Mark Juane

Where do you live?

2009-02-28T19:44:00.003-05:00

One of the greatest mistakes that create erroneous Biblical teaching occurs when those who seek to teach the Word take the passage or verse they are teaching from out of context. When a verse or two from Scripture is quoted out of context, it is possible to make that verse support whatever bias the teacher wants it to support. This results in error and does a disservice to Biblical wisdom.

But context isn’t only for studying the Bible. Context is also important in understanding what God is trying to do in your life and in the lives of those we are trying to lead. Knowing your current spiritual context, will unlock God’s wisdom for you and your ministry.

Recently, the Lord has been showing my wife and I the importance of understanding our context. He pointed us to the story of the Israelites and their journey from Egypt into the wilderness and eventually into the Promised Land. The insight and the challenge for us was inspired by this question: Where do you live? Egypt? The wilderness? The Promised Land?

These three contexts provided a framework of understanding where we were in our journey and became a source of understanding and assurance.

Egypt
Living in Egypt means that you are not living the life God intended you to live. You are a slave to someone else’s agenda. Rather than pursuing your God-given dream, you are building someone else’s dream. Instead of fulfilling your purpose and realizing your destiny, you are creating the desired future from someone else’s purpose and destiny. In Egypt, you are a slave to someone else.

If you realize that you are living in Egypt, know that this is not all there is. There is more. You have a Savior who is mediating on your behalf. As Moses liberated Israel from the land of slavery, Jesus desires to liberate your from your context of slavery. From the cross, Jesus is saying to the powers that keep you in your Egypt, “Let my people go!”

Egypt is the land of not enough. It is a place of extreme hardship for our lives; a place of lack. How does one survive in Egypt? Who is God to us in Egypt?

When we find ourselves in Egypt, we must look to God as our only hope. We hang on to the conviction that there is a greater destiny in store for us. We must believe that there is a God-sized dream waiting for us; that we have a Promised Land that we have yet to enter. In Egypt, we hold onto hope.

And when we hear the voice of our liberator calling us to rise up and leave Egypt, we must turn that hope into action and leave the land of slavery behind us.

The Wilderness
Leaving Egypt behind does not automatically bring us into the Promised Land. Rather, abandoning Egypt brings us into the wilderness. Most people think the wilderness is a bad place to be. It is a place that seems barren. A place that seems vast and uncertain. But the wilderness is a place where many lessons must be learned before entering into the Promised Land. We cannot enter the Promised Land without first going through the wilderness.

The wilderness is a place of revelation. It was in the wilderness that God revealed His laws and statutes. It was in the wilderness that God taught Israel how to be His people. The wilderness was the place from which the Law was received by Moses. It was a place of revelation.

The wilderness was also a place of temptation and testing. It was in the wilderness that Israel’s obedience was tested. This was the place where their faith would be proved. It was a testing ground for Israel’s confidence in the goodness of God. The time in the wilderness was to determine who really would be the god of Israel.

Unfortunately, a whole generation of Israel failed that test. A whole generation would be lost before Israel could move on. It would be a whole new and different generation that would actually see the Promised Land.

How long does it really take to walk from Egypt to Canaan? The journey should have only taken around 40 days to complete. But they ended up wandering around in the wilderness for 40 years! Disobedience will delay your destiny.

The wilderness is the land of just enough. Time and time again, over 4 decades, God proved Himself to be capable of supplying all the needs of Israel. Every day, God provided manna for food to eat. This was heavenly food. But it wasn’t a time to store up any excess manna that was left over. No, manna would be provided on a daily basis. Just enough for the needs of the day.

When we find ourselves in the wilderness, our faith will be tested. But God will reveal Himself as the daily provider for our needs each and every day we are here. Our time in the wilderness is not a time of abundance. It is a season of just enough.

What lessons must we learn in the wilderness? Careful obedience. As God reveals His secrets to you, He will show you what you must do...how you are to be His people in this season. Whether we obey or not will determine how long we will stay in the wilderness.

Let me offer hope for the wilderness. Remember, Jesus overcame the wilderness. He was tempted just as we would be tempted. But he overcame. In the same way, we must look to Jesus to get through the wilderness. And like the cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night, Jesus and His Spirit will lead us through the wilderness to the place of promise.

Carefully obeying Jesus can only come from the conviction that in the face of our most pressing basic needs...Jesus is enough. The bottom line is that the wilderness is a place where we must learn to trust Jesus. In the wilderness, we trust and obey.

The Promised Land
Of course, ultimately, we all want to be living in our Promised Land. But the Promised Land context is not the place where we rest and kick up our feet and sip exotic drinks by the beach all day. There is much to do when we enter our Promised Land. There are battles to win. Kingdom culture to establish. A destiny to fulfill.

The Promised Land is the land of more than enough. It is a place of abundance. And while every promise is yes in this place, we must still be careful to fulfill the purpose of God in this place. The Promised Land is something that must be fought for. We have an enemy that wants to steal, kill, and destroy our purpose. There is nothing that this enemy would want more than for us to squander the opportunities that the Promised Land offers. The enemy will try to deceive us into thinking inwardly and focusing our attention on ourselves rather than on the mission Jesus has set for us.

God said to Abram about His people, “You will be a blessing to many nations.” The role of Israel in the Promised Land was to be a blessing to the people’s of the world. The land of Israel was to be a base of operations from which God would bless the world.

We must remember that even while we may find ourselves in a context of abundance, we have a purpose to fulfill. The problems that Israel faced in the Promised Land stemmed from losing sight of their purpose. Seduced to pursuing other gods, they put themselves outside of God’s purposes. They lost their distinctiveness as God’s people.

That is the danger of the Promised Land...the seduction to idolatry...when good things become god-things. In the Promised Land, we must hold on to Jesus as the God of purpose and destiny.

Where do you live? Egypt? The wilderness? Or the Promised Land? Understanding our context will give us the wisdom to respond accordingly.

Where in the world is Mark?

2008-07-09T15:01:00.003-04:00

Some of you who read my blog here might be wondering where I've been. It's been a while since my last post. And you might be wondering what's up?

Well, for the past couple of weeks (3 days after my last post actually), my family and I went on a road trip to New Jersey, New York, and Ohio. It was a blast! I had 5 speaking engagements with 4 churches in those states. I also got to meet up with some friends Beth and I haven't seen in years.

Aside from that, I've been working with a web developer to launch my own website. If you've been in my personal email directory, you probably got a notice from me announcing the launch of the new site.

My plan is to switch over to the new blog over there. I've also been toying with the idea of starting new blogs to cover different and more specific topics. I'm still trying to figure out how and if I want to transfer all the content here onto the new blog. Any suggestions?

The new site at www.markjuane.com or www.DreamBigRevolution.org will have an opt-in form so I can send you some free resources. Chekc it out and let me know what you think ok?

Worship is so huge...

2008-06-24T23:29:00.000-04:00

More Roaring Lambs

2008-06-16T10:16:00.002-04:00

Here are a few more excerpts from chapter two of Roaring Lambs. The title is Salt: Make Use of It...

...the salt Jesus had in mind is stinging, biting, cleansing, and preserving and is anything but dull, anything but tame. To the kind of salt Christ spoke about is to be on the cutting edge, in the fray, at the forefront of battle.

The way to be salt is to replace evil with good, not just to sound off against the evil.

We do not have to be the best to be effective, but we have to be at our best.

Being a roaring lamb is not about special days, special emphases, special people, and special professions. Rather, it is about everyday people doing everyday jobs with a very special goal---that of effectively representing Christ in all areas of society. Our churches should exist for this.

I love how this challenges us to do ordinary things with an extraordinary purpose. That last sentence that our churches should exist for this is so right on. As a leader and equipper in the Church, my main goal ought to be to glorify God by equipping God's people to shine (or in this case, to be salty) in real life.

If Not Excellence, What?

2008-06-14T11:29:00.003-04:00

Here's another word from Tom Peters which I think is absolutely essential to our discussion on being roaring lambs, being miracles. If not excellence, what?

Excellence Always from Tom Peters on Vimeo.

Roaring Lambs

2008-06-12T11:41:00.003-04:00

This morning, I picked up my copy of Bob Briner's book Roaring Lambs. Once again, it ambushed me with both passion and truth. Below is an excerpt from chapter 1. It's lengthy but well worth the read.

...despite all the fancy buildings, sophisticated programs, and highly visible presence, it is my contention that the church is almost a nonentity when it comes to shaping culture. In the arts, entertainment, media, education, and other culture-shaping venues of our country, the church has abdicated its role as salt and light.

Culturally, we are lambs. Meek, lowly, easily dismissed cuddly creatures that are fun to watch but never a threat to the status quo.

It's time for those lambs to roar.

...My point is really quite simple. Look around you. Can you honestly say that Christian influence is felt in Hollywood? That a Christian presence is evident in the major art galleries and museums of our land? That when you turn on the television you are aware of an underlying foundation of Judeo-Christian values in that medium? That as you pick up the morning newspaper you see objective (not favorable, just objective) treatment of religion in your community? That when you browse through the best sellers at the airport bookstores you will find even one novel written by an active, church-going, born again Christian?

Do you honestly believe that our big churches and highly visible Christian leaders have brought about a movement that is taken seriously in this country?

We feel we are making a difference because we are so important to ourselves. We have created a phenomenal subculture with our own media, entertainment, educational system, and political hierarchy so that we have the sense that we're doing a lot. But what we've really done is create a ghetto that is easily dismissed by the rest of society.

...I'm afraid many in the world view us as a flock of lambs grazing in the safe pastures surrounding our churches that have been designed to blend right in with the neighborhood landscape. We're good neighbors. We look like everyone else. And except for Sunday morning, we follow the same patterns of behavior as those who have little or no interest in religion. Our lives are divided into sections labeled religious and secular, and neither category seems to affect the other. Consequently, our religious views are not taken very seriously.

I have a number of friends in network television, the business community, newspaper journalism, and the arts, and I've learned two things about them. First, they have little to do with Christianity, but second, they are consumed by their pursuit of success. What this has told me is that if I want to reach them with the Gospel, the worst thing I could do is invite them to church or "witness" to them during a break in the board meeting. On the other hand, if I want to point them toward the Savior, I need to make sure my professional behavior is stellar. I need to make the best presentations, close the most successful deals, deliver the greatest product I possibly can. To them, my work is a reflection of who I am.

...We need to reclaim the territory, not in a triumphalistic sense but out of a strong conviction that this is where we belong. Our churches are growing. Our colleges are full. Subscriptions and sales are up at our magazine- and book- publishing companies. And our broadcast media continue to bring our own music and teaching into our homes. In short, our subculture is healthy. It doesn't need more attention. It's the world that needs help.

It's time for the lambs to roar.

What I'm calling for is a radically different way of thinking about our world. Instead of running from it, we need to rush into it. And instead of just hanging around the fringes of our culture, we need to be right smack dab in the middle of it.

Can we hear the voice of the Spirit here? This is what I've been talking about. Dream big! Act now! Stand out! Be the miracle!

Watch out for my new initiative DreamBigRevolution! A community and a movement that seeks to nurture, inspire, and equip shining stars for the Kingdom of God.

Dream Big: Henry David Thoreau

2008-06-10T00:40:00.000-04:00

If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with success unexpected in common hours.

Henry David Thoreau

Act Now: You are One of a Kind

2008-06-07T09:58:00.004-04:00

'"There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all of time, this expression is unique. And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and it will be lost. The world will not have it. It is not your business to determine how good it is nor how valuable nor how it compares with other expressions. It is your business to keep it yours clearly and directly, to keep the channel open. You do not even have to believe in yourself or your work. You have to keep yourself open and aware to the urges that motivate you. Keep the channel open. ... No artist is pleased. [There is] no satisfaction whatever at any time. There is only a queer divine dissatisfaction, a blessed unrest that keeps us marching and makes us more alive than the others."'

from The Life and Work of Martha Graham

Dream Big: Frogs

2008-06-07T09:42:00.004-04:00

Once upon a time there was a bunch of tiny frogs who arranged a running competition. The goal was to reach the top of a very high tower. A big crowd had gathered around the tower to see the race and cheer on the contestants....

The race began...

Honestly, no one in crowd really believed that the tiny frogs would reach the top of the tower. You heard statements such as:

'Oh, WAY too difficult!!'

'They will NEVER make it to the top.'

or:

'Not a chance that they will succeed. The tower is too high!'

The tiny frogs began collapsing. One by one....except for those, who in a fresh tempo, were climbing higher and higher....

The crowd continued to yell. 'It is too difficult!!! No one will make it!' More tiny frogs got tired and gave up....

But ONE continued higher and higher and higher....This one wouldn't give up! At the end every one else had given up climbing the tower. Except for the one tiny frog who, after a big effort, was the only one who reached the top!

THEN all of the other tiny frogs naturally wanted to know how this one frog managed to do it?

A contestant asked the tiny frog how he had found the strength to succeed and reach the goal?

It turned out...the winner was DEAF!!!!

The wisdom of this story is: Never listen to other people's tendencies to be negative or pessimistic because they take your most wonderful dreams and wishes away from you -- the ones you have in your heart!

Always think of the power words have. Because every thing you hear and read will affect your actions!

Therefore: Be DEAF when people tell YOU that you cannot fulfill your dreams!

"I can do ALL things through [Christ] who strengthens me." Philippians 4:13

More comments please!

2008-06-04T21:09:00.002-04:00

Thanks to all of you who've commented on the FOJC Youth Congress post below. I'd love to hear from more people and how the experience has impacted them. I'll be publishing the comments on the new website I'm working on. Should be done before the end of the month. I'll announce it here.

For all of you who want to be a miracle...Watch out for the new DreamBigRevolution.com!

Mark is home.

2008-06-04T02:46:00.002-04:00

Got back to Ottawa on Monday night. I'm glad to be home with Beth and the kids.

My engagement at Beacon UMC went well. It was the first time we offered my teaching DVD, "Hearts on Fire: Apostolic Roots of the Methodist Church" for sale. I was encouraged to see the response. I didn't really push it...in fact, I almost forgot to mention it to Alan, the pastor of Beacon UMC.

Now we get back to the grind of designing my new website and registering the new ministry.

Leadership

2008-05-31T18:03:00.000-04:00

Tom Peters on the Definition of Leadership from Tom Peters on Vimeo.

More of Tom....woohoo!

PASSION!

2008-05-31T14:07:00.000-04:00

Tom Peters on Passion! from Tom Peters on Vimeo.

I can't get enough of Tom Peters! Go Tom! Bring it!

Beacon UMC

2008-05-29T21:22:00.002-04:00

I'll be speaking at Beacon United Methodist Church in south Seattle on Sunday. My talk is entitled, "SHINE" from Philippians 2:15.

FOJC Youth Congress 2008 - Raven Resort, Bataan, Philippines

2008-05-28T17:37:00.002-04:00

I’ve been in the Philippines for the past 8 days. The Friends of Jesus Christ Ministries International brought me in to speak at their 25th Anniversary Youth Congress at the Raven Resort in Bataan.

