NLC's Prayer and Fasting Day - 7 Specifics for Prayer

Hey Next Level Church,

I'm excited about all that God is doing in & through our church, & I believe today is going to be a great day as we pray & fast across Southwest Florida for God to move, personally, corporately, & throughout our community.

Per the talk from yesterday's P90X - Part 2 message about Jesus' Model for prayer, here are the 7 Specific Elements for praying today:

7 Specifics for Prayer:



1.  Have Confidence in your Relationship with God.

- Spend time approaching God as Father. Go boldly into His Presence today.

Hebrews 4:16 “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”

2.  Love God and Worship His Name.

- Spend time worshipping God & praising Him for who He is and all He has done for you.

- This is where we change our reality! Let Psalm 103 be an example.

Psalm 103:1 “Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.

v. 2-3 “Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits – who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases,

v. 4 “who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things

v. 5 “so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.”

3.  Pray God’s Agenda First.

- God's #1 prayer request is Lost People!!!

- Pray for God's people to be courageous to live for Him in their worlds!

4.  Present your Needs to Him.

- Whatever is on your mind & weighing you down, lift that up to God.

- Pray for the bigger ventures & callings of your life as well.

5.  Get your heart right with God & with People.

- This is the zone to cleanse your heart before God. If you have anything within you that is not pleasing to God, confess it and get it right now.

- Also, let God search your heart for any human relationships that might be out of sync. Commit to making those right in the next 48 hours.

6.  Confront the Enemy.

- Intercede for people who are far from God.

- Do battle in the spirit realm for the lost, the hurting, the helpless, who are far from God.

7.  Trust God with Absolute Assurance in His Ability.

- Begin thanking God for the peace that comes with knowing that He is in control of everything we face in our lives.

Some Next Level Church Prayer Requests to Lift Up to God today:

• The Closing on the Loan to purchase our 1st Permanent Location happening in October.  Pray that all the details would go smoothly and that there would be no hiccups on a timing level.


• The Miracle Offering for the Closing on Sunday, September 26th. Pray that those who have made a 6 month commitment can fulfill it on that day. Pray for everyone who calls NLC their home to have courage to seek God on how they should participate.


• Continued Favor with the Residents in our Communities downtown at Palmetto Courts & Sabal Palms. Pray that trust would continue to be built up and that God would raise up leaders to continue making an impact to raise those communities.


• Our Church Planters in New Jersey, Delaware, New Hampshire and Ohio.

1) Dan & Stephanie Stauffer at Family Life Church in New Jersey.

2) Mark & Susan Johnston at The Journey Church in Newark, Delarware.

3) Josh & Jennifer Gagnon at Next Level Church in New Hampshire.

4) Taitem & Jessica Kretz at Lifeway Community Church in Youngstown, Ohio.

• Our Missionaries in Kenya, Sri Lanka, India and Dominican Republic.


• Our Missions team we are sending to Columbia in November.

For those of you who have made a commitment to pray this week in alignment with our P90X series, here's the quick guide from I Timothy 2 for your prayer times this week:

1. Requests. Bring your needs to God. Where do you need wisdom or a miracle or provision? Bring your requests (or supplications) to God. Where do you need "supply"?

2. Prayers. This is the relational part. God wants to spend time with you. Come to Him as Father & with confidence. (More on that this weekend...)

3. Intercessions. This is where we get to stand in the gap for some other people. Who is far from God in your world? Pick 3 or 4 people & begin interceding for them this week.

4. Thanksgiving. Never miss an opportunity to thank God for all of the blessings in your life. What you focus on is what you'll get more of...especially in prayer! Focus on thanking God for all that He's done for you & given to you.

There you go. It's that simple. Spend some time with God this week and watch how your reality begins to change.

(You can listen or watch the message from last Sunday by going to: www.NextLevelChurch.com/video)

Everybody wants a harvest.

In every area of our life, we want the harvest don't we?

We want a leaner body.

We want more margin in our finances.

We want the great marriage.

We want the promotion.

We want to be closer to God.

We want the harvest.

Today I ran across a little truth that has everything to do with getting the "harvest" each of us want. But here's the trick...

Getting the harvest we want has nothing to do with the harvest. Instead, it has everything to do with the season before the harvest, also know as the harvest season.

Proverbs 20:4 says,

"A sluggard does not plow in season; so at harvest time he looks but finds nothing."

In other words, if we want to have a harvest later, we must recognize when it's the season to plow. Doing the hard, invisible and often tedious work in the plowing season will produce big results in the harvest season that follows.

But Here's the Problem:

We don't like to plow! We don't like getting up early to work out. We don't like saving money instead of spending.  We don't like staying up late to work out issues in our marriage. We don't like doing the grunt work so the boss will trust us with more responsibility. We don't want to turn off the TV and spend time praying or reading our Bible. We don't like to plow.

In order to get the harvest we want later, we have to be willing to plow now.

Challenge:

What one step could you take this week to begin plowing in some area of your life where you're wanting a better harvest?  Plowing and Harvesting are two different seasons, but they are never mutually exclusive.

A Thought on Creative Thought.

This quote from Seth Godin's blog is unreal!!!

"Simple example: start a blog and post once a day on how your favorite company can improve its products or its service. Do it every day for a month, one new, actionable idea each and every day. Within a few weeks, you'll notice the change in the way you find, process and ship ideas."

If you don't subscribe to SethGodin.com or follow him on Twitter @ThisIsSethsBlog, you're missing out on some amazing learning.

I'm a huge Seth Godin fan & I'm not afraid to say it!!!

Now back to the quote... What would it look like to create a place to land one creative thought per day? A journal... A blog... A word doc... A post-it note... Whatever. What if Creative Thought has more to do with disciplined action, then anything else?

