At the summit of Mt Tyson, took time to process on the plane when flying back home.   “How could I explain in a simple way what a profound experience, amazing fun and bonding time Caleb and I had.  All I could say was it surpassed all that I had anticipated.  Darren Lewis is an amazing teacher, leader and visionary.  He picked just the right environment and organized the very best adventures.  Presented the lesson with simplicity and conviction.   All 22 of the sons and fathers shared epic experiences together in the rain-forest, over mountains, by the beaches, on the rapids, and below the waters (the Great Barrier reef) of Northern Queensland, Australia.

Standing in the clouds a top Mt Tyson, Tully, Queensland, Australia

I want to share first hand from a sampling of fathers and sons in their own words.  When asked what this experience has meant for the fathers and sons, they said:

• “An improvement in a better understanding and communication with my son. The start of better things to come, and an experience to refer back to in the future.”
• “We have both said this is the highlight experience of our father-son relationship. It was an epic event that took our relationship deeper and further than anything else.”
• “This has given me valuable insight into manhood and has given me a vision / goal to strive for my sons, my family, my wife, and myself.”
• “Put it back on track. Renewed the quality time of our relationship.”
• “Everything – it presently represents one of my highest priorities in life – one of leaving a legacy that proceeds me long after I’m gone.”
• “It has provided an opportunity to affirm my son & his capabilities… it would not have happened otherwise. It has built a bridge for communication into the future!”

2. When asked “What was the high point of your experience?”

• “Watching my son’s eyes light up during white water rafting and during the initiation ceremony.”
• “There were too many high points. It would be easier to list the low points.”
• “Publicly affirming my son, the initiation ceremony, and the evening presentations. Spending one-on-one time with my son.”
• “My son looking up at me and taking it all in during the initiation ceremony.”
• “Watching the joy on his face accomplishing some activities for the first time; being able to spend time together.
• “To look my son in the eyes and tell him publicly that I love him, and that I’m proud of him.”
• “The self-examination following the evening presentations, and the opportunity to realize that a good relationship can become a “great “ relationship… not only father-son, but beyond this.”

Darren has done well keeping a good balance of not making this a “church camp” but keeping it distinctive in strong Biblical values and teaching.  One last quote I will share of how a father shared the experience of a renewed relationship with God and the role He should play in his and his sons life in the future.  In his own words…

...to tell you how much of an impact last weeks trip had on me and my son. On the plane back, my son gave me a letter he wrote in Tully (which I read that night with my wife), expressing his thanks and how much he enjoyed his time with me and the other fathers and sons. It was not something I expected and was touched (which I later told him). The other positive and surprising outcome from him is his request, that he would like to understand more about Jesus and I quote “what does it mean to accept Jesus in my life”. Your program has made a big impression on us both. I consider this as a positive wake up call, and even though we are Christians we have not been practicing ones for a very long time….mostly due to life excuses etc. My wife and I plan to change this going forward…..small steps.

Men, if you are are looking for a concentrated time with your son to build character and a vision of what a man is, and maybe craft your own vision for what it means yourself, consider Father Adventures.  It may be the greatest investment you make in your sons life and your relationship.

Click here to learn more of them:  Fathering Adventures

Join the Facebook Fan page so you can keep informed on the latest adventures: Facebook

Caleb turns 16 this summer (he is getting older, I’m not getting old).  The next 10 days we will celebrate this rite of passage into young manhood.  Anybody who is able to drive a deadly weapon (a car), has to shave facial hair, and leaves for college in 2 yrs is more than an adolescent, he is a young man.  Caleb and I are heading to Australia on Tuesday to participate in Fathering Adventures - a 5 day excursion to the land down-under.  This will be a huge trip with some amazing Aussies.  Would you covenant to pray for us as we gather for adventures (rafting, kayaking, diving, and mtn climbing), but also as we have some deep and meaningful conversation (topics: Intentional fathering, authentic manhood, 4 marks of a man, etc.)? We will close with an initiation into manhood ceremony.

