SIMPLY FRIENDSHIP II

... The late 70's saw the Invis plant churches. From Joburg, to Pretoria. From planting in East London and Port Elizabeth to Capetown. Pinetown and Pietermaritzburg soon followed. When London and Amsterdam were planted, the excitement and imperialistic expectation grabbed our hearts. Matched with a move from the little Lutheran church to the big warehouse, we were stirred. Folks those were the 70's.

At the home base, the leadership now shifted from Nelson to Carl, and we explored the cell, congregation, celebration model of Yonghi Cho. This was multi-siting before its time. Rob, Big Dave and I were sent out to lead the Westville congregation. We had fun out there. The three of us worked so well together. I was around 20 years old, Rob a seasoned 25 year old and Big Dave a bullet at about 32.

It would seem that the power of friendship, beyond simply beers and BBQ's, is to labor together. Even face weighty challenges together. Rob and I are peculiar. In many ways we are so different. He is older than I am. His journey through an agnostic home, into the wild Rhodes Univ [the one garment parties] into Hinduism and the farm, was so foreign to my world. My father was a blue collared worker, my mother a woman of great faith within a more traditional framework. My suburban teens kept me in touch with church although I first came to faith on my bed at home in 1976.

When God put us together, our lives intertwined. We led home groups together, we were in the worship together, acted in salvo plays together spending much of our times together. I remember the evening Rob was preaching on the street. We were in different parts of a particular stretch of the beach front, when Rob appeared with a look of horror / amazement. He was witnessing to someone who, being somewhat drunk, turned and punched Rob on the side of the face. He had lost his hearing. So we did what we knew to do. We laid hands on him and God did the rest [although Glenda does seem to think that the hearing is not fully recovered. It seems that chores around the home could possibly see an unhealing manifest - but I am not sure!]

True friendship has to have some guts and fight. My friend Alan Hirsch calls it communitas - friendship forged under fire. When Rob and Big Dave planted the Invis Pinetown, we were stoked - and Rob was petrified. What so few understand is how shy my friend is. He overcomes that shyness every day. With bold Reformed foundations Rufus started preaching. His primary source outside of the Bible was Spurgeon - afterall we had just been schooled in straight up 5 pointers and we preached it with passion. I preached my first message on propitiation when I was about 21 - that was a long time ago.

I was so stoked for Rob and Glends. As I was soon going to do my military service, I did not join them although I did help out with worship when they needed a hand and I was around. We prayed together, theologized together, ran together, trusted God together. I marvelled at Rob's prayer life. I was intrigued by his remarkable mind to process weighty theology. I was delighted that such a shy retiring man would take on such a mammoth task of planting a church. Under the fire of planting, our compelling friendship of fun, just transitioned to friends who needed each other in times of fighting that only pioneering can require...tbc

FROM A FATHER'S PEN-Feb 2010

I love pens. The collection on my desk next to my computer is loaded with stories. Of course, the Mont Blanc fountain that M gave me, rises supreme among the others. Mark gave me a beautiful green fountain pen that cuddles up to the one JD gave me, which was hand made by a friend. The one I bought in OZ is in convo with the one I picked up somewhere. I love pens.

Actually I love writing. Writing is not always for the reading. It is just the need to give air to the word pictures that flurry around in the soul. Writing is not about words. Words can be cold impersonal and so functional. Writing is about art. When God created, he invested with wonder of imagination in all of us. This heavenly inspired imagination needs to find expression in our worlds. To sow, to draw, to kick, to sing, to play, to think, to talk, to design, to dream... each speak of a creator God who giggles with delight when we 'art'. I am a wordsmith. I see the words as picture stories. They scamper before me like puppies, each focussed on the sheer exuberance of life. Life, that glorious celebration of divine intent, finds words displayed in me.

But I am a father. From the first moment I heard the cry of a fragile little girl as she climbed her way our of her mother's tummy, I knew I had found my highest call. The trauma of a near death at birth galvanized M and me to fight for our little girl's life. She had to live. The toxemia that threatened her mother, was now threatening her too. Stuck in the pelvic canal required an emergency caesarian section surgery. The little girl's heart pounded in phoetal distress as we rushed to the OR.

Tears. We wept when she came into our world. Little, tiny, vulnerable, hurting, bloodied but loved. She was alive and she was ours. Our little "miracle of God" had entered our world.

