Never... Stop... Learning... EVER!

Once I heard someone really wise say "Once you stop growing, you start dying."

This past week, I've had the opportunity to learn it all over again.

I wish I could tell you that I enjoyed the opportunity, but I did NOT!

Please don't misunderstand... I NEEDED it. I just didn't LIKE it!

The Bible says that if we chasten ourselves, God won't need to chasten us.

Ummm... Note to self: It is MUCH better to chasten yourself!

Now that I'm this side of the chastening, I am certainly thankful for it because God showed me some things deep within myself that I didn't even know were in me.

And it DESPERATELY needs to come out!

Just because we don't see the ugly doesn't mean it's not there (everyone else sees it, you can be sure). It just sits there beneath the surface, eating away at you... And you're totally oblivious.

Until God--in His mercy--opens your eyes to see what He (& everyone else) sees.

And once you know it's there, you can start to learn from it.

And once you start learning, you stop dying & start living.

Never... Stop... Learning... EVER!

I L-O-V-E Field Trips!!

Sometimes the hardest thing to get somebody to do is think outside their box.

I know that's true for me!

One of the things I love about traveling around the world is experiencing the nuances of a country & a culture that you didn't know existed til you experience it...

...like the call of bald eagles that fills the Alaskan air (I didn't even know bald eagles made noise!)
...or the traffic in Peru (CRAZY!)
...or the size of the cars in Italy (tiny!)
...or the vending machines in Japan (they outnumbered people when I was there in 1991).

Some things just have to be experienced before we even realize that the way we think isn't the only way things are.

One of the challenges that we face as a functioning church trying to re-launch into our community--starting over, basically--is that we are in a "box".

That's not evil or wrong, it's just human.

The challenge is breaking down the walls of a box when we don't even realize there IS a box, much less that we are inside of it.

This is the main reason we stopped having "services" until we launch (more about that here & here).

Today, we took another HUGE step: we leased a bus & took a field trip to  Journey Fellowship where their team SHOWED our team what we've been TALKING about for so long!

And it was GREAT! This was EXACTLY what we needed! The walls came crashing down with a resounding thud & an entirely new perspective was burned into the hearts & minds of our folks!

What was most exciting to me as the leader was the way our team talked about their experience today... Their words prove that they see US doing things this way! They said thing like, "We need to do ______ & we need to do it like this: _______."

Our Launch Team is a pretty amazing & creative group of people, so they probably would've gotten to this point sooner or later (in spite of me), but this field trip was like a shot of steroids to our development!

Yes... I L-O-V-E field trips!

Whatever Happened to the "Religion & Politics" Rule?

A couple days ago I was reading my Facebook wall.

I usually enjoy seeing what all of my friends have to say, but on this particular day I was overwhelmed by all of the "my-choice-for-president-is-better-than-your-choice-for-president" posts.

Really?!

It's amazing how nasty some of these things get... Even among friends!

I always remember hearing that one should never discuss religion or politics in mixed company... But that rule has obviously been thrown out with the bathwater.

But what if it hadn't?

It seems to me that there is a direct (but inverse) relationship to the amount of religious & political talk & the amount of civility toward one another: the MORE people talk religion &/or politics, the LESS people are civil toward each other.

Coincidence?

I don't think it is.

In fact, I think that is precisely WHY the rule was written in the first place!

I think someone, somewhere realized that their relationships were important than their political persuasion. That winning someone's trust was more important than winning their vote. That being loving was more important than being right. Or "left."

I think they were on to something. And I wish we'd all get back on board.

A former POTUS supposedly said, "Some of my friends are for it and some of my friends are against it... And I'm for my friends!"

Well... If I might borrow that (& use a little literary license): "Some of my friends are Democrats & some of my friends are Republicans--and, nowadays, some of my friends are Libertarians-- and I'm for my friends!"

So... Now that that's off my chest... How 'bout those Saints?

Now THAT was fun!

One of the most-important & highest-priority things we MUST do if we're going to launch effectively is to develop our DNA from the very beginning.

So, we wanted to start developing the DNA of Inspire by doing something where everyone could experience what we've been talking about. We want Inspire to be life-giving, creative, diverse, genuine, & passionate.

So how could we help our Launch Team EXPERIENCE that?

