WHERE I WENT AND WHY:
Curiosity and a great day to be outside took me to Elevation Church. I could walk to their Uptown Campus at Spirit Square and I have always been curious about this "phenomenon". David has been curious too, so he got up and went with me despite the late football game last night (go Tigers!).
WHAT TO KNOW IF YOU WANT TO GO:
Elevation has 10 campuses in the greater Charlotte area from Rock Hill to Davidson and Concord, and three more in Roanoke, Toronto and Raleigh. You can even download their app to take "instant inspiration with you wherever you go." We went to the 9:30 service at Spirit Square, Uptown. Dress was extremely casual. Folks had on shorts, tube tops, jeans and t shirts. The pastor wore jeans and a military green khaki t shirt and boots. The crowd was very young and diverse, but David and I did not stick out as "old" (I don't think!), there were several other at least 50 somethings there. We took our segways (since I was going to the grocery afterward) but I know they provide free parking at 7th St. Station. The girl at the welcome desk said that if you were going to Ballantyne or Blakney that there could be long lines for parking and the welcome tent. Outside of Spirit Square (on the College St. side) they had music and tables and chairs and corn hole games set up. There were programs set up in different floors of Spirit Square for "EKids" and "EStudents" (middle and high school). They have security check-in, parent identification security tags and trained security officers and volunteers who have all passed background checks.
Jai and Matthew at the welcome tables on Tryon St.
REFLECTIONS ON WORSHIP
MOOD:
Walking in, you really felt you were about to enter a rock concert. The stage had 3 huge screens, with music and lighting pulsing to a definite "rock" (praise?) beat. There were both piped-in music and a live band on stage with 3 guitars, a drummer and 3 female singers. The time for the "live" service was counted down on the screen. There was no bulletin, just a connection card. The words to the songs were on the screen and folks were encouraged to sing and clap along. It was all very well produced and David was impressed with the level of production and technology. The lower level of Spirit Square was full and ushers helped folks find seats with flashlights throughout the first few songs. The rock concert mood changed dramatically during the sermon, which was broadcast from the Ballantyne location. While still highly "produced", it was very Biblical and engaging.
MUSIC:
David and I were not familiar with any of the songs and we speculated that they were all originally composed for the church. They were all on sale in the lobby and this would reduce copyright issues They were not difficult to sing, though only a few of the parishioners actively sang along, but most clapped or swayed to the music. The beat made that easy. While not my "style" of music, I will say that it was very well done, and the musicians were very talented, especially the guitarist in Ballantyne and the lead singers in Uptown. From its reputation, I was not surprised by the production, but expected more of a "performance". This group truly seemed to be worshipping (vs. performing). One song had a line I thought worthy of writing down: "This is a day You have made - I won't complain". I liked that!
MESSAGE:
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| Baptism pool in Spirit Square Parking lot |
The sermon was broadcast from their new facility in Ballantyne and was preached by their founder and lead pastor, Steven Furtick. This is when the rock concert mood changed. He is a dynamic speaker and he reminded me of a Revivalist (and yes, they are starting a 10 day revival next week) and had a definite folksy, gospel, almost African American cadence to his preaching with lots of repetition. He preached from Isaiah 65: 1 and John 5: 1-8 (Make the mountains tremble and Jesus heals the paralytic by a pool on the Sabbath.) The nugget I took away from his sermon was if you want change (or his term was have a breakthrough) in your life, you must receive Christ and take action (Jesus told the man to take his mat and get up, and he did and was cured.) Jesus will come to you, but you must believe and be willing to change. "IT doesn't change (ie the problem, addiction, etc.), YOU must change." Then you can go from "what God can do for me", to "what God can do through me". His delivery was a mix of theology, church history, personal stories (very few), and exhortation: very powerful.
OUTREACH AND OTHER OBSERVATIONS:
- Except for multiple references to the upcoming "Orange Revival", no mention was made of activities or outreach ministries of the church, though visitors and members alike were encouraged to use the website to connect to smaller groups and "Eteams" and "Egroups" (this only through messages on the video screens and in literature passed out, not verbally).
- When I went out on the website it seemed that almost all of the small groups were discussion focused and not outreach to the community, though I know the church does several service "blitzes" each year.
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| Corn hole and relaxing between services in Spirit Square parking lot |
- Expectations vs. Experiences: I was expecting the music to be contemporary and "praise" centered, and I was not disappointed. I also expected the "big production" and experienced even more glitz than I anticipated, but I was impressed that everything was geared toward praising God, not the performers. I expected more of a "Jim and Tammy" atmosphere and was absolutely (and thankfully!) disappointed. There was an offering (in large pewter bowls, and you could give on line through their app!) but it was very low key. I also expected more of a "prosperity theology", especially since previous "Orange Revivals" have featured Joel Osteen, but got none of that in the message today.
- This church was started as a "mission plant" of the Baptist State Convention of NC and has grown in 10 years from 121 at its first service to "15,000 in 13 campuses" (according to wikipedia). Its Southern Baptist roots are still showing: all of the campus pastors are young white men (though the congregation was pleasantly racially mixed) and many of the Egroups were studying a curriculum called "Mr. and Mrs. Betterhalf" which stresses that marriage is monogamous and between "one man and one woman."
- When the technology had a glitch, the campus pastor asked us to turn to our neighbor, introduce ourselves and tell each other our favorite flavor of ice cream. It only lasted about 30 seconds.
- At the end of the service there was an "almost" altar call at the end of the final prayer with folks asked to raise their hands if they were "moved to seek a deeper relationship with Jesus." Those who raised their hands were given orange Bibles. The lady in front of us had 4 or 5 children with her all about 10. She pushed all of their hands in the air! LOL Hey! Nothing wrong with making sure kids have Bibles!
- Visitors were offered a T Shirt at the VIP Tent. (So I could also say, "I've been to Elevation and I have the T Shirt to prove it"... but I declined.)
- After visiting 7 churches, 4 of which were either being broadcast on the radio, TV, or internet, I've learned that one big advantage to broadcasting is you start on time and you end on time!! LOL It definitely keeps the preacher from "going long!!"
And if you've read this far, you deserve a laugh! I told you I was sailing with the ship of fools this week! www.shipoffools.com: "How to Pitch a Tent"
VIP Pamphlet and Connection Card (no bulletin):
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