Just a thought...

Excuse me sir, Would you like to be my Mentor?

I am a huge advocate of having mentors. I have been blessed to have some incredible mentors through the years. I know I wouldn't be who I am and where I am today without the mentors who have poured into me over the years.

Here are a few thoughts on the whole Mentor Concept:

1. Mentor somebody.

I am a firm believer that we all have something to offer somebody else. Get over any feelings of inadequacy you might have, because somebody needs what you have learned.

2. Find a Mentor for every area of your life.

For me, if there's an area of my life that I want to grow in, I enlist a mentor. Here's how:
1) Pray for God to bring that person across your path.
2) Start looking for them.
3) Start collecting questions.
4) When you find them, go boldly & humbly in their direction.

3. Don't neglect "Virtual" Mentors.

Over the years, I have been mentored by some amazing leaders that I've never met simply by reading their books or listening to their talks. Today, with the free content of the internet, it's easier than ever. I literally downloaded over 12 hours of talks by Seth Godin in 1 night that I've been listening to & learning from for the last few months.

4. Become an expert Question-Asker.

The way to mine out the wisdom of a mentor is by learning the art of asking good questions. Good questions can unlock the depths of experience like nothing else can. Here's a little tip when preparing questions in advance for a meeting with a mentor... Make a list of a ridiculous number of questions. For example, come up with 87 questions for a 60 minute meeting. If you do, you'll discover the best 8 or 10 questions that will allow you to learn the most during your time.

The right mentor at the right time in your life can literally be life-changing. Finding one and being one is essential to your success.

Slaying the Monster of Sunday (a help for communicators)

Taming the Monster of Sunday

(Help for Pastors under Pressure)

One of the most taxing things about being a lead pastor is the drain of having to come up with completely new, creative, thought-provoking, challenging, engaging, funny, life-changing content every 7 days. I like to call it the Monster of Sunday. It's always licking at your heels and if we, as the primary communicators of our church, can't figure out a way to tame that monster, it will eventually become our undoing & hold us back from reaching the full potential of our calling.

Over the past eight years, I’ve learned a ton about my rhythm as a communicator. Hopefully these tips will help you as well…

1. Learn your Personal Rhythm. My personal rhythm is 6 weeks. After that, I need a change. If I speak more than 6 weeks in a row at Next Level Church, my creativity, drive and passion begin to sag. I know I’m not giving our people my best. Consequently, as a rule, I will not speak more than 6 Sundays in a row.

2.  Get out of your own reality. In order for me to remain creative, I need a change of perspective. Therefore, I build into my yearly schedule the opportunity to travel and speak in other churches a few times a year. Being away from home, helps me keep the greater vision of THE Local church in my mind. I can get tunnel vision otherwise.

I highly recommend for pastors to “sow into another man’s field.” For me this looks like developing relationships with pastors who are "a couple of steps behind us” and offering to pay my own way to come and invest in their church for a weekend.

When I travel and work with other churches, I learn from them as well. I get fresh ideas and perspective when I get out of my own pulpit.

3. Get 4 to 6 weeks ahead in message preparation. One of the ways I avoid the Monster of Sunday is by staying 4 to 6 weeks ahead in my message preparation. We short-change our content and our people when we write messages the week of. There are just some creative ideas that need time to marinate. And writing a message on Saturday afternoon, isn't sufficient time enough for that to happen adequately.

4.  Learn to write to 80%. When I say that I'm 4 to 6 weeks ahead in message prep, this is what I mean. I have a goal to have the main points, verses and illustrations laid out (or 80% of the message) weeks in advance. This gives me peace of mind knowing that on any given week, I'm simply microwaving the message up to 95% on Monday morning, rather than trying to start from scratch every week.

5.  I write on Mondays. The common theme for most pastors is to want to jump in front of a bus on Mondays, but I have found that if I can get in the zone and think of it as a continuation of the day before, I'm actually capable of some pretty amazing creativity. The benefit of locking in my message on Monday is:

• I feel extremely productive. Doing what I do best on Mondays, rather than all the to-do list stuff, makes me feeling like a million bucks and sets me up for a more productive week.


• I don't feel as swamped later under all the details of church. Church work can drain you. And carrying the pressure of Sunday's message on your shoulders while I'm dealing with detail stuff during the week can be overwhelming. Details put me on edge, which is not good for my team.


• I have a clear mind to lead and make decisions. When the pressure of Sunday is off, the more confident I feel in my decision making. The bigger our church gets, the more pressure I feel on a decision making level. Having a handle on Sunday early in the week, helps me feel more empowered to make decisions that need to be made during the week.

6.  Learn to see "Sparks" everywhere. For any communicator, the distance from zero to a creative spark is infinity, but once you have the spark, the rest of the content for a message can flow pretty quickly. If you have to communicate on a weekly basis, you'll have to develop the art of seeing sparks for messages everywhere. I see sparks everywhere, so much so, that there are lots of messages that I never have opportunity to develop or preach anywhere. But just developing the discipline of seeing the sparks helps me as a communicator.

The second key to seeing the sparks is having a place to put them once you see them. That's where the Wall of Sundays comes in for me. Whether I use them or not, at least I know I have somewhere to put them.

7. Use a Wall of Sundays to organize your thoughts. The way to see the long-range rhythm of your year is to have a place to put your creative thoughts when they come to you. We started doing this about 3 years ago and our wall of Sundays has become life to me and our team. I have to see things big and as a team, we need to plan ahead.

Here’s a picture of our most current Wall-of-Sundays.