There are some things I would like to enlist your prayer support on…

1. Pray as we tour Sydney on July 1st (we will never live in June 30th, that’s wierd).  We will be jet lagged, but it is our only day to see and do the town.  We are looking forward to it.
2. The mission of Fathering Adventures is that the hearts of the fathers are turned to their children, and the hearts of the children are turned to their fathers (Luke 1:17).
3. Please pray for Darren Lewis, leader of Fathering Adventures, for his health, and even more importantly, his sensitivity to God’s Spirit, and His leading. From what I understand, four of the eleven father-son pairs coming are unchurched. May they experience the drawing of The Father during their time amongst us. May God’s message be heard, understood, received, embraced and lived out by all.
4. Please pray for Melissa, Darren’s wife, and their 3 sons who won’t be participating… Brandon, Joseph, and Theo… that they will be covered, protected, and blessed despite Dad’s physical absence.
5. For the health and protection of all of the participants, and their families.
6. For a new generation of men in Australia and the United States to be born: men of honor, character and integrity…modern-day knights.

Join the Facebook fan page and stay in touch.  Many of you men are raising a modern-day knight too.

Gallup recently released a study on personal savings accounts in Africa.  The study showed that only a handful of people have personal bank account.  When you live from hand-to-mouth, it’s hard to think of saving for “rainy day.”  Only 2% of Malians have a personal bank account.  Sixty-six percent said they didn’t have one because they didn’t have enough money.

While we lived in Zambia (9% of Zambian have a personal bank account), the Barclay’s bank branch manager ran off with a lot of money he stole from the bank, left his family, and died of AIDS before they could catch up with him.  Just as we Americans have a hard time trusting banks these days, Africans have a hard time trusting what little they have to a bank front loaded with fees and service charges, only to have it stole.

See below the full article from Gallup…

Africa and Savings accounts

CHRISTIE STORM ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE
Areport urging Southern Baptists to re-energize efforts to spread the Gospel and plant churches will top the agenda at the denomination’s annual meeting in Orlando, Fla., next month.

The Great Commission Resurgence Task Force report not only presses for a revival of evangelism in the face of declining baptisms but also outlines new responsibilities for the denomination’s missions organizations — the International Mission Board and the North American Mission Board. It also calls for increased giving by all Southern Baptists.

Ronnie Floyd, pastor of First Baptist Church of Springdale and The Church at Pinnacle Hills in Rogers, is the task force chairman.

He said he believes the recommendations, crafted after a year of discussion across the country, reflect the wishes of Southern Baptists.

“We believe we have our finger on the pulse of the vast majority of leaders and people in the Southern Baptist Convention,” he said. “But June will tell.”

With 16.1 million members, the Southern Baptist Convention is the nation’s largest Protestant denomination. But membership has dropped in recent years. The number of Baptisms climbed slightly from 2008 to 2009, but have dropped sharply in recent decades.

Bloggers and commentators have dissected the report and many have voiced opposition to the changes online and in Baptist publications across the country. Even leaders within the denomination, including Morris Chapman, president of the powerful executive committee, have expressed concern with portions of the report.

Others, however, support the recommendations and think the changes will streamline the denomination’s efforts to reach the world for Christ.

“I think the report is crucial and essential to the future of our denomination, because the structure our convention is operating under is a model that is antiquated,” said Jeff Crawford, pastor of Grand Avenue Baptist Church in Fort Smith. “This report refocuses who we are and what the No. 1 focus of the church needs to be and that’s the Great Commission, taking the Gospel around the entire world.”

Crawford, 40, will attend his first convention annual meeting this year. In the past he hasn’t felt compelled to make the journey. This year is different.

“I find the Great Commission relevant,” he said. “I can get excited about the Great Commission and I think it will strike a chord with many other pastors as well.

“I think there’s a general consensus that we need to do something different. People can get nervous about what that means but I think everybody realizes we can do better and we need to do better.”

