THAT was one of my very favorite Kick-Offs in a long time…

• Loved the drums during Miracles – told Michael Tait & Newsboys they could rip that if they wanted (their manager said they might:))
• Wasn’t sure I could keep it together after hearing those stories Saturday night…some of my favorites of all time. Thanks John, Keith, Lynne and Jay. You are MIRACLES.
• Worship was dynamic – loved singing Alive Again, and it was fun to end with Hold Us Together. (That’s the first time we’ve ever used two songs by the same artist for a kick-off. Cool.)
• The Saturday night service was electric. Can’t remember the last time we used the Saturday night service to duplicate and post on the web…just one of my favorite services in a long time.
• Snazzy-Dog really is just that gorgeous, isn’t she?! (Purely gratuitous!)
• I really believe it all begins and ends w/Jesus. If every church (much less every Uprising Church!) got a hold of that one and made sure everything began and ended with Him, it would change us. If I lived like that, it would change ME.
• The Church is a spiritual hospital for healing and hope. People in compromised positions used to be drawn to Jesus. Around Jesus they felt bigger, not smaller. Loved, not used. Like they had a chance at life again.
• We can all get honest in the light of the cross.
• Loved having Jimmy here from Compassion, International on Sunday…seeing him lose it again every time he saw the video of meeting his rescuer face to face at Catalyst just about undid me.
• My niece Ruth’s rescue was a catalyst for hundreds of rescues later Sunday night…so grateful for a God who will go to any lengths to pull us out of the canyons of our lives.
• We are a church full of rescued people becoming rescuers!

Questapalooza rocked!

• If you were on the field Sunday, you know we had a record number of people here! Loved watching thousands and thousands experiencing this irresistible community for themselves.
• It took 1000+ volunteers to pull that day off! Thank you for BEING the church!
• Group1Crew, Newsboys & Switchfoot were a terrific line-up…thanks, guys!
• Seeing HUNDREDS and HUNDREDS stand up and ask Jesus to rescue them was UNFORGETTABLE! Can’t wait for the team to finish the final count of who went from DEATH TO LIFE!
• I believe heaven cheered along as Jesus was glorified. I love partnering with Questers to make Jesus famous!
• If you’re one of the hundreds who asked Jesus into your hearts Sunday night, sign up for my twitter to receive encouragements for your first 30 days with Jesus. Let’s be on this journey together!
• Thanks to the dozens and dozens of you who stopped me to say thank you to this church for being a part of your rescue. You are why we do what we do…you are the treasures of heaven!

Questers…thanks for all of your prayers and invitations! THOUSANDS and THOUSANDS of people came to SEE FOR THEMSELVES this weekend! Let’s all invite them back!

To our guests…you really are VIPs to us. Thanks for giving Quest the chance to serve you. We really hope you’ll come back to experience Him for yourself!

100s and 100s went from death to life! 1000s upon 1000s came and were invited to Quest. The invitation went out to Come See For Yourself.

Fall Kick-Off was an event to remember. Questapalooza kicked. Had a fantastic personal time with Newsboys, Group1Crew and Switchfoot and many of the other great folks who were here. In awe of what God did tonight.

Lots and LOTS of people came home…THANK YOU, JESUS!

That’s the invitation Jesus offers and that’s the invitation we join Him in.

Come See For Yourself!

If you’re wondering about reconnecting with God…looking for a fresh start…or maybe just wondering what Quest is all about or if God could really make a difference in your life: Come See For Yourself.

If you’re a Quester, BRING SOMEONE WITH YOU THIS WEEKEND! Invite your friends, your family, your neighbors and your co-workers. Invite the guy at the drive-thru, the dry cleaner, the cashier, your server. Take advantage of every opportunity.

Praying for your inviting!

For our 5 Year Questapalooza Anniversary, we’ve lowered ticket prices to an INSANELY low price. Come for Fall Kick-Off for our brand new series, Come See For Yourself and stay for Questapalooza Sunday afternoon!

Questers…invite like a machine! This is one of the single best inviting tools we give you all year. We’re giving it our best to make this weekend one of the most powerful, most memorable experiences of our whole ministry year…so do everything you can to get your people here for Fall Kick-Off and Questapalooza. Let’s make Jesus famous together!

