Do you know Jesus?

Continuing my reading of "Re-Jesus: A Wild Messiah for a Missional Church" this morning waiting for my daughter Abbey as she was getting braces on her bottom teeth, I read this:

"Whether we like it or not, we carry the burden of having to live out the truth in such a way as to establish its viability among those who are watching. Shane Claiborne, author of The Irresistible Revolution, once surveyed a group of people who identified themselves as 'strong followers of Jesus' and asked them, 'Did Jesus spend time with the poor?' Around 80 percent replied in the affirmative, leaving a disturbing 20 percent of so-called strong followers of Jesus who think Jesus didn't spend time with the poor. That this could be the case should remind us of the levels of Christian ignorance about our founder and Lord. But the more disturbing fact is that Claiborne asked the same group, 'Do you spend time with the poor?' Only 2 percent replied that they did. There is for many an almost complete disconnect between our beliefs about Jesus and our actions." pg. 53

What impact does reading something like this have on you?

A Post-Father's Day Post

I would like to thank my friend, Greg Finke (pastor at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, Houston, TX) for his "Good Morning Church" piece I received this morning. Good stuff!

"Ephesians 5:25, "Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her."

Ephesians 6:4, "Fathers, bring your children up in the training and instruction of the Lord."

Yesterday was an awesome Father's Day celebration at Gloria Dei. We talked about some simple practices that have surprising results in refreshing our lives. In marriages that are strong and spiritually vital, and in families that are full of joy and Jesus, there is a common denominator: a husband and father who is quietly taking the spiritual lead in his family. There is something about the way God designed the family that makes the husband and father's simple actions and quiet convictions very powerful for his wife and children. We can ignore this design, deny it or even rebel against it. Or we can trust it, align ourselves with it and be blessed. Your choice. So choose well. Men often get the willies when they hear that God looks to them to be the spiritual leaders of their families. And women, who have been let down or even abused by the men in their lives can easily be skeptical as well. Who could blame them? They should have been able to count on the men God placed in their lives. However, much of this confusion comes from a misunderstanding of what God had in mind when he wired men and designed their families to prosper as he humbly takes up the spiritual headship in his family.

What does it mean to be the spiritual leader in the family?
- It does not mean he knows all the right answers to Bible trivia questions.
- It does not mean he prays the most eloquent prayers.
- It does not mean he is supposed to impose his will and opinions on the rest of the family like
some kind of bully.

Being the spiritual leader of the family simply means the husband/father loves Jesus openly and does his best to follow him as a man of God. If we men do this, it blesses our families powerfully. Micah 6:8, "The Lord has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God."

We men have underestimated the powerful difference we could make in our families if we simply loved Jesus openly and tried our best to walk humbly with our God. Likewise, we men need to realize that we are already leading powerfully in our families, whether we acknowledge it or not. We are either leading our wives and children toward Jesus or away from Him. Our action or inaction is already having a profound effect on our families. So, by being more open in your love for Jesus and more intentional in your desire to follow Him (even though we often fall short), you will bless your family deeply.

Men, here are three simple practices that will transform your marriage and family:
1) Spend the first 15 minutes of your day being filled up with the love your Heavenly Father already has for you. Listen to Him (Bible), talk with Him (prayer), and then believe and receive Him (silence and reflection). With your heart re-filled with His love, you are ready for the next two practices.

2) Every morning, take the hand of your wife and pray for her. Keep it simple. But do it daily. Fill her up every morning with the love you have received from the Father. Ephesians 3:16, "I pray that the Father may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being..."

3) Every morning, take your children into your arms, put your hands on them, and bless them (speak life-giving words into them). No matter how old your children are, they will always long for your love and blessing. Mark 10:16, "And Jesus took the children in His arms, put His hands on them and blessed them."

The Kingdom of God is the upper room of every home. Men, open the door for your wife and children every day. Be a reason they are blessed!"

Loyalty

Look at Jesus! Take some time to really consider Him today! He makes everything clear. He can be trusted. Have you ever wondered why people followed Him? Yes, indeed, the Spirit of God burned within them. Given them at Pentecost, the disciples were fully loyal....to death!

As we lead others to follow Jesus, don't we burn with a passion to see people be that loyal to Him today? Aren't we desirous to see a leadership multiplication happen in our ministries? As leaders in the kingdom of God we are not just looking for people to follow us, we are looking for people to follow Jesus. As leaders in the kingdom we are not merely looking to have people follow, we are looking to help people lead!

It may be important, then, for those of us who are called and set apart to lead to come to grips with why people follow. As a leader, what compels people to follow YOU? And what do you want to instill in others you are trying to raise up as leaders?

I'm not sure where I got this. It may have been in some of the posts or tweets from Will Mancini. Check out his blog when you get a chance.

Here's a leadership formula to consider:

Clarity (compelling vision)+ Capacity (trusted leadership)=Loyalty

What are you doing as a leader to nurture clarity? What are you doing in your leadership development to build capacity?

Missional Church Top Ten List #1

The church is, by its very nature, missional. Being missional is not a part of what the church is to be about. It is what the church is! Just like we, as individual followers of Jesus are not simply to behave missionally in part, we are missional through and through because we belong to Jesus!

