by Gary Reinecke | Nov 18, 2018 | Church Multiplication, Disciplemaking, Leader Development |
Wishing you and yours a blessed Thanksgiving!
As Christians, we have so many privileges to be thankful – but they can get lost in the midst of the daily grind.
Be mindful this Thanksgiving to recall all that God have given, especially the people He was surrounded you. Remember that every human being has worth, value and significance. That your friends, family and even those God has put in your life that might not see the world as you see it are created in His image.
This Thanksgiving, receive with a heart of gratitude, share what He has blessed you with and give thanks.
Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
His love and his kindness go on forever.
1 Chronicles 16:34 Living Bible (TLB)
Thank you for being a friend to InFocus,
for serving the Lord as you make disciples
and develop the leaders around you!
by Gary Reinecke | Nov 9, 2018 | Disciplemaking, Leader Development, Personal Development |
Love is a wonderful noun – but a challenging verb!
It is one thing to love someone or some thing. It is quite another to show love for a person.
The vertical dimension to “love God”, requires belief. The horizontal dimension, to “love your neighbor”, requires action.
Here are four steps to love your neighbor.
4 STEPS TO LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR:
- Prayerfully discern a “neighbor” in need.
- Identify the need.
- Offer to help.
- Let God use you.
We have done this as a small group and have witnessed God do some amazing things. Who are some people your group could serve?
Key questions to consider:
- How do you express your love of God?
- Who is your neighbor?
Please like this blog below and share it with you friends.
by Gary Reinecke | Nov 1, 2018 | Uncategorized |
One of the most impactful worship environments that I’ve participated in was in a marginalized community in Springdale, Australia. The Gospel was potent that Sunday evening many years ago. We met in a community center where me and Gina (my wife) ate a meal with other members of the community, from donated food. A closet set aside for clothing and other necessities, was made available to those in need. After we ate together on the first floor, we went upstairs to participate in worship together. That evening was memorable in many ways:
- Inter-generational – from twenty-somethings to 60 year-olds
- Multi-ethnic – Pacific Islanders to Aussies
- Socially diverse – current and former drug addicts, prostitutes and people working towards sobriety
The evening began with scripture reading and prayer. A cardboard box with percussion instruments was passed around so everyone could have a shaker, tambourine or drum to beat. Then in a light-hearted manner, the worship leader led this rag-tag band in a couple of familiar worship songs, inviting people to engage in a non-threatening manner.
Perhaps the highlight that sticks-out for me was the leader that led the Bible portion of the night who was from the local community. After various people read the passage aloud, we broke-up into smaller groups to explore insights from the passage and ways to apply the truths we had gleaned. To culminate our time together we shared Communion as a symbol of the New Covenant Jesus had called this gathering to live-out together, in a missional community called the Rainbow Church.
You might have thought I was going to share the content of the Gospel with you as if something had changed. The New Covenant Jesus preached and lived-out remains the same as 2,000+ years ago. However, the church of today must return to a more incarnational and missional expression of the Gospel.
One church staff team I consulted with recently came up with the slogan to rebrand their ministry: Be Missional to Multiply! This is what Jesus did. This is what the church must return to. This is what the church must be and move towards.
Reflect on the questions below so that you and your ministry can. Be Missional to Multiply!
- How are you making the Gospel unnecessarily resistible?
- What does it mean to be missional in your context?
- What can you do differently to make missional living part of your DNA?
- How are you multiplying disciples?
- What else could you be doing?
by Gary Reinecke | Oct 26, 2018 | Church Multiplication, Disciplemaking, Leader Development, Uncategorized |
What does it take to see a person reproduce the character of Christ in a new apprentice of Jesus? If you’re like me you’ve seen a number of approaches, perhaps, too many to count. Some have been super fruitful, while others not so much.
Assuming the approach includes the key qualities of disciplemaking like the power of the Holy Spirit, application of Scripture, fellowship, prayer and coaching – the soil is ripe for multiplication. In the expediency of time I find many of us are troubled with the lack of reproduction even into the second, not to mention the third and fourth generation. This impatience can and will result in growth by addition – looks amazing in the short-term but malnourished in the long-term.
