So our lives have been ex-TV for the last two weeks. I’m proud to say I’m not desperately foaming at the mouth, and Katrina and I aren’t about to claw our eyes out from the boredom. In fact, we’ve had more silence and peace around here than we’ve had in awhile. We’ve had a chance to read more, to talk over meals, and to pray together. The best part about us getting rid of our TV is the story - so if you don’t mind, let me indulge:

We’d been trying to pawn off our TV for several months, each time chickening out - coming up with some excuse why we still needed it. It wasn’t until our good friends were putting on a garage sale that we finally worked up enough courage to pull the plug on our TV habit.

Let me tell you, hauling a 27 inch TV down a flight of stairs and shoving it into a two door car is not an easy job - but we did it. Then we hauled it out into the middle of a field (the “best” place for a garage sale…where’s the garage!?!) and set it up next to all the other stuff we could bear to part with.

Browsers and perusers kept eying the TV, but there were no takers. One lady “bought” it, but when she illegedly tried to “plug it into her car” it wouldn’t turn on. DUH. I’m not sure what that was all about, but we were happy to give her her money back when she started yelling profusely.

Then came this great Hispanic couple. They wanted to buy our TV, but didn’t have enough to make the full purchase. It was the end of the day, and I wasn’t looking forward to carting that thing back to our upstairs apartment, not to mention have to deal with the ball and chain of a TV now that we finally felt free enough to sell it. So we sold it for less than it was worth, and even drove it up to their house for them. Their words were full of joy and excitement. They pointed to their family’s names in the concrete. I noticed a few Scripture verses scrawled into their front porch.

As I was installing the TV, the wife asked if I liked tamales. When I responded in the affirmative, she left the room and brought back a big stack of homemade tamales! She confessed she was embarrassed they couldn’t afford to pay what I was asking for the TV, but would like to pay for the rest in tamales. I loved it! Believe me, those tamales were a gift of hospitality, not just a payment for the TV. I feel like I could’ve hung out there all day. It was a real place of peace.  That’s how the world ought to work in my opinion.  A world where capitalism looses ground and communism is unnecessary.  A sharing and redistributing of personal resources, rather than living off cash.  It’s old school, but I like it.

So, much like giving away a puppy, I was glad to know that our TV was in the hands of a good family. I suppose that only reveals my covert TV idolizing, and reveals how happy I am that its out of our house.

Now its on to bigger and better things. God is too big for prime time.

So what might leadership in an organic, Christ-centered network look like? When the “preacher”, “elder” and “deacon” as we have traditionally come to understand those terms have been uprooted, what might emerge from the soil? That is the question that we have been wrestling with lately, and there have been some interesting responses surrounding this that I thought I’d toss around.

Over the last few years, we have truly seen a wave of Christians leaving church-as-we-know-it and moving into a smaller, more intimate community of friends. They meet as the Church in their living rooms, parks, coffeehouses, and anywhere life happens. We’re also seeing the un-churched or the new believers skip right over institutional churches in favor of simply living life with God and friends.

But it usually stops there - from my limited research, at this point, no one has anything very developed on missional, organic leadership (save this guy) that extends beyond the local house church.

My instinct says that if this is to be anything more than a flash in the pan; if there is to be any type of meaningful spiritual nurturing happening, eventually, Christians in these churches realize that they must connect to believers outside of their own little group in order to thrive. That is where leadership comes in.

Followers of Christ realize that Christ is the ONLY head of the Church, and no one can be a mediator (priest) between Christ’s disciples and himself. If that is the case, if preachers and bishops and pastors and all that aren’t here to predigest God’s Word for us, or to function as judge for God, then what good are they?

They listen to Jesus, and do what he says.

It’s that simple, and its a project that will last for the rest of time.

Some leaders (like missionaries/apostles) will work as catalysts; spreading the vision for God’s New Life anywhere and everywhere they hear Jesus calling them. Paul lived and worked like this. He never pretended to be a church’s Father, (only God could fill that role). He made it clear that God broke through the barriers that separated man and God, and nothing could separate them again. Apostles will start new communities by looking for a “person of peace” (Lk.10, Mt.9) and plant inside them the seeds and the DNA of the Kingdom. Before long, they are moving on.

Apostles usually gather around them other leaders: prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers. They work together as a team of missionaries to resource an emerging network that is spawned out of others who are listening to Jesus and doing what he says. Working around missional prayer, incarnational friendship, and pastoral discipling, a missionary resource team can participate in seeing a relational network of churches grow. Without preservatives, without burning out, without false structures…this is God’s family at work. (Eph 4:11-16)

As long as these leaders serve the people they are in connection with by providing resources and opportunities for deeper involvement in God’s family, they will be “organic leaders”. They are the nitrogen in the soil, whereas the seeds are the new communities that are birthed deep down within God’s good earth.