Crawford’s hope is that the report will unite convention members under one common goal — sharing the Gospel. He said the very relevance of the denomination is at stake.

“We can’t afford to be irrelevant,” he said. “We need to send a message that the denomination can be relevant and the right way is to make sure we are centered on the Great Commission.”

Thousands of delegates, called messengers, will gather June 15-16 in Orlando to consider numerous resolutions, elect a president and other officers and hear from the task force.

Floyd said as the 23 task force members met with Southern Baptists during the past year they found most are concerned about how the denomination of autonomous churches can pull together to reach the world for Christ.

“This is a very complex ministry that has to work really hard at cooperating with one another,” Floyd said. “This is about how we can do it better.”

In all, seven recommendations will be presented by the task force, including one to phase out the so-called cooperative agreements between the North American Mission Board and state conventions in seven years and establish a new strategy for partnership. That would mean state Baptist conventions will no longer receive funds for in-state missionaries and church planting efforts from the national mission organization. In Arkansas, that amounts to a loss of about $500,000, according to Arkansas Baptist News.

The Missouri Baptist Convention stands to lose even more — almost $2 million — and the executive board has expressed concern about several other aspects of the report. The group’s executive director, David Tolliver, will attempt to make a motion at the annual meeting to delay action on the report to give the entities involved time to study the impact of the proposed changes.

FINANCIALLY SPLIT

While Southern Baptists are generally united in wanting higher membership and more baptisms, they’re divided over how to split the money.

“We need to take some time to study the ramifications of their recommendations. I may be for every one of them once I fully understand what it will mean to Southern Baptists,” Tolliver said.

Tolliver will be one of many messengers attempting motions on various topics. He said there’s no guarantee he’ll even be acknowledged, but he’ll make the attempt.

Tolliver said he’s concerned about several components in the report, including a section proposing a new category of designated giving — Great Commission giving — which he believes will hurt the denomination’s Cooperative Program. Since 1925, the Cooperative Program has helped unite Southern Baptists in a spirit of cooperation. Local churches contribute to the Cooperative Program and state conventions fund their ministries with a percentage of the money and forward the rest to the executive committee to be disbursed among the various denomination entities.

As for the cooperative agreements, Tolliver said the report leaves the future of funding unclear.

“But if Southern Baptists decide to dissolve those agreements, I, frankly, will do that and we’ll begin to adjust,” Tolliver said. “We’ll live with whatever Southern Baptists want us to do.”

Floyd said the recommendations concerning cooperative agreements are an attempt to utilize the North American Mission Board more effectively. The proposal calls for “refocusing” the board by making church planting in North America the top priority. He said that requires moving funds.

“We need to move as much money as we can out of the South and into areas where Christianity isn’t known,” Floyd said.

Mike McDaniel, pastor of Grace Point Church in Bentonville, hasn’t attended an annual meeting in several years but is making the trek to Orlando this year. His congregation is similar to many others — it affiliates with the Southern Baptist Convention but also with other entities, including the Willow Creek Association, and supports them financially. The majority of the congregation’s contributions go to the convention. McDaniel calls these congregations neo-Baptists, those who no longer place the same value on aligning themselves with a denomination.

“Denominations are shrinking,” he said. “They are relics of modernism and we are in a postmodern culture … where we are anti-institutional.”

McDaniel sees the restructuring of the convention as an attempt to stabilize the denomination but he’s not sure the changes will foster a sense of cooperation, especially with the dissolution of the cooperative agreements.

“My conclusion is that it will create a competitive spirit,” he said. “It’s a fight for a bigger piece of a shrinking pie.”

WORLDWIDE REACH

McDaniel said changes to the Cooperative Program are needed because the current system is not efficient if the goal is to reach the world with the Gospel. Most state conventions keep more than 60 percent of their cooperative giving funds in state. He thinks the majority of funds should leave Arkansas.

“There needs to be prioritization on evangelizing the unreached peoples of the world,” McDaniel said. “If 60 cents of every dollar never left the state, did we really believe in global missions or did we believe in Arkansas missions?”

