Cold weather

Baby.... it's cold outside! Dang. There may be nothing that makes me feel older than cold weather. And it's been downright frigid the last few days. This morning it was zero degrees fahrenheit, and the windchills have been below zero that last couple nights.

Last night we had our twice-monthly group that serves food to the under-served outside the downtown library. I wondered what they would do since it was supposed to be so cold. No one acted like it was anything out of the ordinary, so we put on our longjohns and headed to church. There weren't a lot of folks there, but the few who were seemed pretty happy to see us. We gave them some hot food, some food to take with them, and passed out a number of sleeping bags, blankets, coats, hats, gloves and whatnot. Jane and I ended up giving one guy a ride to the rescue mission afterward. He seemed almost numb, as did many of them.

I wish there was a way I could wax poetic on something like this, but the truth is, it's just sad stuff. I guess. I mean, I don't really do much in the way of serving food. I usually help bag sandwiches or something at the church, but once we arrive at the library I guess I've kind of taken on an overseer-type role. I stand back and observe and see if there is anything that needs taken care of, but I have also taken the stance of simply trying to look at people's faces and learn names. These are real, live people who have substance to them. They're not mere statistics. They have sense of humor, and responsibilities, and needs and wants and concerns. Sure, some of them have behavioral or mental issues, and some struggle with addictions, but they're humans. Sometimes I feel a bit selfish in that I often wonder if *I* don't need this more than some of them! It's so tempting to get caught up in politics, or theology, or thinking I know right from wrong.... and totally lose touch with the reality that "there but for the grace of God go I." I don't know, there was a point last night where I kind of started to get weepy just thinking about it.

So, after last night, today I got up and was feeling fairly good. I also had my storage auction at work today. The "high" temperature for the day is to be 6 degrees. Ugh. I'd done quite a bit of work preparing for this auction, and I really hated even having it - 10 days before Christmas - but it had been too long since I've had one. It did not go well, though, and I would guess this might possibly be my last on-site auction. There were 10 people who registered, and I only took in $25 after paying the auctioneer. And that was for 5 units! This was far and away the worst auction I've ever had, and possibly the worst for the company. It was only made more miserable by the frigid stinking weather.

So how's that for a paradox? Last night I freeze my butt off with a group of people who have next to nothing, and today I froze my butt off auctioning people's stuff who now have next to nothing. Life is weird like that, and I'm feeling older than ever. This weather also makes me extra tired. Just a few more days until the days start getting longer though. Of course that means winter is just now getting started. Ugh. I have about zero ambition right now.

Great books & films about jesus

In the appendix of Michael Frost's great little book, "Surprise The World: The Five Habits of Highly Missional People," he has a list of great books about Jesus, as well as great films about Jesus. I think they are both quite good, and I want to list them here for future reference - especially the films.

GREAT BOOKS ABOUT JESUS

• The Jesus I Never Knew - Philip Yancy
• The Challenge of Jesus - N.T. Wright
• The Life: A Portrait of Jesus - J. John
• Following Jesus: A Non-Religious Guidebook for the Spiritually Hungry - Dave Roberts
• Velvet Elvis: Repainting the Christian Faith - Rob Bell
• A Spectator's Guide to Jesus - John Dickson
• God in the Flesh - Don Everts
• Mealtime Habits of the Messiah - Conrad Gempf
• The Jesus of Suburbia: Have We Tamed the Son of God to Fit Our Lifestyle? - Mike Erre
• Paradoxy: Coming to Grips with the Contradiction of Jesus - Tom Taylor
• Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes - Kenneth Bailey

GREAT FILMS ABOUT JESUS

• The Gospel According to St. Matthew (1964)
• Godspell (1973)
• Jesus of Nazareth (1977) (6-hr miniseries)
• Jesus of Montreal (1989)
• The Passion of the Christ (2004)
• The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005)
• The Nativity Story (2006) 

I can only vouch for a few of these, but look forward to checking out some more.

Identifying as a missionary (sent)

The fifth and final habit in Michael Frost's book, 'Surprise the World: The Five Habits of Highly Missional People,' is: SENT. The idea is to journal the ways we have alerted others to God's reign so we can begin to identify as missionaries (sent ones).

Many people used to think of missionaries as exclusively describing those who traveled overseas to spread Christianity. A big part of "missional" ideology is reframing this to include all Christians being called to glorify God in our daily lives wherever we are.

Personally, his phrase "alerting others to God's reign" makes me cringe a little, but I like what Frost is getting at. The idea is to present what we believe the reign of God will look like in the world. Frost says it will consist of these things:

• Reconciliation - between God and humankind, as well as among humanity.
• Justice - Whether donating to a cause, signing a petition, or opening our homes to the poor.
• Beauty - (I like this) - Inviting others to recognize the beauty of God's kingdom, as well as the beauty of what we can create as his agents of grace.
• Wholeness - the restoration of broken people, relationships, and the world.

WHY JOURNALING?
Frost suggests journaling because, not only is it a way to record our thoughts, but it will help us identify ways we mirror God's work of justice, reconciliation, beauty, and wholeness in the world. It will help us sort through the myriad ways we operate as God's ambassadors in the following ways:

1. Processing events - It helps us see everyday acts - of creativity, diligence, service, and kindness - as being as legitimately missional as acts of evangelism, preaching, or social justice.
2. Making sense of God's work - Journaling forces us to take notice of the way God is unfurling his reign throughout the world through our small contributions.
3. Keeping a record of insights - Writing things down leads to a deeper understanding of the ways God is using us, or working among us.
4. Asking important questions - It's a place for us to be honest with God, and ourselves.
5. Identifying ourselves differently - It's about reshaping our identities around our fundamental calling as the sent ones of God.

