The agua bendita church planting team will touch kids, youth, ladies and men in unique ways during this Easter week. A team of single mom’s will teach ladies to sow their own skirts, and cut hair as a business. A special team of mimes will teach the children. Most Agua Bendita children have never seen mime. A team of youth and men will camp out in Agua Bendita to share the Gospel with the men and youth around a camp fire and shared evening meal. All will be invited to a special Easter service in the Tenancingo Church.
Our new single Mom’s ministry will be teach ladies in the impoverished town of Agua Bendita how to sow their own skirts and how to cut hair as a trade. While both trades are taught, single-mom from Tenancingo will build friendships and share their own testimonies of God’s grace. Many Agua Bendita women suffer physical and emotional abuse. The single-moms have applied God’s grace to their abusive pasts, and will share their experiences of healing and finding purpose.
Monday, March 29, 2010
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
What do you think of this article?
I saw this article and wonder what others think?
The Pastor's Job: To Be A Visionary?
What is the pastor's job? Isn't it to lead the church by setting the vision for a bold future? My doctoral work has really pushed me to think through these questions. While I can't say for certain what the pastor's role is (this could be bad news since I teach a course in pastoral ministries at the undergraduate level), I believe I am getting a clearer picture of what it isn't.
Dr. Alan Roxburgh shares four qualities that most congregations look for when hiring a new pastor: personal character, ability to cultivate people, ability to cultivate systems, and vision. Of the four, two are valued higher than the others in the pastoral search: the personal character of a pastor, and the pastor's competence to form and communicate a vision and then motivate others to follow that vision. The two qualities that very little attention are given are a pastor’s ability to form people and to form systems and networks in a congregation. Thus, most search committees are looking for someone who has a strong moral constitution (read: won’t embarrass us by getting caught in a scandal – extramarital affair, embezzlement, sermon plagiarism, etc.) and can tell us where we need to be headed, give us direction.
This sounds good, but I believe there are several underlying problems. First, it is very hard for us to understand how influenced we are in church leadership by corporate business models. Most churches want a CEO (chief executive officer) to lead the way. The CEO has become far more than a metaphor; in very real and tangible ways the pastor is expected to run the church. This particularly becomes an important model when local congregations are looking for someone to save them from the perceived perils of a post-Christendom culture. As attendance slips, membership in the denomination wanes and budgets face uncertain cuts, people feel threatened. They look to the pastor as a hero – a captain who can pilot a sinking ship to safe harbor. Someone who can save the institution.
Second, implicit in the notion that the pastor should be the one to provide the vision for a church is the unconscious assumption that people shouldn't. People expect the pastor to be the one who dreams for the future, this is not the responsibility of common folk. The hierarchical structure of most churches reinforces the idea that the laity are merely passive spectators. The only time they need to act is when the pastor tells them to (or at least works hard trying to convince them to). The seeker sensitive model of church growth has only further established the picture of the senior pastor riding in on a stallion in the nick of time with a vision that will save the aimlessly wandering people of the parish.
Third, when the vision of the lead pastor and the vision (or visions) of people in the congregation collide, look out! Power struggles, alliances, and conflicts are sure signs of a CEO at odds with one or more groups in the congregation. This is noticeably true when a pastor and a board of elders do not agree because they each have different or multiple visions for the church. Which vision will rule the day? The vision that is championed by the person or persons with the most power in the institution.
Perhaps it is not the job of the pastor to supply a prefabricated vision for a local congregation. What if the pastor was hired for the two qualities that very little attention is given to – ability to cultivate people and ability to cultivate systems? If a pastor could do these two things well, couldn’t the pastor equip and empower the body as a whole to think together, ask questions together, dream together, and envision the future together? There is no room for command-and-control freaks here, even if they wear the label "emergent."
Where the people of God are, the Spirit of God is.
God’s future lies among God’s people.
I know what the pastor’s job isn’t. It is not to bring the vision to the people. It is to call the vision out of a people, to join in the work that God is already doing; to partner with, live with and dine with those who do not yet understand that they can be vital participants in the unfolding, ongoing drama of God’s kingdom.
The Pastor's Job: To Be A Visionary?
What is the pastor's job? Isn't it to lead the church by setting the vision for a bold future? My doctoral work has really pushed me to think through these questions. While I can't say for certain what the pastor's role is (this could be bad news since I teach a course in pastoral ministries at the undergraduate level), I believe I am getting a clearer picture of what it isn't.
