This Will Change Your Church Or Organization

Please take time to watch this video. This is great insight and could literally change your organizational life!

Weekend Highlights

1. Super great Sunday at People's Church!

2. Over 200 people gave their lives to Christ on Sunday! I'm always so excited to see people give their life to Christ every week.

3. 4149 people attended Sunday.

4. I'm so proud of our church. We launched four experiences on Sunday to make room for more people to hear the Gospel and to have their lives changed. So many of our church family began serving this Sunday to make it happen. Thank you! Many lives were and will continue to be changed because of your faithfulness!

5. So many of our church committed to attend the 8:30AM & the 1PM to free up seats at the most popular service times (10AM & 11:30AM). All I can say is WOW, what a great response and turnout to the 8:30AM & the 1PM. Thank you, church, for freeing up seats so more lives can be changed.

6. The 11:30AM experience was super crowded. If at all possible, starting this Sunday, we need many of our regular attenders to begin attending the 1PM. Also, the 10AM will be jammed packed in a few weeks, so if at all possible, we need many of our regular attenders to attend the 8:30AM. Let's free up more seats so that we can see more changed lives!

7. On Sunday evening, hundreds of people came to Connect.me, and many great relationships were formed. This event helps our church family get plugged into a Community Group. Life-giving Christian friendships are so key to having a thriving relationship with Christ.

8. This Wednesday night begins the new semester of The Wednesday Connection. This is an event for the entire family. I will be kicking off a teaching series called Overcoming the Obstacles of Life. There will be awesome experiences, programs, small groups and fun for kids and teenagers. We are serving FREE Chick-fil-A for dinner. Come grow spiritually, meet some new friends and have a blast!

9. Don't you dare miss this Sunday! There will be an end of the world rap performance by Exodus. Buzz Lightyear from Toy Story will be in the kids’ area hanging out with the kids. I will be continuing the teaching series End Of The World!

10. It was nice to be back to my normal weekend routine after 4 weeks of traveling. I'm such a home body! I love hanging out with my family! It was a great weekend!

11. I have had 3 fantasy football drafts and have 3 more left. I'm ready for some football! BIG TIME! BRING IT ON! My Sooners kick off this Saturday!!!

Muse "Apocalypse Please" & Toy Story

This Sunday at People's Church, there will be a special can't miss performance! Also, Woody from Toy Story will be roaming the hallways in the kids’ area. The kids will love meeting Woody! It's going to be a Sunday to remember! Also, I need as many of you as possible to attend the 8:30AM or the 1PM experience to make more room for all of the guests who will be at People's Church this Sunday and the Sundays to follow. Thank you for your passion to see MORE changed lives!

Connect.me

Would you like to have some friends who are followers of Christ? Do you want to grow closer to God? Do you want to have a blast with other people? Would you like people to be there for you when life is tough? Don't you dare miss Connect.me this Sunday night at People's Church. Check out the video for all the information! FUN, FUN, FUN night planned, and the best news is EVERYBODY is welcome!

Connect.me from People's Church on Vimeo.

End Of The World

This Sunday, we are kicking off the hottest, most intriguing, and most helpful series of the year! You can’t miss any week of this series! There will be special performances every week! Start inviting everyone you know!

End of the World from People's Church on Vimeo.

Weekend Highlights

1. This was my fourth straight week of traveling. Josh Brown, my Executive Director of Operations, and I flew out on Friday morning to Nashville, TN.

2. I spoke the main session of a pastor’s conference on Friday night and then did a Q&A with senior pastors immediately following the session.

3. Several of the leaders took me and Josh to a Mexican restaurant following the sessions. Mexican food at 10:30PM is not a good idea for your health. :)

4. I had a great ministry time in Nashville. I'm honored to have the opportunity to invest, learn and hang out with other pastors.

5. We caught a 6AM flight back to Oklahoma City, and I was home around 11AM. It was a very early morning, but was well worth it to spend the day with my family.

6. My wife made chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy for dinner. I must admit that I have a deep love for white gravy. This was an incredible meal.

7. We had a great day at People's Church on Sunday. Over the last month, around 200 people have committed and are getting plugged into a ministry.

