Consumerism and the local church

In many respects we really can't help it. We live in a time and place where nearly every institution is competing for our time, attention, money, adoration, dedication, and promotion. It turns out that marketing people are very smart...they know how to get us to do just about anything they want. Quite simply they strive to appeal to our basest of qualities, a quality derived straight from the Garden of Eden; that is....the elevation of "self" to a level that makes our own desires outweigh anything else. Marketeers are constantly telling us all the things we deserve, how we should treat ourselves, pamper ourselves, lookout for number one, etc. And we have bought in to it "hook, line, and sinker!" Why wouldn't we....we love getting what we want! I personally love a good thick steak.....and when some guy with a thick aussie accent tells me that I deserve it and I should "treat myself" to some Outback tonight....well, how can I argue with that?

Unfortunately, alot of us bring that "it's all about me" attitude to church. We want to sit in our chair every Sunday and "consume." Afterall, that's what we do at Outback Steakhouse, or Starbucks, or Chick-fil-a, or Bell's! We choose what we want, what sounds good to us, how we want it cooked and then we wait on someone to serve us so we can "consume." The difference is.....now listen closely.....this is the good part..... "Church isn't about what you want, it's about what God wants." The local church serves 3 purposes....1) to worship and give GOD glory, 2) to equip believers to reach others, 3) to provide an environment for those who don't know Jesus to hear the gospel. I believe that the local church is God's primary tool for reaching the "lost." So, (this may sting a little) if you are a believer...it's not about you! I have heard Pastor Greg say that the difference between the church and a country club is that a country club exists to serve it's members....in the church, the members exist to serve the church.

Remember Mark 10:45
"For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."

So how are you serving your church today. Are you doing more than just taking up a seat on Sunday morning? Do you see the bigger picture....that there are people that will only be reached by the local church....and it is our job to put our desires aside and to prepare an environment that is welcoming, safe, engaging, and "real" so that someone we don't even know yet can come to a relationship with Jesus. Consumer church is NEVER satisfying. True satisfaction comes through serving others. Don't miss out. Find a place of meaningful service today.

This Sunday @Foothills Toccoa

I haven't been this excited about a Sunday morning in a long time! As we finish the What If... series with a message entitled "What if today was your last day", tomorrow has the potential to be HUGE! This is a service that you seriously need to invite your friends, co-workers, neighbors,....anyone who needs a relationship with Jesus. It's going to be amazing!

See you tomorrow...and don't be late....you don't want to miss a single minute!

workdays at the new bldg this week

Hey everyone! We are making great progress in the new bldg, however, we have a tons more work left to do. We need as many people to come help as possible. This week we will be working wed during the day...9-3 and then Wed night 6-8. We will be working then again on Sat from 9-3. Please make plans to be there...its always a lot of fun!

workday aug 29

Hey everyone! The demolition inside the building is finished! Tomorrow we will be beginning to frame up walls in the children's side. There won't be as many opportunities for youth workers this week except to be runners between the saws and the carpenters. Also there will be a little painting on the outside if the rain holds off. Bring saws, nail guns, etc used for framing. Can't wait to see you there!

Workdays this week

Hey everyone....the workday this past Saturday was amazing! Got a lot done.

This week we are going to be at the building working Wednesday night from 6-8 doing some clean-up of demolition that was done on Saturday and probably starting a little demolition on the children's side of the building.

Then Saturday we will be there from 9am - 2 or 3pm. It will be a lot of the same as last weekend. Painting of the outside of the building and demolition of the childrens side interior.

Can't wait to see everyone there!


Shannon

First workday!

We are going to have our first workday at the new building this Saturday. One of the first things we want to do is paint the exterior. We will be doing at least a coat of primer this weekend....maybe paint if I can get the color sample in time. We will also start some demolition of existing walls inside. We will be starting @ about 9:00am. Please bring paint brushes, rollers, ladders, and any other painting tools we might need.

For the demolition bring sledgehammers, saws, pry bars, etc.

It is going to be a hot one on Saturday so if someone could volunteer to bring water, etc to keep the workers hydrated that would be awesome!