I spoke 7 times and covered the topics found in the Encounter materials that I wrote for NUCOMM. I tried out some new materials that came out of my reading on neuroanatomy. It worked out well enough to keep in the new version. Clearly, the most powerful session was the one on “Experiencing Forgiveness.” Several of the young delegates shared about how they were set free from the hatred they had in their hearts. Yes...HATRED. Much of this hatred was directed towards their parents!!!

My closing words were very simple and was an echo of a message I gave a few years ago and continues to linger in my heart: Dream Big! Act Now! Stand Out! Apparently, that talk was just as memorable.

It amazes me at the wealth of potential found in those young people. They just need someone like a “father” to give them permission to be a mavericks for the Master. :-)

Dr. Randy Pausch

2008-04-15T14:02:00.002-04:00

Here's an abbreviated version of a talk billed as "The Last Lecture" by Dr. Randy Pausch, a tenured professor at Carnegie Mellon University, on Oprah. He's a father of 3 and is battling with pancreatic cancer. I was so inspired and encouraged by his talk. I hope you are too.

2008-04-12T13:07:00.000-04:00

A leader's greatest obligation...

2008-04-10T09:51:00.002-04:00

I absolutely love this quote from former Hewlett-Packard CEO, Carly Fiorina:

A leader's greatest obligation is to make possible an environment where people can aspire to change the world.

Who's winning the war?

2008-03-31T15:29:00.004-04:00

A battle wages upon the earth. Not a battle for oil. Nor political power. It's not a battle for rights. Nor a battle for the environment. A battle wages upon the earth for souls. And Islam is winning. According to The Vatican Newspaper, Islam is now the world's biggest religion. Apparently, Muslims make up 19.2% of the world's population while Roman Catholics come in second at 17.4%.

Considering that not all Roman Catholics possess a saving faith in Jesus Christ, this should disturb us. No. we shouldn't be angry at Muslims. We can't expect them to behave any differently than what their religion tells them to do. But we should take a good look at ourselves, the Church.

What is it that makes Islam attractive to a growing number of people on the planet? Here are some thoughts:

1. A conservative belief system with definite behavioral expectations.
2. A compelling hope of paradise for its followers.
3. A cadre of people willing to die for their convictions and doing so in numbers.
4. A clear explanation for what's wrong with the world and who's to blame.

Now, what makes being a Christian so unattractive to a growing number of people on the planet?

1. An unclear and unconvincing message.
Quite frankly, I believe that the Church has lost touch with its message. While Paul wrote in Romans 1 that he was not ashamed of the Gospel, western churches and those they've influenced do not preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We've made the Gospel a message of self-centered success and self-improvement. We preach a message of prosperity without sacrifice, life without death, comfort without the need for conviction, abundance without service.

Attempts at calling the church back to the Gospel has shifted the message from self-improvement to social improvement. Missional communities have risen up as a "subversive" movement away from the institutional church. But I am concerned that these well-intentioned "revolutionaries" may have also missed the target. I'm glad that a growing portion of the western church is recovering the social and justice dimensions of the Gospel. But I have yet to see any of them express the essence of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

The fact that Christians can't even agree on what the Gospel message is is a strong factor to why people reject Christianity.

2. A lack of integrity between what Christians believe and how they behave.

This condition has been a plague among Christians since the inception of the Christian movement. Paul wrote to the Corinthians about not even associating with someone who calls himself a brother and yet lives contrary to the Gospel (1 Corinthians 5:9-11). Sometimes, the strongest case against the Gospel is Christians themselves! Why would anyone want to join a group like that?

3. An inability to differentiate between Christianity and consumerism.

Possibly the greatest threat to genuine Christianity is consumerism. As Alan Hirsch wrote, "You cannot consume your way into discipleship." But our twisting of the Gospel (see point #1) has caused us to actually encourage consumerism rather than discipleship. The non-Western people of the world see Christianity and consumerism as one. Something, they would rather not be a part of.

The Church should have used the Gospel to redeem consumerism so that the resources that are produced may be used to serve the poor and fight for justice. Instead, consumerism has changed the Church to become selfish, self-centered, and self-serving. Definitely not something people are attracted to.

So what needs to happen to turn the tide of the war we are losing?

1. We must repent and return to the original Gospel message. The essence of the Gospel is that it has the power to save Jews and Gentiles. How does it do that? The message revolves around the life, death, resurrection, ascension, and return of Jesus Christ. The Gospel saves us from the penalty of sin so that our relationship to God can be restored. But the Gospel also saves us from the power of sin so that we have the means by which to deal with our sinful and selfish nature and to become a new creation in Christ. In a word, the Gospel is the means by which we are transformed individually and corporately. Biblical principles will not change us. Without the Gospel, Biblical principles only enslave us once again to the law.

2. We must repent and return to living a life of integrity in line with the truth of the Gospel. For this to happen, we will need to return to the preaching and teaching of God's Word. Please do not misread "God's Word" as simply the Bible. To do so would lead us down the path of Biblical moralism and a return to legalism. We already have that today.

The preaching of God's Word means preaching and teaching the Bible through the lens of the Gospel. Every line in both Testaments must point us to Jesus. The Bible is not about you or me. The Bible isn't a book filled with principles to teach us how to live a life of abundance. It is a book about Jesus. From Genesis to Revelation, it is about Jesus. Every principle we "exegete" from the Bible should lead us to Jesus.

3. We must repent and return to demonstrating the power of the Gospel through signs and wonders. Perhaps the fulfillment of the Great Commission will come when we fulfill the Little Commission in Luke 10. The Gospel is transrational. It begins in the realm of facts, history, narrative but launches well beyond into the supernatural. Sings and wonders point to the validity and supremacy of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Church has been given supernatural power through the Holy Spirit in the name of Jesus to serve the Gospel by meeting the needs of people (healing, financial miracles, deliverance etc.).

4. We must raise up a generation of disciples who will lose their life for the sake of the Gospel. John Wesley once said, "Give me a hundred men who love God and hate sin, and we will turn the world upside down for Christ." Who will be that generation? If not us, who? If not now, when?

We are fighting what appears to be a losing battle. But there is still time to turn the tide, Our entire strategy and tactics must change. Repenting and returning to the Gospel will do that.

Lessons from Repentance

2008-03-26T09:32:00.003-04:00

Just came back from Toronto where I taught an Encounter Weekend over the Easter holidays. Made some revisions in the teaching that seemed to go really well. One participant told another that it seemed that I was talking directly to him and about him. Always nice to hear that.

The first night, I spoke about repentance, showed a portion of "The Passion of the Christ." It was very moving. Then we had a time of personal repentance. The Lord spoke to me about 3 areas in my life:

1. Build God's dream.
2. Be who I was made to be.
3. The Gospel is my cause.

New Directions

2008-03-19T11:15:00.002-04:00

It's been forever since I posted on here. But just a quick note to say that I'm working on a new direction for my personal ministry. I'm trying to discover my "sweet spot" and build a ministry on that. I'm pretty convinced that I don't have it in me to running another church. So, I'm contemplating focusing on training and leadership development.

Reflections of a Starbucks Barista

2007-11-12T04:56:00.000-05:00

Today is my last shift working for Starbucks. It's 16.5 months since I started working for store 4666 on Innes and Lanthier in Orleans. I don't know if I will get used to paying full price for coffee now. As I look back on my life as a barista, here are some lessons I've learned.

1. Values must always be translated into a few measureable behaviors to mean anything.

2. Values and behavior must be reinforced often.

3. A strong system can make even the weakest partner look good.

4. It is important to manage someone according to both their motivation and skill level.

5. Management is no substitute for leadership.

6. Though the book is not exactly the same as the actual experience, aiming for an ideal and falling short is better than not aiming at all.

7. Choose your attitude. Be there. Play. Make their day.

8. The secret to the Starbucks Experience is the partners.

9. Just say, "Yes!"

10. Not everyone will be your friend but treat them with respect and dignity anyways.

New Directions

2007-11-04T11:03:00.000-05:00

I submitted my letter of resignation from Starbucks last week. It felt a little odd doing that. i guess I'm more emotionally attached to working there than I thought.

Anyways, I made that decision with the idea that I would be focusing on 4 areas from this point on:

1. Producing video teachings every month for UFCTC Philippines.

2. Developing SOULNET in Ottawa, Toronto and possibly California.

3. Building my business with ACN.

4. Writing a discipleship primer for the new movement in the Philippines.

Mark's Itinerary in the Philippines

2007-10-01T17:44:00.000-04:00

I'm in the Philippines on a mission trip for the United Followers of Christ International Ministries (UFCIM). This was started by my late grandfather, Rev. Lingkod A. Juane many years ago to train pastors and church leaders and to bring spiritual renewal to hundred of local churches.

My shcedule of activities is posted here for those of you who wish to pray specifically for me on these days. Keep in mind that the Philippines is 12 hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time. Thanks!

October 2-25

2 - Aldersgate Board Meeting ( I sit on the Board of this ministry that hosts and annual spiritual renewal conference in January for about a thousand people representing hundreds of churches all over the Philippines.

4 - Pick up UFCIM Board members arriving from the US

5 - Pick up UFCIM Board members arriving from Canada
UFCTC Faculty Dinner with UFCIM Board Members

6 - Cavite District Pastors Gathering with DS Balatan and Bishop Sol Toquero of the United Methodist Church

7 - 10am Preaching in a United Methodist Church in Bulacan (north of Manila)
3pm Preaching in Knox United Methodist Church in Manila

8-9 Retreat with Pastors from Nueva Ecija at the Riverview Resort

10 - Teaching at United Followers of Christ Training Center (UFCTC) in Pampanga

11 - Teaching in UFCTC Manila

12 - Teaching in UFCTC Cavite

13 - Teaching in UFCTC Taytay

14 - Preaching at Shekinah UMC in Pampanga

15-20 Conducting a Regional Leadership Institute for 33 pastors at the Riverview Resort

18 - UFCIM Board Meeting

21 - Preaching at NUCOMM with debrief and evaluation of trip with UFCIM Board members

22 - Tour of Corrigidor Island

23 - UFCIM Board Members Depart

24 - UFCIM Board Members Depart

26 - Mark Departs

Hello, my name is Mark. I'm a ______

2007-09-19T06:44:00.000-04:00

My friends Jon and VIkki Ruby has been hanging out in our SOULNET gatherings. I love these guys for the honesty they bring. Jon is a recovering addict who is actively involved in helping others in recovery through Jericho Road Ministries in downtown Ottawa. He and his wife, Vikki, are not ashamed to openly admit their situation and Jon's condition. They remind me that all of us are damaged in some way and addicted to something to cover up that damage. But they also remind me that Jesus offers us a way of recovery.

As I think of my own life, I want to openly declare that I'm damaged. I'm not addicted to drugs, alcohol or any other chemical substance. My damage has to do with feelings of being alone. For some reason, which I have yet to figure out, I really struggle with feelings of loneliness. At this point, I need to say that this has nothing to do with any shortcomings of my friends or family. I feel I have great relationships with people. Yet, in spite of that, I have a tendency to feel that I am alone. Being a leader exacerbates these feelings because everyone knows that "it's lonely at the top." Everyday I feel like I am the only one leading the charge to see our movement, SOULNET, happen.

My friend, Al, has constantly reminded me that I am not alone. And that he hurts when he hears me expressing my loneliness.

Someone once gave me an acronym to remind me about certain conditions that we need to be aware of that puts us in a vulnerable position. When we are in one of these conditions we need to HALT.

H - Hungry
A - Angry
L - Lonely
T - Tired

I've noticed that the times in my life that seemed to be more of a struggle was when I was in one or more of these conditions.

Hello, my name is Mark. I struggle with loneliness.

Back to Blogging

2007-09-19T06:42:00.001-04:00

I decided to revive this blog site as a place to put down my personal story: struggles, victories, things that happen to me, things that make me go "hmmmm."

New Blog: SOULNET

2007-02-24T07:08:00.000-05:00

Check out my new blog at www.soulnetmovement.blogspot.com. Just click on the title of this blog and you'll get there.

The SOULNET blog is the place where I will be journaling about our new missional movement in Canada and beyond. It will cover a range of topics from being a movement to updates on how things are going as a ministry. See you there!

When A Soup Company Replaces The Church

2007-02-13T14:25:00.000-05:00

True Dads Take Action (caption)

So now we have the soup company, Campbell's, telling us how to raise our kids!

New Leadership for a New World

2007-02-10T12:15:00.000-05:00

Here's the last part of an interview of Margaret Wheatley conducted by Scott London from the radio program Insight & Outlook. Wheatley is the author of a breakthrough title Leadership and The New Science. I think she has a lot to say towards 21st century organizations, the new world of work, and the emerging missional church...

(Click the title of this entry to read the whole interview.)

London: What do you think are some of the critical questions we need to ask during this period of transition?

Wheatley: For me, the basic organizing question is: What do we want to create? So, if we are in a school system, what do we want this school to mean in this particular community, in this context, with this population. What are we trying to create?

We've backed away from this fundamental question. I have a colleague who asks it even more strongly. She urges people whenever they organize together to ask: How is the world going to be different because you and I are working together? I think those questions are not being asked. I don't think they are being asked at the national level. We are grumbling about "What is America?" and "What holds us together as a nation?" But we're afraid to get into this as a national conversation about what we would like to create now that we're an America of the 21st century. What is the future that we want given who we are demographically, economically, and everything else? Who are we going to be in the future? What's possible and what's needed?

Corporations are going to have to at least acknowledge the fact that what they want to create in terms of growth and profit is not necessarily what people are willing to work for in terms of greater meaning and shared purpose. That's a lesson that's starting to creep in.

Suburban Idol: Consumerism

2007-02-08T09:28:00.000-05:00

I just saw a commercial for some Super Bingo Lottery thing. How silly it seemed to me especially with the commercial jingle repeating "Happiness is playing...happiness is playing." What a crude example of how marketers are trying to tap into the souls of people by positioning a game of chance as something fulfilling to the soul.

When you think about it, consumerism (the obsessive pursuit of safety, security, comfort, and convenience) has just as much influence as emperor worship (Caesar) in the first century Roman empire. Suburbanites regularly bow to the god of comfort and convenience in the name of their children's future and well-being. But in the end, they are sacrificing their souls. After being deeply embedded in the kingdom of consumerism, suburbanites end up feeling empty and BORED.

The challenge is how followers of Christ engage this today...What does the gospel of the Kingdom sound like and look like to desperate housewives and their husbands?

Silent for a While

2007-01-22T23:47:00.000-05:00

I know that I've been pretty quiet when it comes to posting here on my blog. Some time in the later half of 2006, I felt that I was blogging faster than I was processing. Over the past several months, I have processed a whole lot of info. I've also had some incredible circumstances happen in the last few months. I just got back from my trip to the Philippines. I've needed the past few days to recover from jetlagging. I also happened to get a respiratory tract infection during most of my trip. So I was sick most of the time I was over there. I'm still at around 80% of my true self so I hope those of you wondering what's happened can be a little more patient.