Heaven celebrates every birth. None are surprises in God's authorship. Piece by piece, he spent nine months putting you all together. The wonder of the womb held you in place as the cosmic artist splashed you with mystery, uniqueness, personality, destiny. Heaven sang their songs of joy. Angels visited your very and every first moments. And there was a Father who laughed. Tears streaming down his face, he laughed as you breathed your first. As the lady in blue, pushed and probed your fragile body under lights and clinical functionality, the angels chuckled. You were celebrated.

How do you know? Well they did it to him. The hidden birth in a manger — probably a cave, heard the chuckle of heaven, heard the angels sing and felt the smile of the Father. That is how I know. I know because they were there when my trilogy of gifts graced our anticipated worlds. They were there because I did not celebrate it alone.

Welcome to our world of wonder. He made you with a chuckle, smile and dance. I remember...

SIMPLY FRIENDSHIP

There is something rather amazing about friendship. This one started in 1977.

1976 saw me studying at Rhodes University in South Africa. Our hair was long, our guitars were tuned and our dreams were endless. In December of that year, Jesus called me, embraced me, loved me. The response to this level of grace was not difficult. He was more appealing than anything or anyone else. I fell in love with Jesus. I had to tell others. "Jesus is alive" punctuated our lives. All else seemed to pale into insignificance.

In March of 1977, I was asked to speak at a Methodist Church camp for high schoolers. This Jesus, that I just could not keep inside, spilt over into their lives and most of those present, wept their way into eternity. That night, I met a quiet, totally feminine, beautiful 15 year old. Her subdued strength was matched by a mystery that captured me, and has held me for these 33 years. Jesus was our conversation. He was our worship, our affection, our priority, our revealer, our journey. By October of '77 M and I began dating and our story began — but that for another time.

Some months after that, I was asked to speak at a Christian Club meeting of the local Boys High School. Something sweet had started to happen there. Many of the seniors had come to Christ and the school was abuzz with God wonder. Jesus still saves. Historically, these meetings were often for the forgotten few. But when I arrived, the main hall in the school was abuzz. This school of about 1000 boys saw about 600 in the meeting. It was cranking. Boys were talking about Jesus. The crowd of boys suddenly parted and the teacher stepped through to greet me. I immediately recognized him. He had played for a band called "Crutch" at Rhodes Uni. The times I had seen him on stage, well, let me say he was not altogether of sound mind. Of course, we had not met there but that day, we became friends. Actually an extraordinary styled friendship had begun

After the meeting, Rob asked me to come to his house that night. He was having some of his old surf mates around for dinner and a movie [Quo Vadis]. He asked if I would come and we could do some music together and tell about Jesus. It was an amazing evening. I entered a world fairly different to my own but one that was full of Jesus. I met Glenda. She was and remains beautiful. With her long hair combed hippy styled down the middle, her little chuckle connected her to M and me immediately. With two little boys on hand, she loved, cared, fed, laughed and infused us with delight. WIth no real possessions to speak of [except of course the rusted Volkswagen], they loved Jesus, loved each other and loved the church, whilst desperately wanting to see people come to Jesus. We became friends — simply and deeply friends.

Without apology I tried to get them from the AOG church to join us at the "Invis". Our inner city church was raw, scruffy and wild about Jesus. Eventually they joined us. Street preaching loaded our weekends. The sound of a folksy guitar pounding the African sidewalk would soon attract a crowd. We had just a few minutes to talk about this Jesus before the sidewalk would clear. There we laughed together. There we found faith to pray for strangers and testify boldly of the Father's great love. Friendship was forged in these fiery times.

The JC Country Band has been added to folklore with a touch of urban legend. Rob and I formed a band during those "heady and intoxicating years"[Rob's phrase]. We even practiced-mostly Rob's songs as well as a few Barry Mcguire and Randy Matthew's songs. Open air concerts and the great concert at WBHS was our 'Last Waltz'. That was still the 70's. The friendship had begun... tbc

THE PAIN AND PRIVILEGE OF MINISTRY

This ministry thing is rather an amazing thing. I am up at 3:30 am. The body creeks under the weight of struggling with all his energy at work within me. My mind rushes. Like a power point presentation, portraits of our wonderful southlands@thegallery community rushes past me. Each extraordinary, each with a story to tell. Each with an intriguing spiritual story to tell and journey to explore.

In December 1983 I left school teaching and entered the amazing world of leading God's people as my life passion, pleasure and privilege. The young idealistic dreamer was captivated by the notion of growing the biggest church in Durban [South Africa]. I look back today and I am so embarrassed to have considered such an ego driven dream.

