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Core Values Lived Out – The Kind Of Leader We Hope To Be

What does it look like for a simple church leader to live out the core values identified by the Simple Church Alliance?  Here are some thoughts (WARNING:  Think of the picture painted below as a picture of who God is calling us to be as leaders–not a picture of where we are now or where you need to be to start leading a simple church.  I’m not sure I know anyone who fits this description perfectly) Community – When a simple church leaders think of their “church family” they think of their simple church community.  They focus on a few in order to have a large impact–much in the same way Jesus did.  They are vulnerable and transparent with those in their simple church community.  They pray and care for those in their community out… Read More »Core Values Lived Out – The Kind Of Leader We Hope To Be

Ozymandias by Shelley

Matt Wheeler (one of the simple church leaders) and I had a great conversation about this poem recently and I thought it would be great to post here.  Thanks Matt for sharing this with me!  I had never read it before. Ozymandias By Percy Bysshe Shelley I met a traveller from an antique land Who said: “Two vast and trunkless legs of stone Stand in the desert. Near them on the sand, Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown And wrinkled lip and sneer of cold command Tell that its sculptor well those passions read Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things, The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed. And on the pedestal these words appear: `My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings: Look on my works, ye mighty, and… Read More »Ozymandias by Shelley

The Difference Between A Missional Community and A Simple Church

In the last few years I have been exposed to all types of new terms related to churches and small groups.  One such term is “missional community.”  There seems to be a push in the western church to think of small group ministry not as bible studies, fellowship groups, “life” groups, etc. but as missional communities.  As I have read literature and spoken with those involved in the missional community movement, I have wondered what the difference is between a missional community and a simple church.  It seems that a simple church should be a missional community.  However it also seems that a missional community may not be a simple church as many understand simple church. It seems that many missional communities remain connected to traditional church structures in ways that simple churches often do… Read More »The Difference Between A Missional Community and A Simple Church

When to multiply?

I thought this excerpt from the book The Rabbit and The Elephant by Tony and Felicity Dale was helpful when addressing the question of, “When and how should our simple church multiply?”  I think it also speaks to how someone (I’d recommend a couple of believing families) might possibly start a simple church…   How do we multiply our church? The first church we started grew to more than fifty before we split it down the middle into two groups. For a year after that, people told us that the split felt like a divorce. Because of this, we no longer multiply by dividing a church into two. From the start we encourage those who find a person of peace to seek to start new churches/groups within that person’s sphere of influence. If, in spite… Read More »When to multiply?

A Roaring Lion

I had a great opportunity today to speak to 100 or so basketball campers at Asbury University. Even more, this afternoon I have had the privilege of speaking with the parents of sixteen campers and share with them that their child responded to the Gospel message.  Certainly we cannot know exactly what God is doing in the hearts and minds of these sixteen young men and women, but I have to believe that it pleases God anytime someone says “Yes!” to Jesus with child-like faith in front of their peers!  Will you join me in praying for these campers and their families as many will be discussing today’s events in the coming hours. ——————- Allow me to share with you one verse that kept coming to mind today as I was speaking with the campers…… Read More »A Roaring Lion

Mission Possible? (Audio)

This past Sunday I had the privileged to speak during both services at First Alliance (Lexington, KY).  The message I shared was in many ways a summary of the main truths that God has shown me so far in the simple church journey. Click the link below to download to your computer or listen online to the message.  The audio quality is not the best but hopefully it will be a blessing to you… Click to Download:  Mission Possible:  Six Truths That Will Make the Mission Possible Message Points: 1.  It’s Mission Not Missions 2. God Desires To Release the “APEs” 3. Everyone Must “Go!” 4. Move From Additional Thinking to Multiplicative Thinking 5. Move From A Knowledge Based Faith to an Obedience Based Faith 6. The Heart is at the Heart of The Great… Read More »Mission Possible? (Audio)

Charles Spurgeon On Simple Church?

I have to think Alan Knox for first bringing this excerpt to my attention.  Alan’s blog is found here and is very insightful. These are excerpts from Charles H. Spurgeon’s sermon entitled “Building the Church” (or “Additions to the Church”) concerning Acts 2 which he gave on April 5, 1874. I want you to notice this, that they were breaking bread from house to house, and ate their food with gladness and singleness of heart. They did not think that religion was meant only for Sundays, and for what men now-a-days call the House of God. Their own houses were houses of God, and their own meals were so mixed and mingled with the Lord’s Supper that to this day the most cautious student of the Bible cannot tell when they stopped eating their common… Read More »Charles Spurgeon On Simple Church?

Simple Church Alliance Video

This is the short video that I put together for last weeks Sunday Service at First Alliance.  Hopefully someday soon we’ll be able to put together something more in-depth, but for now I think that this does give a good peek into what a simple church gathering can look like.   [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nmTPykfGIM]  

A.W. Tozer on Simple Church?

This quote was recently brought to my attention by @Neil_Cole and Margaret Feinburg who posted this quote on her blog.  It is so encouraging to me to see Tozer, a man so central to the history of the Christian and Missionary Alliance, penning these thoughts some 60 years ago.  If Tozer thought we had “religious complexity” in 1948, I wonder what he would make of the “nervous activity” found in our Christian world today?  Lord, help us to “proceed in the way of simplicity!” Every age has its own characteristics. Right now we are in an age of religious complexity. The simplicity which is in Christ is rarely found among us. In its stead are programs, methods, organizations and a world of nervous activities which occupy time and attention but can never satisfy the longing… Read More »A.W. Tozer on Simple Church?