Another thing to pray about - Third Service

Hello group!   Something I want you to all pray with me about (in addition to the land!)

I believe I received a revelation this morning.  For several years I have been watching our church grow to the 2nd service being full, then slide back, then fill up – a cycle that has repeated itself over the past few years.  I knew that one day we might go to a third service, but because first service never filled up I always hesitated to start it up. Fact is, first service may NEVER fill up – some people like getting up early, a LOT don't.  That's why people have not moved over in the past when we asked them to.

Going to a third service has been on my mind more and more lately.  And today I was meeting with other pastors here in town, and I felt a got a word.  It is a statistical fact that when  a church gets 70-80% full, parking, seating, children's ministry, that the growth in attendance stops. The more we talked about it, and what they have experienced, the more I began to see it.  

I have been praying about why we keep hitting a full 2nd service, then we go back.  I believe this is a contributing factor – perhaps the biggest factor.  We have a great church, great worship, great people, great teaching (sorry), and there is no reason why we keep hitting this ceiling, other than I am not PLANNING for the growth by opening up space for people to come. 

So I feel we need to begin planning to go to a third service.  It will not be easy.  It will stretch us.  It will require more servants, more teachers, and more sacrifice.  But I have found that whenever we begin to step out in faith, GOD MEETS US.

Don't worry – I'm not going to go into this haphazardly.  I would like to approach this in the following manner:

1. All of us begin to pray for leading, guidance, and discernment
2. Each of you begin to pray about what your ministry may need to do to accommodate a third service.
1. Youth
2. Children
3. Worship
4. Sound
5. Ushers / greeters
6. Prayer teams
7. INFO desk
8. Etc etc (If I forgot your ministry please forgive!)
9. ** IDENTIFY the people and resources that you will need – write them down!
3. I would like to hold a leadership meeting on Wed night, Feb 22 – PLEASE REPLY and let me know if you are not available.  We will talk though the entire process.
4. Once we have met, prayed, discussed, we'll put start asking for volunteers to help us hit this next milestone.
5. We will set a date together that works for everyone.

So for now PRAY!  It's an honor working with you all!

...till the whole world hears,

Pastor Clay

Pray with me!

2821 Carolina Beach Road Property for sale

Hi everyone, this past week God put something on my heart I wanted to share with you – and ask you to join me in prayer.

The 7 acre track behind us has always been something that interested me, and many times I have commented "wouldn't it be cool if God gave us that land".  But the Lord convicted me, "Have you asked me for it?".  I had to answer - "no, not REALLY."  perhaps in passing, but not praying and believing.

So I am going to start doing what God told me to do – PRAY and ASK.  I can't say that I have heard from the Lord that He IS going to give it to us, but I have heard "ask me for it." 

Will you join me?

The words "expand our borders" seem to be coming up in my prayers a lot.  I never jumped on the Prayer of Jabez bandwagon, but the prayer is scriptural, and does come to my mind in this case:

And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, “Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!” (1 Chron 4:10)

Attached is the flyer for the land.  Print it out.  Pray over it. They are asking $850K.  Whether God wants to move the heart of the owner to donate it, raise up a person or group to buy it and donate it, or us to raise it – I do not know.  But I DO KNOW that we serve a BIG GOD and nothing is outside the reach of His hand.

Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them. (Mark 11:24)

PC

Some Changes at CCW

Dear leadership team, I am really excited about what God is doing at Calvary!  Sometimes I feel like I just need to put my set-belt on and hang on!

Some of you may have heard that there are some changes brewing at CCW!  Change can be good, but it can mean 're-adjusting'.  So lets pray everyone has their 'readjustment hat' on!  

Personel changes:  We are making some adjustments to how our staff works.  Starting this month the office staffing will change:

• Annette will begin working Mon, Tues, and Fri.
• Brenda will be only coming on on Wednesdays
• Wes will begin covering the office on Thursdays
• Pastor Mel will be coming in on Wednesdays only.

We are also excited to announce a new member of our leadership team:  Cece Fairley!  

Cece has been faithful in the Children's ministry for quite some time, and now will be taking an expanded role in the Children's ministry, leading this important ministry to the next level!  Please welcome Cece to the team, and be praying for her as she transitions into this greater role!

Pastor Mel will be redirecting his focus in the area of missions and pastoral care.  We are excited about our upcoming missions outreach this summer, partnering with Warner Temple AME church on the Port City Project.  You'll be hearing more about this soon!

CCW Facilities / Event Request Form

On a minor note, as we are working to streamline some of our processes here in the office, one of the things that will be affected is how you submit a request to book a ministry event.  Starting this month, I am asking all ministry leaders to use our new online "CCW Facilities / Event Request Form."  Its pretty much what you were used to doing before, only ONLINE.  You can get to the form by clicking on the link below:

https://calvarychapelwilmington.wufoo.com/forms/ccw-facilities-event-request-form/ 

** I SUGGEST you BOOKMARK the form so you can get to it next time you need it!  :)

The form will also be available on our CCW LEADERSHIP SITE:

http://ccwleadership.blogspot.com/ 

Here you can find the latest leadership updates (including this one), as well as the CCW calendar, the CCW facilities Calendar, and the Servant form (if someone wants to serve – send them the link)

Well, that's all for the moment – I want to let you all know how much I appreciate all that you do do, but even more I love the HEART of this leadership team – you love GOD and you LOVE HIS PEOPLE.  It's an incredible honor and privilege to serve with you.

