Why SASHET is not enough (1)

Why SASHET is not enough (1)
February 11, 2015

In this video, I share about a humiliating experience I had over 50 years ago when I was in 9th grade.  I remember it like it was yesterday!  That experience illustrates why “checking in” with SASHET was initially difficult for me.  See if you identify with my story and share your comments with the rest of us.  Click on the picture below to go to our blog and watch the video.

You helped turn this tragedy around

Hi Dave,

You have been on our hearts during the first couple weeks of our current trip in Africa. I can tell you that adjusting to a 9 hour time shift, going 36 hours without sleep while traveling, being surprised by the ‘extra hot’ weather in Burundi, and the usual adjustment to the African environment is now mostly behind us!

As you travel as part of our team, you can celebrate with us:

• You have helped turn tragedy into new life for many women (see below). Also note that Brooks writes some compelling stories on these same women here.

• You played a part in this amazing story of two rebel soldiers who find new life.

Your prayers are so appreciated as we continue our journey through mid-December:

• DR Congo: training and empowering rural church planters, meeting with key leaders, and providing trainings with the Methodist denomination.
• Western Kenya: training with key leaders and time spent at Liberty School in Bikeke.
• Uganda: trainings and strategic meetings with leaders from all areas.

Your help turns tragedy into a whole new life

Bahizi was horrified as he saw the images of fire on TV that was destroying the downtown marketplace in his own city of Bujumbura. The fire destroyed thousands of businesses and left scores of families penniless.

He, and his wife Lillian, saw women in tears watching helplessly as their life savings literally went up in smoke.

As church planters in that area, Bahizi and Lillian knew they had to do something. As the fire receded, they made their way down to where the devastated families were looking for any remnant of their businesses.

Befriending several of the women who had lost everything, Bahizi and Lillian reached out to them and offered to help them start again with a loan from their own pockets. Amazed, these women began to open their hearts to the Gospel that they saw displayed in the compassion they saw in Bahizi and Lillian.

When we met several of these women, last week, their testimonies of God’s goodness overflowed from them. Their lives had become filled with a joy they had never known before. Their love for God was evident as they talked enthusiastically about reaching out to many others and starting churches in their homes.

NOTE: You helped provide training to Bahizi and his growing team of church planters that have now reached several provinces in Burundi and seen well over 100 new churches planted.

Blessings,
Roger & Brooks

P.S. You can stay connected with us through our un-edited, on-the-road travel blog.

The Daily Walk

“The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart, and saves such as have a contrite spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all.”
PSALM 34:18,19

We must learn sooner rather than later that discipleship is a process of tearing down in order to build up. We cannot expect to have a single mountaintop experience with the Lord and then assume from henceforth the work of the Cross is completed in us. When we are standing with the Lord in the New Jerusalem we may lay down the Cross. Until then, we dare not entertain the thought that we have already been made perfect. We must deny ourselves and take up the Cross daily.

Source: Embrace the Cross by Chip Brogden

 

What promises from God’s Word do you hang onto as a church planter?

God's Plans Are Good Plans

By Jim Carpenter “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” ~ Jeremiah 29:11 (ESV)
READING: Jeremiah 29:1-14
What promises from God’s Word do you hang onto as a church planter? When the challenges come, when you’re tempted to quit, trust God’s promises! Jeremiah 29:11 is a wonderful promise originally given to God’s people after they had been carried into captivity in Babylon, assuring them that one day they would return to the Promised Land.
While Jeremiah 29:11 wasn’t originally given to church planters, it is a great promise, a personal favorite that Dionne and I have claimed throughout our church planting journey. Here are four blessings:
First, God knows – and rules – over everything about us. The Lord begins by saying “I know.” It’s incredibly comforting that nothing about our circumstances escapes the wise control of our Heavenly Father.
Second, God has a plan. “Plans” in Hebrew could also be translated “thoughts.” If God thinks about something, it’s already a plan, isn’t it? What He thinks, He does. He always carries out His intentions. God’s plans are never spoiled or foiled. What He plans for you and your church plant will happen.
Third, God’s plans unfold in His timing, not ours. When God originally spoke this promise, He told His people they must wait 70 years – but He would deliver them. Our church planting timetable sometimes runs ahead of God’s. But He will deliver.
Finally, His plan is for our blessing: “plans for welfare and not for calamity . . .” “Welfare” is shalom – a Hebrew word often translated “peace.” It means wholeness, fulfillment, harmony and well-being. The God who led you to plant churches intends shalom for you and for your church.
Father, Thank You for Your promises and for Your good plans. Give me patience and confidence to rest in Your perfect timing. Amen. 
Dynamic Church Planting International (DCPI) “Equips Leaders to Plant 5 Million Churches Worldwide.” Learn more

