So yesterday we suggested that simply reaching people who don’t go to church by nature is scandalous.  The very thought of reaching non churched people can offend Christians. It’s not we intend to offend, but the Bible suggests we just will.  Religious people get upset when non-religious people become the goal of a mission.

Today I’d love to switch gears and ask: of all the things you’ve done to reach outsiders, which have been some of the best ideas, and how might they have offended people?

Here’s a quick survey with a few things we’ve tried:

• We meet in  movie theaters (in part its just practical – it fits us for now).  Some Christians left because they can’t worship in a movie theater.  Some non-Christians come because it’s in a movie theater and not in a church.  For the record, we just keep pointing them all to Jesus.  (It’s not about a movie theater.)
• On Easter 2008, we tattooed a person live on stage.  It was to make the point from Acts 17 that all of us – even non-Christians – have a notion of God imprinted on our hearts.  A handful of Christians left our church over it.  Some non-Christians said it made them want to come back.  The tattoo artist himself hadn’t been to church for years.  He was very suspicious of church.  He said it was a great experience and impacted him deeply spiritually.  He was surprised a group of Christians accepted invited him in.
• We opened Christmas Eve 09 with Led Zeppelin’s Rock and Roll to try to break up the sacharine expectations around Christmas.  No one left. Everybody liked it and thought it was funny.  Clearly not edgy enough. :0)

We’ve done quite a few other things that have ruffled feathers (some male band members dressed up as Beyonce <not sure we’d do that one again, or would we?>, we gave away Starbucks cards to people who brought their friends <we’ll do that again>), all in the desire to see non-churched people move into a growing relationship with Jesus.

What have you done?  Or maybe more interestingly, what do you wish you would have done?  What was the reaction or what feared reaction kept you from doing it?

“The crowd listened until Paul said that word. Then they all began to shout…”He isn’t fit to live!”(Acts 22.22).

What did he say?  You’d think he dropped some profanity.  Nope.

You’d think he denounced Jesus.  Not that either.

What did he say?  The word was “Gentiles”.  He simply announced that he was going to work with people outside the boundaries of the existing church.  He was taking the Gospel to outsiders.  To the Gentiles, people who had never had access to Jesus before.

That made the insiders furious. They saw it as scandalous that Paul would actually work with people who didn’t fit their category of righteousness.  The text electrified me when I read it earlier this month because I’m not that sure it’s different today.

What do you think? I believe if you are going to reach outsider, you’re going to offend insiders.  Not that you would set out to offend them.  But if you’re really doing meaningful ministry, you will.

Sometimes the very idea of inviting outsiders in is scandalous (what are people with that kind of past doing in church?) Sometimes the methods are scandalous (why would you play that music in church, preach in that manner, or not cater just to my wants as a Christian?).  But bottom line, it is and likely will be scandalous.

Could it be that if you are not offending insiders from time to time, you’re likely not actually reaching outsiders?  Could it be that if you are not offending insiders, you’ve lost your mission?

What do you think?  What’s your experience and what’s your perspective?

Most of us secretly want to be better known, valued and appreciated than we are.   For some of us, that’s just in a wider relational circle.  For others, it’s more public.  We long to be better known in our ministry, in our company, to see our product selling, our album get recorded, our blog get traction or to find ourselves thousands of Twitter followers or Facebook friends.  If we were to pry behind the secret motivation…we think that would make us successful.

I know I’ve struggled with this over the years.  When I was starting out in ministry, I wanted to be that guy who spoke at conferences and was well respected as a leader in ministry. You don’t talk about that kind of thing much, but if you were to gain access to my sinful mind, the thought spun around  in my head from time to time.

Then in a season of my life a few years ago, God wrestled that down.  Well, that’s putting it nicely.  He snapped my ambition.  He took me to a place where I realized that as much as I didn’t want to admit it even to myself, much of my motivation was selfish and not God-honouring.  I finally surrendered it to him.  In fact, I he brought me to a point where I could see myself serving as an effective pastor without ever anyone knowing who I was.  I didn’t really want that definition of success.  But I embraced it anyway. As best I could, I surrendered my ambition to God.

