Will Mancini

That’s an amazing claim from Matt Chandler, pastor of The Village Church. In this video, Matt explains one of the early “shaping influences” of his life being Larry Osborn’s book Sticky Teams. (Originally entitled The Unity Factor.) 

Would you like to have that kind of team effectiveness? Of course you would. Then come out and join me along with

• Wayne Cordeiro
• Larry Osborne (1 min. video about Sticky Teams)
• Jamie Munson, Mars Hill Lead Pastor (yes that’s Mark Driscoll’s church) 

at North Coast Church’s Sticky Teams Conference. This is focused content, in a great location, from accessible leaders at a great price. 

• READ MORE on WHY YOU should attend

• SIGN UP HERE

• Come to my PRE-CONFERENCE workshop and COMMENT on this blog and I will bring you a FREE Collaboration Cube, the single best team-building tool, I have ever seen. 

I am meeting with a pilot group of 12 churches and 12 consultant-practitioners known as Future Travelers. The group is led by Alan Hirsch.  The 12 churches are large growing mega-churches that represent 90,000 in weekend attendance. Some of the churches involved include: 

• Austin Stone
• Christian Community Church
• Rock Harbor
• Granger Community Church
• Seacoast Church
• Kennsington Community Church
• Mountain Lake Church
• West Ridge Church 

What’s exciting about this group, is that these churches, most considered to be thought-leaders, are not satisfied with their current strategy. They are pushing the envelope of strategy in the name of things like “missional community” and “apostolic movement.”

KEY QUESTIONS WE’RE ASKING

• How does our declining church influence in our leading cultural cities, help us wake-up to the enormous need for completely new strategies? Right now we are in San Francisco which has a 4-6% churched from an evangelical perspective. 

• As we develop new strategies, how do we keep mission as the organizing principle of all we do? (That is, how are we thinking missional not just talking missional.)

• If our best church models will not even come close to touching 40% of our culture, how do we reach the other 60%? Here is a post from Tim Steven on “The Shrinking 40.”

• How do we get our best churches to a place of re-imagining the future and not just improving existing methods?

• How do we leverage the platform of the “attractional,” mega-church to integrate and launch initiatives that multiply the mission with new “incarnational” strategies. 

• Is the multi-site “strategy of the day” just a stepping stone to a more viral and exponential strategy to expansion that could be captured by the progression: MEGA  > MULTI > MICRO. Read Todd Wilson’s Micro Manifesto. 

I will continue to post learning from this group.

RELATED POSTS

Identity Shapes Activity

2 Movement Killers

Movement Making with Alan Hirsch

I am currently spending “time away” to work and write on a Church Unique follow-up piece.  In pursuit of time filled with intense personal production and high creativity, I have found these four ingredients to be essential:

#1 Create or find your ideal environment. My greatest productivity happens in context. For me it’s a place in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Everything from the climate and the landscape to the food and the art, come together to help me be my best. I like Santa Fe because of the latent spirituality that is far from Christ. I love cultivating spiritual conversations as I write about leadership and the mission of Jesus in the world.

#2 Fine tune your “fuel mix.” When I produce, I like what I call side-ways inspiration. I like reading stuff that may not directly pertain to what I’m writing, but models thoughtful expression and creativity. I like art and conversation with people as fuel too. On this trip I hand picked about 6 books that I will scan or deep dive into as I feel inspired. I do this concurrently with my own writing. If you have never thought of how to fine-tune your fuel mix, give it a try. Experiment and see what happens! 

#3 Know your rhythms and work them over and over. There are several rhythms that are important to me. One is the macro rhythm of getting away at least 3 times per year. Second, is the rhythm that works in and around intense bursts of productivity. They happen best in a 3-6 day period, with a punctuated intensity. For example, I may enjoy a slow lunch then work for 2 hours, then go on a mountain bike ride and work for 2 hours, and so on. For me, the staggering effect is highly productive. The key is to study yourself and know your rhythm. An important aspect of this is knowing how your physical body works best when you are producing. Think like an athlete in terms of “creative productivity fitness.” 

# Ruthlessly eliminate distractions. After you have done the first three things you have to gut everything else. A thousand things will pull you away from the most important thing. Find your laser-focused state of being. Keep in mind that your context, fuel and rhythm may have some built in positive “distractions” based on your personality. And that’s fine. Remember that most people don’t accomplish great things, not because greatness is not in them, but because they have never learned to focus.

I am amazed at how God is moving in every tribe. While there are certainly more mainlines who talk missional than live it, there are a growing number of churches that are un-programming and re-viving the heartbeat of Jesus in all they do. One such expression of this is the Prebsyterian Global Fellowship. 

