Bill Hybels -- Session 1 -- “5 Critical Questions for Leaders”

• When a leader gets better, everyone wins.
• QUESTION 1: What is your current leadership challenge level? Are you under-challenged? appropriately challenged? dangerously over-challenged?
• Where do you do your absolutely best work as a leader on this spectrum?
• Leadership is like a muscle. You have to stress it to grow it.
• First Application
• If you’re under-challenged, step it up. If you don’t challenge yourself enough, you’re in danger of atrophy.
• If you’re dangerously over-challenged, you’re in danger of a melt down. You need to find a way to delegate and scale back. You set a bad example for those you lead if you live in this area.
• When you are stressed, you get a lift. When you stay stressed, you’ll flatten out. If you stay in this level, you’ll crash and bottom out in the cellar.
• Second Application
• How do we get a handle on who is being overworked in an organization?
• What do under-challenged people in a department do? They leave.
• Third Application
• Do you think it possible for organizations to be under-challenged, appropriately challenged, or dangerously over-challenged?
• QUESTION 2: What is your plan on dealing with challenging people in your organization?
• If there was a 50% revenue drop, who would you get rid of?
• Line Exercise: Put all your people in order from the ones you would most hate to lose.
• Are the people at the end of the line, off-mission? under-performing? Am I just avoiding tough conversations because we are fully funded?
• Willow’s mission is totally dependent on the people we can attract and develop.
• Our future is also tied to dealing with people who are no longer fantastic.
• How much time are you going to give Fantastic Fred to spread his radioactive poison? I get answers from minutes to years. At Willow, this is 30 days.
• Your staff needs to know how long people can have a bad attitude.
• How do you handle under-performers? Or as the Bible says, no worthy their hire?
• Under-performers need our attention just as soon as it is identified. At Willow, this is 3 months.
• The single toughest challenging people issue I’ve had to deal with is when the growth of an organization requires somebody with a greater capacity to fill that role.
• Takeaway #1: If you don’t deal with challenging people in your organization, you discourage and de-motivate your best people. Fantastic people do not want to be dragged down by whiners and complainers.
• Takeaway #2: Challenging people are not happy people.
• QUESTION 3: Are you naming, facing and resolving the problems in your organization?
• Example: The problem of the feeding of the widows in Acts 6
• Nothing rocks forever. Everything has a season.
• Life-cycle of an idea: Accelerating, Booming, Decelerating, Tanking
• By identifying, we can solve these problems.
• QUESTION 4: When was the last time, you re-examined the core of what your organization is all about?
• Can you put the vision and mission of your organization on the front of a t-shirt?
• We all get fuzzy on what we do over time.
• Exercise: In five words, explain the central message of your product or service. In five words, what best describes the good news of Jesus Christ?
• Hybels answer for himself: Love, Evil, Rescue, Choice, Restoration
• God loved you the moment you started sucking air.
• When you’re clear about the core, there is no end to what God can do.
• QUESTION 5: Have you had your leadership bell rung lately? Has any leadership book or talk or crisis rocked your world lately?
• Most of us are hard-headed leadership types; we need our bells rung occasionally.
• If you’re sick enough of being stuck, you’d get on the solution-side of this problem and you’d take action.
• Quit making excuses and start making bold, new solutions.
• There is too much at stake in this world for leaders to walk around with a defeated mindset.
• Why couldn’t the next five years be your best five years?
• How you finish is how you will be remembered.

Upcoming One Life West Training Dates

June 26 -- One Life West will join the One Life East group

July 6 -- Training at Lighthouse @ 6 PM. Food served at 5:30.

July 17 -- Training at Lighthouse @ 4:30 PM. Food served following.

August 3 -- Training at Lighthouse @ 6 PM. Food served at 5:30.

Why I Didn't Preach Last Weekend

I didn't preach at DIscovery Church last weekend. I was at the theater (and no, I wasn't just skipping to watch a movie) but others led in worship and teaching. I've been asked a few times why and here's the reason:

Reason #1: We have talented teachers who need to be given the opportunity to grow and use their gifts.
At Discovery, we've been blessed with some incredibly talented teachers. Yesterday, one of those talented individuals, Janet Oberholtzer, got the opportunity to share about the purpose of and her passion for ministry to college-students. Each time she has preached, she has done a good job...and she's grown in that gifting. Later this summer, you'll have the opportunity to learn from Matt Breivogel, another young, gifted teacher in our midst. I look forward to teaching more at Discovery (and One Life) in the days ahead. However, some times it is good for me and for the body of Christ for others to have the opportunity to share what God is teaching them.

