ELEVATION MAGAZINE | 1

THE 2011 ELEVATION ANNUAL REPORT

ELEVATION

A N N U A L R E P O R T

SPECIAL ISSUE:

2 | 2011 ANNUAL REPORT

PASTOR STEVEN FURTICKCOMING FALL 2012

THE BRAND NEW BOOK FROM

WWW.GREATERBOOK.COM

ELEVATION MAGAZINE | 3

4 | 2011 ANNUAL REPORT

The world is very good about celebrating its achievements – but I believe that God’s people are the ones who really have a reason to celebrate. So often, though, we do a poor job of stopping and thanking God for the work He’s done. At Elevation Church, our Annual Report is one of the ways we can reflect each year on God’s faithfulness.

God has done more in 6 years through Elevation Church than we ever thought possible. It almost feels surreal when you take a step back and look at the lives being transformed and how the Kingdom of God is being added to every single week. In 2011 alone, we saw over 7,500 people make professions of faith in Christ. We saw over 2,400 people baptized. And thousands of people are living out their faith every week through their involvement in eGroups and eTeams. This is truly an incredible move of God, and I feel so honored to be the pastor of this church. The Annual Report should help you understand why this church and God’s work is a great investment. And more than that, we hope you see it as a testimony of how great our God is. I hope this report encourages you to commit yourself to God’s work as part of the local church. 2011 was our best year yet on so many levels, and we’re believing that capturing in this Annual Report all God’s done, will help us build on that success in 2012. Play your part. Be the church. Glorify God and thank Him. Our best days are ahead of us.

A N N U A L R E P O R T

FROM PASTORSTEVENFURTICK

ELEVATION MAGAZINE | 5

2011 SALVATIONS

7,6992,184

2,277

3,238WEEKENDS

FOLLOW BAPTISMS

BLAKENEY

1120 BAPTIZEDMATTHEWS

669 BAPTIZEDUPTOWN

229 BAPTIZEDPROVIDENCE

140 BAPTIZED

In August of 2011, over two weekends, we saw 2,158 people make declarations of faith in Christ through spontaneous baptism. It was one of the most historic moments in our church’s history.

