Did you see the June 8 Guitar Hero III tournament at Northpointe Church? All proceeds go to Greenville Middle Academy green efforts. On May 19 & 21, the greenLIFEproject brought Rock Band, Guitar Hero, Live Earth and An Inconvenient Truth to the 6th grade science classes of Greenville Middle Academy.

donnie-nix-part-3.mp3

Click on the link below to listen to the interview.

wendy-nix-interview.mp3

For some people, going to church isn’t the same as it use to be.  No stained glass windows, no pews, no choir, in fact, no church building.  Many new churches, called church plants, meet where ever they can find available space.  Some people won’t come to a traditional church for various reasons so these churches go to the people.  Many of them meet in schools or store fronts.  They still preach and teach God’s word but just in a different setting.

The set-up at these churches is quite different.  When I say “set-up”, I really mean to set up.  Every week, volunteers come in and set up for the preschool department, the children’s department, the band, and any other area that is needed to “have church”. 

One area that is kind of new is the children’s “check-in” station.  When you come in, someone will be there to greet you and to “check” your children in for their classes.  You give the volunteers a unique security code for your child that only you know.  In order to get your child after service, you must give them this code.  This is one way that the church provides you with peace of mind while you are in the worship service. 

Most of the software that is used at these “check-in” stations is very expensive but we have a solution to that. 

Kid Konnection is “check-in” software that is easy to use and is very affordable for those churches that want “big church” resourses but have “little church” funds.

Brendan O’Gorman, owner of BrenWaves LLC, created this software when he saw how unorganized their church “check-in” had become.  All it takes is a laptop computer and a label printer.

Click on the link below for more information.

Kid Konnection

 

       

“On the job at Northpointe Church, pastor Tommy Vandiver is a picture of tranquility — even when 12-week-old son Joshua is around.

On the motocross racetrack, Vandiver fits in nicely with the chaos.

“I enjoy it immensely,” he says of his unusual hobby. “It’s addictive — when you get into it, it gets in your blood.”

The highly-competitive Vandiver began participating in motocross races as a teenager. He “retired” from the sport during his days as a seminary student, but returned to the mud-soaked motorcycle battles after moving to Greenville in 1996.

“The day after a race, I’m usually pretty sore. Most of the competitors are a lot younger,” says Vandiver. “But it’s a lot of fun.”

For Vandiver, 41, the roar of motocross racing helps satisfy a sense of adventure and keeps his competitive juices flowing. He competed in football, track and wrestling at Commerce (Ga.) High in the mid-1980s, and in more recent years enjoyed competing in half-marathons until knee problems stalled that hobby.

The same sense of adventure has shaped Vandiver’s career. The man who came to Greenville as minister of music at White Oak Baptist Church in 1996 had two large leaps of faith in 2002, when he started a new church — and took on the role of pastor.

“I never saw myself as a pastor. I didn’t really want that responsibility,” says Vandiver. “But I just felt like God was leading us to start a church in this area.”

The “us” reference includes wife Iuliana (pronounced U-lee-anna), another part of Vandiver’s life that meshes divine intervention with his adventurous nature. Vandiver was part of a mission team to Romania in 1998 and was asked by the South Carolina Baptist Convention to lead a team to Bucharest, Romania, the following year. At the last minute, the trip was changed to the southeastern Romanian city of Buzau. Iuliana was assigned to meet the mission team as a translator.” – Excerpt from The Greenville News’ City People, February 13, 2008 by Abe Hardesty.

Click on the link below to read the entire article.

Vandiver on the fast track

I had the opportunity to interview Anthony Coppedge, one of the leading media consultants in the US.  He counsels small churches on how they can aquire “big” church media resources.  Anthony helps these churches with their budgets and shows them how they can use what they have to accomplish what they want to do.  You can visit his website at www.anthonycoppedge.com.

Click on the link below to listen to the first part of my audio interview with Anthony.

interview-with-anthony-coppedge-part-1.mp3

 

“Leonard Brown Jr. believes no church has to play second fiddle to a secular venue when it comes to quality sound and video.

“Our message is the most important message in the world,” he said. “I think it stands to reason that we should use the best tools at our disposal.”

Brown, through his eight-year-old company, Advanced Media Systems, helps churches enhance their worship experience by installing multimedia projection systems, high definition displays, intelligent lighting and digital sound equipment.

The Berea-based company is already nationally recognized for its work. Among its honors is its being named one of the Top 50 Systems Integrators in the U.S. by Systems Contractor News Magazine.

The company is reaching yet another milestone with the installation of its 200th church multimedia system at Grace Church in Powdersville.

Brown believes his own church, Forestville Baptist, north of Travelers Rest, is the first area church to go completely high definition.

The 125-year-old church embraced high technology two years ago, with the completion of its new sanctuary. It has 15 flat-panel displays throughout the facility, a computer-operated lighting system, and high-definition projectors and video.

“To bring a church out here in the cow pastures up to this level of technology was like pulling teeth over a long period of time,” Brown said. “It’s a pretty high-tech situation out here in the country.”

Click on the link below to read the entire article.

Berea electronics company is bringing new sights, sounds to houses of worship

For more information on Advanced Media Systems, go to their website at http://www.advancedmediasystems.net/