There is an excellent post on how differently we must think about measuring success in missional communties by Pernell Goodyear, a leader at The Freeway in Hamilton, Ontario. (Thanks Paul) There is much here to consider if you are a church planter as well as someone who is in the position of coaching/mentoring planters. I would recommend reading [...]
Archive for June, 2007
Missional Church? Be Prepared To Lose
Posted: 29th June 2007 by Brad Brisco in Church Planting, Missional2
Comments Off
Earlier this month my friend Georges Boujakly shared eight “keys” to spiritual transformation. These keys include: 1. Spiritual transformation is an inside job. 2. Spiritual transformation requires deliberate effort. 3. Spiritual transformation has a specific goal. 4. The goal of spiritual transformation is conformity to Jesus Christ. 5. The progress of spiritual transformation is always [...]
Chris Elrod, pastor of Compass Point in Lakeland, FL has a very practical article in the latest issue of Next-Wave Ezine where he discusses lessons learned from planting a church. Those of you who are planting or are thinking of starting a new work should consider these insights learned the hard way.
Back in February of 2005 Brother Maynard from Subversive Influence shared an excellent post titled “To Clarify This Journey.” It was republished a month later at emergingchurch.info. In the post Brother Maynard shares nine characteristics that he longs for in the life of a faith community. How deeply do these points resonate with you? What [...]
Spiritual Transformation – Key #1c
Posted: 19th June 2007 by Brad Brisco in Books, Prayer, Spiritual FormationThe Art of Telling God on Yourself. In light of the previous post I want to share a helpful prayer of confession. It is inspired by John Baillie in his Diary of Private Prayer - day eleven: Merciful heart of God, in true repentance, I now open my heart to you. Help me not to hide anything from [...]
Spiritual Transformation – Key #1b
Posted: 18th June 2007 by Brad Brisco in Missional, Spiritual FormationComments Off
The Art of Telling God on Yourself. Today Georges Boujakly offers one last entry (in two parts) on the reality that spiritual transformation is an inside job. Spiritual transformation, sin (the breaking of relationship of trust with God and others), confession, and forgiveness are terms that converge as the inside job the Trinity does in us. [...]
As our network groups have been reading through Hirsch’s “The Forgotten Ways” we have had several conversations about the pressure to conform to the consumerist model of the American church. Here is a brief discussion with Dan Kimball about the pressures at Vintage Faith Church in Santa Cruz. (HT: Rick Meigs) At the prompting of [...]
While this short video is produced by an inspirational, marketing business I think it has something to say about living each day with a missional perspective and the possible impact of doing so. (Thanks Brad M.)
Spiritual Transformation – Key #1a
Posted: 11th June 2007 by Brad Brisco in Missional, Spiritual FormationMy friend Georges Boujakly continues his series on spiritual transformation: The first key to spiritual transformation is that it is an inside job. Last week I said that this inside job requires certain efforts. True, the job is initiated by the Holy Spirit as part of his constant ministry in our lives. But the Holy [...]
Comments Off
Here are the dates and times for the Missional Network gatherings later this month. We will finish our discussion of “The Forgotten Ways” by examining chapter seven, which deals with developing a movement ethos and chapter eight which emphasizes the need to move from community to communitas. I find both of these chapters add much to [...]
Our network gatherings are finally (after three months) getting to the last two chapters of Alan Hirsch’s book The Forgotten Ways. As we prepare to summarize a bit of chapter 7 in this post and chapter 8 tomorrow I thought it would be good to be reminded of the elements discussed thus far. Hirsch coins the [...]
It’s a world of confusion, Lord: we are muddled in our thinking; we are mixed in our emotions; we are inconsistent in our actions. It’s a world of lies, Lord: we deceive ourselves about our motives and intentions; we mislead others with double-speak and spin; we exploit you as an agent of social control and [...]
Spiritual Transformation – Part 2
Posted: 2nd June 2007 by Brad Brisco in Missional, Spiritual FormationLast week my friend Georges Boujakly shared six introductory “keys” on spiritual transformation. This week he has added two additional principles (HT #7: Pastor Rod). Here are the eight principles that Georges is going to elaborate on over the next several weeks. 1. Spiritual transformation is an inside job. 2. Spiritual transformation requires deliberate effort. [...]
“If men and women today began by the thousands experiencing the depths of Jesus Christ in a transforming way, there would simply be no place for their expression of experience to fit into the present-day straitjackets of Christianity. Protestant or Catholic, neither one is structured to contain a mass of devoted people who long for [...]
This is by far my favorite video of all time. If you are not familiar with this, it is a portion of the half time show at the 2002 Super Bowl four months after 911. Five years later it still brings a shiver up my spine and a lump to my throat.