Questapalooza 2010 Promo from Quest Community Church on Vimeo.

1. Didn’t it feel great to have such a creative encounter with God this weekend as we concluded our God Can series? Thanks to our artists and the whole teaching team for helping us connect with God in unique ways.

2. Our souls were made for intimacy with the Most High God, but most of the time we don’t recognize it or we ignore it in our lives.

3. Our time of confession was so valuable…whether it was writing in the sand, writing God a letter or praying quietly. He’s not mad at you and He isn’t trying to make you squirm. He just wants to be in an honest conversation with you.

4. I loved the picture of “from here to there” in this series. In the land between, when we’re not there yet, we’ve got to KNOW the One in Whom we trust!

5. The song Build us Back was perfect for this series. God didn’t just rebuild the walls around Jerusalem, He wants to rebuild US.

6. Loved celebrating communion together in our weekend worship experience for the first time in more years than I can remember!

7. Didn’t it feel great to have 3,600 of us in that room again, Lexington? It’s fantastic to have our students coming back from the summer! Now let’s fill up both of our campuses this weekend…there’s room for more!

8. Getting unbelievably PUMPED for Fall Kick-Off next weekend! Invite EVERYONE you know to Come See For Yourself!

9. Questapalooza is just DAYS away. Get your tickets NOW for just $12 each to see Switchfoot, Newsboys and Group1Crew! And invite like crazy! Ticket prices go up on Wednesday!

9. If you haven’t been baptized since you gave your life to Christ…sign up for baptism TODAY! Get ready to go public for Jesus and get dunked Sept. 15th. People need to know your story!

10. A big shout out to my friends Pastor Perry Noble at NewSpring Church and Pastor Steven Furtick at Elevation Church. Between those two churches more than 1,050 people came to Christ this weekend!!! THAT’s what the kingdom of God is about…and that’s what we’re begging God to do in Lexington. Be praying for these great pastors and these great churches!

I’ve watched whole families find restoration and healing because someone reached out and told them they’d be welcomed here. I’ve seen marriages restored, addictions snapped, hope reborn, and THOUSANDS of His lost kids come home. And the #1 reason most of those people came was because someone invited them.

You can DO this. You’ve got the offer of a lifetime waiting for your neighbors, your co-workers, and strangers you bump into at the grocery store. And no one can make your invitation but YOU.

Write down a great list of 10 people you know who need to be here for Questapalooza and Fall Kick-Off. Look around you. Who needs a new shot at hope? Who’s marriage or kids could use strong support? Look at your calendar over the next week and make time and space to INVITE.

You’ll be AMAZED at the ripple effects. Your heart will expand as you risk it on people. And they might just find the HOPE they’ve been looking for. Invite them to COME SEE FOR THEMSELVES!

p.s. Two of my invites yesterday said YES! I can’t WAIT!

Leadership Retreat impacted so many of us in game-changing ways. Fan into flame what God’s entrusted to you! Articulate the work He’s done in your life. Reflect on it. Celebrate it. Write it down. When you articulate what He’s done, you understand it more deeply, and you experience it more deeply. Don’t let the great work of God in your life slip away unnoticed.

Tonight at Celebration hundreds of you will have the chance to reflect on what God did in you at Leadership Retreat, and I hope you’ll come ready to lead out! What God did in you isn’t just for you.

I’ll see you there!

——————-

It’s always fun to teach the weekend right after Leadership Retreat! The freedom that God had to speak to us & change the leaders during the retreat always seems to spill over into home. This weekend was no exception!

1. Did you love that new worship song “Alive Again” by Matt Maher? That great song got some extended play at Leadership Retreat, and it felt like an anthem as we sang it at home for the very first time this weekend. (Download “Alive Again” here)

2. We were floored by the people on stage flipping cards during “This is Home” (a Switchfoot hit! See them at QPZA.com!), celebrating the loved ones in their lives that have “come home” into a relationship with Jesus. It was flooring to see the finished work of God in so many lives!

3. So many people resonated with the choice to “adjust your expectations” or “lower your sights” when you find yourself in the land between where you started & where God has called you to. So many of us hold our breath when it comes to the fulfillment of God’s promises to us.

4. One of the ringing lines of the entire weekend (and of Leadership Retreat!) was Pete Hise’s faith-building challenge: “Never underestimate what God can do in a moment.” He may choose to take His time, but I never want to find myself guarding my heart from hope.