If you have any questions call Sam McMillan @ 864-903-5137. Sam and Jody have agree to be the point person for organizing and directing all the remodeling activities! Please give them your support.

Shannon

Building Dedication and what's next

Hey everyone! The building dedication last night was awesome! I really enjoyed getting to worship for the first time in our new building.....and you guys sang your hearts out! This building is going to be an incredible place of healing and life change for people we haven't even met yet....that is exciting for me. I hope it is for you too.

As far as what are we doing next...here is where we are.

We are waiting for the thrift store to empty (we anticipate them being out by Tuesday) and we are waiting for a layout drawing from our architect. As soon as those things happen we will begin demolition of the walls that currently exist that we are not going to use.....and from there we will begin framing.

Just check here everyday for updates as to what and when we will be doing work.

Thanks,
Shannon

Video message format

Some of you may have noticed that we have been trying a couple different formats for the video message at the Toccoa campus over the last few weeks. I am wanting to get some feedback from ya'll about the different formats...what you like best.

Basically there are 3 formats that we are looking at......

1. Lock-down center screen shot of full size speaker with magnified images with lower-third notes and scriptures on the side screens. (This is the original format that we have done 99% of the time since we launched the campus last September)

2. Magnified waist up image of the speaker on the center screen with full-size notes and scriptures on the side screens. This is the format that we used this past week with the message by Daniel Lucas. We ar e going to do this format again this coming week in case you missed it.....

3. Same magnified waist up image on all three screens with lower-third notes and scriptures.

Just comment back on this blog or email me at shannonchiles@foothills.cc and let me know what you think.

Shannon

What a GREAT day!

Yesterday was just a phenomonal day at Foothills Toccoa Campus! The message yesterday was incredible.....if you missed it be sure to watch it at www.foothills.cc

And then yesterday afternoon we had a baptism party out at the lake.....it was awesome! We had great food....ribs, chicken, sausage, hotdogs, and then a slew of side dishes and desserts. But the best part was that we saw 6 people follow through in baptism......awesome day!

If you want to see the pictures.....check out this link or this one on facebook.

I love you guys! I love being your pastor! I love being able to serve with you...passionately reaching those in Stephens County who are far from God and helping them to know Jesus.

Baptism Parrrrrtayyyyy!

We are having a big baptism party Sunday, July 5th starting @ 3:30pm. It is going to be at Josh Schaeffers lakehouse. Come ready to eat, swim, boat....bring tailgate games.....etc....it's going to be a blast!!!

Here are the details:

Location: 538 Imperial, Martin, GA (map to follow)
Time: 3:30pm - ?
Food: Grilled chicken, ribs, sausage, and hotdogs will be provided. Bring a side dish or a dessert to share.
Drinks: Drinks will be provided.
What else: Bring lawnchairs, swimming stuff, boat, tailgate games.

If you don't feel confident that you can find the location....we will have groups leaving from Toccoa Campus and the Walmart parking lot @ about 3:15.

Also...if you want to be baptized, please let me know!

See you there!
Shannon


CLICK IMAGE TO SEE LARGER

When "date night" goes terribly wrong....

If you were at FCC Toccoa Campus this past Sunday, you realize that I WASN'T! It was the first Sunday that I have missed since we launched the campus last September......and I hated not being there. I heard that Jonathan did a fantastic job of making sure stuff happened....I love that guy! I am truly blessed to have him on my team. Also heard that Brian Rhodes came down and lended a hand....it really is cool to be part of a family of staff members who got each others backs.

So this is what happened...

Saturday night, Amy and I were in Seneca. We did not have any kids for the night and were planning on having a nice date night alone. Maybe some dinner and a movie....something like that probably. I have a small hernia on my bellybutton that I had had for about a year. I noticed the night before that the hernia had become hard and tender to the touch....so while I was waiting for Amy to finish up some business before we headed out to date night, I called my brother, Jon, who is a doctor and asked him about the hernia. From what I described to him, he said that it might be strangulated and cutting off blood to whatever was poking out the hernia. He said that it was fairly serious and he would not wait until the coming week to take care of it because if it were bowel or intestine poking out and it was strangulated, that tissue would die and leave me with a hole in the bowel. So, Amy and I went and grabbed a bite, and headed to the ER (very reluctantly). Both of us thought for sure that this would turn out to be nothing and they would send us home........WRONG! Jon pretty much nailed it! They admitted me to the hospital right then and there and did surgery to repair the hernia Sunday morning. Crazy huh?

