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Feb 23 2012
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Bible, Church, Discipleship, Family, leadership, Men

What makes us different?

Here’s my notes on some of the input from Rick Murrill – a great speaker I shared slots at a men’s event with last week. Man went to a men’s conference, heard that he was head of the house. Went home and told his wife. And after that he never saw her for 2 days.

Then… the left eye opened up a little bit.

What’s different about humans? Why are we different to chimps and gorillas? Is it just because we’re tool users? (Lots of men aren’t!). Actually some monkeys have done that. Burying our dead, and Fire are distinctive to humans. But none of that tells us what’s different. Gen 1 tells me twice – I’m ‘made in his image.’

 

That shows us… We’re CREATIVE – because he’s a Creator. Look at all that’s being built. And if there’s a Creator, I’m created as something – not just ‘by chance.’ We’re EMOTIONAL – because God expresses emotions. We’re FORGIVING – because God is a forgiver (no animal does that). These attributes of God are found in humanity. This didn’t just happen. But what actually makes us human? Gen 2;15 – God gave humanity a purpose, to serve the Creator. That’s unique to humanity too, though animals can serve. Jesus said the Greatest commandment is LOVE Mt 22, to God and our neighbour. When Jesus was asked,‘Who is my neighbour?’ He told them about a Samaritan. These are the things that make us unique.

We are his friends, if we love one another. Paul said he was a bondservant. Understanding that you’re a servant will release an understanding of the calling of God in your life. Human ambition = serve myself. That takes the call and brings it back to yourself. Seeking fame, becoming rich maybe- and empty. It will work against you in the end. People end up living a life of suicide. Someone who walks away from Christ, with a great call from God – but it ends up distorting. Cf Whitney Houston. Lived suicidally a long time. Despair because of a loss of value of a human life. Slavers used to value it on the amount of work they could get out of them. People today live as slaves in various ways.

Today we value a person on how much they can contribute to society. That’s not biblical. To base it on a bigger car or house. What do I put the value of my life on? The Bible teaches Ex 21, Mt 19, that we’re valuable from conception. More valuable than sparrows. More valuable than cats! Rom 5:8 – God shows our value here. Christ died for his most valued creation. US! So what is a human? It’s our incomprehensible value to God. We are valuable to God not because we’re better than anyone else. But when we understand how valuable to God, then we know the value of others and can love them (as we love ourselves).

John 13:37 People know HIM, if we love. That’s how we exalt Jesus. Know the value of your worth in Christ. If you don’t know that, you are going to express that. If we understand how valuable humanity is, we will value people.

Rick watched a documentary where an actor dressed like a homeless street person was rolling around and looking like they were in pain. People walked past. Nobody stopped. The same person next day was dressed in a suit, with a briefcase. Did the same. Everyone stopped. How do we value people?

Feb 07 2012
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Bible, Christianity, Discipleship, Failure, Faith, Father God, Holy Spirit, Jesus, leadership, Men, Prayer, Sorted Magazine

Beware. This may not build your self esteem.

Is it an insult to be called a Jar of Clay? It’s not the worst thing I’ve been called by a long way, but last week I had the pleasure of speaking three times on the same passage; 2 Corinthians 4, where Paul described himself that way. The deeper I dug into the passage, the more instructive and inspiring I found it in a world where sometimes we feel all too frail and inadequate and others are only too glad to affirm that picture.

Opponents – in the church –  were saying Paul was unimpressive and ugly, a rubbish speaker, manipulative, a deceiver, a false teacher, money grabbing (anyone would think he was trying to do ministry in the 21st century! If you want to see vociferous nastiness like this just google Rick Warren’s name – look what bloggers galore write about him, and the guy’s amazing!).

What was Paul’s response?

Well it wasn’t like mine. I’d step right up to defend myself on every point. I’ve done it before for sure, perhaps because we are taught to defend our image and self esteem at all costs. Now Paul does declare that he has nothing to hide, because integrity matters – but then he also shows that he’s got nothing to prove either. How?

They said, “You’re rubbish!” And we’d want to affirm our self worth etc. but Paul says the most surprising thing…

‘You’re right.’

You’re absolutely right.

‘…we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.’ 

