Fridays are for Friends & Family 07.31.09

Hey everybody! It’s time for FFF again and since it is a vacation week for me, this will be shorter than usual…but still significant. Let’s start with THE video that’s making all the rounds over the past week: The JK wedding dance from Minnesota. If you haven’t seen the silliness and joie de vie here…the pure love for life…then you need to watch this!

In church planting news, the organization of which I am a part, the Baptist Convention of Maryland/Delaware, was recognized this week by the North American Mission Board, as recipient of the “enlistment award” for the past year. The crystal award reads

First in Enlistment

Baptist Convention of Maryland/Delaware

For excellence in enlisting planters and churches for a commitment to church planting among every people group in North America

“Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.” 1 Samuel 3.9

Presented by the Church Planting Group

North American Mission Board SBC

July 29, 2009

I am proud to be part of a team so committed to church planters and church planting churches. I’ve never known an organization so passionate, so dedicated to the church planting enterprise as the BCM/D. Thanks, everyone, for letting me be a part of this journey.

In family news, my daughter, Sarah, became a “columnist” for the first time this week. The Surrey Now newspaper had her post her opinion on a hot issue in the metro Vancouver area right now: international students studying in Canada. You can read her perspective here. It’s sure to create some conversation.

In sports news, this is trade deadline day in Major League Baseball. I predicted some changes for the Red Sox earlier this year, and still expects some movement before the day is over. However, my earlier predictions seem now to be “off the mark.” You can read what I wrote earlier here. We will wait out the day and see if any major changes are coming and what impact they might have on the team.

Well, that’s it from here today. Here’s hoping your weekend is a great one!

Mistakes Church Planters Make

The song that says “mistakes, I’ve made a few, then again, too few to mention,” was not written by a church planter! When you live in the world of church planters, you learn early on that every church planter is going to make his share of mistakes; it’s a part of the process. The keys are simple: minimize them and learn from others who have gone before you. With that in mind, I’ve chosen to list a handful of mistakes made by me and others I know in the church planting process, in the hopes that this will afford you the opportunity to move beyond these tripwires and accelerate your new church’s growth and development. Please note that the list could easily be three to four times this long; I’ve just chosen these for the impact they’ve had on me personally over the years.

“Doing for God” as a substitute for “being with God.” This is easy to justify in experience. As a planter, there are so many things to be done and often no one to do them, except you! Some things will actually not get done unless you find the time to apply yourself to them, and time is a precious commodity that affords little flexibility. Surely God understands if I’m unable to spend more time with Him, since I’m working for Him, right? After all, He’s the one who called me to do this! Yes, rationalizing is easy, but still leaves you disconnected from the Source of your calling and the Head of His church. Don’t make the mistake of neglecting your time with God; you’ll actually need it MORE as the work begins in earnest.

Thinking too little of God and too much of self. Most church planters I’ve met don’t have a self-esteem problem, and neither did I. In fact, most have convinced themselves that they are the next Rick Warren or Andy Stanley. This “confidence factor” is actually part of the reason most are successful…they refuse to believe they can fail. Yet, while this confidence can translate into great faith, it can also morph into pride and arrogance. It may show itself in an attitude that says, I don’t need to listen to others, because I know what I’m doing. Or again it may state, others may have failed but that wasn’t me. The equation leaves too much self, and not enough God for the intended result. Faith in the “bigness of God” has to come to the planter for God to do the miraculous in their midst.

Relying on the voice of “experts,” rather than the voice of God. Church planting experts abound: there are books, videos, seminars, blogs and podcasts, all of which are ready to tell you how to plant the ideal church in a few simple steps. The problem comes when planters replace the voice of God, who called them, with the voice of another, whom God also called, but in a different place to a different people with a different plan. Making this mistake reduces church planting to a science, with formulas and steps for success. However, God refuses to operate that way. In my experience, God had to break my will, shaping me through a difficult series of events, before I was ready to listen to God’s way of doing things. While a necessary part of character development, my stubbornness wasted critical time and brought unneeded pain.

Attempting to build the Church, not people. We teach church planters the process of church planting, and if we’re not careful, we can give the impression that this is what they are there to do. Rick Warren reminded church planters at the Exponential Conference in 2008 that God had made crystal clear to him many years before that he was not needed to build God’s church…that was Jesus’ job (Matthew 16:18)! Rather we are called to build people, to make disciples. Our job is not a business or a start-up enterprise; it’s a disciple-making ministry that requires community to enable each of us to reach our God-given potential. Focus on the parts and let God create the whole.

