GlocalNet

Aaron, for years you’ve tried to get me to take you with me to visit key leaders globally.  I’ve explained, for our meetings the metal has to come out.  Well - I finally found a place you can go and stay just as you are - in addition, you can put on a lot more - this is the King of Pandanohurtineedlesinfaceandbuttonstencilandtattoodledoodiiwop

Luke 18: 8b   “When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth? ”
As I traveled this past week to Kenya, Africa with Bob Roberts, we walked through the largest slum in Africa called The Kibera—1.2 million people living in a 2 square mile plot of land.  We met with church planters that are planting churches in the middle of hell.  We joined our brothers and sisters in passionate prayer, exuberant worship and world class dancing in church—that’s right, they were dancing in church. They had very little on the outside. Their buildings were make-shift wood and zinc, tents, plastic chairs, horrible sound systems that punished your eardrums. Yet, I observed a vibrant and robust faith, a faith that was pleasing to God. Here in America, we have nice buildings, incredible sound systems, soft chairs lest we offend the backside of our overindulge lifestyle, but our faith is weak, feeble and anemic. Many times it is non-existent. Why do we need faith when we can do it ourselves? Will God find faith in America when He returns?  Are you living by faith in any area of your life? Are you drawing upon the supernatural resources of God for any area of your life, or is everything in your life very manageable by your human strength? By faith, Abraham went out not knowing where he was going? Not knowing is our curse. We hate not knowing because we are a culture of know-it-all. We have it figured out. We have broken the secrets codes and wrote the books to inform the world. They are not buying it. The other side of the world has figured out that all we do here in the west is talk. Like my grandma use to say “Talking is cheap but it takes money to buy whiskey. ” Don’t ask me about the whisky part—never understood it.  By Faith, Sarah received power to conceive, even when she was past the age. Faith not only calls us to the unknown but also to do the impossible! If it is possible for you to do it, then you do not need God.  Without faith, it is impossible to please God, and when God says it is impossible, trust me, it is impossible.

As usual, we have a full cast of Church Planters hitting the field this year.  Here are a few who will be (or already are) planting all over the United States.  Some of the planters already have websites.  See their links below.  Please continue to pray for these families:

Tim Bach - Bend, Oregon

Roberto Munguia - Arlington, Texas

Brad Duncan - Albany, Oregon

Kevin Cox - Heartland, Texas

Richie Kim - Cherry Hills, New Jersey

Colby Fulfer - Springdale, Arkansas

Eric Maggio - San Diego, California

Andy Wood - San Francisco, California

Aaron Snow - Las Vegas, Nevada

One week from today, you might notice some changes around the ‘ole Glocalnet website.  Ok, you’ll notice some big changes!  We have been working diligently for the past few months on designing a new website.  Not to worry!  Bob’s blog will still be right here for you to enjoy and learn from.  Beginning Wednesday, June 11, we will be turning off the comments feature in order to begin moving to the new site, but we will continue to post blogs, so keep visiting.

The new site will have some new features on it which we hope you will enjoy.  If you are a current user of the Glocalnet forum, you need to know it will be going away.  Not to worry, we will still have some communication tools coming in the near future that we hope you will enjoy even more!

So, if you wake up one morning and Glocalnet seems different, that’s because it is!

I’m kind of sleepy—just got off the plane from Kenya—at Heathrow for a couple of hours, then home to Texas.  I have to finish my fourth book in the next 30 days. Won’t be easy,  but I’ll get it done.  I’m excited about it.  I’m getting some really big boulders off my plate, getting into the new worship center, finishing the book, gathering a group of global leaders to network . . .  . At the same time, some things are warping up like never before. 

In some ways, this trip has changed the way I view some things that will impact what I write.  The challenge of all this will be bridging culture which translates into how people process, the pace they process, what they value, etc.  I’ve known Americans have a tendency to be ethnocentric of their culture, but so do other cultures as well. 

I think I’ve discovered the reason why church planting movements stay focused on a “tribe” or a “nation.”  It’s a lot easier to do your own thing in your own context, than to partner.  If you partner, your agenda has to die and it has to become “our” agenda.  THEN, once you agree on the agenda, even if you speak the same language, the words mean different things. THEN, you realize it’s not all about words but what’s not said, etc., etc., etc., etc. This stuff is complex—the mission is simple.  Not complex to do “my” thing, very complex to do “our” thing.   

In spite of all of that, I’m more convinced than ever the church will be global beyond merely existing in different tribes and nations. It will be connected. It must be connected.  Everyone talks about the “Unity” needed in the church.  Unity, for unity’s sake, will never happen.  Unity, because we should all be nice and love one another, will never happen.  Unity, because God has called us to a common mission and purpose, is the only way we will die to ourselves and come together. 

On another note, the Kenyan’s are pulling for Barak O’Bama. He was on the front page yesterday. 

