The Dangerous Kind

Definitive Prayer: Meditations on Community Part Two

2014-08-18T22:34:43+00:00By Joel|Abandonment, Jesus Shaped Community, prayer, The Dangerous Kind|

Discipleship is crucial to the life of the Church/Christianity. But crucial to discipleship is a culture of prayer. I do believe that being a "house of prayer [for all nations]" is an underlying identity of the Church. My experience with the (primarily) program driven church in the U.S. is that true discipleship is rare. I mean we have Bible studies, small groups, and meetings, but intentionally coming together for learning how to do Jesus-stuff is often not done. I've even experienced outreach efforts without intercession for those who are intended to be reached. Now, my goal isn't to complain. My goal is to point out, encourage, maybe even confess :-) We must abandon to Christ if [...]

Oscar Romero: a step back

2014-08-18T22:34:43+00:00By Joel|prayer, The Dangerous Kind|

It helps, now and then, to step back and take a long view. The kingdom is not only beyond our efforts, it is even beyond our vision.We accomplish in our lifetime only a tiny fraction of the magnificent enterprise that is God's work.Nothing we do is complete, which is a way of saying that the kingdom always lies beyond us.No statement says all that could be said.No prayer fully expresses our faith.No confession brings perfection.No pastoral visit brings wholeness.No program accomplishes the church's mission.No set of goals and objectives includes everything. It may be incomplete, but it is a beginning, a step along the way, an opportunity for the Lord's grace to enter and do the rest.We may [...]

A Living Together Reality: Meditations on Community Part One

2014-08-26T03:23:50+00:00By Joel|Abandonment, discipleship, Jesus Shaped Community, The Dangerous Kind|

A few weeks ago I grabbed lunch with a friend at Red Robin. Munching on Buffalo Chicken Strips we were talking about the churches that we were serving at, and about where the Lord is leading in those place. Community is the word that came up. God has me (and some leadership of our church) parked on that, and what it looks like in discipleship. My friend then mentioned another conversation that he had where the person shared his dislike of the word community: arguing that it is a buzzword, and not found in the New Testament. While "community" is mentioned once in Acts, depending on your translation, the word 'family [of believers]' appears a lot. [...]

Lessons on the front lines: Stacking Stones part III

2014-08-18T22:34:45+00:00By Joel|Abandonment, Jesus Christ, Stacking Stones, The Dangerous Kind|

Probably the biggest stones in my memorial of this season, are related to the loss that we experienced in 2009 with the death of our baby boy Elijah. The documentation of this journey can be followed in the following posts:An Artist and Lover of God's Take on GriefCouragePicking Up the PiecesRegarding ElijahInstead of reiterating the journey and the emotions involved, here's what I learned, and they'll be stones in this Josh 4 memorial.It's OK to grieve, cry, and be broken. The grieving process takes...time. You don't just get over holding your lifeless baby in your arms. While people don't understand, as a father it shapes you, it changes you, makes you see life different, and if [...]