I Just Keep Turning Numbers
A couple weeks back we celebrated Elijah’s Fourth Birthday. It was an EPIC week. The closest thing to Mardi Gras a Four Year Old will ever know. In between Family Dinner, A Rockin’ Birthday Bash, and a weekend viewing of Star Wars Episodes IV-VI, Elijah had this profound pearl to offer us- “Well guys, I guess I’m just gonna keep turning numbers.”
He’s right. As much as it breaks our hearts, our little guy is gonna keep turning numbers…and there’s nothing we can do to stop that…believe us, we’ve tried.
All of us Keep Turning Numbers every year, every day, since the day you were born. But here’s the crazy thing – just because you’re turning numbers does not mean that you are GROWING. Everyone Turns Numbers, But Not Everyone Grows. In other words – Just because you’re Older, that doesn’t mean that you’re getting any Better.
This lies in great tension with not only what Jesus Promised (Life to the Fullest) but with what Jesus Expects (Grow and Bear Fruit). How is it that we can go year after year and still be as selfish / as angry / as bitter / as addicted / as insecure as we were the year(s) before? Especially for those who know and follow Jesus? Does it seem like something might be off?
What if we worked as hard for our GROWTH as we do to our attempts to stay young? What would it look like to ask God to give you Growth Goals for your life this Year? This Month? What if Growth is what WE actually lovingly held each other to each year? What if our questions were no longer If We Grew, but rather How We Grew. Imagine what you’d have to actually celebrate at your Birthday? Imagine how you might approach this next year.
Imagine your life Growing, as opposed to just turning numbers.
NO-ing is half the battle
It was, of course, one of the first words that both of our kids learned. As much as we tried to not sound like a broken record repeatedly chanting…
- • “NO – Elijah don’t touch the hot stove”
- • “NO – Gigi do not pull on the doggy’s tail”
- • “NO – Don’t stand up in your highchair”
- • “NO – Don’t put the dead bug in your mouth”
No ended up coming out of our mouths – mostly with a good desire to protect and guide our children towards what was best for them in any given moment. Most of the moments when NO was used it was essentially used for good reason. As I find myself regularly saying “NO” to our children – I am actually learning that the person I need to say NO to more is myself.
Saying NO to good things is helping me to say YES to the best. My humanity has such an adverse response to saying NO because I hate disappointing people. I hate looking like I have human limits. I hate having to miss out on something that is fun, exciting, energizing, and where everyone else will be. I hate that NO usually doesn’t come with a smile. I hate that NO often disappoints. I hate that NO doesn’t always meet expectations. I hate that NO might cause me to be left out on something in the future. But I am beginning to rejoice over the greater things that NO is bringing to my life.
- NO is actually causing me to live with more peace.
- NO is helping me to be more intentional in my relationships instead of always spreading myself too thin.
- NO is helping me to embrace my limits and give away more ministry to others.
- NO is a regular reminder of what I value most.
- NO is a reminder that I can’t do it all – and any moment when I thought I could was a movement towards becoming more narcissistic instead of a servant.
- NO helps me remain on mission to what only I can do.
- NO now essentially allows me to be able to say YES later.
So here is to hoping you give a BIG FAT NO to some good things today – so that you can say YES to the best.
So how about it? What are some good things you need to say NO to doing that will help you say YES to the best?
Every Person of Faith deserves a Great Faith Adventure
Last night we had our first Soul City Launch Party in the Beautiful City of Chicago. We met at the fabulous WIT Hotel on State and Lake, which in and of it self is a God Story! We walked into the evening with so many hopes and so many ridiculous God sized dreams. We had butterflies in our stomach – the kind you get when you are about to do something that will drum up feelings of wondering if you are completely crazy! I jokingly said this morning – I think I have a Soul City Hangover. I woke up with an overflowing heart filled with joy and hope over what God is doing and how he is stirring in this city. We gathered together with about 90 friends to share the story of Soul City Church and invite them to join the story.
We laughed, told stories with old and new friends, we shared the vision of Soul City Church, we worshiped and prayed for God to do even greater things than we could imagine.
