Strangely, the more I get p.o.’d with church, the more I dream, but I am tired of just dreaming. So, I will continue to experiment and try to inspire others to join in. Right now, I have some fragment thoughts that feel like they are bursting with potential.
- The first fragment came from Jon in a dialogue over at Smulo Space. He commented about the possibility of engaging in missional activity and letting church be shaped out of what happens.
I am not sure how a church is born out of missional activity. I think that we have some examples, like the Salvation Army, rescue missions, and recovery groups. Scripturally and logically, the church was originally born out of mission. It is a foreign concept for Christ followers to get together and “design” their church. But what could/would this concept look like today? How would one get started with it? Is it just a matter of behaving missionally and inviting others to join in?
- The next fragment came from Holly who mentioned a new program called Faith In Action, detailed in this article in Outreach Magazine, entitled, Church Cancelled, Service Begins. One church supplied t-shirts that read, Don’t Go To Church, Be The Church.
You have to love these slogans! They capture the heart of a movement that has hit churches that brings them out touting their doctrinal distinctives and turf wars and unites them on the streets serving their neighbors. The question is how to BE the church. The answer will be tailored to each community and their local churches. I am curious about your thoughts, “How can we BE the church?”
- The last fragment comes from Makeesha’s, video blog at Jason Clark’s site, entitled, How Now Shall We Live: Living Small, Local, and Slow.
This one flies in the face of modernism and the mega church. Good! A couple of times, I have written that I think it will be challenging for us to think fresh enough and “simple” enough about the church that is in its infancy today. Definitely, it involves a holistic gospel, strong community connections and ministry that is all about relationship rather than programs. In our culture, there is an ambivalence about these values, in that there is a strong desire for them, but we are so caught up in the whirlwind of life that we don’t know how to get started. What suggestions do you have for living small, local, and slow?
Glen, I think sometimes we try to over think it a bit. Rick Rusaw put it this way with their missional approach (Author of Externally Focused Church, I spent some time in his extensive class at the National New Church Plant Conference in Orlando)….he had no expectations of what would happen, but it all started with (as he puts it) “raking leaves”…a lot of leaves. He said they did some of the simplest things to get into the lives of others, but the only agenda was showing the love of Christ through service to others. In other words, doing simple acts of service without the whole, “I have something I feel I need to tell you” kind of a thing. Only allowing natural conversations, questions, and observations to take place…which happened more than they thought. People were truly interested in why the church was doing what they were doing…and when the response was that the church just wanted the community to succeed…that got noticed and trust was slowly built (optimal word is slowly).
This is tough for some people, and understandably so because the passion they have for Christ and their desire to share Him with others…but gaining trust was the first priority.
The thing is the whole lack of trust in people and especially churches these days creates much skepticism in people. Therefore this is not a short term effort. As one person I was talking to about this in their church said…it took 5 years before they really started to get results in the community. But when the church broke down the trust barrier things began to explode in their community. The church and community began to work together instead in competition with each other.
The thing to keep in mind is that if the missional approach is used to grow a church it can really miss the point of the whole idea, but if the result is to change lives and community then I think the people can get behind that vision.
I am not about the one time event…I am all about getting into people’s lives and gaining trust on an ongoing basis…this included the community at large as well.
But going back to my first statement…I believe we can keep it very simple and still get into lives of others with this missional mindset and change lives and community for the better for the cause of Christ.
I don’t think this has to be something started outside the confines of the local church community. I believe most people want to be part of, will give to, will help with something that has the potential to help others and their community. This is not a big stretch at all. I pray that this missional mindset will capture the hearts of the congregation I serve with…I think the mindset is there…it just might need a little prompting…prompting to set self aside and put other first……….man that sounds like some sort of biblical idea………..nnnaaaaahhhhh can’t be!
pt
By: PT on May 11, 2007
at 5:25 pm
By the way…for some really good practical ideas on missional things to do pick up the book I mentioned above.
By: PT on May 11, 2007
at 5:26 pm
Glenn,
I almost want to respond to your question by saying “I used to know, but now I don’t.” I think the sparks of an answer though are found in Jon’s thoughts you mentioned above.
By: John Smulo on May 12, 2007
at 12:07 am
The challenge, I think, to implementing some of this is the disconnect between Good deeds, and telling the good news.
As a style, servant evangelism can do alot to demonstrate the good news. As it’s sometimes presented, its a a servant form of church marketing. “we are doing this because we want you to know God loves you, from your friends at happy clappy church on the corner, service times at 6.30am”
But at some point, the gospel does need explanation.