Remember Paul described himself as being the ‘chief of sinners.’ He said at the start of this passage he only had any ministry at all because of the MERCY of God.

The God who puts his treasure not in the best china, but disposable containers.

The greek word he’s using for ‘earthen vessels’  (ostrakinos) denotes not a decorative item but a pot used for dishonourable things, the slop buckets, containers you wouldn’t let the guest see what was in it. The wheely bin.

Cheap, common, breakable, replaceable. Not essential but essentially valueless. The only value they had was the service they performed. Again, this may not build your self esteem!

Paul says, “We have this treasure in a waste basket, in a slop bucket.” In other words, ‘It’s not about me.’

Whole talks I’ve heard about this passage and blogs I read around it etc talk about being ‘cracked pots.’ There’s a problem with that.  It’s not in the text. It doesn’t say anything about the pots being cracked. I wonder whether we want to add that in because we want to make it about US again. The point is not about your cracks. Don’t make it about that.

The point is, the container is NOT the point. It’s what’s inside that matters.

We’re made to contain God! To be containers of God! In Ephesians it says God wants to put his FULLNESS in us. We’re made in his image to carry his glory! This sets us apart from everything else in the whole of creation! We’re meant to carry and contain GOD IN US. That’s why it’s accurate to describe anybody  living without God as living an EMPTY life. Don’t let them fool you. Jung said the world’s suffering “a neurosis of emptiness.” Whatever a person tries to eat, drink, sleep with, sniff, buy or sell to temporarily feel full, will never last or satisfy. They’re empty of what they were made to contain and sometimes some people feel that. Like hollow men and women, dressing up outward shells of busyness – inside resounds echoing emptiness.

Many of us have found that if you ask Jesus, he will give you life to the FULL (John 10:10). You will become a container for God’s glory.  Jars of clay don’t have to be pretty. They’re the most ordinary containers. But there’s something different about them. What? They don’t have TRASH in them but treasure!

That’s how it is with us Christ followers. We’re nothing special filled by Someone Awesome! We have HIM in us who is ‘the hope of glory.’ People may look at us and say, ‘Nothing special…’ But if they take a closer look maybe we can show them what we contain, because we’re containers for God. We’re made in His image to carry his glory! We shine His light! We are valuable – as containers. The treasure inside is priceless!

That’s why the Bible says the Lord didn’t choose many mighty or noble or wise people… (anyone else qualify ?). But it says He chose the lowly and weak, the humble, the despised, the ordinary.

So  they said to Paul…”Give up! Stop trying to make a difference! You’re RUBBISH! You’re weak, ugly and unimpressive, you’re a rubbish preacher, too ordinary, not clever, you didn’t go to the right schools to learn the rhetoric, you’re too old…”

He said, “I know, I know, I’ve gone to pot.” (groan!)

But there’s treasure in the pot.

And when Jesus came looking for containers of his glory and messengers for his message he didn’t chose the brightest, the bestest and the beautifullest!

He bypassed people who thought  they were wisest and wonderfullest; the kings and religious experts, powerful politicians and everyone who was so impressed with themselves. He called peasants, prostitutes and fishermen, tax collectors and so on – clay pots – who knew they were empty – to be filled with him and go for him and do what he wanted to do and what he would do if he was there, because where they went, HE IS!

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Jan 09 2012
Bible, Christianity, Church, Discipleship, leadership, Prayer, wisdom

Framing your world with your words. (Thoughts on a Tale of Three Kings)

If you want to check a heart, check the mouth. Look what Jesus said in Luke 6:45 “out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.”

Words are very powerful. The whole of creation was made by the word of God! Destinies of men, women, families, nations and whole world has been determined by words.

Every major change or revolution has taken place as a result of men & women who used the power of their words.

Positively you have Martin Luther King Jr declaring, ‘I have a dream…’

OR – Adolf Hitler writes of Mein Kampf and his struggle ends up embroiling the whole world.

It’s said of Winston Churchhill’s words : He mobilised the English language and sent it into battle! “We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender!”

In 1 Kings 17:1ff Elijah walked into the palace and said to King Ahab “there will be no rain in this land except at my word.” That’s a man who knows the power of his word. (Do you?)

In Numbers 22 we read of how Balaam was employed to curse the Israelites. Why? Because his words were known to be powerful.

