Lebanon Road’s 2011 theme is “Greater Things.” For an introduction and video to this theme, click here. Each Thursday we are highlighting a different area in which we are striving for greater things.

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Today’s post begins a two-Thursday “run” about our upcoming Gospel Meeting. In a time when many congregations are dropping the idea of a Gospel Meeting, Lebanon Road is having her first meeting in several years! I’ll have more to say about the actual meeting next week.

For this week, I want to share with you the steps we are taking in advertising for the meeting. None of these are truly “original,” but we have really tried to focus on having several different ways to spread the word, instead of just one or two.

1. Postcards. We printed postcards from VistaPrint.com and made them available for everyone in our congregation. Here is what the front side of the cards look like:

2. Flyers/Pamphlets. Many congregations make a few flyers and mail them to nearby congregations. We are doing that, but we are also making dozens of these available to our members, too. We took the step of having a local copy shop run these off, so the paper quality is a bit higher. Click here to see what they look like.

3. Facebook. We created a Facebook event page for the Gospel Meeting, both to let our members show their support, and to give them an organized “digital” way to invite friends. Here is the link.

4. House to House. We mail this newsletter to nearby neighborhoods, and we included an ad in the one that will go out this week. (In fact, as I finish this article, a great group of volunteers is finishing up getting them ready to mail.)

5. PowerPoint. We have made a PowerPoint slide that will run in the announcements before our services.

6. Bulletin. Our bulletin has contained information about our meeting for several weeks. For the past 3 weeks, the back page has been an “ad” for our meeting, and I have included reminders about it for around 6 weeks on the front page.

7. Local newspaper. We purchased a 1/4-page ad in the Donelson newspaper that will run the final two weeks before the meeting.

8. Word of mouth. Our best advertising of all is simply people “talking up” the meeting!

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For “greater things” to occur, we just need our Lebanon Road folks to continue spreading the word and passing out postcards and flyers. Get the word out! It’s going to be a great meeting, and I’ll have more information about it on here next Thursday.

Lebanon Road’s 2011 theme is “Greater Things.” For an introduction and video to this theme, click here. Each Thursday we are highlighting an area in which we are striving for greater things.

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Our emphasis this week is on an event that is coming up later this month. In 2010, we held our first ever leadership retreat, as all our elders, deacons, and preachers met for an all-day session of encouragement, information, connection, and planning. It was such a success that, when we were putting events on the 2011 calendar, several suggested that we go ahead and schedule another retreat for 2011.

We Don't Go Anywhere Quite This Exotic, but It's Still a Great Weekend!

Many congregations never have a retreat for their leaders. Since we had never done one at Lebanon Road, we started small, simply meeting in our fellowship hall, but planning many activities throughout the day. We had a guest speaker, Gary Knuckles, come to give us lessons of encouragement. He did a great job (of course!). One of our elders presented a “State of the Congregation Address,” sharing with us news about the demographics of the congregation, as well as updates on our goals for the year.

Our meals were–to put it mildly–fantastic! We asked one of our ladies who was a caterer to prepare breakfast and lunch (we finished the day around 3:00), and she went all out. As we began to plan the session for this year, one of the first concerns was whether she would do this again. (Thankfully, she is!) We also built in a little extra time just to visit around meals.

One of the major functions of the day was to get some ideas started for the following year. Dozens of great ideas were presented, and they started the ball rolling for the goals of 2011. We also took a few minutes to put the “major” events (VBS, camp, Gospel Meeting, mission trips, service days, etc.) on our calendar, so that the building could be reserved and so we could fill in other events around these.

Finally, we spent a long time in prayer. It was truly a highlight of the day, as prayer requests and prayers for specific works, programs, and individuals were offered up for nearly a solid hour. Our thinking is pretty simple: if the leadership isn’t willing to pray, the congregation is going to suffer.

The day was a true success, and I’m very excited about the 2011 session. We will be meeting on September 24. Our schedule will look a little different, but we are sure that this will be a day that will help us grow closer together, and that will help us review as well as plan for the future.

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Obviously, this is a specific group of folks, but we really want greater things to occur through our retreat. The main way for that to happen is for every member to be praying for this day. Pray for our wisdom and that we will be recharged and uplifted by what happens on September 24.

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Back in the Spring, I was asked to present a short presentation on our retreat at the West Kentucky Leadership Workshop. Below is the handout that I gave out that day with some simple things to keep in mind when planning such an event. I hope it helps you.

