Just found this interesting stat from the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project. They found that commercial use of the Internet continues to grow…

“with 58% of Americans now reporting that they perform online research concerning the products and services that they are considering purchasing.”

I suspect that if most Americans perform online research before purchasing a product or service, they very likely also perform online research before deciding to visit a church.

That, of course, begs the question: If people visited your website, would they visit your church?

Five years ago, I wrote about 10 easy ways to keep me from visiting your church because I visited your website. If you were coaching churches today, what would the new list look like?

I’m really excited about this opportunity. William and I are working with Harvest Church in Billings, MT to locate their new Next Gen Pastor. This person will oversee the kid’s and student ministry areas with the help of a capable staff and volunteer leadership team.

In its ten-year history, Harvest has become known for its impact within the community. Harvest is a church that lives out its faith in tangible ways. Their track record speaks for itself. The average attendance across all campuses exceeds 2,500, with the majority of the church having been previously unchurched. Check out this video from Vern Streeter, their lead pastor, sharing a little more about their story:

One of four campuses, Harvest’s main campus is in the Heights area of Billings. I’ve been there in recent weeks. Great community. In fact, it was voted #3 on the 100 best places to raise a family by Best Life Magazine. If family life and outdoor activity are priorities for you, Billings may be the place for you and your family.

If you’re interested in the position, you can upload your resume to our secure site, or email William Vanderbloemen directly. Don’t worry. We’ll keep everything confidential.

In case you didn’t know, I partner with The Vanderbloemen Search Group, a retained executive search firm, to help churches find their key staff. I’m frequently helping large, fast-growing churches with a focus on reaching the unchurched. If your church needs assistance in this sort of search, feel free to contact me.

On what constitutes a bad hire:

“Someone that’s bad for the culture. They can end up really bringing down morale, and it has this ripple effect that can spread like a cancer. It’s something we need to act on early and as quickly as possible. There’s the temptation to hire any warm body that can meet the technical requirements. Most companies, including us, tend to hire too quickly and then fire too slowly, when it really should be the other way around.”

Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappos, as quoted on Alister & Paine (August 19, 2010)

I think you’re going to enjoy this brief video from Steven Johnson talking about where good ideas come from.

(HT: Lifehacker)

Here’s your chance to see the newest Disney movie before everyone else does. I’m offering you exclusive, advance tickets to Disney’s Secretariat, coming to theaters everywhere October 8. Check out the trailer, then I’ll give you the details on how you can see the film before your friends do:

Here’s how to get the advance tickets:

1. Go to U See It First click on “Register Now”.
2. Register your name, password, email and closest city.
3. Use this code: TONYMORGANLIVE
4. Select “Find a Screening” at the top of the page.
5. Then select “Secretariat”.
6. Choose one of the screening options and the number of tickets requested (up to four).
7. A confirmation email will be sent to your and their email automatically.

If you have any questions about obtaining the tickets, email help@useeitfirst.com. And, if you attend one of the screenings, let me know your reaction to the new film.

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btw… I really appreciate my friends at Different Drummer giving me the opportunity to see the film and interview Randall Wallace out at Disney Studios. You may want to check out more of their projects.

A few weeks ago, I shared an interview with former mobster Michael Franzese. Since then, ABC’s Nightline picked up his story. Check out the segment below:

In case you’re interested, here’s Michael’s reaction to the segment.

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This is a sponsored post from Outreach Events, one of my ministry partners on TonyMorganLive.com. Michael is one of many guest speakers and comedians Outreach connects with churches and ministry organizations to bring a fresh voice to their events and Sunday services.

Over the last 40 years, my friends and strategic partners at Cogun have partnered with hundreds of churches and ministries. They’re a pretty knowledgable bunch when it comes to church expansion. With that in mind, I invited them to share with me some key considerations every church should know about expansion. Here’s the list they offered:

1. Clarity is king. Know who you are, who you’re called to reach, and then over-communicate it. This is the rudder that will allow you to end up with the right expansion when it’s done.
2. Expansion options abound. Additional services, multi-site campuses, church mergers and building expansion/relocation are all great possibilities.
3. Understand the budget. When you build new facilities, the building itself is only part of the total cost. Non-building costs can add up to 20 to 40 percent of your total costs.
4. Choose partners wisely. Look for people who have done what you want to do, and choose individuals who you would be proud to have on your staff for a few years.
5. Start your financing plan now. Cash flow is the new benchmark for lending institutions, so begin increasing your monthly surplus immediately. Cash has been king; cash flow is now the emperor.
6. Remember to staff adequately. A new expansion project will require additional staff and/or training when it’s complete. Think through the learning curve on new building and technical equipment.
7. Prepare your congregation. Give mental pictures of the new space and cast vision of the changed lives that will result. Always tie it back to who you are and who you’re called to reach (see #1).
8. Don’t always hire the expert. Choose people with vision first and technical expertise second. Your team should focus on how vision is translating.
9. Observe, don’t emulate. See what others have done, but realize it’s based on their vision and may be outdated already. Look for the transferrable principles that relate to your church.
10. If you’re growing, start planning now. Develop interim growth options and start planning the new facility now. It will likely be two to three years until you occupy a new building so keep your momentum going.