Dr. Alan Roxburgh shares four qualities that most congregations look for when hiring a new pastor: personal character, ability to cultivate people, ability to cultivate systems, and vision. Of the four, two are valued higher than the others in the pastoral search: the personal character of a pastor, and the pastor's competence to form and communicate a vision and then motivate others to follow that vision. The two qualities that very little attention are given are a pastor’s ability to form people and to form systems and networks in a congregation. Thus, most search committees are looking for someone who has a strong moral constitution (read: won’t embarrass us by getting caught in a scandal – extramarital affair, embezzlement, sermon plagiarism, etc.) and can tell us where we need to be headed, give us direction.
This sounds good, but I believe there are several underlying problems. First, it is very hard for us to understand how influenced we are in church leadership by corporate business models. Most churches want a CEO (chief executive officer) to lead the way. The CEO has become far more than a metaphor; in very real and tangible ways the pastor is expected to run the church. This particularly becomes an important model when local congregations are looking for someone to save them from the perceived perils of a post-Christendom culture. As attendance slips, membership in the denomination wanes and budgets face uncertain cuts, people feel threatened. They look to the pastor as a hero – a captain who can pilot a sinking ship to safe harbor. Someone who can save the institution.
Second, implicit in the notion that the pastor should be the one to provide the vision for a church is the unconscious assumption that people shouldn't. People expect the pastor to be the one who dreams for the future, this is not the responsibility of common folk. The hierarchical structure of most churches reinforces the idea that the laity are merely passive spectators. The only time they need to act is when the pastor tells them to (or at least works hard trying to convince them to). The seeker sensitive model of church growth has only further established the picture of the senior pastor riding in on a stallion in the nick of time with a vision that will save the aimlessly wandering people of the parish.
Third, when the vision of the lead pastor and the vision (or visions) of people in the congregation collide, look out! Power struggles, alliances, and conflicts are sure signs of a CEO at odds with one or more groups in the congregation. This is noticeably true when a pastor and a board of elders do not agree because they each have different or multiple visions for the church. Which vision will rule the day? The vision that is championed by the person or persons with the most power in the institution.
Perhaps it is not the job of the pastor to supply a prefabricated vision for a local congregation. What if the pastor was hired for the two qualities that very little attention is given to – ability to cultivate people and ability to cultivate systems? If a pastor could do these two things well, couldn’t the pastor equip and empower the body as a whole to think together, ask questions together, dream together, and envision the future together? There is no room for command-and-control freaks here, even if they wear the label "emergent."
Where the people of God are, the Spirit of God is.
God’s future lies among God’s people.
I know what the pastor’s job isn’t. It is not to bring the vision to the people. It is to call the vision out of a people, to join in the work that God is already doing; to partner with, live with and dine with those who do not yet understand that they can be vital participants in the unfolding, ongoing drama of God’s kingdom.
Vanity of Vanities
What a soul wrecking contradiction is lived in the Novel, "The Bonfire of Vanities." The "best, most intelligent" minds, sell bonds and their souls as they worship the dollar. Yale, and Harvard graduates give every minute of the stock market day to trade bonds with the viciousness of two roosters slashing each other in a fight to death.
These traders do not believe as the founders of our free economy did. The founders held that it is God who blesses and provides. The Wallstreet man presented in this book believes that grabbing all one can is the only salvation. Of course you can never, ever, grab enough.
The author Tom Wolfe, not to be confused with Thomas Wolfe, reveals his belief, in an interview, that the greatest piece of literature every written is the book of Ecclesiastes. The Bonfire of Vanities, as I read, shows that the truth of the Biblical book - all is really vanity.
These traders do not believe as the founders of our free economy did. The founders held that it is God who blesses and provides. The Wallstreet man presented in this book believes that grabbing all one can is the only salvation. Of course you can never, ever, grab enough.
The author Tom Wolfe, not to be confused with Thomas Wolfe, reveals his belief, in an interview, that the greatest piece of literature every written is the book of Ecclesiastes. The Bonfire of Vanities, as I read, shows that the truth of the Biblical book - all is really vanity.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Born again
A middle aged man told me today of years of agonizing pain over his mothers death. After the Sunday Morning message, Manuel with tears in his eyes, said to me, "my mother died when I was seven, and I am still depressed after all these years."
After her death, Manuel's father abandoned him and he was passed around to different relatives during his childhood.
Manuel openned his heart to Jesus. After prayer I asked him how he felt and he said, "I feel peace. I hope I can have this peace all the time."
I assured Manuel that he was reborn and now had a new Father. As God's son he would have peace as he continued to trust in Jesus. Manuel left with a smile on his face. We are planning to meet next week. I asked Manuel to bring a picture of his Mother for our next time together.
"
After her death, Manuel's father abandoned him and he was passed around to different relatives during his childhood.
