February 17, 2015  

What My Friend Has Taught Me

Best Friends

I have a friend.

My friend is one of the most inspiring people I know.

But my friend is the only person I know that regularly tells me how bad of a person he is.

He’s not afraid to tell me about the ugliest parts of his life, even the parts that should make people uncomfortable.

And every time he tells me about the ugly parts of his life, I love him so much more.

Because every time he tells me about himself, I’m convinced I know the real him. I’m not interacting with an inspiring facade. I’m interacting with him.

More importantly, my inspiring friend is giving me permission to be weak, too.

So I don’t have to be perfect to be inspiring. I can just be me, in the place the Lord has me, imperfections and all.

And the imperfect, transparent me can inspire others. Transparency begets transparency, it seems, in this transforming walk we are on.

So, to my weak but inspiring friend, thanks. You have no idea how much it means, in this world of super men, to have a friend who shows you what its like to live with Kryptonite.

You’ve shown that men can be super and still weak. Inspiring, yet with blemishes. Pursue truth and be truthful.

“My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” – Jesus (2 Corinthians 12:9)

Photo Credit: Best Friends by George Koruth

February 12, 2015  

When Podcasts Collide: Competition, Blue Oceans, and Church Planting

Brian Sanders JD Payne

It’s not often that I hear two excellent podcasts about the missional task in front of the church in America.  It’s even rarer when I hear two podcasts back to back that build off of one another.

Case in point: Yesterday I had the opportunity to listen to a podcast by Brian Sanders of the Undergound Network.  This podcast is a presentation he gave that touched on the church’s tendency to compete with itself and fight over believers because it cannot imagine other mission fields and other expressions of Christianity that won’t compete with another church.  If you are a church leader, I highly recommend you listen to this podcast at least once if not twice. It will challenge your motives. You can listen here.

Next up after Brian’s podcast was the Start Strong podcast by Patrick Fore. This podcast featured JD Payne, a missiologist and paster at the Church at Brook Hills.  JD has thought a lot about the apostolic mission of the church and about half way through the podcast he begins to describe the new mission field opportunities that are a kind of answer to the questions Brian asked in his presentation. My favorite part so far is where he says the church planters he sends out, he is encouraging a 95 to 100 percent conversion rate. This is a critical podcast if to catch if you’ve thought about church planting. You can listen here.

Remember, I always recommend things with certain caveats.
February 7, 2015  

Remember…

Remember

Never forget that when I recommend another resource, whether it’s a book, podcast, blog, or something else, that I’m not necessarily endorsing everything in that resource.  I believe that we can learn from people we disagree with, even people we strongly disagree with.

I believe when it comes to resources that I recommend, that you can “eat the chicken, but spit out the bones.” That means you can take from any resource the things that are helpful even if they occur alongside of something that may not be helpful.  This requires you and I to be discerning and wise.

God calls us, like Jeremiah, to separate the precious things from the vile ones. Only the Bible is inspired and only Jesus was perfect, so take every recommendation I make with a grain of salt and if you have a specific concern about something I reference, please email me at PursuingGlory@gmail.com.

Photo Credit: Remember by Loving Earth

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