Sometimes I have a t-rex "god"

It's both interesting and embarrassing how many times I edit my prayers before offering them to God. I truly believe He is capable of answering and addressing any and every situation, emotion, and challenge that I find myself bumping up against on any given day (not to be confused with what He decides is best or what is the best timing but that's another discussion for later). I often try to solve things for God rather than surrendering things to him in their jacked up seemingly impossible state. Simply stated: I edit...and I bet some of you do as well. Today I believe God allowed Numbers 11:23 to reverberate in my conscience like a thunderous cloud. Go back and read the context for yourself, but Moses was facing an impossible situation and he essentially told God it wasn't possible. God's response, "Is the LORD's arm too short?" I appreciate my Creators sarcasm! God was saying, I'm not limited by your inability to see the solution. My version, "Moses, Do you think I have t-rex arms?" Just because you and I can see our way through it doesn't mean we shouldn't pray our way through it. I'm still learning, but if you, like me, at times have a t-rex "god" I would suggest that you pick a new God. Maybe we should consider the One that was talking to Moses in Numbers 11:23!

Whirlwind of a year!

2013 has been a whirlwind of a year for Ridge Church. Christmas Eve was a fitting exclamation point on what was a year full of growth and life change. Our church doubled in attendance the past year and so did our Christmas Eve service. The highlight of Christmas Eve was seeing people engage in the service and respond to the Gospel. Crowd Hero wasn't too shabby either! And, while standing room only for over 70 adults was exciting on one hand it was an indication that we need to rethink our strategy next year:) Thanks for a great year! Thanks to each of you that have INVITED friends, CONNECTED in groups, SERVED at Ridge and Piney Grove, and GIVEN of your resources to this mission. Leading people into a growing relationship with Jesus is our mission but each of you are the fuel pushing it forward. I can't wait to see what God does through all of us collectively throughout 2014!

Here's our last E-News blast of 2013 with important info concerning the next few weeks: Ridge E-News

Have you ever been owned?

There are just some people or some things that have our number. They own us. And there are days we feel just as powerless by the challenges we face in life. Some of us are owned by our past regrets. For others it's the uncertainty of the future. Regardless of what owns us, we all want to be free. That's what this new 2-part series is all about. Join us at Ridge Church  as myself and Patrick Mitchell dive into this concept. Spread the word!

Having fun at Church!

One of our core values as an organization is "Fun". Our filter for this is the question, "How are we creating memorable experiences?" In our creative and planning meetings we often talk about that one moment that people will want to tweet about or tell their co-worker about. Fun is disarming and typically engaging. We did a free, fun, family, photo booth in our foyer during our recent "Future Family" series. It turned out incredible. It was so fun watching families "have fun" together. Check out the highlight video!

Creating a Place where people can belong before they believe

We have two phrases that we've adopted/crafted over time that capture the full heart and intentions of our church. One of those phrases is that, "We want to create a place where people can belong even before they believe." It sounds good on paper and makes for a good tweet or facebook status but to be completely honest, in reality it's messy. When you create an environment that actively pursues this you can no longer make broad sweeping agenda statements about categories of people---instead you are forced to have conversations with "friends". Sometimes the conversations are hard and emotional! It's messy, but when you get it right---It's powerful and the result is epic life change. We have embraced our destiny to move toward the messes. As a result We've seen a lot of life change in the last 5 years. Can't wait to see what the next 5 years hold in store. Here's a snap shot of our 5 years of since our first Sunday morning service at Ridge Church:

Celebrating 5 years of life change!

It's surreal looking back to our humble beginnings. We had 12-13 people at our very first interest meeting for Ridge Church in 2006 (we didn't even have a name yet). Between 2006-2007, through a series of about 40 evening pre-view services and worship gatherings, we developed a core team of about 30-40 people to help launch Ridge Church. Then in 2008 we had our very first Sunday morning worship service. Since that time our people have truly committed themselves to doing literally all that they could do to support this mission AND we have watched God do what only he can do...over and over again. This Sunday we'll celebrate 5 years of life change. It is literally remarkable how much things have grown and changed. This will be an epic celebration. Don't miss out! The next chapter is yet to be written. We would love for you to be part of it...show up early if you want a good parking spot. The opener will be too good to miss!

Prepare to be overwhelmed!

