Rick actually came up with the phrase after going to a worship conference last year. He observed that at the conference before any worship service, there was always a few minutes at the start where they prepared the room. Could have been a video or a practice or silence – but it was a prepared, purposeful pause at the start of the service to remind themselves that they were about to engage with the Holy God in worship.

What does that look like in a local congregation that meets every single Sunday morning?

And no – the Opening Song doesn’t really count as “prepare the room.” See Northpoint’s video below to see what I’m talking about. So last week we started with the video below followed by another video depicting Psalm 31 – My times are in your hands.

The feedback has been pretty positive. Not everyone got the “artsy” rendition of Psalm 31, but everyone loved the reminder to get prepared to worship.

It’s a new tradition, new spiritual discipline of worship for us at Western Hills – prepare the room. And it’s rubbing off in other areas as well. I find myself walking into a meeting or a lunch – pausing in the car to ‘prepare the room.’

Prepare The Room

Psalm 31//My Times video by Jakub Blank

“Grant, be sure to connect with Robin as soon as you can. She’s now in hospice care.”

This was one of the first texts I received after getting back from Brazil.

Robin started coming to Western Hills about a year and half ago with Dana Kelly. She made a decision for Christ but for the last 6 months, her body was just breaking down. With the host of physical problems she was battling, it just wasn’t feasible to show up on Sunday mornings let alone be baptized.

I called. Her voice was clear. “Grant, I’ve called hospice in but I have a request. I still want to be baptized. How can we do this? Do you think we can do it in my home somehow?”

“Absolutely. We will figure it out.”

She wanted Dana Kelly to be a part of it. Dana was the one that took care of her physically as well as spiritually over the years. And her good friend Joyce. So today (Wednesday, July 13) at 10:00, we were the Church at Robin’s house. “We” included her hospice nurse Jason, the hospice chaplain Annie, Gary & Nancy Manford, Joyce, Dana, Robin, and myself. We gathered in the kitchen.

“Robin, you’ve got some options this morning. We can dunk you in the tub or pour water over your head in the sink, sprinkle water over you or even use the garden hose in the yard.”

I could see she was wrestling with the options.

“We know that this is a symbol, this is a statement of an already existent condition for you – that Christ has consumed you and is changing you. God knows your physical condition and he’s pleased with your heart. I’m pretty sure He’s going to be okay any way you decide do this.”

She laughed.

“I want to be dunked. In the tub.”

I grabbed Gary’s Bible and shared some scripture with Robin while Dana filled the tub. Meanwhile we read 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 together.

Dana popped back in shortly. “We’re ready.”

All 7 of us filed into the bathroom, Dana kneeled down to the tub with Robin.

I gave my 2 minute sermon on baptism. Baptismo was originally used in the garment industry. A garment was baptized in a dye and it took on the properties of that dye. I’m not wearing a purple shirt, I’m wearing a white shirt baptized in purple dye. But of course, it is a purple shirt. It’s no longer a white shirt. It’s a new, different shirt because it’s been consumed by something else. The perfect picture of what our life in Christ should be and why baptism is such a powerful, meaningful symbol. We’ve been consumed by Christ, overpowered by Christ. It is no longer I that live but Christ through me.

Dana then had the honors.

“Robin, do you have a personal relationship with Jesus? Is He your Savior.”

“Oh yes.”

“Is it your desire to follow Him symbolized by this act of baptism?”

“Oh yes.”

“Then it’s my honor to baptize you, my friend, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.”

And down Robin went in the water. And back up. And we all cheered.

A quick prayer of thanksgiving. 5 of us left the room for the kitchen and in a few minutes Robin emerged, wet head, and smiling ear to ear.

“What a happy day. What a happy day.”

We spent some time around the kitchen table. Sharing, talking, and encouraging. We took a bunch of pictures. Lots of kleenex was passed around.

A tub will do just fine.

Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. 14 For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage one another with these words.

Paul in 1 Thessalonians 4

I love the pointed honesty of that pastor. I love what value that kind of comment speaks for his church – we do this every week, celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. He’s telling us that if we connect with today, we’ll connect with the 50 other services that they do each year. There is no “bait & switch.” What you see is what you get. Which is the baseline (I would think) of any healthy church – that their services speak to who they are and who they are becoming with authenticity. And that it happens on every Sunday – Easter or otherwise.

There is a danger in creating these “extravaganzas” on Easter and Christmas that is much deeper than becoming “bait & switch” though. Does it falsely define church as that hour or so time slot in that particular location? By putting so much emphasis on a particular service, a particular time slot, are we compromising the true definition of “church”? In other words, if I “sell” to people that they need to be “in church”, by focusing on these services am I defining church for them as a service as opposed to a community of Christ-followers who happen to get together once a week for inspiration and celebration?

I’m all for using Easter and Christmas to speak to our tradition, to celebrate God’s specific chapters of Jesus’ resurrection and birth on those days but I want people to understand that church is deeper (and more beautiful) than just showing up once a week for a little over an hour to hear some singing and a guy speaking. Church is God’s people on mission together for and with Jesus Himself.

And that is much larger than just a service.

One of the greatest threats to multiplying disciples and creating a culture that multiplies disciples is addition. Let me see if I can quickly explain.

