This year we, as a NLCF community, are engaging Lent together. Â It’s nice.
However, as I have been talking to people, a couple of common themes emerge. Â One is that the focus is more on what is being given up than the reason or what people hope to gain through the process.
Now some of this is understandable. Â The questions about “what are you giving up?” roll out more easily and can be discussed in different groups more easily than the more probing questions sometimes.
On the other side of the discussion I seem to be running across more “web chatter” about why giving up for Lent is unnecessary, and to take the wording of some, even a bit dangerous to having a close and intimate relationship with Jesus. Â The idea is that Jesus never asked us to give up coffee for him, he asked us to follow him with our whole lives. Â As such, giving up coffee can produce a sense of false piety.
Probably unsurprising to many who know me, I see value in both concerns. Â
To handle the second, well first…
There has always been the practice of intentionally going without in scripture. Â Releasing what we could have access to, either to allow the kingdom of God to function as it should (the practice of landowners not harvesting wheat from the edges of their fields, and leaving some between the rows, so the poor could get this grain comes to mind) or for the purpose of drawing us closer to God personally (the practice of fasting as a means of remaining humbled before God and reminding ourselves of our daily need of him). Â The tithe… there are many more.
So, following God’s direction to take away something we could have and value, is a good and long-standing practice. Â Sure, it can produce false-piety, anything we do for God can. Â But that has much less to do with the process and more to do with the fact that we are the ones engaging in the process.
Now for the first issue, of putting more focus on what we are giving up than on what we are hoping to experience from God…
Again, this is an easy trap to fall into, happens all the time. Â Our challenge is to remember that just removing caffeine from our diet, or desserts, or just shutting down Facebook, or not watching TV at night is intended to remind us of our need for God and to give us more time to spend with Him or the people he is directing us to. Â So the giving up is the start, but it is only the start.
And for many of us, there are things in our lives we battle with daily, and these things seem to large, or have been too large for us to see victory over. Â Starting with giving up something that, while difficult, is doable, can be a great start. Â If someone who has rarely or never exercised wakes up one day and decides to become run the Ironman, that process will likely need to start with a little jogging, a little swimming and a little biking. Â Small starts, can lead to amazing things.
I get a lot of questions in my role here at NLCF. Â So, from time to time I will take a few minutes and answer one here. Â One that I have been getting recently is fun to answer, so we will start there.
I have noticed that the downtown congregation is now going by the name New Life and has its own website, what’s up with that. Â Are we still one church?
First of all, great question. Â Ready for a great answer? 🙂 Â The answer is Yes we are. Â So why the different name and website?
It will help to remember that NLCF (not unusually) has done things a bit differently than other churches might. Â Typically a church would be planted and after it stabilized, it would develop a ministry to youth, or university students from there. Â That is much more of a normal progression, and it is what people tend to expect.
We did it differently.
NLCF was planted in 1985 by Great Commission Ministries (now The Collegiate Church Network). Â Four years later, the leaders sensed God calling them to leave and JR Woodward was asked to raise his salary and step in to lead what was at that time a church of around 10-20 students.
God breathed on the work that JR and many others of us were doing and over the next number of years NLCF grew to over one thousand. Â To date, NLCF has planted or was heavily involved in planting churches in Los Angeles, Richmond, at Radford Univeristy, Â Lynchburg College and Bluefield College. Â Also we have helped to see the Ecclesia Network and The Network of Giving get going.
And we started what was originally called the Downtown Congregation of NLCF. Â It was started to be a place that would allow people in the New River Valley that wanted to worship with us, but didn’t necessarily want to do it in a room full of students do so. Â It began developing and got to the point that it needed more than those of us that were working with it could give.
Enter the Racek family (again).
