Post Election Thoughts

Today, we woke up knowing who our next President will be. Here’s some thoughts I have today…

• It’s a historic day, as we’ve elected the first African-American president of the United States. It says to me that we’re making progress as a nation to ending prejudice.
• Awesome to see voter turnout. I’m glad to see more citizens engaged in the process.
• I’m thankful for the rights we have in this country.
• I have deep respect for the life John McCain has lived, and his speech last night was very touching. He’s truly an American hero.
• Obama embodies the American dream. He’s accomplished a great deal. I pray that he will seek the Lord’s wisdom as he leads our country.
• I’m glad the election is over. I’m still getting emails from people angry that I guided people to vote for McCain, while others are chastising me for encouraging people to vote for Obama.
• I will never be apologetic for being pro-life. The Bible instructs us to be a voice for those who have no voice, and to protect those who cannot protect themselves.
• Thankful for a number of gals in our church who experienced teenage pregnancy, and are now looking to help teens who are currently pregnant with hope and encouragement.
• I pray our country will unify behind President-elect Obama. We’ve got some big challenges ahead of us.
• I pray that he will lead us where we need to go.
• Ultimately, our country and our world need Jesus. So, as a Christ-follower, today is the day to live out the Great Commission!

Back From Retreat

We’re back from our Pastors Retreat, thanks to all who prayed, and ready to hit the ground running. Our time away was the most incredible time I’ve spent with the pastors of PVC. We had some great discussions about our personality profiles along with the “5 Dysfunctions Of A Team”, although we only got through 3 dysfunctions The talks led to some intense discussions, open and frank conflict, which led to forgiveness, commitment and solid unity.

I love the team I work with, they’re men of God who love PVC. I feel like we have the healthiest team we’ve ever had, and we left with very practical steps to take to be stronger leaders. I’m excited for the future with this team; I believe God is going to use these men in incredible ways as we move forward!

Volunteers Matter!

Our Volunteer Team is led by two incredible gals: Jillayne Payne and Nancy Mondzak. These gals bring a wealth of experience and a level of excellence to the team that helps take PVC to a much higher level. They’re crazy good with systems, and their helping the rest of us get it

One of their projects this quarter has been stepping up the quality of our Volunteer Central; the place where volunteers check-in and also relax during the weekends. We stock it with food and drinks, and want it to be a place where volunteers are reminded how much they matter! So the gals stepped it up to a whole ‘nutha level last week. Volunteer Central is now definitely THE PLACE to be on our campus. The vibe is more VIP lounge than anything, and such a cool way to appreciate our volunteers. Check it out…

Sharpening The Ax

I believe strongly in my need to be continually growing; it’s the only way to lead a health, growing church forward. Today was a day where I felt like I was sharpening my ax for the task ahead. We took 15 staff and volunteer leaders from Palm Valley to Nelson Searcy’s seminar on assimilation. Nelson, who’s been a good friend, and Bob Franquiz did a great job teaching through the assimilation (connecting) process they use in their churches. Here’s some thoughts from the day…

• I believe Nelson is one of the top “systems” guys in the church today. He flat out gets how to develop systems for growth.
• We’re already doing most of what was taught today, but there were a few ideas that peaked my interest, and will lead to some great discussions for our team.
• “People say ‘no’ to what confuses them”. Great statement from Nelson about clarity in next steps.
• “Your building is speaking: what is it saying?”
• “Don’t put the skinny guy at the refreshment table: people will assume the snacks aren’t that good” cracked me up.
• “If you don’t hold members accountable for what you asked them to sign, God will hold you accountable”

Had dinner tonight with Nelson and Bob, and I told them that I thought “they underpromised and overdelivered“! Seriously, if you’re a church leader not learning from Nelson, you’re missing out on a gold-mine of information. I’m thankful for opportunities to learn from other guys who are getting it done, and I feel like I learned a ton today.

Great Conference For Church Leaders

Pastors, I’ve got a great opportunity for you. Nelson Searcy, a good friend of mine, is coming to town August 14th to lead the “Fusion Seminar” based on his just released book. I don’t often recommend stuff on my blog, but if you’re a church leader in the Phoenix area you need to clear your morning and come to this seminar.  More information here.

