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Monthly Archives: October 2009
Simple, organic, emerging, small, unique, home church…
Chatted with a guy named Dan yesterday about a movement that seems to be orchestrated by God. Many people are leaving traditional church and there is a movement at the grassroots level to catch these people. It's not that they are leaving God. It is just that they are leaving the insignificant religion they were brought up in. In my travels, I have visited many traditional church facilities that I would consider "insignificant" in God's eyes. Although, the Church with a capital "C" is always significant to God.
There has not been a single name or description assigned to this movement. I think I will call it Fresh Connections. This movement is not about pulling people away from the traditional church. It is all about catching the ones that fall out before they are forever lost to Christianity in its purest form. As David started his mighty fighting force with misfits, so does Fresh Connections.
I'd love to hear from you if you have ditched the church and looking for a Fresh Connection. 37stories@gmail.com
Surf to: http://www.freshc.org for a Fresh Connection…
For more GodSpots – 37stories Enjoy!
What’s it take for God to get your attention..
“I preached to the people in the morning. That evening my wife died. The next morning I did as I’d been told.” ~Ezekiel
On a positive note:
Facebook Birthday Party: http://tinyurl.com/fbparty
4:00 – 6:00 Saturday.
Not sure what to expect. Anyone had a Facebook party?
Maybe this is a first? Chat with you then.
Surf to: http://www.freshc.org for a Fresh Connection…
The best gift of all…
Tomorrow is my birthday. I will be 56 years of age. Not old. Not young. Just of age. It is a good age to be. I have enjoyed many of life’s experiences. The girl friend of my youth still blesses me by laughing at my jokes. My son has blessed me with a beautiful daughter-in-law and grandkids. God has had His hand in all of life’s experiences.
Many of my life’s adventures did not turn out as I would have preferred, but they created in me the man I have become. I believe I am becoming the man God desires to spend eternity with. From that perspective, I can not fault God for the failures in my life. It is from the pit, I have been able to look up and see God’s face. In being rescued from the pit, I am able to see God’s power, mercy and grace.
Whether in the pit or out of the pit, God continues to be God and has blessed me with the best gift of all. He allowed His Son to die on the cross for my sins such that I might have the opportunity to spend life eternal with Him.
For my birthday, might you consider accepting God’s best gift of all?
“if I visit a deadly disease on that country, pouring out my lethal anger, killing both people and animals, and Noah, Daniel, and Job happened to be alive at the time, as sure as I am the living God, not a son, not a daughter, would be rescued. Only these three would be delivered because of their righteousness.” ~God
Surf to: http://www.freshc.org for a Fresh Connection…
Giddy with the love of Christ
Do you remember a time when you were giddy with a fresh love for
Christ? How long has it been? That’s too long.
I know a guy who works construction for a living. He is a tough guy.
He is so tough that when you talk about the love of Christ he tears
up. Wouldn’t you like to know and keep that kind of love? It can be
yours.
Drop me an email: 37stories@gmail.com or call 210-617-3137
Surf to: http://www.freshc.org for a Fresh Connection…
“The water board called life…” ~priest
There have been times in my life when I was so far down, I had to look
down to see up. Ever been there? There is hope for the hopeless.
There is love for the loveless. There is a way for the those that
know “the way”. Be still. Listen.
“Enemies with no reason to be enemies
hunted me down like a bird. They threw me into a pit,
then pelted me with stones. Then the rains came and filled the pit.
The water rose over my head. I said, ‘It’s all over.’
“I called out your name, O God,
called from the bottom of the pit. You listened when I called out,
‘Don’t shut your ears!
Get me out of here! Save me!’ You came close when I called out.
You said, ‘It’s going to be all right.’
“You took my side, Master;
you brought me back alive! God, you saw the wrongs heaped on me.
Give me my day in court! Yes, you saw their mean-minded schemes,
their plots to destroy me.
“You heard, God, their vicious gossip,
their behind-my-back plots to ruin me. They never quit, these enemies
of mine, dreaming up mischief,
hatching out malice, day after day after day. Sitting down or standing
up—just look at them!—
they mock me with vulgar doggerel.
“Make them pay for what they’ve done, God.
Give them their just deserts. Break their miserable hearts!
Damn their eyes! Get good and angry. Hunt them down.
Make a total demolition here under your heaven!”
Surf to: http://www.freshc.org for a Fresh Connection…
God’s stockpile of love is immense…
“God proves to be good to the man who passionately waits,
to the woman who diligently seeks. It’s a good thing to quietly hope,
quietly hope for help from God. It’s a good thing when you’re young
to stick it out through the hard times.
