Friday, April 22, 2011

Easter...




So, I hear the Easter Bunny has his own movie. And supposedly, he's going to be hopping around a few houses this weekend, possibly even yours. But Easter isn't about a bunny, or eggs, or candy (uh oh), and we're going to try to wrap our heads around that this weekend. We? Who is "we"?

Quite simply, we're a church that meets upstairs at a bar in downtown Dallas.

I submit to you that if Christ were walking around North Texas today- he wouldnt be hanging out in the church secretary's office at First Methodist Bugtussle (No offense to the fine folks at FMB.) But rather, He'd be hanging out with the people that need Him most. After all, it's not the healthy that need a Physician, right?

So, come have a beer and worship with us THIS Sunday night. Which just so happens to be Easter. It's a pretty big day to celebrate. Get comfy, have a beer, hear the Word. Celebrate something worth celebrating.

See you Sunday night at 8pm at the City Tavern at Main & Akard in downtown Dallas.

Thursday, February 24, 2011

The Tavern Church's own Dr. Steve Bezner on 105.3fm The Fan on Super Bowl Sunday...breaking it down...

I got a call from Wally: "Hey man, can you get me Dr. Steve's number?" Me: "Umm yeah sure." Wally: "I have this idea for today's show. It's Super Bowl Sunday. It's been a rough week for the city of Dallas and we think the city needs to cleanse its soul to get ready to host the game..." Me: "Um yeah sure..."

Sunday, November 28, 2010

A Timely Re-posting Of An Old Tavern Church Entry


(This was one of the first things to appear on the Tavern Church site. It's only appropriate that we share it again as we get ready for tonight's Tavern Church service at 8pm.)

Some people love A Christmas Story. Others prefer Christmas Vacation. My girlfriend Kimberly loves Elf. I've always been a sucker for It's a Wonderful Life. But as a child, I was all about Rudolph. It must be telling that I identified w/a story about a deer w/a red nose who ran away w/an elf that really longed to do dental work. There were other aspects to the story that I found fascinating- and who doesn't yearn to live a Yukon Cornelius lifestyle? But, the part that always got me was the Island of Misfit Toys. Where else could you find a Charlie in the Box? A flying lion? A spotted elephant? A bird-fish? It was as if Dr. Moreau had been genetically-mutating christmas gifts and somehow Rudolph stumbled along.

Well, we're less than a month out from the first Tavern Church service. It will always be the last Sunday night of each month at the City Tavern. Some of the guys putting this on are:

-A speaker who'd rather be a professor.
-Two guys who should be melting peoples' faces off at rock shows instead of church services (and they will be days before and days after.) One who's hung w/Snoop Dogg, played Lollapalooza, dined with Madonna, been on Conan O'brien, hung out w/a host of others- but nowadays would rather be hanging w/us...
-A country radio station manager who prefers indie rock.
-A music industry girl who grew up in LA and was in NYC before a series of very random events brought her to Dallas, of all places...
-A former star of MTV's Road Rules- that has turned into a sorta respectable businessman.

It's not exactly the Justice League. In fact, it's a whole lot more like the Island of Misfit Toys. Guys w/crazy pasts tied together by one thing: belief in a Redeemer and a desire to know Him and make Him known. So, we press onward- believing God has brought this random lot together to help bring people to know Him.

Where do you fit in this story? Ever felt a bit like a Charlie in the Box? Perhaps a cowboy that rides an ostrich? A toy boat that sinks? Not quite fitting in as seamlessly as you'd like? Longing for answers? Looking for more out of your life? Come hang out w/us and a bunch more "misfit toys" Sunday, January 31, at 7:30pm. (Obviously, this is dated and we're actually promoting tonight's 11/28 8pm service. See you there.)

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Tavern Church Service This Sunday Moved Up to 5pm!


We know some of you have kids OR are kids at heart. So, we're going to move up our TC service this Sunday to 5p-6p to allow you to go home and get your trick or treat on.

Did you know that most of our modern Halloween (Which was commonly spelled Hallowe'en til the early 1900's) traditions originated with the Scotch and Irish? As a proud descendant of both nations I can easily see how putting on masks and begging from your neighbors would seem like a good idea.