8.  Practice your messages. Some pastors will say they want to "make sure the emotion of the moment comes through on Sunday," or that "you can't rehearse the anointing." But I think that's just an excuse. You wouldn't say that to your worship team. If we want our worship team to rehearse and come prepared, then so should we. It took me awhile to get used to practicing my messages out loud, but for me, there's no better way to actually get the content into your mind and spirit.

I can't tell you how many times I will be practicing my message in my home office on Saturday night and hear myself say something a certain way. In those moments, I'll actually stop and say out loud, "That didn't sound right. Don't say it that way again." ThenI’ll go back to the beginning of that section or story and practice saying it a different way.

By the way, for those of you who do multiple services, remember, first service is not your practice. We can either sweat in preparation or bleed in battle. I don't know about you, but I would rather sweat in preparation.

The Result:

As a communicator who now speaks 150 - 200 times/year as well as writes consistently, it is vital that I have a sustainable rhythm for message preparation and content. There's no way I could live out my calling otherwise.

If you're a communicator, begin to strategically work on developing your own rhythm. It will serve you well for years to come.

Mistake in Pricing creates a Great Opportunity for Church Leadership Teams!

Hey everyone,

I just had to tell you that, due to a clerical error, my book, The Up the Middle Church, is now available in digital form (E-Book & Kindle) for only $2.95! This is a SCREAMING GOOD DEAL FOR YOU and your leadership teams.

Take advantage of it today, because honestly, I don't know how long it will be at that price!

Here are the links:

E-Book: http://bit.ly/UTMebook

Kindle: http://amzn.to/9e6U4P

Of course, you can get the paperback / hardback editions too: http://bit.ly/UTMhardback

Raising Up Communicators - My Most Current Thoughts

A common strain that many pastors feel is the pressure of not being able to miss a Sunday. In their own way, each one says the same thing:

"I don't feel like I have anyone on my team who can do what I do..."

At Next Level Church, we have several capable communicators on our team, but it didn’t happen by accident. It has been a combination of the blessing of God and an intentional approach on our part.

It starts with desire. When we started 8 years ago, I knew I wanted to have others who could do what I do. I didn't want to be, "the only one who could feed the sheep." I knew this would take a  lot of security on my part and the patience to believe God to raise up others on our team as well.

It also requires a strategy.  3 years ago, I began strategically executing the plan to multiply our speaking structure. I started with my associate, Mike, who had moved with us 8 years earlier, and our newly hired executive pastor, Scott Drummond. Once we had 2 guys who had the natural ability and passion to speak, I got extremely strategic about it. Today, we're developing several other young communicators with the same strategy.

A Strategy to Raise Up Communicators in your church:

1.  Include them in on message creation. Rather than just writing messages alone, I started bringing in them in to help me process ideas through. This allowed them to see how I think about message preparation. It also gave me some great ideas and illustrations that I never would have had otherwise.

2. Use their personalities in other ways from the stage. We always have 2 people give announcements in our services. This keeps things fresh and provides for movement and energy in the service, simply by having two personalities on stage instead of one.

The biggest benefit though is allowing our people to become familiar and comfortable with the other pastors on staff. They see them having fun, joking with each other and being in the know with your church. Over time, this creates a comfort in people with having someone other than me on the stage.

3.  Let them speak with you present. I want our church to know that, “just because I'm here doesn't mean I have to be up there..." I intentionally schedule Sundays where they speak with me there. I need our church to be comfortable with me being in the room, but not always being up front. (By the way, I will often jump into one of the announcement guy roles when they speak. We believe in "Interchangeable Parts" in every way.)

4.  Work with them before, during & after. When they're scheduled to speak, we worked up the big idea and spark for the message together. Then they flesh out the raw outline. They bring it back to me and we talk through. This allows me to run it through the filter of our people, because as the guy who talks to them the most, I know their aptitude best. After we meet, they bring the talk up to a mature form and we meet one more time where they “pseudo-preach” it to me in my office.

I stay involved in the process the day they speak as well. We will meet in the green room backstage between services to tweak the content even more. I want them to know what I’m thinking in real time.

Finally, the week after they speak, we debrief and listen to the audio CD or watch the video back together. I thoroughly dissect it with them. Good, bad and ugly.

Here's what I've learned: If I want them to do what I do, I have to be willing to slow down enough to allow them to see how I do it. From my experience, most pastors aren't willing to do this. They just want their other guys to watch them and then just "get it." I wish that were true, because we’d all be much better golfers after watching Tiger Woods every Sunday.

6. Teach your church that they are a teaching hospital. We are committed to seeing young leaders reach their full potential. If you're looking for perfection, you're gonna need to find another church. From the beginning, we have taught our people that they are apart of a Divine Experiment and things won't always go perfectly. We would rather fail trying then never take a risk.

7. Put them inside of a series you're already doing. Including them inside of a series allows them to leverage a greater credibility and allows them to "continue" a thought instead of trying to build a stand alone message. Second, It communicates that you are a teaching team, not individual communicators.

8. Use the word "we" as much as you can. For example, "at Next Level Church we believe" instead of, "at NLC, I believe..." Its a subtle difference but over time, it helps shape the culture in your church's mind.

9. Use somebody other than you, to be the "Campus Pastor" in your service. Even if you only have one campus, we have found it helpful to use another pastor on staff, to close the service. This gives them a pastoral and credible voice, and over time, establishes their voice to the people.

10. Use other pastors to lead things like communion, child dedication, and baptisms. I want our people to know that I'm not the only one, (or the best one for that matter!) to lead these important pastoral elements. I want our church to be comfortable with the other pastors ministering to them in spiritual moments, like communion, baptism, etc.

The result:

3 years later, the results have been amazing! Our church people have become accustomed to me not having to be up there 52 weeks a year. This new reality has enabled me to get the rest I need, speak in other churches, and help other pastors in great ways! The benefit of having confidence in other communicators on your team will far outweigh the time and energy it takes for you to get them there.

