Silence being at last obtained, the customary lessons of the divine Scriptures were read. And when I came to my sermon, I made a few remarks suitable to the occasion and the happy and joyful feeling, not desiring them to listen to me, but rather to consider the eloquence of God in this divine work (p. 830-831).A great reminder that we are to always point to God’s eloquence in His divine work. Sometimes that means speaking. Sometimes it means keeping silent and just pointing the way.
Showing posts with label Books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Books. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Hump Day History: St. Augustine’s City of God
I’m a pastor. Sometimes I think I’m paid to talk. I’m paid to preach, give advice, be a ‘spiritual director.’ But I’m rebuked by St. Augustine’s description of a powerful moment in his ministry. He’s talking about different healings happening during his time as a church leader. On one such occasion, everyone was going crazy praising God going into the service. And this is how the service progressed after this time of healing…
Monday, May 10, 2010
Mission(al) Monday: Missional Renaissance, Shift from Church-Based to Kingdom-Based Leadership – Changing the Scorecard, Part 1
This is a challenge for those who are involved in church-based leadership, but McNeal helps with metrics in four different areas in his leadership training: paradigm issues (moving toward a missional mindset), microskill development (competencies the leader needs), resource management (what the leader has to work with), and personal growth (the leader as a person). Before we look at each, McNeal notes that it will take ‘ruthless self-management’ to ‘live the change they seek’ in the church and in others. What does it look like?
Paradigm Issues
Moving to a missional worldview is seeing your life as a mission trip. Following Jesus is not something you add onto your life, it is your life. McNeal suggests the following to help track the shift.
· Numbers of relationships with people who aren’t Jesus followers or church people, including those who are community leaders.
· Intentional study of things that help you understand your culture – periodicals, books, blogs, websites, and podcasts – and debriefing the culture with your leaders.
· Number of venues for intentional service in the community and number of hours serving.
· Number of life-coaching relationships and a regular commitment to debriefing your personal life with a coach or personal growth group.
· Number of stories of external, missional experiences used in your speaking and writing.
Microskill Development
There are plenty of resources available – books, seminars, and professionals – to grow in the areas to follow.
· Coaching. This means helping people with their further development.
· Storytelling. People under 30 make meaning through story. It is key to helping the missional change. It helps persuade and show people, concretely, how the gospel makes a difference.
· Conflict Management. Change means conflict. There’s also a self-awareness of what’s happening psychologically in yourself if you deal with negative emotions in conflict.
· Transition Leadership. Change doesn’t kill people. The emotions of change bury them. Helping people through it is vital.
· Listening Skills. This is mostly done through focus and intentionality, but there are also resources available to help with this (one of the books on our Friday Book Club queue is Quick-to-listen Leaders).
· Celebrating Others and Self. Celebrate missional progress and achievements because ‘what gets rewarded gets done.’
· Missionary Training. We need to help people understand the language of their own culture – and it should probably begin with generational studies.
· Praying. More time praying, but just as important, prayer must be dialogical, listening to what God is doing and where He wants to lead us.
Paradigm Issues
Moving to a missional worldview is seeing your life as a mission trip. Following Jesus is not something you add onto your life, it is your life. McNeal suggests the following to help track the shift.
· Numbers of relationships with people who aren’t Jesus followers or church people, including those who are community leaders.
· Intentional study of things that help you understand your culture – periodicals, books, blogs, websites, and podcasts – and debriefing the culture with your leaders.
· Number of venues for intentional service in the community and number of hours serving.
· Number of life-coaching relationships and a regular commitment to debriefing your personal life with a coach or personal growth group.
· Number of stories of external, missional experiences used in your speaking and writing.
Microskill Development
There are plenty of resources available – books, seminars, and professionals – to grow in the areas to follow.
· Coaching. This means helping people with their further development.
· Storytelling. People under 30 make meaning through story. It is key to helping the missional change. It helps persuade and show people, concretely, how the gospel makes a difference.
· Conflict Management. Change means conflict. There’s also a self-awareness of what’s happening psychologically in yourself if you deal with negative emotions in conflict.
· Transition Leadership. Change doesn’t kill people. The emotions of change bury them. Helping people through it is vital.
· Listening Skills. This is mostly done through focus and intentionality, but there are also resources available to help with this (one of the books on our Friday Book Club queue is Quick-to-listen Leaders).
· Celebrating Others and Self. Celebrate missional progress and achievements because ‘what gets rewarded gets done.’
· Missionary Training. We need to help people understand the language of their own culture – and it should probably begin with generational studies.
· Praying. More time praying, but just as important, prayer must be dialogical, listening to what God is doing and where He wants to lead us.
Monday, May 3, 2010
Mission(al) Monday: Missional Renaissance, Shift from Church-Based to Kingdom-Based Leadership, Part 2
We started exploring the shift from church-based to kingdom-based leadership last Monday. Go check it out if you missed it and you’ll be up to speed for today’s continuation.
From Train and Deploy to Deploy and Debrief
Academic proficiency does not result in great leadership. McNeal isn’t against training; he thinks we need more theological training, but not the train & deploy model we’re working. Jesus deployed and then debriefed on their experiences. We’re seeing a shift toward this direction in many modular and online programs and it is trickling down to the M.Div. level as well. This opens the door for teachers and others to get a theological education without uprooting their families, etc… It should help develop genuine leaders, not just people with the right credentialing.
From Positional to Personal
The hierarchical authority days are fading. Leadership has been based on positional authority, but those days are numbered. It is personal influence that will soon carry the day. We need up-close and personal leadership. This leads to a huge challenge: “Are we living what we’re talking about? Are our own lives missional? Is there a spiritual attractiveness to us?”
Frequently Asked Questions
This discussion ‘frequently’ freaks church leaders out. Here are some of the questions McNeal deals with on a regular basis.
What is the role of the traditional church in the missional movement?
McNeal doesn’t think the traditional church should or will fold. Rather, McNeal is focusing on changing the focus of the church from “what” to “who” as the church goes into all areas of society. Here are some roles the traditional churches can take in the ‘missional renaissance’…
· Intake and deployment centers for missional followers of Jesus.
