Today and tomorrow, I’ll be attending the Velocity ChurchPlanters.com conference in Cumming, GA at Mountain Lake Church. Speakers include Rick Warren, Steven Furtick and Dave Gibbons! If you’re there, I’d love to meet you. Should be fun. You can follow the action on Twitter.
Recently, I spoke with my friend (and Center for Church Communications Executive Director) Cynthia Ware. She asked me to be a Regional Network Coordinator for the Center for Church Communications and I agreed. Last week she announced this on the CFCC website. Below is what she said:
Building a Team
In my own personal ministry experience I have found that I’m happiest when building and launching a team. It’s always fulfilling for me to gather a group of like-minds and harness their collective resource. The greatest thrill comes from discovering the distinctive talents of each individual—while all working together towards one common goal.
That’s why I’ve decided to establish a collective of Regional Network Coordinators for CFCC. These are simply friends and colleagues who we feel have something to offer as we identify, celebrate, inspire and resource a growing contingency of church communicators. They are diverse, some are well-known voices, others offer a unique perspective, etc.
What They Do
Our network of coordinators will simply function as eyes and ears on the ground in their respective areas of the country. They will help CFCC with behind the scenes projects and will point us to their favorite/most inspiring communicators and campaigns.
We have carefully selected these 18 individuals to act as local resources so that if anyone in their area needs communication resources they can point to CFCC. Likewise, we can learn from them what’s happening in their area and share those lessons, resources and ideas with the broader community. The goal is to offer some back and forth and ensure that CFCC is better plugged into the church communications community. This isn’t an exclusive club—we hope it will grow (especially in areas where we lack representation) and benefit the entire community.
As we all continue to improve our communication skills, we hope these coordinators will inspire us by pointing us to that which is good, true and beautiful in church communication.
Here is the list of Regional Network Coordinators:
CFCC 2010 Regional Network Coordinators
We hope you know some of these people and can be a support to us by directing them to examples you may know of that reflect excellence in church communications. If you’re part of our community, please visit their sites, familiarize yourself with their work and welcome them with comments.
*** So, like they asked, if you would: please feel free to direct me to examples you may know of that reflect excellence in church communications. Thanks!
I promise (I think) this is the last one. I do have a blog prepared on a totally different subject tomorrow (leadership). The last 2 posts (Lifehouse and this one) have come from your comments. I thought your suggestions were too good to go unnoticed.
In today’s video/song, one of my favorite bands, Death Cab for Cutie, ends their live concert with Transatlanticism. Thanks to Michael for reminding me of this piece of musical genius. Notice that the electric guitar plays his first soft strum at 1:50 in. The drummer sits with his arms in his lap for the first 3 minutes! At 3 and 1/2 minutes in he starts to lighting play his cymbal and kick.
At about 4 and 1/2 minutes in, the lead singer (Benjamin Gibbard) switches from keys to guitar. At about 5 minutes in you get to experience a band truly letting a song breathe – it’s wonderful. If you’ll notice: from about 4 minutes to 6 minutes there are no vocals – just instruments building (this is what I was referring to in my post about Owl City and the future of worship music – Selah moments).
At about 7 minutes in the drummer builds to where he’s beating the fool out of the drums and then right at 7:36 he drops out – again reinforcing what I said here about players knowing when to drop out. Watch and enjoy!
My hope is that worship leaders will drink this (and the last 4 posts) in. Wrap your brain and heart around the philosophy of letting music build, breathe and taking dynamics seriously. Send my blog links to your band members. Ask them to watch the videos, take notes and use it for a launching pad of discussion that you can have at your next rehearsal.
If you’re a band member in a local church band, show this to your worship leader and other band members. If you’re a pastor or church leader, pass this on to your worship pastor. Let’s raise the bar in our worship leadership and strive for a creativity and beauty that is worthy of our Creator.
Today’s example of great musicianship is brought in part because of one of the comments made by Trae earlier in the week. I absolutely love this song and love using it in worship, but it had slipped my mind. Trae brought it back to my attention.
This will close this week out. This is Lifehouse singing/playing “Everything” live in Amsterdam. Please notice how long the song takes to build. The band doesn’t come in strong until 4 minutes in!
As Trae said, one of my friends and favorite worship leaders, Michael Bleecker of the The Village Church (where Matt Chandler is Lead Pastor) does this song the best of anyone I’ve heard lead it. I used to play this song with a band I was in every Tuesday night that led worship for 20 somethings/singles and college age. I would often request that we play this or just start playing the intro and let the band jump in with me. Enjoy!
Not sure how this translates to worship? Watch this video of a drama performed to Lifehouse’s “Everything”. I’ve blogged about this before. I can not watch this without crying every time – it’s amazing.
The first time I realized the power of withholding the drums until just the right moment was in Phil Collins’ genius song “In The Air Tonight”. That’s when I “got it”. The following is a video of him playing this live in his Farewell Tour (I have this DVD – because Phil Collins is a musical hero to me). You know you love it! Is there anything cooler than when the drums kick in?