I plan to post a series of thoughts on the gospel, discipleship and the church as it relates to our new church plant. Please keep this in prayer. February 4 is the big day when we will have a lot of people over to the house to share the vision and plans for a fresh movement of new communities in Ottawa.

Hopefully, I'll see you back here soon...

(The picture is me with NUCOMM's Executive Pastor Jon Soriano and his new wife, Billie. I married them on December 30, 2006)

My Trip to the Philippines

2007-01-05T16:08:00.000-05:00

Well, I am back in the Philippines. Won't be going back to Ottawa until January 18.

I have to say that getting here was one of the toughest travel experiences I've had. Basically, I was en route for 36 hours! I had a 3 hour stop over in Toronto, a 3 hour stopver in Seattle with a 2 hour delay, and a 7 hour stopver in Taipei. That's 12 hours of waiting in airports!

In Seattle, I had to walk back and forth from one end of the terminal to the other...twice! The earthquake in Taipei messed up China Airlines' computers so they did everything by hand...and the ticketing agent ommitted certain details on my boarding pass so security sent me back twice! I told the China Air ticket agent, if I have to come back a third time, you better put me in first class! Alas, it was not to be.

From Seattle to Taipei, the seat I was assigned was too small. I was in the front row where they put the bassinet for babies. Well, those seats have armrests that do not adjust! I knew that they would have to use pry bars to get me out of that seat if I stayed there for the whole 13 hour flight! So they switched me with a man from the very back row. That seat was better but still uncomfortable. I did not sleep the whole flight into Taipei.

At least my Taipei to Manila flight was fine. But when I landed in Manila, I hadn't slept for over 40 hours.

I'm gonna go back to sleep now....

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

2007-01-05T16:02:00.000-05:00

May God's favor rest upon your life in 2007...and may you discover the joy found only Jesus Christ the Lord.

Spiritual Growth

2006-11-19T17:11:00.000-05:00

How does someone grow spiritually? Is spiritual growth measured by the number of Bible courses a person completes? Or how many fill-in-the-blanks they've done? What really is spiritual growth?

It seems to me that the New Testament talks about spiritual growth in terms of maturity, fullness, and completion. But I have to admit that these terms don't seem to be too helpful. They're not concrete enough for me. But then again, spiritual growth isn't something as concrete as, say, completing an academic degree.

Life is like that too, isn't it? How does one measure maturity? Physically? Emotionally? Intellectually? Relationally? You can't.

In its essence, spiritual growth is intangible. When you see it, you know what it is. But it's not so easliy defined.

Pastor and author John Burke describes the elements of what is needed for spiritual growth to occur:

1. A picture of maturity.
2. A context of relationship.
3. A personal development path.

I really prefer this approach over the whole 101, 201, 301, 401 baseball diamond approach. I just don't think you can really produce disciples like toys in a factory or cars in an assembly line. There are way too many organic variables that do not neatly fit into a rigid system like that.

When I reflect on my own growth, I see that it had nothing to do with completing any "course work" or study booklets. It had a lot to do with inspiring environments which included teaching from the Bible (eg. Urbana Missions Conference at the University of Illinois), Christian friends that I could be totally open to, ministry experiences like helping start a youth group for the church I grew up in, and the books and tapes I devoured that spoke to my life so deeply. All the while, I had a picture in my heart of the kind of person I could become for the Lord.

I think that discipleship in this culture and time must be fluid and not mechanical...relationships-based rather than curriculum-based.

Recommeneded Books: No Perfect People Allowed by John Burke

2006-10-21T14:40:00.000-04:00

I highly recommend this book guys! It's a 5 star read!!

The four chapters in PART 3: The Struggle with Tolerance alone are worth twice the price of the entire book. A lot of my own questions were answered in dealing with a society that values tolerance above all things. Burke has incredible insight in handling the way the Church engages other religions and homosexuality. I wish I was that smart!

The one word that really stands out to me when dealing with imperfect people and struggling disciples is "trajectory." I think that if we can hold onto the big picture in people's lives and take into consideration their spiritual trajectory regardless of the mess they are in at the moment, we would be able to respond with grace and truth as Jesus did.

There are actually alot of things I picked up from this 314-page treasure. But this is the one thing that stands out in my mind most.

Check it out and let me know what you think here.

Enjoy!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!

2006-10-08T16:52:00.000-04:00

We have a 25lbs. turkey in the oven and a 13lbs. turkey in my brothers new rotisserie! YUM!

It's a small world!

2006-10-07T08:45:00.000-04:00

Yesterday, I found out that Katherine -a co-worker at Starbucks- was my neighbor when we were living in 3682 St. Joseph Blvd! I lived there from the time I began high school until I left for the Philippines. Her dad used to help us a lot with handyman stuff in the house. I can't believe how small the world really is. Katherine was just a baby when I was living there through high school.

Amazing! This cannot be coincidence. It must be a God-thing....especially since Katherine had invited me out for drinks with her and Joe (another co-worker) after work. It was really nice to be invited to hang out with them. And the conversation we had about spiritual seeking, the abuse of religion, and what following Jesus really means over shots of tequila and beer was remarkable. In the end, Katherine said to please invite her to the new church we're starting.

What a full weekend!

2006-09-04T22:52:00.000-04:00

This weekend was so full! We finally moved everything out of storage and back to the house. The repairs and remediation of the house by Minto have been completed. After working from 7am to 12pm on Friday, we moved everything back in from 1pm until late evening. It was so tiring! But at least the kids have their room back and we now have furniture in the basement.

Then the following day, after working from 7am to 4pm, we rushed to prep for Beth and Ariel birthday party at 5pm. We had 8 guests from Toronto stay with us until today. And the house was full for the party. But we had a great time!

Then we held a small worship service at the house. It was the first time for us to do something like it in this house. But we got a good response. My aunt who attended offered her house to use as a place to stage these services to reach out to people. Awesome!

I toured our Toronto friends through the Byward Market, the Rideau Canal, Parliament Hill and Sparks Street Mall on foot. No wonder we were all so tired!

But God is good...and that will never change.

Blue Like Jazz/Live

2006-07-30T23:04:00.000-04:00

I watched Blue Like Jazz Live tonight hosted at TLC. Jason Hildebrand was brilliant. Here's Don Miller's opening Author's Note from the book:

-I never liked jazz music because jazz music doesn't resolve. But I was outside the Bagdad Theater in Portland one night when I saw a man playing the saxophone. I stood there for fifteen minutes, and he never opened his eyes. After that, I liked jazz music. Sometimes you have to watch somebody love something before you can love it yourself. It is as if they are showing you the way. I used to not like God because God didn't resolve. But that was before any of this happened.-

What does somebody loving God look like? I mean the kind that draws people into it. The kind of loving God that really, really touches others deep down in the ancient places of the heart.

New Skills, New Mind

2006-07-15T06:43:00.000-04:00

Learning new skills requires that one takes on a whole new mindset. This has been made clearer than ever as I learn to take orders and call and make drinks with Starbucks. I've found that when I see the big picture, I can better see how all the pieces fit together. Somehow, this helps me create a new mindset as a partner at Starbucks.

For example, my first training module taught me how to operate the POS or cash register. It was when I spent a couple of hours in this position that I realized how much I did NOT know about Starbucks beverages. I would often be dumbstruck when a customer ordered a drink I was not familiar with. It was frustrating for a big Starbucks fan like me to be ignorant of terms like "ristretto" and "doppio espresso." But I kept pluggin away making slow but sure progress.

Until my learning coach (a wonderful concept!) gave me some bar training. Well, knowing how to make the drinks now is helping me to better understand what customers are ordering! I also am much more comfortable calling the drinks (there is a particular way we call our drinks called "barista-speak"). Bar knowledge helped me make sense of what I needed to do on the register.

I'm not as fast calling or making the drinks yet. But I can sense that my mind is reaaranging itself into the Starbucks paradigm. I'm starting to get visions of the bar and mentally rehearse how many pumps of syrup a Venti Vanilla Latte gets and how many shots of espresso too. When I started a few weeks ago, someone did mention that I'd eventually start having dreams of making drinks. I didn't know that they were gonna be open visions!

This experience helps me to better appreciate the kind of uneasiness people have when we propose to do church differently or when we ask them to change a behavior in llifestyle. If we're going to catalyze change, its best we start by helping people get the big picture and how all the different parts work together before getting into the details.

The Wow World of Starbucks Coffee Company

2006-06-24T09:16:00.000-04:00

Started working for Starbucks yesterday. My first shift called 'First Impressions" was mostly about learning the mission, guiding principles and standards of the company. I was so impressed with how much the company gives back to the community and with how they really treat their employees aka. partners with dignity and respect. I respected the company after reading about it in Howards Schultz' book "Pour Your Heart Into It" but after being oriented in an actual store as a partner, I am blown away. I think every Christian businessman should study this company and follow in their example. Lessons to learn from: 1) Make treating each employee with dignity and respect a functional priority and 2) Give back to the community more than you take from it.

How do I want to make this happen in our new church plant?

1. Everything we do with the disconnected and with disciples should be governed by treating them with dignity, respect, and grace.
2. As a missional community, we should seek to give back to the community more than we demand from it.
3. Every disconnected person who chooses to become a disciple should be given a "First Impressions" orientation which includes a global perspective on the Church as a movement, the vision, mission, and guiding principles of NUCOMM, and the clearly defined expectations and behaviors of being a part of NUCOMM CHURCH.

Over a year ago, we already started using the word "partners" to describe membership in NUCOMM. I think we need to clearly outline the growth and development path of a partner in NUCOMM. A possible growth path could be:

1. From being disconnected to...
2. Disciple to...(join an LTG)
3. Discipler to...(lead an LTG)
4. Catalyst to...(facilitate/host a Simple Church)
5. Trainer/Coach (teach at the Encounters)
6. Deacon...(manage a ministry or department)
7. Elder.

Fishing Lessons

2006-06-17T16:26:00.000-04:00

Just got back from a half day of fishing in Smiths Falls, Ontario. We were 9 guys in all. I caught about 3 fish over the 5 hours that we were there. In the end, we had to let them all go. I spent most of the time feeding the fish with my worms than actually threatening to catch any of them. It's the only explanation why they weren't biting by noontime. They were full!

Here are a few lessons I learned about fishing and evangelism:

1. A key to successful fishing is timing. You have to get out there when the fish are hungry even if it means being inconvenienced by a really early wake up call. Evangelism Lesson: Share with people when they are most hungry to hear about Jesus. And remember, disconnected people don't come to Christ at your convenience.

2. Fishing gets your hands really dirty especially when you're using worms for bait. I poked several new holes in my fingers hooking worms for bait. Evangelism Lesson: Be ready to get dirty when you do evangelism.

3. Use the right bait for the right fish. I didn't get any results when I switched to lures half way through. These fish (pike, bass, pickerel) liked worms. Evangelism Lesson: Make sure to position the message of Jesus in a way that interests disconnected people.

4. Use the hook in the right way. I fed most of the fish with my worms because they learned how to eat the bait without getting hooked. Fishing is useless if you can't get the fish hooked. Evangelism Lesson: The primary purpose of evangelism is not to entertain people but to cause them to respond in repentance and faith in Jesus Christ. Don't settle for anything less.

Care to add anything else to this list?

Government to Save Church

2006-06-09T22:15:00.000-04:00

I read in the Globe and Mail yesterday that the Roman Catholic Church is seeking help from the Provincial Government of Quebec to preserve its dying churches. The argument is that the RCC is not just a religious entity but a part of Quebec's heritage.

I don't know whether to feel pity or anger. On one hand, I feel pity for the RCC in Quebec that it has become so irrelevant in people's lives that it's place is now more of nostalgia than anything else. Religion has been so marginalized in Quebec that it seems this is the only place for the church.

But I also feel angry, in that, a case is being made by a spiritual institution to be rescued by government. It seems too assuming to me that a religious group would expect the government to keep it alive. The RCC is one of the riches institutions in the world! Why doesn't the Vatican do something instead?

Terror in Canada

2006-06-04T22:50:00.000-04:00

On June 2, 2006, Canadian authorities arrested 17 Muslims in Toronto who had imported 3 tonnes of ammonium nitrate (explosives material). It was the largest anti-terrorism operation conducted by more than 400 police officers. The incident has sent shock waves amidst Canadians. Recently, a mosque was vanadalized - supposedly as a reaction to this incident.

What is so shocking is that these Muslim "terrorists" come from reportedly upstanding families who have been Canadians for decades. These people grew up and lived in Canadian democracy all their lives. And yet, they bought in to fundamentalist muslim doctrine. It goes to show how powerful ideology and religion can transcend one's social environment.

To me, this shows that social conditioning is truly powerless in changing people's hearts. Only the cross of Jesus Christ can bring the deepest transformation at the heart level. It isn't a matter of religion but of the power of Christ's love and grace applied to the human heart.

What could have changed the hearts of these 17 Muslims? Frankly, Jesus. Period. Think of Saul, the terrorist who targeted disciples of Christ invading their homes and putting them in prison, who became Paul, the apostle, who gave his life for the cause of Jesus Christ. How? His heart had been invaded by Jesus.

On Mission by Darrin Patrick

2006-05-31T21:43:00.000-04:00

Darrin Patrick is a founding elder at The Journey in St. Louis, MO. He has this great essay on their site at www.journeyon.net.

On Mission
Jesus of Nazareth came on a mission. He was not looking for the well, the found, or the righteous. His mission was not about starting a ministry that would produce programs to be consumed by nice, attractive, middle-class, white, suburban, couples with 2.5 kids. It wasn't a country club with nice, painted, iron gates that Jesus inaugurated. It was a church that Jesus founded with its calling to storm the gates of hell. The church he founded was not a place for people to get fed and fat, but a place to be equipped and sent. Church is not a building or destination, but a people who are on mission: to join the Savior in seeking and saving those who are lost.

Evangelism, or mission, is not just another program that the church carries out. It is not some peripheral activity. The church is mission. Yes, the church gathers as people being called out (ekklesia) of the world. But the church is at the same time being sent out (apostolos) into the world. The church certainly must be called out from the world, but it also must certainly go back into the world. We are to be holy, set apart and different in our character than those who do not know God. But, we should also refuse to believe the lies the "churched" culture tells us: avoid hanging out with the people in the world because you will be corrupted. We also need to reject the lie that we have to create our own Christian sub-culture and insulate ourselves from the big, bad world. Mission demands that we follow Jesus, friend of sinners, by being immersed in relationships with those far from God, and thus, bring light to lost people in dark cultures. We are called out, but we are sent. It is only in the context of being sent do the metaphors "salt of the earth," "city on a hill," and "light of the world" make sense in describing the church. We are to be people who have been encountered by God through the gospel, and then we are to enter the world with the gospel.

