I’ve been messing around with the Upstream

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download creep dvdrip site this week, but I think its finally up to speed.

Constructing a web-site is a great exercise in trying to describe who you are to the whole world in a way that is true and understandable. It really makes you think thru who you are and what you are doing. I’d recommend it to anyone as an exercise in clarity!

I’ve added some links about distinctives, un-distinctives

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and core practices.

We have recently begun meeting in small groups of 2-4 to help us get focused on becoming the disciples we would like to be and to encourage each other in our core practices.

Thom Rainer’s latest book (along with Eric Geiger) is entitled Simple Church – Returning to God’s process for making Disciples.

What a novel idea…

Or is it now a trendy idea, given much of what is happening in emerging circles?

Whatever the case I am sure simplicity is a definite key to continual growth in discipleship. I imagine that’s why Jesus summed up the entire law with two commands – love God – love others. That’s it. Do just this and you’re on the road!

So how on earth did it get so complex?…

How did we somehow turn something so obvious and straightforward into a job for theologically trained experts?

My guess is that as churches took on clergy as paid professionals, as we have become property developers and CEO’s and as we have sought to work with a programmatic mentality and imititate the Willow Creeks and Saddlebacks of this world, we have added layers of complexity that just do not need to be there.

I haven’t had a chance to read the whole book, but the first chapter is very hopeful. In simply describing the frantic life of Pastor ‘Rush’ I am sure Rainer will pick up many readers. This complex task that is now ministry leaves poor old ‘Rush’ a weary and conflicted man, wishing for a way out of his confusing and jam packed life.

Rainer then goes to describe the ‘revolution of simple’ using Apple and Google as secular examples before offering Jesus as the primary biblical model of simplification. In distilling the 613 Jewish laws into two principles, ‘simple’ is a good word to describe him.

At Upstream we came to realise recently that even with such a small group and so early in the journey we had made our task more complex than we needed to. So we too have been engaging in a process of simplification – not because people are dumb and can’t follow complex tasks, but because (as my wife would say) discipleship is not meant to be complex.

On a pragmatic level I believe that if people can’t articulate what they are on about in 1 or 2 sentences then they probably haven’t really got it.

And if they can’t describe how things work in another 1 or 2 sentences then its also too complicated.

Rainer and Geiger suggests that there are four steps to achieve simplicity: clarity, movement, alignment and focus.

Focus, the commitment to abandon everything that falls outside the simple ministry process. Rainer and Geiger outline the importance of eliminating nonessential programs within the church.I’m interested to read the whole book as Breakout Churches (another Rainer book) was also an excellent read.

As part of our re-thinking at Upstream we are trying to make our core practices as simple as possible (note: like Rainer we agree that ‘simple’ does not necessarily equate to ‘easy’)

Last week I suggested to our crew that being a disciple of Jesus involved growth in 3 broad areas and if we worked in these we would probably get things happening.

The picture below shows the three areas.

Its true that all of us are stronger in some areas than others and this is our gift to the body.

I lean towards the ‘loving God/loving the world’ side so I am more naturally a disciplined, task oriented and outward focused leader. In our team meeting the other night we each marked ourselves on the diagram according to where we felt we naturally fitted and it was good to see a balance of people in different places. (I put my x on the left side just below the red arrow head)

I should add that this is not a model I have tested at any length but rather is just a helpful lens for us to view discipleship thru. If you have any comments or observations then send them thru.

What does it mean in practice?

Well, as we seek to develop ‘core practices’ that shape us in our journey towards Christlikeness we will be framing up 3 common practices – one for each area that we all do and then adding one or two other personal practices in each area that we see as important in our own growth.

Tomorrow night we come together to give shape to those common practices. I have some strong feelings on what is important for us and have already made my own thinking known on the general form I feel they should take.