Joe, the second elder that was ordained to work with NLCF in the late 90’s,and his wife Lisa, had gone with the LA plant team to, well, LA; sensed God was calling them back to the east coast. Â Through a lot of talking, prayer, and planning, they decided to return to Blacksburg to work with the Downtown Congregation! Â From there, Joe worked to set up an Equipper Leadership Team that would share the responsibility of leading the Downtown Congregation with him. Â As they were seeking God for the vision they would pursue, they kept running into a problem.
When people heard of NLCF, they thought about the campus work. Â Also, as they were talking about vision, the New Life part of New Life Christian Fellowship started to really stick out to them. Â They felt it captured what God was trying to say and they made the decision, along with me, to adopt that as their name.
From there, it became quickly clear that having a separate website would be important. Â It would be more clear to anyone checking us out. Â Also it would help with the growing confusion that members of both congregations were running into in trying to see what congregation was doing what and when. It would give New Life the best opportunity it express it’s vision. Â It is also what almost every other church that has multiple congregations or sites does. Â For those exact reasons.
So, if you go to New Life‘s side of NLCF’s website, you will see that it has a very different vibe about it. Â You will notice the same if you swing by their 10am gathering. Â Praise God for that! Â At NLCF we have always said that we didn’t want to do anything a particular way just because it was done that way by someone else. Â We have always been about living out and expressing God’s vision for our community, our way. Â Certainly we look deeply at the traditions of the church,and those impact us greatly, but then we apply those traditions in a way that makes sense for the mission that God has given us.
So, we have different vibes, different looking Sunday gatherings, different articulations of the mission that God has given us and some different methods for doing it. Â But we are still one family. Â One church. Â Doing some things together and others separately.
Perhaps we would be described at two trees growing from the same root.
Or siblings if you will, but very very close ones.
So, let’s pray for and celebrate what New Life is doing as they celebrate and pray for our impact as well!
Wise and powerful words from a man I have had the privilege of seeing live those words out. Â The fact that he is so well known and so widely read seems to have not caused him to love the acclaim. Â Thanks to ChurchLeaders.com for the post.
On this day in 1517, the priest and scholar Martin Luther approaches the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany, and nails a piece of paper to it containing the 95 revolutionary opinions that would begin the Protestant Reformation.
If you want a brief rundown of the ensuing years, hit this.
And so began the Protestant movement, even though it wasn’t called that until a number of years later.
I am a product of that, especially now that I am a pastor of a non-denominational church near Va. Tech. Â My question is, “do we as Protestants, or better yet, do I as a Protestant, protest too much?” Â This question comes up as we as a church are in the midst of a series on the Lord’s Prayer. Â A prayer that many recite weekly in church’s all over the world.
We as a church don’t.
And my question is, is that good? Â Is it good to include in the general flow of a Sunday gathering time something that can easily become rote and mundane? Â Or the counter, is it wise to not regularly participate in one of the traditions the church has widely participated in over the centuries?
My concern with the former is that we can easily mishandle very sacred things. Â A bit like eating on the good china everyday somehow reduces the specialness of it. Â But my concern with not engaging in its reading and reciting is that I am pushing away something very valuable just to show that we are different.
To be fair, to me and the elder team I lead with, we have thought about this a great deal. Â We aren’t just pushing away tradition for the sake of pushing away tradition. Â But, on the anniversary of this moment in time that truly created a fork in the road, I do wonder if there are areas I simply protest for reasons less well thought out. Â How much of my decision making is influenced by the fact I am a Protestant, who is in ministry primarily among generations that are much more comfortable determining what they are against than what they are for.
So… what did you learn over your sabbatical?   I mean, the question itself is tough.  But I do feel that God showed me a couple of things…  One of the things that I have been reflecting on for the past number of months is my posture. Not my physical posture, although that is something I have been trying to be more aware of. My spiritual posture. My emotional posture.
I think that God is calling me to focus on a posture of grace and receptivity in this next season of life and ministry. Just before my sabbatical started, I had the opportunity to be a part of a coaches’ training time through Ecclesia. A good friend was leading it out. Overall great stuff, fairly Jungian (in a good way), listening stuff. The leader, Brian helped me to bring together the discipline of asking good questions and through doing so, helping someone hear God’s voice.
