Prizes announced!

As many of you know, I am giving away a prize to the best commenter of the month. I will announce the winner in September and they will receive their choice of the following prizes:

T-Shirt option 1: be

T-Shirt option 2: Pelacara (face-peeler) This is made for a special few. Some of my fellow

missionaries have been accused of being the mythical face peelers. By the way these faces are

supposed to be sold in the states...yeah. so, you too can join the club. just don't wear this in Peru!

Book option: If you prefer the non-fiction book I will send you a copy of "Reimagining Church"

by Frank Viola

It isn't too late to send in your comments about any of the previous posts and I will be posting a new chapter in the next couple of days! go nuts.

3rd world internet blues...

Sorry to disappear on you guys like that. My internet has been out for a week now. I will be posting some things very soon, now that we are back online. stay tuned...

MARCO.......POLO!

I am working on the next couple of chapters for the book/blog. So, in the meantime I thought i would open up some topics for conversation. Comment and let everyone know your thoughts. Also, don't forget to vote on the prizes for commenters (to the right).

One of the major disadvantages to simple/organic church meetings that meet in homes or other 'secular' places is that they are hard to find. They do not meet on a special day or place, and sometimes they even change locations with every meeting, so they are often impossible to find. If you visit a new city and plan on being there for a while, it is very difficult to find an organic body with whom to worship. They don't exactly advertise. So, I was wondering if there was some way we can stay connected and open up some possibilities for new relationships and networking without compromising our relationship focused approach.

I know of times where Apostolic workers (missionaries) have passed through a city and needed assistance (food, shelter, fellowship) and they have had doors slammed in their faces. What a welcome site it would be to run into other like minded believers who would be willing to help a church planter type as he is traveling.

One idea I had actually came from the early church (imagine that!). Because of persecution, many of these early groups of believers did not want to advertise to the whole world where they were meeting. So they used simple designs that often disguised a cross, fish or other christian symbol to identify themselves to other believers. Chi-Ro, the first 2 letters of the word Christ, Ichthus or fish symbol and even an anchor are well known as an early christian symbols.

So, here is an idea. What do you guys think? Maybe if we started putting a symbol on our doors or mailboxes or somewhere visible that could help us to find each other and locate a place to worship with the brothers. Let me know what you think of this idea and if you like it, what would be a good symbol to use. my vote goes for Chi-ro.

Confession as a Second language, Part 2

As I learned to confess more intimate sins and I learned something about myself. I am real bad about justifying my sin or like Adam, placing the blame on someone else. This is what it often looked like.

Me: Listen I just wanted to ask your forgiveness for being short with you earlier and not treating you like I should…It’s just that…I’m kind of frustrated because you are always interrupting me and nagging me about stuff.

Wife: Ummm…that just made it worse.

Yeah, not pretty. Sounds familiar huh. God: Did you eat the fruit? Adam: Umm…yeah, I did. But it was the woman you gave me who offered me some fruit and I ate it. We hate taking the full blame for our actions. We want to water down our blame. This is not true confession. We are supposed to confess OUR sins, not the other persons. See it doesn’t matter what caused you to act wrong, you still acted wrong. You are responsible for it. There is a time and a place for dealing with those frustrations, it just isn’t during your confession. When confessing search your heart. See if you have done anything to wrong someone, an action, a thought, a word, whatever. Then confess what you have done. If they feel conviction they may confess something to you, but if they don’t, that’s okay.

Many sins within the church begin with a simple misunderstanding or an offense that goes undealt with. That is why Jesus taught us what to do in these instances. Let’s look at Matt 18:15-17

If your brother wrongs you, go and show him his fault, between you and him privately. If he listens to you, you have won back your brother. But if he does not listen, take along with you one or two others, so that every word may be confirmed and upheld by the testimony of two or three witnesses. If he pays no attention to them [refusing to listen and obey], tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a pagan and a tax collector.

As you can see in this passage the burden of confrontation is upon the offended not the offender. What usually goes on in our heads is something more akin to vengance. “Well, they know what they did and they should come and say they are sorry!” When actually this passage says just the opposite. It says we should take the offense directly to our brother. Why? In my experience, 9 out of 10 times the brother has no idea he has even offended you. It is usually just a misunderstanding that leads to immediate reconciliation. But it requires us to be humble and admit when our feelings have been hurt. More often than not I see people more concerned with winning an argument than finding peace in their relationships. This is destructive to the person but especially to the body.