The Patriarchs blessed or cursed their children – and generations after them and their words were released, they came to pass. Look at Genesis 48:14-16

Jesus spoke innumerable Blessings in the Sermon on the mount, and he also spoke to the fig tree which withered and died in Mark 11:12ff

Heb 11:3 (Amplified) By faith we understand that the worlds [during the successive ages] were framed (fashioned, put in order, and equipped for their intended purpose) by the word of God, so that what we see was not made out of things which are visible.

Notice it said… FRAMED! The universe, Framed by words. your world is framed by your words.

“Words will Frame your life”. The words you listen to, the words you speak over yourself will frame or pattern your life!

Words are the construction tools for your life. More  than that, words are also the building materials for your life. For better or worse – your conversation is your advertisement. Every time you open your mouth, you let other people into your mind and heart. Words carry self-fulfilling power. Your words reveal who you are!

As the book that has been challenging me so much recently wraps up (and with it this short series of blog posts) A Tale of Three Kings briefly touches on King David’s son… Absalom – who after King Saul had died and David became the king he was anointed to be long, long, before – Absalom rose up in rebellion against his own father to set up a monument in his own honour and proclaim HIMSELF the King instead.

And if you read the story of Absalom you’ll see that he was a young man who was very gifted, very privileged. Handsome, talented  – he had it all. Lovely hair, too! One of his Dad’s favourites, and spoilt rotten as a result.

It’s a long story wherein David’s sin with Bathesheba ended up bringing along (eventually) all kinds of consequences. The story got more and more messy, violent and tragic than a  Christmas episode of Eastenders. Absalom killed his own brother, (some would say the circumstances were understandable) and then he went off into exile and sulked,then connived to get himself back near the palace – without repentance.

Instead, Absalom let the perceived injustice and the punishment he’d received fester away in his heart. He started to let that become hatred for his father, David. The poison filled his heart more and more.

But you’d never see that on the surface. He was very clever in the way he subtly undermined the authority over the nation.

1 After this Absalom got himself a chariot and horses, and fifty men to run before him. 2 And Absalom used to rise early and stand beside the way of the gate. And when any man had a dispute to come before the king for judgment, Absalom would call to him and say, “From what city are you?” And when he said, “Your servant is of such and such a tribe in Israel,” 3 Absalom would say to him, “See, your claims are good and right, but there is no man designated by the king to hear you.” 4 Then Absalom would say, “Oh that I were judge in the land! Then every man with a dispute or cause might come to me, and I would give him justice.” 5 And whenever a man came near to pay homage to him, he would put out his hand and take hold of him and kiss him. 6 Thus Absalom did to all of Israel who came to the king for judgment. So Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel.

His words stole people’s hearts away, from legitimate, God-given authority – to himself. He woildn’t go alone, he had to gain a following.  That’s’ the spirit of Absalom. Revolt took place eventually, but as Gene Edwards says, ”Rebellion was in his heart for years.” 

We have to watch for it in the church. Sure I’ve seen Sauls throwing spears in churches and hurting people. I’m not excusing that and don’t wish to emulate it though I know it’s a pressure in messed up leaders to mess up others that way.

But I’ve seen even more heartache in churches rent asunder by Absaloms than Sauls. We have to watch it in our attitudes, in our hearts, in our words.

 

 

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Dec 29 2011
Bible, Christianity, Discipleship, Faith, history, Holy Spirit, Jesus, justice, leadership, Men, perseverance, Religion, Sorted Magazine

A Tale of Three Kings – leadership recommended read for 2012!

‘God has a university. It’s a small school. Few enroll, even fewer graduate. Very few indeed.God has this school because he does not have broken men. Instead He has several types of men. He has men who claim to be God’s authority…and aren’t; men who claim to be broken…and aren’t. And men who are God’s authority, but who are mad and unbroken. And he has regretfully, a spectroscopic mixture of everything in between. All of these He has in abundance; but broken men, hardly at all.

In God’s sacred school of submission and brokenness, why are there so few students? Because all who are in this school must suffer pain. And as you might guess, it is often the unbroken ruler (whom God sovereignly picks) who metes out the pain. David was once a student in this school, and Saul was God’s chosen way to crush David.