Begin NOW to develop your strategy to raise up other communicators who can do what you do in your church. It's worth it.

NLC - 1st Monday - Prayer & Fasting - August

Hey everybody,

Thanks for praying today. There are some huge things on the radar for NLC in the coming weeks and I know that prayer recalibrates us to God's Will. Here are several prayer points for you to pray through today:

1.  Our 1st Permanent Location.

There are two areas where we need to pray specifically in terms of NLC’s 1st Permanent Facility:

First, pray for Financing. We have officially approached several banks with our proposal and there are 3 that are reviewing it, literally as we speak!!!

Second, we need to continue to pray for the 25% down-payment. ($1.2 Million).

• Pray for everyone who has made a 6 month commitment. It’s hard to believe we only have 2 months left. Pray that God will provide for them to give above and beyond their regular tithes and offerings.

• Pray for the miraculous to keep happening remaining $283,000 (as of last week) that is still needed for us to reach the 25% mark! We’re making it, you guys! It’s happening! Let’s keep believing!

For all the latest information, & to pray even more specifically go to: www.ThisIsOurTime.org.

2.  Pray for our NLC Staff. We are back in full swing and gearing up for an amazing fall season of outreach. Pray for strength & wisdom as we walk through this season of growth, opportunity and influence as a church.

Also, be sure to pray for our Children's Pastor, Josh Homan and his wife, Irina, as they are expecting their first child, due in December! (follow them @joshuahoman & @irinahoman)

3.  Pray for Our Backpack Outreach happening Saturday, August 14th in "Our Communities” downtown. Palmetto Courts & Sabal Palms. We are giving away 1,000 backpacks to families in need. Our special offering for Project Backpack is happening this Sunday, August 8th. Pray that all 1,000 backpacks will be sponsored. (Click here for more info) Go here for more informaiton: www.BeOrange.me

4.  Pray for our Missionaries.

• Christ for India; Jameson, Johnson and Mary Titus. Pray for  pastors in their seminary, pray for the Children in their school, pray for the pastors they’re sending out to plant churches.


• Kelly and Kathy Johnson in Kenya, Africa as they train pastors and plant churches.


• Mark & Stephanie Pyles in the Dominican Republic as they plant “Next Generation” Churches in Santiago.


• Luke & Sandy Walters in Sri Lanka. They are working to gain influence among the next generation of business leaders in that nation.


• Paul & Mary Triller. They are working to plant churches across Europe, one of the darkest mission fields on earth today.

5.  The People of NLC. For provision and jobs. For promotions and miracles.  Pray for marriages to be strong & kids to be wise as we begin a new school year.

6.  Pray for the Following Church Planters we are Coaching right now:

• Maurice Stargell in McDonough, GA. I was just with Maurice last month. They are doing great and are about 4 months old now! Pray for momentum and strength as they impact their city for Christ.


• Tory & Elizabeth Farina in St. Paul, MN. HighPoint Church is a 4 year old church meeting in a Movie Theater. Pray for wisdom as they launch into the next level God has for them.


• Shane & Rachel Frasier in Lebanon, IN. Freedom Church is about a year old & God is doing an amazing thing there. Pray for continued strength as they grow. They  launched 2 services in the movie theater where they have church in July. Pray for wisdom for their leadership team as well.

Thanks again for Fasting and Praying today.  For more info on fasting go to:  www.NextLevelChurch.com/fasting

Pastor Matt

An Uncommon Promotion

It was 3 years ago this month that my long time friend& ministry mate, Scott Drummond, decided to resign his position as Senior Pastor of a church in Columbus, OH and to join the staff of Next Level Church as our Executive Pastor. Scott grew up in that church and had served as the senior pastor for 11 years before resigning to join the NLC Leadership Team.

What you need to know is that this is an Extremely Uncommon thing in the church world today. In fact, the exact opposite logic is usually what is heard. Associate Pastors resign to become senior pastors. Rarely ever does it go the other way.

And yet, over the past 3 years, I have had the privilege of watching Scott get in his sweet spot and find greater fulfillment in his life and ministry than he ever had as the senior leader of a church. He is perfectly gifted to do what he does at Next Level Church and his influence is making an impact not just within NLC, but in churches across the country as well.

Sometimes the best promotions are the ones that run counter-cultural, even to the church world. I'm so thankful that Scott was willing to obey the call to join the NLC team. The Kingdom of God is better for it.

I love serving with you, Scotty,

Matt

(Follow Scott on Twitter at @ScottDrummond1)

What Summer Slump?!?

For 8 years now, we have refused to buy into the whole Summer Slump theory at Next Level Church. Instead, we've worked under the theory that if people are home, then why not give them a reason to come to church & bring someone else w/ them? (After all, in this economy, stay-cations are becoming more popular & people are looking for something fun to do.)

This year we declared May & June "A Season of Sabbath" but then, on July 11th, we launched 1 of our big 3 series that we do all year (Easter & October being the other two) called "Who Do You Think You Are?"

We went with a 70's theme complete w/ an NLC Staff 70's photo shoot for the internal mailer that went out to our entire mailing list (1600 homes) of people that have attended at least once in the last 12 months.

In the first 3 weeks of the series, we've seen 50 1st time families!!! In the middle of summer, baby! We know that if we can grow now, we'll have some crazy momentum heading into fall.

To see some of what we did, go to: http://nextlevelchurch.com/video

Additionally, I know of several other churches that we coach who did a big summer series & have literally broken attendance records this summer!

I'm so glad we don't give in to the Summer Slump theory.

...just something to think about...

