Grace- I am now serving as the new lead pastor of Grace Community Church in Centennial, Colorado- south side Denver Tech Center area.  I’m actually kicking off this great, new adventure this weekend, June 4-5, speaking in all three services.  Visit this link for some video of the “story” regarding how Jo Ann and I now find ourselves in Denver, leading this great missional church: www.weallneedgrace.com/#/welcome/whats-happening.  Grace was a church plant back in the day before church planting was all the rage.  It’s had three great men at leading it’s efforts, all of whom built strategically on a great missional foundation and significantly contributed to Grace truly being an outward focused, on mission with Jesus, group of people!  I know God has put us here, at this time, very intentionally, to continue to live out this purpose.  We have great people who will be serving alongside of us and we look forward to expanding the Kingdom!  We’ve already found a house in the area and will be moving permanently the last week of June!

Grads- I will also continue to serve as the Director of the XA Network, and actually, have never been more excited and convinced that the time for this strategy is NOW!  As most of you know, the database systems is online and available- go to www.xanetwork.org. and currently over 500 missional church plants, churches, and other organizations have registered.  We continue to prioritize efforts with Church Multiplication Network to enable this and plan to begin ramping up with XA groups and students this Fall and Spring.  The XA ELT, and especially Scott Martin- XA Network functions under the Student Mission purview, have been incredibly supportive and encouraging of my transition to leading GCC, as well as continuing to direct the efforts of XA Network.  We hope to form a leadership team in the next few months to further enhance and develop XA Network so that it truly is a viable means for graduating XA students to get connected to missional marketplace opportunities- thus enabling XA’s mission to transform the marketplace.

Gratitude- I simply cannot overstate the fact that God has placed some incredibly outstanding people in my life!  From Harv Herman, who initiated me into XA, to Dennis Gaylor, Scott Martin, the entire ELT, regional directors, others in XA (You all know who you are!), to the Lifehouse Church Network guys, to some amazing friends and family, to our new relationships at GCC; Jo Ann and I are truly the definition of what it means to be BLESSED!  And for these folks, for the seasons of ministry past, and for this new season we now enter, we are forever grateful to God and to all of you!!!

The often referenced passage of Scripture to somehow make sense of God’s messages and methods not making sense to us is Isaiah 55: 8-9 “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts, says the Lord.  And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.  For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways, and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.” Most of us respond to this with the viewpoint that God’s thoughts and ways are just not how we think or act; and that is essentially correct.  The tension, however, is trusting God’s Word or way when it seems so crazy to us!  Don’t tell me Noah didn’t experience some tension or had to work through the craziness of “it’s gonna rain, flood the earth, destroy everything and everyone, and I need to build this Ark thing God…??”  Or, Jesus saying things like, “If you want to save your life you have to lose it…” What??  Again, “it seems and sounds crazy, but after all, you’re God and you’re on a different level than me, so I’ll give you that!”  We accept that part of the deal.  What we struggle with is the implementation piece; trusting in what God is saying and doing, enough to actually put it into practice.

At this point, it’s no longer a discussion about God having some “out there”, in our estimation, thoughts and ways; it’s more an issue of putting our faith (not our belief- faith and belief are two different things, and that’s another blog subject) in what God is saying and wants us to do.  And for those who can pull that off, well, it’s epic!  Consider John Patton, who is relatively unknown among Christians today.  In the late 1800′s he served for 10 years as the pastor of a growing Scottish church, but God began to speak to him about going to the New Hebrides islands in the Pacific that were filled with cannibalistic peoples with no knowledge of the gospel.  Years earlier two missionaries had ventured to these islands only to be killed and cannibalized!  At the age of 33 Paton traveled to these islands with his wife and newborn baby.  Within a few months his wife and child had died and alone he dug their graves and buried them.  He faced threat upon threat to his life.  But in the years to come countless cannibals came to Christ and churches across Scotland, Australia, and the Western world were mobilized to make the gospel known among the people groups around the world toughest to reach.  Crazy, yet highly effective when one is completely and totally sold out to God and puts their faith into action!

God’s Word and ways to you may not always make sense in the natural, but two things will always be constant: 1) His Word and ways will always reflect and reveal the character and cause of Christ- never weird, wacky, or way out there in a perverse or twisted way, and 2) You will have to trust in God’s Word and way explicitly!  Only then, will life and purpose and a sense of fulfillment make sense!

We all know that life is marked by seasons- times, phases, situations and circumstances where we live out a day-to-day existence, that relatively stays constant, until… the job you’ve had for 15 years is going to be terminated because of budget cuts; until… all the kids are now graduated and the nest is empty; until… you have graduated college and now face the prospects of life in the marketplace; until… the house must sell, the new job must start, the relocation is happening… You could name countless thousands of transitions that we all go through in one lifetime! We move from one place to the next, one season to another, physically and in every other context too. And transitions, both difficult and exciting, are never without change- the scenery changes, the situations change, the social network changes; and you, me, we have to change too.

