Jason and Shelley are in the process of adopting two sisters from Ethiopia. Ansley is 4 1/2 and Karis is 3 1/2 years old. They may gain custody of the girls by late spring (they weren't expecting this to happen until the fall). Because of the abbreviated time table, they are trying to quickly raise money for their travel expenses to Ethiopia (about $10k). You can read their story adoption story here. Please consider helping these two sisters have a forever family. You can help by praying, donating (even if it's $1, every penny helps) or by re-blogging this post (see instructions here). Thank you so much for your support!
Help Ansley and Karis...
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Production Week
It’s production week!
We’ll be kicking off Holy Week at First Baptist Hendersonville with the choir musical “East to West” this Sunday at 8:00, 9:15 and 10:45 a.m. in the Worship Center. First Media will spend the week tweaking lights, creating a string section in the orchestra pit, adding a 4th camera and handling the 782 other details that go into productions. Production week is always fun and always challenging...I love it!
It takes a huge effort to pull of an event like this, and the feeling of accomplishment you get is awesome! But if that’s why we do what we do, then we’ve missed it completely. We do what we do to share the love of the One who gave His life for us...He took our sin upon Himself, knowing that if we carried it, we would surely die. Instead, He bore our sin and died on the cross. But the story doesn’t end there. Three days later, having defeated death, He rose victorious! Because He died and rose again, we can live.
I hope you’ll take time this week to focus on the sacrifice Jesus Christ made for you.
I’ll keep you updated on the progress we make this week.
We’ll be kicking off Holy Week at First Baptist Hendersonville with the choir musical “East to West” this Sunday at 8:00, 9:15 and 10:45 a.m. in the Worship Center. First Media will spend the week tweaking lights, creating a string section in the orchestra pit, adding a 4th camera and handling the 782 other details that go into productions. Production week is always fun and always challenging...I love it!
It takes a huge effort to pull of an event like this, and the feeling of accomplishment you get is awesome! But if that’s why we do what we do, then we’ve missed it completely. We do what we do to share the love of the One who gave His life for us...He took our sin upon Himself, knowing that if we carried it, we would surely die. Instead, He bore our sin and died on the cross. But the story doesn’t end there. Three days later, having defeated death, He rose victorious! Because He died and rose again, we can live.
I hope you’ll take time this week to focus on the sacrifice Jesus Christ made for you.
I’ll keep you updated on the progress we make this week.
Less Can Be More
This afternoon I’m shooting a promo video for our Men’s Ministry annual camp out that’s coming up in a few weeks. In the camp out and Men’s Fraternity videos that I’ve done in the last couple of years, I’ve included humor or “edginess” and have gotten mixed reviews. Although I still think that this style is definitely appropriate for Men’s Ministry, I’ve decided to cut out the gimmicks and simplify this year’s video.
I’ll get a talking head shot our Men’s Minister in a wooded setting giving all of the details for the camp out and encouraging men to attend. Then I’ll add b-roll that I shot at last year’s camp out. The last shot will be a stationary shot of something in the wooded area (I think there’s a large fallen tree in that area) that I can use as a background for the sign-up info.
This will probably take about an hour to shoot and a couple of hours to edit. Hopefully the “less is more” concept will hold true. I’ll post the video when I’ve finished it and you can let me know how it turned out (as iron sharpens iron...).
I’ll get a talking head shot our Men’s Minister in a wooded setting giving all of the details for the camp out and encouraging men to attend. Then I’ll add b-roll that I shot at last year’s camp out. The last shot will be a stationary shot of something in the wooded area (I think there’s a large fallen tree in that area) that I can use as a background for the sign-up info.
This will probably take about an hour to shoot and a couple of hours to edit. Hopefully the “less is more” concept will hold true. I’ll post the video when I’ve finished it and you can let me know how it turned out (as iron sharpens iron...).
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Social Media
If you haven’t noticed, I’m on a bit of a quest right now. I’m learning everything I can about social media and how churches can effectively use it to communicate their message. For those that don’t know what I’m talking about, social media includes blogs (such as wiredforservice.com), Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc. These sites are amazingly effective ways to tell people what you think. When you log onto Facebook, it asks “What’s on your mind?” You respond and it posts something like this “Chad Conger is thinking about social media”. Twitter’s version is “What are you doing?”...“Chad Conger is blogging about social media”. So what’s the big deal about that?
The big deal is that all of the various social media outlets allow you to have followers, friends and subscribers...all of the sudden you’ve got an online community. These are people that read what you’re doing or what’s on your mind and then share what they’re thinking or doing with you. If what’s on our mind is bringing people to Christ and what we’re doing leads to that...and if we allow them to interact with us about such things...now we’ve got some ministry happening!
