Evotional.com - Mark Batterson

Did a chapel for the Jacksonville Jaguars tonight. What a cool experience. They are in town playing the Redskins. A friend of mine, Asif Shaikh, gave their chaplain, Anthony Johnson, a copy of In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day and some of the guys have read the book. So he invited me to come and speak.

Man, some of those guys are huge. Physical specimens. But I also perceived tremendous spiritual hunger. Neat opportunity to speak a word of encouragement. And it'll be fun watching them play after praying for them.

Also gave each of them a copy of Wild Goose Chase.

I just read the latest issue of Outreach magazine and the feature was an interview with Erwin McManus, pastor of Mosaic in LA. He said something that was so profound. Really made me think. "I think a lot of pastors have a dream that matches the life of the pastor who is the living the dream they want." Man, that stopped me in my tracks.

I think there is a such a temptation to copy when it comes to ministry. I wrestle with it as much as anyone else. I think we need models. I've got my fair share, including Erwin McManus. But I remember reading something Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote in Self-Reliance: "There is a time in every man's education that he arrives at the conviction that imitation is suicide. He must take himself for better or for worse."

I think there are two simple principles that ought to guide us:

1) Keep Learning.
2) Be Yourself.

At some point, most of us stop learning and start copying. It's so much easier. We stop living out of right-brain imagination and start living out of left-brain memory. And that is when we stop creating the future and start repeating the past.

Just a simple reminder. There never has been and never will be anyone like you. And that isn't a testament to you. It's a testament to the God who created you.

I'm going to start sending out transcripts of my messages via email. Actually, I'm resurrecting something I did for several years. If you want to subscribe you can do it here.

For those of you who want the backstory, here is a little bit about the evolution of evotional. I originally came up with the name, with some inspiration from our team, as a description of an email devotional. So you drop the "d" and get evotional. Sort of a double entendre.

Then I launched my blog by the same name. But evotional was originally an email version of my weekend message. In the past year, I've taken a little hiatus because I don't have time to write the message out. But we've decided to resurrect it with one caveat: it's an audio transcript.

By the way, I originally did it to work on my writing skills.

Here's the bottom line: I want to resource other pastors. So all of our messages are available for free in lots of formats. You can watch the webcast or download the podcast. So we're adding a transcript to the mix.

The purpose behind it is this. Give NCCers a double dose. Or for those who miss a weekend, it keeps them in the loop. And it's a resource for pastors around the country.

There you have it. The evolution of evotional.

Sign up for a free subscription.

Just posted our Wild Goose Chase trailer if you want to check it out. We play this at the beginning of our messages as a "bumper" before I get up to preach. Six weeks. Six cages.

Props to our media team and Jeremy Sexton. Love the vibe.

A pastor from the Eastern Shore visited NCC last week and left a Grotto's gift certificate for me. But he did by hiding it in our performance space and emailing me a clue. Just went down there and retrieved it from behind a picture. That's a first.

If anybody else wants to play hide-and-seek let me know. I really like Malnati's and Ruth's Chris hide-and-seek. Oh yeah, also like Fogo De Chao and Cheesecake Factory hide-and-seek.

Well, Wild Goose Chase has been out for one week. Still feels surreal but it's fun getting emails from people who are seeing it in bookstores. Even my little girl, Summer, was visiting grandpa and grandma Batterson in Florida and the book was front-and-center at their church bookstore. Pretty cool. It's now out of my hands and in God's hands.

I'm getting this question quite a bit: who is the book written for? So I thought I'd take a stab at it. Honestly, I think every author writes with a subconscious audience in mind. But you never know who it will resonate with. That's where the sovereignty of God comes into play!

I think it's a great read for anyone who is bored with their faith or lost the spiritual sense of adventure. In that sense, it is written for a general audience. But here are the people I think it will really resonate with. Because I pastor twenty-somethings, I think I naturally write for twenty-somethings as well. It'll be a great read for anyone navigating the quarterlife crisis. I also think it'll help college freshman and seniors who are entering new life stages. Of course, sophomores and Juniors can read it too.

I think it's a great read for people who going through life transitions.