Treating your wife and children as co-workers rather than family. Some planters and spouses, especially those without children yet, find their calling to church planting a joint partnership in God in almost every way. Others, though, farther along in the seasons of life, encounter other priorities and passions in the lives of their family members. If not careful, planters can allow the planting experience to drain the intimacy of their relationship with family members, only to find it deteriorating into a business partnership with dangerous consequences lurking nearby. Planters must guard the sanctity of their family relationship (and time!) with their loved ones, and remember that God has called them to the role of husband and father first, before their role as planter of a new congregation. I suspect these concerns, while specific to church planters, are not exclusive to them. In fact, they could present themselves in the life of any Christ-follower, challenging their faith and character. So let me encourage us all to guard our hearts; stay focused on our great Almighty God and the work He has for us; and, protect our relationships with the family He has given us.

These keys are foundational to faithfulness in any area of ministry. But caveat lector: let the reader beware! If these lessons are not learned on the first go-round, they are destined to resurface later in life.

This article first appeared in my book PlantLIFE: Principles and Practices in Church Planting, copyright 2008. All rights reserved. This is one of 69 short articles that were written by me and other practitioners out of our own experiences in the world of church planting. You can purchase the book by going to the publisher, Missional Press, by clicking here or at Amazon by clicking here.

Monday Morning Rewind: Focused Purpose

Acts 2.42-47 is noted by scholars as the first “summary statement” in the book–in between two specific events (Pentecost and the healing of the lame man at the Gate Beautiful)–and in so doing, gives us a glimpse into the every day, routine life of the early church. But perhaps it wasn’t so routine, at least by our modern-day standards. The church was active and engaged, and making a tremendous difference in their community.

Why you ask? In addition to being led by the Holy Spirit and cultivating dynamic community amongst themselves, they were focused, intentionally and deliberately, on accomplishing the purpose of God…and nothing else. One of the greatest sins in the church today is the sin of distraction…we too often let other things of little consequence capture our mind and steal our time, all at the expense of the significant! The early church didn’t make that mistake, and the results (verse 47, “every day the Lord was adding to them those who were being saved”) speak for themselves.

This purpose of God had been given to them in the Great Commission of Jesus (Matthew 28.18-20) and reiterated in Jesus’ last words on earth (Acts 1.8). So they focused their lives and ministry to accomplish the impossible (“for nothing is impossible with God,” Jesus had told them). And by the end of the book of Acts, this growing group of disciples were indeed well on their way to  accomplishing exactly what God had asked of them.

How did they achieve this? First, they focused their activity (v. 42). They too realized that there are hundreds of good things crying out for their attention! They were wise enough to know, though, that not all of them deserved their focus. Instead they chose to focus on four things mentioned here in this verse: learning/equipping, fellowship, worship and prayer. In addition, this passage indicates they served others and shared Christ as they could. Beyond this, they did not get sidetracked into doing other “stuff.” The key to it all for them was their “devotion” to it. The grammatical construction draws attention to the committed nature of their efforts as they sought to diligently carry out the commission of God. Lives were in the balance and there’s only so much time each person has. They determined to use it wisely, focused on helping “make disciples” while growing as disciples themselves!

Second, they centered their focus on God and others (vv. 43-44). Jesus had taught them this: to love God most and to love others as self.  They saw evidence of God at work in their midst (wonders and signs); in fact, they recognized that the signs done by the apostles were used to point people not to themselves, but to God. In addition, they did what they could do to care for others and share with them what they could to meet their needs. The key to the impact they had on their community was seen in this “anyone before self” attitude. It was evidence of their maturity in the faith and an unselfish, servant-hearted response, learned at the Master’s bidding (John 13). Through their efforts, God authenticated their message and enabled them to be used in powerful, Kingdom ways because of their “bi-focal” work…focused on God and focused on others.