GENE EDWARDS, ‘A Tale of Three Kings.’

I followed a link from somewhere (maybe I heard Andy Stanley reference it?) and ended up downloading this amazing little book to my Kindle. It seems to be well known in the USA but perhaps less so here? It’s a gem. I read a lot of books this year but this one and Andrew Murray’s Absolute Surrender seem to have been the ones God really picked out for me.

If you’re a leader, or a follower – it’s a must read. If you’ve ever been hurt by people in church, especially by leaders, (people like me), read this – and pray for us, and do it better than us.

Written as a cautionary tale, the narrative style keeps on fooling one into recognising a bad guy- then seeing that it’s not him, or her, maybe it’s you!

The character studies of the ‘Three Kings’ are…

1) King David – the anointed and broken. He learned as the forgotten shepherd boy that he didn’t have to be top dog. God ‘went door to door in Israel’ looking for someone like that, who He could use, because he could trust him. But there was more breaking that needed to be done to him. He had to learn true submission. This took place through…

2) King Saul – the anointed unbroken. Gifted, charismatic, a ‘born leader.’ But he threw spears at people. As I read this I naturally thought of this leader and that I’d worked with. Then the Holy Spirit reminded me of how many times I’ve tried to pin people to the wall! ‘Kings claim the right to throw spears…‘ We do so to protect ourselves/ our position/ the truth as we see it etc. Problem? It turns you into a mad king. One can be simultaneously anointed and a mad king!

David had the opportunity to learn humility and brokenness in the school of pain under that mad king. How? By not throwing the spears back.

If you throw spears back, you’ll prove…”You are courageous. You stand for the right…You will not stand for injustice or unfair treatment. You are tough and can’t be pushed around. You are defender of the faith, keeper of the flame, detector of all heresy…all these attributes combine to prove that you are also a candidate for kingship… the Lord’s anointed. After the order of King Saul.”

But if you choose to be like David you’ll learn to dodge the spears instead. He stuck it out as long as he could; not moving on till God moved him on. If he’d not done this, he would have ended up as King Saul II! But in doing so ‘God cut king Saul out of HIS heart.’

And notice when David did leave, he didn’t try to take anyone with him. He didn’t split the kingdom. He left alone.

I think of two good friends who have confided in me similar stories of taking a ministry he took on, only to find the predecessor who invited them to the post, then refused to leave – until he had lined his own nest and badmouthed the new ‘incumbent.’ What do you do? They didn’t pick up spears, they didn’t defend themselves, and as a result they did not become Sauls but Davids, men I’m privileged to call friends. They will look back at those painful times and see that they were in ‘God’s small school’ – and did not fail the test. Now they’re prepared for greater things in the Kingdom.

The difficulty is you can’t judge whether anyone else is a Saul or a David. You can just decide for yourself, “I shall not practice the ways that cause kings to grow mad. I will not throw spears, nor will I allow hatred to grow in my heart.I will not avenge. I will not destroy the Lord’s anointed.”

Making that choice makes you a vessel God can use.

3) King Absalom. 

So much to chew over in this particular character deserves a post all of its own – I’ll get back to you!

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Dec 01 2011
1 Comment
Bible, Church, Discipleship

LOVE ONE ANOTHER. That’s about it.

I’ve heard this story before in talks but only just spotted its source (Jerome).

When the venerable John could no longer walk to the meetings of the Church but was borne thither by his disciples, he always uttered the same address to the Church; he reminded them of that one commandment which he had received from Christ Himself, as comprising all the rest, and forming the distinction of the new covenant, “My little children, love one another.”
When the brethren present, wearied of hearing the same thing so often, asked why he always repeated the same thing, he replied, “Because it is the commandment of the Lord, and if this one thing be attained, it is enough”

[JEROME].

Nov 29 2011
2 Comments
Bible, Christianity, Discipleship, Faith, Family, Jesus, leadership, Men, Religion, sport

Carl Beech: Iron Sharpens Iron

Here’s my notes on Carl’s recent talk when we were at Soul Survivor, Watford. Great stuff and it was a sell out! Looking forward to  playing at home for the ‘North’ version in January! Details of that so you can book in here (why not organise a group from your church?);

http://www.new-wine.org/events/mens-daysIron Sharpens Iron

IRON SHARPENS IRON

Life’s up and down, and often gets very hard – and we men retreat too often. Testosterone gives us ‘fight or flight’ but we run too much too soon, rather than go through the muck and mud.

