Weekly Rundown (6.1.09)

• After a work trip to Dallas and vacation ... HOME SWEET HOME!!  Good to get away but GREAT to get back.


• So the beach (Panama City) was beautiful!!  I ran a ton on the sand, ate really good, relaxed an awful lot, read a couple of books, swam "knee-deep" in the ocean, and had "quality time" with Beth ... great trip!


• Hard to believe that a few years ago I feared going out-of-town.  Our church was young, I did a lot more on Sunday mornings besides preach to get ready, and we didn't have the percentage of volunteers that we do now.  Now I don't give it a second thought.  Our staff and volunteers are amazing and God's work NEVER stops.


• My dogs remembered me :)


• So today we kicked off the Help Wanted series by going with video teaching at all our locations!!  I filmed the message a few weeks ago ... certainly a twist for our Wink (Dalton campus) folks but heard good feedback.  Great job to our Worship/Tech team!!


• Summer night of praise was last night ... awesome! 


• First Wednesday is THIS week at both campuses.


• Chatsworth preps are getting in gear ... a group met in a sports bar in Chatsworth to PRAY and had some GOD-given opportunities!  This fires me up as we pray Colossians 4:2-6 over NW Georgia!  
  
  
  
  • I am also praying that people in this area can a version of this verse about us:  "... you have filled all of northwest Georgia with your teaching about Him [Jesus] ..." (see Acts 5:28).
  
  
  
  


• We're also working through some staffing changes to prepare for being a THR3E site church.


• Have a great week!

Weekly Rundown (5.26.09)

{I'm 2 weeks behind on the "Rundown" so I'll do my best to catch up}

• My trip to Dallas was outstanding as usual.  The "mentor" pastors were great and so full of wisdom on everything from church finances to leadership to staffing.  As always I leave challenged, inspired, and uplifted.


• The Chatsworth informational meeting was incredible.  People are pumped and we're excited that God is opening this door for our church to add a 3rd site.


• Baptism ... WOW!! I could not believe so many people showed up despite the 55 degree weather ... they really wanted to be baptized.  I believe it was our second biggest baptism ever! Praise God for that ... and yes, I did wear a wet suit :)


• Missed the 24 finale ... I was in Texas.  I feel un-American.


• As many of you know Beth & I love movies! Our first date was to see Star Wars: Episode I.  So needless to say, we love summer when all the blockbusters come out.  My favorite so far is the Star Trek movie hands down.


• Making progress on the Small groups pastor search that has been going on since the the fall of '08!!


• We'll be sending out the You Asked For It! survey soon where you can pick the sermons for our August series.


• Appreciate Carll and John McIntosh preaching this past Sunday in Calhoun and Dalton. 


• New series starts Sunday called, Help Wanted!  This is a topic I never heard preached but one we very much need to understand ... our Christian life depends on it.


• Our first ever night of worship is this Sunday night (May 31st) in Stage 123!!


• Hope everyone had a meaningful Memorial Day!

Baptism Celebration!!

Don't forget that our Spring Baptism Celebration is this Sunday starting at 5:00 pm!! For more information or for directions, click here.  

• If you want to be baptized, you can still sign-up!!  Go to our website and click on the big "Baptism" icon.

Big Reasons for a Big Baptism Celebration:

• Jesus was baptized!!


• Jesus commanded His followers to be baptized!!


• When the church was born, there was a big baptism (~3000)!!


• Paul frequently reminded people of their salvation by talking about their baptism.


• Baptism is saying to the world "I am under NEW management -- Jesus!"


• Baptism is a unifier in the church, reminding us all that "entrance" into the universal Church was through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, symbolized by baptism.


• Baptism is all about Jesus ... we should be all about Jesus!!


• Baptism helps give us assurance of our "born again" or salvation experience!!


• Baptism is a way to celebration new lives in Christ!!


• Baptism reminds us that in Christ our sins have in fact been washed away!!


• Baptism is a way to see what God is doing through His church and in people's lives!!


• Baptism reminds us that there is always hope for sinners and that God can do anything!!


• Baptism at Rock Bridge = BBQ (enough said)!!

Weekly Rundown (5.10.09)

• Happy Mother's Day!!!!!


• Rock Bridge Chatsworth informational meeting is this Wednesday!!!


• Hanging out again this week with some church planters from around the area.


• I actually saw my first ever Star Trek movie (the new one) and it was good!! I'm (sort of) a "Trekkie" :)


• Got a new Bible that I'm loving!  It's a parallel Bible that has both the NIV and Message translations side-by-side on the same page.  


• I'm getting a little worried about 24 lately.  It's "jumping the shark" a little too much but hopefully it will end with a bang!


• Great time with our entire staff this past week in Calhoun!


• I can't believe that summer (I officially declare it summer on Memorial Day weekend) is almost here!


