For the last five years, I have been a student of and a participant in the outward/externally-focused, missional, Kingdom-focused, church movement. Yes, a movement by many names.
As I see it, there are several activities happening as churches turn this direction. Here are the four main ones I see. Am I missing any?
1. Missional Communities
Exploding in several flavors and directions, most happening away from the traditional church. Tend to be small, home-based or restaurant-based groups. Tend to be different from traditional small groups by having service components or being evangelistically-focused to bring in new people and may contain worship elements.
Key Players:
Neil Cole is the lead speaker for “organic church.”
My preference is Hugh Halter and Matt Smay, authors of “Tangible Kingdom.” “TK Primer” offers help for existing churches to begin communities.
Alan Hirsch seems to be the theologian-in-residence for this movement.
2. Acts of Kindness / Servant Evangelism
Offers simple entry for existing churches turning outward or new churches starting up to become noticed in town. So simple that many long-time church members won’t see the value in it. Make sure the theology is well taught in advance. For hundreds of ideas, go here: http://www.servantevangelism.com/matrix/matrix.htm
Key Resources:
“Conspiracy of Kindness” by Steve Sjogren
“Servolution: Starting a Church Revolution through Serving” by Dino Rizzo
3. Community Service / Engagement
Working in the community food pantry/clothes closet, serving in schools…you get the idea. Unfortunately, this tends to be the stopping point for many churches.
Key Resources:
“Missional Renaissance: Changing the Scorecard for the Church” by Reggie McNeal
“The Externally Focused Church” by Rick Rusaw and Eric Swanson
4. Community Transformation
Really changing things in your town, bringing about the Kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. Usually requires the entire Body of Christ working together which means collaboration amongst churches.
Key Resources:
“A New Kind of Big: How Churches of Any Size Can Partner to Transform Communities” by Chip Sweney
“To Transform a City” by Eric Swanson and Sam Williams
Monday, January 24, 2011
Monday, January 10, 2011
Top Books I Read in 2010
The Hole in Our Gospel
By Richard Stearns
The Tangible Kingdom: Creating Incarnational Community
by Hugh Halter and Matt Smay
AND: The Gathered and Scattered Church
By Hugh Halter and Matt Smay
Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream
By David Platt
A Mile In My Shoes: Cultivating Compassion
by Trevor Hudson
Switch: How To Change Things When Change is Hard
By Chip Heath and Dan Heath
A New Kind of Big: How Churches of Any Size Can Partner to Transform Communities
by Chip Sweney
Change the World: Recovering the Message and Mission of Jesus
by Michael Slaughter
Transformation: Discipleship that Turns Lives, Churches, and the World Upside Down
by Bob Roberts Jr.
By Richard Stearns
The Tangible Kingdom: Creating Incarnational Community
by Hugh Halter and Matt Smay
AND: The Gathered and Scattered Church
By Hugh Halter and Matt Smay
Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream
By David Platt
A Mile In My Shoes: Cultivating Compassion
by Trevor Hudson
Switch: How To Change Things When Change is Hard
By Chip Heath and Dan Heath
A New Kind of Big: How Churches of Any Size Can Partner to Transform Communities
by Chip Sweney
Change the World: Recovering the Message and Mission of Jesus
by Michael Slaughter
Transformation: Discipleship that Turns Lives, Churches, and the World Upside Down
by Bob Roberts Jr.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Book notes: To Transform a City
To Transform a City
by Eric Swanson and Sam Williams
Reggie McNeal foreword
The missional church sees itself as the people of God (a who) already deployed across all the domains of culture. These life-place assignments have been made by a God who desires to plant the Incarnational presence of his Son everywhere.
Release the people of God (a who) to impact the world.
There is no reference in the NT to church as smaller than a city.
The scorecard can no longer be about how well our individuals congregations are doing. The condition of our communities is the scorecard on how well the church is doing at being the people of God.
Book
Called together a group of Christian leaders to fast every Thursday, then meet at his house at 7pm for a couple of hours of prayer followed by dinner at Denny’s.
Magic Bus tour of human service agencies in the city
We can partner with any organization that is morally positive and spiritually neutral.
Invited city leaders to lunch
Tell us what you do
Tell us your vision for a healthy city
Tell us 3 impossible things you need to accomplish that no person can do for them (we will pray for these)
p. 19 “Kingdom Assignment”
1. preach on parable of talents, handed out $100 to 110 people, asked them to multiply and give money to something God cares about.
2. preach on loving possessions. Challenged people to sell a treasure between Sept and Thanksgiving and bring proceeds to church for distribution
3. give 90 minutes over the next ninety days to serve the least of these (community service fair)
4. no church on a Sunday, instead serve. Celebration service in high school they worked in.
Personal letters of appreciation to teachers and staff
Way easier to catch a wave than make a wave. Catch wave of God’s movement and action.
God intends every one of his children to be living on mission, partnering with him in his redemptive mission in the world.
What if… the church showed the world an alternative story of a truly transformed life, infused with kingdom values lived out through missional actions?
