Ninety Days (A Fictional Account of a Future Reality)

September 19, 2011

It was a particularly pleasant December evening in Georgia when a group of about two-hundred people gathered together in a grassy field for a celebration of sorts.  Among the two-hundred or so people gathered together, around fifty or sixty are vibrant and happy kids jumping on inflatables and enjoying treats beneath a canopy of decorative tents.  The atmosphere feels something like a group of football fans tailgating on game day, except the camaraderie is deeper than that.  There’s is definitely something in the air.  It’s December 18th, so Christmas is near and the kids are bursting with excitement, but there’s more to this story than meets the eye…

Within a three mile radius of this over-sized lawn party, thousands of shoppers are perusing stores in search of the perfect Christmas gift and restaurants are brimming with friends and families celebrating the Christmas Season over dinner.  Many of the shoppers haven’t really paused to think too much about Christmas, or what it might mean to them personally.   The holiday revelry is in full swing.  The perspective from the grassy field becomes interesting as evening begins to set-in.  There’s a glow on the horizon from the city lights, and the grassy field seems like a calm reprieve situated at the center of the commotion swirling around it.  It’s almost like an island comfortably enveloped in the eye of a perpetually stationary storm.

Within the Larger Group of people at this big lawn party, there are smaller groups of people huddled together sipping hot beverages and engaging in rich conversation about the everyday stuff of life.  There’s something magnetic and authentic about their attentiveness to one another.  There seems to be no social facade.  The vibe is that of old friends who are reminiscing.   There’s some depth to this community of people, anyone could see that.

A family taking the back way to Target on Watson Blvd noticed the festivities and decided stop and check it out. A man wearing a green t-shirt on the periphery of the celebration observes this family and heads out to greet them.  The lady swished past chasing after her kids as they explode from the car making a b-line to the nearest inflatable.  The man, however, stops to chat with this greeter in the green t-shirt. “Are y’all having some sort of Christmas Party, the man inquired.”  “Just some friends getting together to watch the lighting of that tree on top of that building over there, but y’all are welcome to join us”, replied the guy in the green t-shirt guy.  “Forgive me for saying so”, replied the man, “but isn’t this a lot of hoopla just fire up that Christmas Tree.”   “Well, that’s actually a pretty good story,” the man in the green t-shirt responded.

“Those people are my best friends, and we’re here to celebrate, not just the lighting of that tree, but something that we have been working on together.”  “What’s that, the man asked?”  “Well, just a few years ago, my family didn’t even know any of these people.  Not one of them.  We had arrived at one of those defining crossroads in life about three years ago, and we wound up choosing a path here to Warner Robins, GA.  We were pretty nervous, but we were inspired to move here and become a part of something that we really felt like God was orchestrating in this community.” “So, is this a church deal?” the man inquired.  “Yeah,” said the man in the green shirt, “it’s a church deal.”  “I’m not much of church guy myself,” the man responded.  “I hear ya, I’m not much a church guy either, the man in the green shirt said.”  “So, what do you do?”, the man asked the guy in the green t-shirt. “Well, I’m the Lead Pastor of this church.”  (Pause) “Huh”, you don’t look like a Pastor.”, said the man.  “Excellent”, the guy in the green shirt replied.” “That’s excellent….”

“My family moved here to be Church Planters.  Church Planting was a super hard gig in the beginning, but at some point, I realized that my faith wasn’t as big as I thought it was.   I thought that God needed me to do something awesome, but He didn’t.  He just invited me take part in something that He already had planned.  He turned the tables on me, and blessed my family with something priceless, something unexpected, something he knew that we needed; incredible friends.  Friends whose lives converged with ours in monumental ways.  Friends that offered us insights and inspiration at all the right moments.  Most would attribute our new friends to accidental randomness, but I call it extraordinary providence.  Because without them, I wouldn’t be standing here now talking to you about the church that we started together in Warner Robins, GA called Longleaf.”