Romans 5:3 says ‘We glory in our sufferings’ why – because of what it produces! If we didn’t go through this we’ll be spoilt brats who sulk when something goes wrong. 9 out of 12 apostles were killed. William Carey saw his wife die. Peter preaches and sees 3000 saved, Stephen says, ‘I’ll have a crack at that.’ And gets 3000 bricks on his head. This helps us understand why so many men are down and depressed. The measure of a man is how you hold up in those times.

When you gave your life to Jesus, you got a target on your back. Carl had a medium once say to him Christians GLOW. Those who know who they are in Christ glow more strongly!

Paul the apostle was known in hell. (The sons of Scheva weren’t).

You are known in hell, too.

But what are you known for!?

Picture of a bullfight. The bullfighter stacks everything in his favour. He has helpers who put spears into its neck, so its losing blood. And all it can do is look at the ground. That’s how our enemy works. To get us men looking down. Men with spears in them.

But the Holy Spirit keeps saying, ‘Look at me! Look up!’

The enemy wants to take you out.

You might be just clinging on. Feeling a fraud.

God says, ‘Lift up your eyes.’

1 Kings 18. Elijah and the prophets of Baal.

vs 22ff

Victory!!

But then look at the next chapter and he’s running from this woman Jezebel, fearful and suicidal.

Fight – or flight!

1 Sam 17.

David and Goliath.

What’s the difference? He focuses on God. Fight!

But he had a wandering eye. He’s a passionate man. And passionate men have a flip side.  2 Sam 11. He can’t keep his trousers on.

Samson was a chancer. Strong alright, but he had a flip side. Your testosterone will take you places you don’t want to go. So how do we stay on the narrow way? How do we not fall?

Or when we do, get up again – because we have resurrection DNA .

This is not about solo Rambo Christians. We run alongside others, and if we do – we’ll get there in the end. We need relationships that are vulnerable and to pick each other up on things and pick us up when we fall.

The more you press into enemy territory, the more pressure we’ll face. We need to be like the army, the SAS, to get close to the enemy so you can be effective – you go into ‘hard routine.’ The enemy is overrunning the church because we refuse hard routine, and instead we sulk when we get a little knock.

The Lord can extract the spears from your neck. So you can lift up your head!

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Nov 20 2011
Bible, Discipleship, leadership, Money, Religion

LYNN SWART at Ivy MCR: Called to EXTRAVAGANCE

Lynn Swart at Ivy MCR Called to Extravagance

These notes from Lynn’s talk tonight form a great study for our Grow Groups:

When she was in the USA recently, saw amazing manifestations of the Holy Spirit. Gold dust on people etc., that’s a miracle – but how about all the other provisions he gives us? Discuss: What do you think about that kind of thing happening in services? Weird – or God?

Discuss: When was the last time something took your breath away?

Watch the Frozen Planet; the penguins jumping out of the water – WOW! Isn’t our God amazing? It can take your breath away.

We can’t script for those moments.

God takes people’s breath away in the Bible:

Read Isaiah 6: and pray that God will keep taking our breath away…

Ezekiel fell on his face before God, as did John – read Revelation 1.

What would we do if we saw God in his glory like that?

We need to recognise that the Trinity is here with us, now. Do we see that? Or can worship become commonplace to us?

When Lynn was in a wheelchair, unable to stand and praise him, she made a promise to God, ‘I will never get bored in worship.’

Read Matthew 26: 6-13
6 Now when Jesus was in Bethany, at the home of Simon the leper, 7 a woman came to Him with an alabaster vial of very costly perfume, and she poured it on His head as He reclined at the table. 8 But the disciples were indignant when they saw this, and said, “Why this waste? 9 For this perfume might have been sold for a high price and the money given to the poor.” 10 But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why do you bother the woman? For she has done a good deed to Me. 11 For you always have the poor with you; but you do not always have Me. 12 For when she poured this perfume on My body, she did it to prepare Me for burial. 13 Truly I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be spoken of in memory of her.”

This is NOT Mary Magdelene, its Mary the sister of Lazarus, a worshipper.

