Discipling a Kindergartner

The moment my wife broke the news that I was a father-to-be I immediately started pondering ways I might communicate the truth of the God of the universe to that little creature growing in her belly.  Income, shelter, clothing, college-fund, retirement...none of these entered my mind in that season.  I wanted to find the special sauce to the spiritual development of my little dude.

Now, five years later, I've discovered, created and chosen a few key practices that my wife and I enjoy utilizing as we disciple our children.  I make no effectual promises as to the long term fruit of these practices...I mean, he's only five at this point!  Here are a few:

• Story/History:  We read, tell and invent so many stories that sharing another Bible 'story' allowed for no 'set-apartness' in his little mind.  Instead we began sharing the 'history' of Gods works, people and movements.  We note our past, our ancient family lineage, the histories associated with the Creator through Christ.
• The Bible Says:  I've nothing against this phrase in and of itself.  The Word is living and active, it breathes Truth, fosters wisdom and develops healthy discernment.  While my children will begin to understand the value and worth of Scripture over time, I much prefer to say 'Jesus said,' 'Paul said in his letter,' 'the Prophets taught,' - the Bible says a lot of things, but to my kids it's another book on the shelf.  I'd much rather him envision God proclaiming these truths and not simply another book on his shelf.
• Modern Parables:  As Jesus promised in Johns Gospel we know that the Spirit will offer remembrance and understanding as it comes to Him and His life and teachings.  That said, as it pertains to Jesus' method I like to point out aspects of nature, social interaction, household work-projects etc. as elements for modern parables to teach Truth.  Sure we're always reading and discussing Scripture - yet making it personal in the moment regularly provides immediate context for crazy questions and revelations.

My son regularly asks for 'God Stories.'  He's aware that God has moved and is moving and wonders what He's up to both in the past as well as the present and so on the walk to school, in a car ride to Target, sitting in a hot tub on vacation he's always prodding for more.

What do you do that fosters a healthy discipling of your kids?  How are you creating an environment that fosters a regular interest in the Gods work through time and space?

Of course my kids are young.  They will rebel, stumble, turn away, grow, mature and hear and know the truth of Christ.  That said, while I proclaim no magic pill in discipling my kids, success is not going to be in the distant outcome but is current through the intentionality of walking Deuteronomy 6:4-9'style with my chillin's.

Enjoy the road.  Share your practices, techniques, tools and joys with one another, it's a long, tumultuous and ultimately joyful parenting journey.

Hows Your Community Group: Part 2

They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and fellowship...

Note that I am not separating teaching and fellowship here. Hearing the Gospel of Christ happened within the context of fellowship with other believers and the Apostles. If any of the 3,000 were interested in growing it meant community, it meant time with other disciples and time under the Apostles.

And there was a strong desire for and a commitment to this teaching. Have you ever made a vow? I did on my wedding day...I vowed once not to eat green olives, otherwise I don't recall specifically vowing to do or pursue anything in particular. It's not our language. Yet this is the language in the text. These early believers vowed to pursue the doctrine of the Apostles - the Gospel, the Truth of Christ, the Reality of the Creator of the Universe!

A hunger and a joy, an honor and a healthy terror, a newness of life in such incredibly new fellowship that I imagine a unified devotion being the only possible response in this season of the ecclesia, the budding communities of believers.

Foundational to both the devotion and the fellowship is the teaching. What were they teaching? The Gospel. This new Message regarding the life of the Messiah and how this alters their paradigm of life in God.

How did they teach it? Their immediate response was to gather together as many believers as possible and...well...talk about Jesus while living about Jesus. Talk about the OT with new light shed on the grand Story, a story they were all a part of.

Guys, if we're going to be a part of Kingdom growth in coming generations we must move beyond our Western view of partitioned community (family/friends/church members/neighbors/coworkers). Who we 'click' with doesn't ultimately matter. This lone-wolfism-amidst-the-crowd-culture is killing the mission of the Church (Matthew 28:19-20) and it's killing our built-in reputation (John 13:35). Put bluntly, we must wholly reengage in exegeting our communities, our culture, the next generation and so rebuild the bridge to Luke's Gospel movement in this Acts 2 devotion to the Word in growing fellowship.

1. Is your home church devoted to Scripture in fellowship? Let's stop thinking of genuine friendship as optional when we gather.
2. Are you leading out of a devotion to Christ both in fostering the Word and fostering genuine community?
3. Is your small group devoted? To one another, to the Word, to healthy community, suffering together, to enjoying life together, to sharing in this devotion with more and more people..

Read Members of One Another. Check out Building Missional Communities. Dig into to remaining story in Acts and trace out the connection between teaching and fellowship.

Good ole Christian...

'Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.'

Knowing your Bible isn't simply what every good Christian should do is it?

Paul says that 'skillfully dividing the word - handling it rightly' tests and approves us as faithful, unashamed disciples. It shows whether we are on the right track, speaking truth in context, not wavering or babbling fluff. He reminds Timothy of the Gospel he taught, he reminds him to beware false teachers, he even passes on a 'trustworthy saying' and all this before challenging him (us) to handle the Word of Truth with eternal care.

Jacob Neusner explains how Jewish students wrestle with the word, 'This one proposes, that one disposes. This one forms a proposition in response to what the Torah says, and that one says why this one is wrong...' and so on to form a symphony of students attempting to handle the Scriptures carefully.

