Life Point Blog

What A Great Day

Yesterday was a great day. I turned one year older and took a day just for me. No church stuff, just a breather. It was awesome. I was pumped and dog tired from Sunday and spent early yesterday morning in prayer and had a great quiet time. Then went to beach to talk a walk, went to Coconut Point and had a grilled tomato and cheese sandwich at Johnny Rockets, went to Barnes and Noble and read all the magazines I cant afford to buy yet, went to the movie to see Gone Baby Gone which was awesome then went to Angelia's house where my team gathered to break bread with me. We had Fried Catfish, Grits, Green Beans, Hot Rolls, Salad and a great light cheese cake for desert. We just hung out and had fun. I got lots of phone calls and emails from my peeps and family, had a bunch of people on face book write on my wall. Just a cool day. One of the best birthdays ever. Thank you everyone!!!

Speaking at FGCU

I had the humble honor of speaking to a group of college students last night at FGCU. It ROCKED. Those kids were unbelievable. Lucas Hillman is the leader of an on campus bible study and I did last night and will do next Wednesday night. We unpacked The Organic God and talked about Organic people. Man it rocked. All my staff was there and after working all day getting ready for Sunday's preview service #1 came out just to support me and get to know these kids. What a team. Team Life. Awesome.
Here are some pics:

2 Great Men Died

I learn from death. Thats right I learn from death. I always ask 2 questions when I hear that someone died:
1: Did they have Jesus as their Lord and Savior
2: Did they accomplish all that they and God had in store for them.
Luciano Pavarotti and D. James Kennedy both died in last 2 days. Luciano Pavarotti. I loved him. It all started with my first purchase of a Three Tenors (Plácido Domingo, José Carreras and Luciano Pavarotti) album entitled, "The Three Tenors in Concert 1994" - a live concert performed at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. My next purchase was an earlier album from 1990 - which was a live recording with Zubin Mehta. And then of course, who can forget when Pavarotti sang with my all-time favorite band, U2, in their 1995 song, Miss Sarajevo? That was quite a combo, let me tell you...

D. James Kennedy. A leader in evangelism. I remember taking Evangelism Explosion which he wrote. I remember those great sermons he preached at Coral Ridge. Kennedy took the Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in Fort Lauderdale from a congregation of 45 in 1959 to a megachurch of nearly 10,000 members today.

Here is a quote he wrote:
“Now, I know that someday I am going to come to what some people will say is the end of this life. They will probably put me in a box and roll me right down here in front of the church, and some people will gather around, and a few people will cry. But I have told them not to do that because I don’t want them to cry. I want them to begin the service with the Doxology and end with the Hallelujah chorus, because I am not going to be there, and I am not going to be dead. I will be more alive than I have ever been in my life, and I will be looking down upon you poor people who are still in the land of dying and have not yet joined me in the land of the living. And I will be alive forevermore, in greater health and vitality and joy than ever, ever, I or anyone has known before.”

Rest in peace Dr. Kennedy and Senor Pavarotti

Firehouse Subs

One of the great things about getting the right people on your team is that as the team gets more comfortable with each other, the more creative and free flowing ideas seem to be. Part of our staff went to firehouse subs after a creative marketing meeting.

I like firehouse subs. It was founded by firemen. It had one purpose and still their goal is to make a great sub. They do. On their website FIRE HOUSE SUBS they still pay tribute to firemen. How cool. But read below about their company and tell me it does not sound like planting a church:
" We made a list of the things we would have to do to differentiate ourselves from the competition; the idea for Firehouse Subs was drawn out on a napkin in a competitor's parking lot that very day.

The Product
Serve hearty subs with high quality meats and cheeses. It took two years of research to find the right products, and it was truly a family affair from the beginning. We utilized holidays as tasting parties to get input from our family and close friends.

The Heat
Serve hot subs without using a microwave. Using a steamer heats the meat and cheese, but also adds moisture, unlike a microwave. Steaming is what makes the meat and cheese flavors burst, and once we tasted it, we knew there was nothing else like it.

The Customers
Create an environment that focuses on customer service, and is family-oriented. Growing up in a family-owned business, it came natural.

The Theme
Find a theme that people can relate to, and that is authentic. Our mom's family has decades of service on the Jacksonville Fire Rescue Department (JFRD), and her relatives inspired our father to join the fire department.

Our dad retired in 2004 with 43 years of service as a Combat Captain, and our family has more than 200 years of public service as firefighters. It is a theme that is personal to us, but is appealing to people of all ages, and is embraced in every community.

