by Jason Joyner | Jun 25, 2012 | Blog, Jesus, Mission Monday, missional, organic church, Outreach Saga
Another Mission Monday. Another series in our Outreach Saga.
The link there will catch you up if you’re so inclined. The basics so far – I’m in a home group/church that has decided to meet out in a local park for the summer. We’re meeting next to a set of low-income apartments on Sundays, inviting the people to a “BBQ for Jesus” and hanging out with them.
My last two Monday posts have talked about our first two experiences relating to what we have done with the people there. Yesterday was another good day where we were able to bless people relationally, financially, and spiritually. I had a great conversation with some guys discussing our souls, forgiveness, and cremation(!).
The outside manifestation of what Jesus is leading us to do is cool enough. However, I am seeing an equally important side-effect.
I am being transformed.
I have been a faithful church attender since high school. I went to church when my mom had given up on it long ago. I’ve been through church splits, highs, lows, and anywhere in between. The Lord has been walking with me all along, through the trials and blessings. However, over the last several years I have struggled at church. I knew that I was not going to get milk. I wasn’t a new Christian, and I felt that I needed to reach out and be a blessing to others. I taught Bible studies and Sunday school classes. I filled in for the pastor if he was gone. Why, I even acted as a “lay pastor” when we were 5 months in between ministers.
Still, it was more of a duty going on Sunday mornings. I felt it was my fault. I needed to pray more prior to church. I had to get my “heart” right. It was on me.
Now that we aren’t doing church as usual, I think I’m seeing something.
Since we don’t have a strict format, since we’re going week by week trying to listen to God and do whatever is set before us, there is a difference in my heart.
There’s an excitement. There’s a renewal of a passion that had cooled.
There’s a new dependence on Jesus.
We don’t know what is going to happen each time! We have done a variety of things so far. I can’t plan – I can’t use my prior knowledge of the Bible or church to guide me. (Certainly I’m leaning on the Word, but it isn’t where I plan a three-point sermon or lesson).
It is staying sensitive to the Spirit each time we’re out there. It is crying out to Jesus through the week, recognizing that I am in over my head! I need Him to walk with me through this.
I am being changed again.
I have had the privilege of many different experiences that have strengthened my relationship with Jesus. A mission trip, nine months of Bible school, and my long history in church walking with some dear people.
It reminds me of my physician assistant program. The first year was almost all classroom. We took in so much information it was like drinking from a fire hose. The second year was our clinical year. We worked with doctors, PA’s, or nurse practitioners to take care of patients. I was part of a team that helped people, and it made the classroom learning real, because it was applied learning.
I feel like our little group is in clinicals right now. We’ve had many years of going to church, learning and building up our knowledge base and our spiritual lives. Now we are in the practical stage. It is time to go out and do.
It is a challenge. It is frightening at times. It is also exhilirating. I know Jesus is helping us as we try to obey as best we can. I’m learning more and more the truth behind this verse:
“With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.” (Mark 10:27)
—
by Jason Joyner | Jun 25, 2012 | Blog, Jesus, Mission Monday, missional, organic church, Outreach Saga
Another Mission Monday. Another series in our Outreach Saga.
The link there will catch you up if you’re so inclined. The basics so far – I’m in a home group/church that has decided to meet out in a local park for the summer. We’re meeting next to a set of low-income apartments on Sundays, inviting the people to a “BBQ for Jesus” and hanging out with them.
My last two Monday posts have talked about our first two experiences relating to what we have done with the people there. Yesterday was another good day where we were able to bless people relationally, financially, and spiritually. I had a great conversation with some guys discussing our souls, forgiveness, and cremation(!).
The outside manifestation of what Jesus is leading us to do is cool enough. However, I am seeing an equally important side-effect.
I am being transformed.
I have been a faithful church attender since high school. I went to church when my mom had given up on it long ago. I’ve been through church splits, highs, lows, and anywhere in between. The Lord has been walking with me all along, through the trials and blessings. However, over the last several years I have struggled at church. I knew that I was not going to get milk. I wasn’t a new Christian, and I felt that I needed to reach out and be a blessing to others. I taught Bible studies and Sunday school classes. I filled in for the pastor if he was gone. Why, I even acted as a “lay pastor” when we were 5 months in between ministers.
Still, it was more of a duty going on Sunday mornings. I felt it was my fault. I needed to pray more prior to church. I had to get my “heart” right. It was on me.
Now that we aren’t doing church as usual, I think I’m seeing something.
Since we don’t have a strict format, since we’re going week by week trying to listen to God and do whatever is set before us, there is a difference in my heart.
There’s an excitement. There’s a renewal of a passion that had cooled.
There’s a new dependence on Jesus.
We don’t know what is going to happen each time! We have done a variety of things so far. I can’t plan – I can’t use my prior knowledge of the Bible or church to guide me. (Certainly I’m leaning on the Word, but it isn’t where I plan a three-point sermon or lesson).
It is staying sensitive to the Spirit each time we’re out there. It is crying out to Jesus through the week, recognizing that I am in over my head! I need Him to walk with me through this.
I am being changed again.