And #1 on my top ten list for what it would really look like to be a missional church?

#1 People who are far from God will confess Jesus as Lord and Savior! More and more people throughout our region will join us as full partners in Jesus' redemptive work. "And the Lord added daily to their number those who were being saved."

Missional Church Top Ten List #2

#2 Our churches will become powerful agents of life-giving transformation in our communities. It would be true that if our churches were not in that community they would be truly missed by the community. The people of God throughout our region would be making a difference; making the community a healthier place, bringing wisdom, and adding value to the community.

Missional Church Top Ten List #3

#3 There would be a greater focus on spiritual preparation, and less activity around planning. As we follow Jesus each of us as leaders needs to learn how to walk with Jesus, listening to Him, trusting Him to guide our steps, rather than making our plans and asking God to bless them. We cannot lead God's people if we do not know how to follow! There will be a renewed emphasis on spiritual formation and the spiritual disciplines.

Missional Church Top Ten List #4

#4 There would be a new passion for the Word of God not only as a text to study, but as our life-blood for missional living. This would mean a fresh look at Jesus in the Gospels and allowing Him to not only be our substitute, but our guide and model as well. Certainly on this point, He is our substitute. Yet, in our Lutheran circles, it seems to me, that we have so elevated Him as substitute in fear of falling into "works righteousness" that we have neglected the fact that He does call us, and lead us to go, to live, as He went, as He lived! "No servant is greater than His master." "You will be blessed if you do them."

Missional Church top Ten List #5

#5...

#5 We will truly believe and act as if the region we serve is a mission field in terms of how workers are trained for mission work. A move from centralized and highly controlled pastoral education to distributed, aligned, and empowered multiplication of missional leadership will be necessary. We will need to embrace the truth that the "workers are in the harvest" and need to be trained in the harvest and released back into the harvest.

Missional Church Top Ten List #6

If a church were really missional we would see...

#6 ...more and more people in our congregations learning how to live life together. We will begin to see all the other days of the week, just as important as Sunday morning. We will learn how to hang out more, and run around busy less. We will see the focus on nurturing healthy relationships as primary. Will this effect what we do when we gather as leaders? I believe it must. Sharing our stories, celebrating our stories, and beginning to see how they instersect with His story will become something we master!

Missional Church Top Ten List #7

What would a missional church really look like? Here's #7 of my top ten:

#7 New partnerships will emerge and be celebrated. If, indeed, it is "all about the Kingdom," we will find others within the Kingdom of God who may not be a part of our section of God's kingdom to work with to reach our communities. We will also work side-by-side with those who are not yet Jesus-followers. "...rather than running around drawing lines of demarcation between those who are in the community of Christ and those who are not, we are simply to bless all those who participate with us in the work of Jesus." pg. 30 "Re-Jesus" Luke 9:49 ff

Missional Church Top Ten List #8

So, what would it really look like to be a missional church? Here's #8 of my top ten:

#8 God's people would have an increasing awareness of Christ's redeeming activity in the world. More and more people will be able to recognize that Jesus is alive and well in our world, working not only in church or at church, but in the world. Our fervent prayer will be "Thy Kingdom come......on earth, as it is in Heaven." "Mission implies everything Jesus is about in the world. And this cannot be limited to merely religious concerns." pg. 29 "Re-Jesus"

Missional Church Top Ten List #9

The church is, by its very nature, missional. Being missional is not a part of what the church is to be about. It is what the church is! Just like we, as individual followers of Jesus are not simply to behave missionally in part, we are missional through and through because we belong to Jesus!

So, what would it really look like to be a missional church?

#9 We would see a move from church-centered concerns to people concerns. Congregations one at a time would be concerned less and less with maintaining or growing their churches. Rather, they would be filled with a passion to grow people! This would also mean that resources (people, money, technology) would be aligned toward people development.

Missional Church Top Ten List #10

Much has been written about the missional church. Many have attempted to define it. I have even attempted to define "missional" myself. Some reject the term altogether. I find much of the focus on "missional" today encouraging as it grounds us again in the consideration of what the church is. The church is, by its very nature, missional. Being missional is not a part of what the church is to be about. It is what the church is! Just like we, as individual followers of Jesus are not simply to behave missionally in part, we are missional through and through because we belong to Jesus!

So, what would it really look like to be a missional church? Over the next week or so, I will share 10 thoughts on that question. Perhaps it would be considered my Top Ten List!

#10 The mission of Jesus would become the organizing principle of all we do. A concern for the preservation of our religious institutions would be replaced with a passionate and fervent, almost obsessive focus on multiplying missional leadership, thereby yielding more and more Jesus-followers in our congregations who are living missional lives.

Cell Phone or Bible

I received this e-mail last Friday. Perhaps you've already seen it. It sure made me take notice of priorities and habits.

"Ever wonder what would happen if we treated our Bible like we treat our cell phone?
What if we carried it around in our purses or pockets?
What if we flipped through it several time a day?
What if we turned back to go get it if we forgot it?
What if we used it to receive messages from the text?
What if we treated it like we couldn't live without it?
What if we gave it to Kids as gifts?
What if we used it when we traveled?
What if we used it in case of emergency?
This is something to make you go....'hmm....where is my Bible?'"