Can't wait to be back at church this Sunday....I missed everyone so much! Love you all, and thanks for the thoughts, prayers and calls.

So much good stuff going on!

Just wanted everyone to know of some of the exciting things that are going on.....

First - This weekend FCC had a weekend students event at the Seneca Campus called Ignite. From all accounts the weekend was incredible! We had 5 students from the Toccoa Campus attend.....1 of which who was baptized! WOW! That is what it is all about people....life change is happening all around us....even with our middle schoolers and high schoolers!!!

Second - We are seeing spiritual decisions weekly at Toccoa Campus. It is incredible....God is working! The awesome thing is that it is we are just being true to the VISION that God has given us! People are inviting their friends....their friends are getting plugged in and inviting their friends....and peoples lives are being changed. I am blown away at all the new young families that are coming! Everyone at Toccoa Campus is doing a great job of keeping their focus off of themselves and on the people we are trying to reach. We are doing the most important job in the world! Thank you so much for bringing your A+ game every week!!

Finally - SAVE THE DATE! We are scheduling a party at the lake on June 14th. Where on the lake? The place is TBD...but the party is going to start about 3:30pm. It's going to be a covered dish dinner so plan on bringing enough of something yummy to feed your family plus 2-3 others. We are also going to be doing baptisms......so, if you have accepted Christ as your personal Savior but have not followed through in baptism, or you were baptized before you accepted Christ....please let me know...this baptism party is going to be a huge spiritual marker in our campus' life. Email me at shannonchiles@foothills.cc if you want to be baptized.

Student Ministry - What, When, How?

Okay.....last week we had our first ever youth event. We did what we called "Staff on a Stick". It was a blast.....for pictures be sure to check out my facebook.

This week we are launching our weekly student get together. It is going to be at my house.....if you need directions email me. Planning on getting started at about 6:30...we will have snacks, games and a video from our Student Pastor Brian Rhodes. It is going to be a good time making new friends, and learning from God's Word and how it all applies to our lives as middle school students and high school students. I can't wait!

Still looking for a name for the group.....if you have any ideas post them here as comments! Looking forward to seeing everyone and seeing what God does through this new ministry area for FCC Toccoa.

Tweeting the Word

Team Leader Meeting

Staff on a stick

Last night we had our very first student activity in Toccoa! We did a staff on a stick scavenger hunt around town and it was a blast! We had 7 students show up and I believe they all had a great time. Starting this coming Wed we will be having weekly student meetings...! Until we nail down a host home, it will be at my house. Anyone who is interested in hosting the students once a week....please let me know. Also if you would like to be a volunteer leader let me know....

If you want to see pictures from "staff on a stick" you need to checkout my facebook at www.facebook.com/playdemkeys. Facebook is a great way to keep up with me and Jonathan and all the staff at Foothills....plus it is a great tool to get the word out about our campus! Join today!

Shine 09

Hey everyone....if you missed this Sunday at FCC Toccoa....you missed a GREAT one! Greg spoke on serving others inorder to show them Christ. It was awesome. Remember you can always view past messages online at www.foothills.cc After church, people had opportunity to sign up for 1 of 3 SHINE09 projects that we are doing in Toccoa. There is a landscaping project at Big A Elementary, Pressure washing and cleaning at a homeless shelter, and painting at another homeless shelter. If you missed sign-ups and want to participate in this incredible event where we get to reach out to our community, email me at shannonchiles@foothillscc.org and I will get you hooked up!