· Umbrella organizations for missional communities. This means building up the church, not necessarily this church.
· Use their gifts meeting some of the needs missional communities uncover.
How will you maintain doctrinal and biblical orthodoxy if you’re all off in your own communities doing your own thing?
There have always been theological shifts and we have the same Word of God and the same Spirit shepherding the church.
What is the role of clergy in the missional movement?
· Teaching: Good teaching and a theological perspective are still vitally important.
· Life coaching: This has been covered in previous posts.
· Missional strategies: Clergy are in a perfect position to be missional strategists.
· Training for missional community leaders: As missional leaders proliferate, they’re going to need someone to lead them. Clergy have some of the tools necessary for this training.
How do I earn a living doing what you’re talking about?
Bivocational may be a necessity for many. Get training now instead of later so you’ll be ready when the need for more than one job arises.
What about my call?
“Does your call revolve around a mission or a job?” Rarely has a question to a question been so clear. Unnerving for those of us who make a living in ministry, but the answer is clear.
From Train and Deploy to Deploy and Debrief
Academic proficiency does not result in great leadership. McNeal isn’t against training; he thinks we need more theological training, but not the train & deploy model we’re working. Jesus deployed and then debriefed on their experiences. We’re seeing a shift toward this direction in many modular and online programs and it is trickling down to the M.Div. level as well. This opens the door for teachers and others to get a theological education without uprooting their families, etc… It should help develop genuine leaders, not just people with the right credentialing.
From Positional to Personal
The hierarchical authority days are fading. Leadership has been based on positional authority, but those days are numbered. It is personal influence that will soon carry the day. We need up-close and personal leadership. This leads to a huge challenge: “Are we living what we’re talking about? Are our own lives missional? Is there a spiritual attractiveness to us?”
Frequently Asked Questions
This discussion ‘frequently’ freaks church leaders out. Here are some of the questions McNeal deals with on a regular basis.
What is the role of the traditional church in the missional movement?
McNeal doesn’t think the traditional church should or will fold. Rather, McNeal is focusing on changing the focus of the church from “what” to “who” as the church goes into all areas of society. Here are some roles the traditional churches can take in the ‘missional renaissance’…
· Intake and deployment centers for missional followers of Jesus.
· Umbrella organizations for missional communities. This means building up the church, not necessarily this church.
· Use their gifts meeting some of the needs missional communities uncover.
How will you maintain doctrinal and biblical orthodoxy if you’re all off in your own communities doing your own thing?
There have always been theological shifts and we have the same Word of God and the same Spirit shepherding the church.
What is the role of clergy in the missional movement?
· Teaching: Good teaching and a theological perspective are still vitally important.
· Life coaching: This has been covered in previous posts.
· Missional strategies: Clergy are in a perfect position to be missional strategists.
· Training for missional community leaders: As missional leaders proliferate, they’re going to need someone to lead them. Clergy have some of the tools necessary for this training.
How do I earn a living doing what you’re talking about?
Bivocational may be a necessity for many. Get training now instead of later so you’ll be ready when the need for more than one job arises.
What about my call?
“Does your call revolve around a mission or a job?” Rarely has a question to a question been so clear. Unnerving for those of us who make a living in ministry, but the answer is clear.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Hump Day History: St. Augustine’s City of God (with some Christopher Hall on hermeneutics! – can it get any more exciting?!)
I lied last time when I said we’d get back to Book XXI. It’s been long enough since I’ve read the book that Books XXI and XXII are no longer fresh so we’ll hop around as appropriate. I mentioned last Wednesday that I’m reading a book on patristic exegesis a few days ago. The book starts with a wonderful challenge on why we should read the fathers and it served as a fine rebuke for the critique of Augustine’s hermeneutics I was eventually planning. (I know; who am I to critique Augustine? I know, I know.) I thought now would be a good time to walk through the process and learn from both Augustine and Hall.
Augustine’s City of God was a challenging read so I wouldn’t say I had my critical reading spectacles on. I was mostly mining for helpful insight and get a feel for him as a thinker since he’s one of the most formative in Christian history. But there are some times where I wonder what he’s doing. He spends forever and a day wrestling with genealogies and timelines. I guess it was a major apologetic issue at the time, but he argues that time may have been measured differently in times past than it is today (XV.14). I suppose that isn’t impossible, but it seems like doing some significant gymnastics to prove a point while there may be some significant reckoning to be done later. He gets creative with his prophetic interpretations at times (XVII.8) and his desire to make biblical characters more noble than they might have been (XVI.25, 37). This, in addition to things I’d heard about his allegorical tendencies in Bible school makes me roll my eyes and be quick to dismiss some of the great saint’s intepretations. Not so fast, says, Hall.
Hall doesn’t argue (in his Introduction) that Augustine is infallible, but he does remind us of what a great tool the early church fathers are for us today. Just like they have their cultural blinders and quirks, we have our own. Given that they are so close to the source (time-wise) and they are in the stream of orthodoxy, we should give weight to their interpretations and use them as good resources to help us get out of our own cultural lenses. We are quick to point out others’ errors and remain willingly blind to our own. Reading the church fathers gives us the challenge of a broadened perspective coupled with the assurance that they bulk of their teaching is within the stream of orthodoxy.
I always thought those Ancient Christian Commentaries on Scripture were a waste of money. I haven’t bought one yet, but Hall has me thinking it might be worth snagging one for the next book I teach through.
Augustine’s City of God was a challenging read so I wouldn’t say I had my critical reading spectacles on. I was mostly mining for helpful insight and get a feel for him as a thinker since he’s one of the most formative in Christian history. But there are some times where I wonder what he’s doing. He spends forever and a day wrestling with genealogies and timelines. I guess it was a major apologetic issue at the time, but he argues that time may have been measured differently in times past than it is today (XV.14). I suppose that isn’t impossible, but it seems like doing some significant gymnastics to prove a point while there may be some significant reckoning to be done later. He gets creative with his prophetic interpretations at times (XVII.8) and his desire to make biblical characters more noble than they might have been (XVI.25, 37). This, in addition to things I’d heard about his allegorical tendencies in Bible school makes me roll my eyes and be quick to dismiss some of the great saint’s intepretations. Not so fast, says, Hall.
