J.R. Briggs
Attempting to behold the miracle long enough without falling asleep
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Archive for July, 2009
Asa, the Apostle Paul + freedom
Thanks to those free iTunes download business cards Starbucks gives out at their cash registers, I’ve been introduced to a Paris-born Nigerian singer named Asa (pronounced ‘asha’) and she’s fantastic. Her sound seems to be a mix between reggae, blues and jazz. Here are the lyrics to her hit song “Jailer.” (You can check out her website here see the YouTube video here). It’s a catchy tune, but the lyrics are piercing.
I’m in chains, you’re in chains too I wear uniforms
You wear uniforms too I’m a prisoner
You’re a prisoner too Mr. JailerI have fears you have fear too I will die
You self go die too Life is beautiful don’t you think so too Mr. JailerI’m talking to you jailer
Stop calling me a prisoner
Let he who is without sin
Be the first to cast the stone Mr. JailerYou suppress all my strategy
You oppress every part of me
What you don’t know
You’re a victim too Mr. JailerYou don’t care about my point of view
If I die another will work for you
So you threat me like a modern slave Mr. JailerYou don’t care about my point of view
If I die another will work for you
So you threat me like a modern slave Mr. JailerIf you walking in a market place don’t throw stones
Even if you do you just might hit
One of your own
Life is not about your policies all the time
So you better rearrange your Philosophies
And be good to your fellow man, JailerI hear my baby say ‘I want be president’
I want chop money
From my government
What he don’t know Be safe Mr. JailerThese lyrics stir something in me.
It’s a musical sermon, a clear cry against modern slavery (significant fact: there are more people in slavery around the world today than at any other time in human history).
A “reap what you sow” lesson.
A stubborn courage that says, “You can take away almost everything I’ve got, but you can’t take away my dignity.”
I don’t know the background story to this song (although I am sure there is a good one). But this I do know: This is stirring for me because I want freedom. We all want freedom.
When I listen to the courageous, blunt and poetic words of Asa I can’t help but think of the Apostle Paul.
- Can’t you imagine him saying something like this to his jailer in Rome as he wrote his now famous letter to the small house church in Philippi?
- Can’t you just hear he and Silas, speaking with a peaceful confidence with a big smile on their faces, communicating a similar message to the jailer in Acts 16?
- I took a seminary class with Scot McKnight on the book of Galatians (it was one of the best classes I’ve ever taken on any level of education). Paul’s letter is written to address what it means to be free men and women now that the tomb was empty. The thesis of the book is Galatians 5:1 – the point of Jesus is freedom.
- Even Jesus had a few things to say about giving up our rights in order to truly experience freedom.
This song forces me to ask some significant questions in light of the gospel:
[1] Why is freedom such a strong cry deep within each one of us?
[2] Who are the “jailers” in my life who should get an earful from me with this same message?
[3] What are the things that enslave me most?
[4] What does true gospel-centered freedom look like in my context?
[5] What is my role – and the Church’s role – among those who are physically imprisoned (many unjustly and illegally) and are desperately longing for freedom?
Food Drive for Manna on Main
One of the three local partnerships Renew has purposefully developed in Lansdale is with Manna on Main, the central food bank and soup kitchen in the region. This information came to me through Manna’s volunteer coordinator, Liz Coyne. I told her I’d get the word out about the needs at Manna. While this was written for Renew, I’d love to get the word out to as many people as possible.If you live in the Lansdale/North Penn region will you join us in helping out?
__________
Manna is having a food drive on August 8th, mainly because our shelves are historically bare during the late summer/early fall. When the food drive was still in the planning stages, we had a hard time deciding what geographic area to target. Obviously, our heart is in Lansdale – but we have such awesome support in such far-reaching communities, and so it was hard for us to pinpoint one location. So, we decided to put the food drive in the hands of our supporters. We are looking to people who already support Manna to spread the word about our services to their neighbors and circles of influence (like 2 or 3 degrees of separation). Thus, we developed the idea of a Community Captain.
As we wrote in our latest newsletter, Peter has already signed up to be a Community Captain. He picked up paper/plastic bags and brochures about the food drive at Manna, and then he pledged to drop one off at each house on his street. The brochures list details on Manna, the food drive, and what we are most in need of. There is also a spot for Peter to write his information (whatever he feels comfortable providing), and a spot for him to say what time he will return to pick up their food donations. He will then return on August 8th, and if the household has decided to donate food, they will leave it out for him to pick up in front of their house. If each home on Peter’s block donates two food items, he will deliver enough to feed a family of three people for one month!