Peter understood this wrestling and challenged believers to remember, 'If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God' (1 Peter 4:11). Be a student of Truth. Handle the word well. We all teach it the moment we share it with one, one-hundred or one-thousand people.

So continue doing your best with skill.
Constantly present yourself to God for service.
Live daily with an attitude defined by the grace and truth of Christ.
Pray continuously that you may proclaim it clearly, as Paul eagerly desired.

2 Timothy 2:15
Judaism's Theological Voice - Jacob Neusner

A Parable for Teachers

A farmer planted seed and as he scattered the seed:
Some of it fell on the road and birds ate it.
Some fell in the gravel; it sprouted quickly but didn't put down roots, so when the sun came up it withered just as quickly.
Some fell in the weeds; as it came up, it was strangled by the weeds.
Some fell on good earth and produced a harvest beyond his wildest dreams.

The seed the farmer scattered on the road - When anyone hears the news of the Kingdom and doesn't take it in, it just remains on the surface and so the Evil One comes along and plucks it right out of that person's heart.
The seed cast in the gravel - this is the person who hears and instantly responds with enthusiasm. But there is no soil of character and when the emotions wear off and some difficulty arrives there is nothing to show for it.
The seed cast in the weeds is the person who hears the Kingdom news but weeds of worry and illusions about getting more and wanting everything under the sun strangle what was heard and nothing comes of it.
The seed cast on the good earth is the person who hears and takes in the News and the produces a harvest yeilding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.

No - this parable isn't designed to acknowledge the narrator/teacher, his gifts or his ability to communicate the Word. Jesus told this parable to a hard-hearted, blind-eyed, deaf-eared audience. A people He knew from ancient times would reject the truth He came to live out and offer. This parable described His audience - and anyone who would hear the Word from that day forward. Not all will be hard hearted though.

Because we know the many paths a person can take upon hearing Jesus' Story of Reconciliation, paths chosen by the hearer and known by the Creator, I like reading this and seeing how it affects the heart of those called to teach the Word:

the depths of the responsibility and honor laid upon (James 3:1),
the spiritual knowledge and hermeneutical work involved in (Titus 2:7),
and the creativity infused within the spiritual gifts to publicly proclaim the Word.

Yes, the Spirit convicts, convinces and converts a mans heart...but He does it through mere men and women. Sinful men and women. It is a postition worth double honor and a heavier dose of accountability to God Himself.

Plant well. With love and grace, seasoned with spiritual salt so that is desired by the listener.

Taken from Matthew 13

Velkomen

Great, let's get started.

In the previous post are some general thoughts about the class and some questions to help get us started on this journey. I'm excited to be an ambassador for the Kingdom, to speak old truth in new ways.

Most of us are at the beginning of this journey in discovering what role we play in speaking the Word. Perfect. The goal is to help realize what it looks like for you - personally, individually - to create, develop and speak how you are built to do so. Good stuff.

Like:
DaVinci with his art
C.S.Lewis with his writing
Quentin Tarantino with his movies
Kenny G. with his clarinet
and Me with my beard...
speaking is an art and a science and a spiritual act of worship that takes time and discipline and reliance on the Spirit. You are designed with certain gifts and whether speaking is one of them or not we want to find out how you communicate best, how you were created to do so.

SO read the previous post - Communis 101 - eat some frosted mini-wheats, and get ready to speak.

Communis 101:

When Jesus 'randomly' strikes up a conversation with the woman of Samaria drawing water from Jacobs well He does is it so naturally (yes, I know He created conversation). He and the woman had something in common - thirst. Thus begins another opportunity for the outgrowth of Jesus' Kingdom.

Communis (Latin) - common - the root of communication.

If we desire to communicate anything of value we should ask ourselves that late 90's pop slogan 'WWJD?' and discover some common ground with the opposite party. When this happens, hearts and minds are attracted and community is given a foundation to grow upon.

Using your vocal cords, however, is not the starting point for worthwhile communication. Your mouth is merely the portal by which the trappings of your heart are released. And your heart is only the filter by which the knowledge of the Messiah and His life and His love are funnelled through.

We'll start there, with the heart and the mind...your lifestyle.
Eventually we'll tap into:
Idea formation
Research & Prep
The architecture of the message
The art of delivery
...and more.

Tell me...

• why do you want to teach, speak, preach etc?
• what do you want to learn in this time together?
• what is at least one strength and one weakness of yours regarding this topic?
• who are some communicators: speakers, preachers, artists, actors, bands etc. that impact you, that hold your attention and stir something within you?

Ask yourself the above the questions (bring answers for the first session). Your answers will help define the purpose and direction of this class. Come ready to discuss, ask and learn. Our mouths are only a part of the teaching process, God will use any and every medium to do His work - everything is on the table - ask.

Bring:  notebook - writing utensil - Bible

Check out the Date page for meeting dates/times/locations.

The Speak page shares my divine enlightenment while reading - which has spilled into this class.

'Be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to become angry [and even slower to assume I'll have every answer]' I think Jesus' brother James said that. Look it up.

In the hope of gaining the attitude of Christ...see you soon.

I'll be there at 7am with a coffee if you're interested in depth and conversation over any topic your spirit so desires.