weekends, but there was no clearly defined path to help people mature in their faith." That is where we are at. We've tried "Plug into a ministry and plug into a community group" but it's had marginal success at best.
Thank God for the crowd. As Morgan says, "Without a crowd, there won't be anyone to take steps toward spiritual maturity." But we've got to turn the crowd into a congregation.
Speed Bumps
When I was in high school we had interesting forms of fun. One of them was hitting speed bumps (which we called "jumps") at high rates of speed. It was fun, but it caused structural damange to my car more than once. I sort of feel like we've hit a speed bump at full speed. We've got some structural damage.
But that is normal. Tony Morgan says, "The 'normal' path includes blood, sweat, and tears." There are times you feel like throwing in the towel or burying your head in the sand. But I agree with Morgan. "I'm convinced these hardships are God-ordained. Without them, our tendency would be to take control."
Habakkuk 2:3 says, "These things I plan won't happen right away. Slowly, steadily, surely, the time approaches when the vision will be fulfilled. If it seems slow, wait patiently, for it was surely take place. It will not be delayed."

My dream has always been to plant a church and see it grow from the ground up. We're eight years into it and I think I'm learning some new lessons right now. And that is what is exciting about pastoring a growing church--there are always new challenges. We'll never arrive. We'll always be a work in progress. And I'll always have a measure of "divine dissatisfaction."
When I think about where we're at as a church here is the metaphor that comes to mind--growth spurts. We're eight years-old. And here is what life is like for eight year-olds. And by the way, I'm an authority on eight year-olds because I have one.
Healthy eight year-olds have amazing growth spurts. They can go to bed one night with clothes that fit fine and wake up the next day with "floodwater" pants. It's incredible. Eight year-olds grow like weeds. There are times that my eight-year-old feeds his sixty pound body more than I feed my two hundred pound body!
Along with those growth spurts comes a degree of uncoordination. It's pretty funny to watch. Summer is amazing at physical comedy and she doesn't even have to try. She makes Kramer look coordinated. She can be standing still and fall down. Lora and I look at each other and just laugh sometimes beause it's amazing.
Here's what's going on. Their coordination hasn't caught up with their bodies. They're walking and the brain forgets that their legs grew an inch overnight and they hit the ground awkward and fall. Or the brain forgets they are two inches taller and they walk right into a counter top! The end result is lots of bumps and bruises and bangs. But that is part of growing up.
What does that have to do with NCC? We're eight years-old and we've experienced unbelievable growth spurts tripling in size in three years! When you grow by 43% three years running you ought to expect some bumps and bruises and bangs. In this book Dog Training, Fly Fishing, and Sharing Christ in the 21st Century, Ted Haggard says it's nigh unto impossible to assimilate people if you're experiencing more than 20% growth. We're experiencing more than twice that. And I think our growth spurt has caused some uncoordination. We've got to catch up with our body.
Growth spurts can be scary for eight year-olds. They are literally changing before their eyes! That can be scary. What is happening to my body? I don't look like I used to? I don't feel like I used to? I have body hair or body odor? That is part of the deal. That is part of maturity.
How we navigate this growth spurt is critical to our future as a church. We're going to fall down and trip over our own feet and bump our head a few times. It just comes with the territory. But it is the only way to mature to the next stage as a church.

I just read a fascinating article on JetBlue and CEO David Neeleman. Jet Blue has become one of the fastest growing airlines pulling in almost $1 billion in revenue in 2003. They expect to add at least 1700 employees in the next 12 months and a new plane every three weeks. The question is: can Jet Blue maintin it's cultural distinctives as it grows larger?
I think that is the question any growing church faces--especially a multi-site church. Can we stay flexible and focused as we grow larger? Can we grow large without losing those unique distinctives that helped us grow large?
Chuck Salter says, "Can JetBlue maintain those qualities as it morphs from nimble startup into the bureaucracy that's required to manage a vastly more complex operation? It's a question that applies to many truly innovative companies these days. Call them postmodern corporations, perhaps. if they pull off the transition, they become big, but remain in importants ways the antithesis of bigness--think Starbucks, Dell, and Amazon. Like JetBlue, they depend on flexibility, speed, and a sense of intimacy with employees and customers alike. Put another way, the challenge JetBlue now faces is this: Is small scalable?"
JetBlue is doing a few things to scale itself. Salter says, "As JetBlue grows, it relies more and more on employees who weren't there in the beginning, when the entire staff could fit in one room. That's why preserving the culture increasingly requires conscious effort, starting with orientation."
JetBlue does a five-day orientation called Principles of Leadership (POL). The goal is to trasmit the culture and values of JetBlue to it's growing number of employees and managers.
Salter comes to an interesting conclusion: "In many ways, the question of whether JetBlue can do all this--grow and standardize and automate--while still perseving its personal touch comes down to this: Can Neeleman be scaled?"
That is the challenge every multi-site church faces.