But seriously, make us a part of your Halloween weekend. Yeah us. Church.

We've got a great pastor with a legitimate PhD (that was not obtained on eBay) and an incredible music leader. Plus, we've got cold beer. What other church can offer that??

See you THIS Sunday at 5pm!

Friday, July 16, 2010

Here's a cool story about the TC that ran recently in Pegasus News...




Friday, July 2, 2010

by Andy Odom

Come on upstairs to Tavern Church, a non-denominational Christian service hosted at a bar in Dallas.

DALLAS — At first, it may seem like a joke: “Twenty Jesus freaks walk into a bar...” But at Tavern Church, which meets at City Tavern in downtown Dallas, that's what happens once a month. They are, after all, doing the Lord’s work. In a bar.

The idea of mixing worship and booze shouldn’t seem so strange. After all, many Christian denominations like Roman Catholic, Anglican, and the Eastern Orthodox, incorporate wine into their worship services every week. But the prevailing belief, no doubt helped along by more hard-line Protestant denominations, is that Christians don’t drink and are happy to judge those who do.

Tavern Church, however, is proudly non-denominational, which helps free it from the baggage other denominations carry. It also raises some questions. Who decided to start a church in a bar?

“There’s nothing in the Bible that says you can’t drink...”

Joshua Jones was haunted by an idea. After he read Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller, the general manager of KHYI told me he couldn’t stop thinking about Jesus. More specifically, Jones couldn’t stop thinking about where Jesus would be – what he would be doing – if he was walking around right now.

“If Jesus was here today, he probably wouldn't be hanging out at a First Baptist Here or First Methodist There, he would be at places like City Tavern,” Jones says. Jesus would, as he did in numerous Bible stories, challenge commonly-held conventions and would reach out to those who didn’t already know him. That thought continued to bother Joshua until he decided to start mentioning it to friends, like City Tavern owner Joshua Florence.

“I was apprehensive about mixing my faith with my business,” says Florence, a lifetime church-goer. But the idea stuck with Florence. While he grew up in church, he often felt judged or unwelcome. He understood the need for a different kind of worship experience. After more consideration and continued prodding from Jones, Florence gave in and decided to host what would become Tavern Church. Now that he had secured a location, Jones needed a speaker and music leader.

Jones attended Baylor University Hardin-Simmons with Steve Bezner, a pastor currently based in Kauffman. Friends ever since, Bezner asked Jones to put his experiences with KHYI to further use and offer Bezner some marketing advice on a new church he was starting in Fort Worth called The Commons. During the conversation, Bezner expressed the desire to take his message where people might not normally hear it. He wanted to give those who might not attend church regularly an opportunity to hear the Good News. This, of course, grabbed Jones’ attention, and he told Bezner they should start a church together. In a bar.

It wasn’t the easiest sell, because pastors are caught in a tough position. They’re called to be selfless leaders, to help others, and to sometimes take unpopular stands if they feel it’s right. However, they also have to make a living, so some risks just aren’t worth it. “I wondered how other Christians would react to that,” Bezner said. Many told him that he needed to be beyond reproach, to keep the appearance of a typical pastor, but Bezner felt the need to be involved. “For me, the more I discovered who Jesus was, I discovered that he wasn't straight-laced and proper,” he said, “but I began to discover that he was controversial and pushed the envelope … we're called to be his followers and embody that in our own lives, and I needed to push the envelope in my own life to reach people.” Bezner is risking alienating a new congregation before it even forms, but he’s sticking to his convictions.

The only person who felt comfortable with the idea was musician John Kent. Kent and Jones have a relationship through KHYI’s support of Kent’s band, The Dumb Angels. Kent grew up in the church, although he has had periods of his life where he felt closer than others – and who hasn’t? Plus, he already makes his living in bars. “We’re all beer salesman,” Kent laughs. “We work in bars day in and day out, promoting music. That’s what we do.” For Kent, his life spent in church and his life spent in bars is indivisible. But, that’s not to say the expression of that dichotomy is natural: “The people that are coming are learning to worship in a bar like the rest of us are,” Kent says. A growing number of Dallasites have bought into the idea as well.