And, finally, I'm hoping it'll resonate with readers who are spiritual seekers or new believers. I think it frames a relationship with God in a fresh way.

Chase the Goose!

Getting excited about Catalyst 08. Every year we take our entire team. Who knows? Maybe someday we'll charter our own plane or rent a couple RVs.

Wanted to let blog readers know about a special discount on labs. FYI--I'll be doing a lab on the Wild Goose Chase. The special rate ends Thursday, August 28. And if you mention my blog, you can get an extra $10 off.

Love to connect @ Catalyst.

Just thought I'd give a heads up. In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day is now available on Kindle--Amazon's wireless reading device.

We're going to give NCCers some tattoos this weekend. That's a first. Thought it'd be a fun way to encourage people to chase the Goose. But I also think it's a unique twist on Deuteronomy 6:4-9.

Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads . Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

The bottom line is this: we tend to remember what we should forget and forget what we should remember. So we need to find ways to keep things at the forefront of our consciousness. A temporary tattoo is one way of doing that.

Every summer I take a little preaching sabbatical. We have an amazing teaching team so it's much easier now than it was five years ago. But I think it's healthy for me. You can preach for two reasons: you have to or you have to. One "have to" is because you are on the schedule. The other "have to" is because you have fire shut up in your bones.

My litmus test every summer is how I feel coming off of my preaching sabbatical. Am I excited about getting back into the saddle? If I'm not, it's probably time for me to hang it up. But every year I have this renewed excitement about what God is doing at NCC.

I definitely need the break. But it's great to get back into the flow. Excited about what God has in store over the next few months. I think it's going to be an amazing season at NCC.

Today was a long day!

Got up at 1 AM EST. Headed to Heathrow airport. We got on the plane and had to sit on the plane for three hours because of a valve malfunction. No fun. Then we had an eight hour flight that got us back to Washington Dulles around 2 PM. Went home. Showered and shaved. And then preached at the 5 PM service @ Ebenezers.

Not sure what time zone I'm in. But it was so good to get back in the pulpit. I preached a little too long which I should have anticipated for two reason. I feel pretty passionate about the topic--Wild Goose Chase. And I haven't preached in a few weeks. That is a dangerous combination!

Gonna watch a little pre-season football and crash!

What a great week in Scotland. Wrapped up Unplugged Europe. I have a feeling we'll be doing another Unplugged Europe. Probably do it in a different country. But it was so great to build relationship and make connections with some amazing leaders on the European front.

Hop a flight to London tonight. Then back to DC on Saturday. I'm actually preaching on Saturday night so hopefully we won't have any delays. Can't wait to see the fam! And I'm looking forward to five weeks without any travel.

I posted some pictures on facebook if you want to check them out.

Great day at Unplugged Europe. We met in a really cool venue called The Jazz Bar. Great group of leaders from six countries.

We have a core value: everything is an experiment. And this is no exception. I think the experiment went well. It was a tag-team effort with Tony Foley, pastor of Eikon Church in Edinburgh, Scotland, and Andrew McCourt, pastor of Cornerstone City Fellowship in Derry, Ireland.

Me and my blokes climbed up to the crags outside Edinburgh to shoot a little video for Wild Goose Chase. There are some ancient ruins--one of the oldest chapels in Scotland built in the 7th century AD. Pretty sweet symbolism. The door is like a portal in time. Like walking through fourteen centuries of history when you walk through the door.

I'll post some more pictures to facebook.

Loving the vibe of Edinburgh. It's a city of half a million people, but I guess the population doubles during the Fringe Festival. Had a blast walking the streets last night. Ate some deep fried food at a little dive called The Clam Shell. Saw the military tattoo march out of the Castle with their bagpipes. And did some people watching.

Went to sleep around 2 AM. Still adjusting to the time zone. And the city was still buzzing. The energy reminds me of Manhattan. Seems like the city never sleeps. But maybe that's because we're staying right on the Royal Mile.

The crazy thing to me is how cloudy and rainy it is. The only sunshine we've seen has been during our round of golf at St. Andrews. And it's crazy that 70's is hot!

Gearing up for our conference kick off tonight. Also going out to "the crags" to do a video shoot today for Wild Goose Chase.