What can you do to move from expediency to significance?
You have probably heard about the practice of prioritizing activities into Quadrant II – Important and Not Urgent (Seven Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey). Multiplication is a Quadrant II activity. Over a three year period, one pastor I have been coaching has changed the expectations of their small groups, which his church calls Life Groups:
- Participation: 79% of the congregation are in Life Groups
- Growth: the number of Life Groups has more than tripled
- Multiplication: 22% of the Life Groups have reproduced into the second generation
Here’s five lessons for your reflection, to keep your eyes on the long-term fruit of a multiplication movement and not get distracted with instant gratification.
Five Lessons to keep your attention on Multiplication
- Lesson #1: Be willing to fail – Multiplication requires an element of to risk – which requires faith.
- Lesson #2: Be open to learn – The best teacher is experience.
- Lesson #3: Be clear with your vision – If you’re unclear where you’re headed, good chance you will get there!
- Lesson #4: Be ALL about the process – The joy is in the journey.
- Lesson #5: Be realistic with your expectations – Go slow at first so that you can go fast later.
by Gary Reinecke | Oct 19, 2018 | Church Growth, Church Multiplication, Disciplemaking
What image comes to mind when you hear the word “church”?
In a world where the Christian apologetic is under scrutiny, Andy Stanley suggests intriguing insights in his book entitled “Irresistable” on the:
- New vs. Old Covenant
- the Resurrection
- deeply held theological assumptions.
In the discussion about the church he identifies the first time the term is used in scripture. In Matthew 16:17-18 Jesus says to Peter: “… and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.”
The author goes on to say this is a future part of the New Covenant.
In 1522, William Tyndale began translating the Greek New Testament into English. The Greek word “ekklesia” is accurately translated as “assembly” or “gathering”. The word “church” is not a translation, but a substitution – and a misleading one at that.
Stanley says, that the term “church” should not have appeared in the text at all. Tyndale lost his battle over the term, and others; along with his life. For this reason, “ekklesia” is substituted with our word “church” and used in the scriptures more that 100 times after this.
This makes a tremendous difference in the way we coach, teach and disciple. The connotation of church is very different than the term assembly – as in a gathering of people (whether it be a civic gathering, an assembly of soldiers or an assembly of idol manufacturers as in Acts 19:28-29). What Tyndale was attempting to do was set the record straight.
Today, I imagine, if you surveyed 100 Christians and asked them how they would describe the term “church”, that description would include a building or campus, where people gather for worship. They might describe an organization vs. and organism. Or they might think of the cultural interpretation of the church; whatever that might be in their context.
Which leads me to suggest the following 5 exercise of a local church. These are intended to be broad is scope. The question is intended to help you reflect on your gathering of Jesus Followers.
5 Exercise of a Church
Exercise #1: A community of Jesus Followers loving God Together
- How are you and your community of Jesus Followers expressing your love of God?
Exercise #2: A community of Jesus Followers loving their neighbor together
- How are you and your community of Jesus Followers loving your neighbor?
Exercise #3: A community of Jesus Followers making Apprentices of Jesus together
- How are you and your community of Jesus Followers making disciples together?
Exercise #4: A community of Jesus Followers collaborating with other communities to reach their city
- How are you and your community of Jesus Followers collaborating with other gatherings of Jesus Followers to accomplish the mission of Jesus in your city?
Exercise #5: A community of Jesus Followers stewarding all their resources in God-honoring ways
- How are you and your community of Jesus Followers stewarding all their resources in God-honoring ways?
Every leader and network of leaders will have their definition of “church”. Reflect on the core exercises Jesus had in mind when he spoke to Peter and his intention for us today. Here are three questions to help you identify how to move forward in your thinking about His community of followers that he has entrusted to your care:
- What exercises are you doing well?
- What exercises are a challenge?
- Which exercises do you need to address now?
Here are a few coaching resources to help you guide leaders.
Church Transition Storyboard
Obedient Discipleship Storyboard
Cultivating Multiplication Movements Coaching Guide with Storyboard
