Combining Contemporary Services for Momentum?

About six months ago (9-23-10) I posted on this blog my decision (supported by the pastoral staff) for not changing the amount and times of worship services Calvary offered.  I stated the reasons for such a decision.  (See the post at http://leadingcalvary.blogspot.com/2010_09_01_archive.html).  During these six months, we have continued to pray for the Lord's direction, observe closely what is happening and listen to what He might be saying.  At this point, I feel like God may be leading us to combine our contemporary worship services in order to gain momentum as we move forward.


As I stated in the 9-23-10 post, one of the primary reasons for having multiple services is to provide room for growth.  We want to be a congregation whose heart is on reaching those without Christ and making sure that there is room for them.  However, providing space for growth does not automatically produce growth.  There are other elements that are important for growth to take place.

Genuine growth can only be produced by God's Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 3:6-7).  So must seek Him and allow his power to work through us and around us.  Another aspect necessary for growth is what I would call momentum.  According to Wikipedia,

In classical mechanics, momentum is the product of the mass and velocity of an object (p = mv). Like velocity, momentum is a vector quantity, possessing a direction as well as a magnitude. 

But when I use the word, I mean the combination of congregational identity, confidence, enthusiasm, energy and shared sense of purpose.  Perhaps another way of describing it is a "snowball effect."  Once the snowball gets rolling, it picks up speed and size.  I believe this is part of what we need at Calvary in order to experience significant growth.  I also think that combining the two contemporary worship services can position us to gain that kind of momentum.

We are reminded that our objective is not numerical growth but to be a vibrant church that is well connected to God and that loves people.  We refer to this as spiritual and relational vitality.  Nevertheless when there is this kind of vibrant health, numerical growth will be a natural by product.

The reality is that we have not experienced growth in attendance to our English worship services for the last eight months or so.  In September I reported that our 8:15 am service attendance had been averaging below 200, our 9:45 am below 300, our 11:15 am fluctuated between 200 and 250 and our 12:45 pm (Spanish) service about 240.  Since then, the average attendance to the 8:15 am service has been about 180, 9:45 am about 250, 11:15 am about 200, and 12:45 pm (Spanish) right below 300.  (The actual average of the Spanish service for the first quarter of 2011 is 307.  The Spanish service is the only one growing in attendance at this time).  Our combined worship attendance is a little above 900.

Compared to previous years, the combined attendance to English services is at a low point for the first quarter of 2011.  In the previous four years, the highest combined worship attendance took place in the 2008--2009 school year.  For the 2010--2011 school year our combined worship attendance is very compatible with that.  The growth in the Spanish service has helped our combined attendance remain strong.

In the 9-23-10 blog post I noted that the combined attendance of the two contemporary worship services had been under 500 except for five occasions in the 2010 calendar year where it came close to 600.  Since then, there have only been two occasions where the 500 mark has been surpassed in the combined contemporary services.  I anticipate that Easter Sunday would be a third occasion in which this would be the case.  Having observed the patterns and trends, if we combine the two contemporary services, there would still be space for growth.  We may have to be creative on future Easter and Christmas musical Sundays.

The questions that arise when making such a move include:

• what time will the classic, contemporary and Spanish services be at?
• how will the Bible Fellowships work?
• when should such a change be implemented?
• what are some of the implications of such a change?

I have discussed this matter with the pastoral staff and with some leaders.  I have also received e-mails from church members regarding the issue.

The pastoral staff and I feel like the best option for times of services will be as follows:

09:30 am  Classic Worship (Contemporary Bible Fellowships)

11:00 am  Contemporary Worship (Classic & Spanish Bible Fellowships)

12:30 pm  Spanish Worship

Furthermore, we feel the best time to implement such a change will be May 1 of this year.

There are many implications of this.  We know that it will take prayer, cooperation, an effort to fill the worship center in such a way that we leave room for guests, longer walks from the parking lot, and continued volunteers in the children's area.  Furthermore, we hope that the momentum that builds up will leave us open for the possibility of starting a new worship service once God gives us the growth.  We don't want to become inward focused but to remain missional.

Before we announce this to the congregation, I am seeking the input of each Calvary leader.  Please pray about this and comment on this post.  I am also having meetings with the coordinating council and the deacons to seek their input.

I am confident that as we seek God's direction, he will make things clear.  May we be obedient in faith.  May he empower us to be all that he has called us to be.  May we lift his name high in such a way that others will be drawn to Him.

Can We Really Change the World?