Third, they demonstrated their focus by the love they showed to each other as they fulfilled the purpose of God (vv. 46-47). The Scripture indicates this was another “together” work of God’s people, grown out of loving relationships that were characterized by joy and authenticity. They were united in heart and mind; they were united in hands and feet, too. The amazing part of this is the frequency of it! The passage indicates they were together “every day!” The “continuing” activity of their lives mentioned in verse 46 is literally the same word used in verse 42, where it is translated “devoted.” What Luke is saying is that their continual “togetherness” in big group settings (temple courts) and small group settings (house to house) was a sign of their devotion to each other. Community was really, genuinely happening!

As a result, the Scripture tells us that the early church was blessed by God, enjoyed the favor of all the people and saw people saved every day. Every church should endeavor to experience the same! But to do it, you and I must stay focused on the purpose to which God has called us, and not just on “big event days,” when it’s easy to be motivated and excited about what God’s doing. Our success or failure in the end will actually depend on how we apply these truths to our lives and to God’s church during the “in-between times of life.”

(This message is the third in a series on characteristics of effective churches, based on the early church’s experience as recorded in the book of Acts. Message one dealt with “dynamic community” and message two dealt with “Holy Spirit leadership.” You can find the notes to both also on this blog.)

Fridays are for Friends & Family 07.24.09

Time for Friday’s Friends and Family edition once again! This week we start on a sad note, reporting that Gidget, the 15 year old chihuahua who became a star in the Taco Bell commercials at the turn of the century has died.  People magazine this week posted this pictorial montage of famous television animals, which have impacted our lives and invaded our memory. Below, I’ve posted the first of many commercials the dog did for the Mexican food chain in 1997. Yo quiero Gidget! R.I.P.

Tim Tebow is once again in the news, this week on the cover of Sports Illustrated magazine. The article, You Gotta Love Tim Tebow (Man of Many Missions) deals with much more than football. In fact, the majority of the story is about his ministry to prison inmates and in the Philippines as a part of his father’s evangelistic association. It’s a great article about his passion for God and his desire to see others coming into a relationship with Him through the Lord Jesus Christ. While I’ve been an avid Alabama Crimson Tide fan from my earliest days, I can’t help but admire this guy and his commitment to the Savior. Kudos, Tim!

On the family front, daughter Rebekah has been accepted into the advanced Strings Orchestra with the Annapolis Youth Symphony Orchestra after one year in the Preparatory Strings. Way to go, Rebekah! You’re making exceptional progress and it shows. Your hard work and perseverance have paid off. We are so very proud of you and your achievement.

Twitter Picture of the Week

This picture that came across my newsfeed recently, purported to be from the sale of surplus merchandise at one of the religious cable networks. It’s another one of those pictures that make you want to go…huh? Podcast of the Week

Lauren Rodriguez chats with me on this podcast about the importance and value of social media (blogging, Twitter, Facebook, etc.). Lauren is our webmaster and communications expert at the Baptist Convention of Maryland/Delaware, so everything she’s says is worth hearing and applying. If you’re not involved in all of these things as a church leader, you’re missing tremendous opportunities to connect with and impact the people and prospects at your church. Listen to or download it here.

Church Planting Website of the Week

Chuck Cruise is church planter/founding pastor of Hanover Fellowship Church in Hanover, Pennsylvania. Chuck came out of Northwest Baptist Church in Reisterstown, Maryland and after completing seminary at Southern in Louisville, returned home to coordinate this church plant with Northwest as its parent church. By all counts, he’s done an incredible job. Check out his website to see what happening there.

Have a great weekend, everybody!

Who Me, a Church Planter?!

Have you ever wondered that? I did, and in the early years of my ministry I laughed whenever anyone suggested church planting might be for me. But over the course of time, and through many lessons and experiences I learned, in fact, that this was exactly what God had created me to be.

Almost every day I deal with someone who is asking this very same question. They are wondering what it takes to be a planter and if who they are, as God has created and shaped them, makes them “church planting material.” As a result of these questions and the subsequent conversations, I put together a series of videos last month to address the items of interest that any potential planter needs to consider as they attempt to discern God’s will for them in regards to church planting. Each video presentation can be accessed by clicking on the hyperlinks (not the snapshot) below; they are each about 45 minutes in length.

Moreover, if you prefer to download the audio part of the presentation or the PowerPoint itself, you can do that too. However, here’s what you must do to make that happen.

1. Go to one of the presentations below.

2. Find the top right corner and “login now.” (Registration is free, but necessary since only registered viewers can do more than simply watch the video.)