Meeting Dudley Daniel was my saving grace. As a friend, spiritual mentor, father and apostle, he dragged me out of the myopic world of one city that captivated and impressed me, and placed me in a world where the nations beckoned. From my first trip to Europe in 1984 to the trip that changed my life, Hong Kong and OZ in 1990, I knew there was another world out there. Another way to do ministry.

M and I are now in our 27th year of church leadership. It has been an amazing ride. We have led 2 churches on 2 continents [Africa and North America] and helped plant many along the way. I have known Christian community at her best and her worst. I have seen passion, commitment and sacrifice that has amazed me, I have also seen an absolute disregard to God's appointed leaders, his word and the wonder of obedience. We have known the presence of the Holy Spirit that has been riveting but have also had to find sanity as we have walked through the valley of the shadow of death. The sheer weight of pastoral ministry has at times overwhelmed me. The pain of people's pain has been to great to bear. Unanswered prayers have weighed heavily on us. Saying goodbye to loved ones who died too young with unfulfilled 'prophecy' has been loaded with too many tears. By nature I am an optimist. By vocation I have had to fight the darkness of the soul with pain and loneliness too difficult to describe.

It is now 4:26 am. In a few hours I will walk into a room full of expectant Jesus lovers. The children will come and give me some love. My daughter will lead worship in prophetic sensitivity. M and the boy will stand with me in worship. We will be found in his presences as we drink in the amazing wonder of worship. The God stories today of healing and financial provision will be met with hooting and hollering. We will talk about the container with about $30,000 worth of goods that will leave for Africa after the meeting. We will welcome back the team that were in Kenya and then I will preach. Shaking in my boots [though they probably wont know], I will talk about Jesus and this remarkable gospel. The blood will wash us. Somewhere in the room, someone will sit and just weep. Normally a broken leader abused by life's ministry journey, will just weep.

After the meeting we will pray for numbers of folks. New folks will come and introduce themselves as the buzz of community will be washed down with lattes. When the din slowly subsides, M and I will probably be amongst the last to leave. Weary, emptied with happy hearts we will know why. Why we love Jesus so much. Why we love his bride so much. Why we love his presence so deeply. Why the pain and privilege of ministry is our daily preoccupation. I am not sure why he chose me to walk on this journey but I am so glad...

SPURGEON

"If there ever should come a wretched day when our pulpits shall be full of modern thought & the old doctrine of substitutionary sacrifice shall be exploded, then will there be no comfort for the guilty or hope for the despairing". CH Spurgeon

Dear oh dear... the prophet spoke of these days where the penal substitutionary atonement is viewed as child abuse. Our pulpits are overshadowed by the opinions of men - egotistical men who are impressed by their own words. Driven by their culture, fashioned by their time yet untouched by the true life transforming gospel... can we appeal for this gospel to return to center stage... and let cleansing and hope restore the true beauty of life?

GOSPEL CENTERED LEADERSHIP IV

This is the final part of our mini series. We have been exploring gospel centered training of pastors built around the Acts 20 interaction between Paul and the Ephesians elders who came to meet with him. It is a great moment of partnership, passion, intimacy, challenge, warning and tears.

I have loved exploring this text through the lenses of the gospel. So often it has been taught as leadership principles. That it is not. It is an encounter between an apostle and the elders he loved. It is loaded with God life, spinning around the power, freedom, healing courage and boldness that the cross brings. Hope you enjoy reading it, better still studying the text for yourself. It has been written as a teaching text rather than in article form. You are most welcome to use the material to teach your emerging elders / pastors...

1. Now I commit you to God: Paul has set a most outstanding example. In fact he says that believers should “follow him as he followed Christ”. I would like to use Paul’s closing comments as concluding comments to these elders. May I reiterate, when the gospel is rediscovered as the hub around which all of Christianity spins, we can no longer teach principles as a checklist for performance. That will always lead to legalism and the subtle [or not so] pressure to conformity.
1. “Word of his grace…”

i. Colossians speaks of ‘grace in all its truth’. The elder is surely to have a growing revelation of grace and teach, love, lead with that in his eyes, heart, mouth,

ii. The elder must ensure that leadership and believer responsibilities placed on folks are all clearly biblical, soaked and stroked in Christlike grace,

iii. I am not sure we can preach any text without landing in the gospel and massaging the subject in grace,

iv. A sense of praise continues to grow in the community because it is all so undeserving,