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As with the other four habits, this one too makes a lot of sense. In a way I think this kind of pulls it all together. I would imagine it is also probably the most difficult to keep up with. I've been a long-time journaler - even aside from this blog. It's not easy to maintain, especially so around such specific content. But imagine the power it could have?

In the final chapter Frost proposes the idea of DNA groups - for Discipleship, Nurture, and Accountability. He likens them to Neil Cole's Life Transformation Groups. The idea is to meet weekly with a few other people to see how you're doing with the new habits. First he suggests simply reading the book together, then committing to regularly meeting for the purpose of discipleship, nurture, and accountability. I think that's a great idea. He has a "DNA Accountability Form" in the book to use as a guide (very simple).

So, all in all, I really liked this book. Again, it was small and super easy to read. While I'm not in love with the BELLS acronym, it is definitely memorable (I have called on it many times in the week or so I spent on the book). I also like the practical nature of the questions, accountability, and other resources in the book. I highly recommend it for anyone interested in following Jesus today. I think it would also be really handy for a small group.

Learning christ

So far in Michael Frost's wonderful little book 'Surprise the World: The Five Habits of Highly Missional People' we have been encouraged to:

• Bless 3 people per week - at least one of whom is not a member of your church.
• Eat with 3 people per week - at least one of whom is not a member of your church.
• Spend at least one period of the week listening for the Spirit's voice.

Today I wrestle with chapter six, which is the fourth habit to becoming highly missional: Learn. Frost recommends spending at least one period of the week learning Christ.

This seemed a strange wording to me, and Frost points out on p. 71:

"The expression 'to learn Christ' was a common one among the earliest Christians... In the early centuries of the Christian movement, conversion involved denying the pagan gods and entering a period of catechism, committing oneself to an intensive study of the person and work of Jesus. We would do well to institute a habitual study of the Gospels ourselves today."

There are two primary reasons he suggests "learning Christ":

1. There is devotional value in growing closer to Jesus, fostering intimacy with God, hearing the promptings of the Holy Spirit, sensing his presence through the beauty of his Word, and seeking to conform our lives more and more to his will. But also...
2. The more missional reason to learn Jesus is - we need to know him if we are going to share him as the reason for the hope we have.

The author calls for not only delving further into the Gospels, but becoming students of the whole of Scripture, which includes understanding the Gospels in their total biblical context. As theologian John Stackhouse has said:

"What did Jesus say?"... is the wrong question for Christian thought just as "What would Jesus do?" is the wrong question for Christian ethics. "What would Jesus want me or us to think, be, and do, here and now?" is the right question.

I was glad to see the main idea Frost emphasizes here is one of my pet peeves when it comes to the concept of missional living: the idea of incarnational mission. The term "mission" means "to be sent; to be propelled outward." Lots of churches seem to get this idea that being missional is going out to others with the Good News (rather than merely waiting for people to come to us). But the term "incarnational" takes it to another dimension. As Frost says, "It describes not simply going out, but also the difficult work of going deep with others." Just as God took on flesh and dwelt among us in Jesus, so his followers are called to dwell among those to whom we are sent. Being "missional" isn't about doing mere projects (not that there's anything wrong with that), but it is being LIKE Christ and dwelling AMONG the people we have been sent to.

Frost gives three suggestions for "learning Christ":

1. Study the Gospels - Read, reread, and reread again. He says Mark takes about ninety minutes, John about 2 hours, and Matthew and Luke about 2 1/2 hours each.
2. Read about Jesus - He cites several works on Jesus in the back of the book (I will list later).
3. Further viewing - He also recommends films about Jesus and the Gospels (also in the book).

So, another good chapter. I have sometimes been tempted to elevate the Gospels over the rest of the Bible, but I agree with the assertion that one is not more important than the other - it is the totality of Scripture, and how Christ comes through and ties it all together. I do miss the days when I was a better student of the Bible, and would like to be more intentional about getting to know Jesus. I want him to be the hero of my story, and the world's. I realize he is, but I want it to be more evident in my life and words. I want to know it in my heart, not just my head.

Listening for the spirit's voice

Today's topic is from chapter 5 of Michael Frost's great little book 'Surprise the World: The Five Habits of Highly Missional People.' It is on developing the habit of listening for the Spirit's voice in our lives.

This came at a very interesting time for me, personally. My present tribe is fond of emphasizing two main questions to ask ourselves: 1) What is God saying to you? and 2) What are you going to do about it? While sitting in our weekly worship gathering this past Sunday it became apparent to me that... I don't have a clue what God is saying to me. So I prayed about it a couple times that day. Then, on Monday, I opened up this chapter on listening for the Spirit's voice! Quite the coincidence, I would say. ;)

Frost suggests spending at least one period of the week listening for the Spirit's voice. Simply a time - preferably at least 20 minutes - where we stop and create space to commune with God. As he says on p. 58:

"How are we to know how to navigate our way through the world, eating with and blessing unbelievers, without the Spirit's voice to guide us away from falling into sin?

When I say "falling into sin," I don't necessarily mean getting drunk or running off with your neighbor's spouse (although of course we're never immune to making such choices). I'm referring to the much less dramatic but far more prevalent sins of fear and laziness.

Fear and laziness are mission killers. Fear of persecution, fear of standing out or causing offense, fear of having to answer someone's tricky questions--fear will shut down missional engagement every time. Likewise with laziness: I don't mean the kind of laziness that has you lying on the couch eating Doritos and watching sports on television. I mean the inner voice that prompts you not to bother with offering yourself in the service of others. Laziness tells you that you don't have the time; laziness whispers to you that you need to take care of yourself first."