When we follow this simple teaching of Christ confession is usually joined with asking for forgiveness and then repentance. This is one of the most beautiful expressions of Christian love in the community of believers. I have always said that one of the chief characteristics of God is forgiveness. And if we truly want to emulate him and be like him, we will forgive. We will forgive when we have been misunderstood. We will forgive even if it makes us look bad, we will forgive over and over and over(Luke 17:4). Because that is how he treats us. Remember the Lords prayer(Luke 11:4)? “Forgive us our sins AS we forgive those who sin against us” The ‘as’ in this sentence is not meaning at the same time, but in the same way. If we will be forgiven in the same way we have forgiven others, we better be people characterized by forgiveness because we sure need plenty of it.

Finally, Jesus says if you have taken your offense to you brother privately, with witnesses and even before the church and he still does not repent that we should treat him like a Pagan or a tax collector. Many feel that this is finally the place where they get to punish the one who has wronged them by kicking them out of the body. While it may be necessary to take some strong action, possibly even excluding them from meetings, the sentiment is not hatefulness. How did Jesus treat tax collectors? How did Paul treat Pagans? They were lost, people needing a savior. They were treated with Love and kindness. The passage is basically saying if they refuse to repent then treat them like unbelievers, win them over to Christ through love.

If you really want to begin to live this active, participatory Body life confession is a good place to start. At its core it is humbling and others centered. It brings about unity. It gives the church something to do. Instead of just sitting in a pew hearing lofty words you forget before you even leave the building, why don’t we help one another with their struggles. Carry each others burdens (Galatians 6:2)

But before we can carry each others burdens, don’t forget you have to reveal your burdens to the ones who can help, the church. That is the first obstacle in beginning to speak the language of confession. Getting over yourself and your desire to be misunderstood. See, We want people to misunderstand us and think we are better than we are. It is precisely because of this obstacle that most people never learn the language of Confession.

Our problem with confession stems from our fear of being found out! Everyone is under the (false) impression that I am good, kind, and hard working. They think I am a good dad and a great husband, I am a faithful follower of Jesus in every way. So, if this is all true, if I am doing alright why do I need Jesus?

Remember the people Jesus enjoyed being around. Not sinners, but sinners who admitted they needed help. The pharisees were sinners, they just didn’t admit it. They portrayed an outward expression that said I have it all together. Sound familiar? But these “sinners” Jesus hung out with basically said, “I am a mess, I am beyond help, I am a prostitute, a drunk, a thief, a disease ridden, broken down pile of flesh. Jesus, you are the only one who can help me.” Everyone already knew who they were. They didn’t need to hide, they couldn’t if they wanted to. Jesus reached out to them because they were broken before him. To the Pharisees, who hid their sin with religious piety and fancy words, Jesus said…”Hypocrite! Snake! Liar! you look great on the outside but inside you are full of death.” I no longer want to be found in the camp of the Pharisees. I want to be known for what I am, so that Jesus can be seen for who He is. I encourage you to confess your true self to the world and let Jesus be glorified in you. Paul did it:

So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God's law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord! (Romans 7:21-25)

So will I:

I am selfish, I am lazy, I put myself above my family, I am like a prostitute who follows after loves of the world and ignores the only one who truly loves me. I am angry, I hold grudges. I fight. I think myself better than others. I am a freaking mess! Jesus, Help me!

How about you?

Confession as a Second language, Part 1

Being overseas for extended periods of time, you get accustomed to being around people who speak several languages. Sometimes you even speak 2-3 languages in a single conversation. Some things just sound better in a certain language. Then when you are in an environment where there is only one language spoken, you feel restricted, even like you can not fully express yourself. If you only speak one language you probably don’t know this feeling, that’s okay but you don’t know what you are missing.

In a similar way, most believers in churches today only speak one language. They do not know the benefits of speaking the language of confession. It really is like another language, you have to learn how to do it. We usually stumble through it at first, but with time it becomes part of how we express ourselves. Let me share how I learned Confession as a Second Language.

