My daughter commented on Easter that it looked like even the Christmas and Easter attenders weren’t showing up for worship. I looked around and agreed.
Times have changed. I asked a young acquaintance of mine what she was doing for Easter. Church was not in the plan. Their families don’t attend church. It isn’t a part of their lives.
The same is true of a good number of people in our culture, both young and old. The church habit is slipping away.
The big question this presents believers with is: How will people hear about the hope we have in the risen Savior, Jesus?
If Christmas and Easter attenders are dwindling, if overall church attendance is declining, if the attractional, institutional church is losing its appeal, how will the Gospel invade the lives of the hopeless?
This is the question each believer and every church must wrestle with. My thoughts? Here they are:
1. The risen Christ isn’t boring or routine. Christians need to be reminded about this in creative and compelling ways.
2. If the risen Christ is the source of true hope, Christians need to be ready to offer this hope in caring and appropriate ways within everyday relationships and encounters. The church must exert new energy for the formation of every believer as a disciple in the trenches.
3. If the institutional church is no longer the center of the culture’s spiritual quest, the church must deploy to venues that allow believers to speak into the god conversation of the culture. This will require great patience, strategic thinking, courageous action, and some radical retooling of budgets.
4. The church must trust that God really desires all to be saved. As the paradigm of outreach shifts, Christians need to remember that the gates of hell will not prevail against the Lord’s Church. Times and methods may change, but Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever!
Showing posts with label Outreach. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Outreach. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Friday, May 6, 2011
Counterintuitivity
In a thought-provoking book review, Andrew Stark of The Wall Street Journal, reviews John Kay's book "Obliquity." The premise of the book is compelling. Kay asserts: "When it comes to major goals, whether in life or in business, one can pursue them best by deliberately not pursuing them."
Stark summarizes Kay's case studies of a variety of companies and historical figures as the author establishes his premise that "we can attain a desired goal only by pursuing it indirectly." (Thank you to Rev. Robert Holaday for the link to the article which you can read in full here)
This counterintuitive direction offers us some Easter clarity. Jesus was never desperate to build a following, but many followed. Jesus never tried to woo people to a religious system, but many put their faith in Him. Jesus never set out to change the world, yet His sacrificial death and triumphant resurrection changed everything.
What does this mean for our Easter existence? It reinforces good old Lutheran counterintuitivity. You know, paradox.
- If you see to save your life, you'll lose it. But if you lose your life for Christ, you'll find it.
- If you pretend your sins don't exist, they'll take on a life of their own and crush you. If you confess your sins and bring them out into the open, you will be completely cleansed and freed.
These are a couple of the beautiful paradoxes of life in Christ.
What does it mean for your ministry?
It means that keeping the main thing the main thing will lead to a God-pleasing and effective ministry. It means that when you live out the reason you've been sent, the details will come together. As Jesus said in Matthew 6, "Seek first the reign of God and His righteousness, and all your needs will be provided to you as well."
You've been sent to spread the reign of God and His righteousness. This mission ("mission" is the Latin word for "sent") flows from the living Word of God that testifies to the risen Christ. If you spread the reign of God to people around you and to your community, much follows:
- people who worship God
- church life
- active prayer
- healthy giving of money for the mission
- orthodox belief
- mutual affirmation and consolation
- justice and righteousness among humanity
- passionate outreach to people who don't know Christ
- persistent multiplication of Christian community
Of course, you rejoice in and fuel these developments. But you pursue one thing: the reign of God.
What might be getting in the way of this counterintuitive pursuit? Your need for self-assurance? Your fear of unorthodoxy? Your hesitance to do more work? Your desire to be in complete control?
What do you need to stop pursuing so you can seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and let God establish the fullness of His reign?
Stark summarizes Kay's case studies of a variety of companies and historical figures as the author establishes his premise that "we can attain a desired goal only by pursuing it indirectly." (Thank you to Rev. Robert Holaday for the link to the article which you can read in full here)
This counterintuitive direction offers us some Easter clarity. Jesus was never desperate to build a following, but many followed. Jesus never tried to woo people to a religious system, but many put their faith in Him. Jesus never set out to change the world, yet His sacrificial death and triumphant resurrection changed everything.
What does this mean for our Easter existence? It reinforces good old Lutheran counterintuitivity. You know, paradox.
- If you see to save your life, you'll lose it. But if you lose your life for Christ, you'll find it.
- If you pretend your sins don't exist, they'll take on a life of their own and crush you. If you confess your sins and bring them out into the open, you will be completely cleansed and freed.
These are a couple of the beautiful paradoxes of life in Christ.
What does it mean for your ministry?