Reason #2: I was serving in KIDS ministry.
Our KIDS ministry rocks! The team does a great job each week in preparing quality lessons that teach and grow our kids. And our KIDS ministry is growing. Sunday, I got the opportunity to pour myself into the life of the kids for one morning. They got to know that their pastor loves them, cares about them, can be goofy, and wants them to love Jesus. All very important lessons in my book. Another exciting part of leading in our KIDS ministry was the chance to teach my incredible 7 year old. Dads, it is so cool to get to lead and love your kids and set great examples for other kids at church.

How to Think Missionally

The following post has been ripped almost word-for-word from the One Life playbook in preparation for the launch of One Life West. Thankful for the hard work and great teaching of Bret Nicholson.

What would you do if God spoke to you this weekend and told you to move to Yemen by this time next year? What steps would you take? What would you do once you arrived? When this question was asked in a recent training session, the lists were formed quickly.

Prior to leaving, many of us would study the culture. Yemen is really different than Evansville. We would study the language. We would learn how to connect with the Yemenis. We would pray. We would begin to arrange our financial situation to prepare for this new reality. The next 12 months would be filled with excitement and anticipation.

Once we arrived, we would begin to identify the

needs in the area. We would look for quick wins that would give some credibility to the more important messages and work that we would be sharing. We would look for individuals to partner with. We would begin to engage the Yemeni population in their cultural water

ing holes.

No matter where a missionary would go, they would go through a similar process. This process defines what it means to think missionally. Missional thinking approaches the environment with a mindset that God has placed you there to make a difference.

Here's the catch: God might not be calling to Yemen. He might not call you to Afghanistan, China, or Egypt. However, if he has not called you to someplace else, it means He has called you to where you are today. How can you begin to think missionally about how you reach your neighbors, your co-workers, and others that God has put within your sphere of influence.

Side note: David Platt noted this morning that North Yemen has 8 million people and only 20-30 are Christians. Maybe God is calling you to Yemen.

What's Next?

It is an exciting time in my life. For the past years, I have served as the pastor for Discovery Church. When we planted Discovery Church, we desired to be a church for people who did not like church. Further, we wanted to be a church that planted churches. In voting to merge into the One Life Network, we believe that we are going to be able to see the vision that God has given us fulfilled in new and exciting ways.

The big question I’ve been getting is: What’s next?

One step is to connect. As the automotive great Henry Ford said, “Coming together is the beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success.” As we become One Life West, we need to get to know each. Build relationships across the church. We’ll be giving you some specific ways that you can connect with others and creating some opportunities for this to happen.

Another beginning step we will be taking is train. We want to make sure that everybody is on the same page. Doing life together in Christian community is sort of like running a three-legged race; progress only happens when we work together striving for the same goal. We will be having opportunities to sit down together and learn some important lessons. Further, as people get integrated into the areas that they feel called to serve, we will need to learn some processes so that there is consistency and excellence in all that we do.
Finally, I want to invite you to pray. It’s been said, “One should never initiate something that he cannot saturate with prayer.” Our heart from the beginning has been to see God move in a fresh and new way through the Tri-State area and specifically on the Westside. We are going to be encouraging you to pray. Starting next Monday, we will be re-launching the email blasts with specific ways to pray for the Westside. If you are interested in receiving those blasts, let us know so we can add you to the distribution list.

These are exciting times. I cannot wait to see what God has in store as we spend our one life in service to Him.

Seeing the Future

I remember the first time I saw Rob Zemeckis' film "Back to the Future Part II." I was amazed by the vision of the future he painted. Honestly, what is not to love about hoverboards and flying cars. As I look back on the film there is one pressing problem: I don't have a hoverboard! In fact, I cannot even go to the store and buy a hoverboard. Zemeckis cast a vision for the future, but it did not happen.

So how can you know what the future looks like? Over the next few weeks, we're going to look to the future. We're going to start by looking at who God is and how He has worked in the past and we're going to talk about how we can hear God's direction. Join me on a journey, a journey of faith with an eye to the future.

