Feeding the poor

Aug 13 2008 05:51 pm

My thoughts on the August 2008 Synchroblog on poverty:

Echoes of “liberal” and “social gospel” ring in my ears. I’ve been told by so many evangelicals/fundamentalists that our sole job is to tell people the “Good News” (their version, of course, doesn’t come off sounding so good). Feeding the poor is OK, just don’t let it get in the way of the real deal - asking perfect strangers where they’ll go if they die tonight or giving someone a tract in place of a tip.

Somewhere along the way, Matthew 25 has been ignored. But one would think a passage that clearly lays out what separates the sheep from the goats is at least of some importance….

Jesus spends much more time speaking of life here and now, and how we are to live that life, than He does about eternity. We are told that whatever we do to the least of these, we have done to Christ. Would we be willing to feed Jesus, to give him shelter, to visit Him in prison?

Jesus fed the multitudes, knowing full well that the majority would soon turn away from Him. If the Master could feed the people without expectation, are we the students so much greater that we can insist someone we feed must have the gospel pounded into them?

(The people behind the inspiration for this:
Igneous Quill
Phil Wyman’s Square No More
Notes from the Underground
A sojourner temporarily stuck in time
The Assembling of the Church
The Eagle’s Nest
Headspace

(There are others in the synchroblog , but their articles are not up yet.)

By Jimmie | Posted in Missional | Tagged , , | Comments (8)

In The Know: How Can We Make The War In Iraq More Eco-Friendly?

Aug 13 2008 05:20 pm


In The Know: How Can We Make The War In Iraq More Eco-Friendly?

Not sure what I can say that would add to this….

By Jimmie | Posted in General stuff | Tagged , | Comments (0)

Crossposting made easy

Aug 08 2008 09:28 am

Well, easier….

Since I’ve discovered blogging, I also like to put my blogs up elsewhere - MySpace, Facebook, my discssion forum, Blogger, and sometimes another forum. This usually means cutting and pasting several times, plus editing for each site. But I’m now discovering ways to make it easier. In order of complexity to set up:

1. Facebook - Anyone with any proficiency should be able to do this. Facebook’s Notes applications allows you to import external blogs as notes. Go into Notes (on the left column, under Applications.) Once in Notes, look for Notes Settings in the right column. Click there and then click on the text about importing an external blog. You’ll need your feed address (look for the RSS or “subscribe to” or “feed” or something similar on your blog, right-click it and ‘Copy shortcut’). Paste your feed address into the import box and follow the rest of the directions. This should work with any blog that offers a feed.

2. MySpace - A little more complicated, and only for those using WordPress. WordPress has a plugin available called MySpace Crossposter. Install it like any plugin, activate, and enter your settings. (If this makes no sense to you, you probably don’t want to try this…) You’ll need your MySpace URL and password. It is compatible with 2.0 and up - I’m using 2.6 and it works fine.

3. Other blogs - For exporting from WordPress to Blogger, Vox, or any other blog that accepts posting by email, WordPress has several different plugins for emailing blogs to subscribers. Install one (I use Subscribe2) and set up a separate user for each blog - enter the email address for posting blogs. This will also work for any forum that allows posting by email as well.

4. Forum integration - Evidently, I should have used phpBB for my forum software, but I chose myBB. I like myBB a lot, but the old plugin to integrate WP and myBB is way out of date. However, from what I read, phpBB and WP integrate very well. The developers of WP have also developed their own software, BBPress, specifically for integrating with WordPress. Unfortunatlely, it only works up to version 2.5 and I’m using 2.6. So I can either switch to phpBB or wait until BBPress is updated. (And then one more factor - myBB doesn’t transfer over directly; I’ll have to transfer it to phpBB and then to BBPress.)

So my solutions (and a partial solution), which show 2 things - I am very obsessive-compulsive and I really am a geek.

(Original posting at http://jimmie.compassionatechristianity.org)

By Jimmie | Posted in General stuff | Tagged | Comments (2)

Noise Trade

Aug 08 2008 03:57 am

I just want to advertize this to as many people as possible. It’s a great new way to sell music - pay what you think it’s worth or tell your friends about it.

