Emotion is the Superhighway to meaning - Conversational Marketing - Part 5

So we're rolling now... the book is, "Beyond Buzz," by Lois Kelly. Here's what she says in chapter 2: "Emotions strongly influence whether a person will believe or take action." Wow. Did you catch that? Emotions strongly influence whether a person will BELIEVE..." We have to move people on an emotional level in our church environments. She says:

1. Personal stories move emotion. Jesus was a story teller. He loved to move people with a story. So often Jesus told stories that allowed people to sense and feel themselves in the story.


2. We shouldn't fear emotion. Too often, we fear allowing people to see the "emotional us." We think that if they see us cry or laugh or be angry over sin, etc. that that emotion will be perceived as weak. How untrue. In fact, it actually adds credibility to our leadership if used appropriately.


3. Use Emotion to communicate Love. That's huge.


4. Emotion communcates Passion. When people see us emotional, they are able to better see and understand the passion that rests in our heart for lost people and for God.


5. Emotion motivates people. If we truly want to mobilize people in our churches to live like Jesus lived, then we have to lead with emotion.


6. Emotion unites people around ideas. Nothing brings unity like a common cause that moves the emotions. We have seen this time and time again at NLC. People love to rally around ideas that are emotion filled!

? How can you begin to infiltrate emotion into your communcation in your organization?

Just an emotional bloggish thought,

Matt

4 Things People need, to Understand Information - Conversational Marketing - Part 4

In "Beyond Buzz," Lois Kelly, gets it done when it comes to making the message of our businesses (read churches) known in our communities. She of course is writing to a business context, but I think we can learn much from her as it relates to our ability to provide "Meaningful Conversations" about what God is doing for the people of our churches. In chapter 2, she gives 4 things that must be present in order for people to pay attention, understand what is being said, and then process and remember it. (read internalize the message and see it actually change their life.) The more I read this book, the more I think it could be used in preaching classes in seminaries across the country!

1. Relevancy. Because of the overwhelming volume of information that people are exposed to today, we humans have an innate "filter" on all the time that is asking, "What does this mean to me? If people can't correlate what we're talking about to where they live, they zone out pretty quick". Wow.


2. Emotion. She says that neurologists have proved that Emotion is "the most powerful ingredient for understanding." In other words, we live in a culture that is screaming out, "I dare you to move me!" Is it possible that we aren't "moving" people with the words we're saying? The other part of emotion is asking, "how does this make me feel? Do I feel stronger? more powerful? more hope-filled then when I came in? Excellent questions for pastors and communicators. People are dying to be inspired to become all that God wants for them to become!!!


3. Context. People want to know how what we're talking about fits into the larger picture of life in general and into the larger picture of their life. Again, we can't just desiminate information for information's sake. It has to be placed against the backdrop of their larger lives. Asking questions like, "What arena are our listeners operating in on a daily basis? Am I speaking to that context?


4. Pattern-Making. Experts say that the human brain is constantly processing information by looking for patterns. We long for order and consistency. This is connecting the dots for people. We can't assume that people can automatically apply what they're hearing and receiving in our messages. We must help make application for them. The easiest way to do this is by turning statements into questions. You'll notice that I've done that throughout this blog. Make it personal through a question. Ready... here I go. ? Am I as a communicator, providing an opportunity for listeners to make it personal to their everyday lives? The answer to the question is the action step for people this week.

You may want to forward this to every public speaker and communicator you know!

Just a Preaching Bloggish thought,

Matt

Why Conversational Marketing Matters to Churches - Part 3

If you're just joining the party, you might want to back up and catch the first 2 installments of the Conversational Marketing conversation we've been having. We're disecting a book called, "Beyond Buzz," by Lois Kelly, and I'm unpacking what I think it's got to do with the world of NLC, church, and church planting, etc.

In chapter 1, she unpacks Why Conversational Marketing Matters. I love this stuff... listen to this...

