Servolution Details Available!

More details are now available about what we're doing for the 7 DAYS OF SERVOLUTION IN HELENA!

Here is the website:
7days.encounterhelena.org

SERVING THOSE WHO SERVE
Thursday, April 2 — To start the week, we will deliver gift baskets to show appreciation to volunteers/workers that serve the Helena community. [Facebook event here]

SERVING OUR COMMUNITY
Tuesday, April 7 — During the week, we help make the walking mall more attractive for everyone in Helena by washing storefront windows. [Facebook event here]

For more information on how you can donate items and get involved, read the website details here. [Facebook event here]

Make sure you are a part of the Servolution this April 3-9. Join with us now!

Join Us For Another Game Night

ABOUT THE GAME NIGHT
There will be no They like Jesus Discussion this fourth week on March 24. Instead, everyone is invited to this social gathering and game night (i.e. Killer Bunnies, Apples to Apples). Bring a game and a friend, as well as some pop or snacks to share.

It doesn't matter if you are in the group or not, you are invited. We'll be meeting at the Powell Home on Tuesday, March 31 @ 6:45pm. Email me if you have any questions or comments or visit the Facebook event listing here.

ABOUT THE DISCUSSION
Resuming Tuesday April 14, the discussion group to explore why people who like Jesus, don't connect with church.

On discussion nights at the Staggering Ox, we're viewing DVD clips and discussing relevant topics from Zondervan's They Like Jesus, But Not The Church.

While responding to six of the most common objections and misunderstandings emerging generations have about the church, we'll seek to express the heart of Encounter Church with clarity, boldness, and compassion.

Invite some friends to the discussion by sending them to theylikejesus.encounterhelena.org

Join The Servolution!

This April 3-9, Encounter Church will be taking part in 7 Days of Servolution, a week devoted to sharing God’s love and changing lives through simple acts of kindness.

We’re encouraging groups and individuals throughout Helena to take on this challenge and get creative with grass-roots efforts to serve our community.

There are four things you can do to get involved right now:

1. GET THE WORD OUT. Let everyone know about 7 Days of Servolution and encourage them to get involved. You can tell them to visit 7days.encounterhelena.org and that we're inviting everyone to share simple acts of kindness each day from April 3 to April 9.
2. DISTRIBUTE FLYERS. You can download and duplicate the flyers and resources from the website and distribute them all over Helena.
3. GET PERSONALLY INVOLVED. We challenge you to take the opportunity to personally share at least one simple act of kindness as an individual in each of the seven days.
4. JOIN IN A GATHERED EFFORT. To start the week on April 2, we will "serve those who serve" by delivering gift baskets to the volunteers/workers of an organizations that serve the Helena community. During the week on April 7, we will gather to "serve our community" by making the walking mall more attractive for everyone in Helena and washing storefront windows. We need people and donations so click here for more.
   

To get the full details on the 7 Days of Servolution in Helena, visit the website at 7days.encounterhelena.org.

JOIN THE SERVOLUTION!

Discussion 3 on March 24: Does The Church Restrict And Oppress Women?

Join us this Tuesday, March 24 @ 6:30pm at the Staggering Ox for our third discussion night. Come early if you want to enjoy a sandwich with us before the discussion.

To catch you up, we're going through six of the most common objections and misunderstandings emerging generations have about the church – guided by Zondervan's They Like Jesus, But Not The Church. Over the next weeks we'll seek to express the heart of Encounter Church with clarity, boldness, and compassion. See our previous posts for more.

Too often, the responses we Christians communicate to others actually end dialogue and close our opportunity to learn from each other. Our ultimate goal here is to create a forum of open and honest communication and dialogue.

Again, we're pretty excited about getting out of our homes and out into the public – among those with whom we hope to create a dialogue. This next Tuesday, we will take in two DVD segments and discuss "Does the Church Restrict and Oppress Women?"

So even if you're just curious, feel free to drop by and bring a friend. You don't have to attend every session to get something out of the discussion.

Contact us if you want to know more.

The Servolution is Live in Helena

Here it is. The new 7 DAYS OF SERVOLUTION IN HELENA website is live!

7days.encounterhelena.org

These 7 Days of Servolution in Helena an effort of individuals and groups partnering together and reaching out to our community through simple acts of kindness for the soul purpose of expressing the love of God.

Make sure you are a part of the Servolution this April 3-9. Join with us now!

Join Us For '7 Days Of Servolution' In Helena!

As a young church plant, it seems difficult to be able to make a significant impact in our community. We don't yet have a large base of people to mobilize. We don't yet have a sufficient financial backing.

At the same time, engaging culture is an essential part of who Encounter is and who we want to be. Our weekly discussion group has suggested that we be positive agents of change within our city and community.