Ambition kills servants of God and turns them into servants of themselves. I’ve come to enjoy the slow death of selfish ambition in my life.  It’s not complete, but it’s in progress. Here’s what I’m learning and (now) loving about the difference.

1. When you’re motivated by selfish ambition, your personal sense of worth goes up and down with the opportunities ahead of you.  When you’re motivated by God, your value is solidly found in Christ every day.
2. When you’re motivated by selfish ambition, failure is terrifying.  When you’re motivated by God, failure becomes an opportunity for grace and growth.
3. When you’re motivated by selfish ambition, you think you’re the deal.  When you’re motivated by God, you know that He’s the deal.
4. When you’re motivated by selfish ambition, you use people to get you where you want to go.  When you’re motivated by God, you value people as you go.
5. When you’re motivated by selfish ambition, you take the credit.  When you’re motivated by God, you realize how much God and the people around you deserve the credit.
6. When you’re motivated by selfish ambition, you strive for breadth of exposure.  When you’re motivated by God, you focus on depth in your walk and let God determine the breadth of exposure he gives you.
7. When you’re motivated by selfish ambition, you are always thinking about the next thing.  When you’re motivated by God,  you’re always thinking about what God wants to accomplish in your life today.
8. When you’re motivated by selfish ambition, you’re always comparing yourself to the other guy.  When you’re motivated by God, you begin to celebrate what God is doing through the other guy.
9. When you’re motivated by selfish ambition, it’s hard to say no to any opportunity.  When you’re motivated by God, it’s easier to say yes to balance and priorities.
10. When you’re motivated by selfish ambition, you can feel entitled to any success that comes your way.  When you’re motivated by God, you simply feel grateful.
11. When you’re motivated by selfish ambition, the need to win is greater than the need to love.  When you’re motivated by God, the need to love is greater than the need to win.
12. When you’re motivated by selfish ambition, you are always insecure.  When you’re motivated by God, your security comes from His steadfast love.

I’m so grateful for these learnings.  The journey isn’t over yet, but I’m glad it’s begun.

The ironic part of this story is that a year or so after God broke me on this issue, I got a call from a major church to speak at a conference in front of thousands of people. When I got the call, I was a bit blown away, but it didn’t mean what it would have meant a year or two earlier. I could hold it loosely.  It was an opportunity for the Kingdom, not just for me.  Ironically, I’ve had more opportunities to do what I used to dream of doing than I ever did before God broke me.  But I don’t accept all of them – and those I do, I hold more loosely than ever before.  And when they’re over, I’m not ‘fulfilled’. Increasingly I’m just grateful that God would use me in that way.

What are you learning about this struggle?  What would you add to this “list”?   In what ways is God speaking to you on this?

A note for my Canadian friends…for some ways to help with the situation in Haiti click over to the Connexus Blog.

I’m grateful to be part of a generous community at a time like this.  I love people who pray and act.  Thank you!

- Carey

We’re all watching and responding to what’s happening in Haiti.  We don’t know the full extent of what the damage is or how many have lost their lives. But we’re praying for them and responding to them.  And we should.  And we will. It’s incredibly sad.  I think it’s only appropriate that our attention, hearts and response are focused on Haiti and helping as much as we can.

But what if we continue to miss something even more pressing than what’s happening now?

Whenever there’s a disaster that strikes, I think about Jesus’ teaching in Luke 13: 1-5.  Two tragedies were in the headlines in that moment two thousand years ago.  The government had killed some citizens and a tower had collapsed killing eighteen.   Jesus addressed the meaning of their death by pointing people to the meaning of their life.  Naturally, just like today, people were asking the why question (why did these people have to die?).  Jesus skirted it and said to those still alive – everyone’s going to perish, and our lives will have no meaning unless we all turn to God, confess our sins and repent.  For Jesus, that was the big issue – not just the tragedy of sudden death, but the tragedy of missing the point of life.

I think about that every time there’s a tragedy. We need to respond to Haiti.  We will.  But what if it’s not the biggest issue facing the people of Haiti or the people of Canada, the US or any other country globally?

What if we prayed as hard for people in peacetime as in war time?  What if we worked as hard for life change in the absence of disaster as in a moment of disaster?  You and I tend to turn to God in seasons of despair and tragedy.  What if we just turned to him that way and lived our lives out differently every day?  Love doesn’t just respond to crisis, it responds to people.