1. Less consumer trust


2. Technology


3. The struggle to make sense out of so many choices and so much information

Isn't that true of people in our culture and spirituality? They have lost trust in so many tranditional religious institutions that once were pillars of our society. Technology is effecting the way we live everyday and undoubtedly effects people's spiritual lives. And we live in a world of "so many choices & so much information" when it comes to spiritual things. People don't know where to find the Truth! That's why this stuff matters so much! We've got to provide avenues for our church people to have meaningful conversations with others who are searching and desiring to know what God wants for their lives!

Listen to this quote: "Today communicating is direct and informal. Just as business dress (read church dress) has turned casual in all but a handful of major urban areas (read churches), so has business communications (read sermons). We often tune out the overly formal in favor of people who are more direct and plainspoken." Oh baby, that's just ridiculous!!! I love that! People want to hear the truths of God's Word in 2 ways: 1) Direct & 2) Plainspoken.

In other words, "Don't dress it all up and fancify it, just tell me the truth and let me make my own decision about it!" Come on! ? Where are we "dressing it all up" in our presentation of the message in our company, church, or world?

I gotta throw in one more quote, just cause it's so good. Listen to this... "When we're trying to understand new ideas, emotion and feelings play a big role in our decisions." Here's what that means. When someone who is new to the things of God is trying to understand them, they need it to be emotional... aka with passion!!! It's so true isn't it?!? I think that's what people love about NLC, they see so many people who are absolutely passionate about the things of God and living their lives in such a way that God is passionately glorified! We'll talk more about this in the next blog, but for now, consider this:

? How can you add emotion and passion to the conversations you're having around your world?

Yet another conversational bloggish thought,

Matt

I Almost hit a Gator on my Bike!!!

I had to interrupt our "Conversational Marketing" stuff to tell you what happened to me this morning! I almost hit a gator while I was on my bike! Here's how it all went down...

Facts: 6:10 am...

It's still pitch black outside...

This is day 4 of my "bike riding, get in shape, stop living unconsciously" campaign...

Once I leave my addition and cross the main road, I kick it into high gear...

The sidewalk I ride on runs right next to a bunch of ponds...

That's when it all went down...

I had just started to ride hard and of course the sidwalk is pitch black, so I'm looking ahead to make sure there are no oncoming bicycles headed toward me since I'm flying at this point. That's when I see this "log shaped" object in the middle of the sidewalk ahead. I gave it one of those "squinting glances" to try and see what it was. THAT'S WHEN IT STARTED TO MOVE!!!

IT WAS A GATOR!!! I am not lying... It was 6 feet long! It started running (as fast as a gator can run with it's little legs and all) across and then I see it go down the bank and splash into the water!

Oh...

My...

Gosh...

It was one of those "hair standing up on the back of my neck" moments. I was freaking out! My jaw was like wide open and I'm riding for the next few minutes thinking, 'What if I would have hit a gator on my bike?' That would have been really, really, (wait for it) really bad!

So here's the thing... From that moment on, I got paranoid. I slowed way down and began watching every little thing in the pavement. How often does that happen in our lives? Something happens that takes us off guard and from that moment on, we allow our whole train of thought to get knocked off course. ? Are you afraid of any "gators" in your life? Guess what, the minute I turned into the housing addition where I ride, I felt safe again and I returned to the pace I'm capable of.

? Where do you need to make a turn so you can return to the pace your capable of?

Oh yeah, I rode back past that pond on my home and he was sitting right on top of the water.

He really was 6 feet long... I'm not lying.

Matt

Conversational Marketing - Part 2

Yesterday we began a series of blog-entries about Conversational Marketing based on insights I'm grabbing a hold of in a book called, "Beyond Buzz," by Lois Kelly. I think this stuff has everything to do with Church, Church Planting, and the business you find yourself in as well. I'll start trying to add some questions to the content to get us thinking more. As always, feel free to jump on the "comment train," and join the conversation. Part 2... Here we go...

