Church Plants Don't Grow From Books

Church plants don't grow from books. Crafting strategy, developing ideas, and implementing 'tried-and-true' models of ministry might grow a group of people, at least for a time. But success as a missionary does not result from reading books, listening to podcasts, or having a 4.0 GPA in mission class. Rather, being a successful missionary is being a faithful disciple. Intimacy with Christ, living the new life of love, grace, and freedom that is found in Him-that will lead to success, regardless of how the results appear to the world. Hardships often hit the faithful, meant by Satan to rob God of His glory but meant by God to increase His glory through the peace, love, and joy that He gives to His children. Remember what Joseph said to his brothers: what they meant for evil, God meant for good. 

I do not write this because I have personally experienced physical trials in Cleveland, but I have seen many trials in the lives of the faithful missionaries here. Car wrecks, building disasters, struggles with discouragement, opposition from the religious, financial hardships... the list goes on and on. Really, no church planter that I know has tread an easy path. As a future full-time missionary, am I prepared to face the difficulties when they come? I have no idea. But I trust that our God gives grace and peace that surpasses all human understanding. 

Since being a successful missionary depends on being a faithful disciple, Barnabas's central focus is raising up more disciples who are committed to make more disciples. Everything is geared towards leadership development, encouragement, and equipping. The people who come to Barnabas are not meant to stay forever; they are expected to be sent out with prayers and blessings to form more disciple-making house churches. The number of members of Barnabas will never grow exceedingly large because intimacy and personal encouragement are essential for Barnabas to serve its purpose. In raising up disciple-making-disciples, Barnabas seeks to serve the kingdom of our God. 

Below, Francis Chan explains how the first-century church might be emulated in modern urban contexts. Though we are making no intent to imitate Chan's model (we discovered this video after the rough draft of the mission statement and vision of Barnabas had been developed), many of the core principles are the same. This video helped us to clarify our vision; hopefully, it will help clarify our vision for you as well. 

Today's Prayer Place: 10501 Lee Ave, Cleveland, OH 44106. This is a corner store near Vision House, and the owner is a potential person of influence.

Spiritual Warfare: An Odd Encounter

Today was an exhausting day. Stacy and I did have fellowship with Phillip Major, the pastor of Gateway Downtown, and a future church planter named David Vanhall. The first half of the day we spent prayer-walking downtown and having coffee with those two guys. We had some great conversations!

However, the exhausting part of the day was My and Stacy's prayer-walk down West 58th. Once again, we came face to face with great darkness and oppression. Immediately after getting off the train, we saw a man lying unresponsive on the ground, possibly overdosed or passed out drunk. All we could do was tell some nearby police officers and pray. Walking down Loraine Ave towards West Side Market  (on West 25th and Loraine), we continued to see the darkness and brokenness of the area. The single mothers and kids signaled shattered families. Closed down businesses and buildings sorely in need of repair highlighted extreme poverty. A few scattered drunks reminded us of that community's hopelessness, and the lack of evangelical churches hinted of deep spiritual darkness. Stacy and I walked and prayed, scouting out chances to develop a gospel-presence and making contact with a couple of local businesses.

I had one conversation that was particularly chilling. Once we reached the bus depot at West Side Market, I spoke to an older man who was sitting on a bench. I told him that my friend and I were out praying for the community, and I offered to give him a free copy of John's gospel. His response took me completely off guard.

"My grandmother communicated with the spirits. My mother did too." My first thought: 'What have I gotten myself into?"

He went on to tell me that the spirits came to him sometimes and touched him, making him either cold or hot. They would tell him things about the future, even though he would 'throw them off' when they would touch him. Needless to say, the conversation was odd. There was nothing in the training manual about that! (In fact, there isn't a training manual at all. In urban ministry, not much is predictable.)

