On not being "helicopter" leaders

*What do you do when people in your house church are struggling?  Perhaps they are in an unhealthy relationship or they have made bad financial decisions.  Out of compassion, our first impulse is to jump in and help them out, to rescue them.  Sometimes this is exactly what is needed.  But, sometimes our rescuing can get in the way of what God is doing.   (Parenting with Love and Logic (Cline and Fay) calls this "helicopter" parenting.  As in a  helicopter "hovers and rescues".)  In each situation, we need to listen carefully to be clear about God's directions.


Why did the father of the prodigal son in Luke 15 not go to the "far country" to rescue his son?  What would have happened if Jacob had rescued Joseph from Pharaoh's prison in Genesis?  The video below presents us with a perspective that wise parents (and house church leaders) need to consider.



Our Struggle with Their Struggle from Stewardship Ministries on Vimeo.


*A core belief of LK10 is that church = family.  It follows then that church leaders = spiritual parents (in the very best sense of the word).  A core mission of LK10 is to train spiritual moms and dads who can give healthy leadership to vibrant families of Jesus.


"... in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel."  1 Cor. 4:15


"... we were gentle among you, like a mother caring for her little children... we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children... "  1 Thes. 2:7, 11.

*Letters to the House Church Movement by Rad Zdero. Chapter Eleven is titled "Letter to a National House Church Movement". "Some house churches reject the whole issue of leadership because they feel that Christ alone is the only leader of their group or because they have been hurt by institutional leaders in the past... (This idea) must be rejected altogether because it is not a biblical idea.

...Your house churches today, must encourage the emergence of healthy leaders. Micro leaders (or elders) are unpaid spiritual moms and dads who nurture, train, and empower believers in their house church to do the work of the ministry. Macro leaders (or apostles) are pioneers, visionaries, and strategists who start new house churches, adopt existing house churches, link them together into 
networks..." p. 152.

John

How to start a million churches

*Every home a church. The subtitle of The LK10 Journal is "Stories from the Revolution". So, what exactly is the nature of this revolution? One critical aspect is a return to the Biblical concept that the home and not the church building is the center of spirituality.

The Chinese house church movement captured this simple but powerful concept with their three mottos...

1. Every home a church

2. Every follower of Jesus a church planter

3. Every church building a training center

So, the house church movement does not necessarily mean that traditional churches or church buildings must cease. Rather, it means that the priorities must be reversed. The large (church services, etc.) must begin to serve the small (the church in the home). The first expression of church must become the small family-like group meeting in the home. The larger gathering must become secondary and supportive.

Want to see revival in America (or, whatever country you live in)? This one revolutionary shift might just do the trick: Every Christian household begins to see themselves as a church. That home would become the center for worship, for education, for outreach. With this revolutionary concept, a million new churches could be started this week (with no building programs!)

This is the vision of the LK10 Community: fulfilling the Great Commission by seeing a vibrant family of Jesus on every block of every neighborhood of every city in every nation on earth.

What might this look like? In the video below, you will hear the story of one of the families who is beginning to live this out. Let's pray for 999,999 more like this one.

"It is not a church’s job to spiritually develop your children. Scripturally, it is the job of the parents. The church body is supposed to support parents in raising children, not replace them." -George Barna

"Write these commandments that I've given you today on your hearts. Get them inside of you and then get them inside your children. Talk about them wherever you are, sitting at home or walking in the street; talk about them from the time you get up in the morning to when you fall into bed at night." Dt. 6:6-7 (The Message)

“The household (in the New Testament) was more than a model; it was the matrix of the new congregation.” Gehring, House Church and Mission, P. 193, footnote quoting Campbell.

Let's return to the New Testament model!

John

SASHET is viral

Neil Cole made this important observation: "Only that which is simple can multiply rapidly." 