• I'll be heading out to Dallas, TX next Monday for a few days with some awesome pastors to learn, hang out, and grow.  This is my 3rd trip out there in a little over a year and I've learned so much.  Really thankful that God has given me this opportunity.


• Our worship teams are planning 3 Worship Nights over the Summer.  This will be a great opportunity to come together to worship.  The first one is May 31st in Stage 123.  The next two are TBD with one of them in Calhoun.  
  
  
  
  • Contact Greg, Jeremy, or Stephen if you have any questions (their emails are {firstname@rockbridge.cc}. 
  
  
  
  


• I've been on a big reading kick lately and in a different genre -- reading "theology" books that have really stretched my thinking.


• We're planning a sermon series for August called, YOU ASKED FOR IT.  This whole series is being voted on by YOU.  We did the first round of voting at First Wednesday to get down to a top 10 list of topics that you want covered.  The next round of voting will happen online so check back here and look for the survey in an e-newsletter coming soon!  We'll be looking for the top 4-5 topics to become a 4-5 part series. 
  
  
  
  • By the way, the first round of voting is pretty interesting and VERY exciting!!
  
  
  
  


• HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!! (They deserve it twice ... have a great week!)

Open Letter to the Rock Bridge Staff

Yesterday we had our monthly all-staff meeting at our Calhoun offices.  While we had fun, there was a general feeling of opposition to God's work at Rock Bridge.  Many people in our body are struggling with sins, the tough economy, marriage difficulties, etc.  We were very burdened to pray for God's deliverance and to pray for our faith to be greater than our questions.  So here is an open letter to the great staff of Rock Bridge from me:

Rock Bridge Staff--

Serving alongside of you is a true joy and blessing for me.  I see your heart for people and your desire that they meet Jesus and never get over Him.  I love hearing your stories of life change & spiritual growth that are happening in your ministry areas.  Your faithfulness, hard work, and hearts for Jesus remind me that God in His sovereignty brought you to Rock Bridge as part of His good and perfect plans for your lives.  Much of what you do is unseen and underappreciated, but God sees all and is a rewarder of faithful obedience.  

And yet I know that ministry is tough and it is 24/7.  In a very real sense, you can never "leave" work at work because your ministry is your heart ... and your heart goes home with you and your heart can get hurt.  It hurts to see people hurt.  It hurts to see the consequences of sin.  It hurts to see people deceived by lies instead of embracing the love of God.  And it just takes one discouraging comment or negative email to overturn ten encouraging ones.

So in a season of exciting growth & life change that is coupled with spiritual warfare & times of discouragement, we are right to seek God as we did Tuesday in the hopes that seeking Him will remind us of His faithfulness, His heart, and His will for our lives.  We are right to seek Him for the people of Rock Bridge and NW Georgia, trusting Him to work in their lives for His glory and their blessing.  As I continued to seek Him this morning, I wanted to share with you a few things that perhaps will help your own search.

1) God is guarding His glory.  We know that God is for His glory and calls us to be as well.  We know that one of the main things that robs God of His glory is self-reliance.  In tough times, God reminds us that "apart from Him [we] can do nothing."  Paul himself never lost the thorn in his flesh but he learned that God's grace was sufficient.  We cannot lean on our own understanding but must simply trust in the Lord with all our heart.

2) God is asking us to renew our belief in and commitment to His appointed methods.  God has set apart His Word as the means for birthing and building faith.  God has appointed prayer as the means for making His Word effective in hearts.  We must stay true to these divine weapons of warfare that bring glory to God.

3) God is teaching us to delight Him in alone.  The results of ministry can never be our primary source of satisfaction and delight for that would be idolatry.  The fuel for sacrifical ministry, for costly love, and for servant leadership must be the deep, unending satisfaction we draw from Christ Himself.  He promised us complete joy that is only dependent upon our connection to Him.  The psalmist declares that His love is better than life (Psalm 63:3).  Only in the eternal well spring of Christ Himself will we be able to stay fresh to pour our lives out as a drink offering (Philippians 2:17) of service.

Finally, let us pray that our lives would shine with the light of Christ (Matthew 5:16) and that the fragrance of God would cling to us every day (2 Cor. 2:14-15).  Let as ask God to take away the works of flesh and replace them with the fullness of His Spirit.  May God remove our fears and irritations and replace them with love, joy, peace, patience and zeal to love people into the Kingdom.  God has made His light shine into our hearts and it is a "marvelous light" (1 Peter 2:9) that rescued us from the kingdom of darkness.  May we never cease of praising God for our glorious salvation and may we never tire in our Spirit-fueled labor to help people grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ.

God bless each of you!

