As you may have seen on this blog before, this is my main work area in my office at church.  

Now, I’d like to walk you through the visual of my day. This was the view this morning:

In order from near to far, you’re seeing:
honeysuckle vines (which I could touch from my chair if there weren’t glass in the window)
driveway (which I could jump to from my desk if I were an Olympic hurdler)
garden area
parking lot

There was a fair amount of demolition work being done outside today in preparation for the new building, but I wasn’t paying much attention.  Until… 

….the big tree on the left just fell over.  
Startled I was. Then this.

Giant claw taking down tree #2.  And I’m finding it hard to concentrate on Easter planning while life-threatening machinery is being expertly operated inches from my happy place. 

Tree #2 gone.  Senior pastor’s head in foreground.  He’s not working on Easter planning.

Aack!!! Again, this is about 10 feet from my desk.  The operator has one wrist spasm, and I lose my head, I’m thinking. 

By the afternoon, this was the view. Despite the calmness, it’s a bit surreal.

NOTE:  there were quite a few trees relocated to other parts of our property.  The ones removed were either too large to be transplanted or were discovered to have disease or pests.

(link to flickr.com photo set where I’ll be collecting these pics over the course of construction)

This was the view from my office window when I posted about this in October. 

This garden area is ‘ground zero’ for our new worship center.  
It was the site of our groundbreaking two weeks ago.
And today, it is the place where demolition/construction is actually starting! Part of the landscaping is being moved to a new garden area, then the whole thing will be leveled to begin building the new structure.

Eventually my window, if it still exists at all, will look out into a new hallway/foyer area.

This is all very good and exciting.  The construction process is going to bring all kinds of adventures every week. It will forever change how we do what we do.  I’m not exaggerating.  

I’m still sad about losing the view. But it’s a great season to be here.

It’s always a little daunting to realize you’re in the middle of a Truly Historic Moment. There’s the excitement and emotion of it. The celebration, or the silence, that might be built around it. There’s the weight of history pushing This Moment toward the future, telling How it Will Change Everything.

Then, the moment passes and you walk away and you fumble to find your keys, or you stub your toe, or you can’t decide what to have for lunch and you realize that everything hasn’t changed. You realize a Moment is still only a moment. What really matters is the collection of people and moments that made this one possible, and the people that are committing to fill this thing, this landmark, with significance in the future. And for you, change comes if you decide to be a part of this new commitment, this new thing that might be done.

On February 22, our church had A Moment:  the groundbreaking for a new worship center. For this church, this is a sizable physical step that represents an even larger journey of spiritual growth and transformation. So it’s a good thing.

We chose to hold a short 10 minute ceremony at the end of each of our three worship services so that the most people possible could participate. It was a simple ceremony, but it was joyful, sincere, and it reminded us that we are God’s church committed to carrying out his mission in our community.

This moment was very very real.  But the commitment is about transforming lives.

all images by Justin Cary Photography

(Read more about our church’s decision to build.)

(View more pictures)

The question: which thing in the picture am I giving up?

There have been some guesses. View them in the comments here.  
Some I wish were true.  Some implied a level of generosity that I wish were true of me. 

One was correct.

Here’s a hint. 

We’re getting warmer….

Could it actually be the purple pen??!??!?

Oh the suspense.

The answer:

NO!!!!!!

The nature?  Nature has to go? Why? Why? Why?!??!?

Yes, the answer is the nature.  
And not only the nature, but the window that views it.

WHAT??!?

The fundraising part of our building process has been successful.  We will be breaking ground for a new worship center in January.  Which is awesome. I’ve been really blown away by the enthusiasm and clear-headed, prayerful approach taken by the people of our church regarding this particular project, during this particular economic climate.  

The one very sad downside:  the new part of the building will sit exactly where this really beautiful garden area now resides. (So, yes, Derek, you were correct.  You win.  Everyone: I’m admitting my brother won.) The new construction will connect to the existing building in a way that takes out my window.  I am sad, because I will miss these beautiful trees, and I will miss the view, and I will miss the light.  There will be a new, possibly larger, garden area created near a new main entrance, retaining our precious ‘green space’. But natural light in the office? No such plan.  