8. I taught a vision message on Sunday. I always go long when I share the vision of PC. My heart explodes with vision. God is at work. Our best days are ahead.

9. Many people made a decision to sacrifice what they love for what they love more on Sunday. Beautiful, absolutely beautiful!

10. Many people made a decision to follow Jesus! YES!

11. Many people made a decision to begin tithing and many others made a decision to begin giving above their tithe to the CRAZY Campaign. God is at work in a huge way!

12. Many people made a decision to commit to attending the 8:30AM or the 1PM starting this Sunday.

13. We are adding a fourth experience beginning this Sunday, August 29. Our new experience times are 8:30AM, 10AM, 11:30AM & 1PM.

14. We are kicking off a new series called End Of The World this coming up Sunday. It's going to be a GREAT series!

15. This coming up Sunday, we are having a special performance, and in the kids’ area, Woody from Toy Story will be hanging out and meeting all the kids!

16. Start inviting everybody you know to People's Church!

People's Church, You Made The News

People's Church, thank you for your passion to invest into the Oklahoma City community. Lives are being impacted with the love of God.

Leading People Is Tough pt. 2

5. Some people are not results driven. Some people have never been challenged to understand that there is a major difference between talking about accomplishing something and actually accomplishing it. As a leader, you have to teach people to not give excuses and to produce results.

6. Some people are not driven to be the best they can be. As a leader, you have to figure out who has the “Eye Of The Tiger”. Who has a desire to win? Who is hungry to grow? Who wants to be the best? Unfortunately, not everybody wants to grow. Some people want comfort, ease and to live life on cruise control.

7. Leading people is tough because it requires the leader to work. It's less work too for a leader to do it themselves. It's less work to give out tasks instead of responsibility. It's less work to manage people instead of developing people. A leader has to make up their mind that they are willing to pay the price to develop people. It will cost you time. It will cost you tons of energy emotionally, mentally, physically and spiritually. It will require you to have difficult conversations. It will require you to learn your team and how they are wired. It will require you to figure out what motivates the different individuals on your team. It will require you to continue to grow so that you can stay ahead of the team you lead. The bottom line is leading people is a lot of work, but it is well worth it. One of my greatest joys in ministry is watching those I develop grow and soar to new heights in their leadership and ministry!

Leading People Is Tough

It's an awesome honor and privilege to lead and develop people to be all God wants them to be, but it's hard work. The only way that it's not hard work to develop people to be the best they can be is to not develop people. I'm not talking about managing tasks or managing people. Managing is a whole lot easier than developing people. Here is a list of why developing people is hard work, but it's well worth the investment:

1. Most people don't step into an organization ready-made. If they are going to be a good leader, you are going to have to develop them.

2. Most people are under challenged. Many people have never really been stretched and challenged to grow and reach their full potential. You have to be willing to challenge them to grow and work hard.

3. When people have been under challenged and show up to a growth and development organization, it shocks their system.

4. Developing leaders is not an overnight process. It takes months and years to develop a great leader. It takes consistent feedback, correction and encouragement.

More tomorrow!

Weekend Highlights

1. It was an extra busy week and weekend for me last week. I also was fighting off a virus all week. This was one of the worst weeks of my life physically. Bummer!

2. Our Executive Director of Ministries, Troy Martin, and I caught a 6AM flight to Columbus, OH on Friday. I spoke twice on Friday evening and once on Saturday morning to pastors and church leaders.

3. I almost lost my voice on Friday night. My voice struggled during the Saturday morning session and in all 3 services at People's Church on Sunday morning.

4. I love hanging out and investing in pastors. I got home Saturday evening from Ohio, and I was wiped out.

5. I had a tough time sleeping Saturday night. I woke up around 4AM and couldn't go back to sleep. I had a lot on my mind.

6. It was great to be back at People's Church after missing the last two weeks. I'm glad to be back in the saddle for our fall growth season.

7. I'm still praising God for the 94 people who got baptized yesterday! Way to go public for Jesus!

8. The message went really well in all three experiences in spite of my voice issues. I'm very grateful for God's strength and anointing to preach.

9. If you missed church yesterday, this is a MUST hear message for our ENTIRE church. Please watch or listen to it at www.peopleschurch.tv. The message should be on the website by the end of the day.