When life is heavy and hard to take,
go off by yourself. Enter the silence. Bow in prayer. Don’t ask questions:
Wait for hope to appear. Don’t run from trouble. Take it full-face.
The “worst” is never the worst.
Why? Because the Master won’t ever
walk out and fail to return. If he works severely, he also works tenderly.
His stockpiles of loyal love are immense.” ~Lamentations
Surf to: http://www.freshc.org for a Fresh Connection…
When the unreasonable become reasonable…
You know I chase after God Spots. I eagerly look for God’s hand at work authenticating His presence. I find God Spots very encouraging to my personal walk and relationship with Christ. I think God enjoys my search and is pleased with my joy in discovery. But what about “Odd Spots”?
An Odd Spot is the precursor to a God Spot. I think many times God works in the Odd times. It’s those times when nothing about an event makes sense. Then God works His will and purpose to create the God Spot from the Odd Spot. I think He gets pleasure when we turn to Him in prayer with our Odd Spot. It is our prayers that is the missing ingredient to the recipe. Maybe God actually waits for our prayers to be the catalyst for change?
I find myself in an Odd Spot, today. Paperwork I need to put my recent jail stay to rest has not shown up. I keep getting promises, but nothing. So last night as I rolled over many times in my sleep, I began praying. Maybe as you read this you will pray and help convert this Odd Spot to a God Spot.
Surf to: http://www.freshc.org for a Fresh Connection…
Follow-up to Barbados Counter Culture
bajanpoet,
Included are my thoughts after reading and dwelling on your thoughts from the heart. I use the term “micro” Church to reference a small group of believers such as a home Church, but is not limited to meet in a home. I use the term church with a little “c” to talk about the institution. If I were to reference a local body of believers with Jesus as the head, I would refer to them as the Church with a capital “C”.
bajanpoet: “They have come out of traditional forms of church, but have touched something intangible within the university context that transforms them –” I find this interesting and if I understand you to say, students may find Christ in a secular university, that phenomenon is not repeated very often in US public institutions. It is usually the other way round. Students may find salvation or something thought to be salvation prior to the university level. Then, they go to the university and apparently lose what ever it was they had previously found. This is not always the case, but seems to be a prevalent theme.
bajanpoet: “In Acts 5 the religious leaders extended their reach and attempted to jail all the apostles (Acts 5:17-18)” For most, it is all about money, power and control. I am sure you have figured out it doesn’t appear God is so much interested in who has the money, power or control. He is interested in Jesus Christ and our relationship. If God continues to work at the micro Church level, the traditional churches will feel the pinch. As my imagination runs wild, I can see the same thing happening in the US as has happened in Europe. The government will bail out the churches and ultimately take control. As I understand it, Constantine in about 300 AD made Christianity the state religion. It was the beginning of the end.
bajanpoet: “The Current Church Structure – … But is this God’s best?” Books have been and are currently being written on this subject. If the falling in numbers in traditional churches is any indication, I’d have to agree the current traditional church is not God’s best. I’m speaking of all churches without consideration of religion. The falling away from the traditional church apparently is no respecter of religion. But just because there is an increase in number of micro Churches does not guarantee they have it right either. There true benchmark of a “C”hurch is a solid representation of Christ at the head. Some do. Some don’t. Some are trying…
bajanpoet: “The Early Church – True relationship was formed..” I think this is vital. Without a relationship with Christ, there is no value in anything else. It is through this relationship with Christ that other meaningful bonds and relationships are formed based on love. In a micro Church, the setting is proper and conducive for building relationship and establishing a transparency that encourages a growth in Christ.
bajanpoet: “Counter Culture – Now … God is looking for a people who, having touched the living Christ cannot go back into business as usual.” The parable of the single lost sheep drives home the point that God is hypersensitive to the ones who knew His voice and have now fallen away. I think this Godly hypersensitivity contributes to the seemingly God ordained explosion of micro Churches. God is creating a fertile ground for Him to permanently change lives. One will not have to ask the question, “What happens when getting saved doesn’t stick?”
bajanpoet: “Counter Culture – Future… What if God wants to do something different?” There is no doubt that God is doing something different. It is a “Back to the Future” event in the life of the local church where small is becoming better. I believe it will become important to realize the value of religious physical structures and they might be best utilized to promote strong growth where God is working. The structures themselves are not bad, they just need to be used in a way that supports what you describe as “God’s Best”.
bajanpoet: “I have been accused of being in a cult more times than I can count because the assembly with which I gather does not meet on Sunday, has no ‘pastor’ and meets in homes!” One has to be realistic and appreciate this phenomenon is contrary to what is the prevalent experience. Imagine if your description became the norm instead of the abnormal? I think we need to look at the available resources, climate, and movement of God. At the same time, we need to figure out what God wants the church to look like and begin the process of building a bridge between the two.