In chapter 1 she writes, "The big idea is simply that marketing is about having conversations and engaging with people in interesting discussions, through new and traditional channels." I believe as leaders in the Body of Christ, we have a responsibility to creatively provide reasons for people to want to engage in meaningful conversations about what God is doing in our church. I think our recent summer Baseball series was that for the people of NLC. We simply gave people a reason to "have a conversation" with someone about our church. And it worked. People came out of the woodwork, in the dead of summer, to be apart of something that was fun, and engaging and passion-filled, and creative. And the end result was that dozens and dozens of lives were changed, and dozens of people added to the church!

She makes the statement that, "People should like talking about your company (read church.)" I love that! People love being apart of something that is exciting and forward moving! All week long, they go to their jobs and move through their lives, if we can give them something to get excited about on a Sunday morning, then I think we're on the right track! I have had more people say to me in the last 90 days, "Sunday mornings are the highlight of my week!" or "I haven't seen my teenagers, or kids this excited about church in a long time!" It makes me smile inside, b/c I know that what they're truly excited about is the Life-Giving presence of Jesus that permeates every environment of Next Level Church!

She gives 2 simple steps to helping people "Have Conversations" about your business, product or church (in our case.):

1. Create Forums. She says that you've got to be intentional about creating forums for people to have these conversations. Of course, she sights things like blogs, podcsats, etc. But when I think individually about the people of our church, I think in terms of invitation cards, or other small tangible items that can spark conversations. For example, 2 weeks before we launched the Baseball series, we handed everyone in church 3 "tickets" that advertised the upcoming series and drove people to the church website for more information. Something small like this can be a huge conversation starter. ? What can that look like in your world? What could you do creatively that would pull people into a conversation about your business or church or product?


2. Have something interesting to talk about. I love that she doesn't leave this unsaid. People's attention spans are short now days. If we're not changing up the look and feel of things, every few weeks, we're missing it. This is why we wanted to do a huge internal series like the Baseball series this summer. We knew we wanted to give our people something to talk about in the middle of summer, instead of just writing off the summer as a wash, like most churches do. Well, it worked and there are families and people whose lives have been changed for eternity because of it!

Here's a closing question for us... What's on the horizon of your business or church or world that you need to get ahead of in order to create opportunities for people to "Have Conversations" about it?

Just another conversational bloggish thought,

part 3 tomorrow,

Matt

Conversational Marketing - Part 1

I just started reading a book called, "Beyond Buzz," by Lois Kelly. I'm 2 chapters in and I have to tell you, it's got some great content. I want to spend the next several blog-entries to share some of those insights, and how I think they apply to the world of NLC, Church Planting, & hopefully, your world as well. I would love to hear your comments, so feel free to interject as we go here.

She begins the introduction to the book by saying, "New marketing is about conversations - listening, having something new to add, and talking like we mean it instead of hiding behind prepackaged corporate-speak." I'll be honest with you, I think this is the revolution that is happening across the church world at large today. There is a renewal of dialogue and interaction across the Body of Christ. We no longer live in a world that just wants to "come and be talked down to," in our services. Our "prepackaged" approach has lost its freshness, and the people of our culture are looking for something much more authentic.

Listen to this quote... After she gave a speech on this subject, one person appraoched her and made the following statement: "You don't have to tell me (we need to change,) I know. I know. I know. It's not about our company (read church if you want) or our products. It's about what people want to know and talking with them in the ways they want. How we want to do things doesn't matter. We're not in control." How that is true in the church world, like never before. We have to cross the divide from what we think people want, to what they actually are asking for from us. In other words, we must begin to truly speak to where people live on a daily basis. Relevance is huge!

One fianl quote from the introduction of the book... "The goal of marketing is not to assert conclusions but to engage an audience in a dialogue, which leads people to discoveries of their own." That's exactly what Jesus did isn't it? Think about when he talked with the rich young ruler in John 3. He's not cramming it down his throat, He's simply giving him an opportunity to be engaged in authentic dialogue and then respond to the truth He's discovered. What an example for us.

There will be more of this next time,

Just a Conversational Bloggish thought,

Matt

Who are you taking the journey with?