I am invigorated – because more than ever in my life I can with deep conviction and confidence say – “I am living the life I was intended to live.” I don’t think there is a human being on the planet that doesn’t want to be a part of something significant and something bigger than themselves. I believe we are designed for adventure because life with Jesus is just that “ADVENTURE” and yet so many of us have tucked ourselves into our safe and secure spiritual journeys and we have forgotten what it feels like to live on the edge of following God. We believe that every person of faith deserves a great faith adventure – and that is what the journey of Soul City Church has been for us and we are praying that for many it will become the same journey.
We will be posting up some more pictures from the night over the next few days – but to those of you that are on this great faith adventure with us – Thank You – Thank You – Thank You! We pray that your will BE all of who God created you to be and that your soul will be radically transformed by the love of Jesus!
Jarrett & Jeanne
Do What Only You Can Do.
“What can only I do?”
It is a mantra that I repeat multiple times throughout my day. It’s not new, but it is essential.
- It emerges when I find myself avoiding the big leadership boulder that only I can push up the hill.
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- It emerges when I find myself distracted by facebook or twitter, avoiding the vision initiative that only I can tackle.
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- It emerges when I spend time checking my inbox multiple times throughout my day – instead of setting a specific time in the morning and late afternoon to open my inbox – give it some love – and then walk away from it and attack a problem that needs a thoughtful solution that only I can bring.
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- It emerges when I find myself spending way to long thinking about how something sounds or appears instead of getting the raw meat of the idea down on paper so that I can move on to a specific task that has a time oriented deadline attached to it.
I’m only a few months into this holy and helpless calling of starting Soul City and I am already becoming acutely aware of what I have heard form my courageous friends that have travelled this road before me – There will never be a day when all the boxes are checked, the tasks are completed, the mission is finished – It just won’t ever happen. That is the beauty of being an entrepreneur. There is always something in front of you – a course that has not been charted or a new adventure that needs to be started. But if I waste all of my energy doing tasks that someone else can do – I will quickly begin to burn up my vision, insight, and energy on what is not only non-important, but non-specific to me.
So one of the things I am relearning daily is the art and skill of finding great people and developing them through the giving away of leadership possibilities early on in the process. Of course as the Leader out in front, you have given up everything. You have given up your home, your salary, your comfort, and more time than you want to admit bringing this Vision into existence. So there is going to be a part of you that thinks you are the only one that can do something since you are the only one that is sacrificing EVERYTHING!!!! And even that thought reveals a flawed perspective. You should be inviting those already on or about to join your team into that same level of sacrifice. Sacrifice is NOT something that only you should do.
Remember – This is not your thing. This is not YOUR church or YOUR vision. It is God’s. Don’t ever forget that. Don’t ever start believing that you are the only one that can lead, cast vision, implement strategies… you need to do what only you can do and give away the rest… and if that list totals more than about 8 – 10 specific things… then you are probably going to be in trouble.
Here’s 3 great questions to ask yourself when giving a task away.
- Is the task a way to actually see if the person has a skill that maybe isn’t being utilized in the church.
- Is the task a way to develop a relationship with a new volunteer.
- Is the task a way to give away more leadership – which will in turn create more authority and ownership of the vision instead of followership and implementers of the vision.
So here’s to giving things away this week! (BTW – If you’re connected to Soul City Church…look out! You’re probably getting a call this week.)
Amy Lawlor Thinks You Can BE Consistent!
“I just wish I was more consistent.” I probably say this to myself or someone nearby at least once a week (if not more frequently). I’ve said it about exercise, I’ve said it about eating right, I’ve said it about going to bed at a reasonable hour, I’ve said it about making time for solitude or prayer, I’ve said it about my spending and my saving habits…and the list goes on.
Ironically “being consistent” is one of the things I pray about most consistently…at least I’m consistent about something.
To nerd out on you a bit – the word Consistent is rooted in the Latin consistere and the meaning has been consistent (PUN!) since the 16th century. One of the meanings of the word I like a lot is “standing firm”. There is something very comforting, very solid, very safe about knowing some things stand firm. Some of you naysayers/devil’s advocates are already saying “but consistency will put you in a rut and you’ll be bored and never be creative, and only watch CSI Las Vegas because you can’t branch out…” I totally agree with you…but want to acknowledge that some things in life MUST/SHOULD BE Consistent. I’m not saying everything…just some things. Some things in life must STAND FIRM.
