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  • Mark 6:50 pm on November 25, 2008 Permalink | Reply  

    What I want for Christmas… 

    Our dreams for communities spreading like wildfire all across Chicago are big.  A centering question we ask ourselves is, “What would it take to see a vibrant family of Jesus in close reach, culturally and geographically, of every person in Chicago?”  That’s a pretty big dream.  But what is the answer to the question?  Well – if nothing else, it will take ONE family (or mission team) willing to ask that question with a vision for the whole city.

    Tonight it is hitting me hard just how difficult it is for one person to catalyze a church planting network.  Since June that’s what I’ve been about – 24/7 it seems.  Making calls, designing websites, brainstorming, and of course, sharing my faith with the lost God is pursuing.  I’ve made a lot of headway, but I realize now, more than ever, how essential another teammate would be.  At LEAST one other person who is putting their time and energy into this dream just as I am.  Yes, there are other organic church planters in Chicago, and yes, it is encouraging having a wife who is SO there for me, helping me think through projects and obstacles, not to mention praying for me, and actively participating in our first organic church.  But nose-to-the-grind stuff is understandably left up to the guy who is receiving support to do it.

    This is what I have dreamt of doing for years.  This is what I have gotten my training in.  But in Abilene everything I had done in my residency was in the context of a team working together.  I long for those days where I could sit around the room and ask questions or stare into a computer screen together trying to work out a problem, or hitting the streets to pray together.  If I were to ask for any one thing for Christmas, it would be a few others who are ready to be about the business of planting churches and training others to do the same.

    I suppose my other problem is timing.  We arrived here in June, but others who are considering moving to Chicago to work with us won’t be arriving till January and/or next summer.  That gave us lots of time to get a feel for the city, and to get comfortable.  I also realize that nothing good comes immediately.  I am planting seeds, I realize that – but it is still tough to have all these ideas you want to move forward on, but with several part time jobs and no one to bounce ideas off of, it quickly feels overwhelming. I’m ready to put these spinning wheels to the pavement.

    I am a verbal processor – I suppose that’s partly why I have this blog.  For those missionaries like me who best work through issues and projects by brainstorming and talking things out, then I recommend not leaving for the mission field until there is another person or team of people ready to leave with you…like the same day you’re moving.  My wife and I love each other, and we work really well together – but we both agree there is something more still needed in a team – even if it was just one other couple.  Don’t be hasty – wait.

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    • guy muse 12:48 pm on November 26, 2008 Permalink

      I hear you. When we first began the process of “team formation” back in ’97 it took three years before things began to come together. It was a very frustrating time of feeling lost, confused, desperate, but in God’s time things did come together and for the past 8 years we have been harvesting what the Lord knew was there all along. Hang in there, and trust the One who sent you to Chicago to fulfill all He intended from the beginning.

    • Chadd 10:42 am on November 27, 2008 Permalink

      Mark & Katrina – I know God is surely already telling you this in many ways–but I want to encourage you that I see (and have seen for some time) God’s work in and through your life. Today, I am thankful to know you…to wonder what God will continue to do in the weeks and months to come through you all.

      I was reminded recently by a mature friend that God oftentimes works very slowly (I think of the “Ents” in Lord of the Rings)…that a fruit of God’s Spirit is patience.

      Blessings today my friends,

      Chadd

    • Phil McCollum 12:03 pm on November 27, 2008 Permalink

      Mark,

      I will pray for another teamate(s) for you. One thought I have is that God may want your team in Chicago to come FROM the harvest. In that case, it may still form slowly, but it may be the best thing that ever happened in your ministry. Wait patiently for a team, but don’t let disciple-making get put on hold in the process. You are doing such a great work, keep it up. Thank you for sharing so we can pray specifically for you!

      For the sake of the kingdom,

      Phil

    • matt 11:55 pm on December 3, 2008 Permalink

      I have been enjoying reading about what you guys are up to.

      Blessings,
      Matt

    • chad 1:37 am on December 7, 2008 Permalink

      what’s up. we need to catch up…i’ll try and catch you on skype tomorrow night or something. Praying for your partners-to-be!

  • Mark 10:12 am on May 26, 2008 Permalink | Reply
    Tags:   

    Grid and Group 

    Two weeks ago I was graduating with my masters. One week ago I was back in the classroom. Yeah, I’m asking the very same question you are! “WHY!?!?”

    ACU was “nice enough” to let me graduate 3 hours short of my degree, so long as I took and passed a summer one-week intensive course. I naturally picked a class right after my regular semester ended, to get the course completed as quickly as possible. I chose “Emerging Culture & Emerging Churches” with Dr. Chris Flanders. Flanders got his Phd from Fuller Seminary, and before that was a missionary and church planter in Thailand. Since he’s been in Abilene, he’s joined the chorus of professors describing the postmodern shift, but he alone seems to think that such shifts might at all change how and what church looks like.

    The class was very engaging, and also very affirming. It helped me think through some of the principles of thought in postmodernity (reading philosophers like Derrida, Foucault, Caputo, etc) and then talking about what that might mean for communities of faith. We looked at churches trying to explore a post-foundationalist theology…all very heady, but also very interesting stuff.

