Day One

So, we were gonna try to make it as far as we could the first day, at least Nashville if not further. We got started a little later than we wanted to today, but that's ok right? wrong. Those 2 hours made all the difference in the world. We were making great time. for the first 9-10 hours we were averaging 60 mph, including all the stops for gas, food, unexpected kid restroom stops, with 5 kids it was great. BUT then my father-in-law calls and asked:

Dad: "Where are you guys right now?

Me: "We are just about 40 miles from Memphis."

Dad: "Oh. Well you guys need to be careful, I heard it is getting pretty bad over there. Some big snowstorm"

Me: "Really, We got nothing. No snow ... even on the ground, beautiful and sunny here, Dad.

Dad: "Ok, call me back in a half and hour and tell me what you see."

Me: "Will do"

Well. We saw a little snow sprinkled on the trees and then on the ground and then a little more and then a little more. I talked back with my Father-in-law and he said that it is supposed to get really bad, but i am gonna push through ... I can handle this! The kids couldn't wait to get out and play a little in it. For Grace, Elise and Ian this was a first that they can remember anyway.

We were getting hungry and it was snowing pretty good, so we stopped at a Steak & Shake to get a bite to eat and to prepare for the coming snow storm. We ate and it was a blast, snow everywhere ... the kids throwning snow balls at each other. They figured out what cold really means.

We got back on the road and traffic was going about 50 mph, then 40 ... 30 ... 20 ... 10 ... 5mph. The road was bumpy from the big ice chunks and that had formed on the (road). Hey look! there's a car on the side of the road ... oh look there is another one ... I decided not to count anymore after 20. Cars, Trucks, Semi Trucks. You could tell how long they had been there by the amount of snow covering them. So, ok ... we need to get off as soon as we can. there was an exit with hotels, just a few miles up the road. Faith looked them up on google and called them, but they were both already full ... The gas station was good enough ... It had to be. About 45 other cars were apparently apart of the sleep over as well.

I realized that Chuck Taylor, even though leather, were not the shoe of choice for this kind of weather ... my feet were cold and wet. Let me show you a couple of images and then share the highlight with you tomorrow.

Christian trying to throw a snow ball at me while i am taking the picture

Me and Faith in front of Steak & Shake. woohoo!

The kids at Steak and Shake before getting back on the road.

Faith and I at the gas station parking lot car hotel.

Christian and I enjoying and snow and the cold wet feet.

A little more perspective

Life ... Going to Cleveland

Ok so 90 hour work weeks again, What am I thinking. This time there is at least a purpose behind it. We are leaveing for Cleveland tomorrow, at like 3 in the morning, about 4 hours from right now. We really aren't going to Cleveland at first. We are going to Warren, OH where my Mom and Step Dad live (where Faith and I grew up) to drop the kids off. This is an exploratory trip to our launch city, about a hour and a half away. We are pumped out of our minds at all that God has placed in our heart and seeing some of these thing finally start to come into focus. God has taken his time with us and has grown many things in us that just can't be done quickly. It has been a long journey and we haven't start, but NOT the kind of journey that wears you out. The kind that builds something new in you everyday
builds confidence,
invigorates,
builds anticipation,
builds purpose,
builds vision,
builds strength,
and all this before the first leg of the race. Pray for us as we leave tomorrow. 5 kids ... 1400 miles ... our 6 month old loves to scream in the car.

Church Plant Blog: State of the church

Here is the weekly installment from the church plant blog that I write for faithHighway found at: http://mediaoutreach.com/?p=1118

In working very closely in consulting churches across America for the last seven and a half years, you start to notice trends that include all denominations and demographics. It is always a good thing to find valid research that says the same thing that your gut has been telling you all along. In the Church Planting World, the research is very encouraging; there seems to be great momentum, but we are still in the very early stages of where this is all going. The direction of the Body of Christ as a whole is moving to a very good spot, and it would appear that much of the strong, thick constructed walls that have divided us for so many years (with relatively small issues) are cracking and getting weaker incrementally. The Conversations that I used to have with churches, even seven years ago, would actually include, websites being of the devil, marketing being a nasty word, strong business principles being a deterrent from the Holy Ghost, denominational name and usage still had very strong loyalty (the presentation has changed, not the loyalty to their roots), the word “multi-cultural” was used rarely, et cetera. The whole landscape of church culture is obviously a completely different world now.

There are 2 blog articles that I would like to reference from www.edstetzer.com. The first is a study, which I will briefly summarize, on some seemly obvious changes in the last 10 years. The Second is the “State of Church Planting.”

This is the summary of the article titled “New Research on American Congregation” (http://blogs.lifeway.com/blog/edstetzer/2008/12/new-study-reveals-changes-in-a.html) the information is mostly drawn from National Congregation Study Wave II via the Christian Post is definitely worth noting. This study, directed by Mark Chaves, Professor of Sociology, Religion, and Divinity at Duke University, compared over 1,505 congregations in 2006-2007 with 1,234 in 1998 revealing some noteworthy changes American churches have experienced in the last 10 years. Here are few points worth thinking about (please note that the sections on style and tech are taken directly from the article mentioned above, while the last point is a summary of the results):

The study shows that our American churches have become less formal in worship style over the past 10 years, but they have not robbed or replaced the biblical components of worship

In 1998, the number of congregations with Web sites was only 17 percent. The number has since risen to 44 percent in 2006-07. In other words, since 1998 another 10,000 congregations created Web sites and now 74 percent of service attendees are in congregations with Web sites. While it’s hard to imagine church life in 2009 without websites and electronic communication, 10 years ago it simply wasn’t an issue.

Ethnic Diversity has increased mostly among “white” churches.

Age of Leadership has increased by 4 years over the last 10 years (This came as a surprise to me). Size of Congregation has remained roughly the same over the last 10 years.

This next article is a very encouraging article that speaks to the Future of Christianity in America, the possible beginnings of a church planting movement. To read the “State of Church Planting” post check out this link (http://blogs.lifeway.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt-search.cgi?search=planting&IncludeBlogs=8).