Hall doesn’t argue (in his Introduction) that Augustine is infallible, but he does remind us of what a great tool the early church fathers are for us today. Just like they have their cultural blinders and quirks, we have our own. Given that they are so close to the source (time-wise) and they are in the stream of orthodoxy, we should give weight to their interpretations and use them as good resources to help us get out of our own cultural lenses. We are quick to point out others’ errors and remain willingly blind to our own. Reading the church fathers gives us the challenge of a broadened perspective coupled with the assurance that they bulk of their teaching is within the stream of orthodoxy.
I always thought those Ancient Christian Commentaries on Scripture were a waste of money. I haven’t bought one yet, but Hall has me thinking it might be worth snagging one for the next book I teach through.
Monday, April 26, 2010
Mission(al) Monday: Missional Renaissance, Shift from Church-Based to Kingdom-Based Leadership, Part 1
The last shift is a leadership shift that includes moving from church-based leadership to more of an AD 30 Leadership. The style is apostolic, though the term freaks some people out. The idea is that leadership needs to shift from building the church to mobilizing people as missionaries. This may mean being a missionary yourself (like Paul) or helping the church be outwardly-focused (like Peter). Here are some transitions in the leader’s self-perception that needs to happen…
From Church Job to Kingdom Assignment
Somehow the passionate expansionist ideals of the early church were crushed by the burden of church hierarchy and institutionalism. Leaders in the missional movement are reengaging the world, not necessarily through the church, but by recognizing the importance of influencing those outside the church. This can be pastors who have an element of their jobs where they serve outside the church or believers who use their influence to minister to their employees and co-workers in practical ways. It doesn’t fill the pews, but it connects people to Jesus.
From Institutional Representative to Viral Agent
Oftentimes current church leaders are promoting this or that event that you need to be at, focusing on what is happening inside the church. Kingdom leaders are doing everything they can to get themselves and leaders into the community making a difference in the lives of those outside the church – most effectively if it is within people’s daily routines. Sometimes the institution and the community can come together perfectly. Example: one church took their VBS to a day care center. Most kids participated where they wouldn’t have before and the tie between day care and church was strengthened, including connecting day care workers with church prayer partners.
From Director to Producer
In the movie business, directors have their hands on the details of the film-making. Producers have a big picture and make it happen. In churches, clergy think they need to be in the middle of everything sometimes. It’s better if they don’t. Rather, they release people to do ministry all over the place, in different venues – their own venues. Instead of getting people to star in church movies, they’re empowered to make their own.
From Reliving the Past (the Historian) to Rearranging the Future (the Journalist)
The memorable quote (after visiting an empty Swiss church on a church holiday): “A faith built on dead people doesn’t thrive.” We need to honor the past and teach the Scriptures, but all our heroes can’t be dead. We need missional leaders who experience God on the frontiers and then take people along to experience him there as well.
We’ll cover the rest of this chapter next week as well as some Frequently Asked Questions on how this works for the leaders who are going to need to undergo change.
From Church Job to Kingdom Assignment
Somehow the passionate expansionist ideals of the early church were crushed by the burden of church hierarchy and institutionalism. Leaders in the missional movement are reengaging the world, not necessarily through the church, but by recognizing the importance of influencing those outside the church. This can be pastors who have an element of their jobs where they serve outside the church or believers who use their influence to minister to their employees and co-workers in practical ways. It doesn’t fill the pews, but it connects people to Jesus.
From Institutional Representative to Viral Agent
Oftentimes current church leaders are promoting this or that event that you need to be at, focusing on what is happening inside the church. Kingdom leaders are doing everything they can to get themselves and leaders into the community making a difference in the lives of those outside the church – most effectively if it is within people’s daily routines. Sometimes the institution and the community can come together perfectly. Example: one church took their VBS to a day care center. Most kids participated where they wouldn’t have before and the tie between day care and church was strengthened, including connecting day care workers with church prayer partners.
From Director to Producer
In the movie business, directors have their hands on the details of the film-making. Producers have a big picture and make it happen. In churches, clergy think they need to be in the middle of everything sometimes. It’s better if they don’t. Rather, they release people to do ministry all over the place, in different venues – their own venues. Instead of getting people to star in church movies, they’re empowered to make their own.
From Reliving the Past (the Historian) to Rearranging the Future (the Journalist)
The memorable quote (after visiting an empty Swiss church on a church holiday): “A faith built on dead people doesn’t thrive.” We need to honor the past and teach the Scriptures, but all our heroes can’t be dead. We need missional leaders who experience God on the frontiers and then take people along to experience him there as well.
We’ll cover the rest of this chapter next week as well as some Frequently Asked Questions on how this works for the leaders who are going to need to undergo change.
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Mission(al) Monday: Missional Renaissance, Shift from Program Development to People Development – Keeping Score
(NOTE: I know it isn't Monday, but I can't copy & paste my posts on my new computer so this post couldn't make it out on Monday. However, my old computer is still in my office so I can make it work ... at least for today:)
The shift from program development to people development makes enough sense, but it is more difficult to figure out how to keep score with such a paradigm shift. We’re used to counting how many are in services or going to church activities or church-centered growth opportunities or staff committed to managing programs. The new scorecard should include relationships people are cultivating, people released into service, personal life development, life-centered growth, and staff engaged in coaching people for their personal development. The shift needs to reveal real changes in people and real staff hours spent in helping people move forward, not just program management. Let’s see what it might look like…
Prayer
We don’t pray enough or expectantly and with our eyes open to see what God is doing. The new scorecard may include…
· The number of people growing in their prayer lives.
· Amount of prayer – individual and corporate – in public gatherings.
· Work team/Committee meetings with key component of prayer linked to the mission of God.
· Time spent in prayer in staff meetings.
· Number of people serving as prayer partners for community leaders and staff.