She’s extravagant. Four marks of that:

Extravagance is UNRESERVED

Lazarus has been raised from the dead. And Simon the Leper is also someone who has been healed. Then – get the picture of Mary. She wasn’t focusing on the meal, or even on having her brother back. Because in her hand, she had this incredibly expensive perfume. An alabaster vase full. A whole year’s wages. A family heirloom. Her dowry. It was her future. And she has come prepared. She pours her future over the head of Jesus. Completely unreserved.

Extravagance seems IMPRACTICAL

The disciples were unimpressed, speaking harshly behind her back. Corridor conversations. We have to watch our reaction to extravagance. Why all this business of giving to the poor? The spirit behind this was Judas… who actually was syphoning off funds for himself. Watch it!

Extravagance is IRREPROACHABLE. .

Jesus says it’s perfect. Why are you bothering her? She has done a wonderfully significant, beautiful thing. They had all the right language, but Jesus was asking them to check their HEARTS. He was not having a go, or contrasting one thing with another.

God says I want you to be like Him – to be LAVISH! Have you got a lavish heart?

Extravagance is UNPARALLELED

Mary made a high choice, and there was high value in it! Jesus gave HER High praise! She got a glimpse of who Jesus was (what he was going to do on the cross as she anointed him for his burial), and nothing was too much – for him.

Discuss – what can you do in the run up to Christmas as individuals and as a group- that has those four marks – what others might call a waste; what looks like extravagant worship, sacrificial, just to put a smile on Jesus’ face?

Reminder: next Sunday we’ll be taking in our Christmas Offering in our services, to help establish a CAP Centre to help rescue people in debt here in South Manchester. 50% will do that.

The rest will help the work of Betel (Christian drug rehab community in Chorlton), the Life Association (Dalits in India), Barnabas (Homeless in MCR) and Boaz (Refugees in the city).

Please PRAY for this!

Oct 17 2011
Apologetics, Bible, Christianity, Comedy, Creation, Discipleship, Faith, leadership

Andy Kind on APOLOGETICS

Here’s my notes from hearing Andy speak yesterday:

Andy is a comic, and a Christian, and a communicator. He said he wasn’t a preacher, but he was preaching – so I guess that makes you a preacher?

He kept being funny too, couldn’t help himself. I thought he was very funny. But you had to be there so I’ve not put the jokes in.

APOLOGETICS

Means to give a defence – based on idea that Christian worldview makes sense. 1 Peter tells us how to do it.

Some people think Christian faith is nonsense from the start, that’s their default. Others are trying to make sense of it but have issues (often the same ones) with suffering, science, harm caused by religion in history etc. Apologetics can help, but not convert.

People say, ‘There’s no proof for God.’

But they mean evidence. Evidence is not proof. They are right that there’s no proof for God. Like you can’t prove love. You can put forward a good case for it, but can’t prove it. And I don’t refuse to marry based on my limited knowledge of that probability.

Anyway, God’s primary aim is not that we acknowledge he exists, but that we engage with him in relationship.

You can put forward a good case for atheism – but that doesn’t disprove God.

Science is about process – how things happen

The Bible is about purpose- why things happen

We don’t need to defend religion – Jesus never set himself up as starting a religion! Religion doesn’t have to be a force for good, we argue for Christ and his resurrection.

Moral argument – we all know the holocaust was wrong, there are some things we all agree are objectively not right. Where did that rightness and wrongness come from? If it’s just about biology and naturalism – where do you root morality? It’s totally subjective, home made rules that suit you now where you are – open to review at any point.

Christian faith rides or falls based on the resurrection.

New Testament scholars (who may or may not even be believers) agree there are 4 facts to deal with:

1) Jesus was buried by Joseph of Arimathea

2) Women were the first witnesses (which strengthens the historicity)

3) multiple appearances post resurrection

4) Despite every apparent reason not to believe anymore after the cross; something happened to change them so that the church started. something they were willing to die rather than renounce.

Christians aren’t perfect. We aren’t saying we are right, we aren’t even good or perfect.

But Christianity confirms & affirms what really matters about the things that really matter.

About love, beauty, hope, purpose

It speaks to all these areas.

Let’s affirm what science can and can’t do.

