What if the Manger was just an E-card?
Surely, Hallmark would have been pleased.
Somehow the season and the great significance of the incarnation would be lost if Christ had come as an e-card. I like them as much as the next person, but even if it was one of those cool jib-jab videos where your put his face in the video it wouldn’t have come close to the kind of impact that followed the in-person birth and life of Jesus. While I know that is obvious,but
in our techy world, we can sometimes be lulled into believing that in-tech is the same as in-touch.
To quote David Olson of The American Church Crisis, in a conversation that we had last week at the Multiplicity Conference, “physicality is still very important.” Our technology can lead us to believe that we are now to superior to mere mortals who have to do things in person, or person to person. The incarnation teaches us that hanging out together is important.
So those who follow the Christian tradition believe that the incarnation– God personally showing up in the person of Jesus, was important. Somehow we needed to meet God in human form. The writers of the New Testament and leaders of the early church believed that not only was this important in the revelation of God’s plan for humanity, but that the principle also holds true in our efforts to transform people today. The person who was arguably the closest to Jesus writes,
1 ”We saw him with our own eyes and touched him with our own hands. He is the Word of life. 2 This one who is life itself was revealed to us, and we have seen him…3 We proclaim to you what we ourselves have actually seen and heard so that you may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.” (I John 1:1-4, TLB)
The invitation of the writer is to join them in a shared relationship. This basic belief influences much about the way we approach life and serving in our communities. For one thing, we can’t do it from a distance. We have to be there in people’s lives, and there is really no school of e-card social work or urban ministry. This is a key characteristic of transformative community service.
While we certainly do get benefit from what we read or view, some of the growth that we need only comes from being around other people in a real relationship. Over the past year, I have had the opportunity to spend time with two coaching groups comprised of pastors and church planters. It has been an incredible learning experience that I have counted as a real honor.
2008 Coaching Groups:
One group was comprised of Wesleyan pastors from across the country in which we met together first in person and then by teleconference to explore how to initiate community service through needs assessment. The second group, which still continues, is a group of church planters from all over the nation. This group has meet twice monthly after getting started at a meeting together in CO at Lifebridge Christian Church. The report from each member of the group, and from its leader (me), is that this has been an important and transformative experience. We have discussed lots of information, but more importantly we have shared,
listened, prayed and encouraged each other in personal and leadership growth around the topic of becoming healthy &
externally focused new churches. I have been enriched as have the other group members by this personal experience.
Doesn’t it make sense that we could learn best how to improve community, while we do that learning in the context of community?
I am convinced that this group coaching approach is one of the best learning environments that I have experienced in my many long years of school and leadership. My insights into the value of coaching were also enhanced as I spent a couple of Days with Ted Cornelius at Coachnet training.
2009 Coaching Groups
As we get ready to launch the new coaching groups described below, consider joining us…
1. New Churches Going Missional. The whole process of developing sustainable community service starting with needs assessment, growing a missional leadership and DNA in the church and ending with community transformation that is fundable from non-traditional sources. Group meets twice per month for 12 months via teleconference, and in person for two days to get started. This group will complete the whole Compassion by Design Development Framework and is designed for church planters at various stages in the process (pre-birth through 10 years).
2. Needs Assessment for New and Existing Churches. A monthly group that starts with intensive training and journeys together for the needs assessment process. This 6 month group will build real skills with the the starting point–needs assessment through expert coaching and group learning. This group will focus on Need Assessment.
3. Building Support for Your Community Organization. This group will develop services that attract new support from community and corporations. The ability of a faith based non profit to attract new funding, especially in these economic times is found in the way it presents and organizes its services. This group will take concrete steps to make itself more attractive to donors and grant funding with expert coaching. This group will focus on funding.
If you are interested in participating in coaching, click here.