2,410 PEOPLE BAPTIZED

SALVATIONS AND BAPTISMS

BAPTIZED2,158DURING FOLLOW

2011 TOTAL BAPTISMS

ELEVATION MAGAZINE | 5

PROFESSIONSOF FAITH IN CHRIST

6 | 2011 ANNUAL REPORT

78% INCREASE20102011

2,5654,549

STUDENTS: 898ADULTS: 3,651

2011 EGROUPS CATEGORY BREAKDOWN

SERMON SERIES DISCUSSION: 189

BOOK STUDY: 129

STAGE OF LIFE | LIFE ISSUE: 98

COMMON INTEREST: 48

509 GROUPS

2011 ETEAM VOLUNTEER BREAKDOWN

PEOPLE ENROLLED IN EGROUPS

EGROUPS | ETEAMS | EKIDZ

2011 ANNUAL REPORT

CONNECTED

500+ NEW ETEAM VOLUNTEERS

3,332 MEMBERS

GUEST SERVICES

EKIDZ

PRODUCTION

ADDED WITH THE LAUNCH OF ROCK HILL AND UNIVERSITY

6 | 2011 ANNUAL REPORT

ACTIVITY & OUTREACH: 45

ELEVATION MAGAZINE | 7

2011 AVERAGE EKIDZ ATTENDANCE

2011 EKIDZ ATTENDANCE GROWTH

BLAKENEY

594 KIDSMATTHEWS

447 KIDSPROVIDENCE

255 KIDSROCK HILL

125* KIDSUNIVERSITY

138* KIDSUPTOWN

118 KIDS

2010

2011

64%INCREASE

832 KIDS1,362 KIDS

200

2010

400

600

800

1000

0

2011

768VOLS

358VOLS

2011 EKIDZ VOLUNTEER GROWTH

* ROCK HILL AND UNIVERSITY NUMBERS ARE FROM SEPTEMBER TO DECEMBER 2011

114%INCREASE

8 | 2011 ANNUAL REPORT

2011 ANNUAL REPORT

LOCATION STATS

2011 EASTER AND CHRISTMAS ATTENDANCE COMPARISON

9,5956,139

EASTER CHRISTMAS

69%INCREASE

2010 2011 2010 2011

62%INCREASE

11,622

19,593

13,378

21,669

2011 LOCATION STATS2011 WEEKLY AVERAGE ATTENDANCE

2010

2011

8 | 2011 ANNUAL REPORT

56%INCREASE2010/2011 YEAR OVER YEARAVERAGE WEEKLY ATTENDANCE

ELEVATION MAGAZINE | 9

BLAKENEY

4,251 PEOPLEMATTHEWS

2,977 PEOPLEPROVIDENCE

768 PEOPLEROCK HILL

881* PEOPLEUNIVERSITY

1,011* PEOPLEUPTOWN

1,016 PEOPLE

2011 AVERAGE WEEKLY ATTENDANCE PER LOCATION

PROVIDENCE

UPTOWN

MATTHEWS

UNIVERSITY

ROCK HILL

$110,430

$71,758

$51,437

$11,783*

$14,118*

$30,488

BLAKENEY

2011 AVERAGE WEEKLY OFFERING PER LOCATION

* ROCK HILL AND UNIVERSITY NUMBERS ARE FROM SEPTEMBER TO DECEMBER 2011

ELEVATION MAGAZINE | 9

FOR AN INTERACTIVE VERSION OF THE ANNUAL REPORT CHECK OUT

WWW.ELEVATIONCHURCH.ORG/ANNUALREPORT2011

10 | 2011 ANNUAL REPORT

2011 ANNUAL REPORT

OUTREACH

$2,036,749

LOCAL | BENEVOLENCE: $1,541,069

DISASTER RELIEF: $234,680

INTERNATIONAL OUTREACH: $136,000

CHURCH PLANTING: $125,000

GIVEN IS DESIGNATED TO GO TO OUTREACH12% OF EVERY OFFERING

OUTREACH GIVING BREAKDOWN2011 DISTRIBUTION LOVE WEEK 2011

*13.4% GIVEN IN 2011- INCLUDING THE OUTREACH CARRY OVER AMOUNT FROM 2010

25 CHURCHESPARTNERED WITH:

TIME SERVED:

