Friday, April 28, 2006
Tuesday, April 25, 2006
ENGAGE- I'M A SURVIVOR
Wow.
What an amazing Saturday conference we had at ENGAGE.
I can't even begin to describe all the cool stuff we did and experienced.
There's a cool picture journal and blog of the day's events over at:
http://artsinteractive.blogspot.com
Go check out some of the workshops, arts entries on the graphitti wall, the service projects we went out on, etc.
All in all, the day exceeded my expectations.
There were people who had never done anything like this in their spiritual life before, and this was my target audience. So, I was thrilled to have so many people take their first steps outside their comfort zone to serve the least and the lost at ENGAGE.
The workshops were all well received and all of the feedback I got was glowing.
The service projects were all very successful. People were blessed, and our participants were excited to be putting their hands and their feet into action for the Gospel.
David Ruis did a fantastic job. I am so honored to call this guy a friend and a brother. He delivered two challenging messages to our group that inspired and blessed us.
The Arts Interactive was the most ambitious part of the day, and in hindsight I think I wouldn't have done so much on setting it up as I did for this day. Next year will be cool, but not as "over the top" as this one was. The best thing was that people really did pick up a brush and a pen and began to share their thoughts and experiences on paper for all to see. I was happy about that.
WHAT I WOULD CHANGE FOR NEXT YEAR'S "ENGAGE":
1. I would make it a two day event. Start on Friday afternoon/evening and extend the experience and the dialog a bit. Maybe even have it spill over onto a Sunday morning also.
2. I will make the next ENGAGE event small on purpose. This year's event was about 70 people and that's about right. I'll cap next year at 100 or less to keep the interaction and the intimacy level high.
3. I'd like to have David Ruis return, but I'd also like to involve other voices like Greg Russinger, Crissy Brooks and my buddy Scott Laumann (who had planned to come this year but couldn't make it at the last minute).
4. Arts Elements: I like the artistic elements very much, but maybe this should be a separate track? I'm not sure. The other option is to do a separate arts conference that specifically focuses on art and justice. This would be small and highly creative, which I love.
5. Involve other area ministries more. I have good friends who work for some incredible ministries here in the OC and I'd love to have them enjoy a larger presence at the event. The OC Rescue Mission, MIKA, the OC Interfaith Shelter, Teen Challenge, Side By Side Ministries, MoreOfJesus.org, and many others, are doing great work for the poor in the OC and I'd love to have a roundtable with reps from each of these groups to come and share together about the face of poverty in Orange County and how we can all work together to improve the quality of life.
6. More volunteers. I did the entire conference pretty much on my own. This is why I am exhausted. This is why I didn't see my family for most of the last week. I will gather volunteers and empower them much earlier in the process next time. I promise.
7. Speaking. I think I'd like to actually take one of the sessions to share next time. I had originally planned to share at this ENGAGE, but because of all the pressure on me (due to lack of volunteer involvement) I decided to let David do all the talking...and it was awesome! But next time I want to share about what I've learned specifically about dealing with poverty in the OC over the last three years or so.
All in all, it was a great day. I'll have podcasts/downloads of David Ruis' messages at ENGAGE pretty soon for everyone to listen to for free. It was a wonderul experience and I can't wait for next year.
Now I turn my attention to MOMENTUM and the Roadshows in June.
Back to work!
kg
What an amazing Saturday conference we had at ENGAGE.
I can't even begin to describe all the cool stuff we did and experienced.
There's a cool picture journal and blog of the day's events over at:
http://artsinteractive.blogspot.com
Go check out some of the workshops, arts entries on the graphitti wall, the service projects we went out on, etc.
All in all, the day exceeded my expectations.
There were people who had never done anything like this in their spiritual life before, and this was my target audience. So, I was thrilled to have so many people take their first steps outside their comfort zone to serve the least and the lost at ENGAGE.
The workshops were all well received and all of the feedback I got was glowing.
The service projects were all very successful. People were blessed, and our participants were excited to be putting their hands and their feet into action for the Gospel.
David Ruis did a fantastic job. I am so honored to call this guy a friend and a brother. He delivered two challenging messages to our group that inspired and blessed us.
The Arts Interactive was the most ambitious part of the day, and in hindsight I think I wouldn't have done so much on setting it up as I did for this day. Next year will be cool, but not as "over the top" as this one was. The best thing was that people really did pick up a brush and a pen and began to share their thoughts and experiences on paper for all to see. I was happy about that.
WHAT I WOULD CHANGE FOR NEXT YEAR'S "ENGAGE":
1. I would make it a two day event. Start on Friday afternoon/evening and extend the experience and the dialog a bit. Maybe even have it spill over onto a Sunday morning also.
2. I will make the next ENGAGE event small on purpose. This year's event was about 70 people and that's about right. I'll cap next year at 100 or less to keep the interaction and the intimacy level high.
3. I'd like to have David Ruis return, but I'd also like to involve other voices like Greg Russinger, Crissy Brooks and my buddy Scott Laumann (who had planned to come this year but couldn't make it at the last minute).
4. Arts Elements: I like the artistic elements very much, but maybe this should be a separate track? I'm not sure. The other option is to do a separate arts conference that specifically focuses on art and justice. This would be small and highly creative, which I love.
5. Involve other area ministries more. I have good friends who work for some incredible ministries here in the OC and I'd love to have them enjoy a larger presence at the event. The OC Rescue Mission, MIKA, the OC Interfaith Shelter, Teen Challenge, Side By Side Ministries, MoreOfJesus.org, and many others, are doing great work for the poor in the OC and I'd love to have a roundtable with reps from each of these groups to come and share together about the face of poverty in Orange County and how we can all work together to improve the quality of life.
6. More volunteers. I did the entire conference pretty much on my own. This is why I am exhausted. This is why I didn't see my family for most of the last week. I will gather volunteers and empower them much earlier in the process next time. I promise.
7. Speaking. I think I'd like to actually take one of the sessions to share next time. I had originally planned to share at this ENGAGE, but because of all the pressure on me (due to lack of volunteer involvement) I decided to let David do all the talking...and it was awesome! But next time I want to share about what I've learned specifically about dealing with poverty in the OC over the last three years or so.
All in all, it was a great day. I'll have podcasts/downloads of David Ruis' messages at ENGAGE pretty soon for everyone to listen to for free. It was a wonderul experience and I can't wait for next year.
Now I turn my attention to MOMENTUM and the Roadshows in June.
Back to work!
kg
Thursday, April 20, 2006
ENGAGE- JUST A FEW HOURS FROM NOW...
I'm running ragged trying to get everything together for this one-day conference for Soul Survivor called ENGAGE with David Ruis.