Matt

The Up the Middle Church is Digital!!!

I wanted to let all of you know that The Up the Middle Church has officially been released on e-book and Kindle.

AND...

(& this is a big AND!)

They made a mistake on pricing which is GREAT NEWS FOR YOU!!!

Right Now you can get a digital copy of The Up the Middle Church for just $2.95! The Hardback edition is $19.99 and the paperback is $13.99. So this is a steal of a deal! Feel free to tell everyone about this Ridiculously Great Deal on the book! (Don't worry I'll still make my $.88 per copy... haha)

Here are all the Links:

E-Book: http://bit.ly/UTMebook

Kindle: (Remember, you can use the Kindle Reader on iPhone, iPad, BlackBerry, Mac, & Android) http://amzn.to/9e6U4P

Hardback: $19.99 & Paperback: $13.99:  http://bit.ly/UTMhardback

Everything is Beautiful in its Time

I thought I would share my SOAP with you today...

S: Ecclesiastes 3:1 "There is a time for everything..." v. 11 "He has made everything beautiful in its time..."

O: I couldn't help but be reminded of how God has set the time in place for everything. Every promotion, every job change, every opportunity, every relationship, every child, every calling, every provision, every miracle... God has appointed a time for everything.

But verse 11 was the one that really hit me this morning... "Everything is beautiful in its time." Outside of it's time, not so beautiful.

A: I can think of so many times in my life where I have wanted something; an opportunity, an open door, a chance, a blessing & in my own heart, I thought that having it now would be the best thing. But for whatever reason, God decided to not allow me to have it right then. Only in hindsight have I been able to see that God's timing is always better than my time, every time. No exceptions. "Everything is beautiful in its time."

P: "God, help me to trust Your timing on so many things that I desire in my life. I have such a limited view of the bigger picture that You're up to in my life. Help me to keep trusting you, because what I want more than what I want is what You want. You truly do make everything beautiful in the right time. Thanks for that, Amen."

Time to Chase some Lions

I just finished reading @MarkBatterson's Best-Selling Book, In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day for the 2nd time. I gotta be honest with ya, it's just flat out inspiring. Here are a few thoughts:



1.  If you haven't read it, you need to. Click here to get it. It will inspire, challenge and motivate you to chase your lion like never before.

2.  It is only those who face their fears and chase their lions that truly live.

3.  We all face obstacles. Only we can determine if those obstacles will stop us from pursuing our dreams, or motivate us to achieve them.

4.  I have 3 Major Areas of my life where I'm chasing my lions. One is for Next Level Church, another has to do with the pastors and leaders we're coaching across the USA, and the third has to do with writing. I'm excited to chase my lions, take my next step, and not give up.

What lion are you called to chase? What's your next step to getting there?

Matt

Who Do You Think You Are - Video Link - http://bit.ly/aUad9M

If you missed Part 1 of our Who Do You Think You Are Series that began last week, just click here to watch it. (You can also subscribe to our Audio or Video Podcasts through iTunes as well)



Just between you and me... the 1st 40 seconds are worth watching the entire thing!!!

Not Willing to Forget the Forgotten - 3rd Saturday Serve Day Reflections

I gotta be honest w/ ya, every time we go downtown to the communities we've adopted, it just pumps me up on a lot of levels.

First, God wrecks me for the kids. I had a little girl, probably 8 years old, run up to me and give me the biggest hug today! You could just see the joy on her face because we were there. We have no idea what these kids go home to when they leave our activities. My heart breaks for them.

Another little boy, probably 7 or 8 years old again, came up to me and when I asked him his name, he said, "You know my name!" to which I replied, "Why don't you remind me..." and he said, "My name is ROARRRRR!!!"

So from then on I called him "Roar" all day. (He finally told me his name but it was useless after that!)

Second, God wrecks me every time we go downtown, for the parents and adults. There are so many moms and so few dads. Men are clearly absent in the lives of their kids and the mothers of their kids. Additionally, so many of the moms are clueless about the stuff of life. Like love & acceptance & worth. It is absolutely heart-breaking to me because I want to be able to tell them there is a better way to live and have life.

Third, God fires me up for our people. I absolutely get tears in my eyes when I see the people of Next Level Church serving and loving and praying and smiling and hugging the kids and residents of our communities! NLC, you gotta know that I am so proud of you & God is pouring out His blessing on us because we're willing to not forget the forgotten ones that are so precious to Our Heavenly Father!

If you didn't see this video... you gotta see this!

Hey everyone,

The infamous "Matt & Sarah's Dancing Heads" video is crazy. If you haven't seen it yet, click here. It's worth the 40 seconds or whatever.

What we won't do to promote a series, I guess...

Up the Middle Church - Team Packs Available at a Discount

Hey Pastors / Church Planters,

Just wanted to let you know that The Up the Middle Church is available at a discount when you buy a 5 or 10 pack. A lot of leadership teams have went through it as a team & it's been beneficial. You can get all the info at www.UptheMiddle.com.

Who Do You Think You Are - Part 1 Addendum

Man, have we gotten the feedback from Sunday's message in our "Who do you Think You are" series.



If you missed it, you can click on the link to the left on this page and watch/listen online. Also, you can subscribe through iTunes and watch or listen directly on your iPhone, iPod, or mp3 player.

This Sunday is Part 2, & it's gonna be equally Hard Hitting. You don't want to miss it.

The MLB All-Star Break

For me the MLB All-Star Break is a mixed bag. I like that all the best players come together in one place and hang out. I like that they are all real guys having a good time together, not taking themselves too seriously.

On the other hand, I miss my team & I miss the everyday action that baseball provides. 4 days feels like an eternity for me around the All-Star Game. Friday's Rays vs. Yankees game can't come soon enough... at least not for me.