Spiritual moms and dads will naturally emerge from each of these churches, working with those God has entrusted to them. Usually, they will be the people who have been Christians the longest, though this might not always be the case. Working with a single faith community, these guides into Christ’s life will grow close with those in their spiritual family and transformation will happen!

–People still like Google because it offers services (like Gmail and collaborative online documents) for free. Even more importantly, they don’t take up your screen with pesky ads like some of the other websites that offer free content or services. They clearly are keeping their patrons first in mind, not their advertisers. In this way, Google is like the missionary leaders of the future. As long as missionary resource teams can function for the network, and not the other way around, you will see healthy growth.

–Leaders in traditional churches are like an exoskeleton, which allows for structure in an organism (good), but restricts how an organism can grow (bad). Endoskeletons function like leaders in organic church networks, serving “behind the scenes” and allowing the organism to grow and take its own shape.

The only way for Jesus to truly be the head of his Church, and yet to have leaders who guide networks to become the Bride of Christ that they were called to be is to allow leaders to simple be the PEOPLE they were called to be…deep listeners of Jesus Christ.

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SO! This is written as a draft - what do you think about it? Can leadership function in this way? Is it possible to have grassroots networks that don’t do the whole corporate heirarchy mess? Do people need human leaders at all? Fill me in and help me think this through!

It’s been over a week since the last post, so for this post I’ll quickly just write some of the things going on:

I’m in a Life Transformation Group with (we’ll call him) B, a new friend from the restaurant I work at.   An LTG is simply just a friendship that is specifically focused on remaining authentic with each other, reading together from God’s Word, and praying for our lost friends.  It stays small (2-3 people, the 4th person is a sign that its time to grow into two groups).  Take a look here for some more info on all that.  B is fighting against some major addictions, and is ready to see Christ change his life.  Already he is interested in bringing a few other friends into our group.  Could this be the “person of peace” I’ve been praying for the Lord to show me?

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The 411 Project is coming along!  Yesterday some of us met with Monty Lynn, a business management professor from ACU.  We were interested in hearing his opinions on how to fund the 411 project, and how to incorporate ownership of land and property.  I was expecting some pretty straightforward legal mumbo-jumbo coming from a BUSINESS professor.  But Monty, being the man of God that he is, wanted us instead to really focus on listening to Jesus and discovering how best to move forward.  What a trip…now BUSINESSMEN can be Christians too? (I’m only joking!)

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Trina and I are thinking about making a trip down to Waco, TX in the near future to see a community that takes Acts 4 seriously.  That means that they share all of their possessions, and live in co-housing arrangements.  I’m excited to meet them because I’m always fascinated to see alternative ways to live the Christian life (they’ve been doing this for over 3 decades!).

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There are new friendships and relationships that are really going deep this summer.  My friend Sean and I are spending more time together - something I’ve wanted to do for a long time now.  He was in MRNA as am I, and so we have a lot of the same dreams and impulses.  I hope that we have a chance to talk about possibilities for shared ministry in the future.

Not only that, but this summer I’ve been given the chance to do more reading, more praying, and more discernment for what Katrina and I have in store for us in the future.  I’ve been hearing from God pretty loud and clear lately that we’re to spend our time in Abilene doing two things: heal and equip.  If you want to summit a mountain (or spend your life in mission in one of the world’s global cities), you’ve got to have a strong healthy body, and the right equipment. Katrina and I are not interested in only going up a 1/3 of the way.  We want to reach the peak without burning out.  We see our time here in Abilene as real life and ministry, as well as training and healing for what is to come.

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Well, here’s hoping some more posts are on the way!

Last Saturday I picked up an extra shift at the steakhouse I work for here in Abilene. As of late I have been in prayer about my co-workers and asking the Lord to raise up workers in his harvest from among the people who work there. Father has been drawing my prayers toward one individual, who is quickly becoming a good friend of mine.

This man is not even as old as I am, and yet he just finished signing all his divorce papers last Friday. That is why he invited me and several others out to Remington’s Bar after work on Saturday. Remington’s is (I’m told) the most respectable bar in Abilene; a good middle-class experience - not too grungy, and not gold-plated. I’ve been there a few times in the past, and each time I walk in with the prayer that God would open my ears and eyes to what I am supposed to experience. He has never failed to answer that prayer.

My friend and I were sitting together and reflecting on his past 3 years as a married man when she approached. Her name was Shar. She had just moved back from Atlanta and knew absolutely NO ONE in Abilene. While she was disappointed with the night life (who isn’t?), she kept hoping that she would find some fun friends to start hanging out with. We introduced ourselves and told her that we had some other friends that would be joining us soon.