The biggest challenge has been the Soliton Interactive Arts Room we're (that means "I am") building in the large fellowship hall at St. James.
Tomorrow I'll lead a small army of volunteers to set up cardboard walls, lay down drop cloths, set up tables, art supplies, paints, paper, etc. for one giant arts interactive experience on Saturday.
I'm a little bummed out that my buddy Scott Laumann won't be able to join us for ENGAGE. I do have Karen Schmidt (an amazing sculpture artist), and Heather Wright (an amazing painter) for the workshop on arts and justice.
David Ruis is ready to go. We should have the lights, sound, video projector, etc. ready to go in time also.
Plus, we've got the NOISE service projects from 2pm to 4pm. This has been a little challenging, but I've reduced the number of projects from five to four, and one of the projects has two sponsors/partners helping out, another has one partner and a very capable team leader (Carrie Yarborough), and actually all of our team leaders are excellent...so that should be fine.
I'm trying not to stress about the things I can't control. I'll do the best I can do and let God handle everything else.
I'm going to feel soooo good after this is all over.
Wish you could all join me for ENGAGE!
If you're near the O.C., check out the website and try to come down for as much as you can:
WWW.SOULSURVIVORUSA.COM
Must sleep now.
kg
The biggest challenge has been the Soliton Interactive Arts Room we're (that means "I am") building in the large fellowship hall at St. James.
Tomorrow I'll lead a small army of volunteers to set up cardboard walls, lay down drop cloths, set up tables, art supplies, paints, paper, etc. for one giant arts interactive experience on Saturday.
I'm a little bummed out that my buddy Scott Laumann won't be able to join us for ENGAGE. I do have Karen Schmidt (an amazing sculpture artist), and Heather Wright (an amazing painter) for the workshop on arts and justice.
David Ruis is ready to go. We should have the lights, sound, video projector, etc. ready to go in time also.
Plus, we've got the NOISE service projects from 2pm to 4pm. This has been a little challenging, but I've reduced the number of projects from five to four, and one of the projects has two sponsors/partners helping out, another has one partner and a very capable team leader (Carrie Yarborough), and actually all of our team leaders are excellent...so that should be fine.
I'm trying not to stress about the things I can't control. I'll do the best I can do and let God handle everything else.
I'm going to feel soooo good after this is all over.
Wish you could all join me for ENGAGE!
If you're near the O.C., check out the website and try to come down for as much as you can:
WWW.SOULSURVIVORUSA.COM
Must sleep now.
kg
Thursday, April 13, 2006
RISEN?
The good folks at SeedStories.com just published my article "RISEN?" just in time for Easter.
Please go check it out and make a comment if you would over here:
http://www.seedstories.com
Thanks for your support!
peace,
kg
Please go check it out and make a comment if you would over here:
http://www.seedstories.com
Thanks for your support!
peace,
kg
Thursday, April 06, 2006
QUOTE OF THE DAY
"The mathematician goes mad.
Not the poet.
Because the mathematician tries
to build a bridge across the infinite.
When the poet can swim in the sea."
G.K. Chesterton
Not the poet.
Because the mathematician tries
to build a bridge across the infinite.
When the poet can swim in the sea."
G.K. Chesterton
LIGHT VS HEAT
LIGHT VS HEAT by Keith Giles
Most everyone who has read my blog here, or who receives my weekly [subversive underground] e-newsletter, knows how I feel about the corporate church model.
It’s no secret how I feel that our modern versions of “doing church” have corrupted the Biblical model where everyone who follows Jesus “is the Church” and gets to participate, use their gifts, interact with everyone else, be ministered to and minister to others, and enjoy the presence of the Holy Spirit in His Power along with everyone else.
Honestly, as we’ve been doing house church now for about two months, I realize that “Koinonia” is something I think I never experienced before now. Everything before “the mission” was just playing church to me.
I also feel that there is way too much emphasis placed on “Leadership” (as defined by the Big Business World and now co-opted into the Bride of Christ).
Why are there no “Follower’s Study Bibles”? Why so much emphasis on leadership? How about encouraging “Followership” since that’s what Jesus called us to do in the first place?
I can remember being so frustrated as an on-staff pastor that our mandate was to make sure we visited with our significant leaders every month. I wondered, “Who will visit with our forgotten, poor and insignificant people if we’re all focused on those leaders?”
*If I’m not careful, I could run off on a rant myself here...so, I’ll take a deep breath.
(whew)
So, the other day I received an email from a friend who had written a scathing attack on this exact issue and he wanted to share it with me, knowing that I lean hard in this direction, I suppose.
As I read my friend’s email, blasting the corporate structure, attacking the cultural distortions of the Biblical form of “being Church”, I guess I saw myself from a distance and it troubled me.
In response to my friend, whom I agree with about 99%, I had to admit my own failures in this area of criticism versus grace.
I know we have a very real need for urgency on these issues, and I applaud the truth and the passion of someone who desires to see things change for the better.
To be clear; I am not arguing for the value of “dispassionate conversations”, but let me point out that “less passion” doesn’t equal “No passion”, right?
I struggle, personally, with these same issues/passions, and how best to make people see what’s going on in the Christian culture around us. It makes me sick. It makes me crazy. I long to see people “get it”.
For example, on the one issue; the sickness of the modern/corporate-inspired version of “Church-as-a-franchise” I am especially passionate...maybe too much for my own good, or the good of the issue itself.
I have written several critical articles on this problem, not for the sake of being critical, but just honestly venting my own revulsion and excorcising my own guilt for having been part of this system for so much of my own Christian life and pastoral “career”.
However, I am starting to think that this sort of language only serves to polarize people on one side of this issue or the other, and that doesn’t serve my passion.
What I really, deep down, desire passionately is for people to start to really see what I have seen.
I think Jesus does this masterfully when he uses parables to illustrate points of eternal significance. I mean, if anyone had a right to be angry/passionate/urgent about the state of his people, the corruption of the Word of God, etc., then I think it was Jesus. But only once did he resort to violence, and only once did he publicly rebuke the Pharisees for their misguided behavior. Instead, Jesus spent MOST of his time/energy/passion on helping people to really UNDERSTAND the things they’d been told by “blind guides” and “empty tombs”, and he did this in a very simple, creative, loving and even brilliant way.
This is my personal goal. I want to teach like Jesus. I want to help people consider things they’ve overlooked, and probably have even known all along but have forgotten it because of the corruption within the corporate church systems.
Are you feeling me?
I’m trying hard now (and this is hard, it’s not the easy path that’s for sure), to listen to the Holy Spirit and to use my gifts to communicate this astounding truth of the Kingdom of God to those who have not yet seen it, or who need to see it again.