I believe that under ‘loving God’ we need to agree to a certain degree of engagement with scripture. Given this is our primary source of revelation (and also one of the most neglected aspects of our discipleship) I’d like to put this firmly on the agenda. Anyone who wants to disagree on that one will be in for a stoush!

When it comes to ‘loving the world’, I believe we need to keep it simple again and ask each person to be committed to at least one ongoing relationship within our local community. People can add other practices (eg workplace) as they wish, but this would seem an obvious place to start given that we are a team with a local focus.

And finally under ‘loving one another’ I am thinking that if we were to take the ‘one another’s’ from the New Testament and simply do one or two of these a week to each other then it would be a practical step towards developing our own community relationships.

We have agreed that we will meet up regularly in 2’s and 3’s to encourage each other, provide accountability and to share what we are doing. I like Neil Cole’s ideas on Life Transformation Groups, so we will be seeking to draw on his learning there without necessarily being a direct imitation.

My hope is that as we do this we will all be both growing in discipleship as we practice in the key areas and operating with common understandings of our purpose as a community.

I know there’s nothing very spectacular about all of that, but I actually think that’s the whole point…

To see a different yet also simple and easily transferable expression of discipleship have a look at the Lifeshapes stuff from St Thoms in Sheffield. Andrew Dowsett has probably blogged on it somewhere!

Of course at the end of the day, models and diagrams mean bugger all if we don’t just get on with it…

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When we came to Brighton in 2004 we started with 5 core families of whom 4 are still here, but that is soon to become 3.

P & J are two great friends and have been a fantastic support to Danelle and I over the last 2 and a 1/2 years. We fully support them in their decision, but will miss them heaps. They also have two great ‘kids’ (if that’s what you call 19 & 21!) who live here, who were part of our youth ministry at LBC and who we will miss as well. One of the weaknesses of our current scenario is that it has been hard for them to connect in. Perhaps a move will enable them to re-locate to a church community where they have a few more peers.

Healthy teams need a variety of people and P & J were the rock solid, stable, unfaltering, faithful ones who don’t get fazed by change and who are able to bring calm to troubled seas. I think God knew what he was doing signing them up with this assignment, because we have had our fair share of ups and downs. They have also been wonderful in the way they have related to all of our kids and I know they will be missed by the little people as much as the big.

As we reflected on ‘what it all means’, and what the significance of the time here was, it was really encouraging to hear that for them this has been a life changing 3 1/2 years (from the first sense of call to this current moment) – a time of viewing life, church and mission from a completely different perspective, such that they do not want to return to the place they were in previously as loyal ‘church workers’.

If part of our mission at Upstream is that of helping Christians reframe their understanding of discipleship such that it is holistic and not compartmentalised then I am sure that is a great thing in itself.

As much as we are sad and will miss them deeply, I am concious that this is God’s show and he knows what he is doing.

I should add that over the last year we have also had two other fantastic families join the community, so we are not ‘left in the lurch’ by any stretch.

Its just sad to know we won’t see as much of them or have them hanging out with us.

We’ve been doing some reviewing, reflecting and clarifying who we are as Upstream and this is a list of our ‘distinctives’. By that I mean some characteristics that may shape our own unique identity as distinct from ‘the church down the road’. It isn’t an exhaustive list, but it does indicate our slant in how we are approaching church and mission.

Feel free to offer your thoughts.

1. Discipleship is our primary task

We see our core task as simply that of being disciples and making disciples. We define this as ‘loving God, loving one another and loving the world we live in’. If we do these things as the Bible describes then we will live counter-culturally and be ‘swimming upstream’. To help us grow in our discipleship we meet in 2’s or 3’s for encouragement in and accountability to several specific core practices. Ultimately we want to see the people we live amongst captivated by the life of Jesus and drawn into following him with their whole lives. We believe this process of discipleship begins from the time we meet a person and develop a relationship with them. As such there is less emphasis on the moment of ‘conversion’ and more on leading people towards a life of Christ-likeness.