I think my first taste of real freedom in the church meeting came when I began learning to confess. I had been a leader in church circles since I was in high school. When you are in leadership, there is a certain unwritten decorum that you must keep up. It basically portrays that you have your stuff together. You are not struggling or in sin. You are worthy of being looked up to. You, of course know this is a lie. But you convince yourself that it is necessary to keep up the façade in order to not be a stumbling block or lead others into sin. After all, they look up to you. You don’t want to let them down.

The first time I revealed my real self in a meeting was after my accident. I was in a meeting with several other believers. I was struggling with my recovery and submitting fully to Him so I was ignoring God. I had gone for several weeks without reading the word or speaking to the Lord. As I was in the meeting the Lord began to convict me, I truly wanted to repent and turn to the Lord. The conversation went something like this:

Me: Okay Lord you are right, I will get back to your Word and we will start talking more.

God: Confess this struggle with the group.

Me: Whoa! I don’t think there is any reason to go that far! We will work this out on our own Lord.

God: Confess.

Me: Lord I have not sinned against them. Let’s just keep this between us.

God: It has and does affect them. Confess it.

Me: Yes, sir

So, I let it loose. I told them, I haven’t read my Bible. I haven’t prayed in who knows how long. I am just keeping up this appearance of a Godly leader but it is a lie. I am struggling. (I winced inside thinking I would hear gasps, I thought I would open my eyes to gaping jaws and disappointed looks) But as I looked around I saw understanding from everyone. And guess what happened, everyone else started confessing their own personal struggles. We had a beautiful time of revealing ourselves and our sin before the Lord. We testified to one another that none of us have arrived, we all still need Jesus.

And guess what else happened? The body didn’t let it end with my confession. They took it further, they prayed for me that night. They commited to pray for me over the next few weeks. They kept me accountable and checked on me to see if I was in the word, how was I living, etc. and honestly they helped me get through this rough patch in my walk. This experience helped me to understand the passage in James 5:16 “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.”

One of my mentors once told me of the dangers of hidden sin. He always said “Confessed sin we can deal with, but hidden sin is so destructive because it controls us.” It controls our behavior because we are afraid we will be found out. But once you are found out, you are free. You can begin to deal with the issue or be healed instead of expending all of your energy in hiding it.

As missionaries we often have to deal with the Christian Superhero syndrome. For some reason, people think missionaries are better christians, that we do not struggle or doubt. It always makes me feel awkward, like I have been caught in a lie. After seeing how things worked out when I shared my real self, I determined to learn the language of confession. I will show the world who I really am, So that Jesus can be more glorified in me, a poor wicked sinner. I try to take every opportunity I can to glorify Christ through my confession. When I am in small groups or even speaking in larger settings, I search myself asking the Lord to reveal in me things that do not please him. If it is appropriate for the setting I will just confess it, ask people to help me. Most people no longer see me as a better Christian, just another loser saved by grace.

These were my first experiences with confession, they mostly dealt with simple things. The Lord decided to take me a bit further down this road. but that is for tomorrow...

Prizes for beings

I am really wanting to encourage comments here in this blog. I know there are several of you creeping around reading stuff and I am glad, but I really want to challenge and engage one another (including me) with how we can be the church together. So, to kickstart your comments and participation I will be giving a prize to our best commenter in August. I will be judging based on quantity and quality of the comments.

Also, let me know on the poll (on the right) what you think would be a good prize.

I am finishing up the next chapter and should be posting it soon. So until then comment on any old posts. I am thinking about giving a prizes for other things too, so have fun and be church together!

Sinners in the hands of a confused church, Part 4

Losing salvation?

This is an ongoing debate among Christian circles and has been for some time. But why is this question so important to us? From my experience, this question has become deceivingly spiritual sounding question springing from a very carnal concern. Actually, “Can I lose my salvation?” is usually more correctly translated “How much can I get away with and still not go to hell?” The question presupposes that a believer is living or at least dabbling in the world. People who are following Jesus are not concerned with such questions.

So, my simple answer to this deeply debated question. “I trust Jesus” I don’t understand his salvation. But I do know that if I seek him I will find him, I do know that if I endure to the end I will be saved, I do know that he loves me and has a plan for my life. I do know that the world only offers death. So I choose Jesus! I may stumble, I may fall, but I get back up and strive towards him. He is my only hope in this mess. The world offers temporary joys, I will pass. I want Jesus! If you and I live like this, we don’t have to worry about ‘losing our salvation.’ Ultimately it is all in his hands anyway, so trust him and live a life worthy of the calling you received.