Yesterday a pastor friend shared a challenge he is issued to his staff and lay leaders. It’s an excellent example of helping a mainline church rethink its identity and mission. (It ties to the discernment of  the “local predicament” circle of the Kingdom Concept)  The church’s name is not referenced to protect the nature of the missional discernment project.

Dear Co-Workers in Christ,

As an officer of the church your primary directive is to make disciples and to make decisions that make disciples.  In other words, officers empower the congregation to look more to Jesus for guidance and more like Jesus in ministry.

 Given that understanding, I want to invite you – challenge you, really – to join in an experience to which I have committed myself and the entire staff. Between now and the first Sunday in August, I want you to use one hour each week in a discernment project.  I want each church officer to join our staff members in taking one hour each week to meet God at Wal-Mart.

 That’s right.  No joke.  You are assigned to meet God at Wal-Mart. Here are the details.

Once a week, go across the freeway to the Wal-Mart. Spend an hour roaming the aisles and watching the shoppers and employees.  Do not go in to shop.  Do not get your groceries during that time.  This is about people, not merchandise or purchasing or recreational browsing.

I want you make note of the people – their culture, socio-economics, dress, expressed values, perceived attitudes, what they seem to be interested/disinterested in.  I want you to imagine what their lives are like leading up to their Wal-Mart visit and returning from their shopping.

As you observe the people, seek God out in prayer, asking, “God, what in the world does our church have to offer these people?  What do we have to offer them and how would you want us to do that?”  Then listen, and take note.

 If the assignment is too confusing or complex, then do this – ask, “Where do I see Jesus today here at Wal-Mart?”

 My hunch is that some of our assumed values and valued programs don’t/won’t play the same in that context.  God might have something to say about that.  We may get some reality checks, with may receive some insights and inspirations, we may even meet God at levels/dimensions where we have not before. 

 If you get bored with Wal-Mart or feel going there is too repetitive, I offer some alternatives.  You are welcome to try the same thing at one or more of these places – Goodwill Industries Store or the nearby bowling alley.

 You may want to take notes, keep a journal, or simply e-mail me as you have discoveries. 

 Hoping you see Jesus anew, Your Pastor

What have you tried like this? What are some examples you could share of a missional mainline?

Before my transition to coach-consulting in 2001, I led several different ministry areas at Clear Creek Community Church. An unexpected season of leading the children’s area engaged my love for vision around the importance of serving children. What I learned through this season has changed my life forever. I believe that children’s ministry is THE golden opportunity for these seven reasons:

#1 The Golden Heart: Children model the ideal kingdom participant. Each of the gospel writers record that stunning moment when Jesus rebukes the disciples and tenderly engages some young children (Luke 18:17). In the face of self-importance, Jesus shockingly points to a child as the model for how to enter the kingdom. Maybe serving children holds unexpected benefit for Christian maturity?

#2 The Golden Years: Childhood is the most effective window for responding to the gospel. Eighty percent of people receive Christ between the ages of 4 and 14. Enough said.

#3 The Golden Glow: Children have a longer life to serve Christ and accomplish more for God’s glory. If you had a candle to burn for a nice romantic evening, would you choose the one that’s three-quarters used up, or would you choose a brand new candle? (It makes you wonder why generally speaking,  our children get so little attention in ministry leadership!)

#4 The Golden Baton: Serving children plants the gospel into the next generation. Yes, the gospel is always one generation from extinction. You choose if the race is all about your short window to live or the enduring story of global redemption.

#5 The Golden Gate: Winning a child is a gateway to winning the whole family. I can’t tell you how many redeemed families I have seen on the beachhead of a child’s testimony. And yes, the more our culture idolizes their children, the more we can leverage this negative tendency for the gospel.

#6 The Golden Moment: Children’s lives are moldable and full of teachable moments. There is nothing like the moment of awe and insight, when  child learns or asks a genuine question. Play and plant in the rich soil!

#7 The Golden Crown: Serving children has a unique significance which leads to special blessing. In Matthew 25-31-46, Jesus shares the parable about serving, “the least of these.” It’s apparent that “the least” include people of some status or need where they cannot repay if they are served (hungry, sick, imprisoned, estranged, poor) Children, though not listed explicitly, certainly fit this list by virtue of their inability. I believe that serving children brings an unexpected treasure of blessing.

This post is dedicated to my beautiful fiancée, Romina Andreotti, who spent the last year serving 12, 2-year old children at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church. Those kids are the most fortunate kids on the planet and I am grateful for her model of love and service that nourishes my own spirit.