SimpleChurch Journal

Love the Weak

Paul tells the elders, "In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, 'It is more blessed to give than to receive'" (Acts 20:35).

Our world is broken and, thus, the weak and hurting are everywhere. But we often fail to see them. They may look capable, speak with confidence, or display outer strength. They may be contentious or annoying. They may even be outwardly hurting, but we simply fail to see.

We had a young friend who seemed self-assured, confident, and outwardly together. I fully accepted her apparent strength and assumed her need of help was low. But my wife saw through that. She recognized this woman’s discontent at a deep level and was able to speak to it. This opened up a door for prayer and introduction to a God who loves, forgives, and leads. This happened because my wife saw what I failed to.

Help the weak. Love the weak.

Too often we contend with the weak rather than help because we only hear their outer diatribes as they rail against a world that is ‘not right.’ Maybe I disagree fully with their ideas and maybe they come across with pride and righteous certitude that raises my ire. But I try to remind myself that love is more than truthful words, otherwise, it is just a noisy clamor that is heard in the name of Christ all too often.

See the weak. Help the weak. Love the weak.

Early believers were known as those unusual people who would spend time in leper colonies helping the weak. Perhaps the church (ekklesia) will find a needed re-birth when our motivation reflects the same love and compassion toward the weak and we respond to the deep human needs that surround us.

We see wonderful growth in the church in Africa where the weak are easy to identify. More importantly, those who are reaching out are committed to helping and loving the weak and vulnerable. Yes, they are easy to see, but the workers also respond with love and care for the sufferers. This results in movements of Jesus-followers reaching and discipling Jesus-followers.

Help the weak. Love the weak.

Our world is broken. And people are broken. Perhaps when we begin to see this and respond with the one virtue we are to be known for we will see a new type of ‘church’ (ekklesia) spontaneously arise where we live, move, and work: simple Jesus-followers known for their love.

Asbury and Jesus Revolution

Asbury renewal among today’s younger generation…

and

The Jesus Revolution movie depicting the movement of God among young people 50 years ago…

I am reminded that God is able to draw people to himself:

• without the hype
• without the organized hierarchy
• without the charismatic leader
• without the programs and performances
• without the ‘professionals’
• without the plates, pews, and pulpits

Maybe we just need to take the risk to let go of all of that… and wait on the presence and movement of the Spirit.

Let’s keep it simple!

Mission and Vision Statement

Some of you might consider having a vision and mission statement for organic-house church a little bit too ‘un-organic.’

Others of you might find that such statements bring focus and direction and that they can be inspirational.

For those in the latter camp, I thought you would enjoy seeing this statement put together by a friend of mine. It may give you some ideas or inspiration of your own whether or not you choose to ‘formalize’ something for yourself, your team, or your house church:

Mission & Vision

Mission
The goal is to make inroads into the lives of people who are part of the unchurched population. This includes individuals who have stopped attending a local fellowship as well as those the Holy Spirit is calling. One life at a time for the God’s Kingdom.

Vision
The vision is to gather in a smaller setting where we intentionally create an atmosphere where we all hear the voice of the Holy Spirit. The vision includes creating an Equipping Center where we learn to use the gifts that have been placed inside of each of us by the Holy Spirit. The goal is to make Christ like disciples who, in turn, make Christ like disciples.

Free Download of "La Revolución de la Iglesia Simple / En Casa"

The Spanish translation of the Simple/House Church book is now available.

Thanks to the wonderful team at the Centers of Church Based Team, we now have this translation available. They wanted to use it for their missionary work and training, and they graciously made it available to others for free. If you or anyone you know would like to access this as a free download, you can do so here.

Out of the Boat to Follow Jesus

Simple/house church has been one of the great opportunities for me to step out of the boat at the word of Jesus in order to follow him with greater abandon.

God spoke clearly to me at the beginning of this journey, “I will not give you a blueprint to follow.” His meaning was clear. He was bringing me to a new dependency on him that would require listening and following daily often without knowing where it would lead.

As Monte Dugger writes: “Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Follow me.’ To where? He did not elaborate. But this was actually the point. The life-journey of a disciple is less about what will happen, where we will travel to, and how we will meet our end, but more importantly about who it is that we are following.”

The house church journey has been a lot of simple re-discovery of what God’s word says about life, church (ekklesia), and ministry along with a willingness to walk out these Scriptures with fresh eyes. This often meant leaving the boat of the traditions and religious culture I was comfortable with. This often meant walking in ways that did not make sense from a worldly point of view. But always, always God met me in these times of faith and risk-taking confirming the truth and power of his word.