Put on a great service, start a great children’s and/or student ministry and it’s possible to see a very quick ADDITION in attendance and participation. Like going from 0 to 150 in the blink of an eye. Then you have to start reading all the church growth books like “Breaking the 200 Barrier”, “Breaking the 500 Barrier”, or my favorite – “How To Be A Mega-church Without Really Trying.”

It’s not a healthy way to understand growth or success because one of the fastest ways to grow a church is to put that church in a fast growing community. So many church’s “growth rate” is directly related to the community’s growth rate that it finds itself in.

But’s that not really multiplication. Multiplication is when a disciple multiplies him/her self in the life of another disciple of Jesus. That messy, life on life, mentoring/coaching process. Then when those two are done – they both go and do that exact thing again with two more people.

Sounds great and wonderful but there is a HUGE reality of this process that most of us don’t really want to deal with — time. Just look at these numbers for a second.

Yr 1 – 1 person discipled
Yr 2 – 2 people
Yr 3 – 4 people
Yr 4 – 8
Yr 5 – 16

I realize this assumes a couple of things that may not be true. Namely that it only takes a year to disciple a person and that the net result of that discipleship will be that person ready to disciple another. I like the push though. I think it’s warranted.

The point is that it takes 5 years to get a small group/life group size of people multiplying disciples. There isn’t a church planter or organization in the world that would think that is successful. But the point is creating a culture that multiplies disciples, not just grow a church to a big number. Besides that – some of these people will move away and go to other places.

yr 6 – 32
yr 7 – 64
yr 8 – 128
yr 9 – 256

So 9 years of discipling sounds like a long time to only have 256 people to show for it. But then it gets crazy.

yr 10 – 516
yr 11 – 1,032

And this point the chart explodes upward every year – 2,064 then 4k, then 8k. It’s nuts.

What’s the point? I thought this wasn’t about growing a mega-church?
The main point is this – there is this LONG, slow runway to multiplication that most of us sabotage in the early years because we want quick growth and easy numbers, not multiplying disciples. We give up too soon, we rush after addition instead of multiplication. Quick growth without multiplication levels out.

Besides that, not all these people stay in your arena. God moves them to other places to start this multiplication process elsewhere. That’s Kingdom investment, not local church investment. We are planting Jesus, not churches.

This is a huge (and good) paradigm shift for me. We want to plant Jesus…not churches. Churches will happen when we do good planting of Jesus in good soil. No duh, makes sense, right?

Yeah but most of the training these days is how to plant churches, not how to make a reproducing disciples of Jesus Christ. So for us — this has been and will continue to be our focus — to make a reproducing disciple of Jesus Christ. NOT — get more people here, in our programs, so we can mature them. It’s a subtle but I think important distinction.

* First words of God and last earthly words of Jesus is to multiply. Not add, subtract, or divide but multiply.
* It’s not really multiplication until the 4th generation – Paul, Timothy, Faithful Men, Others Also
* Goal is plant a self-perpetuating & self-propagating church. That’s a movement.
* Movement starts at simplest level – multiplying disciples, then leaders, then churches, then movements.
* We need to raise the bar on what it means to be a disciple, lower the bar on what it means to do church.
* Agreement to a statement of faith and changed behavior once a week is not a disciple.
* Respect the beginning of the process. There is long runway to build before multiplication. James 5:7-8

*Movement starts with right DNA:
Divine Truth – human and divine, Bible (both), Jesus (both)
Nurturing Relationships – one anothers, smallest unit = 2 people. If it doesn’t work there, won’t work anywhere.
Apostolic Mission – to be sent out, to go out, to serve all
* Do not supplement the DNA. Do not substitute the DNA.

GE’s note – the acronym made me cringe like crazy but it works and it’s true. Have to have these 3 as foundation to a multiplication culture. I like our language better – Love God (D), Live Connected (N), Serve All (A).

* The right DNA needs the right soil – Mark 4
* Only 25% of the soils Jesus talked about were good. Plant there.
* Don’t alter the church to accommodate the bad soils.
* It’s impossible to change bad soil (barren, weedy, shallow) into good soil. Must sit fallow for a season.
* Don’t invest in potential, invest in proven-ness.
* What’s IN the seed determines WHAT grows. Soil determines IF it grows.
* If Jesus isn’t enough to motivate and change a person, my personal counseling or sermons aren’t going to do it either.

GE’s note: Cole’s point was this – when we invest in potential, we are investing in zero. We are robbing our investment some where else. If a guy won’t change, won’t be accountable, won’t do simple obedience – don’t invest in them. Let them come to church. Love them. Pray for them. But life on life investment should be for those who have “proven-ness”, simple obedience.

However, sometimes good soil is slow growing. And what I perceive as bad soil or potential – may just be slow growing. What’s the difference? I think it’s the concept of simple obedience. Someone who will be faithful in small things, will be faithful in large things. Someone who takes baby steps of application of God’s word, who disciplines themselves to spend a bit more time in the word than the week before – those are simple steps of obedience. As long as there is movement and obedience – invest.

* Biggest obstacle, biggest heresy in the church? Legalism. Not heaven/hell, salvation.
* We need better trained pews, not pulpits.
* The church is only as good as her disciples.
* Plant Jesus, not churches.