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 I have been blown away by attendance this summer.  I cannot believe that we’ve run well over 100 people above last year; consistently.  I don’t know if it is high gas prices keeping people at home and coming to church, or if God is really sending us a message to get ready for something pretty amazing this fall.
As I shared during First Sunday, last night, it is important for us to always keep in mind that gifts of attendance growth are gifts of grace from a sovereign God.  We don’t know why God chooses to use us, we are simply grateful and humble. 
I think pride is one of the main things that can undo a church.  When a church takes pride in themselves, instead of giving glory and praise to God, they then are declaring that they are dependent on their own strength.  That is never a good idea!
For those of you who were unable to make First Sunday I would like to share with you some of the things that I think are ahead for our church.
We are going to have to keep learning who is out there and who God is calling us to reach.  We want to be a welcoming and including church.  We want to continue to keep our global reach and keep our partnership with Africa strong.
We are looking at completing additional parking before schools starts that we will be well positioned to receive those who will be coming to investigate our church.  If God truly brings more people to us, we are going to have to be flexible on space.  Some classes and offices might have to be moved around. 
Our critical need as a church is still for leadership.  We want to excel at recruiting and training and motivate leaders, but we have to have leaders to recruit, train and motivate.  God has a role for you as a servant.  I hope you will find it, pray about it, step up and do it.
Here is the last piece from First Sunday.  We do want to stay tightly focused on our mission, which is to help as many people as possible take their next step toward Jesus Christ.  There are a lot of other opportunities for our church, and they are good, but we have to focus what God’s unique calling for us is.

Eric told me that last night we had over 700 people on campus!  WOW!  That’s an all time record.  This includes some 90 or so middle schoolers and their volunteers, 170 or so adult volunteers, and 450 kids!  WOW!

Eric and his team have done a great job - and KidsBlitz tonight will be fantastic.

Lot of folks at VBS - I especially know about the middle schoolers.  There were 104 middle schoolers and workers at my house last night!

Here’s what stood out:

• Kids are hungry for community.  They want to be in the circle.  So 13 were on my trampoline at one time - just sitting in a circile.
• Some kids have a hard time fitting in.  Who knows why?  They hang out on the fringes and need someone to help them be included.
• Some kids need to know an adult knows their name.  I spoke to one girl and called her name.  She gushed, “Pastor Clay, you know my name!”  It was on her name tag and I just read it.  But it mean something to her.
• To manage lots of kids, you need lots of help.  Nathan, Leandra, and Jonathan had done a great job.  There were 10 or 12 adults there to help keep an eye on things - and we needed every one of them.
• Student ministry is never just about the kids in your church.  It’s about all the kids God brings to you.

If you watch football, you know the most important things in the fourth quarter are the score and how much time is left on the clock.  Our church year runs from July 1 to June 30.  June is our fourth quarter.  Before time runs out, let’s check the score:

• Through 51 Sundays, 70 people have professed faith in Jesus and have been baptized!
• Attendance in worship has moved up 4% in the last 12 months.
•  Bible Community attendance has moved up 7% this past year.  This is a great trend – groups are growing faster than worship!
• Giving to our ministry budget is 5% more than last year – and this in a year when the economy is not strong!  We did face difficult financial conditions this year, but thanks to the wise leadership of Mark Partin, our Administrative Pastor, and our Stewardship Team, we have devised a good strategy to meet the financial challenges.
• We are $3,000 shy of reaching $800,000 in gifts to Build on the Rock.  We completed the first phase, renovating the Student Building.  The second phase is under way – the clearing of the parking lot and the construction of a covered drop off.  We expect to complete this project (if the weather holds) by the beginning of school.  These 70 extra spaces will allow 154 more people to have a paved parking surface.
• After two and half years of searching, God brought Todd Fleming to our staff to serve as Education/Discipleship Pastor.
• The people of ADBC have stepped up to fill more volunteer roles than ever before.  You are truly going and sharing your gifts, your resources, and your story as never before.
• We had to say goodbye to Clay and Terrica Smith as this church year ends.  Clay brought to our staff great gifts and passion.  But the good news is God has someone in mind for us who will help us take our next step.
• We have an urgent need to find the right people for the Associate Pastor -Preschool and Associate Pastor – Technical Ministries positions.  The preschool position will help us continue the developing of preschool leaders and the building of an effective ministry for preschoolers and their parents.  The Technical position will help us enlist and train more volunteers so that we can have a solid video production to put on our local cable channel and on our web-site.
• Ranny Haselden being with our team was such a golden time – even if it was shortened by his health concerns.  Ranny is one of God’s true gentleman.  He showed us the value of gentleness and compassion.