· Prayer meetings – inside the church and in the community.
People
We need to coach people and help them develop life skills, self-awareness, resource management, and personal growth. This might be ‘scored’ like this…
· Number of people with improved marriages, friendships, family life over time.
· Number of people engaged in financial planning and increased giving to Kingdom causes.
· Number of people receiving coaching or being mentored or just increasing friendships.
· Number of people identifying strengths, developing, and living a plan.
This also affects leadership. Leaders need to be involved in these things for themselves and serving others so they can happen.
Calendar
Most of the ‘scores’ so far deal with time spent investing in personal development, but there are some creative ways to measure this.
· Amount of time spent debriefing people serving the community.
· Amount of time in leadership meetings figuring out how to develop people.
· Percentage of time in corporate gatherings celebrating faith stories.
· Progress on simplifying the church calendar to leave more time for personal development.
Finances
Money reflects values. Some benchmarks to consider…
· Reducing corporate debt to free money up for investing in people.
· Amount of seed money in microeconomic development.
· Number of financial planning courses and the number of people participating.
· Number of people reporting personal debt retirement.
· Number of people increasing their generosity through charitable giving.
· Amount of giving by constituents.
· Number of messages on financial issues (not just giving).
Facilities
Facilities can do more than just provide places to support ministry programming. Some ways it might be more people development-oriented…
· Percentage of facility used during the week by people for personal growth (exercise classes, tutoring, skill seminars, etc…)
· Number of external or additional venues the church is creating for ministry, such as coffee shops or prayer booths.
· Number of schools or community organizations using church facilities for their activities.
· Space devoted to conversation-friendly areas.
Technology
Technology used to support ministry. Now it delivers it. If it is being used to develop people, you’ll count the …
· Number of personal growth and online learning opportunities on your website … and how many people are using them.
· Number of life change stories on your website.
· Number of people being trained in technology usage.
One church of several hundred congregants interviewed was seeking to be a people-developing church. So they interviewed anyone who wanted to be interviewed wherever they wanted to be interviewed. Their interview had five questions and then they built ministry and people around their findings. The five questions (read McNeal for their rationale – this post is already too long!)
1. What do you enjoy doing?
2. Where do you see God at work right now?
3. What would you like to see God do in your life over the next six to twelve months? How can we help?
4. How would you like to serve other people? How can we help?
5. How can we pray for you?
The shift from program development to people development makes enough sense, but it is more difficult to figure out how to keep score with such a paradigm shift. We’re used to counting how many are in services or going to church activities or church-centered growth opportunities or staff committed to managing programs. The new scorecard should include relationships people are cultivating, people released into service, personal life development, life-centered growth, and staff engaged in coaching people for their personal development. The shift needs to reveal real changes in people and real staff hours spent in helping people move forward, not just program management. Let’s see what it might look like…
Prayer
We don’t pray enough or expectantly and with our eyes open to see what God is doing. The new scorecard may include…
· The number of people growing in their prayer lives.
· Amount of prayer – individual and corporate – in public gatherings.
· Work team/Committee meetings with key component of prayer linked to the mission of God.
· Time spent in prayer in staff meetings.
· Number of people serving as prayer partners for community leaders and staff.
· Prayer meetings – inside the church and in the community.
People
We need to coach people and help them develop life skills, self-awareness, resource management, and personal growth. This might be ‘scored’ like this…
· Number of people with improved marriages, friendships, family life over time.
· Number of people engaged in financial planning and increased giving to Kingdom causes.
· Number of people receiving coaching or being mentored or just increasing friendships.
· Number of people identifying strengths, developing, and living a plan.
This also affects leadership. Leaders need to be involved in these things for themselves and serving others so they can happen.
Calendar
Most of the ‘scores’ so far deal with time spent investing in personal development, but there are some creative ways to measure this.
· Amount of time spent debriefing people serving the community.
· Amount of time in leadership meetings figuring out how to develop people.
· Percentage of time in corporate gatherings celebrating faith stories.
· Progress on simplifying the church calendar to leave more time for personal development.
Finances
Money reflects values. Some benchmarks to consider…
· Reducing corporate debt to free money up for investing in people.
· Amount of seed money in microeconomic development.
· Number of financial planning courses and the number of people participating.
· Number of people reporting personal debt retirement.
· Number of people increasing their generosity through charitable giving.
· Amount of giving by constituents.
· Number of messages on financial issues (not just giving).
Facilities
Facilities can do more than just provide places to support ministry programming. Some ways it might be more people development-oriented…
· Percentage of facility used during the week by people for personal growth (exercise classes, tutoring, skill seminars, etc…)
· Number of external or additional venues the church is creating for ministry, such as coffee shops or prayer booths.
· Number of schools or community organizations using church facilities for their activities.
· Space devoted to conversation-friendly areas.
Technology
Technology used to support ministry. Now it delivers it. If it is being used to develop people, you’ll count the …
· Number of personal growth and online learning opportunities on your website … and how many people are using them.
· Number of life change stories on your website.
· Number of people being trained in technology usage.
One church of several hundred congregants interviewed was seeking to be a people-developing church. So they interviewed anyone who wanted to be interviewed wherever they wanted to be interviewed. Their interview had five questions and then they built ministry and people around their findings. The five questions (read McNeal for their rationale – this post is already too long!)
1. What do you enjoy doing?
2. Where do you see God at work right now?
3. What would you like to see God do in your life over the next six to twelve months? How can we help?
4. How would you like to serve other people? How can we help?
5. How can we pray for you?
Monday, April 12, 2010
Mission(al) Monday: Missional Renaissance, Shift from Program Development to People Development – Keeping Score
I can't seem to copy and paste from my Word file to blogger here. I'll get this up ASAP.
Friday, April 9, 2010
Book Club (Nerd Club) Friday: Church Unique, Chapters 9-10
For our most recent post in this series, go here. They should be every Friday previous to the one just linked as well.
