Flannel Newsletter | November 2011
November 29, 2011
A Catalyst
In 2007, we did quite a bit of planning. Our staff met a number of times to assess how we were doing and to dream about the future. In January 2008, our board of directors made it official. We developed a vision statement.
“By 2012, Flannel will become a catalyst for highly creative people who share our desire to communicate the way of Jesus to the world. In addition to NOOMA, we will be fulfilling our mission with more speakers and formats.”
Praise God, we did it! Since January of 2008 we have released 6 of the 7 films in our BASIC series with Francis Chan along with 2 small group experiences, Who Is God and We Are Church. We have also released 5 of 7 films in the Ed’s Story series with Ed Dobson. We could not have done any of this without your prayers and support. Thank you!
New Projects for 2012
In 2012, we will be releasing 2 new series.
True Beauty (working title)
This is a film series we are creating with Lisa Chan that focuses on lies women have been taught and the freedom that results when you replace the lie with truth as told to us through Scripture. Our culture has placed expectations on women that are, quite frankly, impossible to meet. To understand what I am talking about, all you have to do is walk through the check-out line at your local grocery store. You can learn anything you need to know about improving your looks, your career, your love life, and more. The only problem is, most of what is projected from magazine stands is the exact opposite of what Scripture tells us. While this series is meant for women, it has a lot to say to all of us. Check out this short film from Dove that inspires us in our quest to reveal true beauty.
Once you hear from Lisa, we think you will agree with us that she is a gifted communicator. While you have probably never heard her, she has taught women in her church for years. She has a passion to share with other women what God has put on her heart. And quite simply, that is what we need in order to get serious about following Jesus. Many of the struggles in our lives stem from the fact that we are chasing after the wrong dream.
Lisa also has one of the traits that have become very important in Flannel’s search for new speakers, and that is her life reflects her words! Lisa learned from her grandmother that following Jesus is worth more than anything the world can ever offer. It’s how she lives her life, every day. Lisa will be sharing practical lessons on what it means to follow Jesus. In addition, the series will introduce us to women who have applied these lessons to their lives. We can’t wait to show it to you this coming spring!
Outside with Mike Foster: Unlikely Stories about the Good News of Grace
Mike Foster has been a friend of Flannel for many years. Mike Foster is the co-founder of People of the Second Chance, a movement that advocates for radical grace every day, in every moment, for everyone. He is the author of Gracenomics: Unleash the Power of Second Chance Living and lives in Southern California with his wife and two children.
Mike has a passion to demonstrate grace. As followers of Jesus, we have been given the beautiful gift of grace. Mike has noticed over the years that while we have this gift, we can be pretty stingy about sharing it. We can be pretty quick to judge. One wrong comment, moment of weakness, or other slip can instantly leave you on the outside looking in.
What would our world look like if we were able to extend the radical grace that Jesus has shown us? Well that’s what we will be exploring with Mike in this project. We will be showing real-life stories of amazing grace!
We are very excited to tell you that creative direction on this project will come from our co-founder Tom Rinks! Tom played a huge role in the creation of NOOMA, and he led Flannel for many years. He has gone on to create a number of successful consumer brands, and we could not be happier that he is lending his incredible creative mind to this series.
Ed’s Story
The past few months have been amazing as we have watched Ed’s Story touch people’s lives. We joined up with Ed a couple of years ago now in a desire to be a catalyst for the hope he wants to share with the world. Last month, we saw the hope spread a couple of million times on the Today Show! Watch Ed’s appearance here.
In the month of December, his story will continue to spread on hundreds of radio stations as they air an in-depth interview with Ed about his journey.
We are very eager to finish filming this series and we really need your help. We have two films left with a combined production cost of $100,000. Thanks to one generous donor, $50,000 of this cost has been pledged if we can raise matching funds! We need your help right now. Please help us complete Ed’s Story!
BASIC
We recently completed post-production on the seventh and final BASIC film, Communion. We are grateful for your support and encouragement. This series was put together in a desire to be a catalyst to Francis Chan as he inspires us to BE the church. Today we have a generation of people interested in the teachings of Jesus, but not necessarily the church. In this series, Francis shows us that the two truly go together. If we want to be followers of Jesus, we are the church! This series explores what the church is for, according to Acts 2:42.
In BASIC, Francis often compares the early church to our modern church in American culture. However, we have found that people from around the world are interested in the BASIC message. So far it has been downloaded from flannel.org in the following languages: Spanish, German, Portuguese, French, Japanese, Chinese, Italian, Korean, Russian, and Dutch.
Much has happened since 2008; our vision is becoming a reality, and we thank God for that daily. We also thank you! Thanks for your prayers and support. We could not do this without you. And we ask for your help once again. Would you please consider making a year-end or recurring gift to Flannel?
And from all of us at Flannel, have a very merry Christmas!
Steve Carr
Executive Director
Flannel
PO Box 3228
Grand Rapids, MI
49501-3228 USA
616.776.7755
flannel.org