One of our distinctives at Ridge Church is our commitment to partnering with families. We leverage significant staff and budget resources toward what we call our "family ministries" (birth-12th grade). This summer we threw the biggest celebration in our history as we baptized 8 teenagers. It was an epic night. Prepare to be blown away as you watch this video. It's 18 minutes long and was embedded in a night of celebration with an overflowing, energy filled auditorium. Trust me...it will be the best 18 minutes of your day! This is our mission in motion:

From Young life to New life

I'm a big fan of "young life", a campus ministry that aims to connect with students that might not typically attend a church. In fact, we have tried to structure our church in a similar way--we want to connect with adults that might not typically attend a church. I love Patrick's story. He became a follower of Jesus because some friends had the courage to invite him to Young Life. Now as a young adult he decided to publicly profess his faith and identify himself with Jesus through Baptism. I'm grateful that Ridge Church gets to be even a small part of stories like this!

Meet my former load in partner!

Our church, Ridge Church, is fast approaching our 5 year anniversary. We met about two Sunday nights a month for a "very long" two years then "finally" in 2008 we had our first Sunday morning worship service and began meeting every week. About four months ago we moved into our first 24/7 permanent facility and this new chapter of our existence has been amazing. In the last five years we've had the privilege of baptizing over 60 people and every time it's a reminder of why we started this church. Recently we baptized our first 7 people in our new facility, one of which was my load in partner for almost 4 years. She showed up faithfully at 6:30am for that entire time! Ridge Church wouldn't exist if it weren't for faithful servants like my friend Jessica. So it was my privilege to baptize her. Here's her story:

Stop having fun or else!

Recently I had the opportunity to spend a few minutes casting vision for our "Guest Services" team at Ridge Church. I got to talk about our organizational culture and how it impacts guest services. One of our cultural values as a leadership team is "FUN". In relationship to this value we often ask the the question, "How are we creating memorable experiences?" The reality is, most people don't expect to have fun at church, so when they do it's memorable. AND, fun also increases productivity. Dale Carnegie said it this way, "People rarely succeed in what they are doing unless they are having fun."

Two recent examples where fun elements became memorable:
1) Guest Services: Usually our guest services team are the ones greeting people in the parking lots, checking people in, answering questions, and creating a warm and inviting environment for guests. So for the Guest Services Training our GS director brought in a "stand in crew" to greet the normal team as they entered for the training. They dressed crazy, parked cars on curbs, sent people the wrong direction, and did virtually everything wrong. It was fun...it was memorable!

2) Student Ministry: Our student ministry set up a harlem shakes video on youtube that now has over 400 hits [and still climbing]. All of a sudden church wasn't simply endurable it was enjoyable. Every middle school and high school kid at our church is proudly inviting their friends to "their" church this week.  It was fun...it was memorable.

Are you a Christian?

Are you a Christian? Well, that depends on how you define it doesn't it? This series will literally change the way you think about Christianity. Join us in our brand new facility 9:30 or 11am for this fantastic teaching series. We work diligently to create environments that are welcoming for people in all stages of life. I can't think of a better time to bring your friends to church with you. Check out the series teaser video below. See you at Ridge Church very soon!

Please Fasten Your Seat belts!

2012 was a great year full of milestones for Ridge Church. Without a doubt the most notable milestone was having our first service in our newly renovated building on December 16th. It was also the highest attendance in our history as a church. These new environments will enable us to to open our doors to a whole new group of people as well as bless our city in new and improved ways.

We kick off 2013 on January 6th with a great new year's challenge called "This One Thing." I want to challenge each of us to care enough about the people in our lives to invite them to join us at Ridge Church. It could literally change their lives. Fasten your seat belts--2013 is going to change everything. Don't be a spectator!

NOTE: New Service Schedule
9:30 Waumba Land (birth-pre-k) Upstreet (k-5th) and Adult Worship
11:00 Waumba Land (birth-pre-k) Student Impact (6th-12th) and Adult Worship

New Adult Worship Space

 New Upstreet Theater

You can help change countless lives in 2013!

There are many great organizations who ask for a donation this time of year. When you choose to give to Ridge Church, it enables us to create irresistible environments where people are inspired to take steps in their spiritual journey and to bless those in need. Recently as part of our “Be Rich Campaign” Ridge Church provided an entire red carpet Christmas experience for 10 families in need. We bought gifts for all family members, paid water & electric bills, bought groceries & gas, took care of basic needs, and so much more. But most importantly we were able to inspire hope! Listen to a few heart felt thank you’s and know that you can help us change countless lives in the upcoming year by choosing to partner with us through your year-end gifts!