Suggestions for a Church Leadership Retreat

Lebanon Road’s 2011 theme is “Greater Things.” For an introduction and video to this theme, click here. Each Thursday, we are highlighting a different area in which we are striving for greater things.

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Next week, our Tuesday Ladies’ Bible Class will start up its fall meeting times. These ladies meet (basically) during the regular school year on Tuesday mornings for a wonderful period of study. They do not meet on Tuesdays when Nashville’s Metro schools are out for holidays or weather.

These classes are tremendous. One of our dear ladies teaches regularly, but other ladies teach from time-to-time as well. Most of them are regular members of the class, but at times other ladies come in to teach on a particular topic. The lessons are very in-depth and true to the Bible. Leah regularly attends these classes and loves the depth of study they provide.

Once each month, the ladies follow the class with a meal, either in someone’s home or at our fellowship hall. When they meet in the fellowship hall, I get to walk over and enjoy lunch with these wonderful sisters in Christ (one of the great “perks” of preaching at Lebanon Road!). The meals are delicious, but so much time and effort also goes into making the tables beautiful and right for the time of year. It is a delight to eat with these ladies and visit with them.

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Since we are emphasizing greater things, the main thing that could make this class “greater” is more participation. I know and understand that many ladies work and cannot come. There are others, though, that are missing out on a great Biblical feast by not attending, though they could. The classes last 1 hour (sometimes a little less), so it is not a huge time commitment.

Ladies, why not make it a point to start back next Tuesday and enjoy these great periods of study? You’ll be glad you did!

Lebanon Road’s 2011 theme is “Greater Things.” For an introduction and video to this theme, click here. Each Thursday, we are highlighting a different area in which we are striving for greater things.

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For over a year, Lebanon Road has been placing an emphasis on helping those who are going through times of grief. One of the ways this is being done is through a class that has been offered in the past, and will be offered again, starting in September. The class is called “Crisis Care: Hope for the Hurting.” The lessons are DVD-based, but are more built around discussions from the lessons. [The picture below is of a workbook from the series]

It was thought that this might be a one-time class, but the response was overwhelming, so our elders decided to have the course again, and it will start in September. One of the things that makes this class unique is that there are many in the class who have gone through (or are going through) seasons of grief, while there are others taking the class simply as a way to learn how to better minister to the hurting. That blend is a wonderful thing to see.

I would highly recommend this class, and my prayer is that many will take advantage of these sessions. Grief is part of our lives, and any help we can get in learning how best to deal with grief will be a blessing to us.

I am also sharing this in our “greater things” series to encourage your congregations to think of doing series like this on Wednesday nights. What an opportunity we have to teach practical Christian living in these sessions, not just about grief, but about a myriad of topics that will help our members.

Lebanon Road’s 2011 theme is “Greater Things.” For an introduction and video to this theme, click here. Each Thursday, we are highlighting an area in which we are striving for greater things.

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This week’s “greater thing” has already happened, but I wanted to tell you about it, because it was new to us. One of our members gave us the idea, and it was a wonderful one. The elders approved, and work was underway.

It was our Back to School Service.

We did this last Sunday night, and it was quite simple. It was, however, seen as a great success, and very encouraging to our students. Here is what we did:

1. I preached a sermon primarily with our students in mind. The sermon was called “Gathering Supplies.” I had a backpack with me in the pulpit, and reached in for different school supplies (ruler, glue, rubber bands, paper and pencil, calculator, and scissors). Using each one, I made a spiritual application that could be used in the schools (e.g., the ruler reminds us to measure our words). This sermon was a bit shorter than usual, but that was intended.

2. Following the invitation, we asked all our K-12 students to come to the front.

3. Our youth minister, JD Buckner, spoke for about 10 minutes to the students, giving them words of encouragement from the congregation as they started their school year.

4. While he spoke, a PowerPoint presentation was scrolling with the names of every school and every student. (Yes, we forgot one, and it was my fault….grrrrrr) A lot of our folks told me that they had no idea just how many students we had! The presentation also featured a picture of the school, logo, or website banner to add some color and life to the presentation.

5. Finally, one of our elders led a prayer for all our students. This was a wonderful act, as it showed the leadership of our congregation desiring the best for these students as they begin a new year.

Overall, it was a wonderful evening. It didn’t take any more time than a “normal” Sunday evening service, but it truly encouraged our students, and showed them that the congregation is behind them. We will surely have another Back to School service for years to come!