Nelson will be talking about the assimilation process, helping first time members become committed partners in your church. This is one of the most important systems in a church, and I promise you that this seminar will be helpful.

I believe Nelson is one of the sharpest “system guys” in the church today. He’s flat out getting the job done in New York City, a very tough place to grow a healthy church, and his thoughts/processes on assimilation will benefit any church. I encourage you to go here and sign-up. I’m taking a team from Palm Valley, I’ll look forward to seeing you there!

Ending the Silence

I’ve been quiet the last few weeks, just spending some time investing in my family, my staff, and spending time with the Lord pondering what’s down the line for PVC. It’s been a great summer so far, very profitable. It’s hard to explain, but I believe Palm Valley benefits the most when I’m not around. Let me explain…

Don’t get me wrong, I love teaching, but it can become a grind when I do 24 of 25 weeks like I did this spring. with 5 services, I get flat worn-out. When I get away from the weekly teaching grind, I get a fresh perspective. My brain gets to relax, no pressure every week. I get to spend greater time in God’s Word and prayer w/o having to think about what I’m teaching right now. I visit other churches and spend more time talking with other pastors, gaining valuable perspective from what God’s doing around the country.

Basically, when I get away I feel like I get to just sit and here from God. I believe this is what Palm Valley Church needs me to do most. If I’m just teaching from my own wisom, we’re all in trouble. I believe God has big plans for PVC, and I want to be a part of every bit of it. By the way, my absence gives PVC the chance to hear from extremely gifted teachers like Ryan and Darius, who both brought it the past couple weeks. I truly feel that the quality of teaching doesn’t drop a bit when I’m gone. If anything, it goes up!

So, my blog silence is ending, and I can’t wait to be back with the people of PVC this week.

Volunteers Matter

I’m always reminded in the summer, when it’s 120 degrees outside, that people who volunteer at Palm Valley must really love Jesus (especially those who serve outside). We have nearly 800 volunteers who make PVC happen every week, and we’re not missing a beat during the summer.

Recently the staff gathered and dreamed of fun ways to make sure our volunteers know how much they matter and are appreciated. Here’s some fun things we’re doing this summer…

• Drawings througout the summer for volunteers. Fun prizes like movie tickets, water world passes, gift cards and some other surprises.
• Bought large golf umbrellas (with our logo) for all who serve outside, that way they can gain some shade from the sun.
• PowerAde on ice for set-up and tear-down crews.
• Special food and snacks in Volunteer Central and backstage areas.
• We bought a freezer and put it in Volunteer Central. Throughout the summer we’ll be giving away Otter Pops and other treats to all volunteers.
• Fancy scented towelettes for all volunteers to “freshen up” before/after serving.
• All this, and trust me, we’ve got a few more tricks up our sleeves.

Why all this? Because volunteers matter, and they’re a part of helping people meet Jesus and become fully devoted followers of Him. To all volunteers, THANK YOU! You rock, and I’m proud of you for investing your life even when you can fry an egg on the sidewalk

Go Trip

As you know, we have 28 high school students (plus adult leaders) in Goldfield, Nevada this week reaching out to communities in the area. It’s been so awesome to see what God is doing in and through these students. If you haven’t been following (and praying for them), you can check out their daily updates at Go Mission Blog

Humbling Day

There’s days where I see God at work in such an incredible way that I can’t believe He’s allowed me to be a part of it. I’ll be the first to admit I’m in way over my head, and that it’s only God’s grace and power that is doing this. I’m so grateful to the Lord for letting me experience this. Today, I was humbled and moved by a number of events…