I have had the privilege of many different experiences that have strengthened my relationship with Jesus. A mission trip, nine months of Bible school, and my long history in church walking with some dear people.
It reminds me of my physician assistant program. The first year was almost all classroom. We took in so much information it was like drinking from a fire hose. The second year was our clinical year. We worked with doctors, PA’s, or nurse practitioners to take care of patients. I was part of a team that helped people, and it made the classroom learning real, because it was applied learning.
I feel like our little group is in clinicals right now. We’ve had many years of going to church, learning and building up our knowledge base and our spiritual lives. Now we are in the practical stage. It is time to go out and do.
It is a challenge. It is frightening at times. It is also exhilirating. I know Jesus is helping us as we try to obey as best we can. I’m learning more and more the truth behind this verse:
“With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.” (Mark 10:27)
—
by Jason Joyner | Jun 18, 2012 | Blog, Jesus, Mission Monday, missional, organic church, Outreach Saga, parks are cool
Two down. Not sure how many more to go.
So far this is a three week series. In the first post I explained how a group of friends in Christ decided to do church a little differently. Last Monday I told the story how we didn’t even get the right date on our invitations, but God showed up anyway. Also some people.
We decided last week to meet again at this local park. It is in the midst of a low-income housing area, with over one hundred apartment complexes. In our city it is known as a rougher area of town. The thing we found last week is that people were receptive to us coming and spending time with them.
After some preparation and more invitations (with the right date, thank you very much) we showed up again on Sunday morning. The first gentleman I talked to asked what denomination we were with.
“Well, we’re just a home church trying to do something a little different.”
We had another good day. People came back from last week. New people showed up. We prayed for people, made arrangements to help one person move, and ran out of hamburgers.
The takeaway point for me was one woman saying, “Our complex needs this. Thank you for making a little community time together.”
There are many people out there who are proponents of home church who say it is the only way to do things. I’m not in that camp, but I think our modern American lifestyle does not allow for true coming together as neighbors. We don’t sit on the front porch anymore – we huddle in our backyards behind privacy fencing. We don’t go to the local church – we drive 30 miles to the one that “makes us feel good” and “meets our needs.”
I know we’ve only done this twice, and I can’t make too many generalizations from just a couple of events. However, it seems that people are hungry to find some grace out there, and I would suggest that the followers of Jesus are the ones to bring it.
A minister friend of mine, Tom Brock, says something to this effect: “Belong, Believe, Behave.” We need to make people feel that they belong, that they are welcome and that they are worthy. If we help them belong, then they will come to believe. Out of that, they will learn to behave. So many of these folks have gone to church, sought after God, and have been rejected.
It grieves my heart.
We’re on a little adventure right now. I know we’re going to that park again on Sunday, and after that we don’t know. I’m not sharing this because I have some secret or that we’re doing things “the right way.”
We’re doing things one way, and God is showing up. It is refreshing. It brings life. I hope to share a little of what we’re learning here is all.
And if you’re bored on Sunday, drop me a line. I know a cool place to hang out.
—
by Jason Joyner | Jun 18, 2012 | Blog, Jesus, Mission Monday, missional, organic church, Outreach Saga, parks are cool
Two down. Not sure how many more to go.
So far this is a three week series. In the first post I explained how a group of friends in Christ decided to do church a little differently. Last Monday I told the story how we didn’t even get the right date on our invitations, but God showed up anyway. Also some people.
We decided last week to meet again at this local park. It is in the midst of a low-income housing area, with over one hundred apartment complexes. In our city it is known as a rougher area of town. The thing we found last week is that people were receptive to us coming and spending time with them.
After some preparation and more invitations (with the right date, thank you very much) we showed up again on Sunday morning. The first gentleman I talked to asked what denomination we were with.
“Well, we’re just a home church trying to do something a little different.”
We had another good day. People came back from last week. New people showed up. We prayed for people, made arrangements to help one person move, and ran out of hamburgers.
The takeaway point for me was one woman saying, “Our complex needs this. Thank you for making a little community time together.”
There are many people out there who are proponents of home church who say it is the only way to do things. I’m not in that camp, but I think our modern American lifestyle does not allow for true coming together as neighbors. We don’t sit on the front porch anymore – we huddle in our backyards behind privacy fencing. We don’t go to the local church – we drive 30 miles to the one that “makes us feel good” and “meets our needs.”
I know we’ve only done this twice, and I can’t make too many generalizations from just a couple of events. However, it seems that people are hungry to find some grace out there, and I would suggest that the followers of Jesus are the ones to bring it.
A minister friend of mine, Tom Brock, says something to this effect: “Belong, Believe, Behave.” We need to make people feel that they belong, that they are welcome and that they are worthy. If we help them belong, then they will come to believe. Out of that, they will learn to behave. So many of these folks have gone to church, sought after God, and have been rejected.
It grieves my heart.
We’re on a little adventure right now. I know we’re going to that park again on Sunday, and after that we don’t know. I’m not sharing this because I have some secret or that we’re doing things “the right way.”
We’re doing things one way, and God is showing up. It is refreshing. It brings life. I hope to share a little of what we’re learning here is all.