Just added a Scotland photo album to facebook for anyone who is interested. Also created a Chase the Goose facebook group.

How do I describe my round of golf today? Here's a stab at it. I didn't play St. Andrews. St. Andrews played me. I actually had seven strokes in one sand trap. It was amazing! Or pathetic. Depending on which way you see. All I could do was laugh. I did bounce back to shoot a 47 on the back nine. Nothing to proud of. But I'm more of a duffer than a golfer.

We didn't win the lottery for the Old Course so we played the New Course. But we shot some pictures on the 18th hole at the Old Course. By the way, the honors go to Andrew Smith, Superintendent of the AOG in Scotland. Shot a very impressive 76.

Here are a few pictures: the eighteenth hole, me and my blokes, a sweet putt by Dave Schmidgall, and the sign says it all. By the way, feel free to laugh at my black socks and black shoes. What can I say? Rentals. But I got to keep the socks.

The day has finally arrived. Been circled on my calendar for quite some time. Wild Goose Chase hits bookstores today! Really have a sense of destiny because of the prayers that have been prayed. Can't wait to see the way God is going to use it. I feel like the book is now out of my hands and in God's hands.

I'm going to celebrate by playing a round of golf at St. Andrews. I'll definitely post some pictures. Not sure if I'll post my score :)

Chase the Goose!

Loving Scotland. Awfully rainy and I should have packed a few long-sleeve shirts. But loving the sights and sounds. Staying on the royal mile. Saw a little street theater. Toured Edinburgh Castle. Saw the stone of destiny.

I'll post some more pictures to facebook later this week.

Here's the final book byte. It's actually the opening paragraph of Wild Goose Chase. The book officially releases tomorrow. T-minus one day!

The Celtic Christians had a name for the Holy Spirit that has always intrigued me. They called him An Geadh-Glas or the Wild Goose. I love the imagery and implications. The name hints at the mysterious nature of the Holy Spirit. Much like a wild goose, the Spirit of God cannot be tracked or tamed. An element of danger and air of unpredictability surround Him. And while the name may sound a little sacrilegious at first earshot, I cannot think of a better description of what it's like to live a Spirit-led life than Wild Goose Chase. I think the Celtic Christians were on to something that institutionalized Christianity has missed out on. And I wonder if we have clipped the wings of the Wild Goose and settled for something less-much less-than God originally intended for us.

Chase the Goose!

Hop a red-eye flight to Edinburgh, Scotland today.

I'm travel weary, but excited about the upcoming week. Golfing St. Andrews on Tuesday, the day Wild Goose Chase releases. Pretty cool way to celebrate. And it's one of my life goals.

Also excited about shooting some Wild Goose videos "on site" since An Geadh-Glas, the Celtic name for Holy Spirit, originates there. We'll try to hit Edinburgh Castle and take in some of the Fringe Festival. And, of course, we've got our leadership conference, Unplugged Europe, Wednesday thru Friday. Super excited about connecting with some leaders on the European front.

Bon Voyage!

The first reviews of Wild Goose Chase are starting to come out. Definitely want to say a huge thanks to the bloggers who are reviewing the book. Feel free to post a link in the comments.

For what it's worth, the book was written for a general audience. Ought to challenge just about anybody in any circumstances. But I think it'll really nail people who have lost the adventure of following Christ.

I really struggled with the "sophomore book." I think the influence that In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day had actually made it more difficult to write the sequel. But at the end of the day, I really feel like I wrote what God wanted me to write. And, as an author, that is all you can.

Really been encouraged by early reviews. Most people have told me they read the book in one sitting which I take as a huge compliment. It's one of my goals as a writer. I want to write in a way that is easy to read but then requires people to go back and reflect on what they read.

T-minus three days!

The book bytes continue. T-minus four days till Wild Goose Chase releases.

Can I share a personal conviction? I think vision is the cure for sin. One reason many of us get entangled in sin is because we don't have enough God-ordained vision to keep us busy. The more vision you have, the less you will sin. And the less vision you have, the more you will sin. It is a vision that keeps us playing offense spiritually.

