Eric Taylor

Sunday Night Mind Dump

What an awesome day today!

1. We kicked off our new series "Lord of the Rings" today
2. Sonja taught with me today it it made the message so much better.
3. A lot of people laughed like crazy today.
4. I believe this series is going to help strengthen marriages.
5. The Band was incredible today... They really rocked on U2's "With or Without You."  Ben Davis WAS The Edge!  Those guys make it easy to teach after they're on stage.
6. We got moved into the office this weekend and I'm still looking for a desk for my office.
7. A&E has a Gene Simmon's Family Jewels Marathon on today... since I'm a big KISS fan, I watched a couple of episodes... pretty funny stuff.
8. Several people asked me when Sonja's going to teach with me again... we may have to get her up there more often.
9. I can't wait til Catalyst later this week.
10. Oh, by the way... Auburn 20 Florida 17.  Listen... I've got to celebrate when I can... we may not get many more opportunities!

Quick Post

Thought I'd post a quick thought before heading to the school to get set up. 

1.  Auburn 20 Florida 17-- WOW!     Where have they been for the past 4 weeks?
2.  I can't wait to teach with Sonja this morning.... We start our new Marriage, Sex, Dating series... Lord of the Rings.  This is the first time she's taught with me... she never craves the spotlight like I do, but she's going to hit a home run today!

Lots of Random thoughts ... but not a full on Mind Dump

It's been CRAZY BUSY the last few days with trying to get into our office.  We need some stuff to put in there.  If you have any GOOD stuff you'd like to give us... not the stuff you've been storing in your basement that the youth group at the church down the street wouldn't even take... but things that are in good shape and look somewhat stylish... things like:  sofas, futons, desks, office chairs, plants, tables, etc.  If you know where we might be able to snag some of this, leave a comment and we'll connect with you.

Adding to the busyness has been getting ready for our Newcomer's Coffee this Sunday.  This is our membership class and, if you've been coming to Journey for a long time or just a few Sundays... you're invited.  During this time you will hear  why we do what we do, ask any questions about Journey and at the end of the class you will be given an opportunity to join the church and partner with us in all that God is doing here through Journey Church in Auburn/Opelika and around the world.

We're also getting ready for our NEW SERIES that kicks off this week-- Lord of the Rings... It's about Marriage, not Hobbits.  We've got some really creative and funny stuff lined up for the series... and you can be sure... the band is going to rock!  The best part about it... this Sunday.. as we kick off the series... Sonja is going to be teaching with me...I'm really looking forward to it... she's going to bring it and it's going to be good... you want to invite your friends whether they are married, dating or looking for a date... this series is DEFINITELY going to be life changing!

Finally... it's premiere week.  I have to say, I'm waiting until January for 24 (yes, I'm giving it one more shot) but until then there's The Office and a couple other shows I'm watching.  I caught the premiere of Chuck... I think it's going to be a cool show... it's got all the elements-- Nerd, computers, action/adventure, espionage, lots of shooting and chasing... and a blonde... who, by the way, looks like she likes the nerd... which would probably make it Science FICTION.  Pretty cool show...I'll watch it again.
The other show I caught was Journeyman.  Yes the only reason I watched was because of the name.  I thought we might be able to pull some spoof stuff from here... it actually turned out to be a pretty good show... NOT AT ALL BELIEVABLE but still a pretty good show... even Sonja liked it.  I can't wait until Thursday night -- 8pm... The Office... don't call me then, I'll send you straight to voice mail.

White Boy DJ

Today I was listening to Rick and Bubba on the Radio (the 2 sexiest fat men alive) and they had Dan Smith on, AKA White Boy DJ, the guy who wrote Baby Got Book... the video that made the rounds a few years ago and was hilarious... I heard for the first time "Lots of Caucasians"... a takeoff of I can only imagine.  I had to pull over I was laughing so hard!  Turns out, this guy is now a church planter in Cleveland.  Sounds like they do some pretty creative things there at Momentum.  That confirmed in my mind that we have to pull out the stops creatively at Journey so that we can create a buzz and reach the people who think church is boring and irrelevant... Now, I can't rap like Dan Smith... but we've got some people in our church and people who aren't at Journey yet, that will help us become wildly innovative and creative. 