Manuel openned his heart to Jesus. After prayer I asked him how he felt and he said, "I feel peace. I hope I can have this peace all the time."
I assured Manuel that he was reborn and now had a new Father. As God's son he would have peace as he continued to trust in Jesus. Manuel left with a smile on his face. We are planning to meet next week. I asked Manuel to bring a picture of his Mother for our next time together.
"
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Authentic leadership
Authentic leadership begins with self. In this chapter I will attempt to reframe leadership for congregations by exploring certain popular myths* about the nature of leadership that depend on external illusions of authority, power, or competence rather than leading from the self. A biblical and congregational reframing of spiritual leadership for the church rests on an understanding of the dynamics at play in the hidden lives of congregations, chiefly, that pastoral leadership takes place in an organic relationship system that is only secondarily an institutional organization.** That means that congregational leadership is primarily about the leader�s corporate relationships. And when it comes to being in relationships, understanding self is paramount.
To say that authentic congregational leadership requires leading from the self is not to suggest the notion of looking out for number one. Giving attention to self is not the same thing as being selfish or self-centered. Leading from the self is a matter of integrity and authenticity; it is a matter of providing genuine spiritual*** leadership. Leading from the self is tied into a biblical theology and understanding of the Church.**** If the leader has an institutional view of the Church, then his or her leadership approach will likely manifest itself around control, top-down management, and misplaced concerns about institutional development. But if the leader views the Church as a living relationship organism, then he or she will understand that the best a leader can do is to be in the kind of relationship that influences people toward maturity and responsible responses to the visionary challenge offered to the congregation. Leading from the self in a relationship system means that the leader understands the corporate nature of the leadership function. In this type of leadership, pastors and other congregational leaders are set free from the tendency toward willful influence and coercive methods because they understand that leadership in the church is not about personal goals. Leadership is corporate function and therefore must be accomplished within the nature of the corporate relationships in the congregation.
To say that authentic congregational leadership requires leading from the self is not to suggest the notion of looking out for number one. Giving attention to self is not the same thing as being selfish or self-centered. Leading from the self is a matter of integrity and authenticity; it is a matter of providing genuine spiritual*** leadership. Leading from the self is tied into a biblical theology and understanding of the Church.**** If the leader has an institutional view of the Church, then his or her leadership approach will likely manifest itself around control, top-down management, and misplaced concerns about institutional development. But if the leader views the Church as a living relationship organism, then he or she will understand that the best a leader can do is to be in the kind of relationship that influences people toward maturity and responsible responses to the visionary challenge offered to the congregation. Leading from the self in a relationship system means that the leader understands the corporate nature of the leadership function. In this type of leadership, pastors and other congregational leaders are set free from the tendency toward willful influence and coercive methods because they understand that leadership in the church is not about personal goals. Leadership is corporate function and therefore must be accomplished within the nature of the corporate relationships in the congregation.
Friday, March 5, 2010
church planting manifest
Check out this church planting manifest I found.....
1. That removing the barriers to a movement of God, along with prayer, is the primary work we humans can attempt to accomplish in seeking to facilitate a movement taking place in our midst
32. That the church does more damage to itself than the world does to it
33. That indigenous leaders (growing up leaders inside the church rather than importing them) are better for a church and its community long-term
34. That strategic planning can keep us from strategic implementation if not careful
35. That we typically overestimate what we can do to make things happen and underestimate what the Holy Spirit can do in the same situations
36. That “bigger” was never the objective or outcome in the early church and it is not necessarily “better”
37. That there must be a Great Commandment Resurgence before there will ever be a Great Commission Resurgence
38. That WE don’t actually plant churches, but rather, are invited by God to join Him in the work He is doing as He “builds His Church”
39. That planters will learn more from each other than they will ever learn from academic books and classroom training
40. That succession plans need to be in place from the founding planter to his successor but not necessarily at any other time in the church’s life
41. That parenting or reproducing a church from one’s own congregation will actually bring growth to the original church in most instances
42. That “seekers” need genuine relationships of acceptance and patient commitment (not programs, etc.) more than anything else while they search for the truth
43. That “missional,” if not careful can become nothing more than another word for “church growth”…which was often ego-centric, not Jesus-centric.
44. That young planters and leaders will never “own” what we create for them; but only what we empower and believe in them to create for themselves
45. That a Jesus movement will naturally result in a church planting movement, but the opposite is not necessarily true
to be continued…
(This post is the third in an on-going series, entitled “A Church Planting Manifesto.” You can find part one here and you can find part two here.)