Stay tuned...I’ll post more when I know more.
The big deal is that all of the various social media outlets allow you to have followers, friends and subscribers...all of the sudden you’ve got an online community. These are people that read what you’re doing or what’s on your mind and then share what they’re thinking or doing with you. If what’s on our mind is bringing people to Christ and what we’re doing leads to that...and if we allow them to interact with us about such things...now we’ve got some ministry happening!
Stay tuned...I’ll post more when I know more.
Monday, March 16, 2009
Projector throw distance
I got an email today asking for help identifying what type of projector a church should purchase. In their email, they said they need a multi-purpose projector that would be used in their church service and as a mobile projector. They also mentioned that the projector would sit 75 feet from the screen in their church service.
Throw distance is probably the detail that most people overlook when researching and purchasing a projector. If you have a projector that’s 5 feet from your screen, the image is going to be very small. As you move the projector backwards, the image size increases. You have to be careful to purchase a projector that will fit your screen based on where the projector is located in your room. But never fear, the good folks at projectorcentral.com are here to save the day! They have included a calculator on their website that allows you to see and adjust the throw distance and the screen size to help you determine which projector and screen is right for you. Check them out...they’re a great resource.
Throw distance is probably the detail that most people overlook when researching and purchasing a projector. If you have a projector that’s 5 feet from your screen, the image is going to be very small. As you move the projector backwards, the image size increases. You have to be careful to purchase a projector that will fit your screen based on where the projector is located in your room. But never fear, the good folks at projectorcentral.com are here to save the day! They have included a calculator on their website that allows you to see and adjust the throw distance and the screen size to help you determine which projector and screen is right for you. Check them out...they’re a great resource.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
RT Fisher
The mission of RT Fisher Alternative School in Gallatin is “in partnership with parents, to encourage and equip each student with the emotional, social, and academic skills to successfully return to their home school.” On Friday and Saturday, the mission of more than 100 First Baptist members was to serve the faculty, students and parents of RT Fisher by painting the inside of their school. First Media was on hand to document our church serving the community.
While there, I spoke with Principal Bob Cotter who told me the school had not been painted in over 10 years and was not slated to be painted in the immediate future. Projects like this would typically rest on his shoulders. Principal Cotter said he was overwhelmed by the response from First Baptist to come in do what would have taken him an entire summer to do.
Because a small portion of our congregation was willing to give a few hours of their week, the students and teachers of RT Fisher will have a fresher coat of paint on their walls and hopefully a fresher perspective of Christ’s love.
While there, I spoke with Principal Bob Cotter who told me the school had not been painted in over 10 years and was not slated to be painted in the immediate future. Projects like this would typically rest on his shoulders. Principal Cotter said he was overwhelmed by the response from First Baptist to come in do what would have taken him an entire summer to do.
Because a small portion of our congregation was willing to give a few hours of their week, the students and teachers of RT Fisher will have a fresher coat of paint on their walls and hopefully a fresher perspective of Christ’s love.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Steady now!
I visited a blog recently that had some amazing content. The guy obviously is an expert in his field and he’s out there trying to help others succeed. He posted a video clip from a conference that he spoke at recently. Again, the content of the clip was amazing, however, the delivery system was not so impressive...it was almost annoying. They filmed it with a small hand-held video camera and were obviously in a large convention center. The camera shot was shaking the entire time and it was as wide a shot as they could get, you could barely see who was speaking. The chatter of the people in the background was almost as loud as the speaker’s voice and the loudspeakers overpowered the camera’s microphone.
If the quality of your video is so bad that people stop watching it, you’ll never get your message to them. So how do you create a video of a presentation that looks and sounds as good as the content that’s being delivered? I’m glad you asked...
1. Use a tripod. There’s nothing worse than a shaky shot...unless you’re filming an action movie. You can purchase a tripod for as little as $20. Trust me, your viewers will save that much in nausea medicine.
2. Frame your shot. Since your video will mostly be seen in a small box on your blog or website, make sure the speaker can be seen. Try a “head to waist” shot. If the speaker is antsy and wants to move around a lot, you’ll have to loosen (zoom out) your shot a little bit. You may even want to experiment with following the speaker as he moves around the stage (panning left and right)...but be careful that you’re not being shaky again!
