http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chuX6U-nX_8 Related posts: Should Churches do Commercials? Preaching Like a Prophet Is Evangelism Important? A Thousand Questions

Do Our Assumptions Still Fit? by Lovett H. Weems, Jr. Peter Drucker maintains that organizational problems are not the result of groups doing things poorly or even doing the wrong things. Organizations fail, he contends, because the assumptions on which the organization was built, and on which it is being run, no longer fit reality. […]

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Audio version of this message is available on-line at Sermon.net    or iTunes “Two people can accomplish more than twice as much as one; they get a better return for their labor. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But people who are alone when they fall are in real trouble.  And […]

Original Post What would a church “dream team” look like? That was hard to think up because a dream team doesn’t exist. Well, it does exist…as a dream. But most (99.99999%) of us will never land that dream team. That, and every church has different needs. My dream team won’t be your dream team. Still, […]

The Monster in the Closet Monsters are everywhere, hiding in plain sight, like the one you thought was in your closet as a child. Churches can be perfect places to hide, because Christians are trusting, forgiving, and sometimes just oblivious. My mother called me as I was walking around downtown Kansas City. She had become […]

I think we’ve all played the same game of Hide-and-Seek.  Those that like to Hide. Some people are excellent hiders and they just seem to blend into the background and no one even knows they are there. The problems is eventually they don’t know they’re hiding because no one is looking for them anymore.  Those […]

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Cheap grace is the deadly enemy of our Church. We are fighting today for costly grace. Cheap grace means grace sold on the market like cheap wares. The sacraments, the forgiveness of sin, and the consolations of religion are thrown away at cut prices. Grace is represented as the Church’s inexhaustible treasury, from which she […]

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This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live. Deuteronomy 30:19 Perhaps one of the biggest debates surrounding the human experience is whether we really have any choices at all. […]

BY ROGER FIELDS 1. You think a “podcast” is the new vegetable toss competition at the County Fair.”Did you hear Ernie won third place in the pea pod cast this year?”2. You think “YouTube” means someone else’s toothpaste.”That’s not my tube; that’s you tube.”3. You think “carbon emissions” is what your copy machine produces.”Hey, the […]

It is Wednesday Morning, May 20th and my entire family is sick all that the same time. This means standing room only in the bathroom. Fortunately we know each other pretty well and when you’re sick like this there is no time for formalities or manners. What it is a time for is prayer. So […]

I wait for the LORD; my soul waits for him. —Psalm 130:4   In Spanish, the verb esperar means both “to wait” and “to hope.” I often wonder if waiting for a native Spanish speaker has a different purpose than for me. When I wait I feel like I’m wasting time. What if I were […]

This morning as a sit here getting ready for church I’m thinking about the amazing step 13 young adults are taking to a fuller richer life. I didn’t say a wealthier, more comfortable life. In fact I suspect that many of them will be challenged far more than they realize now. I do believe that […]

Father, It has been a long day and so much has been racing through my heart and my mind. There were times today that worry and anxiety seem to be more than I couyld handle, and yet just knowing You were never far kept my heart warm.  So often I have turned my eyes away from […]

     Now I know it’s time to put away the Christmas tree, bring in the lawn ornaments, and take down the colored lights and deal with the cold of January. All the hype of Advent is passed and we are left with the depressing reality of life getting back to “normal”. But what does NORMAL mean […]

Step One The church must decide if it really wants to grow.   If the church is to grow, there’s a price: Change. If the church doesn’t want any change or can’t tolerate it, it will not grow. Its that simple. Is your church ready to grow, change, and transform? Let’s test the waters, shall […]

Lectio Divina Listening to Psalm 23:1-6 The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.   Supply – There is only one Shepherd and it is the Lord! What could I possibly every want or need that God cannot supply. More importantly, there are things that I want that God knows I shouldn’t […]

Lectio Divina Today’s Reading is from Isaiah 6:1-8 Take time to read the passage 3 times. What words, phrases, or images from the text jump off the page to you. What “me” phrases are filling your life today? Isaiah had a God shaped vision that changed his life. The seraphs were crying, “the whole earth […]

  We make fun of Methodists for their blandness, their excessive calm, their fear of giving offense, their lack of speed, and also for their secret fondness for macaroni and cheese.    But nobody sings like them. If you were to ask an audience in New York City, a relatively Methodist-less place, to sing along on […]