Our goal is to collect 12,000 food items, and all donations are welcome! Renew Community members can get involved by signing up as Community Captains (just contact Liz to make sure we don’t already have a Captain on your street/neighborhood), or by helping us sort the donations on August 8th. My hope is to have refreshments and some fun entertainment to celebrate the efforts of the Community Captains as they return to Manna on 8th with their collections! Also, some businesses are getting involved by picking up 18-gallon tubs at Manna and putting them in a common location in their building. Also, the Lansdale Farmers Market will be a drop-off location on the 8th, so people can get a full dose of Lansdale fun that Saturday. Just let me know if any Renew members would like to get involved with any aspect of the August 8th Food Drive! I’d love to have you guys be a part of what I’m hoping will be a really fun and bountiful day!
If you’re interested contact Liz Coyne at liz@mannaonmain.org Manna will take all the help they can get.
Thinking about church planting in VA?
Chris Backert, director of The Ecclesia Network, asked if I’m mention this:
There are several partially funded church planting opportunities throughout the state of Virginia (and Washington DC) available. These new plants are being started in cooperation with the Baptist General Association of Virginia and the Ecclesia Network. We are looking for planters with a missional orientation and a high value for a contextual approach. Prior experience in a church planting setting or start-up is advantageous, but not necessary.
Additional support will be established through partner churches and personal fundraising. Everyone interested would need to be comfortable participating in skill and behavioral assessments (both electronic and in person) to determine church plant readiness. If you are not quite Reformed enough for some other networks, this might be for you. To discuss a full list of opportunities please contact Chris Backert (chris.backert@gmail.com). Specific opportunities are available in …
Winchester, VA – small university town of approximately 150,000 people 1 hour west of DC Metro area
Fairfax, VA – church planting opportunity near George Mason University
Petersburg, VA – small city located 30 minutes south of Richmond, VA. Future growth potential of the area is high due to military relocation. Facilities potentially available.
Hopewell, VA – suburb located between Richmond, VA and Petersburg, VA. Future growth potential is high due to military relocation. Facilities available.
South Richmond, VA – opportunity for new start located in the Woodland Heights neighborhood. This is a diverse neighborhood in transition. Facilities also available.
Renew-wide gathering :: this Sunday
We’re stoked.
This Sunday morning The Renew Community is holding another one of our monthly community-wide gatherings at 10:15am at Marjeane’s on corner of Broad and Hancock in Lansdale. (Yup, it’s a catering facility/wedding reception hall, but we still know how to have a good time).
This is an invitation to relationship – to participate in the rhythms of our faith community. We only have one rule: no perfect people are allowed. Want more information or want to know more about who we are and what we’re about? Check out our website.
The Renew Community :: looking forward to Year #2
Its hard to believe it, but we just completed year one of The Renew Community. Last summer, our launch team members signed a Team Covenant and began traveling down the road of this crazy God-experiment when we held our first meeting a year ago this week. This past Saturday night we had a cookout to officially end our time together as a launch team. It’s hard to believe its already been a year…
Last week I looked over my notes from that first meeting together. We were a bunch of strangers (though many have agreed that it feels like family now) who had no idea what we’re doing. Everything seemed uncertain. We hardly knew each other. And yet people were certain that God had called them to this unique vision of Renew. We took the “slow burn” approach to Renew. We chose not to sprint the marathon and proceed at a pace that wouldn’t burn us out in the long run. (Anytime you place relationships over tasks things take longer than expected). But because the concept of church means that people are priorities we believed the slow burn approach was the right one. And it served to be true.
What a difference a year can make! The tears, the stories, the celebration, the laughter, the honesty, the grace extended, the relational spaces, the attempts to try something new and different, the discussions centered around the Scriptures, the honest and heart-felt prayers, the relational interaction and the direction and structure needed to see this faith community mature and grow. We’ve shared a lot over the past 12 months.
In many ways, things are what we thought…and in many ways, it has been extremely different from what we anticipated. Last summer we anticipated gathering a small group of people (maybe a dozen) committing to be on the launch team meeting in our living room to pray, process and plan slowly while we were on our faces asking God “What kind of faith community do you want us to be?” Little did we know that we would have sold our house by the end of last summer (hence no living room to meet in) and have a launch team of 50 adults and 18 kids (of which no living room would be big enough to meet).