Cogun acts as a liaison between churches and independent architectural firms to consult churches on the best building and expansion projects. Beginning in the drafting and budgeting phase through post-construction, a team of professionals manages the project along with church leadership.

If you’re interested in learning more about their consulting process, I’d love to connect you with their team. Shoot me an email, and I’ll make sure someone at Cogun keeps the conversation rolling.

“I think the number one thing I do is the ‘V2MOM’ process. It stands for the vision, the values, the methods, the obstacles and the measures. Each of one of those five things also connects to five questions. Vision, what do I want? Values, what’s most important about it? Methods, how do I get it? Obstacles, what will prevent us from having it? And measures, how will we know we have it?”

Marc Benioff, Chairman and CEO of Salesforce.com, as quoted on ABC News (July 22, 2010)

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to connect with some of the denominational leadership of the Assemblies of God. Unlike many denominations, the Assemblies of God are still seeing growth. One of the primary reasons for that is their commitment to planting churches. Check out these stats:

• Through mid-June, the denomination had already planted 113 churches in 2010.
• By the end of the year, they’re projecting that they’ll plant 300 new churches.
• Their goal is to ultimately plant 500 new churches a year…just so they can keep up with population growth.

When I hear stories like this, it makes me excited that Mac Lake is pulling together a team and a strategy to plant churches throughout the country through The Launch Network. We need more healthy churches.

At the same time, I get kind of frustrated thinking about how most denominations use their resources. Typically denominations take money from the most vibrant churches to subsidize the dead and dying churches. I wonder what would happen if denominations shared the same commitment that the Assemblies of God has to planting new churches.

Of course, that’s tough to do when your institution is structured to preserve the past.

“Get smart! Your leaders are handing you a pack of lies and you’re swallowing them! Use your heads! Do you think you can rob, murder, have sex with all the neighborhood wives, tell lies nonstop, worship the local gods, and buy every novel religious commodity on the market–and then march into this Temple, set apart for my worship, and say, ‘We’re safe!’ –thinking that the place itself gives you a license to go on with all this outrageous sacrilege?” Jeremiah 7:8-10 (MSG)

This is not a typical post for me. But when I read those verses they cut to my very heart. How many times am I guilty of the same kind of hypocrisy that Jeremiah is ranting about?

I live however I want to all week long, get up Sunday morning, go to church, and I think I’m safe. Or how about this- I go to church, and I babysit the preschoolers during the second service? and I feed the homeless once a month. And I tithe, usually.
In Hosea 6:6, God says, “I desire love, not sacrifice; knowledge of God, rather than burnt offerings.” This was the same problem Jesus had with the Pharisees. They followed all the religious rules, were very active in the local synagogue, but their hearts were far from God. I think many of them had good intentions. But God doesn’t ask us for good intentions. He asks us for our lives.

Imagine going to the doctor and saying, “I’ve got these weird red dots all over me. Can you help me?” After a quick examination, the doc says, “You’ve got the chicken pox. I’ll prescribe you a pill that will kill the infection inside you, and after time, the dots will disappear.” But you reply, “No, I don’t want the pill. I just want something for the red dots. I was thinking some calamine lotion, or maybe a jumbo pack of band-aids.”

We want God to heal us on the surface, the place everyone can see, and we don’t let Him into the place where the real infection is. We tell people, “After I got saved, I became a happier person. I understood I had meaning. I felt loved.” Those are great parts of salvation. But I think we’re missing something: Sin separates us from God. Jesus died and rose again so that in him we can defeat sin and be reunited with God.

God’s not interested in anyone following the rules for the sake of following the rules. He wants to get to the infection–the thoughts and beliefs that make us rebel–rather than just treat the red bumps.

Don’t you want to hear testimonies where people say, “Through God’s power I’ve been delivered from my addiction to pornography?” “Jesus took away my need to constantly compare myself to others.” “I used to avoid conflict in my marriage. But now that I’m a Christian, God’s been teaching me that my marriage is worth fighting for. I actually love my husband and my kids more than ever.”

I want to come to Jesus “as I am”, but I want to leave and be different. We will never be perfect this side of heaven, oh the freedom we could experience if we let God transform our souls from the inside out!

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This guest blog was submitted by Lindsey Weber, a researcher, writer, editor on our team. Thanks Lindsey!