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Community Makeover Friday

July 22, 2011 in Community Makeover, Community Outreach, Engage Atlanta with 0 Comments

Community Makeover (the annual serving event facilitated by Engage Atlanta) has grown almost 40% since last year. Below are a couple of things that hit me while I was driving around today, and some things that I saw.

  • There’s more activity than there’s ever been on the Friday of CMO. I think a lot more people have taken off from work and started earlier.
  • Our school teachers and administrators need our involvement. They are under resourced and overwhelmed. If churches really want to make a long term sustainable difference in a community we have to be available to serve our schools and encourage our people to volunteer. The doors are wide open!
  • There is hard core poverty in the suburbs. It looks different than urban environments, and we must engage both with sustainable ideas.
  • In Summer #4 this event is becoming more intimate even as it gets larger. There are some big projects with a lot of people serving, but a huge amount is just one family helping another.
  • I saw people of multiple age ranges and ethnicity serving side by side today. Serving together creates unity and diversity at the same time.
  • Was excited to see Parents with older elementary kids serving with their kids and shepherding them as well.
  • Small businesses and locally run franchises are ready and willing to invest in their local community. It’s not about publicity. It’s about relationships.

Post your own project photos on the Community Makeover Facebook page.

If you are on twitter you can follow Engage Atlanta by going to twitter.com/engageatl. Use twitter hashtag #engageatl11 for all your tweets on this year’s Community Makeover.

Our Celebration Service is Sunday night July 24th, at 7:00 pm. at the Paulding County Courthouse!

Go here for directions


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A Few Things I Love About Community Makeover

July 20, 2011 in Community Makeover, Community Outreach, Engage Atlanta with 0 Comments

  • 110 Churches, 1000+projects, 12,500+ volunteers. Yep, I love that.
  • Businesses call and ask how they can help. Racetrac said they didn’t care if their name was on something or not, they just want to be a part of it. Atlanta Paint Disposal did the same thing. (That’s my plug for Racetrac and Atlanta Paint Disposal)
  • Media outlets call and ask me questions that have heard from others about this. The little local ones are the most fun, and impact our community more than larger ones.
  • Project needs are getting met at the last minute. A lot of this happens as different churches interact together and different skills and talents are shared. We are able to say ‘Yes’ to even more folks that we were planning on. Unfortunately, not everyone. There will be more to do when this thing is done.
  • Non-profit partners that jump in unselfishly, NW Habitat For Humanity, CAYA Ministry and A Fresh Hope come to mind off the top of my head.
  • We are also serving some great non-profits, like the area Boys and Girls Club and Wellspring Living.
  • If I take just what I know of from churches like Johnsons Ferry Baptist, Gracepointe Church, Bethany Christian, and others more than 3,000 kids will get backpacks this weekend. That’s a lot of families who don’t have to choose school supply money over grocery money.
  • Working with Church Leaders that do things differently (and better) than us. There is so much to learn from each other!
  • Working with churches of different ethnicity. I think working together outside of the Sunday hour can create a culture in a community that creates diversity inside the worship hour. For my money, churches with a little more ‘color’ have better food.
  • Volunteering creates ownership. This weekend is a catalyst. It is not an end unto itself. Tons of people will be more involved in their churches and in their communities because they gave this ‘First Serve’ opportunity a chance.

 

 

Jesus in a Wal-mart Receipt

July 19, 2011 in Community Makeover, Engage Atlanta with 0 Comments

I’m not sure what you see in the picture to the left, but national news was made this week as one couple came home from church and found this receipt on the floor with the ‘face of Jesus’ on it. Wal-mart reps said the mark would have been made by heat in a cash register. Pretty soon people are going to start comparing this peace of paper to the Shroud of Turin.

You could probably sell tickets to see this thing up close and personal, but most people I know need something more than Jesus on a Wal-mart receipt. They need a God with some skin on.

This weekend thousands of people from around Metro Atlanta will go out and do acts of kindness all throughout the city. Most of the volunteers come from churches. Churches of varying ethnicity, size, and denomination. We call this effort ‘Community Makeover’ and it falls under a non-profit called, Engage Atlanta.

Hundreds of projects will be accomplished all in one concentrated effort. But beyond that, the hope is that connections are made that last way beyond one weekend’s worth of effort. If you serve a widow this weekend, attempt to get to know her. She is going to need more than just a weekend of lawn work. If you serve on a school campus, go back and offer to mentor a child or adopt a teacher. If you take a bag of groceries to a family living in poverty, you should know those groceries probably won’t last the week.

People need a God who shows up on purpose with some skin on.

Everyone Belongs,

Paul

 

An Intro to Community Makeover

July 15, 2011 in Community Makeover, Engage Atlanta with 0 Comments

Intro to Community Makeover 2011 from Engage Atlanta on Vimeo.