Before long we were all toasting each other with drinks and smiles, patting each other on the back for a long night’s work well done. Shar was still in the group, but was having a hard time striking up a meaningful conversation through all the “steakhouse banter”. She scooted over towards me and asked, “So what did you say you were studying?”

With a just a hint of anxiety in my voice I replied, “Uh, missions.”

“Oh.” She did better than most to quickly change the subject, talking about her life in med school and her father who had passed away two years ago, but about 10 minutes later she pressed further.

“So you’re in missions? What is that exactly? That means, like, Christian stuff right? Do you want to be a pastor or something?” I had been pegged. I told her that I did not want to be a pastor, and that both my wife and I had been changed by Christ in very tangible ways, and I wanted to spend my life letting people know what else in life is possible when Christ is at the center. I felt better than I normally do trying to explain myself…as if I really needed to.

“So…” she looked around the room, then back at me.

“Oh. I guess you’re wondering why I’m HERE. I suppose I see no reason why a Christian should hole himself up away from his friends and from so many others just because bars are looked down on at churches. This is where Jesus would’ve been hanging out. Look how much fun they’re having!” I pointed up at an elderly couple that was doing a pretty energetic two-step at the front of the room. They were obviously in love and loving life.

Shar went a little deeper, “That’s good to hear. You know, I had a few Christian friends back in Atlanta who were just amazing. I loved hanging out with them and all, but I always felt judged by them because while I would hang out with them, they would never hang out with me.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean they would never come out to the bars I loved to go to, and never found time to head to any of my other friends’ houses. It just seemed like they were there to drag me away from everyone else I knew. I guess things would have been a lot different for my life if they had actually cared.”

That did it for me. I saw clearly, maybe for the first time ever, the effects of Christians who are just there to add to their own numbers, and not to truly befriend those who needed to know Christ. All I could say in response was, “Shar, there is so much more to following Christ than you’ve been shown. Keep looking.” I don’t know if that conversation affected her, but it sure got to me.

Steve, my Bostonian buddy, just finished writing a great post on “exiles at the table”.  Christians have become professionals at inviting others to their own activities…their own tables.  But could it be that many non-Christians are waiting for Christians to join them at their own tables before trusting them will ever be an option?

Shar’s words about her life almost being changed but for the segmenting Christian friends she hung out with holds tight around my heart.  I will NEVER be afraid to go somewhere with my non-Christian friend.  Christ who goes with me is more powerful than anything that might be present, wherever we go.  For the rest of my life I commit to demonstrating my love for my friends by being present, and by being Christ everywhere I go.  Now “studying missions” actually means something to me.

Lord, I pray for Shar, and I ask that while she in here in Abilene you will give her friends that meet her on her turf - people who are incarnations of your Kingdom in her world.   That the world may know.

This is an intriguing video that only reveals about fleas what we already know about humanity - that over time we find ourselves accustomed to the limits that have been set around us, and are rarely if ever able to break free from our own prisons.

In many ways, this video, as well as a similarly symbolic movie, the Matrix, is an allegory of the human condition - that we are slaves to our own “Matrix” or “flea jar” and we will never escape, even if all restrictions are taken away. Much like the Matrix’s character Cypher, we would rather return to the Matrix power grid and live an illusion than live in a world without controls or limits.

What is really possible for followers of Christ who are not restrained by limitations the Evil One has placed on them? What might new believers, who have never been caught up in the trappings of a system that is designed to suppress them, be free to do or become?!?

It is these sorts of questions that reminds me that the organic church movement must remain out among the lost and the “unchurched”, rather than just sheep-transfer. Otherwise our homes will simply become a new place for us to erect our steeples. The “Matrix” will have found a new way to suppress the freedom of humanity.

I recently read a story (I’ll post it here if I ever find a link for it!) about a woman named Jinger. She was walking down a road in Boise, and a woman named Patty, who had felt prompted by God to stop, picked her up and drove her into town. Patty told Jinger about the love of Jesus Christ at a Bible Study she was headed to. Jinger accepted Christ that evening.

Later in the conversation at that Bible Study, they all began talking about starting simple churches. Jinger was facinated and asked a lot of questions. “Do we need a clergy for this? (no) Could she do this? (yes!) Would it be alright to start with her non-Christian family? (of course!). The next evening she had done just that. There was no formal training - only unbridled freedom to be the transformed light of Christ that she was created to be! Does she still have a lot to learn? Sure! But think about it; she didn’t think. She just took the joy and freedom she had and applied it to the best of her ability. She went from new Christian to church planter in just 36 hours.

And there are thousands more Jingers in this country already doing the same thing…but there are millions more who just keep getting passed on the highway - maybe because too many of us are stuck in our jars.