Sunday, October 24, 2010
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
The Verge Network
The website has launched with videos from their February 2010 conference, including this one by Hugh Halter. I'd also watch the ones by Vandersteldt, Chan ... and perhaps I'll recommend more once I've watched them ...
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
The Tangible Kingdom Primer
Update: The video was messing with the appearance of the blog. So you can link to the video externally here.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
The Tangible Kingdom
I have found "The Tangible Kingdom" to be one of the best resources on living the Gospel life that I have ever read. Overstated? I dare you to decide for yourself. It's a book as much about our own tranformation together as believers and followers of Jesus Christ as it is a book about the mission of God to extend his kingdom through his people. And it's mostly through stories!
"So, Burly, if you were to suggest the best resources for helping communities of believers plant the Gospel, what would they be?"
Well, I'd probably recommend starting with "Total Church" as a foundational resource for that type of mission. Then I might work through "The Gospel-Centred Church" with a small group of people. Then if you (and the group) are "trackin'" with what you've read together, I'd move on to "The Tangible Kingdom." After having read it independently (and others in your group have read it independently), I'd go through "The Tangible Kingdom Primer" in smaller groups, as the homework is heavy-duty (in a good way). By the way, this suggestion (re: "The Tangible Kingdom" and the "... Primer" are not based on actually having done this).
Regarding "The Tangible Kingdom Primer," Hugh Halter (one of the authors) said the following over on Ed Stetzer's blog:
"The biggest thing you'll probably notice is that the 8 weeks feel like you're starting over with Jesus. Because we have so many stories of conversion, people often use it as evangelism training for small groups, but we actually wrote it as a spiritual formation exercise. We have found that what truly gets in the way of becoming a disciple is "individualism, consumerism, and materialism." Everyone says they would love to live missionally BUT, BUT, BUT and then we get a list of all the reasons we don't. In actuality, all the aforementioned 'isms' are rooted in sin and Galatians teaches that the ways of the flesh are in direct opposition to the ways of the spirit and you end up not doing what you want. We've learned therefore that you can preach missional living all you want and call people to be disciples, but it goes absolutely nowhere unless you create a spiritual formation pathway that actually challenges our self orientation. The Primer does this."
"Hey, Burly, who made you the expert on what I should read and do."
Why are you being so confrontational? You know that I know what's best for you and everyone else ;o) ...
"So, Burly, if you were to suggest the best resources for helping communities of believers plant the Gospel, what would they be?"
Well, I'd probably recommend starting with "Total Church" as a foundational resource for that type of mission. Then I might work through "The Gospel-Centred Church" with a small group of people. Then if you (and the group) are "trackin'" with what you've read together, I'd move on to "The Tangible Kingdom." After having read it independently (and others in your group have read it independently), I'd go through "The Tangible Kingdom Primer" in smaller groups, as the homework is heavy-duty (in a good way). By the way, this suggestion (re: "The Tangible Kingdom" and the "... Primer" are not based on actually having done this).
Regarding "The Tangible Kingdom Primer," Hugh Halter (one of the authors) said the following over on Ed Stetzer's blog:
"The biggest thing you'll probably notice is that the 8 weeks feel like you're starting over with Jesus. Because we have so many stories of conversion, people often use it as evangelism training for small groups, but we actually wrote it as a spiritual formation exercise. We have found that what truly gets in the way of becoming a disciple is "individualism, consumerism, and materialism." Everyone says they would love to live missionally BUT, BUT, BUT and then we get a list of all the reasons we don't. In actuality, all the aforementioned 'isms' are rooted in sin and Galatians teaches that the ways of the flesh are in direct opposition to the ways of the spirit and you end up not doing what you want. We've learned therefore that you can preach missional living all you want and call people to be disciples, but it goes absolutely nowhere unless you create a spiritual formation pathway that actually challenges our self orientation. The Primer does this."
"Hey, Burly, who made you the expert on what I should read and do."
Why are you being so confrontational? You know that I know what's best for you and everyone else ;o) ...
Friday, September 17, 2010
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Francis Chan
Francis Chan is a man who follows Jesus Christ. Earlier this year, he left his post as Senior Pastor of the church he founded. This update was encouraging and challenging to me.