    One big take away was an axis continuum Flanders showed us from Mary Douglas. It looked something like this:

    Grid and Group Theory:

    authoritarian (+)

    court room

    Group (-)

    hierarchy

    (+)

    individualism

    Hippie commune

    Grid(-)

    egalitarianism


    The two axes, Group, and Grid, show the progress of institutions (which was defined as a coordinating group of any kind) as growing inevitably and increasingly higher in “Grid”. The higher you go in Grid, the more structure and levels of authority there are. The rules and roles are more clearly defined. The other axis, Group describes the degree to which the collective controls the individual and degree to which people are bonded to particular social units – the sense of “family” the group feels.

    Church examples of each: Hierarchy (Catholic Church), Authoritarian (Roman Religion; Emperor is God), Individualism (consumerist mega-church Christianity), and Egalitarianism (Quakers).

    At first I wasn’t sure how I felt about this chart. Hearing that communities, the longer they are together, always move “up grid” and wake up one day a huge franchised corporation did not settle well with me. But is it possible to be meaningful, to make a difference that matters, while not selling your soul? Where do you find the balance so that lives can be changed, while remaining as structurally flat as possible to keep remain centered on mission and people rather than on preserving the institution.

    What if instead of a chain of command (a la Roman Catholic Church), there was a web of relationships. Individuals networked together for the common good. Organic, family-style churches networked together as a coalition in a local context. Servant leaders of these church networks that network together to work as a resource to one another and provide training for new leaders that focus on a region. As church networks grow, is this a potential way to go “up grid” without having to distribute power to individuals, but rather power to communities? What am I missing here? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

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    • Tim Catchim 6:35 pm on June 13, 2008 Permalink

      Hey mark,

      I love this question and dillema. I tend to think that size is a big leverage on the whole process. The larger you get as an entity or organization, the more the process of institutionalization takes place. However, this is not to say that a small sized group can not go through the process of inst. I tend to think we are all in an institutional vacuum to some degree. Institutionalization happens whenever any kind of pattern emerges in behavior. Paasing out roles to people helps facilitate this. The question to me is “To what degree do we want to be institutional?” Whenever we get in the business of guarding things, wether it be people or theology, we are confronted with roles and patterns. We will always be flirting with being institutional. I think the comforting thing in themoidst of this dilemma is that size helps to hold some the full blown institutionalization at bay. Networks of family type communities is the only way to avoid becoming a ful blown institution to me. Just my thoughts.

    • Mark 11:48 pm on June 13, 2008 Permalink

      Thanks for your thoughts Tim. I think you’re right on in a lot of ways. I agree that we are always institutional – it just depends on what degree we’re talking about. Anytime a group decides on something together (whether its deciding which movie to go to, or who to elect as Pope) an institution is established.

      Let’s say that a network starts out with 20 people. They all commit to always remaining grassroots, and avoid the vices of institutionalism. Is it possible for this group to remain committed to their values when they reach 200? 2000? 200,000? This is not just hypothetical. China house church networks of hundreds of thousands are traceable back to one person/team of people.

      Keep pushing here Tim…what are your thoughts?

  • Mark 9:41 pm on May 22, 2008 Permalink | Reply
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    The Feedback Loop of Christ 

    This might be a little “heady” but its been on my mind for awhile now and I’ve got to put it somewhere! Plus, now that I’m almost done with my Maymester (tomorrow is my very last day of graduate school!) I’ll need to get back into the habit of regularly adding content here. Hope to see you again soon!

    —-

    Fractals are everywhere. From the largest of galaxies to the smallest snowflake, fractals are the code of the universe. Every living thing or dynamic system takes a fractal form. Fractals are based on simple mathematical equations that contain unending diversity. The patterns are determined by a simple rule in a series of repetitions that feed back on itself new information.

    Starting with a simple building block (a human cell, a coordinates in a computer) these repetitions unleash a creative potential for infinite complexity. Fractal art is one large shape made up of many smaller shapes that reflect, but are not identical to, the bigger picture. Each one of those small shapes is made up of even smaller shapes that look like it! This characteristic is called “self-similar.” To fully appreciate the power of fractal art, you must experience it. Check it out in this corny video here:

    The genetic base of an acorn gives the crucial information needed for the fractal equation found in cell division to help catalyze the growth of a tree. The DNA of this seed will grow an oak tree, and not a dogwood or a squirrel. There are boundaries for fractals, and yet, when watching the process, it can only be described as chaotic.

    The fractal process for development in the Church is discipleship. Discipleship is the repetitive feedback to the DNA of Christ. Jesus Christ is the incarnate God, who expressed perfectly what it means to live and follow after God as a human. He was the seed planted on the earth that contained within it everything necessary for the diverse Church to grow. It is through discipleship to Christ that the Church is able to clearly see both the limits set on what it means to be the people of God, and the capacity for wild, chaotic, uncontrollable diversity.

    The Church is a living, breathing, organism; the second incarnation of God on earth. As the Body of Christ, it is composed of trillions of localized cells, of which there are countless different types each doing the work it was designed to do. It is a system, a network of disciples each holding within them the very love and person of Christ. To the degree that this system can effectively access its DNA, it can grow and nurture itself in healthy ways. This is done through the practice of love.

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    • Sean 1:52 am on May 25, 2008 Permalink

      Mark I love how you are discovering Gods word through creation. Keep postin’ this stuff!

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