circular thoughts

ReJesus: A Wild Messiah for a Missional Church

ReJesus:A Wild Messiah for a Missional Church, is the latest offering by Michael Frost and Alan Hirsch.  In this book Frost and Hirsch argue that the church in the West has lost her focus and direction and needs to recalibrate her mission around the person and work of King Jesus.  They do this by exploring the "connection between the way of Jesus and the religion of Christianity" (6).

When I am asked if I am a Christian I normally respond by asking the person to explain what they think a Christian is.  Almost without fail the answer I get is not the same as my understanding.  For example, in the United States, I often hear things like, "A Christian is a Republican," or, "A Christian is a person who hates gay people," or "A Christian is a person who is mean and judgmental" and various other not so flattering descriptives.  When I am overseas I hear things like, "A Christian is a pork eating, wine drinking, adulterer," if I am in the Muslim world, or, "A Christian is one of these," which is said while making the sign of the cross on their chest.  I honestly do not remember anyone ever answering my question with anything close to my understanding of what a Christian is; that is a person who follows the way of Jesus.

This is exactly what Frost and Hirsch seem to be suggesting in this book.  The church, at least in the West, has been taken captive by so many special interests and denominational superstar personalities that no one really knows what this thing we call Christianity is really all about anymore.  The answer, according to the authors, and I agree, is to return to our founder, to ReJesus the church.

When the called out ones (which is the meaning of the Greek word ekklesia which is translated church in our English Bibles) turn back to Jesus some very interesting things begin to happen.  First, the called out ones will follow the example of Jesus not some denominational founder or superstar.  The called out ones will also take back up the practice of equipping everyone to be ministers of the gospel instead of seeking to simply get people into pews.  The called out ones will also take on an outward focus of service instead of the consumeristic what's in this for me downward spiral that seems to have entrapped so many.  The called out ones will have a much broader understanding and experience of worship.  They will see it as a service to mission as all things are offered up to God, not just some songs.  The called out ones will practice the presence of Jesus in ways that are not performance based or legalistic but instead an "intense and private connection between a disciple and his or her heavenly Father" (182).  The called out ones will see the need for consistent re-evanglization so as to avoid the pitfall of becoming self-reliant and self-righteous.  In other words, the called out ones will continually remember the cross and what Jesus did for us so as to not slip into a false belief that it is our "pietism or our personal devotion that sets us free" 184).  The called out ones will "abandon its preference for good-manners piety and adopt again the kingdom values as taught by Jesus" (184).  Finally, the called out ones will devote themselves to scripture and the exercise of the spiritual gifts, for the purpose of building up and caring for each other.  (The points in this paragraph were taken from Chapter 7 - The Church That Jesus Built, pages 165 - 189)

I liked this book very much.  It is actually my favorite out of all the books that Frost and Hirsch have written, both as co-authors and individually.  My recommendation is this; if when you read the Bible you see a difference between the way of Jesus and the religion of Christianity, then buy the book and read it.  If you don't see a difference, then don't buy the book.

For additional reviews of this book go to the page dedicated to this book on The Ooze Viral Bloggers site.

A Theology as Big as the City

Bakke, Ray. 1997. A Theology as Big as the City. Downers Grove, IL. InterVarsity Press.

Ray Bakke is Chancellor and distinguished professor of global urban ministry at Bakke Graduate University in Seattle, Washington.  He founded International Urban Associates (IUA) in 1989.  IUA has developed and facilitated a network of more than 100 urban-based church and mission leaders in many of the largest cities of the world.  Bakke has extensive experience in urban ministry having worked in more than 200 large cities on six continents.  He has also authored The Urban Christian: Effective Ministry in Today's Urban World (InterVarsity, 1987).1

The thesis of this book is that the primary challenge of the church regarding the city is theological. (14)

Bakke takes 26 chapters to develop and defend his thesis.  In the first chapter, Bakke tells his story of how he was pushed and led into urban ministry.  Chapters 2 through 13 are an exegesis of a consistent Old Testament theme of the city.  In these chapters, Bakke discusses the role of the city in God’s mission to reconcile his creation.  Chapter 14 is a look at the role of the city in the intertestamental period.  Chapters 15 through 24 continue the exegesis of the city, but from a New Testament perspective.  Chapter 25 is committed to describing some of the author’s urban ministry heroes and heroines.  The final chapter is Bakke’s conclusion of his theology of the city and it includes a listing and description of ten tensions or themes that he sees as critical to a balanced approach to urban ministry.

