Dave (personal) / culture / ministry — 3 comments
30
Jul 10
First of all, I must confess something. I am a big fan of John Cusack and 80′s films in general. However, only after watching Cusack’s Say Anything for the first time after having had some experience in formal ministry, the movie was quite different for me. It became more about the underlying tale of lives intertwined in everyday stuff–where people aren’t always what they seem, and not everyone strives to be an achiever.
One of the things that stuck in my brain this time was when Lloyd Dobler (played by Cusack) was asked about his aspirations once he graduated from high school. His response was:
“I don’t want to sell anything, buy anything, or process anything as a career. I don’t want to sell anything bought or processed, or buy anything sold or processed, or process anything sold, bought, or processed, or repair anything sold, bought, or processed. You know, as a career, I don’t want to do that.”
When I heard this, my mind immediately went to ministry. I have stayed away from ministry for some of the reasons that Cusack’s character Lloyd Dobler mentioned staying away from choosing a career path. Yeah, it’s kind of a convoluted thought, but if you stop and think about it, don’t you know of someone in ministry that has been guilty of selling something (church, religion, tithing, serving), buying something (doing something in exchange for getting financial support), processing something for sale (personalizing a theology or doctrine and then preaching it, rather than Christ crucified) or ____________ ? (add your own thoughts here)
Ministry shouldn’t be about sales or buying something or having an agenda. It should be about people and connecting them with the eternal love of Christ.
Now, it’s your turn to say anything…
the idea camp — 2 comments
29
Jul 10
I’m throwing out a challenge to the leadership and community from The Idea Camp. It’s more so an expression of a long-term idea rather than an actual challenge.
A bunch of us have stayed connected and formed a tribe of sorts stemming from attendance at the very first The Idea Camp back in February 2009 in Irvine, CA. We’ve stayed connected and helped encourage and support others, but we have yet to take an idea and collectively work together to see it happen. Of course, Charles Lee–the creative force and facilitator of The Idea Camp–has seen his ideas come to life through hosting each event, but what about a ground level, grassroots, collaborative movement inspired by and carried out by our group, affectionately known as Idea Campers?
So, my challenge to my fellow Idea Campers at large is this: Let’s brainstorm some ideas and collectively pool together our talents and resources to see something come of it. Let’s take what we’ve professed as the DNA of The Idea Camp and do something with it!
If you’re not familiar with The Idea Camp yet, learn more and join in the community here:
website: http://theideacamp.com
ning: http://theideacamp.ning.com
twitter: http://www.twitter.com/theideacamp
facebook: http://www.facebook.com/theideacamp
church planting / missional / multi-cultural church — No comments
28
Jul 10
I’ve been staying away from a lot of reading material regarding the church and leadership this year. It all began sounding the same and it was rehashing things I’ve already learned in previous books. However, an excerpt from Ed Stetzer‘s newest book Viral Churches: Helping Church Planters Become Movement Makers has gotten me excited.
In regards to multiplication of the missional church, here are some snippets from the post over at Foursquare News:
“People will need to consider church planting as one of their ministry’s core values. Church planting cannot be an afterthought, someone else’s ministry or a department. Churches will live, eat and breathe it. The widespread expectation that people will be sent out must become normal rather than exceptional.”
“Churches will always have a scorecard…With our emphasis on a multiplication movement, a new scorecard will lend itself toward opening relationships and dialogue between church leaders. Let’s cross the proverbial aisles to help those in varying denominations, networks and methodologies celebrate how God is multiplying churches. Then our members will do the same.”
“We replicate what we celebrate”
“Multiplying churches are going to do a better job of disciple making. This is due to their determination to emphasize the transformation occurring in small communities and to simpler church structures that give more time to personal formation.”
“Future churches will be less tied to the construction of buildings…Multiplication movements are built on the principle of easily reproducible models, and facilities must follow suit.”
“…it is time to for us to assume a position of learning from the global Christian community. We can learn much, for example, from the worldwide church planting movements.”
