Evotional.com - Originality, Authenticity, Creativity

Film Premiere

We just hosted the premiere of a film titled Sing at Ebenezers. The documentary on Uganda was shot by an NCCer, John Scanlon. What an amazing way to end our Week of Justice.

All night the Lord impressed one Scripture on my heart. Jesus said, "He who has ears let him hear." I watch a film like this and I feel like my eyes and ears have been closed. The documentary told the story of missionaries who are working with night commuters--the Ugandan children who are are being kidnapped in mass and living lives of captivity.

I still remember having a conversation with John about film making. He said films are epic parables. I love that description. We need more anointed film makers who are called by God to speak the truth via film. Sing is an powerful parable. It cut to the heart the way a sermon cannot.

In a Pit With a Lion on a Snowy Day

Just had a phone conference with my editors at Multnomah. Looks like we're going to overhaul my manuscript :)

On one hand, I'm totally overwhelmed at the thought of rewriting much of the manuscript over the next twelve weeks. Especially with a couple speaking engagements and the Buzz Conference right around the corner.

On the other hand, I'm totally energized. One word in one verse is revolutionizing the manuscript. I'll spare you the details, but I think the manuscript changes will exponentially increase the book's potential to revolutionize lives.

The key is going to be finding a writing rhythym over the next three months.

Rooftop Football

Beautimus day in Washington, DC. Definitely have spring fever. We played our first game of rooftop football today. We're going to utilize every square inch of this building. It's a stewardship issue. If that means playing football on the rooftop so be it.

Good thing we were using nerf footballs. A few passes sailed long. No customers were injured in the playing of our game.

Church is a Tag Team Sport

From day one our goal has been to create a church where NCCers felt confident inviting their unchurched friends.

We view church as a tag team sport.

When an NCCer walks into church they tag me and say "go for it." And I preach a message that I've poured my heart into. I try to give it everything I've got every time I preach.

When NCCers walk out of church I tag them and say "go for it." I read a study a few years ago that found that the average person has 68 people in their circle of influence. Those are people I don't have any social capital with or access to. We're each responsible for our own circle of influence--neighbors, colleagues, friends, acquaintances.

Anywho.

One way that we tag NCCers is by giving them invite cards. We do the creative work of branding a series. Then we tag everybody in our congregation and say "You're it."

Here is the invite card we designed for our new series titled Neos.

Chazown Day

I just ordered my copy of Chazown on Amazon.com.

I hereby declare April 5th Chazown Day. Is it legal to declare a book holiday? So why April 5th? I'm not sure but I love the fact that the month, day, and year are sequential: 04.05.06. Just seems like it should be some sort of holiday. So Chazown Day it is.

Seriously, if you haven't picked up a copy of Craig Groeshel's new book, Chazown, why don't you amazon it on April 5th. If you are the kind of person that opens presents before Christmas and you can't wait till April 5th, then go ahead and Amazon it sooner.

Here's a link with the 411 on the book.

Craig is the founding and Senior Pastor of Lifechurch.tv. If anybody is qualified to write a book on vision it's Craig.

For what it's worth, if you're lacking vision just stare at the cover of the book for about thirty minutes! Love the cover design.

Boredumb

Just had a meeting with a professor from George Washington University who is working on a book on the way church and culture interface.

She's attending NCC for a couple of months as part of her research for the project. She told me she hadn't attended church since 1977. She paid us a pretty cool compliment. She said, "It's never boring."

I'm anti-boredom. I think boredom ought to be a four-letter word in church :) Let's change the spelling to boredumb.

I did a message a few years ago and the big idea was never a dull moment. That is what it's like to step out in faith and sell out to Christ. Following Christ is lots of things. But here is one thing it most definitely isn't: boring.

That's my rant for the day!

Washington Times

The Washington Times ran a story on Ebenezers today in the Business section. Here's a link if you want to check out the online article minus pictures.

Revolving Door Church

I often refer to NCC as a revolving door church. What I mean by that is this: our turnover rate is approximately 30-40% per year. It used to be 50% per year! We had a brand new church every two years!

Half of that is due to demographics. We're 73% single twenty-somethings who are at a very transient stage of life. The other half of it is due to geographics. DC is the intern capital of the world. It's not uncommon to have someone attend NCC for a three-month internship.

That used to drive us crazy, but we've really embraced that as part of our unique calling. We're a revolving door church.

On one hand it means we have to grow approximately 30-40% just to break even from year-to-year. But it has also been our saving grace. It's very difficult to plant and grow a church in a city that doesn't have population growth or new housing developments. We've been able to build a church in DC because so many people walk through the revolving door all the time. And it's primarily twenty-somethings.

