"The Bible tells us to love our neighbors and to love our enemies; probably because they are generally the same people." -- G.K. Chesterton
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We were able to start our church in San Diego because a band of courageous Christ-followers took a bold step: they sold their church building. After years of declining attendance, the building was debt-free but little money was left over for ministry. Rather than just hold on, they liquidated their biggest asset and used the funds to start two new churches. The ripples of that decisions are still being felt. All across the country there are scores of faithful believers who meet in small numbers every Sunday. Their love of God remains unchanged. Their desire to see people come to know Jesus is still there. Unfortunately, they often lack the resources they need to make an impact in their community. Weekly offerings pay the utilities and a part-time salary. They are under-resourced with one exception: they may own their property "free and clear." At this point, I see four options:…
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When we planted our church in San Diego in 2005 (yay LifePoint!), we intentionally started in a redeveloping community. Two years later we were privileged to assist in our own small way a new church plant in the heart of downtown San Diego (Citywalk Christian Church). Over the years I've become convinced we need to purposefully target urban areas, here in the United States and around the world. There was a time in American history when a majority of the population lived in rural areas. That is no longer the case. In fact, nearly 17% of the United States population lives in one of five metropolitan areas: New York, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles and Philadelphia. These same five cities are dramatically under-churched. And they are not alone. You could add to that list Denver, Seattle, San Diego, San Francisco, Boston, Miami, and Peoria (I had to give a shout-out to…
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Growing leaders in any facet of life are always trying to answer the same question: "What's next?" During a season of growth, it might be tempting to consider settling down, playing it safe. It might seem reasonable to rest and enjoy. What appears to be a summit may actually be a plateau. A good leader will be thinking ahead ... "What's next?" When we find ourselves in the midst of a struggle, it's easy to ask "What's next?" and to expect that the answer means a release from our tension and conflict. That may be the answer; it also may not be the answer. The answer may lie in what God wants to teach us during the journey. Emerging stronger, we ask again "What's next?" Asking "What's next?" keeps us focused on the future -- on growing, developing, learning, and maturing. What's next for you?
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"“Once in seven years I burn all my sermons; for it is a shame if I cannot write better sermons now than I did seven years ago.” John Wesley Upon returning home after my dad died, I found a collection of notes and outlines from sermons I had delivered back when I was a teenager. As I read through them, it was as if I was having an out-of-body experience. "Did I really say that?" was a common thought that kept popping in my head. If I could have found every person who had happened to hear one of those messages, I would have apologized on the spot. Did they contain gross errors? Not necessarily. Often it was a matter of how I said something -- or the dogmatic certainty about issues that I no longer was dogmatic about it. Those were messages I had preached when I was 15-17 …
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