I’ll believe in it when I get on one myself… which I’m totally open to that!
What’s your take? Real or fake?
I loved playing with LEGOs as a kid so I was up for the movie. I went to the LEGO movie last night and didn’t fully appreciate the clip until the very end. The last 10 minutes of the movie makes an astounding statement about our society, processes, worldview and yes…even your ministry.
The ministry your designing and working day after day to build, one day will be picked apart and put back together in a different way. How does that make you feel? Are you okay with that? Is it worth it?
In the LEGO movie we see two different approaches to building, one follows instructions on the diagram given to them because they know it will work. The other type of builder sees a bunch of random pieces and somehow makes something magnificent out of it. While both builders make something great, there are two completely different approaches here and one sometimes will work better than the other.
I don’t believe we need to change our approach to truth, doctrine or the gospel but we need to be innovators in ministry. We need to bring change to our processes in an ever changing culture. We need to use our imagination to look at our current pieces differently, our budgets, our leaders, our students. Your ministry could have the potential of being something MUCH different, reaching those perhaps you never reached before. This will require picking apart your ministry LEGO pieces you have already put in place, or pieces that have been put in place before you.
Be open to change, it’s not always a bad thing.
A good leader demonstrates great abilities. A great leader empowers the abilities within others.
If you do not learn this and act upon it you will be consumed by details and will be stuck right where you are at. Once you have reached capacity of what you are able to handle and I’d argue well before that, you need to learn how to extend your ministry to others. Learn how to give it away.
I am fully capable of calling and talking with all the parents represented in my ministry, and perhaps once a year I may attempt to do that. With 17 small groups, and around 175 students representing 350 parents I cannot simply pick up the phone and make a personal phone call. This past weekend I passed out our current rosters and made the ask. I asked each small group leader to call down the list of names represented in their small group and help spread the word about our summer mission trip opportunities.
Instead of calling 350 parents this week I intend to send one email and let those closest to the students call the parents, the small group leaders. Yes, I am leveraging the leadership I have… so that my entire team can carry the weight of responsibility we have been given.
When you empower those around you, there is more buy-in to your mission, more attention given to where its currently needed and you are less likely to burn out! Work smarter not harder.
By no means do I have the perfect student ministry, nor do I believe it exists. Each and every student pastor that is honest will say, “We have strengths and weaknesses.” I do believe there is a difference between an average operation and one that is really firing on all cylinders. The reason being is because the ministry leaders are working off a blueprint that has been set before them.
Whether you are in student ministry or not, I hope you are working off some kind of blueprint or plan in the project you have ahead of you. A blueprint keeps you on task, the must have factors, measurements, desired outcomes, it’s all there. If you are ever lost, just check the blueprint.
At Gateway Church we have a fairly simple blueprint in place for our student ministry. I believe a ministry designed the way we have it can work fairly well, we just need to stay committed to it and see it come to fruition. Like many other larger student ministries, we are somewhat of a small church plant. We have 3 programs to execute every week, a student band to improve, budgets to run, camps to plan, mission trips, volunteers to recruit, families to partner with… and the list goes on. But what does all of this amount to? How can we physically see it happening year in and out? What are we building?
We are building up a generation of students who will own their faith and make it known to others wherever they go in life. I have faith, that through this blueprint, we are equipping the next generation of both the churched and unchurched in what it means to accept God’s love on a daily basis. Not only identifying that relationship but also accepting the challenge to take it into their world and share it with others.
Here’s my blueprint:
Large Group. The weekly hangout. This involves a somewhat non-threatening environment to bring a friend to play some games, hear some music, listen to some funny stories, hear from the Word of God.
Small Groups. This happens every week directly following large group. Everything we do points back to connecting our students faith to an authentic community of peers around them. Students and adults they can explore doubts, ask questions, be real.
Winter Camp. Camp is full weekend of small group time. Long retreat time into teaching, personal reflection, worship…but also tons of FUN. Camp makes memories for our students, we get to help them make positive memories of their relationship with God and the church. A weekend camp vs. a summer camp allows more student participation (it’s cheaper) and more adult leader participation (don’t have to take off work).
GO! Teams. Our mission trips can be life changing moments for our students. Both those near and far from God come back from GO! Teams with new world views and a better understanding of how God’s love permeates the most unimaginable lifestyles and deepest needs.
