CreativePastors Blog & Podcast

Sexual Revolution Series Banner

Because our church is located in a high-traffic area, signage is one of our most effective ways to build awareness about what is happening at Fellowship Church. As we have with key series in the past, we posted a large banner on the side of the building to promote the launch of our current Sexual Revolution series. Though connecting church and sex seems controversial to some, this series reminds us that sex is God's idea and that the church is the second-best place (after the home) to learn about it. If you haven't caught these messages yet, don't miss out!

Podcast > Sexual Revolution > Heaven on Earth

Good or bad, right or wrong, the word sex conjures up a variety of images and ideas in everyone’s mind. But are those images and ideas the right ones? Or have we missed the larger picture of what sex is designed to be?

In this message, Ed Young shows us that when we learn to associate it with the right things, sex takes on a new level of meaning and influence in our lives. And by putting sex in the right place, we can actually experience heaven on earth.

To listen now, click on the podcast icon below.

Length: 32:14

Sexual Revolution Series
God designed it. Culture redefined it. But who got it right? It's time to put the bed back in the church and the church back in the bed. In this series, Ed Young helps us get back to God’s incredible design for sex, beginning with the important realization that He created this life-uniting gift. Focusing on when to, how to, and who to enjoy sex with, this powerful teaching series promises to revolutionize your perspective on sex, whether you are married or single, a parent or not.

Sexual Revolution

CreativePastors

If you have iTunes 6.0, click the link below to subscribe to our podcast. Twenty-four hours after Ed delivers his weekend message at Fellowship Church, it will be downloaded to your computer automatically. You can listen at your computer or take the MP3 with you on your iPod or other MP3 player.

If you don't have iTunes, you can get it here free for Mac or Windows. You can also subscribe to the podcast using other podcasting tools and RSS newsreaders. The feed address is: http://feeds.feedburner.com/cpblog.

Revolutionary

You say you want a revolution?

Those familiar words from the Beatles set the tone for the first message of our Sexual Revolution series last weekend at Fellowship Church. Because, as Ed explained, a revolution is a sudden change - and we're seeking a change for the better. Between the series banner on the side of our Worship Center building, a bed prominently placed in the middle of the stage, a widely distributed direct mail piece and Ed's candid Stripped sermon, this series has been generating plenty of feedback at Fellowship Church. Check it out in this week's podcast, and be sure to subscribe (for free!) so you can catch the series as it unfolds each week.

Coming soon to Atlanta

There's still time to register for one of our last Regional C3 Conferences this year. On Monday, October 2, Fellowship Church will be hosting the Regional Creative Church Conference at Free Chapel in Gainesville, Georgia. This is a phenomenal opportunity to gather your team and get refreshed and refocused together - admission is just $325 per church, regardless of the size of your group. It's a one-day event featuring Ed's teaching in the morning, a special luncheon for senior pastors and their spouses, and breakout sessions with FC staff in the afternoon. Learn more here.

And if you're in the neighborhood, consider attending Free Chapel's Sunday evening worship service at 6pm on October 1, where Ed will be the guest speaker. It's a free event, so bring your family and friends!

Your Stories: Launching a Church in Massachusetts

One of the joys of partnering with church leaders throughout the world is hearing your success stories and sharing your "Yeah, God!" moments. This week brought such a story from Pastor David Payne, who just launched Lifesong Church in Millbury, Massachusetts. Check out his account from their opening weekend:

"We have been planning our church launch for the last 12 months - working on raising funds, putting together our team, finding facilities, etc. When asked by one of my coaches if I'd picked my first series yet, I said that I hadn't but was looking at several. Finally I made the decision and picked 'Pronoun' as the opening series and 'why i' as the second one. I wanted to have the media content and the skeletons all set so I could focus on the flesh and the function following launch sunday. Well we launched on 9/10/06 and it was PHENOMENAL. We had about 420 people at our launch in Worcester, MA - New England, man... that don't happen up here unless God does the work. Anyway, I am preaching the 'You' message day after tomorrow - of course adapting to my own experiences - but the response to week one was unbelieveable and the media resources are top shelf. Thanks for sharing your creativity as a springboard for my own. God bless you guys...."

Thank you, David, for passing on the awesome story of your church launch. Make sure to keep us posted on your progress! And we know Millbury, Massachusetts isn't the only place where God is doing amazing things - let us know what your church is experiencing!

Podcast > Sexual Revolution > Stripped

Sex. We all think about it. Many of us even convince ourselves that we’ve got it all figured out. But that mentality has stripped us of something basic in our lives—our humanity.

Sex is multifaceted. It’s more complex than we like to admit. And in this message, we learn to look at sex from a new perspective and strip it down to what it really is.

To listen now, click on the podcast icon below.

Length: 32:50

Sexual Revolution Series
God designed it. Culture redefined it. But who got it right? It's time to put the bed back in the church and the church back in the bed. In this series, Ed Young helps us get back to God’s incredible design for sex, beginning with the important realization that He created this life-uniting gift. Focusing on when to, how to, and who to enjoy sex with, this powerful teaching series promises to revolutionize your perspective on sex, whether you are married or single, a parent or not.

Sexual Revolution

CreativePastors

If you have iTunes 6.0, click the link below to subscribe to our podcast. Twenty-four hours after Ed delivers his weekend message at Fellowship Church, it will be downloaded to your computer automatically. You can listen at your computer or take the MP3 with you on your iPod or other MP3 player.

If you don't have iTunes, you can get it here free for Mac or Windows. You can also subscribe to the podcast using other podcasting tools and RSS newsreaders. The feed address is: http://feeds.feedburner.com/cpblog.