Mission is intrinsically connected to community. In the gospel of John, it is said that the unity of the church is vital if the world at large is to believe and experience the Christ sent from God the Father (John 17:21-23). Further, he said that we, the church, would be identified as followers of Christ only when we are sacrificially loving one another, which is another way of true Biblical community (John 13:34-35). It seems that the gospel of John points us to a reality that is both awesome and frightening: The believability of the gospel which the church proclaims is directly linked to the "realness" of its community. Could it be that many times, the gospel cannot be fully comprehended outside of this kind of real community?

Living the gospel, ie - being on mission, can take many forms: explaining the gospel to a friend or stranger, carrying out acts of compassion, or by being faithful to sacrificially love those in your church. The challenge is for all of us to stay in "mission-mode" and not to default to "maintenance-mode." When it comes to being missional, it is easy for Christians and local churches to be content in our bible studies, worship services and small groups and to forget the world. We do not drift toward mission, we drift away from it. It is not easy to be missional, it is hard work, it takes intentionality. It is much less stressful to hang out with people who look the same, smell the same and believe the same things we do. It is uncomfortable and challenging to intentionally spend time with people who hold differing world-views. But we must push through this discomfort because we are the church. We are the church, the called-out ones. We are the church, the sent-out ones. We are the church, on mission for the sake of the world.

The Dangers of Pragmatic and Moralistic Preaching by Tim Keller

2006-05-29T09:45:00.000-04:00

Here are a few thoughts on both pragmatic preaching and on moralistic preaching from Tim Keller. You can click the title of this blog entry to read the whole article. Sadly, this is the kind of preaching I have been hearing in the churches lately. And worse, these are the kinds of sermons I have been preaching for years!

On Pragmatic Preaching
...Today's preacher must argue against the self-serving pragmatism of postmodernity. The gospel does say that through it you find your life, but that first you must lose your life. I must say to people, "Christ will 'work' for you only if you are true to him whether he works for you or not. You must not come to him because he is fulfilling (though he is) but because he is true. If you seek to meet him in order to get your needs met, you will not meet him or get your needs met. To become a Christian is not to get help for your agenda, but to take on a whole new agenda—the will of God. You must obey him because you owe him your life, because he is your Creator and Redeemer."

On Moralistic Preaching
...Deep weariness etched every line of Joan's face and body. "I just can't do it any more," she said. "I can't live up to what a Christian is supposed to be. All my life I've had people telling me I had to be this or do that in order to be accepted. I thought Christ was supposed to bring me freedom from that, but instead God turns out to be just one more demanding taskmaster—in fact, he's the worst of them all!"

That conversation underscored for me that Christian moral teaching is both similar to, and very different from, that of other moral and ethical systems.

At the end of The Abolition of Man, C.S. Lewis demonstrates how the major religions agree on certain moral absolutes. Christians find that in today's culture wars, they often are on the same side with believing Jews, Muslims, and Hindus. The Christian preacher seems to be saying, "Be moral," along with exponents of other philosophies.

But when we ask, "Why be moral?" the other systems say, "In order to find God," while Christianity says, "Because God has found you." The Christian gospel is that we are not saved by moral living, we are saved for it. We are saved by grace alone, but that grace will inevitably issue in a moral life.

Religionless Spirituality by Tim Keller

2006-05-28T23:05:00.000-04:00

Pushing moral behaviors before we lift up Christ is religion. The church today is calling people to God with a tone of voice that seems to confirm their worst fears. Religion has always been outside-in—"if I behave out here in all these ways, then I will have God's blessing and love inside." But the gospel is inside-out—"if I know the blessing and grace of God inside, then I can behave out here in all these ways." A woman who had been attending our church for several months came to see me. "Do you think abortion is wrong?" she asked. I said that I did. "I'm coming now to see that maybe there is something wrong with it," she replied, "now that I have become a Christian here and have started studying the faith in the classes." As we spoke, I discovered that she was an Ivy League graduate, a lawyer, a long-time Manhattan resident, and an active member of the ACLU. She volunteered that she had experienced three abortions. "I want you to know," she said, "that if I had seen any literature or reference to the 'pro-life' movement, I would not have stayed through the first service. But I did stay, and I found faith in Christ. If abortion is wrong, you should certainly speak out against it, but I'm glad about the order in which you do it."

(Click on the blog entry title to read the entire article.)

In Search of Jesus part 4

2006-05-28T18:14:00.000-04:00

We went to a presbyterian church this morning. We ran a little late and had to park a couple of blocks away missing the first 15-20 minutes of the service. It's been a while since I've been inside a traditionally designed sanctuary. I was surprised at how the stained glass and bronze memorial plaques had an impact on me. Something connected within me when I saw the colorful art of the large stained glass windows adoring the walls of the church. The choir did a really good job with the anthem. I don't know who the composer was but the only lyrics were "Alleluia." And no, it was not the Hallelujah Chorus!

When the announcements (aka. inimations) were made by one of the ministers (pastors), he seemed really nervous. Though he seemed to have a script (list), it seemed like he really didn't know what to say about the church members he was talking about. I think this minister just came on board and didn't know the congregation very well.

After the announcements, the minister called a "lay person" up front to read some passages of the Bible from the New Testament. She did a pretty good job. I remember thinking how much I appreciate the public reading of the Word of God. I thought it odd to think that since I really am not much of a traditionalist.

When it was time for the sermon, I was surprised to find out that it was the same minister who gave the announcements that was going to give the sermon! He started out very promising by getting right into the passage (Ephesians 1). I thought that he was going to do an exposition on that passage of Paul's epistle. But then everything fell apart. I tried really hard to listen but I could not comprehend what he was saying! It seemed to me that each sentence he spoke was not connected to the previous one nor to the sentence to follow. And I could not figure out what he was driving at. What was he trying to communicate to the congregation? It really was a mystery to me as he seemed to end abruptly as well.

Well, when I do these critiques and share my observations, it is with the perspective of a lost/unregenerate person. And I must say that I came away just confused. I am looking for the answer to these 3 questions when I visit churches:

1. Who is Jesus to this church?
2. What is the gospel according to this church?
3. What is the mission of this church to the city/nation/world?

I'm sad to say that I could not find the answer to these questions in this church experience. So for about 60 minutes this morning, nothing was said about Jesus, the gospel, or the church's mission to the world. I feel sorry for the people who took the time to dress up and attend this service.

Not wanting to end this on a sour note, I must say that the closing hymn was awesome. Rejoice the Lord is King is one of my favorite hymns. I had a tear in my eye when we sang the last stanza.

Discovering Contentment

2006-05-24T09:34:00.000-04:00

Moving from Manila to Ottawa was a big risk for me and Beth. We had no promise of employment. No financial support from the church we had been leading for the past 8 years. It's been 3 months now, and we still have no source of income. It's hard for me to have to rely on others to meet our needs. It's an uncomfortable time in our lives now.

Paul's letter to the Philippians can be compared to a missionary's letter to his prayer partners and supporters. Early on in the letter, the apostle calls the Philippian church his "[partners] in the gospel from the first day until now (1:5)." The life of a apostle/missionary can be a life of sacrifice and hardship. Someone once commented that the hallmark of an apostle is a willingness to suffer. Paul's life is defintely a clear example of suffering for the sake of Christ and his Cause. And yet he could say that he was content.

I rejoice greatly in the Lord that at last you have renewed your concern for me. Indeed, you have been concerned, but you had no opprotunity to show it. I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength. Philippians 4:10-13

Paul learned the secret to being content in whatever his circumstances. The active word here is "learned." The Greek word is "mathano" which means "to learn by use and practice." Contentment isn't something that comes easy. It's something that is learned and developed. Mathano is also a derivative from the Greek word "mathetes" which is the word for disciple. Paul was a disciple of contentment. His life experiences taught him about being content even in a time of need.

What keeps us from being content?

Envy
Too often we are not content because we see our friends, neighbors or other family members possessing things that we ourselves wish we had. We dream of what it would be like to have that car, that house, that barbeque grill, that job, that lawn, that wife! Our misguided fantasies create discontentment in our hearts.

I can point to the specific issues in my own lilfe where I struggled with envy as a preacher/speaker. I remember envying my pastor friend's prophetic anointing or another colleague's connections in the national church network. Years ago, as a young church planter, I recall the envy in my heart towards those who had more and more people attending their own church plants. I remember attending a leadership conference in one of the U.S.'s major megachurches and feeling so intimidated by the sprawling campus, brand-spanking new audio-visual equipment, multiple lcd projectors, and humungous cafeteria/atrium. I think I must have glowed green all weekend at that event.

Greed
Many of us are driven by greed. Our lives are all about accumulating things. Something deep in us convinces us that our lives amount to how much we can get. Our self-worth is based on our net worth. The size of our bank accounts, the number of cars parked in our driveway, gtetting the latest gadgets become the driving force in our lives. The Bible calls greed idolatry. Greedy people are always discontent. Someone once asked a billionaire Howard Hughes, "How much (money) is enough for you" His answer was, "Just one more dollar." Never content.

Complexity of Life
The complexity of life can make us feel discontent. We may be overwhlemed by the demands of life. The truth of the matter is that life is hard, life is unfair, and life is demanding. Though we wish we could put the demands on our lives in a waiting line and deal with them one at a time, the reality is that they come at us from every direction. A life like this not only brings increasing stress but also increasing discontent.

Wants
Our wants can cause us to be discontent. There is a distinction between our wants and our needs. God promises to meet our needs when we put him first in our lives (Matthew 6:33). But God does not promise to give us all our wants. The myriad of choices available in the world can cause a lot of discontentment in our hearts.

Isn't it so frustrating when you buy a computer and 6 months later a better, faster, smaller and improved version comes out at the same price? It seems we can never keep up with technology. Technological discontentment. I bought an iPod a while ago. Within a year or so, Apple came out with the iPod Nano with video! Last year, I bought an iBook G4. A week ago, Apple released the new Mac Book! Arrrrrrgggggh! iDiscontent!

Envy, greed, life complexity, and wants are all factors that war against our sense of contentment. They conspire to ensure that we never feel satisfied with our lives. So how do we learn to be content?

Learning to Be Content

1. Hang on to the goodness of God. Being a disciple of contentment means that we first and foremost become learners of God's character. Don't reduce God to be the Great Big Vending Machine in heaven. Some people will take God's goodness and pervert it to mean that God wants them to have everything they desire. By doing this, they justify their greed. God's goodness means that the things in your life -even the really crappy situations- are there to eventually do some good for you. Romans 8:28-29 tells us that ultimately every circumstance can be used to shape our character closer to the image of Christ. Being conformed to Christlikeness is the ultimate good.

2. Cultivate thankfulness. Discontentment is driven by a spirit of ingratitude. The foundations of contentment begin with thankfulness. Be thankful for God's goodness. Be thankful for what you do have. A grateful heart has no room to be discontent.

3. Recognize what is essential and what are the extras in your life. We were recently informed that the developer who designed and built our community will be making repairs to our house and property. Unstable soil movement has cause problems with the foundations of our house. And so, we have to pack up and move everything in the basement and in the garage into storage. This has caused us to realize how much we really have accumulated over the years. When we move all of our stuff back into the house, we're gonna have to determine what things are essential and what things are extras. Hopefully, this will put order to our domestic clutter. When we can accept what our essentials are and how God has provided for those essentials, we will be able to simplify our lives and discover the peace of contentment.

Returning to the Cross
When all is said and done, it is essential that we bring our discontentment to the cross. Forces like envy and greed are found in our hearts. And the only thing that can change our hearts is the cross of Jesus Christ. Jesus lived the life we ought to have lived and died the death we should have died. By faith, we can return to the cross time and time again to deal with these recurring forces in our lives that produce discontentment and unrest.

The good news is that contentment isn't something that we need to work hard for. Contentment is a gift from God that can be received when we lay down our envy and greed at the cross through confession and repentance. At the cross, Jesus exchanges our greed and envy and unhealthy desires and ambitions for his peace and contentment.

Jesus was the embodiment of contentment. Not the contentment found when you empty your mind and your heart of all ambition and care (like Buddhism). Rather, Jesus was content because he trusted his Father in heaven. Jesus was content because he was more concerned about fulfilling his purpose than measuring his possessions.

When we recognize and admit that there are specific personal forces at work in our hearts that cause us to be ungrateful and discontent, we can repent (change our minds) and come to Christ in prayer and surrender our envy and greed to him. Those personal forces then are killed at the cross and Jesus gives us his life. From Christ, we receive the ability to appreciate God's goodness, cultivate thankfulness and simplify our lives. Beyond that, we can discover our purpose in Christ which becomes the great organizing factor of all we are and do. And this is why we can say with the apostle Paul, "I can do everything through him [Jesus] who gives me strength."

The Gospel According to Ottawa

2006-05-22T23:49:00.000-04:00

So far, here is what I understand about Canadians in general and Ottawa/Orleans in particular:

1. They generally feel that religion is a private matter.
2. They are reluctant joiners.
3. They stay away from Americanism.
4. They value their freedom first and foremost. Next to freedom they value their friendships/relationships most.
5. They are sexually liberal. Orleans (east Ottawa) is considered to have the highest number of swingers in the area.
6. They have more confidence in religious leaders than in politcal leaders.
7. They value being loved and appreciated.
8. They see themselves as spiritual in a personal and private way.
9. They are spiritually open.
10. Their questions on life and death have not been addressed by the church.

With this in mind, the gospel must be contextualized to the Canadian mindset/culture. I propose the following approach.

The gospel must be presented as the power of God to address deeper heart issues. Canadians must be shown that the roots of personal and social damage is found in the hearts of men and women. And that the only solution to healing those roots is the cross of Jesus Christ. Sin must be presented not only as something to take responsibility for but also as a destrutcive force that other people and social systems have enacted against them. In other words, the gospel must also be the solution to the sins committed against them as well as the solution to the sins they themsleves have committed.

Sin must be postioned as spiritual choices made personally and by others that hinder their deepest personal freedoms and stunt their personal development. Canadians must be made to understand that there is a social dimension to sin; that sin damages culture a well as individual souls.

The response to the gospel must be threefold: personal, public, and purposeful. This is to say that Canadians must be called to personally follow Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. And that following him means entering into intentional community with people in His church. But that intentional community and personal faith has a missional purpose which calls each Canadian to go beyond their cultural comfort zones and influence others for Jesus Christ.

This Canadian gospel must be communicated through at least 2 primary means: public proclamation where the cross is central to every message (see my entry on Christ-Centred Preaching) and through the practice of missional hospitality/friendship-building with disconnected people.

In Search of Jesus part 3

2006-05-22T20:49:00.000-04:00

I want to put a disclaimer in this 3rd installment of In Search of Jesus. We have been visiting churches in our part of Ottawa, Canada to get a better understanding of what the Church (capital C) has been offering to the city. In no way do I want this to be misconstrued as sitting in judgment over these ministries; only the Lord Jesus has the right to judge anyone. My intent is to confirm something I have been suspecting about the Church. I suspect that the Church has been preaching morality rather than the gospel and that the cross is not central to the message of Jesus' Church. I have undertaken this personal project because I myself have erred in much the same way that I have written about regarding these churches. Having said that...