As for me, I am working to communicate to others more about the pure JOY of living in the Kingdom, of being truly FREE in the Spirit to BE THE CHURCH. I believe that if I can paint a more clear and accurate picture to others about what astounding and amazing freedom there really is in Christ, outside of the structure of corporate church systems, that God will woo those sheep who hear His voice.
The old saying is true, “You attract more flies with honey”, and I’m trying to follow Jesus in His example to accomplish this very thing.
I still believe that Jesus is the ultimate leader and that his style of leadership should be our model. That means not only his servanthood and his “others-focused” ministry, but his tone and his style of communication as well.
I have come to believe that making positive changes within our own lives and modeling this new way of “being the church” we all hold dear is much more effective, and Biblical, than simple criticism, no matter what our tone may be.
It’s partially why I gave up on the whole Apologetics thing a while back. I realized that I had never once argued someone into the Kingdom, but when I shared with others what God had done and was doing my life, then my life became the Apologetic, (which is way more challenging), and besides, no one can argue with the Truth of what God’s Spirit is doing in your life, or in mine.
So, as I struggle with this inner passion, I pray that I can maintain the heart of Jesus and love those brothers and sisters in the Church, no matter what model or form they prefer to worship in.
After all, didn’t Jesus command us to “Love one another, even as I have loved you?”
Amen.
Kg
Most everyone who has read my blog here, or who receives my weekly [subversive underground] e-newsletter, knows how I feel about the corporate church model.
It’s no secret how I feel that our modern versions of “doing church” have corrupted the Biblical model where everyone who follows Jesus “is the Church” and gets to participate, use their gifts, interact with everyone else, be ministered to and minister to others, and enjoy the presence of the Holy Spirit in His Power along with everyone else.
Honestly, as we’ve been doing house church now for about two months, I realize that “Koinonia” is something I think I never experienced before now. Everything before “the mission” was just playing church to me.
I also feel that there is way too much emphasis placed on “Leadership” (as defined by the Big Business World and now co-opted into the Bride of Christ).
Why are there no “Follower’s Study Bibles”? Why so much emphasis on leadership? How about encouraging “Followership” since that’s what Jesus called us to do in the first place?
I can remember being so frustrated as an on-staff pastor that our mandate was to make sure we visited with our significant leaders every month. I wondered, “Who will visit with our forgotten, poor and insignificant people if we’re all focused on those leaders?”
*If I’m not careful, I could run off on a rant myself here...so, I’ll take a deep breath.
(whew)
So, the other day I received an email from a friend who had written a scathing attack on this exact issue and he wanted to share it with me, knowing that I lean hard in this direction, I suppose.
As I read my friend’s email, blasting the corporate structure, attacking the cultural distortions of the Biblical form of “being Church”, I guess I saw myself from a distance and it troubled me.
In response to my friend, whom I agree with about 99%, I had to admit my own failures in this area of criticism versus grace.
I know we have a very real need for urgency on these issues, and I applaud the truth and the passion of someone who desires to see things change for the better.
To be clear; I am not arguing for the value of “dispassionate conversations”, but let me point out that “less passion” doesn’t equal “No passion”, right?
I struggle, personally, with these same issues/passions, and how best to make people see what’s going on in the Christian culture around us. It makes me sick. It makes me crazy. I long to see people “get it”.
For example, on the one issue; the sickness of the modern/corporate-inspired version of “Church-as-a-franchise” I am especially passionate...maybe too much for my own good, or the good of the issue itself.
I have written several critical articles on this problem, not for the sake of being critical, but just honestly venting my own revulsion and excorcising my own guilt for having been part of this system for so much of my own Christian life and pastoral “career”.
However, I am starting to think that this sort of language only serves to polarize people on one side of this issue or the other, and that doesn’t serve my passion.
What I really, deep down, desire passionately is for people to start to really see what I have seen.
I think Jesus does this masterfully when he uses parables to illustrate points of eternal significance. I mean, if anyone had a right to be angry/passionate/urgent about the state of his people, the corruption of the Word of God, etc., then I think it was Jesus. But only once did he resort to violence, and only once did he publicly rebuke the Pharisees for their misguided behavior. Instead, Jesus spent MOST of his time/energy/passion on helping people to really UNDERSTAND the things they’d been told by “blind guides” and “empty tombs”, and he did this in a very simple, creative, loving and even brilliant way.
This is my personal goal. I want to teach like Jesus. I want to help people consider things they’ve overlooked, and probably have even known all along but have forgotten it because of the corruption within the corporate church systems.
Are you feeling me?
I’m trying hard now (and this is hard, it’s not the easy path that’s for sure), to listen to the Holy Spirit and to use my gifts to communicate this astounding truth of the Kingdom of God to those who have not yet seen it, or who need to see it again.
As for me, I am working to communicate to others more about the pure JOY of living in the Kingdom, of being truly FREE in the Spirit to BE THE CHURCH. I believe that if I can paint a more clear and accurate picture to others about what astounding and amazing freedom there really is in Christ, outside of the structure of corporate church systems, that God will woo those sheep who hear His voice.
The old saying is true, “You attract more flies with honey”, and I’m trying to follow Jesus in His example to accomplish this very thing.
I still believe that Jesus is the ultimate leader and that his style of leadership should be our model. That means not only his servanthood and his “others-focused” ministry, but his tone and his style of communication as well.
I have come to believe that making positive changes within our own lives and modeling this new way of “being the church” we all hold dear is much more effective, and Biblical, than simple criticism, no matter what our tone may be.
It’s partially why I gave up on the whole Apologetics thing a while back. I realized that I had never once argued someone into the Kingdom, but when I shared with others what God had done and was doing my life, then my life became the Apologetic, (which is way more challenging), and besides, no one can argue with the Truth of what God’s Spirit is doing in your life, or in mine.
So, as I struggle with this inner passion, I pray that I can maintain the heart of Jesus and love those brothers and sisters in the Church, no matter what model or form they prefer to worship in.
After all, didn’t Jesus command us to “Love one another, even as I have loved you?”
Amen.
Kg
Wednesday, April 05, 2006
BLOOD
BLOOD
by Keith Giles
There was rhythm in the air that morning
a seed-planting rhythm in a land
of broken ground. It traveled
from my heel to
my fingertips and
circled in my neck until
I bowed my head in submission. The beat
continued, echoed across
the arid stretch
of the hillside and all
of the faceless people stood
swaying to the rhythm
the compelling metronome
of hammer and nail and
the crescendo mounted until the blood
the blood gushed hot and wet onto the grass
we held our breath until they lifted
the crossbar over our heads, until the sky
turned to black cloud, until he whispered that it was finished and the soldiers took him down.
