Archive for September, 2007
Show & Tell vs. Hide & Seek
Do you remember “Show & Tell” when you were a kid? It was always a hit! It seemed to be the teacher’s wild card. I, personally, believe that an extremely creative teacher with poor planning skills invented it . . . “Guess what tomorrow is class?—Show & Tell!” Translation: “I am way behind in my lesson planning and kids love to talk about the things they love!” And “Show & Tell” was born. The key to its success is that people love to make known to others the things they really value. But I think it taught us all something really dangerous. To some degree, it programmed us to value only the things that are cool or fun or pretty, and, by default, taught us to keep the other stuff hidden.
Which reminds me of another classic from childhood: “Hide & Seek.” This one is timeless. In fact, I recently heard about a group of 20-somethings at Buckhead Church who’ve been playing this at one of our Fusion leader’s homes on the weekends. From what I understand, they even mix it up every once in a while and play one of my favorite variations of this classic— “Sardines.” That’s where one person hides and everyone else tries to find him, and once he is found, everyone else joins him until the last person discovers the group.
I’m not a psychologist, and I’m not trying to suggest that these games are evil . . . that would be weird! I’m just wondering if our communities reflect these games more than they do what God desires for us. I reflexively move toward hiding and away from showing and telling . . . especially when it comes to the not-so-pretty aspects of life. It’s easier and less embarrassing, but also very lonely.
Personal confession has been practiced in the church for generations. Some church denominations are better about making a habit of their everyday faith practices than others, but, truthfully, none of us really enjoy it. But it is something that is ESSENTIAL for growing faith communities. As I was reflecting on some of the things God has been teaching me lately, the thought that came to me was, “Who am I telling . . . the good, the bad, and the ugly, as they say, of what God is revealing to me, about me, my relationships, my priorities, my character?
So last week, I decided to stop hiding and start showing and telling in my community group. It was awesome! So without a ton of detail, here’s what’s up with me…
• Through Don Miller at the Labor Day Retreat, God revealed to me that I am finding validation in people, stuff, and my achievements. God is teaching me that finding freedom is finding that validation in Him—Alone!
• Through Andy’s series How to Be Rich, God is teaching me that not only am I rich, but that I use my riches more for me than anyone else.
• Through my wife and son, God is teaching me that I am prioritizing the wrong things, that His will for my life is to be a reflection of Him and that is more about being a husband to my wife and a father to my son than it is about being a pastor in our church.
Those are some of the things God is teaching me . . . it is messy, hard, and incredibly freeing to reveal!
What about you? This is your invitation to “Show & Tell?” Comments???
joel thomas
director of college & singles
From Buckhead to Baghdad
Yesterday we closed out the four-part series, “How to be Rich.” This was a perspective-altering series for many of us. As one person told me after the 11 am service, “I think this series has changed my life. I’ll never view my resources the same way ever again.”
If you weren’t with us over the last four weeks, you really need to listen to the messages on-line.
Before we move on to the next series, I want us to wrestle with the tension of the following question: What are we going to DO?” Let’s not squander the momentum God has created over the last four weeks. Let’s do something. After all, we’re rich.
Yesterday at Buckhead, I mentioned an idea to that effect. My friend and fellow staff member Kendra Fleming is working on a project to provide school supplies to 30 schools in Baghdad. That’s right, Baghdad, as in Iraq. She was looking for some staff members to help contribute and then I thought of the thousands that attend Buckhead Church. What would happen if we came to the rescue?
Well, that’s what we’re going to find out. We are asking each person or family to provide school supplies. We’re working through the details right now and will have more information on the blog tomorrow. In the meantime, discuss this with your small group, friends or family and think about what you can to do.
After all, we want to be a church that is rich in good deeds.
Thanks!
Jeff Henderson
Campus Director
You’re a Winner, Buckhead Church
Congratulations everyone. Your generosity, commitment, and passion for our mission are being recognized in a variety of ways. The latest happened Wednesday night at the Georgia Aquarium as the Urban Land Institute presented Buckhead Church with its Project of Excellence Award. The ULI recognizes development projects that stand out as examples of “smart growth through the responsible use of land and in creating and sustaining thriving communities.”
Consider this. On Wednesday night, over 700 members of the Urban Land Institute gathered together to hear the unique story of what God is doing through you at Buckhead Church. Wow.
I thought you might enjoy seeing your award. Congratulations.