All of this may sound familiar, because many churches take this same blueprint or concept and add a few tweaks to make it their own. What does your blueprint look like? What works well for you?
I posted this article almost exactly a year ago, but read through it again for a second time. If you are discouraged about your ministry budget, lack of volunteers and want to rally your leadership to invest in the next generation, then I believe you will find some great nuggets in this article by Duane Smith. This can help you take a much closer look at what we as youth pastors are up against.
Redefining Youth Ministry in a Postmodern Culture, Revitalizing Reformed Churches
by Duane Smith
INTRODUCTION
We are living in confusing times. Many culture watchers are convinced that our society is undergoing a transformation of broad proportions. This cultural shift goes by various designations. Some observers tell us we are in the throes of a transition from a Christian to a post-Christian era. Others declare we are moving from a Constantinian to a post-Constantinian situation. But the most widely used description suggests we are witnessing the emergence of a “postmodern” society. Whatever may be the preferred nomenclature, the various voices are in agreement that the cultural shift now transpiring carries grave implications for the church.1
These thoughts of Stanley Grenz, former professor at Carey Theological Seminary, Vancouver, BC, in the preface to Making Sense Out Of Church, provoke us to rethink the effectiveness of our current ministry paradigms. The “grave implications” to which Grenz refers are evident to those involved in youth ministry. Many of our congregations seem stuck in “cultural lag,” a slow or delayed response to changing paradigms, resulting in the loss of relevance or impact, particularly with younger generations. Even when churches seek to understand these postmodern shifts, most struggle with simply “keeping up” in a rapidly shifting youth culture. Cultural analysts note that in the 1980s and early 1990s, the landscape of youth culture shifted significantly about every six to seven years; today this shift seems to occur every three years.
Recent statistics regarding baptized youth also reveal evidence of cultural lag. Approximately eight out of ten adolescents will leave their RCA or CRC roots within a year of high school graduation. Certainly this is one factor affecting the forty-year plus membership decline within the RCA, yet it’s a factor we have not addressed well. Revitalization efforts, if effective at reversing this decline, must embrace the reality that our static youth ministry efforts are not effective in the long term. Although solutions will not come easily, we must begin to elevate youth ministry as a higher priority. We are losing connection with today’s generation. We will likely continue to die as congregations and denominations unless we pay serious attention to this issue.
We Need Courage and Wisdom to
Embrace a Changing World
Most researchers and authors currently exploring the postmodern shift recognize the enormity of the challenge before us. Creating and implementing new and effective youth ministry models will be demanding work. Ron Hutchcraft, a thirty-year veteran of student and family ministry, calls the challenge we face “a battle for a generation.” “Youth ministry, Jesus-style, requires the courage to leave our comfort zone and plunge into the surf and storm as he did.” Hutchcraft further notes that “if this generation is lost, it won’t be because the world is more powerful than we are, or has something better to offer. It will be the result of not showing up. We won’t lose by fighting. We will lose by forfeit.”2
We Must Elevate Youth Ministry to a
Status of Higher Priority
Traditionally, youth ministry has not received priority attention within our churches. Recent analysis of the churches within the RCA Synod of the Great Lakes revealed that the average congregation invests less than 7% of its operating budget in youth ministry,3 even though according to George Barna, 41% of those who comprise American churches are 18 years of age or younger.4 In some cases, less than $500 is annually allocated for youth ministry efforts. Additionally, further polling reveals that only one in ten churches claims to have a vibrant youth ministry. Likewise, the profession of youth ministry has been one of the lowest paying vocational careers in America. In some cases, those in professional youth ministry receive a compensation package that is 60% less than other similar professions requiring the same level of education.
A Re-Imagined Paradigm is Needed
If eight out of ten baptized youth are exiting our churches soon after high school graduation, the time for change has come. Old paradigms of ministry are no longer effective. For instance, during the 1980s and 1990s, many youth ministries were built on the “field of dreams” concept, i.e., “if you build it they will come.” The idea was to create an impressive facility with “bells and whistles” that would “attract” community youth while keeping covenant youth excited. Today, there seems little we can build that will attract students. Most do not care if we have great auditoriums and nice game rooms. What they long for are authentic relationships that dive deep into spiritual understanding. (Developing meaningful relationships is the one constant that has not and will not change in effective youth ministry.)