Too often we try to stop sinning by not sinning. That is what psychologists call a double bind. It's sort of like saying, "Be spontaneous." You can't be spontaneous now that I've told you to be! The way to stop sinning is not by focusing on not sinning. The way to stop sinning is by getting a God-sized vision that consumes all your time and energy.

Really enjoyed speaking at Echo.

I was a little nervous because I felt like a PC amongst Macs. Lots of geeks at this conference. That's a compliment, by the way! I joke with our media team that they do tech support and I do non-tech support.

Really enjoyed the experience. And I love connecting with people before and after events like this. And it was great to meet Todd Wagner, pastor of Watermark Community Church.

Long day. Good day.

Hopping a flight and heading to the Echo Conference. Speaking in the kickoff session on Thursday night. Looking forward to attending and hanging out with our media team.

Gonna catch lunch with some of my friends at rightnow.org.

I'm sharing some book bytes from Wild Goose Chase until the book releases August 19. Here's a daily dose of Wild Goose.

If you would describe your relationship with God as anything less than adventurous, then maybe you think you're following the Spirit, but you have settled for something less--something I call inverted Christianity. Instead of following the Spirit, we invite the Spirit to follow us. Instead of serving God's purposes, we want Him to serve ours. And while this may seem like a subtle distinction, it makes an ocean of difference. The result of this inverted relationship with God is not just a self-absorbed spirituality that leaves us feeling empty; it's also the difference between spiritual boredom and spiritual adventure.

Here is another book byte from Wild Goose Chase. T-minus six days till the release date, August 19. Counting down the days. Here is a list of online retailers where you can pre-order the book. And just a reminder. If you pre-order, you can get a free download called 10 Steps to Setting Life Goals. Alright, here's a daily dose of Wild Goose.

What is most lacking in the church of Jesus Christ is not education or resources. Keep learning, but we are educated way beyond the level of our obedience. And keep giving, but we do not lack the resources to alleviate poverty or fight injustice or spread the gospel. We are the most resourced church in the most resourced country the world has ever known. You what is most lacking? Good old-fashioned guts.

The will of God is not an insurance plan. It's a daring plan. And more often than not, the will of God will involve a decision that seems unsafe or insane. Dare I suggest that the twenty-first century church needs more daring people with daring plans?

In the words of a daring twentieth century missionary, C.T. Studd: "Some want to live within the sound of church or chapel bell; I want to run a rescue shop within a yard of hell."

The church needs more Studds! And you can quote me on that.

Next week we start serving lunch @ Ebz. We'll have a simple sandwich menu. Five options including wraps and paninis. Gonna be SO convenient to be able to grab lunch at Ebz!

Just found out we had the largest offering in the history of National Community Church this weekend. And attendance was way down--the August effect.

It's so apropos that Zeb Mengistu was speaking. Zeb pastors Beza International Church in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. NCC helped plant Beza. And I spoke there a couple months ago. I came home from that trip with a "mantra" echoing in my spirit: grow to give, grow to give, grow to give.

My primary motivation for the growth of NCC is seeing people cross the line of faith and follow Christ. But my ulterior motive is missions! We need to keep growing so we can keep giving. We need to grow more so we can give more. We need to be giving millions of dollars to missions every year. And the only way to get there is to keep growing!

Our A18 series was all about missions. What's cool is that we really focused the challenge on going instead of giving. In fact, we had 200+ people sign an A18 card saying they wanted to go on a short-term trip.

I think this series and this offering is a harbinger of things to come. If we keep giving to missions, God will keep growing NCC!

So excited about launching our protege program this fall. Lots of interest and lots of applicants. We were only going to take 3-4 proteges, but it was tough to say no to some amazing people. Looks like we'll have seven proteges joining our staff on 09.09.

I just wrote an article for Sermon Central titled The Adventurous Pastor.

Here's an excerpt:

A few years ago I played hooky from church. Instead of going to our Saturday night services, my son and I hit the ski slopes. It was the last weekend of the ski season so it was our last chance to go after one of the life goals we share in common: learn to snowboard.