It's been a few weeks since we've covered Church Unique, but we're back at it. I'm not sure if my partners are still with me, but we'll roll it out this week and see where we stand. This week we'll cover chapter 9, "Discover Your Kingdom Concept," which led to some great discussions in staff meeting a few months ago. I'm looking forward to looking deeper into and seeing some of the principles behind our specifics. I hope to get into it in the next day or two, but feel free to comment and set the table in the meantime.
It's been a few weeks since we've covered Church Unique, but we're back at it. I'm not sure if my partners are still with me, but we'll roll it out this week and see where we stand. This week we'll cover chapter 9, "Discover Your Kingdom Concept," which led to some great discussions in staff meeting a few months ago. I'm looking forward to looking deeper into and seeing some of the principles behind our specifics. I hope to get into it in the next day or two, but feel free to comment and set the table in the meantime.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Hump Day History: St. Augustine’s City of God
Since we’re just a few days out of Easter, I thought I would get out of Book XXI, which is about judgment, and hop ahead to the final book, Book XXII to look at eternity. (We’ll get back to Book XXI next Wednesday). While heaven is happier to think about than hell, we’ll dwell on a bittersweet thought of Augustine’s today. Specifically, we’ll forget our sins in heaven so far as we will forget them experientially. But we will remember them intellectually. Here’s why…
Our sins bring us great pain and we shall be delivered of them one day in full, but not to such a degree that we forget the great debt paid at the cross by Jesus. I don’t know how this works, but it rings true. He will wipe away every tear (Rev. 22), but we will still look upon the Lamb that was slain.
“But their intellectual knowledge, which shall be great, shall keep them acquainted not only with their own past woes, but with the eternal sufferings of the lost. For if they were not to know that they had been miserable, how could they, as the Psalmist says, for ever sing the mercies of God? Certainly that city shall have no greater joy than the celebration of the grace of Christ, who redeemed us by His blood” (p. 866).
Our sins bring us great pain and we shall be delivered of them one day in full, but not to such a degree that we forget the great debt paid at the cross by Jesus. I don’t know how this works, but it rings true. He will wipe away every tear (Rev. 22), but we will still look upon the Lamb that was slain.
Monday, April 5, 2010
Mission(al) Monday: Missional Renaissance, Shift from Program Development to People Development (Part 2)
Go here for Part 1 of this post. Let’s continue on…
From Delivering to Debriefing
Pastors often think once they’ve delivered the goods, the information, they’re done. Or maybe the program ‘does its thing,’ but that isn’t enough we need to let people process what they’re learning and living. It may mean giving time in service to share what God is doing in their life with their neighbors or it could be having people share how they’ll apply a Sunday message with the people sitting around them. It’s a move from mental assent to the Word or an event to actually processing how it changes us.
From Didactic to Behavioral
This is the next step from debriefing – training people to live their faith, not just get the facts down. It isn’t a delivery system we’re looking at. It’s helping people live their faith. This can happen with a bunch of faith coaches to help people grow in a customized way.
From Curriculum-Centered to Life-Centered
Instead of pulling people out of life to go through curriculum, enter into their lives and walk with them through their challenges. The example is a woman with quintuplets. A woman wanted to get her out of the house an hour per week to mentor her. Instead, she was challenged to fold diapers with her and talk about life. That’s life-centered.
From Growing into Service to Growing Through Service
Don’t worry about getting people ready to serve by ‘growing’ them. Get them serving as soon as they’re interested and watch them grow through that process!
From Compartmentalization to Integration
Instead of recognizing giftedness that MUST be used in the church, help people recognize that they are gifted by God to serve the world wherever they find themselves in their work, neighborhood, etc… It is the church being a who rather than a place. The church should be integrated into society as Jesus’ Body is serving all over the place.
From Age Segregation to Age Integration
Program-driven churches have ‘generational silos’ where a family can go all Sunday without interacting. Of course there’s a draw to being with people your own age, but if we’re to develop people, we need the range of human experience and to build relationships across generations. One baby step is a youth leader who sends a summary of his messages to parents with discussion questions so they can follow up. Discipleship isn’t the church’s job. It’s the family’s. We equip.
Final Thoughts
This is about relationships. And, coupled with the shift to service, it means not just transforming people in our congregation, but those we serve. So, instead of just giving food to the poor, we figure out how to move them forward and help them develop as people to be who God has called them to be.
We’ll look at how we might ‘Change the Scorecard’ on moving from programs to people-development next week.
From Delivering to Debriefing
Pastors often think once they’ve delivered the goods, the information, they’re done. Or maybe the program ‘does its thing,’ but that isn’t enough we need to let people process what they’re learning and living. It may mean giving time in service to share what God is doing in their life with their neighbors or it could be having people share how they’ll apply a Sunday message with the people sitting around them. It’s a move from mental assent to the Word or an event to actually processing how it changes us.
From Didactic to Behavioral
This is the next step from debriefing – training people to live their faith, not just get the facts down. It isn’t a delivery system we’re looking at. It’s helping people live their faith. This can happen with a bunch of faith coaches to help people grow in a customized way.
From Curriculum-Centered to Life-Centered
Instead of pulling people out of life to go through curriculum, enter into their lives and walk with them through their challenges. The example is a woman with quintuplets. A woman wanted to get her out of the house an hour per week to mentor her. Instead, she was challenged to fold diapers with her and talk about life. That’s life-centered.
From Growing into Service to Growing Through Service
Don’t worry about getting people ready to serve by ‘growing’ them. Get them serving as soon as they’re interested and watch them grow through that process!
From Compartmentalization to Integration
Instead of recognizing giftedness that MUST be used in the church, help people recognize that they are gifted by God to serve the world wherever they find themselves in their work, neighborhood, etc… It is the church being a who rather than a place. The church should be integrated into society as Jesus’ Body is serving all over the place.
From Age Segregation to Age Integration
Program-driven churches have ‘generational silos’ where a family can go all Sunday without interacting. Of course there’s a draw to being with people your own age, but if we’re to develop people, we need the range of human experience and to build relationships across generations. One baby step is a youth leader who sends a summary of his messages to parents with discussion questions so they can follow up. Discipleship isn’t the church’s job. It’s the family’s. We equip.