Today is the first day of school for my kids, and several thousand other kids here in Southwest Florida. My prayer for my kids as they start this school year is the same as it has been since last year at this time. It's a simple one, but I believe it is an absolutely, priceless one as well.

My prayer for my kids this school year is that "God would bring them friends that they could take the journey with." In other words, I am praying that God would pair them up with a few others who want to live for God, and that together they could experience the adventure together. I know they are only 4 and 7 years old, but I beleive that the people we surround ourselves with will make or break us. No matter what age.

So here's my question to all of us: Who are you "Taking the Journey of Faith with?" Who are the people closest to you that share your faith and beliefs in Jesus, and that you can take the journey with this year?

September 9th is Rally Day at Next Level Church. That's the day when we launch a new semester of Connection Groups. If you are a part of the NLC family, I want to strongly encourage you to dive into a Connection Group on Rally Day. It's doing life together deeply, that is truly life-changing.

I heard Rick Warren say recently, "You don't need a lot of friends, but the ones you have, have to be good ones!" Who are you taking the journey with?

Just a bloggish thought,

Matt

My Trip to Birmingham

As I write this, I am flying home from Birmingham, AL. I was apart of a
church planters' think tank with about a dozen other guys who are on the
cutting edge of what God is doing in church planting today. It was great to
sit around tables until the wee hours of the morning and talk about our
passion for seeing God's church move forward through life-giving church
planting like what we have at Next Level Church.

I'm excited that God is continuing to open up a platform for all that we've
learned at NLC to impact other churches across the country. I am humbled by
the potential that God has given to us, as a church, to speak into the lives
of pastors and church planters!

NLC family, I cannot even begin to tell you how proud I am to be your
pastor. I can't believe that we get to do this! Each and every week, we
get to create environments where people who are Far from God, can Draw near
and be transformed in the process! It all matters! Every table, every
projector, every nursery and kids environment matters. Because every week,
someone's life is changed for eternity! Thanks for making that happen!

Your faithfulness is now impacting churches across the USA!

NLC Represent!!! (Yeah Baby!!!)

Matt

NLC, you rocked the Block Party!!!

To say that the block party was a success would be a complete
understatement. Next Level Church, you are awesome. Every single one of
you that gave money, packed backpacks, did invitations, gave out wristbands,
painted faces, made cotton candy, cooked hot dogs, gave out drinks, set up,
tore down, and did hip hop, thank you. You have truly made a difference
that will last. You have made me so proud! By working together, we impacted over 1,000 people in one day!!!

I especially want to thank Josh Sims and Lindsay Kistner for
all of their incredible work in planning, preparing, and pulling off this
event. You two are awesome and this would not have happened without you! so many lives were impacted because you guys sacrificed and lead our church into the most incredible outreach event EVER!!! WooHoo, Baby!!!

Next Level Church, you are awesome! I am so proud to be your pastor!!!

Just a congratulatory bloggish thought!!!

matt

What a Great Weekend!

Hey everyone,

I am so excited to blog in with you again. I had an amazing weekend! On Saturday I traveled up to Sarasota to speak at Bayside Community Church (www.baysidecommunity.org). My friend, Randy Bezet, is the Pastor. He was out of town for the weekend and asked me to fill in for him. Bayside is just under 5 years old and they are rockin' the house! They are an ARC Church Plant and Randy is a friend, mentor and quite honestly like a brother to me.

The meet in an Elementary School right now and are doing 3 services every weekend! 1 on Saturday night, and 2 on Sunday morning. Preaching the same message 3 times was a first for me! And I have to tell you, I'm tired! I was feelin' it during the last service on Sunday morning! All in all, I think there were close to 1,400 people in attendance between the 2 days! It's rockin'!

The weekend went great and I was able to connect with Alex, one of their staff pastors, and a great couple on their Board of Trustees.

John Goodnight accompanied me on the trip. John and Lisa Goodnight are staples of Next Level Church and have served faithfully on our Board of Directors for 3 years! They also carry our Hospitiality Teams and do countless other things that move the ball down the field for our church! It was great to spend time with John and talk about the vision of NLC and where we're headed in the future!