“Here in the United States, the majority of church growth continues to come from immigrant and non-Anglo congregations. They may take a leadership role in this country’s church multiplication movement, because their congregations may be willing to multiply sooner and faster than others.”
“Saints persevere, but their institutions and facilities are temporary. As new congregations are formed in the multiplying movements, we will view church facilities as kingdom assets. Church buildings are like an inheritance to pass along rather than a living trust to keep.”
Finally, I’ll end with a quote from Stetzer’s book credited to Bill Easum: “Historically all movements have begun because of the charismatic efforts of one lone individual who touched a nerve among a host of people. Who will step up to be that person?”
See all the quotes in context from Foursquare news here: http://www.foursquare.org/articles/1382,1.html
Dave (personal) / church / leadership — 8 comments
27
Jul 10
The title is in reference to my friend Jon Reid‘s blog of the same title. In particular, it has to do with this post: “and” (Philippians 1:1 lectio) and Jon’s reply to my comment on that post. I’m sure my takeaway from Jon’s post was different than his thoughts that went into writing the content, but it struck me pretty hard in my own way. You see, I’ve been wandering around here in Portland, OR for the past six months feeling alone and like a stranger in a strange place. No matter what I do, I just feel unsettled here. During a tokbox video chat with my friend Josh Roberts, I found myself unexpectedly going off on a rant about pastoral leadership and how I felt there was a breakdown in pastors caring for and mentoring leaders within their churches. So many people are leaving the ministry and embracing life in roles as speakers, authors, coaches…you name it. They are abandoning the church. It saddens me. So many people are falling away from their roles as servant leaders because of feeling burned out or just going through the motions. They have lost their passion and have become unsupported for their callings. This saddens me as well.
During my rant I told Josh that it was just what was in my mind at the time of our conversation. He insists that it was more than that. He told me it was a burden on my heart. I never thought about it before as a burden, but from that moment on I’ve thought about what he said. Is it a burden? Must I respond?
Feeling lost and alone here in Portland, I too have removed myself from any formal ministry role. I’ve been working up to 12 hours a day, coming home around 9:30pm and even working Sunday mornings until 9:30pm sometimes. I’ve been okay with that up until that tokbox conversation with my friend Josh. I hadn’t really thought about acting on it much until I read the post from my friend Jon. Jon wrote in his blog post:
“I haven’t had either a Paul or a Timothy in my life for many years now, and it shows. ++Lord, send me a Paul. Send me a Timothy.++”
This crushed me. My heart went out to Jon. I know his pain and anguish. I hope for what he hopes for. We need people to have a burden on their hearts to help equip and encourage others. We need people like the Apostle Paul to pass along his encouragement and training to people like Timothy. It must be a continual cycle of renewal. Somehow we have lost this mentoring relationship. I feel I must get back into this, even at an informal level. I may not be the designated leader in a community at the moment, but I have a burden to give back to those who want to receive and encourage those that just need a little boost.
While I could always just go do this, I feel like there must be more to it than that. A community, a network, a fellowship… something bigger than myself must be the result.
faith / people — 1 comment
25
Jul 10
I’m curious to know how you feel about the following quotes:
- [there is a] “greater purpose for every single one of us, even if we’re stripped of all our wealth or our resources.”
- “One thing about honor, one thing about dignity — it’s not dependent on what’s written on a document…That comes from standing up and being truthful to who you are.”
- [He also vowed to] “continue to speak up for those people who cannot.”
- “I know that there are a lot of people who are suffering, and my oath, my commitment to them, doesn’t end…”
So, what do you think? Do these sound noble? Might they even be words you’ve said or thought at some point? Are they your battle cry?
The above quotes are from Lt. Dan Choi whose website bio reads:
Arabic Linguist.
Iraq Veteran.
West Point Graduate.
Infantry Officer.
Gay… Fired… and Fighting Back!
Question is, does knowing who made the above statements change your mind about how you feel about them? Next question is, why?
Here is the context of the quotes from cnn.com: http://bit.ly/aj91HG