You have to be consistent about
- Showing up at your job
- Telling your spouse or your kids you love them
- Eating food and drinking water
- Stopping at red lights and going at green ones (unless you live in Atlanta, then red ones are really more of a suggestion than anything else).
These consistencies lend a STABILITY, and a SURENESS that is good for us. It’s healthy, and it’s necessary and we rely on many of these consistencies every day.
At Soul City Church we need some Consistency too – we need some Sureness and some Stability in order to keep pressing towards the reality of this Vision that God has given us.
One of the big pieces of the BE Campaign is the challenge to BE Consistent. We believe that Consistency in our/your giving is a declaration of our dependence on God…we declare that we trust him to take care of our needs, and that He has called us to give financially to His work. We need people to Give Consistently to Soul City Church. This gives us a baseline of financial stability and sustainability that we’ll need, especially for these first two years.
Our Goal is to have $500,000 committed to Soul City for the next 2 years. This means people like you, who will commit to and follow through on giving consistent weekly, monthly, or quarterly gifts. Our hope is that you would pray about Being a Consistent Giver to Soul City Church, and if so led, that you would start giving now.
So, we invite you to pray about BEcoming a Consistent Giver to the vision of Soul City Church and then, as God leads you, Start Giving and BE Consistent.
- You can click the Link Up to the Right to get started.
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Amy Lawlor is a vital part of the Leadership Team of Soul City Church. She’s making the move from Atlanta to Chicago this Spring to start Soul City. She Consistently has to tell Jarrett that his jokes aren’t as funny as he thinks.
Humbition = Humility + Ambition
Humility and Ambition
Most of the time these two characteristics tend to hang out on opposite sides of the playground. They tend to have different friends, desires, and interests – yet both are essential to the health of a leader and the world desperately needs more leaders that are willing to be both. I believe that Jesus was the ultimate example of the best parts of humility and ambition. He was Humbitous in every way because at every given moment Jesus knew where his power came from.
“Knowing where our power comes from is what keeps us Humbitious.”
TRUE HUMILITY reminds us of our constant need for grace and that we really are not all that amazing outside of Jesus.
TRUE AMBITION reminds us of our constant need to live with vision, passion, and discipline towards the mission of Jesus.
When we live with True Humility & True Ambition we live HUMBITIOUS LIVES.
- But when we allow Humility & Ambition to take on their ugly false selves that’s when we forget where our power comes from and we usually get into trouble.
- When we believe that it is OUR Power we get into trouble.
- When we believe that we are the reason for success and failure we will get into trouble.
- When we shame ourselves and dwell in the land of self-hatred we get into trouble.
- When we don’t allow ourselves to live in forgiveness we get into trouble.
- When we are trying to prove something we get into trouble.
- When we are trying to be something we are not we get into trouble.
- When we try to make people happy instead of lovingly lead people we get into trouble.
- When we see ourselves as more powerful than another person our relationships with others get into trouble.
- When we believe that everything hinges on us we get into trouble.
So we must learn to hold our power with true humility and true ambition – This is part of our truest self as leaders.
Thomas Merton says “There is only one problem on which all my existence, my peace, and my happiness depend: to discover myself in discovering God. If I find Him I will find myself and if I find my true self I will find Him.
So may you find your true self in your pursuit of true humility and true ambition today – in so doing I pray that you find JESUS, the one who was completely HUMBITIOUS in every sense of the word.
So how do you need to step into true humility and true ambition in your life today so that you can be HUMBITIOUS?
From Soil to Soul
A ton of people have been asking about the significance of our name “SOUL CITY CHURCH” – So today a little bit about the “SOUL” part of the name.
Our collective human story begins with some dirt… complete nothingness. Dusty brown soil that God took into his hands and blew on – that is what formed who we are – our soul.
- God formed Man out of dirt from the ground and blew into his nostrils the breath of life. The Man came alive—a living soul!