Not all of that conversation was spiritual in nature, and some other things the man said made me wonder if I was dealing with a mentally ill person. Either way, he seemed confident about his interactions with the spirits, and I clearly sensed that these spirits were not of the Lord. All I had on me was a copy of the gospel of John, so we talked about the Holy Spirit guiding us into all truth. I also wanted to see if he would admit that Jesus is King and Lord. Oddly, he didn't deny that or affirm it, merely agreeing that 'Jesus was above' him.

What do I make of this conversation? I don't know. At times it gave me chills down my spine. Several times I made sure to affirm Jesus as King and the presence and guidance of the Holy Spirit as truth. I offered to pray for the man, but he declined. Most of all, the encounter opened my eyes to the reality of spiritual warfare in that community. Jesus, however, is Lord of all, and the gospel is the power of salvation. I think Stacy and I realized the biggest need in that community: it needs a faithful gospel presence. Please pray for us as we brainstorm how to connect the right people (brothers and sisters who will be there much more than our mere 7 weeks) to the right places and how to most effectively sow gospel seeds on the West Side.

Today's Prayer Place: West 58th Street and Loraine Ave, Cleveland, OH.

Cookouts and Conversations

I hope you all have had a great Memorial Day! Since Mondays are our off days, today was nice and relaxing and included music, reading, frisbee, running, and hearing from Rebekah. Twas a good day indeed.

We had a cookout yesterday for the neighborhood. Hamburgers and hotdogs, frisbee, and a jammin' playlist made for a good time with a few of the neighbors. The turnout wasn't huge, but it was nice to sit and converse with our neighbors, building relationships and trust. Trust between neighbors is virtually nonexistent here. As Kevin pointed out, for something as different as Barnabas, numbers are not a big deal at this point. In reality, we're still trying to figure out what we're doing and what it is that God is making Barnabas to be!

Next week, Stacy and I are going to focus on significantly increasing the volume of conversations that we're having. Certainly, we've had a few fruitful conversations, but it's time to really find our groove and sweet spots for conversations. Please pray that our Lord will open doors and open hearts as we fish for people of peace throughout this city! The darkness is strong here, yes, and much of Cleveland has been a fortress of the enemy for a very long time. But our great God is stronger, and we believe that through the faithfulness and obedience of His people, the name of Jesus will be made known. 

Today's prayer place: West 58th Street, Cleveland, OH 

So Much Dust

Yesterday, we spent most of the day getting the garage ready for Barnabas's first cookout. I didn't think that so much dust could possibly be in one little garage. The nasty stuff invaded my sinuses and caused much grief as we swept, cleaned, and organized. At the end of the day, though, it all got done.

This is a quick update because I'm working from my phone. Our internet was down last night and I wasn't able to get it fixed before I went to bed. Right now, Stacy and I are on our way to help a church planter move houses. Yesterday we were able to talk to a few people on Lee Ave about the cookout, and there was some moderate interest. Keep praying that we'll have chances to share Christ and to connect with persons of peace on our street! 

Today's prayer place: Cleveland State University. Google CSU, Cleveland, OH. 

A Spirit-Driven Church

"I bet you'd agree that a group of talented, charismatic leaders can draw a crowd. Find the right creative team, musicians, and speakers, and you can grow any church. It doesn't even have to be a Christian church. The fact is that without making a conscious choice to depend on the Holy Spirit, we can do a lot. (Although without the Spirit, we wouldn't actually be drawing our next breath-but I am talking about cognizant and intentional dependence on our part.) My point is that a growing and energetic gathering is not necessarily evidence of the Holy Spirit's work."
                                            -Francis Chan, in Chapter 7 of Forgotten God

This excerpt from our reading this week is simply food for thought. Without the presence and direction of the Spirit in our lives-and in our churches-we cannot fulfill the mission that God has given us. The problem is not with our Lord; it is with our insistence on trying to fulfill a God-sized mission by human strengths. This approach simply does not work out, and ignoring the Spirit's guidance in ministry leads to exhaustion, frustration, discouragement, and doubt. On the contrary, living in the grace that the Spirit gives us leads to joy, peace, and strength. Obedience to the Spirit's guidance and everyday focus on our relationship with Him is integral to all believers' lives. Our Father did not design the Christian life to be lived in mere knowledge of the Spirit; rather, this life is made to be lived in relationship with the Spirit.