Last week during my vacation, as I read the hotel-provided issue of USA TODAY (3-14-11), I read an article entitled "America's churches can help change the world."  I found it to be an interesting and compelling treatment of the role the church and religious leaders have historically played in being "prophetic" and transformational agents (sometimes negatively and sometimes positively).  Additionally, the need and the urgency for us to step up to the plate today in a world of turmoil and change is recognized.  In church circles, we often talk about "changing the world."  Sometimes that becomes cliche.  However, it is interesting when a secular newspaper says to the church and religious leaders, "C'mon, it's up to you to do something for the moral well-being of our world!"

You can read the article yourself here:

America's churches can help change the world

As we continue in our forty days of prayer "Seek God for the City" and we pray for the world, one country at a time, we need to have the conviction that we can actually make a difference!  As the people of God, we can be transformational agents in our city, our nation and in the world.  We don't do this on our own strength and wisdom but God does it through us.  We are his ambassadors!

When Pastor Rick Warren introduced his P.E.A.C.E. plan (http://thepeaceplan.com/), he argued that the church (not one local expression but the body of Christ globally) is the best agency, above governments and business, for addressing the world's largest problems.  In my opinion, one of the reasons we are not making a difference at that scale is that we really don't believe that we can.  I also believe another reason we fail in being global transformational agents is our preoccupation with internal affairs.  We are looking through a microscope when we should be using a telescope.

I believe that our God can use Calvary Baptist Church in McAllen, Texas to be a local and global change agent.  Calvary has already done so but the potential is so much greater.  For this to happen at a greater scale than ever before, there are certain necessary ingredients:

• a complete dependance on the Holy Spirit through constant fervent prayer;
• a clear sense of who we are and what we are about;
• a increasing vision of God's kingdom in the world;
• an intentional plan to partner with other churches, agencies and movements in prayer and work

None of these have magic or instant formulas.  They each involve a process of growth and development over time.  But we have to start somewhere.  Below I list some of the steps that we are taking in that direction.

1. Our forty days of prayer "Seek God for the City" have the intent of emphasizing our dependence on the Holy Spirit and the need for constant spiritual preparation for our mission as a church.  The themes and topics of our prayer guide are also intended to broaden our vision as a church as we pray for our city and our world.  I hope that this kind of thing does not end after the forty days but it becomes part of who we are as a congregation.
2. Our pastoral staff has been working on refining our strategy focus for a couple of months now.  In addition to our regular staff meetings, the staff is having extended day-long meetings and is planning a spring retreat.  Furthermore, we have calendared another leadership lab for key Calvary leaders on May 1 and a possible follow up on May 22 where we can get input from each.
3. In light of the financial situation in our area, and particularly in our church, the personnel committee has asked that I evaluate our current staff structure and recommend changes that are conducive to greater efficiency.  The stewardship and missions committee have endorsed that request and have expressed concerned about finding ways to reduce budget expenses.  In the next several weeks I will be working to identify areas where we can be more efficient as a church.
4. Given the above three steps, I expect that by the fall of this year there will be some ministry and program adjustments in our week-to-week operations.  I do not foresee major changes or a rebranding of our church.  However, I do see the need to refine what we are doing so that we can be a more effective disciple-making missional church.
5. We are looking at the possibilities of several strategic partnerships locally and globally also.  These should be in development and implementation by the second part of this year and the beginning of 2012, Lord willing.

These small steps, I believe, get us closer to positioning ourselves where God can use us in a bigger and greater way as transformational agents in the world.

Your role as a leader is crucial.  Pray, participate and believe God!  I know I am!

Forty Days of Prayer Begin Today

We are beginning our forty days of prayer today.  This emphasis which culminates on Palm Sunday is a focused effort in our congregation (and for churches around the world) to seek God's power and kingdom for the transformation of our cities and our world.


As a church we understand that being missional hangs on our dependence from God.  We seek God for vision, direction and power.  We understand that spiritual vitality is essential to the mission.


There is much work for Calvary to do as it lives out its mission in the city of McAllen, in the Rio Grande Valley and around the world.  However, our church must be spiritually healthy, relationally strong and infilled with the power of God's Holy Spirit if we are going to make a difference.  That is why it's so important for us to pray together seeking God's face.


This week's emphasis (March 9 through March 19) is,


"Seeking God's FACE"


Psalm 24:6 and 27:8 speak of "seeking God's face."  We are praying that God would give us a hunger for being in his presence and that as we encounter his presence, He would do in us what it is His desire to do.  I hope that we earnestly do that this week.


