Tag Archives: Resurrection

4 Steps to Starting an Online Worship Service

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As Pastor of Resurrection Online, I have heard from several others who are interested in starting an online worship service. I suggest the following:

1 – Ask the Right Questions

Pastor(s), key staff and volunteers need to be able to have clear answers to the following questions:

  • Why are we considering starting an online worship service?
  • How will this initiative further our mission as a church?
  • What are we hoping for?
  • How will it be implemented?
  • What will comprise the worship experience online?
  • What impact do we anticipate on the current congregation?
  • Why does this make sense within the culture of our church?
  • What balance between service to the current and future congregation will be struck?

At Resurrection, I was part of a staff team that considered these and other fundamental questions about the structure of an online worship service for nearly a year before we launched weekly worship online. While many of our initial responses to these questions changed, it was crucial to getting off the ground.

2 – Clarify Scope and Ownership

A key to success in launching an online worship service is to be clear about the scope of the initiative and who will own it.

  • Will there be interaction around the online worship experience?
  • Will there be intentional efforts to provide care and discipleship?
  • Is it to be just a worship service or more than that?

The scope of the online worship service will provide a guide to who will own the effort. It may be within the worship team, volunteer effort, stand alone ministry area or some combination. Before launch, it is necessary to know who will own it.

At Resurrection, it was clear that Resurrection Online would become a stand alone ministry area. It did not begin that way, however it was clear that this was where it was headed.

3 – Get it Started

Go for it.

If you have spent time on fundamental questions, scope and ownership, it is time to kick it off. You might start with a webcam, a laptop and livestream.com or you might have high definition cameras, broadcast quality switcher and dedicated encoders. In any case, start and see what happens. You will not be able to really tell what works and what doesn’t until you actually get started.

4 – Be ready adapt or hit the kill switch

When you start an online worship service, you have to be flexible. Be ready to make changes as needed and incrementally. Always be ready to pull the plug on the online worship service if it is no longer making sense for your church. Don’t make it something that starts and can never stop. It would be helpful to go back to the fundamental questions on a regular basis to check for any changes in direction or to realign your efforts.

Additional Posts that may be helpful:

Preaching = Fun

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Yesterday morning, I had the opportunity to preach at the Heritage Service at Resurrection Leawood. This is the first service on Sunday at Resurrection beginning at 7:45 AM. It was the first time that I had lead worship in several months and it felt really good.

We considered the story of Jesus washing the feet of the disciples in John 13 and looked at ways that serving others builds relationships both with those being served and with those with whom we serve. We serve others out of gratitude to God and a clear hope for the future.

If you are interested, you can read the whole thing online at http://j.mp/c3weUc.

It is great to have the opportunity to preach!

All Staff Lunch at Resurrection

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Yesterday I had a good time as part of the All Staff Lunch at Resurrection. We have these about once a quarter and outside of our weekly staff chapel worship experience it is one of the only times that our entire staff of over 200 gathers together in one place. Here is a brief rundown of the agenda:

  • Lunch – burgers and dog courtesy of Chris Cakes (who knew they cooked up anything other than breakfast food?!)
  • Introduced 10 new staff people since our last all staff lunch in February – including Anthony James, Software / Web Developer who will add significantly to Resurrection Online’s development.
  • Spiritual Retreat Center Update – Latest plans for future development
  • Employee Handbook – Newly refreshed and available for all staff :)
  • Wellness Challenge – This time around focusing on eating fruits and vegetables, sleep and exercise.
  • Destination Resurrection – focus on engagement at each of our locations over the summer
  • Annual Conference hosted at Resurrection – The Kansas East Annual Conference will meet for the first time at Resurrection this year.
  • Multi Campus – Future developments for multiple campuses including reorganization to support additional campuses.
  • Input and Dreams next 10 years of ministry at Resurrection

It is really a great time with other staff. Oh and I nearly forgot, that I was part of the “game show” featuring married or engaged couples on staff a la The Newlywed Game. A good time was had by all.

