::conversation outside the bubble

This seems to be a raging debate that many “Christian” groups are taking aim at and trying to do their best to make sure a mosque does not appear anywhere near the fallen towers from 9/11. While I do understand totally the reasoning for not wanting a symbol near the fallen towers that many relate to the reason they fell in the first place, I also know there is much more to this debate than what most are saying.

To be clear i neither support or condone Islam in any form, but truthfully the same could be said about Christianity…there are many false prophets and people doing bad things out their in the name of “Jesus” including murdering doctors at clinics, beating gays, and killing muslims even. Does this mean those small percentage speak for the majority of all Christians? I sure hope not. Much the same way many Muslims believe about these terrorists. The jihadists of the world are a small percentage of Muslims who have taken the meaning out of their own faith and principles.

So should there not be crosses at Ground Zero either? Because thats essentially what you are saying. Again, I do understand this thought and passion for wanting this to be a memorial. I strongly urge you to read this book if you want some understanding of how we need to look through the eyes of Jesus and not always through the eyes of our own love of our flag. Rob Bell once said As much as Christians want to put the flag above the cross, as followers of Jesus we simply cannot. I think of this often. I love my country, my family is full of veterans, and I will always love and take pride in their sacrifices, but we too must always remember we are Christians first before we are Americans.

http://www.amazon.com/Myth-Christian-Nation-Political-Destroying/dp/0310267307

If you do not know the concept of micro-lending I suggest you GOOGLE the term or check out www.kiva.org

I have to thank my friend and sr pastor at IKON out in SF, Aaron Monts for turning me onto Kiva a few years back. It has changed the way I think about donating to third worlds and those across the seas in need.

Our house church also has been actively supporting the LSK mission which also is turning to micro-lending for much of its focus on sustainable living in Lesideng, South Africa.

With that said, we have been having a unique opportunity at The Fringe at trying to make real and direct impact into our community around us. At the same time, having the conversation of how that will look different from the many churches and organizations that are already trying to do this today.

Along came a young couple into my life that I think will be a turning point for not only me personally, but for our group as well. As this young couple became good friends of mine through playing basketball, an opportunity has arisen from their story which has met with our story.

This couple comes from an all too well known background especially in this area. Broken home, no father figure, well below the poverty line as a family, and raised in an area infested with drugs, gangs, and all sorts of problems. A tiny apartment filled with 3 families while gov’t support like sec8, WIC, and Link support them all.

But how do you stop this cycle? I think the gov’t has forgotten that while these programs are vital to helping people achieve basic needs of life, they never were intended for a way of life.

Back to this couple specifically. The guy has a great desire to be successful in life and being a man of God, raising his new son, supporting his partner, and working hard. How does a 20yr old urban kid with a kid of his own, and no sort of family support or help make it in todays world? I know if it wasnt for my family and friends this guy wouldve been in deep trouble.

So during these discussions amongst our group it has become obvious that maybe the answer is exactly what we are trying to do across the ocean in South Africa. Maybe its about an idea, that given someone a shot, while not a handout, but a belief that they are worth something, and someone believes in them that they will one day be able to help others just as we were blessed to help them.

So we have embarked on something totally new for us. A no strings attached loan of sorts to help them into their own apartment. Get them into a budget, a banking account, and learning how to do life together much as God has allowed us to do. Being a family for them, while all along truly believing that God has something bigger for their lives. Its not a handout anymore, its suddenly something of much more value. And its not a bank where we send monthly statements. No its a belief that what God has in store for them has a rippling effect not only on their lives, but lives around them, and many lives to come. Here’s to a new way of doing God’s will in our own communities!

Scot McKnight over at Jesus Creed wrote down some of his thoughts regarding the defense of mega churches. Here was my response:

I have grown up in churches of all sizes and many denominations and non denominations. My biggest concern with any church whether small, medium, large, or supersized is the fact most are inwardly committed. Take the massive mega church in Alphretta, GA. They have a campaign going to erect a multi million dollar bridge to get people in and out of their Jesusland faster.