With this in mind, I've been perplexed about how to serve Helena right now ... until this afternoon when I visited the 7 Days of Servolution website. 7 Days of Servolution is a coordinated effort to join with individuals all over the nation and the world to share God's love and change lives through simple acts of kindness.

Go and check out the website now, then come back and continue reading.

The idea is to choose one day between April 3 and April 9 to organize a service project for your community (the week before Easter). The website lists many ways churches and individuals can get involved – for all sizes of groups and all budgets.

A 7 DAYS OF SERVOLUTION IN HELENA
Let's make these 7 Days of Servolution in Helena an effort of individuals that represent many churches. It's about partnering together and reaching out to our community through simple acts of kindness for the soul purpose of expressing the love of God to people in our community. You can participate regardless of what church you may attend.

We invite you to participate in at least one of two ways:

1. Personally Share One Act Of Kindness Each Day
   
   Let's make this effort true to it's name by taking a full 7 days to serve our community. We challenge you to take the opportunity to practice at least one simple act of kindness as an individual in each of the seven days.
   
   One idea is to purchase a coffee for the person behind you at the coffee shop. Be creative! There are virtually millions of things we can do. Imagine if our neighbors all over Helena noticed a difference That one single week from April 3-9!
   
   
2. Join Together For One Gathered Effort With Others
   
   Let's join together for a single, gathered effort to share God's love through a coordinated simple act of kindness. We are meeting together to brainstorm and plan what exactly we will do and when. We will then post the details here.
   
   If you would like to join us for the brainstorming and planning meeting at 6:30pm on Friday, March 20, click here for more.
   
   

JESUS CAME TO SERVE, NOT TO "SELL" THE FAITH
Since the focus of this effort is on showing God's love through service, our goal is not necessarily to promote specific churches or to evangelize people. Just as Jesus came to serve, not be served — we, too, will be sharing the heart of Jesus by our actions through simple acts of kindness alone. Instead, let's focus our efforts on inviting everyone you know to get involved — regardless of whether they are from your church or are even a follower of Jesus.

Make sure you are a part of the Servolution this April 3-9 as we share God's love through simple acts of kindness so that lives can be changed through the power of Christ.

JOIN US NOW!

Discussion 2 on March 17: Is The Church Negative, Judgemental, and Political?

Join us this Tuesday, March 17 @ 6:30pm at the Staggering Ox for our second discussion night. We'll have a little St. Patrick's Day celebration of our own. :-)

To catch you up, we're going through six of the most common objections and misunderstandings emerging generations have about the church – guided by Zondervan's They Like Jesus, But Not The Church. Over the next weeks we'll seek to express the heart of Encounter Church with clarity, boldness, and compassion. See our previous posts for more.

Too often, the responses we Christians communicate to others actually end dialogue and close our opportunity to learn from each other. Our ultimate goal here is to create a forum of open and honest communication and dialogue.

Again, we're pretty excited about getting out of our homes and out into the public – among those with whom we hope to create a dialogue. This next Tuesday, we will take in two DVD segments and discuss "Is The Church Negative, Judgemental, and Political?"

So even if you're just curious, feel free to drop by and bring a friend. You don't have to attend every session to get something out of the discussion.

Contact us if you want to know more.

Who Will Launch Encounter Church?

This last week, myself, Andrea, and other church planters here in Montana had a strategic round table to discuss some steps of the church planting journey. It got me thinking about about our current phase as we seek to develop the Encounter Church Planting Team.

Originally we were calling this the "Core Group," but as we've discussed this term with individuals and fellow church planters, I begun to see this term as counter-productive to the healthy establishment of a faith community. That's why I've gone back and changed the terminology in a couple of our recent posts here and here.

Here is a clearer explanation of who will launch Encounter Church and how these teams overlap and fit together.

THE CHURCH PLANTING TEAM
The Church Planting Team are those people that will form, serve in, and launch a new church plant. They will gather for Planting Team Meetings to explore, discuss, and determine foundational systems of Encounter Church in the context of our vision, mission, and core values. Involvement in the Encounter Planting Team involves four essential expectations.

• To serve strategically in Planting Team meetings to publicly launch the Encounter worship gatherings

• To participate in an Encounter LifeGroup (small group) or discussion

• To invest your life into those far from God, both personally and through Encounter community impact and awareness events

• To give financially during your commitment with Encounter

THE LAUNCH TEAM
Individuals from the Church Planting Team and others will then move forward as a Launch Team with specific strategies toward the public launch of the worship gatherings, small groups, and outward focus environments. The primary purpose of the Launch Team is to strategically serve in at least one ministry team for worship & technical, setup & breakdown, kids & students, groups, or community impact.