Knowing What to Mentor

ChurchPlants.com

What kind of a legacy will you leave behind you when you move on to another church plant?

Knowing What to Mentor by Ron Thiesen

Knowing What to Mentor

By Ron Thiesen All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may bethoroughly equipped for every good work. ~ II Timothy 3:16, 17
READING: II Timothy 3:10-17
It is apparent in this passage that Paul had known Timothy for a long time and had mentored him from a young age. Timothy had developed a “track record” before Paul. You can never really know “who” a potential leader really is until the circumstances and pressures of life assail him. Then we see things that need to be changed. Though we are only agents of change, we must do our part from within a close relationship to that person.
As we read between the lines, it is clear that Paul mentored Timothy across a broad range of skills and topics, giving him generous doses of both more formal instruction in Scripture and practical experience gained as he traveled with Paul. We observe in Paul also a tender spirit of encouragement to speak to what might have been Timothy’s personal susceptibility to timidity.
On the one hand, Paul exhorts Timothy, saying bracingly: “God did not give us a spirit of timidity . . .” (II Tim. 1:7). But, on the other hand, Paul also gives kindly practical advice: “Stop drinking only water, and use a little wine because of your stomach and your frequent illnesses” (I Tim. 5:23).
Have you developed a relationship with someone in your team or church for whom you are willing to sacrifice your comforts, time, energies and finances to see them grow spiritually? What kind of a legacy will you leave behind you when you move on to another church plant?
Father, Show me who you would have me mentor. Help me to be willing to sacrifice my comforts, time, and finances to see someone else succeed. Amen.
Dynamic Church Planting International (DCPI) “Equips Leaders to Plant 5 Million Churches Worldwide.” Learn more

CLOSE YOUR CHURCH FOR GOD

Close Your Church for Good

By Jeremy Myers

I’m writing a book called Close Your Church for Good. The goal of the book is to help churches and pastors move themselves and their congregations in a missional direction that will help them live and operate according to the principles of the Kingdom of God.
In Close your Church for Good, I don’t want your church to shut down and cease to exist; I want to it to rise up and be all that Jesus intends.
When will the book be out? Well, my current word count is 50,000 words, and I am about 2/3 done. But I am running into problems on some of the later chapters, so… who knows how long it will take to finish…

But you don’t have to wait!

I am actually writing this book online. I make 3-4 posts per week which are based on the content of the book. While the final edition will not be exactly like these posts, the posts still provide the general idea and thought flow of the book.
In other words, whether I get the book published or not, you can still read a rough version of it right here on the Till He Comes blog.

Why am I posting the book online?

For several reasons.
First, free is the new business model. Besides, I am not an established author, and I already have a job, so why not give the content away for free?
Second, am I crazy? I have some fairly extreme ideas for how a church can become more missional, and I really desire reader feedback. So as you read the section, please comment and interact, even if you disagree. If you think I’m crazy or have completely lost my senses, tell me! If, however, you think that other people need to hear what I’m writing about, you don’t necessarily need to tell me, but please tell them!
Third, books and blogs are getting connected. If/when the book gets published, I will have a ready-made place to send the readers if they want to ask me a question, or interact with other readers.
Fourth, blogs are sometimes better than books. I can do things on a blog post that I cannot do in a paper book. Like lots of pictures, for example. To see what I mean, check out this post about church buildings. There is no way I could put those pictures in the typical book.
Finally, I am a book lover. As such, I have always wished that all books were free. I used to have a sign that hung in my study which said, “If grace is free, why are Christian books so expensive?” While I don’t believe that all authors should offer all their books for free, I still think that all authors would benefit from making more of their stuff available for free.