Christian leaders, unable to motivate their church members to follow God’s precepts, still vocally demand that secular society live by them. How can we expect (or in some cases demand) others to adopt the values and ethics of Christians when we as Christ followers so easily flout them?
Ben Ecklu, Campus Crusade West Africa says, “If Christians are sixty to seventy percent of the population of Ghana, then we must own sixty to seventy percent of our country’s problems. If just the Christians did things differently…the city would change drastically.”
We can serve the city, love the city, and bless the city- but only God has the power to transform the city.
The critical mass to transform a community begins with just one person who is yielded to the Spirit of God.
Transformation comes through proclamation and demonstration of the gospel, both a verbal message and a lifestyle of love and compassion, good news and good deeds.
A minister of God’s grace to the community.
If we want to be Jesus’ followers then it may be a good first step to meditate and reflect on the passage that captured his heart- Isaiah 61.
We don’t serve to convert, but we serve because we are converted.
The most fertile ground for evangelistic conversations is a servant-rich environment.
Ron Sider- “Our social concern dare not be a gimmick designed to bribe people to become Christians. Social action has its own independent validity. We do it because the Creator wants everyone to enjoy the good creation. At the same time, when our genuine compassion also has an evangelistic dimension, we rejoice. Again and again, that is exactly what happens when we truly care for the needy and stand with the oppressed who seek justice.”
Leadership teams play a catalytic role instead of sponsoring and owning ministries. A catalytic leadership role in the community.
Churches- what can we accomplish together that we could not do alone?
We must never lose sight of the fact that we are kingdom workers, not just community volunteers.
Amazing story (p.66-68) of El Salvador becoming significantly more Christian, but the nation becoming worse off. “We settled for conversion rather than transformation.”
Jim Herrington – “The hope of the world is the church, not necessarily the local congregation.”
by Eric Swanson and Sam Williams
Reggie McNeal foreword
The missional church sees itself as the people of God (a who) already deployed across all the domains of culture. These life-place assignments have been made by a God who desires to plant the Incarnational presence of his Son everywhere.
Release the people of God (a who) to impact the world.
There is no reference in the NT to church as smaller than a city.
The scorecard can no longer be about how well our individuals congregations are doing. The condition of our communities is the scorecard on how well the church is doing at being the people of God.
Book
Called together a group of Christian leaders to fast every Thursday, then meet at his house at 7pm for a couple of hours of prayer followed by dinner at Denny’s.
Magic Bus tour of human service agencies in the city
We can partner with any organization that is morally positive and spiritually neutral.
Invited city leaders to lunch
Tell us what you do
Tell us your vision for a healthy city
Tell us 3 impossible things you need to accomplish that no person can do for them (we will pray for these)
p. 19 “Kingdom Assignment”
1. preach on parable of talents, handed out $100 to 110 people, asked them to multiply and give money to something God cares about.
2. preach on loving possessions. Challenged people to sell a treasure between Sept and Thanksgiving and bring proceeds to church for distribution
3. give 90 minutes over the next ninety days to serve the least of these (community service fair)
4. no church on a Sunday, instead serve. Celebration service in high school they worked in.
Personal letters of appreciation to teachers and staff
Way easier to catch a wave than make a wave. Catch wave of God’s movement and action.
God intends every one of his children to be living on mission, partnering with him in his redemptive mission in the world.
What if… the church showed the world an alternative story of a truly transformed life, infused with kingdom values lived out through missional actions?
Christian leaders, unable to motivate their church members to follow God’s precepts, still vocally demand that secular society live by them. How can we expect (or in some cases demand) others to adopt the values and ethics of Christians when we as Christ followers so easily flout them?
Ben Ecklu, Campus Crusade West Africa says, “If Christians are sixty to seventy percent of the population of Ghana, then we must own sixty to seventy percent of our country’s problems. If just the Christians did things differently…the city would change drastically.”
We can serve the city, love the city, and bless the city- but only God has the power to transform the city.
The critical mass to transform a community begins with just one person who is yielded to the Spirit of God.
Transformation comes through proclamation and demonstration of the gospel, both a verbal message and a lifestyle of love and compassion, good news and good deeds.
A minister of God’s grace to the community.
If we want to be Jesus’ followers then it may be a good first step to meditate and reflect on the passage that captured his heart- Isaiah 61.
We don’t serve to convert, but we serve because we are converted.
The most fertile ground for evangelistic conversations is a servant-rich environment.
Ron Sider- “Our social concern dare not be a gimmick designed to bribe people to become Christians. Social action has its own independent validity. We do it because the Creator wants everyone to enjoy the good creation. At the same time, when our genuine compassion also has an evangelistic dimension, we rejoice. Again and again, that is exactly what happens when we truly care for the needy and stand with the oppressed who seek justice.”
Leadership teams play a catalytic role instead of sponsoring and owning ministries. A catalytic leadership role in the community.
Churches- what can we accomplish together that we could not do alone?
We must never lose sight of the fact that we are kingdom workers, not just community volunteers.
Amazing story (p.66-68) of El Salvador becoming significantly more Christian, but the nation becoming worse off. “We settled for conversion rather than transformation.”
Jim Herrington – “The hope of the world is the church, not necessarily the local congregation.”
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