One In Jesus

I grew up in the Churches of Christ. And when I was a teenager, we had these classes for leadership training. Of course, girls had to take something else, but the boys were trained in leadership. 

As best I can recall, we learned to —

* Lead a communion service and pass the trays.

* Lead a public prayer.

* Preach a short sermon.

* Lead singing.

* Say the prayer before the offering, which was, of course, separate and apart from the Lord’s Supper, although it was always immediately afterwards.

Notice a pattern? Continue reading →

As I mentioned in the introduction, there is no model for how to do this — not in the sense that we leaders think of church models. We want a “how to” book with pre-printed literature for classes. Maybe even a poster we can buy to hang in the foyer. Maybe an expert we can hire with all the answers. But it’s not going to happen.

6. Neither Missional nor Simple is a church model.

Frankly, the proclivity of leaders to look for another church model is a sign of the church’s shallowness, not its maturity. … Continue reading →

Stetzer and Geiger write,

5. Both Missional and Simple are people-focused, not program-focused.

Instead of utilizing people and resources to keep church programs functioning, missional leaders view their programs and resources as tools for people to encounter the grace of God. The goal is people, not program. They view their resources as tools for people’s lives to be transformed, and they train their members to think this way.

This is densely packed. There are two parts. First, we have to eliminate the idea that our job is to keep the programs running. Second, we have to replace many programs — most programs — with a change in the hearts of our members: they see their own resources as missional. It’s not just the church’s job. It’s theirs. And it’s their passion. Continue reading →

Well, I wrote a little something on private Christian schools for K -12, and so I figure I should say something about Christian colleges. By way of background, my wife and I graduated from Lipscomb (Church of Christ affiliated college in Nashville) way back in 1975. We both grew up in small congregations in small towns and loved our experience there, and we benefit from it even now 33 years later (has it been that long?)

My two oldest sons attended Harding (Church of Christ school in Arkansas) and did well. My third son (of four) is a sophomore at Auburn, a secular, state college. There he’s active in the student ministry run by the Auburn Church of Christ, which has been a great experience for him. My fourth son is a senior in the local public high school and is pondering his choices.

And so, I’m a fan of our Church of Christ colleges … well, most of them. Some are still consumed with legalism, and I wouldn’t send anyone to any of them. Continue reading →

Alan asked a question at an earlier post that helped me think through an issue I’ve been wrestling with: the role of private Christian schools in a missional church. Now, I’m thinking largely of K-12. The Christian colleges have different roles, which I’m still sorting through.

I have four sons, with the youngest being a senior in high school. The two oldest attended Harding (affiliated with the Churches of Christ). The third is presently at Auburn (a state school with relatively conservative values).

At the K-12 level, we’ve had children in the public schools, a secular private school, and a Christian private school. We’ve tried everything — and each has had its advantages and disadvantages. I’m neither pro- nor anti-private school. Rather, I’m just trying to think how the private school idea best fits into the idea of missional Christianity. Continue reading →

Stetzer and Geiger write,

4. Missional and Simple leaders know the culture.

They offer several examples of Paul working within Grecian culture to the teach the gospel. They then note, 

Missional leaders fall deeply in love with the city or town in which God has placed them. They embrace and embed themselves in their community. Such leaders understand the vital key of incarnational ministry by living out the words of Jesus on a daily basis through a missional rhythm of being a blessing to the people (community) to which they are sent (Genesis 12:2).

When a church is marked by complexity, it is usually not filled with church leaders engaging their neighbors. They are too consumed managing the systems that keep the warehouse functioning. The warehouse has become the end instead of a means to effectively release and distribute people into the world.

And the second point is a critical one, I think.

Continue reading →