But the rhythm never left my feet
kept time with
the beating in my heart, turned
my blood to wine.
*more poems in the link at lower left
by Keith Giles
There was rhythm in the air that morning
a seed-planting rhythm in a land
of broken ground. It traveled
from my heel to
my fingertips and
circled in my neck until
I bowed my head in submission. The beat
continued, echoed across
the arid stretch
of the hillside and all
of the faceless people stood
swaying to the rhythm
the compelling metronome
of hammer and nail and
the crescendo mounted until the blood
the blood gushed hot and wet onto the grass
we held our breath until they lifted
the crossbar over our heads, until the sky
turned to black cloud, until he whispered that it was finished and the soldiers took him down.
But the rhythm never left my feet
kept time with
the beating in my heart, turned
my blood to wine.
*more poems in the link at lower left
Thursday, March 30, 2006
NEW: AUDIO SERMON LINKS ONLINE
I just discovered how to add links to my page.
Yeah...I know I'm slow...
But the good news is, now you can check some cool website I love, and also listen to a couple of my sermon's while you're online.
The two up now are:
"Hunger and Thirst" Audio Sermon and...
"Worship and Justice" Audio Sermon.
Both are linked at the lower left.
Enjoy!
kg
Yeah...I know I'm slow...
But the good news is, now you can check some cool website I love, and also listen to a couple of my sermon's while you're online.
The two up now are:
"Hunger and Thirst" Audio Sermon and...
"Worship and Justice" Audio Sermon.
Both are linked at the lower left.
Enjoy!
kg
Friday, March 24, 2006
VIDEO: BONO'S REMARKS BEFORE CONGRESS
Earlier I emailed the [subversive underground] list about the text for the address Bono (from U2) made before the Congress earlier this month.
Now you can watch the actual video...here:
Awesome!
kg
Now you can watch the actual video...here:
Awesome!
kg
Wednesday, March 22, 2006
ARTICLE UPDATE: GINKWORLD
My article, "BRINGING JESUS" is now live at Ginkworld (a cool, sensory overload/emerging christian site)
Read it right here:
http://ginkworld.net/
Wubba!
kg
Read it right here:
http://ginkworld.net/
Wubba!
kg
Tuesday, March 21, 2006
ENGAGE- APRIL 22ND (NOT JUST ANOTHER CONFERENCE)
SOUL SURVIVOR: ENGAGE is just one month away!
This is designed to be an "un-conference" in that we want this to be a catalyst for real life change, not just another meeting. So, participants can get out of their comfort zone by signing up for pre-conference "Mission Assignments". A workshop "Debrief" session will take place for those who take the challenge to share their experiences.
We've also got an amazing "Soliton Arts Interactive" planned where participants will share their "notes" on the conference publically, via text or drawing or any other artistic method, live on the spot. Others will respond to those notes with their own thoughts, etc. We'll also be posting the art/notes/photos/thoughts/etc. live on the web as the event takes place!
During the day we'll take time (from 2 to 4pm) to go out and serve the poor in the community together. So, we're not just talking about social justice issues, we're actually going to go out and serve as part of our experience!
After the final session, participants can sit around a table with David Ruis, Paul Martin and myself and share in an open round-table dialog about the things we've learned and experienced at the conference...and after it's all over we'll continue the dialog online at our forum, and via the PARABOLIC JOURNAL project which will spawn out of this event.
(check out the PARABOLIC JOURNAL site- http://www.parabolicjournal.com )
We want this to be an event that makes a difference in our actual lives and we're doing all we can to keep the interaction and the dialog open to all who participate, even until the next event in June (MOMENTUM) and the new event in the Fall of '06 (as-yet-untitled).
CHECK OUT THE WEBSITE AND REGISTER FOR THIS AWESOME, INTERACTIVE EXPERIENCE:
http://www.soulsurvivorusa.com/engage/
This is designed to be an "un-conference" in that we want this to be a catalyst for real life change, not just another meeting. So, participants can get out of their comfort zone by signing up for pre-conference "Mission Assignments". A workshop "Debrief" session will take place for those who take the challenge to share their experiences.
We've also got an amazing "Soliton Arts Interactive" planned where participants will share their "notes" on the conference publically, via text or drawing or any other artistic method, live on the spot. Others will respond to those notes with their own thoughts, etc. We'll also be posting the art/notes/photos/thoughts/etc. live on the web as the event takes place!
During the day we'll take time (from 2 to 4pm) to go out and serve the poor in the community together. So, we're not just talking about social justice issues, we're actually going to go out and serve as part of our experience!
After the final session, participants can sit around a table with David Ruis, Paul Martin and myself and share in an open round-table dialog about the things we've learned and experienced at the conference...and after it's all over we'll continue the dialog online at our forum, and via the PARABOLIC JOURNAL project which will spawn out of this event.
(check out the PARABOLIC JOURNAL site- http://www.parabolicjournal.com )
We want this to be an event that makes a difference in our actual lives and we're doing all we can to keep the interaction and the dialog open to all who participate, even until the next event in June (MOMENTUM) and the new event in the Fall of '06 (as-yet-untitled).
CHECK OUT THE WEBSITE AND REGISTER FOR THIS AWESOME, INTERACTIVE EXPERIENCE:
http://www.soulsurvivorusa.com/engage/
Wednesday, March 15, 2006
THE MISSION-UPDATE MARCH
The house church is going very well. In fact, it's so amazing that I
can't believe it.
Last week's meeting was just a jaw-dropping, eye-opening experience for me.
As usual we started at 6pm by welcoming all our friends, new and old, to the house. One new girl visited for the first time, another new visitor for only the second time returned and brought his guitar to lead us in some worship time later on.
We began by holding hands in the kitchen and praying over the meal, asking the Holy Spirit to come and join us and be part of our meal and fellowsip together.
During the meal I stood up and read from 1 Corinthians (about the Lord's Supper) while people tore off bits of bread from the loaf in front of them and dipped it in the juice cup at the center of their table. After the scripture reading I prayed again for God to join us in our "communion" with each other, and with Him.
Then we at desert (strawberries, ice cream and cake..yum!) and worship soon followed.
THE BEST PART: "SHARE TIME"
We all sat around and shared after our worship time together and slowly we started to realize that someone was stringing together our shared scriptures, dreams, impressions, thoughts, responses and experiences during the week into a cohesive, singular sermon. It wasn't me. It wasn't any of us. It was the Holy Spirit.
It takes my breath away to sit back and watch the Holy Spirit teach a lesson
to us, through us, and yet without our realizing it. I'm not sure I can even
describe it, but it's a thing of beauty.