The Dryness Test

Once a month, I have the privilege of meeting w/ 4 young leaders who are future world changers at Next Level Church. Well, today was that day & I challenged them w/ the Dryness test in Exodus 17.

After the children of Israel are led out of Egypt (A Season of The Miraculous) they are faced w/ a water shortage (A Season of Dryness). Seasons of Dryness are normal & should be expected. Unfortunately, most of us, most of the time, never see it coming & therefore get blind-sided by it.

Learning to expect & then knowing how to navigate through them is essential to serving God long-term. Verse 5 tells us how:

1. Get alone w/ God. Nothing can take the place of that.

2. Don't Isolate. Isolation is the trick of the devil to get us to compromise. Nothing can substitute for for accountability. God told Moses to take the Elders w/ him.

3. Remember what God has done in the past. God told Moses to take his staff along w/ him. His staff was a powerful reminder of what God had done for Moses in the past.

4. Strike the Rock. Go boldly before the Lord & expect the water to flow.

Dry Seasons are inevitable. Allowing them to crush us, is not.

The SOAP Guides are in!

I'm so fired up about the new #NextLevelChurch SOAP guides that came out yesterday. If you didn't get one, they'll be available next Sunday or at the Warehouse this week too. If you've gotten out of the habit of spending time in God's Word, today's a great day to get back into it!

Today's Chapter is I Peter 1 and it's full of amazing stuff. Why not recommit right now to SOAPing today? Trust me, you'll never regret the time you spend with God on a daily basis.

www.NextLevelChurch.com/SOAP

My Time with Mark Batterson

On Thursday afternoon, I had a chance to spend 90 minutes with Mark Batterson, best-selling author of In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day, Wild Goose Chase, & Primal. We talked alot about what it means to feel called to write. Mark is one of the only other people I've ever known who has said that, "He feels as called to write as he does to pastor." That's the same thing I've felt in my heart for years.

Mark has been a long distance mentor for me for the last few years, and it was great to spend some up close time with him.

Top Take Aways from our Time:

• Mark is refreshingly down to earth. Talk about a guy with no pretense. Mark made it easy to just jump into a life-changing conversation for me about what it means to be an author.


• Mark has a childlike excitement about him that is contagious & infectious. You get the feeling that "Wherever Mark is, he's definitely all there!" And I love that about him. He never once looked over his shoulder or made me feel like he had something better to do. He was totally into what we were talking about and I could feel that!


• Mark didn't hesitate to believe the best in me & leverage himself for my benefit. It's not everyday that you find someone who understands the calling to write. Most people just roll their eyes and give you a blank stare when you tell them that. But Mark got it on a level that very few other people I've talked to can.


• Mark is passionate about making God's Word relevant to a new generation. I definitely walked about with a true sense that Mark Batterson is serious about being a cultural translator for the next generation.

Thursday's meeting with Mark Batterson will definitely go down as a life-changing day in terms of my calling to write. Thanks Mark for being a friend, mentor & example for me to follow.

Matt Keller

www.UptheMiddle.com

My 35th Birthday:: Reflections

Today is my 35th Birthday. I am officially in my mid-30's and I gotta be honest... I am having the time of my life.

If there is one word that I would use to describe my life at this point, it would definitely be GRATEFUL! I just feel so grateful that I get to live this life God has given me.

• I have a great wife. Sarah, I couldn't ask for more. You are more than I could have ever imagined 18 years ago when we got together as teenagers.


• I have 2 great boys! They really are amazing. They have such sensitive spirits and know right & wrong. Amazing.


• I have a great church! NLC, you truly are a great group of people who get the vision and heart that God put inside of us so many years ago. I can't believe we get to impact Southwest Florida like this!!!


• I go to work everyday with my best friends! Not too many guys get to do life with the group I get to. I seriously couldn't ask for a better team. Thanks NLC Staff for getting me and being willing to work with me and around me, at times, to make the dream of my life come true everyday.


• I have my family close. I'm so thankful that my family lives near me and is apart of our lives like they are. We seriously couldn't do it without you! I love you mom & dad!!!


• I get to influence other pastors & leaders across the country which is a dream come true. What a privilege to serve the Body of Christ like we get to do on a regular basis.

When I look across my life, there's really nothing else that I want. So today, on my 35th Birthday, I am so aware that there are very few people who ever reach the place that I find myself today.

"What a privilege, Lord, to get to do this. Thanks for giving me the courage to stay the course, even in the hard and difficult times. Thanks for shaping me in those seasons. And thanks for allowing me to experience where I am today. I am truly GRATEFUL."

Matt Keller

NLC 1st Monday Fasting & Prayer Guide

Hey everybody,

Thanks for praying today!  Here’s how you can pray specifically today & all month…

1.  Pray for NLC’s Future Facility. There are two areas where we need to pray specifically in terms of NLC’s 1st Permanent Facility:

First, pray for Financing. We have officially approached several banks with our proposal and there are 3 that are reviewing it, literally as we speak!!!

Second, we need to continue to pray for the 25% down-payment. ($1.2 Million).

• Pray for everyone who has made a 6 month commitment. It's hard to believe we're already 3 months in. Pray that God will provide for them to give above and beyond their regular tithes and offerings.

• Pray for the miraculous to keep happening remaining $283,000 (as of last week) that is still needed for us to reach the 25% mark! We're making it, you guys! It's happening! Let's keep believing!

For all the latest information, & to pray even more specifically go to: www.ThisIsOurTime.org.

2.  Pray for our NLC Staff. Many of the staff are taking some much needed downtime with their families this month. Pray for protection over staff families as they travel this month. Pray for marriages to be strengthened. Pray for strength & wisdom as we continue to walk through this season of growth, opportunity and influence as a church.