By Jimmie | Posted in General stuff | Tagged | Comments (0)

Hot Dog!

Aug 06 2008 04:21 am


I live in New Braunfels, a small town (now more of a suburb) just north of San Antonio. New Braunfels is known for both Schlitterbahn and river tubing. Trying to find ways to reach out to people, we decided to take Jesus’ message of love to the tubers on the river. We decided handing out hot dogs to tubers near the end of their trip would be something nice that anyone would appreciate.
We got off to a slow start last summer, as the weather refused to cooperate. But we were finally able to hand out hot dogs one weekend. We gave out over 400 hot dogs the first time and interacted with at least that many tubers.
The reactions we received were varied. Some people refused to believe we were giving out anything for free and assumed there was some catch. Some just took the hot dogs. Others thanked us and asked why we were doing this; I’d say the majority of people fell into this category. We simply told people that we were trying to show people Christ’s love in a small but practical way.

So far this summer (2008), we’ve done 2 more handouts. Our final one of the year will be this coming Saturday, August 9th. In June, we handed out water as well as hot dogs. In July, we increased our number of hot dogs to 1,000. Over 30 people volunteered between the 2 Sundays.

Some lessons learned:
People are not only willing to talk to you about Christ and God when you do something unexpected and loving, they will initiate the discussions.
Some people won’t believe something’s free, no matter what the evidence is. But some of these people will change their minds when they see others enjoying the gift.
Sharing the Gospel just requires a willing heart.

Jason handing out dogs

People really were curious

Some of the kids played while we cooked

1000 hot dogs takes a lot of work - and a lot of people

Hot dog prep

Alex and Brian cooking the dogs
At least one happy customer

By Jimmie | Posted in Missional | Tagged , , , | Comments (1)

A missional job description?

Aug 05 2008 11:49 am

OK, so I am trying to finish up a little blog/lesson plan on ways to “10 ways to live missionally”. I’m stuck on phrasing for a way involving money (our spending being not only reflective of our heart but also something others take notice of). So I decided to google “missional living”.

A large portion of the hits were on living “green” but I expected that. Other links led me to some excellent blogs (3 added to my blogroll today).

But I did not expect to find this: Missional Multiplier Job Description

Yep, a “job description” for being missional! But it gets even better. Not only has reaching out to people been programmed into a few “You must do this” items, you can move beyond this into a “Missional Multiplier” - evidently, they’re the guys that have got “missional” down pat.

Every student should, at the very least, be living missionally.
What this looks like is -
• Having intentional meals/coffee with classmates, work associates, neighbors
and family initiating spiritual conversations trusting God for a Gospel
opportunity.
• Invite same people into the body, the church and CRU events,
• Join other groups associated with a hobby, interest, or major and spending
time to create relationships with the intent of having spiritual conversations.
……

There are certain individuals that are Missional Multipliers (M&M) –
• M&M’s are faithfully attempting the above missional lifestyle and also
multiplying that lifestyle in the lives of others to raise up missionally minded students for the movement.
• M&M’s disciple key students so that they are multiplying a missional lifestyle into others’ lives.
• M&M’s are discipled by Staff members or other student leaders.
…..

Admittedly, there are some good ideas in this list. But I see some issues:
1) We’re not clones. To say that everyone must do exactly the same thing is silly, illogical, and unbiblical (did Paul and Peter reach people the same way?)
2) If we, as Christians, create relationships with people just so we can have a spiritual conversation, then we have treated them not with love but as means to an end.
There are other issues, but the primary one is reducing following Christ down to a handful of “musts”.

Of course, this does come back full circle. By creating a list of ways to be missional, I could also be “programming” missional. It is our tendency to want to break everything down, to number it, to add some “musts” and “must nots” to the list. I like checklists and job descriptions. They help me know exactly what I need to be doing. But I hope I never limit anything of God to a checklist for myself or for other people. God is far bigger than any 10 ideas I could ever come up with.

I’ll still finish my list of 10 ways, but they are simply suggestions for me and others. They are a starting point, something concrete to begin a life of following Christ.