“Can I ask you a stupid question?” Sure, the green t-shirt guy responded.  “So, why are all of you standing around in this grassy field having a party?”  You see that building? “Um, yeah, I see that building.” We’re in the process of making it our new home.  It seats more than double the number of adults and accommodates more than double the number of kids than the space that we’ve been meeting in over the past year or so.  We’re pretty fired up about it.  We’re not quite done renovating it, but we’re going to open it up tonight for a walk-thru, then gather together for some Christmas music after we light the tree.  We punched the accelerator to the floor on relocating to this building on September 18th, which was exactly 90 days ago, and together we are opening the doors on a new chapter for our church”

One more question for you, the man said…. “Is that Justin Bieber and his little brother over there racing through the inflatables?” “No, that’s just Ben and John Harmon, but they are huge in the greater Bonaire/Kathleen area.”

Click HERE to join this story…

Rocket Ride

June 3, 2011

Since the beginning of the Longleaf Church movement, Amy and I have so enjoyed the privilege of meeting new people in and around Houston County.  Over the past couple of years, we have had countless conversations with new friends who immediately felt that the mission and vision of Longleaf Church was exactly what they had been searching for.  Our new friends represent a remarkable range of people.  This range of people encompasses people who have grown up around Middle Georgia, to those who have relocated here from other countries.  Additionally, the high-capacity volunteers and staff that have been brought together around our church are truly a gifted group of leaders.  God has assembled our faith community from pure scratch in such a short time, yet everyone seems like old friends.

Amy and I continue to have providential conversations with new people week after week.  Just this past week, we met with a couple who told us that they walked away from their first service at Longleaf Church with tears of gratitude from the sense of authentic community that they discovered at our church.  Make no mistake, we are each part of something bigger than ourselves, something that we’re called to, something that’s changing lives, including our own.  We are stewards of His grace.  We are a growing community of people cultivating a movement together.  We are Longleaf Church.

I want to take a moment to look back over the rocket ride that has been this early season of launching Longleaf Church.   I want to share some tangible results with you that we can celebrate together.  The growth trends of Longleaf Church match, or exceed, the most successful of Church Plants during their first year of operation.  In other words, our growth trends are tracking with the first year trends of churches who grew to more than 1000 regular attendees 5-7 years after launch.  Thanks to the providence of friends, our compelling vision and the grace of God, our path is straight and our future is bright.

Check out our amazing one-year growth trends:

If you were able to attend our Easter Service, you witnessed the tangible results of theses remarkable trends as we baptized five people.  Thanks for your part in our story.  We are primed to come out of the gate strong this fall.  Thanks for connecting!  Thanks for giving!  Thanks for serving! Thanks for inviting!  See you Sunday!

Growing Community

May 10, 2011

For the past couple of years, my family has been living in somewhat of a cultural bubble.  Don’t misunderstand, I’m well versed in current events both nationally and globally.  However, my family-life and my work-life are fast-paced and everything is very proximate to home.  My family spends a great deal of time on school activities, kid activities and Longleaf Church activities.  It’s awesome, but we’re definitely ready for summer vacation.

Our little world has kept us focused, but our perspective is now akin to parents looking at old photos of their children.  As my family and I prepare to close and reflect on this past season of life, we are so amazed at our blessedness.  We are amazed, not simply at the remarkable growth of Longleaf Church, but the remarkable community of friends in and around Houston County who so greatly enrich our lives.

As I consider how our growing community continues to respond to our opportunity to do something great together, I’m reminded of a video that we watched together this time last year called me generation.  Specifically, I’m reminded of a line from that video that alludes to the concept of “a community of our own making”.  I’m reminded of what God often chooses to do through us when a compelling vision collides with big faith and great friends.

