Assembly feedback?

[Pastor Gary]

Those who attended or viewed the COGOP International Assembly online: I'd love to hear your impressions, feedback, suggestions and constructive ideas for improvement.

[EagerBeaver]

Overall rating: 8.5/10

What was good: Audio came through very clean, very few hiccups on video end, no interruptions from what I saw. Very clean feed being broadcast. Speakers were good to hear, etc.

What needs help: Separate the video feed on the Internet from the feed being shown in the room. Looked odd seeing one thing on computer, incl. words to songs and then seeing the same image on screen behind worship team.

Would have loved to see: More social media integration. Twitter/Facebook boxes, etc.

Overall: Very well done and I think it showed that COGOP seemed to consider its Internet audience just as much as its audience that were there in person. With numbers off a tad this year, that was of utmost importance and it showed.

[Paully_44]

Those who attended or viewed the COGOP International Assembly online: I'd love to hear your impressions, feedback, suggestions and constructive ideas for improvement.

my highlight was watching my wife sing Thursday evening, but then I am extremely biased.

I like Chris's idea of more social media integration.

I love the Mission Encounter. It would be nice, if even in the archive, there would be something from that. Roving camera or something.

I thought the camera work and editing was pretty good. Better than years past.

I would also have liked to view them on my iPad. Podcast?

[dawgs10]

The mission encounter. Was very good. Enjoyed being apart of it. Was able to help my friend Daniel. I had to leave Saturday morning but I would think that Friday night is a prime time spot. I would rather not have dept. presentations during the nightly services. It would seem that we could have those during the day and get to the preaching earlier in the evening each night. Enjoyed it though.

[Pastor Gary]

Some of these are my thoughts, and many are things people came and told me, under the mistaken impression that I had some influence in changing things:

• Louisville venue was okay - way better than Freedom Hall. (Starbucks in the lobby!)

• Irony: on youth harvest emphasis night the worship team pulled out the oldest songs in the blue book. (Which leads me to...)

• We (COGOP) paid a lot of lip-service to releasing emerging leaders, and I believe we really mean it, but the entire Assembly was a nostalgia-fest. Can't keep driving forward looking wistfully in the rear-view mirror.

• I think we missed a great marketing opportunity by not being ready to announce the '14 Assembly location last week. (I mean, it's a 99% done-deal, but that 1% was not in place.)

• I appreciate all who serve(d) but there seemed to be times when there were Usher-breakdowns. Overseers are asked to sit in a reserved section, not because we're special, but so the powers-that-be can find us when they need us: that was total chaos this year. While we were frantically trying to set up the Mission Encounter booths people were flooding in an hour ahead of time, and we couldn't find anyone to control that.

• As much as I think the Bahama Brass Band is Cogopaliscious, their best value is (IMHO) as a PR engine, and if they played outside in the nearby park it would have been interesting. A great heritage element of COGOP, for sure.

• A suggestion has been made that we hold a YouTube audition for COGOP worship teams to play at the Assembly. Great idea! (How about - (1) must video an ACTUAL worship service, not a set-up recording event, (2) one up-tempo number + plus one slower song.) Selected teams would have to attend at their own expense, and would play maybe one morning + one evening session.

• Memo to worship teams: great songs do need rearranging. Leave them singable, and make the melodies obvious. Thanks.

• Can we have a T-shirt and jeans day? Seriously.

• I still say a Honolulu Assembly would be awesome (4Square and World Baptist Congress met there) but I'd like Vegas (cheap plentiful rooms, major airport, cheap food, lots of conference facilities), L.A., Orlando, Montreal, Nassau... and to internationalize it, maybe every 3rd Assembly in a non-U.S. location?

• One leader suggested to me Assembly every 4 years, with the other two year gap bridged by a Presbyter-Area meeting... like a North American Assembly, Asia-Oceania Assembly, Africa Assembly, etc.

• The lobby display honoring deceased ministers was great, and (IMHO) better than the way we formerly honored them. It was also sobering to see evidence of an aging ministry. I am committed to the release of young, emerging leaders to stem that trend.

• No other denomination I know has such a close, familial love that bridges race, language and culture, and we need to celebrate that. That being said, our Assemblies tend to heavily favor some cultural preferences over others... music selection, etc.

• The vendor area was pretty sparse, possibly because the COG was meeting in Orlando the same week.

• Dear White Wing Bookstore: I love you, and support you, but — again — kind of a nostalgia-fest in there.

...more?

[VolPastor]

Pastor Gary - I am not sure where you get your information, but the location for the 2014 Assembly is not a 99% done deal. We have looked at approx 15 cities and are down to the top three based on proposals. Negotiations are ongoing with those three and two seem to be making a very strong push. This information is from a pretty reliable source.

Also, we would prefer to have announced at this Assembly, but thought it more important to get the right package in place. Competition between cities has been tighter than ever, which is good for us. When a decision is made, we can get the word out quickly through Facebook, Connections, White Wing Messenger, and word of mouth.