3. Use a lav mic. Purchase a digital voice recorder with a lav mic (about $50). Even if you’re using another microphone while you speak, clip this mic on your shirt and press record just before you walk up to give your presentation. You should be able to import your video and your audio files into iMovie or another editing program and line them up with one another. You’ll get a much cleaner sounding video without all the background noise.
You’ll be amazed at how much difference these three steps will make in the overall look of your video presentation.
If the quality of your video is so bad that people stop watching it, you’ll never get your message to them. So how do you create a video of a presentation that looks and sounds as good as the content that’s being delivered? I’m glad you asked...
1. Use a tripod. There’s nothing worse than a shaky shot...unless you’re filming an action movie. You can purchase a tripod for as little as $20. Trust me, your viewers will save that much in nausea medicine.
2. Frame your shot. Since your video will mostly be seen in a small box on your blog or website, make sure the speaker can be seen. Try a “head to waist” shot. If the speaker is antsy and wants to move around a lot, you’ll have to loosen (zoom out) your shot a little bit. You may even want to experiment with following the speaker as he moves around the stage (panning left and right)...but be careful that you’re not being shaky again!
3. Use a lav mic. Purchase a digital voice recorder with a lav mic (about $50). Even if you’re using another microphone while you speak, clip this mic on your shirt and press record just before you walk up to give your presentation. You should be able to import your video and your audio files into iMovie or another editing program and line them up with one another. You’ll get a much cleaner sounding video without all the background noise.
You’ll be amazed at how much difference these three steps will make in the overall look of your video presentation.
Monday, March 9, 2009
Back from Montana...so now what?
Well, we made it back safely and I’ve had a few days now to digest our trip.
The seven days that we spent in Montana were simply amazing. We saw some of the most beautiful scenery that we have ever seen. We saw four churches getting outside their own walls to serve their communities and build relationships. We saw those communities embracing those relationships. And we saw God working through a few faithful people who said, “I will go”. We learned a lot about them, their ministries, and their strategies for using church plants to reach the 90% of Montanans that are unchurched.
So now what? We could mark that up as just another good experience and go about our lives or we could learn from what God showed us through these churches. The story that we were sent to cover was “Church Planting”, but the message God kept giving to me was “getting out into the community”. So that’s what we’re going to do.
Many of the ministries at First Baptist are out in our community partnering with schools, prisons, and other organizations and building relationships by serving them. Some First Media volunteers have joined in and served along side others from our church. But now it’s time for us to be intentional about getting out in the community and building those relationships.
As we learn about ways that First Baptist is involved in serving our community, First Media will be there to capture it via video and/or photos. And that doesn’t mean that Chad runs out with a camera every time there’s a service project...that means that WE (you and me) are out there filming the work that’s being done and capturing the stories of those who have chosen to serve. We’re in the process of developing outlets for sharing these stories with our congregation to encourage and challenge them in serving our community as well.
If you are interested in taking part in this ministry, please email me at cconger@fbchtn.org.
The seven days that we spent in Montana were simply amazing. We saw some of the most beautiful scenery that we have ever seen. We saw four churches getting outside their own walls to serve their communities and build relationships. We saw those communities embracing those relationships. And we saw God working through a few faithful people who said, “I will go”. We learned a lot about them, their ministries, and their strategies for using church plants to reach the 90% of Montanans that are unchurched.
So now what? We could mark that up as just another good experience and go about our lives or we could learn from what God showed us through these churches. The story that we were sent to cover was “Church Planting”, but the message God kept giving to me was “getting out into the community”. So that’s what we’re going to do.
Many of the ministries at First Baptist are out in our community partnering with schools, prisons, and other organizations and building relationships by serving them. Some First Media volunteers have joined in and served along side others from our church. But now it’s time for us to be intentional about getting out in the community and building those relationships.
As we learn about ways that First Baptist is involved in serving our community, First Media will be there to capture it via video and/or photos. And that doesn’t mean that Chad runs out with a camera every time there’s a service project...that means that WE (you and me) are out there filming the work that’s being done and capturing the stories of those who have chosen to serve. We’re in the process of developing outlets for sharing these stories with our congregation to encourage and challenge them in serving our community as well.
If you are interested in taking part in this ministry, please email me at cconger@fbchtn.org.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Montana - Day 7
Today was our final day in Montana. A snow storm came through and dumped more than 4 inches of snow in the Bozeman area and almost 8 inches in the pass between here and Livingston...which is where we drove this morning. It was a slow drive, but it was beautiful.