2. “Build you up…”

i. The gospel is loaded with kindness, forgiveness, cleansing, restoration, healing, so when it is presented, the people will not need shallow motivational talks, as they will be grounded in the true measure of our soul. That will inspire like no other,

ii. Gospel centered leadership will prophecy. I am Reformed in my theology but also certainly Charismatic. Whilst these words can ensnare because of stereotypes, I am so passionate about sound theology building up but also around the role of the Holy Spirit gifts. They are for today. They are available to the church today. They empower the priesthood today. They undermine the celebrity culture that always weakens the church ultimately and keeps all in immaturity and with dependence on the ‘superstar stud’,

iii. True effective eldership show how the gospel when fully presented has all the ingredients necessary for us to handle all situations – Jesus is still the answer - not as a cheap slogan but as a true truth born out of his full incarnation, execution, resurrection and consummation,

3. “Give you an inheritance…”

i. Paul’s great foundations for every believer, is what he speaks about in Colossians 1, is that every believer has “the knowledge of his will…” our inheritance is found in the will of God for our lives,

ii. Eph 1 tells us that the Holy Spirit is the seal of this inheritance,

iii. Ps 2 tells us that if we “ask of me and I will make the nations your inheritance…” again the wonder of the gospel appears again… “ all over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing” Col1. Inheritance is always people… friendships, partnerships, allies, disciples, the lost, the nations…

4. “I have not coveted… it is more blessed to give than to receive”:

i. The ‘shalom’ of God is our portion – both peace and prosperity come with the atonement. This is not the ‘prosperity message’ [that is definitley not a gospel at all].

ii. It is born out of our gospel theology that God “gave his only begotten son…”- God is the giver, he is extravagant and generous. In turn as his seed takes root in our lives through the gospel, it will “bear fruit and grow” as Paul says in Colossians 1,

iii. We accept that through the redemption work, God paying our ransom, we have been bought with a price, we are not our own – that is especially true of leaders-

iv. We live for the benefit of others, daily we lay our lives down,

v. The well being of the sheep is our highest calling,

vi. ‘I should you that by this kind of hard work…’

vii. We must help the weak…

5. “He knelt down with them all and prayed…”

i. The first and greatest gift a pastor can give his community, is his prayers,

ii. Kneeling is an act of enormous humility,

iii. Acts 6 tells us, this is what we give most of our time, effort and energy to,

iv. These were passion prayers about life and death, weighty indeed.

v. These prayers were not disimiliar to Matt 28 when the apo mantle was handed on p this time not to 11 men but to a community to continue to be faithful to their origins in Acts 19, and their mandate as they are reminded in Revelation 2. These prayers continuously remind the community of their apo and prophetic responsibilities.

GOSPEL CENTERED LEADERSHIP III

This is the third part of Gospel centered leadership. It is a study I did with our leaders @thegallery, with the community @thegathering, as well as with the pastors @Exploration. It is a study from Acts 20 when Paul calls for the elders from Ephesus to join him in Miletus. I have intentionally kept it as my notes rather than an article so they are easily usable for those who wish to teach it themselves:

1. Paul’s four part address to the elders: Acts 20:28 - 31;
1. "Keep watch over yourselves...":

i. Watch the barometer of our red hot devotion to Jesus [Piper]; – we are always lovers before we are laborers,

ii. Watch out for your devotion to the text; we are learners before we are teachers, when we stop learning we are in danger, danger, danger –

1. Our theology should be ever going deeper [mining specific texts, truths,]

2. higher [a higher view of God esp. his sovereignty]

3. wider [not limited to our prejudice & preferences]

4. longer [overview of the whole of scripture not selected portions]

iii. Watch out for the Holy Spirit presence; we are to lavish ourselves in his affection – for me that is not to be limited to his manifestations! Let the wells of worship, meditation, reflection, being quiet, tongues, exercising the gifts, all flow,

iv. Watch out never to lose sight of the magnificence of God’s grace; we are eunuch leaders of the bride

1. Deepest devotion to Jesus above all other loves,

2. Endless thirst for his texts,

3. Real and resilient affection for his bride,

4. Spurred on by the privilege to lay down our lives,

5. Keep ourselves rooted in relationships,

a. With our spouse,

b. With our families,

c. With apostles,

d. With peers,

e. With friends – new and old,

f. With ‘the sheep’