 And, that's exactly what we have seen with using SASHET to "check in" with each other. This powerful community building tool is so simple that, if a person experiences it once, they often begin teaching it to others right away. In the video below, you will hear how the CO2 (church of two) which uses SASHET, has spread rapidly to the third and fourth generations. SASHET helps create an environment where a viral church planting movement can occur.

In the video below, Walt Hastings explains how this is happening in Kenya.

John

SASHET transforms families

The value is for connecting on the heart level.

One practice that helps us live out that value is "checking in" using SASHET.

By regularly "checking in" using SASHET, the simple church gatherings equip couples, families and households with a powerful transformational tool.

In the video below, Hugh Brandt (who was a missionary in Africa for many years) and Walt Hastings (who is coaching church planters in Kenya) explain how the CO2 (church of two) concept (which includes daily SASHET) is changing families in Kenya. While the African customs may seem strange to us in the west, the reality is that communication around the typical dinner table in the US is often equally superficial.

Both church and family should be what John Eldredge calls "a fellowship of the heart".

John

(This video also is evidence that the CO2 concept and SASHET are transcultural. People in every culture have emotions and need ways to connect with each other on a heart level.)

SASHET engages young people

The value is that church would be a "fellowship of the heart".

One practice that helps us live out that value is "checking in" using SASHET.  (SASHET is an acronym for six basic emotions:  Sad - Angry - Scared - Happy - Excited - Tender)

Clearly, SASHET is not just for adults. In fact, children seem instinctively

to want to talk about what is going on in their heart. And, they want to

know what is going on in our heart. SASHET allows young people to feel part of our house church gatherings. And, it deepens conversations around the family dinner table.

Here's what 14 year old Nathan had to say on the subject...

This is from Ken, in California...

“Hey John,

I just wanted to tell you that my five year old reminds us to do SASHET

around the breakfast table every morning. It has been good for us as a

family.”

"A true sense of family"

SASHET helps create a true sense of family (even with seminary students!). In the LK10 Community we talk about a very simple equation that explains a great deal about house church. Church = family. While this is easy to say, it is often difficult to implement because our experience of church has been anything but family. (Hard to experience "family" in a gathering of a thousand people!) We've experienced...

Church = meeting

Church = performance

Church = organization

Church = business

But, in the New Testament, church was none of these things. Church was always seen as an extended spiritual family. In Roger Gehring's very important book, House Church and Mission, we read “... this concept of church as the ‘household of God’ (1 Tim. 3:15) incorporates two aspects: (a) the house or family is the fundamental unit of the church, and (b) the church is a social structure patterned after the household.” P. 7

So, if we understand how healthy families function, it will go a long way towards understanding how healthy NT churches function. And, healthy families are groups of people who are able to connect with one another on a heart level. SASHET is a powerful tool for creating that sense of family. In the video below, Hobby Chapin, church planter in Brighton, CO tells how he used SASHET to help a group of seminary students experience that "true sense of family".

John

Top Ten Reasons for using SASHET in your church (#6)

* Top Ten Reasons for starting simple church by using SASHET to "check in" with each other...

#6. It's simple (but profound). SASHET is so simple that it can be explained in ten minutes. And, then, it can be immediately put into practice.

Over 10 years ago, the Lord gave us the term "simple church" as a way of explaining house church. He said, "This is a way of doing church that is so simple that any follower of Jesus can say, "I can do that!" " Simple church does not require a seminary education. It doesn't take years of training. It's a concrete expression of the priesthood of all believers. (1 Pt. 2:5, 9) And, SASHET is a "tool" that makes simple church simple.

SASHET is like baseball. It is simple enough that five year olds can enjoy playing T-ball on their first day. Yet, it is so profound that grown men (and women) can devote their entire lives to mastering its subtleties. (To clarify: SASHET is only a tool. The goal is learning to pay attention to our own hearts and the hearts of others. To do this well takes both coaching and experience.)