34,257 VOLUNTEER HOURSDURING LOVE WEEK 2011

10 | 2011 ANNUAL REPORT

ELEVATION MAGAZINE | 11

A21 CAMPAIGN $25,000

COMPASSION INTERNATIONAL $25,000

LOTTIE MOON CHRISTMAS OFFERING $20,000

OUTREACH PARTNERS

SAMARITAN’S FEET $20,000

$54,895 A CHILD’S PLACE

$45,000 CHARLOTTE FAMILY HOUSING

$62,000 CIS SAFE JOURNEY

$45,000 CRISIS ASSISTANCE MINISTRY

$60,000 FREEDOM SCHOOL PARTNERS

CHURCHES HELPING CHURCHES $51,040

SAMARITAN’S PURSE $100,000

CHURCH OF THE HIGHLANDS $18,800

ST. PAUL’S METHODIST CHURCH $23,000

$70,000 HABITAT FOR HUMANITY

$51,000 JACKSON PARK MINISTRIES

$25,000 MATTHEWS HELP CENTER

$45,000 RIGHT MOVES FOR YOUTH

$45,000 URBAN MINISTRY CENTER

A F

EW O

F O

UR L

OC

AL

PA

RTN

ER

SA

FEW O

F OU

R

INTE

RN

ATIO

NA

L PA

RTN

ER

SA

FEW O

F OU

R

DISA

STER

RE

LIEF P

AR

TNE

RS

2011 OUTREACH PARTNER SAMPLE:

FOR A COMPLETE LIST OF ALL OF OUR OUTREACH PARTNERSVISIT WWW.ELEVATIONOUTREACH.COM

OUR OUTREACH STRATEGY IS TO PARTNER WITH EXISTING ORGANIZATIONS MAKING THE MOST IMPACT ON THOSE IN NEED. IN 2011 WE PARTNERED WITH OVER 30 LOCAL ORGANIZATIONS IMPACTING THE CITY OF CHARLOTTE. WE ALSO PARTNERED WITH SEVERAL INTERNATIONAL PARTNERS EQUIPPED TO RESPOND QUICKLY TO DISASTER ALL AROUND THE WORLD. BELOW ARE JUST A FEW OF OUR OUTREACH PARTNERS YOU GAVE TO IN 2011.

ELEVATION MAGAZINE | 11

JUST A FEW OF OUR

12 | 2011 ANNUAL REPORT

2011 ANNUAL REPORT

MEDIA

ACTIVE VISITORSNO TRAFFIC

TOTAL TIME SPENT WATCHING:2011 ELEVATION CHURCH SERMONS

690,777 TOTAL SERMON VIEWS

WWW.STEVENFURTICK.COM VISITORS

1,208,121508,724

2011

2010

1,670,298 PAGE VIEWS

ELEVATION MEDIA2011 WWW.ELEVATIONCHURCH.ORG STATISTICS

2010 2011

927,442

1,681,886

WEBSITE VISITORS:

137%INCREASE

1,518,290VISITORS

36,616VISITORS

17,608VISITORS

14,231VISITORS

10,140VISITORS

9,976VISITORS

6,257VISITORS

5,196VISITORS

4,999VISITORS

4,784VISITORS

VIEWED BY 193 COUNTRIESIN 2011 ELEVATIONCHURCH.ORG WAS

82%INCREASEFROM 2010 TO 2011

1,681,886 VISITORSTO ELEVATIONCHURCH.ORG IN 2011

ELEVATION MAGAZINE | 13

406,901

AUDIO SERMON PODCASTS

ELEVATION APP

20,247 TOTAL ALBUMS SOLD

2011 ELEVATION WORSHIP

WORSHIP LEADER HEIGHT COMPARISON

WADECHRIS MACK LONDON JANEBRAD

DEBUTED #1

MAGAZINE HEATSEEKER CHART NOVEMBER 2011

ON THE BILLBOARD

2011 ELEVATION SERMON MEDIA

TV WEEKLY AVERAGE

838,803

1,536,529

83%INCREASE

20102011

VIDEO SERMONPODCAST

VIEWS

25,456 SONGS DOWNLOADED ON iTUNES

61,157 INSTALLED ON MOBILE DEVICES

21.5KVIEWERS*LOCAL CBS & NBC PROGRAM

FOR THE HONOR

677,217APP LAUNCHES

FOR AN INTERACTIVE VERSION OF THE ANNUAL REPORT CHECK OUT

WWW.ELEVATIONCHURCH.ORG/ANNUALREPORT2011

14 | 2011 ANNUAL REPORT

2011 ANNUAL REPORT

EXTENSION &EXPANSION

EXTENSION SITE LOCATIONS

164 SALVATIONS200 + ATTENDANCE

LARGEST EXTENSION SITE: KERSHAW CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTION

BAPTISMS:

54 PEOPLE2011 AVERAGE ATTENDANCE

735 PEOPLE

EXTENSION SITES APPLIED TO OPEN IN 2012

CURRENT EXTENSION SITE

ELEVATION EXTENSIONELEVATION EXTENSION IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR LEADERS ANYWHERE TO JOIN THE VISION OF ELEVATION CHURCH AND

START AN ELEVATION EXTENSION SITE IN THEIR COMMUNITY. IN ADDITION TO RESIDENTIAL SITES, WE ALSO HAVE MILITARY

BASES, UNIVERSITIES, AND PRISONS THAT ARE PART OF ELEVATION EXTENSION. ELEVATION EXTENSION SITES ARE EQUIPPED

WITH A WEEKLY VIDEO WORSHIP EXPERIENCE ALONG WITH ADDITIONAL RESOURCES AND TRAINING FOR THE SITE LEADERS.