Great Sunday

Yesterday was a great Sunday.  If you weren't there, you missed the band rocking the house...they are awesome, as always.  The message in our Blueprints for your life series was --Your Financial Blueprint... now, some people say not to talk about money because it will offend people... but I've found that the only people it offends are Christians ... who aren't giving like they should be giving.  I mentioned that we think our solution to our financial struggles is just to get more money... it's not an issue of MORE... it's an issue of Trust.  We are some of the richest people in the world... I mentioned a website where you can see how you rank in terms of how rich you are in the entire world... that website is here.  Just input your income and see where you rank in the world.  It may shock you... it may make you feel ashamed because you'll find out just how "rich" you are.  Like I said, the issue isn't how much money you have, it's an issue of trust.  Will we trust God's blueprint for our finances, or will we use money the way the world tells us to use it?  If you, like 75% of all other Americans are living paycheck to paycheck... check out some of the resources we pointed you to in your worship guide:

• Dave Ramsey
• Crown Financial Ministries
• Randy Alcorn-Eternal Perspective Ministries

We're going to wrap up the Blueprints for your Life series this week talking about your Spiritual Blueprint.  This is a GREAT time to invite your friends and bring them with you to Journey this weekend... I'll promise you they will have a great time... we'll have great music, their kids will have an awesome time in JourneyKidz and the message will be relevant and practical.  Who are you going to bring?

We have a REAL office

We can add one more office to our list of places we meet and do business as Journey Church.  Along with the "official" office in my house, we have the morning office-- Panera Bread Company, the Afternoon office--Momma Goldberg's Deli... now, we have a real office... one where we can actually have desks and phones and meetings and creative stuff... I'm pumped about it and can't wait to see how we can transform it into a great space that has Journey's unique fingerprint on it. 

I took Zach over there after we shot a video and he has some great ideas for making it a very cool, yet functional office space.  Plus... now we have a legitimate reason to do a spoof video of "The Office".  Stay tuned... that will be coming soon!

Don't just do something...stand there.

I know the title of this post seems backwards... as a church planter we are people of action... always on our cellphones, blogging, preparing creative ways to communicate God's Word, bouncing ideas off of other church planters and always trying to connect with disconnected people. Some days I have gone nonstop all day long and have been very productive...but we have to always be aware of the habits we're forming... if we go constantly and never stop to think, contemplate or  meditate, that can wreck our ministries and churches just as much as laziness can.  I heard Andy Stanley say one time, don't just work IN your ministry, work ON your ministry.  One of the things I think that God is doing in me right now is SCREAMING LOUD to plan some THINK TIME.  Carve out some time in my schedule to think about what we're doing as a church that just turned 1 year old.  What are we doing well?  What are we doing poorly?  Who are we reaching?  How are we reaching them?  How are we helping transform them into Passionate Christ Followers?  Are people's lives being transformed?  Tons and Tons of questions... If I'm too busy to think about them... we'll just keep putting things off and pushing things back and soon... we'll be a church that's 5 years old and hasn't changed or grown a bit.  That's not acceptable for me... I know God has more for us than that... God has more for YOU than just to leave you the way you are.   I ran across a post from Bil Cornelius... I haven't read his blog in a while but it was just what I needed today because I've fallen into that "hurry up -- we've got so much to do we can't slow down" mode... in it he said said that we've lost the art of reflection... the art of thinking.

"One of the greatest reasons why we do not see more “fruit” in our lives, or more results is because we are not thinking. When is the last time you just sat down and contemplated why you do what you do and what needs to change in your life?  There is a forgotten art of contemplation and meditation found all through the scriptures.  If Jesus wandered off into the forest, wilderness, hills, or across a lake, maybe we should too.  I find that the greatest move I can make to see God move through me is to grab my Bible, a journal and a pen and wander off.  When you wander off with God you get to experience His wonder."