Side note:

At one point in the talk Andy was challenged from someone sitting in the congregation. He’d said that he didn’t believe it was necessary to believe Adam and Eve were real people and the literal Creation account rather than evolution and still be a Christian. The challenger took issue with this and there was a little back and forth on it. It’s the kind of question you could endlessly bat around and some people delight in doing so unprofitably – nobody really wants to change their minds just air their views.

Unfortunately this could be the only thing many people who went there end up remembering and talking about, rather than the rest of the talk which in my opinion was excellent, well prepared and graciously given.  That’s why I think good manners should dictate one doesn’t interrupt a preacher (especially a guest) if one disagrees with them, unless they set it up as a discussion.

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Oct 13 2011
Bible, Christianity, Church, Discipleship, Faith, Jesus, leadership, wisdom

THE CHURCH BUILDING CYCLE. (ALC Network Day)@StephenMatthew_

 Stephen Matthew has become a friend whose wisdom I appreciate greatly, he has been very generous with his time and encouragement, mentoring me individually through numerous conversations over in Bradford and also coming across to meet with some of our leaders at Ivy recently as we prayed and planned into our future. He is a surveyor by background and combines theological acumen, practical skills and a pastoral heart through 25 years of ministry to be a man with a brain worth picking for anyone who wants to build a prevailing church. Here’s my notes on his talk at the ALC Network day this week: 

There are only two kinds of churches:

  1. The church everybody wants to build (It’s there in Acts 2, and the ideal church, it inspires us).
  2. The church God wants you to build.

If you try and copy the church ‘out there’ you’ll always fail.

God wants to speak to YOU about YOUR people and place. It’s always bespoke.

You work the process and start to build from scratch or reinvent what’s been built so far.

What comes next carries challenges. When people get involved. People present challenges! You hit the barriers, you get frustrated by money etc. How to sustain momentum?

One Pastor he knew, got a very excited small team around him and for two years planned to change everything. Expected eager embracing of the whole thing. It didn’t happen. Why? Well it had taken two years for him to get excited about it. It would take a while for the people to get there too!

Church building is not linear – it’s CYCLICAL.

You don’t do one bit then it’s done, then do the next bit. One thing leads to the next. There is nothing in the church building process that you change which stays the same. You have to keep spinning these plates. Every church has a building CYCLE. 8 things:

1. Communicate Clear Vision – Consistently

Tell them again and again and in various ways what kind of church you’re going to be. Through music, posters, message. Proverbs 29:18.

2. Change – in line with the Vision

This tests their trust in you. Will you DO IT?  If you’ve talked about it, you have to do some things about it. It shows you’re serious about it. Appoint new ministries etc. Start something.

3. Use the Power of a Good Report

Because some will love the change and some will hate it, and if you don’t take hold of it, the negative report will always win out. Use testimony and good report –  of lives being changed. Eventually the good will overwhelm the bad.

4. Model the Culture

People have to see it in me as the leader. I have to be devoted, if we’re going to ‘devote ourselves.’ If we’re going to reach the new culture I have to look like the church we’re going to build. ‘Set and example as a leader

5. Regularly call for the spirit of Agreement 

This usually looks like turning up. I agree – because I’m going to sign up for that and be there to help. What triggered Nehemiah to build? What he felt. He felt what God felt for the ruins of his city. We have to call people to feel it too, then pull together. Invite this agreement.

6. Call for SPECIFIC Involvement.

Because some people will lavish words of agreement on you – but it’s all words. They need eyeballing and saying, ‘We need you – HERE. Have you ever considered being involved here?’ You have to call for involvement. Get proactive in speaking to them, calling forth that involvement. Let them know how to get involved. They should increasingly feel involved, the model is that it’s all hands on deck – ‘So how do I get involved?’ Nehemiah ended up with shopkeepers and goldsmiths and priests building with him. But they all FELT IT and made the decision to build right where they are. Put a ministry fair on, with desks and stalls – and get the healthy competition going to get more people involved in something they will love that will benefit the Kingdom.

7. Celebrate their Contribution

We only survive because of our volunteer army. Honour and celebrate the volunteers. Hybels says this positive volunteer cameraderie  never happens by accident. How do you foster it? FEED them. Get them a drink. Volunteers get a sandwich. Have a volunteer party and thank and celebrate them. Depts put forward their ‘volunteer of the year.’ Usually someone hardly anyone has ever heard of.