We had a recipe for success! But financially, we had to get creative to open up the first restaurant. Our family and friends pitched in. Lots of blood, sweat and tears went into opening the first restaurant. We even financed most of the opening on my (Robin's) mother-in-law's credit card. "

Sound familiar.... how cool.

Time Off

I took some time off from blogging. I don't really know why except I have been working my behind off getting ready for our preview services and working with the GREATEST TEAM one could ever imagine. Well, now we are ready for Phase 2 of planting Life Point Church. Phase 1 was the pre-planning, team gathering, networking, raising money, praying part. Now Phase 2 is the "roll up your sleeves and get into the trenches part." Phase 3 will be the Launch and after launch part. That may be Phase 3 and Phase 4.

Nevertheless, we are officially into Phase 2. I will post more frequently so everyone can keep updated and hopefully what we do can benefit someone else who is planting a church. I must admit, we are not really doing anything that different than other church plants. I "borrowed" most of of ideas. It just flat out does not make sense to reinvent the wheel. What we are doing though is fine tuning everything so we can easily reproduce it. See God has called us to be a multi-site church. 1 church with 5 locations. So it is critical to get this part right so we can be reproducible. Its all about systems: the right ones working in the right manner.

Boy, I love church planting.

I Love The Fourth of July

This is one of my favorite holidays. I love the fireworks and the food. I love the friends and family time. Every 4th we use to have a big family reunion at the beach. We would eat a ton of watermelon, bar-b-que chicken and eat a ton of great deserts. It is a time I remember my dad who wanted to live just for the 4th celebration 10 years ago in Edisto Beach. He made it down and I have great memories of me and him and Mark. One of my favorite pictures is the 3 generation of Judy's at the beach. 10 years ago dad went home to be with the Lord. Cancer. A little over a month after mustering up the strength to make the reunion he went to be with Jesus. My dad loved his family. I love my dad and this holiday brings back a ton of great memories. He was my best friend, my sounding board, my dad. I miss him dearly. This is your day dad.

America's Cup Tied at 1-1

In an incredible day of sailing, Team New Zealand overcame a 23 second deficit to beat the Swiss Alinghi by 28 seconds. You have to understand that in match racing, this is HUGE. The wind is never constant and you are fighting the currents, the spectator chop, and the shifts in the wind conditions. All of this makes it extremely difficult to go up and down on a windward/leeward course.

Both boats are very close in boat speed with a slight edge to Alinghi. However the real key is calling the first wind shift. The Swiss nailed that and took a 20 sec lead. However in a dramatic turn of events, Team NZ split coverage and went to the right side of the course, caught a fresh favored shift in breeze and when they crossed were ahead. DRAMATIC TURN AROUND!!!

The 3rd race is today and it will be anyones guess on the weather in Spain. Yesterday was breezy and shifty. But it was a lay day. Today who knows. All I know is there is nothing like racing sailboats except being a church planter with the team God is putting together here in SW Florida. WOW!!! I am blessed!!!

Americas Cup Begins TODAY

The oldest trophy in all of sports. The Holy Grail of trophies. Ongoing for 156 years the 32nd Americas Cup Yachting Race begins today in Valencia Spain. The Kiwis with Team New Zealand will seek to bring the Cup back down under by beating Swiss defender Alinghi. This race only comes every 4 years. It is an incredible display of teamwork, wind and water management, and hours of intense concentration. The best adrenaline rush in the world.

This is a great event for me having raced sailboats professionally for 13 years, all over the world and in 2 Cup campaigns. Its hard to believe that 20 years ago this week, I was in Australia doing what they are doing today. There is no greater thrill than winning the cup and bringing it back to the USA like we did in Freemantle in 1987 and then defend it in 1992 in San Diego. This is a best of 5 series and will last all of 2 weeks. Stay tuned, I will be posting updates.

Ruth Graham Goes To Be With Jesus

I will never forget the day many many years ago that I was at Ridgecrest Baptist Assembly in NC with a bunch of kids. We went to Pizza Hut in Montreat and I had to go into Eckerds Drug Store. While I was there in walks Mrs. Ruth. I went over, introduced myself and we talked and she invited me to Little Piney Cove. That started a friendship with her and Dr. Billy. She was one of the most remarkable women I ever met. Truly down to earth and a true friend to young pastors. She is with Jesus now. Doing what we are preaching about. Pray for her family.

Summer Reading

Every summer, I commit to reading a new fun author. Last summer it was all the Stewart Woods novels. This summer it will be The Lee Child Novels. His main character is Jack Reacher. As far as I'm concerned, the tight-lipped, human arsenal Jack Reacher is the most compelling figure in contemporary escapist thriller fiction.

You can see all the Lee Child Jack Reacher novels in order HERE.