10. I'm also praising God for all of you who signed up to get plugged into a ministry. The greatest in the Kingdom of God is truly the servant of all. Serving is so key to our spiritual growth and to ripping selfishness from our hearts. Let's serve each other! Let's live beyond ourselves! Let's be a blessing and not just receive a blessing! WAY TO GO, PC!

11. I can't wait to teach part two of the message 4 Chairs on Sunday! I love you, PC, and I am so humbled and honored to be your pastor and to be a part of a powerful move of God!

HONOR 101

I was recently listening to a great teaching by Geoff Surratt of Seacoast Church about ways people can serve their leaders and I began thinking in a similar vein about what it looks like to honor our leaders.

One of the core goals of my ministry is to reinstate the virtue of honor back into the body of Christ. And although I believe honor is something that we should give to everyone, including those beside us and below us, the most natural place for most of us to start is with the people above us.

My generation has done a phenomenal job at obliterating the concept of honor, especially in regards to those who hold positions of leadership. We have confused it with respect and come to believe it’s something we can withhold based on the performance or likeability of the person we’re ascribing it to.

But that’s not biblical honor. In the Bible, honor is weight. Honor is value. While respect must be earned, honor can be freely given from the heart based on the calling and potential God has placed inside of a person and the position God has given them in your life.

To show honor to leaders is to treat them as being special because in reality that’s what they are. God has placed them in a unique position over you. He has given them the responsibility of casting vision and coordinating the efforts of the people they lead to achieve it. And that includes yours.

What your leader needs and deserves then is for you to ascribe to them the weight God has already given them. To set them apart as special in your life and be willing to do whatever it takes to help them succeed. And you’ll find that by setting them up for success you’ll by extension be setting yourself up for success.

If you’re at a loss as far as what it looks like to practically honor those above you, ask yourself the following questions for a good start:

1. What is your leader’s favorite way to communicate?
-Adapt to it. Even if it’s not your favorite way to communicate.

2. What makes your leader’s day?
-Do it.

3. What does your leader dread?
-Nuke it before it ever gets to them.

4. What is the thing you can do for your leader that only you can do?
-Keep doing it and do it better.

5. What sets my leader back?
-Do everything in your power to make sure it doesn’t happen.

If you’re still struggling with honoring and serving those God has placed over you, one of the greatest things you may need to realize is that God hasn’t placed your leaders over you to make your vision come to pass. He has put you under them to make their vision come to pass. And God isn’t going to hold you accountable for their vision. He’s going to hold you accountable for your support of their vision.

This post was written by Pastor Steven Furtick, Senior Pastor of Elevation Church in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Why The Father's House Is A Great Church

I had a great time teaching God's Word for my friend Pierre du Plessis at The Father's House in Rochester, NY. This was my second time being at the church and the first time I’ve preached there. Pierre and his wife Marlize took over this small congregation in 2002, and God has done some incredible things through their ministry over the last 8 years. The Father's House has grown to around 4000 people and has seen thousands of lives transformed by the power of God! I want to share with you why I think The Father's House is a great church. You can check them out at www.tfhny.org.

1. They are passionate about reaching people far from God. Pierre mentioned to me several times about how they try to stay relevant and maintain a heart for those far from God. They are doing a great job of reaching broken, hurting, lonely, addicted and un-churched people.

2. They have passionate and phenomenal worship. Their worship team is diverse, and they really pursue God. They lead people into the presence of God. There are hands raised high across the auditorium giving praise to Jesus, and the worship team leads. One word comes to mind: Beautiful!

3. They understand the importance of volunteer lay leadership. They are passionate about getting their church family plugged into a ministry so that they can use their gifts to be a blessing to others.

4. They have a 1 to 2 hour prayer meeting that around 200 people attend every Saturday morning! All I can say is incredible! Prayer really does make the difference. This one factor alone says a lot about why God is blessing this church in a unique way.

5. Pierre and Marlize have a father and mother's heart. They are investing into their staff and church family. They are being a father and mother to the church house. Powerful!