- Genesis 2:7 (Message translation)
As God’s breath reached our soil of nothingness the soul was birthed and the most beautiful relationship between God and humanity was formed. The bond of dependence between the creator and His creation began, a bond that was never meant to be broken – but sin brought separation and humanity has been trying to breath on its own ever since. We want to help people recognize and return to what they were created for – DEPENDENCE ON GOD.
Soul City Church is committed to helping people live from their Soul. We believe that as we dig in the soil of our lives we discover who God created us to be and we learn to live the life God originally intended for us. To do that we know that Soul City Church needs to help people in the journey of identifying their basic soul needs and then walking with them on the road of transformation. There are more reasons why we choose the word “SOUL” to be in our name – but this is the primary vision for us – Helping people LIVE & LOVE & LEAD from their Soul.
So here are just a few of our basic soul needs….
The Soul needs
- The soul needs breath
- The soul needs intimacy
- The soul needs healing
- The soul needs truth
- The soul needs forgiveness
- The soul needs Encouragement
- The soul needs love
- The soul needs inspiration
- The soul needs creativity
- The soul needs beauty
- The soul needs relationship
- The soul needs comfort
- The soul needs hope
- The soul needs affection
- The soul needs affirmation
- The soul needs commitment
- The soul needs security
- The soul needs safety
- The soul needs acceptance
- The soul needs correction
- The soul needs council
- The soul needs perspective
- The soul needs vision
- The soul needs reminders
- The soul needs understanding
- The soul needs sleep
- The soul needs food
- The soul needs laughter
These are just a few. There is much more.
The real question is – What does your “Soul” need today?
Amy Lawlor Thinks You Can BE Creative
Creative is a word that has always made my hands a bit clammy. When I was a kid I was so much happier to have a coloring book with patterns I could follow rather than a blank sheet of paper that forced me to be “CREATIVE”. But over the years I’ve realized that it’s not that some of us are creative and some of us aren’t. We have the thumbprint of the author of creation on us…creativity just might look different for each of us. It’s easy for me to dismiss something because it doesn’t seem like it applies to me, or it isn’t how I’m built or wired. And for a long time “being creative” was one of those things I shrugged off, believing it was something I just wasn’t built for.
In a parallel way I’ve felt God, over the last few weeks, calling me towards something…something that makes me even clammier than the call to be creative. He’s calling me towards GENEROSITY. (For some reason I keep hoping that one day He will call me to sit on the couch, eat Doritos and watch Law and Order re-runs but that’s looking unlikely.) Admittedly (and ashamedly), as I felt God speak deeply to me about generosity, my 1st response was “Really God? You do realize I’m broke right? You do realize I almost have a panic attack every time I look at my account balance?” See 2 Corinthians 8:1-10 if you want to see how God sort of punched me in the gut with this theme one morning.
The reality I’m learning these days is that generosity isn’t something that God calls us into only in seasons of plenty. And generosity isn’t something he only expects from those who have a perceived abundance. God is calling many, if not ALL OF US to be Generous. Even in difficult financial seasons, when it’s not easy or comfortable to do. And sometimes this means Being Creative.
As we invite people to BE Soul City Church we know that we, and many of you have the ability to BE Creative as you give and serve with us. Some of you can’t write a check even if you wanted to right now. But, many of you can find creative ways to help provide the resources we need to launch Soul City Church. We need a ton of resources that you may have access to and have the ability to offer.
- You may have or know of a way we could get all of our production equipment given to us.
- You may have items that you could could sell to turn in to cash for Soul City.
- You may have a talent or skill that you could offer to us as we launch this church.
- You may have access to some very specific items that we need such as books, toys, games for kids, computers or office equipment, furniture etc..
We’re asking you to think and pray about ways you can give Creatively through your Resources, Time or Talents to Soul City Church and to encourage others to do the same. There is a LIST on our website of needs we have (and there are probably plenty of creative things we haven’t even thought of!)…please check it out and see if there is a way you can BE Creative with us! Or simply Click The Link to the Right of this post that says CLICK HERE TO SUPPORT SOUL CITY. You may not feel like you have “a lot”, but we ALL have so much to GIVE.
