Are We Afraid Of Our Freedom
One of the more provocative verses in all of Scripture is Paul’s statement, “All things are lawful…” (1 Cor 6:12) After the cross God begins to reveal a structure of grace. The story of Peter’s vision and wrestling with what it means to eat meat explores this tension in detail. This breakdown provides some detail on the Levitical restrictions that …
What Changes In Spiritual Transformation
In your understanding of spiritual transformation, what change is actually happening?
Darryl Gardiner On Discipleship
Darryl Gardiner’s Sin Chat from The Work Of The People on Vimeo. [RSS - See Embedded Video] This video is going to frustrate some people but I love it. It’s from The Work Of The People. Travis Reed is doing some great projects and posts it all at Alter Magazine. Darryl explores our contextual understanding of discipleship and how it …
What Is A Follower Of Jesus
It seems like I’ve had some of the best conversations lately. It started with this post, which asks if Christianity is a system of belief or a way of life. And then it extended to this post, which asks if denying God is wrestling with God. And within these conversations seems to be common thread. What is a follower of …
What’s Your Intrinsic Mobilizing Story?
Do we have an intrinsic mobilizing story that compels us to follow? This video by Francis Chan is interesting for several reasons. Francis talks about how we’re attracted to Jesus but not really willing to follow Jesus. We like what Jesus did, but we’re not willing to see Jesus as an action role model to emulate. The subtle tension is …
Creating Missional Community
Popout Matt Carter // Missional Small Groups from Todd Rhoades on Vimeo. I so wish every pastor in the world would watch this video. Chips and dip, a living room and the Bible do not make a missional community. I really was amazed at Matt’s honesty about the process. And it is that honesty that I believe has transformed his …
Spiritual Maturity
Last night I had an interesting conversation with a friend about spiritual maturity. A friend of his is part of a small group and they are hitting the proverbial wall and the community is somewhat stagnant. They aren’t taking risks, instead settling into the easy right answer routine. I know that feeling. I know what it’s like to reach a …
A Definition of Leadership
Over the last couple of months I have been reading an increasing number of people talk about and engage the issue of leadership. We know we want it but we don’t necessarily know what it is. We know it when we see it but we also know when what we’re being fed something that has a distinctly awful aroma. I …
What Do Small Groups Really Do?
I have been in many conversations over the years about small groups. I remember my professor in college in 1994 telling me about a new concept called “small groups” and that we should pay attention. And in many cases the conversation reveals a real difference in terms of what a small group really does. Some are nothing more than Bible …
The Want To Before The How To
I love Rick McKinley. If you haven’t heard him. You should. And you can. His podcast is exceptional at Imago Dei, and this audio session from Catalyst is a good start to really get an idea of the person his is. He’s also the pastor of Donald Miller, author of Blue Like Jazz. But if you listen to this session …