As for my family, our faith has never been bolder.  Our passion for the potential of the local church has never burned brighter.  Our recognition of providential relationships has never been clearer, and our love for Longleaf Church has never been stronger.  Yep.  I love my church.  Here are a couple of things to take note of as we head into summer:

Summer Shift – Beginning Sunday, May 29 we will shift to only an 11AM service for the summer.  We’ll shift back to two full services on Sunday, August 7.  Amy and Brynn will communicate a plan for Family Ministry volunteers to take off two Sundays in June and two in July to attend church.  Thanks for your support of Summer Shift!

Volunteer Apprenticing – If you’re thinking about Strategic Service, we would love for you to take a couple of weeks this summer to shadow some of our volunteers.  There are opportunities to do that on the Road Crew and within Family Ministry.  Email us @ info@longleafchurch.org for details!

Summer Fun – We are planning some church-wide Summer Fun events such as a Family Movie Night and a Braves Game Road Trip.  Stay tuned for details!  I also want to really encourage Community Groups to share some fun events this Summer.

Jump Start – Jump Start is designed to help kids begin their spiritual journey. It is a 30-minute presentation where parents and kids learn together about what it means to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.  We’re hosting Jump Start immediately following church on Sunday, June 26 and again on Sunday, August 14.

See you on Sunday!  Don’t forget to invite a friend to church!

A Vested Invitation

April 12, 2011

It’s such a replenishing time of the year.  Springtime is vibrant and warm, so people tend to get outdoors more.  The longer days make for pleasant late afternoon walks.  Yeah, I know that many of us need to prep with allergy meds and mosquito repellent, but these are pleasant days nonetheless.  Taking a walk with your spouse or a friend makes for some great relationship investment time.

At Longleaf, we talk about Four Things that represent full engagement with our mission and vision.  Those four things are to connect, give, serve and invite.  That last one, invest and invite, means that our attendees will take part in our mission by inviting friends and neighbors to church.  Using our unique relationship leverage to invite someone to church is relational evangelism.

Our desire is to make it easy for attendees to invite disconnected people to church by creating great environments that are non-threatening to people who don’t really like church.  We want to create a culture where grace is evident and truth is apparent.  Thanks to some incredible volunteers, that’s the case at Longleaf Church.  We have a great opportunity to invest and invite!

At Longleaf, we talk about Four Things that represent full engagement with our mission and vision. Those four things are to connect, give, serve and invite.  That last one, invest and invite, means that our attendees can take part in our mission by inviting friends and neighbors to church.  Using our unique relationship leverage to invite someone to church defines what is called relational evangelism.

Our desire is to make it easy for attendees to invite disconnected people to church by creating great environments that are non-threatening to people who don’t really like church. We want to create a culture where grace is evident and truth is apparent.  Thanks to some incredible volunteers, that’s the case at Longleaf Church.  There are some exciting things to share with people about our church.  We have a great opportunity to invest and invite!

In particular, we want really want to push invest and invite for Easter Sunday at Longleaf.  It’s going to be an experience that you won’t forget as we hear baptism stories from people in our church and celebrate our risen savior.   Here some easy ways to invest and invite people to church on Easter Sunday:

1. You will receive a postcard style email on Monday, April 18 promoting our Easter Service.  It’s designed for you to forward along with a personalized invitation AND for you to share on facebook and twitter!
2. Share my EASTER THREADS blog post with someone.
3. If you have friends with preschool age kids, invite them join us for our Waumba Land Egg Hunt on Saturday, April 23.  Send and email to Brynn (brynn.morseman@longleafchurch.org) for details.

Thanks for the part that you’re playing at Longleaf Church!  I’ll see you this Sunday and I cannot wait for what is sure to be a memorable Easter Sunday!

Blooming Horizons

March 10, 2011

Our horizon is blooming with lots of radiant energy at Longleaf Church!

The volunteer force of Longleaf Church gathered for a Leadership Community event this past Sunday evening and it was such a big win.  It’s so important to our mission that the people within our growing community step-up to Serve Strategically.  Additionally, it really energizes our mission when we can just gather and experience the authentic community that exists at the core of our church.  Thanks for the part that everyone plays!  If you’re just getting connected to Longleaf, that’s fantastic! We think that you’re going to love attending, connecting and inviting your friends!