In Livingston we met with two couples: Paul & Christine Seddon and Cody & Tiffany Wood. They came from the east coast about two years ago to plant a church in Montana. Cornerstone Community Fellowship meets on Sundays in the local Red Roof Inn. They started with only 3 families and now have about 30 members. Cornerstone’s ministry is very missional. They are out serving the community and building relationships along the way. They have really challenged me to look at the ways I serve our community...and the ways I don’t serve it.
If you were watching Fox News this morning, you may have seen a story on a gas main explosion in downtown Bozeman, MT. The explosion originated in a bakery called Boodles and destroyed several surrounding buildings. David and I ate lunch across the street from Boodles yesterday and planned on being back in that area this morning since our video shoot wasn’t until 1:00 today...or so we thought. While talking with the Pastor Seddon, I realized that I had actually scheduled the shoot for 10:00 which kept us out of the area. So thank you for praying for us while we’ve been traveling...God has been faithful to keep us safe. Please pray for the citizens of Bozeman...this is a tight-knit community that has been struck hard by this tragedy. The last information we got from the local radio said that one person was still missing. Please pray for them and their family tonight.
In Livingston we met with two couples: Paul & Christine Seddon and Cody & Tiffany Wood. They came from the east coast about two years ago to plant a church in Montana. Cornerstone Community Fellowship meets on Sundays in the local Red Roof Inn. They started with only 3 families and now have about 30 members. Cornerstone’s ministry is very missional. They are out serving the community and building relationships along the way. They have really challenged me to look at the ways I serve our community...and the ways I don’t serve it.
If you were watching Fox News this morning, you may have seen a story on a gas main explosion in downtown Bozeman, MT. The explosion originated in a bakery called Boodles and destroyed several surrounding buildings. David and I ate lunch across the street from Boodles yesterday and planned on being back in that area this morning since our video shoot wasn’t until 1:00 today...or so we thought. While talking with the Pastor Seddon, I realized that I had actually scheduled the shoot for 10:00 which kept us out of the area. So thank you for praying for us while we’ve been traveling...God has been faithful to keep us safe. Please pray for the citizens of Bozeman...this is a tight-knit community that has been struck hard by this tragedy. The last information we got from the local radio said that one person was still missing. Please pray for them and their family tonight.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Montana - Day 5
This morning we traveled from the Missoula Valley five hours east to Billings. Along the way we crossed the Continental Divide, which I’ve always wanted to see...I was not disappointed!
In Billings we talked with 99-year-old Dr. Donald Held of Emmanuel Baptist Church. Dr. Held told us the story of his father going to the 1925 Southern Baptist Convention in Memphis. While there, Southern Baptists from across the country adopted a plan to raise funding for missionaries, thereby allowing them to stay in the field rather than returning home sporadically to raise funds. Today this ministry is known as the Cooperative Program. He also told us about his father’s part in starting the very first BSU. It’s amazing to see how God has used Dr. Held and his father over the last 100+ years. It was a good reminder that one person dedicated to God can truly make a difference in His Kingdom!
NERD ALERT: All non-nerds may want to tune me out for a minute!
Dr. Held was a Technical Theater/Speech Communications major in college. He went on later to teach in both of these areas, which eventually landed in him in Montana. While in college, Dr. Held assisted Dr. Theodore Fuchs in the creation and development of using sub-faders on lighting boards. Dr. Held’s and Dr. Fuchs’ designs changed the course of theatrical and production lighting processes forever!
In Billings we talked with 99-year-old Dr. Donald Held of Emmanuel Baptist Church. Dr. Held told us the story of his father going to the 1925 Southern Baptist Convention in Memphis. While there, Southern Baptists from across the country adopted a plan to raise funding for missionaries, thereby allowing them to stay in the field rather than returning home sporadically to raise funds. Today this ministry is known as the Cooperative Program. He also told us about his father’s part in starting the very first BSU. It’s amazing to see how God has used Dr. Held and his father over the last 100+ years. It was a good reminder that one person dedicated to God can truly make a difference in His Kingdom!
NERD ALERT: All non-nerds may want to tune me out for a minute!
Dr. Held was a Technical Theater/Speech Communications major in college. He went on later to teach in both of these areas, which eventually landed in him in Montana. While in college, Dr. Held assisted Dr. Theodore Fuchs in the creation and development of using sub-faders on lighting boards. Dr. Held’s and Dr. Fuchs’ designs changed the course of theatrical and production lighting processes forever!
Monday, March 2, 2009
Montana - Day 4
Today we traveled from Kalispell to Missoula. I know this is gonna shock you, but it was beautiful! We followed the edge of Flathead Lake for much of the way and just admired the post-card view. The mountains were reflecting in the perfectly calm water. To quote Forest Gump, “I couldn’t tell where the mountains stopped and the sky started.”