2. Mission takes priority over Meeting

We see our primary focus as being what happens during the week in the community and the workplace and this is where we seek to invest our best energies. For this reason we place less emphasis on the Sunday meeting which for many has become the centre of church life.

3. Mission shapes Church

We are seeking to let our understanding of the local Brighton community determine the shape and rhythms of our church gatherings rather than coming with a pre-determined model or liturgical preference. We understand this is what classical missionaries do – allowing their ecclesiology to flow out of their missiology. British theologian Martin Robinson has said that most of what passes for church planting in the West is usually ‘Sunday service planting’. We are hopeful that in this process we will develop truly indigenous expressions of Christian community that resonate deeply with the people we live amongst.

4. Community Transformation as the Primary Measure of Success mad the divx

We are seeking to gauge our impact and effectiveness by the degree to which we are involved in community transformation and the extent to which we see evidence of the kingdom of God in our local area. While we would love to have people join with us we do not see increased attendance at any meeting as a primary goal. If new Christians identify better with the functioning of a more traditional church then we would encourage them to join them. As such we are committed to working in genuine partnership with other local churches & community organisations to see God’s kingdom in Brighton become a reality.

5. Relationships are Primary

We are seeking to foster mission & community primarily through personal relationships and by flowing into the natural rhythms of life here in Brighton. Where appropriate we will use programs to serve us and the community, but they are not the primary means by which we develop relationships.

6. Simple Multiplying Communities

Our longer term dream is to see a great number of new communities springing up and multiplying in the developing northern coastal suburbs where Aussies who would have little interest in church as we know it, may be able to connect in Christian community and grow in discipleship. To that end we intentionally seek to keep our meetings simple and small. Smaller gatherings requires minimal time and resource to accomplish, enable a greater opportunity for participation and reduce the possibility of passive consumerism. They are also much easier to reproduce.

7. Learning & experimenting

We are seeking to try and discover what kind of church expression works in this community. We will be bold, take risks and adapt and adjust as we learn.

While it isn’t difficult to articulate the distinctives of our team life, the reality is that we are continually coming to grips with this different way of living our life and faith. We are consciously walking the mostly untrodden path of being missionaries here in the West and discovering along the way what that means.

Some of it is refreshing and exciting, while other parts of it are difficult and disturbing. In many ways we are an experimental group, learning and making mistakes but hopefully also making discoveries and providing hope to those both inside and outside our churches who want to follow Jesus but struggle to connect in the current structures.

While we are committed to the path we are on, we do not advocate it as ‘the way’ for the future. We don’t have a model to work from or a strategy to emulate. That is intentional. We strongly believe there is a need for many fresh expressions of church to emerge in the West if we are to fulfil the missionary task God has given us, but they will need to reflect the context they are birthed within and the people who are their lifeblood.

As I was writing yesterday I thought it might be helpful for us to remember what we are not seeking to do and become. While I agree its always more helpful to describe something in the positive, I thought it might be worthwhile to also describe who we are not and why we have made those choices.

So, at the risk of offending some of you here are our ‘un-distinctives’, the people we hope we don’t become…

As upstream communities we are not:

• Concerned with developing a large and attractive Sunday meeting. For many churches this is a significant priority as a means of attracting people (often existing Christians) into attendance. There are plenty of these kinds of churches around suburbia and we don’t feel we need more of them. We believe discipleship tends to happen more effectively in up close relational settings and that larger gatherings, while inspiring at times, do lend themselves to a passive consumerist mentality.

• Aiming to employ full time pastoral staff. We will intentionally travel light with any role that requires financial support, as history has shown a tendency for church members to shrink back and allow ‘experts’ to do ministry once trained and paid clergy are involved. We believe everyone is capable of serving and we don’t want the community to be dominated by one paid person.

• Looking to invest our financial resources in buildings. We will use homes and local facilities as required, but we will not seek to develop a dedicated worship centre. We believe the enormous dollars required for such a venture could be better spent elsewhere.