THE FOLLOWING STATISTICS ARE EXCLUSIVE TO OUR ELEVATION EXTENSION SITES AND ARE NOT INCLUDED IN OUR REGULAR

CHURCH NUMBERS.

14 | 2011 ANNUAL REPORT

ELEVATION EXTENSION LAUNCHED IN APRIL 2011 AND AT YEAR END HAD 20 SITES. WE CURRENTLY HAVE LEADERS FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD GOING THROUGH OUR APPLICATION AND LEADER DEVELOPMENT PROCESS TO LAUNCH NEW ELEVATION EXTENSION SITES.20 SITES

ELEVATION MAGAZINE | 15

ELEVATION EXPANSIONROCK HILL & UNIVERSITY LOCATIONS

ROCK HILL

UNIVERSITY

UPTOWN

MATTHEWS

BLAKENEY

PROVIDENCE

AFTER THE ADDITION OF OUR ROCK HILL AND UNIVERSITY LOCATIONS2011 AVERAGE ATTENDANCE

10,368 PEOPLEPOTENTIAL GROWTH STRATEGIES FOR 2012

CHARLOTTE

LAND PURCHASE LAND FOR FUTURE PERMANENT LOCATIONS.

BEYOND CHARLOTTEPOTENTIALLY ADD LOCATIONS OUTSIDE OF THE CHARLOTTE REGION.

WAREHOUSES RETROFIT EXISTING WAREHOUSE SPACE TO AN ELEVATION LOCATION IN TARGET LOCATIONS OR TO TRANSITION A PORTABLE LOCATION TO PERMANENT.

PORTABLE LOCATIONS CONTINUE TO LOOK FOR POTENTIAL PORTABLE LOCATIONS IN STRATEGIC AREAS.

EXISTING LOCATIONS

NEW LOCATIONS IN 2011

WE ARE ACTIVELY PURSUING ALL OF THE FOLLOWING:

16 | 2011 ANNUAL REPORT

2011 TOTAL INCOME ALLOCATION

2011 ANNUAL REPORT

FINANCES

PERSONNEL*

EXPANSION | SAVINGS | DEBT REDUCTION**

OPERATIONS

2011 INCOME BREAKDOWN

$14,274,817OPERATING

$637,580EXPANSION$331,015

OTHER *

* NATIONAL AVERAGE OF PERSONNEL EXPENSES FOR CHURCHES WITH OVER 10K IN ATTENDANCE IS 42%.

** INCLUDES ROCK AND UNIVERSITY LAUNCH COSTS.

* RESOURCES, BLAKENEY

RENTAL INCOME, CD/DVD SALES

$15,243,412$3,858,423

$3,701,278

$2,108,374

OUTREACH $2,036,749

FACILITIES $1,426,337

EKIDZ | EGROUPS | ETEAMS $1,078,841

WEEKENDS | EVENTS $1,033,410

EXPENSES

ITEMIZED INCOME AND BALANCE SHEETS ARE AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST PLEASE CONTACT CHURCH FINANCE OFFICES FOR MORE INFORMATION.

2011 GROSS INCOME COMPARISON

2010 2011

$11,601,332

$15,243,412

31.2%INCREASE

25.3%

24.3%

13.8%

13.4%

9.4%

7.1%

6.8%

25.3%

24.3%

13.8%

13.4%

9.4%

7.1%

6.8%

TOTAL INCOME$15,243,412

ELEVATION MAGAZINE | 17

ELEVATION CHURCH UNDERGOES A VOLUNTARY ANNUAL YEAR END AUDIT BY C. DEWITT FOARD AND CO., P.A.