Ultimately, McDaniel said the denomination’s pace of change could be too slow for many churches.

“I’m afraid the more progressive churches loyal to good, sound Baptist doctrine aren’t waiting around for the slow giant to wake up and change,” he said. “They are moving on.

“People in our church aren’t waiting for the IMB and other SBC organizations to change and catch up with the times. They are getting seminary degrees … going on missions with pioneers. They are ready to go and they are not going to wait around five more years or so until the denomination can finally get going in the right direction.”

As for Floyd, he encourages Southern Baptists to read the report. It’s online at pray4gcr.com.

“Southern Baptists are very concerned about the future but the problem is they are not sure how to get there,” he said. “We need to build a compelling vision that rallies them to a better future. … We need to create a climate where change is acceptable.”

We are in the process of launching  another GPC worship gathering in mid-town/lake area of Rogers.  We will share the one name, leadership, budget, vision and message as a unified body bringing our hearts together with those of Bentonville and Rogers.  I started with a list of reasons for a multi-site launch last week; but had too many reasons and needed to break it into two entries.

10 reasons why we are launching a missional 2nd GPC site (continued)
6. Multi-stie churches remove the limits of a 4-walled-church to see the church as community. The church’s walls aren’t limited to one building or address.  The church is a community, so the church should be a part of the community and not be defined by what goes on within 4 walls.  For the first five years of GPC existence, we were a portable church.  Many of our children knew the church was the community of people and not the building.  This is a more biblical idea of a church.  We are going back as we move forward.
7. Multi-site churches are  catalyst for 3-self church planting, not a hindrance.  One of my biggest push backs to multi-site was how I thought it would hinder 3 -self church planting.  Studies have confirmed that the multi site churches are more likely to plant churches than single campus churches.  84% of churches with multiple campuses have also planted  churches; only 74% of single campus churches have helped to sponsor another church plant (Viral Church, Stetzer).
8. Multi-site churches take a jack hammer to a mega church. Multi-site churches function as a smaller community so they can be nimble and be responsive to culture and people around them rather than be a huge massive institution that can’t adjust to change.  However, with the close affiliation between campuses it keeps the breadth of resources, talents, and depth of a larger church accessible to both.  In my doctoral research, I did a case study of Mosaic and their 9 campuses in the Los Angeles region.  Their pastor, Erwin McManus, said to me: “Mega churches don’t require empowering lay people.  They require a system that standardizes so that fewer people have to do everything in the decision-making process.” Multi-site churches, however, help the whole body of Christ to function and exercise their gifts.
9. Multi-sites enable people to go and plant churches while staying connected to the church they love. This will afford more members who feel a call to go and help plant a church to take a baby step, by leaving GPC Bentonville and going to GPC Rogers; yet, never having to leave their GPC family.  It is an in-between step to starting 3-self churches.  We need 15-20 families with a church planter’s heart that are ready to go and serve and worship on Saturday nights and labor to start a new campus with GPC’s heart and soul.
10. Mult-site churches enable different groups of worshipers in multiple communities to network and experience fellowship together. It is sad to say, but many times there is a disconnect between churches. Multi-site churches build a system of unity and working together, serving together as we serve one another, and serve our Lord.  It expands God’s community under one common heart and voice of the people, even if they are separated by miles.

Choosing the right campus pastor to serve in this strategic position is paramount to the over all success of the campus.  Pete Finfrock is an amazing young man who we have been “grooming” for this position. He is graduate of Ecclesia Bible College and he and his wife Emily live in Rogers.  Emily is a teacher. They have been a part of GPC since our years in Bentonville High School.  They share a common vision for the city of Rogers and know they will lead and care for the people well.  Hear Pete preach Sunday May 16th at GPC, as we move forward as a church to be on mission in Rogers.

