Grace and the Heart of Discipleship

Wednesday October 12 2011 8:46 AM
Will F. Johnston

My wife and I spent our first Christmas as a married couple at her parents house in southern California. One of the things that California has that Illinois—where we were living at the time—does not is decent card rooms. I fancy myself a bit of a poker player and was looking forward to checking one of them out while we were there.

One day I borrowed my father-in-law's truck and started heading south on I-5. I was zipping along at 70 mph, a bit nervous to play cards in an actual casino for the first time.

It was a rainy day in Los Angeles, as it often is that time of year, and as I sped along in the left lane I hit a pool of standing water and began to hydroplane. I let up off the gas, but it was too late. I spun backwards across four lanes of traffic before slamming into the concrete barrier along the right shoulder.

I was shaken and disoriented, but as best as I could tell I wasn't seriously hurt. By the grace of God I hadn't hit anyone else. After calming myself I called my in-laws. I explained that I was in a car accident and that I was okay but the truck wasn't drivable.

I already wasn't sure what my in-laws thought about their new poker-playing son-in-law. I mean, who is this guy who comes to town and the first thing he does is run off to gamble? And now he's wrecked our car?

But what happened next was nothing short of amazing. The only questions I was asked were, "Are you okay? Are you sure you're not hurt." "Where are you? We'll come get you."

That's it.

They called a tow truck and came and got me.

I didn't have a job at the time. I couldn't pay for the truck, and they didn't ask me to. They never expressed anger or commented about how irresponsible I was. Nothing.

Their response had a profound impact on me. At moments when my temper begins to flare because someone has done something to make my life more difficult I often remember that experience, and it shapes how I react.

And so we see here not only how an expression of grace to one person can beget grace in the lives of others, but we also find the heart of discipleship.

Discipleship isn't primarily a program or small group or one-on-one meeting or book discussion. The essence of discipleship is found in the simple phrase, "Follow me as I follow Christ."

Certainly you can be intentional with discipleship. You can read and discuss a book. You can coach and ask good questions. These are good things, but ultimately, far more will be caught than taught.

Rick and Patty Klein discipled me through their Christ-like actions without any plan or intention or formal discipling relationship.

Discipleship requires little more and nothing less than time spent together.


Will F. Johnston is the Small Group Catalyst at National Community Church in Washington DC.

5 Steps for Handling Frustration

Monday October 17 2011 2:50 PM
Rick Warren

Here are five simple steps for dealing with frustrations in your life.

1.  Ask yourself, “Did I cause it?” The Bible says, “A man reaps what he sows” (Galatians 6:7 NIV). Many things in life frustrate us because we brought them on ourselves. We don't have anybody else to blame.

It’s frustrating to run out of gas on a trip. But if you didn't stop to get gas before you left, or decided to push your luck, who’s to blame?

2.  Ask yourself, “What can I learn from it?” Use the irritation as an opportunity to grow in character and become more like Christ.

How does God produce the fruit of the Spirit in your life? He places you in the opposite situation. If God wants to teach you love, He will put you around unlovely people. If God wants to teach you peace, He will put you in a situation of total chaos so you can have inner peace.

Romans 8:28 says, “All things work together for good” (NIV). There are many bad things in the world, but all things work together and even the negative God can turn into a positive if we will let Him.

3.  Thank God in the situation. 1 Thessalonians 5:18 says, “In everything give thanks” (NIV). You don't have to be thankful for a bad situation. But you can be thankful in a bad situation. That frustration, that irritation, that inconvenience, that interruption, may be a blessing or an opportunity in disguise.

The Apostle Paul wanted to go to Rome to preach, but God took him to Rome to be in prison and write the letters that formed the New Testament. Paul was frustrated but God saw it as an opportunity to make him sit still long enough to write the Bible.

4.  Turn the frustration into a funny, humorous event. The Bible says, “A cheerful heart is good medicine”  (Proverbs 17:22 NIV). A sense of humor is God's antidote for anger and frustration.

5.  Ask God to fill you with His love. Why? Because 1 Corinthians 13:5 says, “Love is not easily angered” (NIV).  Love is self-giving, not self-serving. We get irritated because we think everyone and everything has to revolve around us. Love concentrates on the other person.