By Jimmie | Posted in Missional | Tagged , | Comments (2)

Come join the party…

Aug 04 2008 07:45 am

As I read the Gospels, I’ve noticed that there were a couple things that made the scribes and pharisees angry with Jesus. The first, and most obvious, was His claims of deity. But another is the fact that He opened heaven/eternal life up to more than just the religious. He opened it up to whoever would come, even those that the Jews would have nothing to do with.

The issue of Christ’s deity is not a big deal within the Church today. Even religions/churches most christians would reject recognize Christ’s deity. But the issue of who gets in and who doesn’t…. talk about stirring up a hornet’s nest!

A recent discussion on one forum highlighted this. Someone wrote about a party in heaven, and that everyone was invited. But a pharisee showed up, clipboard in hand, to make sure that everyone who showed up was indeed invited. The keys to the kingdom were in her hands, as far as she was concerned, and she would make sure the riff-raff stayed out. How dare someone say everyone was welcome!

I posted an analogy of Jesus sneaking people past the pharisees and in the back door. Isn’t this what Christianity is? We couldn’t keep the Law (and get on the invitation list), so Jesus found a way to get us into the party anyway. Yet this analogy drew fire - even from a poster I respect.

Why is it so many people are more concerned with keeping the riff-raff out than with helping them get into the party?

The good news is that not only is there a party planned for us, it has already begun. But the bad news is that your invitation got lost somewhere and you’ll never get past security (religion) at the front door. Don’t feel too bad; I lost my invitation as well.

But Jesus is more than happy to sneak you into the party. Just follow Him in through the back door. It’s a great party; it’s a shame so many are missing it because they insist on checking names at the door.

By Jimmie | Posted in Missional, Rant | Tagged , | Comments (4)

Making the Most

Jul 20 2008 10:45 pm

The Book of Acts contains our best examples of biblical evangelism. It starts in Acts 2, where a large crowd was drawn by the activity of the Holy Spirit and Peter took the opportunity to tell them about Christ. And throughout the book we read that the apostles were accompanied by signs and miracles (the work of the Spirit) and that people listened to them because of this. The Spirit is still at work today, though the signs and miracles are less flashy today. Don’t get me wrong; I believe there is still supernatural physical healing. But I believe that we can see the Spirit at work everyday in the casting out of the demons of addiction or in the healing of a broken person. And those outside the Body of Christ do pay attention when they see these kinds of miracles – it is up to us to make the most of the opportunity to tell people the Gospel of Christ.

There are 2 examples of evangelism in the Book of Acts that have always stood out to me. Both involve less supernatural circumstances but definitely involved a believer making the most of an opportunity to speak.

In Acts 17:16-34. we read of Paul’s speech in the Aeropagus. This speech is a great example of apologetics and an inspiration for many of us who would share Christ with those of other faiths. But first Paul had to be given the opportunity to speak. How did he gain this? First, he saw the situation in Athens. The people were worshipping a large number of idols and Paul’s spirit, who we can assume was in tune with the Holy Spirit, was provoked. In other words, Paul was responding to the Spirit’s promptings.
Second, he talked with the people around him. The bible doesn’t tell us how long Paul spent talking with the people in the marketplace before being given the opportunity to speak in the Aeroagus, but I imagine it was weeks, if not months. It is obvious that not only was he telling people about Christ, he was also listening and learning about what they believed as well – he will use their own beliefs as his starting point for his sermon.
Third, Paul is respectful towards those he was talking to. He was respectful enough that they invited him to the Aeropagus so they could hear him speak more. Paul continues to show respect when he addresses the Aeropagus. Instead of condemning them for false beliefs, he makes the observation that they are indeed very religious. And then he goes on from there to tell them of the unknown God that many are already worshipping.
So we can learn 3 things from Paul on making the most – 1) Let the Spirit guide you; 2) Sometimes evangelism takes time and effort; 3) Treat others with respect.
The bible tells us (vv. 32, 34) that there 3 different reactions to Paul’s presentation of the Gospel. Some scoffed, some wanted to know more, and some became believers.