THE EXTENDED CHURCH PLANTING TEAM
Our Extended Church Planting Team are those other friends and family here in Helena, throughout the country, and around the world who are helping to launch Encounter Church. They include the following...

• Individuals, sponsor churches, and coaches from our church planting network.

• Our growing intercessory prayer team. Those people who have become prayer partners and are praying regularly when they receive our regular email prayer updates. To sign up, click here.

• Individual financial partners who have chosen to support us and the Encounter launch through one-time or monthly gifts. To find out how to help us financially, click here.

• Other individuals who are telling everyone they know of these crazy people they know who are starting a church for this generation in Helena. Let people know about Encounter by sending them to the website here at encounterhelena.org or passing them our email or cell phone number. If you contact us, we'll even get you some of our new Encounter Church awareness cards.

YOU CAN BE PART OF THE TEAM
These are the “early moments” of a movement within Helena to lead a generation into a growing relationship with Christ. If you haven't already thought about it, we challenge you to seriously consider being part of our team.

You may feel led to join one of our teams on an ongoing basis or you can choose a specific time frame like 12 or 24 months. If you resonate with our vision and feel that God is calling you to getting involved with Encounter Church, please let us know by contacting us today.

Discussion 1 on March 10: The Danger Of The Christian Bubble

Join us this Tuesday, March 10 @ 6:30pm at the Staggering Ox for our first discussion night.

There will be live music going on as we try to take in two DVD segments and discuss "The Danger of the Christian Bubble." Yes, I know - don't ask me how well this is going to work. At the same time, we're pretty excited about getting out of our secluded homes and out into the public arena – among those with whom we hope to create a dialogue.

To catch you up, we're going through six of the most common objections and misunderstandings emerging generations have about the church – guided by Zondervan's They Like Jesus, But Not The Church. Over the next weeks we'll seek to express the heart of Encounter Church with clarity, boldness, and compassion. See our previous posts for more.

Too often, the responses we Christians communicate to others actually end dialogue and close our opportunity to learn from each other. Our ultimate goal here is to create a forum of open and honest communication and dialogue.

So even if you're just curious, feel free to drop by and bring a friend. You don't have to attend every session to get something out of the discussion.

Contact us if you want to know more.

The Church of Tomorrow?

When I hear people refer to this generation as "the church of tomorrow," my heart breaks. Not because there is no hope for this generation, but quite the opposite. Seeing this generation as the upcoming generation means that we are tragically clinging to the past.

Dan Kimball is correct in the assertion that those in this generation are the primary shapers and influencers in our culture. He writes in They Like Jesus, But Not The Church, "Musicians writing the songs that influence people at a national and global level are primarily in their twenties. The creativity and innovation of people in their twenties and thirties are used in the marketplace and in the music world, but are they given a place to help shape the church?"

Truth be told, this generation is "the church of today," not tomorrow! Unfortunately, the hearts and minds of many in this generation are being squelched because they don't conform to traditional structures of organized religion. The thought patterns and life experience of this generation are like no other generation in history.

From Craig Groeschel and a recent series over at the Swerve blog, let's highlight some important observations about this generation:

Our world is smaller and our perspective is broader.
Because of technology, The lines between global and local has been blurred.

We have a wider definition of "friends."
Today a friend can be someone you may not have ever met before they clicked on your Facebook page and asked to be your friend.

We're more experiential.
Instead of accumulating possessions like previous generations, our generation is into accumulating experiences.

We have been under-challenged.
Many in this generation have been given much, yet we’ve been challenged little. We have more potential than most realize.

Our world is gray.
Many of us in this generation have been told that truth is relative, but deep down we believe and are searching for absolute truths.

We’re searching for a cause.
This generation is looking for something, often anything, worthwhile to live for. When we find a cause, we'll go to extreme measures to make a difference.

We are conversational.
But before we listen to you, we want to know if you’re listening to us. This generation builds trust slowly. If you’ll get to know us, we will listen to you.

We want to be loved.
This generation craves intimacy in relationships. We want to know and be known. We are hungry for acceptance and affirmation and respond well to sincere Christian love.

If you’re quick to judge, don’t bother trying to connect.
Unfortunately, too many Christians are turned off or intimidated by the young, tech savvy, tattooed, and pierced young adults.

This generation doesn’t want to hear about what you believe.
We want to see your beliefs in actions. As strange as it may seem, we are drawn to faith that feeds the hungry, clothes the naked, heals the sick, and loves the outcasts—all in the name of Christ, the King. If you’re daring enough to live like Jesus, we might join you. And then one day, we might believe what you believe.

Care to add to this list? Click on the word "comments" below...