Miami Followup

Here's a link to the Miami Fall Kickoff recap on our FC website - check out the photos to get a feel for the campus.

Insight from New Campus

We've had some great feedback about this morning's Creative Leader Newsletter, so in case you missed out, here's the content from the latest issue. And if you're not signed up to receive our newsletters, you can do it here - for free!

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Ed Young's Creative Leader Newsletter - September

Over the weekend we celebrated an incredible movement of God during the Fall Kickoff at our Fellowship Church Miami Campus. After weeks of community outreach and preparation, we were excited to welcome over 600 people in our two Sunday services during the official grand opening weekend.

Opening this campus has really taken us back to our roots as a small church when we started in an Irving, Texas office complex with 150 people. We began with an even smaller base in Miami and have already experienced amazing growth. And though things are definitely different in a small church, the underlying approach we use for all five of our campuses remains the same. We're employing creativity and personal interaction to reach out and touch one life at a time. Here are a few highlights from our recent efforts in Florida:

• We're investing in marketing. We knew that direct mail in Miami would have greater potential impact than in other regions where the church advertising market is more saturated. To coordinate with our Miami campaign of Refuel, Refresh, Redefine, we sent out a direct mail piece that visitors could Redeem at the church for a $5 gas card. When it landed in homes, we experienced a significant increase in phone calls.
• Banners and signage outside the church are worth every penny. Many visitors have told us that they saw our signs and logged on to our Miami campus website for more information. We made sure the front page of that site is very easy to navigate with important information prominently displayed, and also included content that would give them a taste of the Fellowship Miami experience.
• We're also taking advantage of free marketing. Because of a press release we filed two weeks ago with national and local news agencies, the Miami Herald was on site covering our Kickoff Weekend. Read the full article (available for a limited time).
• Nothing beats one-on-one dialogue. Whether we are in local stores, restaurants or just waiting in line somewhere, we strike up conversations with the people around us. Building relationships within the community is the most successful form of outreach available. While stopping at a coffee shop, one of our staff members started chatting with an employee there and ended up handing her an invite card. That weekend, not only did she visit for the first time, but she brought her entire family along.
• We work the phones. This is something we've been doing since day one of Fellowship Church. Our staff personally calls each first time visitor. And we're making a special effort to call in the evenings so we can actually talk to the visitors, answer questions and invite them back.
• We've used the questions people ask us to guide our marketing. We noticed that many of the people we talked to in Miami asked us, "What kind of church is it?" So in our promotional materials and signage for this campus we've added the fact that we are a Christian church.
• We're making the best of the space we've got. We know that our overall vision for this environment will take time to achieve. But we are taking immediate, easy steps (and lots of volunteer elbow grease) to upgrade the campus by planting additional landscaping and applying fresh paint. Instead of traditional white-skirted tables, we've brought in some more modern wood tables for hospitality areas. We're adding music, Cuban coffee and local pastries to create a welcoming atmosphere. And we're fanatical about keeping the facility sparkling clean!
• Friendliness is irreplaceable. A positive attitude and huge smile are tremendous assets in attracting people to any church. We have a team of floaters (greeters) who circulate throughout the entrance and areas outside the worship center, so visitors usually are engaged in several conversations before they sit down. The parking lot entrance is flanked by greeters who wave at passing traffic and incoming cars. In fact, we just talked to some visitors recently who said they turned around and came back because we waved at them!

I'm so excited by what's going on at the Miami campus and the opportunities there to see lives changed. We'll continue to keep you updated on what God's doing through this effort, so stop back here regularly for upcoming articles. And check our Assmilation Kit or Leadership Uncensored resources for more information on assimilation and satellite campus growth. We know God is doing great things at your churches as well, so be sure to share your stories with us!

Podcast > Clueless > Stumped

Anyone familiar with boating knows the danger of underwater obstacles. Logs, weeds and stumps can catch the motor or penetrate the hull, keeping you from the freedom of the open water.

The same is true in life. Subsurface issues so often bring everything we know to a standstill. And no matter how much we rock the boat, we cannot set ourselves free.

In this message, Ed Young shows us that when we tap into the power of God’s promises, we can curl our toes over the bow of the boat, dive in and go subsurface to get free from the stumps that are holding us back.

To listen now, click on the podcast icon below.

Length: 29:05

Clueless Series
Our society is trained on empty promises and broken vows. And because of that, we are clueless of the real meaning, power and influence that promises can have. We don't understand that they can change everything.

In this series, Ed Young takes us on a journey to encounter the truth about God's promises and the radical changes that can occur when we learn to trust in Him.

Clueless

CreativePastors

If you have iTunes 6.0, click the link below to subscribe to our podcast. Twenty-four hours after Ed delivers his weekend message at Fellowship Church, it will be downloaded to your computer automatically. You can listen at your computer or take the MP3 with you on your iPod or other MP3 player.

If you don't have iTunes, you can get it here free for Mac or Windows. You can also subscribe to the podcast using other podcasting tools and RSS newsreaders. The feed address is: http://feeds.feedburner.com/cpblog.

Next Elevate Series Available Now

Get ready for an epic adventure with the heroes of the Bible, because the next Elevate series is now shipping! Heroes, the latest release for our Elevate Children’s Curriculum, uses a fun, creative approach to teach biblical values like truth, generosity, forgiveness and loyalty. Follow the exciting stories of Noah, Nehemiah, Nathan and David, Jacob and Esau, Esther, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and more during this 8-week series. So grab your mask and cape and join us as we fight injustice with the inspiration of the heroes from the Bible! Click here to order or find out more about Elevate.