The prayer guides we are providing give daily Scriptures, topics and prayers to help us focus on this theme.  Furthermore, it suggests specific prayer for segments of the population in our city.  This week we are praying for:

• women (March 9)
• youth (March 10)
• ethnic communities (March 11)
• the sick (March 12)
• families (March 13)
• the military (March 14)
• the poor (March 15)
• the homeless (March 16)
• pastors (March 17)
• agricultural workers (March 18)
• men (March 19)

Also, we are praying for each country in the world beginning with the Americas this week and ending with Jerusalem on Palm Sunday.  Each day of the week will have a list of countries as we pray for God's kingdom to come on earth as it is in heaven.

As we pray specifically for Calvary Baptist Church we pray that God would give us a clear sense of identity as a missional church.  That we would have a greater sense of what it means to be authentic disciples on mission.  That we would grow in our sense of purpose as the people of God as we practice the Great Commandment and the Great Commission.  May we love God with all of our being, love others, and may that love be so evident that others would want to be a part of such a community of authentic disciples.

Take time to pray today and each day this week!

"Seek God for the City"

We are calling for a forty days of prayer emphasis from March 9 through April 17.  The theme will be "Seek God for the City: Prayers of Biblical Hope."

Why?

As a church we understand that being missional hangs on our dependence from God.  We seek God for vision, direction and power.  We understand that spiritual vitality is essential to the mission.


We also understand that, according to Acts 1:8, our mission begins in “our Jerusalem.”  We pray for the transformation of our own city without taking our eyes off the “ends of the earth.”  In fact, we understand that transformation flows from the inside out: from the individual heart to the church, from the church to the community, from the community to the city, from the city to the region, and from the region to the ends of the earth.


When?


As we look forward to Palm Sunday, we remember Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem.  This event was an event marked with hope.  We anticipate the increasing presence of His kingdom in our city.  Ultimately, we look with hope to his return.  It is with this kind of hope that we pray for our church, for our city and for our world.  Furthermore, taking our cue from the significance of periods of "forty" in the Bible:

• 40 days of testing for Noah in the ark (Genesis 7);
• Moses' 40 years of preparation before leading his people;
• Moses' 40 days on Mount Sinai (Exodus 24);
• Israel's 40 years of testing in the wilderness (Deuteronomy 8);
• Jesus fasted for 40 days before beginning his ministry (Matthew 4);
• the preparation of the disciples for 40 days after Jesus' resurrection (Acts 1);

we dedicate 40 days as a church for focused prayer.  Counting back 40 days from Palm Sunday (April 17), we will begin our season of prayer on March 9.  Some traditions call this the Lent season.  We may or may not like to call it that but we will want it to be forty days of fervent prayer.

How?


Prayer guides for the “Seek God for the City” emphasis will be available in English or Spanish at the Calvary campus for those who are interested beginning this Sunday, February 27.


These prayer guides provide daily direction on how to pray for the city and for the world.  Each day has Scripture verses, a theme of prayer for city transformation, a population to pray for, and a list of countries.  During those six weeks we will pray seeking: (1) God’s face; (2) the gospel of the kingdom; (3) the righteousness of His kingdom; (4) the peace of the kingdom; (5) the joy of the kingdom; and (6) the visitation of Christ the king.  Each week we will pray for a different continent and its respective countries beginning with the Americas and ending with Jerusalem.


These prayer guides can be used in your individual devotional time, at the dinner table with the family, in Bible Fellowships, Choir and praise team rehearsals, men’s fraternity, GROW and WIT groups and in worship services.  No additional prayer meetings are being calendared for this emphasis.  We would like this emphasis to be incorporated into the existing events of the church.  However, if you feel led to form a prayer group for this purpose, feel free to do so.  The prayer guides will be made available in the bulletin table and in the foyer.  If you are able to, you may put a $1 cost-recovery donation for the booklet in an offering envelope and label it “prayer guide,” placing it in the offering plate.


I hope that as a Calvary leader, you will be intentional in both, your individual participation in prayer in these forty days, and in intentionally finding ways to lead your ministry to participate.


Additionally, we will be following the themes of this prayer guide in the Wednesday night prayer group that meets in the Slayton building at 6:30 pm beginning on March 9.



It is my hope and prayer that as his people we will grow closer in intimacy with him, we will experience his transforming power in our lives, we will grow in our compassion for our city and our world, and we will be thrust into his mission of redeeming the world to Himself.  Only God can do that!  That's why we are "seeking God" for our church and city!