Or the local “small” congregation down the road from me that just spent $8M to “grow for you” and build a bigger auditorium. While inner city buildings and even suburban buildings sit empty as the country is on verge of bankruptcy. Our schools are a wreck, our neighborhoods a disaster. The poor and homeless rates rising. Yet the like of Willow Creek have flat panels and glitz and glamor everywhere you look.

And trust me I have several very good Christian friends who have been involved with Willow for decades and are servants of Christ for sure. I know these large and small churches do some good. Its just the money flaunting I cant seem to get myself over. Dont we have better things to do with our money than lavish our buildings so we can gather in the flock and keep them coming all throughout the week?

What happened to the church of Acts where everything was shared or given away to the homeless, the fatherless, the poor? Where is that love of nothing matters here on earth so why store up our treasures here? Jesus surely didnt live this way. I often ask the question would Jesus attend church as it is today. I often think No he truly wouldnt. He would be in the midst of all those in need much like He was when He walked the earth.

While the house church sure has its disadvantages too, I truly believe the days of meeting in peoples homes and engulfing yourself into your own community is what Jesus would do if He were in human flesh walking amongst us today. In the end the church of today is about sustaining its own life, keeping its flock coming in the door, and keeping the church machine growing for its own existence. I see this as the number one reason the church is failing in all sizes of congregations.

One of the few mega churches that seems to grasp a small church mindset well is Mars Hill in MI. While I know they are not perfect, the fact they are so simple in everything they do is something more mega churches should take note of. Everything they do except for Sunday mornings seems to be outward focused. Rent the building out all week long, make your small groups, house churches, etc the focus of anyone or anything in need. Recycle 80% of everything you consume. Keep the inside as bare and as basic as possible to keep costs down. It all seems to make sense to me.

So Im not just a “church” or mega church hater, I embrace those who do it right. And I look forward to the house churches in the country showing what smaller groups of people can do that clearly the bigger churches have failed in over the years. Lets take over our neighborhoods and communities, blanket them in unconditional love and giving and see how God changes not only them but you too.

Well worth the listen!

As our house church met last night to discuss direction amongst our own group, one member shares very much the same vision I share. Serve and Give. That’s it, that’s all I want to do for “church”. However, church no matter if its 10,000 people or 10 people ends up usually in a place of stagnancy and frustration for many people at some point. It seems inevitable. Even large churches like Willow, Mars Hill, etc, all have had major shake ups and I am sure there fair share of internal issues.

So as we gathered last night to talk about our future and making sure we remain true to what called us into this ministry to begin with, I often wondered would Jesus attend church if He were walking amongst us in human form today?

Obviously there is some scripture that notes Jesus visited the temple to learn and to pray. But most of his ministry on earth was basically wandering through his region teaching and healing and serving others. But yet the church we mostly all knew and grew up in, was this machine to keep you in a building and draw others to this building through countless programs and outreaches, that in the end hopefully makes your “church” successful. And the success was usually determined on numbers of people, numbers for offerings, and numbers for countless other internal related needs.

Over the past few years I think the church has tried to become more outwardly focused, as we can see with the likes of Rick Warren rolling out his “40 Days” series, and with the likes of major disasters in the world making the church reach out to people who are hurting. But in the end, its still the internal machine that drives church. How to get people in the seats, how to get them to stay, and how to get them involved in that specific church’s way of thinking and doing.

What does this all mean? Donald Miller has one sort of slant on this HERE but even this pastors take still seems to serve his own congregations personal needs. What are they devoting themselves too? The community or the church machine?

I still believe the local church has significant value. I know that what we do in a smaller house church setting has its own issues. But when confronted with the question “What will make us different than the church down the road minus our size?”  As a smaller local house church with no budgets or worries about internal drives, I think the difference has to be in what we DO in the community around us. As we celebrated earth week yesterday, we decided to simply canvas the neighborhood and clean up trash. In the parks, in the entrances, around abandoned homes. (And I’m totally not trying to sound like “Look what we did, what did you do” sort of attitude).  At the end of it, I honestly felt like a graffiti artist making his mark. “The Fringe was here”

Do we have it fully right? Absolutely not. But for me where I walk it seems like when Jesus went through an area His mark was left. “Jesus came through here” – And shouldn’t that be what the church strives for in the end?

