Today Georges Boujakly continues his series on ”keys” to spiritual transformation with key number five:

There is only one speed on the highway of spiritual formation: slow.

Speed rules. Speed is everywhere. We expect all our services speedily. We expect our technology to respond faster all the time. Speed’s pervasive presence has affected our view of spiritual formation, and discipleship. (By the way, if you are looking for a simple way of telling discipleship from spiritual formation here it is: Spiritual formation is the work of the Holy Spirit to conform us to the image of Christ. Discipleship is learning to follow Christ as the Holy Spirit teaches us to do. God’s work is to form us. Our work is to learn his formation process and participate in it. This distinction is helpful to me.) Because God in Christ in the Holy Spirit uses life and disciplines to teach us himself so we may have a kingdom way of life, the process of spiritual formation is always slow. That we demand speed in this area of Christian living is an indication of our consumerist tendencies in the church today.

What does slow progress feel like? What does it look like? Chime right in. Here’s what I think. Frankness and personal experience must guide me here. Read the rest of this entry

God’s transforming presence will change us, not so we can transform the world, but so we can experience God’s presence more deeply and be restored to God’s image more completely. When fully human people do God’s will, they move into the neighborhood as a loving, transforming presence, like Jesus did. If there is to be a renaissance of faith and culture, and I pray that there will be, it will be a by-product of God’s transforming presence in our individual lives. Cultural enrichment proceeds from enriched individuals, and there is but one aim for our transformation: God intends to transform us from fallen humans to fully human.

- Dick Staub in The Culturally Savvy Christian

When discussing church planting issues the question of revitalizing existing churches will often be raised. In fact just this week I had a guy ask if I knew of any “dead or dying” churches in our network that were open to making changes to be more “externally focused” and “evangelistic.” I shared with him that in most cases there are good reasons why a church is dead or dying and often it is simply because the church has no real desire to change. The church may say they want to change and experience spiritual and numeric growth, but their actions and behaviors prove otherwise.

Well today David Wayne linked to an interesting article discussing research on our resistance to change in a 2005 issue of Fast Company magazine. The article was reference by Ed Stetzer in a conversation that he, Drew Goodmanson, and David had over lunch at the GCA North America Church Planting Seminar. Read the rest of this entry

Here is a link to the latest podcast of the Roxburgh Journal interview with Pete Akins titled “Engaging Neighborhoods Where We Live.”

Roxburgh highlights a creative lay church planting movement taking place in the towns and villages in the UK. I would highly recommend taking 30 minutes to listen and be encouraged by what God is doing through the lives of His servants there. As Roxburgh states on his blog when reflecting on the interview: “I was struck by the power of what God is about in quiet, sustained forms of on-the-ground fresh expressions of kingdom life in rural England.”

O Lord, mercifully receive the prayers of your servant who calls upon you, and grant that I may know and understand what things I ought to do, and that I also may have the grace and power to faithfully accomplish them; through Jesus Christ my Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

-The Vespers Office, The Divine Hours

In an excellent article in Word & World Journal titled “Rethinking Denominations and Denominationalism in Light of a Missional Ecclesiology” Craig Van Gelder discusses the significant developments in the past few decades in trinitarian studies regarding an understanding of mission, specifically in the area of ecclesiology. He highlights two streams within trinitarian studies that inform this conversation, and ultimately inform our understanding of the genetic code of the missional church. Here is a portion of the article: Read the rest of this entry

“It is not the church which ‘undertakes’ mission; it is the missio Dei which constitutes the church.”

- David J. Bosch in Transforming Mission: Paradigm Shifts in Theology of Mission

In April 1992, two years before the end of apartheid, Bosch tragically bled to death after a head-on traffic accident in a rural area of South Africa. Passersby called for an ambulance to bring the “jaws of life” and cut his feet free so the bleeding could be stopped. When they called a second time to ask what was taking so long, the emergency dispatcher reportedly replied, “You didn’t say he was a white man.” A later investigation of whether this actually occurred was inconclusive, largely because the tapes of the two phone conversations had disappeared.