He continues on the next page:

"My experience when engaging with my neighbors is that I must open my heart to the Holy Spirit in order to separate truth from untruth, fiction from knowledge, the honorable from the dishonorable. Figuring out how best to be an intriguing, blessing, godly presence in community isn't easy. If I'm going to encourage you to bless others and eat with them, it would be irresponsible of me not to also encourage you to listen to the Spirit."

This habit of listening is designed to provide us with the nurture, sustenance, and accountability for the missional lifestyle. So for those willing to undertake the challenge of silence and solitude as a missional habit, this is the advice he offers for fostering an openness to the Spirit's promptings:

1. Set aside a designated time - Actually block it out on your schedule. He prefers a Sunday or Monday (early in the week).
2. Eliminate distractions - Find ways to avoid any intrusion on the senses of touch, sight, smell, taste, or sound. As Jesus taught in Matthew 6:6, "When you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray... in secret." Again, he suggests 20 minutes or more, saying something often happens to the stillness around ten to fifteen minutes in.
3. Let God in - He suggests some type of "centering prayer" (more in this below). As Thomas Merton said, "The prayer of the heart has to be always very simple, confined to the simplest of acts."
4. Follow God's promptings - It is somewhat pointless to listen if we are not prepared to follow.

CENTERING PRAYER:
On pages 64-65 Frost talks about "centering prayer." Centering prayer is different from classic Eastern meditation, which is designed to empty your mind by pushing thoughts away or by having no thoughts. The key to Christian contemplative prayer (centering) is to focus our attention. Perhaps using a prayer-word, such as: amen, Abba, grace, love, let go, stillness, Jesus; or maybe the so-called Jesus Prayer (adapted from Luke 18:13) "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner." It's okay to let thoughts in, but we don't want to engage them. Ideally, after a period of centering prayer, our thoughts will begin to slow down, becoming more captive to the object of our worship, and shaped by the Holy Spirit.

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One thing that really leaped off the page for me in this chapter was the quote by St. Therese of Lisieux:

"If you are willing to bear serenely the trial of being displeasing to yourself, then you will be for Jesus a pleasant place of shelter."

Wow. That brought me such a sense of hope and comfort. I am often displeasing to myself. I like the thought that, rather than disqualifying me for Christ's love, it actually qualifies me as a "pleasant place of shelter" for Jesus; A person he wants to be with.

Naturally, as an introvert, this chapter on listening was much more to my liking than the acts of blessing and eating. It's not anymore important, perhaps, but I found it very timely and powerful.

Developing an eating habit

Reading through Michael Frost's little book, "Surprise the Word: The Five Habits of Highly Missional People," and today I look at the second habit: Eating. As with blessing three people a week (habit 1), now he recommends eating with three people a week - at least one of whom is not a member of your church.

I have to admit, this is a hard one for me to... swallow. I know everyone says we need to eat together, and that it is the most basic form of hospitality and whatnot. I am not disagreeing, but it is really hard for me to eat with others. It's one of the most uncomfortable things in the world for me to do - especially with people I don't know. I feel awkward, and it really stresses the introvert in me out. But... I know it's something I need to get over.

Frost brings up an interesting view I'd never heard before. English pastor and author Tim Chester once posed the question, "How would you complete the following sentence: 'The Son of Man came...'?" He says there are three ways that the New Testament completes that sentence; while the first two are well known, the third was a bit surprising to me:

• "The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many" (Mark 10:45).
• "The Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost" (Luke 19:10).
• "The Son of Man came eating and drinking" (Luke 7:34).

Frost writes, "While the first two oft-quoted verses tell us about Jesus' purpose in coming - to serve, to give his life as a ransom, to seek and save the lost - the third describes his method. How did Jesus come? He came eating and drinking."

This is a pretty good little chapter (and pretty convicting). Especially on p. 46 where Frost writes:

"The table ought to be the primary symbol of the Christian gathering. It represents hospitality, inclusivity, generosity, and grace. In many churches today, I suppose, the primary symbol might be the pulpit or the screen. These churches seem to believe that Jesus said, "Every time you meet together, listen to a sermon and sing." Now, I'm not against sermons or singing, but if we took Jesus' directive seriously, we'd know that the table is a better metaphor for Christian worship."

Again, I can't argue with any of this. As uncomfortable as it makes me, I do see the value in it. My only issue is the idea that it has to be EATING together. I would think the main point is the social aspect of interacting with others in a more casual atmosphere. I'd think it could be meeting for coffee or drinks. I've had many great discussions over a drink. Whatever gets us in the company of others; and them in our company.

So... as with the blessing... I know this is something I need to work on. I know it. And I'm probably not as bad at is as I think. However, as with anything else, it takes intentionality.

Blessing others

In chapter 3 of Michael Frost's little book 'Surprise the World! The Five Habits of Highly Missional People,' he breaks down the first "habit": BLESS. The suggestion is to bless 3 people each week - at least one of whom is a part of your church, and one of whom is not.

He gives some background on the meaning of the term "to bless." Technically it involves the act of consecrating something or someone. However, as he describes, when the Bible was being translated into Old English, the term was chosen to translate the Latin benedicere and the Greek eulogein, both of which have the meaning "to speak well of; to praise." Today Christians use the word 'bless' for everything from a response to when someone sneezes to a way to pronounce or make someone happy.

