Tag Archives: Leadership

New Monastacism and NLF

On June 1st I introduced a Rule of Life to our memberhip at NLF at our annual meeting. It was the culmination of over four years of pondering, struggle, and prayer about how to best lead in such a way that Christ be formed in our people. Click on the icon “rule of life” at the NLF website (www.newlifefellowship.org) and listen to my 18 minute introduction to the Rule as well as the Rule itself (it has 16 points). You can download a brief commentary on it as well. I distributed also a laminated card with the Rule and invited our church to begin piloting it this year. I am not sure all that God intends with it, and how this will all work out as a large missional church in NYC committed to evangelism. I just am sure that we are to move in this direction as a local church. It is intentional, focused, clear and a strong. Read more.

Resurrection Without Crucifixion

I believe the central message of Christianity remains Good Friday, Easter, the Ascension and Pentecost. Death is God’s way to transformation and new life. I know it intellectually and dislike very much how it lives! My journey with Christ into what we now call “emotionally healthy spirituality” has three distinct, but overlapping, phases to it: 1994-96 – Emotional health and Spiritual maturity inseparable 2003-04 Contemplative spirituality integration 2007-08 Personal integrity/Differentiation. I don’t really understand this one very well since I am only now in its beginning, but I do know that it has involved, for me thus far, really grasping the crucifixion and death. As Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, unless a kernal of truth falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds” (Jn. 12:24). Jesus is telling it like it is. If the seed does not die, there will be no fruit or grain.. Read more.

The Future Runs Through the Past: Learning from History 2

The greatest richness and learning that comes out of us learning church history, especially early church history, is the perspective it gives us on the North American church. This leads me to the next few lessons. The first relates to the state of the church today in light of history. One twenty two year old in our church put it well: “I had no idea how weak we as the church in America are until I heard/saw all this.” This came out of listening to the purifying effect of the persecutions up to 311 ad where Christians experienced 129 years of persecution and only 120 years of relative peace. This eliminated any notion of half-way, nominal Christians rather quickly. Christianity is an Asian religion with rich African roots, not Western. They continually moved Eastward in their mission. Who knew there were three “Christian kingdoms” in Asia before the Roman Empire. One seminary alone, in. Read more.

The Future Runs Through the Past: Lessons from History 1

One of the great challenges for leadership, and the church in any generation, is to see itself as clearly as possible within the large scheme of history so as to not limit or distort the gospel to a cultural, ethnic, or nationalistic agenda. How do I be a Christian in the 21st century West dominated by pleasure, comfort, money, secularism, upward mobility and in a conflict with Islam that looks like it will go on well-beyond our generation? How do we be the church when nominal Christianity is the norm ? Last week my good seminary friend, Scott Sunquist, came and taught a church history course at New Life on Friday night and all day Saturday. For twenty plus years, I have longed to partner with someone like Scott. He is a PHD from Princeton Theological Seminary, a former IVCF staff worker and now a professor at Pittsburg Theological Seminary. He has been studying and writing on. Read more.

Grounded

The theme for what God is seeking to do in me can be summed up around the work grounded. I am so easily pulled away, seduced into what is easy and popular — like speaking, new projects, getting overextended, doing the easy (be active) rather than think and do the best. Today I am headed for 24 hours alone with God (something now in our Rule of Life as pastoral staff at NLF that we are all to do 1x a month) at a nearby retreat center. They have a hermitage that is both simple and lovely. I have taken it very slow this week, working minimally to compensate for the heavy previous week with the EHS conference. I am feeling refreshed physically and emotionally. Yet I can feel the weight of demands pressing around me — sermon on Eph. 6:10ff for Sunday to prepare, staff issues, running NLF, and the numbers of people. Read more.

Late For Church

We just completed our pastor, leader and spouse conference here at Emotionally Healthy Spirituality. It was a whirlwind of preparation, people, meetings, and speaking. We added a preconference on the skills Geri and I have been working on since September. People came from South Africa, Eastern Europe, England, Mongolia, Canada as well as from around the USA. It was wonderful and, of course, a great output of energy from us. Between that, our regular two day conference and then preaching on Sunday, I was quite spent and am taking it very slow this week. Something major, however, happened in me this weekend. I followed Christ and took a next step in my spiritual journey with Him by showing up LATE for church on Sunday. Yes LATE – for the first time in 20.5 years as Senior Pastor at NLF. Like slowing down for silence, Offices and Sabbath can feel like one is. Read more.

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