We went to a Baptist church yesterday. I appreciated that the service was at 11am. We got to sleep in a little and didn't have to feel rushed. Nice. There were just under 50 adults in attendance. Here are my observations.

Overall, I felt that the musical style, Bible version (KJV), and preaching style created a big DISCONNECT on a personal and cultural level. The congregational singing was accompanied by a piano and was led out of a hymnbook. They sang old Gospel hymns like the type you would hear in the US Midwest. The choice of songs had nothing to do with the message and the lyrics were outdated. Unfortunately, the pastor read the Bible passage he was preaching from out of the KJV. I don't think anyone could have possibly understood the story as he read it.

As for the pastor's preaching, I appreciated that he taught the Bible as an exposition. This did not happen in the 2 previous churches I had visited (see In Search of Jesus 1 and 2). Unfortunately, the pastor had a habit of scrunching up his face quite often giving the impression that he was angry or disgusted. This happened a LOT. He did not give us background or context of the passage he read from so we didn't know where the story fit in the big picture. The pastor had way too many references to other passages that really distracted from the main passage he was teaching from. He referred to several obscure passages assuming that the congregation was familiar with them. He also used a lot of "christianese" like judicial forgiveness, gloriously saved, born again, remission etc.

In all fairness, of the 3 pastors whose churches we've visited, this pastor was the only one who tied in his teaching to following Jesus as a disciple. That in itself far outweighs all of the negatives I listed above...as far as I am concerned.

When I visit churches I have been asking 3 questions:

1. Who is Jesus according to this church?
2. What is the gospel according to this church?
3. What is Jesus' mission in this city according to this church?

This is what I discovered in this Baptist church:

1. Jesus is the Son of God who died on the cross as the substitutionary sacrifice for our sins.

2. The gospel message (according to a tract they give to every visitor) is about having one's sins forgiven by trusting in Jesus Christ. Nothing else is mentioned about the benefits of the gospel except forgiveness of sin.

3. Nothing was ever communicated about the mission of Jesus or the Church in the city.

Though I truly appreciated that this church taught the Word of God, Jesus and the cross were still not central to the message of this church. They were relegated exclusively to the beginning of the Christian life. This is something I suspected that most churches were doing. In visiting other churches, I have been confirming this suspicion.

Are 3 churches enough to make this conclusion? A Seeker church, a Baptist church, and a Pentecostal church. Hmmm....I think we will visit an Alliance church next.

Decoding Culture part 4

2006-05-19T07:34:00.000-04:00

Here's are excerpts from Alison Johnson's Harvest Field Research Initiative: Summary of Findings Religion Data (August 2003). This is based on 2001 Canadian Census data. You can read the full report here.

Our greatest challenge in Ottawa-Hull is not with those of Other Faiths or those with No Religion, it is with the vast majority of people who associate themselves with the Christian Faith, but are not active disciples. The challenge is how to reconnect with these people.

If we describe ‘Unreached’ people are those who have not made a positive connection with the gospel as evidenced by lack of regular participation in church services (yearly or never). It is our focus to connect with these people through various means to share the whole gospel and connect them with a church family where they can be discipled. Unreached people represent 69% of the Ottawa-Hull population. 68% in Ottawa and 72% in Hull.

Despite limited involvement now there is a growing trend to affiliate with a religious group for life events such as weddings, birth-related events and funerals. Also the vast majority of Canadians believe that God exists and pray privately. There is a hunger for spiritual things and 41% of Ontarians and 57% of Quebecers say that they have experienced God’s presence.

However, the Church is not meeting their needs. The No Religion group is the religious group which grew the most between 1991 and 2001 in Canada and Ottawa-Hull. Most of these people are younger.

Religion of Children
Judeo-Christian religious groups tend to remain dominant in Canada despite intermarrying between religious groups. In the Judeo-Christian family it appears that the mother’s religion is the strongest indicator of the children’s religion

Confidence and Values
• Canadians are more confident in religious leaders than in government leaders. More than half of all Canadians (56%) believe that ministers should be addressing social, economic and political issues, including 51% of those who say they have no religion.

• Top values for Canadians are: freedom, family life, being loved and friendship which can be summarized as freedom and relationships. These are followed by a comfortable life, success and creativity. Religion and spirituality are important to those already involved in religion.

• Canadians' questions about life and death are not being addressed.

• There was little difference by generation in expression of spiritual needs or in the belief that one is spiritual. More than half of Canadians see themselves as spiritual, and a solid majority say they have spiritual needs. Despite this most keep it to themselves. The less often one attends religious services the more likely they are to keep their spirituality to themselves. 60% of yearly attenders and 80% of nevers, keep their spirituality pretty much to themselves as opposed to sharing it outside a religious group.

Conclusions
• There is a stirring among large numbers of people outside the churches who are pursuing answers about life and death and spiritual needs with more openness than at perhaps any time in our nation’s history.
• 3 in 4 Canadians are talking to God at least occasionally. 2 in 4 Canadians think they have actually experienced God’s presence.
• 55% of adults who are currently attending services less than monthly say they would ‘consider the possibility of being more involved in a religious group if they found it to be worthwhile for themselves or their families.’ What would make it worthwhile varies. Here are Bibby’s conclusions at this point although he indicates that more research is required:
o ‘Nones’ may need to be convinced that their needs can be met;
o Catholics that the Church is capable of change, openness and flexibility;
o Mainline Protestants that particular emphasis to the children, partner, and friendship networks will be given.
• ‘All is well on the demand side. It’s the supply side that poses the problem.’ The belief systems and programs offered by churches and other religious groups are simply not connecting with the people who need them or think they might need them at some point in the future.

Church Keeps On Growing and Growing and...

2006-05-17T23:27:00.000-04:00

I love it! Just got some great news from my leaders in Manila. We've almost doubled the number of simple churches in our network from when I left 3 months ago. We've gone from 10 simple churches to 18 simple churches meeting this week. And apparently, 3 more new simple churches will meet this Sunday. That makes it 21 simple churches in the NuComm Network. Awesome!

Tactical Communication

2006-05-17T00:35:00.000-04:00

Tonight, I attended my brother's (Sonny) seminar on Tactical Communication: Improving Interpersonal Communication Skills and Diffusing Aggressive Behaviour Through Verbal and Nonverbal Messages. This is a required class for those working in the network of 12 bars and restaurants in the Byward Market, Ottawa. I was impressed by his ability to apply the materials to the service industry. He really is an expert in his field. 15 years working in the Byward Market makes him quite knowledgeable.

He ended the teaching part outlining Strategies for Conflict Prevention. The workbook lists 15 of these strategies. As I listened to his explanations, I realized that these are great guiding principles for those of us who attempt to share the gospel with people. Check them out. I will list them as they appear in the workbook but I'll add commentary in parentheses:

1. If not in clearly marked uniform, identify yourself. (This speaks to the need for Christians not to be ashamed to be identified as followers of Christ.)

2. Establish rapport as soon as possible.

3. Always begin in a friendly way.

4. If possible avoid any physical contact. ( I'm not sure how this applies to faith sharing. Maybe in the area of inappropriate touch?)

5. Utilize positive body language.

6. Actively listen ---do not interrupt.

7. Appear fair and unbiased. (Although our end goal is to eventually help people make a decision to follow Christ, in the process of sharing we should be fair and unbiased especially when you talk about other religions.)

8. Make an effort to honestly see things from the other person's point of view. (Awesome advice!)

9. If you're wrong admit it quickly. (It would be refreshing for Christians to admit their faults and failure in sharing the gospel. Most of us make the mistake of thinking we have to be perfect, successful, victorious etc. to be a convincing witness for Christ.)

10. Do not say the first thing in your mind especially if you have become angered or offended.

11. Use agreement/word re-direction.

12. Show respect for the other person's opinions. Never say, "you're wrong" re-direction of words "I see and..."

13. Get the person saying "yes" immediatley. (It's good to build common ground here.)

14. Important to remain calm and in control at all times.

15. Remember the only way to get the best of an argument is to avoid it.

Happy Mother's Day!

2006-05-14T13:37:00.000-04:00

May we all honor the women in our lives who have exhibited amazing strength and courage in raising a generation of men and women to follow after them to the best they knew how with the resources they had and the opprtunity availabe to them.

I honor my own mother, Adeluisa F. Juane, who showed incredible strength, faith, and foresight as she raised 3 boys to become responsible, courageous men...all by herself! As she proudly says, "I'm so glad that I know that none of my sons will ever grow hungry. They know how to take care of themselves." Today, she continues to demonstrate the same strength and faith more than ever.

Thanks, Ma! I love you.

Decoding Culture part 3

2006-05-07T22:34:00.000-04:00

Belief strong in Canada, but the pews are empty: Poll shows 'there is a thriving privatized faith'

This was the headline in the online version of the National Post for April 15,2006. The article quoted Andrew Grenville, senior vice-president of Ipsos Reid which conducted a Canadian religious survey weeks leading to Easter this year as saying, "There's a huge gap between those who believe and those who belong." Reginald Bibby, a Canadian sociologist and former Baptist pastor in Canada and the U.S. has claimed that 25% of Canadians attend church on a weekly basis. However, religioustolerance.org says differently. The site claims that Canadians (and Americans) are lying to pollsters. The real figure is about 10%.

But I think one thing is clear in decoding Canadian culture. There is a definite bias towards a private faith. How does the church engage a culture that strongly believes that one's beliefs are best kept private? It behooves churchplanters to demonstrate the benefits of allowing one's beliefs to impact society. Churchplanting in Canada will be even more of a challenge because of this.

In Search of Jesus part 2 (Redux)

2006-05-07T11:37:00.000-04:00

This morning we attended the 9am service of a popular Pentecostal church in East Ottawa. Just as I did last Sunday at the WCA church, I wanted to see this church from the eyes and ears of someone who did not know Christ. It was a bit difficult since I did know most of the people on staff at this church and several of the members who attend. But laying aside those factors, the following is what I observed:

1. The music was culturally relevant but the sound levels were so low that it was difficult to really appreciate and allow the music to inspire us. The music and musicians were great. But the level at which they were set was uninspiring.

2. There was a strong family feel in the atmosphere which included the recognition of one of the staff members retiring and the person who would replace her.

3. I was greeted by about half a dozen people before and after the service. This would have been great if this is what a visitor would experience. Sadly, this church has a reputation for not being that friendly.

4. Jesus was barely mentioned during the sermon. This was disappointing since there were some really good opportunities to bring Jesus into the talk. For example, when the preacher said that the perfect example of obedience was Jonah, I thought that he could have brought Jesus in as the Perfect example. This could have been tied in to say that even though we are inconsistent with our own obedience, Jesus lived the life we should have lived and died the death we should have died. His complete obedience makes up for our disobedience. And through Christ, we can receive God's blessings.

I guess I'm really sensitive to the lack of Jesus being the center of our messages these days. I saw it in the WCA church last week. And I saw it again in this Pentecostal church.

Again, the Bible was the central figure in this church not Jesus. And the more I see this happening, the more I am convinced that there is a HUGE difference between being Bible-centered and being Jesus-centered. They are NOT the same thing.

So thus far, I have been able to observe 2 kinds of churches in Orleans. One was a seeker-sensitive type of church and the other a Pentecostal church. One was a small church of less than 100 and the other a large church with about 1000 or so people. Both have been around for over 10 years. And both did not seem to preach Jesus as the central figure. Both did preach the Bible. But what they communicated was a "try harder and do more" kind of message which isn't really good news at all, is it?

(I have deleted certain sections of this post in the interest of sincere love for those who may have been personally hurt by my comments in those earlier sections. I believe in freedom of speech. And I believe in the necessity of the Church to critique itself even though it may be painful to hear. None of my comments in the In Search of Jesus thread on this blog were meant to hurt anyone nor name specific names. I call them as I see them from my POV. However, in the interest of sensitivity and to maintain honor and respect to individuals who are sensitive to those previous comments, I have edited some content here. -MAJ)

Decoding Culture part 2

2006-05-03T15:56:00.000-04:00

In his review of Michael Adams' Fire and Ice: The United States, Canada and the Myth of Converging Values, Jordon Cooper from resonate.ca makes this conclusion which I tend to agree with:

-The American worldview is dominating our church in Canada which may explain why the exodus of Canadians continues to move away from the church. Some may say that the people are leaving the Gospel but I don't agree. I think the Canadian church has taken some shortcuts and is taking answers from south of the border without asking the hard answers ourselves. Just as part of the country votes for neo-conservative values and feels that they can have success, the church looks around and takes comfort in the fact that "these people are listening to what I am saying" without ever thinking that the majority is looking and going, "that doesn't jive with anything I am seeing".-

This makes the job of decoding Canadian culture all the more important. What I have been observing is that rather than taking the time to do the hard work of decoding culture, the tendency for church planters is to be captivated by a model of ministry (Willow Creek, Saddleback, G12, emerging etc.) and then entering into a community and simply implementing that model. This may be why Ottawa has yet to see a significant spiritual movement and why the city does not have a single megachurch in her midst.

One thing for sure, any missional church that wants to reach Canadians must not come across as an American import.

In Search of Jesus

2006-05-01T18:40:00.000-04:00

Last Sunday, our family along with my cousin's family decided to visit a church we had heard about in our neighborhood. It is a Willow Creek Association church which has been meeting in a French elementary school just a few blocks away from our house. I was intruigued because it was the first church in Orleans that I knew of that was connected to Willow Creek.

When we got there we saw that the service was in the gym which they had split conveniently in two so that their children's ministry could meet on the other side. Seating was around large round tables - the kind you use for fundraising dinners. It looked like our two families comprised almost half the congregation. There was a small band set up with drums, bass, acoustic guitar and keyboard in the front. There was no stage. The LCD projector was large but of good quality. There was no pulpit in sight but there were several awkwardly placed music stands for the band and for the speaker. A coffee table was set up on the side but I couldn't figure out where the coffee was on the table. Though they did have a lot of bagels.

The program started with the song "Don't Worry, Be Happy" led by the drummer. This was followed by a welcome and announcements by the pastor's wife/keyboardist. She also introduced a movie clip from "The Truman Show." I didn't quite understand the point of the clip. But the theme of the day was Spiritual Spring Cleaning: Removing the Clutter. After the clip, the pastor stood up to preach. The whole setting was casual and light. I think I may have overdressed wearing corduroy pants, crew neck t-shirt and a brown, cotton jacket. After the pastor ended his sermon, the band led in a closing song.

We got to talk to the pastor and his wife. They were both very nice people. Apparently they had started the church in their home about 10 years ago. It was very kind of the pastor to sit and talk with us for such a long time since we made it clear that we weren't really searching for a church but that we were just visiting churches in the area. They both admitted that that's why they did the first few months they moved into Orleans before they started the church.