Frost prefers describing the term "to bless" as "to add strength to another's arm." As he says, "In this respect, to bless others is to build them up, to fill them with encouragement for them to increase in strength and prosperity." Adding strength to another's arm can be anything from relieving a burden, helping them breathe easier, or anything that lifts their spirit or alleviates their distress. It can be large or small.

THREE FORMS OF BLESSING: (pp.31-35)

1. Words of Affirmation
2. Acts of Kindness
3. Gifts

He rightly points out a few cautions about blessing others. First, it must be sincere. For instance, with words of affirmation, encouragement requires empathy and seeing the world from another's perspective. Shallow words may make US feel better, but do little for the person we intend to bless.

Secondly, the point in blessing others is to BLESS them, not to manipulate them into doing something we want. Being nice to people so we can try to convert them or get them to come to our church is not really blessing them.

The third caution is related to the first two - the key to successful blessing is that the recipient must feel blessed. Our action ought to "add strength to their arm." Thinking we know what's best for someone else, or giving out of our own "love language" may actually make others feel worse. The point is to get to know THEM, discover THEIR love language - what makes them feel blessed?

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So, this seems a pretty simple admonition at first glance, but it really does take a different approach to life. As the Apostle Paul said in Philippians 2:3-4, "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of others." That is something that is much easier said than done - especially on a regular basis.

As I thought about this, it really did smack me upside the head that I do not have this mindset the way I used to. There was a time when I was much more aware of trying to be a blessing. When one goes through a period of suffering or pain, it is much more difficult to be mindful of others. So while it seems like a no-brainer, it really does require intentionality.

To be honest, I don't really FEEL like blessing others right now. I haven't written a word of encouragement to someone in a long time. I used to do it quite regularly. I'm thinking this is a habit I need to start working on again - whether I feel like it or not. I could stand to be a more generous person, and I should want to be a more generous person. So, we'll give this a shot. Who knows. What's the worst that could happen??? ;)

Missional b.e.l.l.s.

I've begun to read from Michael Frost's tiny book 'Surprise the World! The Five Habits of Highly Missional People' (among a couple of other books). This book is packaged just how I like them: around 100 pages, small pages, inexpensive, and it has discussion questions for each chapter.

The book started out as a missional 'strategy' for his church, then it was published as an e-book, and finally just recently came out in print form. It seems pretty good so far.

The premise of the book centers around the idea that the church needs to develop certain missional "habits" (or "rhythms" or "practices"). Frost believes those to be Bless, Eat, Listen, Learn, and Sent. He suggests these are the five habits of highly missional people...

BLESS - I will bless three people this week, at least one of whom is not a member of our church.
EAT - I will eat with three people this week, at least one of whom is not a member of our church.
LISTEN - I will spend at least one period of the week listening for the Spirit's voice.
LEARN - I will spend at least one period of the week learning Christ.
SENT - I will journal throughout the week about all the ways I alerted others to the universal reign of God through Christ.

The rest of the book is spent explaining how these habits translate into missional values...

• If you bless three people every week, you're going to become a very generous person.
• If you eat with others, you'll develop a greater capacity for hospitality.
• If you foster the habit of listening to the Spirit, you'll become an increasingly Spirit-led person.
• If you're learning Christ, it's fair to assume you'll become more and more Christlike.
• If you're journaling the myriad ways you've been sent into your world, you'll increasingly see yourself as a sent one, or a missionary in your own neighborhood.

I like his description of "missional" on p. 21:

"By missional, I mean all that we do and say that alerts others to the reign of God.

South African missiologist David Bosch wrote, "Mission is more than and different from recruitment to our brand of religion; it is the alerting of people to the universal reign of God through Christ." In other words, mission derives from the reign of God... the ideas of our mission and God's kingdom are irrevocably linked. Mission is both the announcement and the demonstration of the reign of God through Christ.

Mission is not primarily concerned with church growth. It is primarily concerned with the reign and rule of the Triune God...

Missional habits aren't just strategic, they're consequential: Because of the universal reign of God through Christ, we bless, open our tables, we listen for the Spirit, we learn Christ, and we are sent out on this evangelistic task..."

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I am taking the specific habits with a grain of salt at this point, but I really like this "reign of God" stuff connected with the idea of being missional. It reminds me of when Reggie McNeal talks about the "in-breaking of the Kingdom" (which I actually connect with better). These ideas are so different from using "missional" as a way to get people involved in church projects.

Good stuff so far...

B.I.O. life

We are in a small group bible study with another couple and we recently started doing the Chip Ingram series, "Spiritual Simplicity." It's an 8-week video study. I am not overly familiar with Chip - I've read some things he's written over the years - and I'm not really interested in judging the content or format of the study. However, there is one thing I really like. Apparently, at the end of each study - after watching the video, and going through some discussion questions - there is a section called "Live It Out - B.I.O."

He says, "Bio" is a word that is synonymous with "life," and found in those three simple letters (B.I.O.) is the key to helping you become the person God wants you to be. It breaks down like this:

B = COME "BEFORE GOD" DAILY
Meet with Him personally - through His word and prayer - to enjoy His presence, receive His direction, and follow His will.

I = DO LIFE "IN COMMUNITY" WEEKLY
Structure your week to personally connect in safe relationships that provide love, support, transparency, challenge, and accountability.

O = BE "ON MISSION" 24/7
Cultivate a mindset to live out Jesus' love for others through acts of sacrifice and service at home, work, play, and church.

There are questions and suggested activities that go along with each of these sections. I don't know about it being "the key" or anything, but I do have to say that I think he's on to something. I like how it's broken down, and think it will be good to use that as a guide for awhile, if not longer.

