emerging mosaic

Doug Pagiit found Jesus in  the wood trim at his house (tongue firmly planted in cheek).

I was taking a picture of the trim work in one of the bedrooms of our duplex in order to get a matching piece for the other side. When I looked at the picture I notice the strange little “Jesus” face on the right - kinda creepy. I also kind of looks like Abe Lincoln. Face in the wood

 My advice: Quick rip it out put it up on ebay and the Golden Palace Casino will buy it for thousands of dollars.

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Technorati Tags: faith & culture, Jesus, jesus_christ, jesus_followers, joe_dumars, john_perkins, juan_williams, Kanye-West, Kester-Brewin, kung_fu

I noticed that sometimes these two words representing movements of change the church can get used interchangably. I wonder how much synergy there is between the two. Some people are in both conversations

This article speaks to some of the connecting pont beween the two. http://www.urbana.org/_articles.cfm?RecordId=993

I really appreciate the defining of the characteristics of a missional church using this wrong/tough question format.

The collapse of the church culture.

a) Wrong question: How do we do church better?
b) Tough question: How do we reconvert from “churchianity” to Christianity?

 The shift from church growth to kingdom growth.

a) Wrong question: How do we grow this church?
b) Tough question: How do we transform our community?

A new reformation: Releasing God’s people.

a) Wrong question: How do we turn members into ministers?
b) Tough question: How do we turn members into missionaries?

The return to spiritual formation.

a) Wrong question: How do we develop church members?
b) Tough question: How do we develop followers of Jesus?

The shift from planning to preparation.

a) Wrong question: How do we plan for the future?
b) Tough question: How do we prepare for the future?

The rise of apostolic leadership.

a) Wrong question: How do we develop leaders for church work?
b) Tough question: How do we develop leaders for the Christian movement?

I feel a great resonance with the tough questions. I think these are the kinds of questions I ask or need to ask as I do ministry and live  out my call. It feels much more organic that the moden church and less laissez faire then emergent stuff. For instance promoting the rise of apostolic leaders rather than eschewing any strong leadership outside of a flat leaderhsip model.

Compare and contrast with these core practices of an emerging church cited in ch 2 of Gibbs and Bolgers book Emerging Churches which I am reading right now.

1. Identifying with Jesus
2. tranforming secular space
3. living as community

 I think these three things are reflective of the mission of the faith community Iead Mosaic Life.

To live in faith - identifying with jesus and living out his patterns in our lives and faith,
be known by love - living as community drawn together and connected to each other by God’s love
and be and instrument of hope - transforming secualr space by engaging the "secular and point to God’s hope

Maybe missional + emergent/emerging church = integral church

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Technorati Tags: apostolic_leadership, emerging church, missional_church, spiritual-practice, spiritual_formation

Rudy Carrasco has a book Urban and Multiethnic Outreach, Vol. 1  out. Rudy is a really sharp guy and an innovative thinker about things multi-ethnic. So even though I haven’t read this yet I suggest you check it out

Popularity: 10% [?]

Technorati Tags: multi-ethnic, outreach, rudy-carrasco

If you have ever seen one of those stupid church signs and wanted to get one of your own but didn’t have a church sign to do it visit Church Sign Generator  and make one of your own.

For inspiration check out

http://stupidchurchsigns.com/page1.htm

or join the fight against stupid church signs here

Popularity: 16% [?]

Technorati Tags: church_signs, faith & culture

While browsing I came across an interesting story it reflects an ongoing lack of understanding among about race and racism that I have most recently experienced with some Christian folks I’ve been meeting with. Here’s a quote

Hey, black guy at Home Depot wearing a do-rag and cornrows, I am not racist, I am just easily distracted and not good with faces.”

read the whole story here: the adventures of a boy and his computer - Guilt

There is such hesitation to deal with the fact that people are racist. I don’t have to be burning crosses to express racist tendencies. It flows out of deep seated perspective on the world and people of color that surface when we are in our comfort zones. Maybe that is why we tend toward dog and pony shows of like diverse worship gatherings to show that we aren’t racist. This despite the work of Emerson & Smith (Divided by Faith ) saying that just doesn’t work.

This is why race and racial reconciliation matters! you think?

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Technorati Tags: cornrows, diversity, people_of_color, racial_reconciliation, racism

Sometimes I think I don’t post enough on this subject but this is worth sharing. My oldest son (following in his mom’s footsteps) got straight  A’s on his final report card. He is going into 7th grade and doing 8th grade math this summer and next year. don’t know where he gets it from because I really stink a math.

This past weekend he and his team placed 3rd in a local Gus Macker 3 on 3 basketball tournament against some pretty big guys including out of town ringers.. They should have won but got robbed in a heart breaker game in the final second but that is another story.

I’m proud of you kid!

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Technorati Tags: 8th_grade_math, basketball, family, gus_macker, my life, the kids

While browsing over the Christianity/emerging church category over at wordpress.com I came across this "gem".  Thanks to Fajita blog for the lead

No suits, no ties, no Sunday shoes. I told one of the ushers that he needed to show more respect in the Lord’s house. That this was a church, not the mall. Then he sassed me. Talked about how he wasn’t ‘at church, he is the church’. I was like, ‘Oh, okay. I must have mistaken that steeple on your head for a plastic mesh trucker cap, Cooter.’ Lord forgive me."

Despite their disclaimer I there is a real disconnect in terms of what some black and white folks consider to be church. I’ve seen it in our own church. So is this connecting with anyone in the African American community. Is there another path or should we all just chug the koolaid from one camp or the other?

go read the whole article The Holy Observer: Frightened Black Family Flees Pomo Church

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Technorati Tags: african_american, african_american_church, black_church, diversity, emerging church, pomo, racial_reconciliation, spiritual-practice

Well it has taken me this long to get over the shock of the Pistons being knocked out of the NBA playoffs. I have officially been in mourning. (not alozono) but now I can blog on  it. I actually think Flip Saunders the coach got out coached by Pat Riley. Which is not hard to conceive because Riley is one great coach.

But it is frustrating to see the Pistons have such a great season record then smack down the cavaliers in their first two games but go on to wilt in the following games. I don’t know what magic Dir of BBL operation Joe Dumars is going  to do in the off season but I can’t stomach another like this.

I hope they resign Ben Wallace and shore up the bench

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Technorati Tags: basketball, ben_wallace, detroit, Detroit-pistons, flip_saunders, joe_dumars, NBA, nba_playoffs, pat_riley, pistons

NT Wright and some other top notch speakers will be coming to Grand Rapids as a part of Calvin January Series in 2007. Here is their preview 

N.T. Wright will return for the first time since being ordained Bishop of Durham

Dr. Brenda Salter Mc Neil, passionate speaker and co-author of “The Heart of Racial Justice”, will be our presenter in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

Miroslav Volf is the author of “Free of Charge: Giving and Forgiving in a Culture Stripped of Grace” , a phenomenal book about forgiveness and grace that everyone should read. In fact the Christian Century reviewed his book and stated: “There are good books, there are great books, and then there are books that make you want to send copies to all your friends and pass them out to strangers. Volf’s book is one of the few members of that last category.”

See here www.calvin.edu/january for more info.

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