This weekend we launched a new series at Journey called SHIFT.
Honestly, it was kind of hard to say “goodbye” to the JESUS CREED series. Lots of our small groups are still in the series and many of us are still making our way through 40 DAYS OF LIVING THE JESUS CREED by Scot McKnight. But on the weekends we are moving on.
This series has it’s own uniqueness. This series has a two-pronged application – a “ME SHIFT” and a “WE SHIFT”. In fact each message has a pretty definite “It’s time to shift” launch move aligned with it.
Recall that this series is not about a U-Turn, a radical direction change; it kind of assumes that we are on the right track, but that we need a shift of some kind to gain momentum.
The worship was very cool this weekend.
This WEEKEND we talked about a “SERVE SHIFT” somehow going from a renters to owners’ mentality. I loved how the band featuring Woolly Mammal singer (Click here for Woolly Mammal site) Michael Chandler did the Bruno Mars song “Count on Me” – exactly what we are talking about.
THE TWO WE SHIFTS
Well really they are sort of kind of 1a and 1b shifts. The quickest way for a big chunk of Journey Peeps to go from Renters to Owners is to start with what they already do – Weekend services and just show up an hour or so earlier or and hour or so later. Use that hour to
• Take a class – lots of people did just this to be involved with a Jesus Creed small group
• Serve – help park cars, serve espresso, greet,
• Or… and now for the other shift
INTERGENERATIONAL CONNECTION – One of realities of the life of Jesus as portrayed in the gospels is his commitment to the “least of these”. And Children were among the least of these that Jesus was most adamant about. The SHIFT? O.k. here it is:
WE AT JOURNEY NEED TO MAKE A SHIFT IN OUR LOVE FOR AND SERVING OF THE 600 (that’s right there are 600 people at Journey every weekend between the ages of 0-18) CHILDREN IN OUR MIDST EVERY WEEKEND.
I asked Brian Berry our “Generations Pastor” (this deserves it’s own post) to take this part of the message. WOW! He crushed it. He shared some new ways that our children’s ministry is going to help parents to bring what goes on at church home. Kids can’t be spiritually formed in only one hour one time per week. We also pointed out that in our children’s ministry the average adult volunteer / child ratio was 30/1. We can do much better than this!
I think the ride’s going to get better and more fun and pick up some speed as we make the SHIFTS that are begging to be made!