My son David started us off sharing a dream that God had given him during
the week about the end of the world. Dylan, my other son, then shared about a dream he had also had about the end of the world. (Which is significant since we've not been talking about this in our family, or discussing this sort of thing...nor have we been watching any movies like this. The dreams were just "out of the blue" and yet connected in theme). That lead to a dream that an adult had also that was connected thematically. Then another elementary-age girl shared a scripture with us that had spoken to her this week (John Chapter 1), and then my wife shared what God has been saying to her about maturity.
This lead to some discussion, and then another woman shared about what God has been saying to her, I read a scripture verse, a person came in late to the meeting and started sharing her thoughts on this discussion. Then another woman shared an excerpt from a book she's been reading. That lead to more discussion, more shared experience, and then I read from 2 Peter a verse in chapter three that tied all of this seemingly random thought and experience and discussion together in a neat little bow.
God did that.
Wow.
We spent time afterwards praying over each other, asking the Holy Spirit to
confirm in our lives the lesson He had just taught us through the evening
together. We dismissed but several women ended up in the kitchen laying
hands on my sister-in-law and praying a blessing over her as she wept.
Others gathered and shared what God has been doing in our lives together.
One woman stayed until 11pm and we had an extended, intensive prayer time
together for a dear friend and his family.
For me, this is the best thing I have ever done with the word "Church" on
it.
I can't wait for our next meeting!
Peace,
Kg
can't believe it.
Last week's meeting was just a jaw-dropping, eye-opening experience for me.
As usual we started at 6pm by welcoming all our friends, new and old, to the house. One new girl visited for the first time, another new visitor for only the second time returned and brought his guitar to lead us in some worship time later on.
We began by holding hands in the kitchen and praying over the meal, asking the Holy Spirit to come and join us and be part of our meal and fellowsip together.
During the meal I stood up and read from 1 Corinthians (about the Lord's Supper) while people tore off bits of bread from the loaf in front of them and dipped it in the juice cup at the center of their table. After the scripture reading I prayed again for God to join us in our "communion" with each other, and with Him.
Then we at desert (strawberries, ice cream and cake..yum!) and worship soon followed.
THE BEST PART: "SHARE TIME"
We all sat around and shared after our worship time together and slowly we started to realize that someone was stringing together our shared scriptures, dreams, impressions, thoughts, responses and experiences during the week into a cohesive, singular sermon. It wasn't me. It wasn't any of us. It was the Holy Spirit.
It takes my breath away to sit back and watch the Holy Spirit teach a lesson
to us, through us, and yet without our realizing it. I'm not sure I can even
describe it, but it's a thing of beauty.
My son David started us off sharing a dream that God had given him during
the week about the end of the world. Dylan, my other son, then shared about a dream he had also had about the end of the world. (Which is significant since we've not been talking about this in our family, or discussing this sort of thing...nor have we been watching any movies like this. The dreams were just "out of the blue" and yet connected in theme). That lead to a dream that an adult had also that was connected thematically. Then another elementary-age girl shared a scripture with us that had spoken to her this week (John Chapter 1), and then my wife shared what God has been saying to her about maturity.
This lead to some discussion, and then another woman shared about what God has been saying to her, I read a scripture verse, a person came in late to the meeting and started sharing her thoughts on this discussion. Then another woman shared an excerpt from a book she's been reading. That lead to more discussion, more shared experience, and then I read from 2 Peter a verse in chapter three that tied all of this seemingly random thought and experience and discussion together in a neat little bow.
God did that.
Wow.
We spent time afterwards praying over each other, asking the Holy Spirit to
confirm in our lives the lesson He had just taught us through the evening
together. We dismissed but several women ended up in the kitchen laying
hands on my sister-in-law and praying a blessing over her as she wept.
Others gathered and shared what God has been doing in our lives together.
One woman stayed until 11pm and we had an extended, intensive prayer time
together for a dear friend and his family.
For me, this is the best thing I have ever done with the word "Church" on
it.
I can't wait for our next meeting!
Peace,
Kg
Friday, March 10, 2006
CONSTANTINIAN FALL-OUT
In my most recent [subversive underground] newsletter entitled "MODELS" I shared a little about my personal struggle with what I've learned lately about Constantine and his negative impact on the modern church as we know it.
I'm currently reading a book about Constantine that details his conversion to Christ and his subsequent murder of his wife and son, and most of his friends and advisors...after he supposedly turned to Jesus.
Beyond this, Constantine had difficulty with the idea of the crucifixion of God's son (he felt it was an embarrassing display of God's failure to rescue his own), and he scolded his own sister for her "worship" of Jesus.
It's difficult to say that this person was a saint...or to even accept that he really had a life-changing experience with the same Jesus you and I follow.
More troublesome to me is how Constantine's impact on our modern church practice and tradition has effectively removed our earlier family-based form of worship (the House Church) and created a form of Christianity where the family/relational form of worship was replaced with something more impersonal.
In essence, Constantine broke up the relational house churches and set up their leaders as miniature kings who would now rule over a peasant class which would be taxed to pay for the upkeep of the castle (the church building), and the provision of the new christian royalty.
This bothers me.
As I shared this with the faithful [subversive underground] subscribers, I received quite a few responses. Some supportive and in agreement with me, some questioning my motives, some critical....but that's what this is all about. I want an open dialog and I really am trying to work out this stuff in my own life and in my own head.
Here are some of the edited responses I offered up today to a few of those who asked for more clarity on this issue.
First of all, I'm sorry if I came across as being judgemental or critical of the modern church. I'm really trying not to be too critical...and honestly, if someone can show me where the early Christians met somewhere other than homes (in those first 300 years before Constantine), I'm very, very open to seeing this evidence. I mean, I WANT to find it. I'm seriously willing to email all 56 people on this underground list and admit my mistake if someone can show me where I'm wrong on this point.
Yes, the book of Acts shows us the earliest Christians meeting in Solomon's Collonade (or Porch), and we know that sometimes they would gather in the temple in Jerusalem, but as persecutions (by the Jews) increased, this became less and less possible. Soon, even within the time period of the writing of the book of Acts itself, and the entire New Testament, we see the early Church meeting in their homes almost exclusively. For 300 years the home was the main place the church would meet. (And I always have to stop and remind everyone at this point that the United States of America isn't 300 years old).
Secondly, I'm not trying to paint all "non-house churches" as evil, paganized organizations. I really am thinking out loud here. I'm honestly struggling in this email, and in my real heart, NOT to do this. I want to remain open to both the historical facts of christian history, and the reality of God's Spirit moving with power through His church (all of it...all forms and models of it) right up to this very day.