Updates on Barnabas: We are having a kickoff cookout this Sunday, which will hopefully gather the neighbors together to have a good time, and we'll be able to tell them that our church will begin next Sunday. So far, there have been several highly supportive neighbors who are beginning to internalize the idea. Please pray for these neighbors, especially Pete, Terry, Mary, Frank, and Berlin. I don't know that all of them truly have a relationship with Jesus, but they are supportive of the church's efforts and want to be involved. Our prayer is that if they don't know Jesus, they will very soon!

Also, Stacy and I had dinner tonight with Gary Frost (one of the vice-presidents of NAMB), Kim Robinson (personal assistant to NAMB president Kevin Ezell; former vice-president of Proctor and Gamble), and Alex Ennes (Church Planter and chaplain for the Cleveland Indians), along with a local NAMB coordinator and a future church planter. The NAMB people happened to be in town and wanted to tour Vision House, and the advice and encouragement that they gave us was priceless. Their two biggest pieces of advice were (1) Don't be afraid to fail. Church plants die when they begin to fear leaps of faith, plus failures teach us lessons that we don't easily forget; and (2) Always have a mentor and a support group. No matter how high you get, always have someone that supports you and pushes you to succeed. I was quite humbled to be able to actually interact with the "big-wigs," so to speak. And know what I love? They were just people who loved their brothers and sisters in Christ.

Today's Prayer Spot: Cleveland Clinic. Google-Earth "Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH." This massive Clinic is one of the best in the nation, and it is an area of strategic focus for our search for persons of peace.      

Friendly Neighbors

A day of rest is always refreshing. I slept late, went for a jog, read some of a book, went to Starbucks, talked to Rebekah, and played frisbee in Wade Park. However, I also found myself in an encouraging conversation.

The two guys next door are Pete and Terry. As I was reading on the front porch this evening, I noticed that their car was parked on the street with the hood open, and they were poking around in the engine and scurrying about, evidently trying to locate the problem. I walked across the road to see if I could help with anything, and we casually struck up conversation. The problem was just a thermostat in their car, but the encouragement came from the talk that followed.

They wanted to know what I studied in school and why I was in Cleveland. When I told them what our plan was-to start a church that would become a family of believers in the community-they were quite open to the idea and assured us that they wanted to be involved! Sure, these two guys are "rough around the edges," so to speak, but we all have our failings and shortcomings (to say the least). The spiritual desire that I sensed, however, is the key. They want to be involved.

Pete I believe has a relationship with Jesus; Terry I'm not quite as sure about. One of our goals, however, is that the community takes ownership of this church. If they don't become a faith-family and everything we do is dependent on us missionary's presence, then it will all end once the summer comes to a close. Seeing two men get excited about getting together and grilling out and praising the Lord was a step in the right direction.

At one point, one of Terry's friends rode up on a bicycle. Tony was his name, and he was really rough around the edges. I don't know him well yet, but I didn't get the impression that he was a follower of Jesus. However, he said something that made me want to shout for joy, and it sparked a realization in my mind that I hadn't fully grasped before. When he found out that Terry would be at the gatherings, Tony said, "Oh yea! Where Terry is, I know I'm welcome."

He knows that he's welcome in the presence of his friend. To function at all in a neighborhood where suspicion and apprehension is expected, people must feel at home in our gatherings. We must offer a space where they can relate to their neighbors with trust and love, and together we hope to grow in our faith and to share the gospel both with those that come and with those that refuse to gather with us.

With man, what we want to do is impossible. But with God, all things are possible. Please pray for Pete, Terry, and Tony, that the Spirit will work in their hearts and draw them closer to Jesus, and that they will receive the gospel with gladness.

Stacy and I have decided to pour most of our time into the Lee Ave area. Since the church is located here, it makes the most sense to focus on serving and connecting with the immediate neighborhood. So if you Google Earth and pray, please pray over Lee Ave, Cleveland, OH.

