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a new do
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Well after a year of using some design that was hurriedly thrown together by a real hack–yours truly–here is the new look. A new do. This creativity is a little more modern with a lot more post. A little more contemporary with a lot more theme. A little more funk with a lot more meaning.
Creative juices for the new, greatly improved design are the work of the husband and wife team Studio Bennett. Check them out…they do great work.
Thanks so much David & Tara!!! May the Lord bless and keep your family and may He make His face to shine upon you. May He guide you in the path of peace.
Jet Set in Western Europe
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By the time this posts, I should be in London. Over the next several days, I will be traveling with The Upstream Collective on their JetSet Tour here in the UK and in Paris. You will be able to find a number of interesting posts, video interviews, photos, etc. from the group that will be going. I will be tweeting and posting some links to other blogs where updates may be found in addition to posting some material here.
Following my time with the UC crew, I will be heading on to Spain to spend time with some old and new friends there. I look forward to bringing you some stories, images, and thoughts from western Europe.
Join us virtually on this trip to get a better understanding of what God is doing in this part of the world.
Mission Catalyzes Community and Worship
Posted by: | CommentsIn this, the fourth video interview installment, Frost contends that both community and worship happen through people being on mission. Pursuing something greater than the individual helps catalyze a coming together of people. In the same vein, being about the mission of God “stimulates a desire either to want to praise God or throw yourselves on the mercy of God.”
Let me encourage you to register for email updates or add this site to your reader to learn about future videos and posts. Also, if you would like to view the previous Frost videos as well as other “favorite” videos that present ideas important to the church, you may visit or subscribe to the almost an M YouTube channel.
G2g: Industrialization
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Key principle #7 for moving discipleship from great to good: Organize, systematize, industrialize through a process to serve the needy.
good
The industrial revolution changed our world forever. Factories produced more product out the back end of the assembly line than several individual shops had been able to manufacture collectively. This changed so much. Levels of income were impacted, work hours, education for a white collar group of people, urban shift began, etc. Industrialization also changed the church. Caring for the needy (among other things) became a process that mirrored the assembly line schematics. Roles were given and systems put in place to facilitate the church’s ability to meet the needs of the poor. And it was good.
Through collection of tithes and offerings, some of the budget is allocated to caring for the poor. With funds collected, some staff or lay people go with huge hearts to buy food to stock a food closet for the poor. When hungry families come to get food, they have a form to fill in, a meeting with a pastor to hear the gospel, and a bag of food. Then, their names are recorded to start the clock for them to be able to return for food in 1, 3, or 6 months time. Through this good, there is a way for the hungry to be fed and an opportunity for one or a select few to be about sharing the gospel.
Great
It seems that so much less could be so much more at this point. Jesus speaks to His disciples about a day when He will separate the sheep on His right and the goats on His left. The distinction between the two that He gives in Matthew 25 is that some fed the hungry and clothed the naked while others did not. He speaks of a personal accounting here, not of the churched and the unchurched. The expectation is clear. It is a daily outworking of the Lordship of Christ that causes a person to see with His eyes of compassion. The ramifications are enormous. It is the difference between being blessed or cursed by God.
If instead of the needy waiting in an office to meet with someone to learn about God to then have their physical need met, what would it look like if a family seeking to follow Christ showed up with a hot meal at the home of the needy? Instead of a meal delivered it could be a meal served up personally or a meal shared. While obeying Christ’s command to feed the hungry, the disciple is also obeying the command to make disciples. What if the homeless was invited to dine in a restaurant with a disciple-maker and a disciple or two. Then after dinner, more food is given to the needy. And the family or group of disciples that began to bless continued the relationship and blessed further and helped and served. Further help may come about in the areas of helping the needy find work, manage finances, care for children, and in the process learn about the One who sends others to bless. In the realm of great discipleship, the church is released into the community to serve and bless others and carry the hope of Christ into families that desperately need it.
a little on money
Serving the poor in this way does not mean that church funds do not need to go to serving the poor anymore. There still will be issues far beyond what a family or two or three can meet. This could be assisted through funds from a larger church budget. The discipleship process could start with a stock of food that the pastoral staff gives to the disciples going to bless and form relationship and a time for them to pray together for wisdom and multiplication of the resources. However, when a family gets involved, things are different–especially when children participate. It has been my experience that the children will want to give some of their own food and money to meet the needs of those that they are serving. Discipleship is inevitable at this point. It is great…it cannot be easily stopped.
(In the excerpts from my non-book, Great to Good (G2g), truth or satire may be employed. At times, the two may even meet.)