As I sat through the service, I couldn't help but get flashbacks when I had started our first church plant in Orleans almost 15 years ago. We didn't last one year at the time due to a lack of experience and not knowing what to really expect in churchplanting. If I had to compare what we did to what we had experienced last Sunday, I'd have to say that we were doing pretty good 15 years ago without even knowing it. Lots of lessons learned. This Willow Creek-style church really reminded me of how we tried to do it. This time though, as I sat through the program, I had a more discerning perspective.

The intention and mission of the seeker sensitive model is quite noble and Biblical: turn unchurched people into fully devoted followers of Christ. But I think I see where the holes are in the seeker approach. By seeing it like this on Sunday, I also saw where I had made grave errors.

As I observed the proceedings and listened to the message, I asked, "Who is Jesus to these people? Or who do they portray him to be?" Unfortunately, Jesus was barely mentioned except for a passing remark when the preacher quoted from the Sermon on the Mount under one of his points. This positioned Jesus at best as someone who said some things about wise living and at worst a marginalized figure in the church.

I also tried to discern what the gospel was as presented through the experience. It seemed to me that the Bible was the central figure rather than Jesus. Biblical principles were shared on how to overcome struggles with fear and worry. What came across was, if you obey these Biblical principles your life will get better. But then I thought, "Isn't this the same "do this and God will give you this" religion?

In talking to the pastor and his wife -whom I truly believe loves the Lord and have laid down their lives for the kingdom- I know that their approach to Christianity is the "Christianity is not a religion but a personal relationship with Jesus Christ" kind of deal. This is the same mistake I believe I have been making for years. Oh, it's not a theological mistake. It really is about a relationiship to Jesus Christ and not religion. It is more of a missiological error.

These days, as I try to be more missional and see things from a non-Christian perspective, the whole "personal relationiship with Jesus" angle seems a little soft especially if I'm trying to reach men (the toughest audience no matter what culture you're in). It's starting to sound a little effeminate and gay when the gospel is presented as having a loving personal relationship with Jesus Christ. I believe it's because of our reference point. Which Jesus do you have a personal relationship with? The hippie Jesus in the gospels who walked around jobless with a bunch of guys loving on people and who got a beating for doing it? Or are we talking about the post-resurrection Jesus who is the King of kings and the Lord of lords with fire in his eyes, a sword in his mouth, and a tatoo on his leg ready to open up a can of whoop ass on the nations?

In dealing with the theme of worry and fear, I think he should have brought us to the cross. We should have been provoked to search our hearts asking, "What is the root of our fear and worry? What is going on in our hearts that causes us this distress?" And once our hearts -filled with self-centeredness, pride, unbelief and a desire to be in control- were exposed, we could have been led to the cross where these things can be dealt with. Only the cross of Jesus Christ can deal with the human heart. And only repentance before a mighty Jesus can transform fear into faith and worry into worship.

I think that in the work that we plant here in Ottawa, the message of the cross must be central no matter what topic we teach on. The apostle Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 2:2, "For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified." The church of Jesus Christ must proclaim Him faithfully to this culture. The cross is the only hope for any society.

Decoding Canadian Culture part 1

2006-05-01T18:36:00.000-04:00

This is the first installment of a series of posts in my attempt to decode Canadian culture. I'll specifically focus on the kind of culture we find in Ottawa, the nation's capital.

Canadian culture is much more secular than American culture. Religion plays no major role in public life. Spirituality is something that you do personally and privately. Offending other people due to religion is a major faux pas. Here's a quote from the Presbyterian Church in Canada. Click here for the whole article.

"Canada's ceremony on Parliament Hill, after the events in New York on September 11, 2001,was telling. God's name was not uttered, and prayer, hymn singing or reading from scripture of any religion were absent. This stems presumably from the belief that, if such activities took place, someone, somehow, somewhere might be offended."
-David Horrox, Presbyterian Church in Canada

Unlike American culture where Christianity is very much a civil religion and where national roots are generally recognized as Christian, Canada seems to have more in common with post-Christian Europe. Religion is institutional. It has no place in public policy as seen with how Stockwell Day was treated when he led the Conservative Alliance party in 2000.

This will greatly impact the way we approach our mission to help disconnected people become fully devoted followers of Christ. Unlike the American church, we cannot take a direct marketing approach to promote Jesus, the gospel, or the church. Canadians are extremely sensitive to this kind of "hard sell." I believe that the practice of hospitality will be a key to reaching Canadians.

Christ-Centered Preaching

2006-04-25T08:11:00.000-04:00

Rev. Tim Keller from Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City publishes a newsletter called The Movement which has a great article on preaching. The article made me realize how few Christ-centered sermons I've actually preached in my 24 years of preaching. Click here for the article titled "Keller on Preaching in a Post-Modern City."

What I've come to realize is that much of what we call Bible-based preaching is not really Christ-centered! Rather, sermons tend to be moralistic rather than rooted in the gospel. It's wonderful that even after preaching thousands of sermons in 24 years, that there is still so much to learn.

Not all Bible-based preaching is Chrsit-centered. We can approach the Bible in one of two ways: It is either about me or it is about Christ. When I approach the Bible in a me-centered way, then it is a book full of exmaples that I "should" follow. It is a book that teaches me to try harder to be like the characters in it.

But if I (rightly) approach the Bible in a way that says it's about Christ then I don't see the stories as examples but I see Christ there. It points me to Christ everytime whether I am preaching on Abraham and Isaac, David and Goliath, or on tithing. It all points to Christ. Tim Keller's article shows how to do this.

Let me know if this article was helpful to you and what thoughts it may have stimulated about your own preaching.

A Few Pics from Orlando

2006-04-25T00:51:00.000-04:00

Now This Is A Vacation!

2006-04-17T13:13:00.000-04:00

Well we got back from Seattle and 4 days later...Here we are in Orlando, Florida - home of Micky Mouse!

We drove 26 hours from Ottawa to Orlando without spending a night in a hotel. Surprisingly, it was a nice trip here. We left Friday night around 8pm and arrived about 11:30pm on Saturday - guess that makes it a 27 hour trip. 3 of those hours were spent going to the bathroom, getting lost on the Pennsylvania Turnpike (FOG!), eating breakfast at an IHOP in Washington DC etc.

We're staying at Orange Lake Resort - beautiful, spacious, clean, and only 15 minutes away from Micky, Epcot, Universal Studios, and Seaworld. Since it was the Easter weekend, we won't be able to get into Disney until tomorrow. So we're just chillin' here at the resort. Nice 2 day rest after such a long drive.

We make the long drive back to Ottawa Saturday morning...

The Sky is Falling?!?!

2006-04-12T03:15:00.000-04:00

Found Alan Roxburgh's new book waiting for me when I got back from Seattle tonight. Got ambushed by something in the preface. I noticed the popularity of Joel Osteen's book, "Your Best Life Now." I can't help but mention that Oprah Winfrey popularized the phrase, "Living Your Best Life!" Then here comes Roxburgh in his preface:

Throughout Western societies, and most especially in North America, there has occurred a fundamental shift in the understanding and practice of the Christian story. It is no longer about God and what God is about in the world; it is about how God serves and meets human needs and desires. It is about how individual self can find its own purposes and fulfillment. More specifically, our churches have become spiritual food courts for the personal, private, inner needs of expressive individuals. The result is a debased, compromised, derivative form of Christianity that is not the gospel of the Bible at all. The biblical narrative is about God's mission in, through, and for the sake of the world and how God has called human beings to be part of God's reaching out to that world for God's purpose of saving it in love. The focus of attention should be what God wants to accomplish and how we can be part of God's mission, not how God helps us accomplish our own agendas. -Alan Roxburgh

In our desperation to connect to a lost and fallen world, is part of the Church pandering to the self-centered, self-fulfilling humanism made popular by celebs like Oprah?

Gospel Response

2006-04-08T03:32:00.000-04:00

If the gospel we preach is not understood as ultimately an invitation to radically change our lives for Jesus Christ so that people either desire to change or rebelliously reject the message then the following might be the problem(s):

1. We did not communicate the gospel message in a way that our culture understood.

2. We compromised the contents of the gospel to make it less offensive thus making it an impotent message.

3. We (Christians in that culture) created an unreceptive environment through legalism or compromise or anything else that distorted people's perception of the church, God, and/or Jesus Christ.

Radical Reformission by Mark Driscoll

2006-04-06T04:34:00.000-04:00

Here are some excerpts from the book as promised:

The way to avoid sin is not to avoid sinners but to stick close to Jesus.

Anytime that Jesus is used as a means to an end, a false gospel has been introduced and the thing improperly focused on becomes a false god.

Reformission requires that every Christian and church realize that is about not something they do but something they are. We are all on mission with Jesus everyday, and we are either good missionaries or bad.

Reformission requires that in our increasingly individualistic, lonely, and depressed culture, we avoid proclaiming soley a personal relationship with Jesus. The gospel requires us to proclaim and embody the full work of Jesus' death and resurrection. Jesus has accomplished four things which people long for. First, Jesus takes away the sins that separate us from God so that we can be connected to God, which fills our spiritual longings. Second, Jesus takes away the sins that separate us from each other so that we can be reconciled to each other as the church, which fills our social longings. Third, Jesus forgives the sins we have committed, thereby cleansing us of filth, which fills our emotional longing for forgiveness. Fourth, Jesus cleanses us of defilement that has come upon us through the sins of others, which fulfills our psychological longing for healing, cleansing, and new life.

To be faithful in reformission, we must embed ourselves in a culture and develop friendships with lost people so that we can be informed and avoid making erroneous judgments.

Reformission is not about abstention; it is about redemption. We must throw ourselves into the culture so that all that God made good is taken back and used in a way that glorifies him. Our goal is not to avoid drinking, singing, working, playing, eating, lovemaking, and the like. Instead, our goal must be to redeem those things through the power of the gospel so that they are used rightly according to Scripture, bringing God glory and his people a satisfied joy.

Alki, Seattle

2006-04-06T04:12:00.000-04:00

These are pics from a place in West Seattle called Alki. I wish I could say Alki Beach but that's a couple more miles further from where these pictures were taken. It was so beautiful. The sun was already setting so the lighting is dimmer that I would have liked. The road running along this shore goes to Alki Point. I think it's called Harbor Blvd. We ate at a place along the road called Spud's Fish and Chips. It's been around for 70 years! It turns out that the road, which was lined with a mix of old homes and condos becomes a beach near Spud's. Sweeeeeeeet!

We stayed until it got dark. The Seattle skyline was beautiful in the dark. I loved the sound of lapping waves on the shore. And the view of the stars in the crisp night sky. The sky seems bigger here.

Mars Hill Church: Gospel, Culture, and Church

2006-04-06T02:12:00.000-04:00

I recently attended Mars Hill Church in Seattle where Pastor Mark Driscoll has been leading a postmodern congregation of about 3000 for the past 7 years. You can check out their website at www.marshillchurch.org. They have downloadable sermons and vodcasts available there. We attended their morning service in Shoreline (north Seattle) last Sunday. The Shoreline congregation started last January lang. It was a great set up with only a drummer, bassist, and pianist/guitarist leading worship. Simple but really cool. I was inspired by the style of worship. 3-piece band with drums, bass, and keyboard/guitar. Simple but musically really good.

Before we left the service, I bought 2 books at a discounted price. One of them is Mark Driscoll’s book, “The Radical Reformission: Reaching Out Without Selling Out.” I’ll be posting some quotes from the book shortly after I finish writing this. My favorite quote from chapter 1 is...The way to avoid sin is not to avoid sinners but to stick close to Jesus.

One of the issues that Driscoll has me dwelling on is the importance of knowing our culture so that we can reorganize ourselves to be able to connect to people in ways that clearly communicate the gospel. In the book he makes the point by citing that Billy Graham’s Steps to Peace with God appealed to a generation that understood the gospel in terms of peace because they had gone through the experience of World War II and were searching for a way to find peace. Bill Bright’s Four Spiritual Laws appealed to a generation of students who accepted the absolutes of Newtonian physics. But this wouldn’t fly to a generation that’s been raised on Quantum Physics and the New Sciences. It’s very interesting how Mars Hill Church has contextualized the gospel for the Seattle culture.

I'm including below a list of questions from the book that I think would be helpful for anyone seriously thinking of impacting a culture for the kingdom of God. You will need to spend some time to talk to people about these issues -especially disconnected pre-believers.

This issue has caused me to plan to stop and take the time to do this exercise myself before we start anything in Ottawa. Here are the questions for understanding the cultural context in which we advance the kingdom. I think it is important to begin with specifying which age group or mindset you are trying to reach and how they would answer these questions.

Understanding the Culture We’re In

1. Where do people spend their time and money?
2. What do people do during their free time?
3. What do they fear?
4. What do they dream about?
5. Where do they shop?
6. What cultural experiences do they value?
7. What are the most painful experiences they have had?
8. What music do they listen to?
9. What film and television do they watch?
10. What do they find humorous?
11. In what ways are they self-righteous?
12. What do they read?
13. What is their spirituality?
14. Whom do they trust? Why?
15. What do they think about the gospel?
16. What sins will the gospel first confront and then heal for these people?

Questions for Designing Worship Gatherings

2006-04-02T00:02:00.000-05:00

Dan Kimball has a great list of 7 questions to ask when designing worship experiences:

1. Did we lift the name of Jesus up as the centrepiece of why we gathered?

2. Did we have a time in the Scriptures learning the story of God and man? Did we invite everyone to be part of his story in kingdom living?

3. Did we pray together and have enough time to slow down and quiet our hearts to hear God's voice and yield to his Spirit?

4. Did we experience the joy, love, and encouragement of being together as a church?

5. Did we take the Lord's Supper together as a church regularly?

6. Did we somehow remind everyone of the mission of the church and why we exist?

7. Did we enable people to individually contribute something as part of the Body of Christ?

I think this would be great to ask both during the design process AND after as an evaluation...

Lifestyle Change

2006-04-01T15:18:00.000-05:00

I've been thinking about our new life in Ottawa. Not so much the ministry aspect as the personal aspect. I know I need to make lifestyle changes. I want to live a more active life. I want to lose a considerable amount of weight. I want to enjoy the outdoors and sports more. But I want it to be a joy not an obligation.

When I was in high school, I must have spent 5 hours a day in physical activity. I would go to school early so my friends and I could use the gym to play full court basketball. During the lunch hour, we would play volleyball. And then after school, I would spend 2-1/2 hours in practice (basketball, volleyball, or rugby - depending on the season). When we were in between seasons, my friends and I would drive over to the other side of town to the Nepean Sportsplex to play a pick up game of semi-competitive volleyball.

What I look forward to are bike rides, daily walks, trail hikes, camping, basketball, volleyball...and more. Hmmm....bike rides along the Rideau Canal (check out the pic!)...B-E-A-utiful! Now I'm excited! When will this vacation end?! :-)

Still On Vacation!