Jesus faced constant frustrations in his life, but he always made time for people. We get so preoccupied with our own things; we forget that people are the priority in life.

“You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.”  Isaiah 26:3 (NIV)

Rick Warren is the founding pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., one of America's largest and most influential churches. Rick is author of the New York Times Best Seller The Purpose Driven Life.  His book, The Purpose Driven Church, was named one of the 100 Christian books that changed the 20th century. He is also founder of Pastors.com, a global Internet community for pastors. © Copyright 2011 Rick Warren.

What Worship Style?

Tuesday October 04 2011 6:00 AM

Shannon O'Dell

In the past few months I have had many leaders ask me what “style” of worship through song we have at Brand New Church. Honestly, I have been taken back by this question and the fact that it is still a topic of discussion for many churches. For pastors everywhere, especially rural communities, I want to share with you my heart on our “style.

#1 We are Celebratory in Style
Contemporary, Modern or Traditional are not terms used in our vocabulary. We are intentionally celebratory in our approach. One week could be bluegrass, rap, hymns, acoustic, choir, ensemble, rock and any other style you can imagine. Genre is not the center focus, the focus is: “Does it bring glory and celebrate the King of Kings?”

#2 We are Flexible in our Leadership
Having the same person as the front soloist, guitar, keys, or even sound man can be detrimental to the flow of creativity in worship. You need a balanced attack. We have a creative leader that brings the pieces together each week, but different faces. Some of the best worship leading takes place in the congregation.

#3 We are Creative in our Purpose
Creativity is an intentional part of our plan. Jesus never used the same bait when fishing and neither should we. Change your stage, opener, closer, song set location, instruments and even design – not for clever’s sake, but for listening and environment enhancement.

#4 We are Quick to remove Pride
When pride walks on the stage, God walks off. You will find out very quickly if your stage is being controlled or Christ-centered when you apply a few of these recommendations.

#5 We are Sensitive to our Atmosphere
Sight, Sound and Smell must be priorities for great worship to exist. Get a decibel reader and improve your sound quality. Purchase lighting that enhances listening and attentiveness. Make sure there is a pleasant aroma in every area of your facility especially your restrooms. Every campus has this passion and leads out (picture below is from our NWA campus).


These are just a few of our worship “styles”…as you can see have very little to do with music, but a lot to do with worship.

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Source: Breaking All the Rurals.
Shannon O’Dell is a devoted husband and father of four. People know him as innovative, inspiring and committed to reaching out to struggling rural churches and churches with a rural state of mind. He has served Brand New Church as senior pastor for over seven years in Bergman, Arkansas, a small community of just over 400 people.
Brand New Church has grown from 31 to 2000 members with 7 campuses, network churches, and an online campus under Shannon’s leadership. He is the author of “Transforming Church in Rural America”.

One Way to Increase the Commitment Level of Your Members

Sunday October 09 2011 10:10 AM

Rick Warren

Why do churches have so many members who give little or no evidence of Christian commitment or even conversion? Why do many churches find it difficult to motivate members to give, serve, pray, and share their faith?

The answer is simple. The members were allowed to join with no expectations placed on them. You get what you ask for! 

While becoming a Christian means to commit yourself to Christ, becoming a church member means to commit yourself to other Christians. Paul mentions two different types of commitment in 2 Corinthians 8:5 – “First they gave themselves to the Lord; and then, by God's will, they gave themselves to us as well.” (GN)

At Saddleback, we call these the first-base commitments. You commit yourself to Christ for salvation and then you commit yourself to other Christians for membership in our church family.

At Saddleback, we only expect of our members what the Bible clearly expects of all believers. These expectations are summarized in our Membership Covenant. It is the most important element of our membership class.

We have four requirements for membership:

1) A personal profession of Christ as Lord and Savior;
2) Baptism by immersion as a public symbol of one’s faith;
3) Completion of the membership class; and
4) A signed commitment to abide by Saddleback’s membership covenant.

I urge you to prayerfully prepare and adopt a membership covenant in your congregation if you don’t have one. It can revolutionize your church.

You may worry, “If we adopt a membership covenant, there will be some who leave our church over it.” You’re right. There will be some. But here is the fact of reality: People are going to leave your church no matter what you do. Don’t be afraid of people leaving. People even walked away from Jesus. 