• Seeking to depend on programs for our community connections and gospel presentations. leatherheads divx download We place a high priority on a personal commitment to genuine relationships and see these as the primary way to connect with people and to communicate the gospel message.

• Wanting to complicate things. The biblical images of church are simple and organic – family, flock, body, but over the years we seem to have come to view church as a corporation with complex organisational structures and CEOs as leaders. We are not seeking to deny the reality that church is both organism and organisation. But to avoid getting caught up with elaborate organisational structures, we will seek to ensure that we are a network of smaller self sustaining, multiplying communities who can operate with minimal structural support.

• Seeing church as a product to be marketed but as a community to be encountered. Generally speaking we will not seek to promote ourselves in the community as a way of attracting new ‘customers’.

• Seeking to establish a parallel universe. For some time now churches have sought to offer Christian versions of secular activity. We would choose to get involved in local activity rather than creating our own sub-culture.

• Suggesting we have found the perfect way to do church. We are an experimental group who do want to provide an alternative to the current dominant expression of church. Because of that we want to be free to change and adapt as needed rather than developing a larger, less fluid structure.

So… none of this is a dig at anyone out there ‘having a go’ in a more typical church expression. But it does give a description of who we see ourselves as not aspiring towards.

One thing I am increasingly conscious of is the power of the current form of church in our imagination. We have been so dominated by one expression of church that it is hard for anyone, including those of us experimenting, to actually think any different.

So, feel free to make comments and ask questions.

Much of what I write is a ‘work in progress’ and open to critique and reforming if necessary.

On Sunday we had a review of where we are at as Upstream Communities.

Kent did a great job of leading us thru a significant question of identity but in 3 hours we were only able to cover a certain amount of ground, so the conversation continued tonight.

What blew us all away was how we ‘heard’ so many different things yesterday.

“I thought we said ‘X’… ”

“No no!!… we actually said the opposite of ‘X’… ”

Hey?

How does this happen? How can a group of people sit in the same room and hear so many different messages?

It is a reminder of the complexity of communication sometimes. Just hearing stuff doesn’t mean we have understood it. Agreeing to an idea doesn’t mean we all see the idea in the same way.

We had some good fiesty conversation tonight as we thrashed some stuff around. We’re back at it again next week and I’m praying we get it sorted quickly. I am sure the enemy of action in so many churches is the people sitting on their butts debating terminology, and yet the problem of not having a shared understanding of what we are doing is that we operate on different frequencies.

I know the challenge is for us to make missional community as simple as we possibly can while retaining the rigour and integrity required to stay true to our calling.

The name we have chosen for our missional community is a very intentional one.

It reflects what we believe is our calling – to be a community of people who live ‘upstream’, who live in the flow of society but who also challenge the dominant (often self centred) values by swimming against them and trying to live differently. Its what following Jesus is all about.

Its a huge challenge because we are as immersed in this world as anyone and its hard to live ‘Jesus’ kind of lives when we are as naturally selfish as anyone else. Sometimes you have to make difficult decisions, even apparently foolish ones to do that.

Today was the culmination of one of those ‘foolish’ decisions. I have permission to tell their story and I’d love you to read it because its a good one!

Since coming to Brighton 2 1/2 years ago, one family from our team – Mike & Heidi – have been living in a very nice 4 bed 2 bath home with a pool and all the fruit. As a result they have had a huge mortgage to service. They would also say they were obsessed with getting more and more, and going bigger and better. Their lifestyle had become a noose around their neck and they were drowning in it. (Sorry to mix the metaphor!)

At our Forge intensive back in March they were particularly confronted with their lifestyle and the issues of consumerism and indulgence. At the end of the conference Heidi announced to everyone that they were selling their house and downsizing as a first step towards living differently.

I have to say I was very impressed but also a bit concerned because changing house is an expensive process in itself and there aren’t many cheap houses where we live. Was this a wise decision?

