Category: Uncategorized

Hugh Halter and Matt Smay have written an interesting book on "Creating Incarnational Community."  It's a good read.  Following is not a book review, rather just some notes (and quotes) that I wrote after reading it: Author Hugh Halter tells this story: As I’m sitting at a Starbucks in the final week of editing this book, I…

David Watson presented a one-day web seminar on church planting movements.  Notes and links to this webinar are below. Many feel, as I do, that the movement toward simple/house churches has the potential of paving the way for the rapid multiplication of churches, by the hand of God, often referred to as church planting movements. …

A picture sent to us from our daughter-in-law:

The process of thinking about, practicing, re-thinking, re-imagining, and re-experimenting is exactly where the church needs to be today as it struggles to shed some irrelevant outer garments and seeks to uncover the shape it is morphing into. I have seen the benefits of moving away from more traditional structures and into church forms that…

I just want to mention a few books of interest. Pagan Christianity, by Frank Viola and George Barna.  This is an update of Viola’s former book that is receiving mainline attention despite its hard-hitting message of God’s original design and intention for his church.  The thesis: “Most of what present-day Christians do in church each…

In case you have not heard from some other source, we are involved in a group effort to bring relief to some of the victims of the violence in Kenya that broke out two months ago. My wife and I were there 9 weeks ago, so the tragedies have been very personal and upfront, involving…

Dave Wainscott has put together some excellent quotes around the topic of “Worship is not Music.” “It would be true to say that during the last twenty-five years or so amongst those churches which would own the label ‘evangelical’, a significant change in understanding has taken place over the meaning of the word ‘worship’. If…

Ian Mobsby posts a talk that begins with the following quote from the theologian Voot suggesting the need for a deep spirituality among those who enjoy simple, participative church structures: A participative model of the church requires more than just values and practices that correspond to participative institutions. The church is not first of all…

(Following are my notes on Deb Hirsch’s talk at the CMA Organic Movements Conference earlier this month.  This is the abbreviated version.  You can download my longer notes here: 7_obstacles_to_engaging_in_mission_deb_hirsch.doc ) The fall away rate for people who continue to be really involved in mission is very high.  People get older and become church attendees,…

Perhaps the church is neither emerging nor re-structuring so much as re-claiming its true nature as an underground, insurgent movement.  By that I mean that the truest work of the Holy Spirit always seems to be initiated among the least and the unseen bringing forth true kingdom life that is contrary and even subversive to…