We need a few churches to become innovative leaders in youth ministry development, churches that will move outside the box of traditional ministry and embrace innovative strategies that engage youth in the cause of Christ. The average congregation invests less than 7% of its operating budget in youth ministry. Larger churches must begin to share their resource wealth with smaller churches. This means that we must break down the walls that separate churches in our communities and explore community-based youth ministry approaches. When it comes to youth ministry, most of our churches are segregated and dysfunctional at best. Rarely have our congregations worked together with any sense of synergy. We live in communities where 50% or more of the youth are now unchurched, yet we remain isolated and ineffective.
Churches with innovative youth ministries then can become centers for youth ministry development, effectively cultivating and training leaders to coach and mentor youth. At the same time, our denominations must take the lead in advocating fair and equal treatment of youth workers, keeping these leaders engaged in kingdom work instead of sending them packing because of economic hardship. We must embrace our mission as “going into the world” instead of waiting for lost youth to find our church doors.
The biggest challenge will be articulating a new or revised paradigm that works. Webster’s Dictionary defines paradigm as “a set of assumptions, concepts, values and practices that constitutes a way of viewing reality for the community that shares them.” What core assumptions, values, and practices might we need for developing a pardadigm of youth ministry within our postmodern context? In his book Unfreezing Moves, Bill Easum argues that congregations must break out of a mere maintenance model and move into a missional model of ministry in general. He writes,
Most Protestant congregations are stuck in the muck and mire of their institutions with little or no movement toward joining Jesus on the mission field. To them faithfulness means supporting their church and keeping it open. For them to be faithful to their God-given mission, they must be freed up from their slavery to their institutions to live for others on the mission field, freed up to function in a constantly changing world.5
RETHINKING YOUTH MINISTRY
God is a God of mission. The Father sent the Son in the power of the Holy Spirit to reconcile the world to God. As God sent Jesus, so Jesus sends the Church to be ambassadors of reconciliation in the world. Thus Jesus provides the primary model for missional youth ministry. The Gospel narratives suggest that Jesus’ ministry was characterized by clarity of purpose and the practices of teaching, equipping, and sending. More specifically, we can note the following about Jesus’ ministry:
These aspects of Jesus’ ministry can be translated into guidelines for a missional youth ministry today.
Articulating a Clear Mission and Vision
Most churches, although unconsciously affirming the value of youth ministry, have never clearly articulated why their youth ministry exists. Without a defined mission and purpose, many churches find themselves “shooting in the dark,” hoping to somehow hit the target. As our statistics indicate, many miss. Clarity of mission must accompany conviction regarding the necessity of youth ministry. Clearly articulating a youth ministry mission and vision is the starting point that ultimately can lead to the development of strategic, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely goals.
Identifying a Wider Target Group
Today’s adolescents face adult challenges and temptations at younger and younger ages. What were once typical experiences for high school and collegeage students are now typical for middle schoolers. Walt Mueller, president of the Center for Parent/Youth Understanding, refers to this shift as “age compression.” Age compression is created, in large part, by the media and popular culture. According to Mueller, “marketers have used [age compression] as a strategy to expand a product’s market by pushing adult-type products, values and attitudes on kids at younger ages. What’s resulted is an environment where what used to be for 18-year-olds is now for six-year olds, who are increasingly dressing, talking and acting like yesterday’s 18-year-olds.”6
Therefore pilot churches testing new paradigms of youth ministry must focus on younger students, especially those in fifth through eighth grades. We are losing connection with today’s generation. We will likely continue to die as congregations and denominations unless we pay serious attention to this issue. Additionally, we can no longer approach ninth through twelfth grades together. Both research and the experience of youth workers suggest that the first two years of high school are radically different from the last two years. The typical “youth group” approach does not connect with eleventh and twelfth graders. These adolescents today are more interested in leadership roles and mission opportunities.
We also need to expand our youth ministry efforts to include late adolescents and young adults post high school, ages eighteen to twenty-four. This group seems to be all but forgotten within many RCA and CRC congregations. While some in this age range take on leadership roles in youth ministry, a high percentage slip through cracks and exit our congregations.