We’ll wrap up the Balanced series on Sunday, March 20 (officially the first day of Spring) and we’ll host our first NEXT environment on that same Sunday immediately following our 11AM service.  NEXT is a half-hour, conversational environment designed for people that have connected with Longleaf over the past few months.   The goal for NEXT to help new attendees determine their best next step to get engaged in the mission of Longleaf Church.  If you’re new to the Longleaf Church community, please join us for NEXT!

I’m excited to be preaching on Sunday, March 27!  I’ll be continuing my Fried Grits series with Part 2, Secret Ingredient.  I can’t wait to share it!  Leading up to my message on March 27th,  you’ll hear about something that we’re calling The Orange Project.  The Orange Project is about shifting to another gear on the Family Ministry front and empowering families to become fully engaged with our mission while also staying focused on the home front.

Easter planning is also under way and we’re very excited about plans for that weekend  Among other great things happening around Easter, we will be having baptisms in our Easter service!   If you would like more information on baptism, please click HERE.  Stay tuned for details!

We can’t wait to see you this Sunday!

Bold Faith

February 12, 2011

If you haven’t noticed, Longleaf Church is a GROWING community of people planting a church together and who are being defined by bold faith.  It’s been an exciting start to 2011.  Man I love this church. I’m just so thankful to be part of it.

Our previous message series, titled Time of Your Life, was a great series to launch a new year with.  If you weren’t able to hear all of those messages, remember that you can always watch previous messages on our website. We’ll also post my Fried Grits message from February 6 next week. If you haven’t seen it on facebook already, click HERE to view the Simple Man opener for Fried Grits. Ben and the band did such a great job with it!

This Sunday (February 13th), we’re launching a new series called Balanced. This message is truly a life changing message about finances. Many of our Community Groups will dig in a little deeper to these messages each week throughout the series.

I have a few things to highlight this month. Please pray for our church as we continue to charge forward with bold faith. God is granting us so much favor through our collective prayers and the mission engagement (give, serve, connect, invite) of our community.

Don’t be surprised in the coming weeks to hear about some expansion plans and our dreams for 2012 and beyond. Check out the newsletter and invite someone to church this Sunday! Thanks for your bold faith!

Community Resolve

January 6, 2011

Happy New Year friends!  2011 is off to fast start around Longleaf Church!  God has granted our growing community some great momentum as we head into the new year with services every Sunday!  Our current message series titled, Time of Your Life, is such a great series to launch a new year with  If you weren’t able to make church this past Sunday, remember that you can always watch previous messages on our website.  In addition to our new schedule, we are rolling out some new resources and initiatives that are going to help us create community, empower families and invest into the volunteer leadership force of Longleaf Church.  We’ll be announcing these initiatives over the course of January, so stay tuned!  Two upcoming events to take note of are the Longleaf Ladies Brunch on Saturday, January 15 at 10AM and the Series Group Social on Sunday, January 16 at 6:00PM.  The Series Group Social is for adults that aren’t connected with a Community Group and would like to get plugged in and unleash the power of Authentic Community into their lives.

In early December,  I wrote a blog post about the type of dialogue that we want to empower within Community Groups titled Genuine Article.  Here’s an excerpt:

Encouraging words originate out of genuine motives to help another person.  I’m not not only encouraged by inspiring words, I’m encouraged by challenging words that charge me to keep moving forward.  Only certain people can challenge us because not everyone is fully vested in our lives.  We each have unique opportunities to inspire and challenge other people.  Genuine motives allow us to inspire and challenge our sons, daughters, parents, spouses, brothers, sisters and our friends with encouraging words.

As we prepare to close one year and head into the next, we tend to ponder the turning points of our past and our future goals.  These are great things to consider, but I’m thinking about things a little differently this year.  I’m thinking of the consistent voices of encouragement speaking into my life.  These voices are a blessing for me and I too have a responsibility to be an encouraging voice in the lives of others.