Egypt and Muslims

We have all been concerned for the situation that has been unfolding in Egypt over the last several days.  The protests of a people who are tired of the tyranny of a dictator and the unwillingness of Mr. Mubarack to step down have given way to sympathy and empathy for the people, fear of the potential of the rise of an extremist islamic leader, and uncertainty about the stability of the middle east.


As Christians, these leads us to do at least three things: (1) pray for Egypt; a peaceful resolution to its situation; freedom for its people; protection for the Christ followers and missionaries there; (2) encourage our president to intervene on behalf of the people and human rights; (3) pray that the new leadership not be from the islamic extremists.


This brings to light a related subject that is broader than the Egypt issue.  It has to do with the growth of the Muslim population.  Two weeks ago I attended a conference that dealt with the subject of evangelizing Muslims in the United States.  Although this is something that I don't have any experience in doing, I have heard numerous testimonies which encourage me in this area.


The sheer population statistics should cause us as evangelical and missional Christ followers to reflect on this.


An article published by a CNN blog, reports the following,


"Twenty years ago, the world had about 1.1 billion Muslims. Twenty years from now, it will have about twice as many - and they'll represent more than a quarter of all people on earth, according to a new study released Thursday.  Pakistan will overtake Indonesia as home of the largest number of Muslims, as its population pushes over 256 million, the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life projects.  The number of Muslims in the United States will more than double, to 6.2 million, it anticipates.

Afghanistan's population will nearly double, to about 50.5 million, making it home to the ninth largest Muslim population in the world.

Israel will become nearly a quarter Muslim. The Palestinian territories have one of the highest growth rates in the world.

Fractious Nigeria, where Christian-Muslim violence has left thousands dead in the past decade, will become a Muslim-majority country by 2030, the Pew Forum projects.

And two western European countries - France and Belgium - will become more than 10 percent Muslim. Sweden will hover just below that level, at 9.9 percent.

Iran, on the other hand, will see very slow growth. Iranian women have among the fewest children of anyone in the Muslim world. They use birth control at exactly the same rate as American women, 73 percent.

The Muslim share of the global population will rise primarily because of their relatively high birth rate, the large number of Muslims of childbearing age, and an increase in life expectancy in Muslim-majority countries, according to the report, "The Future of the Global Muslim Population."

Conversion will play relatively little part in the increase, the report anticipates. It says little data is available on conversion, but what little there is suggests Islam loses as many adherents via conversion as it gains."

While these are interesting facts, the report keeps things in perspective by comparing the growth to Christianity,
Despite the rapid growth of Islam, Christianity seems set to remain the biggest religion in the world for the next 20 years. There are currently more than 2 billion Christians - 30 to 35 percent of the global population - making it very unlikely that there will be fewer than 2.2 billion Christians in 2030.

"There is nothing in these numbers to indicate that in 2030 there would be more Muslims that Christians," Cooperman said.

In fact, both Christianity and Islam could be growing, both in absolute terms and as a percentage of the whole, he pointed out.

"We don't want people to jump to the conclusion that if Islam is growing, everyone else is shrinking," he said. "Christianity and Islam could both be growing at the expense of other religions."

(you can read the entire article at World Muslim Population Doubling (CNN))

In terms of Texas, some sources report that there are 140,000 Muslims, making Texas the 8th largest Muslim population state in the Union.  They are primarily concentrated in Houston (57,000), Dallas (30,000), Fort Worth (4,000), Austin (5,000), San Antonio (5,000), Arlington (3,000) and El Paso (1,500).  Recently a Brownsville newspaper reported that in the Rio Grande Valley there are about 200 Sunni families who meet in four mosques: Brownsville, Edinburg, McAllen and Weslaco.  Interestingly, the article states that Muslims in the Valley find it easy to interact with the Hispanic culture and that Hispanics seem to be attracted to Islam.

There are some who lump all Muslims into the category of extremists and/or terrorists, which is an uninformed opinion.  Those who do so see all Muslims as the enemy and choose to either hate them or fear them (or both).

We must remember that God loves Muslims and that Jesus died for their sins too.  We should be encouraged by the fact that many of them have come to faith in Christ through dreams, visions and the witness of faithful missionaries.

We can choose to see them as the enemy and launch a crusade against them.  We can choose to ignore them with apathy as they continue to grow around us and die without Christ.  Or we can be proactive about praying for their salvation and learn how to share our faith with them.

I have much to learn in this last aspect but I believe that I need to reflect on my role in helping to bring the gospel to Muslim peoples as an individual.  I believe our church needs to do the same, with a very critical involvement of our Spanish ministry, and learning to network with other like-minded Christians.