5. God CAN finish a work inside your heart! When He does, make sure you’re counting your blessings and celebrating them big time. There’s a lot of land between, so stock up on courage by partying hard over the finish lines you’ve already crossed.

6.  After reading Israel’s list of people who had come home from exile in Nehemiah 7, reading Quest’s list of families that have come home to Christ in this place was astonishing! It breathed so much hope into our hearts for what God might want to write next to our families’ names!

7. There was hardly a dry eye in the room as we took just a moment to picture the spiritual longshot in our life (someone resistant to the pursuit of God on their lives) saying this one simple phrase to us: “Don’t give up on me.” No matter who they are & no matter how long it’s been: don’t ever give up on somebody!

8. One of my personal highlights was sharing the voicemail from my friend Emily from the day she called and told me that she gave her life to Christ! It was a concrete reminder that God DOES bring His people home — no matter how difficult the fight or how long it takes. The day does come… and sometimes it’s a surprise voicemail waiting for you!

9. It felt so important to bring Pastor Pete’s teaching from last week: “pray and participate” in relation to helping the people we love discover a relationship with Christ. Not only do we need to pray for our people, but seize every opportunity to create moments when they can see Jesus for who He really is.

10. So  much HOPE was poured into our church this weekend — especially for those just one step away from coming home into a relationship with Jesus! I got to meet several people, including one that came to Christ during the 11:30 service, who realized that they knew enough about Jesus to trust Him with their whole hearts. Congratulations to everyone who came home — the Bible says there’s a massive celebration for you in heaven right now!

p.s. Don’t miss the Leadership Retreat Remix on Wednesday night at Celebration!

Every session, from 1st wave to 3rd, stood out and shaped us for the race ahead of us…

1. CHOSEN – We Have Been Chosen to Burn for Him (2 Tim. 1:1)
2. LIT – We’re Called to Fan into Flame What He’s Entrusted to Us (2 Tim. 1:6)
3. REFLEX – We Have to KNOW Him to Trust Him (2 Tim 1:12b)
4. ENTRUSTED – Only You Can Complete the Ministry He’s Entrusted to You (2 Tim 4:5b)
5. FAITHFUL – You can be a faithful finisher (2 Tim 4:6-8)

Remember what God did in you and take action, friends of mine.

The number one thing people have reflected to me so far is a new understanding that “My Story is My Ministry.” Way to go, guys! I can’t wait to see real action as you step forward. Don’t forget your assignment to get in real conversations helping people find Christ after worship on the weekends…your story might just be what they need to hear! (You can do this…say hello to your friends and family later. People who’s lives and eternities hang in the balance will thank you one day.)

You were changed on this retreat. I saw it in so many of your eyes. Never recover from what God did in you. Never forget the video I showed you of my niece, Ruth. We are on a search and rescue mission! Never forget what you KNOW to be true of Him…and take up your baton to run this race all the way to the finish. I couldn’t be more proud of you!

p.s. Take today’s survey, be at Celebration this Wednesday night for a special Retreat Remix, and sign up to follow me on Twitter as we all run this race together. It’s an honor to run with you.

]]> http://www.petehise.com/v2/2010/08/leadership-retreat/feed/ 0 http://www.petehise.com/v2/2010/08/heavens-hopes-are-up/ http://www.petehise.com/v2/2010/08/heavens-hopes-are-up/#comments Wed, 18 Aug 2010 04:00:15 +0000 admin http://www.petehise.com/?p=5027 Leadership Retreat 2010 is finally HERE!

In just a few hours, 161 first wave leaders will arrive at Leadership Retreat for a provoking, eternity-changing time away with God. And they’ll be joined by HUNDREDS of others as the week progresses. Do you have any idea what happens when 600 leaders and emerging leaders get inspired, equipped and challenged to live out their calling to impact the world for Christ?!? I can’t begin to explain what God does in us during this time away together, but heaven’s hopes are up.

So are mine.

If you love your church and you haven’t yet signed up for the open-invitation third wave of retreat, don’t judge the nudge…see if you can grab one of the last slots available. Maybe He’s been holding a spot just for you.

I’ll see hundreds and hundreds of you very soon!