The effect of encouraging words from genuine people are a great gift, but they don’t come with much fanfare.  The impact of encouraging words is cumulative.  The cumulative impact of encouraging words is like an artistic force that shapes our very identity.  Encouraging words are that powerful.  We have the opportunity to give and receive encouraging words in a way that reflects the faithful and steadfast nature of our Heavenly Father.  His grace is like the steady flow of a river that shapes us into the genuine article.

If you’re interested in getting plugged into a community Group, please email Lindsey (lindsey.gilstrap@longleafchurch.org) and make plans to attend the Series Group Social.  We hope that you’ll continue to invite friends, family and neighbors to Longleaf Church.  Click HERE to invite someone to church with the email invite tool on our website.  Thanks for what you do to help us pursue our mission and vision.  See you Sunday!

Miracle Season

November 30, 2010

It’s that time of year! The Christmas Season is upon us. Christmas is always exciting and memorable, but what a special year this is for the community of people that launched Longleaf Church together.  Our Savior stepped down into time and made a way for us on that starry night in Bethlehem and here we are, two thousand years later, taking part in the greatest story ever told.  Our story of planting Longleaf Church is pretty inspiring and each one of us are playing a key role.  Our church is becoming a beacon of hope that reflects the grace and truth of our Savior.

We have decided to bring back The Leaflet newsletter on a monthly basis to help keep everyone informed and connected. There’s some exciting things happening around our church this December! We will continue with An Unexpected Christmas for the first three Sunday mornings of December. We’re excited to conclude this message series on December 19th with some extended Christmas music immediately following the service. Please continue to invite your friends, neighbors and coworkers to church!

I’m excited to announce that we are hosting a Volunteer Christmas Party on Sunday, December 12 at 7PM!  If you volunteer in any capacity at Longleaf Church, please make plans to join us for dessert and coffee as we celebrate the Miracle of Christmas and our memorable Church Planting season.  Volunteers will receive a separate electronic invitation very soon.  Childcare will not be provided but we will offer childcare reimbursement for your family.

We have partnered with a few organizations this Christmas to demonstrate compassion and spread some cheer. Thanks for those that took part in Operation Christmas Child. We sent in nearly 50 shoeboxes to needy children!  Additionally, Lauren Train is organizing a Christmas Intersect project for the residents of Summerhill Retirement Community in Perry on December 18th. Contact Lauren at laurenbtrain@gmail.com to participate!

Two other great opportunities to give towards worthwhile causes this Christmas Season are the Jarrard Family Adoption Fund and charity: water.  The Jarrard’s are a family at Longleaf Church who are in the process of adopting an orphan from Ethiopia.  Coffee mugs sponsoring the Jarrard Family Adoption are available for $20 at Longleaf Church on Sundays or donations can be made HERE.  I’m partnering with charity:water on my blog.  charity: water intersects one of the foremost humanitarian crises on the planet, clean drinking water.  Click HERE to support my charity:water campaign with a small gift.

There are some exciting steps on the horizon for us in 2011.  We will be moving to an every Sunday schedule and we’ll be adding a full Volunteer Service at 9:15.  Also, I’m very excited to announce that I’ll be launching a semi-monthly lunch environment called Sixteen-Three on Friday, January 5.  Sixteen-Three is about investing in Longleaf Leaders and Volunteers while creating an environment that mobilizes, inspires and challenges faith-driven professionals.  Stay tuned for details on the Sixteen-Three initiative!

Please take a moment to read the other sections of our newsletter and let us know if you have an questions.  Many Thanks for Connecting, Serving, Giving and Inviting!   I can’t wait to see everyone this Sunday for Part Three of An Unexpected Christmas!