6. They teach the Bible in a practical way so that people can apply it to their daily lives.

7. They have a great passion for the hurting and overlooked in our society. They allow the physically and mentally challenged to worship in the auditorium. Their hearts for the overlooked are so awesome. I was deeply ministered to while listening to them talk about their hearts for those who have challenges.

8. Pierre walks with God. He talked in depth about how Jesus is working in his life.

9. They are visionary leaders. Pierre is constantly thinking about what God has next for the church.

10. They invest heavily into the next generation. They allow teenagers to be a part of the Sunday platform ministry time. They allow teens to get plugged into ministry and use their gifts now. They also have a great kids’ ministry.

11. They invest heavily into the community and missions around the world.

12. They are a staff-led church. They do have elders for accountability and spiritual leadership, but the church isn't bogged down with voting and unnecessary policies and procedures. When God speaks to the leadership, they can move immediately and follow the leading of the Holy Spirit.

13. They are a very multi-ethnic and multigenerational church. Pierre and Marlize are both from South Africa, and you can tell with their rich accents. The congregation and people on the stage are very diverse. This church is getting it done when it comes to being a diversified and unified church.

14. They are making Jesus famous! Their focus is Jesus! Their passion is Jesus! Jesus is what this church is all about!

My Last Two Weeks

1. I have been out of pocket for the last two weeks. My family went to Minnesota to see my wife's family (grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins).

2. We had a blast in Minnesota. We hung out on the lake, went tubing, ate good, played video games, played card games and laughed a lot. My two oldest boys went fishing and caught some fish. It was a blast.

3. My wife's family members are committed followers of Christ, and I love to see the rich heritage in her family. All I can say is that it pays to serve the Lord. Generations are impacted!

4. On Friday, my wife and I flew to Rochester, NY. We had an incredible time hanging out with the pastors, Pierre & Marlize. They pastor www.tfhny.org. This is an incredible 4000-person, multi-ethnic, multigenerational, multi-site, kickin', Jesus rockin' church.

5. Pierre & Marlize are incredible hosts & friends. They treated Tiffany and I like a king and queen all weekend. We thoroughly enjoyed our time.

6. On Sunday, The Father's House has 3 services at their main site, and I think two at their downtown site. I had a great time preaching there. The Father's House people laughed, shouted, cried and responded beautifully to the working of the Holy Spirit. It's a fun place to preach.

7. Late Saturday night and on Sunday morning I was throwing up constantly. I either had food poisoning or a virus. Either way, this made preaching a little bit tougher than normal. :)

8. This was a great weekend away for Tiffany and I without the kids. It's always a treat to hang out with my bride without the kids. She is my best friend, and I love spending alone time with her. She is just a special lady. I'm so blessed with such a godly wife. She's my dream lady!

9. Tiffany's mom drove down from Nebraska to watch our 4 precious little ones. I'm sure they gave her a run for her money! :). I'm grateful that she was able to have this wonderful bonding time with her grandkids. Nadine, Tiffany's mom, is a great woman of God and is a wonderful grandmother to our kids.

10. I'm glad to be back in the saddle and to see the incredible things that God is going to do at People's Church this fall.

11. This Sunday at People's Church, I'm teaching an ILLUSTRATIVE message that you can't miss. I believe God is going to use this message to change your life in a powerful way.

12. Also, we are baptizing many people on Sunday! I'm so excited to see followers of Jesus go public with their faith! If you haven't signed up, it's not too late. Email anita@peopleschurch.tv today and let her know which experience you would like to be baptized in. It's going to be a great Sunday at People's Church. Start inviting everybody you know.

13. Troy Martin, our Executive Director of Ministries, preached God's Word the last two weeks at People's Church. He did a great job. Troy is a gifted communicator, and I appreciate his wonderful spirit, attitude, loyalty, work ethic. teachable spirit and heart for Jesus. He and his family are a great addition to the incredible team we have at People's Church.

14. Buckle up, People's Church, God is getting ready to blow our minds with all that He is going to accomplish through us this fall! MORE CHANGED LIVES!

Baptismal Bash

Check out this short video about our Baptismal Bash coming up this Sunday, August 15. If you have given your heart to Christ, it’s time for you to go public for Jesus and get baptized. Obey God, and watch how He blesses your life! To get signed up, please email anita@peopleschurch.tv today and indicate which experience time you would like to get baptized in.