House churches have developed, missional spaces have been birthed, relationships have been cultivated, our identity has begun to be formed.
Looking back, I’m more encouraged than I thought I would be. I’m more excited about what’s ahead as we look to Year Two. I’m wiser (I think) after a year of experience of what works and what doesn’t. But I’m just as nervous/scared as I was when we started! In a sense, I hope I never lose that nervous/scared feeling because its always forcing me to my knees.
And I’m healing. I’ve healed a lot in the past year from wounds of the past…but I still have a long way to go in the healing process. I’m a work in progress. I’ve wondered if our “slow burn” approach might also have been providential, as it was extremely healthy for my own soul to rest, in order to receive a sort of mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and be brought back to life. (I was much more wounded than I realized at the time).
I am so thankful for our launch team – a group of crazy, committed people who agreed to step out into strategic uncertainty in order to pursue this vision of seeing skeptics and dreams have a place to connect – and join with God’s mission to see the area renewed. The launch team sacrificed a lot: their preferences, their certainty, their security, their finances, their understanding of what “church” means, their relational boundaries and their efforts to serve in ways they never thought possible. The team agreed to meet at odd places (a storefront, a bar, a park, a youth facility and a catering/banquet hall) and at odd times - and be led by one odd leader. In spite of this fact, not once did I hear people complain about the conditions or the facilities or the sacrifices we were asking them to make. They’ve done the heavy lifting that’s involved in the crucial first 12 months of a church plant – up front, behind the scenes and everything in between – and helped shape and form the ethos of who we are. What a team of people. Thank you, launch team. Renew wouldn’t be the same if you weren’t a part of it. Even saying thank you seems so trite and superficial because of all they’ve sacrificed in the past year.
As the launch team officially ends their involvement it doesn’t mean Renew is slowing down. No, it means we’re experiencing change – good, healthy change – that asks of us to accelerate through the turn. Sure, with how close we’ve become we’re going to go through various feelings of grief with what we have to let go of as a team as rhythms and relational spaces won’t be what they were. But as hard as transition and change can be, we’re so excited about the future. It’s a graduation, not a funeral. We anticipate so much in Year Two as we’ve grown and matured. But there is much more growth and maturity that needs to take place.
God’s faithfulness was evident in Year One of Renew’s existence and I anticipate God to show us His incredible faithfulness even more in Year Two.
Sola Deo Gloria.
Missional [Q]: What are ways to get involved in my community?”
Before we talked about who to spend time with to get to know the needs of your community. Some have asked another question: “What are ways to get involved in my community?”
- Join a gym. The YMCA is a great place to see and meet a diverse group of people.
- Join the Chamber of Commerce. It’s a great way to get to know area businesses and businessmen/women. The whole point of the chamber of commerce is networking. Very few churches join, but its a purposeful space for connection.
- Attend council meetings. Yeah, the open secret is that they are long and boring (even council members will tell you that) but coming 30 minutes before they begin and staying after they finish allows for some great connections to be made.
- Get an official city calendar of events and attend them. Concerts, educational workshops, kids productions, volunteer opportunities. Your local government office should have a calender, either in print or online.
- Coach little league. One of the best (and often overlooked) ways to serve and get involved in the life of families in your community.
- Hang out regularly at the library and read the posted signs and advertisements. Lots of ways to get involved if you just look around the checkout desk.
- Volunteer. Somewhere. Anywhere. Doing anything. Just do it.
- Host your neighbors for a dinner/BBQ/party.
- Walk the streets to meetings. If you can’t walk, bike. Rearrange/reschedule your meetings, if possible, to be closer.
- Frequent popular restaurants and get to know the regulars and the wait staff.
- Find a local barber. Sure, Super Cuts can cut your hair, but (for males especially) getting a real, old-school barber can be of the best resources you could find. They’ll tell you everything that is going on around town and introduce you to some others who are experts in the community.
- Find the “third places” in your community – coffeeshops, parks, pubs, libraries, hangouts and watering holes, both inside and outside.
