al-Qaeda Ministry

Although al-Qaeda and Osama bin Laden have become almost synonymous over the last decade, bin Laden does not run the organization single-handedly. Its infrastructure is small, mobile, and decentralized—each cell operates independently with its members not knowing the identity of other cells. Local operatives rarely know anyone higher up in the organization's hierarchy. Truth be told there are many, many leaders of the organization. A few are even considered more dangerous now. Ten years ago when we had that horrible tragedy in NY and DC something happened though. Osama became a household name. If you would have asked a million Americans who Osama bin Laden was on 9-10-01, maybe ten would have known who you were talking about. Within a week, every single one of them knew his name. To this day, he is known, feared, and sought after.

There is something that I have been struggling with for awhile now. It is not a new problem, but I feel like it is getting worse. I call it al-Qaeda ministry. The name isn’t very nice sounding. But I feel it is the best description for what I see happening at churches all across the country. For some reason we have become silo’s unto ourselves. I am not even talking about from church to church. I am talking about within each church. We have youth ministry, a kids ministry, a senior adults ministry, small groups, choir, and young families. Each working towards their own goal. Each of these ministries is small, mobile, and decentralized, operating independently with its members not knowing the identity of other cells. Even the leaders of these ministries barely know higher up’s in the other ministries.

Just like Osama, when one member of our church succeeds, it rarely seems to bring up the rest of the ministries. It does seem to uplift that person and their ministry only. There are a ton of reasons why this structure doesn’t work. Inevitably, there are ministries that are more glamorous, and will attract more, and talents leaders. But then there are ministries that are always struggling to find help. Is their ministry any less important? I talk a lot about different churches working together toward the common good. But until we understand that within the walls of our own church, it does no good.

The way God designed our bodies is a model for understanding our lives together as a church: every part dependent on every other part, the parts we mention and the parts we don't, the parts we see and the parts we don't. If one part hurts, every other part is involved in the hurt, and in the healing. If one part flourishes, every other part enters into the exuberance. 1 Corinthians 12:25-26 (The Message)

If you are a leader and have people under you in church, I dare you to start “loaning” your leaders to other ministries. I challenge you to make it a requirement for “your” people to help other ministries once a month. Seems like a crazy thought to most of us. But I say the idea that they are “your” people is even crazier. If you are lay leader in any department or ministry, I dare you to go and find a ministry that is struggling and needs help any time you can. I know you just love your worship ministry, but they need help in the preschool class, and that is just as important. Stop being a part of a ministry and be a part of the church. Don’t dare to sit there and watch an outreach or event from some other department fail if you can help it succeed. Make a difference. Change the world.

peace – love – recycle

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Stalk The Killer

There is a mini-series on tv right now called Human Planet. If you haven’t seen it yet, you should definitely check it out. It’s an 8 part series made by the BBC and Discovery Channel. It is a lot like their other mini-series they have put out about animals, both on land and in the water. But for the first time they are focusing on the people of the world. They show things that in our “real” world would get people demonized by PETA. But it's what these people have done for centuries. Whether that is snaring birds from the air with a giant fish net, or blow darting monkeys out of the trees.

Well last night I was watching the episode about the grasslands. There was a tribe that does something for food that can only be described as audacious. Something daring. Something fearless. These tribesmen in Africa badly needed food for their families. So they waited and watched as a pride of about 15 lions take down a wildebeest. It was impressive, but nothing we haven’t seen on National Geographic a million times. What happened next was incredible. Three men from this tribe were sitting about 100 yards away from these blood soaked, feeding, ferocious lions. They watched as the lions started eating this wildebeest and then did something so crazy I thought it was a joke for a minute. They stood up and started walking towards the feeding lions. Sure enough, one by one they scattered. The men walked up, cut one large haunch from the animal, and walked away before the lions came back. The men said, you have to be confident. You have to put on an air of superiority. You have to show NO FEAR, when you want to steal from a lion.

It reminded me of Peter getting out of the boat to walk on water to Jesus. In the face of sure death, he was fine as long as he was confident in the one he was walking toward. What if we as Christians had some confidence to do the audacious? What changes would happen in the world. How many times have you held yourself back from doing something because you just “knew” that it was a “death trap”. People we don’t talk to. Ministry ideas that never leave our heads, our office, or our journal. Outreaches that never see the light of day. We can justify these sometimes by saying things like “I am just waiting for God to open the right doors”, or “Once I understand more about these people, then I will reach out to them”. But there is no where in the bible where it talks of waiting to reach out. In fact, the bible is full of audacious people that did things that were seemingly stupid to the rest of the world, all in the name of Jesus.