PERSONAL PERSPECTIVES
I have parents in the modern church form. I have great friends and colleagues in the "constantinian" form of church. Some of these friends, and my parents, are reading this email newsletter. The last thing I want to do is to insult them or make enemies with these dearest of friends and family.
What I am trying to do here is to share with everyone what I'm learning, what I'm reading, what I sense God saying to me about house church. I believe that House Church is not for everyone. I'm not arguing for all of us to tear down the traditional church model. I believe God is still madly in love with His Bride as it exists in this form, and as it has existed in this
form for thousands of years.
But...gee...wouldn't you want to know about how this one guy (Constantine) shaped our christian history and practice? How he never really converted to Christianity at all and yet how our traditions have been tainted by his influence? It's seriously fascinating, and troubling to me.
What do we do about this? I don't know.
SO WHAT?
As I said in my previous email article, I'm asking myself if I can just learn about this, accept it as fact, and then just go, "So What?" and let it go.
People who don't go to house church are not evil. People in the house church aren't smarter or more holy or spiritual. We're all honestly following Jesus the best we know how.
But I would hope we would all be willing to just take a look at the stuff I've shared and take it at face value. You don't have to agree with me. That's cool. But I do feel the need to defend myself and make it clear that I'm not calling for an end to the organized church. What I am doing is to ask hard questions, share my personal misgivings, and offer up my
perspective, and my personal decisions about what I'm learning, with others.
I'm more than willing to be questioned, and rebuked, by anyone on this point. Some of my friends and fellow pastors have dialoged with me about my comments, and it's been helpful to me.
(sorry to ramble on and on here...almost done..)
What I didn't share in the last email was that I realize that what I want to be is a reformer of modern christianity, not a revolutionary. I don't want to argue. I don't want to fight. But I do hope to ask good questions and share some of my perspective with others and pray that God does the rest to reform His Bride in the areas He wants to do this.
I'm honestly trying to walk out this paragraph above.
FINAL THOUGHTS
So, as I consider these thoughts, and I struggle internally with what to do about these thoughts and ideas, I think I have come to a few conclusions...(for those of you still reading this monologue):
1) I need to focus on the postive experiences I've had in our House Church more than I spend any more time criticizing the modern church.
2) I need to emphasize that the Church is more about who we are as followers of Jesus and less about where we meet or how we go about worship. This is a core conviction of mine and I realize that some of my ramblings on Constantine start to undermine this key point. "We are the Church. Church is not a place you go to for a meeting. We need to BE the Church, not attend one."
3) While I feel that Constantine screwed up the Church in many ways, God is the one who has allowed this and has redeemed this structure and form for His Glory. God has the last laugh. Seventeen hundred years later, God has a Bride that has emerged victorious, in spite of the clothes that Constantine has put on her. One day Christ will give Her a new robe, a wedding gown of pure white and nothing any man does will change that inevitable truth.
4) I'm still learning. I can be wrong. I might not have it all together myself. Just a few months ago I was blissfully ignorant of these unsettling thoughts and God loved me as much then as He does now.
5) This blog entry is way too long.
Thanks for reading.
peas,
kg
Monday, March 06, 2006
CLOSED DOORS, OPEN WINDOWS
CLOSED DOORS, OPEN WINDOWS
By Keith Giles
Yesterday I had one of those days that you anticipate with dread.
Wendy and I have been slowly transitioning out of the church we had helped to plant in Tustin over three years ago. Since October of last year we have been meeting with our friends and fellow pastors about feeling called to leave and start a new church elsewhere.
The journey itself has been a painful one. Saying goodbye, asserting your convictions, standing for what God has called you to do, and defending your vision is always difficult when those who disagree with you are your brothers and sisters in Christ.
All in all, this could have been worse. As painful as this process has been for our family, and for those who remain behind at the church, God’s grace has been sufficient to sustain our friendships, and to maintain our fellowship.
For the last five months my family has been continuing to serve in the elementary class we started called “Kids Rock”, training new teachers, handing over responsibility and becoming advisors rather than leaders in a ministry we dearly love, for children we have pastored for three years.
Yesterday was our last Sunday. We had agreed upon the date of March 5th as our final Sunday in attendance.
We had been dreading the goodbye, and especially the pain of closing the doors. Even though we know we’ll still see many of our friends again, and we aren’t moving away, the process of saying goodbye itself is most painful, especially when so many of our friends still don’t understand why we’re leaving and don’t support what we’re doing now.
But God has a way of healing wounds and mending hearts.
As a tribute of sorts, they had put together a short video collage. Thankfully, the video was brief, and even humorous at times, but we still cried. Wendy and I were invited up front, along with our two boys, and the entire pastoral staff laid hands on us and prayed a blessing over us, to send us out in our new, strange, ministry of house church.
After this blessing, they presented us with a baseball bat which had been signed by everyone in the church, encouraging us to “step up and swing the bat” for the King in all that we do.
I prayed over the elementary children, one last time, and then we went out with them for our final class together. The Kids Rock class itself was great. Wendy and I had a great time with the kids, and there were no tears (thankfully) as we gave our final lesson.
After church we took the kids to the Pizza Party, and then over to a friend’s house for a Baptism.
My final day at this church, I stood in the hot tub, side by side with my Pastor and friend, Robert Crabbe, and together we baptized a little boy from our Kids Rock class, a little girl whose family we met while ministering at the motel in Santa Ana, and an older gentleman who had never been baptized in his life, even though he had served the Lord faithfully for many years.
Afterwards, as we stood waist deep in the warm water, Robert and I were able to talk, and to share about these last few months of transition, about the pain, and the tears, and the way God had held things between us together for His Glory, and His Purpose. In that moment, there was healing, and an agape kind of love for my brother in Christ that transcends words. It was a sweet moment of grace between the two of us that only God could have orchestrated.
After all the disagreements, after all the pain of tearing ourselves away from our friends and church family to launch out into the unknown, there was something healing about doing the work of the Kingdom alongside my brother in Christ that last day. In the act of initiating these few children into the family of God, Robert and I became brothers again. Our differences faded into the background for those few moments, and our words lost all value and meaning in the simple obedience of baptism.
I am thankful for the time we spent at The River, serving the poor, teaching the children, and sharing our lives with the good people there. I’m grateful that we’ve been part of the legacy of this church in these areas of compassion and ministry to children, and to know that these ministries will continue under new and capable leaders.
Planting a church like this one has been one of the most dynamic and spiritually stimulating experiences of my life. In truth, it has been a sort of laboratory where I’ve been free to try new things, dream big, and lead others in the kind of Christianity I’d only dreamed of before. I’ll never forget my time in this church.