P.S. Pray especially for the youth on the street. There is much darkness and spiritual oppression among the young in this neighborhood, especially the young men. They need Jesus. Desperately. I fear not just for their souls but their very lives if they don't come to know Jesus soon.  

Barnabas Church. Who Are We?

Joseph, a Levite and a Cypriot by birth, the one the apostles called Barnabas, which is translated Son of Encouragement, sold a field he owned, brought the money, and laid it at the apostles’ feet. -Acts 4:36 (HCSB) 

Barnabas, the "Son of Encouragement." Why would a church planter choose to name a church after this man? What does that indicate about the nature of the church? We have spent the last few days trying to cast Kevin's vision for Barnabas into tangible form. Placing a God-given dream into words is no easy task, and it has stretched my and Stacy's creative and administrative skills. However, after a few coffee shop visits and a lot of brainstorming, we have begun to move in a solid direction.

Before I explain BC's identity and mission, I'll lay out the problem. Thousands of non-Southern Baptist churches are in Cleveland, with Catholic, AME, and Pentecostal by my estimation the most common. Regarding SBC presence, the Cleveland Hope Baptist Association has existed in for 58 years and has actively focused on church planting for the last 10 years or so. However, the percentage (the actual percentage, not just the gross population) of lostness continues to increase yearly. Currently, 8% of Clevelanders are actively evangelical, and that figure is estimated to drop to 5% in the coming years. On the West Side of Cleveland, only 1 out of 10 SBC church plants have survived to become self-sustaining churches. 

This is a problem, and we want to fix it. Fixing it begins with change.  

Barnabas Church is the first step in what we hope will be a new wave of church plants. As I mentioned in Wednesday's post, the church plant is very different. Kevin is the Director of Missions for Cleveland Hope, so he will not need or accept a salary from Barnabas. The church will meet in his house and garage, so almost very little overhead cost will exist. No sound system is being purchased, and no elaborate praise band is being formed. People, the Bible, and sharing the gospel are the focus of all that Barnabas will do. As much as possible, the resources provided will be poured back into gospel-sharing activities. 

How do we plan to do this? The premise of Barnabas is that every believer can be encouraged and empowered to share the gospel AND teach others to share the gospel. The mission is this: Encourage one another. Grow in faith. Share the gospel. Currently, our plan for gatherings is to begin Sunday evenings at 5:00 with a grill-out and fellowship. We'll have basketball, snow cones when possible, and however else we decide to simply enjoy one another's company. Then we'll move into a time of simple worship. Sometimes there may be a single guitar or keyboard; sometimes we'll use CDs, sometimes we'll sing acapella. Next will come Kevin's teaching, which will focus on understanding the gospel message. Kevin feels led to teach through the good news as laid out in Charles Brocke's Good News For You, a simple guide to the gospel that is non-denominational and derives all questions and answers directly from scripture. After the teaching time, we'll have a time of testimony, prayer, and discussion, where we'll be encouraged and challenged to think about how we can use our talents, passions, and places in life to reach our circles of influence with the gospels. Good News For You booklets will be available, and all will be encouraged to take a few to pray over and see who the Holy Spirit leads to share with. The hope is that these studies will lead to the members beginning the Good News For You or other gospel-centered bible studies with friends, families, coworkers, etc. From there, churches may be started and more leaders trained and equipped. 

We don't know what the results of this endeavor will be; we can only stay obedient and faithful to the call that God has placed on our lives. This model of church planting is a bit "out-there" so to speak, and nothing like it has been tried here in Cleveland. But desperate times call for desperate measures. 

That being said, I can only imagine how the vision and direction of this church plant will change and shape over time. Below, however, is the mission and core values that Barnabas will stand by no matter what direction the future takes.