I believe that explanation should come and will come at a natural time, in a natural context, but its a conversation that will need to be had.
Being the church cannot be divorced from sharing the good news. Otherwise, I see it’s no different than the latest charitable organization.
Pastor Chris
EvangelismCoach.org
By: Pastor Chris on May 13, 2007
at 8:58 am
Thanks for the mention Glenn,
I’ll try and post more on this when I get the time to do it justice. Essentially I think it has to do with what we are working toward. Len at nextreformation had a series of post on chicken or egg, ecclesiology or mission. Essentially, if Jesus is the centre we will be engaged in His mission. When we do this we realise that we can’t do it alone. We need others to help us – this is when we start being church corporately, but we shape the church in a way that helps us achieve our mission.
There is a great bit in “Jim and Casper” when Casper visits ‘Jasons House.’ (a house church) The church seek together different ways they can transform their communty, individually and together. Then the have a wider community open house to teach everyone in the community house to help transform the community. In this way “not yet believers” participate in mission alongside the christians. This really resonates with me.
Thanks again … Jon.
By: Jon Hallewell on May 13, 2007
at 2:29 pm
John…
I think that we are in ecclesiastical research and development! Somehow mission has to be repositioned as the motivation for all we do and the reason for the church’s existence.
By: Glenn on May 13, 2007
at 5:40 pm
Pastor Chris…
I have often said that evangelism is “show and tell.” It is just that we have been all about “come and hear,” rather than “go and show,” so I think there is a need for emphasis on the practical aspects of the Gospel.
Yet, I have also said that it seems evangelism has been sort of moved out of the picture in the current emerging/missional conversation.
I think the “new evangelism” is more organic and holistic in its approach, yet Christ’s redemption and restoration of individuals (along with the environment, the arts, culture, etc.) is the core message.
By: Glenn on May 13, 2007
at 5:48 pm
Jon..
Once again, your words have sparked something within me. I like what you said about shaping the church to achieve mission and involving “not yet believers.” I’ll try to check out the book. Thanks!
By: Glenn on May 13, 2007
at 5:54 pm
PT…
Good to hear from you and I very much agree with what you said about keeping it simple, meeting people where they are, and building trust.
My concern, lies in motivation. Once you get the machinery of the church running, it begs to be maintained. This includes the human and financial resources to sustain the building, the staff, and the programs. It becomes very hard to not want to draw people into that machinery to sustain it and grow it. In other words, it is hard to not put our focus on developing good church members verses partnering with God’s work in an individual’s life and helping them to develop appropriately. I have yet to see a church really address this, though I think some are starting to do so now.
I hope this makes sense to you and I hope you realize that I am not just lopping cheap shots at the institutional church.
Here’s the rub, any emerging or missional church that successfully involves very many people faces these same issues.
By: Glenn on May 13, 2007
at 6:05 pm
I just finished reading Confessions of a Reformissional Pastor by Mark Driscoll of Mars Hill. That place is definately not small. Yet from my reading, listening to sermon broadcast, they are still trying to be the church even though they are huge.
I’m now reading Organic Church, which is also helping me think how to get beyond the “come and see” and into the “go and tell”.
I have stepped out of the pastorate for a season simply because “come and see” wasn’t helping me do evangelism. I wanted to go and tell, rather than maintain programs, budgets, plans, etc. In the church life cycle, i’m much more the pioneer and want to be outside the church building. . . . let somebody else run the machine.
Pastor Chris
EvangelismCoach.org
By: Pastor Chris on May 14, 2007
at 9:03 am
Chris…
It seems like the prophets and pioneers are usually on the fringes. What does that say about the church?
By: Glenn on May 14, 2007
at 10:16 am
Glenn,
“Ecclesiastical research and development”, eh? Can I put that on my business card?
By: John Smulo on May 14, 2007
at 11:20 am
John…
Absolutely!
It is sad that the concept scares so many people or they think of us as outcasts when I believe this to be at the heart of what God is doing today.
By: Glenn on May 14, 2007
at 2:23 pm
Glenn,
I liked pt’s thoughts on this. Showing love may go a hundred yards farther than telling about love, or it may plant a seed where other things wouldn’t grow.
By: hdolezalek on May 14, 2007
at 9:18 pm
Holly…
“Show” usually works better than “tell.”
Keep writing! You have been bringing up some important issues!
By: Glenn on May 14, 2007
at 9:59 pm