becoming – week one

Hi Friends!

I’m looking forward to this weekend when we begin our new series, Becoming.  As we start out in Matthew chapter 14, we can rest in knowing that God has been at work in our new church start-up:

• our worship attendance grew by 50% over the past 4 weekends
• we have seen 15 lives turn to Christ
• Catalyst was the front page story on the Akron Beacon-Journal

Amazing.  God is exceedingly faithful in spite of our messiness.

I have a document for you to download with important information that I’m asking you to print out, pray over, and bring with you this Sunday.  We have an amazing opportunity to truly impact north-east Ohio if we unite together with our combined, sacrificial hours and dollars.

I’ll share more on Sunday, but truly this is a moment for our new church start-up to come together and advance God’s agenda: changed lives for His glory.

Know that you are loved and prayed for -

Jonathan Herron, lead pastor

The Buzz

Sunday mornings are all about creating an engaging atmosphere where someone far from God can move forward in their faith journey at their own pace.  We’re always seeking to learn and improve in our mission – - here’s what some 1st-time Guests shared after this past Sunday (Feb 15th):

• “I love seeing relevant music integrated into the message. Too often Christians make a fictitious sacred vs. secular line in the sand as if an unbeliever can never say, write, or sing anything with truth in it. In my opinion, incorporating truths that are contained in ‘secular’ music goes a long way in reaching unchurched visitors.”
• “My wife made the comment after church that you were the friendliest church we’ve visited in a long time.”
• “Anytime my 3 year old daughter comes out of church saying ‘Daddy I learned about Jesus’ is a great sign!”
• “I was really blessed by the comment in the sermon about looking through the lens of your spiritual gift. I’ve never thought about it like that before but definitely see that it’s true for me. The worship was great.”
• “They liked the band; they weren’t familiar with the worship songs but when they heard the Beatles number they realized how good the band is.”
• “(My friend) is a techie and was impressed with the use of technology.”

Come Together…

Love the Beatles song, but never caught the lyrics before seeing them on the screen today at Catalyst.  Amazing stuff – - the words talk about all kinds of people from varied backgrounds being beckoned to unite by John Lennon and Paul McCartney.

“Come together, right now, over me.” Curiously, Jesus of Nazareth issues the same call to His followers.  That’s where we found ourselves today in reverse engineering our social lives.

Practically, we focused on 4 areas of moving forward as a community of faith:

1. Small Groups – West-Side meets Monday nights, East-Side gathers Wednesday nights.  More info on joining in on our studies of Vintage Jesus are available through Ben Seals.
2. Invites – Yes, my story this morning is TRUE.  I invited my doctor to Catalyst while being examined in a precarious position.  Why?  Because we exist to reach the lost at any cost.  Build up our community by inviting folks this week – try E-Vites!
3. Serving – We ask our partners to serve 2 Sundays on, 2 Sundays off.  It’s a 1 Corinthians 12 thing.  Every body part keeping systems flowing.
4. Giving – Tithing is trusting.  At Catalyst, we follow 2 Corinthians 8 when it comes to equal sacrifice in our community.  We were blown away by today’s results: $3,249.05!
   A snapshot of equal sacrifice in our body:  a younger kid responded to the message by insisting on putting their nickel in the popcorn bucket – amazing!

Moving forward, God is going to do some amazing things through our church start-up.  So long as we unite around the Name of Jesus – -  we are part of something bigger than ourselves: the Body of Christ.

Dumping Debt

You’re invited to join us Tuesday from 7-8:30pm for Dave Ramsey’s Dumping Debt.  This biblically-based, video-driven small group class is one of Dave’s signature lessons and a great starting point for joining Financial Peace University at the Catalyst Offices.  For more info, drop us a line.

The Catalyst Offices are located at 125 South Water Street in the heart of downtown Kent (corner of 43 and 59; across the street from Franklin Square Deli).

Big Favor

We have a big favor to ask of everyone this Sunday:  If you do not have small children, please plan on parking as far away from the front doors of Regal Cinema as you possibly can this Sunday.  We need the closer spaces opened up for visiting guests and families with young ones.

Once inside the auditorium, our volunteers will be asking you to fill every seat in the auditorium and slide down toward the walls.  Last Sunday was standing-room-only.  With all the new faces joining us for worship, we need to squish into every available spot for worship.  Thank you for your understanding (these are great problems to have!).