Failblog.org

Found a new site to me....... www.failblog.org It is hilarious, but be sure to select G-rated pictures and movies only!

here is a funny sample

This is an amazing interview....full of grace and truth

http://www.elevationchurch.org/mediaPlayer.php?sermon=170

Monday Morning Thoughts

Yesterday was a great day at Foothills Toccoa! The band flat out rocked and the peoples energy was great. Brian Rhodes message on undeserved love really touched me and many others I believe. One of the best parts of yesterday was that I got to play the keyboard for the feature song "This Kind of Love." I hadn't played since before we launched the Toccoa Campus...so I felt a little rusty, but it was a blast being able to play again. I didn't realize until after the service how many people had no idea that I played keyboard or was musically gifted at all.... which is kind of strange for me because most of my life people have known that and associated me with music. But there are so many new people at Foothills Toccoa that had not been in Seneca that it really shouldn't have surprised me. Anyway, I appreciate Jonathan letting an old guy up on stage to play a song this week!

The second highlight of the day was that the Toccoa Softball team won our first game! It was awesome! Some highlights of the game were Aaron Krumenacker playing third base. This dude can flat out play third! It was amazing to watch. Also, we had two in the park homeruns yesterday. The first was Tom Ross....amazing shot out center field. And the second was a grand slam by Jonathan Wright. I think everyone had a good time.....

Today we have an off-site creative planning meeting to plan series' for the next 6 months. I love these meetings where we just brainstorm and come up with creative ways to engage people in church! Creative planning is definitely one of my favorite parts of my job.

Saturday morning setup

We have an amazing group of volunteers that setup and breakdown Foothills Toccoa Campus every week! The are rockstars in my mind! It is really incredible to see them go at it.... It is hard to imagine, but they have the entire gym transformed into an auditorium most times in less than 1 hour! The importance of this team of people can never be underestimated. They are literally creating God's house for us to worship in come Sunday morning. Week after week I am told by first time guests how impressive it is what we do to the inside of that gym....it is warm, welcoming, and looks like it is left up week after week. This is because our volunteers take such great care in what they do.....knowing that lives WILL be changed inside that room!

This week we have several people that will be out of town or unavailable to do setup as they usually do on Saturday morning. If you could spare an hour from 8am til 9am on Saturday morning to help setup our campus for Sunday....please email me at shannonchiles@foothillscc.org or just show up! This may be the second best hour of your week....second only to the Sunday morning experience at FCC Toccoa! We always have a good time setting up...you will do something extremely important, make some new friends, and probably laugh a whole lot!

Hope to see you there.

Shannon

Things coming up.....

It seems to be a very hectic time right now for some reason. It may be because we are starting so many new things in the coming weeks. Here is a list of important things and dates to remember.

Sunday, April 26 - Foothills Toccoa plays their first softball game! The game starts at 4:00pm and is at Shaver Rec Center in Seneca. Come cheer on the Toccoa team in "blue". Any team name ideas?

Sunday, April 26 - Praise Night/Lord's Supper/Baptism 6:00pm at the Seneca Campus! This is a entire church event combining both campuses! This is the first time we have done this! It is going to be exciting...plan to be there!! And if you are interested in being baptized and you haven't let me know......do so soon!

Monday, April 27 - Student Pastor Brian Rhodes will be having an informational meeting for those interested in volunteering in student ministries in Toccoa. Time and Place TBD....stay tuned.

Sunday, May 3 - Belong class at Toccoa Campus, 9:00am. If you are interested in what Foothills is all about and what we believe, plan to attend this class. This is a great class! It is offered monthly....but only occasionally is it offered on Sunday morning, usually they are Thursday nights.

Sunday, May 10 - Parent/Child Dedications. We do child dedications once a year. If you are interested in having you child dedicated, please email me the parents names, child's name, and a picture of the child.

Saturday, May 16 - Shine09. This is a day when the entire church goes out and does service projects to give back to our community! There will be a variety of projects to choose from, each lasting 3-4 hours. Last year we had 1000 people participate in Seneca.... I am expecting a turnout of at least 100 people from Toccoa for Shine!

Thats the next month in a nutshell.......mark your calendars. You don't want to miss any of this!