That’s probably the toughest part- the personal change; adapting, adjusting, to the new season, new people, new settings, new situations; and most people end up stressing about all the “stuff.” Well, don’t! Why? Two reasons: 1) IF, you are a follower of Jesus, then YOU are FOLLOWING HIM. That means his purpose is being fulfilled. That means he has gone before you and prepared the way. That means he is with you; his presence, power, provision, and protection (I can probably think of at least 3 more “P” words…) literally engulf you! And 2) IF, you are a follower of Jesus, the YOU live by FAITH. That means you see what others can’t see about your life. That means you know this new season is a set up for a God-adventure far more than you could imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams (Eph. 3:20). That means, like Abaham, and every other person that’s mentioned in Hebrews 11, you are on your way to success; because you trust God, you take Him at His Word, you signed up long ago for the adventure of a lifetime!

You are in transition, changing- becoming more like Jesus as you live out his purposes! You are an agent of transition, change- because you follow Jesus you are on his mission to change the world! Personally, I have a profound sense that this new season that Jo Ann and I are entering into has the potential to be the most powerful, dynamic, and productive one we’ve every experienced as it relates to Kingdom purposes. That’s not hype or wishful thinking; it’s simply knowing that we are at this moment in our lives because God has not only ordered it, He is orchestrating it in a way that is aligning the right people at the right place at the right time to see something very significant accomplished in advancing the cause of Christ. So, be encouraged, follow Jesus, live by faith, transition and change the world!

As the above relates to the race of life, which is obviously a marathon and not a sprint, I’m reminded of Hebrews 12:1-2, which says, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up.  and let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.  We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith.  Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame.  Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.” Let me offer you a few insights from this passage…

First, urging and inspiring us onward, are those people of faith who have already run the race and proved that, as Matt Chandler says, the Gospel works!  The life of faith- the Gospel, must always be contended for and contextualized in our lives and time in history, just as it always has been.  It’s just our turn now; and just like running a marathon, we need to make sure we are constantly preparing and training to run the race as effectively as possible!

Second, we need to be able to acknowledge and deal with the hindrances and sin that can not only trip us up, but potentially take us out of the race altogether.  It’s so often, the “unless” stuff that gets us.  For example, money or wealth isn’t a bad thing, unless… Comfort isn’t a bad thing, unless… Vocational aspiration isn’t a bad thing, unless… I think you get the point.  Yesterday I witnessed a runner cheat- one mile from the halfway turnaround point, she stepped of the side of the road and then started running with those already headed back in to the finish line.  Only she knows why she did this, but one thing we should all know; sin will seek you out, and sell you out, so make sure you’re always guarding your integrity, mind, and heart!

Third, each of us have a race to run that God has set, or marked out for us.  Yes, in the marathon yesterday, every runner was on the same course, but every runner had to run their own race.  I knew, for myself, I needed to run between a 10:00-10:30 min. per mile pace if I was going to have the endurance to finish; other runners had to run at their pace, etc.  Life really isn’t about who you can keep up with, or who you can blow past, etc.; it’s really all about staying the course God has very intentionally set for you, and living/running it at the pace that is in step with His Spirit!

Fourth, in living the life of Gospel witness- contending for and contextualizing it, it is absolutely essential that you look to Jesus and His example of enduring the cross, disregarding its shame. Regrettably, so little today in American Christianity has anything to do with the Cross.  But the Cross is not just the place of suffering and enduring painful circumstances, it is also the place of profound grace, hope, and love!  For Jesus to perfect faith in us it will require some painful experiences along the way- not necessarily God-initiated, but those things, like Paul’s thorn in the flesh, that cause us to keep our focus on Jesus.  Honestly, yesterday when I finished the marathon, I lost it, cried like a baby.  Why?  I recalled the past 16 weeks of training and pushing through the pain thresholds, not quitting, staying focused on the goal, and at the finish line, raising my hands in an emotional victory celebration- it was all very much worth it!  Faith has to be perfected in us through oftentimes, painful experiences, and there’s no other way for that to happen than to come to the Cross and find grace, hope, and love in Jesus’ example and ultimate victory.

Paul wrote in 2 Timothy 4:7-8 “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful.  And now the prize awaits me…” Yesterday that’s exactly what I experienced- I kept fighting through the temptations to quit, or slow down, I kept believing I would finish well, and I kept running, crossed the finish line and received my medal!  But more importantly, I want that for my life race and I want that for you too!

But one this we need to remember about these situations is that at one time, they were a “fresh well” that had been dug and established in that area, that was providing “life” to people. However, over time, again because of a variety of issues, the once “life-giving well” has been filled with clutter or completely covered up. We know from Genesis 26 that Isaac, because of the need to sustain his flocks and herds in a certain area, saw it necessary to not only dig “new wells”, but to “re-dig” the “wells” his father, Abraham, had dug many years earlier! This is an incredible picture of what is possible and a viable vision for restarting new churches in old churches in city areas that desperately need a “well!”