6. Keep an eye on our health

2. I would like to make some observations from Paul’s life that may help the marketplace elder: [It is often rather challenging for marketplace [MP] guys to transition from one world to the next and to be able to check how they are doing. From a world of results, deadlines, and various forms of measurables, to the ministry with its people intensity but not defined,

i. “How I lived among you”- by the qualification of 1 Tim 3, the MP has already established that his life, home, relationships are of such a nature that other can take a read off him. This is in and of itself a high value – to show others how this Christian journey can be done…

ii. “With these hands of mine I have supplied my own needs and of my companions… we must help the weak…” The MP elder has a unique opportunity to keep the eldership team connected to the life’s challenges of those in the congregation. The freedom to do what they do, simply because they love the sheep and feel called to do so, is huge.

iii. “ I served the Lord with great humility and with tears, although I was severely tested…” MP’s are incredible gifts of love and sacrifice to the body. Whilst we do want to train with faith and grace, we cannot keep from them the weighty moments of pain and trauma –welcome to the ‘house of privilege and pain’.

iv. “I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God [NIV] attest to the good news…whole purpose, plan and counsel of God [Amp]” The MP elders have such a remarkable opportunity to take the gospel to their world, when most salaried pastors rarely have those moments. They invariably can help others find the will of God for their lives, using house-to-house moments as well as the public places. Very cool.

3. All the flock: [It is all about THEM and not me or my ministry]

i. All:

1. As overseers, all the people,

2. No prejudice,

3. No preference, [Paul ministered to both Jew and Gentile, even though he was an apostle to the Gentiles]

4. All gifts, callings, giftings, ministries, ages, economic groupings…

ii. The: focus of Jesus’ affection, specific, set aside, by name, as opposed to a generic, general, vague, possible; … Eph 1:3 - 14

1. Blessed,

2. Chosen,

3. Predestined,

4. Grace given,

5. Redemption,

6. Purpose of his will,

7. Sealed with the promised Holy Spirit

iii. Flock:

1. He is the chief shepherd, [a study of John 10 is very helpful]

2. We are described here with these parts of a job description:

a. Elders – govern,

b. Bishops – oversee

c. Guardian – protect

d. Shepherd – lead

e. Pastor – nurture,

3. He chooses whom he sends us to lead and oversee. We are only relieved of this requirement when the chief shepherd releases us and not when they leave the church…

4. They will drift, but the true shepherd will keep pursuing them,

5. Shepherds know the number in their flock – this discipline is not to encourage or discourage but to hold to account,

6. Lambs are a natural, consistent, continuous part of flock life.

4. Savage wolves:

i. This is very strong language Paul uses… not a matter to be taken lightly. The Exodus texts grant many examples of divine discipline. The elder needs to be acquainted with these passages, as obedience to the Spirit is needed in every unique situation.

ii. “Come in among you…”

1. Look like sheep,

2. Sound like sheep,

3. Act like sheep,

4. Under pressure they become wolves

iii. “Will not spare the flock…”

1. Solely preoccupied with their own agenda,

2. Are not bible people in their humble submission to the text,

3. Known by their open and clear Absalom-styled rebellion which they eventually strut as if ‘they own the place’,

4. They show no respect, honor, recognition for God appointed leaders,

5. They are not Jesus lovers, their spiritual language is either absent or very mystical and ethereal,

6. They will destroy the sheep, snarling, biting, scattering-it is truly all about them and they are so often injured form their fights!

2. From your number:
1. ‘Distort the truth…’

i. So often this group of folks have been embedded in the community, hiding their lack of true conversion, or their unresolved hurts, pains or disappointments,

ii. Academic gymnastics are now required to justify their own rebellion,

iii. True measures of exegesis and hermeneutics are forfeited to reach their own ‘theological’ ends,

iv. The end justifies the means,

v. They will be un-teachable and will intimidate with loud, brash accusations especially about the apparent fragile theology of the God appointed leaders,

2. ‘Draw away disciples…’

i. Lack of the fear of God is evident to the discerning,

ii. Lack of respect nor recognition of God given authority,

iii. With use all means fair and foul… emails, phone calls, special meetings, even highjack legitimate meetings for their own ends,

iv. Especially use sentiment and emotion for most are not firstly founded on Jesus, the gospel and the full biblical text,

v. I am deeply saddened by the bible illiteracy. ...This has produced believers who have a very fragile foundation from which to process these challenges – and in a relational house, unfortunately, the emotion places a disproportionately high role – Jesus dealt with the sentimental when the 5000 followed him by the call to ‘eat of my flesh…’ – he just refused to let anything but truth claim our allegiance.

As leaders we need to love deeply, lead strongly, feed consistently. This is not the time to focus on the aggressors but on Jesus and his gospel - this gospel bears fruit and grows, not punch counter punch...