What struck me was how difficult it was to not insert my own.
In his fantastic book, Blink – The Power of Thinking Without Thinking, Malcom Gladwell hits on that very thought. “The key to good decision making is not knowledge. It is understanding. We are swimming in the former. We are desperately lacking in the latter.†(p. 265) His point is that we have the capacity to, in areas that we feel competent and experienced in, to make blink judgements. Draw conclusions in two seconds. The longer I walk with God, I grow both more comfortable and less with that.
I am probably more comfortable, challenged, and clear on what God wants me to do than I have been in a long time. I am seeing fruit from my efforts – it is working. In the way I have asked God to make it work, on the timeline that I have asked for it to work. It doesn’t always happen that way, so I love the ride. That gives me a sense of confidence. (more…)
So, a number of people have contacted me and asked about why my postings have dropped over the past few months.
Fair question with an easy answer. Since May 15th I have been on sabbatical, and for the roughly month and a half before that, I was getting ready to go on that sabbatical.  It got a little nuts.
The first six weeks of my sabbatical is intended to be a writing sabbatical where I would be able to do some very preliminary work on the next book; very preliminary.  I also want to continue some things to help promote the first one. The second six weeks would be straight sabbating. Some focused reflection in the morning and then just enjoying whatever we as a family wanted to do, by ourselves or with friends.
A bunch of people have asked what the point of a sabbatical is.
Is it just an elaborate word for vacation?
Is it an indicator that Tracy and I are about to move somewhere else?
Am I taking it because my life is spinning a bit out of control?
To the second question. No. Certainly God has the ability to guide us wherever he chooses to, but, no indications that we are leaving the area or [nlcf] anytime soon.
Now for the first question, is this just another word for a vacation? The simple answer is, kinda.  The word we get vacation from is actually vacationem (nom. vacatio) “leisure, a being free from duty. It also means freedom or release from an occupation or duty. So, in that way, it does fit. This summer I am not doing the things that I have spent the last 15 years doing in my ministry work as they relate to my job. No teaching, no coaching of staff and leaders, no meetings, no planning, no assessing, no networking or helping out with any of the churches, congregations, and non-profits [nlcf] has started or helped to start.  I certainly continue to live my life as a follower of Jesus, I just don’t do certain occupational activities I have been doing for [nlcf].
That is certainly a release from my occupational duties. And it has been great!
However, it doesn’t fit most people’s idea of a vacation in other ways. The term sabbatical comes from the Mosaic code of the Old Testament.  It meant, the 7th year where the land was to remain untilled, slaves were to have been released, and debtors relieved of their debts.  If you look at the Mosaic code, you get the intent of the sabbatical or Sabbath year. It wasn’t just do take a random break, it was to take a reprieve from the demands of yearly planting so the ground could actually be more fruitful in the future.  It was to stop doing some things to remember more fully who God created them to be.
That is very similar to what I am trying to do. I have been on staff with [nlcf] for 15 years. I started as a staffer who had never led a small group and who was still a pretty new follower of Jesus. Think of where I started as the equivalent of the corporate mailroom. As the years progressed I have had just about every job in [nlcf] you can have. I even led worship one pitiful Sunday.
The reason I think God guided me to ask for the sabbatical this summer, and the reason I think he guided my co-pastors, friends and Tracy to encourage it, was that I needed to take time away and let the ground remain untilled. Get away from the demands of helping to guide a church and all that requires and take time to allow the ground to soak up a few extra nutrients.  Step back a bit and reflect on whether I am becoming more fully the man God has created me to be.