By doing this, we can recapture sacred history, restore them to their intended purpose, and revitalize a city area in the process. Interestingly, churches and cities have a shared destiny- just look at the New Testament and world history. Also, interestingly, Nehemiah rebuilt the Temple first before rebuilding the city of Jerusalem. By doing this it significantly motivated the people for the task of restoring their city. In the midst of this transformation, Haggai the prophet, said, “the latter glory will be greater than the former glory!”

As I personally consider a potential new area of growing and sustaining “flocks and herds”, I’m convinced that one of the key actions will be to not only “dig”/start some new “wells”/churches and campuses, but to also “redid”/restart some old “wells”/churches! After all, we can not forget that by doing this, we are essentially participating with God in the means that most effectively expands His kingdom!

As the model for discipleship, Jesus spent most of his time with a small group of men.  In John 17 Jesus puts this into perspective by basically stating that these men were the “work that God, the Father, had given him to do.”  Sure, Jesus obviously came to give his life as the Supreme sacrifice for our sin; but he also, by virtue of the content and emphasis of his prayer in John 17, reveals that this small, somewhat eclectic group of men, was quite literally, his life!  When you read John 17 you cannot help but realize the intensity of affection Jesus had for these men, as well as, the gravity of investment he had made in their lives.  The bottom line: Jesus spent more time with these guys than everyone else put together- and his expectation, in his absence, was that they would go out and do the same with others.

It is a radical concept for the church in America to consider not only abandonment to Jesus (when so much religious activity seems to indicate otherwise), but to take discipleship beyond the Sunday morning experience, beyond the token small groups ministry, beyond the packaged programs, and literally spend one’s life making a Jesus investment in a few other folks in the context of a relational journey.  In reality, discipleship is so simple that every Christian can do it; and that’s exactly the point!  It’s why Jesus said every Christian must do this.

And yeah, that’s probably radical!

The basic, core value of networking is the ability to give up all, or a considerable part of yourself for the greater cause of the network.  I’ve often said, that what gets you a seat at the network table is what you bring to the table to give away!  Many people, and too often church leaders, have the idea that they’ll join a network or be involved in networking solely because they’ll be able to get a lot out of it.  Although that’s true, simply because networking does facilitate gaining many things from others who are better than you, or further down the road than you are in a variety of areas, etc., the real value of networking is the give and it will be given principle that Jesus stated is the way the kingdom works.  You want networking to work for you, then go into it as a giver and not a getter!  There is a sweet reciprocity of generosity that happens when people, leaders, churches, and businesses, work together in an environment of selflessness, sharing, and support for each other, as well as the greater network.

I have also discovered that those who ultimately choose to no longer participate in a networking context are either the most selfish of all, or lack any personal or kingdom security- many times it’s both of these things!  I love 2 Cor. 9:6-10 Remember this- a farmer who plants only a few seeds will get a small crop.  But the one who plants generously will get a generous crop.  You must decide in your heart how much to give.  And don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure.  For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.  And God will generously provide all you need.  Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others… For God is the one who provides seed for the farmer and then bread to eat.  In the same way, he will provide and increase your resources and then produce a great harvest of generosities in you.

And that, is the nexus of networking!

So far in this blog series I’ve talked about 1) how true Christ-followers are the multiplication of Jesus’ mission, 2) how we are expected to multiply the fruit of the Vine, souls, and 3) how we can only do that by experiencing the multiplication of the fruit of the Spirit in our personal lives!  Briefly, in Part 4, let’s consider multiplying communities of faith.  I talk a lot about churches actually representing spiritual greenhouses where all the conditions are conducive to God growing His Church- we can’t grow it, only He can (see 1 Cor. 3 and 2 Cor. 9); but we are expected to create the right environment/atmosphere for spiritual development and growth!  More on Spiritual Greenhouse in a later series.

To me, this is a simple as it gets: We shouldn’t focus on planting churches, but on multiplying followers of Jesus! Churches, communities of faith, in the pattern of the New Testament, naturally develop as people come to Christ.  This was obviously Paul’s approach (note Acts 17).  Certainly there must be a very strategic plan to plant churches- especially if we’re going to reach, impact, and transform our culture today.  But this is not a contradiction to what I previously just stated.  Rather, it enables us to set forth a very deliberate strategy that essentially incorporates the multiplication of disciples as the means for planting churches! In other words, as we raise, resource, and release people missionally, helping them to thrive both in the areas of the fruit of the Spirit and the fruit of the Vine, multiplication and movement naturally takes place that facilitates the emergence of a new community of faith!  These emergent “churches” spring up then where they are most needed, most meant to thrive, and most effective- in all the socio-economic, marketplaces, and cultural “mission fields” multitudes of people congregate in every day.

Let me repeat, so as not to create any confusion here: Developing in the character of Christ is catalytic to demonstrating the cause of Christ- making disciples (Matt. 28:18-20); which naturally further expands and develops into active, ongoing communities of faith (church plants/churches) that serve as spiritual greenhouse and multiplication centers, that continue this life-of-Jesus producing paradigm!