So where can you start reading?

I thought about listing ALL of the posts in the entire book right here. But then I realized that this would be about 200 posts. Nobody wants to look through that.
So I decided to arrange the posts like a book. Think of this post as the Table of Contents.
Below are the chapters in Close Your Church for Good. Each link goes to another page, which contains a ordered list of all the posts that were made from that chapter. If you read straight through them, you will get the basic content of the chapter.
Enjoy!

---

Close Your Church for Good

Table of Contents

Introduction

1. The Satanic Church
2. Faith of the Fallen
3. The Church Must Die
4. Cancel your Church Service
5. Cut All Church Programs
6. Sell Your Church Building
7. Resign as Pastor
8. Down with Preaching
9. Discard the Doctrinal Statement
10. Let Prayer Meetings Cease
11. Enough with Evangelism
12. Pass on the Offering Plate
13. Give Up Your Rites
14. Give Up Your Rights
15. To Hell with the Church

Epilogue: Fixing Our Eyes on Jesus

The LAST-DAY CHURCH

NOTE from ANDREW: The Bible declares in both Joel and Acts that in the Last Days, God's Spirit will be poured out upon "all flesh". And yet many today say there is "no hope" for the church in the Last Days - and that it is "only apostasy" that can be expected. Below is what David Wilkerson wrote on this topic before he died. We would appreciate your comments, my friends. The LAST-DAY CHURCH -David Wilkerson. I believe God´s vision for His last-day church is based on His revealed Word-because the Bible clearly outlines what the church of Jesus Christ will be like just prior to His coming. The church in America is far from what God envisioned it to be. For the most part, entire denominations today operate without the Holy Spirit. They are devoid of the presence of Jesus and bankrupt of all spiritual gifts. They practice a form of religion without any power, conviction or saving message. They are cozy with the world and are more political than spiritual. They appease sin, wink at divorce and ridicule the supernatural, while tossing aside all teaching about heaven, hell, repentance and judgment. The New Testament church made devils tremble! It drove legions of demons into the abyss, prayed prison doors open, made rulers cringe in fear. Those early believers had such faith and power that cripples rose up leaping and beggars became evangelists. They believed in the supernatural and they opened blind eyes, unstopped deaf ears and healed all manner of diseases. They even raised the dead! I am not saying God´s last-day church will be a repeat or copy of the first-century church. No-I am saying it will be even greater than that! It will be mightier, stronger, with an ever greater revelation of Jesus. It will have greater unction from the Spirit than ever- greater even than at Pentecost! God always saves His best wine for last! The prophet Daniel confirms this. He said that certain prophetic truths were locked up, only to be revealed in the last days: "For the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. . . . And none of the wicked shall understand, but the wise shall understand" (Daniel 12:9-10). Today the Holy Spirit is revealing these things to spiritual, discerning saints! "It is written: `Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things that God has prepared for those who love Him.´ But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God" (1 Corinthians 2:9-10). The Lord is preparing a powerful yet humble army of shepherds after His own heart and also a remnant congregation of hungry sheep who have turned away from the deadness and sin of the modern church. The scene is being set for that church which will be hot, not lukewarm-and it will rock the very foundations of hell. No power on earth will be able to ignore or despise it! -Please comment on this topic at the following website- http://www.johnthebaptisttv.com/

CRUCIFIED WITH CHRIST

"I have been crucified with Christ;
it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me."
GALATIANS 2:20

Paul says that even though he was crucified, he lives. Does Paul
mean to say that he was raised from the dead with Jesus also? If
so, why have we not heard about this before now? Finally he says he
is not really living at all, but Christ lives in him. To the
natural mind, of course, this all sounds very strange. This is why
we must discern spiritual things spiritually.