We were awfully sore at the end of the day. Especially my backside! But it was one of those unforgettable days. And there is one moment in particular that is frozen in my mind. Literally. We were riding up the chairlift as the blizzard-like snow was coming down. And I heard the still small voice of the Holy Spirit. I realized, in that moment on that chair lift, that my life had completely revolved around National Community Church for the better part of a decade. On one level, when you plant a church, you've got to pour your heart and soul into it. Sacrifices are par for the course. But I came to the convicting realization that I didn't really have much of a life outside of church. It was as if the Holy Spirit said: Get a life!

I'm afraid that many pastors, if we were completely honest, would have to admit that we have no life outside of church--no hobbies, no relationships, no interests, no goals, no margins. And we wonder why we're bored with ministry. So let me share a few ways to adventurize your life...

You can read the entire article here.

Here is another book byte from Wild Goose Chase. Sharing a daily dose of Wild Goose until the book releases on August 19.

Here's a thought that fired across my synapses not long ago: Do angels yawn? I know it seems like an inane theological question, but I seriously wonder if angels have the capacity to get bored. More importantly, I wonder if some of us are living such safe lives that not only are we bored, but so are our guardian angels.

Chase the Goose!

It was nearly a year ago that Parker and I signed a discipleship covenant. It involved three challenges: spiritual, intellectual, and physical. We still have a ways to go on all fronts. But I'm excited about our upcoming physical challenge. I really wanted to go after a goal together so next month we'll run the Dewey Beach Sprint Triathlon.

I don't think we'll set any course records! But I'm gaining confidence. My biggest concern was the swimming leg, especially because it's an ocean swim. But I think we're going to get there.

I'm trying to accomplish a couple things in this process. One is teaching my son to develop good disciplines. And I've found that if I'm disciplined physically it's easier for me to be disciplined spiritually. And vice versa. But I also want to push him to do things that will stretch him. Few things in life compare to the thrill of doing something really hard or doing something you didn't think you could do. And even if we don't succeed in finishing, I'd rather fail trying!

Here is another book byte from Wild Goose Chase.

When we turn Christianity into a noun, it becomes a turnoff. Christianity was always intended to be a verb. And, more specifically, an action verb. Some of us live as if we expect to hear God say, "Well thought, good and faithful servant!" or "Well said, good and faithful servant!" God isn't going to say either of those things. There is only one commendation: "Well done, good and faithful servant."

Had so much fun preaching at Northway! Felt so welcome and so connected because I preached here last year. Great group of people that really reflect the personality of their pastor. So hospitable!

After church we hung out a little bit. Ate some Grotto pizza and played some Horse. Gotta admit, Buddy schooled me. But it took about a game and a half to discover that you've got to bank every shot on their driveway hoop! Good times. I'll get even next year!

Honestly, pastoring can be pretty lonely. But over the past couple of years it's been great to develop a few friendships with some pastors around the country that are in similar scenarios. We don't see each other often, but we pick up right where we left off.

Preaching a couple services today then it's back home.

This weekend the Washington Post is launching a weekly column featuring weekly messages by area pastors. It's called This Week's Word. Pretty cool deal. Here's a link.

For what it's worth, it was seven years ago "to the weekend" that the Post did a front-page, Sunday-edition article on NCC that really put us on the map in the DC area. Grateful for good press! I really think it's the favor of God.

Really excited about hanging out with my friend Buddy Cremeans this weekend and speaking at NorthwayChurch.tv. Great guy. Great church.

Last year I talking about chasing lions. This year I'll talk about chasing the Wild Goose.

Off to NY.

Bummed I wasn't able to make it to Willowcreek's Leadership Summit this year, but I will be at the Group Life Conference at Willow in October. It's a "must attend" conference for anybody who does small groups. Excited about tag-teaming with our discipleship pastor, Heather Zempel, for one of the sessions.

Love making the pilgrimage to Willowcreek. It was a Willow conference when I was in seminary that really gave me a glimpse of a church that was reaching the unchurched.

Over the next few days I'm sharing book bytes from Wild Goose Chase. Think of it as a daily dose of Wild Goose. Feel free to share it, blog it, or delete it.

In the beginning, God made man in His Image.

Man has been making God in his image ever since.