Man, I needed that today... It stings to think that I've let our church suffer... I haven't led like I should, I haven't planned strategically like I should, I haven't cast vision like I should... all because I've been trying to work IN Journey Church... so for the next few days... I'm going to grab my Bible and my journal and listen more than I talk, slow down more than I speed up and think and dream and recapture the vision that God burned in my heart years ago for a church that would rock the world by helping transform people who were far away from God into passionate Christ followers.  There may be some big changes... there may not be... but this I know... I anticipate God rocking my world and I'll never be the same.  I let you know what He's saying to me and what He's leading us to as a church. 

Every Leader Must Read this Book!

Making Vision Stick  by Andy Stanley.  Every leader MUST READ THIS... it doesn't matter if you are a church planter, a pastor of an established church or you lead any other organization... this book is critical to remind us how to help people remember why they're following us.  And it helps remind us that, for the most part, people aren't as obsessed with our vision as we are... so if it's worth doing, it's worth repeating.  I read the book in a couple of hours, not to brag about my speed reading skills, but the thing's only 74 pages.  Here are the 5 things that make vision stick:

• State the Vision Simply
• Cast the Vision Convincingly
• Repeat the Vision Regularly
• Celebrate the Vision Systematically
• Embrace the Vision Personally

The best thing I read was a kick in the pants for me:  When it comes to casting vision...I am responsible... no one else.  God called me out to begin the church and I have to be the one to make sure people understand and embrace the vision.

He unpacks these 5 things in 74 pages and I wrote tons of questions that I have to ask myself and others. 

If you call Journey Church your home, I would love to get your feedback on a couple of these questions... If you would leave a comment or drop me an email it will help me evaluate how well the Vision of Journey Church is sticking... Here are the questions:

1. Why do we (Journey Church) exist? What's the Vision of Journey Church?
2. Since you've been coming to Journey, have you been moved to action because of the vision?

Thanks so much for your help.

Sunday Night Mind Dump

OK, this post covers a bunch of thoughts I've had throughout this very busy, but incredibly relaxing weekend... even though Auburn lost!

• Sonja and I went to The Grand Resort in Point Clear (around Mobile) for the weekend... just to get away... God spoke LOUD to both of us!
• We found an incredible Italian restaurant there called Gambino's (I'm not sure if they're connected to the mafia, but their Chicken Napoli and Breadsticks were killer!
• I read a lot this weekend about First Impressions and Guest Services... got a lot of great ideas for how we can step it up!
• Auburn is going to struggle this year... I'm not looking forward to it.
• South Florida IS that good ... but yes, Auburn could be that BAD this year.
• Why did we run out the clock when we had 2 time outs?  You can't trade them in for cash!
• I hated the game was so late.
• It really killed our crowd this morning.  We were down about 30%. 
• HOWEVER... the Band... all of them were at the game last night(this morning) were there at 8am to unload the trailer-- I love those guys!
• They absolutely rocked the house today... it's all coming together... we have the best band in town!
• I thought the message was just okay... but then I had lots of people tell me that it hit them right where they lived... I love it when God shows up and moves even when I don't think that I communicated well.
• I love spending time with my wife!  She's going to help me teach during our next series!  I'm so pumped!

The Prioirity of People

I have missed blogging for a few days... Been CRAZY Busy... Family stuff... helping Abby with 9th Grade science projects... Seth's Cross Country meets and routine family things... I've actually sat down to blog a few times at the "mobile office" known as Panera Bread Company but have had some pretty special "Divine Interruptions"--those encounters when you cross paths with people that you know God put there to see if you were going to be "too busy" or take the time to listen to their story.  I had a few of those the past few days... Yes, it has kept me from getting some "work" done... not that blogging is my life's work... I'm sure when I stand before God one day, He's going to say to me... "yeah, I've been keeping up with your ministry by reading your blog... pretty good stuff."  I think God would be more pleased that I spent time with people who were hurting... connected with them and listened to their stories.  (see this verse) I got to do that today with a couple of people... by the end of the day I looked around and still had some things on my To Do list... but they'll be there tomorrow and I can sleep well tonight knowing that today--people were my priority.