Matt

Guest Blogger: Brian Holt

{This is a guest blog post by our Technical Director, Brian Holt.  Brian has a passion for helping people serve in church according to their gifts and passions as an act of worship to bring God glory.}

I came to Rock Bridge almost a year ago to help our worship team with audio, video and lighting. It’s been a great year and I wanted to share with you one of my hopes for the people Northwest Georgia. My passion in this church is to see people truly get involved and plugged in to ministry. You might remember several months ago Matt when talked about our church being volunteer-driven. I can’t say enough how important this is for us, as a church, and for every Christ-follower.

Typically, when people think about the importance of volunteering, thoughts immediately go to the benefit for the organization or the people who are being served. But when it comes to volunteering, it’s as much about your heart as it is about the people you’re serving.

In the book of Jonah we see a man who is running from what God has asked him to do. You might remember that Jonah was thrown into the sea and swallowed by a giant fish. You might remember that Jonah was spit up onto the beach and finally complied with God’s command (although rather reluctantly). But look through the book and tell me the name of one Ninevite. You can’t do it, because we’re never told any of their names. Revival goes through the whole city (120,000 people and much cattle) and we don’t even know the name of the king. In this story, God was focusing on the servant as much as he was on the served. Jonah was just as important to God as the Ninevites. His attitude (see chapter 4) was as important to God as revival in the city.

I’d like you to consider a few things about volunteering and then consider taking that next step in faith (if you’re not already doing so). 

1.      Volunteering builds community. Despite our always-on technology that connects us to others like ever before, people are more lonely than they’ve ever been. God has created us to connect to other believers. Connecting in service, behind a common vision, often helps create deep, lasting relationship.

2.      Volunteering creates a sense of ownership. It’s too easy in modern Christianity to simply come to church for what you can get out of it. It’s a natural extension of our culture. But the church is not a place to get something, it’s a place to be a part of something. When you volunteer, you join in the mission of that organization and become a real part of it.

3.      Volunteering requires sacrifice. Volunteering requires you to give your time. It may require you to do something with which you’re not completely comfortable. It causes you to give of yourself in order to meet somebody else’s need. Jesus sets the ultimate example for this, sacrificing everything for us. We can follow that example by giving our time (or resources) in sacrificially for others.

4.      Volunteering is an act of worship. Or at least it can be. Putting others first and making a sacrifice of your time or resources is a great way to worship the God that gave them to you. I pray that all of my volunteers think about (and worship) the God that created them every time they serve. 

You may not see or feel these things when you volunteer. Maybe you only feel one or two of them. Focus on them and give it time. My hope and prayer is that when you volunteer, you do so out of a love for God and a love for people. In the same breath, volunteering is all about your heart and not about you at all.

Weekly Rundown (5.3.09)

• Terrible weather today ... but great crowds and once again our Host Teams did a fabulous job!!


• Our Worship Teams get a lot of interest in the songs we sing so we're going to start to including our song list for each venue & campus during the Weekly Rundown post.  We'll include the singer as well.  You can search and find these songs for download on iTunes.


• SUNDAY SET LIST:
  
  
  
  • How Great is Our God by Chris Tomlin {Wink & Stage 123}
  
  
  • Let Me Sing by Todd Fields {Wink; Stage 123; Calhoun Campus}
  
  
  • Made to Worship by Todd Fields {Wink & Stage 123}
  
  
  • Glorious One by Steve Fee {Wink & Stage 123}
  
  
  • How Great Thou Art -- hymn {Calhoun}
  
  
  • Cannons by Phil Wickman {Stage 123}
  
  
  • Be Glorified by Tim Hughes {Calhoun}
  
  
  • God of Wonders by Third Day {Calhoun}
  
  
  • We Lift You Up by Desperation Band {Calhoun}
  
  
  
  


• First Wednesday is THIS week -- BOTH campuses!!


• Baptism is in TWO weeks!! I'm so pumped ... Baptism is a celebration of NEW LIFE in Jesus and PUBLIC IDENTIFICATION with JESUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


• Some of our Elders and myself are in the process of revising our Church Bylaws.  The Bylaws basically describe how our church is to be organized, structured, and governed.  They also have legal significance since we are incorporated in the state of Georgia.  Why are we doing this?
  
  
  
  • Our original Bylaws were written for a church of 200 people.  We've amended them over the years but we felt a total review might help us ensure we are properly structured for growth and to better handle who we are as church after 6+ years of ministry.
  
  
  • We need our Bylaws to reflect our multi-site strategy as well give direction for establishing leadership at our campuses.
  
  
  
  


• I praise God that He has given us technology to help advance the Gospel!!


• My brother heads overseas (again) this week.  He is an Army Ranger.  Please pray for him and all of our Armed Forces personnel.


• This past week I did a new running workout: sprints.  I would sprint 50 yards, walk back to the start and sprint again.  I haven't done that since I was maybe 20 years old.  My body did not respond like it did back then ... oh how I hate the effects of Genesis 3 and the Fall of Man!!


• Mother's Day is Sunday!!


• Tomorrow is my Sabbath!