*Physical training teaches us about spiritual training. In 1 Tim. 4:7-8, Paul writes, "Train yourself for spiritual fitness (or godliness)". The word for "train" is gymnazo from which we get gymnastics. I'm going to begin to post short videos about physical fitness that can teach us about spiritual fitness. Notice the role of the coach in the process of "skill transfer". Who is coaching you? http://media.crossfit.com/cf-video/CrossFitJournal_CarlKelly_ThePosition_PartFive_PRE.wmv

*Subscribe to this blog. We'll be posting new content (stories, videos, articles, etc.) every couple of days. Don't miss out! To subscribe, scroll down in the right column and enter your email address in the small white box.

*National House Church Conference.September 2-4 in Jacksonville, FL.http://www.cvent.com/events/momentum-basics-and-beyond/event-summary-35d9eb8b489245b383c00068e2ebd074.aspx

Top Ten Reasons for using SASHET in your church (# 7)

* Top Ten Reasons for starting simple church by using SASHET to "check in" with each other...

#7. SASHET helps create a true sense of family (even with seminary students!). In the LK10 Community we talk about a very simple equation that explains a great deal about house church. Church = family. While this is easy to say, it is often difficult to implement because our experience of church has been anything but family. (Hard to experience "family" in a gathering of a thousand people!) We've experienced...

Church = meeting

Church = performance

Church = organization

Church = business

But, in the New Testament, church was none of these things. Church was always seen as an extended spiritual family. In Roger Gehring's very important book, House Church and Mission, we read “... this concept of church as the ‘household of God’ (1 Tim. 3:15) incorporates two aspects: (a) the house or family is the fundamental unit of the church, and (b) the church is a social structure patterned after the household.” P. 7

So, if we understand how healthy families function, it will go a long way towards understanding how healthy NT churches function. And, healthy families are groups of people who are able to connect with one another on a heart level. SASHET is a powerful tool for creating that sense of family. In the video below, Hobby Chapin, church planter in Brighton, CO tells how he used SASHET to help a group of seminary students experience that "true sense of family".

*Physical training teaches us about spiritual training. In 1 Tim. 4:7-8, Paul writes, "Train yourself for spiritual fitness (or godliness)". The word for "train" is gymnazo from which we get gymnastics. As you watch this video, think about James 1:2-4. "Knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance." http://media.crossfit.com/cf-video/CrossFit_WOD110720_CFSC_WtPushUp_final.wmv

*Subscribe to this blog. We'll be posting new content (stories, videos, articles, etc.) every couple of days. Don't miss out! To subscribe, scroll down in the right column and enter your email address in the small white box.

*National House Church Conference.September 2-4 in Jacksonville, FL.http://www.cvent.com/events/momentum-basics-and-beyond/event-summary-35d9eb8b489245b383c00068e2ebd074.aspx

"Practice hospitality"

"Practice hospitality." Romans 12:13. Imagine you are going to a house church for the first time. It can be awkward (especially if you are a little introverted to begin with). What do you talk about? You wonder how this kind of church works. What are the "rules"? And, all of these other people already know each other. It's easy to feel like an outsider.

By starting the meeting by "checking in" with SASHET, everyone (visitors and regulars) are placed on the same footing. The "rules" are very simple. After one or two people share, you can quickly see how it's done. And, you can share at any level of vulnerability you are comfortable with so, you feel safe. SASHET moves the whole group beyond the level of "small talk". It provides an easy starting place for lots other follow-up conversations. In the course of one meeting, you are part of the community. No longer an "outsider".

"Hospitality is a fundamental function of the Jewish home. This practice is also central in the Hebraic heritage of the Church. Schooled in a rich rabbinic background, Paul inculcates this teaching in his readers... The term used in rabbinic literature for hospitality is hakhnasat orhim, literally "bringing in of guests" or "gathering in of travelers."... The rabbis considered hospitality one of the most important functions of the home... Guests were to be received graciously and cheerfully." Wilson, Our Father Abraham, p. 219-220.

Hospitality means opening our homes to guests. Perhaps even more important is the opening of our hearts to guests. SASHET gives us a pathway to do just that.