The story continues…
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Disjointed and missing everyone’s expectations, our Christmas journey this year was more than adequate. We enjoyed and struggled with 14 inches of snow on Christmas Eve. This was the day that we continued to live out the story and relationships which began months ago and was introduced in a previous entry entitled The Fight. The “Jones” family came over to join us for lunch and to open some of the presents our extended family had purchased for them. During our time we were able to share both a Christmas meal and family stories as well as reflect on the story and hope of Christmas.
Following the meal, as the Jones were leaving, we noticed a flat rear tire. After airing it up, we determined that the tire would not hold air long enough to make it home. So venturing into the blizzard in a 4×4 we purchased a new tire while serving others to free them from being stuck in snow and ice. It was great to have the father and son be a part of serving others that were in even more immediate need at that particular moment.
With the new tire mounted, we saw them off after towing them through the snow and ice out of the neighborhood. The following day we had the privilege of clearing snow from the drive so we could make the trek back to Dallas to be with other family and to continue the mission of Christmas and our family discipleship.
Yesterday we had another family seeking to disciple their children join us to host a Hispanic family that is also experiencing great need. Through our time with the “Lopez” family over the past months we have seen the mom make Christ her Lord. Since that time, the four children have been observing and processing the gospel.
We shared lunch and gave Christmas presents. The fellowship and fun later turned into an impromptu Little Caesar’s pizza dinner. It was during this second meal while taking in some of the Dallas Cowboys’ game that the dad was able to hear the good news for the first time. Though he was not ready to believe, he did initiate a hug with me and the other dad that shared the day and his family with him and his family. We continued to learn and will continue to teach. The good news made more sense to the shepherds when they could see and touch it and the same holds true today.
Links for Making a Difference
Posted by: | CommentsI have had chances to speak and meet with a lot of people this week that are looking for opportunities to get involved. Below are some links that may be helpful to those that are looking for ways to get info. and to begin to make a difference.
Last Letter Life
Posted by: | CommentsI had the privilege of helping launch Last Letter this past week at Catalyst. LL is an effort to start a movement that combines social action with sharing the eternal hope of Christ. Perhaps you could call this missional living with an attitude. It is a call to live James 2 both with integrity and abandon. Below is one of the pieces that are on the site. It is a remake of Revolution by the Beatles. The video features Rick Heil of SonicFlood, Drew Cline, Missi Hale (Women Of Faith), Stephanie Smith, Lucas Parry and Jason Eskridge. You can learn about the movement and download a free MP3 of Revolution on the Last Letter site.
Sacrifice. Action. Justice. Jesus. This is a call to reexamine how we are living our lives. Are we making our time count?
Nones, Economics, and a Meetup
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There have been a number of interesting studies and articles lately that I think are helpful for the church to be aware of–and possibly a little bit more. A little bit more what?, you may ask. That, my friend, is a very good question. I’m glad you asked. I am even more interested in your thoughts. Here we go….
One piece of great interest deals with the increase of the “Nones.” Many interesting things here. One is that, “in terms of Belonging (self-identification) 1 in 6 Americans is presently of No Religion, while in terms of Belief and Behavior the ratio is higher around 1 in 4.” If I am reading this correctly, more people belong to some religious group than believe and behave differently. Experientially, this does not surprise me. That people recognize and communicate this fact IS surprising for me. A second point of interest for me on this report in a quick overview is that, “most Nones are 1st generation – only 32% of “current” Nones report they were None at age 12.” This seems to indicate a generational shift in belief and practice in the U.S. This is not surprising, but corroborates the ever-increasing post-Christian U.S. reality. It is both coming and it is here. This piece was twittered about a good deal and blogged on several sites including Ed Stetzer’s.
Another piece that is important for discussion but did not receive the same amount of attention is an article entitled: “Religious life won’t be the same after downturn.” The future will impact the outcome on this point. Though I am not a prophet nor am I making a prediction, I do feel that serious inflationary pressures in the future have the strong possibility to combine with very high unemployment at present (pushing 10% nationally and much higher in some states / counties), unseen foreclosure rates that still have upward pressure, and historically high credit card defaults, etc. to make things more difficult in the U.S. in general and for the church in particular. Notes payable on buildings have had serious consequences for some churches already and will bring about greater pressure for others. Even for churches that are not struggling with paying off a building, strains could be felt if economic and inflationary pressures continue to cause job losses and utility costs rise. It is possible that churches without debt could struggle just to pay the electric bill and payroll.