A Longleaf Story, The Megrans

October 3, 2010

Meet the Megran Family: Glen, Pam, Corey (14) and Cullen (12).  Pam is a native of Jacksonville, Florida and Glen grew up just outside of London, England.   Glen is a Physician Assistant in Macon and Pam is full-time Mom here in Warner Robins.  Pam homeschools Corey and Cullen, who are bright and active kids.

The Megran’s are a tight-knit family and they generate an aura of authenticity that people are just drawn to.  One thing that the Megran’s really enjoy is soccer.  In fact, the Megran’s regularly organize some great pick-up soccer games for a group of friends.  Having played in some of these pick-up games, I have observed a family that enjoys life and simply creates community.  Some friends mentioned Longleaf Church to the Megran family so they attended some of our pre-launch environments this past summer.  The Megrans were excited to hear about the vision of Longleaf Church, so they quickly brought their resources, their passions and their energy to bear on our church movement.

Glen said, Longleaf Church’s mission and vision has refocused my thinking of “church” and how the church influences my spiritual life.  The small group environment, where my family and I can receive encouragement, prayer, and accountability, really speaks to a true community of believers that’s akin to the early Church described by Paul.  My own relationship with Christ is then strengthened and focused.

Pam said, Since we are one year new to this area we would not likely find a group of other believers to share life with for a very long time if not for this church. Worship at Longleaf is beyond anything we have ever experienced. We strongly believe in the mission of this church and are excited about being a part of it in any way we can. We have invited one family to join us at Longleaf and they are now in a small group with us.

Corey said, I like the goal of creating environments that are engaging and fun, and the emphasis on small groups and doing life with other people.

The Megran’s do a great job Serving Strategically at Longleaf.  They have jumped in and have become a part of the Longleaf Story.

“As part of the crew that physically transforms our “church space” for service, I (Glen) am grateful and joyful for the opportunity to create an environment for worship, teaching, and that promotes Longleaf’s mission, so that others may experience the sense of community that I do.  Pam serves a Small Group Leader in Waumba Land and Corey serves as Small Group Leader on UpStreet.  Corey and Cullen also serve on our Road Crew.”

It’s such an honor to watch the Longleaf Community grow and thrive as the life stories of individuals and families like the Megran’s intersect with the unfolding story of Longleaf Church.  See you Sunday, October 10 for our next service!

A Longleaf Story, Tom and Brittany

September 20, 2010

Meet Tom and Brittany Adkins.  Tom and Brittany are both natives of Middle Georgia and they now reside in Perry.  Tom is an Information Technology Professional and Brittany is an Occupational Therapist.  At the invitation of a friend, Tom and Brittany attended some pre-launch Longleaf Church events this past summer.  Like many others that have become part of the Longleaf Church movement, Tom and Brittany instantly connected with our vision of creating relevant environments that unchurched people across Middle Georgia will love to attend.

“The idea of creating a church that appeals to non-believers, while also equipping believers, is very inspiring to us.  Most churches that we have attended seem to focus on creating a super christian-friendly environment, yet the message from the stage is about reaching the lost.  Longleaf Church is striving to create church environments that make everyone feel welcome, no matter what a person’s background is.”

Tom and Brittany have brought their gifts and talents to bear on our mission, to lead people into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ.  They have really engaged in 4 Things that define participation in our mission and vision.  Those 4 Things are serving, giving, connecting and inviting.

“Brittany and I have already made lifelong friendships with so many people through our involvement in small groups and through serving at Longleaf Church. We are thankful for all the friends that we now “do life” with.   In serving on the production team and roadcrew, I (Tom) have really enjoyed the opportunity to use my creative and technical abilities.  Brittany has also been able to let her passion and creativity shine by serving in Waumba Land.   She is thankful for the time that she gets to invest in the lives of children. It is easy to contribute time and resources to something you believe in and are a part of.”

Tom and Brittany have exemplified servant leadership from the moment they connected with our church.  We’re so excited that their story has intersected with ours.  Want to share your Longleaf Story?  Go HERE.  See you this Sunday at 11am for our service!