Now, we turn our full attention towards the work of God at The Mission, the small house church that meets weekly in our home. This is our new adventure. This is the next laboratory of the Spirit for us to discover more of Him, walk deeper into the Kingdom, and become more like Jesus in the process.
Wendy and I take strength from the experiences of serving at The River and set our hearts toward the new thing that God is doing in our family, for His Glory.
God has been so faithful to us, opening a window for us, even as he closes a door. We know that He has so much more in store as we continue serving Him and seeking His face.
Thursday, February 23, 2006
ENGAGE- WEBSITE NOW LIVE
Hey everyone, be sure to go and check out the awesome website for ENGAGE that my buddy Lito did in about 5 hours time.
SOUL SURVIVOR PRESENTS: ENGAGE- APRIL 22, 2006
WITH DAVID RUIS and others
http://www.soulsurvivorusa.com/engage/
EARLY-BIRD Tickets are just $15 while they last, and then they go up to $25, so hurry!
Peace,
kg
SOUL SURVIVOR PRESENTS: ENGAGE- APRIL 22, 2006
WITH DAVID RUIS and others
http://www.soulsurvivorusa.com/engage/
EARLY-BIRD Tickets are just $15 while they last, and then they go up to $25, so hurry!
Peace,
kg
TWO OR MORE
TWO OR MORE by Keith Giles
Last Thursday Wendy and I attended a Teen Challenge Graduation Ceremony in Santa Ana.
We arrived early, got to meet a few people, and sat back as the flurry of activity took place around us while the team was setting up for the celebration.
They set up tables, chairs, and laid out food and drinks for everyone to share after the ceremony. They practiced their worship songs and ran off copies of the program and lyric sheets for all who would soon arrive.
Finally the guests were all congregating around the makeshift sanctuary, which was a converted two car garage, complete with the large door which remained raised so that people could make their way inside and find a seat.
We opened with prayer and a few wonderful songs of worship, lead by the Director of Teen Challenge himself, Ron Brown, on the piano. His gospel-themed style of piano and singing made us all feel that we were at a Sunday Morning church service, rather than in a converted garage in the poor side of Santa Ana.
After the worship time, Ron got up and introduced me. I gave a short message on The Power Of Weakness, looking at King David, Samson and Gideon as examples of how God looks for and seeks out the most ordinary and simple of people to accomplish His amazing work on Earth.
The most surprising miracle was that I managed somehow to deliver the message in exactly 20 minutes. No one was more stunned than I was.
Next came the real blessing. The Graduates of the 4 month program were to be honored for completing their initial stages of sobriety. One by one they were brought up to the front and given a blessing and a word of encouragement by their counselors for the hard work they had done in successfully completing the program.
Everyone was in tears by the end.
But what God most dearly blessed us with on this day was something very simple and sweet.
The good people at Teen Challenge had spent all this time and energy putting on this Ceremony, and about 50 people went out of their way to drive out and attend this graduation service, for just two men.
That's right. Only two men graduated this day from the 4 month program.
On the drive home, Wendy and I were marveling that this ministry would have such an amazing heart to stage such an event in order to honor just two people.
"Would we do that?" Wendy asked out loud in the car.
I wondered that also.
And then God did something kind of sneaky.
That night, as we prepared our dish for our Thursday night house church meeting, only two people were there. I was very disappointed by this. We held hands to pray and bless our food and I held back a sadness in my heart at my apparent failure to attract and minister to more than two people, one of whom was my sister-in-law.
We ate our dinner together, we talked about life, we shared a bit. But inside I was squirming. I felt like going into my bedroom and hiding away.
Then, one other person showed up.
Still, I felt embarrased. Now this person realized what everyone must already know, that I was a failure. Our house church was a failure. Maybe we really were foolish to think that this sort of thing would ever fly in Orange County?
We finished dinner and sat down to share together what God had been speaking to us this week. As we shared, another person showed up.
I felt a little better. At least now we had four people, and including my family that made eight. Maybe this wasn't so bad after all?
That was when Wendy shared with the rest of us how blessed she was at this morning's Teen Challenge ceremony. How blessed she was that they would do for only two people what most of us would only do for ten or twenty.
That's when the Holy Spirit kicked me in the teeth.
"Would you do that?"
Well...would I?
Suddenly the lights came on. I realized that God had deliberately used this morning's experience at Teen Challenge to show me how to operate in the Kingdom.
Even God Himself, the Creator of the Universe, isn't too important or busy to show up for two people. "Where two or more are gathered, there I am in the midst of them." Why should I treat people any differently?
Now I realize that I was more concerned about my own reputation than I was about honoring and serving the people of God.
I wanted those who have mocked us and put us down for taking this step into the house church model to hear about a "successful" and "growing" meeting in our home. Even though personally I do not equate bigness with success, and I don't personally believe that "growth" equals "depth", I know that those who judge us and criticize us really do draw those parrallels, and I wanted to look good in their eyes.
So, I had to repent. And I do this now, in full view of all men. I repent of my own pride. I repent for wanting to please men rather than to please God. I repent for playing along with those who say that large gatherings equal success and continual growth equals spiritual maturity.
Tonight, our house church meets again in our home.
Whether we have one, or two, or even if our family is the only one in attendance. We will have church. We will invite the Holy Spirit. We will worship God and we will read the Scriptures together and take strength from God's Word and His prescence with us.
I remind myself again, "We are the Church. Wherever we are, there is the Church. Whatever we are doing, this is what the Church is doing."
I repent.
kg
Last Thursday Wendy and I attended a Teen Challenge Graduation Ceremony in Santa Ana.
We arrived early, got to meet a few people, and sat back as the flurry of activity took place around us while the team was setting up for the celebration.
They set up tables, chairs, and laid out food and drinks for everyone to share after the ceremony. They practiced their worship songs and ran off copies of the program and lyric sheets for all who would soon arrive.
Finally the guests were all congregating around the makeshift sanctuary, which was a converted two car garage, complete with the large door which remained raised so that people could make their way inside and find a seat.
We opened with prayer and a few wonderful songs of worship, lead by the Director of Teen Challenge himself, Ron Brown, on the piano. His gospel-themed style of piano and singing made us all feel that we were at a Sunday Morning church service, rather than in a converted garage in the poor side of Santa Ana.
After the worship time, Ron got up and introduced me. I gave a short message on The Power Of Weakness, looking at King David, Samson and Gideon as examples of how God looks for and seeks out the most ordinary and simple of people to accomplish His amazing work on Earth.
The most surprising miracle was that I managed somehow to deliver the message in exactly 20 minutes. No one was more stunned than I was.