What should we do then?

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." --matthew 28:19-20

Jesus sent the church into the world with the task of proclaiming Him, and making disciples! To make a disciple is hard work, it is time consuming, it is heartbreaking, and it is frustrating. But it is what we were commanded to do.

Converting people to Christianity by helping them to work out the sin equation is not making a disciple. Making a disciple requires you teaching by example, living your lives together, and sharing your struggles and victories. It took Jesus 3 years to disciple 12 men to the point where they were truly committed to him, and even then one betrayed him and when trouble came they scattered. Years of frustration with their bickering, years of heartbreak when Judas hid things in his heart and eventually fell away, but you also see the victory of these men taking his message and changing the world after he left. That is the power of disciples.

Telling people to say a prayer and then sit in a pew the rest of their lives and give a tithe is a bastardized version of Jesus command and his plan for his church. It is a sickness and the very reason the church has become powerless in the world today.

So how do we proclaim this good news (that is Jesus) to the world? First, BE the church! If we live body life in the church the way that it is set out in scripture, the world will stand up and take notice again. They do not take us seriously now because we have become a joke, a simple religion. We must become Jesus followers again.

Second, we must be his witnesses everywhere (Acts 1:8) Testifying to WHO HE IS everywhere we go. This could take the form of sharing the stories of his time on earth, sharing his teachings, proclaiming him as lord in the public arena, sharing his riches with your friends, family and even strangers. This should come from the overflow of our being. We do not need to be trained to do this; we just need to know him.

And Finally, DO NOT BE ASHAMED! (Romans 1:16; 2 Tim 1:8) But be prepared! The true gospel is dangerous. If we begin to tell people the full gospel instead of the watered down version, you will offend many. You will be hated because you will not compromise and water it down for people. You could be ostracized, ignored, persecuted, beaten or even killed. Jesus himself warned us that they would hate us like they hated him. That bears the question though, if the gospel that we are proclaiming has lost its edge, if it has been watered down and no longer offends, is it still the gospel?

Am I still saved?

Okay, don’t panic. I am not saying that if you came to Christ through a sinner’s prayer or the roman road that you are not a believer. I am just saying you didn’t receive the best presentation of the gospel. Here is the question. Where is your hope? Have you sold everything you own to buy this pearl of great price (Matt 13:45)? Have you put all your eggs in his basket? If Jesus is your reason for living, then you have found salvation IN JESUS.

However, If you said a prayer years ago and ‘asked to receive Jesus as your savior’ but you live your life for yourself and your desires. Then you may be in trouble. As I have visited churches in the states over the years, I would say most “christians” fall into this category. They are chasing the American dream, they are trying to fulfill their desires and enjoy life. But they have abandoned the call of God upon the Church. They have never truly understood what it means to be in Christ. They just said a prayer so that they get to go to heaven, and they go to a holy building and hear a priest tell them lofty things to appease God and stay in his good graces.

I have heard this, “He has received Jesus as his savior, he just hasn’t made Him Lord.” This is complete garbage; you cannot have one without the other. Jesus is your everything or He is your nothing. Salvation is simple (it is found in Jesus) but it is hard ( you have to die).

Sinners in the hands of a confused church, Part 3

...more problems with the simplified version of the gospel. (If you are lost check out part 1-2)

It destroys the mystery of salvation. Who really completely understands it? Is it meant to be understood? To me, it is an underserved acceptance of a wicked being, the adoption of a filthy bum by a king. It will never make sense to me. But I will take joy in this great mystery, that He loves me. I don’t know how the equation works, but I trust him. I trust Him, not the equation! He is my Hope.

We convince people through logic, not the spirit. We have to remember that it is the Spirit who calls men unto himself (John 6:44; those who were appointed believed, Acts 13:48; Ephesians 1; Rom 8:28-31). It is not by the works or explanations of men, our understanding, or our philosophies. It is an undeserved miracle done by the Holy Spirit that should cause Awe in our life every day.

It creates false hope. These “roman road/4 spiritual laws” type evangelistic methods basically guarantee that if you follow these steps, you will receive eternal life in heaven. What about the parable of the sower? Or when Paul said it is those who endure to the end who receive the prize? It is not about ‘a moment in time’ or a ‘spiritual birthday’ when we become ‘saved.’ It is about deciding to follow Jesus completely, no reserves, whatever he asks of us.