- Do a ride-along with the police department. I mentioned this in the previous post, but its so significant I’ll mention it again, but in greater detail. Many law enforcement departments (like ours) allow local citizens to ride along with the officers for a shift – sort of like a real-life COPS* episode in many aspects. I did an 11pm to 8 am ride along shift when we lived in Colorado Springs with a friend of mine who is a police officer. It blew my mind. Call the police station and ask if your city allows for ride-alongs. If they do, schedule a Thursday, Friday or Saturday night shift. They’ll need to do a background check beforehand, but it is a fantastic learning experience. If you decide to do this, be prepared. You won’t look at your city the same again. It will mess with you as you see first-hand the brokenness on streets that you’ve only seen in daylight. You have no idea what goes on in your community while you sleep.
- Read these two books: If you are unfamiliar with the term “third place” I recommend you read The Great Good Place by Ray Oldenberg and Pour Your Heart Into It by Howard Schultz, CEO of Starbucks).
- Read -and write to – your local newspaper: Seems obvious, but one of the best ways to learn (and pray) for the needs of your city is to read the paper daily (if possible) – before they go out of business. Maybe even consider writing an editorial for the paper when appropriate.
Any other ways you’ve participated in and would recommend?
The Renew Community :: being in the loop
There are a lot of people (maybe you) who want to be involved and engaged in the rhythms of our community of faith, The Renew Community But in order to be involved you gotta know what’s going on. Here are 6 ways to stay in the loop with what’s going on in our community.
Missional [Q]: “How do I find out the needs of my community?”
To be missional is to be able to both exegete the Scriptures and exegete the culture with incredible humility and clarity. There is a need for bilinguality, as Barth calls it: to be conversant with the Bible and with the context we live, work and play in. A missional pioneer’s most important lesson is to learn is that the most important part of the body to use is not one’s mouth, but one’s ears – and eventually one’s hands and feet.
In a previous post I ended by asking missional questions of engagement and involvement in the local community, There’s been a lot of positive conversations from that post. Of all the questions people have asked there is one that keeps getting asked over and over again: “I’m not sure I’m confident as to what the needs of my community are, but I want to learn more. Who should I talk to to know the needs of my community better?”
Ask yourself, “Who are the experts of my city?” and “Who would possibly know more than anybody else on what’s going on in my community?” Be a student of your context with an insatiable desire to learn. Dave Gibbons has a mantra at his church: “the locals always know more than you do.” This posture is one of humilty and teachability. With that posture, then seek out opportunities to connect with them, pick their brain, treat them to coffee and know the pulse of your community.
Here are a few suggestions of who you could talk to:*
- Long-time business owners: they know a lot about your community and they’ve probably seen a lot of changes throughout the years. At restaurants, learn the names of the wait staff. Develop ongoing relationships with them and ask about their lives. They interact with a lot of different people in an average week.
- School counselors: they work closely with families within the school systems. They (along with social workers) can tell you trends, changes, needs and issues that are unique to the area (all while remaining confidential when necessary).
- Mayor and city council members: Call them and introduce yourself. Treat them to lunch and get to know them. Ask questions about the needs and what they’d like to see changed. Thank them for what they do (much of it going unnoticed in your community).
- Police chief and fire chief: these two individuals probably know more about the needs of your community because they see everything. Most cities/towns/townships allow citizens to do a “ride-along” where you can ride with an on-duty police officer. I recommend doing a ride along shift starting around 11 pm and going until sunrise. I’ve done this and learned a ton about my community (much more goes on at night than you realize – and its not all good).
- The director of the library: your library has many programs that run in an average week/month. Find how what those are. Find out why the director chose to sponsor/host those events at the library. Consider attending a few of these events (and maybe eventually hosting a few of them).
- Real Estate agents: location and property value are the two things that agents can tell you (in certain settings, but not all). Housing prices can tell you a lot about who lives where and why.
- Long-time pastors. Find a few pastors who have been serving in ministry longer than you’ve been a live. (They probably have socks that are older than you, too). They will know a lot about the spiritual temperature, the changes and the transitions throughout the years/decades.
- Youth club directors: talk to the director of the YMCA, the Boys and Girls Club, Little League coaches, the director of the Parks & Rec department and other area youth clubs. They can tell you a lot about what they are seeing in the next generation. You’ll certainly be aware of some of the areas of need among youth – they will gladly and freely tell you what they are.
- Immigrants and minorities: cities oftentimes have a hidden population of immigrant workers or minorities who are often ignored or remain unseen. Jesus cared about those on the fringes. So should your church.
- Your neighbors: seems obvious, but many don’t utilize this resource.
- The directors of food banks, soup kitchens and other organizations who work with the under-privileged and under-resourced: talk about needs. They could tell you stories all day long – and tell you practical and specific ways you can serve the community.