Second Look @ Sunday

Some quick take-aways for me from yesterday:

• You have to get to AMC Stadium 16 pretty early to beat Marty Smith there. When I got there, he had already worked up enough of a sweat that he needed to take off his jacket (his hat).
• Thankful for Ascended. They worked hard and it clearly paid off.
• By the way guys, if you have a Twitter account, use it.
• Was surprised to see Lindy Weatherly join us. Anxious to hear her notes from the service.
• Big idea: God is always faithful and He is still in the redemption business.
• In what part of your life do you need to experience redemption?
• So sweet to see some of our people serving the residents of Riverwalk Communities. Here's the proof that I even participated.
• Had a great time at lunch hearing one of my high school friends share her heart for missions. It is amazing what God is doing in her life. Abso-freakin-lutely Amazing.
• Sad news came to me on Sunday night: another friend from the youth group I grew up (quite literally) in passed away Sunday morning. I got a chance to spend a few moments with him on Saturday evening. Not enough time in hindsight. He truly was semper fi (always faithful).
• Finally: looking forward to a great Super Bowl with two legendary teams. Now just have to determine the perfect venue to watch it at.
• 
  

Why I'm Excited (part 4)

I have already confessed to you that I am not a scientist. Here is another confession for you: I am not an economist (and I did not stay in a Holiday Inn Express last night either). I did take a basic macro economics course during my freshman year at the University of Evansville. One of the principles I learned in Dr. Blalock's classroom was economy of scale. The basic concept is that at a certain point it is easier and cheaper to produce a great quantity of a product.

As I think about the proposed merger between Discovery Church into the One Life Network, I am excited by this economic principle again. The One Life Network has been able to assemble a team of individuals that are really talented. To be able to free those individuals to use their gifts to bless individuals at more than one location or site is really exciting to me. To this point in Discovery's life, our media department has consisted of primarily two college student volunteers (thanks Eric and Ben). To think that we could partner these two gifted individuals with other incredible talents like the team at Fat Head Media or Rocket Plant Studios is so exciting. To think that we could partner our talented worship teams with other talented musicians is exciting. To think of being able to offer small groups around the region.

The beauty to me in this is that it reflects what the body of Christ should look like. There is nothing as beautiful as the body of Christ coming together, bringing their gifts, talents and abilities, to offer life, hope and truth to others.

To read the first three parts, click here: part 1, part 2, or part 3.

Why I'm Excited (part 3)

I got the opportunity to spend today in Nashville visiting with the Crosspoint Church team. First, it is an amazing team that God has assembled there. Second, the staff could not have been more generous in their time. Even though our appointment was just a lunch meeting with Pete Wilson, there were several staff members who spent time answering questions and offering us tours of their facilities (thanks to: Evie, Jarrod, Matt, Wendy, & Justin). As we were driving back from a great time of learning, we began to process all these new insights.

And then it hit me...

I am so thankful that I do not have to walk down the road of ministry by myself. I have been surrounded by great minds from the very beginning. One of the things that excites me about partnering with the One Life Network is the opportunity to learn from other like-minded and passion-driven individuals, some of who have been doing ministry for much longer than me.

John Maxwell has said, "Everything rises and falls on leadership." There is so much truth in that statement. To see the passion, the excitement, the insights that God has blessed these men with is encouraging and challenging. Let me share an example:

Mark just returned from spending three weeks overseas in a southeast Asian country where Christianity is far from the religion of choice. He shared with us the story of Elijah, a church planter, who serves a church of roughly 50. He sleeps in a bamboo car-port so that his lifestyle would not be a stumbling block for those outside the church. His church has taken in a half-dozen widows and cares for them. His passion and commitment to the church is inspiring and convicting.

The chance to partner together with these leaders on a regular basis, sharpening each other, is very exciting to me.

Thrown Under the Bus

Lindy Weatherly threw me under the bus on Sunday morning. Following the (rocking) prelude, there was awkward silence. It lasted just a few seconds, unless you knew that something was suppose to fill it. She said, "We're looking for Trey...." beep, beep.... Bus coming through. I quickly corrected the situation by throwing John Miles under the bus. "It's not me. It's video."