Final Thoughts
This is about relationships. And, coupled with the shift to service, it means not just transforming people in our congregation, but those we serve. So, instead of just giving food to the poor, we figure out how to move them forward and help them develop as people to be who God has called them to be.
We’ll look at how we might ‘Change the Scorecard’ on moving from programs to people-development next week.
Monday, March 22, 2010
Mission(al) Monday: Missional Renaissance, Shift from Program Development to People Development
McNeal begins with a challenging story from a church plant he started twenty plus years ago. After a meeting, God spoke to him: “Are people better off for being part of this church, or are they just tireder and poorer?” It bothered him – because he thought he knew the answer. He didn’t know how way to measure people’s spiritual growth – only church involvement. This is the most difficult shift for leaders to make. We know how to cross programs and events off our calendar, but people are never ‘done.’ This is a trap for the missional church, not just the traditional. We can feed the poor, but that’s just step one. How do we mentor them or help them get jobs or whatever’s next.
The rise of the program-oriented church came in the wake of WWII with the rise of the service economy. People outsourced things they didn’t like to do, including spiritual formation. According to McNeal, the church isn’t supposed to be the center for spiritual development – “everyday living” is. In all our programming, the church is disliked by many because we have not loved like Jesus, despite all our programs.
McNeal isn’t calling for the death of programs. Rather, the issue is making peoples’ success the end, not the program’s success. The quality of people, not the programs is what we’re looking for. (Note: McNeal is quick to point out that this isn’t a mega-church vs. small church issue. Both have successes and disasters in their portfolios).
What does this look like? We’ll start this week with “Fostering a People Development Culture” and we’ll finish it next week. Like moving from internal to external, this is going to take some shifts in our thinking and behavior. Just one of these changes won’t work, but taken together, they can get us on the right track.
From Standardization to Customization
For a long time churches were like McDonald’s. You knew what you were going to get at a Baptist church all around the US (or any other denomination, for that matter). It started with the desire to target programs to people, but things were inverted in time. But just as the previous era was mass standardization, now the mode of operation is mass customization. You don’t have to buy a CD for one song or go to Bible study on Sunday only – with people others have chosen for you. This creates challenges for the program-oriented church, but opportunities as well.
From Scripting to Shaping
Pastors are trained to give people the script for growth, but people are less inclined to listen to experts and want more control over their lives. The role needs to shift to coaching, which people are more inclined to receive. Leaders should know what people need, but we need to help them participate in the process by coaching them. This is labor-intensive, but worth it. And this is a place where you can direct people to programs that will help them build their growth portfolio.
From Participation to Maturation
People can participate in a bunch of church activities and never actually be changed. They can tithe and still be as mean as ever. Go to Sunday School and still defend racist views, etc… The missional church focuses less on what people are doing and more on who they are becoming.
We’ll cover the rest in two weeks. Next week we’ll be walking through Passion Week.
The rise of the program-oriented church came in the wake of WWII with the rise of the service economy. People outsourced things they didn’t like to do, including spiritual formation. According to McNeal, the church isn’t supposed to be the center for spiritual development – “everyday living” is. In all our programming, the church is disliked by many because we have not loved like Jesus, despite all our programs.
McNeal isn’t calling for the death of programs. Rather, the issue is making peoples’ success the end, not the program’s success. The quality of people, not the programs is what we’re looking for. (Note: McNeal is quick to point out that this isn’t a mega-church vs. small church issue. Both have successes and disasters in their portfolios).
What does this look like? We’ll start this week with “Fostering a People Development Culture” and we’ll finish it next week. Like moving from internal to external, this is going to take some shifts in our thinking and behavior. Just one of these changes won’t work, but taken together, they can get us on the right track.
From Standardization to Customization
For a long time churches were like McDonald’s. You knew what you were going to get at a Baptist church all around the US (or any other denomination, for that matter). It started with the desire to target programs to people, but things were inverted in time. But just as the previous era was mass standardization, now the mode of operation is mass customization. You don’t have to buy a CD for one song or go to Bible study on Sunday only – with people others have chosen for you. This creates challenges for the program-oriented church, but opportunities as well.
From Scripting to Shaping
Pastors are trained to give people the script for growth, but people are less inclined to listen to experts and want more control over their lives. The role needs to shift to coaching, which people are more inclined to receive. Leaders should know what people need, but we need to help them participate in the process by coaching them. This is labor-intensive, but worth it. And this is a place where you can direct people to programs that will help them build their growth portfolio.
From Participation to Maturation
People can participate in a bunch of church activities and never actually be changed. They can tithe and still be as mean as ever. Go to Sunday School and still defend racist views, etc… The missional church focuses less on what people are doing and more on who they are becoming.
We’ll cover the rest in two weeks. Next week we’ll be walking through Passion Week.
Saturday, March 20, 2010
More Tozer
I just finished The Pursuit of God by AW Tozer. I was reading it in bits and pieces and kind of distracted – mostly when I could steal a few minutes here and there at work. I don’t think I read it thoughtfully enough. He’s a thoughtful writer and I need to take some time someday to give be a more thoughtful reader of his. Until then, I’ve mined a few great quotes and added them to my Quote Index on my computer. Here’s one for thought…
“Made as we were in the image of God we scarcely find it strange to take again
our God as our All. God was our original habitat and our hearts cannot but feel
at home when they enter again that ancient and beautiful abode" (p. 104)
Friday, March 19, 2010
Book Club Friday: Church Unique, Chapters 8
We’re back to our Book Club – or Nerd Club. We’re on chapter 8 of Church Unique. I skimmed it last night. I’ll give it a better look over the next couple days and expand on it. If you’ve read it and want to start the discussion, get us started…
Monday, March 15, 2010
Mission(al) Monday: Missional Renaissance, Shift from Internal to External (Keeping Score, Part 2)
Last Monday we looked at how People and Prayer can be reconsidered and reallocated in a ministry with Kingdom perspective – externally focused rather than internally focused. We’ll finish this new kind of scorekeeping this week. Remember, these aren’t just things to do, they’re things we should track that we might make, and communicate, a shift from internal focus to external focus.
