We Are Now Part of the Show
The stage of the Indiana University Auditorium in Bloomington, Indiana.
Every week, two or three of the guys in my house church eat breakfast at an inner-city McDonald’s to pray for the lost, talk accountability, and discuss what we’re reading in the Bible.
Because this is a McDonald’s of the inner-city variety, there’s always something entertaining going on: The janitor walking out of the bathroom reacting to the mess he’s found inside, some kind of fight breaking out in the lobby, or a guy on a hover board riding back and forth through lobby while never buying anything. We’ve come to call our Sunday McDonald’s experience “dinner and a show.”
What’s happened as we’ve continued to meet there week after week is we’ve become some of the regulars. Not only that, but we’ve found if we make ourselves available, we regularly have chances to share Jesus with the men and women who come to McDonald’s on Sunday mornings. As you might guess, most of the people who are there at that time aren’t believers.
So a few days ago we were sharing the Gospel with a new friend at McDonald’s. We weren’t yelling by any means, but because of the close nature of the building, you could hear what we were saying pretty clearly if you wanted to. I was sure others heard us. And I realized something: We had become part of “the show.” We are the guys who are always sharing Jesus in the midst of this already unconventional restaurant. We had become part of the unusual cast of characters that gather here.
This isn’t a bad thing. Quite the contrary, Jesus called us to be “salt and light,” (Matthew 5:13-16). Salt, in addition to be a preserving agent, is also something we use to bring out the flavor of our food. We actually make things better and more interesting as we live out our lives a salt and light. Instead of blending in or hiding, my friends and I are starting to embrace the drama we’ve been called to be a part of. We’re the Jesus guys at McDonalds on Sunday morning. My point is that instead of blending in in this environment (whether people like it or not) we stand out. Our hope is we not only get to be salt, but that in time our light will break through the darkness and people will be changed.
How about you? Somewhere, in your life, you are called to be salt and light. Neither salt or light go unnoticed. They don’t blend in; they stand out. They change the environment they enter. Aren’t you tired of sitting in the seats watching? Somewhere, it’s time for you, in your own way, to become part of the show.
Will you join me?
Photo Credit: Indiana University Auditorium Stage by Joey Lax-Salinas
Michael Frost on the Power of Stories
So just to mix things up a bit, I thought I would post a series of quotes by Michael Frost. For those of you who don’t know Michael, he along with Alan Hirsch have been pushing leaders, churches, and movements to leave their comfortable lives and engage on God’s mission. What follows is a series of quotes from his message at Exponential East this year, as recounted by Matt Hill on his website, Matthill.org. I hope you enjoy!
People aren’t primarily moved or changed by bullet points or sermons. They are changed when you give them a different story to live into.
and
God captures not by force, but by the imagination of his fallen creatures.
and finally…
Encoded into the DNA of suburban American is “be safe”, “build houses,” “renovate your kitchen,” “send your kids to the best schools.” Left to their own devices they will be sucked into the American dream. The only thing that will draw them out is story….Stop only telling people that Jesus died on the cross for their sins. Tell them what it could look like if they lived like Jesus. Tell them the story of God and what it could look like if they saw heaven.
Food For Thought: Evangelism and Community Edition
Every week here at Pursuing Glory I try to bring together the best posts I’ve found that will equip the end-times church to operate in her God-ordained destiny. These are the best blogs, articles, books and other resources related to our purpose here at this site. Feel free to visit, comment, and make use of the resources found at each site.From Institution to Communitas
Over the past several months we’ve seen our house church change from a community of Christ following families into something a little more bent on discipling the nations. The implications have been messy but well worth the change. Interestingly enough, a lot of the thought provoking articles from this week are around those very same topics. And now, on with the links.
Love Others Bob at Logan Leadership writes about what it means to be a movement that loves others. Bob’s insights are short and profound, but they can be summed up with one of the mantras I’m always sharing with believers in my life: “History is defined by those who show up.”
Should We Increase Community at the Expense of Being Missional? Felicity at SimplyChurch has been tackling the very real issue of community development vs. mission that so many house churches find themselves in.
From Institution to Communitas Ross at theJesusVirus takes a stab at the community vs. mission question with this post, drawing on insights from the phenomenal book, The Forgotten Ways. This post shows the progression of a church from an institution to a family to an army and is a needed concept among organic churches everywhere.
Confessions of the World’s Worst Evangelist Steve at Movements.net writes about how the Lord has changed him from the world’s worst evangelist to a worker in the harvest.
Photo Credit: Design Probes – Food for Thought by centralasian.
Cluster Map
Pursuing Glory 