This morning as I was thinking through the service again, the Holy Spirit smoked me. Not just a gentle wrist slap; it was more of a full-on slap across the face (could have inspired a song like this). In the quiet of the morning, God clearly said to me, "The issue is not who was right. You do not have to always be right." (I hate it when God says things that my wife has already told me before.) He continued, "The issue is not being right; the issue is your pride. Your pride will not allow you to be wrong." (Now you see where the bright red marks across my face were there.)

As I sat and thought, I immediately thought of some of the verses from the Bible that speaks to the issue of pride:

"Pride goes before destruction, and haughtiness before a fall." (Prov. 16:18)

"Pride leads to disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom." (Prov. 11:2)

"Pride ends in humiliation, while humility brings honor." (Prov 29:23)

So many of the nations that the prophets of the Old Testament speak out against are condemned for their pride. And I am no better. My pride can drive me to make decisions that glorify myself, my thinking, my knowledge or skill set...and it's not about me. I wasn't there when the earth was set on its axis. I was not there when the sun burst forth into light. I was not in the beginning. I was not before the beginning. I am not God.

So I confess and ask for forgiveness to God, to Lindy, to John. It's not about me and my desire to be right or proved correct. I should have not thrown you under the bus in an unintentional attempt to preserve my pride. And now the really hard part: making this a lifestyle change and not just a blog post.

Second Look @ Sunday

Another amazing week at Discovery Church. Here are a few of the highlights:

• Thanks to all the Discovery volunteers who came early to help make sure things went smoothly. Your consistent service is inspiring.
• Thanks to the One Life tech team that came to inspire our production team. Thanks to all the sound, light, and CG volunteers.
• Thanks to Second. Can't wait for you guys to come back. ;-)
• Thanks to Bret Nicholson for challenging us via video. If you missed the video, you can watch it here.
• Bret taught from John 4. Great story.
• "Jesus did not just want her as a convert; He wanted her to be a worshiper."
• So exciting to see new faces and familiar faces back at Discovery.
• Blessed beyond belief by a great family. Unfortunately, Morgan had to miss the big day due to a stomach bug. My mom stepped up big for us and watched her.
• Can't believe the Patriots lost (and the state of Indiana rejoices)!

Why I'm Excited (part 2)

Confession: I am not Bill Nye, the Science Guy. In fact, if I were forced to pick one subject area which was my particular weakness, it would be science. I chose to take the SAT instead of the ACT because of the science component. However, I did enjoy one science class: physics. I convinced myself that physics was more mathematics than science.

One of the equations that I remember from physics was the equation for momentum. The equation reads: p=mv. This fancy equation simply means that momentum can be determined by understanding it as the result of mass multiplied by velocity. Simply put, to increase momentum you must either increase mass (size) or velocity (speed). If you either of those components decrease (without an increase in the other area), you'll see decreased momentum.

This basic understanding is one of the reasons that I am excited by the possibility of merging into the One Life Network. I believe the merger will increase the momentum of both movements in the Evansville metropolitan area. The velocity that One Life has been moving with over the last four months has been exciting. The combined mass of the overall network would aid the people of Discovery as we strive to make an impact on the Westside of Evansville. It's exciting to think of the momentum that God might bring when two unique and exciting groups partner together to make Him known throughout the Tri-State area.

Today's prayer: Lord, do what only you can do. Increase the passion and speed with which we pursue you. Prepare the hearts of those who have not yet heard. As we lift your name up, draw men and women to you.

Why I'm Excited (part 1)

Do you remember the day or weeks before a major event in your life? Do you remember the way your stomach felt funny, like you just tangled with some bad sushi but you had not even had any? Or your mind was racing with a million different ideas and you were so excited that you couldn't sleep? Got those moments in your mind. Great. Now you know where I've been over the last several weeks.

I remember where I was when Discovery really began taking shape in my heart and mind. I knew we were called to plant a church on the Westside. I knew that God was going to go before us. I didn't know where we were actually going or more importantly (or least it seemed that way to me) how we were going to get there. I felt like I might puke from the excitement and nervousness. I was excited by one thing: VISION.

I did not know the details of meeting space, worship teams, production quality, or even things like board members or denominational affiliation. But I knew what we were being called to be. We were being called to be a church that reached out to those that were not in the church in a compelling and authentic way. We were not to ignore the culture or be lost in the culture, but wade through the culture to make the case for absolute truth and more importantly for the Way, the Truth and the Life.