Revolving doors can make you dizzy! But it is part of our calling as a church.

clashradio.com

I'm doing an interview with Doug Giles of clashradio.com tonight. Not sure exactly when it airs, but I think it'll hit their website this weekend and the airwaves next week.

You can check it out at clashradio.com.

Google Earth

Jeremy Steffens, our future church planter in residence, sent me a google earth image of 201 F Street, NE. Too cool.

This must be about two years old because Station Place, the office building that sits opposite Ebenezers, was dirt. I think they were just starting to dig the foundation. You can see the Federal Judiciary building across from Ebenezers. And Union Station is a half block away.

Right at the bottom of the map are the Senate office buildings that are across the street from the Capitol building.

FYI. Our house missed this map by one block.

Go Fly a Kite

Sometimes you gotta love living in Washington, DC. Today was one of those days.

It was absolutely beautimus. Sunny and 60's. We went to the tidal basin to check out the cherry blossoms. And we flew kites. Actually we flew one kite. The other kite malfunctioned.

It was exactly what the doctor ordered. I've been a little stressed out lately. So it was fun to just run around with the kids on the National Mall.

Go fly a kite.

Thou Shalt Withdraw to the Wilderness

The buzz commandments continue.

If you haven't registered for the Buzz Conference yet visit www.buzzconference.com.

FYI. We just secured the movie theaters @ Union Station as our conference location. The Buzz Film Festival will still be held at our coffeehouse on Capitol Hill, a half block from Union Station.

Here is Buzz Commandment VII:

Thou Shalt Withdraw to the Wilderness [1]

I came up with a little formula a few years ago:

Change of Pace + Change of Place = Change of Perspective

Habituation is one of our greatest spiritual enemies. We learn how and forget why. We start doing ministry from memory instead of ministry from imagination. We keep doing what we've always done and our ministries become monotonous. Spiritual disciplines become empty rituals. We get stuck in a creative rut.

New environments stimulate new ideas.

That is why retreats are so powerful. That is why I take our team to conferences and we do offsite meetings. That is why I need to study in coffeehouses and bookstores. That is why we need to go on vacation.

So how do we stay on the creative edge?

Jesus set the example in Mark 1:35: "The next morning, Jesus awoke long before daybreak and went alone into the wilderness to pray."

That passage reveals the pace Jesus set. It also reveals the place where Jesus prayed. Jesus loved climbing mountains and walking beaches. And he frequently withdrew to the wildnerness to catch is spiritual breath. And he always seemed to return to the fray with fresh vision.

A few years ago I heard Bill Hybels say something that was so convicting and so challenging. He said the pace at which he was doing the work of God was destroying the work of God in Him. I think most of us have been there. We feel like the Red Queen in Through The Looking Glass. We have to go faster and faster just to keep up!

One key to creativity is finding a rhythm that works for you. For example, I have meeting days and focus days. I'm guessing that 90% of my creativity happens on focus days. And 90% of that 90% happens before Noon. I hit a point of diminishing return in the afternoon.

One of my greatest fears is that NCC would become a closed-system. It's so easy to do what you do and lose perspective.

I think there are two antidotes. The first antidote is prayer. That is how you continue to get God ideas. The second is exposing yourself to other models of ministry. If you think you have it all figured out it is the beginning of the end. Humility is one key to creativity.

Here are ten ways to stimulate creativity:

1) Read offbeat magazines.
2) Take a fieldtrip to a successful retail store and take notes.
3) Do something you've never done before
4) Skim the entire New Testament in one sitting.
5) Attend a new conference.
6) Schedule creative meetings--we call them Big Idea meetings
7) Do a short personal retreat
8) Read like crazy--physics, business, self-help, biography, etc.
9) Subscribe to some podcasts.
10) If all else fails, take a vacation.

[1] Mark 1:35

Buzz Film Festival

From day one we've wanted our Buzz Conference to be as open-source as possible. We're asking the churches who are attending our theater church forum on May 4 to bring some of their best practices for a little show-and-tell.

I think our Buzz Film Festival is a great open source event. I would guess that half the video ideas we've had over the years were generated by something that someone else did. We took the idea, tweaked it, and did it NCC style. I think the Film Festival is a great opportunity to get some great ideas.

We're now accepting video entries for the Buzz Film Festival. You don't have to be Stephen Spielberg. We'll take up to three entries per church. Send DVDs to:

National Community Church
Attn: Buzz Coordinator
205 F Street, NE
Washington, DC 20002

FYI. We're giving two complimentary movie tickets to everybody who enters a video.

