A Vibrant Culture

Recently I posted a tweet in which I quoted Pastor Rick Godwin. He said, “Culture - not vision or strategy - is the most powerful factor in any organization period!” I totally agree.

Here is a video with Pastors Phil and Chris Pringle, from C3 Oxford Falls in Sydney, talking about ten points of C3 Church Culture. Phil and Chris started Christian City Church in 1980, and now C3 has become a movement with over 300 churches globally.

 C3 Church Culture Video from C3 Church Sydney on Vimeo.

A week ago we moved to the San Diego area and are excited to make C3 San Diego our new home church. Already we have discovered that this church embodies the culture which Pastors Phil and Chris talk about in this video.

C3 San Diego is led by Jurgen and Leanne Matthesius, who have built a vibrant and passionate team of incredible leaders who continually create an atmosphere of faith, hope and love. The spirit of this place is irresistible!

A New Chapter

 

Hi friends,

Ali and I have for some time sensed that God is calling us on. We have experienced this several times before in our lives following Jesus. We know that when God prompts us we must respond, and so, after almost five years, our time at Coast Hills Church is coming to a close.

This is certainly not the kind of decision we make lightly. The rest of our lives depend on what happens next and so we have been diligent to test that this really is God’s plan for us.

However, as much as we want to be sure of our decisions, as Pastor Ken Baugh has said, “Our God is not a God of full disclosure.” He often calls us to step out without knowing what the whole journey holds. This is called faith! We are not sure of ourselves, but we are sure of God.

We have connected with some Australian friends, Jurgen and Leanne Matthesius, who pastor C3 Church in San Diego, and have felt a real affinity with them. We love what they are doing and how they are going about it.

We will be moving to join them and their team in building God’s Kingdom in that area.

At this point we are not sure about all the details. No promises have been made in regards to a salary or of a position on their staff, but we do have the promises of a God who is with us, who is faithful, and who provides.

While our location will change, our purpose and calling will not. It just might look a little different now.

We still believe we’re to lead others in their love for God.
We’ll continue to use our gifts to help others express their worship.
We still want to discover God and bring that discovery to others.

We want to love God, love people and bring the two together.

Thank you all for your generous love and support over the years. Let’s continue to build the Kingdom of God and build people’s hearts, making His praise glorious! God is Great!

Keep shining!

Mark and Ali

[We have no date set as yet for our last day with Coast Hills. We will let you know about that in the next week or two.]

Follow me on Twitter: @MarkCullenUSA

Fresh Sounds

Here's a couple of new records that I'm really loving right now.

First is the new one from Rend Collective Experiment: Homemade Worship By Handmade People. RCE consists of a core of five people from Ireland who collaborate with many others. As a result the sounds and songs are many and varied. Accordians and acoustic guitars to toy piano, brass instruments, banjo and various unconventional percussion instruments (garbage cans and more), sit alongside the usual rock band instruments to produce some very compelling orchestration.

At the heart of it all though is a real heart for worship. Honest lyrics that aren't afraid to say things in unexpected ways, fresh arrangements that range from gentle and intimate to soaring declarations and raucous celebrations, this is really interesting music that rings with authenticity. I love it!

Here's a short video that introduces what they are about.


The second is Be Lifted High - Live Worship from Bethel Church. What I love about the Bethel team is that they take us into the presence of God and are in no hurry to leave. The production is big and clean, but the songs are mostly very simple and singable, inviting you to get lost in the moment, to linger and to love on God.

 

There are five different lead vocalists on this record and they are all amazing. While they all "perform" flawlessly, I truly get the impression through the music that their singing is an extension of who they are as real life worshipers.

There is a real prophetic edge to this music (these people, this church!) that stirs up faith in me. Let's face it - we all need that!