It should be obvious that Paul is talking about something other
than a physical crucifixion and a physical death, burial, and
resurrection. Although he says, "I was crucified with Christ" he
does not mean that he was present with Christ in the flesh at the
moment of crucifixion; instead, he intends to show us something
much more profound.

We will soon discover that this experience of being crucified with
Christ is not unique to the apostle Paul, but is true of every
born-again child of God. Not only Paul, but all disciples of Jesus
have been crucified with Christ.

TEMPLES MADE BY MEN

"God does not live in temples made by man." ACTS 17:24 ESV

We are not zealous for the establishment of any earthly nation, but for a heavenly nation of kings and priests (Revelation 5:10). We are not praying for the building of a physical temple, but a spiritual temple, a house of living stones, of which Jesus Christ is the Cornerstone, Builder and Architect. We are not looking for the appearance of an earthly Messiah, but a Heavenly Messiah, Who is building His Ekklesia upon the earth; we are not of the earth. This is not our home, for we are from above. Though in the world, we are not of it. We will not eat its meat or drink its wine, and we will not bow down to its idols. Though we live in the shadow of Babylon, we are not afraid of its fiery furnace or its den of lions, for our God is able to deliver us.

The heavens do rule. We affirm it boldly and confidently, regardless of appearances to the contrary. The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory belongs to God (Matthew 6:13) - not man, not the devil, not the nations of this world.

MEEKLY ACCEPT THE CROSS

"We were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father,
even so we also should walk in newness of life." ROMANS 6:4

The Cross is the means by which God reduces us to Christ, that we may be raised to new Life. What cannot be accomplished in a lifetime of self-effort is easily accomplished in God through the Cross.

We may take many shortcuts along the way and attempt to escape the inevitable, but the day we cease striving and meekly accept the Cross we find everything is done for us.

THE EKKLESIA UNDERGROUND

"In due season we shall reap..."
GALATIANS 6:9

The good news is that even if the Ekklesia has been underground, it is still growing and developing. When the season is right it will burst forth and once again those who have eyes to see will indeed discern the blade, the head, and the full grain in the head. In fact the blades have already broken ground in several places and we are even beginning to see some grain taking shape. If you have traced the recovery of the Heavenly Order so far then you know there have been many obstacles and hindrances to God's Will over the last six thousand years or so of the history of mankind.

So far God has defeated everything that rose up to challenge His Purpose in Christ. Not only has He defeated it, but He has actually used evil to bring about good and further increase His Son. The Scriptures provide us with every expectation and assurance that God will continue to do the same with our generation. He is very much an active part of world affairs, whether they be secular or sacred.

No Argument Necessary

"While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. But their eyes were kept from recognizing him." LUKE 24:15,16 ESV

You see that Christ is revealed or hidden from men as He so desires. So many professed disciples of the Lord Jesus fail to recognize Him.

Even His closest disciples are prone to doubt and unbelief. After the resurrection, Thomas declared, "I will not believe unless I see the scars and put my hand into the wound in His side." When Jesus therefore appeared to them He did not argue or try to convince Thomas. He simply said, "Look! See My hands and My feet!" When Thomas saw the Lord, he spontaneously cried out, "My Lord, and my God!" This is revelation. Revelation does not require any arguing or convincing, as if it all depends on how well we can make a defense of the Gospel. I see no argument in the Lord Jesus, I only see Him. Seeing Him, I am convinced, and no argument is necessary.

Do you miss church?

Some thoughts from Karla


Dear Friends,


For those of you who are "outside the camp"...

How many times do you catch yourself missing the things that "church" offers?

Especially this time of year, with the holidays approaching, it can be a lonely time for some who used to go to church.

Do you miss the singing, praise and worship, Women's ministry, Men's ministry, potluck dinners, preaching, tithing/giving, children's ministries, even listening to people giving "prophetic words" (just to name a few).