Aerial Photo

We weren't able to get on top of Station Place to take an aerial shot of Ebenezers, but an NCCer who works there let us get a shot from his window.

Now all we need is a hot tub on our rooftop and we'll be good to go. Did I say hot tub? I meant baptismal :)

Hill Rag

We aren't doing much marketing for Ebenezers. It sort of markets itself via location. We're really relying on word of mouth which is the least expensive and most effective form of marketing. It's called buzz.

We are, however, advertising in the April issue of the Hill Rag. The Hill Rag is our Capitol Hill newspaper. Here's a look see.

Open-Source Church

Life Church rocks.

I've always been a huge fan of the lifechurch.tv podcast. If you don't subscribe, you need to. They are right at the top of my list of churches that I have profound respect for.

I love what Craig Groeshel preaches, but I also love the way he preaches it.

FYI. Craig is a Multnomah guy! Can't wait to get my copy of Chazown. I think it'd be cool if evotional readers "Amazon it" on the same day!

Anywho.

Life Church is going open-source with their resources! Check it out at www.lifechurch.tv/open. I really appreciate their kingdom-mindedness.

Mucho Props!

Preaching at Modern-Day Wells

Every Monday the Washington Times does a feature called The Capital Pulpit. They spotlight a church in the Washington, DC area. Pretty amazing feature for a major metropolitan newspaper. Props to the Times.

This is our third Capital Pulpit feature. I love the title of the article: Preaching at a Modern-Day Well.

Dividend ReInvestment Plan

I just got an email from an NCCer who was a significant shareholder in this Ebenezers dream. I thanked him on Saturday and he sent me an email this morning with a great thought. He said, "Something came to my mind after you mentioned being a shareholder on Saturday. Every cup of coffee I buy at Ebenezers is part of my Dividend ReInvestment Plan (DRIP)."

I love it.

The cool thing about Ebenezers coffee is that it doens't just taste good it feels good because every penny of profit goes toward our community outreach and foreign mission endeavors. That's why our logo says coffee with a cause.

DRIP. DRIP. DRIP.

Weekend Reflections

We concluded our SFSG: So Far So God series this weekend. I preached from Jeremiah 31:21: "Set up road signs; put up guidposts. Mark Well the path by which you came."

There is a difference between making a trip and marking a trail. This series was about marking a trail. I don't want us to forget how we got here! I talked about some of the lessons we've learned while pursuing this dream of building a coffeehouse on Capitol Hill.

I'm still adjusting to the rhythm of preaching on Saturday nights. I'm sure it will take a while. For what it's worth, my goal is to have a five-page manuscript for my message. But I typically have about ten to twenty pages of notes. My biggest challenge is always eliminating what I don't have time to say.

To be honest, I've been a little long winded lately :) I try to shoot for 25-35 minutes for a message, but I've been going 40-45 minutes.

One of the things I'm really excited about is experimenting on Saturday Nights. The atmosphere is so personal and comfortable. And its not as frenetic as Sunday mornings. Things get pretty crazy on Sundays when you have two locations and four overlapping services. I think Sunday nights will be a more relaxed atmosphere. We can do a Q & A after messages or do more responsive worship or spend time praying for one another. We want Saturday nights to be interactive.

We'll continue growing and experimenting one week at a time.

Curtain Call

The Winston-Salem Journal just did an article on theater churches titled Curtain Call: Churches Finding a Home in Theaters.

Here's a link if you want to check it out. It takes a minute to load.

Neos

We're kicking off a new series on April 1st. I was going to do a series titled My Big Fat Greek Bible and talk about several Greek words or phrases like Kairos and En Theos. And I might do that in the future. But we landed on a series that revolves around one word: Neos.
Here's the series graphic:

Multi Tasking Multi Plexes

I just got a copy of In Focus magazine. It is put out by The National Association of theater Owners. It is the magazine for anyone and everyone in the theater business.

Their feature article in the March issue is titled Multi Tasking Multi Plexes. It is a six-page feature on churches meeting in movie theaters. I did a long interview with the reporter a couple of months ago.

This trend of churches meeting in marketplace environments continues to pick up steam.

Here's a link to the online article.

FYI. We are hosting a theater church forum on May 4 in Washington, DC. We want to gather as many theater churches as possible to share best practices with each other. The forum is on the front end of our Buzz Conference.

WTOP Radio

Just did a radio interview with WTOP here in DC.

