Our church recently started small groups for our growing number of adults, and we have been talking about the vision of our particular church, which is Loving, Reaching, Growing. The first two weeks were on loving. Loving God with all of my heart, soul, mind, and strength, and translating that into real-life. It was an awesome two weeks.

Today is the third week and the start of the second area, Reaching. I came from a very evangelistic church, so “reaching” is sort of in my blood. But recently, that task has slowly become secondary, and not a primary function of who I am as a follower of Christ.

This morning, Pastor Scott showed a video that I sent him called Jesus Loves the Outcast. In the video, Jason Harper, outreach pastor at Capital Christian Center discusses his relationship with a man he calls “Gay Joe.” Through his friendship with “Gay Joe,” he has broken down many of the stereotypes that Joe had/has of Christians because of his sexual orientation. I love the video, because it truly displays the heart of Christ. “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” That rings true in the video, and it rings true for all mankind.

I loved the video because of it’s about something that is very real, loving homosexuals. I also hate it because it makes me ask what kind of outcasts am I loving? Who am I reaching? I mean, I am a pastor, it should come even easier! But the truth is, it isn’t. I was personally convicted, thinking, “How many people in my apartment complex even know that I am a pastor? How many have I talked to about Christ, let alone talk to at all?

I’m glad my senior pastor has the guts to show a video like that to our church. Sometimes believers need to be rocked out of their comfort zones and even have some of their paradigms challenged. We say, “Love the sinner, hate the sin!” But more often than not, it’s easier to hate the sin than it is to love the sinner. It’s easier to cast judgment and label someone than it is to actually get down with them, enter their world, and love them the way Jesus does.

My wife and I had a great conversation about it afterwards. Sometimes we think evangelism is a huge event or witnessing on the street. That isn’t to say that God can’t use those methods, He certainly does. My life was changed at a huge event. But I think the downfall to those methods is that it can cause the believers to place themselves above the sinner. I love the relational approach because it builds an environment of trust. And that environment is far more fertile soil than a tract, an event, or a street evangelist. As my good friend and mentor Jeanne Mayo says, “Friendship is often the highway the Holy Spirit travels on most.”

In the opening chapter, he boldly writes, “I have become a paid professional Christian.” For me (like many), the tendency is to get so good at doing God’s work that we forget about the God of the work. The work becomes the god. Primal is all about getting back to the roots of Christianity, back to it’s raw form, when it was all about loving God with everything that we are and have.

Anyways, it’s a phenomenal book and I encourage every Christian to read it!

Get Primal today!

Then I met Malia at her home, and she was finishing getting ready for our night out. Since it was her birthday, she got to pick where she wanted to go. We ended up at a Japanese steak house called Hibachi (much like Benihana) in Marysville. At one point in the meal, she asked me if I got her a card for her birthday. I said that I didn’t, but that I got her a gift. She said a kind of disappointing, “Oh.” BUt I didn’t say anything about it after that. We enjoyed a great meal and great entertainment by the cook. Meanwhile, this entire time, I am going over the plan in my mind… “After dinner, I am taking her to the fountain in downtown Yuba City…”

The dinner went without a hitch, and as we walked outside to get into the car, we both shivered in the freezing cold. Knowing that the intense frigid weather would cause severe distractions, I decided against the fountain idea. It was simply far too cold. So I got her in the car, and then said, “Oh! I need to give you your present!” I proceeded to go to the trunk of my car, and shuffle some things around making it sound like I was getting something out of the car. I then told her to close her eyes, and I walked to her side of the car. I opened the door, getting on one knee, and I held the ring out there. She opened her eyes (before I could tell her to!) and gasped as she saw the ring! I then looked at her straight in the eyes, and said, “I just have one question for you…will you marry me?” She gave an exuberant “YES!” to be followed by a big hug!

I then got back in my side of the car, because it was REALLY really cold out! She immediately began texting her ENTIRE contact list on her phone telling them the news. I called my family to inform them of the news as well. Within minutes, she began receiving phone calls and text messages congratulating her on our engagement.

It was an exciting time, and thank you to all who are a part of both of our lives.

My incredible soon-to-be fiance wrote this, and I thought it was worth sharing.

Human beings have such an ugly tendency to be selfish. It’s not news. We all know that selfishness winds an invisible thread throughout the essence of every person. The holiday season broadcasts the selfish weakness of God’s creation with a resonance of a boom microphone with messages like, “What do you want for Christmas?” And “you deserve_________”.