Update to Community Makeover 2011

July 13, 2011 in Community Makeover, Engage Atlanta with 0 Comments

There are several amazing movements caused by churches working together going around around the World. I really believe we are seeing a seismic, cultural shift of collaboration, and impact that is leading to measurable change in the places where it is happening. I think that change will come in the form of the Gospel being accepted, lowered poverty rates, lower divorce rates, and create a private sector movement of generosity led by (but not limited to) faith-based non-profits. I mean every word of that and then some. I’m privileged to be a part of one of these movements.

This is our 4th Summer doing Community Makeover in Metro Atlanta. Led by Pastor Brian Bloye (at the request of other Pastors) We began with 8 churches in the summer of 2008. There were Churches of different size, ethnicity, and denomination doing various community projects and acts of kindness.

In the Summer of 2011 we are up to 100+ churches, doing more than 1000+ projects, and this year we are projecting more than 12,000+ volunteers, July 21st-24th. Nice round numbers, huh?

The reason for the round numbers is that every year as the word spreads to new circles about what is happening, more leaders and volunteers decide to get involved, and more  incredible things happen. This is a catalyst event leading to deeper connection between churches and schools, community leaders, and under-resourced families. As the connections are made, barriers fall that previously prevented groups of people from coming together, or needs being met. It’s been exciting to watch. I’ll start to share some examples in the next few days.

If you want to get involved go to www.engageatlanta.com and click the graphic that says, ‘Volunteer’. There you will see a unique project management website that many of the participating churches use to collaborate together.

Everyone Belongs,

Paul

An Emphasis on Prayer

June 21, 2011 in Community Makeover, Engage Atlanta with 0 Comments

This marks the 4th summer that I have had the opportunity to help facilitate the Engage Atlanta Community Makeover. Working side by side with churches of various sizes, denomination, and ethnicity, we have shared God’s love on hundreds of projects, alongside thousands of volunteers.

As our collaboration grows and matures, the board of Engage Atlanta has asked that we mobilize our efforts in another area that could help bring about eternal impact to seeing our city transformed.

As part of Community Makeover we are setting aside July 21st as a day of prayer. We would like to ask that the @ 10,000 volunteers that will be a part of this weekend serving event would join in prayer for our our leaders, our community, and our churches. Even if your church is not serving on this weekend, Christ-followers all over the Metro area can set aside this day for prayer.

We will do projects at 75-100 Metro Atlanta Schools.What kind of difference could be made if we walked the grounds of those schools and prayed for the students and families in advance of the school year before we lift a finger painting or landscaping?

We will serve dozens of widows. We will serve many families impacted by storms this year. We will engage whole communities of people living below the poverty line. Back packs filled with school supplies will be given out to hundreds of students.

We must be people of prayer for our City, County, and State Leaders. Our hope is that we would also pray for unity and for the success of other churches on this day. You may want to just take your family and prayer walk your neighborhood. You might pray for a moment or for an hour. In whatever way your family or you church plans to participate in this, our hope is that thousands of people will engage in prayer on Thursday, July 21st.

Everyone Belongs,

Paul

Why We Do This Voodoo

May 31, 2011 in Community Makeover, Personal thoughts with 0 Comments

When some people hear you talk about churches working together to serve their community or serve a common purpose, it sounds like this mystical, mysterious, crazy talk talkin’ that people just don’t understand. Well to some it is. Maybe we can clear it up with a couple of examples:

All of the storms in the US have given lots of churches the opportunity to be a part of something larger than themselves, and bring healing and restoration to places that need it. I think about what Casey Graham did when Tornados ripped through Alabama (Check this website for an overview). He began to challenge churches to tithe 10% of an offering to Tornado Relief to help those potentially being overlooked in rural areas. He raised 10′s of thousands of dollars in a hurry. No church or individual could have done that by themselves.

I love hearing about my friends at River Church in Charleston, SC who started Love Gave last year. This is a church plant! They began this initiative in their first year. I’m mean fresher than a newborn giraffe, and they have rallied a dozen other churches, and also area businesses, to provide bikes to kids at Christmas and do some needed work in area schools. Shouldn’t church plants be worried about their own growth, and not stuff like this?

Personally, I get to lead the Engage Atlanta Community Makeover. (Last year’s highlight reel, in case you missed it) Churches from all over the city are creating a movement of compassion that is bringing new credibility and opportunity in their communities. There’s also Engage Burkina that has friends all over the country now partnering together to bring clean water, build churches, and expand education.

There are dozens and dozens of examples of this now around the country.

Some people read this and say, ‘Of course’, that’s what you do. But for way too many churches all of this is all a bunch of voodoo. It’s a foreign concept, and they sit on the sidelines.

The amazing thing is that the churches willing to get involved in collaborating with others in Kingdom initiatives larger than themselves are the ones that are growing. In giving ministry away (sowing seed) they are reaping a new crop of people who are coming to discover the Jesus that commanded us to love them in the first place.

The churches working together are becoming a part of life change stories in formerly hardened hearts.

I love this voodoo that we do.

Everyone Belongs,

Paul

 

Some Small Business

May 20, 2011 in Community Makeover with 0 Comments

This year the Engage Atlanta Community Makeover (July 21st-24th) is moving on to new heights, not only seeking to engage churches, but businesses as well.