• Heard some incredible discussions amongst our staff. Our guys and gals are growing in such a great way, they’re developing the leadership integrity and skills it’s going to take for PVC to go to the next level. I see our staff thinking and talking about things at a much higher level than in the past. They’re moving past simple details and into visionary leadership, and it’s exciting me for the coming days. We’ve got a young staff, but they’re hungry for the Lord’s presence and power in our ministry.
• Paul Lewis came and shared with me that 163 people have made decisions for Christ in the past 3 weeks at Palm Valley. I know, I couldn’t believe that number either. I’m also excited because every one of these people who have stepped across the line of faith are being followed up with by our Fresh Start team. I’ve never experienced such a wave of people coming to Jesus, it’s awesome!
• Got to pray with Mark today as he heads for Africa. I hated seeing God lead Mark off our staff, but I’m digging having a front row seat to watch (and be a part of) what He’s going to use Mark to do next. Mark loves Jesus, and he’s going to impact the world (literally) with the love of Christ. Pray for him over the next 3 weeks as he travels Africa discerning his role in helping churches connect with opportunities.
• Had lunch with big-wigs from a bank that’s considering funding our building project. It amazed me today to sit in a meeting that reminds me how close we are to actually seeing a campus for Palm Valley Church became a reality. Thanks to those who were praying, I felt it went incredibly well. In the coming weeks we’ll be making some huge decisions about how we move forward; it’s definitely speeding up. Drove by our land on the way home, all the roads are in and infrastructure is almost all in place. Yeah God!
• Ended the day by celebrating the 80th birthday of Lori’s dad. Hosted the party at our house for Lori’s family, just had a great time celebrating an incredible man. Lori’s dad pastored for 50 years, and has done things for the Kingdom that the rest of us dream of having the faith and courage to do! He took about a 1/2 hour and shared his life story with the kids and grandkids, ending with a special prayer of blessing for us. I was moved to tears thinking about how much his faith has meant to me, and the huge amount he’s poured into me. It meant alot to me to see my kids so intrigued and interested in PaPa’s faith, I know they were processing it. I pray that I will be as faithful to the calling God has placed on my life as this man has been.
• Sitting here tonight thinking about what an encouraging message God has given me to deliver this weekend. We’ll be talking about “Growing Through Failure”, and I believe what I’m going to share will have a huge impact on all of us; since we’ve all failed at different times. I’m so thankful God’s definition of success is far different from ours!

That’s it, what a great day! To top it off, tomorrow I’ll be hanging out and swimming with my kids, then Lori and I are taking our boys to our very first Nascar event at PIR; thanks to a friend who shot us some tickets. We’re fired up to honorary rednecks for the evening!

Investing In The Next Generation

One of the core values I have is that I want to intentionally investion in the younger generations. I love my years as a youth pastor, and thought I would always be working with young people. Now as a Senior Pastor, I realize that I reach young people through a different conduit; by creating a church atmosphere where young people are valued and invested in. At Palm Valley, we make children and teens a priority in budgeting, scheduling, and space. We seek to make the children’s environments as significant (or better) than the adult worship environment.

This year I’ve really been praying about how I can be more involved directly with the young people of our church. So, I have felt led to get involved this summer directly with the camps for our elementary, jr. high, and high school students. Lori and I will be attending all these camps, hanging out with kids and I will be speaking at each of these. I’m fired up about investing in and pouring my heart into the young people of our church.

Parents: if you haven’t already, I encourage you to sign your children up for camp. I know it takes time, and money; but the investment will be well worth it. We spend money on so many things that don’t really matter. This year send your kids to camp; they will benefit spiritually! Camp registrations are already happening and filling up quickly; don’t let your kid miss out!

Elementary Camp: for those students going into 3rd, 4th and 5th grades. Dates are June 15-19th. We have rented out the entire Tonto Rim Camp in Payson to be shared by our elementary and jr. high camps. Cost is $250 (for 1st 100 registered). you can register here… register for elementary camp. Contact Adrienne Nunez for more questions.

Jr. High camp: for those entering 6th, 7th and 8th grades. Dates are June 15-19th. Cost is $250. you can register here… register for jr. high camp. Contact Jeremiah Hann for more questions.

High School Camp (crashing the Rohlinger family vacation): For those entering 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th grade. Dates are July 21-25th. Cost is $300. We will be heading to Durango, Colorado for a week of hiking, alpine slides, rock climbing, white water rafting, and so much more. Contact Darius Sanders for more questions.