We are 9 days away from opening Center City Church. So exciting. There's a ton going on right now, and I spent my day doing exactly the opposite of what I would have expected a week and a half before we open our church: in the court room. My jury summons instructed me to arrive at the Mecklenburg County Courthouse in Uptown Charlotte at 8am. I was selected on the very first case of the day and spent the entire day hearing testimonies. Crazy enough, this case has carried over into tomorrow, meaning I get another full day ahead of me in the court room. I'm so grateful for Pastor Will Morgan...

Jeremy Cowart had an idea. Find someone in need. Take their portrait. Print their portrait. And deliver them. He called it, very simply, Help Portrait. This one idea sparked a social phenomenon that spanned the globe. Creatives of all types - photographers, graphic designers, lighting technicians, makeup artists, etc - came together in December 2009 to pull off one of the most unified movements the creative community has ever seen: 4,000+ photographers. 10,000+ volunteers.600+ locations. 42 countries. Over 42,000 pictures given.Photographers were not just taking pictures. They were giving...

We have just moved into our new venue, Elizabeth Traditional Elementary School, and along with that comes the need for - you got it - more fund raising. Here's a look at the most current piece we came up with to give people an opportunity to contribute to the cost of one hour, one week or one month in our new venue. It's a 4x6 postcard (designed by Pastor Will Morgan). FRONTBACK

Pastor Will Morgan just designed our invite cards for Center City Church. We each carry them (business card sized) in our wallets (or purses) and have them available in case someone is interested in checking out what we're doing!FRONTBACK

I just got back from a three day trip to Wyckoff, NJ to meet with Pastor Don James and Pastor John James at Bethany Church. Bethany is an incredible church in Northeast Jersey. Pastor Don has been there for over 20 years and they give close to one million dollars a year to missions. So inspiring! They are now launching a new church campus about 15 minutes away from their existing campus. They brought me up there to chat all things church planting. We had such a great couple of days and I'm so encouraged by their vision and creativity. I love church planting and love seeing how creative...

Dara and I share a dream to open a full service coffeehouse/venue in Uptown Charlotte. Imagine it with us for a moment...Enter on the street level of Uptown. An eclectic blend of the finest furniture our thrift stores have to offer. Friendly and knowledgeable baristas greet you and prepare you a perfect latte. The music is chill. The wifi is fast. The vibe is laid back and engaging. Can you see it? The venue upstairs is used for multiple functions throughout the week. Business meetings. Catered events. Parties. After school tutoring. Dance lessons. Yoga. Live shows. And we could turn it into...

Dara and I believe that God has called us to church planting for life. We want to spend the rest of our lives planting new churches anywhere and everywhere God leads. And we want to do it all from right here in Uptown Charlotte. We have a dream to pastor Center City Church for the rest of our ministry. 40 or 50 years in Uptown Charlotte doing life and ministry sounds great to us. So that means that our role in planting churches will be more indirect. We have a dream to raise up church planters and send them out healthy, resourced and ready to roll. It's an exciting dream.I am spending two...

I went to the mailbox today and found a $1,000 check for Center City Church. It was accompanied by a hand written note from another pastor in Charlotte. I was completely blown away. Speechless. I sat in my car and stared into the distance for a while after I read this letter. He said that he was excited about Center City Church and wanted to let us know he loved us and was excited to unite with us to spread the Gospel. Wow. What an incredible example of generosity and unity. I love the fact that God has brought together a group of like-minded pastors in the Charlotte area that do not view...

I had a great meeting today with Pastor Larry Brey from Elevation Church. They are doing amazing things in the Charlotte community as thousands of people have met Jesus through their ministry. I have so enjoyed meeting so many pastors in our community. We are all a part of God's plan to show his love to this community in a real, genuine and applicable way. Same goal. Different methods. And we are all in this together.Thank God for Elevation Church - and so many other churches - that have come before us and laid the foundation of God's tangible love in this community. We honor them for what...

Dara and I felt God's call to North Carolina over two years ago. We visited this area with every intent of planting a church. That was our plan. And I'm so glad God's purposes were accomplished instead. We met Pastor Mike Field through a mutual friend. We found out that he was planting Hope Church in North Charlotte. The more we talked with Pastor Mike, the more Dara and I were convinced that we were supposed to place our dream on hold of leading a church plant. God was calling us to support Pastor Mike and his dream to plant Hope Church. I am so grateful for the time that we spent at Hope...