3. Proceed to download the audio as an mp3 file AND/OR save the PowerPoint to your hard drive.

The three video presentations of “How to Know if Church Planting is for You“ are offered in a linear fashion, since the content in the first is the most essential part, and the second more essential than the third, at least in my estimation. Of course, you can view them in any order you desire.

Presentation One focuses on the Calling of a Church Planter…how to know if you’re called, the process calling can take, and some essential factors, “non-negotiables,” if you will, in nurturing and living out the “timing” of that call as a planter. You can access part one by clicking here.

Presentation Two focuses on the Character of a Church Planter…the proto-typical SHAPE of such planters, PLUS other strengths and vulnerabilities/limitations they face. In addition I address the process of character development God often uses and offer some words aimed at helping planters stay “healthy” in the process. You can access this presentation by clicking here.

Presentation Three focuses on the Competencies of a Church Planter…by reviewing essential behavioral skills and capacities that show themselves in a planter’s typical activity. In addition, there is a brief overview of the needed knowledge that lays the groundwork for the ministry of church planting. You can access this third presentation by clicking here.

At the end of each presentation there is contact information to reach me for follow-up, if you so desire. Of course, if you prefer, you can always connect with me by leaving a comment below. Here’s hoping these presentations enable you to do some self-assessment and discern under the Spirit’s guidance whether church planting is indeed for you.

Monday Morning Rewind: Holy Spirit Leadership

This is the second in a series of messages from the book of Acts on “Characteristics of Effective Churches.” Last week we noted in chapter one the characteristic of dynamic community; chapter two focuses on the Holy Spirit’s leadership in the life of His people. Specifically, the Holy Spirit is THE key to an effective church. In point of fact, these characteristics are just as true of us as individual disciples, too!

Chapter two begins with the mention of Pentecost, one of the three feasts every male Israelite was expected to attend (Dt. 16.16). In fact, the city of Jerusalem would swell from around 50,000 residents to perhaps more than half a million at this event (the perfect time for God’s Spirit to share the good news in a way that would quickly spread it to the ends of the earth!). This feast celebrated the completion of the grain harvest, and traditionally, the reception of the law of Moses at Mt. Sinai. It was to become a defining moment as “the birthday of the church.”

What truths can we glean from the first 41 verses to assist us in recognizing the Holy Spirit’s role in the life of His church?

First, His arrival is a reminder that God always keeps His promises (vv. 1-4). The apostles were told by Jesus that they would receive power when (not if) the Holy Spirit came upon them, and as a result they would be His witnesses. Now that promise had come true. They had been shown once again the faithfulness of God. Christ had not abandoned them when He returned to heaven. The Spirit was God’s gift to His people, as promised. This gift enabled them to be bold in sharing the good news for Christ. Their confidence had been bolstered by the assurance that their God was there for them, providing what they needed to meet every situation.

Second, we learn that the Spirit always points people to Jesus (vv. 14-36). Jesus had told His followers this weeks before, during the Upper Room Discourse (John 15:26). He informed them that the Spirit would not draw attention to self or His work, but to Christ. Peter’s sermon given here is indicative of a message preached in the fullness of the Spirit’s leading on His life. It is all about Jesus! In fact this passage is the first of several messages in the book of Acts that follow the same pattern. called the kerygma by commentators and scholars. In the kerygma (the core essence of the proclaimed message of good news), there is always fulfilled prophecy, the facts of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection, followed by an appeal to the listeners to turn to God. The central part of the message is the resurrection of Christ. Peter points to three realities that confirm this essential truth: it was prophesied, they were witnesses of it personally and the coming of the Spirit required it.

Third, the Spirit led them to focus on others who needed Him, too (vv. 37-41). His coming was not for believer’s to “keep” to themselves; rather, this same gift that they had received–the Holy Spirit–is available to all would believe, too. Peter commanded them to repent (inward change of heart and mind) and be baptized (outward change in behavior, demonstrating the changed life now located “in Christ”). In so doing they are able to experience the gift of the Holy Spirit for themselves. In fact, they are told that the gift is “for you AND your children AND all who are far off.” Thus, this gift of the Holy Spirit has filled them, enabled them, given them boldness, brought conviction of sin and brought ones to the gift of salvation, all of which is evidence of God’s great love and presence for us.