With all this going for us, my dear, dear friends, stand your ground. And don't hold back. Throw yourselves into the work of the Master, confident that nothing you do for him is a waste of time or effort. 1 Corinthians 15:58 (The Message)

There is an enemy that is always stalking us. Trying to cause us to fail. If we really believe that God is greater, it is time to come out of hiding, and confidently take the fight to the enemy and quit waiting for an ambush. I dare you today to think about, maybe even remember, that audacious thing that you have never had the confidence to do. It is time to stalk the killer. It is time to be truly confident. It is time to change the world. It is time to be audacious.

peace – love – recycle 

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The New Home

Hey there guys, just a quick note. If you remember, a couple weeks ago I posted about selling Gracey the bus. I talked about how she is gonna be working with a ministry down in Miami that teaches kids to surf. Saw this pic of her today and thought I would share it with you. Remember to keep moving and to change the world wherever you end up.

peace - love - recycle

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Awaken The Sleeping Giant

Japanese Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto was a part of the military in Japan during World War II. Yamamoto believed that Japan could not win a protracted war with the United States. He even seemed to believe that the Pearl Harbor attack was a blunder — even though he was the person who came up with the idea of a surprise attack. He had a famous quote after his attack on Pearl Harbor, "I fear all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve." Yamamoto realized something before it even happened. Even to this day America is a relatively young nation, but he knew that they were a force to be feared if united. After that day, America did something that hasn’t been seen since. We became one. The attacks on 9-11 did something similar, but not nearly to the same scale. After Pearl Harbor, every steel company, car industry, and manufacturing plant in America decided to do whatever it took to help our country win WWII. They quit making cars, steel girders, and sewing machines, and instead started making guns, ships, and ammo. The nation united together to do whatever they could to see our military succeed. What is even crazier was what happened when they put aside their own well being and decided to work towards the common goal. Unemployment in our nation dropped drastically. The average worker started making more money. All in all, our nation flourished because of the united cause.

This blog is not about war, or Japan, or politics. I want to say that right away. It is about how the church can change the world. I hate that I have to put disclaimers on everything, but I will give one more before I start. When I speak of the church, I am speaking of the church that Jesus talks about in Matthew.

You are Peter, a rock. This is the rock on which I will put together my church, a church so expansive with energy that not even the gates of hell will be able to keep it out. Matthew 16:18 Message

It is us. Not a building, or a denomination. It is the people that say they unite under the banner of Jesus and His teaching in the bible. I feel like the church in America today is like the USA the day before Pearl Harbor, December 6, 1941. We all say that we are working toward the same goals, but in reality we have our own enterprise and ideals that we want to see flourish. Of course we want to see the world come to know this same grace and love that we feel. But never at the expense of what WE have created. So today, I want to call out to all true Christians out there. What if we decided to put aside some of our differences. What if we quit arguing or competing over theological superiority. What if we really decided to be united despite our different opinions on the Holy Spirit, or once saved always saved, or baptism. I see incredible things happening everyday from these separate, single celled ministries. What if we forgot for one moment about what we want to happen, and decided to do what God wants to happen. Imagine the whole body of Christ working together to see the world changed. Not looking for a way to benefit, or one up the other guy, but truly ignoring our goals for the goals of Christ.

The whole congregation of believers was united as one—one heart, one mind! They didn't even claim ownership of their own possessions. No one said, "That's mine; you can't have it." They shared everything. The apostles gave powerful witness to the resurrection of the Master Jesus, and grace was on all of them. Acts 4:32-33 Message

Not only would we see the world changed overnight, but we would all have that same grace that we started with. On top of that, I believe that we would see the things that we have spent so much time working towards prosper too.

Remember: A stingy planter gets a stingy crop; a lavish planter gets a lavish crop. I want each of you to take plenty of time to think it over, and make up your own mind what you will give. That will protect you against sob stories and arm-twisting. God loves it when the giver delights in the giving. 2 Corinthians 9:6-7 Message

It is time church to “Awaken The Sleeping Giant”.

peace – love – recycle 

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Goodbyes Are Hard

So this weekend something big happened in my life. A relationship that started a year and a half ago came to an end. I spent thousands of hours understanding, knowing, and nurturing this relationship, and all of a sudden in a second…..it is gone. I feel happy to know that she has moved on to a new life, but still feel a little empty inside.

I sold my bus Gracey.

 I got Gracey as a regular school bus in 2009. I spent about 5 months completely remodeling her into an RV and then lived in her for the last Bike For The Light tour. If you didn’t follow the whole process, you can see it here: Gracey the bus remodel pictures

Seems like a sad day, but it something we all deal with. If we are reaching out to help people, inevitably the day will come when someone that you spent hours mentoring, remodeling, crying with and praying for, will move on. God didn’t create us to sit still. We were created to seek out places that need our help. Places that feel significant. If we are to be like Christ, then we need to actually be like Christ, and be seeking out the hurting and needy around us. For some that means we will move on to a new place or area of the country. Sometimes that means moving on to a new step in life. Sometimes it is a new set of friends or circumstances. But I can say that being still and having your life not change is the exception, and not the rule. If the bible is to be our guide in life, then look to it, and how every major character was always moving around. There is an old saying that motion creates emotion. If you are having a hard time feeling God in your life, or reaching out, then maybe it is time to get moving.

Yes sometimes that will be sad, and you will hate to leave. But then you get to see what is on the other side. You see, Gracey is now going to be used by a non-profit in Miami that teaches underprivileged kids to surf, and the life lessons of sticking to something. I actually found someone that wanted her just the way she was. Pink & blue with a hundred thousand signatures of how students are going to change the world. Who would have ever thought someone would want her just the way she was? I could have kept her here with me, but she would have just rusted away in a parking lot. She moved on to something so much greater. My life is different as well. I moved on to a house, with a wife that is my best friend. There is a time and a place to be still, but don’t be scared to move forward when you are unsure. Do you think Paul was sure what he was doing as he walked the road to Damascus blinded by God? No, but he knew that sometimes to create a change in the world you have to actually change your world. Love the bus. Honor the bus. But get off the bus. Change the world. I love you Gracey. Keep changing the planet.

peace – love – recycle 

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