Equipping a Team to Invest in Youth
Youth ministry leadership that connects relevantly with adolescents fifth grade through post high school requires that we move past the mindset that one paid professional or vocational youth leader can adequately do the job. Typically, churches hire vocational youth workers who are young and highly relational, thus able to attract students with a magnetic personality. This fits with the “if you build it they will come” paradigm. However, this leader type often fails to produce long term results. Administrative and organizational responsibilities are a challenge, and the young, inexperienced youth worker lacks the maturity and experience to develop a strong volunteer team. These youth workers are often short-term, leaving their positions within one to three years. Students who develop a close friendship with this type of leader feel abandoned, and since volunteer leaders are not adequately trained, the youth ministry is placed on hold until the next star is hired. Consequently, the next youth worker arrives with new dreams and ideas but encounters skeptical students, all wondering how long this one will stay. Churches continue to spin their youth ministry wheels, while never gaining long term traction.
We must rethink the role of the “hired” youth worker. The youth worker should not be viewed as a “hired gun” to do the work of youth ministry for the congregation. Instead, the youth worker must be seen as a team facilitator, similar to that of a coach. The model of ministry as coaching is supported by developments in leadership theory. Easum writes,
A new understanding of organization is emerging, born out of quantum physics, chaos theory, and a return to biblical principles of organization. The thrust of this theory is team ministry, built around a gift-based, permission- giving, servant-empowered approach to leadership. The role of leadership is to provide an atmosphere of trust and permission so people can follow God’s leading rather than the will of a handful of people who try to control everything that happens.7
Implementing a gift-based style of youth ministry leadership within RCA and CRC structures will require significant change in our current systems. As mentioned above, we must deconstruct the concept of hiring a “director” that somehow will be “all things to all students.” The typical director excels in some areas of ministry but struggles in others areas in which he or she lacks skill and passion. This inevitably leaves “leadership voids and holes” within any youth ministry infrastructure. In contrast, gift-based team leadership allows a ministry director to excel in areas where he or she is gifted. This model creates space for others to utilize and express their gifts within the greater whole, a much more well-balanced approach. In the business world, this concept is often referred to as synergy, “the interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual efforts.” Today’s effective youth leader (vocational or volunteer) knows both how to mobilize a team and how to create and foster synergy within a team.
By revisiting Jesus’ ministry model, we can conclude that a minimum of one effectively trained youth leader is needed for every twelve potential students that a congregation is seeking to reach. The role of the “hired” director/facilitator now becomes identifying, recruiting, equipping, deploying, and coaching youth ministry apprentices and leaders. In this paradigm, the “volunteers” are championed equally with the trained and equipped “youth leaders,” as they are entrusted to invest relationally in the lives of a small group of teens (rather than just serving punch and cookies in the back of the room).
Deep Relational Ministry–The Heart
of Jesus’ Ministry Model
Jesus invested in twelve seemingly average people. He journeyed with them through life. He spent significant, quality time with them. He became vulnerable and transparent on both good days and challenging days. His disciples saw him angry, grieving, distressed, lonely, disappointed, struggling over God’s plan, and praying that there could be another way. They saw him live faith and daily “work out” his relationship with the Father. We might say that field trips were a valuable component of his mentoring. Seldom did he use a classroom or a building.
When we compare this kind of intense interaction with the amount of time that youth ministers (let alone ministers in general) interact with young people, the latter seems woefully inadequate. Popular culture has far more interaction with adolescents than youth workers. According to Walt Mueller, adolescents engage popular culture for approximately twenty-five hours each week,8 while the average youth leader spends one or two hours with the same students. How is it that we truly expect any degree of lifechanging impact?
Time is not the only issue to be addressed when developing relational youth ministry. We must also change the kinds of interactions we have with adolescents. The three-point, carefully articulated, theological argument, packaged in a thirtyminute lecture is a “terribly boring package.” Yet we continue to see many youth leaders and pastors frozen in this “talking head” teaching methodology. We dismiss the youth and say “see you next week.” The youth worker should not be viewed as a “hired gun” to do the work of youth ministry for the congregation. Instead, the youth worker must be seen as a team facilitator, similar to that of a coach. Hutchcraft writes, “Too often we expect a teen to be attracted to Christ through approaches that he or she probably considers irrelevant, uninteresting, and culturally foreign. Then we interpret this disinterest as rejection of Christ when, in reality, he may be rejecting the package in which we have presented him.”9
Today’s youth are interested in spiritual realities. The church must learn to connect spiritually with this generation in new ways. Conversations with post high school adolescents who remain active and involved in their congregations suggest that they stay engaged because of two factors. The first is authentic relationships, often cultivated through the context of middle school and high school ministries that utilized small groups. In most cases, these small groups were facilitated by one or two caring adults who invested in the teens outside of youth group or church functions. The second factor for their continued involvement in the church is that these older adolescents and young adults felt valued by their church. Each was given meaningful leadership and service roles within a gift-based, servant-empowered environment.