The mail system - lessons learned

I found out from several people in Toccoa, that they received their Easter letter from me with invite cards AFTER Easter! Obviously that was not planned. So, I went to Seneca today to talk with the administrative support staff to find out how this could have happened. It turns out that the letter and envelopes were printed on April 2 and taken to the Seneca post office to be mailed that same day. We have a bulk rate permit for mailing out of Seneca and that is how we have always mailed stuff. People in Seneca, Westminster, etc that have a 297xx zip code received their letters within a day or two from what I understand.... However, people with a 305xx zip code obviously did not.

When we talked to the post office to try to figure out why this happened we found out something interesting. Here is the travel itinerary that your letter took......if you live in Toccoa. Seneca, SC to Greenville, SC to Greensboro, NC to Columbia, SC to Toccoa, GA. Wow....that letter is more well travelled than some people I know! On top of that, because it is Bulk Rate mail....each of those locations have up to 3 days to process it! I had no idea. The office staff had no idea. So......chalk it up to a lesson learned. But rest assured, the letters weren't sent last minute, they didn't get left behind when the others got mailed..... The USPS just got us!

Multi-site church changes everything....... so many things change when you go multi-site that I can't begin to list them all....and there are some that I probably still don't know. It is interesting to look at other churches who are multi-site and realize that although most of the campuses are with in 30 minutes of the live campus....most are in the same state! Crossing statelines makes it extra interesting.....

Anyway....I am sorry everyone got their letters late....we will try not to repeat that mistake.

Shannon

Vision, vision, vision

I just wanted to give a HUGE shout out and thanks to all the volunteers at Foothills Toccoa! We have so many dedicated people who work tirelessly week in and week out so that the gospel can be accessible to the unchurched people of Stephens County. What is so impressive is that when you assemble any group of people from many different backgrounds, you will have just as many (if not more) different opinions of how things should be done. However, we have seen time and time again people swallow pride, put aside personal agendas, and continue on with one goal. To reach those who are not in church. This means grabbing PASSIONATELY onto the vision and standing by the leadership even when they don't necessarily agree. Craig Groeschel says "If you want to reach those who no one else is reaching, you have to do what no one else is doing." You know what we are comfortable with? What we have already done....that's what we know and what we are comfortable with. Doing something different causes discomfort.....so, doing what no one else is doing is going to be uncomfortable! That is all there is to it! Our desire should ALWAYS be to be willing to sacrifice MY comfort for the benefit of someone elses eternity....if you don't get that, you don't get the VISION of Foothills Community Church.

Vision works....selflessness works.....FCC Toccoa had it's most incredible week EVER this past Easter Sunday. If spiritual decisions are the measuring stick by which we measure if what we are doing is on track (and I believe it should be)...then this Sunday told us we hit the mark. This past week we had more spiritual decisions than in any other Sunday since we launched the campus last September. 3 first time salvations! 7 recommittments to Christ! 6 baptism requests! That is almost as many in one Sunday as we have had cummulative since we launched!

We are just starting to hit our stride....I think God is getting ready to open the flood gates and we are just beginning to see what God is going to do.

Hang in there. Stay focused on the vision. Give God ALL the glory.

Shannon

This will make you cry!

This is 12stone in Lawrenceville, GA! How come I can see Eric, Odom, and Jonathan B doing this!??????

The Roadie Song

I go through phases where I will listen to different types of music for a period of time...then move on to a different genre. I have had country phases, pop phases, christian phases, r&b phases, hip-hop phases, alternative phases....you name it I have probably listened to it for some period of time. Here lately I have found myself drawn to "classic rock." "Classic rock" is actually a politically correct way to say "old rock." The thing is....it's now the music I grew up listening to....so what does that make me? Old? Once again, I will yield to the politically correct term and refer to myself as "classic." Hmmmmm, whatever!