We’re grateful for those of you coming alongside us in this season and are so excited to have you BE a part of Soul City with us!
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Amy Lawlor is a vital part of the Leadership Team of Soul City Church. God has led her to BE Crazy and join the Soul City Team and make the move from Atlanta to Chicago – a place that defines the word Winter!
Skateboards and Ocean Liners
Churches and Organizations tend to fall into one of two camps – they’re either SKATEBOARDS or OCEAN LINERS.
Skateboards are Small, Fast, can make Turns on a dime, and are incredibly risky. A few small pushes and you’re off! They also tend to have only 1 rider at a time (I’ve tried to fit more, it never ended well). When ridden well they are exhilarating to watch. When they are not, they can be quite painful.
Ocean Liners on the other had are Big, Slow, and follow carefully plotted Courses. They are methodical because they have to be. They demand MANY people doing precise jobs, giving lots of small pushes (often unseen) to make everything work. When it works it is amazing though not as exhilerating. When they don’t…well I think Kate and Leo taught us a thing or two about that.
I have had the privilege of working for Two Very Large and Wonderful Churches (Willow Creek and North Point). They are Ocean Liners. While no one there would like to think of themselves as a deck mate, the truth is, in many ways they are. They are a small but significant part of a massive thing that makes tremedous impact on the Kingdom of God. While the impact is undeniably huge, it doesn’t always feel that way from the cargo deck.
I now ride a Skateboard. Soul City Church is a New, Young, Fast Moving, Nimble Church. We can make Big Decisions in a Short Time because there’s only a few of us making those decisions. It is wonderfully terrifying faith filled ride. It’s just us at this point. It all falls on us. If we don’t know or we can’t do, we run the risk of getting stuck or falling flat on our face. But, while the Impact is not as massive yet. We see it all. We experience it all. Firsthand.
- So, what are you riding on right now?
- A Skateboard or (at the risk of evoking T-Pain) an Ocean Liner?
- What’s One Benefit?
- What’s One Drawback?
- How can you, whatever you’re riding, do what only you can do, to make a difference in the direction you’re heading?
When is a Blog more than a Blog?
We get that many of the people that come to the Soul City Blog aren’t Blog Nerds. Neither are we….BUT…There are ways to get the most out of this Blog without having to call the IT Department. Here’s a few ideas.
Subscribe
Instead of having to constantly keep coming back here to see if there’s a new post, have it automatically inform you through a Feed Reader. You can do that by going HERE
Or, if you’d rather have each post delivered to your Inbox, simply Click HERE and paste this – http://soulcityblog , add your email, and Voila! Instant Inbox Love!
Comment
We are so much more interested in Connection and Conversation as opposed to one way rants.. The best way to do that is to chime in with your thoughts and comments. We use Intense Debate on our blog, you can sign up and login HERE and let the comments roll.
Sign Up For Our Monthly Soul City Snapshot
Look to your right. See that little box that says Receive Monthly Soul City Snapshots? You should do that. You’ll receive a monthly email with all that you need to know about Soul City Church from a glance. It’s quick and easy and we promise not to sell your email address…unless of course they offer us LOTS OF MONEY! You can grab October’s Snapshot HERE.
Support Soul City Church
The BE Campaign is one of THE best ways for you to be a part of Soul City Church. You can be a part of Building and Extending the Kingdom of God by coming alongside what God is doing at Soul City Church. You can click the Box to your right to get started. It’s SAFE and SIMPLE and makes a HUGE Difference. You can Support Soul City by
BEing Creative (Non Monetary Gifts in Kind)
BEing Contagious (Give $100 invite friends in your network to give $100)
BEing Consistent (Monthly commitment of 2 years – $50, $100, etc.)
BEing Courageous (One Time Substantial Monetary Gifts)
We are so grateful for those who have already Lovingly and Sacrificially Given to be a part of Soul City. You may never be able to attend, but you can always be a part!
Take a Look, it’s In a Book.
Did you know that Soul City has it’s own Book Store? That’s right, we don’t even have a building yet and we already have a Book Store. It’s filled with Great Resources that have shaped the DNA of Soul City. Check it out. Every purchase you make through our Store automatically gives 10% back to Soul City Church. So go ahead, buy those 10,000 books you’ve had your eye on. And if there are any books you would recommend, leave them in a comment below.