Jones’ idea could have easily been dismissed with a laugh. How on earth could a church in a bar work? Can you really expect people to reconcile the two? In spite of common sense, however, a sympathetic bar owner, a speaker willing to take risks, and a music leader who would be there anyway made the difference. They have all bought into the idea that the world isn’t broken down to Christian vs. non-Christian, or churched vs. non-churched.

And they all agree on Tavern Church’s mission statement. While any and all are welcome, this is a special place for those who don’t go to church normally. And a bar certainly fills that role. According to Jones, whose name means “Jehovah saves,” “there’s nothing in the Bible that says you can’t drink.” According to Bezner, believers like them are called to be fishers of men, and they need to go where the fish are. That’s a great example of “preacher talk,” but the point is sincere: These guys are trying to fulfill a need and to be there for people. To put it another way, Kent says, “Those mega-churches feel more like social events and can be so impersonal … we’re just trying to do what we feel called to do, which is just love people.”

“The Weight” and The Word

Climbing the stairs at City Tavern is hardly ascending into the heavens, regardless of how miraculous $1 Shiner Bock beer and buy-one-get-one-free entrees may seem. Something feels different here on the last Sunday of every month. Sure, the corner stage has a guitar or two on it, as it usually will with the regular live music the bar hosts. But the chairs neatly arranged in front of the stage and a modest lectern certainly give you pause if you don’t know what to expect.

A Tavern Church service has a music portion at the beginning, followed by speaking, or teaching, or preaching, whichever term you prefer. Actually, the service itself is not that out of the ordinary. In fact, there are a lot of churches today trying to reach out to “seekers” that follow a similar formula. Many offer a “contemporary” service to appeal to a younger demographic or to the Tavern Church crowd. But in the end, those are just marketing ploys; there’s nothing different about those churches. Behind it all are the same things that keep their target audience out of the pews. Having services in a bar, however, goes beyond the thin veneer of appearing to be different – so far beyond that there must be more to it.

Throughout the Tavern Church service, waitresses mill about to bring food, take plates away, or refresh one’s favorite adult beverage. Attendees look for a dry place to set their Bibles on the table around beer bottle rings. The mood is somewhat reverent – it is church after all – but mostly casual.

As focused as the Bezner’s speaking is on scripture and God, Tavern Church really differentiates itself from a normal church experience with its music (well, that, and the bar location itself). At a recent service, the songs played by Kent and his band, featuring members of local group Somebody’s Darling, included “I Saw The Light,” “Turn! Turn! Turn!,” “The Weight,” “Let It Be,” “Stand By Me,” and Tom Waits’ “Come On Up To The House.” Not exactly “Amazing Grace” or “Onward Christian Soldiers.” The song choice, though, exemplifies larger issues concerning an endeavor like this.

It’s noble to attempt to create something new, something different, but too much can be rejected. Can striving for hyper-relevance in general, or in music choice in particular, backfire? In trying to connect with the unchurched by focusing on secular music, the risk is sacrificing all relevance by being so watered down that the actual point is lost. In what way does one connect “The Weight” to The Word? “We sort of left the canvas pretty blank for what we wanted to do through the music,” Kent said. “A song like ‘Country Road’ is talking about nature, or a personal journey ... sometimes worship or a spiritual connection can be made through a song or a memory that a lyric represents.”

Perhaps that’s why this approach works for them. Some already have a connection to pipe organ and piano or modern praise music, but many who attend Tavern Church do not have a connection to church at all. And since they cannot beat anyone over the head with their guitar any more than they can with their Bible, choosing “Stand By Me” or “Turn! Turn! Turn!” – songs that are grounded and accessible but have their own connections to eternal concepts – might help some recognize the timeless and universal themes Tavern Church is trying to address. Plus, Bezner adds, it would be different “if we didn’t faithfully talk about the Bible every time we got together.” Well, sure, there’s that.

A place without judgment

Six months in, Tavern Church is flourishing. Interestingly, they’re starting to face problems seen in other churches that drove them to start Tavern Church to begin with. There’s a fear that it will become just another “social club,” fueled by growing numbers and infrequent meetings, so Jones and Bezner are thinking of ways to keep the growing number of regulars in touch during the month between meetings. Bezner adds, “Our hope is ... that people who experience God in a real way through Tavern Church take that next step and be part of a faith community that’s more day-to-day.”