I liked this book very much and believe that the author did an excellent job of defining and defending his thesis.  His personal storytelling style of writing evidences his extensive experience and adds great authority to the book.  This book was a paradigm shifter for me.  In particular, there are two different themes that I see having a major impact on my current ministry context.  First, the church must repent of its nationalistic tendencies.   Second, the missionary strategies of Paul were city oriented, which is something that I must learn to embrace as a sender.

In several chapters, Bakke addresses how our nationalistic tendencies are not a part of the plan of God.  He shows from the stories of Jonah, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Ruth, the Jerusalem Council in Acts and several others that “the whole gospel for the whole city is what’s required” (100), not just for those who are like us.  He also points out that Stephen’s sermon, in Acts 7, seems to be focused on calling into question “Israel’s ethnocentrism and geographical patriotism” (141).  For this, Stephen was killed.  He then points out that many Americans are guilty of a similar thing by “wrapping the gospel in the U.S. flag” (141).  This type of ethnocentrism is nothing short of a sin against God and his plan to redeem all peoples.  We, the church, must repent of this if we are going to join in God’s plan.

In Chapter 19, Bakke outlines Paul’s urban missionary methods.  First, Paul always approached cities instead of rural areas.  The key is how Paul approached each city he went to.  Paul’s wisdom was in realizing that no two cities were the same.  Paul “varied the three m’s - the message, the meeting place and the methodology - to better reach the different audiences of those cities” (154).  We must learn to do the same.  We must learn to seek where the Holy Spirit is already at work in a particular context and then design our strategies around such.  Paul’s methods show that this is both an acceptable and effective approach to finishing the task.

1 Board of Regents - BGU.edu - Bakke Graduate University. http://www.bgu.edu/profiles/regents (accessed February 14, 2009).

Good to Great

Collins, Jim. 2001. Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap... and Others Don’t.  New York, NY. HarperCollins Publishers.

Jim Collins researches great companies to learn how they grow.  He takes what he learns and teaches good companies how to become great companies.  He has written and co-written four books including Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies, which he co-wrote with Jerry I. Porras.  Collins holds degrees in business administration and mathematical sciences from Stanford University, and honorary doctoral degrees from the University of Colorado and the Peter F. Drucker Graduate School of Management at Claremont Graduate University. 1

The thesis of this book is that “almost any organization can substantially improve its stature and performance, perhaps even become great, if it conscientiously applies the framework of ideas” (5) presented in the book.

Collins takes nine chapters to develop and defend his thesis.  Chapter 1 is an introduction to the thesis of the book along with a description of the research process followed by Collins and his staff.  The next seven chapters each discuss one of the key concepts Collins presents as key to going from good to great.  These concepts are, Level 5 Leadership, First Who...Then What, Confront the Brutal Facts (Yet Never Lose Faith), The Hedgehog Concept (Simplicity within the Three Circles, A Culture of Discipline, Technology Accelerators and The Flywheel and the Doom Loop.   In the final chapter, From Good to Great to Built to Last, Collins links the findings from this present book to his findings from his previous book, Built to Last.

I liked this book and believe that Collins did a good job of developing and defending his thesis.  I feel that  Built to Last provided more practical applications than Good to Great, but Collins’ discussion in the last chapter of how the two studies go together and how Good to Great is like a prequel to Built to Last helped provide some synthesis and overlap between the books.

I am reading from a non-profit, ministry context.  I found solid concepts in each chapter that will help me in my leadership.  There were two, however, that stood out to me above all others.  There were Level 5 Leadership and Confront the Brutal Facts (Yet Never Lose Faith).

Level 5 Leadership describes several characteristics of great leaders.  Level 5 leaders are “a paradoxical mix of personal humility and professional will” (39).  They are driven to achieve great things beyond themselves and are able to put the goals of the company, or ministry, above their own personal goals.  They are also able to accept the blame when things go wrong.  The key, in my opinion, to being a Level 5 Leader is humility.  As I read this chapter I was drawn to Matthew 20:20-28, where Jesus discusses with his disciples the practice of servant leadership.  We must learn to lead through humility.  This will result in great things.