1. That removing the barriers to a movement of God, along with prayer, is the primary work we humans can attempt to accomplish in seeking to facilitate a movement taking place in our midst
32. That the church does more damage to itself than the world does to it
33. That indigenous leaders (growing up leaders inside the church rather than importing them) are better for a church and its community long-term
34. That strategic planning can keep us from strategic implementation if not careful
35. That we typically overestimate what we can do to make things happen and underestimate what the Holy Spirit can do in the same situations
36. That “bigger” was never the objective or outcome in the early church and it is not necessarily “better”
37. That there must be a Great Commandment Resurgence before there will ever be a Great Commission Resurgence
38. That WE don’t actually plant churches, but rather, are invited by God to join Him in the work He is doing as He “builds His Church”
39. That planters will learn more from each other than they will ever learn from academic books and classroom training
40. That succession plans need to be in place from the founding planter to his successor but not necessarily at any other time in the church’s life
41. That parenting or reproducing a church from one’s own congregation will actually bring growth to the original church in most instances
42. That “seekers” need genuine relationships of acceptance and patient commitment (not programs, etc.) more than anything else while they search for the truth
43. That “missional,” if not careful can become nothing more than another word for “church growth”…which was often ego-centric, not Jesus-centric.
44. That young planters and leaders will never “own” what we create for them; but only what we empower and believe in them to create for themselves
45. That a Jesus movement will naturally result in a church planting movement, but the opposite is not necessarily true
to be continued…
(This post is the third in an on-going series, entitled “A Church Planting Manifesto.” You can find part one here and you can find part two here.)
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Tenemos el sueño de ver una comunidad (iglesia) de esperanza, sanidad, y justicia adorando al Cristo resucitado en cada uno de los 70 pueblos abandondos, donde abuso, alcolismo y drogas, violencia y injusticia han matado la imagen de Dios. Ni un pueblo será olvidado.
Tenemos el sueño de ver esta region abandonada transformada por el Reino de Dios atravez del cuerpo de Cristo.
Tenemos un sueño de un lugar “ciudad de refugio” donde en comunidad Habra sanidad en amor, y capacitación para restauracion y justicia en la region.
Vemos en la ciudad de refugio…..
1. Vemos mujeres golpeadas, abusadas y olvidadas encontrando refugio, sanidad y siendo capacitadas para llevar justicia y transformacion a la region.
2. Vemos hombres siendo libradas de alcohismo y tomando el liderazgo para una region de justicia.
3. Vemos jovenes sonando visions grandes para la transformacion de la region y el mundo entero.
4. Vemos niños que pensaban que “no podian” y que “no valian” encontrando que son unicos, capaces, con proposito y “si pueden” hacer todo lo que son creados para hacer.
Tenemos el sueño de un Centro de Plantacion de Iglesias donde
1. Se enseñara la promesa de Dios para bendecir a las naciones a travez de movimientos de plantación de Iglesias.
2. Apostoles, plantadores de Iglesias pueden ser preparados para sembrar movimientos de plantacion de Iglesias.
3. Apostoles – plantadores pueden formar su Teologia de Dios y su Iglesias.
4. Apostoles – plantadores pueden conocer como trabajar en un equipo de apostoles, profetas, evangelistas, pastores y maestros.
5. Apostoles – plantadores pueden recibir mentoreo en plantar y multiplicar iglesias en comunidad.
Tenemos el sueño de ver esta region abandonada transformada por el Reino de Dios atravez del cuerpo de Cristo.
Tenemos un sueño de un lugar “ciudad de refugio” donde en comunidad Habra sanidad en amor, y capacitación para restauracion y justicia en la region.
Vemos en la ciudad de refugio…..
1. Vemos mujeres golpeadas, abusadas y olvidadas encontrando refugio, sanidad y siendo capacitadas para llevar justicia y transformacion a la region.
2. Vemos hombres siendo libradas de alcohismo y tomando el liderazgo para una region de justicia.
3. Vemos jovenes sonando visions grandes para la transformacion de la region y el mundo entero.
4. Vemos niños que pensaban que “no podian” y que “no valian” encontrando que son unicos, capaces, con proposito y “si pueden” hacer todo lo que son creados para hacer.
Tenemos el sueño de un Centro de Plantacion de Iglesias donde
1. Se enseñara la promesa de Dios para bendecir a las naciones a travez de movimientos de plantación de Iglesias.
2. Apostoles, plantadores de Iglesias pueden ser preparados para sembrar movimientos de plantacion de Iglesias.
3. Apostoles – plantadores pueden formar su Teologia de Dios y su Iglesias.
4. Apostoles – plantadores pueden conocer como trabajar en un equipo de apostoles, profetas, evangelistas, pastores y maestros.
5. Apostoles – plantadores pueden recibir mentoreo en plantar y multiplicar iglesias en comunidad.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)