Preston Mitchell's Blog

Looking Back and Looking Forward

This year's C3 was the best conference we have ever had at Fellowship Church.  The Holy Spirit's presence was unmistakable in the speakers and the audience.  The speaker lineup was powerful.  Here are a few observations about each of them:

Jentezen Franklin - his talk on mercy was outstanding.  Our churches need to be houses of mercy, not houses of judgement and condemnation.  He made me rethink my lack of mercy because I am a cynic in many ways.

Christine Caine - I had never heard her speak before.  She is a preaching nuclear reactor.  Christine spoke several times during the week and at our weekend services.  She reminded me that although we are not of this world, we are still placed in the world to make a difference. Too many of us try to live secluded from the world which is the opposite of what Jesus teaches.  She said that we are too busy doing church to be the church.

Craig Groschel - He has one of the most unique speaking styles of any pastor I know.  Craig has the ability to present his thoughts in a clear and concise manner without a lot of "tricking it up."  He challenged the church to "cut the crap" on all the programs that are not important and stick with the basics.  He also talked about trying to please people.  His best line was "becoming obsessed with what people think is the fastest way to forget about what God thinks."

Bil Cornelius - Bil is one of the most humble guys I know.  His talk on prayer was right on.  What Bil is doing in Corpus Christi is incredible.  He has been a great friend and leader to me over the years.

Ben Young - Ben is one of the most intellectually gifted pastors I know.  Yet, he can bring it down to my level.  He is so unique in his thoughts that he will say things in a way that I have never heard.  He always brings it back to the truth of the Bible.  You cannot doubt it or explain it away!

Tommy Barnett - after all these years, he is still consumed with reaching people that most churches won't reach.  The homeless, the broken, addicts, prostitutes, etc.  Tommy's church and ministry has made a huge difference in the lives of thousands of people in LA and Phoenix.  Now he is starting a church in NYC.  Does it surprise you?  Not me.

Bishop Jakes - what can you say?  His talk on Elisha and the widow was excellent.  He taught that we need to let God flow out of the capacity God has given us.  The more we increase our capicity, the more God will allow us to pour into the lives of people around us.  God has an infinite supply of whatever we need, if we have the capacity to receive it.  Flow and pour out, flow and pour out.

Ed - I saved the best speaker for last.  Ed did a great job of talking about the chairs in our churches and who the chairs represent.  His talk on teenage spiritual maturity was great.  The talk he did on depression struck a chord with almost every pastor in attendance.  We have all been in the dumps before and Ed gave practical and biblical wisdom about how to get out of the hole.  He used the life of Elijah as an illustration. 

Volunteers and Staff - As great as the speakers were, our staff and volunteers brought the conference to Super Bowl status.  It takes a lot of work to put on one of these conferences, but it can't be done without the hundreds of people you don't see you make it happen.  Our staff is awesome and this conference impacted us in a way we will never forget. 

Worship - over the top cool and creative.  It was a great blend of music and elements to focus our minds and hearts on God.  Our worship leaders have a heart for worship, which is not always the case in many churches. 

I can't wait to get the CD's so I can really break each talk down and meditate over the words and scriptures.  My life will never be the same.  I pray that everyone who attended felt the presence and power of God.  We will be praying for you and it won't be long before 2010 is here!  Make plans to be in Dallas next year.

Check out the C3 Recap on www.fellowshipchurch.com and edyoungblog.com.

C309 Wednesday Night

What a great kick off to the conference on Wednesday night.  Jentezen Franklin open it up by talking about the mercy of God.  He told a great Aggie joke about the star athlete who had to pass a test to play in the big UT game.  After special tutoring, they brought the athlete on Kyle Field to ask him 5 questions.  If he answered them right, he could play.  First question, what is 2+2?  "Four", he said.  The crowd exploded.  Questions #2, what is 3+3?  "Six," he said.  The crowd at Kyle Field went wild.  Questions #3, what is 3+4?  The athlete started to sweat, and with great concentration he said seven.  The huge crowd of Aggies at Kyle Field starting screaming "give him another chance."  That's what God does for us. He gives us another chance.  The church is about taking in the unmerciful and showing mercy.

Christine Caine was next.  I had never heard her speak so I was excited.  She was incredible.  She talked about the role of the church in the world.  She said that we are too busy doing church than being the church.  She talked about being "of the world" and "in the world".  Her point was that too many of us turn out the lights in our community because we don't want to be in the world.  But if we are not "in the world", where are we?  We are hiding behind our church walls trying to be "of the world." She talked about the lost in Matthew.  The sheep was lost because it was preoccupied.  The coin got lost because the woman was careless.  The son was lost because he was unprepared.  Most lost people are not "big, bad, terrible people," but they are just preoccupied, careless and unprepared.  We can be the light in the world for those people.  That is our job, our calling, our ministry our only reason to be.

Wow.  I am going to listen to the talks again and again to get it all.  This is just a drop of what we have learned. Stay tuned.

C3 2009

It is here! We kick off C3 tonight with an incredible time of worship and teaching from Christine Caine and Jentezen Franklin.  I feel a sense of urgency like I have never felt before.  I believe God is about to do something miraculous during this conference.  If you haven't registered, come tomorrow morning and walk up.  There is still time.

Ed will be twittering and blogging from the conference.  Check out his blog at edyoungblog.com and get the latest on his thoughts and feelings during the conference.  Make sure you are also following him on twitter and Facebook. 

I pray that all the attendees will have safe travel and God will prepare their hearts and minds for what He has to say through our speakers, worship and time together.  If you need anything, please don't hesitate to call the C3 number at 800-230-8860 or go online at www.creativechurchconference.com.  You can also email me at preston.mitchell@fellowshipchurch.com. 

See you here!

Get Ready! Get Ready! Get Ready!

It is finally C3 week!  We have been looking forward to this conference for a long time.  Most of our staff has put long hours into making this the best conference in the country.  I know there are a lot of conferences out there, and I have been to many of them.  But I still believe our conference does the best job of speaking directly into the lives of pastors and church leaders who want to take their ministry to (as Ed would say) "a hole nutha level!!" 

Ed is pumped up with passion!  God has given him some incredible stuff to share.  We have experienced a lot at Fellowship this past year and we are thrilled to be able to share with you what God can do in your church and in your life.  Ed has some HCO's - hot church opinions - that he is ready to share.  The music is going to be off the chain.  And C3 Nights will be a double dose of praise, worship and teaching that everyone can enjoy.  This week is NASCAResqe in it's non-stop, action-packed schedule of events.  You will leave C3 emotionally energized, spiritually supersized and creatively calibrated to make a difference wherever you live.

I am looking forward to catching up with friends from all over the world. There is nothing like hanging out and talking about the church.  I hate that the economy is keeping some people from coming, but I understand!  We will be praying for you as you stay back at home and continue the work God has given you.

During the conference, I'll do my best to let you know what is happening behind the scenes.  To me, that's the best part of the conference.  If you are coming, yell at me!  If you can't come, we will miss you. 

Keep in touch!