Tag Archive for 'Movements'

New works in Montpelier & Barcelona? I hope so!

Published
by
Justin
on November 23, 2008
in Movements
. 2 Comments

I’ve had the chance to go out with some other CA staff this past week to do some (more) research in the cities of Montpelier and Barcelona. After 5 full days of traveling, meetings, and walking I’m really tired. I’m in Barcelona now waiting to head to the airport and I’m so tired that all I feel like doing is sitting and typing on my computer! *Note: I’m in this really cool pub that I’ve walked by a hundred times and I had no idea how cool it is in here. Free wifi too! I really really wish that I didn’t have to get on a plane tonight in order to go ‘home’ and see my family. I wish that we just lived here and I could just drop in here from our apartment…that would make life a lot easier and it make Jen and I oh-so-happy to be finally settled!!!*

So the research stuff…both cities went well. Very different places and very different trips. Montpelier was virtually unknown to any of us. We had some great meetings and learned a lot about the city. It’s a really pretty place and a ton of students! People we talked to said that there were as many as from 60k to 90k students…in a city of 500,000 that’s a lot. We left really feeling like there is opportunity…also important, it seemed as though a lot of those we talked with would like to see another church planted there. Like most cities in Europe…there are only a few churches in every city that are really doing anything about the current spiritual climate here, other than just simply existing.

This has been my 4th time in Barca…and a very productive time for us. Marty planted a church here in 1992 that has since been lead by people from Assemblies of God. It’s been cool to be here w/ Marty, to hear his stories and to learn from his experience. We had a few meetings and all of them went well…Each person expressed the need for new work here and each offered to help in any way and to be a resource for us. Everyone also expressed a need to really know Spanish (and even Catalan) even though our initial work will be with internationals. We are stoked to learn Spanish and I’m really looking forward to being able to communicate here. I think that I’ll love the city even more when I feel less out of water. I saw places in the city that I had never seen and even found a great open air market with all kinds of stuff that we may be able to use someday! I feel like I have a much broader and better understanding of the work that is going on here…it’s great to know the context in which we’ll be entering…and to have the relationships with people who have experience and can provide wisdom when we’ll certainly need it! 

All in all, both places are great places where more, new, and creative forms of following Jesus are needed. I’m excited to see how Jen and I will engage Barcelona and take what I’ve learned here and put it to use…and see lives changed.

Simplicity

Published
by
Justin
on October 7, 2008
in From Out of Nowhere, Missional Church and Movements
. 5 Comments

I’ve been reading through 1 John the last few days. Today this part stuck out to me:

1 John 3:23

This is [God's] commandment: to believe in his Son, the one named Jesus Christ, and to love each other as he commanded us. Those who obey Christ’s commandments live in God, and God lives in them. We know that he lives in us because he has given us the Spirit.

The simplicity of this verse stands in stark contrast to the amount of all that I’ve read, heard, and lived in regards to being a follower of Jesus. My reasoning for this error is that we live a culture that values the pursuit of knowledge above most else. In the story of the Garden in Genesis…what does the serpent tempt Adam and Eve with? Knowledge. Abandoning the simple trust in their God, they chose it.

I wonder: In our pursuit of knowledge about God, scripture, and what we believe is Christian living; in what ways have we abandoned the commandment of God: to obey Jesus, and love each other.

I wonder: How would the world be different if we traded our talk, thoughts, and plans for loving others - for actually loving others?

I wonder: Will we ever be content with the simplicity of love? Or will we continually be tempted to add more to it? …maybe as a justification for our lack of obeying Jesus’ commandment to love?

I’m serious about this choosing love thing. We’ve done the knowledge thing for a long time and it’s gotten us only so far. I say we allow our knowledge to evolve into love and let God have a shot using that for a few generations.

Hmm…we gotta do some thinkin’ on this one

Published
by
Justin
on August 5, 2008
in Leadership, Missional Church and To Think About...
. 2 Comments

I got this stat from another blog called ‘Next Reformation‘ who writes from Canada…Worth a listen and some time asking this question, “If we are really serious about blessing the world around us, are we really listening to what those further from God care about or do we just simply want to do what we care about better?” 