As the elders have met and prayed about this recommendation to merge within the One Life Network, I keep being drawn back to the vision: to be a church for those who do not like church; to help people far from God experience Jesus. As we sat in meeting rooms and living rooms, I kept being drawn back to why we exist...and amazed that God was leading us to partner with another group that had same pressing desire.

Today's prayer: Lord, give us eyes to see as you see. Remove our blinders so that we can see (a) all that you are up to and (b) all the ways that you desire to include us in your awesome work. Let us be driven by our desire to see you glorified and made much of.

Second Look @ Sunday

So much to process from this past weekend, but I'll give it a try anyway.

• Had a great time visiting with Kitten's siblings this weekend. I've been blessed with some fantastic in-laws.
• Speaking of blessings: the nephews came too! Love those guys.
• Alyssa did an incredible job as a cheerleader at the Reitz game on Saturday night. So stinking cute I'm going to have to hire a militia in a few years to keep the boys away.
• Our set-up team is pretty much the most amazing thing since Bacon Bandages. By the way, if we had those in my house, I'd get paper cuts all the time.
• We had a worship team emergency when the drummer went down on Saturday night. God blessed us with an amazing last minute fill-in. Thanks Chris Clark!
• Had a great time looking John 4 on Sunday morning. Pretty amazing how Jesus meets us right where we are and takes us where we could not go on our own.
• He truly is all we need.
• Congregational meeting after service went really well. We talked about the elders' recommendation to transition to the One Life Network. Exciting times.
• Coming this week: why I'm excited about the One Life Network. Can't wait to share some of what excites me about this possibility.

Insights from "It: How Churches and Leaders Can Get it and Keep it"

One of my goals for 2011 is to be more intentional in my reading. Over the next year, I hope to read 50 books (not overly ambitious by my previous standards). I'll try and share some of the insights I learn along the way.

The first book that I read in 2011 was "It" by Craig Groeschel. Craig is the senior pastor of LifeChurch.tv, which has campuses around the country. Craig and LifeChurch.tv have done an incredible job of maintaining a "kingdom-minded" focus. They have developed numerous resources that they give freely to others to grow the kingdom. One great example is YouVersion.

In "It," Craig shares his heart on how the church can get it. Here are some of my favorite insights from what truly is a great book.

• "...it is what God does through a rare combination of these qualities found in his people: passion for his presence, a deep craving to reach the lost, sincere integrity, Spirit-filled faith, down-to-earth humility, and brokenness."
• "It tends to follow big vision." Cast crazy big vision that is rooted in what God has called and gifted you uniquely to do.
• "Teamwork is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results." I could write for days on this one thought. I am so thankful for the team that God has surrounded me with, the team that He has assembled at Discovery. They make life (and ministry) so much fun.
• Push past the local max. Groeschel draws on Seth Godin's work to say that we need to be willing to fail (and sometimes fail big) in order to see the very best innovations come to life. We need to be willing to push through the failure to experience it.
• "Let him stretch you. Attempt what others says can't be done. You have more in you than you realize. God has put more in you than anyone else sees."

One question for you: Have you ever experienced it? Where are you seeing it right now?

Why I'm Excited...by Tammy Sutton

Over the last several weeks members of the Discovery Church leadership team (the elders and staff) have been sharing some of what has them excited about partnering with One Life. Our fifth installment has been written by Tammy Sutton. Tammy is one of Discovery's elders, in addition to serving as the chief financial person (CFP?).

Most people that know me know I have a passion for projects that involve serving others. One of the most exciting things for me about One Life is the expanded opportunities that it will give us as a church to be a servant. To steal a quote from the One Life Church website, “Jesus lived compassion. We want to follow His lead and share his compassion both locally and globally.” Compassion is the word One Life uses to address these service projects. It involves opportunities for us to serve others ranging from our local neighborhood to those living on the other side of the world.