I know this isn’t about me, so I’m going to have to deal with it with grace and maturity.

I am also thinking about bringing leftover July 4 supplies to the office, because maybe I can accidentally fashion a sky light. 

Thanks for playing.

Read more about our church’s decision to build.

This weekend, we kicked off our building campaign.  To read about the weekend worship services, click here.

A Review:
Twenty years ago, this congregation took a huge leap of faith, bought a piece of land waaaay out of town in the middle of nowhere, and built the current building with the express goal of reaching out to the community that would be moving in that geographical direction.  The area around the church has now fully developed, and we find ourselves on one of the main streets of our region of Wichita.  The building features a multi-purpose room, which is where we now worship on Sundays… and play basketball during the week… and where pre-school parent orientation is held… and movie nights… and kids ministry games… etc.  I love that our building gets used so completely and so creatively.  

However, for those who were a part of that original building vision, there has always been a promise of building a dedicated worship center.  Our current worship space is nearly full every week, and the addition of a large meeting space would relieve several space issues. We come to this point as a healthy, growing, vibrant church family.  So a 780ish seat worship center has been drawn up, and we are moving toward a ground-breaking in early 2009 (hopefully).

The Harvest Project:
While we are not a rural church, and we do not have a large population of farmers in our church, we ARE still in the middle of Kansas. Wheat harvest IS a part of local news every summer, and many people in our congregation grew up in farm communities.  Thus the branding for the financial campaign for our new worship center: ‘The Harvest Project’.  This project.. this campaign.. the ideas of sacrifice and stewardship and prayer… these things will be what we talk about over the next few weeks.

Given this theme, a team of creative people went to great lengths to let people know that Something New is Happening this past weekend.   Banners ….  German dinner rolls (yummy… from Mennonite Brethren cultural history)… kids planting wheat seeds… a lawn ornament: 

.

In the previous post, I wrote about what I’ve learned over the years about God’s opinion of the church.  It bears repeating, as I do not believe we are a church just asking for money, or finding cute themes around which to gather.

One of the most simultaneously confusing and exhilarating things I’ve experienced during my years on a church staff is the resiliency and holiness of God’s church.  The Church, made up of imperfect people doing things imperfectly.  The Church, responsible for some of the most amazing and some of the most horrifying events in history.  Yet, The Church that God continually redeems and chooses to work in and through to bring light in the darkness.  When God’s presence is obvious within a church, it is truly awe-some. With the memory of some rough moments in our history, this church is recognizing God’s activity as a blessing, a miracle, a vision to be followed without hesitation.  This is not about the building.  This is about what God is stirring up in us to be and do. 

In the shift we’ve just made, there are a few interesting factors that have become important in the health of the transition.  Today’s topic: song selection. 

Here’s what  the ‘contemporary’ side of our new worship world has looked like over the past three weeks: July 6: band, vocals

• Sing to the King (Foote)
• Unchanging (Tomlin)
• Hallelujah to My King (Brown/Baloche) 

     The message this week encouraged us to take time to worship. So we did:

• Be Still and Know 
• Unashamed Love (Ten Shekel Shirt)
• My Jesus I Love Thee
• You are My King (Amazing Love) (Foote)

July 13: band, vocals, worship choir

• Joyful, Joyful:  worship choir arrangement with brass & band
• Cry Out Your Name (Moore): older, but a solid hook & great theme
• Hallelujah to My King (Brown/Baloche)
• Your Name (Packiam/Baloche)
• I Surrender All: beautiful 4-part accapella vocal arrangement (sung by 8 person ensemble from the back of the room) used as a response to sermon

July 20: band, vocals

• You Are Good (Houghton)
• Cry Out Your Name (Moore)
• You Are (Roach) 
• How Great is Our God (Tomlin)
• May the Words of My Mouth (Hughes): great response song