It means that keeping the main thing the main thing will lead to a God-pleasing and effective ministry. It means that when you live out the reason you've been sent, the details will come together. As Jesus said in Matthew 6, "Seek first the reign of God and His righteousness, and all your needs will be provided to you as well."
You've been sent to spread the reign of God and His righteousness. This mission ("mission" is the Latin word for "sent") flows from the living Word of God that testifies to the risen Christ. If you spread the reign of God to people around you and to your community, much follows:
- people who worship God
- church life
- active prayer
- healthy giving of money for the mission
- orthodox belief
- mutual affirmation and consolation
- justice and righteousness among humanity
- passionate outreach to people who don't know Christ
- persistent multiplication of Christian community
Of course, you rejoice in and fuel these developments. But you pursue one thing: the reign of God.
What might be getting in the way of this counterintuitive pursuit? Your need for self-assurance? Your fear of unorthodoxy? Your hesitance to do more work? Your desire to be in complete control?
What do you need to stop pursuing so you can seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and let God establish the fullness of His reign?
Friday, April 8, 2011
Let It Change You
My very first grandchild was born last weekend. She's a beautiful little girl, a miracle and gift. I haven't felt feelings like this since my own children were born. Suddenly, everything else pales in importance. Suddenly, life is different.
You may know how it goes:
- You want to tell people. E-mails, photos, videos, texts, tweets, phone calls, and personal conversations multiply as you eagerly share the news.
- Your priorities change. Money, time, your thoughts--everything--becomes oriented to one thing: that new and precious little life.
- You adjust your actions. All at once you become aware of what you're watching on TV, what's on the radio when you drive, what you're eating, the way your speaking, and how you live in front of a new and impressionable life.
- You remember your purpose. Life isn't about acquiring things, being comfortable, or paying the bills. It's about shaping another life, giving her the best, doing all you can to make sure she receives life in its fullness here and forever.
Of course, you can resist the changes new life brings. You can live it for a couple of days or a few weeks, but revert back to the old ways. You can ignore the excitement, the love, and the life-changing wonder of the miraculous spring of water God sent rushing into your wilderness.
Or you can let it change you.
The same is true for churches. Into the life of the church comes the living water of Jesus Christ. Springs of Living Water rinse barren and hopeless souls. New life begins. New hope springs eternal. Suddenly, life is different:
You need to tell people. Your priorities change. You adjust your actions. You remember your purpose.
Of course, you can resist the changes new life brings. You can become inward looking. You can settle into a business as usual mindset. You can focus on paying the bills and keeping insiders happy. You can stay safe and never risk trying something to reach the lost. You can fill your days with attending to e-mail and thinking about theology.
Or you can let it change you. You can think about theology AND put theology into action. You can share the beauty of the Gospel.
Studies show that in established churches it takes 60 people to reach one new person with the Good News of Jesus. In new churches, it only takes 10 people to reach a new person with the Gospel.
Is this because we become so accustomed to the miracle of the resurrection and so caught up in day-to-day distractions that we forget the miraculous new life right under our noses?
If Jesus Christ is truly risen from the dead, will you let it change you? Will you let it change your church?
You may know how it goes:
- You want to tell people. E-mails, photos, videos, texts, tweets, phone calls, and personal conversations multiply as you eagerly share the news.
- Your priorities change. Money, time, your thoughts--everything--becomes oriented to one thing: that new and precious little life.
- You adjust your actions. All at once you become aware of what you're watching on TV, what's on the radio when you drive, what you're eating, the way your speaking, and how you live in front of a new and impressionable life.
- You remember your purpose. Life isn't about acquiring things, being comfortable, or paying the bills. It's about shaping another life, giving her the best, doing all you can to make sure she receives life in its fullness here and forever.
Of course, you can resist the changes new life brings. You can live it for a couple of days or a few weeks, but revert back to the old ways. You can ignore the excitement, the love, and the life-changing wonder of the miraculous spring of water God sent rushing into your wilderness.
Or you can let it change you.
The same is true for churches. Into the life of the church comes the living water of Jesus Christ. Springs of Living Water rinse barren and hopeless souls. New life begins. New hope springs eternal. Suddenly, life is different:
You need to tell people. Your priorities change. You adjust your actions. You remember your purpose.
Of course, you can resist the changes new life brings. You can become inward looking. You can settle into a business as usual mindset. You can focus on paying the bills and keeping insiders happy. You can stay safe and never risk trying something to reach the lost. You can fill your days with attending to e-mail and thinking about theology.
Or you can let it change you. You can think about theology AND put theology into action. You can share the beauty of the Gospel.
