Everything we do as followers of Jesus Christ - be it good or bad - can be traced back to one thing: discipleship. What does it really mean to be a disciple of Jesus of Nazareth? What does it really, really mean? The answer to that question will inform everything we do as Christians. Everything.
Posts Tagged ‘Missional’
Discipleship is the Key
Mature Christian Evangelism is about Friendships
There is a healthy way to introduce friends and neighbors to the faith. For far too long, Christians would happen upon a person who really needs to hear our Good News, and instead of hearing the Good News, they felt attacked and threatened. Attacked because they were presented not with the Good News, but with some sort of presentation of what a “good” Christian is or believes; threatened because they were made to feel … inferior. This is not a healthy presentation of the faith. It’s a fine approach, if you want to be interpreted as an antagonistic, or worse yet, a slick marketer or salesperson. Start with authentic friendship first; talk faith as it comes up naturally in the course of the friendship. Read More
Turning Off the Spiritual Infomercial
Jesus and his simple way are anything but ordinary. Jesus’ way is simple, but it is anything but ordinary. Jesus’ way is extraordinary, in its simplest form!
So, I guess I’m asking if you see simplicity itself as extraordinary; or beyond extraordinary. Complications, shallowness, and distractions are rooted in the world’s ordinary or everyday way of being and doing. These are the sorts of things upon which all of those things we are so tired of are built. Popular Christian words and spiritual sounding catch-phrases flow from these sorts of things; simplicity is the foundation of the extraordinary way of Jesus of Nazareth. Read More
Our Emerging IMG Leadership Team
I am so thrilled and so thankful for the people God is bringing together to lead our church plant in the city. God is faithful. Read More
How Do You Do Well - Doing Good?
How to decide where to focus concentration: If your church were full of professional people, why would you have them go build houses? Building houses is a good thing, but if you have people with MBA’s and PhD’s is the greatest contribution they can make swinging a hammer? You must think through these issues. Porter says he never volunteers in a soup kitchen. “Why would I?” he asks. “I can do more good working with city leaders than giving someone green beans. But it’s good that someone is serving green beans.” Read More
Joining the Holy Spirit in an Apostolic Journey
I’ve taken a few days to pray, pursue, and ponder. Especially on my mind was/is Inner Metro Green, our church plant in Lancaster City. I have been interacting with many, many un-churched people in the city for nearly 3.5 months now. My conclusion? Revival. Read More
The Jesus of Suburbia
I am reading through Mike Erre’s The Jesus of Suburbia. Wow! What a great and timely read this book is! It is a fairly light and easily understandable read, but it is not meant for the faint of heart. It is a piercing indictment of most of American Evangelical Christianity. So, if you are quite comfortable there, then you may want to take a pass on this one. It wastes zero time getting to the point too. The following excerpt is lifted directly from the third and fourth pages of the introduction: Read More
The Infantree: Lancaster City’s Young Creatives
I recently met a bunch of dreamers, artists, and writers in Lancaster City. Collectively, this group of young creatives is called The Infantree. Read More
In Utero: The Dawning Vision of Inner Metro Green
I believe church can be done differently in Lancaster City and the vicinity. I believe we can train strong leaders to plant & lead strong house churches and strong community groups wherein seriously edifying transformation and discipleship can take place. If this is all done faithfully we can then trim down the usually bloated production budget of church as we all know it. Think about it! I’m sure 95% of what happens in church could be - and should be - happening in the community instead. Yet, we drop huge, huge amounts of money and we vainly try to squeeze it all into a segregated, four-walled box and try to convince outsiders that it is community and not consumerism. It doesn’t work! Honestly, it just doesn’t work anymore. Is the final product really worth all of that money? Really? Is it really community? Or is it really just a second community existing far apart from the first community? I think it is the former, honestly. Read More
Lancaster City’s Missional BIC Church
I have been blessed with outstanding denominational leaders, elders and pastors in the Brethren in Christ Church. Together we will be planting an emerging-missional church in Lancaster City aka Inner Metro Green. Yes, we are an emerging church; we are missional minded too. You can find us enjoying life, culture, coffee, church and God in our city. Feel free to join us! Read More