I believe what was once intended to help celebrate the glory of God’s most definitive act of mercy has become a tool to skew our line between need and want, desire and necessity. Commercialism has taken the name of Christmas, the representation of the purpose of Christmas, and fluffed up the most significant moment in human history. Somewhere lost in the glitter of our tinsel, garland, little lights, massive inflatable snow globes and amazing food, lays the message of God’s love for His creation. The message is hidden, but it’s a message of giving. It seems as though we’ve become caught up in giving with the purpose of receiving something in return. In reality, God gave the first Christmas gift: a life. He only longed for relationship from us. Not a watch, expensive perfume or cashmere, etc. rather; He desired us. He so longed for communion with us that He gave.

How often do we give, just for the sake of giving? It doesn’t have to be monetary; it doesn’t have to be expensive. But, how about just a note letting someone know we care? Or baking an extra 12 cookies for someone? Giving doesn’t have to be expensive. Giving just has to be sincere.

My prayer this year is that with all of the economic turmoil, that we would re-focus the purpose of giving. That my own giving would be consistent and that I would remember the faces of people who have nothing. I pray that God will burn the image of a person on each of our hearts, so that we can offer up a prayer and perhaps, a meal or warm blanket. I pray we won’t lose our purpose in the frenzy of commercialism. I pray that Christians will begin to act instead of gossip, pray instead of scowl and hug instead of turn away.

Christmas can [still] change the world. This year, Give Presence.
- Taken from Advent Conspiracy

URGENT PRAYER REQUEST!
AUGUST 27, 2008
Dear beloved sponsors and friends of Good News India,

We have never seen anything like this.

We knew that Orissa was the most resistant and hostile State in India as far as the Gospel is concerned. And we brushed off the continuous threats and harassment we faced as we went about His work.

But none of our staff imagined that they would see this kind of carnage….

And it seems to be totally under the radar of the Western Media…. Let me explain….

A militant Hindu priest and 4 of his attendants, who were zealously going around the villages of Orissa and “reconverting” people back to Hinduism, were gunned down by unknown assailants in Central Orissa last weekend.

Immediately the Christians were blamed. The cry rose up…”Kill the Christians!”

And the horror began….

In the past 4 days, we have first hand witness to hundreds of churches being blown up or burned and many, many dozens of Christian tribals have been slaughtered. For no other reason than they bear the name of Christ.

Night and day I have been in touch with our Good News India Directors spread across 14 Dream Centers in Orissa… they are right in the middle of all this chaos.

In Tihidi, just after the police came to offer protection, a group of 70 blood-thirsty militants came to kill our staff and destroy the home. They were not allowed to get in, but they did a lot of damage to our Dream Center by throwing rocks and bricks and smashing our gate, etc. They have promised to come back and “finish the job.” Our kids and staff are locked inside and have stayed that way with doors and windows shut for the past 3 days. It has been a time of desperately calling on the Lord in prayer. More police have come to offer protection.

In Kalahandi, the police and some local sympathizers got to our dream center and gave our staff and kids about 3 minutes notice to vacate. No one had time to even grab a change of clothes or any personal belonging. As they fled, the blood thirsty mob came to kill everyone in the building. We would have had a mass funeral there, but for His grace.

In Phulbani, the mob came looking for Christian homes and missions. The local Hindu people, our neighbors turned them away by saying that there were no Christians in this area. So they left. We had favor. The same thing happened in Balasore.

All our dream centers are under lock down with the kids and staff huddled inside and police outside. The fanatics are circling outside waiting for a chance to kill.

Others were not so fortunate. In a nearby Catholic orphanage, the mob allowed the kids to leave and locked up a Priest and a computer teacher in a house and burned them to death. Many believers have been killed and hacked into pieces and left on the road…. even women and children.

At another orphanage run by another organization, when this began, the Director and his wife jumped on their motorbike and simply fled, leaving all the children and staff behind. Every one of our GNI directors that I have spoken to said: “We stay with our kids…. we live together or die together, but we will never abandon what God has called us to do.”

More than 5000 Christian families have had their homes burned or destroyed. They have fled into the jungles and are living in great fear waiting for the authorities to bring about peace. But so far, no peace is foreseen. This will continue for another 10 days…. supposedly the 14 day mourning period for the slain Hindu priest. Many more Christians will die and their houses destroyed. Many more churches will be smashed down.

The Federal government is trying to restore order and perhaps things will calm down. We ask for your prayers. Only the Hand of God can calm this storm. None of us know the meaning of persecution. But now our kids and staff know what that means. So many of our kids coming from Hindu backgrounds are confused and totally bewildered at what is happening around them. So many of their guardians have fled into the jungles and are unable to come and get them during these trying times.

Through all this, I am more determined than ever to continue with our goal: the transformation of a community by transforming its children. Orissa will be saved… that is our heart’s cry. If we can take these thousands of throw away children and help them to become disciples of Jesus, they will be transform an entire region. It is a long term goal, but it is strategic thinking in terms of the Great Commission.