I received this email recently from someone stepping out of her boat that describes this well:

We have stepped away now from what we’ve lived so long……the American Church Christianity culture… Our hearts are being fed and the Holy Spirit is keeping us in peace and with expectation of what lays just ahead. We know the outpouring of the Spirit in these last of the last days will empower us and all the remnant in all our lack. We are waiting and dependent, for apart from Him, we can do nothing of any lasting value.

I am challenged to continue to walk each day with this kind of dependency on God and not settle into new ways of remaining in the boat.

I try to continually encourage myself:

1. Listen afresh to God’s word every time I read and meditate on it
2. Allow his Spirit to speak and impress upon me what he is saying without any preconceived notions
3. Converse with God and respond with a ‘yes,’ as an intention to put into practice or step out at his word
4. Trust, rest, and enjoy his leading and presence

When we follow him in such a way is there uncertainty at times? Yes. Are we fearful at times? Yes. But do we discover the joy of the spiritual journey and the faithful intimate connection with Jesus? Always.

Zoom Workshop on Introduction to House Church

We are offering our first ever 1-hour zoom workshop on Introduction to House Church.

Time: Wednesday, Apr 6, 2022 5:00 PM Pacific Daylight Time

Sign up here if you are interested!

This introductory workshop is best for those who are newer to house church or still exploring.

We will cover several basic topics that will help you start or participate in an organic, house church:

1. Change Your Thinking from Institutional to Biblical and Organic
2. Learn the Four Elements of a New Testament House Church
3. Discover Five Ways to Start a House Church
4. Learn About the Dynamic House Church Gathering
5. Understand How to Make Room for Multiplication
6. Discover the Key to Sustaining House Churches
7. Q&A

More information here.

House Church is Everywhere Church

Let me just say it that, yes, gatherings of God’s people are important. But here is the problem. We continue to divide up life in our thinking between sacred/holy and non-sacred/non-holy. And, our time spent in a church location or service or gathering (even a house church gathering) is seen as somehow more sacred than our time spent outside of that place, service, or gathering.

This false, dichotomous way of thinking robs us of our everyday identity as God’s, Spirit-filled people and it diminishes our true purpose as light and salt in a world that desperately needs both.

Changing my thinking about ‘what is church’ is more than recognizing that the church (ekklesia, God’s called-out people) can meet anywhere, even informally in homes. The power comes when God’s called-out people become His Everywhere Church - taking His life and light and Spirit, and presence into every situation that we step into with the same excitement and reverence we might have for any so-called sacred meeting.

God is with us. This is the power and truth of the work of the cross. The Spirit of God is with us in every setting and situation we step into. The ‘church’ is the Spirit-filled Jesus-followers who recognize the supernatural presence of God at work in all of life and in every situation:

• A conversation in a grocery story - Everywhere Church is happening
• Sitting in a whirlpool in my gym and someone shares that his wife is having surgery next week - Everyday Church is happening
• At home praying with my wife - Everyday Church is happening
• Lunch with a spiritually-minded friend - Everyday Church is happening
• Serving at the homeless food line - Everyday Church is happening

Everywhere that we go, the Spirit of God is seeking to transform, illuminate, revelate, draw people, heal souls, and more. It is not that we do not believe this, it is that we often draw a distinction between what we see as ‘mundane’ life and what we view as sacred life. We approach it differently and, therefore, we have different expectations and levels of faith as we go.

Missiologist Leslie Newbegin says it this way: “It is in the ordinary secular business of the world that the sacrifices of love and obedience are to be offered to God. It is in the context of secular affairs that the mighty power released into the world through the work of Christ is to be manifested.”

But I would take this even one step further. There simply is no secular business. When we see God, the world, and ourselves correctly, every moment is a sacred one, infused with God’s life and presence and purposes, calling us moment by moment to enjoy and step into the surrendered, supernatural life that is available… everywhere.

House Churches, Movements, & Organic Prayer

When I speak to Disciple-Making Movement leaders in Africa and ask them about prayer, they always say something to the effect of, ‘Movements of any kind are always accompanied by prayer movements.’ For them, this is simply a natural or ‘organic’ fact. Prayer movements seed hearts and prepare the way for people to be reached, helped, and mobilized to reach others. Prayer movements prepare those who are praying for the work God wants to do through them. These leaders do not expect fruitfulness apart from movements of prayer. They never envision one without the other.

We see the same dynamic when looking at house church movements earlier in China or anywhere in the world today. They are always accompanied by “sustained, persevering prayer.”