“Studies have shown that only 10% of the non-churched population are comfortable with and open to ‘contemporary worship’ style services. (ie. Hillsong style singing - preaching etc). Yet the same study shows that up to 90% of churches are moving towards this type of service. By my calculations that leaves around 90% of the unchurched population without a church presenting the message of Jesus in a culturally relevant method for them.”

This stat could be seen as a negative thing…but I see it like this: We have much possibility for innovation in the ways in which we express the Kingdom. And if our innovations move towards blessing others there are lot of people who will be on the receiving end of the good that Jesus will do through us.

How to Kill a Movement: Part 3…an Ode to the best admin ever: David Nelson*

Published
by
Justin
on April 19, 2008
in Movements
. 3 Comments

How to Kill a Movement Part 3: Refuse to provide administrative help and let it suffocate under it’s own weight

 

Of all the things on the list, I think this one may be the most ‘unMovement’ feeling for most. Here is the reality: There is a big difference between starting a movement and sustaining a movement. Administration is not sexy, does not inspire most people, does not get the earthly praise and is sometimes low on the gift list of leaders who are out beginning the movements.

 

Let me say from experience…administration is very important to long-term movement sustainability. If a leader is thinking long-term, then administration has to be included in that strategy. Here’s how I see it:

 

Movements are like fast moving boats in stormy water. Most types of people that get on these boats are the people who are bent towards looking out past the bow. They ask questions like: Where are we going? What do we have to navigate? What is the best way to get where we want to go? Their eyes and hearts are bent towards what is to come. And that’s a good thing.

 

The truth is that while going through this storm, people fall off the boat. People get left behind. Some people are even trying to get on, while others are just barely hanging on. I see administrative roles looking out for this stuff and looking out for solutions to the problems caused by the nature of the storm…not to mention looking at the map to make sure we are going in the right direction…and checking the engine to make sure it’s not going to explode! Admin gifted people can help answer (and ask) questions like: Is this the best way to get where we want to go? How can we get through the storm better? Who has fallen off and how can we throw them a life-preserver? Who is trying to get on this boat?

 

If a movement is truly healthy it will grow. And the more people that get on the boat, the harder it is to maneuver, operate, repair, and keep people from falling off. Admin people have the giftedness to help a movement expand their boat.

 

The people and the way that they think can (and should) become the backbone of a movement. They keep it standing up tall, not lying limp on the ground. So if you are wanting to begin, have started, or are in the thick of a movement, remember that there is a reason that God gave us all different gifts and that each one has value. See the strategy behind having a healthy admin structure because if you don’t prepare for it now, it could kill you in the future! Also, admin people can also be visionary and gifted not only in tasks and processes…listen to and look for them.

 

A good example of this is found in Acts…the disciples appointed some other people to take on the ‘admin process’ of distributing bread among the widows. One of those men was James. Who in a chapter later gives one of the most hard hitting talks recorded in the book of Acts…and ends up being killed for it. But his original task? Bread distributor. We never know how God may have or will gift those in our movements.

 

Administrate…do it. Find people to do…or we run the risk of killing our movements under their own momentum. 

 

Dave is a great friend of Jen and I’s and was my admin back in the day…truly an amazing person that I had the privilege of serving with. He was a great admin, but an even greater friend. I would work with him again in a heartbeat…and he made some dang good coffee! 

How to Kill a Movement Series: Require education for the leadership

Published
by
Justin
on April 6, 2008
in Missional Church, Movements and Posts That Even Make Me Mad
. 2 Comments

A while ago (a really long while ago), I talked about doing a series of posts on a list that I had found on another blog. Honestly, I’ve not had the extra brain energy to put into this, and I am finally back to thinking on this level again. Well, we’ll see after this post! 

Over the next few weeks I’m going to be unpacking my thoughts on the list called How to Kill a Movement. Here’s the list if you want to look at it the whole thing. 