What if there was an urgency to the mission of the church everyday as intense as it is in crisis? What if we gave like we’re giving now to the larger issue of changing the lives of people in Haiti, Canada, the US and beyond when there was no ‘crisis’ other than the one Jesus identified?  What if we cared last week like we cared now?

What if we acted like there is a crisis even if there wasn’t a crisis?  Can we even think this way?  Is it healthy?  Is that what Jesus was driving at? What do you think?

Some mornings my Bible reading stops me dead in my tracks.  This was the first verse I read this morning:

“Some time later, the Lord spoke to Abram in a vision and said to him, “Do not be afraid, Abram, for I will protect you, and your reward will be great.” Genesis 15:1 (NLT)

Could have stopped right there.  What if I lived like this was true?  What if I just believed that and operated like that was the case in my life?

Look at the claims of the verse.

First – no fear.  No fear of the obsctacles ahead, the conflict pending, the challenges or the battle.  No fear.

Second, a promise of God’s protection.  God would cover for us.  Doesn’t mean it won’t be difficult (read the rest of chapter 15) or dramatic.  It might be.  It’s just that God’s got our backs.  The worst the world can do is…kill us.  And I think Jesus covered that in the resurrection.

Third, the reward will be great.  Probably doesn’t mean we’ll be rich, but it does mean that our obedience will be worth something…it matters to God, and he’ll give us whatever we need and likely far more than we expect.

Think about it:  God promised Abram (and I think, all who follow him) the ability to move through our fear, God’s own protection and a reward.

What if I lived that way?  What would it do? What mediocrity would that eliminate? What ambivalence would that crush?  What fear would that resolve?  What obedience would that make possible?   For sure I think it would give me:

• More confidence
• More courage
• More determination
• More boldness
• More faith
• More faithfulness (doesn’t fear move you off course too?)
• More resolve

So that’s what I’m chewing on today.

If you knew God wanted you to navigate the fear, that he would protect you fully and give you a reward, how would your life change?  How might that move you more onto course.  What are you not doing now that you could start doing with this being true?

We had a great day at Connexus yesterday.  A record or near record crowd (I don’t see all the numbers Sunday)…great feedback.  Lots of new families.  As any lead pastor, staff member or volunteer might be, I was pumped as I drove home.

But then this irony struck me – hard.  We start setting up church before 6 a.m. on a Sunday morning.  Trust me, everyone but our volunteers and a handful of gas station clerks are asleep.  As I drove off of campus after lunch, the world is waking up, the parking lots at malls are filling up.  And we’re winding up, putting it all away.  It’s like we missed each other.

I’m not suggesting that we should move worship off Sundays or even off Sunday mornings (churches that have tried it rarely see great results).  If unchurched people are going to attend a service, it’s probably going to be on Sunday mornings. I’m not even saying we should be open 24/7.  That can often just mean the church becomes a cocoon – a retreat from our friends and neighbours.

What I’m thinking about this morning is that I hope there is plenty of evidence of our faith left on Mondays (and Wednesdays and Saturdays).  What a shame it is if as the world goes to sleep, the church wakes up and as the church goes to sleep, the world wakes up.

What do you think is the most effective way to personally and collectively lead people into a growing relationship with Jesus when the world is alive, awake and fully engaged?

If you want to attract and keep great people around you, value them.

As I watch my own patterns, I realize this truth – I gravitate to where I feel valued most.  My guess is you do too. Probably your favourite people to be around value your input, listen to your ideas and respect you both on an intellectual and personal level.  You feel appreciated and you feel like you’re making a difference.

If you want a deeper, closer relationship with your spouse and kids, value them.  Desire deeper friendships?  Value people.  Want to be a better boss or co-worker? Value people.  If you’re a ministry leader in charge of volunteers, value those who serve with you.

Conversely, if you want people around you to lose heart, make them feel like they don’t matter.  That rule works on a personal and professional level.