So there you go. We hope this helps and we are so excited to be a part of this Divine Adventure with you. We honestly believe that
EVERY FOLLOWER OF JESUS DESERVES THE RIGHT TO BE A PART OF STARTING A CHURCH AT SOME POINT IN THEIR LIFE.
Soul City may just be that church for you.
Mystery Moment Movement
This past week at Soul (simpli)City Sunday we talked about the process that God uses to actually cause a person to begin to THINK differently with their mind. We talked about three components to the process of Mental Transformation.
The first is the MYSTERY – that experience we have all had when the Holy Spirit begins to whisper – “I have created you for so much more.”
The second is the MOMENT when a person responds to the Mystery with two very important internal questions –“I think I am created for more… but Is it worth it & and Is it possible?”
Then the third part of the experience dawns with the MOVEMENT that occurs in a person’s life through the work of the Holy Sprit and the help of the people of God – the Church.
We spent time talking, dreaming, hoping, and praying about what SOUL CITY CHURCH can do in the process of movement. We are passionate about helping people take the moments when their hearts are tender towards God, or when the bottom falls out in life, or when they experience a renewed desire to become more dependent on Jesus, or when they look at their life and desire for more…
So many of us have those moments – those holy discontents – but we don’t know how to respond to the mystery of the Sprit and take movement – To actually step onto the path of Spiritual Transformation. This is one of the primary values and passions of Soul City Church – helping people take the moments when the Spirit of God whispers and actually experience movement.
What does the process look like for you when you experience Mystery, Moment, & Movement? What do you dream about when it comes to a church that is dedicated to doing whatever they can to help people take movement in becoming all of who God created them to be?
An Unashamed Homage to VIP Treatment at U2.
We’re Church Planters. Which means among many other things that the words Discretionary and Income are rarely uttered in the same breath.
So when we heard U2 was coming to town, we looked at our budget, laughed…cried….and made the choice that it would not be the best way for us to use our finances in this season.
We were cool with it. We had moved on. That is until an old friend of ours – Jess called up with (RED) Zone seats to the show…for that night…for free! On the Floor. 20 Feet away from the stage. 5 feet away from the Runway. What a gift!
God provided a relatively small thing in a way that was bigger than anything we could ever imagine. It was hands down the best concert experience of our lives.
There will be no “Lessons Learned from the 360 Tour”, no “What the Church Could Learn From Bono”. Nope. This post is all about celebrating a great night at a great show, brought to us by our good friend Bono, I mean, Jess.
SPOLIER ALERT – These pictures will make you hate us. We understand. Click HERE to see them all at our Flikr Page.
Deciding to Make Decisions
“Some choices we live not only once but a thousand times over, remembering them for the rest of our lives.” - Richard Bach
One of the realties to starting a new church is the amount of decisions that need to be made. Every morning greets me with hundreds of decisions. Perhaps like you, I tend to categorize my decisions in subconscious cubbyholes of importance. I often times try to determine what is a small choice, a medium choice, and a large choice.
Small Decisions are things like what to eat for breakfast, what to read, or what to wear. Medium Decisions are things like who to spend time with, where to live, and how to spend our resources. Then the Large Decisions usually are around what God is uniquely calling us to with our marriage, our family, and ministry. For much of my life I did not allow the cubbyholes to interact with one another but I am starting to recognize the deep importance around allowing the division between the small, medium, and large decisions to fade because often times the small decisions that I make actually play a large role in helping me be able to be present when the big looming mac daddy decision comes rolling down the aisle.
So some of the small decisions that I am making right now are around simple things like when I go to bed and when I wake up. How much caffeine I consume in my day. How often I say “No” to things that I would really love to do, how much time I devote to prayer instead of working round the clock for the church as if it was dependent on me, and how I choose to be more playful instead of so structured with my kids.
All of these small decisions are actually helping me to be more of who God created me to be. These small decisions are helping to keep my life posture in a place of peace for all of the major decisions that we seem to be making every day about the inner workings of Soul City Church.