We all encouraged them in their decision, but wondered how they would pull it off – and maybe even if they could pull it off. As we discussed it, we figured their house was worth $410K at a minimum and on a good day maybe $430K, but… to find another place was the issue. To find anywhere livable under $370K was a challenge. Then, deduct agents fees and stamp duty and you might spend $20K to save $30K. Would it be worth it? I was a little worried they would spend a lot of money and not actually erase the debt that was hanging over them.

Then along came Dave, the agent who tells them he can get $480K for their house.

As the pigs were flying over head I told Mike in true ‘Castle’ form to ‘tell him he was dreamin’. While theirs is a nice house it isn’t a big one and $480K would almost seem like theft! It was an absurd scenario as no house in Brighton had ever sold for that amount and theirs was not the best house in the suburb.

They gave the agent a one week listing – a week to see if he could come up with the goods. In the mean time they put an unconditional offer on another place at $365K. They had 2 months to get their place sold or pay two mortgages…

So Dave opens their home on the first Sunday for people to look thru and the very first buyer of the day places a cash offer of $475K.

What the?…

While it wasn’t $480K, it was the highest price ever in the suburb and way above what anyone expected.

Today was house move day and we have just come home from helping Mike & Heidi shift into their new 3 bed 2 bath home on a cottage block. Its quite a bit tighter for living and doesn’t have much of the fruit of their old place. But in the move they have knocked $100K of their mortgage and have begun a journey of living a sustainable and less consumer focused lifestyle. The house was only one part of that, but it was a landmark decision to live differently and stand against the lifestyle they had fallen for.

How did they get $475k for a $430K house?

Some might say bloody good luck, but I have a feeling that it was another case of people taking a risk, trusting the leading of the Spirit, seeing something miraculous happen that otherwise wouldn’t have. Yes, the challenge is now to live differently and to keep moving towards a simpler lifestyle, but that’s why we do this thing together.

Its why we are called Upstream Communities – rather than upstream individuals.

Last night we met for our Upstream Community Meeting and it was my turn to lead again.

We are currently working our way thru Luke and I had chapter 22. What a chapter!

The more I read it over the week the less I wanted to ‘study’ it and the more I wanted to help people get immersed in it and feel it. This is one powerful story with so much to learn.

So here’s what we did (Again, this is for those who wonder – ‘what do you do when you get together?’)

When Darkness Reigns

1. I read the chapter with a few embellishments and additions trying to help people feel what it was like to be there. (If I had time i would have paraphrased the whole chapter and written it as I imagine it to have been.)

Settle people

Everyone else to listen and feel it. Imagine being there and allow yourself to engage with the action.

Read slowly with eyes closed.

As I read it I want you to see what scene captures your imagination and mentally bookmark it to come back to. We’re going to use our imagination to tune into the story, to explore it, to learn and listen to God.

2. Reflecting on the story

Track back to the scene that captured your attention and sit with it imagining what is happening there, how the people in that scene are feeling – the atmosphere – the tension in the air – the anxiety – whatever it is that fits with the scene.

Allow yourself to be a bystander – an onlooker – close enough to know exactly what is happening – yet discreet enough not to get entangled.

Guide: As I sit here I see” I feel”I wonder”

Sit with it for 15 mins

3. Sharing stories.

Tell your story…

As I sit here I see” I feel”I wonder”

We can all add on as we see our story fits.

4. Reflecting

What did we learn as we did that?

This is a pretty simple exercise, but for those able to use their imaginations it is powerful.

Today I am off to speak to the Seventh Day Adventist Church Planters School – sharing the story of what we are doing here in Brighton.

Having heard a number of people share stories of their adventures with churches both established and newly planted, I have been really disturbed by how easy it is to ‘not let the truth get in the way of a good story’. A good communicator can spin a yarn that makes himself sound like the Apostle Paul re-incarnated. And yet reality is often quite different from the public story.

