We’re in the midst of a mega-series, Epic, which is taking us step by step through the story of God.  John did an amazing job closing the first part of the series, In the Beginning, which took us through the book of Genesis.

Immediately after the message, we celebrated life change with three of our members through baptism. In addition to it being special to each of them personally, it was corporately significant, marking Blueprint’s first in-service baptisms. It was encouraging to hear testimonies of God’s love bringing them out of sin into an intimate walk with Him. The display of obedience was extremely moving and memorable (see pictures below).

Over the next few weeks, we will be continuing our Epic series, and will resume small groups.  We appreciate your prayers and ongoing support as God continues to do some amazing things here at Blueprint Church.

What a summer it’s been here at Blueprint Church (and we’re just in July)!  May and June were without a doubt the busiest time in our church’s young history.  Activity doesn’t always mean productivity,  but in this case it has, and we are excited and humbled by the latest developments.

At the end of May, we transitioned to our permanent facility in Atlanta’s historic Fourth Ward, holding our first service in the building Memorial Day weekend.  The following Wednesday (yes, THREE days later) we launched our Rebuild series, which is an eight-week community learning experience aimed at rebuilding and constructing a worldview that is founded on God’s word.  Since we’re taking a break from small groups during the summer, Rebuild is a weekly gathering designed for more in depth study of the scriptures.  With only three weeks remaining in Rebuild, we’re amazed at how timely the series has been catering to the desire & interest of our participants (averaging more than 100 attendees each Wednesday).

In addition, we identified a Director of Operations when one of our volunteers (Dena Burress) offered her services in this capacity.  We’re grateful to God for her willingness to help bring the structure and systems we need at this stage.

We also started our Blueprint Church Counseling Ministry to provide counseling from a Christian perspective for individuals, couples, and families at a reasonable cost.  The counselors, Blueprint members and licensed associate professional counselors,  can provide this service to the community regardless of religious affiliation.  For more information or to set up an appointment, contact our offices at 404-963-1209, or email our counselors directly at counseling@Blueprintchurch.org.

Presently, we’re preparing for our first EVER church Membership Class on July 16 – 17,  and we couldn’t be more excited about it.  This is a time to cover the essentials of what it means to be a member, our basic beliefs, our distinctives and what to expect from the elders and leaders. Our staff will be there to get to know everyone and to highlight opportunities to serve within our church during a Ministry Fair.  Please go to our website and register for this event.

Your prayers and support are GREATLY appreciated for all that’s happening.  Feel free to come visit us at your new home in the Fourth Ward! Hope to see you soon.

February was a month to REMEMBER for Blueprint Church.  Although those 28 days went by quickly, those four Sunday services were not short of impact.  In fact, we concluded our Big Brother, Little Brother series, which was both provoking and encouraging at the same time.

Hear from a few who were impacted by the messages.

The Big Brother, Little Brother series has challenged me to evaluate my motives: Am I seeking after the Father’s stuff, or am I seeking a relationship with the Father?  Extremely challenging whether you’re a big brother, little brother, or a combo of both! –EW

I have been greatly impacted by the series because it caused me to self-evaluate my own life. That no matter if you’re a big brother or little brother, we should all look at ourselves and learn to appreciate God for who is he, just as he accepts us no matter how “perfect” of ’flawless” we pretend to be.  And that we can learn from one another no matter what level we are on spiritually.–KM

In case you missed any of the messages from this series, check out our website to download & listen for yourself.

On Sunday, we begin our new series, Old School.  Come join us as we look back at Bible classics—stories that foreshadow the personal work of Christ as we put more trust in Him.

Please keep us in your prayers and don’t forget to SPRING FORWARD this Saturday night by setting your clocks ahead an hour!

I’ve been both inspired & PROVOKED by the efforts of a couple of dear friends to embrace the Sabbath and engage with family.  My wife and I have extremely busy lives SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY…that’s right, MONDAY for us actually begins on Sunday.  All the more reason for us to be intentional on the days we choose to unplug.

With that in mind, we’re modifying how we do LIFE on Saturdays and beginning to treat it as a Sabbath.  I’d be the FIRST to admit that it’s not easy, and we barely have a couple of consistent Saturdays where we’ve actually Sabbath(ed)!!!  I mean, just yesterday there was a TON of basketball & football games being televised and there were SEVERAL occasions I was  tempted to call, email, and tweet!!!

In those moments, I reminded myself of the scripture, “What does it profit a man to TWEET the whole world and lose his soul?”  Ok, maybe that’s not a passage from the Bible…the point is it’s not EASY to unplug.  We’re making the adjustments NOW, so we can offer our best to the areas where we’re most passionate.

Quick shout out to Jarrett & Jeanne Stevens for reminding me of what’s really important…be sure to check out the AMAZING work their launching in the Windy City!

Day 5 of Seven

Matthew 6

Verse 31-34

Therefore do not be anxious, saying, What shall we eat? or What shall we drink? or What shall we wear?32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. 34 Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

James 4

Verse 13-17

Come now, you who say, Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit–14 yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.15 Instead you ought to say, If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.16 As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.17 So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.

Day 6 of Seven

Psalm 37

Verses 1-6

“Fret not yourself because of evildoers; be not envious of wrongdoers!2 For they will soon fade like the grass and wither like the green herb. 3 Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.4 Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. 5 Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act.6 He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday.”

Chapter 55

Verse 22

“Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.”

Psalm 62

Verses 1-2

“For God alone my soul waits in silence; from him comes my salvation.2 He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.”