And remember, it’s not about Buckhead Church. It’s about Buckhead.
Jeff Henderson
Campus Director
SINGLES LABOR DAY RETREAT
If you missed it . . . well, you really missed it!!
Over 900 of us from North Point, Buckhead, and Browns Bridge returned last week from our annual Singles retreat in beautiful Destin, Florida—almost 600 were from Buckhead Church alone!
The weekend was full of opportunities to connect by competing in golf, tennis, and volleyball tournaments, as well as beach Olympics and moonlit Ultimate Frisbee for those who like to be active. Our “lounge” was a more laid-back environment where people connected with friends, watched football games, and enjoyed live music.
SHIFT was the theme of the weekend, built around the messages of Donald Miller, author of the New York Times bestseller Blue Like Jazz, who joined us as our main speaker (http://www.donaldmillerwords.com/). 
Kristian Stanfill and his band engaged us each session in passionate worship, partnering with Don as he attempted to “shift” our perspective on those outside the church. Some of it was profoundly basic, like “other people exist” and “people won’t listen to you unless they know you like them.” And some of it was very fresh and insightful, like “introducing someone to the gospel is about introducing them to a being, not a system of beliefs.” The most critical, perspective-shifting concept for me was this: “If we don’t find deep, true validation in God, we won’t truly love those we are trying to reach with the gospel. We’ll only use them to feel validated ourselves as ‘good Christians.’” 
We also partnered with Nathan George and Trade As One, a nonprofit organization that uses sustainable businesses to address the issue of global poverty by selling high-quality products made in developing countries in the American consumer market. This is an excerpt from an email Nathan sent out after the retreat:
Our target for the weekend was to sell $13,000. We sold precisely $20,212.50. Given that about $6,000 in sales provides a job for a full year, North Point, Buckhead, and Browns Bridge declared the year of the Lord’s favor to three women in about five hours of frantic activity at the boutique.
How cool is it that in five hours God used the consumer dollars of our community to rescue three women from having to prostitute themselves in order to provide life’s basic necessities for them and their families. For more information on Trade As One, or to purchase their products and join the cause, click on http://tradeasone.com/content/view/33/89/.
We concluded the weekend with worship and communion on the beach, with the baptism of over 40 people. There has been an incredible response to the weekend, and as the Singles pastor at Buckhead Church, I’m excited to see how God will use it in our lives to impact our community.
joel thomas
director of college & singles
MARRIEDLIFE LIVE THIS WEEKEND…ANOTHER FIRST!
The last six months at Buckhead Church have been full of “firsts.” We opened the doors in May for our first services at our new home in Tower Place. This summer brought our first Starting Point classes, GroupLinks, summer camps, and the first Promotion Sunday for children. This Saturday (Sept 15), we are excited to roll out . . . our FIRST-EVER MARRIEDLIFE LIVE in the new building!
MarriedLife Live is an awesome quarterly event that offers married couples an evening of laughter, great music, and the creative presentation of relevant truths to empower and enrich their marriages! MarriedLife Live is for married couples of all ages . . . from newlyweds to empty nesters! This weekend’s MarriedLife Live is all about communication and is shaping up to be one of the best events we’ve ever offered! Trust me when I say you don’t want to miss it!
We have a ton more room in our new building for MarriedLife Live to grow! This is why we need your help in two specific ways…
1. ATTEND and BRING SOME FRIENDS! I know this is kind of last-minute, but it is not too late to attend this weekend! Talk it over with your spouse and then invite some friends, neighbors, and folks in your community group. Typically, we want you to buy tickets in advance ($12 each), but this time around, simply arrive at the auditorium at Buckhead Church around 7 p.m., and you can buy them at the door!
2. As this environment grows, we are going to need people to VOLUNTEER TO HELP us make it happen! It is a great way to “give back,” but also to meet some other great couples in the process! For every MarriedLife Live, we specifically need help with set-up (typically on the Thursday before the event), hosting and greeting at the event (in the auditorium and parking lot), and breaking down after the event.
If you have questions or want to volunteer, simply email Katie.Peters@buckheadchurch.org and we’ll get you plugged in! If you can’t make this one, be sure to put Saturday, November 3, on the calendar for the next one! We hope to see you this week at the very first MarriedLife Live in Tower Place!
Billy
Billy Phenix
Director of Family Ministry/MarriedLife
Buckhead Church