- The elderly: there are many senior citizens who would love to share their wisdom and experience with you (it may mean more to them since many senior citizens struggle with loneliness and oft forgotten). Ask them about what they remember the most growing up there and have them articulate their biggest fears, disappointments or concerns for the future of the community.
When I meet with these people I like to ask questions like: If you could snap your fingers and have three things changed about this community what would they be? What is going on in the communty? What social events are happening that every should go to? And I end with: “Who else should I talk to?”
Who else would you recommend talking with to be able to exegete the culture you live in?
__________
*I’m indebted to Chris Backert, director of The Ecclesia Network, for some of these suggestions.
“Your church rents out a bar…?”
“Your church rents out a bar…?”
We get that question a lot. Yes, we do rent out a bar.
The Renew Community is hosting another doubt :: night tomorrow (Tuesday) night at 7:30 pm at Third and Walnut Bar and Grille (on the corner of Third and Walnut Streets near the Lansdale train station). Click here for directions. These nights continue to be one of my favorite nights of the month at Renew. It’s a laid-back, yet intentional space to talk about doubts, questions or concerns that you have about life, God, faith, Jesus, the Bible, church – whatever. Another question we are asked often is: “Do you have to be religious to attend a doubt :: night event?” No. This is open to everyone 18 and older. We rent out the bar, pay for appetizers and have an hour and a half honest conversation. This is open to the public. No RSVP needed. No perfect people allowed. No kidding. Just show up.
Want to know more what doubt :: night is like? Read here, here and here.
If you’re interested in joining us, we’d love to have you.
Random links worth perusing
Here are a few random posts as we lean into the weekend…
A great YouTube video called Things you can’t do when you’re not in a pool
If you’ve haven’t seen the video United Breaks Guitars, this parody ain’t going away anytime soon. The video has garnered over 3 million hits and has been a PR nightmare for United. The acting is cheesy, but the song sure is catchy and has a heartbreaking (but all too familiar) background story worth reading.Maybe they’ll learn a thing or two from the whole experience.
Ed Stetzer talks about Accountability Groups and different accountability questions offered by differing leaders. Have you had a good or listless accountability experience?
Fascinating photo essays on American Mass Consumption. What does this make you feel as you see the amount of waste Americans produce?
16 Embarrassing Marriage Proposals. Some of these are hard to watch…
Piggybacking off of my earlier post of what the church can learn from Apple Stores, Microsoft announced they are building retail stores…right next door to Apple stores. Nothing like cutting edge innovation and courageous outside-the-box decision-making from the people who brought you the PC. This reminds me a bit too much of how the church oftentimes tries to copy what we see culture doing…
David Crowder* Band creates a hilarious video called Twtter Will Kill You If you aren’t on Twitter, this might not be that funny. If you are, this is hilarious.
Michael Hyatt has two great posts worth sharing. 20 Questions to Ask Other Leaders. Then he asks the question: “What do bad situations make possible?”
How to deliver humorous lines during a presentation: The Rule of Three
10 Questions Every Change Agent Must Answer
T-Mobile conducts an absolutely brilliant crowd participation experiment in Trafalgar Square in London. This is one of my favorite YouTube videos of all time. The power of sharing and participating in something with others brings others together like nothing else. Something rises up inside of me every time I watch this. Imagine if the Body of Christ tap into the creative imagination and unleash this sort of joy-filled, exuberant celebration of community not because of a phone company or a popular Beatles song, but because of the Risen Christ.
Gerard Kelly’s blog contains poems that are unbelievably creative. If you are looking for some creativity in worship, it might be worth incorporating some of these into your worship gatherings. So are his Twitter posts (@twitturgies).
Helicopter fishing: this may be the most extreme thing I’ve seen in a long time. I want to try this! Anyone else want to join me?
39 Ways to Live, and Not Merely Exist
Dave Gibbons and Erwin McManus talk about creativity and leadership
A great video parable about risk, freeing spirits and leadership. Would you be guy Number #1, #2, #3 or the crowd?
Man tries to pay bill with a spider drawing. Brilliant. And a bit juvenile.
10 Unusual and Creative Restaurants. Which one would you want to eat at?
Ever wonder what a typical day in the life of the president is like inside of the White House? MSNBC offers this fascinating inside peak. Regardless of what you think of his politics, you gotta give the man some props: he loves 5 Guys Burgers. As every American should.
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