As a westerner, my typical reaction to this is that I must work to schedule in more prayer both personally and corporately. But I think this ‘get-organized’ reaction largely misses the point. This type of prayer is based more on perspective and lifestyle than simply the disciplined scheduling of more prayer events. These organic prayer movements seem to arise from the perspective that God is the source of all things and must be depended upon, and therefore our lifestyle shifts to revolve around this reality. The resulting schedules and rhythms of prayer organically become so consistent that ‘prayer movement’ is the only way to describe it.

All this to say, I wonder if some of us are not sensing the stirrings of more organic prayer in our own lives and in our own contexts. Perhaps this is one of the blessings of this season of less-certain times. Maybe God is stirring us afresh to see prayer as the real foundation of a fruitful life. Perhaps a greater sense of dependency is seeping into us and the lifestyle of prayer is becoming more appealing and natural. Maybe this germinating sense of a simple desire to be nearer to God and rest in His power and activity rather than our own is the initial seed of a prayer movement in our own life and setting.

May God inspire us through this coming year toward more organic rhythms of prayer that will deepen our walk with Him and release more of his kingdom-come into the dry places around us where movements are needed.

House to House - It's That Simple

In one crisis-ridden area of Northern Nigeria, the following simple document is releasing the church to catch fire in the midst of persecution. Even militant Muslims are finding the simple joy of finding and following Christ.

The document:

Within this framework the church is free to be about the business of prayer, helping others, and sharing the stories of Scripture with others. Perhaps it really is that simple!

God's Graces in the Seasons of Loss

Perhaps it’s the season of life I am in, but it seems to have been a year of personal loss: saying goodbye first to a mother-in-law, then to a good friend, and more recently to two very dear friends. Losses, especially when they seem to pile up, can produce a sense of shifting sand under the feet and a disorientation around those parts of life that once seemed rock solid.

A short post like this cannot even begin to deal with the process of walking through loss, pain, and potential renewal. Such a topic is far too big. I only want to point to three overarching works of grace that I have experienced during this season in order to reflect on how I see God working during this time.

Graces in the Seasons of Loss

1. The sufficiency of who God is. Eventually, at the end of the day, loss does give way to a fresh perception and depth of experience with God leading to a deeper sense that He is sufficient in the fullest sense of that word. Again, I do not mean to make light of the processes of pain and letting go that we walk through during loss. I only want to point to the final stages in which God does work in all things to draw us more deeply to Himself. For me, this means that I discover in a more potent way, that God is father, friend, lover, counselor, caregiver, comforter, king, and the one who knows me fully and loves me more than any other. This grace does not remove the pain or grief or loss, it simply works within me a greater awareness of my own vulnerability, the vulnerability of life, and the deeper sense of eternal realities and God’s presence right in the midst of real life.

2. The recalibration of true-north and what is really important. I have also found that my sense of priorities have again been reset. I find myself regularly asking what and who are most important. I find myself re-discovering the passions and motivations that are in me that are God-inspired and God-gifted rather than internal drives that come from self-seeking and self-promoting agendas. While I often seem unable on my own to lay down self and seek first the things that I believe in my heart are most important, loss often rearranges me internally and allows me to receive the grace to refocus my life priorities. I want to hear God’s voice more. I want to see less of myself in my activities and more of God. I am willing to take more time to seek Him and I am more willing to be content with quietness and spiritual rest rather than frantic activity. Not that I won’t digress into more-of-me and less-of-Him, but I find myself drawn a little bit more toward those things that flow from His heart rather than from my needs for self-protecting or self-promoting.

3. The renewal of community that supports both #1 and #2. This last grace ties in with the overall purpose of this blog: organic (simple) community life that supports the church (ekklesia) to live out a reflection of Jesus in the world. Often, we need to live out our existing commitments to our communities whatever they look like or however difficult they seem to be. Other times, we are called to change, renew, or find/start new communities that more fully support our life-in-God as well as our mission-with-God. Either way, we re-discover that even with the loss of key relationships, we still need community and others to live fully our life and purpose. This may push us into new places, new relationships, and new expressions. This may propel us out of comfort zones and into completely different expressions of Jesus-community. This might re-orient us toward God’s current mission in our life which can drastically change who we find ourselves spending time with. All of these things are good as long as we allow God to reinforce in us our need for each other. As we know, this does not require an institution or a sermon because where two or three gather, Jesus is there. But it does require an intentional willingness to do life, however messy, with others.

Your thoughts?