This gift is for you too. Have you received this Holy Spirit of God within your life? And if you have, are you allowing Him to lead you as you should? He’s the key to effectiveness in our church; he’s the key to effectiveness in your own journey with God.

Perhaps today will be a defining moment in your life, too, just as it was for the followers of Christ on that Pentecost day so many years ago.

Two decades ago today…

…my wife Joye and I were holding our firstborn child, Sarah, in our arms and standing in awe of God and his gift to us. The day before I had been at the church alone, working after the conclusion of our Vacation Bible School activities and in preparation for the coming Sunday’s events. In the midst of it all, I dropped a large wooden sign on my right foot, breaking two of my toes. I called my wife on the phone and since I could not drive, asked her to come and take me to the emergency room. Joye, “being great with child” arrived via a friend since we were only a one-car-family at the time, and drove me to the hospital.

Over two hours later, my toes had been “fixed” and we were driving home when Joye went into labor! Since I couldn’t drive and now she couldn’t drive, we stopped at the nearest church member/friend’s house and stayed there while she worked through the early stages of labor. Later that night, another friend took us back to the very same hospital for the birth of our firstborn.

Sarah was born at 3:56am that morning. She was a beautiful baby girl, with lots of very dark hair. That day changed our lives forever, and we will be eternally grateful.

From the start she has been studious and conscientious, talkative and confident. She is a take-charge kind of girl! A born leader and an avid learner, she is a person I’m sure will make an impact on this world.

Her love for God began early in life. She memorized parts of the Bible; she sang songs with me at church. She became a believer in Jesus Christ and was baptized at an early age. And today she continues to love and learn from the Lord.

Her quest for knowledge and dreams for the future has led her to take risks, like heading to Vancouver, BC, Canada for the continuation of her studies. And when reality has looked slim, her dreams have remained large. Today, she is a second-year student, who has won a perpetual scholarship there as the best journalism student in last year’s class, who has been hired to work at the International Broadcast Centre for the Winter Olympics, and who has written several articles/had several photos published as a freelance artist in her first few months of “trying.”

Two decades ago on July 20, at President Reagan’s encouragement, I took her outside our little apartment and stood on the balcony and showed her the moon. “Twenty years earlier,” I told her, “men walked on that moon, showing what we can do when we dream big and live large.” I told my precious two-day old daughter that night to dream big, too.

She has and today her mom and I applaud her. Well done, baby girl! We are so proud and so amazed at all God’s doing in your life.

This is your day! So celebrate and enjoy, and give thanks to a God who has made it all possible. And somewhere, over two thousand miles away in a small suburban setting south of Baltimore, know that those of us who love you, will tonight be looking at the moon and doing the same thing, too.

Fridays are for Friends & Family 07.17.09

My weekly FFF edition returns this week with an Internet offer for all of you who like things that are “free.” Interested? Then read on…

Christianaudio.com offers a free monthly audio download for anyone. We’ve reported on this site before and many of you have taken advantage of similar offers. This month any of you who went to Exponential ‘09 in Orlando or are familiar with Francis Chan will be interested to know that his book, Crazy Love, is the audio item they are giving away. You can download it at no cost by going to the site from here and following the online instructions.

For those of you who did not see it on my Facebook page this week, here’s an article published in the Baltimore Sun newspaper about some of our church planters and their ongoing efforts in the city for Jesus. It’s a positive article, emphasizing the difference these churches are making in the lives of many people. You can read about it here.

The Baptist Standard NewsJournal in Texas recently wrote a telling research article regarding megachurches–of which there are many in the Lone Star state–and their appeal to younger generations. The conclusions from their study are intriguing, if not wholly surprising, especially to those of us who live in the world of church planting.

The Great Commission Resurgence (GCR) has received a lot of attention in my denomination over the past few months. This focused emphasis was overwhelming approved by the Southern Baptist Convention at its annual meeting in June. The framework document is in place and an organizing group of leaders are now working on specific applications that will be shared with us in the months ahead. The following writer, however, thinks that there may be a “hole” in the GCR plan. You can check out what Tom Cocklereece of Simple Discipleship finds “missing” and what he suggests for consideration here.