Ask yourself a question...

Are the "things" that I miss really ministering to the LORD or to ME?

Really look deep into yourself and ask this question.

"Church" for the most part gives you the mindset of Martha. Busy little Martha, trying to minister to others, much serving, and even fulfilling her own need to be needed; maybe even fulfilling a desire to be in charge (because she thought Mary should be doing more to help her).

How many of you can remember working your butt off in churches thinking, "Why isn't everyone else working as hard as me?"

But we see Mary is sitting at the feet of Jesus, ministering to Him.

A lot of people write in and ask us what it means or looks like to minister to the Lord. I always picture Mary sitting quietly at Jesus' feet. She has no other person on her mind or any concerns other than sitting at His feet and listening, talking, sharing, and loving the Lord Jesus while He is right there in front of her.

Did she do this 24/7? No, of course not. Jesus went on with what His Father had Him to do, and Mary went on to do her daily things that needed to be done. But remember that she did take time out to sit at His feet and Jesus said this is what is needed.

So when you start to miss the things you once enjoyed so much in "church", remember where the Lord has brought you. Do not be like the children of Israel who always complained and wanted to go back to Egypt, thinking you had it better in "church".

There is a reason and a purpose for bringing you out. Let the Lord guide you in this new walk. Let Him teach you His ways - which are far better then your ways or the church's ways. And remember that the main lesson is: He will increase and I will decrease. This process is not an easy one but you have to go through it!


In Him,

Karla Brogden
http://www.TheSchoolOfChrist.Org

IN-CHURCH, OUT-of-CHURCH, FUTURE CHURCH

IN-CHURCH, OUT-of-CHURCH, FUTURE CHURCH
-by Andrew Strom.

I have met and fellowshipped with many wonderful Christian people
over the years - from all kinds of backgrounds. But I just need to
comment on this "In-church/ Out-of-church" thing - because it
keeps cropping up.

Let me be clear about this. I meet wonderful "In-church" people all
the time that I absolutely love - and I meet lovely "Out-of-church"
people too that I absolutely love. One of the biggest problems is
that often these two groups do not understand each other at all.
And neither do they necessarily see the need for a "future church"
that is beyond anything that any of us are seeing - a church that
is literally just like the Book of Acts. That is supposed to be our
goal - but too often we are satisfied basically where we are.

CHALLENGES FOR the "IN-CHURCH"

Many of the Christians who are totally "in" the church system truly
see the need for "change". They are not wanting to sit still. They
see there has been a great "decline" in Christianity away from the
old paths - and they are praying that God will move to restore and
purify His Bride. I have met many godly, warm-hearted people like
this who care passionately about God's kingdom and His true
gospel. I usually get on very well with such ones because we
share a common desire to see things "righted" - especially the
gospel message that has become so diluted and lost.

I guess the biggest challenge that I see in these settings is that
I believe God is about to move "outside the box" in such a drastic
way that if we allow ourselves to be too attached to the current
"system" or "way of church" - then we can easily get left behind.
To get us back to true "Book of Acts" Christianity will take such
a leap - and such change - that I wonder if we truly have it in us
to go with Him where He wants to go. How "loosely" do we hold
all these things - our buildings, our "meeting formats", our labels,
titles and ways of doing things? When these things are shaken
or challenged, it is sometimes surprising to discover what a hold
they have on us - even if we think they don't. This is the biggest
challenge that the "system"-type people face, I believe.

But our love of the true gospel and true "Bible" Christianity will
take us a long way.

CHALLENGES FOR the "OUT-Of-CHURCH"

I have moved amongst many 'House-church' and "Out-of-church"
type Christians (which are not the same thing) over the years. In
fact I have been part of these circles myself at times. One of the
biggest problems I have seen is that some of us really thought
we had the major "answer" to the church's problems. Those of us
in the 'House church' movement would think, "If only the church
would get out of buildings and into houses and become more
'relational' - most of our problems would be solved!" We truly
thought that simply by "changing boxes" we could get back the
Book of Acts church! What we ended up with, of course, was
simply the same people in a different "shell" - slightly more
'relational' - but hardly anything like the power and purity of the
early Christians. We had changed the outward "form" but the
POWER of Jesus Christ was still mostly lacking.