Maybe to say it another way, take what you have and figure out how it can be used to create what God wants.
My friend’s thoughts from Barbados
I have a friend in Barbados who is a passionate believer in God. He has a message to share. I have posted it here. His supporting document can be viewed “click here“. YOU really need to read this. Your thoughts about church may change forever.
Be encouraged to comment…
Introduction
The Lord laid this message on my heart, and commanded me to release it
to the members of the Body of Christ in the Caribbean. I feel the
urge to release it at this time, and I pray that you will read it and
seek his face concerning it.
I have been prayerfully waiting for the Lord’s prompting, not only in
when to release this word, but to whom, as well. I pray that it will
cause you to seek your own heart first, so that he can speak to you
concerning any areas in your own heart that need realigning. I pray,
also, that these pages will cause us all to have a massive time of
seeking the Lord for the way forward, both individually and
corporately.
Who Am I?
I realize that some of you who this email may be targeted to may not
recognize the name nor the email. So, let me introduce myself. I,
Robert Gibson, have been a part of the IS/IVCF movement for many
years. First at The St. Michael School in Barbados, as a member of
the ISCF there, and then moving into Barbados Community College (BCC),
where I was exposed to the tertiary version of that movement – the
UCCF. I have been a member of the UCCF from 1995 (when I joined BCC)
until 2005 (when I graduated from UWI, Cave Hill.) In my long time as
a member of UCCF, I was first introduced to the presence and person of
the Holy Spirit, and then grew until I became somewhat of a father
figure to later members of the UCCF before the Lord asked me to
release my responsibility to them.
The Vision
If you are on this list, you may have passed through the ‘halls’ of
either the Barbados Community College or the University of the West
Indies and may also have been a member of or affiliated with the
Universities and Colleges Christian Fellowship (UCCF), while some who
read this may not have attended either institution or been affiliated
with the organization. This document speaks specifically to the
spiritual climate of the regional campuses and the religious bodies on
those campuses – not just the ones named in this email. However, God
also has a wider vision. He is speaking generally about the climate
of the Church and is agitating for a shift in focus. We, as the Body
of Christ, must stop being afraid of being polluted by the societal
culture and start seeking God for an impartation of HIS culture – the
culture of the Kingdom of God. God is calling for a ‘counter culture’
where the Body of Christ is willing – and able – to impact the society
with the culture of the Kingdom which we are aligned by being called
Christ followers.
The Response
After this email has been released, what is the response expected?
What are we to do? First, as I mention in the article, I have no
answers of my own. This article poses questions and leaves room for a
time of seeking the Lord. I am wanting to encourage discourse and a
corporate prayer as we ask the Lord, “What do we do?” There are
thousands of young people who annually are released into our tertiary
institutions, but how do we really reach them? There are hundreds who
find a major connection with God in the tertiary educational system -
how do they stay lit up with the passion of an empowered connection
with God?
As an example of why this article was written, a couple of years after
leaving BCC, I had a phone call from an old friend who asked me, “How
did you keep it?” He was referring to my passion for Christ and my
devotion for the things of the Kingdom. He had left the ‘nest’ – the
relative ‘safety’ of the UCCF and was now out in the ‘real world’ -
and finding it a major culture shock! I forget exactly what my
response was, but I do remember the immediate thought I had – “How
could you lose it?”
It is time that this region light up with the fire of the Almighty
God. It is time to seek the Lord.
I know there are more things for the Lord to say; if he releases me, I
will send more emails as he directs.As the Word says, “Come, let us
reason together.” As you read, you are encouraged to communicate with
me, or with everyone on this list by using the “Reply to All” feature
in your emails. Anyone who wants to respond can do so.
I encourage you to prayerfully consider who you will pass on this
document to, as well. This message must be heard by those who have
ears to hear – God wants us to change our focus – millions of lives in
the Caribbean depend on it!
Surf to: http://www.freshc.org for a Fresh Connection…
For more GodSpots – 37stories Enjoy!