Prior to this transition, about half our congregation attended our contemporary service, and about half attended our ‘blended’ service.  The blended service included a few newer style songs, plus a few traditional style hymns each week.  Because of that, and because of the culture of that service, we did not use the same ‘library’ of new songs as the contemporary service.  Now that we’ve upset the proverbial apple cart, probably 1/3 of the people in the room for each of our contemporary services aren’t familiar with our standard, use-them-whenever, hit-the-ball-out -of-the-park worship songs.  So, two things become important:

1.  intentionally using 1-2 songs each week that are well-known to everyone (at least for a while)
2.  thoughtfully choosing the songs that will continue to be used (hopefully, new songs are always thoughtfully chosen…)

In the shift we’ve just made, there are a few interesting factors that have become important in the health of the transition.  Today’s topic: song selection. Here’s what  the ‘contemporary’ side of our new worship world has looked like over the past three weeks:

July 6: band, vocals

• Sing to the King (Foote)
• Unchanging (Tomlin)
• Hallelujah to My King (Brown/Baloche) 

     The message this week encouraged us to take time to worship. So we did:

• Be Still and Know 
• Unashamed Love (Ten Shekel Shirt)
• My Jesus I Love Thee
• You are My King (Amazing Love) (Foote)

July 13: band, vocals, worship choir

• Joyful, Joyful:  worship choir arrangement with brass & band
• Cry Out Your Name (Moore): older, but a solid hook & great theme
• Hallelujah to My King (Brown/Baloche)
• Your Name (Packiam/Baloche)
• I Surrender All: beautiful 4-part accapella vocal arrangement (sung by 8 person ensemble from the back of the room) used as a response to sermon

July 20: band, vocals

• You Are Good (Houghton)
• Cry Out Your Name (Moore)
• You Are (Roach) 
• How Great is Our God (Tomlin)
• May the Words of My Mouth (Hughes): great response song

Prior to this transition, about half our congregation attended our contemporary service, and about half attended our ‘blended’ service.  The blended service included a few newer style songs, plus a few traditional style hymns each week.  Because of that, and because of the culture of that service, we did not use the same ‘library’ of new songs as the contemporary service.  Now that we’ve upset the proverbial apple cart, probably 1/3 of the people in the room for each of our contemporary services aren’t familiar with our standard, use-them-whenever, hit-the-ball-out -of-the-park worship songs.  So, two things become important:

1.  intentionally using 1-2 songs each week that are well-known to everyone (at least for a while)
2.  thoughtfully choosing the songs that will continue to be used (hopefully, new songs are always thoughtfully chosen…)

THE BIG DEAL
Before: 8:30 & 9:45 identical, ‘blended’ worship. 11:15 ‘contemporary’ worship.
Now: 8:30 classic worship. 9:45 & 11:15 identical ‘contemporary’ worship. 

While I’m not a fan of these incredibly non-descriptive words like ‘blended’ and ‘contemporary’, there has to be some way to talk about what’s happening in the room. So this is where we’ve landed. Our new ‘classic’ service is truly traditional in nature, and has been very well received across the generations. My long-time co-worker in the worship ministry is doing a great job of planning this service very thoughtfully and including a variety of accomplished musicians. The ‘contemporary’ service will vary from week to week… the music sometimes being very band-driven, sometimes including a worship choir, but the overall atmosphere informal.  

ATTENDANCE PATTERNS & SEATING
Before:  Attendance in 8:30 + 9:45 = attendance in 11:15, give or take 20-30 people, with the 8:30 service always the least attended.  Room had to be set up to accommodate the 11:15 attendance, so we had 3 huge sections of chairs with 2 long aisles.  With limited ability to rope off parts of the room, the 8:30 service always felt a bit cavernous.