I can remember having arguments over "plurality of eldership", the
precise "correct" way of taking the Lord's Supper, and all kinds of
things. None of it seemed to make the slightest bit of difference.
That is because the "outward" things and the 'form' of things
are all "secondary". This is not where the power is. But it took
such a long time to learn this lesson.

The "Out-of-church" people are even more radical. They often
fellowship with almost no-one - and many of them will tell you that
the organized church is the "whore of babylon", etc. A lot of them
are lovely people with a real heart for people and for TRUTH. But
some can be very judgmental and harsh. They will often "write off"
church people as being totally bound by "religion". But I found
many of us in that circle had our own "anti-religion" religion going
on! We despised having "leaders" or "organized" things of any
kind. We said we believed in the "5 fold" ministries but we couldn't
stand to have any actual "leaders" - even godly ones. And we
were secretly filled with PRIDE - because we could see everything
that was wrong with the "system". Man - did I have a "humbling"
coming when I got into this mindset! I was so "religiously" anti-
religious. I was so filled with arrogance and looked down my nose
at so many "system" people! I "judged" them just because they
went to a "building" on Sunday! God forgive me.

Of course, none of this is the answer either. I had to repent. I had
to RENOUNCE very deeply this harsh "anti-religion" religion that
made me so proud and arrogant towards people. I found that many
of them loved Jesus just as much as I did. And many of them
prayed more and were kinder, more loving and more godly than
I'd ever been. I had been kidding myself. When it boiled right down,
we "out-of-church" types were no closer to the Book of Acts than
many of the "system" people that we judged so harshly. We just
knew more "stuff" (supposedly). But clearly it wasn't the stuff that mattered.

It was only when I deeply repented and RENOUNCED this whole
prideful mindset that God gradually began to show me what was
really important. And it was not the "outward" stuff - though of
course there is some importance to structure, etc.

Each of these things (below) I believe will be a crucial part of the
FUTURE CHURCH that God wants to bring about. You could
literally write a book about each one - they are so important.
It was these very things that meant the early church SHONE
FORTH the GLORY OF JESUS every day. Here they are-

We must have-
(1) An APOSTOLIC gospel being preached with Apostolic-type
anointing and authority. (Whenever this has happened down
through history there has been real Revival). -SO CRUCIAL.
(2) The powerful moving of the HOLY SPIRIT - filling people, healing
people, convicting people, transforming people.
(3) REAL LOVE and an emphasis on ministering to the POOR.
(-Just like the early church).
(3) REAL DISCIPLES who actually "forsake all" to follow Jesus.
(4) REAL PRAYER - in the Holy Spirit. -And lots of it!!
(5) THE WHOLE BODY MINISTERING - Starting with the "5-fold"
ministries - whose goal is to release the whole body into ministry.
(6) MIRACLES and HEALINGS. -These are a must!

Of course, we could go on and on. But let me just conclude by
saying this:-

It doesn't matter if we are "In-church", Out-of-church, Over-churched
or under-churched. If we don't have the above things (which the
early church had in abundance) then we really don't have ANYTHING.
It doesn't matter what we "know" or whether we meet in houses,
barns, on the streets or in sun-porches. If we don't have these
crucial things that the early church majored on, then we really
have NOTHING that matters.

So I don't really care if you are "out" churched, "over" churched,
"thru" churched or "half" churched. We need to pursue and
pursue until we GET REAL CHRISTIANITY BACK!! And none of
us have got it - so we had all better repent of our pride and start
seeking that which is lost! A glorious Bride beckons. What price
are we willing to pay to see her glory restored?

-Please comment on this article at the website below-

http://www.johnthebaptisttv.com/