A couple of weeks ago in our Launch Team Meeting, Jennifer & I introduced the idea of having a BBQ, then had a brainstorming session to see how our BBQ could be life-giving, creative, diverse, genuine, & passionate.

As our Launch Team shouted out ideas, Jennifer jotted them down on a whiteboard. Our Launch Team has some VERY creative people, so we ended up with a pretty good list of ideas!

We narrowed that list down to a few things we thought we could do with excellence that would also be highly experiential. Here's what we came up with...

1. Great food
2. Good music
3. Something fun for the kids

Just 3 things, right? How could these 3 things possibly help people experience a BBQ that is life-giving, creative, diverse, genuine, & passionate?

Not only was it possible, it was easy--because we did it with excellence!

Here's what we did for each of those 3 things...

1. Great food: we got ribs, roasted corn, & sugar snap beans from Zea's... Yummy!
2. Good music: we hired a GREAT jazz band... Wow!
3. Something fun for the kids: we rented a big, inflatable bouncy-house & hired a really good face-painter... The kids LOVED 'em!


All evening, I heard people on our Launch Team talking about how great our BBQ was!

I talked with several guest our Launch Team members brought, & they all had a GREAT time!

We also made a bunch of NEW friends!

We invited several kids who happened to be at the park to play on the bouncy house. Actually, they just came running to play on it! When their parents came chasing after them to stop them, we told them they were welcome to play with us & then we talked to the parents while the kids played.

This was cool, too: several people around the park heard the band, so they pulled up lawn chairs & listened.

By the end of the evening, every single person there was able to experience the DNA of Inspire: life-giving, creative, diverse, genuine, & passionate.

And... It was a BLAST!

The toughest seed I've ever sown

Last month, we took one of the biggest steps of faith in my life!

Nearly 13 years ago, God sent Jennifer and I to New Orleans to bring the Life of Jesus to a people who--for the most part--are tragically unaware of just how much He loves them.

We have fought long and hard to see that come to pass.

So far, it has not.

Have you ever looked at a seed? What did you see?

Did you notice size? Color? Texture? Shape?

Did you see "just" a seed or did you see potential?

Did you see the potential for that seed to become a tree?

Or did you see "just" a seed?

Did you see the potential for that seed--that ONE seed--to become a forrest?

Or did you see "just" a seed?

That potential is there. In fact, if that seed does what it was created to do, it WILL become a forrest! The only way that seed does NOT become a forrest is if something actively hinders it from fulfilling its purpose.

But... Does that seed look like the forrest it will become?

Nope.

It takes VISION to see that seed for more than what it IS, and for what it can BECOME.

It also takes vision to see a church for more than what IT is, and for what it can become!

But you'll never see that potential in a church if you don't first see that church as a seed.

But once you DO see that church as a seed, God can take you to the NEXT step.

In John 12:24, Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it remains alone. But its death will produce many new kernels—a plentiful harvest of new lives."

What did Jesus say must happen to the seed in order for it to become a forrest?

It must die.

So, what must happen to a church AS IT IS in order for it to become what it COULD be?

It must die.

How does a church die?

There are as many answers to that question as there are churches. And each church has to figure out what THEIR answer is!

But figuring out what the answer IS doesn't mean the answer is easy to LIVE. We figured out our answer two years ago, but it terrified us! (Well... It terrified ME!)

Here's what WE had to do to die: we had to stop having services.

We had to stop HAVING church so we could learn to BE the church.

We had to stop trying to be a forrest--because we weren't, no matter how hard we tried to be!--and just be a seed.

That was one of the biggest steps of faith I have ever taken. (It may very well have been the biggest, but I'm trying not to be dramatic.)

And once we took that step, God changed everything!

Once we took that step, God replaced wrestling with relief... It's exhausting trying to be something you're not!

Once we took that step, God replaced frustration with joy... It's liberating to be who you are!

Once we took that step, God replaced futility with hope... It's inspiring to realize that God has placed tremendous potential in the YOU He created!

So, we don't have services anymore... We've accepted that we're a seed for now, and we've let God plant us just beneath the surface, feeding and watering us so that we can become the forrest we see in the vision He gave us.

Our answer may not work for you... In fact, you'd BETTER know it's God if you even try it!

But as crazy as it seemed, it was OUR answer... And it has been one of the best decisions we ever made!