E2 Conference

Just got back late last night from this years E2 conference in Des Moines. Man was it AWESOME! This years speaker was Mark Batterson from National Community Church in Washington D.C. Mark is one of those pioneers in church planting and re-thinking church. I got the chance to hang out with him for just a bit yesterday and he really motivated me to do some big things for God. I want to encourage everyone to check out his blog at markbatterson.com and his church on the web at theaterchurch.com. He also has a book out called "In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day." It's a great read for anyone who wants to step out of their comfort zones and do something great for the kingdom.

As I reflect with my time at the conference and my time with Mark, God put a few things on my heart. First of all I never want our church to be in defense mode but rather offense mode. Jesus played offense. It can be easy for us to say we have enough people and we like the church the way it is but this is how churches die. Defense mode is when a church is constantly fixing problems and they get stuck in the way things are. We must be constantly looking at ways that we can reach more people and expand God's kingdom. That means that things may look differently then they did let's say six months to a year ago. Let's not get comfortable in our church. Let us not be the church that says, "We've always done it this way!" Let's keep investing and let us keep inviting those that need to hear about God's love. There are many people in our community and county that have yet heard the true gospel. Let's play offense and expand the kingdom!