In the meantime, join me in praying for:

• Muslim-background Christians to be used by God in witnessing to others;
• Missionaries to Muslim peoples;
• the salvation of Muslim peoples in our area and around the world;
• a vision and a passion for evangelizing Muslims;
• God's glory among all the nations of the world

The links to some of the sources used above:

Muslim Population distribution in Texas Cities

Muslim population in Texas

Brownsville Herald article about islamic community

The State of Giving at Calvary

Last night the president of the United States gave the State of the Union address.  In this post, I want to simply give the state of giving at Calvary.

I have asked the administrative team in our staff to give me some figures that would give us a picture of what percentage of the congregation is supporting the church budget through their tithes and offerings.

The reason for such an analysis is to discover the financial potential of our church and so that we can pray accordingly.  We know God's potential is bigger than our human potential but it helps to know where the gap might be.

In order to get a good idea of this, we need a two-dimensional picture.  On the one side, we need to look at contributions from members and on the other at contributions from those who actually attend.  These two areas have a big overlap.  In other words, there are many members who are regular attendees and vice-versa.  However, there are also members who do not attend and attendees who are not members.  So all these segments need to be considered in looking at this contributions picture.

In 2010, the average annual contribution was $1,971.  Using this average as a benchmark, we discovered the following for 2010:

• 26% of Calvary members gave more than the average contribution;
• 24% of Calvary members gave less than the average contribution;
• 50% of Calvary members gave nothing

Since, it could be said that many of those who are members are not regular attendees and therefore may not contribute, it is also important to combine membership and attendees.  In 2010,

• 22% of all contributors gave more than the average contribution;
• 33% of all contributors gave less than the average contribution;
• 45% all attendees gave nothing

*It must be noted that this reflects only budget contributions and not designated offerings, also it does not reflect 12:45 service offerings since they were given through a designated fund in 2010.

While it may be said that these percentages fair better than most churches, we also know that there is still potential for growth in giving at Calvary.

We don't believe in trying to get people to give with guilt-driven approaches.  However, we can do the following:

• pray for God to touch people's heart so that they will discover the joy of giving
• teach from the pulpit and through ABF's about financial stewardship
• continue to provide "Financial Peace" education where we teach people how to get out of debt
• seek God's provision first and trust Him

We expect great things from God in 2011 and we commit to seeking his face.  We trust that he will provide and we pray He will do so through his people.

Pastor Joe Gerault's Medical Update

This week, I have asked Joe to share a medical update with you.  Below you will find what he has written:

If you are actively involved at Calvary other than just participating on Sunday mornings, you will have noticed I often use a cane during the week.  I don’t use it on Sundays, mainly because it would attract too much attention to me, and that’s certainly not the focus of what we are to be about on Sundays.  However, my health situation has reached a point where I am going to need to be using it more, so before you were surprised by that, I wanted to take an opportunity to explain.

I am so appreciative of the many inquires about my health and your expressions of your prayers for me and your concern for me.  It’s just a demonstration of the kind of loving and caring church family you are.

Many who were at Calvary at the time remember the dramatic health crisis I went through in 2005.  You can read my medical testimony of that experience here: My Medical Testimony

However, a few months before all that came to light, I was experiencing the early symptoms of a condition that has been diagnosed as Ataxia.  Ataxia is primarily characterized by progressive balance problems (disequilibrium), progressive impairment of the ability to coordinate voluntary movements (cerebellar ataxia), and difficulty speaking or slurred speech (dysarthria).  You’ve probably observed all three characteristics in me.

 

There are a number of problems with Ataxia beyond these three, but these are the most prominent and visible.  You can research it for yourself, but for a simple explanation with a little more detail than I’ve given in this note, I have linked some information here: Ataxia

  

I am blessed that the progression of this chronic condition has been slow.  I’ll probably die of old age before any complication of Ataxia gets really bad.  Most days have their challenges, and some days are very difficult, but I just get up every day and serve the Lord with the best of the abilities He has given me for that day.

Certainly as the illness has progressively gotten worse, my challenges have increased and have become more outwardly visible.  On Sundays in particular, I’m reaching the point where the walking and twisting and turning and visiting with people is pretty difficult.  I get very fatigued, which makes the problems worse.  I find a cane helps me keep my balance more as I move about, and that is why I will soon need to start using it on those days, as well.

I just wanted to take an opportunity to let you know more details about it so when you see me with a cane, you’ll know why.  I appreciate your care and concern for my health struggles, and I appreciate your prayers on my behalf.

Joe Gerault