Reverse Engineer Your Life

Our 4 week teaching series kicked off this past Sunday at Regal Cinemas in Stow.  This coming weekend, February 8th,  we’ll focus on Reverse Engineering Your Finances.

As promised, here are the study notes and questions for you to wrestle with from Jon’s talk (download message here).  Special thanks to John Phelps, Mark Driscoll, and Tyler Jones for their rich input on this message.

Read Ecclesiastes 10.10.  Can you identify with the lumberjack?

Guiding Principles
1. Life is a checkbook – every day you write a check. How do you spend your time?
2. You must see the macro before the micro.  Google Earth your life!
3.  Must have a plan…Write it down.
4. Premeditated fun must be in your plan.
5. Acceptable release valve for your pressure… Running, coaching child’s team, silence/study, going to the gym…what is it for you?

Guiding Priorities

1. Write out 7 priorities. …No one can do more than 6 or 7 things
2. …then schedule life according to priorities.
3. Reverse engineering piece — Pick a day as far in the future that you can reasonable plan toward—1 year, 2 years, 5 years. Ask the questions, then define what/who you want to be on that day…then reverse engineer

• • How are you going to get to that place you want to be? (Consult the book of Proverbs)
• • Where will you live?
• • What will you do?
• • How many kids do you want to have?

Health

• How much will you weigh?
• How much will you exercise?
• What will have changed about your appearance?
• How many hours of sleep will you get a night? (average should get 8 hrs, 5-6 hrs in reality)
• How many times a week will you nap?
• What day do you Sabbath?
• What will your vacations and holidays look like?

Practical

• Where do you live? (What’s it going to take to get there?)
• What do you want in your home?
• What do you need? Home office to be home with family…craft room for wife…community with other families…not isolated.
• What kind of vehicle will you drive?
• How long will your commute to work take?
• What furniture and appliances will you have gotten rid of or acquired?

Financial

• What is your job?
• What do you want to be doing? Find someone in the church to talk to about the field you are interested in. Actively pursue people that are doing what you want to be doing.
• How much money do you make?
• Marketplace & the Home –Double income–Statistically Wives make over $60,000, then she should work…daycare, work clothes, take out, taxes…
• How is your money spent, saved, invested, tithed?
• What is your insurance? Health, life, dental…etc.

Marriage

• How often do you pray together?
• When is your date night?
• How can you take better care of one another?
• Why has your love grown?
• How has your home become a place of unplanned connecting?
• What brings you together?

Family

• How many children will you have? (This affects where you live, how much you make, car, private schools, raise children)
• How will they be educated? Public school, home school, private school?
• Extended family What is your relationship like with each family member (mom, dad, brother, sister, grandparent)
• If you extended family is close by, what are the boundaries?
• How do they play into holidays, birthdays, and vacations?
• Every time they fight, do you have to be in the middle of it?

Friends

• Who are your closest friends going to be?
• Which people should you drop as friends?
• Which friends should your spouse drop?
• What things do you do with your friends?
• Who no longer has your direct phone number/email?
• Get rid of voicemail….you get stuck with work you didn’t agree to

Ministry

• What area have you studied deeply?
• What books have you read?
• Do you have a spiritual mentor?
• Do you have a reading plan?
• Listen to sermons, mp3s.

• How are you building the Kingdom of God?
• Are you doing the WORK that GOD called you to?
• What are you doing in the church?
• How are you pastoring your family?

Changes

• What do you have to change in yourself, ministry, and family to accomplish your goals?
• What top 3 time, energy, and emotional drainers have you dropped?
• What 3 changes in your life would make the biggest differences? (joining a gym, buying a house)
• What 3 things do you need the most?
• What obstacles are keeping you from living by your convictions?
• Do you need counseling?

• People 3 people really know you, 12 people you hang with…that’s it other than your family.
• Is this person is a good investment?
• Who are the most helpful people that you need to spend more time with?
• Who do you need time with? A counselor, a mentor, a financial planner, a teacher

Handing off

• What can you hand off? Think through the details!
• Make your schedule 24/7.  When are you going to do anything/everything?
• Can you do it?
  4 kinds of things:
  1] Something you think you can control and you can = DO IT!
  2] Something you think you can’t control and you can = DO IT!
  3] Something you think you can control and you can’t = LET IT GO!
  4] Something you think you can’t control and you can’t = LET IT GO!
• Should you do it? Only do what is in your priorities.