I have this conviction: the good news ought to make the news. It's so cool the way all of the media outlets are picking up on this coffeehouse story. By the time we're done we'll get some major coverage from TV, newspaper, and radio.

From Crack House to Coffeehouse

I did a show-n-tell during last weekend's message because I was talking about altars and the fact that we need physical reminders of spiritual lessons we've learned along the way. I wanted to share some of the backstory behind Ebenezers because historicity is what makes the place so cool.

One of the things I showed was a liquor bottle I have in my office. Ebenezers used to be a crack house where people got drunk or got high. That bottle represents redemption. I have it sitting in my office as reminder that God is in the redemption business.

From crack house to Coffeehouse.

Grand Opening

Our "Now Brewing" signs got hung last night. It is Grand Opening Day at Ebenezers. Here are a few recent photos inside and out.

Four Score and Seven Lattes Ago

In honor of opening day, I thought I'd share a coffee factoid.

Mental Floss had a fascinating article in the last issue on how a coffee shortage killed the confederacy during the Civil War.

David Norris writes, "Union campsites were dotted with tiny fires, each boiling a pot of coffee like a million miniature Starbucks." Or insert Ebenezers where it says Starbucks :)

Soldiers craved coffee because it was the best thing on the menu. Union supply chains were filled with corrupt food contractors who provided rotten, stale, and insect-ridden food. But the coffee was always fresh because it was deliever in whole-bean form. For what it's worth, officials requested whole beans after contractors began slipped dirt and sand into the ground coffee.

Here is where the story gets interesting.

Because of Union naval blockades, coffee was in short supply in the South. Before the Civil War, coffee cost 20 cents a pound in yankee money. Once the pre-war stockpile ran dry, that same pound of coffee cost $60 in confederate money! So the Confederates had to rely on coffee substitutes. Norris writes, "All these imitations lacked potency, tasted awful, and upset the bowels."

One fascinating footnote.

According to Norris, "Soldiers on the front lines often called informal truces so Rebels could swap tobacco for Yankee coffee and then dash back to their camps before they were reported missing."

You Never Know

You never know who you're going to bump into :)

I was walking through Union Station today and I bumped into Cris Collingsworth. For non-football fans, he is a former NFL wide receiver with the Cinncinati Bengals and broadcaster extraordinaire.

He was chaperoning one of his kid's trips to DC. We talked for a few minutes. I told him a little bit about NCC. And then we snapped a quick picture.

Union Station was packed today! There must have been 3.7 million students in the food court. Must be class trip season :)

Buzz Update

We got great news yesterday.

Somehow we landed the movie theaters @ Union Station for the Buzz Conference. We'd already been turned down twice because Mission Impossible III opens May 5. But we used our Cinemark Connection to get it done. Props to Tom Doyle for helping us get the space.

Long story short, we're moving the Buzz Conference half a block from our coffeehouse to Union Station. We'll still do a tour of the coffeehouse and host our Buzz Film Festival there on Thursday night. But I'm pretty stoked about hosting the conference in our flagship location.

If you haven't registered yet, here's a link.

Here are a few photos of Union Station.

Sticky Fingers

As part of our multi-site gathering, Leadership Network often brings in a non-church guest to share some transferable principles. This time around it was the COO of Sticky Fingers, a chain of sixteen rib restaurants in five states.

Two things stuck.

He said, "Our operating partners are the keepers of the culture."

I've toyed around with the idea of creating a Pastor of Culture position at NCC. The only reason I haven't is because I think everybody on staff and all of our leaders are keepers of the culture. But I love this concept. We are keepers of the culture. And there is nothing easy about creating and managing church culture. It is our most difficult and most important job as pastors.

The COO also said something interesting. He said that even if they don't have a job opening, but the right person walks through the door, they will create a position and hire them on the spot.

I love that approach to hiring. For what it's worth, my radar is always on and my antennea is always up. I think we have to be in hiring mode all the time. Some of our hiring stories are pretty bizarre at NCC. I knew after a quick conversation or bumping into someone in the blogosphere that we needed them on our team. Sometimes it'll start out as a part-time position or internship. But we're always trying to get the right people on the bus.

One footnote.

Sticky Fingers has a line item in their budget for rewarding employees. One-half of one percent of their revenue goes directly toward rewarding employees in unique and creative ways.

For what it's worth, we have a line item in our development budget. We reserve up to 1% of our budget to reward our team. Our staff is always going the extra mile and I feel like that deserves an extra blessing.

Lizard Hunting

A little known fact about the Batterson family. We're lizard hunters. My son Parker has lizard radar. Well, you can't come to Florida and not look for lizards. They were all over our hotel last night. So Joel and I went hunting. Here is our catch.