Time & Calendar
Make engagement with the community part of the staff’s ‘performance measurement.’ Make the church calendar a community calendar. Put both on the calendar so people know you value what’s going on in the community (and have links to city websites). Begin church planning with the community calendar. Build around what they’re doing. Reduce the nuber of church events on the calendar so people can be engaged. McNeal: “The commitment to do this might just be the first sign of a true conversion to missional” (p. 79). Monitor the time spent working for community. Finally, (and I think this is great) help people see their community involvement and their paid work as “primary opportunities for ministry” (p. 79).
Facilities Resources
The first question should be “what kind of building, if any, do we need?” If you have a building, how can you use it to bless the community? How can you partner with groups who serve the disadvantaged? Count the number of people served through AA or feeding programs (even if they’re run by another organization!) in your church building. Allow your space to be used by schools for concerts, meetings, etc… Look for offsite facilities that can be used for the benefit of the community – renting space in a mall for tenagers, etc… And be sure to count these as a fulfillment of the church’s mission, not just things we do. In addition to caring for those in need, your church can be used as an art exhibit or coffee shops or venues for local musicians.
Financial Resources
This isn’t my strong suit, but some ideas here include having a community component to your giving and capital campaigns (examples: one church gives $2 to external measures for every $1 it spends on its own facilities, another tithes to the community), get grant writers and partner with businesses on community-friendly initiatives. Ask community leaders of their needs. Create accounts of venture capital for community-oriented initiatives within the congregation. Do local microfinance, not just internationally. Challenge the congregation to figure out ways to limit expenses so they can give more (we did this at Christmas with Advent Conspiracy). Finally, think of ways to give creatively to the community. One church figured out how much they’d get taxed if they were to get taxed and they give that much to the community. Again, keep track and celebrate it!
Technology Resources
The last thing we’ll look at is an external focus with technology resources. Make sure your website has service opportunities for church members to bless the community and even let people share their encounters as they’ve sought to bless the community. Take advantage of social networking on the Internet. Create podcast interviews with community leaders. Measure hits on ministry opportunities to discover interest and allocate resources accordingly. Blog about missional engagement. Post celebratory videos/podcasts on what God is doing through your community engagement.
Next week we’ll look at the next shift – “From Program Development to People Development”!
Time & Calendar
Make engagement with the community part of the staff’s ‘performance measurement.’ Make the church calendar a community calendar. Put both on the calendar so people know you value what’s going on in the community (and have links to city websites). Begin church planning with the community calendar. Build around what they’re doing. Reduce the nuber of church events on the calendar so people can be engaged. McNeal: “The commitment to do this might just be the first sign of a true conversion to missional” (p. 79). Monitor the time spent working for community. Finally, (and I think this is great) help people see their community involvement and their paid work as “primary opportunities for ministry” (p. 79).
Facilities Resources
The first question should be “what kind of building, if any, do we need?” If you have a building, how can you use it to bless the community? How can you partner with groups who serve the disadvantaged? Count the number of people served through AA or feeding programs (even if they’re run by another organization!) in your church building. Allow your space to be used by schools for concerts, meetings, etc… Look for offsite facilities that can be used for the benefit of the community – renting space in a mall for tenagers, etc… And be sure to count these as a fulfillment of the church’s mission, not just things we do. In addition to caring for those in need, your church can be used as an art exhibit or coffee shops or venues for local musicians.
Financial Resources
This isn’t my strong suit, but some ideas here include having a community component to your giving and capital campaigns (examples: one church gives $2 to external measures for every $1 it spends on its own facilities, another tithes to the community), get grant writers and partner with businesses on community-friendly initiatives. Ask community leaders of their needs. Create accounts of venture capital for community-oriented initiatives within the congregation. Do local microfinance, not just internationally. Challenge the congregation to figure out ways to limit expenses so they can give more (we did this at Christmas with Advent Conspiracy). Finally, think of ways to give creatively to the community. One church figured out how much they’d get taxed if they were to get taxed and they give that much to the community. Again, keep track and celebrate it!
Technology Resources
The last thing we’ll look at is an external focus with technology resources. Make sure your website has service opportunities for church members to bless the community and even let people share their encounters as they’ve sought to bless the community. Take advantage of social networking on the Internet. Create podcast interviews with community leaders. Measure hits on ministry opportunities to discover interest and allocate resources accordingly. Blog about missional engagement. Post celebratory videos/podcasts on what God is doing through your community engagement.
Next week we’ll look at the next shift – “From Program Development to People Development”!
Friday, March 12, 2010
Friday Book Club: Nothing new, catching up.
We're slowing down a little so we can have more interaction and everyone can get caught up with where we are in the book. Please post on the previous entries. Here's last week's post again so you can post on it. I'm shutting comments down on this one.
http://whirledviews.blogspot.com/2010/03/book-club-friday-church-unique-chapters.html
http://whirledviews.blogspot.com/2010/03/book-club-friday-church-unique-chapters.html
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Hump Day History: St. Augustine’s City of God
Over the next few weeks we’ll hit the highlights of Book XXI. I wasn’t anticipating spending much time on this because it focuses on eternal condemnation – not the happiest subject. But it has some interesting points that are worth noting. This first one is a random thought that caught my attention. It’s near the end of a long argument on how eternal punishment, while it may not be totally understood, should be considered possible given all the mysteries in this world. That aside, there’s a concept of God’s role in the universe worth noting.
“So great an author as Varro would certainly not have called this a portent had it not seemed to be contrary to nature. For we say that all portents are contrary to nature; but they are not so. For how is that contrary to nature which happens by the will of God, since the will of so mighty a Creator is certainly the nature of each created thing? A portent, therefore, happens not contrary to nature, but contrary to what we know as nature” (p. 776).I hadn’t intended that last sentence to be part of the quote initially, but it really is the central issue. I liked the idea of God being involved in the universe, but this seemed to neglect the apparent consistency of nature. His last sentence articulates our limited knowledge, the wonder of the created order, and God’s independence to operate in His creation however He sees fit.