A new side

Not sure if anyone has noticed the update to my sidebar (all 5 of you). It's not much, but I added a couple new links, as well as created some new groupings.

First, I added some links about running, in hopes of keeping updated better on local road races. When I did that I created the "Heath & Fitness" category. So that's where I will keep my running, exercise, meditation and counseling links.

Then I created the "Coaching & Leadership" heading, to hold things dealing with church leadership, discipleship, and whatnot. It differs from the "Faith & Church" category in that these sites have more to do with practices and processes rather than institutions.

A couple of the c & l sites are new:

• Leading MCs is a rather new start-up from a guy I go to church with at Grace (Andy D).
• Gravity Leadership is apparently a new venture from Ben & Deb Sternke and Matt Tebbe. I just heard of it the other day from something Ben posted on Facebook. It looks quite intriguing to me, though I'm not really at a point to start off in another coaching/discipleship direction just yet. Still, I've always thought Ben's writing and teaching was really, really solid stuff (even from his personal blog). They're both worth checking out.

 So, there's that. Btw, I had to google how to take a screenshot on my phone to get this photo. I learned something new. Yay!

Sent (final interrupted post)

My final post on Jen Hatmaker's comfort-shaking little book, 'Interrupted: When Jesus Wrecks Your Comfortable Christianity,' will cover the last and final Phase (Five) of the book. This has been a good book. She has a very readable style, and I really like how she chopped it up into 'phases' with short 3-4 page chapters. That's just how I like to read. I will have to admit, though, that the material especially towards the end seemed a little dated (in fairness, it's not a new book). It's a lot of the same things I've been reading for the last 10 years or so, so it didn't hold my interest as much at the end. It's still a good book though.

Phase Five is about the aspect of being SENT, as the church. She talks about the mission of the church, and being mission-al, and then some specifics about their new church in Austin. Again, I wasn't all that interested in this personally, but that doesn't mean it wasn't good stuff.

I really like her discussion of 'mission' and 'missional' on p. 198-200. I think many of us get confused over 'doing good deeds' and really being incarnationally mission-al in our everyday ordinary lives. She says,

...While we were saying "missional," most people thought that meant "mission," and I think we transposed the two for a while as well. *Mission* encompassed our work with the homeless community, disadvantaged schools, an orphanage in Mexico, a reforestation project in Africa. When we engaged some aspect of human suffering or care for the earth, it fell under the mission banner.

But even though all our mission work is sustainable and long term, we spend the majority of our lives in our homes, our neighborhoods, at work, in school. It was essential to incorporate the 'spirit of mission' into our natural habitats, where the brunt of our influence exists (being mission-al).

Are you a teacher? Your school is a mission field, plain and simple. Business leader, the principles of cultural immersion are absolutely the front door to reaching your colleagues. Stay-at-home mom, the community of mothers raising littles is special -- connect with other women intentionally during what can be a lonely and isolating season. Students, you are surrounded by peers hungry for salvation and purpose but deeply cynical about the church; developing language to introduce them to Jesus is noble and urgent. Recovering legalist... we must replace some entrenched perceptions about culture in order to become missionaries to our neighborhoods. An accurate understanding of grace will wreck the tidy categories we've assigned people and allow us to open our arms wide. Taking Jesus seriously goes well beyond a church service or mission project; He becomes the substance of our whole lives.

'Missional' at its core means "sent." It is the opposite of "come to us." (and on and on...)

On p.212 she shares how they launched their new church. She's talking about the idea that "Theology very naturally follows belief, but belief very rarely follows judgment," and then...

This position has driven ANC (Austin New Church) since its conception. As we moved toward the official launch of our church, we reimagined its public birth scheduled for Easter 2008, exactly one year after our profound experience the Easter before. We could have revealed our church to the south Austin community via bullhorns and billboards, but that wasn't consistent with our mission. As slaves to our city, our first Sunday service was a massive food drive benefiting the Capital Area Food Bank; it encompassed twenty neighborhoods, and we collected more than one ton of food. The messaged we wanted to communicate was: "Nice to meet you, south Austin. Austin New Church is here to be your servant.

The last item I highlighted from the book is some specifics about how their church meets. I thought this kind of interesting so I wanted to copy it down:

Our community groups meet two weeks a month for traditional fellowship and discussion (this is deliberately inclusive and the front door into our church family); they meet one week for mission work with our nonprofit partners in the city; and they spend the last week apart to intentionally live on mission: inviting neighbors over for dinner, going out for coffee with a coworker, hosting poker night at the Hatmakers.

Instead of decidedly weird labels of "mission" and "missional" work, we call the whole effort: Love Your Neighbor, Serve Your City.

So, there ya go. Again, there was much about this book I liked. It was easy to read, yet it packed a regular punch of conviction as well. I'm not sure that's exactly where I'm at at the moment (as far as the specifics of their church), but I certainly don't have any issues with it. A really good and worthwhile read.

It's all good (and stuff)

I can remember there being several years when I felt like I was right in the center of God's will for my life (or however you want to say that). Life was good. I felt like I was MADE to be a small church pastor. I believed I was right where God wanted me to be. The fact that things didn't work out - or didn't end so well - does not diminish that truth (at least in my opinion).

I have taken a boatload of personality profiles, leadership tests, and whatnot... and I always seem to fall pretty close to center, or even, or in that smallest of small minorities that can't really be described by test results. Even when it comes to being an introvert or extrovert... it's hard to distinguish which way I lean. The several times I've taken the APEST test, I have very little variance between the five. I've always attributed part of this to being ambidextrous, even though I have no idea if it's true or not, but that is also what I believe made me such a perfect fit as a small church pastor. I wasn't really good at any one thing, but I was "okay" in a lot of areas. Lately I've been thinking about "fit" quite differently though.