But, does that mean they want regulars to move on at some point and leave Tavern Church? No; right now, it is as much of an option as it is a destination. Besides, Tavern Church might grow into a larger organization itself, although they won’t be in any hurry to leave the bar. “I’d hate to do that,” Jones says, “It’s part of the charm ... But, we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.”

So, given everyone’s apprehension in starting the church, are there any regrets? Heavens, no. “It really had a positive impact on people’s lives,” says Bezner. “Relationships are being built ... and barriers are coming down. They see I’m not there to judge them.” Even owner Josh Florence has discovered he actually enjoys mixing work and his faith, and that it’s helped foster a more open relationship between the bar, its patrons, and the employees.

The fact is that Tavern Church is sincerely trying to exemplify what mere Christianity is all about. And, that’s why the idea of having church in a bar is so odd. Bible-belters are conditioned to expect “church” or “Christianity” to be more about rules and regulations instead of a legitimate personal experience. And since rules are meant to be followed, they get pushed on others as though the rules are what matters most. The real message is lost. But, it’s not a blind adherence to rules that matter, and that’s part of the message that Tavern Church strives to keep alive.

As for the other pieces still left undone? Those other details will get worked out in due time. “Once it takes off, it’ll take off,” Jones says. “We’re just waiting for that moment.”

Thursday, June 24, 2010

The Catch


Sooo I like marketing. Scratch that. I love marketing. Its one of my favorite things about my chosen career-path. Everyday I have to give people enough reason to go from Point A to Point B (and to spend their moolah when they arrive at "B.") Its a challenge- but I find it rewarding.

Church is the same way. A lot of churches try the "McDonald's method," build an awesome playground and try to create a super kid-friendly environment and hope the kids will drag the parents. Some churches have basketball goals to attract neighborhood hoopsters. Others offer knitting classes in an effort to rake in the GramGrams of the world. Some churches actually use traditional media marketing (TV, radio, print) to get folks to walk through their doors. Lots of people have lots of opinions on this matter, but I usually stick with a "Hey Dude- Whatever It Takes" policy (within reason.)

That brings us to the Tavern Church. We don't have basketball goals or knitting classes, but we do have...beer! (We also have phenomenal music and incredible teaching, but nevermind that point right now.) So, Josh Florence our great friend, former Road Rules star, and City Tavern owner has graciously offered to do $1 Shiner Bocks and BUY1GET1FREE entrees (at the upstairs bar) beginning at 7pm on nights of Tavern Church services. Hey dude, whatever it takes.

The last Sunday night of every month (from 745-855) we have the Tavern Church upstairs at the City Tavern (Main & Akard) in downtown Dallas. And, that means its coming up THIS SUNDAY NIGHT. I can't wait to see you there.

Come on out. Grab a beer. Listen to some cool tunes. Hear the Word.

Monday, May 17, 2010

Tavern Church Music


I love John David Kent. I love his music, his heart, and his friendship. He is one of those guys that God brought into my life AND THEN QUICKLY revealed the reason. We connect. And I like to think we bring out the best in each other.

One of the best aspects of each Tavern Church service is, without a doubt, the music. It's not stuck in 1980, or 1880, and it doesn't sound like a Coldplay cover band. JDK and the Tavern Church Praise Ensemble (that's not really their name I'm just successfully trying to be hilarious) are incredible. You'd have to pay to see these guys play anywhere else. Dave Ponder, Mike Talley, Nine-digit Nate, (and lately Jason Andrew) are a local all-star band of sorts. And they're ours.

But back to JDK. His resume is ridiculous. Played Lollapalooza? Check. Been on Conan O'Brien? Check. Lunched with Madonna? Check. Been snubbed by Axl Rose at a house party? Check. Had a major label record deal? Check. Hung with Snoop Dogg? Check.

Here's a link to a clip last week of JDK and former bandmate Ben Kweller from the KHYI studios. Hopefully it'll whet your appetite for the next Tavern Church service: Sunday, May 30 at 7:45...

JDK & Ben Kweller