8. Keep the Prize before their Eyes

Why are you doing this? Because it affects this... When they were building, Nehemiah had the trumpet blower at his side so if they were getting spread out they could be rallied together. Which gets you back to the top of the circle again.

When you don’t do any of this – things slow down.

What do you need to do more of in your church to keep the wheel turning?

Final observation – this needs to happen in every department of the church. For it to happen anywhere in the church it has to happen everywhere in the church. Every leader, every department. It’s not just about what comes from the platform on a Sunday.

Tagged , , , , , , , ,
Oct 05 2011
Church, Discipleship, Faith, Family, Religion

BE AVAILABLE – Jon Acuff at Catalyst 2011

Quitter – Jon Acuff at Catalyst 2011

A diamond is just a rock we’ve assigned value to. Do we assign value to the wrong rocks?

How do we BE PRESENT to the things God is doing?

  1. Be available.

To what God has in motion. One sign of how available you are is how much you feed to social media. When you give life to the mobile phone rather than the people you’re actually with. Hang up before you arrive. We are the first generation that has to have a Twitter/ Facebook conversation about what they put online etc. Let the family be your family, not your content. Don’t document for strangers what your family are relating to. It makes them feel like silver medal.

Another sign? You don’t have real friendships. Who are your heart friends – those you’d really miss? Hang out with some people. Spend time with a few. Build it.

Another sign? You get drunk on what’s next and new, and miss NOW. Just sit there, and grow. Culture feeds us to think next. We want what’s new. We create a list of books just to finish them. Movies just to have watched them.

Why do I want to start a ‘new one’ – why not get behind an existing one?

In the prodigal son story, there’s an elder son – who’s not available. Too busy for the party. When the whole farm began to celebrate, he was in the field. Doing what? ‘Slaving for you!’

A beautiful picture of availabilty? Christ. He had time for tax collectors in trees and women at wells. Dinner with sinners.

How to get available.

  • Push away from the table. Self help? Don’t always try to be better at being who you are.
  • Unplug. Don’t kid yourself that how you relax is to read leadership books. every city needs its parks, green space – or it’ll suffocate! How do you cultivate space. Why do you have great ideas in the shower? Because its the only place you get quiet. Make shower moments in your week, to receive. Musician’s first albums are often great, the second is squeezed out.
  • Ask WHY. Why do I need to worry about that? Why do I need to write a book? Have you lived it yet? Ask why and a lot of problems disappear.
  • Get counselling. Why do we think it’s great to get pre-marriage counselling, but not for marrieds!? His counsellor asked him, ‘What do your voices tell you?’ Write them down. His voices say, ‘Are you happy? why don’t you do something perfectly then you’ll be happy.’ That voice sounds like a friend but it’s a foe.

Everyone hears this voice: ‘Who are YOU, to do THAT?’

We think that’s God, but it’s not. He knows who you are. He knows what you are there    for.

- Another voice, ‘You’re not as good as theirs.’ Thanks to the internet, it’s so easy to find others to compare to and we never give ourselves chance. Comparison? Never compare your beginning to someone else’s middle.

  • Another voice, ‘By now it should be… bigger/more..’ Why can’t I just learn from others? Why can’t I be humble enough – rather than have that sense of entitlement and jealous that makes you want something you don’t really want, and ignore the things you already have.
  • Another voice: ‘The critics are right.’ I brush off positives., but listen too hard to critics. Critics Math = 1000 compliments plus one insult = 1 insult. Why do we worry about one critic so much that it makes so many other thousands of positive people’s voices fade away.
  • Last voice. ‘If I had enough time, I’d do it.’ The devil is afraid of people who DO, not just DREAM. Dreamers who DO change the world. When you don’t give time to the things that matter, those things will suffer atrophy.

Luke 15:

Sheep

Coins

There was a SON….And he doesn’t explain it. In the prodigal son story, the father never says a word to the son. He never talked to him, but to the servants. What if when God’s quiet it’s not because he’s mad with us but because he’s planning a party or hugging us.

Be available to God. Get empty to let him fill you up.

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