Occasionally I will have someone ask me if I'm "ready to get back into ministry." I know what they mean. They want to know if I'm ready to be a pastor in a church again. It's kind of strange, but I honestly don't even think in those terms anymore. In fact, I don't really think I've ever STOPPED doing ministry. Yes, my occupation has changed; my context has changed; but I don't believe my relational approach to other people has changed all that much. I don't think *I* have changed all that much in that regard either.

It's like the deal with being missional. Tom and I have been talking about this for years. Some people believe "being missional" requires participation in a mission community, or that you have to have a project, or be 'doing something,' or all these other quantifier/qualifiers. I agree with Tom in that missional is simply how we live out our faith and participate in the reconciliation of all things with God - IN OUR EVERYDAY LIVES: in our families, at work, in our activities and whatnot. It's not something SEPARATE that we do; it is A PART OF us and what we naturally do.

So when I think about the prospect of coaching people - whether I'm coaching a church pastor or an atheist - I approach them from the same mindset of helping them find their inner self; their true calling; their God-given nature, if you will. And, while my skill-set used to lend itself more to doing that in a small-church context, I believe I can adapt to any and all contexts I find myself in in the Kingdom of God. The point is seeing life as kingdom-centric rather than church-centric. The context is different (kingdom instead of church) but none of the rules change - at least in my mind.

Eh... I'm not putting this into words very good. But I have felt myself moving towards this for a long time. I believe I was doing exactly what I was made to do for several years while I was pastoring a small church. That time has come and gone. I knew for several years I was being "called elsewhere," so to speak. I just didn't have the guts to follow God's leading. I believe I am still serving in full-time ministry, albeit without the occupational title. In fact, I could possibly be even more full-time than I used to - I no longer have the stress of trying to turn "on" and "off."

Well, the longer this gets, the cloudier I seem to be making it. I should probably just stop. One of these days maybe I'll try to explain it to myself again. For now... I'm good. I have lots of regrets and many things can and do make me sad... but, really, I'm good. It's all good.

The wellness center

Dr. Tim and his lovely wife are in a video for the new non-profit they have established back in our old stomping grounds (he is our nephew). It's called Cornerstone Community Wellness. You can hear all about it in the 7 minute video. It sounds like they must have made this for their church. Pretty neat stuff. Very proud of them. And... interestingly enough, I think Jane recommended the book Radical to her brother Mark, who then recommended it to his son Tim. I believe Jane may have also recommended Not A Fan to Tim. Here's the link to the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scUm3xxu8K8

Napkin theology

Some good (and simple) little drawings explaining some of the Christian basics by Seth McBee...

http://www.vergenetwork.org/2013/01/28/napkin-theology/

MLI re-gathering notes

Some of the random notes I took from Reggie McNeal and Lance Finley at our first re-gathering the end of January 2013.

From Reggie...

• "Church stuff will kill you. Kingdom stuff will feed your soul."
• 32% of Gen-Y now want nothing to do with church (was 25% 5 years ago).
• Metrics = What are we celebrating; what are we emphasizing; what are we shining the spotlight on... "When we do this we're feeling the wind of the Spirit."
• How many spiritual conversations did we have this week?
• How many hours of community service did we do this week?
• "We have to celebrate something, so we might as well celebrate something we want to see more of!!!"
• "Do not worry alone. But don't worry the same person to death."
• "Empower people without trying to co-ordinate people." (pepper them with ideas)
• Meettheneed.com/org = free service to connect volunteers w/needs
• "You've got to be so sold out that you just don't care who gets the credit."
• We (Christians) are free to be FOR everybody. The serpent created "us vs. them". We are the "we" people. (this might have been Brian Miller)
• "We need to work on solving issues at the community level rather than the organizational level."
• What movie (or song) best describes the narrative of your life right now?
• "Internal narratives are crucial in helping us fall down or up."
• "The N. American church no longer has a strong enough internal narrative. How can we make the Good News a compelling story again?"
• "Our problem is that we have put eternal life at the end of life. Jesus put it throughout." (eph. 2:8-9 AND 10).
• Helping people find freedom. Not just saved 'from'... but also 'to' and 'through.' (From slavery, thru the cross; to abundance... What have we been saved to?).
• "Sharing the prayer request IS the prayer. We don't need to do it again. God can hear."
• WIGS = Wildly important goals.
• Consider sponsoring a child locally, not just overseas.
• literacydesigncollaborative.com
• "If we are announcers of Good News, and the Kingdom narrative is a street party, what do we need to do (or learn)?" (we need to learn how to be community developers)
• valuetheperson.com
• "If we're going to lead a Kingdom movement then we've got to gain Kingdom competencies. And the competencies are gathered by gaining street smarts."

From Lance...

• Jeremiah 29:7
• Shalom = the way things were meant to be (Gen. 1&2).
• All of Jesus' miracles were to reconcile things broken/undone in the Fall.
• Bridges Out of Poverty book (understanding generational poverty and how that shapes them).
• Poor people have a skill set, it's just not a middle-class skill set. But they know things we do not.
• The theology of this is important. It's not just helping people so we can grow our church. This is part of God's narrative.