Now: We anticipated a more evenly dispersed attendance across the three hours, which has proven to be true. The room has been set up in a pattern of smaller sections, which allows for some areas to be roped off for the 8:30. So far, none of the worship services feel too empty, and none feel too full.  I realize attendance patterns will change in the fall, but still believe this configuration will accommodate people more effectively.

MUSICIANS
Before: two different worship bands each week, one in each style of service. Two different groups of vocalists rotated with these bands. Our adult choir sang nearly every week in the blended services. Once a month, an orchestra was a part of the blended services.

Now: Two different core bands, and one pool of vocalists, rotate week to week playing in the contemporary services. We now have two distinct choirs: one will sing in the classic service 2 times a month, and one will sing in the contemporary service 2 times a month along with the worship team vocalists.  Once every 2-3 months, the orchestra and combined choirs will be a part of all worship services.

REHEARSALS & SOUND CHECKS
Before: 
Wed pm:  6:45-8:00 choir, 8:00-9:00 blended service band.
Thur pm: 7:30-9:30ish contemporary service band
Sun am: 7:30 sound check band #1
8:00 choir
8:30 1st service
9:45 2nd service
10:45 stage re-set: move 2 rows of choir chairs, 3 large platforms, move drums & all other instruments, sound check band #2, talk through set               
11:15 3rd service

Now: Wed pm: 6:45-8:00 classic choir, 8:00-9:00 contemporary choir,  7:30-9:30ish worship band
Sun am:  8:00 classic service rehearsals
8:30 1st service
9:00 band meets in separate room to talk through set, run through songs
9:15 contemporary choir meets in separate room (if singing)
9:30 band moves to stage with minimal re-set, sound check
9:45 & 11:15 worship services

It’s probably not immediately obvious, but the schedule we’re now keeping is waaaaay more tolerable and sustainable than the previous plan. We used to have 30 minutes to re-set the stage between services,  plug in, talk through the set, and sound check.  This always felt harried to me, although we usually made it.  Now, we have 15 minutes.  But.  The band meets ahead of that time to get our heads into the music and the flow of the set.  We have very little to re-set on the stage, so the 15 minutes can be all about plugging in instruments and doing a quick sound check. Somehow, in the end, it all feels more relaxed.

So?? In quite a lot of words, that is how this transition has affected us so far. What I didn’t write about is what I see happening every week in our church family. I see people gathering to worship, some in the same manner they have for years, some with greater freedom than they have had for a while.  We set out to solve a few logistical issues, knowing that we also had a chance to provide more effective worship environments for our entire congregation, which is no small thing.  I believe God has led us to a great solution for this time, for this church… and for that I am grateful.

Statistics:

• attendance at our contemporary service vs. our blended services has been split nearly 50/50
• style preferences of our congregation (as reported through a survey in 2007): 14% prefer traditional worship, 37% prefer ‘blended’ style, 41% prefer contemporary, and 8% don’t care.
• the 14% who prefer traditional are never offered worship opportunities in their comfort zone.  Talk about growth and ‘it’s not about you’ all you like, this still matters. 
• Because of our worship style split, 86% of our kids attend Sunday School at the same time. This amounts to nearly 250 kids.  The goals of kids’ Sunday School had been to adopt a ‘small group’ approach, which is impossible with that number of kids and the configuration of space available.

  How is this a creative solution?

(Read about the background to this decision here.)

Statistics:

• attendance at our contemporary service vs. our blended services has been split nearly 50/50
• style preferences of our congregation (as reported through a survey in 2007): 14% prefer traditional worship, 37% prefer ‘blended’ style, 41% prefer contemporary, and 8% don’t care.
• the 14% who prefer traditional are never offered worship opportunities in their comfort zone.  Talk about growth and ‘it’s not about you’ all you like, this still matters. 
• Because of our worship style split, 86% of our kids attend Sunday School at the same time. This amounts to nearly 250 kids.  The goals of kids’ Sunday School had been to adopt a ‘small group’ approach, which is impossible with that number of kids and the configuration of space available.

How is this a creative solution?