Baptismal Bash 8-15-2010 from People's Church on Vimeo.

The New Thing At People’s Church

Check out this short video to find out the new thing that’s happening this fall at People’s Church.

4 New Experience Times from People's Church on Vimeo.

Hilarious Crying Baby Video

Check out this short video we showed our church the last few weeks to bring to people’s attention the distraction a crying baby can bring and to highlight our kids’ ministry.

Babies from People's Church on Vimeo.

7 Keys To An Effective Youth Ministry

At People's Church, we believe that there are essential ingredients we must have in our student ministry to make it effective. Here are seven of them:

1. The youth ministry must support the vision of the senior pastor. I'm here to serve Pastor Herbert and People's Church, not build a separate youth ministry. Everything we do falls under his vision.

2. The youth ministry staff must lead through volunteers. I'm here to be a leader, not just a doer. If I'm not leading leaders, I'm not going to be effective. I also believe that in order for our ministry to grow, we must be ready for the harvest, not catching up to it. We are constantly building and training our leadership team.

3. Youth ministry must be done with excellence. This generation deserves the best and nothing less. With that, we hold everything we do to a high standard. We are always looking for what we can do better to reach and disciple more students. We also correct everything that is not done with excellence. We want students and parents to leave Epic with a good first impression. This happens when we pay attention to every detail and do everything with excellence.

4. Our experiences are geared toward un-churched students. We want to grow our youth ministry by reaching students who don't know Jesus instead of getting them from other churches. The pre-service music, set up, worship, message and Community Groups are all done with an un-churched student in mind. Every week we give students an opportunity to receive Christ as their personal Lord and Savior.

5. We put a heavy emphasis on Community Groups. We believe the best way for students to grow spiritually is through relationships. On Wednesday night, every one of our students is in a Community Group.

6. During the school year, we are on campuses every week. This plays a huge part in our effectiveness in reaching students in Oklahoma City. We rarely have a week where we aren't on campuses. This is a great way to connect with our students and their friends on their turf. It also helps us build relationships with our community through the local schools.

7. Live by a “safety first” motto - the last thing I want to do is have an event, teach a message, send out a mailer or play a game that could come back and cause headaches for Pastor Herbert. Our youth ministry should always be helping the growth of the church, not hurting it. We take a ton of safety precautions, and if anything could be questionable, we don't do it, or we ask first. It drives me crazy when I hear youth pastors say, "it is better to ask for forgiveness than permission.” That can get you fired and cause headaches for the church. It’s best to use wisdom and think about the big picture and what is best for the church.

This blog is by Chris Smith, Student Ministries Director at People’s Church.

How to Kill Your Kids’ Ministry

It’s been said that there is more than one way to skin a cat. I would also like to add that there is more than one way to kill your kids’ ministry. Here are five things that we avoid at all costs in our kids’ ministry.

1. Take advantage of your volunteers. Volunteers need to feel valued and cared for. Send them a card, buy your team donuts, or simply give someone a pat on the back and let them know how much you appreciate them. If volunteers don’t feel genuinely cared for, you may find yourself doing ministry alone.

2. Don’t have fun. Our goal at People’s Church is to make every experience and every environment unforgettable. We aim for Sunday to be “the best hour of their week”. So don’t be afraid to make a mess and crank up the volume.

3. View kids’ ministry as babysitting. The function of kids’ ministry is exactly the same as it is for adult ministry: to connect people to God and others. No babysitting allowed.

4. Let anybody serve. It takes a lot of people to meet the needs of ministry, but we can’t act out of desperation. It’s important to have a proper screening and training process in place. Set the bar high and don’t compromise.

5. Forget about God. As crazy as it sounds, it is very easy to get busy doing the work of the Lord and not involve the Lord. Whether you’re a pastor or a volunteer leader, it’s critical to pray over your kids’ ministry and invite God to move in the lives of the children and families that are being ministered to. As Psalm 127:1 reminds us, “Unless the Lord builds a house, the work of the builders is wasted.”

This post is by Jody Earley, PC Kids Director at People’s Church.