I can’t tell you how many times I have heard at funerals “It brings me so much comfort knowing that he walked the aisle and asked Jesus into his heart when he was 8” Even though he never followed Christ! Even though he lived in the world! There were no fruits in his life? This is FALSE HOPE! It is a LIE!

Think of the calling of Peter in Matt 4:18-20 Jesus said, “follow me and I’ll make you fishers of men.” Now, if Peter had said, “Okay Lord, I’ll do it!” Then went back to his nets, would he be a follower of Christ? No, he would be a Jesus-watcher or maybe a Jesus-Admirer. But that is what most Christians do these days. They make a confession of faith that is not backed up by their lives. There lives look no different from before except they go to some holy building on Sundays. What Peter did do is this: He and his brother left (the word implies permanently) their nets and followed Jesus. Their nets were their hope for future and financial stability. But they LEFT it! And followed Jesus. They found ALL their hope in Jesus. This is what salvation should look like today!

It does not present the true Christian life, just the good stuff. The way we present the gospel today, we might as well dress up like a used car salesman when we go out evangelizing. It is basically the same concept. Let’s share with them all the good stuff you get, but we are conveniently going to forget the difficulties. How many of you have ever heard a gospel presentation that included a warning about future persecution? That the people will hate you? That God may ask you to give up people/things that you love? That he has commanded you to go to the nations? That you will suffer? When these things begin to appear because of faith in Jesus, the new believer feels lied to. They feel like they bought a lemon. And they fall away. In fact in my experience most of the people who come to Christ though these methodologies return to the world in short order. Especially when there is no discipleship present. Maybe it is time we give an honest presentation of what following Christ might entail. Maybe then people will know what they are getting into. The persecuted church understands this concept and those who come to Christ in these countries know it will more than likely lead to persecution or even death. But they follow him anyway because He is worth it.

It breeds lazy cheaters. I have always been a poor mathematician. And I am going to confess something openly here. My best friends girlfriend did almost all of my geometry homework. Yes, I cheated. I never really understood or cared to understand geometry. Why? Because it was easier to have someone else do it. The same concept proves true in the Christian church today. If you can’t work or present the “salvation formula” well take them to someone who can. Usually when someone has a lost friend, they bring him or her to church. Why? because there are qualified spiritual mathematicians there who can do it for you.

This was unheard of in the first century church. Because if you had Jesus, you shared him. You testified to his glory and goodness. You shared in his sufferings, etc. But we have made evangelism into something that is better worked out by professionals. This has done great damage to the kingdom of God.

Heaven is not the point! Jesus is! I have always found it strange that the major push behind modern evangelism was heaven. Something that will happen after we die?! Really? Is that the hope we have found? That in 40-60 years we will get to be with God in heaven? Streets of gold and all that. If that is it, I will pass. That is not enough for me. I want/need something for now! That impacts my life and helps me to know abundant life. The point of true evangelism is not heaven, but JESUS! He is the reward, He is our portion! He is our Hope! He is our Strength, He is our Rest. He is our EVERYTHING!

In fact, the passage that most people use to understand what heaven is like is actually talking about the New Jerusalem. Seeing New Jerusalem as simply a place (heaven) is missing the richness of the text. The New Jerusalem is the church in all her glory, cleansed and presented to the groom, Jesus. This is the wedding feast, the consummation of our relationship with Christ. Our waiting is over; we are being made whole in HIM! Read it, it will give you new perspective. Revelation 21

Sinners in the hands of a confused church, Part 2

So here are some of the problems we encounter with this simplified version of the gospel?

It doesn’t play out in the whole of scripture. Consider:

• Jesus with rich young man: Matt 19; Mark 10; Luke 18

YM: What must I do to inherit eternal life?
JC: obey the law
YM: I have done that.
JC: You are only missing one thing, sell all you have and give to the poor and then come follow me.

• Jesus with Nicodemus: John 3

N: Teacher, I know you have come from God
JC: No one will ever see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.
N: How?
JC: He must be born of Water and spirit, not the flesh.
N: I don’t understand.
JC: Nic, you know God sent me, put your belief in ME.