I have already had more time to spend with my family, and that has been wonderful. God speaks to me so much through them. I have already read five great books and look forward to many more. I have been able to sit down and read Leviticus in a sitting (not everyone would say that is a good thing) 🙂  I have had more time than normal to pray and more time than normal to reflect. We have had a few neighbors over, with plans for more. We have had the opportunity to help a few people that needed it.  We have planted a garden for the first time ever and I am getting to some yard and house work that has been long overdue. (more…)
This post is a part of a three part posting that started here… Welcome to the conversation!
We clearly live in a Westernized culture that has been deeply impacted by both the scientific and industrial revolutions.  Both of those have been unbelievably helpful to our culture and the world.  We are now able to break down complex systems (organic and inorganic) into smaller parts, study them, and in many cases reproduce or replicate them.  These processes are sometimes called systematic deconstruction, we organize something, break it down to its component parts, sort it out then begin to rebuild it. How many advances in medicine can be traced back to those processes?. How many developments in the industrial sector (that we likely appreciate in our economy all the more now) as well?
One of the issues that has come with these advances, though, is that they can tend to be overused and applied in areas where they are less helpful, or even misguided. James Watson, often called the father of Behaviorism, famously stated,
“Give me a dozen healthy infants, well-formed, and my own specified world to bring them up in and I’ll guarantee to take any one at random and train him to become any type of specialist I might select – doctor, lawyer, artist, merchant-chief and, yes, even beggar-man and thief, regardless of his talents, penchants, tendencies, abilities, vocations, and race of his ancestors. I am going beyond my facts and I admit it, but so have the advocates of the contrary and they have been doing it for many thousands of years.â€
Even though Watson isn’t as radical as some might think him to be, he applied a deconstructionist model to parenting and most of us would say that was a misuse. (more…)
J.R. Briggs and I really could have ended up one another’s arch enemies. Â If you know J.R. and I, then you immediately get why.
He and I might be the two best looking men that are a part of the missional movement of the church. Â I know for a fact that he and I are the two best looking men on the board of Ecclesia.
But do we fight? Â No. Â Do we try to bring the other down to raise ourselves up? Â Not recently.
Instead, we took the road less traveled.  We  got to know the person behind the beauty, and (at least I) discovered, he is a great guy that I respect a great deal.
So, I am very excited to let you know about a conference that J.R. has guided into being. Â It is called, Epic Fail Pastors Conference. Â Let me share an excerpt from the conference site…
The idea for this conference came from two sources: A blog post from J.R. Briggs, a pastor at Renew Community in Lansdale, Pa and the wildly popular site www.epicfail.com.
A few dangerous questions were asked:
-What if we offered a space that is gutsy, hopeful, courageously vulnerable for pastors to let go of the burden to be a Super Pastor?
-What if we could hold an event that was free from the thrills and frills of other pastors conferences?
-What if we came together as epic failures and sought not successful models or how-do’s but instead celebrated faithfulness in ministry because of the reality of Jesus?
-What if we were reminded that we’re not responsible for being ‘successful’ in ministry, but we are responsible for being faithful to the calling that God has laid out for us – regardless of the outcome?
-What if we had a conference that was not led not by famous pastors who are household names, but by scandalously ordinary ministers and leaders who are faithfully attempting to join with God – even in the midst of glaring obscurity and anonymity?
I love those questions!
In my experience I have run into countless examples of two extremes.  I have been to many events where either those that are speaking or those that are attending find ways to let everyone know about the numeric success they have experienced.  Sometimes this is subtly done, and other times, less subtly so.  I have also seen examples of those that are so broken, usually by their reletive lack of numeric success, that they become bitter and ultimately frustrated with the very group they were trying to reach.
I can say that I have been in both of those camps. Â During my time at [nlcf] I have experienced multiple seasons of numeric growth and also multiple seasons of having lower numbers. Â Times where I have given in to the temptation to let others know how “well” we are doing and others where I have grown frustrated that the people I am trying to reach don’t want to be reached!
The thread that runs through all that, is that it is primarly about me. Â My kingdom building, my success.