Valuing people sounds easy, but it can be challenging:

• Most of us tend to take for granted those close to us.  That undercommunicates value and sells the relationship short.
• Insecure people can’t value others because it threatens their own sense of worth.
• People feel like they are valued in different ways: some prefer public or private verbal recognition,  some look for input and a seat at the table, others appreciate gifts, some just like time with you.  Often, it’s a sustained combination of all these that communicates value most deeply.

Who do you value?  This coming week (or even today), how are you going to let them know?

What makes you feel valued?  What are some of the best ways you communicate value to other people?

For years, I’ve been thinking about writing a book.  People have encouraged me to do it.  I’ve written outlines.  But I never wrote one.

That is until a friend said he wanted me to write one with him.  This week, I sent off the manuscript.  It’s actually done  (it releases in the spring of this year).

It certainly helped to have a co-author, a deadline and a publisher. But the thing that surprised me is that it wasn’t  as difficult as I thought it would be.  Was it hard work?  Absolutely.  But I could do it.  And I found the time to do it.

For years, I had raised objections in my head as to why I couldn’t do it.  Then I just did it.  Why the difference?

The pressure helps for sure, but I’m also learning to think about time differently.  A few years ago, I realized God gives me and you the same amount of time in the day as everyone else on the planet.  Jesus got 24 hours in a day.  The people  I admire most who accomplish far more than I have don’t get more than 24 hours a day.   They just spend their time differently.  I learned that if I want a different outcome I need to learn how to spend time differently.

So a few years ago I changed the way I think by changing the way I speak. I stopped saying “I don’t have the time”.  Instead, I started saying “I didn’t make the time.”  That made me realize that everything I do is a choice.  It’s a constant reminder to me that I need to make time for what’s important and cut what isn’t. It’s still a daily battle.  I always have more things to do than time to do them, but this shift in thinking has helped a lot.

Take your calendar out right now and look at the next week.  There are only a few things you need to do.  You likely need to sleep, eat three times a day and perhaps show up for work.  Pretty much everything else is a choice.  You chose to have coffee with your friend.  You chose to go snowboarding on Saturday.  You chose to enroll the kids in 62 activities simultaneously.  Get the point?  You don’t have to do any of that.  Sure, you feel pressure to do it, but you don’t have to.  You are authoring your own destiny.

So what have you always wanted to do?  Truth is, you have the time. As much as anyone else on the planet does.  You’re just spending it differently.

What have you found helpful in making the time for things that matter?

Very few people I know have a bad day.

Let me correct that.  All the people I know have bad days and discouraging moments.

It’s just the people I hang around on twitter seem not to.  Everyone is so pumped to be part of an organization, has the perfect wife that they can’t believe married them, loves their family and is excited about the future.

Now to some extent that’s true, I’m sure.  I have a great wife, love working with the team at Connexus, am thankful for my kids and have moments where I’m downright pumped about the future.  But Toni and I argue and don’t always agree on things.  There are good days and bad days in ministry.  My kids are great but we have conflict.  And I’m mostly pumped about the future, but some days I get discouraged.

Confession:  I tend not to tweet the junk.  At times it means there is silence.  At times I find the one positive thing I can tweet about.

Second Confession: I don’t like following negative people.  I’ve actually stopped following people who are overly negative or rant all the time.  I love authenticity, but I don’t like negativism.

Third Confession:  I’m not sure I want to tweet a struggle because I would never want to throw a co-worker, friend or anyone in my world under the bus intentionally or unintentionally.  It’s just not fair.

I find blog posts and sermons the easiest to be ‘truthful’ on because they are longer and invite dialogue and explanation. But I won’t criticize anyone there either because I think it’s a bit unfair and unwise.   I can be self-reflective and self-critical because at least on blogs and in messages there’s a context for junk (at least my personal junk) and joy (shared joy or personal joy).  Personal differences are just that – personal, and they should be worked out one on one face to face.

It’s even easier to be self-reflective on a blog or in a message because you have time and a few minutes or words for context.  Twitter’s and Facebook statuses are so hard because they are so short.

That said, when you tweet, blog, or update your status on Facebook, how do you tell the truth?  Are we putting up false fronts?  Building up false personas?  How do you tell the truth and still encourage others?  Is our on-line personae actually the real ‘us’?  How can the real you be accurately known in social media?