• Jesus and Samarian Woman: John 4

JC: can you get me some water?
SW: Excuse me, is a Jew asking me for water?
JC: If you knew what was really happening here you would ask me for water and I would give you living water. (they talk religion for a while, then…)
SW: I know the Messiah is coming, when he comes he will explain everything.
JC: I who speak to you am he!

• Jesus and thief: Luke 23

T1: Aren’t you the messiah? Save yourself and us.
T2(to T1): Don’t you respect God? We deserve what we are getting, but this man is blameless.
T2 (to JC): Jesus remember me when you come into your Kingdom.
JC: I will see you there later today.

• Acts of the Apostles: Early chapters of Acts (also John 1:12-13)

Apostles: proclaiming who Jesus is
People: Believed and were baptized

• Phillip & Ethiopian: Acts 8

P: Do you undersand what you are reading?
E: How can I unless someone explains it.
E: Who is the prophet talking about?
P: (proclaimed) Jesus.
E: there is water can I get baptized?

• Pete & Cornelius: Acts 10

C: God told me my prayers had been answered and that I should send for you. I have gathered my friends and family to hear what you have to say.
P: (Peter tells them about Jesus, then says…) "He ordered us to preach to the people, and solemnly to testify that this (Jesus) is the One who has been appointed by God as Judge of the living and the dead. Of Him all the prophets bear witness that through His name everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins. While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who were listening to the message.

In all of these stories you will notice 2 things. 1) It is all about Jesus, he is the focus of each of these stories, not balancing some spiritual formula. 2) It was never the work of men. They did not come to salvation because they understood how the sin formula worked and balanced it out. Which brings us to the next problem.

Sinners in the hands of a confused church, Part 1.

The Modern church has made very clear that when speaking of entering the kingdom of God they want everyone to know they have it all figured out. All mystery has been revealed. The mysteries of God’s reconciling himself to man can be found in this simple ‘spiritual formula’. A (Recognize your sin) + B (say a sinners prayer) + C (get baptized) = D (heaven). In boiling down the message of Christ into this simple formula we have stripped it if the beauty that has marveled kings and paupers! We have oversimplified and somehow overcomplicated it to a point that it no longer contains the wonder that once enraptured thousands in the days of Acts.
Unfortunately, this simplified formula does not play out with the whole of scripture. Sure, we can take verses from Paul’s letter and cut and paste them together and come to this simple formula. (Four Spiritual Laws, Roman Road, FAITH) Just to give you an example of the abridged version let’s read Romans 10:9 “if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. “ Now let’s take a look at the whole of Romans 10…yes, right now…seriously, go get your Bible!…now, see what I mean. How can the richness of this testimony of Christ be summarized in this one verse? It can’t. It is like VBS Kool-Aid, just a watered down version of the real deal..
I understand what many of my brothers were trying to do in these attempts. They just want to make the gospel easier to understand, easier to swallow. But that bears the question, was it meant to be easy? As you look throughout the New Testament you will see the diversity of ways people came to Christ. There was no simple pat answer, It will always be complex! Why? Because it demands we abandon everything. Everything we are and want to be. Everything we desire and hope for. And as we lose everything, we find life in Christ. I can’t explain it, but I’m okay with that.

order UP!

I just wanted to say thanks to those of you who helped me jumpstart my writing again. I have almost finished the rough draft of the next chapter and will be putting it up in a couple of days. Since It is a bit long i will be breaking the chapter up into 4-5 posts. Remember, this is a first draft. out of my brain and onto the screen. I welcome your comments and opinions.

You ARE the boss of me!

Okay guys, thus far i have been giving you stuff I had already written. It has now time to get back to writing. It has been over a year. I am feeling the itch. But I don't know where I should start. So here are some other topics I am planning on touching in the book. Please let me know which one you want to read next and I will get on it. This is your chance to boss me! take advantage! just leave your request in the comments and I will begin working on the top 2 or 3. Then I will post something soon.

• Called to obey
• Make a joyful noise
• 5 Functions in the Church
• Getting’ Lazy
• $ issues
• Obedience vs Knowledge
• Let the little Children come to me
• A king and a kingdom
• We are Pilgrims
• “Sinners in the hands of a confused Church
• Unity
• The Lords Supper
• Networking churches
• Confession as a second language
• Broken
• Tour boat or canoe analogy