I hope the point is getting across. Let music build. Let it grow. Let it breathe. Leave space. Know when NOT to play. The musicians and bands that I’ve featured the last few days get it – it’s time the Church got it. I know some of you get this – but unfortunately, the majority of the Church (big “C”) doesn’t.
Do you have any other great examples? And yes, I know Mercy Me opened their Live DVD concert with their arrangement of “In the Air Tonight”. I loved it. You can watch that HERE.
Yesterday I expressed my personal opinions about music, dynamics and letting a song build. I said that the quickest way to spot an amateur player is to see him playing the whole song. A real musician knows when to not play.
One of my favorite bands is Coldplay. Today I thought I’d show you Coldplay playing “Fix You” (one of my favorite songs) Live from Tokyo. In this video, notice the bass comes in at 0:51, the guitar comes in very lightly at around 1:20 and drums come in with a driving electric guitar at about 2:44 (like yesterday almost 3 minutes into the song!) . You’ll notice the drummer often has his arms crossed or his hands in his lap – again a sign of a pro. Like yesterday, both bands also know when to drop out at the end. Enjoy!
I can’t embed it, but also check out the same song (“Fix You”) Live from Austin City Limits HERE.
As you know, I travel quite a bit and visit/work with a lot of churches. One of the most common problems with church praise bands (and also easiest to fix) is this issue of dynamics. Most church praise bands play too much. They play all the time (from beginning to end) – which is another way of saying they’re too busy – and they don’t let the music build. Like I said yesterday, music needs space – it needs to breathe.
If you’re a worship pastor that leads a band and you let your musicians play 100% all the time, you’re dropping the ball (you know I like to shoot straight). I mentioned that when I visit churches I often look for a laptop on stage. But one of the first things I look for is who is not playing. The difference between an amateur musician and a professional is knowing when not to play. It’s the whole “less is more” thing that I always preach.
Maybe this is something that your church band struggles with. Maybe you have a pianist that used to be “the band” and is used to playing the full 100% of the music. Now that a guitar, bass and drums are added in, she doesn’t know that her role must decrease and she must adjust the amount of action or busyness that she plays with in order to allow the other instruments to equal to 100%. This is what I call the 100% rule. You only have 100% to divide up – any one player can’t play like the 100% is up to him/her.
Let’s get practical: Often to make a point, I will go to the extreme. I used to do this with my camera operators and video directors all the time. When working with church bands, I will often ask players to “sit out” or restrain from playing for a LONG period of time – in order to get the point across.
One of the best songs I’ve used to teach this to countless people is “My Immortal” by Evanescence. I want you to watch this video twice. The first time just enjoy it and be moved by the song. The second time, look at it more technically.
As you’ll notice, the high-hat comes in at about 2:43 and the full band kicks in (hard) at about 3:07. If you missed that, the band doesn’t come in until 3 minutes into the song. This is a song and video that you can download from iTunes and play for your church band in order to drive this point home. The song is moving and powerful because of how long the rest of the band waits to come in. The song would be ruined if the band was playing the entire time (which again, is what happens with most church bands).
Take this lesson seriously. Learn and grow from it. Go to extremes with your band if you have to. Let the music build. Your congregation will thank you.
I came across this blog post by David Putman and Shawn Lovejoy on Pastors.com. I thought it was worth re-posting:
It happened again! Another one bites the dust! Each year thousands of new churches are planted across the United States, and each year hundreds – if not thousands – close. When this happens the fallout can be great for the church planter, his family, and those who attend.
It’s hard to know how many church plants don’t make it each year. Some organizations suggest as many as 80 percent fail. One is too many. Avoiding common mistakes can improve the survival rate of new churches. Here are some common mistakes to avoid.
Rushing ahead
Most of us quick-start church-planter types are driven by the urgency of the calendar. We tend to focus on a launch date, and regardless if we are ready or not, we launch. Instead of being driven by the calendar, it would serve us well to be driven by milestones. Milestones focus on the accomplishment of strategic actions.
Here are some to consider:
This list is not intended to be comprehensive, but to get you thinking. Failure to reach critical milestones prior launch is a key reason churches plateau or decline early in their life cycle.
Underestimating the cost
If you haven’t planted a church, you can count on three things: It’s going to take longer, require more money, and be harder than you imagined! As church planters, we are often guilty of getting “drunk on vision.” We’re so “intoxicated” with the desire to plant that it clouds our good judgment. When we’re intoxicated, we fail to listen to others, think clearly, and make wise decisions. Jesus tells us to count the cost. It always pays to listen to him.
Violating the Sabbath
Planting a church comes with a high price. First of all, let’s dispel the myth that you can plant a church without paying the price. Because of this you have to make taking care of yourself a high priority. A church planter must nurture his vitality. This requires taking regular time to refuel your emotional, relational, physical, and relational vitality. Paying close attention to these gauges can add longevity and impact to your life and ministry.