How ironic that one who lived as an enemy of racism should die as an unofficial victim of it. But racism was not the victor in this story. Bosch’s death exposed racism for what it really is – an ideology that kills even when it does not intend to, an ideology that cannot silence those it wishes to silence. How could it, when mere death is its ultimate weapon?

- Discussing the death of missiologist David J. Bosch in the introduction of “A Reader’s Guide to Transforming Mission” by Stan Nussbaum.

Alan Roxburgh interviews Rev. Graham Cray, a bishop in the Anglican Church in the UK and the chair of the working group who published the “Mission Shaped Church” report which is available for download at Fresh Expressions. Bishop Cray talks about what is happening in the UK around fresh expressions of church and how they are trying to connect with the “de-churched.” He also discusses how a sense of collaboration is developing as older churches are learning and working together with newer churches. The interview is only 11 minutes long and can be viewed here.

“So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.”

- Romans 12:1-2 (The Message)

I want to make you aware of the Missional X conference coming up September 20-22 in Tucson. The conference will feature Jim Henderson, author of Evangelism Without Additives and Jim and Casper Go to Church and Darrin Patrick, pastor of The Journey in St. Louis and Vice-President of Acts 29. For more information, including workshop topics be sure to check out the site.

I recently began reading Dick Staub’s The Culturally Savvy Christian, subtitled “A Manifesto For Deepening Faith and Enriching Popular Culture in an Age of Christianity-Lite.”  In chapter one Staub emphasises how popular culture is crippling the souls of people. He then contends that the only real answer is a transformed American Christianity. Here is a short excerpt from the conclusion of chapter one. Read the rest of this entry

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you,
wherever He may send you.
May He guide you through the wilderness,
protect you through the storm.
May He bring you home rejoicing
at the wonders He has shown you.
May He bring you home rejoicing
once again into our doors.

- A blessing from the Celtic Book of Prayer

Lord God, almighty and everlasting Father, you have brought me in safety to this new day: Preserve me with your mighty power, that I may not fall into sin, nor be overcome by adversity; and in all I do direct me to the fulfilling of your purpose; through Jesus Christ my Lord. Amen.

- The Concluding Prayer of the Church, The Divine Hours

While in LA a few weeks ago I became aware of a great ministry called NightLight. NightLight is based in urban Bangkok (and now they have a “branch” in LA) that combats the sexual exploitation of women and children. I have to admit that I was not fully aware of the extent of human trafficking around the world, including the United Sates, until hearing a woman from NightLight speak on the topic.

One of the unique ways this ministry raises support and offers employment for those rescued from the world of trafficking is through the selling of hand-made jewelry that you can check out here. I hope you will consider buying some jewelry to help support this ministry and then allow the jewelry to be a conversation starter to share with others how they can help. Read the rest of this entry

The goal of spiritual transformation is conformity to Jesus Christ.

In light of the last post it is important to recognize that God’s telos is not nebulous. It is specific. It is love but it is love of a specific kind. It is particular. It is as particular as the life of the trinity: a life of perfect love.

Romans 8:29 refers to this particularity as conformity to the likeness of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ shows more than anyone else what the perfect life of love is like in the way he goes about loving as described in the Gospels. He loved God fully, and loved others fully. Nothing spared, not possessions, not even life itself. Paul tells Timothy to participate in his own spiritual transformation to attain a particular goal: godliness, i.e. to be and to behave like God (1Timothy 4:7-8). Read the rest of this entry

Here are the dates and times for the Missional Network gatherings later this month. This month we will take a break from discussing a book and instead we would like everyone to come to the network gatherings prepared to respond to two questions in regards to your ministry and/or how you are currently experiencing the Christian life. Our hope is to create an opportunity for us to learn from the journeys of each other. The two questions to consider are:

1. What do you find yourself “unlearning?”

2. What are you discovering?

Newton Network
Friday, July 27th
12:00 – 3:00pm
The Journey
7th and Plum
Newton, KS

KC Network
Thursday, August 2nd
4:00pm-7:00pm
Kansas City Association
8745 Ballentine
Overland Park