The tension occurs because nothing is ever ‘all good’ or ‘all bad’.

People ask me ‘How are things in Brighton?’ And now I just draw an imaginary normal curve.

‘Some is great, some is good, some is ok and some is difficult. It just depends which day you get me on as to what I am focussing on!’

In preparing for today I reflected on my own journey over the last 6 years or so as I moved from a team leader role in a church of 400 or so, to starting over as a missionary in a new place. I prepared a summary description of what had happened in each year and what the accompanying feeling was.

Here is 6 years of summary:

(As you read be aware that this is the ‘public information’ version and does not tell the whole story either. Thats because this is not my story only. This is just the bit I think it is fair to put in the public domain and that we would all agree on)

Pre- 2001: Team Leader at Lemurdie Baptist Church

Feeling = Dissatisfaction – why are we so poorly connected with our community? Why don’t I have time for people outside the church? Why am I embarrassed about what church looks like?

Key Learning:

* God was at work preparing people for this

2002: January-Feb specific sense of calling to move on – bought land in Brighton and finished year at LBC as team leader

Feeling = Anticipation – This is the start of a wild new adventure. Yeeeha!

Key Learnings:

* Churches don’t always mean what they say!

* Drive slowly thru the fog

* Clarify expectations

2003: In transition – 6 months of long service leave – moved into Brighton in Sep

Feeling = Enthusiasm – Energy high and ready to roll

Key Learnings

* Initiative initiative initiative

* Prayer prayer prayer

* 18 months lead is both too long and just right

2004: First year of having a whole team in Brighton – developing team and living in community

Feeling = Frustration – The team was not gelling well at all.

Key Learnings:

* Lead strong – fight for the DNA now

* We may be on the same page but not the same line on that page!

* Some won’t get into it and will leave – that’s ok

2005: Sorting out issues and bringing clarity of shared expectations

Feeling = Determination – ok so its harder than I thought to lead a missionary team – lets dig in

Key Learnings:

* You can (and must) confront and resolve issues

* Importance of balancing mission and meeting

* Foundations are not impressive, but they are essential

2006: Common dreams, increased buy in and relational development in team

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Feeling = Hope – we might just make it after all…

Key Learnings:

* It just takes time”

* We are programmed to program

* Seamless living – if you leave me can I come too

Lately at our Upstream gatherings I’ve been experimenting a bit with some different ideas.

I usually like experimentation after the event, but find it stressful before and during it, wondering if it will work out!

Last week’s ‘experiment’ was a relational map, tracking the connections we have made since coming to Brighton.

The idea was simple. We write the names of the 6 team families on the paper and then around them they list the people they know and who are primarily in their worlds. From there we drew a black line to indicate an acquaintance, a brown to show friends and a red to show close friends. It showed us the huge number of people we have got to know in the last two years, and also caused us to think about the nature of those relationships. We obviously can’t be ‘friends’ with everyone, but it did cause us to reflect on where relationships were at and where they are headed.

It also showed where we are connecting with one another’s friends and developing a stronger community network.

Then tonight it was time to try something new again…

As a long term Baptist ,’Lent’ refers to what I do with books, nothing else. But this year I have been feeling like God wants us to have a look at this whole deal and engage with it – to pick up more on the Christian year. It really is a new experience for almost all of us to make some of these traditions a part of our experience.

But there’s no time like the present to get started…

So with google as my guide I began reading up on Lent. Yep – I didn’t know much at all!

As we met tonight and I suggested we take the Lent period seriously I was a bit nervous because I was trying to introduce people to something I knew precious little about. Here I am trying to explain Lent and am only half a step ahead of everyone else…

However with the help of google and Andrew Dowsett we made tonight our Ash Wednesday and practiced the marking of the cross in ash on the forehead as we read scripture and reflected on some appropriate music.

I actually get the impression we have lots to learn here as we walk a new path again.

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