When your congregation adopts a membership covenant, at least you’re choosing the kind of people that stay.

The Saddleback Membership Covenant

Having received Christ as my Lord and Savior and been baptized, and being in agreement with Saddleback's statements, strategy, and structure, I now feel led by the Holy Spirit to unite with the Saddleback church family. In doing so, I commit myself to God and to the other members to do the following:


1.  I WILL PROTECT THE UNITY OF MY CHURCH
...By acting in love toward other members
...By refusing to gossip
...By following the leaders

“So then, let us aim for harmony in the church and try to build each other up.” (Romans 14:19 NLT)

“Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.” (Ephesians 4:29 NLT)

“Obey your spiritual leaders, and do what they say. Their work is to watch over your souls, and they are accountable to God. Give them reason to do this with joy and not with sorrow. That would certainly not be for your benefit.” (Hebrews 13:17 NLT)


2. I WILL SHARE THE RESPONSIBILITY OF MY CHURCH
...By praying for its growth
...By inviting the unchurched to attend
...By warmly welcoming those who visit

“We always thank God for all of you and pray for you constantly.” (1 Thessalonians 1:2 NLT)

“So his master said, ‘Go out into the country lanes and behind the hedges and urge anyone you find to come, so that the house will be full. For none of those I first invited will get even the smallest taste of my banquet.’” (Luke 14:23-24 NLT)

“Therefore, accept each other just as Christ has accepted you so that God will be given glory.” (Romans 15:7 NLT)


3.  I WILL SERVE THE MINISTRY OF MY CHURCH
...By discovering my gifts and talents
...By being equipped to serve by my pastors
...By developing a servant's heart

“God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another.” (1 Peter 4:10 NLT)

“Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ.” (Ephesians 4:11-12 NLT)

“Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. … Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being….” (Philippians 2:3-4, 7 NLT)

4.  I WILL SUPPORT THE TESTIMONY OF MY CHURCH
...By attending faithfully
...By living a godly life
...By giving regularly

“And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.” (Hebrews 10:25 NLT)

“Above all, you must live as citizens of heaven, conducting yourselves in a manner worthy of the Good News about Christ. Then, whether I come and see you again or only hear about you, I will know that you are standing side by side, fighting together for the faith, which is the Good News.” (Philippians 1:27 NLT)

“On the first day of each week, you should each put aside a portion of the money you have earned. Don’t wait until I get there and then try to collect it all at once.” (1 Corinthians 16:2 NLT)

“One tenth of the produce of the land, whether grain from the fields or fruit from the trees, belongs to the LORD and must be set apart to him as holy.” (Leviticus 27:30 NLT)

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Rick Warren is the founding pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., one of America's largest and influential churches. Rick is author of the New York Times Best Seller The Purpose Driven Life.  His book, The Purpose Driven Church, was named one of the 100 Christian books that changed the 20th century. He is also founder of Pastors.com, a global Internet community for pastors. © Copyright 2011 Rick Warren.

