It is hard to believe that today was our last full day of boot camp here in Illinois! We have made some fantastic friends and can’t 
wait to see what God is going to do through them in their new churches in the coming year. Today was cool because Jamie and I were interviewed by the Church Multiplication Network on our story. It was the first time we had been interviewed on film during this process so needless to say, we were so thankful that the CMN would take the time to do this and put our story out there.
So, what did we learn today??? That is the question. Well today we had the privledge to hear Steve Pike speak on finances and raising money. Steve is the National Director of the Church Multiplication Network. I was highly impressed by the content of today’s financial discussion. We got some good ideas about raising money and were told about some awesome resources that are available to us because we are planting a church! Good news there! But if I had to say I learned something today, here it is. We have so much to do to get ready for our launch that it’s not even funny! I’m serious guys! Some material we went through today, showed us that we still have numerous things that must be accomplished, dealt with, and worked on before we could even think about launching. Good thing we aren’t launching until the Spring of next year. Don’t get me wrong, we are making great progress and are right on track to a sucessfull and large launch, but we still have a lot to do in preparation. One area I am so thankful for is the blessing of a staff that we can team up with to accomplish most of this necessary stuff. If I had to do this stuff alone, there is no question that not only would I be overwhelmed, but I would be finished. I wouldn’t be able to do this on my own. We need a team and a team that loves Jesus! We need a team that is called for such a time as this to lead this church in South Side! And guess what??? We have one. God is adding to our team and He is adding the RIGHT people who are in the RIGHT positions on this team. I am so excited to connect with my team and start talking about how we can accomplish some great things for God in preparing for our Spring launch!
Even though we have a lot to do to get us ready, we know that we serve a God who’s sole priority is to propel us into Kingdom success! As long as our trust and focus is on Him, He will provide, encourage, and take care of us. He will mesh every detail together and will build His church! How exciting is that!?!?! Tomorrow morning will be our last moments here and then it is off to St. Louis for a weekend with my family. Very excited about that!
I will finish my Boot Camp series tomorrow night at some point! I hope you have been blessed by my thoughts and our experiences over the last week. If you are called to plant a church, then consider some of the things in this series and go to God for clarity, direction and understaning on your call! As you step to Him, He will step to you! Don’t ever forget that!