By the way, we released the lizard back into the wild. Joel, however, is still in captivity.

City Place

I really enjoyed these last two days in Palm Beach. We had a long day of planning yesterday, but I feel like God is giving us peace and clarity about next steps for NCC.

We hung out at City Place last night. Too cool. It is "the place" to hang in West Palm Beach. Lots of cool stores. The kind of stores you never buy anything at :) We ate at an Italian place called Il Bellagio.

Christ Fellowship is renting space at a theater right in the main square of City Place. Here's the cool thing. The theater used to be a Methodist Church where Adrian Rodgers attended Sunday school as a kid.

Catalyst Monthly

Somehow we landed in Catalyst Monthly newsletter. I had no clue. They reprinted a Leadership Journal article on NCC. Here's a link if you want to check it out.

I'm also adding the catalyst podcast to my must-subscribe list.

Out.

Ebenezers Postcard

We're putting together an Ebenezers postcard. Why not? Everyplace in DC seems to have a postcard. The back will share a little backstory on Ebenezers origins. We'll use it to promote our Grand Opening this weekend. We'll also have it for customers who want a memento.

Multi-Site Gathering

Nothing like waking up and looking at the forecast for DC--snow and 30's. Then walking outside your hotel into sunshine and 80's. I'm loving Palm Beach.

Another day of imagineering.

We're pretty consumed with launching our third location right now--our coffeehouse on Capitol Hill. But we have tentative plans to launch our next theater location in Fall 2006. I'm really trying to gauge the psychology and chronology of that launch. Because we're occupying our coffeehouse much later than planned, it might bump back our next launch back to 2007. We also want to launch a Spanish service in the next twelve months so we're trying to put all the pieces of the NCC jigsaw puzzle together.

There is definitely a hard science to multi-site. You've got to have the money. You've got to have the location. And you've got to have the core group.

But there is also the soft science. You've got to have the green light from the Holy Spirit. And you've got to have the emotional and physical energy.

I'm confident that we can find the money, the location, and the core group. But I'm really trying to gauge all the soft factors.

Palm Beach Here I Come

I'm checking out of the blogosphere for a bit.

We've got our last multi-site gathering with Leadership Network this week. Christ Fellowship in Palm Beach is hosting it. This is our fourth meeting with ten other multi-site churches. I've thoroughly enjoyed getting to know this group of pastors. Especially in places like Palm Beach :)

Out.

Thou Shalt Preach in Parables

I've been doing a series of blogs called The Buzz Commandments. I'll go into greater depth on them at our Buzz Conference May 4-5 in Washington, DC.

We've already covered the first five:

I--Thou Shalt Preach From Boats
II--Thou Shalt Hang Out At Wells
III--Thou Shalt Not Wash Thy Hands
IV--Thou Shalt Wash Smelly Feet
V--Thou Shalt Curse Barren Fig Trees

Here is Buzz Commandment VI:

VI: Thou Shalt Preach in Parables [1]

Let me come right out and say it. I've been around the homiletical block enough times to know that there are certain camps within Christendom that believe that expository preaching, a verse-by-verse exposition of a text, is the only form of biblical preaching. There is one problem with that perspective. Jesus wasn't an expository preacher. He was a parabolist.

Matthew 13:34 says, "He did not say anything to them without using a parable." The NLT says, "Jesus always used stories and illustrations."

I don't think there is anything inherently wrong with expository preaching. And I think the foundation of every message should be good exegesis of a text. But I also think we should take our communication cues from Jesus. And Jesus was a master of metaphors.

I have a communication conviction: the most important truths ought to be communicated in the most unforgettable ways.

Enter parables.

There is an old aphorism: a picture is worth a thousand words.

That aphorism is wrong.

According to neurological research, the brain is able to process print on a page at a rate of approximately one hundred bits per second. But the brain can process a picture at approximately one billion bits per second.

Mathematically speaking, a picture is worth ten million words!

Jesus communicated in word pictures. Why did Jesus use agrarian metaphors? Because he explained spiritual truths in everyday terms. He knew his listeners already had cognitive categories for his agricultural metaphors. If Jesus were preaching in our 21st century context, I'm sure he would have tapped into the cultural consciousness of our day and used a variety of metaphors.

John 12:52 has always been my preaching mantra.

Jesus said, "I did not speak of my own accord, but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and how to say it."

What is sermon content.
How is sermon branding.

