Archive for September, 2008
Obstacles to our mission
September 29, 2008 6:09 pm | Written by PhilMohawk response
September 27, 2008 5:00 am | Written by Phil
My son begged us to let him get a mohawk for the summer months. He absolutey loved it! Aside from it just being a really fun haircut, we thought it was interesting to see the reaction of the young woman who gave him the haircut. She’s a neighbor who runs a hair salon out of her apartment. When Meri asked her to give our son a mohawk, her jaw dropped. “But you are Christians. I thought you guys aren’t supposed to do things like that!”
Meri shared how in the Bible Jesus taught his disciples that God doesn’t judge people by their outward appearances but by their actions and what’s in their hearts. The young woman thought this was very cool. Suddenly we became more approachable. Awesome!
What do you see?
September 26, 2008 5:01 am | Written by Phil
“Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”
- Jesus of Nazareth
Good things other people are doing
5:00 am | Written by PhilStrategic Places and Strategic Living
September 25, 2008 5:00 am | Written by Phil
Thoughts on strategy from a recent team huddle…
When we started out on this mission we told people why East Hollywood is a strategic place for us to share and demonstrate the message of Jesus Christ. People are closed to religion but open to spirituality. Since so many people in E-Ho have relationships in other areas of the city and globe, as E-Ho residents discover the joys of surrendering to Christ they have the potential to share this new life with people in areas we could never touch ourselves. For this reason, I still believe this place is “strategic.” (Only God knows what really will happen, though.)
But my team and I also like to say that any place can become strategic as long as Christ’s followers are willing to arrange their lifestyles accordingly.
Does God call certain people to live and minister in certain cities and countries at certain times in history because “the fields are white for the harvest?”
If so, does that mean God has given up on the other places that aren’t “hot spots” right now in human opinion?
Churches in the U.S. get excited about sending missionaries and church planters to foreign countries and our nations “inner city” neighborhoods. Yet many of these same churches lack zeal for missions done in their own communities where they could have the most influence.
God wants people to experience salvation in the
Paid missionaries and their sending churches and agencies will continue to ask themselves, “Is this a strategic place for us to be right now?” I support that thinking.
But I wish all Christians everywhere would ask themselves, “How are we living strategically in the place we’re in?”
The Great Commission as I understand it is not a divine order to send a few Christian missionaries away to a few “strategic places.” As I intrepret these words of Jesus, it is a call to live strategically and intentionally for the gospel, making disciples of all ethnic peoples as we go. Some of us will end up in other places of the world as we respond to this call. Others of us will stay right where we are. But for all of us, joining Jesus in mission will become a way of life.
Good things other people are doing
September 24, 2008 7:07 am | Written by Phil
Every once in a while I like to point out good things other people are doing. Here is a photo of a typical food line in E-Ho. Once a week the Dream Center delivers fresh produce and other items for free to families.
To find out more about the Dream Center, click here.
The God behind the experiment
September 23, 2008 12:41 pm | Written by Phil
[Minor editing to this article has occurred since it originally was posted.]
What we’re doing in LA is an experiment. Some churches don’t like to support experiments.
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