When the two issues above are combined, the challenges for the church increase, especially if inflation and employment concerns bear out. If so, the ramifications for U.S. church may require a shift(s) in paradigm and praxis.
One other note is that I will be at Catalyst this next week. Wednesday night I am looking forward to participating in a meetup for bloggers organized by Brad Ruggles. If you are around, I’d be happy to meet you. Drop me a note.
Aslan is on the move
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Whether in the book or the movie, to learn that “Aslan is on the move” is rousing both to the characters and the observer. Something is going to happen. It may not be easy or safe. Things may get messy. There is probably a good amount of pain involved. But it will be exciting…and, ultimately, it will be good.
I have been so encouraged this past couple of weeks to learn of some places in the U.S.–yes in the U.S.–where God is moving. Some of these movements are exciting works in progress. Others are in the incubation stage. Each is very real. Each is concerned with impacting lostness. Each spreads the glory and fame of God, not of man. Some of these may become “movements” that we would want to try to count and dissect. Others may not. However, this connotation of the word movement is less important to me than knowing that the Holy Spirit is stirring the hearts of faithful servants to impact the lives of future disciple-makers.
Participating in the Live Sent Conversation this week was a blessing for me for so many reasons. One key reason is that I was able to meet some serial church planters. Some of these churches have already planted multiple churches. These are some normal guys being used by God to do some great things. Several of these guys readily admitted that they don’t claim to know what they are doing, but they are simply seeking to be faithful. The humility and faithfulness of the Reproducing Churches Network is an encouragement to me.
In addition to what is happening in Florida, I have recently been encouraged to learn that the Spirit is moving in a number of urban centers including Los Angeles, Nashville, Detroit, and Atlanta. Also, there are exciting things happening in Dallas, Houston, and Birmingham. I trust that there will be more posts of this nature in the future, but that is His to do and share. Together, let’s wait and pray expectantly and see what our great God will do.
This week I will be posting a number of times regarding some key points in doing mission. This will correspond with a Jet Set Tour being hosted by The Upstream Collective with Ed Stetzer. It should be an interesting and rewarding conversation. Thank you for participating in this journey. Here are some other bloggers that will be following along on the trip.
Andrew Jones (Tall Skinny Kiwi)
J.D. Greear
Matt Chandler
Ed Stetzer
David Putman (DavidPutmanLive)
David Phillips (Integrating Missionally)
Michael Carpenter (Dining with Sinners)
Derek Webster (re:frame)
Grady Bauer (Missional Space)
C. Holland (Missionary Confidential)
Kevin Mullins (Life.Outpoured)
Guy Muse (The M Blog)
Ray Short (Cultural Dichotomy)
Todd Littleton (The Edge of the Inside)
Paul Chambers Cox (OMS International)
Tim Patterson (Travel Light)
Justin Powell (Urban Idealist)
David Jackson (Moving at the Speed of God)
Ernest Goodman (Missions Misunderstood)
An Experiential Outlier (part 1)
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In Outliers, Gladwell writes that “researchers have settled on what they believe is the magic number for true expertise: ten thousand hours.” That is 10,000 hours of practice to get at some mastery level of proficiency. The author continues to share that this roughly breaks down to 10 years of experience. Some of his examples as well as simple calculations demonstrate that the experiential quota is viable in 5 to 6 years.
When considering missions, the 10,000 hour rule makes a lot of sense. Working in a cross-cultural context begins slow most of the time. The first year or years are usually spent in language and cultural acquisition. Being a student of language and culture is not over at that time, but it is well-advanced. Then more mission learning and experience are logged through a series of trials that are often associated with failure. Throughout all of this process relationships are being formed, history and trust are being built. Disciples are being made. Then after some period of time, those that have stuck it out will often begin to see some ways to advance their efforts have a foundation of key, healthy relationships, and have built requisite levels of trust to see healthy results.
In thinking through a number of relationships with M’s throughout Europe and beyond, I see that the 10,000 hour rule has a strong correlation with impact. With a range of paradigms and approaches, missionaries that have some 10 years of experience that is relevant to their culture and context are generally seeing greater results than those that do not have this level of experience.
Investing 10,000 hours in anything is not a guarantee for success, however. Some limiting factors seem to include:
- Moral (spiritual) failure;
- Living out or seeking to promote an ethnocentric worldview;
- Not investing in nationals;
- Not pursuing relationships with either non-believers or with nationals that are heavily involved in the lives of non-believers; and
- Placing emphasis on supervisory responsibilities.
There is more to come on this in some future posts, but I wanted to go ahead and throw the idea out there for stimulation and discussion.