In Acts 8:25-40, we read of the Ethiopian eunuch and Philip’s discussion with him. The situation begins quite differently here – the Spirit doesn’t just prompt Philip but gives him direct instructions. The similarity with Paul at the Aeropagus lies in the fact the Spirit was at work behind the scenes; neither the Athenians or the eunuch see the Spirit at work except through their interactions with believers.
The situation continues quite differently as well. While Paul had weeks or months to talk, learn, and lay a groundwork, Philip has to act instantly. The Spirit tells him “Go talk to him, now!”
But Philip was ready. He made the most of this chance by asking the eunuch if he understood what he was reading. Though we only have a short description of the interaction between Philip and the eunuch, it is obvious that Philip was (like Paul) treating the eunuch with respect. The eunuch was a powerful man, yet he invited Philip to come join him and talk to him more. And later, the eunuch believes in the Gospel and becomes a follower of Christ.
So the three things we learn from Philip – 1) Let the Spirit guide you; 2) Sometimes evangelism requires instant action; 3) Treat others with respect.

By Jimmie | Posted in Evangelism, Missional | Tagged , , | Comments (2)

How we should be known…

Jul 20 2008 12:36 pm

    T-Shirts (How we should be known) by Derek Webb

they’ll know us by the t-shirts that we wear
they’ll know us by the way we point and stare
at anyone whose sin looks worse than ours
who cannot hide the scars of this curse that we all bare

they’ll know us by our picket lines and signs
they’ll know us by the pride we hide behind
like anyone on earth is living right
and isn’t that why Jesus died
not to make us think we’re right

when love, love, love
is what we should be known for
love, love, love
it’s the how and it’s the why
we live and breathe and we die

they’ll know us by reasons we divide
and how we can’t seem to unify
because we’ve gotta sing songs a certain style
or we’ll walk right down that aisle
and just leave ‘em all behind

they’ll know us by the billboards that we make
just turning God’s words to cheap clichés
says “what part of murder don’t you understand?”
but we hate our fellow man
and point a finger at his grave

they’ll know us by the t-shirts that we wear
they’ll know us by the way we point and stare
telling ‘em their sins are worse than ours
thinking we can hide our scars
beneath these t-shirts that we wear

By Jimmie | Posted in Missional | Tagged , | Comments (0)

Becoming a cerified emergent movement critic

Jul 18 2008 06:33 pm

Interested in a new and fascinating career? Want to make sure you’re in with all the right Christian circles? Here are some quick tips for becoming a emergent movement critic:

1. Don’t bother to learn the difference between emergent, emerging, and missional. After all, all 3 are left of where you are and so must be evil.
2. Never, ever read or listen to anyone you plan to criticize. After all, there is absolutely no need to muddy the water with what they actually have said or believe.
3. Lump every liberal group, person, or activity in under the emergent umbrella. Guilt by association is a well-respected technique, even when there is no actual association.
4. Always use anti-emergent websites for your sole source of information. The best ones uses lots of ellipses (….) when quoting emergents, leaving out irrelevant info that might actually clarify what was written.
5. Remember, the diversity of the emergent movement is meaningless. If McLaren, Bell, or Pagett said it, feel free to assume that anyone associated with the movement must believe it.
6. Never admit to any truth in any emergent writings, no matter how small. You can’t give them an inch. Likewise, anyone who expressed any sympathy or understanding of emergent thought has been seduced away from the truth. Treat them as you would an emergent.
7. When arguing against emergent, feel free to ignore the aberrant theology of anyone else arguing against them - their enemy is your friend.
8. All emergents have one goal and one goal alone - the destruction of your church. Don’t let anything else they say distract you from their main goal.
9. Emergents are not and can not be sincere in their faith, their search for the truth, or their love for their fellow man. It’s all a front for their desire to destroy your church.
10. When all else fails, try the following phrases: “Social gospel”; “friends with the world”; “attacking the brethren”; “pluralism”; “friends with Rome”.

By Jimmie | Posted in Missional, Rant | Tagged , | Comments (2)