2006-04-01T15:10:00.000-05:00

10 more days before we go back to Ottawa. Now Beth has joined the kids in their chorus of wanting to get back. We have 4 big boxes that just came in containing alot of our stuff from the Philippines. She's anxious to unpack and get started with our new life. Can't say I blame her.

I'm enjoying the down time. But it is difficult to live in someone else's house where you have to keep your guard up to make sure you don't wreck anything or disturb something that shouldn't be touched.

In a few hours, I'll be meeting up with a couple of guys to teach them how to do a Life Transformation Group. I wonder if they'll even show up?

Acts 10, 2006

2006-04-01T01:44:00.000-05:00

Just got back from a very interesting experience.

I was invited by a friend of mine visiting Seattle from New Jersey to come over to his sister's (Chinky) house to pray for his brother-in-law (Jun) who has cancer in his lungs. We got there around 7pm and the living and dining rooms were full! Even my friend did not expect that many people. Apparently, Jun and Chinky called the extended family over for the "healing service."

We sang a few song led by Marion (my friend's wife) on the piano. My friend, Luther, opened in prayer. Then I came up to share about Jesus from Mark 1 where He healed a leper. I pointed out that it wasn't Jesus' ability that was in question but his willingness. I think a lot of people are like that. They don't doubt God's ability to heal but His willingness to do so.

I preached about Jesus and who he was and what he did on the cross. I felt like I was in Cornelius' house (cf. Acts 10). It was quite a sight.

Then we prayed for two people's healing. Jun, who was suffering from lung cancer. And Edna, who has thyroid cancer. Both felt something as we prayed. I sensed the presence of the Lord. We ended the night with dinner for all. Wow! It was like living the New Testament. I loved it. I had everyone hug the person next to them before we ate. Great atmosphere!

Still On Vacation

2006-03-31T15:15:00.000-05:00

Beth and I just got in from a nice walk in the Lake Forest Park neighborhood. This vacation has been really good except for my youngest daughter, Micah-el, getting a tooth infection. It's been a long one though. Both kids miss Ottawa badly. They've been asking when we will go back home.

I was surprised when I measured my blood sugar level after our walk. It's 4 times higher than it should be. It really is a pain to have Type II Diabetes. I hate it. But the real question is, "Do I hate it enough to do what it takes not only to control it but also deal with it once and for all?" I've heard of people with Type II who were able to basically revert to normal and discard all medication. God, grant me the will to do the thing I know I ought to do!

In spite of that, it sure is nice to get out in nature and breathe clean air. Maybe tapping into that love for nature can help with this blood sugar thing?

Call for Topics

2006-03-31T03:12:00.000-05:00

Please send me any topics you might want me to cover here. I need to know what you want to know.
I might not know everything on everything but I do know somethings about a few things. I'm trying to narrow the topics I should write about here (though I will always include updates on me and my family and book recommendations) so I need your help.

Just hit the comment button below and suggest away...

Starbucks c. 1971

2006-03-27T19:52:00.000-05:00

While in Seattle, we took an hour long walk through the downtown area and through the historic Pike Place Market. Near the north end of the market we discovered the very first Starbucks that opened in 1971. This gold post certifies for all customers that this is where it all began. Very nostalgic for me as many of you know that I am a big fan of Starbucks for both its coffee and it's business philosophy. Though I did forget my digital camera in the van (!) I was able to snag a pic. I can truly verify that this is what we saw today.

Mt. Rainier, Washington State

2006-03-24T13:48:00.000-05:00

Here we are at Mt. Rainier. We didn't get all the way to the top but it was so beautiful up here. It was already the first day of spring but at this height, snow stays cold. You can't see it too well from the angle but the snow caps were blue when we took this shot. The peaks shot through the clouds and reflected the azure sky off the snow. Wow!

Encounter @ Ronald UMC, Seattle 2006.03.18

2006-03-20T11:23:00.000-05:00

I conducted an Encounter Weekend at Ronald United Methodist Church in Seattle. The event started on Friday night and ended Saturday night. I taught all 6 sessions. It went very well. Participants from another church (Beacon UMC) want to hold an Encounter for their congregation. Here's what it looked like...

Everyday Spirituality

2006-03-13T12:42:00.000-05:00

It's possible to learn to recognize the myriad ways that God touches us outside of that which is openly spiritual and we can share these moments with others. God touches us through painful growth experiences of loss and grief, through moments of creative and athletic excellence, through moments of victory over our problems and through the tenderness of relationships. God's grace falls on the just and unjust alike. All humanity experiences God's hand. These moments when we touch something eternal and noble and good are God's footprints in our lives---His prevenient grace. People need to realize that the God they feel they do not know has, in fact, been at work already in their lives in many ways. -Chris Harding quoted in THE SHAPING OF THINGS TO COME by Frost and Hirsch

Our approach to spirituality has been highjacked by Greek dualism where life is divided into two part: the material or natural part and the spiritual part. Generally, the material part of life is looked down upon and considered something to be conquered not redeemed. The spiritual is looked upon as the better part or the good part that only matters.

This dualism is what makes those of us seeking to live more spiritual lives seem schizophrenic. What we need to understand is that God doesn't look at life in that way. Life is much more complexly and messily integrated. This is the message of the Incarnation. God sees the material as essential to existence. We act and live through our bodies. I used to admire the saying, "We are not human beings having a spiritual experience but spiritual beings having a human experience." I realize now that this only promotes the kind of dualism that causes so much consternation in Christian discipleship.

What we need is a spirituality of incarnation. Mike Slaughter once wrote that, "Incarnation is where the sacred and the secular meet." Incarnational spirituality creates a vibrant spirituality. One that can embrace all of life and does not compartmentalize spirit from everything else. This kind of spirituality embraces all of our God-created passions like nobility, love, sex, ambition, dreams, hope, etc.

We feel God when we feel the excitement of the underdog beating the favorite team. We feel God when we are moved to tears by a powerful scene in a movie. We feel God when we come alive when we fall in love. These are all ordinary moments. But these moments are very compelling. Moments when God touches our soul in the ordinary things in life.

People who live in this way make spirituality something real, tangible and attainable. Jesus was just like this. He lived in such a way that he embraced all of life. He saw the Spirit in everything and not just in "spiritual things."

Followers of Christ who embrace life in this way can draw people into God's unfolding story in the following ways:

1. Appreciate everyday moments.

2. Nurture a sense of wonder and awe.

3. Be extraordinarily loving.

4. Connect to God's presence in all creation.

5. Embrace life!

Vive-le! (French)
L'chaim! (Hebrew)
Mabuhay! (Filipino)

Seattle 2006.03.14

2006-03-13T06:41:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow, we fly out to Seattle. The home of the Sonics, Bill Gates, Frasier, Mt. Rainier and where I had my close encounter of the God kind. It's been several years since I've been back to Seattle. But the place always stirs up a sense of nostalgia whenever I think about it. I'm really looking forward to bringing Beth and the kids to Mt. Rainier. Beautiful up there!

I've noticed lately that I've been reconnecting to all things nature. Crisp cold air. Bright clear sky. The smell of melting snow. These things are all around us and are easily taken for granted. It's good for my soul to see these things as if for the first time.

Seattle will have me busy. I'll be conducting an Encounter this weekend. I'm speaking at Ronald United Methodist Church on Sunday. Then the next Sunday, I'll be speaking at Beacon UMC. We're in Seattle for a total of 4 weeks. The remaining weekends may have me speak at churches outside Washington State.

ROBERT ALTMAN

2006-03-07T06:56:00.000-05:00

Tom Peters posted this on his website. Click the title above to go to the link.

Robert Altman
Mr Altman won the lifetime achievement award at the Oscars last night. I loved this from his acceptance remarks, and I paraphrase: "The role of the Director is to create a space where the actor or actress can become more than they've ever been before." (Or, maybe: "dreamed of being." Better yet. I'll have to find a transcript.)

To me that's the essence of leadership—in any context.

INSPIRATION!

2006-03-05T15:28:00.000-05:00

It's a gorgeous Sunday. Right now. Right here. We went to TLC's early church service then had family time at Tim Horton's, picked up some fruits at Food Basics, window shopped at Henry's Electronics, Sport Mart and Dollar Blitz. When we came home, we sat down to watch Nemo with the kids but caught a good portion of Dr. Wayne Dyer on PBS. Wow!

Here is this guy speaking with passion, energy, and life talking about being inspired. He described how living an inspired life awakens dormant senses within you. Living an inspired life elevates your life causing you to live with a greater awareness of connection and spirit.

Family Circle magazine interviewed him. Here was the opening question and Dyer's response:

FC: What is intention?

Dyer: It's the difference between motivation and inspiration. Motivation is when you get hold of an idea and don't let go of it until you make it a reality. Inspiration is the reverse - when an idea gets hold of you and you feel compelled to let that impulse or energy carry you along. You get to a point where you realize that you're no longer in charge, that there's a driving force inside you that can't be stopped. Look at the great athletes, musician, artists, and writers. They all tap into a source.

FC: What is that source?

Dyer: Some call that source God or soul or spirit or consciousness.

Now, mind you, Dyer is definitely connected to New Age philosophy. But he was speaking a language that tapped into the inner passion of every human being. He was defintely inspiring.

And I contrasted that with our experience at TLC this morning and most people's experience with the church. I exclaimed to Beth, "Now why couldn't church be that inspiring!?" I thought of our spiritual community's monthly Fuel gathering and said, "Fuel should be this inspiring!"

Much of what Dyer taught aligns with Biblical truth and the teachings of Jesus. This validated what Scripture teaches in Romans 1:19-21 in the New Living Translation:

19For the truth about God is known to them instinctively.[a] God has put this knowledge in their hearts. 20From the time the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky and all that God made. They can clearly see his invisible qualities--his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse whatsoever for not knowing God. 21Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn't worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. The result was that their minds became dark and confused.

Wayne Dyer and motivational teachers like him are defintely tapping into something harmonious with The Divine Character. Though they do not acknowledge God as a personal and holy God, they've touched on something the church has missed. It's time the church start speaking to the longings of people's souls. To tap into those things that inspire us; that call us upward towards a higher level of living.

Inspire and be inspired.

Hidden Jesus

2006-03-05T04:31:00.000-05:00

Beth and I just finished 5 days of acupuncture treatments with Dr. Tran at the behest of my mom. I must admit that I was skeptical at first. I didn't know much about acupuncture except that it is alternative medicine and that it is an ancient Chinese practice. The most I had ever seen of acupuncture was an old Steven Segal movie where he healed himself using Chinese needles. But it seems to be working! Everyone says that my face and stomach have gotten smaller. Anything that can do that is worth a good shake! But I didn't want to talk about the validity or merits of acupuncture here. I want to tell you about our experience at Dr. Tran's clinic.

The New Acupuncture clinic is run out of the home of Dr. Tran and his wife. They are from Vietnam. When you walk in, you will usually find the house filled with people. It is not uncommon to wait for at least 30 minutes before 1 of 20 or so beds is free for you to be treated on. Treatment consists of a consultation and then two rounds of needles (front and back). We spend an average of around 2 hours there everyday.

From the very first day, we noticed that many of the patients knew each other. They talked and laughed and shared freely with one another. "They must be long term patients under Dr. Tran's care," we thought. On our second day, we met Eve and Arun. Eve is a pretty, 30-year old, French Canadian whom we instantly bonded with while waiting for our beds to free up. Arun was there to accompany his friend Anne. He is from India and was having some kind of problem with his shoulder. He got a consultation with Dr. Tran, and returned the next day for his own treatment.

Eve said something very significant and it got me thinking. She said that when she first started going to Dr. Tran, she was really shy. Apparently, Eve's right leg had some kind of skin problem that makes it look like her thigh was burned. There was no pain though. At first she was embarrassed to talk about it. But after some time, she realized, "Everyone is here with some kind of problem. You wouldn't even be here if you didn't have a problem." Then Eve proceeded to lift up her right pant leg to show us why she was at Dr. Tran's. She's come a long way.

When Dr. Tran consults with you, he doesn't do it in the privacy of an office. His consultations are right in front of everyone for everyone to hear. He is direct and to the point. He often anticipates what your problem is and begins to advise you immediately to change your diet. He once spoke to a man about his unbalanced testicles in front of everyone! The benefit of this "open" consultation is that you can learn something new everyday.

And I thought...this must've been how it was in Jesus' day when the Healer from Nazareth would go to a home and begin healing and teaching people:

1. Healing happened in a very natural and non-laboratory place.
2. There was a sense of community which revolved around the Healer.
3. Everyone was open about their problems.
4. The Healer spoke to each person publicly and truthfully.
5. Everytime you went to Jesus, you always learned something new.

What would simple churches be like if these charactersitics were evident in them? Imagine a network of people who met in homes not cathedrals. Imagine what it would be like when each of the people present came because of their relationship to Jesus and not because of their religious obligation. Imagine each person expecting to get touched by Jesus every time the group met. What kind of church would this be if the people were very open about their problems because they all admitted that the reason why they need Jesus is because they are damaged? Imagine this kind of church where Jesus spoke through the people in truth and love. And then imagine what it would be like where every time you attended this group, you learned something new that you could use in your life. Wow.

Dr. Tran has a full "clinic" due to word of mouth. He doesn't need advetising for his business. I calculated that he must make about $400,000 per year. And none of that is spent on commercials, posters, flyers or anything. He doesn't need to promote his clinic because each of his patients have become evangelists. Word of mouth fills his house with those seeking healing.

What can the church learn from that? Somewhere in that full house on Wellington Street in Ottawa is a hidden Jesus.

Just Like Heaven

2006-02-25T02:01:00.000-05:00

Well here we are in Ottawa...finally. We're still unpacking and jetlagging but we're here. Over some pizza pockets, Micah-el said as only she can, "Canada is just like heaven." How different this new world is. And how different our life is going to be. Even when we were in the airport in Nagoya, I could feel the difference; as if the air seemed lighter. When we were making our final descent into Ottawa from Detroit, I was stunned when I looked out the window to see a snow-covered Ottawa with winter-dead trees and clear and bright cold sky. God, what have you gotten us into?

Two events marked the turning of the page of this new chapter in our lives. After we arrived in Ottawa, PGMA declared a State of Emergency. All classes in all levels were cancelled. The 20th Anniversary Celebration of EDSA 1 (which ousted then President Marcos) was dispersed. All rally gatherings were forbidden. Warantless arrests were made. Gosh! I go away for just one day and the country falls apart! LOL

The second event happened a few hours ago. Over dinner, our house was shaken by an earthquake...in Ottawa! We couldn't believe it. But this must have some kind of significance for us. Unrest followed by an earthquake half a world apart.

Then i remembered Acts 4 where another nation was in a state of emergency and an earthquake jolted them as well. And they were filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the Word of God boldly (Acts 4:31).

Maybe Mic-mic was right....this is like heaven.