2011 AVERAGE WEEKLY GIVING COMPARISON

2010

2011

PERCENTAGE OF OFFERING GIVEN ONLINE

30.5%INCREASE

2010 2011

44%

59%

34.1%INCREASE

BUILDING LOAN SUMMARY

$286,774AVERAGE WEEKLY OFFERING

$219,785AVERAGE WEEKLY OFFERING

2010/2011 YEAR OVER YEARAVERAGE WEEKLY GIVING

PERCENTAGE OF OFFERING

GIVEN ONLINE

$7.9 MILLION REMAINING ON LOAN

$8.3 MILLION PAID IN CASH PRIOR YEARS

$1 MILLION PAID DOWN PRINCIPLE 2011

BLAKENEY & MATTHEWS PERMANENT LOCATIONS

$8.3 MILLION

$7.9 MILLION

$1 MILLION

18 | 2011 ANNUAL REPORT

2011 ANNUAL REPORT

FINANCE REPORT

FROM YOUR FINANCE OFFICE:I would like to thank all of you who have been so generous to this great movement of God and for your obedience to Him in tithing and in even giving beyond for the purposes of His work.

I want to let you know that the leadership at Elevation Church is incredibly diligent about how we spend money that is entrusted to our care. How we spend money is well thought out and the integrity is beyond reproach. The leadership here thinks before they spend. And the personal accountability throughout is great. If a $1.69 cup of coffee is mistakenly put on an Elevation credit card, the person who made the mistake will quickly be in my office with a check in hand to make it right. And speaking of credit cards, no one in Pastor Steven’s family has an Elevation credit card.

It is also great to see that when Pastor says we give 12 percent “off the top” of our offering back to the community or that he tithes a certain percentage that is exactly what happens. I get to see this all happening, and I can tell you, it blesses me to no end to see God’s favor in all of this. What a humbling honor to be here.

And a word of thanks to all of you who give online. Please know that the process continues to be very safe and secure, and also know that we do not have access to your password or personal information. Online giving allows us to keep lower resource levels so that money can be spent in

other areas of Kingdom work. Currently, 65 percent of our contributors give online, and we encourage more of you to consider online giving as well.

This is the third year that we have completed an audit. Now if you are not in business for yourself or an employee of a large corporation that phrase, “we have completed an audit” might not mean a thing to you. But believe me it is extremely important. It means that a third-party team of independent auditors who are employed by a Certified Public Accounting firm have reviewed our financial records and have tested our processes and procedures and found them to be certifiable. It was a pleasure to complete our audit this year, and we will continue to embrace this process as a way of letting you know that financial accountability and transparency is of the utmost importance to us.

And finally, please feel free to ask me any questions about how we run the financial office at Elevation. By example of this annual report, we want to be an open book with how your money for God’s purpose is handled here. I am truly humbled to be on staff at Elevation, and I am very excited to be a part of seeing what else all of us can do so that people from God will be raised to life in Christ.

In Christ Always,

WHO APPROVES DEBT AND THE FINAL BUDGET AT ELEVATION? In accordance with government regulations, under the IRS’s section 501(c)3 and as indicated in the church bylaws, the board of directors of the non-profit corporation (Elevation Church) make the final decision on debt and the annual budget. The board is referred to as the “Board of Overseers.”

WHO APPROVES THE “MAJOR” PURCHASES?All purchases over $1 million must be approved by the Board of Overseers. The board also approves an annual capital budget to guide annual capital expenditures. Each ministry department head approves all other purchasing within their department and budgets are reviewed monthly.