I missed being at NLC, and can't wait to see everyone this Sunday! I've got a great message I'm working on for this weekend. We're gonna have a time!

Have a great week everyone,

Just a bloggish update,

Matt

I'm Livin' It! and I'm Lovin' It!

So alot of you were trackin' with us at the beginning of the summer when we did our "Arcade" series. We talked about living missionally in our everyday lives. Well, as many of you remember, I was pretty convicted by the whole thing... basically realizing that I wasn't intentionally interacting with unchurched people consistently.

Well, all of that is changing. In the last couple of weeks, I have had the opportunity to realize that my "living missionally," content" is rising! I am amazed at how God is answering my prayer to be more missionally focused in my everyday life. Here are few things I'm realizing:

1. People are messy. The truth is that people and people problems don't fit into our nice, neat organized boxes, do they? Truly engaging into the life of someone else is messy, costly, & time consuming.

2. Walking with people isn't easy. Living missionally is in it's purest form, walking with people. Through good and bad. Ups and downs. Whatever. And when you begin to interact with people who need to see and experience the love of Jesus most, what you begin to realize is that they are the ones who are walking through a storm or difficult time. And that's not easy.

3. This is all part of the deal. When we sign up to become Like-Christ in our everyday lives, we sign up to get our hands dirty. We sign up to do whatever it takes to live like Jesus with the world around us. The end result being that others see a side of God they have never seen before. And that makes it all worth it.

Just a bloggish thought,

matt

Drywall! Drywall! Drywall!

Hey everyone,

I just had to tell you that they are putting up drywall today at the new office space!!! Oh baby! I am so pumped! It's becoming more real every single day! It gets me excited to think about the opportunities for extended life change that this space is going to provide for our church!

Thanks to so many of you who are carrying this thing with us! What an exciting step for Next Level Church!

I'll keep you posted!

Just a building bloggish thought,

Matt

God is Perfect!

In the last 5 1/2 years of church planting, I can honestly say that I have learned that God is perfect. He has proven that so many times throughout the journey of Next Level Church. In the early days of our church, (back when I used to think I knew it all,) I am blown away that God knew better what road we needed to take then we thought we did. Time and time again, we have seen the perfection of God. Here are my 2 most current thoughts on God's Perfection:

1. God's Timing is Perfect! I suppose that when you are the creator of time, it's not too difficult to be on time. I used to be a stickler for being on time. I remember in my younger days (like 8 months ago) saying from the platform of our church, "When someone is late to an appointment with me, it's like they're spitting in my face!" Then, I became more busy then I've ever been in my life and all of a sudden, I started being "late" to appointments. Wow. What an eye opener I had.

When I think about God's Timing, I have become convinced that His timing is perfect. He is always exactly on time. So watch how this plays out in our daily lives. If there is a deal, or a relationship, or an issue you're facing and it's not moving as quickly as you would like, can I just encourage you that God is right on time! If you're walking in Him and leaning on Him, He's GOING to show up! It's not a question of "if" it's "when."

I think God's desire is that we learn to trust Him. It's amazing how He always sets things up in my life so that He gets the glory.

Here's a Question for us to consider: Where are we getting anxious? Where do you need to trust God? In a deal? In a relationship?

2. God's Provision is perfect. The other thing I've learned is that God's provision is perfect. He always provides just what we have need of at just the right time. I love the Scripture that says God won't give us more than we can handle!
One of the biggest growth areas of our faith is in the area of finances, isn't it? It's so much easier to trust God in ALL the other areas of our life, but when it comes to finances, it's like, "Hang on there, ole' buddy, now you're gettin' personal!"

Here's what I think: When we allow God to become GOD of our finances, He's truly God of our whole life! Yielding there, is a huge step. Trusting that His ability to provide for you and your family is greater than your ability to provide for you and your family. Wow. That's huge.

One Final Question: Are you trusting God as your Provider? Or just leaning on your own ability to provide for your situation?


Just a bloggish thought on God's Perfection,

Matt