Watch how some of my friends are seeking to be a missional community in the Northside of Richmond Virginia, my hometown.Part of the struggle of missional community where they live:Their house has bullet holes from a shooting in front of their house. Their cars have been vandalized, … [Read more...]
Finding out your community needs
September 1, 2009 By Leave a Comment
I spent time giving some evangelism coaching a church yesterday.The questions of the day revolved around finding and meeting community needs.A majority of church members are no longer within 5 miles of the neighborhood that has transitioned from blue collar to immigrant. As such, there is … [Read more...]
They Like Jesus But Not The Church – A Review
June 7, 2009 By Leave a Comment
I recently picked up and reread my copy of They like Jesus, but not the Church by Dan Kimball, in review to a post I read this week at the Christian Manifesto.Kimball gears his book at those who want to get out of the Christian subculture and actually engage people in spiritual … [Read more...]
Pain of Job Loss, Housing Loss and Credit Debt
February 7, 2009 By Leave a Comment
Some glimpse in the the mind set of the US.While the government reports numbers, you likely know a real face, a real story, a real person who is behind these statistics.Do you know someone affected by these numbers? How can you communicate the peace of Christ to them? Read on. Job … [Read more...]
The Church has left the Building
October 29, 2008 By 2 Comments
One of the blogs I read (Fierce Grace) decided to do something entirely different on a Sunday morning. Cancel the service. Serve the neighborhood. Read about it at The Church Has Left the Building. I have often mentioned that some churches can do this. I can't imagine Mars Hill or Seacoast … [Read more...]
Pilgrimage on the Edges
October 21, 2008 By 1 Comment
Today, I bring you another guest article, by Christian Dominic Boyd of www.celtichound.org. Christian is also pastor of New Creation, a Presbyterian new church development in O’Fallon, Illinois, which is part of the St Louis metro area. He and I were co-presenters at the … [Read more...]
Moving from Attractional to Missional
September 27, 2008 By Leave a Comment
I've spent the last month talking with pastors around the US about church transformation. A few pastors are in really difficult situations (read more at: Leaving Egypt and Not Liking it).From those discussions, it seems that a common meaning of church transformation is Church transformation … [Read more...]
How One Church Re-engaged the Neighborhood
September 26, 2008 By 9 Comments
What can we do to survive? Thus began a conversation ten years ago with a dying church in a transitional neighborhood.The church invited me to do some Evangelism Consulting with them about launching a new worship service.That topic was the buzz of the time and the church leaders simply … [Read more...]
Is Neighborhood Outreach Evangelism?
August 28, 2008 By 8 Comments
In the course of my consulting and speaking at evangelism training workshops, I've encountered many churches that have very active outreach and community service programs:After school tutoring Shut in or Prisoner Visitation Habitat for Humanity work projects Medical outreaches for the … [Read more...]
Friday Finds
August 8, 2008 By Leave a Comment
Adrian Warnock asks: Should You be a Church Plant Leader? In it he gives video and a list of 20 questions that every church planter should ask. I was a church planter one, and I work with church planters now. This is a great inventory to add to the list. Joshua Cody at Church … [Read more...]