Tim Morris, a house church leader in Denver, share about the value of SASHET for himself and his house church.

John

Vulnerability necessary for community

SASHET helps the church obey Scripture. "Weep with those who weep." Romans 12:15. Whenever a church of almost any size meets together, it's inevitable that there will be some who are sad. Some parent is hurting over one of their children. Someone has lost a job. Someone has experienced a death in the family. To live this life is to suffer loss. And, God intends that the community called "church" is the place where we receive support in our sadness.

But, often, church is the one place we have been taught not to weep. Put on a happy face! "How are you doing today?" "I'm fine. How are you?" People may be weeping on the inside but they may have learned that church is not the place (not safe?) to weep on the outside. As a result, we disobey the Lord's instructions for what should go on when we gather.

When we begin the meeting with SASHET, we find out who is sad this week. Then, we can obey Scripture and weep with them. This is the very nature of a healthy body. As Paul says in 1 Cor. 12:26, "If one part of the body suffers, every part suffers with it.

*Side note: And, of course, it is impossible to obey this command if the church is made up of 100 people, let alone 1000 or more.

Walter Brueggemann on embracing the "darkness" of life...

"It's no wonder that the church has intuitively avoided these psalms (of disorientation). They lead us into dangerous acknowledgement of how life really is. They lead us into the presence of God where everything is not polite and civil... They lead us away from the comfortable religious claims of "modernity" in which everything is managed and controlled... The remarkable thing about Israel is that it did not banish or deny the darkness from its religious enterprise. It embraces the darkness as the very stuff of new life. Indeed, Israel seems to know that new life comes nowhere else." The Message of the Psalms by Walter Brueggemann, p. 53.

Examples of Psalms of disorientation and lament: 13, 22, 30, 35, 74, 79, 86, 88, 137

Interview with Desi Starr. Hobby is a house church planter in Denver, CO. In this short interview, he explains how the SASHET "tool" bonds a group and why he teaches it to every new house church that he plants.

John

SASHET helps us listen deeply to each other

Interview with Hobby Chapin. Hobby is a house church planter in Brighton, CO which is north of Denver. In this short interview, he explains how the SASHET "tool" bonds a group and why he teaches it to every new house church that he plants.

Top Ten Reasons for using SASHET in your church

* Top Ten Reasons for starting simple church by using SASHET to "check in" with each other...

#2. It helps me know what part of me is present. How many times have we gone to church meetings without thinking deeply about where our own hearts are? As a result, we end up merely "going through the motions". We relate on a superficial level. But, when I take time to think through SASHET (Sad - Angry - Scared - Happy - Excited - Tender), I can be authentic with my community. I present my "true self" and the result is meaningful relationships with both the community and with God.

What benefits have you found from "checking in"? Add your thoughts in the "Comment" section below. Also, if you are new to SASHET and the CO2 concept, see the resources in the right column.

*National House Church Conference. September 2-4 in Jacksonville, FL. http://www.cvent.com/events/momentum-basics-and-beyond/event-summary-35d9eb8b489245b383c00068e2ebd074.aspx

*Letters to the House Church Movement by Rad Zdero. Chapter Four is titled "Letter to Women in House Churches". Rad comments that "Women (in the early church) were full participants in church life and mission. They could pray, prophesy, teach, encourage, and use all their spiritual gifts." He lists a number of roles that women functioned in. One particularly significant role was that of apostle. "Women were apostles. In Rom. 16:7, Paul greets two outstanding apostles. One is a man named Andronicus. The other person's name, however could either be read "Junias" (male) or "Junia" (female), ... the evidence overwhelmingly favors the female name "Junia." p. 50. (Rad goes on in the book to outline that evidence.)

When we pray Lk10:2b, we beseech the Lord of the harvest to send forth both male and female apostolic church planters! And, it's happening!

Perhaps you've seen the video below - Leadership Lessons from Dancing Guy. What are the lessons for the LK10 Community?