Also, be sure to pray for our Youth Pastors, Will & Arianne Hutcherson, who just had their 1st child, Liam, over Memorial Day Weekend. They're doing great and adjusting well to parenthood!!!

3.  Pray for “Our Communities” downtown. Palmetto Courts & Sabal Palms. Pray for single moms and children specifically to be lifted! We’re making a difference one family at a time! Pray for our 3rd Saturday Serve Day, June 19th! This month we're doing a special Children's Outreach. Go here for more informaiton: www.BeOrange.me

4.  Pray for our Missionaries.

• Christ for India; Jameson, Johnson and Mary Titus. Pray for  pastors in their seminary, pray for the Children in their school, pray for the pastors they’re sending out to plant churches.


• Kelly and Kathy Johnson in Kenya, Africa as they train pastors and plant churches.


• Mark & Stephanie Pyles in the Dominican Republic as they plant “Next Generation” Churches in Santiago.


• Luke & Sandy Walters in Sri Lanka. They are working to gain influence among the next generation of business leaders in that nation.


• Paul & Mary Triller. They are working to plant churches across Europe, one of the darkest mission fields on earth today.

5.  The People of NLC. For provision and jobs. For promotions and miracles.  Pray for marriages to be strong & kids to be wise. Pray for favor with neighbors and family they have influenced through our Feeding Fort Myers campaign.

6.  Pray for the Following Church Planters we are Coaching right now:

• Maurice Stargell in McDonough, GA. I was just with Maurice last month. They are doing great and are about 4 months old now! Pray for momentum and strength as they impact their city for Christ. www.hope-church.tv


• Tory & Elizabeth Farina in St. Paul, MN. HighPoint Church is a 4 year old church meeting in a Movie Theater. Pray for wisdom as they launch into the next level God has for them. www.highpointchurch.tv


• Shane & Rachel Frasier in Lebanon, IN. Freedom Church is about a year old & God is doing an amazing thing there. Pray for continued strength as they grow. They are getting ready to launch 2 services in the movie theater where they have church in July. Pray for wisdom for their leadership team as well. www.freedom-church.org

Thanks again for Fasting and Praying today.  For more info on fasting go to:  www.NextLevelChurch.com/fasting

Pastor Matt

Sabbath Talk Follow-Up

Hey everyone,

I wanted to take a minute and give you 1 additional resource from the talk yesterday at Next Level Church on the Sabbath.

A couple of months ago, I was referred to a book about the Sabbath that was hugely instrumental in how I developed the thoughts for yesterday's talk.

The book is called, "The Rest of God" by Mark Buchanan. Mark pastors a church in Vancouver, BC, Canada and some of his language is kind of advanced, but his content is Amazing!!!

If you are someone who struggles with giving yourself Permission to Rest, then you really need to read this book. Here's the link:

The Rest of God



Have a great week... & oh yeah, don't forget to Rest!!!

Matt Keller

Exponential Conference - Session Attendees:

Here is the link to the Next Level Church Constitution. Thanks for being apart of the training!

If there's anything else we can do for you, don't hesitate to get in touch with us at: www.NextLevelChurch.com

NLCConstitution & Bylaws

Who I'm Rooting for in the MLB 2010 Season

Rather than making my predictions on who will win each of the 6 divisions in Major League Baseball this year, I'm going to tell you who I'm rooting for and why. It's just better that way, I think...

American League East: Tampa Bay Rays.

These are my boys! I have officially shifted my allegiance from my childhood team, the Cubs, to the Rays. Their local, their close by, my boys love them, &  I just love the way the new owner has put the team together.

American League Central: Minnesota Twins.

1. They spring train across the street from our church, so we kinda have to be fans!

2. We vacation in MN every June & have tons of friends in the Twin Cities.

3. They just got a new ballpark and I can't wait to see how she plays...

4. Joe Mauer is just sick!

American League West: Texas Rangers.

Let's be honest, this probably has more to do with Josh Hamilton than I think any of us would like to admit, but they have a cool ball park, and I just think someone should put a hurtin' on the Angels this year.

National League East: Washington Nationals.

I love a good underdog story. They have a brand new ballpark that is sweet. They have a ton of young pitchers and they got Pudge Rodriguez to train all those young pitchers. Well played Nationals Front Office, well-played.

National League Central:  Chicago Cubs.

My loyalty stands. There's nothing quite like Cubby Blue. Maybe I need a trip back to Ole' Wrigley this summer to revive my Cubbie Juices. We'll see...

National League West: Who Cares.

The Dodgers are arrogant.

The Padres stink, but have a cool ballpark.

The Giants have Tim Lincecum which my kids like.

The Diamondbacks are still trying to figure out who they are since they changed their colors a few years back.

The Rockies are probably the best team, but are purple, need I say more.

Gonna have a tough time watching anything from the NL West this year.

So there you have it. Who I'll be watching this year!

Now, for all of you out there going, "I can't believe Keller's too big of a chicken to actually makes some predictions," here you go. All be it, without explanation.

AL East: Rays

AL Central: Twins

AL West: Mariners

AL Wild Card: Red Sox

NL East: Phillies

NL Central: Cardinals

NL West: Rockies

NL Wild Card: Dodgers

World Series: Rays vs. Phillies

Rays = World Series Champs, baby!!!

By the Way, I'll be at Opening Night at Tropicana Field later this evening! It has become a tradition, & I like it!