I like the approach that One Life takes on serving others. They not only look at the immediate needs for food, clothing and shelter, but at the issues that are causing the underlying poverty. They encourage economic growth of the community through micro financing and industry development. Part of the systemic change involves providing clean water for the area. The local residents are trained in various methods to treat and purify the water, resulting in a reduction of diseases and illnesses. Tools such as job training and furthering education enable those in poverty more opportunities to make a sustainable living. The local culture remains intact when implementing these methods that allow for a higher standard of living, and leadership of the community develops from within the native people.

FAQs re:Staffing and Leadership

Since the elders of Discovery Church announced their recommendation to join the One Life Network, there have been several questions asked. Over the next few weeks, we hope to address those questions here. As always, if you have another question, feel free to let us know and we'll either answer you personally or in an upcoming FAQ.

1) The elders have made this recommendation to the congregation, but are the staff members at Discovery Church on board with this?

Yes. Janet, Kitten and I were engaged in the discussion with the elders throughout the process. As you read in Marty's post yesterday, Janet and Kitten offered valuable insight throughout the process. As the elders voted to make the recommendation, the staff stated their support at the same time. Click these links to see why Kitten and Janet are excited about partnering with the One Life network.

2) What will happen to the Discovery Church staff?

They will be drug out into the streets and shot. Not really! This is actually one of the questions that our elders asked as we investigated the process. Trey will serve as the campus pastor for the Westside campus of One Life. Kitten and Janet will still be intimately involved with our ministry. We will probably take a step back and evaluate where people are, who is on board, and then allow people to serve in roles where they are passionate and gifted. At the same time, others might join us who bring experience and passion in areas that we have not begun to fully explore yet.

3) Will there be an elder board for the westside campus of One Life?

The One Life Network is governed by a board of elders that oversee the ministry throughout the network. It is reasonable to assume that each campus will have some representation on that board. The elders are concerned with the vision and direction of the network. Each local campus will have its own leadership team that will direct the day-to-day operations of the campuses.

4) You're not leaving, right?

No. I'm not going anywhere. I am excited about serving alongside you for years to come still. As long as God continues to lead us together, I'm here. You've read why many of the staff and elders are excited about the possibilities. Next week, I'll share with you some of the reasons that I personally am excited.

Why I'm Excited...by Marty Smith

Over the last several weeks members of the Discovery Church leadership team (the elders and staff) have been sharing some of what has them excited about partnering with One Life. Our fourth installment has been written by Marty Smith. Marty is one of Discovery's elders and helps lead our set-up and First Impressions teams.

The thing that is most exciting to me about our partnership with One Life is seeing God at work through His people. I am talking about the other elders and staff of Discovery. In every meeting we have had, it has been awesome to feel the presence of God. It is amazing to see how God uses the strength of every person to accomplish what I think is the shared goal of One Life and Discovery. I love seeing Tammy light up when an opportunity for missions arises. I'm encouraged by how Jack shows genuine care and concern about the feelings of others and how we can demonstrate God's love to them. I appreciate the insightful input that Janet and Kitten have offered. I'm thankful for Trey's direction to look at the big picture. I am very thankful that God has placed me here, to add what I can and enjoy the ride. I truly believe what my favorite passage from scripture says: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart leaning not on your own understanding. Acknowledge him in all your ways and he will keep your path straight” (Prov. 3:5-6).

I am so excited because Discovery and One Life share the same vision. Discovery has always focused on those who do not like church and church planting. The main focus of One Life perfectly aligns with Discovery in that regard. It is so exciting to see God coordinating our efforts.

Personally I am excited because this new partnership could expand the influence and ministry we have. One of my big passions is student ministry; my prayer is that we could make a significant impact in the lives of the next generation.

In closing, I would like to encourage each of you to pray about and or ask questions about this partnership. Let’s all enjoy the ride!!

Note: Hey, Chase and Nick, I made it through this entire post without a cheesy joke…. Until now…What do you call a big white animal shaped like a tooth? A molar bear! LOL

Second Look @ Sunday

Thankful for another incredible (and busy) weekend. Before we jump into the highlights from yesterday, I would be remiss to not share some highlights from the past two weeks:

• Christmas Eve was incredible! Where to start....thanks to our set-up team for showing up in the midst of the first round of snow storms to unload the trailer at Bob's.
• Thanks to the band who came together to lead us in worship.
• Thankful for those who helped tear down and load up so that everyone could enjoy Christmas.
• Got a chance to worship with my sister-in-law's family last week. Got to see my oldest nephew profess his faith in Christ and follow Him in baptism. Awesome.
• It was really cool to be able to sit with Alyssa (the 6-year old) and join her in worship. She's learned to read which makes it much easier for her to sing corporately. So cool to hear her sing praises to God with me.
• Many people are ashamed or embarrassed by their in-laws. Mine are pretty incredible. Had a great time with them.
• The gym is getting busy. We closed out the month on a great note. Thankful for a great team there too.

