Thursday, November 11, 2010

November 11, 2010~RightNow Conference....breakout1

Matt Carter
Reaching the college student, 20's and 30's

There is a huge demographic that is missing from our church in America 18-35yr olds

Principles that the Austin Stone is applying to the church in order to reach that generation

You must lift up the name of Jesus in all that you do
He must be the star of all that we do

The way your church worships may attract people but it will not keep them

First reason they stay is the Preaching, teaching and doctrine is what keeps people

..... Teach the Word
..... Teach doctrine but do so in a way that people will understand
..... Teach all of the Word
..... Challenge with the Word
..... Transparency is crucial. It is okay for them to see you being real
..... Give people a chance to not be okay

Get your mind around the Gospel
.....Teach them to fall in love with Jesus and let Him work through you
..... Are we teaching the Gospel or self righteousness


Second reason they stay is because we get them on mission

.... They want to be in the fight
.... They want to Christianity that is displayed in the book of Acts
...... They need to be released into service
...... They want to make a difference.
..... They hate injustice and want to be a part of making a difference

We must challenge our people to give their lives away for the cause of Christ


Trent Brown, Lead Pastor
Gateway Fellowship

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November 11, 2010~ RightNow Conference session1

Pete Briscoe
The Mystery Of It All

Ephesians 3
Ephesians 6

What did Paul trade in his life for?

1. He traded for Christ
....I am an apostle of Christ, I am a minister of Christ
Paul was a Christ intoxicated man
He traded in the law of Judaism for the person of Christ
2. He traded for Grace
.... The administration of grace
.... We must be stewards of grace
.... We embrace it, receive it, and give it
3. He traded for the mystery
.... The mystery made known to me by revelation
.... Christ in which everything is found
.... Christ indwelling me which is the hope of glory
.... Christ in me, Christ in us
4. He traded for the church
.... The dynamic of Christ in us is real and unique
.... The church takes Christ to the world
.... Christ in us the hope of glory
5. He traded for ministry
.... Servant of the Gospel
.... God by his grace has given me the gift of ministry
.... Ministry is not our gift to God. It is his gift to us


We must become Christ intoxicated people
We must become messengers of the mystery

Trent Brown, Lead Pastor
Gateway Fellowship

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Wednesday, November 10, 2010

November 10, 2010~RightNow session4 (Pre Conference)

Matt Carter
Moving "small groups" to "Missional communities"

We can never allow our churches to fall in live with the mission more that the Savior

You can not fall more in live with mission than Jesus

Ephesians 4:11 and 16

What causes the body of Christ to grow?
.... Each part has to work properly

The body of Christ in America is not growing therefore we have to realize that all of it's parts are not working properly

What does the Gospel look like when it works and walks through our lives?

What are we really trying to achieve?

There is a growing sense of restlessness in the laity of the church

18-30 year olds are not okay with sitting on the sidelines of ministry. They want to be a part of something bigger than themselves.

They want to know when they can get into the fight.

We must equip and empower them to DO and to be SENT

If your church is preaching the Word of God and the people are on mission- it will grow

Question:: if my church grew by thousands, would my city really change?

It would if we equipped them and sent them into the neighborhoods and community- that is when change occurs

Jesus' church growth model was to take 12 ordinary guys. He equipped them, trained them and released them

Is it possible to attract people and release them?
..... It is!
.... Move from community groups to Missional Communities
..... Don't just come together to pray and eat but come together with the goal in mind to really be Missional in our community

1. Changes definition of success for small group
.... Has the group of people moved from just meeting together to engaging missionally in the community
........... "there is nothing that fosters community better than mission"
2. Change how we train and disciple leaders
...... Train them to think and act like missionaries
3. Raise the bar for the groups
...... Challenge them to do huge things
....... Scripture tells us that the power of the resurrection resides within those who are sitting in our churches... Release them!


Trent Brown, Lead Pastor
Gateway Fellowship

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November 10, 2010~ RightNow Session3 (Pre Conference)

Mac Lake
Mentoring Made Easy

why we should mentor

1. It is Biblical
.... We have to think generationally
.... We have to recruit for vision not need
..... We must have a leadership development culture

2. It is the best method of transformation


Trent Brown, Lead Pastor
Gateway Fellowship

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November 10, 2010-Rightnow session2 (Pre Conference)

Dr. Larry Osborne
Sticky Church: slamming your back door

The people we have are tools to be used
.... Shepherd the flock God has entrusted to you

We can not overlook the ones who are struggling in the flock

Assimilation and retention (sticky church)
....assimilation equals getting people to come back and get them into a program (vital first step but not a place of connection)
....retention equals getting people to stay (goal is lifelong relationship)

Question:: what are we doing relationally in our small groups as well as what we are doing missionaly

Our groups have to be highly Missional but relational as well
.... Are we creating tight family relationships
.... People have to learn to be vulnerable not "friendly"
Example....how are you? .... I am fine (when really they are not)
..... Friendly does not equal connection
Many people will be friendly by will not connect


Churches have to be birthing centers
.... People need to grow and be nurtured
.... People stay where there is growth

We can not think that just because we are friendly that we are connected

Question... Are we really connecting and becoming sticky?
Or are we just acting friendly


Trent Brown, Lead Pastor
Gateway Fellowship

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November 10, 2010~ RightNow session1 (Pre Conference)

Dr. Larry Osborne
The Church Has Left The Building
~the transforming power of a church-wide weekend of service

2 keys to reaching our culture today::
- authenticity
- Bono factor= what are you doing for someone else?

How do we mobilize the congregation to get out and serve the community?
-small groups have to model
-church wide service of serving in the community

Luke 10: 1-20
A weekend of service

1. They went as his advance team to a specific place- verse1
2. They went with a specific cause- verse 2-9
3. They returned with joy -verse 17-20

Points to ponder::

Before they went out to serve Jesus thinned the herd

They were sent out Not just to do good deeds

They were sent out to be the advance team so that the people would be willing to accept Jesus, when He came

They focused on those who were opened to their message

Poverty, injustice and disease are not life's biggest problem. Eternity is!

Practical App::
1. Be sure you are asking what is our purpose and how will we measure success?
2. How can we make this a great experience for everyone?
3. How can we institutionalize good intentions?


Trent Brown, Lead Pastor
Gateway Fellowship

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Wednesday, November 3, 2010

"I Had No Shirt"

While reading through John Piper's book "Let The Nations Be Glad: The Supremacy of God in Missions", I came across this excerpt and I wanted to share it. On page 103 it states:

"It is almost impossible for Americans to come to terms with Jesus' commendation of the widow who "out of her poverty put in all she had to live on"(Luke 21:4). To see this spirit fleshed out, we may have to leave America and go elsewhere. Stanford Kelly illustrates it from Haiti.
The church was having a Thanksgiving festival, and each Christian was invited to bring a love offering. One envelope from a Haitian man named Edmund held $ 13. That amount was three month's income for a working man there. Kelly was as surprised as those counting a Sunday offering in the United States might be to get a $ 6,000 cash gift. He looked around for Edmund but could not see him.
Later Kelly met him in the village and questioned him. He pressed him for an explanation and found that Edmund had sold his horse in order to give the $ 13 gift to God. But why hadn't he come to the festival? He hesitated and didn't want to answer. Finally, Edmund said, "I had no shirt to wear"

.... I am not sure anything else needs to be said!