Sermon branding is nothing new. It's as old as the ancient prophets using God-inspired props to make their messages stick. Jesus took the Old Testament art form to a new level. No one was better at branding truth than The Truth. His parables are pure genius. Hear them once and you'll remember them forever!

We need lots of different kinds of sermons because there are lots of different kinds of learners. That is educational theory 101. But let me zoom out and make an observation: I think linear sermons were more effective in the modern era with a left-brain orientation. They don't work as well in the postmodern era that is moving toward a right-brain orientation.

There are fifty-three parables in the gospels. Each one is a masterpiece in how to communicate to the right-brain of listeners. You've got to use metaphors and tell stories that capture the imagination. I think there are three keys to a great sermon: metaphor, metaphor, metaphor.

Ingmar Bergman, the Swedish filmmaker, said, "Facts go straight to the head; stories go straight to the heart." Sermons need to be both/and. They have to use facts that inform the left-brain and tell stories that inspire the right-brain. But it sure seems like Jesus targeted the right-brain.

One last thought.

What if Jesus were a teaching pastor at a 21st century American church? Would he preach the same way he did in the gospels? I think he would. And I think people would leave his church because they would complain that his messages weren't "deep" enough or "expository" enough or "long" enough for that matter! Most of his parables are less than 200 words! They were so simple. They were so short. Too simple and too short for some people!

So keep exegeting Scripture. Throw in some cultural exegesis. And never preach without using a parable!

[1] Matthew 13:34

Sunday Night Live

We take fun seriously at NCC. We're unapologetic about the fact that we love to laugh. I think the church ought to have more laughs per capita than anyplace else on earth.

We definitely upped the laughs per capita tonight :) We had our first Sunday Night Live event at Ebenezers. To quote Pastor Joel, "It was a night of hilarity!"

The creativity of our team never ceases to amaze me. I had nothing to do with the event so I got to sit back and enjoy it. The stand up was great. Joel cracks me up like nobody's business. And we had everything from a dance contest to the kiss cam to a live band. I've been live at Letterman a couple times and I think we topped it.

And you've gotta love having the coffeehouse upstairs for post-event fellowship.

I try not to be prescriptive with the way we do church. I think every church is unique. We need lots of different kinds of churches because there are lots of different kinds of people. But I could see a coffeehouse trend than mirrors the theater trend. We have this core conviction that the church belongs in the middle of the marketplace. I think God is calling the church back into the marketplace.

It was so cool to meet some non-NCCers tonight. And I know that there is no way they would have come if we weren't doing church in a coffeehouse.

Cool beans.

Weekend Reflections

Another whirlwind weekend but the thing that will stick in my spirit from the weekend is the people who raised their hand at our Ballston location saying they wanted to cross the line and put their faith in Christ. That's what it's all about.

We had two inaugural services at Ebenezers on Saturday. When we kick off our regular Saturday @ Six service next week it'll seem like a cakewalk doing one message instead of two. It was so cool to see people hanging out in the coffeehouse before and after services. I have a feeling that the coffeehouse will exponentially increase our FQ--fellowship quotient.

We had a few hiccups with our transition to high-def today. We couldn't play our video elements at Ballston. And there was a glitch in our 10:30 message at Union Station. I think that is par for the course.

Growing pains :)

iSermon

Just got an email from iTunes. They are offering March Madness games for $1.99. Interesting development.

I'm not sure exactly where Apple is taking us, but I know the church needs to be blazing the technology trail. I'm pretty stoked about our theaterchurch.com video podcast. It is one way we do digital dischipleship and e-vangelism.

I continue to think that there are ways of preaching that no one has thought of yet. I think we'll see new genres of preaching evolve in the next decade that aren't even on the radar right now.

The message is sacred. The medium isn't.

The church needs to be redeeming technology and using it to serve God's purposes. I see the iPod as a tremendous evangelism tool and discipleship tool. That was really the driving motivation behind www.GodiPod.com.

I just did a magazine article last week that I titled iSermon. An iSermon is a sermon that utlizes the iPod medium. Podcasts and video podcasts fall into that category, but I'm guessing that sermon shorts and short films will grow in popularity. I can see five minute messages and five minutes films functioning as postmodern parables.

Just thinking out loud.

Video Flashback

Powered by Castpost

Four years ago we purchased 201 F Street, NE. We commemorated the event with a Tear Down the For Sale Sign Celebration. We thought it'd be cool to dig into the video archive and do a little video flashback since we're focusing on the faithfulness of God during this SFSG series.

To appreciate how beautiful our new coffeehouse is you have to see how ugly the old building was!

