This past week I spent a few hours in Lakewood at the Bear Valley Church. They hosted a new Denver church planting network called "Breakthrough Leaders." The question is this: how can we work together to impact our region for Christ? It's an important question because one church or one denomination cannot reach everybody. Church history, including the modern chapters, has been plagued by a turf mentality. We see our friends and neighbors as fish within our fishing pond -- and no one else should fish there. It doesn't matter that most churches aren't catching many fish. A better analogy might be to see our friends and neighbors as prisoners in a spiritual war. Does it matter who sets the captive free? Is it acceptable to allow people to remain captives? I sat next to Reg Cox, the minister of the Lakewood Church of Christ. I grew up in the…
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On December 17, 1903, after many attempts, the Wright brothers were successful in getting their "flying machine" off the ground. They immediately telegraphed their sister, Katherine, with this message: "We have actually flown 120 feet. We will be home for Christmas." Katherine hurried to the editor of the local newspaper with the exciting news. He took the telegram and responded, “How nice. The boys will be home for Christmas.” Amazingly, he totally missed the fact they had actually flown 120 feet! It's possible to be so caught up in the ordinary tasks of the day that we completely miss those amazing moments around us.
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Every now and then I get to hang out with church planters. Most of them haven't shaved in a few days and wear wrinkled shirts ... just kidding -- I used to be one of those guys. Come to think of it, there are days I still look like one :-) Yesterday was one of those days. In the early afternoon I spent time with Jonathan Simpson, a guy who is looking to plant in South Denver. He's on staff at The Rock of Southwest, a church that has birthed three churches and a new campus in six years. I enjoyed hearing his vision of starting a movement rather than just a church. When Tonya and I planted a church with Stadia, they challenged us to define success in terms of having a granddaughter church. In other words, not one church but three or more. Then last night I enjoyed…
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One of the things I enjoyed the most about living in the Bay Area in the late 90's was the energy of the tech industry. There were start-ups springing up everywhere. You'd meet guys at Starbucks (or Peet's!) who were writing their business plan on the back of a napkin. When I ventured into that world in 1999, I found myself attending networking events in San Francisco with other young guys looking to strike a deal, get a job, or just enjoy the food. Lots of free food. The idea was simple: you walk up to someone, introduce yourself, and ask what they did. Within a few minutes you knew if you needed to talk more or bow out gracefully and move to the next person. As a pastor, I was accustomed to meeting new people and loved every minute of it. Did I mention the free food? One of…
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In simple terms, the "gospel" refers to the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. Through his atoning death and the power of his resurrection, he is able to make wayward sinners friends of God. In short, he is able to do for us what we are unable to do for ourselves. As one called to preach, I've thought about how the gospel should infuse our preaching. Not every message must be an explicit explanation of the gospel. But every message should strike a note of hope, offering a bit of gospel to the topic at hand. Gospel-centered preaching recognizes that the true power of transformation lies with God, not within us. Reconciliation, forgiveness, patience, endurance -- and other godly virtues -- are the result of allowing God to work in our lives. When we give the impression that we are "three steps" from any life change without mentioning God's role,…
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