And now yesterday's highlights:

• Loved the job the worship team did leading. If you're not worshiping, it's a you issue. Really cool to see people like Chet and Chance set free to use all their gifts and abilities to the fullest.
• Can't imagine what life would be without our Children's Ministry volunteers. Thanks for all you do!
• Guess which movie was showing in the same theater as we set up our nursery? Yep...this one.
• "The only thing worse than being blind is having sight and no vision." -- Helen Keller
• Thankful that Jesus does not go for the Dream Team, but chooses the dropout and flunkies, the less-desirables, me.
• Got a chance to talk with someone tonight about what it means to be a Jesus-follower. Praying for her as she studies Jesus, His life and ministry, and His call on her life.
• Already getting excited about next week. I've got people in mind to invite; do you?

Why I'm Excited...by Janet Oberholtzer

Over the next six weeks, members of the Discovery Church leadership team (the elders and the staff) will be sharing some of what has them so excited about partnering with One Life. Our third installment has been written by Janet Oberholtzer. Janet serves as the Small Groups Director and Other Titles as Assigned when she has the microphone.

I think one of the things I’m most excited about is the change I’ve seen in my heart as I’ve entered into this process. When Trey first suggested the idea to me, I was hesitant. I wasn’t sure about what One Life was all about or who their leaders were. I wasn’t excited about leaving the Evangelical Presbyterian Church. God has brought me past my initial hesitancies to willingly and whole heartedly say “Yes!” Here’s a little bit about how that happened,

My first introduction to One Life was at a preview service in October. I saw there that God had done incredible things to bring the church body together and provide the venue. From what I saw and heard that night, I sensed a church with a heart and vision similar to that of Discovery. I then learned that God blessed their first Sunday morning service with nearly a thousand people. I was excited to keep my eye on this congregation and what God was doing in her midst. Later that week, we met with a leadership team that was blown away by what God had done, grappling with what that meant in their personal and professional life and wondering what God would do next outside of the four walls of their facility in Henderson. At that point enthusiasm was high, but how Discovery could be involved was yet to be discerned.

As leaders from both sides continued to pray about this, we continued to ponder “What if?” My hesitancies about leaving the EPC began to fade as I saw the strength, wisdom and humilty of the leadership of One Life. I saw men with a heart to build God’s kingdom, not their own, men who have a track record of being faithful leaders and servants. While being with a denomination ties a church to a rich tradition and offers accountability, serving under a group of leaders who have walked with God for years and hold each other accountable is also a gift.

I’d kind of felt like Discovery was “at capacity” with our current infrastructure and resources, I think we all have great dreams for the future; however the future seems a bit far and distant as we look at our current reality. Linking arms with One Life feels like tapping into synergy (a force created by two entities that is stronger than each one could do individually). Instead of developing our own small group, teaching and mission strategies, we could plug into an existing plan and focus our energies uniquely on the West Side of Evansville.

What draws my heart most about the Westside is USI. I was thrilled when I learned of the heart that One Life leadership has for reaching out to students at USI and excited when I realized that my ten years of working in collegiate ministry could be utilized in helping us reach out to university students if only I had time and resources to focus.

In short, (perhaps too late to say?), as I thought about where we want to go as Discovery and I thought about where God is leading One Life, I saw a common vision and direction. There may be some logistical and technical differences, but the heart is the same. As I think about the thousands of students that will come and go from USI every four years, wondering if they will have the opportunity to hear the gospel, I thought how could we not link arms with One Life and give this a shot? Sure, we may lose some things in the transition, but when I think about what we can do for the kingdom of God together, I can’t imagine not taking the risk. I think our unification honors Christ and his church, his church for which he endured birth, suffering and death. His Church for which He rose again. His church which He will be coming again to claim as His own. May God be glorified and honored above all else as we contemplate this decision.