Jesus Challenged Them
as Emerging Leaders
Jesus never forced belief on his disciples. Instead he looked for teachable moments. He seized life opportunities to challenge the disciples’ faith, creating and cultivating an environment where meaningful questions could be pondered. He used illustrations and stories, tying real life situations and faith together. He provided space for them to wrestle through issues that did not make immediate sense, and he never became angry when they “didn’t get it.” He could see their potential beyond their current condition.
Today’s teens are under-challenged. Too often we conclude that youth are only interested in eating pizza, playing video games, or being entertained. Yet youth today are quite interested in questions of faith, social issues, or helping a friend through his or her parents’ divorce. As we rethink youth ministry in our Reformed settings, we must interact within adolescents’ real life settings. We must create challenging opportunities for them to discover their potential (God’s call) within the framework of a real life context–e.g., through extended, inter-generational mission trips.
Jesus Ultimately Transferred
Responsibility to Them
Jesus imparted responsibility to his disciples, ultimately trusting this rag-tag group to build the church. Here is where a massive paradigm shift is necessary. Serious questions must be asked regarding the viability of our static, Reformed church infrastructures. Why is it that all aspects of our churches are controlled by adults? Why is it that youth seldom have a voice? Why is it that youth do not serve in many leadership roles? Why is it that systems are lacking to help youth discover and implement their spiritual gifts? Why it is that youth ministry often receives the budget “leftovers”? It is within these “adultcontrolled environments” that perhaps the greatest disconnect occurs between the church and youth. Because there are so few opportunities for youth and young adults to connect through leadership and service roles, many, upon high school graduation, feel lost, with no purpose or reason to remain involved. They conclude that they are not wanted or needed. So it’s not surprising that many “check out” between the years of eighteen and twenty- four. As part of a redefined ministry context, student leadership development, accompanied by opportunities to serve, must become a high priority in every RCA and CRC church.
From Awareness to Action
Youth ministry must be redefined. No one church has it down to a science. No one approach will work in all congregations. And so we find ourselves faced with an exciting yet daunting challenge. Will we take the effort to rethink and redefine youth ministry, or will we continue to watch younger generations disconnect from our churches? Statistics verify that time is not necessarily on our side.
The purpose of this article has been to raise awareness and foster greater action. Although time tested solutions are not offered, rethinking youth ministry by revisiting Jesus’ model seems like the logical starting point. As we extrapolate from this model, I believe we can begin to build a framework that will reconnect us with younger generations. Student leadership development, engagement in missions and social action, and the creation of authentic communities that foster meaningful theological reflection and action will be part of the equation. The result can and should be revitalized congregations and Reformed denominations, a people gathered, equipped, empowered, and sent to be the presence of Christ in this world.
Does your family calendar look like this? If it doesn’t there are 10 students in your ministry that it does represent. We are way too busy, and if you can’t slow people down you need to get ahead of their schedule.
Many times, those young bucks in charge of the kiddos are known as the last-minute man. Simply, don’t be that person. I had a parent approach me earlier this week telling me how impressed they were, being that they got a calendar for the entire school year last fall. This allowed them to plan family vacations around special dates, like camps and mission trips. It simply took me a few days to look at the school calendars and block out the times I needed from families to run special activities for our students and make a calendar.
I guarantee that forward thinking and planning will only increase your participation rate. It’s worth the investment.
When using forward thinking and calendaring out 6 plus months in advance respects the family and partners with parents to provide an experience for their child. With a game plan in hand, they will walk away aware of two things when you schedule a camp, mission trips, or a special event.
Now that I have done this for the past year, my job is simply to be consistent. Get the calendar in the hands of the parents late in the summer and do my best to stick to the same dates of camp/trips of the previous year. Consistency is your best momentum builder, this investment over time yields big rewards for your ministry as the years go on.