Monday, June 21, 2010
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Not Enough Pastor Jobs
USA Today had an article posted online two days ago regarding the fact that there just aren't very many jobs out there for Protestant pastors. The article is talking about the lack of full-time, professional, pastoral positions.
I remember back in my seminary days being annoyed by the fact that seminary students were not told by the administration that pastoral positions are few and far between.
Let me ask a barrage of questions:
*Why do people who are gifted to minister the Gospel solely look for full-time positions in order to minister? *What if the economy doesn't recover?
*What if you [hypothetical reader in the category of one looking for a place to minister full-time in a professional pastoral position] never find the ministry "job" you're looking for?
*Will that prevent you from functioning as a pastor/shepherd/minister?
Please discuss.
I remember back in my seminary days being annoyed by the fact that seminary students were not told by the administration that pastoral positions are few and far between.
Let me ask a barrage of questions:
*Why do people who are gifted to minister the Gospel solely look for full-time positions in order to minister? *What if the economy doesn't recover?
*What if you [hypothetical reader in the category of one looking for a place to minister full-time in a professional pastoral position] never find the ministry "job" you're looking for?
*Will that prevent you from functioning as a pastor/shepherd/minister?
Please discuss.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Constitution of the Upside-Down Kingdom
Keith Dow, husband to Darcie Dow who is the good friend of my sister-in-law Heidi (got that?) wrote the following Constitution of the Kingdom of Jesus. I hope it stirs you:
Constitution of the Upside-Down Kingdom
We the people of the upside-down Kingdom proclaim a revolution of repentance. We will no longer be conformed to the counterfeit-power of politics but will stand transformed in the resurrection-power of the Prince of Peace. We bear witness to His strength made perfect in weakness and the joy that is perfected in suffering. His Kingdom dwells among the dead and the dying, the wounded and the helpless; for it is not the healthy that need a doctor and not it is not the living that need new life.
We refuse to legislate life and death but instead join in the death-to-life renewal that begins with poverty of spirit and ends in richness of faith. It is not we who decide where the sun shines or the rain falls, nor do we bless or curse. The gavel of judgment is too heavy for our feeble human hands to hold.
We renounce the world as it has been told to us, the world of kings and princes, and look instead to the world of slaves and paupers, of widows and orphans. Here the least are the greatest and these are our masters, our monarchs. From the eyes of the one without a home a palace is commissioned. From the whisper of a muted voice, a herald is ordained. As I look into the soul of my neighbour-other, my response signs my soul. It is at this moment that I proclaim or betray my allegiance to the Kingdom of repentance.
We reclaim the back alleys, the crack houses, and the minefields as holy ground. We sanctify the shelters, the ghettos, and the street-corner grates. Our war is not with flesh-and-blood, but within each kingdom-citizen. We obliterate indifference and apathy. We attack hatred, spite, and judgement. Even the will to justice succumbs to its fulfillment in mercy, and other-love submerges a legion of sins.
We mourn together the loss of the garden, the birth of god-lust, and the claiming of the power of good and evil. It is only the fruit of life that fills famished souls, not knowledge-power wielded over one another. As Adams and as Eves together we stumble back to the gardens of humankind, tending to the withering and dying and tearing out the weed of desire to be divine found festering in each soul.
We demand no earthly King and call for no holy war. We ourselves are the infidels and the pagans, who know not what we do. Were we even to recognize an enemy, we seek not victory but the martyrs death: To be witness, to proclaim the King's death, to hear "Well done." This is our battle cry.
We dictate no foreign policy or trade embargo; The choices we make are of conscience not control. We refuse to condone the violence of economic oppression or knowingly enslave our global neighbours for the sake of passing popularity or the latest lust. In each transaction we relate not to an 'it' but to a 'you,' not to a brand but to a brother, and each dollar is either a helping hand to bring one to their feet or another drop in an ocean of indifferent economic subjugation.
We believe that giving our children good gifts means not comfort but creative compassion, not fortification but the strength to forgive. It is not weakness that prevents our hands from lifting the sword to protect those we love or ourselves, but the assurance that the victory lies in having fought the good fight and finished the race. Defeat lies not in death but in words betrayed by actions, for each enemy we encounter is both a stranger and a friend, a foe and a brother to whom we are bound. Uncompromising love is what we have witnessed and unrelenting mercy is our prototype. To abandon our Saviour-King at the call of His cross is to be found unworthy of His Name.