WHO CONTROLS THE COMPENSATION OF THE EXECUTIVE STAFF?The Board of Overseers sets Pastor Steven’s salary. Very similar to most large non-profit organizations, there is an independent compensation committee formed by the Board of Overseers that recommends a salary which the Board votes to approve. The compensation committee uses a salary study performed by an independent CPA firm to get a basic salary range. This study is also performed for additional executive staff

WHO SERVES ON THE BOARD OF OVERSEERS OF ELEVATION CHURCH?The current Board of Overseers is comprised of Pastor Dino Rizzo (Healing Place Church – Baton Rough, LA), Dr. Jack Graham (Prestonwood Baptist Church – Plano, TX), Pastor Perry Noble (Newspring Church – Anderson, SC), Pastor Kevin Gerald (Champions Centre – Seattle, WA) and Pastor Stovall Weems (Celebration Church – Jacksonville, FL). Pastor Steven also serves on the Board, but does not vote on his salary.

FINANCIAL FAQs

Gary SessionsController, Elevation Church(Gary, a retired CPA, left banking after 30 years of service and has been on staff at Elevation since January 2009)

ELEVATION MAGAZINE | 19

THE FOUR G’SBECOMING A PART OF ELEVATION CHURCH MEANS TAKING AN ACTIVE ROLE IN THE LIFE OF CHURCH; IT MEANS PUTTING FAITH INTO ACTION. WE’VE DEVELOPED A VERY SIMPLE, BUT EFFECTIVE MODEL FOR DEFINING WHAT THAT ACTIVE PARTICIPATION LOOKS LIKE. IT HAS EVERYTHING THING TO WITH WHAT WE WANT FOR YOU RATHER THAN WHAT WE WANT FROM YOU, AND WE CALL IT OUR 4G’S.

INVITING PEOPLE FAR FROM GOD TO OUR WORSHIP EXPERIENCES.

PARTICIPATING IN A SMALL GROUP FOR THE APPLICATION OF BIBLICAL TRUTH.

GENEROUSLY SEWING INTO THE MINISTRY OF ELEVATION CHURCH.

SELFLESSLY USING YOUR GIFTS AND TALENTS TO ADVANCE THE VISION OF ELEVATION CHURCH.

“God brought our family out of the wilderness to Elevation Church. When we began to tithe, he immediately showed us his faithfulness in tangible ways. He has shown us that when you give from your heart, he will pour out his blessings on you. Now we have such gratitude and joy in giving. It’s not an obligation. It’s an act of worship.”- BISHOP BEALL

GIVING

“At Christmas time, I start thinking about who I know that’s either not at church, or who has become complacent at their mainstream church. And I invited them to join us for a huge Christmas party. Two years ago, we brought one bus load to Elevation. The second year it was two bus loads. The total’s over 205 people now. Our Pastor is so anointed and gifted in preaching and teaching the word with such grace and truth. The word of God is so alive at Elevation and I just want everyone to experience it. This Christmas, we’re bringing three buses.” - ANNE NEILSON

“Our eGroup is called ‘Single Ladies in the City’ and we serve together, study God’s word and pray together and go out into the city to have fun together. Our group is full of women learning to replace loneliness with God’s presence, to rise up and become strong warriors for Christ. I’m so grateful for Elevation and Pastor Steven because we’re a big church with opportunities like this to connect and grow with other believers. I stepped ‘out of my comfort zone and into my sweet spot’ to lead this group and we’re learning it’s ‘not about us’ as we are excited to grow and let Jesus be the central character of our ‘better stories.’”- JOYA SAIN

“Serving at Elevation showed me what it really means to be a follower of Christ. Through our service on eTeams and with Elevation Outreach, God has healed us and is rebuilding and restoring our lives. Before I met Jesus, I was a person on a path to destruction. Using my gifts for Christ not only makes others feel better, it made me begin to feel whole again and understand why God placed me on this earth.” - KRISTIN CLARK

GROUPS

GIFTS

GROWTHFYIELEVATION

20 | 2011 ANNUAL REPORT

11416 EAST INDEPENDENCE BLVD, SUITE N, MATTHEWS, NC 28105WWW.ELEVATIONCHURCH.ORG

HAVE A STORY TO SHARE?

EMAIL US AT AMEN@ELEVATIONCHURCH.ORG