The Up the Middle Church
…playing the game of ministry one yard at a time…
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There’s a New Normal in the
Church World!
“Everybody loves a long-bomb... unfortunately, few of us get to experience one!”
The crowd jumps to their feet as they realize their team has won! As the receiver crosses the goal line and scores the winning touchdown, thousands of fans scream with all their might in amazement and jubilation. The story of this victory will be retold hundreds of times around water coolers! Cameras capture the moment for the highlight reels! ' is is truly one for the ages! Everyone loves a long-bomb!
We love to hear the stories of churches that start in faith, and within a few short months are living the long-bomb. We love to hear to the stories of thousands in weekend attendance in the first year. We dream of what it would be like to be apart of something God visits that way. We all dream of being the long-bomb! We love to watch those churches, study their tactics, and learn from them. We want to hear what they did, how they did it, and when they did it. We long to grab a hold of that little nugget that will let us become like them. Something about the overnight success story inspires us to want to do what they did. We long for our church to
look like theirs. We aspire to walk in their footsteps, and experience what they experienced.
But their story is not my story. And the reality for most pastors today is that their story doesn’t look like the long-bomb, so many of us feel pressure to live up to the long-bomb story.
What if it doesn’t have to be this way? What if there is more than one way to win? What if the long-bomb isn’t the only play God is using today? What if God’s strategy to impact the nations centers on more than just the long-bomb churches? What if there’s hope for the rest of us? After all, we know the game is not won or lost by the long-bomb play alone.
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About the Book
In the Up The Middle Church, Matt Keller offers an on-the-field playbook for pastors and leaders who need to know how to win their Super Bowl one yard at a time!
The church world today is inundated with stories of Overnight Success. The one percent of churches who have a long bomb story seem to make the headlines, but what about the other ninety-nine percent? Are we destined for failure? Are we left without options? Will we ever see our dream of doing something great for God come true?
In The Up the Middle Church, Matt Keller unpacks the myth that just because a church isn’t big, fast, doesn’t mean it isn’t successful. When Next Level Church began in 2002, it was anything but an overnight success story. However, by learning and implementing the principles that are in this book, that same church has grown from four people to nearly a thousand every week!
There is a new normal in the church world today, and it’s The Up the Middle Church. It’s possible to win in your church, but maybe God wants to show you how…one yard at a time!
About the Author
MATT KELLER is the lead pastor of Next Level Church in Fort Myers, Florida. Matt is a passionate communicator who uses humor and storytelling to captivate audiences in the weekly services of Next Level Church and across the country.
Since its humble beginnings in 2002, Next Level Church has grown from four people to nearly 1,000 attendees in their weekend experiences. Matt has a heart to help the little guy in the church world and frequently travels and consults with pastors of up-the-middle churches across the United States.
With a heart for church planting, pastoring, leadership development, and consulting, Matt is a leading voice in the next generation of leaders in the church world today. Matt and his wife, Sarah, have two boys, Will and Drew.