And if you’re bored on Sunday, drop me a line. I know a cool place to hang out.
—
by Jason Joyner | Jun 12, 2012 | Blog, Jesus, Mission Monday, missional, organic church, Outreach Saga, who needs the right date anyway
Putting the wrong date on an invitation is usually a bad thing.
Last week I told how our home group was planning to meet in a local park, next to a low-income apartment complex. We decided to have a free BBQ, but we didn’t want to do a “bait-and-switch,” so on the flyers we delivered to every apartment we told them we’re inviting them to hang out with us and talk about Jesus. They knew up front what we were doing. We planned it for Sunday morning from 11-1.
The flyers went out on Thursday, June 7. We talked, planned, and most of all prayed. We got burgers, watermelon, chips, and cookies together and got together early to prepare and wait for people to come.
We waited.
Finally we talked to one guy. We told him we put out flyers. “Oh, the ones that say ‘June 6’ with no day of the week on them?”
Yes, that would be us.
I’m certain the computer automatically put the date of when it was done. So we now had 50+ apartments, 100 burgers, and 0 people.
We decided we’d better go knocking.
We went around to each complex again, inviting people to come. My wife and I knocked on the door of one woman who was fairly sick and couldn’t come out into the windy cold weather. We said we’d bring her a plate of food. My wife nominated me since I’m medical and the woman was visibly ill. I brought her a plate and got visiting with her. It turns out I had something left over from my mom that was used twice and would be a good help to this new friend. She was very excited to get something that would help her in her illness, and I was excited to give her this device after holding onto it for several years.
I came back to the park and we had several people come and go. I think we ended up with around 20 adults stopping by, with many kids as well. The cool thing about this is it was a good number for us to start with. Between our group of 9 adults, we got to talk to everyone who came for at least a few minutes. I got to meet a couple of guys who were happy to hang out. They liked that people gathered at this park to spend time with them. I talked with them, learned about some of their troubles and their lives. I never had to force it, but I was able to share about Jesus with them.
Everyone in our group had similar stories. It was an amazing time. We wrapped up and I think we all were thinking, “Why hadn’t we done this before?” It was so simple. We served people. We treated them with respect and listened to them. One of our group had prepared a talk, but it didn’t work out.
We hadn’t even decided what we were going to do next week, but we had such a good time we realized we should go back again and build some relationship. We might move to other parks during the summer, but for this week we’ll take the next step. Even though the wrong date could have torpedoed our plans and our resolve, God was good to give us what we could handle.
If you have questions about what we are doing or how things went, I’d be happy to discuss it. We’ll see what the future holds.
—
by Jason Joyner | Jun 12, 2012 | Blog, Jesus, Mission Monday, missional, organic church, Outreach Saga, who needs the right date anyway
Putting the wrong date on an invitation is usually a bad thing.
Last week I told how our home group was planning to meet in a local park, next to a low-income apartment complex. We decided to have a free BBQ, but we didn’t want to do a “bait-and-switch,” so on the flyers we delivered to every apartment we told them we’re inviting them to hang out with us and talk about Jesus. They knew up front what we were doing. We planned it for Sunday morning from 11-1.
The flyers went out on Thursday, June 7. We talked, planned, and most of all prayed. We got burgers, watermelon, chips, and cookies together and got together early to prepare and wait for people to come.
We waited.
Finally we talked to one guy. We told him we put out flyers. “Oh, the ones that say ‘June 6’ with no day of the week on them?”
Yes, that would be us.
I’m certain the computer automatically put the date of when it was done. So we now had 50+ apartments, 100 burgers, and 0 people.
We decided we’d better go knocking.
We went around to each complex again, inviting people to come. My wife and I knocked on the door of one woman who was fairly sick and couldn’t come out into the windy cold weather. We said we’d bring her a plate of food. My wife nominated me since I’m medical and the woman was visibly ill. I brought her a plate and got visiting with her. It turns out I had something left over from my mom that was used twice and would be a good help to this new friend. She was very excited to get something that would help her in her illness, and I was excited to give her this device after holding onto it for several years.
I came back to the park and we had several people come and go. I think we ended up with around 20 adults stopping by, with many kids as well. The cool thing about this is it was a good number for us to start with. Between our group of 9 adults, we got to talk to everyone who came for at least a few minutes. I got to meet a couple of guys who were happy to hang out. They liked that people gathered at this park to spend time with them. I talked with them, learned about some of their troubles and their lives. I never had to force it, but I was able to share about Jesus with them.
Everyone in our group had similar stories. It was an amazing time. We wrapped up and I think we all were thinking, “Why hadn’t we done this before?” It was so simple. We served people. We treated them with respect and listened to them. One of our group had prepared a talk, but it didn’t work out.
We hadn’t even decided what we were going to do next week, but we had such a good time we realized we should go back again and build some relationship. We might move to other parks during the summer, but for this week we’ll take the next step. Even though the wrong date could have torpedoed our plans and our resolve, God was good to give us what we could handle.
If you have questions about what we are doing or how things went, I’d be happy to discuss it. We’ll see what the future holds.
—