8 Essential Characteristics Your Church Needs

Monday October 03 2011 12:05 PM 

Rick Warren

If you want your church to have the impact of the early church, the book of Acts shows us 8 essential characteristics we need in our congregations -- Supernatural power (Acts 2:3-4) -- We don’t just talk about God; we experience Him. This is what makes the Church different from every other organization on the planet. We have the Holy Spirit. Microsoft doesn’t have the Holy Spirit. The United States government doesn’t have the Holy Spirit. The Red Cross doesn’t have the Holy Spirit. No other organization has the power of God in it. God promised His Spirit to help His Church. Use everybody’s language (Acts 2:4) -- This passage isn’t about speaking in tongues. It’s about the gospel being communicated in real languages. People actually heard the early Christians speak in their own languages -- whether that was Farsi, Swahili, German, Greek, or whatever. God says from the very first day of the church that the Good News is for everyone. It’s not just for Jews. It’s amazing grace for every race. But the power of Acts isn’t just about the language of your country of origin. It’s also about languages spoken only in particular subcultures -- like mothers of preschoolers or people into hip-hop or accountants or truck drivers. God says in His Church, everyone’s language gets used. Are you helping your people use their “language” to reach people with the Good News? Uses everyone’s gifts (Acts 2:14, 16, 19, 21) -- In New Testament times, there weren’t spectators in the Church. There were only contributors -- 100 percent participation. Not everyone is called to be a pastor, but everyone is called to serve God. If you want your church to have the impact of the early Church, get everyone involved in the ministry of your church. Make it clear to everyone in the church that passivity isn’t an option. If they want to just sit around and soak up the service of others, let them find another church. Offer life-changing truth (Acts 2:22-40) – The early Church didn’t offer pop psychology, polite moralisms, or nice-sounding inspiration. We must always offer the truth of the Gospel. God’s Word has the power to change lives. No other message changes lives like the Good News. No other message changes a guy from a wife-beater to being a loving, responsible husband. It’s when the truth of God’s Word gets into us that we change. In Acts 2, Peter gives the very first Christian sermon, quoting the Old Testament book of Joel. Peter shares the Gospel in this message. Acts 2 says that the early Church devoted itself to the “apostles’ teaching” – the Bible. God’s Word gave the early Church power (For more about helping your church dig into God’s Word, check out 40 Days in the Word). Provide loving support (Acts 2:42) -- The first Church loved and cared for one another. The Bible says in Acts 2:42, “They took part in the fellowship, sharing in the fellowship meals and in praying together.” One translation says, “They were like family to each other.” The Church isn’t a business. It’s not an organization. It’s not a social club. It’s a family. For our churches to experience the power of the early Church, we’ve got to become the family that they were. Enjoy joyful worship (Acts 2:46) -- When the early Church gathered, they celebrated, “praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people.” We must understand and teach that worship is a celebration. It’s a festival, not a funeral. It’s the party for the kingdom of God. When worship is joyful, people want to be there because people are looking for joy. Do you think if our churches were full of glad hearts, joyful words, and hopeful lives, we’d attract other unbelievers? Sure they would. Make generous sacrifices (Acts 2:44-45) – The Bible teaches us to make generous sacrifices for the sake of the Gospel. The Christians during the Roman Empire were the most generous people in the empire. In fact, they were famous for their generosity. They literally shared everything – with one another and the poor. The Bible says the early Church “shared everything they had … .” That’s a church worth dying for – which is exactly what first-century Christians did. They’d rather die with gladiators and lions in the Coliseum than renounce their faith and their brothers and sisters in God’s family. Create exponential growth (Acts 2:47) -- When our churches demonstrate the first seven characteristics of the early Church, growth is automatic. People may have looked at the first Christians as weird, but they liked what they were doing. They saw their love for one another, the miracles that took place in their midst, and the joy that was in their lives, and they wanted what the Christians had.

Layman's language of 10 commandments?

Layman's language of 10 commandments ? 

Beautiful words.

 

They are like the ten commandments to follow in life all the time.

 1]  Prayer is not a "spare wheel" that you pull out when in  trouble

 but it is a"steering wheel"  that directs the right path throughout.

 

 2]  Why is a car's WINDSHIELD so large & the Rear view Mirror so small?
 Because our PAST is not as important as our FUTURE. 

So, Look Ahead and Move on.

 

 3]  Friendship is like a BOOK.  It takes a few seconds to burn but years to write.

 

  4] All things in life are temporary.  If going well, enjoy it, they will not last forever.

If not going well, don't worry, they can't last long either.

 

  5] Old Friends are Gold! New Friends are Diamond! If you get a Diamond,
 don't forget the Gold! Because to hold a Diamond, you always need a Base
 of Gold!

 

  6]  Often when we lose hope and think this is the end, GOD smiles from
 above and says, "Relax, child, it's just a bend, not the end!

 

  7]  When GOD solves your problems, you have faith in HIS abilities;

when GOD doesn't solve your problems HE has faith in your abilities.

 

 8]  A blind person asked St. Anthony: "Can there be anything worse than
 losing eye sight?"  He replied: "Yes, losing your vision!"

 

  9] When you pray for others, God listens to you and blesses them and
 sometimes, when you are safe and happy, remember that someone has prayed
 for you.

 

  10] WORRYING does not take away tomorrow's TROUBLES, it takes away
 today's PEACE.