For the last 10 years, we have been part of a church plant that has grown from a vision to over 2000 in regular attendance. Unfortunately we are just learning to pay attention to our own gauges. Fortunately our wives have been incredibly patient and honest with us. We are yet to find a church planter worth their salt who doesn’t have to work hard at this. As church planters, we’ve got to embrace what the Scriptures teach us about our time. There’s a time to work. Work hard! However, there’s also a set aside time to rest. Rest hard! As a leader, if you don’t nurture your own vitality and monitor your own pace, no one else will.
Hanging on too long
When you give birth to a new church, it’s your baby. The church you planted begins with the vision God put in your heart. When you first plant, everything begins with you. You have to do everything. However, as the church begins to grow, the longer you hold on to everything, the more you become the bottleneck. There simply comes a time when we must let go and empower others.
Church planters who don’t develop the skill of empowering others seldom grow beyond 75 to 125 people. You may launch your church. You may reach people; but you usually end up stuck. The most effective church planters understand the importance of raising up leaders and building teams.
Not having a coach
Church planting is the R&D department of ministry. Planters understand that we learn our way into the future. As we move forward, we assess our failures and successes and we build off of them. Like Churchill, we understand that “success is moving from failure to failure without losing momentum.” Church planters surround themselves with other leaders and learners. I was reminded of this when Will Henderson, our Australian church planter, returned from an ACTS 29 learning experience where they advocated that every church planter needs a minimum of five coaches in their lives. Those who grow in their leadership surround themselves with coaches.
As church planters we’re going to make mistakes. No one gets it right all the time. We can avoid many of these if we’re willing to be teachable and surround ourselves with people who have been where we are going.
To learn more about church planting, join us February 22-23, 2010, for our Velocity Churchplanters.com Conference.
*** I (Greg) will be at the Velocity Churchplanters.com conference. I hope to see you there!
Anyone using visual media in church should know the answer to this question (WHY?) if they are to be effective.
Come and be part of the discussion that is shaping the philosophy and vision of visual media in the modern Church. Engage with visual worship leaders and ministry staff from across the country in this roundtable forum. VisualWorship2010 was launched to be a catalyst for visual worshipers and the Church to discover what God has in store for us.
Check it out!
The following is an article by Daniel Scocco that I found on Daily Blog Tips.
Sooner or later most of us need to collect some Internet statistics. Maybe it is for your homework, maybe it is for a market research you are doing for a project, maybe it is just out of curiosity. Over the years I came across several websites that provide these stats, and I decided to list the best ones in this post.
One of the best resources for people looking for Internet statistics. Their research cover social networking, web 2.0, broadbandand digital divide. Apart from detailed reports you will also find infographics, presentations, trends and surveys. The research topics are quite actual as well. For instance, they already have a bunch of reports and numbers on Twitter.
w3counter provides a web analytics program for website owners. However, they also use the data collected on the websites using the program (over 28,000) to create a monthly report called “Global Web Stats.” On the report you will find the most popular web browsers, operating systems, screen resolutions andcountries.
The w3schools website also publishes a report with browser, operating systemand screen resolution statistics. One advantage of this site over the previous one is the fact that you can see at a glance the market share evolution of the different browsers over time. They have data going back to 2002, and there is also a section about the adoption of JavaScript.
If you are looking for Internet usage and adoption statistics from around the world, this is the website to visit. It comes with data regarding the total number of Internet users, a break-down by continent and penetration rates. The data seems to be updated frequently as well.
Not all of us are Alexa fans when it comes to traffic estimations. However, we can’t deny that Alexa has been tracking traffic numbers for a long time, and its list with the 500 largest websites on the Internet seem to be relatively accurate. If you need to get an idea of what are the largest sites on the web, it is worth a look.
Another company that offers decent traffic estimations for large websites is Nielsen. On the free report that is available inside their website they list the top 10 web parent companies, top 10 U.S. web parent companies, top 10 U.S. video sitesand top 10 U.S. search providers. Nielsen also offers a monthly newsletter with the latest online trends and numbers.
Hitwise is a company offering competitive intelligence services. Inside its website there is a section called “Data Center” where you can access all sorts of Internet data. For example, they offer a list of the top 20 search engines, top 20 websites per industry, top 10 search terms per industry and the like. Make sure to check the Reports & Webinars section as well.
8. Point Topic
Point Topic is a research company specialized in DSL and broadband research. Most of their reports are paid, but they have a section called “Free Analysis” where you can get access to a bunch of free reports and studies. As far as broadband numbers go, they are the most complete I have found online. The only catch is that you need to register an account before getting access to them.
If you want to see some data regarding the early days of the Internet (i.e. 1993 – 2000), check this website out. Apparently it was created by an MIT student, and it is not complete, but it does have some data available. For example, you can see the growth in the number of websites, web hosts, and the usage of the different protocols over time.
10. Verisign Domain Name Industry Brief
Verisign is the company responsible for the .com and .net domain registrations. As you can imagine, they have a lot of data regarding domain names, and they provide a quarterly report detailing all the latest numbers and trends on the domain industry. You can download the PDF documents directly, and they are well structured.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
