 Tools & Trainings E-Newsletter Issue 44 September 20, 2010
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Missional Shift - Action
"...but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth." Acts 1:8
How is your house church doing in the "A" (Apostolic Mission)? For many, we often need a swift kick in the "A"...if you know what I mean. This is not unusual however. Throughout the history of the church and even in the New Testament we find God giving people swift kicks in the "A". One Biblical example is found in Acts 8. In Acts 1:8, Jesus tells His church that He will be sending them the Holy Spirit for the purpose of giving the power (indicating the ability, boldness and right words to speak) necessary to be His witnesses to their home town of Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the whole world. By Acts 8, the believers had not left Jerusalem so God gave them a swift kick in the "A" - He allowed the church to be persecuted so that the common believers took off to Judea, Samaria and the utter most parts of the world and spread the good news about Jesus (read more by reading Acts 8). God wants His good news to get out and He wants it out there through the mouths of you and me - saints of the church.
Earlier in the year, we talked about making a missional shift of sorts in our community and for our community. You can read more about what this shift is like HERE and you can listen to two podcasts; Missiology 101 Part 1 and Missiology 101 Part 2 (part 2 is better :-). The key to this shift is to move from thinking about church mostly as a gathering of people to thinking about church as a scattering of people into the world. If we take Jesus into our world intentionally, there will be a transformation in our neighborhoods, work places and homes. Jesus always makes a difference when He engages souls.
So how is your church doing in the "A" - Apostolic Mission?
Get out there and cast some seeds!
Blessings,
Ed Waken
Valley Life Church
Phoenix, Arizona
Originally Posted Here
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Upcoming Trainings- Organic Greenhouse
 Prescott, AZ // Story 1
Oct 8-10
with Ed Waken
Details and Registration: Here
Edinburgh, Scotland // Story 1
November 19-21
with Neil Cole
Details and Registration: Here
Philadephia, PA // Story 1
December 3-5
with Neil Cole & Jared Looney
Early Bird Registration open now
Click HERE for more Details and to Register
Trainings in the planning stages:
Long Beach, CA // Story 1
Twin Cities, Minnesota// Story 1
Detroit, MI // Story 1
Canada, Kenya. maybe your city?
Beginning the summer of 2010, Shapevine
will be launching one of the most unique training opportunities yet.
The Missional Quest series is a cohort based learning journey that will
give you the opportunity to join in a small group of like-minded
sojourners with Deb Hirsch, Alan Hirsch, Dan Kimball, Neil Cole, and
others. More...
YouTube Video Intro
Partners in Innovation Conference
October 4, 2010
Columbus, OH
Learn with Alan Hirsch & Neil Cole
www.sdapartnersininnovation.org
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Featured Resources
FALL 48 Hour Sale
 Organic Leadership: Leading Naturally Right Where You Are
by Neil Cole
This book will challenge long-held practices, show how healthy and growing disciples can emerge naturally as leaders, and present simple leadership development practices to raise up homegrown leaders from the harvest for the harvest.
Get the Hardcover for cheaper than the paperback- Only $10!
Now Through 3pm
Pacific Time September 22, 2010
Or a Case of 30 for $8.75 per book
 TruthQuest: The Facilitator's Guide | Updated Version
By Neil Cole
Fresh off the presses, this updated resource contains all you need to facilitate a TruthQuest learning community. TruthQuest is a system for training emerging leaders in systematic
theology and to reproduce that learning amongst their disciples!
Church 3.0: Upgrades for the Future of the Church
By Neil Cole
"Church 3.0 is an all-in-one compass, survival manual, tool kit, leadership agenda and imagineering workshop. It is a treasure trove that distributes the wealth of Neil Cole's rich experience and insight. I cannot imagine trying to navigate... without it."
─Reggie McNeal
For the whole list of resources on Sale >> click HERE
Online Map of Organic Churches and Networks
Check it out here and add your group! |
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Featured Article What is Organic Church? An Interview with Neil Cole and Frank Viola
by Keith Giles
When I approached Neil Cole and Frank Viola about the possibility of
hosting this interview on my blog, they were both in agreement about one
thing: This is not a debate. It's a dialog between two brothers who see
different sides of the same coin.
As you may know, both Neil and Frank are seen as thought leaders in
the area of organic church. However, the very term itself isn't always
very clear. Sometimes we need to stop and define our terms before we
engage in a dialog so that everyone understands what we're actually
talking about. That's the purpose of this interview between Frank and
Neil. We hope to engage in an encouraging dialog concerning the Church....
Question 1:
As simply as you can, define what "Church" looks like to you in
practical terms. (Looking for an example of how an "Organic Church"
would function - how a typical meeting might look - in your version of
"Organic" church). What is your definition of "Organic Church"?
Neil: Many scholars attempt to describe church with a list of
ingredients that they believe are found in the New Testament. Here is a
typical list: a group of believers that gather together regularly and
believe themselves to be a church. They have qualified elders and
practice baptism, communion and church discipline and agree on a
doctrinal foundation and have some sort of missional purpose.
I have no problem with these ingredients being a part of church,
though not all of them are indeed biblical (no where in the NT does it
say that we have to consider ourselves a church to be a church-that is a
cultural reaction to calling bible studies or parachurch organizations
churches. There are also NT churches that have not had elders appointed
yet on the first missionary journey-Acts 14:21-25). I believe that this
understanding of church is missing the most essential ingredient: Jesus!
If we can define church without Jesus than we can do church without
Jesus and that is a tragedy at best and treason at worst....
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