Anyway, today I was listening to the local "classic rock" station when I heard one of my favorite songs of all time. "The Roadie Song / Stay" by Jackson Browne. I love that song....always have. It has to do with a lot of things I think....the piano (which is my instrument of choice) is very cool, the variety of instrumentation in extremely interesting, but the lyrics are what really gets me. From the surface, it seems like a song about the life of a traveling artist and what it is like going from town to town and performing, life on the road, etc. But it's not! It is a song about conviction and connection and that is what draws me in everytime I hear it. The singer, the band, the roadies all are doing a very difficult job, a job that is physically and emotionally draining. They sleep on buses and hotel rooms away from their families and friends. They lose track of where they are and where they are going next. But they love what they do so much because of the connection that they make with their audience. I love the line "We pass the time in hotel rooms and wandering 'round backstage. But when the lights come up and we hear the crowd, we remember why we came." That is exactly the way I feel about Sunday mornings. The way we do church at Foothills Community Church is a lot of work. It is physically and emotionally draining....but I wouldn't want to do anything else in the world. Because when we open the doors on Sunday morning and the people pour in, and the music begins to play, and God is glorified, and people experience life change....."I REMEMBER WHY WE CAME!" In Toccoa, we set up and breakdown our church every week. And many people have heard me say "It is kind of sad when it all gets taken down and the space is back to being a gym." I ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS want to stay a little bit longer.

Enjoy this video

Sunday was awesome!

This Sunday at the Toccoa Campus was amazing. Our new worship pastor, Jonathan Bryant did an outstanding job as did all the guys in the band. It was really and incredible time of worship.

The lifegroup signups were off the chart.....I am going to need to add one or two more groups to accommodate all the people who want to get connected to a group!

We have so many great people at the Toccoa Campus....it really blows my mind! Every week people are stepping up and asking what they can do to help....wanting to serve.....get connected.

Next Week we are doing a big SERVE push.....the message will be on getting connect through serving and then we are going to have a volunteer appreciation party to let our volunteers know just how much they mean to us. We will watch the Superbowl on the big screen, have food, and drinks....everything will be provided by staff and team leaders. If you are a volunteer or you are interested in finding a place to serve at the Toccoa Campus......please come out and have a good time....eat some great food....and just have a fantastic time with our church family. Festivities start at 5:00pm.

My knee and Jessica Simpson

So out of the blue my right knee starts hurting on Tuesday. The pain increases throughout the day to the point that by the time I am ready to go to bed I cannot bend it without experiencing EXCRUTIATING pain! Wed it was a little better....but today it is still very painful. The thing about it is that I don't remember doing anything to injure it. What does this mean.....can you just have spontateous knee injuries that bring you to tears. I may have to write this up for a medical journal, or 48hours Mysteries, or maybe an episode of "Fringe"! Weird!

Tonight I am taking my wife to a concert at the Bilo Center. Her favorite band by far is Rascal Flatts so we are going to see them! She is going to love it! The problem is that we have to put up with the opening act......JESSICA SIMPSON! Baaarrrrffffola. Maybe we should bring cans of Chicken of the Sea to throw up on stage!

BTW - Awesome night last night in Toccoa. We had our first ever GROW class and had 13 people attend!

New Year's Resolution....my only one

I have been a "slablogger!" What in the world is a "slablogger" you ask? It is a slacker-blogger. I have rarely blogged in the last couple of months....and when I have, there hasn't been much to it. So....as much as I hate New Years resolutions I am going to make just one...and that is to blog at least twice a week. I don't want to say everyday or everyother day or on days that end with the letter y or anything like that......just two days a week. And I expect my faithful blog readers (or at this point it may be just one reader.....) to hold me to it! So that is my part of the deal....I will provide more blog posts. Your part of the deal is to leave COMMENTS! I love comments.....so leave lots of them.....it makes it so much more fun and interactive!

Totally different subject......I have very exciting news!
We have hired a Worship Pastor for Foothills Toccoa! Whooooooooo Hoooooooo! Many of you will remember Jonathan Bryant. Jonathan lead worship the week that Pastor Greg was in Toccoa and spoke live! I am totally jacked up about this! Jonathan and I have been able to spend some time together and he is an awesome guy who, besides being a great worship leader, has a incredible heart for connecting with people and connecting them with Jesus. Jonathan will be starting next Monday and leading worship in Toccoa starting Jan 25.

When you see him....be sure to give him a big Foothills welcome.

Intro Video

Alot of people have asked to see the intro video again from last weeks service. The premise of the video is that I am mysteriously missing from Church and have gone back to Seneca to get a new copy of this weeks service video.....and the video picks up from there....