On the popular culture front, in the past month we’ve seen a re-engagement of interest in the Star Trek franchise, with the surprisingly successful release of the “prequel” movie of the same name. Lawrence Krauss, director of the Origins Initiative at Arizona State University and author of The Physics of Star Trek, suggests, in his own opinion, why that is the case. Here’s a hint: it has more to do with our current world situation than you realize.

On the family front, my dad, Jimmy Jackson and I are co-hosting a European tour next September. It will be centered on the Passion Play held every ten years in Oberammergau, Germany, a full day experience steeped in rich tradition and spiritual impact. But the tour will also include overnight stops in Wittenberg, (Martin Luther gravesite and “95 Theses” church) and Berlin (Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s house), among other cultural, historical and spiritual experiences along the way. If you are interested in joining us or in simply knowing more about the trip, send me a “comment” and I’ll respond with more information.

Podcast of the Week

This week’s featured podcast is with church planter Jim Goforth (seen here with his wife Lori), planter and founding pastor of New Life Church in Inwood, West Virginia, about the work and impact of his church. New Life is now the largest church plant we’ve planted since 1995 and is a leader in evangelism annually. You can download or listen to it here.

Church Planting Website of the Week

Disciples Fellowship International is a multicultural church plant in the Gaithersburg, Maryland. Led by planter and founding pastor Paul Mulani, the church has grown and now has established a church plant of its own in Baltimore city. Check out the their church and its many ministries here.

Video of the Week

Finally, the passing of two years since the shootings and tragic deaths of the students and school officials at Virginia Tech University in Blacksburg, Virginia, this spring has been commemorated in a variety of ways. One such way is a video that has been circulating on YouTube about Mary Karen Read, one of those who lost her life on that day. This video chronicles her journal entries on “forgiveness” recorded just days before the shooting. It’s a powerful message for all of us today.

The #1 Principle in Discovering Effective Church Planters

Is there a secret, a “silver bullet,” to discovering effective church planters? Some of us think there is; all of us who are interested are intrigued to know. In fact, this is a great question, partly because we address it with our own biases and assumptions.

Here’s what I mean: some of us think that a Bible education (college, seminary, etc.) is necessary to be an effective church planter. In reality, only sometimes this is true. In fact, it is almost as often NOT true as it is true in real-time experience. There are reasons for this and perhaps we’ll go into them in a future post, but for now suffice it to say, formal education does not necessarily make one a good church planter.

Some of us assume that being an excellent public speaker is mandatory to being an effective church planter. While it certainly helps (especially in an “attractional” model), church planters need to know that just because you can gather a crowd does not mean you can plant a God-led church.

Others assume that an limitless fundraising ability is the key to a successful church planter in establishing a new church. And again, I have to tell you that while it may be advantageous (I repeat: MAY BE advantageous), there’s a down side too. In fact, in the long run it may have more to do with the church plateau-ing than growing (again, maybe this is for another day).

There are many other biases and assumptions we make that all of us carry into the learning process that may cause us to “misread” the potential in church planters. There is, however, one standard predictor, one basic principle that crosses cultural, linguistic, educational, racial, socio-economic differences to suggest effectiveness in church planters.

The best predictor of future behavior is past behavior.

Period.

In other words, we’ve learned that the characteristics, traits and habits of an individual are the best way to evaluate his effectiveness in the future.

What does this mean? For one thing, it means analyzing the potential planter’s past behavior, not his resume. Resumes share the good, the accomplishments and the positions held, but rarely do they disclose behavior, or the habits and values of the person who accomplished them. An assessor must delve deep into the way things have been done before in specific areas where church planters who are effective must apply themselves to see if a candidate has the behavior patterns needed to be successful.

Additionally, cross platform (different life settings, i.e., family, work, school, ministry, etc.) and cross temporal (children, adolescence, young adulthood, etc.) dimensions in these traits and characteristics validate greater strength in the characteristics or behaviors being explored. In other words, the more different life settings and time periods this behavior has been seen in your life, the more it stands to reason that it will be seen in the future, too.

Add to this a certainty of God’s call upon one’s life to plant churches and consequently, the result from our own human perspective should be overwhelmingly affirmative in anticipating the impact of a ministry of starting new congregations in the Kingdom. The key then is to match the “right” planter to the right place with the right plan at the right time.