What can you do? First, please uphold all this in fervent prayer. Second, pass this e-mail on to as many friends as you can. We must get the word out and increase our prayer base for this is spiritual warfare at its most basic meaning. We are literally fighting the devil in order to live for His Kingdom.

The next 10 days are crucial. We pray for peace and calm to pervade across Orissa.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. Please pass it on and help us to get as many people to partner with us on this cutting edge effort to fulfill His mandate: Go and make disciples of all nations….

Blessings!
Dr. Faiz Rahman
Chairman/Founder
Good News India

India: Christians face ‘reign of terror’ in Orissa, says church official
India tells Vatican it is capable of handling Orissa situation

*Note: I preached this to several older church members. So I was careful.

I ran across this quote today, and it really nailed me. For the last few weeks, I have really starting noticing that my students aren’t really feeling connected with each other as well as with me. How can I teach principles of God’s Word if i don’t even know them? I sat here writing sermons and teaching materials and really didn’t even know what my students needed. God is really helping me to unlearn some things and relearn others in this ministry.

I have been in discussions with a friend about church and the mission that Christ left us with. It all boils down to relationships. Being Jesus in the place that we are in. Big outreaches, high-tech services, amazing musicians, and great preaching are no longer going to cut it anymore. In fact, I don’t think they have been cutting it at all.

Over the years, I have been involved in two larger youth ministries (larger numerically). Each of them were very structured and had everything in it’s place. There was obvious growth. But I look back, and there was addition, but not multiplication. People were added regularly, but ministry wasn’t multiplied. We inevitably ended up causing other people to become just like us. We did outreach after outreach, “winning” people to Christ. Or was that adding them to our attendance? Sometimes we get the two confused (ok, not sometimes. All the time). I am starting to see that events that draw crowds and even programs intended on keeping them are effective, but I wonder if they are efficient.

The emerging generation has heard and seen it all. They are aware at some level of many systems of belief. They know there are varying views of faith. They will carefully weigh what they perceive as the core of that faith. They will listen to what they see and hear on TV and other media about that faith group. They are very open to Jesus and Who He is. But they are not open to us. they are fascinated with Jesus and His message. They are not interested in His bride. Part of the reason is that we are quick to tell them our “only way to heaven” message without even entering their world. We treat them like some kind of trophy or award to be achieved rather than a person with feelings and thoughts.

Much of what I have been reading has a common theme. Community. What the Body of Christ is lacking is a sense of community. Not a Christian sub-community or a “bubble of Christian sub-culture” as Dan Kimball calls it. But a real community letting in real people. An environment where people’s lives are engaged and thoughts are laid out.

I noticed in Acts 2, after the first baptism of the Holy Spirit on Day of Pentecost, a picture of what the early church looked like.

42 All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper), and to prayer. 43 A deep sense of awe came over them all, and the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders. 44 And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. 45 They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need. 46 They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity—47 all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved.

This passage describes community more than it describes a building, an outreach, an event, a service, and a message. And it closes with, “each day the Lord added to their fellowship.” They weren’t added to the program. They weren’t issued membership applications. They didn’t get an impersonal letter thanking them for their attendance. But they joined the fellowship. I wonder if many came to the various gatherings because of relationships long before they believed.

“They don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” I don’t even know where I first heard that or who said it first. But it’s so true. This last week for our youth service, I completely dropped the entire agenda and took all of our students to Starbucks just to hang out. I am realizing more and more that ministry is about relationships. People need to feel like they belong before they will believe our message. So why then do we structure ministry around what we know rather than structuring ministry around how much we care?

P.S. This is part 2 of They Like Jesus But Not The Church.

We live in a place where the church is no longer the central hub of society. If anything, the church is an archaic reminder of what used to be. People aren’t flocking to the church anymore. Yet, Jesus is still very much in our culture. The other day, I was at the grocery store in my college town community and saw a college age guy with one of those “Jesus is my homeboy” t-shirts. At Urban Outfitters, you can buy Jesus t-shirts and other merchandise like a Jesus bobblehead, a Jesus action figure, a Grow-Your-Own-Jesus to name a few.

If you ask people what they think of Jesus, the answer is usually pretty positive. Unsaved people generally like Him. They generally think of Jesus with great respect and admiration. You might hear things like he was a great prophet. He helped the poor and widows. He was a great philosopher. He genuinely cared for people.

