Random Bits from Kevin

As I was finishing my Bachelor’s Degree several years ago, I discovered something very basic and simple. The Church long ago ran away from the arts and has since shunned them more than been willing to use them.

I have since come to the conclusion that creating “Christian media” is not the way to win back the arts. I have found that many in my generation see this Christian media as sub-par. Whether it be music, TV, or movies, it seems that all of them are just simply terrible. They are either simple rip offs of other secular media, or they are just very cheesy and outdated attempts at trying to reach a younger generation.

I also concluded that IF media was going to be recaptured by the Church and the Christian culture that it would have to be by Christians being involved in the secular environment. There are many Christians that are in Hollywood and other media centers. Some open, others not. However, they get to have a direct impact on decisions (or those making decisions) as to what media is created and supported by major studios, TV networks, etc.

Where does the Church fit into that model? I believe that the Church has the great opportunity to be a training ground for those who want to live in that environment. This means a great change in many churches. We have to be able to provide the means and the abilities for people to grow their gifts and talents within these areas. I really came to believe that this was possible when I first visited North Point Community Church. They truly give people the opportunities in their environments to hone the skills of audio, video, lighting, and other production based skills on a weekly basis. Their services are run by mostly volunteers. Even still, the volunteers are directed by staff who are more than qualified to be in the secular media market, but have chosen to be in the church for many different reasons.

Another glimpse of this idea was passed onto me today. In one of my meetings, Rich showed us the following video. It’s from Port City Community Church in Wilmington, NC. You can read more of the back story on their site, but basically the only “hired talent” are the stunt drivers.

Pursuit Intro HD from Port City Community Church on Vimeo.

They totally let their volunteers run with this (with direction I’m sure), but look at the finished product!! This is absolutely unreal!

So, all of this to really say: What are YOU doing to let people grow their gifts/talents to recapture media in today’s world?

About six months, I was able to attend the Catalyst Conference. It was an amazing few days of learning and being in the presence of 12,000 other church leaders. If you haven’t signed up, I’ll help. CLICK HERE NOW.

Well, the Catalyst team decided not long after the conference ended to do a road trip. The project got handed off to a guy named LV and this has sparked some amazing things. Please take a few minutes to see what LV has been up to on his blog. LV has been joined this past week by Micah. They’ve been driving through the state of Florida with their VW Vanagon. They’ve visited church leaders and more importantly connected people from different churches together.

Tonight, they stopped in Jax on their way out. Rich got an email during our staff meeting this afternoon that the Catalyst guys would be in town. We were very interested. I quickly followed their tweets to keep up with them. I was out and about and saw that they were at a restaurant not too far, so I drove over, saw the van and went inside. I found the guys and chatted for a few minutes. Read more about the story on their site. How crazy is that?!

They had setup a meeting with one of the guys from Christ’s Church here in town. Rich and I met up with everyone at the Chicago Pizza Sports Grille. The NCAA championship was on in the background, but we were more interested in connecting with each other and helping flesh out ideas that we’ve had and how we can help each other to impact the city of Jacksonville in our respective church communities. It was a great couple of hours as we shared and learned.

To the Catalyst team, thanks for coming up with the idea. You’ve collectively done a fantastic job of moving Catalyst from an event to a movement. Please continue to push the edge and think outside the box.

LV and Micah, thanks for being willing to live on the road. I can’t imagine what it’s like to just keep plugging in GPS destinations and driving, but you are moving and changing things.

Christ’s Church, thanks for what you’ve done in the Jacksonville community. God is doing things through you. I know that transition can be tough, but please continue to push ahead and keep God in your focus.

I can’t get over how great tonight was. I got to meet people that I may have never connected with, but through some simple technology, it’s been a very impacting night.