Call it naturalism. Call it anthropomorphism. Call it idolatry. Call it what you will. The end result of this spiritual inversion is a god that is about our size and looks an awful lot like us. And most of our spiritual shortcomings stem from this fundamental mistake: thinking about God in human terms. We make God in our image and what we’re left with is a God who can never surprise us, never astonish us, never overwhelm us, never transcend us.

Thomas Jefferson loved the teachings of Jesus. In fact, the author of the Declaration of Independence once called them the most sublime and benevolent code of morals which has ever been offered to man. But Jefferson was also a child of the Enlightenment. He didn’t have a cognitive category for miracles so Jefferson literally took a pair of scissors and cut them out of his King James Bible. It took him two or three nights. And by the time he was done, he had cut out the virgin birth; cut out the angels; and cut out the resurrection. Jefferson extracted every miracle and the end result was a book titled the Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth or what is commonly referred to as the Jefferson Bible.

Hard to imagine isn’t it? And something rises up within those of us that believe the Bible is divinely inspired by God. Part of us scoffs or scolds Jefferson. You can’t pick-and-choose. You can’t cut-and-paste. You can’t do that to the Bible. But here’s the honest truth: while most of us can’t imagine taking a pair of scissors to the Bible and physically cutting verses out, we do exactly what Jefferson did. We ignore verses we cannot comprehend. We avoid verses we do not like. And we rationalize verses that are too radical. And we may not cut them out with a pair of scissors, but the end result is the same. We are trapped by our own logic. Our lives are limited to those things we can comprehend with our cerebral cortex. And we end up in the cage of our own assumptions. And the more assumptions we make, the smaller our cage becomes.

Excerpt from Wild Goose Chase

Parker and I are reading through John's gospel in our journey thru the New Testament. Thought I'd share a thought.

John says in John 1:20: "I am not the Messiah."

I think there are two fundamental questions that drive us: 1) who is God? 2) who am I? And the first question is the key to the second question for a very simple reason. If God knows you better than you know you, then you need to get to know God so you can get to know yourself. Think about it.

Half of the "who am I" journey is discovering who you are--gifts, personality, passions, etc. The other half is discovering who you're not. And this is where true freedom is found. It starts with this simple acknowledgment: "I am not the Messiah."

I think most of us spend way too much energy trying to be who we're not. But the greatest freedom is having nothing to prove. And I think that is why John was used by God in such a great way. He knew who he wasn't. "I am not." In the process, I think we not only come to terms with things we're not good at. We learn to laugh at them. In fact, the healthiest and holiest people on the planet, in my estimation, are the people who laugh at themselves the most.

Is it just me or is it really cool that today is 08.08.08? I'm posting this at 8:08.

It's going to take awhile. Brett Favre as a Jet? Not overly excited about the team he's going to! They were 4-12 last year. And I'm still upset at the Packers. But a friend who pastors a church in Wisconsin told me that Favre's replacement, Aaron Rodgers, is a Christian. At first I was upset because that means I can't cheer against him! And I wish I was joking. This whole thing has me tied up in emotional knots. But I'm so glad he told me that. I'm back to praying for Rodgers and the Packers.

Thought I'd share some book bytes from Wild Goose Chase before it releases on August 19. Think of it as a daily dose of Wild Goose.

I wonder if churches do to people what zoos do the animals. We try to tame them in the name of Christ. We remove the risk. We remove the danger. We remove the struggle. And what we end up with is a caged Christian.

Jesus didn't die on the cross to keep us safe. He died to make us dangerous. I would like to think that when I pronounce the benediction at th end of our church services, I am sending dangerous people back into their natural habitat to wreak havoc on the Enemy.

excerpt from Wild Goose Chase

My little guy, Josiah, just got his first tattoo.

I'm a raving Catalyst fan. Our entire staff makes the pilgrimage to Atlanta for the Catalyst Conference every October. So I got a "goody box" from them this week with lots of knick knacks, including a bunch of temporary tattoos. My kids went nuts!

All I can say is that the creativity quotient of the Catalyst Crew is off the chart. We're going to steal the temporary tattoo idea for our next sermon series!