Studies show that in established churches it takes 60 people to reach one new person with the Good News of Jesus. In new churches, it only takes 10 people to reach a new person with the Gospel.
Is this because we become so accustomed to the miracle of the resurrection and so caught up in day-to-day distractions that we forget the miraculous new life right under our noses?
If Jesus Christ is truly risen from the dead, will you let it change you? Will you let it change your church?
Monday, November 8, 2010
Grand Processions
Romans 10 sends out a plea for help:
"But how can people call for help if they don't know who to trust? And how can they know who to trust if they haven't heard of the One who can be trusted? And how can they hear if nobody tells them? And how is anyone going to tell them, unless someone is sent to do it? That's why the Scripture exclaims, 'A sight to take your breath away! Grand processions of people telling all the good things of God!'" (vss. 14-15, The Message)
As a Missional Worker, you're the grand procession. As a Missional Worker, you're the one who is sent.
But what are you supposed to do out there? How can you share Christ in such a confusing and opposing culture?
Let me share three tools with you as you work in the harvest fields of God:
First, listen. That's right. The key to sharing Christ is to listen to people. Understand them. Establish a relationship. Show you care. God will open remarkable doors for you as you discover the real needs and questions of a person in your life. Listen and let God show you how He wants to use you as an instrument of Christ's love.
Second, read God's Word. Please don't dismiss this as a pat answer. If you are reading the Bible regularly, you will be filled up with Good News to share when the time is right. I'm reading the New Testament in the Message paraphrase for my devotional reading. I'm amazed at how much God gives me to apply to my life and to share with others. Stay fueled up with the Word!
Third, if you're looking for a book that describes how God's people, the Church, can break out of navel-gazing and paralysis, read "Transformational Church" by Ed Stetzer and Thom Rainer. The book is filled with practical advice and important attitude shifts that will help God's people do their mission.
Dear Missional Workers, you are the grand procession of God, bringing the light of Jesus into a world in need. Keep going!
"But how can people call for help if they don't know who to trust? And how can they know who to trust if they haven't heard of the One who can be trusted? And how can they hear if nobody tells them? And how is anyone going to tell them, unless someone is sent to do it? That's why the Scripture exclaims, 'A sight to take your breath away! Grand processions of people telling all the good things of God!'" (vss. 14-15, The Message)
As a Missional Worker, you're the grand procession. As a Missional Worker, you're the one who is sent.
But what are you supposed to do out there? How can you share Christ in such a confusing and opposing culture?
Let me share three tools with you as you work in the harvest fields of God:
First, listen. That's right. The key to sharing Christ is to listen to people. Understand them. Establish a relationship. Show you care. God will open remarkable doors for you as you discover the real needs and questions of a person in your life. Listen and let God show you how He wants to use you as an instrument of Christ's love.
Second, read God's Word. Please don't dismiss this as a pat answer. If you are reading the Bible regularly, you will be filled up with Good News to share when the time is right. I'm reading the New Testament in the Message paraphrase for my devotional reading. I'm amazed at how much God gives me to apply to my life and to share with others. Stay fueled up with the Word!
Third, if you're looking for a book that describes how God's people, the Church, can break out of navel-gazing and paralysis, read "Transformational Church" by Ed Stetzer and Thom Rainer. The book is filled with practical advice and important attitude shifts that will help God's people do their mission.
Dear Missional Workers, you are the grand procession of God, bringing the light of Jesus into a world in need. Keep going!
Thursday, June 17, 2010
First Impressions
Bad news from Summer Camp came my way the other day. The first lunch served to hundreds of young people ages 5-10 was "beanie weenies." Yes, it's a soupy mix of hot dog slices and beans. Your mouth may be watering at this point because you love this gustatory delight. But I'm pretty confident that a survey of grade-schoolers' food favorites wouldn't show "beanie weenies" even in the top 25.
Proof of my gut feeling is that several kids wept openly when they found out about the lunch menu. In tears, one growing boy who could probably polish off a whole pizza, decided he would rather subsist on a couple of crackers than torment his taste buds with the dish of the day.
I felt badly for the summer camp crew. The lunch selection wasn't a winner. What really bothered me, however, was that this was the FIRST lunch. Can you imagine the terror in virtually every camper's psyche: "I've got FIFTY more lunches to go!"?
First impressions make a difference.
As workers in God's harvest field, you will make many first impressions. Every day, you have opportunities to give small previews of Jesus and the life He gives. In relationships with others, you show people what the menu of life in Jesus looks like. What impressions will you make?