But ask them about the church, and you get a very different response. Meanwhile, church people are oblivious to this because they are generally satisfied living in a Christian subculture bubble. The mindset of most church people (at least from what I see) is that they just want the world to conform to the ways of the church. We expect the world to just “get a clue” and come back to God and the church. This attitude comes across in how we treat unsaved people when we meet them. We don’t tip well those who serve us, we grumble and complain at Starbucks when our coffee isn’t made right, we sit and bash the service that we just attended while eating at a public restaurant. Then we want people to come to church and become just like us!

I love the idea of a “missional church” as I read about in They Like Jesus But Not The Church by Dan Kimball. I’m sure I can find a more in depth description of a missional church elsewhere, but the gist of it is the leadership and people of the church function as local missionaries in their community. Instead of separating our church life and “other” life, they become one and the same. The reality of the matter is that we are no longer living in a Christian culture. But people of the church somehow have missed this fact, and are waiting for the the “lost” to figure life out and come to God. Being a missional church and even a missional Christian is much like the way a missionary enters a different culture to learn the culture first. They spend time learning the values system, the spiritual views, customs and traditions, etc. Then they take that information and weave the message of the gospel into it AFTER they have spent considerable time building solid relationships with the people of the culture. In this way, they gain the trust of the people, and feel as though they are genuinely cared for by the church. The culture HAS to be entered! We must enter their world if we want any chance to win them!

Then when we do outreaches, we often treat people like a proselytizing project rather than a human being. We immediately attack them with our witnessing bullets, having an answer to just about any reply. When was the last time we sat back and just listened to unsaved people? When was the last time we really built a solid relationship with people that are lost? There has to be a dramatic shift in the eyes of the church if we are going to actually fulfill Christ’s commission to us. He didn’t say, “Make the world come to you to make them disciples.” But rather, “Go…”

Jesus never told us to avoid the world. But rather to be lights to the world. John 17:15 quotes a prayer of Jesus to the Father regarding the saints, saying, “I’m not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from the evil one.” It’s really easy for us to lose sight of our mission and call when we are around “church” people all of the time. God did not call us to live in a Christian “bubble” so that we could be safe from the world.

In a blog about discipleship, another close friend writes,

Jesus knew that to effectively train up people to do God’s work, there needed to be bonding, relationship building and constant investment. Jesus knew that His disciples would respond to his lessons more positively if there had been some “hang out” time the same week.

It’s all about getting into the ditches where people are and building a relationship with them. I remember a leadership quote from long ago, “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” Do unsaved people that we know (that I know) have a tremendous feeling that we (even I) care about them?

I was discussing this with a very good friend and mentor in ministry, and she had this to say to me:

Last week I was the “pastor on call” (which means any walk in or call ins come to me). A lady from our church called, and long story short, she drove by a young pregnant girl standing on the street about a mile from our church with a sign that she was homeless. So this lady from our church is asking me to go and help her! I was absolutely speechless. This lady drives by, has a heart for a pan handler, and calls the church asking if a pastor will go and help her. Man, I wanted to just REAM her. Instead, I tried to discreetly point out that maybe God had put her on her heart for a reason. She says, “What are trying to say? That I should turn around and help her in the middle of my busy day on my way to an appointment?” Can you believe it Tony? Anyway, she ends up going to talk to the girl herself and then she calls me after. I am thinking, “Well good, at least she went and did it herself.” Oh no, she is calling to tell me that she had to get lunch anyway, so she got some lunch and then stopped to talk to the girl. NOT to buy her lunch, but to tell her that one of the pastors from her church would be coming by shortly to help her. I just about blew a gasket. To me, that was everything wrong with church people today. It is the church’s job to fix the world.

Dear God, help us! We need to have Your heart again for people!

Since there is NO youth ministry here at all, I am literally starting from the foundation, and that is just building relationships. There are great things in the works, but right now, I am simply focusing on getting to know the students that I have. Once I get in with them, I can start to build on that foundation.

I appreciate all of your continued prayers. The road ahead is a long one, and I know that I am still in the “honeymoon” phase so to speak. Everything right now is very optimistic and cheery, but I know that there is hard work to be done. So here we go!

Before the last weekend, someone was supposed to finalize their rental agreement and move in to the place. It was the only 2 bed1/bath available in the place, so the pastor and I were praying! Also, one of the board members lives in the complex as well. As of last Saturday (Sept 29), the deal fell through, and the apartment became available! Pastor Scott was quick to call me and let me know!

Monday morning, he went over and looked at the place, had nothing but great things to say about it, and faxed the paperwork over to me. I filled out the paperwork and had it faxed back to him around 3pm. Here is where God is amazing, and I can see how He is orchestrating the next chapter of my life. At 4.30pm that same afternoon, the apartment owner called me to tell me that all of my paperwork was in good order, that I had excellent credit, and that they would be happy to rent to me! I was shocked, needless to say. God is so good.