A caution, however, is in order: while this kind of analysis is the best predictor available in determining the effectiveness of potential church planters, it is still JUST A PREDICTOR. Forecasting the future cannot take into account changes in environment, crises that shape one’s heart, succumbing to inevitable temptation or the direct and inexplicable work of God on one’s life.

In the final analysis, only God can know the future. This is simply the best current tool we have to see what is yet ahead and thus, act as wise stewards in resourcing, training and empowering others to follow the voice of God in joining Him for His work.

Monday Morning Rewind: Dynamic Community

This week we start a new series of messages, aimed at discovering characteristics of effective churches from the early church in the book of Acts. The first chapter of this historical account shares a prologue by author Luke, Jesus’ final words on earth to his disciples, His ascension and the preparatory work of these Christ-followers before the day of Pentecost. It is this last item in the chapter, found in verses 12-26, which is the focus of our learning in this post.  What did the early church do during these days in anticipation of the promised Spirit coming upon them? How did the Spirit, in fact, use these days to prepare them for what was ahead?

The answer is found in the concept of “dynamic community.” In other words, God used these days to weld them to Him and to each other. The learning that they shared in common and that, under the Holy Spirit’s direction in chapter two, enabled them to move out quickly in advancing the message they had been given (“We are witnesses of these things.“), became the foundational basis for all else in their shared, communal existence. What are the clues in this passage you ask? They are two: the use of the word “together,” a theme emphasizing their shared, interdependent “common-unity” and a grammatical construction (the genitive absolute) which emphasizes the dynamic and on-going nature of these actions.

How did they build this “community” that was so essential in their day and is considered so needed and desired today?

First, they spent time together (vv. 12-13a). Here the durative, ongoing, continual nature of their activity is emphasized by the author as he reminds us readers that they recognized the value found in being in each other’s company. The disciples had learned this with Jesus themselves as they traveled over almost three years of their lives together. They had built the foundation of relationships, learning strengths and weaknesses, but becoming closer, more intimate and more committed over time. Nothing could replace that! In fact, it’s still true today. The more we “program” church into various meetings and services, the less we allow dynamic community to take place. People need physical presence to go deep, to open up, to trust others and become interdependent within the body of Christ. This is a challenge in today’s world, yet cannot be accomplished just in our worship gatherings. It won’t happen. They must build relationships in smaller settings and in places away from the church building. Unless this happens, true, authentic community won’t take place.

Second, they prayed together (v. 14). The early disciples and other members of what would become the first church “joined together constantly in prayer.” You guessed it! It’s the same grammatical construction, reminding us that this was not a programmed or scheduled event; rather, this was the ongoing, constant, enduring, persistent nature of their activity. Understand please that praying had now taken on a new dimension and meaning to them. Before this time, Jesus had walked with them; now He was back in heaven. Before, they had tangible response to their questions; now, they had to listen much more intently. Prayer had become an integral way of connection to the Lord Jesus, their leader, and his command upon their lives. But prayer also became a conduit for linking them to each other as they prayed together. For when God’s people pray deeply and passionately, they bear their soul and show their heart; and as others intercede for brothers and sisters in Christ, they link their concerns and hearts with each other. In such times, God once again creates interdependence and dynamic community through the exercise of petition and intercession. Churches need to build times of collective intercession and petition into their life together for a variety of reasons, including this supernatural ability of God to use it in connecting us to one another.

Finally, they learned together (vv. 16-26). Peter led them in studying the Scriptures, with a special focus on Psalms 69 and 109 to understand what God was doing in their midst. They derived great comfort in learning together that God had prophesied that the events of Judas’ life would take place; it had not taken Him by surprise. They also recognized that if God had kept His promise about that many years before, that He would also keep His word of the promised Spirit who would come in a few more days. Their hope and excitement in anticipation caused them to ready themselves as a people to do what needed to be done for Him to use them on that day not far ahead. My point is this: their learning did not stop with the accumulation of knowledge from the Scriptures. They acted upon it and applied it to their lives in anticipation of God’s invitation to join Him in the great work of His mission ahead. Our churches need to make sure that our “teaching” sessions result in “learning” sessions, and that cannot happen unless we enable the body of Christ to live out these realities in real-time settings. It must change our behavior. And as “we” learn together through doing God’s will, it will in fact result in a deeper, richer, dynamic community that all churches say that want but few truly experience.