I just read an interesting article on Michael Eisner that is a fascinating follow-up to the importance of storytelling and leadership.
The article in Fast Company says, "Disney is the premier storyteller of our era." It claims that few of us get through a day without hearing from Disney in some form or fashion. Disney's modus operandi is "bolstering Mickey's relevance across multiple demographic groups." Interesting comission!
The article talks about the woes of Michael Eisner. He was fighting for his life at the annual shareholder's meeting March of 2004. Charles Fishman says, "He offered no storytelling. Eisner--wizard-in-chief--should have marshaled his animators, his writers, his imagineers, to product an event that would rebut his critics and enchant the nervous." Instead, Fishman says that Eisner was "tired around the eyes." In his opinion, "The spark in his eye is gone, the spirit is spent, the spell has broken. Without those, how can anyone possibly make magic?"
Fishman ends with as astute observation. "These days, we need our mythmakers, our storytellers, as urgently as we ever have."

A recent Fast Company article made a profound comment on the power of storytelling. "The stories that you tell about your past shape your future." That one statement is so critical to effective leadership and communication.
One of my definitions of a "leader" is the person who knows the most stories! A leader shapes culture by telling and re-telling stories. I think the same is true in a family context--a parent shapes culture by telling and retelling family stories that usually begin with, "Remember the time when...."
Stories are cathartic. They add a level of authenticity and integrity. Their is nothing more powerful than telling or hearing a spiritual story.
It's no wonder Jesus was so narrative! I want NCC to be a storytelling culture. Posted by Batterson at April 12, 2004 10:09 AM
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This blog contains some of my reflections on The Sermon Maker by Calvin Miller. This book is a great tune up for anybody who is called to communicate the gospel.
"The way each generation hears and appropriates truth is quite different." I think this observation is critical because most preachers are good at biblical exegesis, but not as proficient at cultural exegesis. A good communicator has to be in tune with God and in tune with culture. I think our God @ the Box Office series is a good example of the way to marry biblical exegesis and cultural exegesis. I think another example is trying to play off of popular television shows--especially reality TV. If it's done well, playing off of popular cultural metaphors can give sermons and series an "air of relevance." If done poorly, it's like drinking a soda with too much sugar. We can't afford to compromise truth or relevance!
One of our core values is irrelevance is irreverance. Relevance isn't optional. I like the way John Stott says it. We "refuse to sacrifice truth to relevance or relevance to truth." It is a balancing act, but we "resolve instead in equal measure to be faithful to Scripture and pertinent to today."
Another great concept in the book is what could be called the marriage of biography and theology. James William McClendon Jr. says, "Biography at its best will be theology." Miller says, "Theology is not what we preach. Theology is who we are, and who we are is what we preach." It comes down to this. "Great preaching grows only from the soil of great lives."
When everything is said and done, I think preaching at its best is ultimately communicating the timeless word (logos) in a timely way (rhema).
A few more thoughts:
"Every modern communications specialist agrees that we both 'think and store' in mental pictures." We are wired for metaphors! That is how we think and how we learn. I think communicating is about three things: metaphors, metaphors, metaphors! Jesus was the master of metaphors! Aristotle said, "The greatest thing in style is to have command in metaphor."
"Sermons take their life from the nearness of God."
"Urgency takes no time for irrelevancies."
"Great sermons answer real issues. There is only one question of real importance: 'Is this sermon for me right now'?" Unfortunately, Calvin Miller says that many preachers have "devoted themselves to long talks on nonessential subjects."
"In saying what God wanted said, the potential force of people's acceptance or criticism lost its control over him." There is nothing like the conviction that accompanies a message birthed by the Spirit of God in your heart of hearts.
Hugh Litchfield says, "After reading and listening to hundreds, yea thousands, of sermons, I am convinced that their greatest weakness is a lack of focus. They often go everywhere." As the old adage goes: tell them what you're going to say, say it, then tell them what you said.