Collins discusses what he calls the Stockdale Paradox in Chapter 4.  The Stockdale Paradox requires a leader to “retain absolute faith that you can and will prevail in the end, regardless of the difficulties, AND at the same time confront the most brutal facts of your current reality, whatever they might be” (88).  This concept speaks of bravery and perseverance.  It speaks of an ability to confront issues head on and get to the root cause without wavering from fear.  It reminds me again of Jesus’ teaching his disciples to persevere in the face of persecution (see Matthew 24:3-14).  Strong leaders and ministries must do the same.  This is both our calling and the example we have been given.

1 Jim Collins “Biography,” http://www.jimcollins.com/bio/index.html (accessed March 8, 2009).

The Starfish and the Spider

Brafman, Ori and Rod A Beckstrom. 2006. The Starfish and the Spider: The Unstoppable Power of Leaderless Organizations. New York, NY. Penguin Group.

Ori Brafman holds a BA in peace and conflict studies from the University of California at Berkeley and an MBA from Stanford Business School.  He is an entrepreneur who has founded a wireless start-up, a health-food advocacy group and a group of CEOs working on public benefit projects.  Rod A Beckstrom holds a BA and an MBA from Stanford and was a Fulbright Scholar.  He is also an entrepreneur and founded CATS Software, Inc., which he took public.  He has also helped start and build other high-tech firms. (book jacket) 

The thesis of this book is that organizations that are decentralized and organic in nature have a competitive advantage over those that are centralized with top-down leadership because the “harder you fight a decentralized opponent, the stronger it gets” (26).

Brafman and Beckstrom take nine chapters to develop and defend their thesis.  Central to the book is their description of the fundamental nature of the starfish and the spider.  The starfish  is a decentralized “network of cells” (35) which means that when an arm is cut off a new one grows in its place.  In fact, in some species of starfish the arm that is cut off actually becomes a new starfish.  The spider, on the other hand, represents a centralized organism with a body and a head.  If the head is cut off, the spider dies.  Each chapter deals with a different aspect of decentralized organizations including the hidden power of catalytic leadership and hybrid organizations.  The authors conclude the book with 10 Rules of operating in this new and exciting era of decentralization.

I liked this book very much and believe the authors did a very good job of developing and defending their thesis.  I am drawn to the concept of decentralization as I believe it is a key to seeing the church spread throughout the world, especially in unreached areas.  In particular, I appreciated the authors’ discussion of catalytic leadership and hybrid organizations.

A key for a catalytic leader is “letting go and trusting the community” (111).  A catalytic leader knows that what the ancient Chinese philosopher Lao-tzu said is true: “A leader is best when people barely know that he exists; not so good when people obey and acclaim him; worst when they despise him” (115).  In other words, a catalytic leader understands that he or she leads by example and that true leadership happens when followers are given ownership in the outcome.  I am currently in the process of re-writing the Mission Policy for our ministry.  I will be setting up a secure, online discussion board for our missionaries.  My goal is to let the missionaries write the new policy.  They will be given the old policy in segments and asked for input in what works and what doesn’t, thereby giving them ownership in the process.

After reading this book, I am now seeking to develop our mission department into a hybrid organization.  In the past we have been top-down and centralized.  This has resulted in too many rules which has restricted the creative talents of our missionaries.  I am now seeking to instill the vision of each missionary team being an autonomous entity that is responsible for reaching the unreached people group to which God has sent them.  They are the ones who will make it happen, not our central office.  My role is to act as a catalyst by releasing each team to pursue God’s plan to reach their specific people group thereby decentralizing our efforts.  It is my belief that this will result in the decentralized DNA that is necessary to reach entire people groups.

No Line On The Horizon

If you are a U2 fan, you already know about the new release.  If you are not, you need to be, and you need to know...

This, in my humble opinion, is an incredible record.  I have been listening to it constantly since I downloaded it on Tuesday.  It is one of the band's most spiritual records.  My favorite song right now is Magnificent.  Here are the lyrics:

Magnificent / Magnificent / I was born / I was born to be with you / In this space and time / After that and ever after I haven’t had a clue / Only to break rhyme / This foolishness can leave a heart black and blue / Only love, only love can leave such a mark / But only love, only love can heal such a scar / I was born / I was born to sing for you / I didn’t have a choice but to lift you up / And sing whatever song you wanted me to / I give you back my voice / From the womb my first cry, it was a joyful noise… / Only love, only love can leave such a mark / But only love, only love can heal such a scar / Justified till we die, you and I will magnify / The Magnificent / Magnificent / Only love, only love can leave such a mark / But only love, only love unites our hearts / Justified till we die, you and I will magnify / The Magnificent / Magnificent / Magnificent