Sonrise Community Church

Posted by D. Goodmanson on Sep 22, 2005 in Church Technology, Sheep&Goats | 1 comment

“People thought [my becoming a pastor] was bogus,” said Pastor Stan Miller. “They said, ‘He’s lost his marbles’ and ‘He’s flipped out.’ It angered the media. They vilified me. Most of this came from my former colleagues at KUSI. It’s because I’m the only pastor and news anchor in the country,” said Miller. Pastor Miller took over Sonrise’s Unite service one-and-a-half months ago. “I was assigned this position. The guy who was doing it left for full-time mission work.” Unite is Sonrise’s “postmodern” evening service for young adults. I asked Miller what a postmodern service was. “I don’t know what the heck postmodern means. I tried to ask the old Unite pastor to explain it, but I still don’t get it completely. Your guess is as good as mine,” replied Miller. Miller concluded that it is a service geared toward younger people. “If you don’t reach kids by junior high, you’ve probably lost them by college. A lot of professors who are atheist preach a message against Christianity daily in their pulpits of the classroom. They can sway these kids and I don’t want to lose them. Kids are very much open-minded and receive [what the professors say], which is heresy.”

Three 15-foot video screens projected a timer countdown: 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 0. As the counter hit zero, the band emerged from backstage to lead worship. Noah Balcombe, the worship leader, yelled, “I’m excited to be here!” Balcombe bounced around and jumped as he led the worship. A pianist, drummer, bass player, two guitarists, and vocalists led the congregation in popular songs such as, “Here I Am to Worship,” “In the Secret,” and “Consuming Fire.”

Full Article: Sonrise Community Church

Emerging From Church De-Construction to Church Kingdom Building

Posted by D. Goodmanson on Sep 19, 2005 in Church | 2 comments

This is a transition that our church has gone through, that I believe all church planters should contemplate. It is something that I see as a common denominator from many of the Acts 29 churches that are making a large impact on their community. Some of those who are extremely gifted in this area are Mark Driscoll at Mars Hill and Rick McKinley at Imago Dei Community. I pray that Kaleo would learn from these but also forge our identity as we consider the following:

To make a Kingdom-impact on your local community and the world-at-large, you must move from Deconstruction to Kingdom Building.

Driscoll and McKinely are just two of the pastors I know that do an amazing job at casting a vision and gathering people to join that vision. I attended Mars Hill for about 5 years and was always impressed by Driscoll’s vision-casting often at the beginning of the service. It was a ‘here is where we are going as a church’ that got people passionate about what Mars Hill was doing. When I think of Driscoll it is the counter-culture message he preaches that contradicts a city that is one of the least church cities in the country. Driscoll has rallied a group around this great cause he champions. Where Driscoll spear-heads this vision at Mars Hill, McKinley does this through servant-leaders. There is a platform for the ministry leaders, other pastors, even author Donald Miller and others to cast the vision and gather groups around ministry, cultural ideas and kindgom-mindness. Both have different methods but both work.

The common denominator is that instead of reacting against, they are building towards something. If you are an emerging church, what is your identity? As I attend ‘postmodern’ or churches that would say they are ‘emerging’ they usually can tell me what they are not. We don’t have central leadership, we don’t sing old-school hymns, we don’t have traditional worship, we don’t…[fill in the blank]. In the long run, I don’t think you can rally too many people to this cause and anti-identity.

David Fairchild (preaching elder at Kaleo) and I have been speaking about where Kaleo’s identity is going. Fairchild has been spending considerable time thinking through the implications of the work of NT Wright, Piper, Tim Keller, Francis Schaeffer to name some of the prominent authors. What is a message that combines gospel-redemption, kindgom-living, passionate-God-seeking, worldview-altering realities? There is much to unpack, but this is where Kaleo Church wants to proclaim a message, solidify a vision and gather a people to co-labor toward…

One of the sermon blunders you always are afraid of…

Posted by D. Goodmanson on Sep 17, 2005 in Church, Sermon | 0 comments

I’m sure everyone on the web has heard this blunder but it’s pretty hilarious:

Big Sermon Blooper…

Dust – 008 by Rob Bell

Posted by D. Goodmanson on Sep 17, 2005 in Church | 4 comments

I attended a ‘postmodern’ (they described as postmodern, when I asked what that meant, not one person knew) church service that played a video (called a NOOMA). It asked the question: Believing in God is important, but what about God believing in us?

Dust – 008Believing in God is important, but what about God believing in us? Believing that we can actually be the kind of people we were meant to be. People of love, compassion, peace, forgiveness, and hope. People who try to do the right thing all of the time. It’s easy for us to sometimes get down on ourselves. To feel “not good enough” or feel like we don’t have what it takes. But maybe if we had more insight into the culture that Jesus grew up in and some of the radical things He did, we’d understand the faith that God has in all of us.

Does “God believe that we can actually be the kind of person we were meant to be”?

How To: Score in Church

Posted by D. Goodmanson on Sep 14, 2005 in Church, Culture | 1 comment

Maxim, September 2005

1. Find Your Faith
Macking in a holy place is easier than almost anywhere else—the good girls never see it coming. Plus, “every girl wants to tell her father she met her boyfriend at church and not at a bar,” says God-fearing cutie Erin Howard, 25. Look for progressive sanctuaries that offer “contemporary” services (to attract a younger, hipper crowd) and coffee hours (so you can actually talk, as opposed to just ogling from afar).

2. Enter the Kingdom
Scope out the finest churchgoer, then snag the pew in front of her. You won’t appear too eager, yet you can make eye contact easily—and shake her hand if there’s a “sharing of the peace.” Avoid making moves mid-service. “You’re in a place of bloody worship; you have to be respectful,” notes Tracey Cox, author of Superdate. Instead, listen to the sermon, which’ll give you plenty to talk about later.

3. Get Religion
Despite the communion wine, forget your sloppy bar tactics. After the service, just introduce yourself and act genuinely curious about the church. Say, “I’m new here. Are you a regular?” This’ll transition to the coffee hour, where you can quiz her about the service and how she ended up there. If all else fails, say something about looking for a higher meaning in life. She may make it her goal to “convert” you.

4. Reach the Promised Land
At this point patience is key. “A lot of repressed religious girls are damn hot in bed,” notes Cox. “But you’re not getting a quick shag here.” Provided she’s sending positive signals (e.g., laughing, smiling, not making the sign of the cross), simply tell her you’d love to meet up, outside of church, and ask for her digits. And no matter where it goes from there, try to think like the Browns do: There’s always next Sunday!

Thank God we have some godly men who can spot these guys from a mile away.

Confessions of Mark Driscoll (book 2)

Posted by D. Goodmanson on Sep 14, 2005 in Church, Culture | 2 comments

I can’t say much, but I’m reading an advance copy of Driscoll’s new book…this one is good. Driscoll is really transparent in the struggles behind the scenes of what has happened at Mars Hill. Where Radical Reformission dealt at a more individual level this one is more at a church level. Keep your eyes out for it, I don’t know when it’s coming out…

(edit: Looks like it’s scheduled for May 2006)