Who’s Your Tribe

Posted by Jonathan Brink
May 21, 2008

Erin started it…but not really. She just said what millions of people where already feeling.

Gary, Barb, Jim, Alan, Jeff added their two cents. Then Glenn told a few people and when all was said and done the idea spread like wildfire. The cat was out of the bag.

Where can we find truly authentic community? Is there a place for those who feel disconnected from traditional church but long to discover an emerging expression of being the church?

I know this feeling first hand as well. Six years ago a group of twelve of us decided to take a journey together. We sat around the room asking what would it mean to really follow Jesus. To be honest we were scared. But what took us past our fear was our sincere desire to find something real. We were sick of the Bible studies. We were tired of the wrote answers we had all been given…that didn’t seem to produce life. We were dumb enough to actually believe that God would show up in our midst, if we trusted.

Within months, we knew that we had been led to something special. I say led because only the combination of people could have put all the pieces together required for the journey. It required a joint effort that could only have been assembled by the work of the Spirit. One guy brought a protocol for operating. One guy brought teachings. One guy brought the focus of trust and love. One guy brought the intensity. It was the perfect storm and we were riding its waves. We had discovered communitas.

About three years ago, God allowed me to focus on developing this full time. And to be totally honest, it took me about two years to get out of the way of what God was trying to do through me. The more I surrendered to what He was doing, the more success we encountered, the more love seemed to show up.

And then I began to hear stories like Erin’s, and Gary’s, and Barb’s, and 12 million others. Authors wrote books about this growing trend. Organizations were started to address it. People criticized it. But we couldn’t push away the growing realization that our hearts seemed to resonate with it.

And I realized that God is doing something in our midst. The question is then do we want to participate? Do we want to take the risk to restore our own hearts, to release the baggage that cripples the best of us? Do we want to discover what God has known all a long, that we really are worth it in His eyes?

About six months ago God took us in a different direction. He revealed that what we were doing was not meant just for us, but for His followers. And so Tribe was born. Tribe doesn’t begin with church. It begins with participating in His mission, to follow in the footsteps of Jesus within a tribe. Tribe is about participating in love and trust? It’s about participating in restoration, redemption, reconciliation and repentance. It’s about finding a wholistic understanding of the journey.

Over the last couple of months a group of six of us have been working on what that looks like and how it will work. Our desire is to create an organization that is bent towards supporting those who are looking for an emerging expression of being the church. I say this as encouragement. Out there…there is someone working to create the mechanisms and platforms for you to discover His mission and restoration, to discover your tribe.

Know that He loves you more than you can possibly imagine. But ask if you really want to take the risk to discover that?

More to come…

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Church Planting, Communitas, Emerging Church, God's love, Journey, discipleship, missional church

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  • I know exactly what you're talking about because I couldn’t push away the growing realization that my heart seemed to resonate against it.

    And I realized that God is doing something in our midst. The question is then do we want to bear the conflict? Do we want to take the risk to let God restore our hearts, to reject the semi-pelagian postevangelicalism that is crippling the witness of the Body of Christ? Do we want to discover what God has known all a long, that He is really worth dying for if need be?

    About three years ago God took me in a different direction. He revealed that what the Emerging Church was doing was absolutely not a move of His, but He allowed it to provoke His followers to finally stand up for the genuine Gospel of Jesus Christ. And so Apprising Ministries was born.

    So Jonathan since we're diametrically opposed, which of our subjective "feelings" is really from God ? Something serious to think about.
  • I guess the only real test is the fruit of our ministries Ken. I would say this. If what I am doing does not produce love then I am the one who is in the wrong.
  • Jonathan ~ Good answer. No, excellent answer!
  • "If what I am doing does not produce love then I am the one who is in the wrong."

    "excellent answer!"

    Hmm, not so sure. Because don't e.g. many who are atheists, or Jehovah's Witnesses, or Mormons, or Muslims, or Buddhists all "produce love"?
  • Tim
    "Love the Lord Your God with all your heart soul mind and strength."
    "Love your neighbor as yourself."
    -Jesus Christ
  • I'm interested to hear more about Tribe. Is it related to Thrive or something else?

    ...the greatest of these is Love.
  • jonmholmes
    Ends up my tribe is a group that likes to eat at Denny's and watch Ultimate Fighting. Go figure ;)
  • Jon, that's funny.

    Ken, I was quoting Jesus. I'm sure you know this.

    Matthew 7:15-20
    15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. 16 You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? 17 Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Therefore by their fruits you will know them.

    The assumption is that he's talking about the fruit of the Holy Spirit: love, joy, peace...

    Are you saying Buddhists and atheists are saved? Help me with this one.
  • Daniel
    In light of a email our pastor sent about Rob Bell (re: these videos http://www.alittleleaven.com/2008/04/rob-bells-...) and Kens response to this post, I think John 15:35 is in order: :By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."

    We (Christians) need to stop hating one another, stop thinking we know better than God who is a follower, and who is not, and just love one another and support one another. In fact, is that not one of the points of the upper room discourse, "Father, help them to be in unity" (a paraphrase).

    Ken, pastor guy, others, please kindly be quiet and pray that if what Jonathan or Rob bell (or you!) are wrong that God will correct them, not you.

    Please note that I'm not saying a good Biblical theology is not needed, but come on, lets try to understand that the Bible allows room for interpretation. only one is correct but still.... Look at Wesley vs Calvin vs Luther vs the Anabaptist vs mother Teresa vs Graham, differing theologies but all used greatly by God.
  • I think this is the first time i have ever quoted Bible in a comment...

    1John4
    7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11 Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.

    there is a clear exclusion, but not the one that many of us seem to wish for.
  • I love it when Jesus shows up. :-)
  • Sorry, that related to Tim's comment which was the last one in my browser.
  • Has Jesus showed up?
  • Ken, I can only say He has in my life.
  • Mine too.
  • See, I knew we had something in common.
  • Yep. At least we claim to anyway.
  • Ugh.
  • This quote is oft times attributed to George Bernard Shaw (that godless playwright :-) , of course):
    I learned long ago, never to wrestle with a pig, you get dirty; and besides, the pig likes it.
    I wish I knew why this seemed particularly appropriate at this juncture.
  • Jim
    Jonathan,

    Thanks for the link love. :o)

    Tribe sounds interesting. However, I am a bit skeptical of programmed community. I'll follow from a distance and see where your efforts lead. Good luck and Godspeed with them!

    [Oh, and don't let the critics, even me if I sounded critical above, get you down!]
  • Jim, I very much share your concern for programmed community. Because what you probably think of programmed is not what we're doing. In fact the number one thing people say about what we're doing is, "this IS church for me."

    People don't want to have to reinvent stuff over and over. We learn from each other and share what works. Tribe looks A LOT like what Jesus did. That's what we're following. We found that it worked to create missional community.

    Tribe is helping set the context so people don't have to reinvent the wheel every time.
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