By the way, nothing like an old video to keep you humble. Not sure who that goofy looking guy is that is talking but he looks vaguely familiar :)

So Far So God.

High Definition

We make the transition to high definition this week.

We're going to capture our Saturday Night message on a G5 Quad. Then we'll transfer the message to three G5 hard drives for Sunday mornings. Those hard drives will be our playback mechanism in our theater locations.

Sounds so simple doesn't it?

All of that means this. Our picture quality will be more lifelike. Plus we'll be able to fill up the entire movie theater screen with our image. High-def will take us from a 4:3 TV ratio to a 16:9 movie ratio.

The only downside to high-definition is that I have to wear make-up. But don't tell anybody. It's our little secret :)

Product Sampling

I'm working on an article on video podcasting for Vision Magazine. Just thought I'd post a short excerpt:

Around the turn of the 20th century, C.W. Post came up with a novel form of marketing called product sampling. He was trying to create market share for his caffeine-free coffee substitute called Postum.

In an unheard of marketing manuever, Post offered free samples to customers of local general stores in the Midwest. The sampling process gave Post market domination because he was able to directly touch the end consumer. He revolutionized the food industry forever.

Anybody ever eat a free lunch by sampling all the freebies at Costo? Or walk by a Chinese food court restuarant...seventeen times? You owe C.W. Post a thank-you. He basically bought your lunch.

What does that have to do with church?

Churches need to be intentional about product sampling.

Psalm 34:8 says, "Taste and see that the Lord is good."

Churches are in the taste test business. We're offering people free samples. We've tried to create a culture at NCC that embraces those who are unconvinced about Christianity but they are genuinely seeking.

We have a motto: the most important decisions ought to be the most informed decisions. We want NCC to be a place where people can sample God. Why? Because we have confidence in the "product." Once people taste and see that the Lord is good they are going to keep coming back! They are going to want more.

For what it's worth, I think podcasting is product sampling at its best. It lets virtual visitors check out NCC via their iPod. I think blogs and websites are product samples. We've got to be intentional about letting people "taste" and "see" before they buy into the message we're preaching.

Mucho Thanks

I seem to be in gratitude mode these past few days.

I can't put into words my gratitude to God for this coffeehouse dream becoming reality. I'm so grateful for an amazing team that goes the extra mile all the time. And I'm more and more grateful for the people God has put in my path.

About two weeks ago I started using a new phrase--Mucho Thanks. It's my new salutation. I like the Spanish/English combo :)

FYI. I took four years of Spanish and I only remember two-and-half words :) One of them is mucho. The other one is Que. I say it in a very high-pitched tone like a martial artist. And the half-word is manana, but I pronounce it like banana. So I only get half-credit.

That's my random blog of the day.

Mucho Thanks!

Forty People

I had coffee with an NCCer yesterday morning. We started meeting almost two years ago when he was BC (Before Christ). Long story short, he crossed the line of faith after a number of conversations and I had the joy of marrying he and his wife. He recently went through Alpha and he was telling me about some conversations he's had recently where he has shared his faith. It's so cool to see people come full-circle!

Anywho.

He told me something fascinating. I think he attributed it to Billy Graham. He said it takes, on average, forty people to lead someone to Christ. The first person thinks they had nothing to do with it. The last person thinks they had everything to do with it. And they are both wrong!

I love it. A person that I helped lead to Christ is now teaching me about evangelism :)

Ebenezers Logo

I'm loving the Ebenezers stickers we got for our glass doors. They look like they are etched in the glass.

Choo. Choo.

The Buzz Machine

The buzz machine is cranking.

I just did an interview with The Voice of the Hill tonight. They are going to do an article on the coffeehouse. I did a radio interview with KTIS in Minneapolis this morning on churches meeting in theaters. The Christian Post picked up on the theater church study and ran a story yesterday. I think the Associated Press Radio is going to do a story on theater churches. It looks like the Washington Times will do a page 2 feature on March 28. They'll include an excerpt from my message and focus on our coffeehouse. I think we'll probably get Fox News, The Washington Post, and a variety of local papers to run articles on the coffeehouse or theater church study as well.

When it rains it pours :)

I have a core conviction: the good news ought to make the news! The church ought to be serving its community in such practical and creative ways that the News can't ignore the Good News!

One of the things we'll talk about at the Buzz Conference is developing a PR strategy.

For more info on Buzz visit www.buzzconference.com.

Inaugural Services

Here are some pictures of our inaugural services @ Ebenezers.

Inaugural Message

Here are a few shots of my inaugural message at Ebenezers. Are you getting tired of the word inaugural yet :)

Inaugural Worship

Here are some shots of worship at our Inaugural services.