 COLLECTIVE IMPACT (from Stanford U. article):

Pre-conditions -

1. Influential Champion (somebody to call the party; people of influence).
2. Adequate Financial Resources
3. Urgency for change (realize now is the time)

5 Conditions of Collective Impact -

1. Common Agenda (What 1 or 2 issues, if solved, would make the biggest difference in this community? What builds common ground is a common threat. TED talk).
2. Shared Measurement (we need something to celebrate)
3. Mutually Reinforcing Activities
4. Continuous Communication
5. Backbone Support

Phases of Collective Impact -

1. Initiate Action (may take a couple years)
2. Organize for Impact (we need systems for sustainability)
3. Sustain Action and Impact

Backbone Organizations -

1. Funder-based
2. New non-profits
3. Existing non-profits
4. Government
5. Shared across multiple organizations
6. Steering committee driven (can initiate through but not sustain with)

Halloween as a missional exercise

My views on Halloween have changed quite a bit over the years. I'm still not a big fan of it from a spiritual standpoint. I used to be pretty rigid and legalistic in my Christian faith, and having worked ever-so-little with people caught up in demonic oppression and possession, I saw things in a very different "light" than most people. What started out as outright opposition to the day from a moral and spiritual standpoint, probably eventually turned into fear and intimidation at some point though. I was afraid of what might happen to my kids, and even me. So now, years later, I don't know if I've just mellowed, or if I have overcome that fear... Because now - while I still don't really "celebrate" the day - I have come to a place where it doesn't at all bother me and I can see the benefits of participating as a Christ-follower from a social perspective.

I read this article - Three Simple Ways to be Missional On Halloween - and while I'm not so sure about the ideas they suggest, I liked this intro...

The final week of October is here, which means Halloween is upon us. This particular day brings out some different perspectives for many Christ-followers. From the “it really isn’t a big deal and I enjoy the chance to trick-or-treat with my kids”, to “I refuse to participate in such a celebrated, pagan day”. Though there are some compelling arguments from and for both perspectives, its vital for the Christ-follower to view this particular day through a lens of Gospel-mission.

Regardless of one’s view of involvement on this day, there is a sociological fact that cannot be denied: Halloween is the one day which neighbors are outside of their homes and engaging in something together. There is not another day during the year that we see so many faces and family in our immediate sphere of influence, together.

I couldn't agree more. So this year we called off our Wednesday night activity at church and I encouraged people to stay home and pass out candy, and to view it as an exercise in being missional: just be neighborly and try to build some relationships with the people you live among.

So unless something else comes up, you will find our front light on, and we will be passing out candy and trying to get to know the neighbors.

ADDED LATER: A couple of pics from our front door. I had dug this old ape out of storage the other day because I thought Anna might like to play with it. Then I had the bright idea to use it to scare the trick-or-treaters. It didn't work so well with the little kids, but it got a start out of some of the older ones. I told the kids this was my wife, Jane. :)

Seven signs in john, and missional renaissance questions

I think I've posted both of these things before, but they just came up again the other day.

First, here is this thing from CMA called "Seven Signs in John: A Simple Process For Evangelism and Starting Churches." Good stuff...

Also, here are the questions told about in Reggie McNeal's book 'Missional Renaissance' from the end of ch. 6. Church leaders visited people and asked them these five questions (from here):

• What do you enjoy doing?
• Where do you see God at work right now?
• What would you like to see God do in your life over the next six to twelve months? How can we help?
• How would you like to serve other people? How can we help?
• How can we pray for you?

MLC 2011 notes

I am finally getting around to looking over my notes from the 2011 Missional Learning Commons held Oct. 28-29 in Chicago (at Northern Seminary). These aren't really even notes, they are more just random jottings that I made. So don't expect much. Some are just personal observations from me, and some are quotes (or what I remember of quotes) made by some of the speakers. And one of the problems with the MLC is that they don't always introduce the speakers, so I don't even know who most of them were. The "main" people that I do remember were: Mike Breen, David Fitch, Ben Sternke, and Matt Tebbe. Everything here deals with 'discipleship'... So... here goes some randomness...

• Most intense points of discipleship come when we're pushed to our weaknesses, rather than playing to our strengths. (sort of agree/disagree)
• Imitation plays a big part in discipleship. "If my life looked like (who), that would be ok."
• The culture of our formation is important (Breen): parents, geography, friends, people who invested time in us, etc.
• "People usually most open to the gospel are refugees" (Breen)
• The thing Jesus is looking for is -- who's following you.
• Do you know who your disciples are, and do they know you're discipling them?
• "Does the gospel you preach naturally lead to people becoming disciples?" (Dallas Willard?)
• "The gospel you're preaching is going to result in the disciples you're getting" (Sternke)
• "Missional people don't fall out of trees - they have to be formed" (Fitch)
• "Discipleship is considered 'extra credit' for too many, and it's not... it is what the gospel is about." (Sternke)
• People who are taught that forgiveness is the gospel don't become disciples... because they see no need for discipleship. They are what Dallas Willard calls "vampire Christians" - they only want Jesus for his blood. (Sternke)
• "Grace is not opposed to effort, it is opposed to earning." (Willard)
• Breen gave this really nice description of the gospel - that I can't really remember. Something about... "Jesus is the king. The kingdom is Jesus in charge. We are involved by either being for it or against it; with the king or against the king. Life is defined by Jesus and his rule. The question is how we are involved in the kingdom (protagonist or antagonist).
• Sometimes we're too eager to explain things and we're not content to plant seeds.
• "Most of us don't have ears to hear, we have ears to sort" (Willard).
• "Jesus was asked over 180 direct questions, and he only answered 3 of them." (Tebbe) (so don't tell people what to do, but ask questions).
• The Christian life is not my own, but it belongs to the community.
• Discipleship is part of community, not meant to be done one on one. (Breen made this comment when I was not around, so I don't know the context of it).
• "The practice of reconciliation is the single most forming thing you can do..." (Fitch)
• Colossians 3:15 - "rule"=referee/arbiter (teaching people to listen to the whistle; or else they're breaking the rules)
• The word "disciple" is not mentioned beyond Acts. Discipleship is taken from Rabbinic tradition. In the epistles the language - the process of imitation (or metaphor) - changes from Rabbinic to "Father/Child" language. Training/nurture in a more parent/child relationship is in repeatable/predictable patterns. (Breen - interesting stuff).
  