I’m sure Jesus would find many good things in the local church, I’m just not convinced He would spend much of His time in one. Maybe I’m wrong. Thoughts?

Thin air of course! Great debate again from RP vs Bernanke.

Thanks so much to Chris Brogan and Donald Miller…looks like I won a book which I will proudly read and pass on to others who would like to read for sure.

As anyone who knows me, story pretty much has formed and drives my life.

http://www.chrisbrogan.com/winners-of-the-donald-miller-project/

Its funny when you read the slant Christianity Today puts on it. I would love to see an interview from say Rolling Stone and see what their questions are? The whole time you could tell CT wanted to just yell out loud “You sinner, you cant be gay and be a Christian” – the whole tone is that. I think I am still in the camp that believes God chose man to be with woman and vice versa, but in the end its not my call and its up to the person and God to hash that one out. She has some great comments which I totally agree with. Especially appreciate her not caring about “Christian Music Industry” – I couldnt agree more about that. Screw them!

http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/music/interviews/2010/jenniferknapp-apr10.html

I’ve held firm to my no facebook stance, but yes I am officially a twitterer (this word has now been added to dictionary.com) – You can catch me at www.twitter.com/ellisinzion

Healthcare Reform Passes

by Ron Paul

Following months of heated public debate and aggressive closed-door negotiations, Congress finally cast a historic vote on healthcare late Sunday evening. It was truly a sad weekend on the House floor as we witnessed further dismantling of the Constitution, disregard of the will of the people, explosive expansion of the reach of government, unprecedented corporate favoritism, and the impending end of quality healthcare as we know it.

Those in favor of this bill touted their good intentions of ensuring quality healthcare for all Americans, as if those of us against the bill are against good medical care. They cite fanciful statistics of deficit reduction, while simultaneously planning to expand the already struggling medical welfare programs we currently have. They somehow think that healthcare in this country will be improved by swelling our welfare rolls and cutting reimbursement payments to doctors who are already losing money. It is estimated that thousands of doctors will be economically forced out of the profession should this government fuzzy math actually try to become healthcare reality. No one has thought to ask what good mandatory health insurance will be if people can’t find a doctor.

Legislative hopes and dreams don’t always stand up well against economic realities.

Frustratingly, this legislation does not deal at all with the real reasons access to healthcare is a struggle for so many – the astronomical costs. If tort reform was seriously discussed, if the massive regulatory burden on healthcare was reduced and reformed, if the free market was allowed to function and apply downward pressure on healthcare costs as it does with everything else, perhaps people wouldn’t be so beholden to insurance companies in the first place. If costs were lowered, more people could simply pay for what they need out of pocket, as they were able to do before government got so involved. Instead, in the name of going after greedy insurance companies, the federal government is going to make people even more beholden to them by mandating that everyone buy their product! Hefty fines are due from anyone found to have committed the heinous crime of not being a customer of a health insurance company. We will need to hire some 16,500 new IRS agents to police compliance with all these new mandates and administer various fines. So in government terms, this is also a jobs bill. Never mind that this program is also likely to cost the private sector some 5 million jobs.

Of course, the most troubling aspect of this bill is that it is so blatantly unconstitutional and contrary to the ideals of liberty. Nowhere in the constitution is there anything approaching authority for the Federal government to do any of this. The founders would have been horrified at the idea of government forcing citizens to become consumers of a particular product from certain government approved companies. 38 states are said to already be preparing legal and constitutional challenges to this legislation, and if the courts stand by their oaths, they will win. Protecting the right to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness, should be the court’s responsibility. Citizens have a responsibility over their own life, but they also have the liberty to choose how they will live and protect their lives. Healthcare choices are a part of liberty, another part that is being stripped away. Government interference in healthcare has already infringed on choices available to people, but rather than getting out of the way, it is entrenching itself, and its corporatist cronies, even more deeply.