Inaugural Faces

I just finished looking at 300 pictures of our Inaugural Service @ Ebenezers. We have a photography small group that we've been keeping pretty busy. I'm going to post a few blogs with my favorite shots.

Here are some of the faces of NCC.

Book Cover

We don't have a final cover design yet for my book, but here is a placeholder we're putting in catalogs. I'm thoroughly enjoying this process of designing a book cover. I plan on writing lots of books so I'm viewing this first one as a learning curve.

Instant Human

We keep adding some retro coffeehouse decor. Here is a sign I just got from www.vintagemetalart.com.

I've got this one hanging in my window :)

KTIS Radio

Just did a radio interview with Don Rupp at KTIS in Minneapolis. The interview will air at 12:15 PM today on AM 900. It's the Northwestern Radio Network so it's picked up by stations in Wisconsin, North Dakota, and Iowa as well.

The theater church press release is starting to hit the fan :)

Evotional Update

I have been so busy the last three weeks that I haven't sent out an evotional--the written email version of my weekend message. I've had to take a little evotional hiatus to maintain my sanity. But I'm back in business.

I sent out the SFSG: So Far So God evotional today. If you'd like a free subscription to the evotional you can visit www.theaterchurch.com and follow the evotional link. My weekend message will be emailed to you each week.

Smiling Faces

It's so cool to see people walk into the coffeehouse for the first time :) It's hard to describe "the look" but it's a combination of pleasantly surprised and this place is cool. People usually come in and stand there for a few seconds taking it all in.

It feels like all I've done so far today is give impromptu tours of the coffeehouse :) I'm loving it, but I probably need to get a few things done as well :)

One funny thing happened yesterday. Someone came in asking if there was a bookstore upstairs. Too funny. No, we don't have a bookstore. Just my personal library :) You know you have too many books in your library when people think it's a bookstore!

Ebenezers Giftcards

I have a sidewalk closed sign in my office that I'm keeping as a memento from this construction project. We blocked off our sidewalk for the better part of twelve months. We felt really bad about inconveniencing our neighbors, but it was the only way to build the coffeehouse.

So I got an idea from a neighbor who was complaining to me :) We're sending a letter with an ebenezers gift card to every neighbor on the 200 block of F Street. We genuinely want to be a blessing to our neighbors! I think it's the little things like this that make a big difference!

A Theater, A Barn & A Nightclub

So what do a theater, a barn, and a nightclub have in common?

All three are makeshift sanctuaries.

A journalist visited NCC a few weeks ago and did a story titled Spirituality in Strange Places. She spotlighted NCC, Mosaic in LA, and a church in Wisconsin that meets in a barn.

Here's a link if you want to check it out. It's worth the read.

Friday, March 31, 2006

Film Premiere

In a Pit With a Lion on a Snowy Day

Rooftop Football

Church is a Tag Team Sport

Chazown Day

Thursday, March 30, 2006

Boredumb

Washington Times

Revolving Door Church

Wednesday, March 29, 2006

clashradio.com

Google Earth

Go Fly a Kite

Thou Shalt Withdraw to the Wilderness

Tuesday, March 28, 2006

Buzz Film Festival

Aerial Photo

Hill Rag

Monday, March 27, 2006

Open-Source Church

Preaching at Modern-Day Wells

Dividend ReInvestment Plan

Sunday, March 26, 2006

Weekend Reflections

Curtain Call

Friday, March 24, 2006

Neos

Multi Tasking Multi Plexes

WTOP Radio

From Crack House to Coffeehouse

Grand Opening

Four Score and Seven Lattes Ago

Thursday, March 23, 2006

You Never Know

Buzz Update

Wednesday, March 22, 2006

Sticky Fingers

Lizard Hunting

City Place

Catalyst Monthly

Tuesday, March 21, 2006

Ebenezers Postcard

Multi-Site Gathering

Monday, March 20, 2006

Palm Beach Here I Come

Thou Shalt Preach in Parables

Sunday, March 19, 2006

Sunday Night Live

Weekend Reflections

iSermon

Friday, March 17, 2006

Video Flashback

High Definition

Product Sampling

Mucho Thanks

Forty People

Thursday, March 16, 2006

Ebenezers Logo

The Buzz Machine

Inaugural Services

Inaugural Message

Inaugural Worship

Inaugural Faces

Book Cover

Instant Human

KTIS Radio

Evotional Update

Smiling Faces

Wednesday, March 15, 2006

Ebenezers Giftcards

A Theater, A Barn & A Nightclub