"Here at Barnabas, we are a different kind of church. Our mission statement is simple and straight forward: We exist as a faith-family of believers who gather together to encourage one another, grow in faith and boldness, and actively share the gospel of Jesus Christ. Founded on four core principles, Barnabas seeks to impact lostness in the greater Cleveland area by equipping and empowering followers of Jesus to share the gospel, beginning within each of our unique circles of influence. Ultimately, our desire is that our community of believers will understand the equal ability of all followers of Jesus to share the gospel, becoming a catalyst for evangelistic Bible studies and church plants throughout Cleveland and beyond. 

The core values of Barnabas Church include:

1) Encouragement. Whenever Barnabas gathers together as a family, encouragement is key. No matter where believers (or unbelievers seeking the truth) are in their walks of life or walks of faith, they are encouraged to grow in intimacy with Jesus, take the next step of obedience in their Christian lives, become more Christ-like, and use their gifts, passions, talents, and opportunities to share the gospel message.    

2) Simplicity. Because we desire for Barnabas to be a paradigm gospel-sharing network of believers, Barnabas Church strives for all of our activities, methods, and services to be reproducible by any Christian regardless of social, economic, or educational factors. 

3) Equality. Barnabas Church maintains that any true Christian,any follower of Jesus, is equally empowered by the Holy Spirit to share the gospel and to teach others about sharing the good news of Jesus Christ. Our value of equality does not detract from the diversity of Spiritual gifts nor does it negate the importance of orthodox gospel contextualization.

4) Authenticity. Every thought, attitude, and action in a believer's life should truly reflect their relationship with Jesus Christ. Likewise, as a corporate body of believers, Barnabas Church focuses on bringing every aspect of our existence in line with orthodox biblical theology. Our practices flow from the true and actual change brought in our lives by a restored relationship with God the Father, a relationship with Jesus Christ, and the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit."

This is our mission and these are our values. Please be in prayer for us, for the future family members of Barnabas Church, and for those in Cleveland who do not have a saving relationship with Jesus. 

Today's Prayer Place: University Circle. Uptown, Cleveland. 

  

A Job Too Big

"When you have a job that is too big for you, you're in the right place." A sister in Christ, Joanne, said these words to Stacy and me earlier this evening. Continuing, she said that believers with tasks that seem far to difficult to accomplish are just in position for God to do something great. When the only one who can do it is Jesus, God is most honored because the victory belongs to him. Look to Jesus, she said. Look and keep looking, and obey whatever he shows you. 

Her encouragement was inspirational, particularly in light of its ironic backdrop: "Look to Jesus. . . and obey." Joanne is nearly completely blind. She lost her eyesight in 1997, when she suffered from retinal detachment in both eyes. Despite the trial, Joanne remained faithful to the Lord and even took her ministry up a notch. Now she leads a contemporary service at her church, and she focuses especially on prayer. 

Which leads to the power of our encounter tonight. 

Joanne is part of a short-term team that'll be doing construction work for a church until Sunday. Seven out of this group are staying with us here in Vision House for the next few days, and Stacy and I were waiting on them when they arrived around 6:00. Their arrival came on the heels of a huge realization for me and Stacy because the weight of our task-and our responsibility in planting this church-has become more evident over the past two days. Kevin has made it clear that we're not just college interns helping to plant a church. We are an integral part of the core leadership team for Barnabas Church (BC). 

So, from 1:00 until the team arrived, Stacey and I brainstormed mission statements and tag lines. We tossed around ideas about logos, mission statements, methodology, and tried our best to really define who we are as BC and what our mission is. We prayed, we read scripture, we began Francis Chan's Forgotten God, we took coffee breaks. . . and we realized how inadequate two college kids are to face a city of darkness and lostness and expect to actually make a difference. Prayer, the Spirit's work, and obedience/faithfulness are ALL we have. And just when it all began to really sink in, Joanne and the team showed up on our doorstep. Our God has a way of timing things just right.