Year end giving made easy-Two ways to give: 

1. Egive (December 27th is last 2012 posting day for EGive!) Give HERE! 
2. Mail Giving (2012 donations Must be posmarked by December 31st                                                                                                                             Ridge Church P.O. Box 1292 Matthews, NC 28106

When is our Grand Opening?

We are in the home stretch on the up fit for our new facility. This week volunteers are showing up Wednesday, Thursday, Friday 5-8:30 and Saturday 8:30-4:30 to paint and do small construction projects. Our project has been a cash project to date which means two things:

1. We are debt free in this construction effort to date
2. When our funds run out we will push the PAUSE button on construction

The million dollar question that people ask me every week is "When are we getting into the facility?...When's the grand opening?" At this point our Grand Opening has about 5% to do with construction time lines and about 95% to do with funding. We have two things between us and the finish line and you can help

• We have 250 remaining chairs to sell. Each chair represents a person we hope will sit in the seat one day as well as a portion of the renovation. We've sold over 200 already!
• We need to increase our monthly budget by $5,000 more per month to absorb construction & facility related costs. We've already increased by $5,000 since we began the campaign so we are halfway there! (see chart for details)

You can give online HERE and help us get to the Finish Line

Concert in the Commons

We have an exciting night planned for October 5th. We are doing a concert in the commons (Sycamore Commons) from 6-8:30pm. We are also doing a pumpkin patch that night and all proceeds will go to support Piney Grove Elementary School, the title one school that we partner with. In one great night we get to combine great fun in our community and serving our community. Admission is FREE but we do have tickets so you can invite friends. Pick up tickets from guest services on Sunday and start inviting!

You never know

Be on the look out for opportunities to invite people to experience Ridge Church with you. One of the four things that we ask every core person at Ridge Church to embrace is what we call invest & invite. The premise is: as you develop relationships in the circles that you travel in look for appropriate opportunities to invite them to experience Ridge Church "with you". My kids are all on new sports teams this year and we've already had opportunities to meet several new families and invite them to our church. Trust me--our environments and volunteers will be ready for your "invest & invite". You never know when a simple invitation could result in someone's life being changed forever!! So be bold.

When God "Chat room God" video

From beginning to end Sunday's service was one of the most moving and challenging services that any person could imagine. I witnessed and experienced extreme emotion on every level. We started the morning with a video called "Chat Room" God. Our creative team, lead by Karen Clark, began dreaming about the idea long ago and with the help of Ed Williams creative writing and Chris Lee's editing the final product was...well it was the thing people have been talking about and asking me about all week long. It's not just hype when I say you really MUST to be at Ridge Church right now or you will simply miss out on some amazing things that God is up to! Our messages are always posted online but their is no comparison to being in the room while Christopher Kincaid and the Ridge Band are leading. It was absolutely unbelievable this past Sunday...ask anyone who was there and they'll confirm! Here's "Chat Room God" which was followed up by a "Nickel Creek" opener.

Partnering with Parents

One of our desires as a church is to do what we call "Partnering with Parents". We want to leverage the small percentage of time that we have with children on any given Sunday to partner with parents to build bridges and create conversations between parents and their kids in the huge amounts of time that they spend with their children. Most parents will spend more time with their children in the car this month than we, as the church, will spend with them in the entire year! Fortunately for Elijah his parents understand this partnership from both sides. They are both investing in their children at home as well as investing in others at Ridge Church as volunteers. Experiencing a child putting their faith in Jesus as Savior and letting the world know through baptism never gets old!

She picked a great super power!

I'm often amazed at how much children understand when it comes to God. At times their capacity to believe seems to out pace those of us who are "adults". I don't think it's a coincidence that Jesus said we should approach him with "faith like a child". This is another great example of how big of a difference the investment of your time, abilities, and resources are making. Thanks to all of you who continually invest your life in something that will outlast it!

You never know who is watching!

As Lily shared her story I couldn't help but go back a few months in my mind to the moment I had the privilege of baptizing her grandmother. Forgiveness is powerful and it spans generations. Every person, every generation, every race, every socioeconomic group longs for forgiveness and acceptance. AND through Jesus that forgiveness is available to every person, every generation, every race, and every socioeconomic group! I hope the dispensing of and receiving of forgiveness becomes an epidemic in our city! Enjoy Lily's video:



FBC - Lily Williams from Ridge Church on Vimeo.