I give our great God thanks for making this a winning year at ADBC!  I am glad as the clock runs down, you all are on the team.

If you watch football, you know the most important things in the fourth quarter are the score and how much time is left on the clock.  Our church year runs from July 1 to June 30.  June is our fourth quarter.  Before time runs out, let’s check the score:

• Through 51 Sundays, 70 people have professed faith in Jesus and have been baptized!
• Attendance in worship has moved up 4% in the last 12 months.
•  Bible Community attendance has moved up 7% this past year.  This is a great trend – groups are growing faster than worship!
• Giving to our ministry budget is 5% more than last year – and this in a year when the economy is not strong!  We did face difficult financial conditions this year, but thanks to the wise leadership of Mark Partin, our Administrative Pastor, and our Stewardship Team, we have devised a good strategy to meet the financial challenges.
• We are $3,000 shy of reaching $800,000 in gifts to Build on the Rock.  We completed the first phase, renovating the Student Building.  The second phase is under way – the clearing of the parking lot and the construction of a covered drop off.  We expect to complete this project (if the weather holds) by the beginning of school.  These 70 extra spaces will allow 154 more people to have a paved parking surface.
• After two and half years of searching, God brought Todd Fleming to our staff to serve as Education/Discipleship Pastor.
• The people of ADBC have stepped up to fill more volunteer roles than ever before.  You are truly going and sharing your gifts, your resources, and your story as never before.
• We had to say goodbye to Clay and Terrica Smith as this church year ends.  Clay brought to our staff great gifts and passion.  But the good news is God has someone in mind for us who will help us take our next step.
• We have an urgent need to find the right people for the Associate Pastor -Preschool and Associate Pastor – Technical Ministries positions.  The preschool position will help us continue the developing of preschool leaders and the building of an effective ministry for preschoolers and their parents.  The Technical position will help us enlist and train more volunteers so that we can have a solid video production to put on our local cable channel and on our web-site.
• Ranny Haselden being with our team was such a golden time – even if it was shortened by his health concerns.  Ranny is one of God’s true gentleman.  He showed us the value of gentleness and compassion.

I give our great God thanks for making this a winning year at ADBC!  I am glad as the clock runs down, you all are on the team.

I believe the key to following Jesus is to be willing to take your next step.  The next step may be to embrace the healing power of God’s love and grace into your life.  It may be to step up to the challenge of serving or giving or sharing your story.  It may be to let go of something or someone you love.
Churches have next steps.  Over the past three years at ADBC, one of our next steps has been to build a strong leadership team – in the ministerial realm and in the volunteer realm.  God has blest our church with some exceptional leaders.
Now, God is moving Clay and Terrica Smith to their own next step.  Their obedience creates for us our own next step, a step of letting go of people we love.
There is godly irony, I suppose, in the fact that Clay is going to Shandon Baptist Church in Columbia.  It is no secret that Shandon is a mentor church for us and their pastor, Dick Lincoln, is a mentor of mine.  But no two churches are alike.  In the past three years, we have learned some things as a church and a staff team that Clay will carry with him to Shandon.  Hopefully this will be a small repayment for the graciousness that Shandon and Dick Lincoln have shown us through the years.
God’s next step for us is to recognize that we are a church that has much to give – let us be confident that God will provide the right leaders for the next leg of the journey.
Join me in praying God’s best for Clay, Terrica, and Madison as they make this move.  I hope you will be here Sunday as Clay preaches and we honor him in all three services.  But join me also in celebrating that God knows what we have to give and who we need – and He is already making provision for our next steps with Him.

We had a planning session for our September Message series.  It’s called First Family - and it’s based on Adam and Eve and the struggles their family went through.  This series will be great!  I’m convinced that building strong families is one of God’s missions for the church in North America. 

We will need your involvement along the way - so be on the look out!

Sunday had to be one of the best days of life - really!

First, great attendance and giving - especially for the first Sunday of June!

Second, got to tell one of my favorite stories - about the courage of a monk named Telemachus, who took a stand in the name of Christ. 

Third, it was graduation recognition.  This is always a special day, but to have a chance to shake the hand of my own son and celebrate his graduation from high school was a thrill beyond words.

Then, to be surprised by the anniversary video celebrating my 14 years at ADBC - wow!  Thanks to Sarah Lee, Richard Lee, and Gina for doing the hard work of pulling it together.  I have only one question - what happened to my hair?

First Sunday was great as well - It always touches me when we do Deacon ordination.  To see the church come forward and lay on hands - what a great moment.

Thanks ADBC for 14 great years - and keep those horses saddled - we never know where God will take us next!