“… and enlarge my territory!” Jabez not only asks God to bless him, but to enlarge his territory. How big is your sphere of influence? Whose lives do you impact and why? Do you just touch the lives of family or are your reaching beyond?  A plea for more territory is a plea for God to enlarge your […]

If you’ve ever had the joy of travelling with kids on a long trip then you know the monotonous question that is always on their lips, “Are we there yet!” Most little kids don’t fully realize that a 10 hour trip is necessary for getting to the beach. They aren’t acquainted with the discipline to make […]

Lewis is a big supporter of the notion that all human beings have within them a twinge of the Divine spark that helps us recognize the difference between right and wrong behavior. There are some differences to be sure, just like there are differences in people who have the ability to be muscially inclined, but […]

I’m not really a big one for resolutions. Usually because I make loft commitments that I think sound good on paper, but which I really don’t intend to keep.  Still if you don’t make any resolutions then you are either (1) Perfect – I don’t need to change anything and everyone else can learn from […]

Reason #3: “I haven’t found a church I really like, a church that fits me just right” “I haven’t found a church I really like, a church that fits my own personal style and tastes.” This is the third most common phrase I hear from lukewarm Christians as to why they haven’t committed to a […]

More Missional and Less Consumeristic The consumer-Christian will not survive in the next ten years. You might ask, “What is a Consumer-Christian?” In our church, it is the person who “church shops” for a church that meets his needs. Church is all about them. When the church doesn’t work for them anymore, they shop for […]

Many people have the misconception that being “called” by God is something only missionaries, pastors, nuns, and other church leaders experience. But the Bible says everyone is called to serve God by serving others. We are not saved by serving, but we are saved for serving. The basis for serving others is salvation. You cannot […]

I am hopeful that “missional” language, concepts, and practices will provide a framework for our church to fulfill its calling to engage our homes, neighborhoods and communities and “world” in meaningful, transformational ways. “Going missional” reflects the heart of FUMC’s connecting and equipping ministries.   To use Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s language: “The church is only the […]

Balance  (n):  The difference in magnitude between opposing forces or influences.   Sometimes churches can become so mired down in achieving balance that it loses it way. Mission gives way to harmony and balance is elevated as the greatest good, but a quick study of the gospel’s reveals that Jesus’ ministry was anything but balanced! […]

Extravagant — going beyond what is deserved or expected Grace — given freely without reservation or restraint, unmerited favor of God     [Philip Yancey]   We are accustomed to finding a catch in every promise, but in Jesus’ stories of extravagant grace there is no catch, no loophole disqualifying us from God’s love. Each has at […]

 “Silence requires the discipline to recognize the urge to get up and go again as a temptation to look elsewhere for what is close at hand. It offers the freedom to stroll in your own inner yard, and to rake up the leaves there and clear the paths so you can easily find the way […]

From Greg Goeschel: What will the local church look like in the next ten to twenty years? This week I’ll offer some of my theories. I’m writing from an American perspective. (Those of you around the world can help broaden my perspective.) Many of you will disagree. Please express your theories and we’ll learn from […]

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hvJR_SIiPl4]  The future of the church is really in flux these days. What has been is changing rapidly and what tomorrow will bring nobody knows! The church must be ready to respond to the changing times with the Gospel which is true no matter what age, but in the language of the culture it finds […]

By its very nature, the Christian life is a call to discover our true home. This suppose, of course, that all this stuff is not. I like the quote by CS Lewis “If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made […]

http://churchrelevance.com/resources/churches-to-watch/good-church-websites/ Related posts: The Future Church, Part 1 15 Signs that your church lacks Vision Top Websites The Emerging Church

I saw this and just had to share it with you. I hope you are as moved by its message and portrayal of the reality of life as I was. I hope and pray that we’re not just playing church but that we are offering Extravagant Grace to all who need hope. Enjoy [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyheJ480LYA] Related posts: […]

You may be interested to know that this blog has now been rated for content and been awarded the following rating!    This rating is based solely on language and content, not on our passion and purpose. Do you think it would change if it were? Related posts: Let’s Go Missional 2010 Family Christmas Letter […]

Are we really part of the Body of Christ? Or have we simply become librarians of the faith waiting patiently behind the Reference Desk for visitors to ask for the help we know they need. What does it mean to you to be part of the Body of Christ? Who is wise and understanding among you? […]