September 23, 2011 in
AND Conference with
- 60% of the US Church will not go to the current model of the Church
- Keep doing the 40% well as a church currently- don’t stop what you’re doing but think in a way that the 40% will be “sent” into the 60%…
- How you see reality is how you’ll be communicating and influencing others about their realities… How do you communicate to others what a church is? It matters.
- The paradigms and assumptions we make today will have a dramatic impact on what will or will not be in the future- It is critical we get our paradigms right and defining reality.
- Alan Hirsch: “We are operating on an old paradigm that the church is a privileged position in our society…. I’ve bet my life on the need for a paradigm shift to an apostolic model…”
- “The Age of the Unthinkable”- recommended book by A.H.
- How the Bible defines the Church: #1 Can be quite small, a house (Local), #2 then city-wide, #3 across the empire (Regional/movement), #4 Theo, entire body of Christ….. All of these are “the Church”… Too often we think of a local church meeting in a building… We must change our thinking to a movement, multi-location, regional, and global…
- If you don’t change the paradigm- you won’t experience the changes that are needed. What got us here is not going to get us there…. We must work to change the paradigm…
- Yes, you’re going to have to go on a journey- it’s hard as we want to have a quick-fix, but it’s critical we slow down and work to understand the fundamental shifts that need to happen…
- You have Innovators who always want change- and you have Resistors that will never change…
- All you need is 16% of the population to eventually reach the “tipping point”- that’s encouraging to the journey ahead to shift the paradigm needed in the Church
- Plant the Gospel and the story of Jesus, not churches, and let that seed grow… Need to think like a missionary again…
- Imagine then Shift then Innovate= MOVE
- Paradigm at the Core (where change needs to occur), Ethos translates the core into what the practices should be (Strategy), then new Practices exist (3 circles)
- The Church needs to risk engaging the culture, not seeking safety and security where are large volume of the church and middle class exists today
November 6, 2010 in
Uncategorized with
Four areas to focus on…- #1 What do we think about Jesus? We need to understand our Founder and the place of our Founder.
- #2 Rediscover the story of Jesus in the Gospels… Why is Jesus knocking on the door of the church? Jesus has become Savior but not Lord…
- “Jesus and religion don’t mix… and there’s a lot of religion going on out there…”
- #3 We need to rediscover mission… Mission is part of who God is, not something that He does…
- #4 Reorganize- we need to reinvent…. The Church needs to think “you build it we can help” rather than “we’ll build it and you help…”
- If you have 16% of the population an idea is inevitable… it’s the tipping point…
- Some need to break from the herd and model what the Church should look like on mission
November 4, 2010 in
Uncategorized with
The megachurch put “evangelism” back into the ministry (Rick Warren/Bill Hybels)- “Through America, I see a new church emerging in the Western world…”
- Future Travelers- 12 churches that are going on the “missional” journey (Granger Community Church included)
- The Church is designed as an “advancing body” going against the gates of hell, not a defensive fortress
- Cultural Distance- how far people are from a meaningful communication of the Gospel (line chart 1-4)
- Examples: Language, race, religion/world view- those 3-4 on the scale are really hard to penetrate
- In the West, we can no longer assume our culture is aligned with the church, barriers and cultural distance is expanding… we are becoming increasingly cross cultural, sub cultures- more missional & culturally complex
- The church used to be operating as the “center” of society, the way it’s been for many generations, was central to communities- even the idea of being American is to be a Christian- This works well when our cultural factor is one or less… no cultural hurdles
- Church is becoming more isolated in American society- our cultural barriers are expanding and growing (especially in the population centers on the coasts)
- Attractional: Those outside come into the church but then they are alienated from their old culture… we’re extracting them from that setting/cultural group… This is the underlying problem…
- Within 3-5 years of someone being a Christian, they lose their contact outside the church… they become culturalized within the church
- We need to shift thinking to cross-over to cultural differences… Our calling is to take the Gospel and take it cross-culturally… we’re to be the missionaries not those who are kicking the tires on church
- God, Jesus, Spirituality, Church- how does our culture view these 4? Generally 3 thumbs up, down on church
- 95% of American’s believe in God in recent surveys
- “perceived set”- in a product line, you’re likely to only remember 3 products in a brand category… that’s where most businesses are trying to get their products in the mind space
- If you ask the question, who is the greatest person who ever lived? Jesus is most mentioned… many of the other names that come up (Mother Theresa, Ghandi, others subscribed to the teachings of Jesus or actually were followers of Jesus)
- People are cool with God, Jesus, and Spirituality but are down on church…
- Jesus yes, church no…. like Apple and AT & T- one you love, the other… not so much…
- Traditional church in steep decline
- Thinks 12-15% of Australians would find the “evangelical” model attractive
- Americans could be near 40% “evangelical” model attractive (m0-m1 slice of pie)
- 1200 churches have over 2000 people that attend… (out of 400,000 churches)
- 95% of our churches are trying to reach the same 40%, all our eggs in one basket… that’s a strategic problem…. what about the 60%?
- What are the responses to those outside the church? Blase’ (hey, good for you- just not for me…) to Hate (money grabbing, church will hurt you…)
- The problems of the church? You’ll keep getting the same results if you use/have the same thinking… Organizational Insanity
- If doesn’t mean our current methods are not of God, they just isn’t working for the 60%…
- 60%- think blue ocean strategy… most of the church is trying to reach the same 40%…
- The future of the church, launching a missional view to every culture in our society…
- If you can’t imagine it, you can’t do it- Einstein…. we need to recover our “imagination”
- Find in the place of “AND” to reach the 60%- think movement not institutions….
- Some Q & A:
- Is the house church movement addressing the 60%? “Hirsch thinks no… typically they’re doing the same type of church in homes…just with a lower quality”
- How much of the attractional church model is just not attractional? (Giving box of chocolates, Harley’s…. If that’s what the church has to resort to, it’s a bit pathetic…)
- How many models are represented in the 60% to imagine? (How the Father sent me… Jesus modeled it… he went into the culture… There should be many many different types of churches… Culture determines (should) the church and style…)
- Learn how to plant the Gospel first and then let the church come out of that within various cultures
- Movements can be organized, it just looks different- they organize in networks and collaborate differently
- Can a Megachurch also be a movement? (Yes… some examples of that… doing it within the Western culture the new challenge)
- What questions can a church ask itself to become more missional? (Learning comes from being willing to ask candid questions of ourselves and our programming)
- Is a can opener really a can opener if it can’t open cans? Is a church a church if it’s not doing what a church is to do? What is a church?
- Does a church have to be large to become a movement? Movements are about the people of God… everyone in your church is a church planter
- Can a pre-existing church shift to reach the 60% while not alienating the 40% (existing church)? (The leader’s job is to define how people think about an organization…. the key leader needs to define it… If you’re a movement you start to act like a movement… You don’t have to ditch what you’re currently doing to create a movement)