If you want to kill a movement the first thing you should do is require education for the leadership. 

Leadership is one of the most crucial issues when thinking on a movement level. I’m not one of those guys who thinks that everything rises and falls on leaders, but I do think that leaders play a significant role in developing a movement’s culture, ideals, values, and vision. Having the right people in the right places is absolutely critical in maintaining a movement dynamic. 

I believe that leadership habits can be learned and that one can be taught how to lead. But ultimately, leadership (meaning influence) is a gift from God that we are called to be stewards of. The way I see it, if somebody has been given Kingdom influence it is a gift from God, there is no need for them to have to have a certificate or a degree to validate their influence. I do believe that education is good…I believe that it reveals commitment, it can challenge thinking, and it can provide good mentoring. I just don’t think that it is the stamp of approval for a leader. I have observed that there is a clear difference between true spiritual authority and simple hierarchy. Education does not produce spiritual authority, wisdom, or influence; only God does. And this in only revealed by the fruit it produces. It’s not revealed in strategy. Nor organized teaching. Nor the appearance of ministry…only by it’s fruit. Requiring a leader to go through formal education runs the risk of burning out their passion by weighing it down with specialized vocabulary, methods, and strategies that may even detract from them being truly incarnational leaders. This could be compared to making a Masai leader go to seminary just to return to the bush wearing a suit, making people sit in pews, and sing hymns.

Here are some thoughts about what I think movement leadership needs to be…since formal education is not one of them.

Movement leadership needs to be held with open hands

Life always comes with change. And with every change in seasons comes new challenges and needs. Leadership within a movement needs to be seen as a gift that God temporarily lets us borrow to be used as He sees fit. We must hold onto this gift loosely knowing that it is not ours…and that we are ultimately valuable to God because of Jesus, not because of our giftedness. Our identify comes from within, not from without. I get a picture of golf clubs in my head…on some shots God may need a driver, yet on others, a pitching wedge. Just because God can crush His driver 7,000 yards doesn’t mean He has to do it every shot! There is a time and a season for every leader…our job is to be as faithful as possible for the places and seasons God has put us in…all the while knowing that the season we are in could just be prep for the next thing God has around the bend! 

Movement leadership needs to be empowering

The best leaders understand that their true ministry is to equip those around them. This is especially true when wanting to start a movement. People from within the movement need to know that they are believed in. That they are gifted. Basically, they need to know that they have what it takes. The fundamental role of a leader is to provoke people into seeing themselves the way God does. The best type of movement leadership is birthed from the inside out. Yes, recruiting leaders is good too, but I would take a leader who is developed from the inside over a ‘top recruit’ any day…even if the recruit looked better on paper! But in order for leaders to emerge and see themselves as influencers they must be empowered. This won’t look the same way in every situation (it shouldn’t be a cookie cutter thing anyway), but the value of empowering developing leaders is must for any movement to succeed. 

Movement leadership needs to pass on core transferable values and get rid of the other nonsense

The big picture of movement thinking is long-term reproduction and sustainability. It’s worth noting that it is extremely important to pass on the right things and not treat unnecessary, or overly specified things, as fundamental. I think that that key is to reduce what we want to see multiplied to the core values and allow the values to multiply (not mimic) themselves into new expressions. These new traits and practices will become incarnational expressions of the new environment, not simply carbon copies of the original.

Movement leadership ultimately needs to trust that God is in control

If we’re being honest…we prefer predictability to trust. At least I do most of the time! But when it comes to movements, we have to be willing to risk…risk failure, risk resources, and even risk people with people. We are never never going to survive unless we get a little crazy…wait, that sounds like Seal doesn’t it? But we have to trust that God is going to meet crazy with provision and/or grace! Following the Spirit is an unpredictable journey that leads us into danger and even chaos. But this is the space where faith is born. 

I think that’s enough on this one…but two last thoughts:

1. Jesus never went to any formal training that we know of…he was a carpenter from a hick town.

-and-

2. “Your mom goes to college” - Kip Dynamite