Keller

NLC's Prayer & Fasting Day - April

Hey everybody,

Thanks for praying today!  Here’s how you can pray specifically today & all month…

1.  Pray for NLC’s Future Facility. There are two areas where we need to pray specifically in terms of NLC's 1st Permanent Facility:

First, we need to pray for God's wisdom with the right financing package. Banks are obviously skittish in this economy and we need God to reveal to us the right bank with the right terms, etc. Pray for wisdom for our Leadership Team & our Board of Directors.

Second, we need to pray for the 25% down-payment. ($1.2 Million).

• Pray for everyone who has made a pledge that God will provide for them to give above and beyond their regular tithes and offerings. April is Month #1 of the 6 month commitment.

• Pray for those who haven't made a commitment yet, but will be receiving information in the mail about how they can.


• Pray for the remaining $338,000 (as of last week) that is still needed for us to reach the 25% mark!

For all the latest information, & to pray even more specifically go to: www.ThisIsOurTime.org.

2.  Pray for our NLC Staff. Pray for protection over staff families and marriages as we continue to walk through this season of growth, opportunity and influence as a church. Pray for wisdom in leadership decisions.

3.  Pray for “Our Communities” downtown. Palmetto Courts, Sabal Palms and Southward Village. Pray for single moms and children specifically to be lifted! We’re making a difference one family at a time! Pray for our 3rd Saturday Serve Day, April 17th! Go here for more informaiton: www.BeOrange.me

4.  Pray for our Missionaries.

• Christ for India; Jameson, Johnson and Mary Titus. Pray for  pastors in their seminary, pray for the Children in their school, pray for the pastors they're sending out to plant churches.


• Kelly and Kathy Johnson in Kenya, Africa as they train pastors and plant churches.


• Mark & Stephanie Pyles in the Dominican Republic as they plant “Next Generation” Churches in Santiago.


• Luke & Sandy Walters in Sri Lanka. They are working to gain influence among the next generation of business leaders in that nation.

5.  The People of NLC. For provision and jobs. For promotions and miracles.  Pray for marriages to be strong & kids to be wise. Pray for favor with neighbors and family they have influenced through our Feeding Fort Myers campaign.

6.  Pray for the Following Church Planters we are Coaching right now:

• Ashley & Jamie Wilson in Lexington, KY. Sarah & I were just there for a weekend on-site. They have had a trying first year, but are surrounded by a great leadership team & are turning a corner. Pray for momentum and strength as they impact their city for Christ. www.LifeGateChurch.tv


• Taitem & Jessica Kretz in Youngstown, OH. Lifeway Community Church is 1 1/2 years old and has been growing steadily every month. Pray for Taitem as he is working full-time & pastoring the church. www.LifeWayCommunity.com


• Shane & Rachel Frasier in Lebanon, IN. Freedom Church is about a year old & God is doing an amazing thing there. Pray for continued strength as they grow. Pray for wisdom for their leadership team as well. www.freedom-church.org

Thanks again for Fasting and Praying today.  For more info on fasting go to:  www.NextLevelChurch.com/fasting

Pastor Matt

The Great Pre-Requisite to Leadership

How does one earn the right to lead in the next generation? Is it a birthright? The Luck of the Draw? The right education? Or is there a greater pre-requisite to leadership? I believe there is one factor necessary in order to earn the right to lead and influence the lives of others that far outweighs any other...Pain.

Here are a few of my Most Current Thoughts on a not-too-popular-but-all-too-necessary topic for leaders... pain.

1.  We Endure Pain for the Prize.

I know it might sound cliche, but the truth is, there is no reward without pain. Ask an Olympic Athlete. You don't get to stand on the podium, or even compete in the games, if you aren't willing to endure the pain of training. That's why there are millions of us at home watching and only a select few on the course competing.

The same is true in our lives as well. If we want to reach a greater place of influence or promotion or leadership, we must be willing to endure the measure of pain congruent with the level of achievement we seek. If we want our lives to count, then we must resolve that there will be pain. As Seth Godin says in his new book, "Linchpin," "You can't fit in and stand out at the same time." So if we decide to stand out, we must be willing to endure a measure of pain to be exceptional.

2.  We Endure Pain for the Platform.

One of my favorite leadership sayings is, "Your Pain is your Platform." Unfortunately, too few leaders like to admit this. It's often hard for many of us to look back on the most painful places in our leadership life, learn from those moments and allow vulnerability to trump pride and fear to the degree that others actually profit from our pain.

Some of the darkest and hardest days of my life are now some of the most powerful teaching points of my life story. We don't lead from what we know, we lead from what we've endured. Our pain IS our platform.

3.  We Endure Pain for the Promise.

At the end of the day, our last day is not the end of our days. In other words, eternity awaits. This world has a way of temporizing our vision to only see that which is immediately in front of us. Going through painful situations positions us for perspective. In our moments of greatest pain, we are acutely aware that this world is not all there is.

There is a hope filled eternity that awaits on the other side of our pain. There is a cloudless sky at the other end of our flooded path. There is a promise of redemption hiding behind the shackles of our momentary pain. A redemption that out weighs any earthly heartache or emotional wound. A redemption that allows us the perspective of eternity.

4.  We Endure Pain for the Privilege.

I have become convinced that pain is the admission price of leadership. You can't learn the experience of leadership from a book anymore than you can learn the experience of a roller coaster from the ground. In order to have the privilege of influence on the life of another, each of us must first walk through the fiery threshold of pain.

I recognize the disappointment this may be for some of us who are new to all this, however, I have never been more convinced that any leader worth following is a leader who has taken a few arrows in the back, a few shots at the heart and a few blows to the ego.

In conclusion, I give us, the leaders of the next generation, a challenge to dare to lead this generation, to be courageous enough to endure this inevitable weigh of pain, that we might be trusted with the influence of the lives of those who would choose to follow us.

Enduring with you,

Matt Keller