Yes, we get that numbers matter. Â Each of those numbers is a person who matters a great deal to God. Â To that extent, there is an important place for hearing from people that have seen God bless their efforts. Â So, this conference doesn’t deny the value of that. Rather, it honors the fact that the life of faith is a challenge. Â That living our lives in an honest way before our Messiah will mean that at times we will face frustration, confusion, difficulty and failure. Â And in a culture that so highly values numeric success, not demonstrating that success; while not a failure, can certainly feel like it.
So, having a space where men and women can gather and be honest about what hasn’t gone right, what hasn’t shown results and what hasn’t been pleasant, could be a great thing. Â A space that doesn’t worship failure, but one that worships Christ in the midst of it; a space, not to be cynical, but honest, is necessary.
So, go if you can and encourage friends in the ministry to do so as well.
I like the idea so much, I am going to encourage all 2,000 people that attend our church to consider it as well. Â Wait, did that just drop out? 🙂
Peace, Jim
“I didn’t fail the test, I just found 100 ways to do it wrong†Ben Franklin
Jim Pace would like to officially indicate that likely he is never one of the best looking guys in any room (even when he is alone in it) and that his church isn’t close to 2,000 people…
I have shared before that I am a fan of the orthogonal approach, especially in debates that can get intense, that trigger strong emotion and call on deeply held beliefs. Â For those who aren’t familiar with that term, it applies best to issues where there can be a strong “you versus me” mentaility. Â I win or you do. Â It becomes about voicing your opinion more effectively than someone else might be able to. Â If you do, you win. Â If you don’t, they win.
The orthogonal approach would suggest that instead of letting it go that route, a tug of war if you will, you put a right angle in there somewhere and take the discussion a new direction. Â Approach the interaction differently.
This approach doesn’t mean that both sides give up what they believe, that isn’t the case at all. Â It just means we seek to reframe the discussion in a way that gives it some hope of avoiding the typical roadblocks. Â This approach also isn’t new. Â We are reminded in scripture to be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry. Â This isn’t suggesting we don’t share truth, not at all. Â It is more how we approach the interaction. Â We are told that we can be absolutely right, but if we don’t communicate our views with love and respect, we drastically reduce the impact we can have. Â So, this isn’t new.
As I have sought to apply this approach in the myriad of discussions about intense issues I find myself in I have learned a critical step in navigating them. Â Not only should I seek to understand before I am understood, but I should take the additional step to reflect carefully on what about my life and my experiences would make it harder for me to truly understand where the other person is coming from. Â I try to look at my filters and see if they are making things more difficult.
Hear me again, just because I look at my filters and reflect on them, doesn’t mean I drop them. Â Our filters are born out of who we are; our beliefs and experiences, the aspects of our world that we understand, the things we have learned. Â So, we don’t drop them, we simply ackowlege them and look to see if they impact the discussion we are in.
So… [nlcf] has been involved in a series called Show Us Your Buts — our reasons for not getting closer to God. Â The idea is that most people in our culture today, if asked, would say some semblance of this statement: Â I would be closer to God/Jesus but… this keeps me away. Â Whether the issue of God’s reality or presence is a central one in their life, or a very distant one,research shows most would have some version of this phrase somewhere in their mind.
On October 17th, [nlcf] dealt with this but… I would be closer to God but… He allows far to much suffering.
When we asked the members of [nlcf] and others to contribute their ideas for what we should cover (and over 250 people did) the issue of suffering was one of the highest requests on the list. Â And it was one of the most intensely emotional categories as well.
So, how does the orthogonal approach impact the issue of suffering that God allows?
It would cause us to take a step back and look at our filters. Â Honestly there are many, but let’s start with this one.
Ready?
We expect those with great power to use it to help those in need. (more…)
crossroads church
Crossroads, encouraging our people to understand, embrace, and grow in their practice of being “on mission” everyday. Meets in Severn MD
crossroads church
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if you need a photographer and are anywhere near charlottesville va, you want this guy
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