Do you have a plan for the next 6 months? 12 months? How will you communicate that plan to parents?
A few weeks ago I officiated my first funeral. Though an honor to be asked to officiate such a ceremony, this was a tragedy for family, friends and the church. I struggled my way through it in the best way I knew how, grabbing sermons from others and crafting something of my own, which you can find attached at the end of this post. Fighting back tears and doing my best to deliver a message, this was one of the hardest things I’ve had to do in ministry yet.
The funeral wasn’t for one person, but two. One of my students lost both of her parents to a drunk driver. Just like that…gone. Unfair. Unjust. Unable to comprehend and explain. I had many family and their friends approach me with “why’s?”
I became comfortable in responding this way, the only way I knew how…
We weren’t created to understand death, we weren’t made to fathom separation from others. We were created for life, life with God and life with each other. When we see life taken from us whether young or old, it never feels right nor should it. We can’t seem to accept death, but we should accept that God has a reassuring hope for us. Through the person of Jesus, He gives us access to life with God and a future-Eden to look forward to in this most desperate time.
Things I recommend you should NOT say to someone that just lost a loved one:
Simply state you are sorry for what they are having to endure and ask if they have any needs that you can help meet during this time. Delivering meals, house cleaning, yard work, etc. These small things can really help out a family during the loss of a loved one.
Attached here is my manuscript (names have been altered to respect the family), feel free to use it as a resource as you serve others. Funeral_Manuscript_Parker
Raise your goblet of rock! I love how the student asks, “Are we going to be goofing off like this every day?” Yes, he is Jack Black and has every right to “goof off” but he was getting the point across and had a personal critique for each student… all the while cutting loose and having fun.
At my church, we have been through the ups and downs of a student band, different leaders approaching leadership of the band from a different angle. Through fun times and not so fun times, we are heading in a great direction now but wonder if this is a struggle among most youth groups that desire to have music as part of their program?
What does your band practice look like? What elements are a must? Do you play any secular music at youth group? Why or why not?
Where do you find an amazing worship song? Among other well known artists…consisting of Beyonce, Jason Derulo, Imagine Dragons, etc. “Oceans” simple yet profound lyrics have drawn a HUGE following of both churches but perhaps even the unchurched in helping it snag a spot in the Billboard Hot 100. What a great achievement to celebrate in making God’s name known among our highly competitive music industry.
“The earth will be filled with knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the ocean.” Habakkuk 2:14
God has used this song, at this time, to unite His people worldwide, while also delivering a message of hope for those without.
My favorite verse of the song is, “Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders, let me walk upon the water, wherever you would call me.” I believe we all have a border of trust… deep down we have some sort of boundary of what we will give over to God. No one has a perfect trust. How often do we stop to ask the Holy Spirit for help?
Ask the Spirit to expand your trust, that you would continually transform into the willing vessel of a servant found displayed in the person of Jesus.
Click here to read more about Hillsong United’s achievement.
It was after sitting down with some veteran youth pastors and their teams, that I discovered how much an infant in ministry I really am. I am going on 2 years of overseeing my own student ministry at Gateway Church here in Austin. While I do feel accomplished and my ministry blessed in the amount of time I have been on staff, I know many endeavors are yet to come. Like all youth pastors, I continually ask the question, “How do I take this to the next level?”
How can I get rid of the kryptonite that is disabling my ministry from reaching the potential I know it has? The answers lie deep within your vision, goals, prayer, volunteers, and *drumroll* ….other churches. Yup! I said it, other churches.
Whether you are a lone ranger trying to do this on your own, have another partner in crime or perhaps even lead a huge team of youth ministry staff; it’s time you got some fresh air and went on a field trip. Take your team, some key volunteers, or even your senior pastor to another church that you respect or know has certain aspects they thrive in that you are weak in. Don’t fool yourself, this all-star ministry will have its own kryptonite and unique set of challenges but what can you learn from them? What are they doing well? How did they get there? Ask a lot of questions and take notes.
A simple visit to another church can both help you dream and even troubleshoot with someone else in your profession. Pick up the phone and call your fellow peer, let them know you are coming to visit!
If you are ever in Austin, give me a shout, come observe and tell me what we can do better! chris_parker@gatewaychurch.com