Peter, the brash and bold apostle who failed many a first impression test, reflected on his life in the book of 1 Peter in the Bible. He spoke about some first impressions harvest workers need to give to people walking in darkness:
"Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do." 1 Peter 1:13-15
"Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation." 1 Peter 2:1-2
"Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us." 1 Peter 2:12
"Live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble. Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing." 1 Peter 3:8-9
"But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect." 1 Peter 3:15
Will the people God puts in your life be repulsed by the menu you display? Or will they crave the delightful and delicious fare you bring as you represent Jesus? Will they line up for more as they feel hunger pangs for the Bread of Life?
Read Peter's words again and let your first impressions do wonders in the name of Jesus.
Proof of my gut feeling is that several kids wept openly when they found out about the lunch menu. In tears, one growing boy who could probably polish off a whole pizza, decided he would rather subsist on a couple of crackers than torment his taste buds with the dish of the day.
I felt badly for the summer camp crew. The lunch selection wasn't a winner. What really bothered me, however, was that this was the FIRST lunch. Can you imagine the terror in virtually every camper's psyche: "I've got FIFTY more lunches to go!"?
First impressions make a difference.
As workers in God's harvest field, you will make many first impressions. Every day, you have opportunities to give small previews of Jesus and the life He gives. In relationships with others, you show people what the menu of life in Jesus looks like. What impressions will you make?
Peter, the brash and bold apostle who failed many a first impression test, reflected on his life in the book of 1 Peter in the Bible. He spoke about some first impressions harvest workers need to give to people walking in darkness:
"Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do." 1 Peter 1:13-15
"Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation." 1 Peter 2:1-2
"Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us." 1 Peter 2:12
"Live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble. Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing." 1 Peter 3:8-9
"But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect." 1 Peter 3:15
Will the people God puts in your life be repulsed by the menu you display? Or will they crave the delightful and delicious fare you bring as you represent Jesus? Will they line up for more as they feel hunger pangs for the Bread of Life?
Read Peter's words again and let your first impressions do wonders in the name of Jesus.
Monday, November 30, 2009
Missional Worker Training
In 2010, a new phase of the "Mission 200" effort will begin in Area C of the Texas District. It's called "Missional Worker Training." Following Jesus’ words in Luke 10:2 to “ask the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest field,” Missional Worker Training will seek to RECRUIT, TRAIN, SEND, and ENCOURAGE missional workers who will start new ministries. This effort will multiply possibilities of ministry expansion and help create a missional movement in Texas.
Who will lead the effort?
As a next step of the M2C effort in the Texas District, the Area C MMF and Area C pastors will combine efforts to implement this training.
What will Missional Workers do?
A Missional Worker is a new or veteran believer who is eager to reach out and is willing to reach a specific group of people or ministry area. This may include home study/worship groups; ministry to men, women, children, and youth; outreach to the “least of these” in neighborhoods or care facilities; leading a “church within a church” ministry, and more.
When will training start?
The goal is to begin Missional Worker Training in the first four months of 2010.
Where will the training be held?
Target areas are: the greater Austin area, San Antonio, Corpus Christi, and the Rio Grande Valley. Local churches will host the training.
How will Missional Workers be trained?
After being accepted into the program through an application and interview process, an initial one-day seminar led by the MMF and pastors will bring each missional worker a solid foundation of faith understanding, along with unfolding the specific mission plan of each worker. Monthly training gatherings will follow. After the 12-month program and certification, a Missional Worker may elect to take the next step of training by pursuing deacon/deaconess or SMP coursework.
If you or someone you know would be interested in this training, please contact me at mnewman@txdistlcms.org.
Who will lead the effort?
As a next step of the M2C effort in the Texas District, the Area C MMF and Area C pastors will combine efforts to implement this training.
What will Missional Workers do?
A Missional Worker is a new or veteran believer who is eager to reach out and is willing to reach a specific group of people or ministry area. This may include home study/worship groups; ministry to men, women, children, and youth; outreach to the “least of these” in neighborhoods or care facilities; leading a “church within a church” ministry, and more.
When will training start?
The goal is to begin Missional Worker Training in the first four months of 2010.
Where will the training be held?
Target areas are: the greater Austin area, San Antonio, Corpus Christi, and the Rio Grande Valley. Local churches will host the training.
How will Missional Workers be trained?
After being accepted into the program through an application and interview process, an initial one-day seminar led by the MMF and pastors will bring each missional worker a solid foundation of faith understanding, along with unfolding the specific mission plan of each worker. Monthly training gatherings will follow. After the 12-month program and certification, a Missional Worker may elect to take the next step of training by pursuing deacon/deaconess or SMP coursework.
If you or someone you know would be interested in this training, please contact me at mnewman@txdistlcms.org.
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