[Phil Hoover]

online, as much as I could....So between Orlando and Louisville, I got a great "Pentecostal infusion" last week.

However, from LOUISVILLE, this was a denomination that I barely recognized. I think most of the changes are wonderful...but what about the older saints who are still part of the "church militant" and haven't been graduated to the "church triumphant" yet?

Honolulu, Salt Lake City, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Portland, Seattle, Phoenix...Denver, Baltimore, CHICAGO...all would be great places for a General Assembly...

[Pastor Gary]

Pastor Gary - I am not sure where you get your information, but the location for the 2014 Assembly is not a 99% done deal. We have looked at approx 15 cities and are down to the top three based on proposals. Negotiations are ongoing with those three and two seem to be making a very strong push. This information is from a pretty reliable source.

Paul, sorry if I misunderstood. 3 different people from IO in 3 different conversations said things from which I inferred that. They each made oblique references to the same area, so perhaps it was wishful thinking on their part?

[VolPastor]

I think some do have a preference, but we will base it on the best fit and financial package. Many of the cities listed on this forum have been considered, but their prices were not good enough to make the top 3. The top 3 are San Jose CA, Orlando FL, and Columbus OH.

[Phil Hoover]

ALL THE WAY!

[Pastor Gary]

I think some do have a preference, but we will base it on the best fit and financial package. Many of the cities listed on this forum have been considered, but their prices were not good enough to make the top 3. The top 3 are San Jose CA, Orlando FL, and Columbus OH.

San Jose is closer for me, obviously, and would give some Hawaii folks a shot at coming. Orlando: no-brainer... airport access, Disney vacation opportunity, visitor-friendly. I've been to Columbus. Meh.

[dolfan]

I ran an informal Twitter hashtag survey/assessment between the COG and COGOP assemblies during the week last week. There was a noticeable and distinct difference in tones. Now, the COG is my home these days so I am not saying this for or against anyone --- and my observations are only mine based on a very limited review of one particular pair of internet phrases. In other words, completely reliable and wholly scientific!

Overall, the hashtag traffic between the two on Twitter was about the same in quantity. That surprised me, frankly. From what I saw, the tone of the comments from COGOP were way more upbeat not only about the assembly itself but about the direction of things. Now, part of that may be (as we ALL know) that disagreement breeds commentary more than satisfaction does. And, there was a measure I won't get into that was roundly controverted in the Twitterverse among a particular group of COG ministers with a particular view they felt compelled, obviously, to express. That measure and the way it failed to pass may skew the results of my analysis, admittedly. But, on the whole, I'm saying that, if you look at Twitter, the COGOP seemed to more than hold forth with inspiration to the folks who left that assembly. COG had some really moving preaching, according to Tweets and such, but I failed to see the kind of overarching vibe to the tweets that I got when reading COGOP #cogopia12 vs. #ga2012.

Now, I think there's something to that. I think that, if you're in COGOP, you can be assured that there is momentum for the future, and that it is not system-generated. I think you can be confident that God is really doing a work among you. That's not to say He isn't doing a work in COG (He IS, and the foreign growth numbers are similar in kind to the ones COGOP reports, which should be no surprise to anyone), but just to say that when you are sitting there wondering and waiting and wishing and working, and it seems like nothing is happening, that you can know of a fact that you have not been sawn off on a limb from the rest of the tree. That there IS a benefit to being part of a larger body of like-minded Christians who are hungering and seeking God's kingdom first and only. That the vision for the Way of Jesus is alive and well and that you are part of that. That you are, in truth, a cutting-edge part of that.

[dawgs10]

ORLANDO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[one love]

video quality was great! I did notice during the healing portion, the ministers lapel mic was on to the internet audience but I dont think it was to you live in some parts. Like when he was asking for testimonies, he went to Bishop Howard to ask him if he would ask for testimonies and He replied no I would rather not my voice is going. you could hear them talk clearly online though they were talking quitely in each others ear:)


But over all the quality was just great.

The numbers looked off, I heard Bishop howard say saturday before Dr Londons message that we have "2000" people here that can unite in prayer" about three times. It looked like more people when they showed the audience a few times a day or so prior to that, I thought it looked like about 3000 . Did they give a count?

Not being a member I dont know what would be best for COGOP assemblies but I enjoyed being able to watch it online.

NOW: Feel free to come back to NC and I would love to see you all there:)

Virginia Beach, I would drive the four hours and visit family and come fellowship:)

Again I am not sure what is best for you all but Orlando seems like it could be a good place logistically and all they have to offer there.

Appreciate the live stream.

[dawgs10]

I don't think the numbers were badly off. It was a smaller room. The seating was more compact. Bite it was full Thursday and Friday. But they did seem to be down some. I think we have to prepare for smaller numbers in the U.S. when we move it out of the South East.