Field Trip notes

I've got to brag on Charlotte North Fellowship. They didn't know we were coming to check out how they do 'church in the movies' this morning because I know that Sundays are busy and I didn't want to complicate things for them. Well, once they found out that we were a church plant they went out of their way to show us around, give us the ins and outs of doing 'church at the movies,' talk to us about set-up, tear-down, working with theater management and they had GREAT Starbucks coffee!!!

I am also so appreciative to the team from The Point that went with us. I think God showed us some things and it was awesome to get a picture in our heads of what could be.

Here are some observations that I made:

• Their set-up was SIMPLE. My first thought was, "We can do this!"
• Each team (greeting, host, etc.) had matching cool t-shirts with the church's logo. That way it was easier to know who to go to for help.
• They use Tall Wooden Boxes to collect financial contributions and connection cards, just like us!!!
• The BIG theater screen is great.
  
• Children's workers all wore reflective road worker vests. It went with the "Kidstreet" theme, but it was also cool.
• All the flooring in the kid's area was that interlocking padded stuff.
• They stored all their stuff under the screens. That means they don't need a trailer.
• It's fun having a cup-holder at your seat.
• They had very professional, yet simple looking signage. It gave things an air of credibility and professionalism. It communicated, "We care and we're for real" to me.

From my perspective, it was a great first field trip. I can't wait for our next one in two weeks.

Prayer Walk/Drive observations

I promised some observations from our Prayer Walk/Drive on Sunday AM, so here they are:

• There were lots of people out walking in Converse Heights at 11 AM on Sunday morning. Parents had their kids at the playground. Folks were getting exercise. Neighbors were talking. But, they weren’t at church!
• The Westgate Mall area is a destination. Spartanburg Regional is the county’s biggest employer. Downtown is packed with professionals during lunchtime Monday through Friday. (These aren’t really new observations, but they lead to some questions which I will share in a minute.)
• No college students were seen on Wofford, Converse or USC Upstate’s campus at 11 AM.
• Even subdivisions seem to be racially divided.
• At 11 AM the parking lots of Publix, Walmart and Fire Mountain are PACKED!

These observations lead me to some questions:

• How can we maximize Spartanburg’s Destination of the Westgate Mall area? Should The Point have a venue there? If so, where, how and when?
• How can we take advantage of where people gather? What giveaways could we do during lunchtime downtown?
• How can we make our gathering more desirable than Publix, Walmart and Fire Mountain?

Prayer Walking/Driving is more than just talking to God. It’s listening. It’s observing. It’s crafting out some space to hear from God on behalf of the people we are trying to reach. We’ve made some observations. We’ve got some questions. Do you have any suggestions?