There are two ways to get your business involved right away!

I want to invite all of you to come out and help support Community Makeover by playing in the Engage Atlanta Golf Tournament on Friday, June 24th at Creekside Golf and Country Club in Hiram. You can go here to sign-up online. There really are no words to explain my golf game. You have to see it to understand. Come on out and join us!

Coming up this Wednesday, May 25th at 11:30 am at Macaroni Grill on Dallas Hwy in Marietta there is an opportunity for your business to learn how to participate in Community Makeover as a sponsor, or do a project as a business. Come learn how to demonstrate to the community your desire to play a meaningful role in serving NW Atlanta as a whole. Send a note to Stephanie at stephanied@westridge.com to RSVP.

We believe that following God is not limited to just doing church with other Christians. It must be a part of our every day lives. Help us engage your employees or co-workers with the love of Jesus Christ by finding out more about how they can be a part of Community Makeover this year.

Don’t forget to ‘Like’ Community Makeover on facebook. If your business has a facebook page we would love to talk about how to strategically connect in that environment.

Everyone Belongs,

Paul

All Together Now

May 9, 2011 in Community Makeover, Engage Atlanta with 0 Comments

There is an amazing thing happening in cities all over the country. Churches of different denominations and ethnicity are coming together in unity to serve their community and to show God’s love and kindness for people on a whole new level.

If you know anything about churches and church leaders that statement alone may have caused you to topple over face first into the reading device of your choosing. However, it doesn’t stop there. On top of that School, Gov’t, and Civic leaders (many times of different faiths or none at all) are coming to churches, handing them the keys, and inviting them to engage the needs of a community as active partners and participants.

There is a movement happening that is so big it is outside of the realm of ‘credit’ and outside of the realm of possibility. City by city it could change the face of the church in the US. If you are in Atlanta, we need you to get involved.

In 2008 a non-profit started called, Engage Atlanta, that host a catalyst event every summer called Community Makeover. It is a one weekend Summer Serving event that is happening this year on July 21st – 24th. I want to invite you to be involved. On top of that, we really need you to be involved. Every day I receive project requests from the types of leaders I just referenced. Every day I hear from people around NW Atlanta who are asking me if there’s a church near them that would be willing to help serve their family. And these requests are spreading out far and wide! We have three school systems that are asking for help from volunteers in churches. They are inviting principals to generate requests on a system wide level!

Requests are also coming in from various leaders in our Metro children and family services. We need churches to step up in a big way!

We want to invite church leaders to hear more. Engage Atlanta will be hosting a lunch on Thursday May 19th at 11:30 am at La Paz in Vinings at 2950 New Paces Ferry Road (There will also be a follow-up event for business leaders. More on that in the next day or two).

Together we will coordinate, communicate, and celebrate together! You can sign up your church right away by clicking here!

This year will undoubtedly include serving families in areas hit by the tornados that ripped through Alabama and NW Georgia just a couple of weeks ago. Join us and get involved!

Sign up today!

Everyone Belongs,

Paul Richardson

 

Throwing Rocks At The Bride

April 18, 2011 in Community Makeover, Engage Atlanta, Personal thoughts with 3 Comments

I was at Catalyst Conference in 2007 when Rick Warren walked out on stage, and one of the first things out of his mouth was about comments he was hearing like these: “I love Jesus, I just don’t like his body.” Pastor Rick suggested that this statement is the same as someone saying, “I love you, I just don’t like your wife.”

I’m a little sensitive to this I know. I have seen the Church (The Bride of Christ) do some beautiful things when they come together in unity. Through the Community Makeover I’ve had the privilege to lead for Engage Atlanta I’ve seen multiple denominations, and ethnicity, serve side by side and watched the kindness of God lead people to repentance, and build the community.

Lately, there’s not a more cannibalistic tribe on the planet than the American Church. We criticize Pastors we’ve never listened to, and books we’ve never read. Churches take shots at each others Easter Egg hunts and their method of making them happen. We conveniently time blog post on morality alongside the moral failures of Christian leaders instead of going to them privately to offer encouragement and help in restoration. You can recruit volunteers to paint faces at the local school spring fling, or paint over graffiti in an urban setting. Either way, to the opposite party, you are most likely an idiot. That’s just how it feels lately.

People throw rocks at the bride on twitter and facebook to try and gain more following, all the while hoping their stone lands the death blow so the rest of the vultures can circle. If you have a problem with the Bride, take it up with the Groom. We need to pray for the Bride. She needs all the love and support she can get.

The culture of our churches has to change. We need to do less to split and more to mend. When we do I believe every church that is doing the thing God has led them to do to reach their community, and joining together in love and unity with others, will grow and thrive as individual congregations, and God’s Kingdom will rise in total.

Maybe I’m throwing rocks at the rock-throwers, I’m not sure. But don’t be cynical. Don’t throw rocks at the bride. Don’t be that guy.

Everyone Belongs,

Paul

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