On another note, just read The Post American World by Fareed Zacharia.  He spoke of how India is being influenced by China which promotes peace and stability that leads to development.  India’s last electoral campaign centered on that theme.  China …

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On pda so typing not pretty—concluded our meetings today. It is going to be a fun ride—been a huge learning curve for me—will write more later on all that. I came worried that I might be the biggest obstacle being American and from the West. I did my best to walk softly—hard being a Texican—When I’ve been with other cultures and gone deep, it was one culture at a time which allowed me to go fast or slow depending on the person and it’s never been that hard for me—-I also assumed it was harder for Americans to relate to other cultures—I was wrong—there were many cultural differences between others that were challenging——I was able to bridge some of it—mediate—this will be hard work but crucial work—we have to do this.

Last night we ate supper at Oscar Muriu’s home. It was a lot of fun. Omar spoke and did awesome. Later today we’re going to ride through a game reserve. Jack Sara from Palestine also spoke—what a powerful story. This is an utterly incredible conversation—a book could be written on it. One of the biggest ideas is the reality that the church is really not connected globally. Denominations and mission agencies are, but not the church. I’m sitting with the church—major leaders from all over the world and we believe this is the future. I wish young pastors were here. I MUST get them together with these guys. These are totally different conversations than the American Church and they are having conversations separate and apart from ours. We are the loosers. The problem is we don’t want to listen, and they don’t take us serious.

Sorry guys I haven’t been able to write. Web service is sporatic where I am and this is the first time in a few days I’ve been able to get on. I have had an incredible two days. I spoke at the Redeemed Gospel Church - they have 20,000 at their main campus and thousands of others at the other campuses. It was incredible. I spoke at the main campus and another location. It was very moving. The LONGEST worship I’ve ever been in in my life. It was good, and didn’t get old. The pastor has started 2,000 churches in Kenya—not bad! He’s a very happy man and is head of the Evangelical Union of Churches here in Kenya. We had a lot of fun. It’s a Pentecostal Church. Maybe I’m going soft as I get older but I liked it—didn’t seem that wild to me. Everything was appropriate and in order.

Today, I met with the guys here and we talked all day about what it would look like to work together. It was a blast. We had a lot of spirited debate and “ah-ha” moments. Tonight, we go to Pastor Oscar’s house.  Yesterday they launched a church and it had 1,000 in the first service—that’s where all the other pastors went. David Grubbs said he’s moving to Africa and joining that church. Of course, he said that a couple of months ago when we were in Korea. I love seeing a young guy’s eyes opened to the world.

Omar Reyes is just so stinkin’ smart. He had some incredible insights along the way that brought clarity. We were talking how we make a good team.

I’m more convinced than ever the church has to come together globally. It’s going to happen. I’m also convinced we are even more lost in the West than I have previously thought. We may be ready to engage the world, but they no longer want us engaging, and there’s some good reason to it. In the end, we all have to come together—it’s just going to be hard because the way we come together is going to be so radically different. As I sit and listen to these guys who plant tons of churches and have massive ministries, I’m amazed at how much they have to teach us. I’m not sure we’re ready to learn, yet. They don’t think we are—so smile …

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There is a sense that God is up to something here.  I think everyone has some sense of expectation.  We’re almost all here and we had our first session tonight.  It went really good.  Oscar helped set the tone.  I thought I’d share this with you—it was really hilarious—one of those things you would have had to been there but maybe you can get it:

Murui translation of 1 Corinthians 12

If the American church would say, because I am not of Africa I do not belong to the body, it would cease to be the body if the whole body were European where would the sense of joy be (hysterical laughter) and if the whole body were African where would the sense of order be.  But, in fact, God has arranged the parts of the body so that everyone of them just are as they should be.    If they were one part where would the body be - as it is there are many parts - but there is only one body.  The Canadian church cannot say to the Asian church I have no need of you.    That the Asian church cannot say to the Europen church I don’t need you.  On the contrary, the parts that seem to be weaker like the Japanese church are indespensible to the body.  African parts less honorable should be treated with special honor.  And the Latin American parts that seem unpresentable should be treated with modesty.  The presentable parts like the big American church need no special treatment - except for TEXAS - but God has combined the members of the body and there is greater honor to the parts that lacked it so that there should be no division in the body.  But the parts should have equal concern for each other if one part suffers every part suffers.  If one part is honored every part is valued.  Now you are the body of christ and each one of you is a part of it.

Last night I arrived and we got a good night’s sleep. Thanks to Omar, melatonin really works!  Andy, from Onnuri, Bishara, Oscar, David, Omar, and me are here so far.  The rest arrive throughout the day today.  I’m very excited about it.  It’s very pleasant here and the weather is very cool.  Omar and the gang went to the store to get us some stuff.  I’m trying to write—haven’t done that much, yet.  Pray for us. We begin tonight discussing what global movements look like.

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