In Missoula we spent the day with Pastor Rich Ratts of Convergence Ministries. Convergence has targeted their ministry efforts toward the 24 and younger demographic which makes up 38% of Missoula’s 100,000 citizens.
More than 90% of this age group in the Missoula area is unchurched. Rich told us that “it’s not that they’re hostile toward the Gospel, they’re just ignorant of it.” Rich and his team are trying to change that...and it’s working.
We asked Rich to tell us more about the AA Church Planting Strategy. He said there are 14 AA school districts in the seven most-populated cities in Montana. The vision is to plant substantial churches that will make a large impact on these seven cities. It’s a monumental task that cannot be completed by just one or two church planters, so the AA Church Planting Strategy team is looking for others to come alongside them to pray, participate, provide and partner.
In Missoula we spent the day with Pastor Rich Ratts of Convergence Ministries. Convergence has targeted their ministry efforts toward the 24 and younger demographic which makes up 38% of Missoula’s 100,000 citizens.
More than 90% of this age group in the Missoula area is unchurched. Rich told us that “it’s not that they’re hostile toward the Gospel, they’re just ignorant of it.” Rich and his team are trying to change that...and it’s working.
We asked Rich to tell us more about the AA Church Planting Strategy. He said there are 14 AA school districts in the seven most-populated cities in Montana. The vision is to plant substantial churches that will make a large impact on these seven cities. It’s a monumental task that cannot be completed by just one or two church planters, so the AA Church Planting Strategy team is looking for others to come alongside them to pray, participate, provide and partner.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Montana - Day 3
Our four hour road trip this morning took us from Great Falls through the Blackfoot Indian Nation, along ice-covered roads on the edge of Glacier National Park, and through the Rocky Mountains to Kalispell. Just when we thought we had seen everything Montana had to offer, we’d drive around a curve and see something spectacular. God’s creativity is clearly evident in these mountains and rivers. I’m sure the locals aren’t as awe-struck as I have been over the last couple of days...but then again, I’m like them when I’m at home. I need to stop and enjoy the beauty of what God has given us in Middle Tennessee more often.
Once in Kalispell, we spotted moose (or is it mooses...or maybe moosi) everywhere - a moose statue in front of the bank, a moose statue in front of the sporting goods store, a moose statue in front of the pizza place, a moose statue’s head in the lobby of our hotel...this town loves moose statues!
But the reason we traveled to Kalispell was to talk with Pastor Daniel Lambert of Easthaven Baptist Church (he had an elk head and a mule dear head in his office, but no moosi). He told us about his church’s vision for sending people out to minister to the lost through church plants. They are doing so locally (literally planting another church in Kalispell), throughout Montana and around the world.
In the Kalispell church plant, Easthaven sent 120 of their 450 members to start the new church and to make sure they would make an impact on the part of the community they were trying to reach. He said they were scared of the negative impact that would have on their congregation and their budget, but knew that God was in control and that “when He guides, He provides”. Within 6 months, their giving was back on track and within a year their attendance was surpassing 500.
But Easthaven isn’t just throwing darts at a map to decide when and where to plant churches, they have a strategy...and their strategy is catching on. Tomorrow we’ll talk with another church planter who has worked closely with Pastor Lambert in developing the AA Church Planting Strategy in Montana.
Once in Kalispell, we spotted moose (or is it mooses...or maybe moosi) everywhere - a moose statue in front of the bank, a moose statue in front of the sporting goods store, a moose statue in front of the pizza place, a moose statue’s head in the lobby of our hotel...this town loves moose statues!
But the reason we traveled to Kalispell was to talk with Pastor Daniel Lambert of Easthaven Baptist Church (he had an elk head and a mule dear head in his office, but no moosi). He told us about his church’s vision for sending people out to minister to the lost through church plants. They are doing so locally (literally planting another church in Kalispell), throughout Montana and around the world.
In the Kalispell church plant, Easthaven sent 120 of their 450 members to start the new church and to make sure they would make an impact on the part of the community they were trying to reach. He said they were scared of the negative impact that would have on their congregation and their budget, but knew that God was in control and that “when He guides, He provides”. Within 6 months, their giving was back on track and within a year their attendance was surpassing 500.
But Easthaven isn’t just throwing darts at a map to decide when and where to plant churches, they have a strategy...and their strategy is catching on. Tomorrow we’ll talk with another church planter who has worked closely with Pastor Lambert in developing the AA Church Planting Strategy in Montana.
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