The Missional Leader

In 2002, I was exposed to something called Chaos Theory.  It is also called Complex Adaptive Systems Theory, and is born out of Physics (quantum mechanics, etc.).  It is the world of the physics of Einstein.

It turns out that this systems theory is evident in a lot of our world.  From the stock market to organizational change, CAS is prevelant in the fabric and DNA of our world.  It is the science of post-modernity, of dramatic change.

In 2002, I was able to compare and contrast this systems theory with Diffusions of Innovations.  DoI is a social theory best expressed by Everett M. Rogers in his book Diffusion of Innovations.  It was a facinating exercise that led me deeper into research on Chaos Theory, a journey that I am still on.  In the midst of this, I decided to put together a paper, a small book, that I called Chaos in the Church, and I self-published it through Lulu.com.  (I greatly recommend this site to you if you want to do something like this.)

The gist of the book was a theoretical look at how to think about church structure and culture through Chaos Theory and provide a theoretical framework for moving into that direction.

Why bring all that up?  Well, first to pimp the paper (though it needs some grammatical work - I should have let my wife mark it up before I actually published it) which I will provide you in a PDF if you want to print it out as it is only 38 pages.  Just contact me and I’ll git-r-done to the first 15 of you.

However, even more so, to recommend Alan Roxburgh’s new book, “The Missional Leader“, which is the application of Chaos Theory, or Complex Adaptive Systems, into the structural and cultural aspects of the church.  It is the practical to my theoretical.  Thanks Steve McCoy for talking about Roxburgh’s book, that’s the reason I bought it last week.

I can’t put it down, I can’t wait to tweak what we’ve done here in Delaware and can’t pray soon enough through some of what he discusses.  I don’t agree with everything so far, but there is some really good stuff here.  Get it and read it.  I’ll have more of my thoughts on it after I finish reading it.

My lovely bride!

Ten years ago today, at 6:00 CDT, at Lakeside Baptist Church in New Orleans, LA, Dr. Alan Jackson performed the wedding of my Bride and I.

She is the love of my life. She keeps me grounded. She keeps me balanced and focused. She’s quiet and sweet and loving but when necessary she’ll get in my face and give me the “what for”.

I just can’t imagine life without her!

We’re leaving tonight and stopping in Annapolis, MD for a New Orleans meal at Copeland’s. Then we’ll spend a few days in Washington, DC touring the sites and having dinner at ESPN Sportszone (my wife is a HUGE sports fan). Lunch Sat is at Hard Rock.

FBC Dallas holding an outreach to Homosexuals

This comes from Agape Press:

First Baptist Church of Dallas, Texas, is taking a pro-active step to reach the homosexual community with the truth of the gospel. On Saturday, May 6, the church is hosting a one-day conference titled “More Than Words” (MTW). The conference is an event that features Tim Wilkins, founder of Cross Ministry in 1996 and creator of the MTW conference.

This is a great step by FBC.  And they are doing it without a senior pastor.  Large Applause!


What also amazes me, according to the article,  is this:

Wilkins, whose articles and commentaries have been featured in numerous publications, was the first person ever to make a motion at the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) asking the convention to develop resources for reaching homosexuals with the gospel. Since that motion in 1997, literature has been created to evangelize homosexuals, numerous testimonies have been given at annual conventions, this area of ministry has been spotlighted at the 2003 and 2005 SBC annual meetings, an exhibit specific to reaching homosexuals has been featured at annual SBC conventions, and an SBC Task Force on Ministry to Homosexuals was created.

LifeWay Christian Resources, an arm of the SBC, has created The Way Out, a highly-identifiable name for this area of ministry. Some Southern Baptist seminaries have begun to recognize the need to specifically address this issue in training its students.

Did you guys know Lifeway was putting out this kind of information?

Barna: Church not necessary for Spiritual Growth

In the April 18th study, Barna states:

While nearly half of the adult population attends religious services during a typical week, people’s conceptual bond to the local church remains tenuous. Fewer than one out of every five adults firmly believes that a congregational church is a critical element in their spiritual growth and just as few strongly contend that participation in some type of community of faith is required for them to achieve their full potential.

Only 17% of adults said that “a person’s faith is meant to be developed mainly by involvement in a local church.” Even the most devoted church-going groups – such as evangelicals and born again Christians – generally dismissed that notion: only one-third of all evangelicals and one out of five non-evangelical born again adults endorsed the concept. Only one out of every four adults who possesses a biblical worldview (25%) agreed with the centrality of a local church in a person’s spiritual growth.

Just as few adults (18%) firmly embraced the idea that spiritual maturity requires involvement in a community of faith. The subgroup that showed the greatest devotion to spiritual growth through belonging to a faith community – Revolutionaries – is, ironically, the group often accused of seeking to grow independent of community ties. Adults who possess a biblical worldview were twice as likely as those who do not have such a perspective to acknowledge the importance of community in spiritual growth. Even so, only one-third of those who see life through a biblical lens embrace the necessity of growth in the company of other believers.

I’m seeing that here in Delaware.  That’s becoming a strong attitude nationwide.

 

Louisiana Baptists begin plans to build 1,000 New Orleans homes in two years

This will truly be a God-Sized task. I applaud them!

From ABP 

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