Resurrection Online at Leadership Institute 2010 #li2010

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I am excited about the Leadership Institute 2010, October 7 and 8 in Leawood, KS. I am going to be presenting a workshop on social media strategy and partnering with Clif Guy, Director of IT to lead a pre-institute about online ministry. Here are the descriptions of the workshops that I will be leading. Will you join me in these sessions? More online at http://www.cor.org/li2010.

Workshop, Session 2 – Social Media Strategy 101

Should the pastor of a church have a blog? Why would my church want to use Twitter or Facebook? In this session, we will consider the purpose of social media and how it might be leveraged to build community and make ministry happen in your local church.

Pre-Institute, Afternoon Session – From the Church Website to Online Ministry

The Internet now enables more ways of reaching, engaging, and connecting people than ever before.  Led by the pastor of Resurrection Online and Resurrection’s IT Director, this pre-Institute workshop will cover the basics of church websites; then it will move on to strategies for using streaming video and social media to advance all aspects of your church’s ministry.

Will you come to Leadership Institute 2010? #li2010

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I hope your answer is yes.

This is Resurrection’s 11th annual Leadership Institute 11th annual leadership training event in which we hope to give away our best ideas. This year the focus will be on the future of the church. There are young adult and new church start discounts. You can find more information and register at http://www.cor.org/li2010. Here are a few things you can do right now:

  1. Like Leadership Institute on Facebook at www.facebook.com/rezleadershipinstitute
  2. Follow Leadership Institute on Twitter at www.twitter.com/rezleadership
  3. Use #li2010 when tweeting about Leadership Institute 2010.

Resurrectionisms

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I don’t know what it is like where you go to church or work, but around The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection there are some sayings that frequent conversation among leaders.

  • A few nuggets – Valuable bits of information salvaged from a conversation or meeting. For example, “Here are a few nuggets from the meeting…” or I picked up a few good nuggets from [insert name here].”
  • Speak into that – Adding additional information on a topic, occasionally used in a perplexed pause in the conversation. For example, “Let me speak into that for a minute…”
  • How cool is that – A rhetorical question or exclamation used when reflecting on ministry outcomes or considering plans that are moving forward. For example, “We are going to send dozens of mission teams to Haiti, how cool is that?!”
  • I’m jazzed – used to reference something about which one is excited. For example, “I am jazzed about [insert ministry area or initiative].”
  • Push back on that – A tool used to provide critique or voice disagreement, most often in a meeting. For example, “I am going to push back on that. We should actually consider…”
  • Talk offline – used to put a stop to tangential conversations in a meeting, a request for the individuals to talk outside of the meeting when the topic doesn’t affect others in the group. For example, “Could you talk offline about that?

Do any of these sound familiar to you? If you are connected with Resurrection, what else would you add to the list? If you are not connected with Resurrection, what are some sayings that are familiar to you and other leaders in your church?

2010 Summer Internship with Resurrection Online

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I invite you or someone that you know to apply for a summer internship at The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection. I am looking for a 20 hour / week intern to work with Resurrection Online. Interested in this or the other 10 summer interships at Resurrection this summer? Find out more at http://www.cor.org/about-resurrection/employment/internships/. Here is a general overview:

As a Summer intern at Church of the Resurrection, you will…

  • Serve in a ministry department (as listed) and be given specific job responsibilities and ministry goals.
  • Have weekly meetings with your supervisor regarding the effectiveness of your work and to make sure the ministry is meeting your expectations.
  • Attend a group orientation session at the beginning of your internship.
  • Build community with fellow interns by participating in group learning opportunities 6-8 times over the summer with topics such as;
    • Leadership development
    • Spiritual growth
    • Church structure and governance
    • Worship planning
    • Finance and Accounting
    • Strategic planning.
  • Receive exposure to the church staff as a whole thru our weekly staff chapel gathering.  Interns with pastoral interest will be encouraged to help with the planning and leadership of “Chapel” as part of a cross-departmental team responsible for developing content.
  • Provide a short reflection paper at the conclusion of the summer that summarizes your experiences and articulates the status of your ministry call.