We are the few and the foolish. We will never be the majority, the crowd, or the many. Narrow is the path we walk, a path not of practicality but of passion, not of wisdom but of weakness. It is the foolishness of the cross to which we cling; the madness that to suffer is better than to sin; the absurdity of relinquishing rights rather than resisting. To watching eyes we bewilder and confuse, but we are a sight that will not be quickly forgotten. Our dying prayer is that every adversary's eyes will eventually rest upon the crucified Christ.
We the people of the upside-down kingdom work expectantly through the night, confident that the dawn of a new day will soon be upon us.
Reposted with permission.
Constitution of the Upside-Down Kingdom
We the people of the upside-down Kingdom proclaim a revolution of repentance. We will no longer be conformed to the counterfeit-power of politics but will stand transformed in the resurrection-power of the Prince of Peace. We bear witness to His strength made perfect in weakness and the joy that is perfected in suffering. His Kingdom dwells among the dead and the dying, the wounded and the helpless; for it is not the healthy that need a doctor and not it is not the living that need new life.
We refuse to legislate life and death but instead join in the death-to-life renewal that begins with poverty of spirit and ends in richness of faith. It is not we who decide where the sun shines or the rain falls, nor do we bless or curse. The gavel of judgment is too heavy for our feeble human hands to hold.
We renounce the world as it has been told to us, the world of kings and princes, and look instead to the world of slaves and paupers, of widows and orphans. Here the least are the greatest and these are our masters, our monarchs. From the eyes of the one without a home a palace is commissioned. From the whisper of a muted voice, a herald is ordained. As I look into the soul of my neighbour-other, my response signs my soul. It is at this moment that I proclaim or betray my allegiance to the Kingdom of repentance.
We reclaim the back alleys, the crack houses, and the minefields as holy ground. We sanctify the shelters, the ghettos, and the street-corner grates. Our war is not with flesh-and-blood, but within each kingdom-citizen. We obliterate indifference and apathy. We attack hatred, spite, and judgement. Even the will to justice succumbs to its fulfillment in mercy, and other-love submerges a legion of sins.
We mourn together the loss of the garden, the birth of god-lust, and the claiming of the power of good and evil. It is only the fruit of life that fills famished souls, not knowledge-power wielded over one another. As Adams and as Eves together we stumble back to the gardens of humankind, tending to the withering and dying and tearing out the weed of desire to be divine found festering in each soul.
We demand no earthly King and call for no holy war. We ourselves are the infidels and the pagans, who know not what we do. Were we even to recognize an enemy, we seek not victory but the martyrs death: To be witness, to proclaim the King's death, to hear "Well done." This is our battle cry.
We dictate no foreign policy or trade embargo; The choices we make are of conscience not control. We refuse to condone the violence of economic oppression or knowingly enslave our global neighbours for the sake of passing popularity or the latest lust. In each transaction we relate not to an 'it' but to a 'you,' not to a brand but to a brother, and each dollar is either a helping hand to bring one to their feet or another drop in an ocean of indifferent economic subjugation.
We believe that giving our children good gifts means not comfort but creative compassion, not fortification but the strength to forgive. It is not weakness that prevents our hands from lifting the sword to protect those we love or ourselves, but the assurance that the victory lies in having fought the good fight and finished the race. Defeat lies not in death but in words betrayed by actions, for each enemy we encounter is both a stranger and a friend, a foe and a brother to whom we are bound. Uncompromising love is what we have witnessed and unrelenting mercy is our prototype. To abandon our Saviour-King at the call of His cross is to be found unworthy of His Name.
We are the few and the foolish. We will never be the majority, the crowd, or the many. Narrow is the path we walk, a path not of practicality but of passion, not of wisdom but of weakness. It is the foolishness of the cross to which we cling; the madness that to suffer is better than to sin; the absurdity of relinquishing rights rather than resisting. To watching eyes we bewilder and confuse, but we are a sight that will not be quickly forgotten. Our dying prayer is that every adversary's eyes will eventually rest upon the crucified Christ.
We the people of the upside-down kingdom work expectantly through the night, confident that the dawn of a new day will soon be upon us.
Reposted with permission.
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