Verses 5-8

“For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is from him.6 He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken.7 On God rests my salvation and my glory; my mighty rock, my refuge is God. 8 Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us. Selah”

Verses11-12

“Once God has spoken; twice have I heard this: that power belongs to God,12 and that to you, O Lord, belongs steadfast love. For you will render to a man according to his work.”

Proverbs 16

Verses 1-3

“The plans of the heart belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord.2 All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the spirit.3 Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.”

James 5

Verses 6-11

“Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you,7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.9 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.10 And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.11 To him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen.

North Region Group Social

Just in case you missed it, our regional socials were held a couple of weeks ago and considering Atlanta’s weather recently, it was so refreshing to see both the excitement and the turnout from those attending.  In our North region, several of us came together and shared a few of our personal experiences.

Not to put anyone’s business in the streets, but I thought it was rather interesting to hear…

“If had to be an animal, I’d be our dog growing up, who looked a lot like Lassie.”

“The first time I heard about Blueprint Church was through Dhati preaching at a church in North Carolina about a church he was planting in Atlanta!”

“If I could have an endless supply of any food, it would be Captain Crunch cereal!”

“I read about Blueprint Church on a website-forum, attended the service at the end of August & now I’m here.”

“A movie about my life would be called, ‘Out of Balance,’ and the actor playing my life would be Jim Carrey.”

“My superhero growing up was my grandfather…he kept the family together.”

“If I could accomplish one thing in life, I’d travel the world.”

Ok, since the individuals making the above comments will remain nameless, let me just say that this was from ONE of the FOUR regional groups Blueprint Church is launching and if you’d like more information, please check out our website or contact John Onwuchekwa (John@blueprintchurch.org)

So, maybe you missed the Sketch of Blueprint weekend!!!  No worries…we’re all returning to a less formal more relational setting in Candler Park this coming Saturday from 11:00am – 3:00pm.  There will be LOTS OF FOOD with LOTS OF FUN for the family. We will also be providing more information regarding our upcoming Regional Meetings as well as our Upload Series (beginning in October)!

More importantly, this weekend is for YOU and we’re looking forward to connecting with as many families and friends as possible!!!

The address for Candler  Park is 1400 McLendon Ave NE Atlanta, GA.  Feel free to bring your blankets & lawn chairs…HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE!!!

It’s FINALLY here!!! After months of planning, preparing, and PRAYING, we’re only a day away from the eve of our BIGGEST weekend to date. Sure, there’s stillTONS of stuff to do and that’s unlikely to change anytime soon.  We couldn’t be more “amped” about getting out of the blocks this weekend and running at an Usain Bolt pace for the remainder of the year (not familiar with the track phenom below YOUTUBE him)!!!

We learned early this week that our Saturday concert is SOLD OUT (special thanks to the many fans of Reach Records).  To no avail, we were unable to accommodate the number of people who missed out. No worries though…our Sunday service is the clearest way to witness firsthand what we believe Blueprint will offer the city of Atlanta.

Now, we all know experiencing the first EVER Blueprint Church service is pretty historical (that one thing later on in life you can tell the grandkids)!  Seriously, we’re making known all of the “what’s,” “why’s” and “when’s” of our church during this service.  Learn of upcoming socials, regional group meetings and even dates of our next service(s) which are probably sooner than you think.

A couple of quick pointers/reminders…the Sunday service will be held in the Georgia Tech Hotel, which is downtown Atlanta (800 Spring Street).  Service start-time is 10:30 a.m (not 10:45 a.m as falsely advertised on the top poster).  There is parking along the street near the hotel.  However, WE RECOMMENDparking in the hotel deck which  is complimentary for Blueprint guest(s).  Guest(s) may exchange parking tickets for vouchers at the service.

Also, childcare will be provided for ages six months  up to the 5th grade!

We GREATLY appreciate the interest many have expressed regarding our efforts.  Please continue to keep us in your prayers and hopefully we’ll connect at one of the two events this weekend.  Again, feel free to pass this on to any of your family or friends!!!

We’d love to see each and every Atlantan (that’s right, all 5 million plus) at this event, although finding a venue would be a nightmare!  Seriously, we can’t wait to connect with everyone who has already made plans or are considering being in attendance.  Seeing old friends and making new ones are two of the things we MOST look forward to with the Sketch of Blueprint.  Yet, we realize there are in-towners & out-of-towners alike with previous commitments.

Our request…no our PLEA is that you’d carve out some time over the next 9-10 days to pray for us. There are a slew of assignments, projects and task(s) being completed by a few “faithful folk!”  Could you please commit to praying for them as well as their families?  Pray for our leadership.  Pray for those in attendance.  Pray for our time. Pray…pray…PRAY for us!!!

Again, feel free to pass this on to any of your family/friends who may enjoy hearing about our journey.  For more information, check us out online:

www.blueprintchurch.org

www.facebook.com/blueprintchurch

www.twitter.com/blueprintchurch

Sketch of Blueprint Weekend

August will be a landmark month in the life of Blueprint Church. We’ll close out the summer with two events that will highlight what is to come for us. Mark your calendars and invite a friend.

Don’t Waste Your Life Concert – Reach Records
Saturday, August 29 – 7:00 p.m.
Georgia World Congress Center
http://www.reachrecords.com/dwyl/

Introductory Service
Sunday, August 30 – 10:30 p.m.
Goergia Tech Hotel & Conference Center
http://www.blueprintchurch.org

Our team is working diligently as we prepare for this weekend. Many of them have just relocated to Atlanta and have hit the ground running. Please pray their transition will be smooth. Also, if you or anyone you know is interested in serving during this weekend as a volunteer, please contact Laura Ashby at laura@blueprintchurch.org.

We will keep you posted and would LOVE to see you during this weekend!

www.blueprintchurch.org