Monday, March 8, 2010
Mission(al) Monday: Missional Renaissance, Shift from Internal to External (Keeping Score, Part 1)
The last couple Mondays we’ve looked at what it means to shift from an internal to an external focus. It’s a great discussion, but what does it look like, practically, to be successful? The subtitle of Reggie McNeal’s Missional Renaissance is “Changing the Scorecard for the Church.” That’s what we’re looking at today. How do we change the scorecard from an internal focus (how many = attendance; how often = attendance at church events; how much = offerings) to external? Before we check out some ideas, remember these are some of McNeal’s ideas and are intended to spur on creativity, not serve as a blueprint.
A starting point is to articulate external goals and successes that are both individual and corporate: meals fed, backpacks made, community service hours logged. Note: these shouldn’t be exclusively church initiatives. Rather, they should be done in partnership with all kinds of organizations. What are some other ways we ‘keep score’?
Prayer
Look for (and track) ways the congregation can be externally focused in prayer. How? Prayer walking, prayer cards for families who receive backpacks for school, community prayer times, prayer booths/boxes, prayer for the lost, praying for the community in worship services, but my favorite is prayer-scaping. One church staff sent each of their leaders to a part of their city and they were to ask God, “Help me see what you see.” It transformed their staff so much that they sent their people out on a Sunday morning to do the same thing.
People
This is developing a member culture and turning it into a missionary culture. For leaders this might mean making a community ministry responsibility part of their job description, limiting the number of church offices/roles one can take so there’s community time, insist that every group have an external community service component, put offices somewhere other than the church to get community connection, and make staff available to serve other organizations in the community (coaches, mentors, advises, etc…).
For congregants, publish community needs alongside church needs, adopt a school, provide training for people who want to serve the community, track volunteer hours and celebrate them, and assign people as missionaries to apartment complexes, etc … and support their mission in those places.
This is plenty to chew on. We’ll hit the rest next week.
A starting point is to articulate external goals and successes that are both individual and corporate: meals fed, backpacks made, community service hours logged. Note: these shouldn’t be exclusively church initiatives. Rather, they should be done in partnership with all kinds of organizations. What are some other ways we ‘keep score’?
Prayer
Look for (and track) ways the congregation can be externally focused in prayer. How? Prayer walking, prayer cards for families who receive backpacks for school, community prayer times, prayer booths/boxes, prayer for the lost, praying for the community in worship services, but my favorite is prayer-scaping. One church staff sent each of their leaders to a part of their city and they were to ask God, “Help me see what you see.” It transformed their staff so much that they sent their people out on a Sunday morning to do the same thing.
People
This is developing a member culture and turning it into a missionary culture. For leaders this might mean making a community ministry responsibility part of their job description, limiting the number of church offices/roles one can take so there’s community time, insist that every group have an external community service component, put offices somewhere other than the church to get community connection, and make staff available to serve other organizations in the community (coaches, mentors, advises, etc…).
For congregants, publish community needs alongside church needs, adopt a school, provide training for people who want to serve the community, track volunteer hours and celebrate them, and assign people as missionaries to apartment complexes, etc … and support their mission in those places.
This is plenty to chew on. We’ll hit the rest next week.
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Counterfeit Gods
We’re working through Exodus on Sunday mornings and, as we were having discussions about Egypt’s gods, an article about Tim Keller from Christianity Today came to mind. That led to the purchase of Counterfeit Gods, his newest book. I have too many other ‘designated days’ going right now, but this is a fascinating book that really probes the nooks and crannies of one’s soul to reveal our idols. A few choice quotes to think about this lovely Saturday…
Speaking of public officials who sacrifice everything (even when they say they’re doing it for their families), Keller has a fantastic line (among many in the two chapters I’ve read so far):
Speaking of public officials who sacrifice everything (even when they say they’re doing it for their families), Keller has a fantastic line (among many in the two chapters I’ve read so far):
“They had sacrificed everything to the god of success, but it wasn’t enough. In ancient times, the deities were bloodthirsty and hard to appease. They still are” (p. xiii).If you’re looking for something to read, check this book out. Money, Sex, and Power are the subtitles, but there’s a challenge for every kind of idolatry imaginable … and there are more idolatries than we can possibly imagine.
Friday, March 5, 2010
Book Club Friday: Church Unique, Chapters 5-7
I haven’t read them yet, but this week’s discussion on Church Unique will be Chapters 5-7 (they’re short!). While the first few chapters were laying the groundwork for vision-casting, this next section is “Clarifying Vision.” Be sure to share your insights/questions as we work through the process.
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Hump Day History: St. Augustine’s City of God
We’re still in Book XX of The City of God by St. Augustine. This is the second (or third if you count the intro) in a yet-to-be-determined series of thought-provoking or insightful (by my standards) quotes from St. Augustine. Go here for last week’s post and here for the introductory post.
St. Augustine is never short on opinions, but I like how he grapples with the challenges of Revelation:
While there are plenty of challenges when it comes to engaging Revelation, it’s good to stay focused on the things that are sure and, even if we can’t nail down all the answers, hope in those fixed points God has given that we might have hope.
St. Augustine is never short on opinions, but I like how he grapples with the challenges of Revelation:
“No doubt, though this book is called the Apocalypse, there are in it many obscure passages to exercise the mind fo the reader, and there are few passages so plain as to assist us in the interpretation of the others, even though we take pains; and this difficulty is increased by the repetition of the same things, in forms so different, that the things referred to seem to be different, although in fact they are only differently stated. But in the words, ‘God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, but there shall be no more pain,’ there is so manifest a reference to the future world and the immortality and eternity of the saints – for only then and only there shall such a condition be realized that if we think this obscure, we need not expect of find anything plain in any part of
Scripture” (p. 737)
While there are plenty of challenges when it comes to engaging Revelation, it’s good to stay focused on the things that are sure and, even if we can’t nail down all the answers, hope in those fixed points God has given that we might have hope.
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