My skepticism has passed since doing some thorough research.  Once I saw there were many models of multi-sites rather than just the celebrity model that I have sometimes seen, my perspective began to change.  Once I had studied healthier models that were Kingdom minded with a clear missional involvement, and less mega church and attractional, my defenses came down.   (Attractional is simply a program- driven- come- and-see- what- we- do- approach).  I began to see some real upside for God’s Kingdom work in some powerful ways.  The following are some bullet point observations that speak to the advantage of churches using a healthy multi-site approach to launching churches.

10 reasons I am a believer in “Missional” Multi-site Churches…

1. Multi-site churches are a way of putting “local” back in the church.  With the advent of mega churches, the local church has been lost and the regional mega-church born.  When churches do multi-site, they are taking the church back down to a grass roots movement in a community and move away from  larger massive institutions.
2. Multi-site churches create space and opportunity for new leaders to be born and to become. Take for example praise teams.  Once a church has its polished worship band and team, the tendency is to simply work the most talented and  only develop back one or two talent spots for each position.  This leaves a lot of emerging talent on the side.  Multi-site forces every pastor and ministry leader to become a developer of people for future campuses and church plants.  Sounds a lot like a form of disciple making to me.
3. Multi-site churches foster a “going” ethos.  ”Missional” is a term over used and under-defined today.  If you want to sell a book or sound trendy, use the term “missional.” I even hated using the word to describe our version of a multi-site, but there are so many hybrids of the new method.  Though there are many dialects of missional, one thing is unanimous with missional churches – they “go.”  The biggest event isn’t the coming to church, but the going of the church.  They go to the under-developed and under-resourced; they go to the growing populations segments in need of a spiritual community.    Multi-sites create a culture where “going is good.”
4. Multi-site churches take the church to the people, instead of expecting the unchurched to come to them.  It is most important to build bridges to the unchurched.  Caring enough to go to the people and be among the people is more meaningful than saying come to us. People typically will travel as far to church as they travel to work (15-20 min in NWA).  It is beyond reason to expect an unchurched person to travel further than this to attend church gatherings.  Unchurched people won’t go out of their way to go to church.   Neither are the unchurched turned on to Jesus by a church’s polished performance.  Instead, the church living in the community, affecting the community mind, body and soul opens doors to speak into the lives of people far from Christ.
5. Multi-site churches are more efficient with God’s resources and effective in church planting .  A 3-self church plant (self supporting, self governing, and self sustaining) is the traditional form of church planting should still be a priority.  However, some church starts require subsidies of $150,000 or more before they can become self sustaining churches.  Multi-sites can be self-sustaining faster and with less money because the start up cost, logistical organization, legal papers for 501c3 status, and marketing functions are all shared by the launching campus as they have already established systems, processes,  and a name to help the emerging congregation.   Instead of crawling as a baby church, they are able to start walking and running quickly as a multi-site.

There are some things about multi-site churches that I am repulsed by.  However, My definition of what a multi-site church can and should be has been broadened. I now see its potential value.   Next blog post I will give the other 5 reasons I have gone from a skeptic to a believer in multi-sites.

GPC has recognized some of the hunger issues of the world.   Our people have given generously and are intending to help fight against the global hunger needs.  We are particularly focusing our attention on the severe malnutrition in Mali, West Africa.  We are in partnership with SILAH-Mali (NGO humanitarian organization in Mali) and MANA a manufacture of “Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Foods” (RUTF) to help alleviate the growing malnutrition needs of a nation where 38% of Malian children are chronically malnourished.  One of our SILAH Mali reps who sees the malnutrition daily, wrote me an email detailing an account of increased malnutrition and it’s affects that are comparable to the holocaust  and the hunger suffering that was endured during World War II.

Read the account below and visualize the tragedy of the holocaust and the modern day tragedy of hunger today.

We do a lot together: raise 3 awesome children, start churches, travel on mission to 20+ countries together, but I am so proud of her that she is a confident and capable leader, communicator and missiologist.