Simple, but intentional, shaping

At the Missional Learning Commons on Friday night, first we heard a couple of people reflect on their personal discipleship experiences. They were both quite different. Then Mike Breen from 3DM shared a bit of random reflection on discipleship himself.

Mike talked about the importance of culture in shaping us. Whether it is the people, the region, or whatever... belief is often more "caught" than "taught." So we were supposed to discuss around our table the formative influences in our lives - the who, what, and where that helped shape our faith.

Mike then shared from Jeremiah 18 (1-6), and the "Potters wheel." It was very interesting but I didn't write anything down. Anyway, then we were supposed to share at our tables one resolution we would make to "shape" someone else (meaning to "disciple" someone).

I didn't share this at the table, but thought about it later... I remember when we got our cat... It was pretty scared of everything, so I consciously set about to try to pick it up every now and then, but to put it down before it wanted down. I wanted to create an atmosphere where it knew I wasn't going to hold it against its will; and, in fact, where it wanted to be held LONGER than I was holding it. Interestingly enough, I think it worked. The cat now likes for me to hold it, and usually climbs up in the chair with me at night (though it's still pretty scared of everyone else).

I tried to do something similar with our granddaughter. I wanted a "signature" so-to-speak, so from a very early age she would know how to distinguish her grandpa from everyone else. So as soon as she was able to see and recognize things, every time I would see her I would put my hands together, wiggle my fingers, and come up to her and sort of tickle her (not that I really tickled her, but more just the wiggly fingers thing). So then every time she saw this person wiggling their fingers and coming up to her, pretty soon she would start to catch on that it was the same person every time. Now, all I have to do is wiggle my fingers from a distance and I get a great big grin - because even though she may not know I am "grandpa" yet, she at least knows who I AM. It was simple, but intentional.

I think that's a lot of what discipleship is. It's not rocket science, but it takes intentionality. So, one thing I want to resolve to do is to disciple my granddaughter by singing to her simple "Bible" songs - once she's able to do that. I would also like to read Bible stories to her. It's not rocket science, but it's not going to happen if I'm not intentional about it.

After we discussed this some more Mike shared a couple more things. He said, "The thing that Jesus is looking for is - who's following you." Are you discipling anyone? It doesn't have to be hard; it doesn't have to be something that's really deep or dramatic either. But are you intentionally helping anyone grow in their faith?

Then he said, "Do you know who your disciples are, AND do they know that you're discipling them?" Hmm... that adds another little twist. Do they know they are being discipled?

Well, anyway, I think we often don't do anything, because we think it's going to be too difficult or require too much from us. Actually, it can be quite simple... but we have to be intentional about it. I think.

Missional learning commons at northern seminary

Jane and I attended the 2011 Missional Learning Commons held at Northern Seminary yesterday and today. I will probably post some of my notes eventually (though I didn't take very many). I just wanted to get some logistical information down for the future right now though.

We stayed at the Hyatt Place hotel. It was close to the seminary, and we actually walked over there Friday night. Although the trail through the woods isn't lit. The Weston is actually 'right there' and has a Harry Carey's bar inside. I might check that out if I ever go back.

It was 190 miles, and took us about 3 hours and 20 minutes to get home (without stopping). Google said 3:52. I think we made it a little faster on the way up on Friday, but I drove faster - hoping to get there before rush hour was too bad. We took I-69 to rt. 30, took 30 to Merrilville and got on I-65N, to I-80W, to I-294N, to I-88W, to Highland Ave. N., to Butterfield Rd. E., to Fountain Square Dr. - and we were there. Reversed it all to get home. I think we paid 3 80-cent tolls each way. On the way there we stopped in Valparaiso and got gas. That was 120 miles from home; so it was another 70 from there to Lombard (the hotel/seminary). It took about 2 hours to get to Valpo.

The event was pretty good. It was all about discipleship. There were several speakers, and lots of round-table discussion. Mike Breen and Dave Fitch sort of oversaw the festivities and offered feedback now and then. The biggest problem was that the room was hot, hot, hot on Friday night, and cold, cold, freezing cold on Saturday. Plus, on Saturday we had someone sit at our table who sort of just totally dominated the conversation and refused to discuss what we were supposed to be discussing. He is on staff at Indiana Wesleyan, and just had a new book published. He was a real nice guy, and his wife was super nice, but it irritated the snot out of me and I didn't say much. I don't like being "used" for information, and also being "tooled" to satisfy an unsettled ego (or whatever). I'm just not into the networking thing and performing for someone so they can tweet about it. But other than that it was a pretty good time.

We ate at a Weber Grill restaurant on Friday night, and had a boxed lunch at the seminary Saturday for lunch. We ended up leaving at noon (instead of 3 pm when it was over). The room was so stinking cold, and I was tired of listening to our table mate. The other table mates were all nice though. I suppose anymore I would just as soon leave when I've got enough stuff, rather than risking waiting around to get something more and being overdone. Or something.

Anyway, good trip.