...till the whole world hears,

Pastor Clay

And then some…

(original post, Pastor Steven Furtick, Elevation church)

Drive and motivation is the secret to success and doing anything worthwhile and significant in life. Skill and natural aptitude only takes you so far. At the end of the day, it’s your heart and the drive to go above and beyond that is going to set you apart from the masses that live in the muck of mediocrity.

From my experience, I’ve found that there are three types of people when it comes to their heart and motivation. Each person puts forth a certain kind of effort, and each person receives a corresponding reward.

The first person has a bare minimum mentality. They’re D- people. Doing enough to pass, but nothing more. They spend the bare minimum time with their spouses that it takes to appease them. They turn in work that meets the bare minimum requirements. And then they wonder why their marriage is not good, they never get a promotion, and they can never find fulfillment in life. It’s because a bare minimum mentality reaps bare minimum rewards.

The second person runs by the mantra of good enough. They’re B, maybe B+ people. They turn in good work that shows effort. They do the routine daily and weekly duties that sets you up for a good marriage. But they leave it at that. They get the ball 80 yards down the field, but because they aren’t willing to put in extra effort, they usually settle for a field goal, which is good. But they could have gotten a touchdown, which would have been great.

And then there are people with world-class drive. They’re A+ people. Good enough isn’t good enough for them when they know they have greatness in them. As a result, they generally have great jobs, great marriages, and greater fulfillment.

What sets these people apart really comes down to three simple words. And they’re words all of us can adopt as our own. These three words will make you stand out from the crowd. They’ll set you up for success in every area of your life and take you a long way.

In your marriage.
Your job.
Your relationships.
Your church.
Everywhere.

Three words:
And then some.

People with world-class drive who reap world-class rewards do what they’re supposed to do…AND THEN SOME.

They don’t just get flowers for their spouse on their anniversary. They also do it on random Wednesdays for no reason at all. They don’t just do what they’re asked at work. They find ways to go above and beyond.

Choose to live life with an “and then some” mentality. Reject mediocrity. Don’t let good enough be good enough for you when you have God in you.

Living with an “and then some” mentality is deeply connected to honor. If you value your job, your spouse, your church, etc., you’ll go above and beyond for them

Encouragement - Col 3:23

And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men…
-- Col 3:23

Sunday this was one of the verses I shared in the message, and as I was praying this morning the Lord opened that up a little more and He hit me with three questions that I felt I was supposed to share with you all…

#1 What am I doing to better myself?
>> bottom line, if I am not growing and learning, I am going backwards.  We should always be seeking to learn and grow; spiritually with the Lord, practically in our calling, and growing in our role as a leader in the ministry.

#2 What am I doing to better the ministry God has entrusted me with?
>> Being a leader in the ministry is akin to the parable of the talents (Matt 25), where we are given stewardship over the ministry and the people that serve in it.  Are we doing the best we can with what God has given us? Do we have eyes that watch for things that could be improved? We must always be open to things that will improve the ministry God has called us to.

#3 What am I doing to better others in the ministry God has entrusted me with?
>> Are we investing in the people that God has placed into our ministry?  Are we building relationships?  Are we teaching and training people? God is growing CCW right now – yet if we are not developing others to serve alongside us, that growth will be hindered because WE CANNOT DO IT ALL OURSELVES.  Be generous and share the blessing of ministry, invite others to be a part of what God is doing!

The most scarce resource we have is TIME – we only get 24 hours each day… are we making the most of it? Take time each day to ask yourself these three questions, and prioritize time each day to these areas. 

...till the whole world hears,

Pastor Clay

Leadership Meeting June 5, 2011

For those that missed the leadership meeting today, here is the recording.


CLICK HERE

2011 Men's conference planner

Hi guys, so I have confirmed the date of our 2011 mens conference, Oct 28-29 2011, and we will be having it here at the church.  (just as an FYI, I have am reserving Ft Caswell for the last week in Aug 2012 so we will for sure have it next year!).

As I noted in the Men’s Leadership Forum on Tues, that team of guys will be helping to plan and carry out the conference this year.  This is not to the EXCLUSION of our current deacons and elders, but in addition to.  Together we can put together a great conference!

We will be utilizing the monthly meeting slot that we have been using for the leadership forum – second Tuesday of the month at 7 pm.  The next meeting will be Tues June 14 at 7 pm at Holy Grounds. Please mark your calendars.

Attached is the preliminary conference planner (PDF and word format), along with a list of roles that will need to be assigned.  Some I have pre-filled with the obvious people (I.E. Geoff will have sound, etc).  Please take a look at the planner, and come on June 14 prepared to plan, commit, and start the process!  I think we will have a great conference this year, and I have a great team of guys that will help put it together!

...till the whole world hears,

Pastor Clay