Lori may have left me but in 4 hours and 23 minutes (not that I am counting), I am picking her up from the airport and bringing her home.  She is returning from K-village where she traveled with the 7 other women.  They were armed with only their backpacks, and a translator or two, to live in a mud hut (AKA: the Grace Point Hilton), draw water from a well, and teach villagers about Jesus.  But to top it off she sprained her ankle while in the capital city and went to the bush on crutches…wait the story doesn’t end there.  K-village church (GPC first church plant) and GPC have been working together to see a 2nd generation church born in N-village some 2 hours walk away.  Despite the crutches and 100+ degree temps she and a couple of other ladies from the team and some leaders from K-village church traveled with her to N-village and shared more stories of Jesus.  Thirteen ladies became Christ followers in N-village.  There are now 19 Christ followers in a very remote village with a population of 600.  This is an amazing harvest in a predominate Muslim and animistic setting.

My wife left me…but she can leave anytime if this is the kind of work she is goin be about.

PS: she also proofs my blogs, but since she left me I might need your help with my grammar or spelling, send any needed correction to mike@gracepointchurch.net

Here is an article that is worth reading if you are a Beyond Borders thinker like myself.  Eric Swanson, of Leadership Network (and outstanding para-church thinking, equipping and catalyst organization) had this article in their recent Network Advance. It is a great help for seeing the mission effects of when churches become missional.  When churches go on mission with God, the way we look at the world, the mission of God, and our mission in life is effected.  Read and be blessed.

1) Mutuality- The future of missions will be shaped by mutuality between East and West, North and South, sending and receiving nations. Because there are now vibrant believers and thriving churches in Africa, Asia, Latin America, Eurasia, and even the Middle East, we in the West shouldn’t think of ourselves as the saving force in world missions. Churches worldwide are learning to come together.

3) Investing in leaders -Leadership is everything. Wherever good things are happening, a capable and passionate man or woman will be leading the way. Churches that are effective overseas have learned to leverage the passion of local leaders. How do you recognize good leaders who will make great partners? The most obvious sign is they are already engaged in effective ministry without any outside help.

says that even in the toughest of countries they don’t leave Jesus at the immigration booth. Jonathan told me, “When we are asked if we intend to proselytize people through our service we tell them, ‘We’re here to make Jesus known and Jesus gets known through his followers doing good’–as opposed to, ‘We are not here to get followers of Jesus.’ So far, that has worked for us.”

5) Greater financial accountability-Churches that effectively engage in global ministry are thinking differently about who, what and how they support missional engagement. The days of cutting a check and hoping for the best are rapidly disappearing. With all the needs and opportunities in the world, global missions leaders of the future are working to maximize every dollar expended on global outreach. Effective missional churches of the future support mission-critical projects that their global partners deem important. This type of giving can only come from a trusted relationship. Churches are learning never to start initiatives that will require western dollars to continue.

6) Business as mission-An emerging funding model ties business and mission together. This is more than missionaries posing as businesspeople but rather missional entrepreneurs who are starting businesses and creating jobs in the countries in which they serve.

7) Focus-There is a power in focus. On the flipside, the most frustrated pastors I interviewed were those whose churches supported scores of scattered legacy missionaries who were serving all over the map. Much of the time, these missionaries were not home-grown but rather nephews of former staff, or friends of friends, or a missionary tied to a designated gift. The often unstated missions goal was to place representatives from the church on every continent of the globe. Churches today are learning to do better by focusing on fewer places of engagement.

Technology -With every breakthrough in communication technology, there have been innovators who have exploited that technology to advance the gospel. The printing press, radio, TV, and the Internet have allowed the church to increasingly enter a world without boundaries. All around us are glimpses of churches that are discovering the power of today’s newest technology–to impact a country without ever physically visiting that country. Tech-savvy mission leaders are shrinking the world with technology.

i. William Gibson, quoted in The Economist, December 4, 2003 Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Gibson. Accessed June 20, 2009

 

 

 

 

 

Playing For Change: Song Around the World “Stand By Me” from Playing For Change on Vimeo.

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