Come and Live

Sharing the Heart of Come&Live! from Come&Live! on Vimeo.

Over the summer, a musician friend of mine shared with me about a non-profit record company called Come and Live.  While a lot of record companies are involuntarily becoming non-profit, I found it interesting that someone would choose such a thing.  I was even more amazed to hear that the record organization gives all of the music away.  They see their bands as missionaries and operate like a mission board that blesses hearers with music.

Something about this ministry amazes me, and it isn't merely their vision (though I think their vision is incredible).  What amazes me is that this is a genuinely new idea.  A follower of Christ sought God and allowed his creativity to operate in the power of the Spirit.  The result was a brand new idea.  Come and Live is not a Christian version of a secular organization.  It is not a re-packaged version of something tried before.  It is a brand new idea from Christians.  Praise God!  I was afraid we had forgotten what that looked like.

I have grown so weary of Christian versions of secular ideas.  I nearly vomited when I heard that someone came up with a Christian version of Twitter.  For so long, we have embarrassed ourselves with timid, unimpressive versions of secular ideas that only serve to keep us and the gospel away from the people who need both so desperately.

We were once the leaders of culture.  For centuries, Christians were at the forefront of philosophy, science and the arts.  I'm not sure why we quit creating and started imitating, but I know how things must change.  Come and Live is something brand new.  Let's start making things new again.

Here are a few thoughts on how:

• Don't try to copy someone else's idea!  If I see another "Christian version of..." I will throw a case of Testa-mints at you.  
• Allow the Spirit to lead.  Stay connected to Him all the time (Word, worship, prayer, etc.)
• Vision first.  What has God laid on your heart?  What burdens you?  What are you passionate about?  Decide on a need first (one there is no answer to yet) and then ask God how He wants to use you to make a difference. 
• Risk. Don't drop the idea because it seems hard or impossible.  If God gave you the vision, He will provide the resources.  Start the process now.  
• Believe your critics, but don't believe your critics.  Someone will tell you why it won't work.  If they share your vision and want to help, listen to their thoughts.  If they aren't doing anything about your vision, hear them out and keep moving forward.  
• Change.  Your idea will have to change a lot.  Keep working it.  You may have to cut away things you have worked on for years.  Keep working.  Lose what doesn't work to focus on what does.  
• Believe God.  I know it sounds simple, but its true.  If God gave you the idea, He will see it through with you.  Keep moving forward.  

What has God burdened you about?  Do you have a brand new idea?  What is your next step to make it reality?

Leavin' on a Jet Plane

It is 11:13pm, and I just finished packing for my first international mission trip. I am torn between two very distinct emotions. I am excited about this trip, the experiences I will have and the ministry I will get to be a part of. However, I hate being away from my family, not just dislike...hate. I miss my wife and son during regular work days. I can't imagine what it is going to be like when I am half a continent away. Right now, the missing my family emotion is stronger than my excitement about going.

Tomorrow, my wife will drop me off and I will get on a plane with a team of people from Open Door to fly to El Salvador. She doesn't know this, but I'm planning on hugging her and singing "Leavin' on a Jet Plane." The truth is we will probably both cry.

I know I'm only going to be gone for a week, and I'm not headed into persecution or any great danger. Leaving my family for a few days is, compared to the first century apostles, a small price to pay in order to help further the gospel. However, it still hurts. God is made strong in our weakness, and we depend on Him in our trials. I'm going to need Him this week.

By the way I appreciate your prayers in these areas:

• Gospel preached, heard and lived.
• Safety for the team and our families.
• Dependence on God.
• Details we don't even know about that He has under control.
• Preaching--I'm giving my first international Sermon Sunday night.

Note: Pray wildly, expecting God to do more than we imagine.

What are you believing God to do while we are in El Salvador?

Prince, Dating and Evangelism

Recently, I was involved in a discussion about door-to-door evangelism, and it got me thinking about why we share our faith in the most awkward ways possible. Let me be very straightforward; I don’t plan to ever schedule any door to door evangelism events. The truth is I hate it when religious proselytizers show up at my door. They interrupt whatever I’m doing, and they seem out of touch with the real world. When a guy in a white shirt and black tie shows up at my door I think, “Who are you to talk to me about my spiritual life. You don’t even know me.” Why would I want to associate myself with guys who are considered the worst Saturday bummer-inflictors of all time? I’ve done my share of “spontaneous” evangelism, and it has never worked out well. I’m uncomfortable, and they are uncomfortable. Drive-by evangelism in all its forms isn’t usually very effective. I believe this for 3 reasons:
1. It is creepy. Think about how you feel when a salesman or J-Dub (Jehovah’s Witness) comes to your door. That’s how people feel when you show up unannounced at theirs or when you introduce yourself by saying, “If you died today…” By the way, my friend Patrick says that Prince is a Jehovah’s Witness. While seeing him at your door would be more interesting than most J-Dubs, it would still be creepy (see below).

2. It gives me a reason to compartmentalize my life, separating witnessing from daily living. Witnessing should be a part of every relationship I have. If I set aside special “evangelism nights,” I tend to leave evangelism only to those nights.
3. The gospel is about relationship (God with man). When we share the gospel outside the context of relationship we are not only limiting our ability to communicate the full message of the gospel we are not living it either.

I’ve been thinking about why we put ourselves in uncomfortable evangelistic situations, and I’ve realized how much it is like dating. It is important to us, or we wouldn’t want to do it. And, it is best done in the context of relationship. I used to be so afraid of asking girls out. My nerves would get the best of me. It seemed like the less I knew the girl, the more uncomfortable we both were and the less likely she was to go out with me.

However, I realized something my senior year of college. The more comfortable I was with who I was and what I was asking, the more at ease the girl would be. More than that, the more at ease I was, the more likely it was that she say “yes.” However, that comfort only came as I got to know the girl. This is how I eventually married my wife. True story!

Have you ever felt nervous sharing your faith? Think about how the pre-Christian felt. Wouldn’t you like to feel comfortable? After all, you are the one with the good news. He’s the one who needs to hear it.

This is why we have the 5Bs. Now, I hate to call the 5Bs a “system” or “method” because it really is a lifestyle. This May, we are going to teach our church how to evangelize. If you want to learn how, sign up for a Life Group at www.churchoftheopendoor.org.

What has your experience with evangelism been like?