FUEL! (2006.02.19)

2006-02-18T21:23:00.000-05:00

This was our first gathering since dissovling the weekly Sunday worship services. We had to hold it at Metropolis Star Mall, Muntinlupa (on the other side of SLEX across from Festival Supermall).

On February 5, 2006, we did something that very few churches have ever tried to do...Instead of meeting as a congregation every week for worship and teaching, we began meeting in simple churches all over Metro Manila. This is what happened on that Sunday:

148 adults...
26 children...
14 new people...met as
10 different simple churches in Laguna, Cavite, Muntinlupa, Paranaque, and Quezon City.

This represented NOT people who sat quietly and passively by as they watched a worship leader and a pastor conduct a “church service.” Rather, this represented a higher than average number of people who were actively engaged in activities which promoted fellowship, participation, learning, and sharing.

I led our congregation down this path because I believe that we must begin to BE the church and not just DO church. A congregation-based church experience does not promote the kind of environment that produces New Testament disciples of Jesus Christ. That’s because New Testament churches are meant to be small, participatory, and connective. These dynamics just don’t exist in a larger worship service.

Our vision is to help disconnected people become fully devoted followers of Christ. We want to see a vast network of simple churches in homes, offices, factories, schools, classrooms, coffee shops, call centers, parking lots, malls and wherever else a small group of people can meet to passionately pursue the mission of Jesus Christ.

This way of being the church is as old as the New Testament. It’s really a return to a more apostolic and ancient way of life. And yet, we must realize that no matter how promising our church structures and way of organizing are, there will never be a substitute for the life found in the passion of loving our Lord Jesus.

We read in Revelation 3:14-20...
14"To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:
These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God's creation. 15I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! 16So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. 17You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. 18I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see. 19Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent. 20Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me."

The church in Laodicea was full of notable deeds. These good things did not escape God’s notice. They were functioning the way a church should by serving society, meeting needs, performing good works. But there was something missing. Jesus says to this well organized and performing church, “I am about to spit you out of my mouth.”

What was it that was so repulsive to God? Lukewarmness. This was evident not in their actions but in their attitude. What attitude? It was the thinking that, “ [They] do not need a thing.” When you feel self-sufficient, you don’t need anything...including God. And it was this condition that sent Jesus gagging in spasms. What did the church lack? Passion. In the end, Jesus was pushed outside of the church knocking and waiting to get back inside.

A lack of passion is evidence of the absence of Jesus.

Why is passion so important for us?

Passion energizes. Whether you meet in a cathedral, home, or mall, church can become quite routine. Routine is the archenemy of passion. When we feel that church is routine, it becomes predictable, lifeless, and dull. A passion for Jesus and his mission is our life force.

Passion infects. All it takes is one person in a simple church to share his passion for Jesus and the rest of the group feels the life. If we’re going to make an impact on society, we must become passionately contagious. There are no methods or techniques that can ever compensate for a lack of passion.

Passion attracts. There is something attractive about a woman in love or a man on purpose. They know what they’re about. Their passion makes them transcend the here and now and live on a different level; a level where most people only dream of living.

Without passion, church becomes a lifeless corpse. When the church has lost its passion, it needs artificial life support systems like rules, laws, traditions, and political mechanisms to give it a semblance of life. We become civil but not loving. We may do what’s required of us but we have no joy. In this case, the church may exist but it isn’t alive!

As we move into a new era for our spiritual family, I urge you to keep your passion for Jesus alive. If you find yourself cooling off, here are a few things you can do:

1. Ask God to renew your passion for Him. God wants you to be excited about life. You can turn to Him to get your heart on fire for God again.

2. Search the Bible for fresh revelations that excite your soul. We get excited about things that we discover. Let God speak to you through His Word.

3. Put yourself in an environment of passion. Ignite! Fuel. Aldersgate Conferences. These are all events that create an environment of passion. Don’t miss any of these. Joining these experiences will raise your passion level.

4. Spend time with passionate people. Because passion is contagious, you should spend lots of time hanging around people who are passionate for the Lord. These spiritual friends will make a big impact on you. And who knows, you’ll be surprised that you make a difference in their lives too!

5. Feed on what inspires you. What excites your soul? A certain movie? Song? Show? Art? Book? Whatever it may be, make sure to plug into it regularly. God does not limit His presence to only religious settings. You can find God in that which is noble, beautiful, excellent, and inspiring.

Friends, being passionate is a choice. It is a choice of reckless surrender to Jesus. It is a choice to hunger and thirst and reach out for him. It is a choice to lay aside everything else in pursuit of his presence and his power in the now. It is a choice to realize that you need him more than anything. Choose passion.

Aldersgate 2006:Understanding the Times and Knowing What to Do

2006-02-17T09:08:00.000-05:00

Here are some pics from last week's Aldersgate conference where I spoke. It was a powerful 4 days with about 750 people in attendance. Though the numbers aren't confirmed, we had about 250 pastors up in Baguio for this year's spiritual renewal conference. That's the most pastors we've ever had in attendance.

6 Days to Go!

2006-02-16T23:44:00.000-05:00

Well, we're very busy trying to get things packed for our trip back to Canada. It's exciting and frightening at the same time! I'm looking forward to walks in the cold, brisk air. Ah....being able to walk outside without fear of an asthma attack. Nice.

Heroic Leadership

2006-02-14T18:26:00.000-05:00

I never thought I would be reading a book written by a former Jesuit...and enjoy it! Chris Lowney does a great job surprising me in his inspiring book Heroic Leaderhip: Best Practices from a 450-year-old Company that Changed the World. It gave me a greater appreciation for this Roman Catholic order and the contributions they have made over the centuries. I was surprised by how much I really identified with the Jesuits (Society of Jesus) and their leadership values. Here are a few excperts that stood out for me...

"We're all leaders, and we're leading all the time, well or poorly.
Leadership springs from within. It's about who I am as much as what I do.
Leadership is not an act. It is my life, a way of living.
I never complete the task of becoming a leader. It's an ongoing process."

"Circumstances will present a few people with world-changing, defining-moment opportunities; most will enjoy no such bigtime opportunities in their lifetimes. Still, leadership is defined not by the scale of the opportunity but by the quality of the response."

"A leader's most compelling leadership tool is who he or she is: a person who understands what he or she values and wants, who is anchored by certain principles, and who faces the world with a consistent outlook. Leadership behavior develops naturally once this internal foundation has been laid. If it hasn't been, mere technique can never compensate." (Really think about this one! -Mark)

(4 Guiding Principles of Jesuit Leadership)
Jesuits became leaders by...

1. Understanding their strengths, weaknesses, values, and worldview.
2. Confidently innovating and adapting to embrace a changing world.
3. Engaging others with a positive, loving attitude.
4. Energizing themselves and others through geroic ambitions.

"A...leader is not content to go through the motions or settle for status quo but is restlessly inclined to look for something more, something greater."

The greatest contribution this book offers for me is the practice of Examens as a daily tool to integrate these guiding principles into everyday life. Here's my outline on how to do this.

1. There is an inductive phase where for 30 days a person goes through a time of meditation and self-reflection to establish a foundation of self-awareness. We must discover for ourselves what our strengths, weaknesses, values, a worldview are. What do we care about? What do we value? Who are we? And how do I fit in the world?

2. The above will help us establish key goals for our lives; goals birthed out of self-awareness and discovery. These are innate goals that become guiding stars for our lives.

3. Every morning, upon waking, we meditate and remind ourselves of these key goals for our lives. This is the launching pad for the day.

4. Around noon, we take another 5 minutes to reflect and think upon theprevious few hours in light of our key goals. Have we been living up to who we've discovered ourselves to be? Have we contributed the way we know we must contribute?

5. Later in the evening around supper time, we take another 5 minutes to do what we did at noon.

In this way, we are constantly aligning ourselves to what really matters to us and to our role in the world.

Destroy Your Church!

2006-01-30T10:01:00.000-05:00

Well, we took the leap of faith. We destroyed NuComm. Last Sunday was our last weekly celebration service. Starting Sunday Feruary 5, 2006 we will be meeting all over Manila (Paranaque, Las Pinas, Cavite, Laguna, Muntinlupa, Quezon City) in the new network of about 20 simple churches. By this weekend we will have also added another group of about 80 people from Bulacan into the network as well.

My feelings are a mixture of faith in the face of fear. The unknown is before us. Where will this take us? I do not know. But I am confident that the Lord is in this and that we shall prevail. People think I am crazy for doing this. We shall prevail. People think that this is the end of NuComm. We shall prevail. Some have violently reacted against this move. But we shall prevail.

What we have seen so far outweighs these potential dangers. People are actually reading their Bibles and hearing God! The disconnected are being found and connected. Groups are already multiplying. Much excitement is in the hearts of most of our people.

"No one is a leader...and everyone is a leader." - it actually works! The Bible and the ministry are back in the hands of the people. Right where they belong.

Welcome 2006!

2005-12-31T22:40:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year to all!

This next year promises a whole new adventure for me and my family...

I'll be conducting my first PEAKS Seminar for HIMEX Medical Equipment. I love what this new technology for personality profiling can do for businesses and ministry. My mentor in this, Dr. Shirley Lim, is respected globally for how she developed and applies the Five Factor Model of personality assessment to leadership profiling, corporate benchmarking, and team development. I'm excited as to where this will take us.

Taking a more global outlook, our family is moving back to Ottawa, Canada where we hope to catalyze a simple-church-planting movement. We are also hopeful to do the same in Toronto and, Lord willing, in Vancouver over the next 3-5 years. However, I'll still be leading NuComm Global with our launching pad in Manila, Philippines.

I'm hoping to be able to extend the work we've started with Research Communication International to Canada and even to parts of the world where we will develop leadership for the marketplace and for the church.

I sense a whole new paradigm emerging over the next several years that will somehow integrate both marketplace leadership and church ministry together to catalyze social transformation in the heart of cities. Perhaps, it will be a fresh paradigm of 21st century discipleship?

Before we make our move, I'll also be meeting with some of my spiritual sons to see if we can start a new network for emerging church leadership based on organic church principles. My first meeting will be this week with a son from Bulacan who has a handful of housechurches under his care.

Obviously, the key word for 2006 is CATALYST; CATALYZE.

2006: A New Adventure with No Maps

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays

2005-12-25T23:33:00.000-05:00

Blessed Christmas to you and your beloved ones. May the New Year show you greater possibilities than you ever imagined! Ephesians 3:20

Here we are in Malaysia

2005-11-03T04:27:00.000-05:00

Water demo with William...I'll never drink water the same again!

In front of Edmark Industries...

With the Crown Managers in the lobby of Times Square Hotel...great place!

Malaysia II

2005-11-01T01:18:00.000-05:00

Our trip to Malaysia was quite an adventure. Fellow travellers' luggage did not arrive at our airport of deprature. That's about 20 pcs.! Beth pulled off her usual magic and got the flight operations manager to agree to send all the luggage to Kuala Lumpur provded someone stays behind. Way to go Jacob! At least it all caught up to us in KL.

The hotel we were in was nothing short of amazing. Times Square Hotel consists of 2 towers of luxurious hotel suites divided by a huge 7+ story mall. Starbucks had a very convenient free WiFi. (Of course.) Borders was a refreshing book stop with it's own Starbucks too! The only thing I missed at TSH was a free breakfast buffet that I would have expected from a place like that.

Roadways in KL were quite nice. Wide and fairly smooth.

This well developed infrastructure made me wonder about Singapore too. Does progress in Asian nations require strong, almost dictatorial, leadership? I think of Singapore's Lee Kuan Yew and PM Mahathir of Malaysia and Marcos of RP. Does the Philippines need another Marcos to move forward?

Malaysia!

2005-10-22T10:22:00.000-04:00

Beth and I will be in Kuala Lumpur this week. I do hope there is internet access!

Thoughts on Spirituality here...

2005-10-09T10:59:00.000-04:00

I decided to revive my old blogsite to record my musings on spirituality, ancients, and new apostolics...check it out by clicking the title of this post. Enjoy!

Undesirable Outcome

2005-09-09T23:45:00.000-04:00

These days I am constantly reminding myself that there is no such thing as failure. There are only outcomes. When we think in this way, "failures" are opportunities to learn and grow. No one who did anything of significance allowed "failure" to paralyze them. Colonel Sanders was rejected 1009 times. And Thomas Edison...?!?! When you see "failure" as simply an outcome, you can change the outcome by making changes ---small or big--- to your behavior leading to that outcome.

CEO Next Door?

2005-09-08T22:44:00.000-04:00

Click the title of this post and check out this article on corporate leaderhship. Really a different look at the big chair! Especially great for you entrepreurial types...

There is no normal. (part 2)

2005-09-08T20:57:00.000-04:00

"More rewards go to the person who does what he or she loves." -Harriet Rubin, Soloing

There is no normal.

2005-09-08T20:53:00.000-04:00

Just watched the 1995 movie, Angus...actually, I only caught the last half of it on cable. I loved Angus' monologue at the end. Posted it below. Hope it inspires you to be YOU...there is no substitute!

Angus: I'm still here, ASSHOLE! I'll ALWAYS be here!
[Begins to violently push Rick across the dance floor]
Angus: You push me down and I'll get back up again, and Again, and AGAIN, And AGAIN, AND AGAIN!
[Rick falls, hitting his head on the steps to the stage]
Angus: I could beat you RIGHT here, RIGHT now! But I DON'T WANT to be better than you, Rick! I DON'T WANT to be better than ANYBODY! I just want to be who I AM: a FAT kid, who's good at science, and fair at football. That's who I AM! I can LIVE with that. Why can't you?
Rick: Because it's not normal. YOU'RE not normal.
Angus: And who is? You?
Rick: You bet your ass.
Angus: So to be normal, we all have to be like YOU? There are 400 people in this room who are NOTHING like you, Rick! Some of them are fat, some of them are skinny. Some of them are short, some of them are tall. Some of them have braces, some of them have birth marks, or scars, or frizzy hair, or EARS THAT STICK OUT!
[Troy's head pops up out of crowd]
Angus: But most of them walk through these halls EVERY DAY, never telling anybody what they really think, or feel, or believe, because people like you, NORMAL people like YOU, have them TERRIFIED of being who they REALLY are. If YOU'RE normal, what does that make all of them? So which is it, Rick? Are you normal? Or are you just one of us?
Rick: Whatever I am, it's something you're never gonna be.
Angus: Thank God.

Apple does it again!

2005-09-08T10:30:00.000-04:00

Apple just launched the new iPod nano. Thinner than a pencil, it can hold up to 1000 songs! They also have a new cell phone loaded with iTunes. But I think this nano is cooler.

The Evolution of Leadership

2005-09-05T19:09:00.000-04:00

This was an interesting article from Wired. Click on the title above to go to the link.

I first heard about this concept from reading Howard Schultz' book about Starbucks. As the company grew, he had to reinvent himself as a leader. I think he is now on his 4th evolutionary incarnation as Chief Global Strategist for Starbucks Coffee Company. I think it's one of the best companies to work for.