Resurrection’s Christmas Eve Worship Schedule

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Christmas Eve is one of the busiest days of the year at The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection. We began our Christmas Eve services yesterday to help make room for guests today. Here is a complete run down of the services for the afternoon and evening.

December 23

  • 3:00 – Children’s Christmas Eveat Central Campus Sanctuary
  • 6:00 – Contemporary Christmas Eve at Central Campus Sanctuary
  • 6:00 – Resurrection Online at http://live.cor.org
  • 8:00 – Contemporary Christmas Eve at Central Campus Sanctuary

December 24

  • 1:00 – A Christmas to Remember (multi-generational) at Central Campus Sanctuary
  • 3:00 – Traditional Children’s Christmas Eve at Central Campus Sanctuary
  • 3:00 – A Vibe Christmas at Central Campus Student Center
  • 5:00 – Traditional Family / Children’s Christmas Eve at Central Campus Sanctuary
  • 5:00 – A Vibe Christmas at Central Campus Student Center
  • 5:00 – Resurrection West at Holiday Inn
  • 5:00 – Resurrection Online at http://live.cor.org
  • 6:00 – Resurrection Downtown at Grand Avenue Temple
  • 7:00 – Class Traditional Christmas Eve at Central Campus Sanctuary
  • 7:00 – A Vibe Christmas at Central Campus Student Center
  • 7:00 – Resurrection West at Holiday Inn
  • 7:00 – Resurrection Online at http://live.cor.org
  • 9:00 – Class Traditional Christmas Eve at Central Campus Sanctuary
  • 9:00 – Resurrection Online at http://live.cor.org
  • 11:00 – Traditional Christmas Eve with Holy Communion at Central Campus Sanctuary

I hope that you can join Resurrection or your local church for worship today.

Qualifications and Expectations of a Micro Church Leader

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This is a very rough draft of a document which may guide the life of Resurrection micro church leaders. Will you please share with me your thoughts, feelings and opinions in the comments?

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To be considered as a potential micro church leader, a person will:

  • affirm the essentials of the Christian faith, enunciated in the historic creeds believed by nearly all Christians, such as the Apostle’s Creed and the Nicene Creed
  • affirm all 15 core traits of a deeply committed Christian and be willing to grow in all areas.
  • regularly practice prayer and Bible study.
  • be able to share her or his faith story.
  • understand the importance of hospitality and showing concern for others.
  • demonstrate willingness to become a spiritual guide and care provider.
  • be passionate about discipleship and community.
  • be aware of spiritual gifts and open to exploration of them.
  • focus on what is helpful and builds up the Body of Christ, and avoid judgmental statements, name-calling, harsh labeling, and efforts to describe anyone holding a different view as “un- Christian”
  • embrace the Resurrection membership expectations.
  • agree to be held accountable to the Volunteer Leader Covenant of The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection.
  • have previous experience leading adults (i.e. projects, teams or groups – managing, delegation, logistics, details, etc.).
  • embrace the importance of establishing a group covenant, celebrate differences in group member’s personalities, appreciate differences in spiritual background and knowledge and be open to helping group members do the same.
  • have volunteered for ministry inside and outside a church.
  • have previous experience participating in a small group for Bible study and spiritual growth.
  • have previous experience leading group prayer.
  • have previous experience leading a Bible study.
  • have completed Disciple 1 or equivalent.

Expectations – A micro church leader will:

  • collaborate with and receive care and guidance from the Pastor for Resurrection Online.
  • collaborate and be in community with other micro church leaders.
  • facilitate the micro church worship experience.
  • communicate with each person in her or his micro church, at least once a week, to:
    • inquire how their souls prosper;
    • advise, caution, comfort or encourage as necessary.
  • commit to developing opportunities for each micro church participant to worship, grow, give and serve.
  • communicate with Resurrection at least once a week to share:
    • who are active in the life of the micro church,
    • any who are in need of additional care or guidance (i.e. illness, spiritual concern, etc.),
    • stories of life change, and
    • any technical problems or concerns.
  • look for a person who could be key in influencing a new circle of people to start the next micro church.