They heard our ideas and listened to our vision. And then they encouraged, exhorted, and most importantly PRAYED. They took our hands and lifted us up in prayer. They lifted up the future Barnabas Church in prayer and the people of the city in prayer; they praised God and interceded on our behalf. Feeling the undeniable and overwhelmingly strong presence of the Spirit has only truly happened a handful of times in my life. But tonight was one of them. To again quote Batterson in The Circle Maker, the encouragement was "just enough, just in time." 

I would love to tell you more about Barnabas Church and our role in this very unusual church plant. And I will tell you more, but this post is long enough already and the hour is late. I'll just give one teaser until Friday. The core values of Barnabas Church include: (1) encouragement, (2) simplicity, (3) authenticity, and (4) equality. I'll explain them more later.

In the meantime, please pray for this target area that we prayerwalked today. West Side Market , 1979 W 25th St, Cleveland, OH 44113. 

Please, please pray. God bless!            

P.S. Barnbas Church is launching Sunday, June 1st.  

Cleveland Bound Again

(Note, I actually wrote this a few hours ago, but I couldn't find wifi in the airport. I am now sitting on my bed in Vision House.)

Well, another semester is done; another summer is here; another adventure is soon to begin. After only a week of sleep and relaxation after the hair-pulling, teeth-gnashing weekend of finals, I’m sitting in the Atlanta airport, Cleveland-bound. Once again, I’m heading out for a summer of church-planting missions. As with all mission trips, excitement is driving me forward, but the adventure is all wrapped up in a package of home-sickness that never quite leaves me alone. I love my family, and in their arms I really do find home. But I know what God has called me to do, and, as God always does, He gives the strength and endurance and joy to persevere. It’s an odd collision of passions to love all pieces of an adventure: the journey, the destination, and the welcome-home at the end. In that way, I suppose a journey is like life. In Christ, there is joy every step of the way, even if the joy is tinted a little different with each of those steps.

I just finished reading The Circle Maker by Mark Batterson. Walking readers through the life of his church plant, National Community Church, Batterson calls Christians to fervent prayer. Several key phrases stood out to me as I read and learned from his insights, but two in particular challenged me about this venture in Cleveland: “praying through” and “only God.” Batterson differentiates between “praying through” and “praying for,” challenging his readers to continue on their knees until God answers their prayers. It may not be the answer they were looking for or the timing that they wanted, but all things work together for the good of those who believe. “Only God” brings to light God’s will to do things beyond human ability or even imagination; once again, the “only God” moments of life bring God the most glory whenever they are direct answers to prayer. Essentially, The Circle Maker reminds us scripturally and experientially to pray and keep praying.

Will you join me in prayer for Cleveland this summer? I’m going to commit to write at least three times a week. My goal is Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, though I cannot absolutely guarantee those days since I haven’t figured out my weekly routine yet. We do have some specific requests, however.

1. We want to find at least 5 potential leaders of Barnabas Church (the house-church that we’ll be working with) from each of our target areas.

2. We would like Barnabas church to fill the garage by the end of the summer.

3. We want to connect intimately with the families in the immediate neighborhood of Barnabas Church, which meets in the house that we’ll be living in.

4. We (that is, me and my brother in Christ Stacy) want to be a faithful presence in Cleveland: faithful to the gospel, faithful to Christ, and faithful to the mission of Acts 1:8.

We pray these things not demanding that God bends to our will; rather, we pray as we feel the Spirit leading us to pray. We cannot accomplish it on our own. Only God will be able to pull off a feat such as this in a place such as Cleveland.  Throughout history, God’s people have most been aligned with His will when they were serious about prayer; Jew and Gentile, apostle and laymen. Even Jesus Himself.
 Three times a week, I will end a blog post with a specific address that you can pray for. You can Google Earth the place or just pray for it with the vision of your mind’s eye. Each blog post may not have a new address, but I’ll send at least three a week anyway.

I’m excited and ready for this adventure to begin!

Today’s prayer place: 10726 Lee Ave, Cleveland, OH, 44106. This is the address of the home that we’ll stay in and the church that we’re working with. God bless, and I would be grateful if some of you could commit to pray for us and for Cleveland daily.