GlocalNet

I can’t wait until Thursday - yesterday we had an incredible day of registrants pouring in - it’s going to be a great crowd and I’m convinced a very unique movement of God emerging.  If you know me, if you’ve heard me speak, if you’re a church planter and you’ve been through our training - like some are today and tomorrow - you know that historically God has spoken to me through questions that were placed in my mind. 

The first question was, “When will Jesus be enough?”  In the answer to that question I discovered the Kingdom of God.  The second question was, “What if the church was the missionary?”  In that question I learned about engaging society, domains, and releasing the people in the pew.  The third question has been “What would it look like if the church were to turn the world upside down in a good way?”  In that question I learned about how societies, cultures, and tribes are put together and how we communicate with gatekeepers and other tribes.

For me, questions as to who is God and how do we find salvation, are not the primary questions I’m seeking and seeking to answer at this forum.  I’ve come to acknowledge that theologically there are irreconcilable differences in some of what I believe and what others believe.  But, how we relate to others, and how we work together in the world - is everything.

How do I help people see, particularly my own tribe of evangelicals, that there is a correlation between what people think of me and my tribe and their receptivity to my message?  This has huge implications for the Great Commission.  If another tribe views me as egotistical, arrogant, bullying, war mongering, and what I really want is for everyone to get a fair hearing of the Gospel, I can’t blow that off.

Second, what does it mean to live out your faith in a globally connected world where all religions are all places?  How do we speak of faith?  How deep do we go?  I’m convinced things have to be simpler, clearer, and more core if people are going to understand us.

Third, how do I learn from what others believe and also recognize the fact, that though I may not theologically agree with them - I can still learn from them?  There is a tendency, if we disagree theologically with someone - we completely discount them and don’t listen to a thing they have to say.  I’m convinced that is wrong.  I’ve learned a lot more about my faith, as it has rubbed up to other faiths than I did just sitting in a class listening to someone lecture about my faith with a room full of people who all agree. 

Fourth, how and where is it appropriate to work together in making the world a better place for everyone?  The reality is we are all citizens of the same countries, pay the same taxes, have the same civic responsibilities - what would it look like to hold on to your belief but work with others in creating a world with a lot less tension? 

Fifth, how do I build deep relationships with people with whom I have fundamental disagreements with, but still recognize the need to treat with respect?  Some of my greatest friends are not Jesus followers like me.  Would I like them to be?  You bet.  Am I going to love them less if they don’t?  No way. 

Finally, how do we get people to see things from someone else’s perspective?  That doesn’t mean I agree or I compromise my faith - just that I’m trying to understand them more and love them more.  If we honestly believe we have the ultimate truth - then we should be the humblest, most loving, and those that are reaching out the most because we are secure in what we believe.  I’m convinced the reason some freak out when they are with people radically different from them, is because they are not secure.  God help us all to grow up. 

What questions do you have?