Next came the real blessing. The Graduates of the 4 month program were to be honored for completing their initial stages of sobriety. One by one they were brought up to the front and given a blessing and a word of encouragement by their counselors for the hard work they had done in successfully completing the program.
Everyone was in tears by the end.
But what God most dearly blessed us with on this day was something very simple and sweet.
The good people at Teen Challenge had spent all this time and energy putting on this Ceremony, and about 50 people went out of their way to drive out and attend this graduation service, for just two men.
That's right. Only two men graduated this day from the 4 month program.
On the drive home, Wendy and I were marveling that this ministry would have such an amazing heart to stage such an event in order to honor just two people.
"Would we do that?" Wendy asked out loud in the car.
I wondered that also.
And then God did something kind of sneaky.
That night, as we prepared our dish for our Thursday night house church meeting, only two people were there. I was very disappointed by this. We held hands to pray and bless our food and I held back a sadness in my heart at my apparent failure to attract and minister to more than two people, one of whom was my sister-in-law.
We ate our dinner together, we talked about life, we shared a bit. But inside I was squirming. I felt like going into my bedroom and hiding away.
Then, one other person showed up.
Still, I felt embarrased. Now this person realized what everyone must already know, that I was a failure. Our house church was a failure. Maybe we really were foolish to think that this sort of thing would ever fly in Orange County?
We finished dinner and sat down to share together what God had been speaking to us this week. As we shared, another person showed up.
I felt a little better. At least now we had four people, and including my family that made eight. Maybe this wasn't so bad after all?
That was when Wendy shared with the rest of us how blessed she was at this morning's Teen Challenge ceremony. How blessed she was that they would do for only two people what most of us would only do for ten or twenty.
That's when the Holy Spirit kicked me in the teeth.
"Would you do that?"
Well...would I?
Suddenly the lights came on. I realized that God had deliberately used this morning's experience at Teen Challenge to show me how to operate in the Kingdom.
Even God Himself, the Creator of the Universe, isn't too important or busy to show up for two people. "Where two or more are gathered, there I am in the midst of them." Why should I treat people any differently?
Now I realize that I was more concerned about my own reputation than I was about honoring and serving the people of God.
I wanted those who have mocked us and put us down for taking this step into the house church model to hear about a "successful" and "growing" meeting in our home. Even though personally I do not equate bigness with success, and I don't personally believe that "growth" equals "depth", I know that those who judge us and criticize us really do draw those parrallels, and I wanted to look good in their eyes.
So, I had to repent. And I do this now, in full view of all men. I repent of my own pride. I repent for wanting to please men rather than to please God. I repent for playing along with those who say that large gatherings equal success and continual growth equals spiritual maturity.
Tonight, our house church meets again in our home.
Whether we have one, or two, or even if our family is the only one in attendance. We will have church. We will invite the Holy Spirit. We will worship God and we will read the Scriptures together and take strength from God's Word and His prescence with us.
I remind myself again, "We are the Church. Wherever we are, there is the Church. Whatever we are doing, this is what the Church is doing."
I repent.
kg
Wednesday, February 15, 2006
Small Requests
Hey guys,
Just wanted to ask for a prayer from you about a message I'll be giving tomorrow morning (Thursday) at 9am.
I'm speaking a Teen Challenge graduation ceremony in Santa Ana, California. This is a class of students who have graduated from their 90 day addiction recovery program.
Pray for me, please, that God would speak through me to encourage these guys and gals. Pray that God would bless them and that I would share only what is on God's heart for them.
ARTICLE ALERT:
I've got 2 new articles online right now.
BBQ WAFFLES is online now at SEED STORIES:
http://www.seedstories.com/main.cfm
CONVERSATIO MOREM! is online now at CMA RESOURCES
http://www.cmaresources.org/
Go check'em out!
Thanks!
Keith
www.keithgiles.com
Just wanted to ask for a prayer from you about a message I'll be giving tomorrow morning (Thursday) at 9am.
I'm speaking a Teen Challenge graduation ceremony in Santa Ana, California. This is a class of students who have graduated from their 90 day addiction recovery program.
Pray for me, please, that God would speak through me to encourage these guys and gals. Pray that God would bless them and that I would share only what is on God's heart for them.
ARTICLE ALERT:
I've got 2 new articles online right now.
BBQ WAFFLES is online now at SEED STORIES:
http://www.seedstories.com/main.cfm
CONVERSATIO MOREM! is online now at CMA RESOURCES
http://www.cmaresources.org/
Go check'em out!
Thanks!
Keith
www.keithgiles.com
Monday, February 13, 2006
ENGAGE- "GET OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE"- APRIL 22ND, 2006
SOUL SURVIVOR PRESENTS: "ENGAGE" APRIL 22, 2006
(Get Out Of Your Comfort Zone)
With David Ruis and others.
Hey guys, we're taking registrations now for the Soul Survivor ENGAGE conference on April 22nd now.
The basic info is up now:
www.soulsurvivorusa.com
The first 20 people who register can get in for just $15 each!
After that it's just $25 per person.
The theme of the event is "Get Out Of Your Comfort Zone" and this will be a one-day Saturday conference to explore the Biblical connection between Worship and Justice.
Our main host is David Ruis, and this other guy Keith Giles...some of you may know him.
WORSHIP SERVICE:
The conference will also feature interactive artistic elements, workshops, and a 2 hour "Worship Service" where we let our Worship be our Service to the poor in the community.
TAKE THE CHALLENGE:
For those brave enough, we're offering a "Missionary Challenge" track where people can sign up to go on a "Mission" into the culture to engage the poor, BEFORE the event even begins! Those "Missionaries" will then have a "Debrief Session" at the event where they can share their experiences and testimonies with each other.
Hope you can all make it out!
Peace,
kg
www.keithgiles.com
Monday, February 06, 2006
RELATIONSHIP FACTOR
Poverty: The Relationship Factor by Keith Giles
One thing I’ve had to learn about working with the poor is that it’s not about “fixing them”, instead, it’s more about the relationship.
When I first began working in the motel over in Santa Ana, my vision was grand. We were going to start regular Bible Studies, share meals, worship together and see powerful conversions, healings, deliverance and eventually convert the entire motel into a satellite service of our own Church.
God had other plans.
Instead, as we began to host monthly carnivals for the children of the motel, God started high-lighting one particular family to me. We were involved with serving several families at this motel, but one in particular stood out in our hearts and minds, as if God had put a spotlight on them for us and said, “Love these above all”.
So, we started to intentionally befriend his family. I took time to drive Mike all around Orange County so he could find an apartment through the Section 8 program for those who need housing assistance. We prayed together, searched the internet together, drove all over the county, looked at apartments together, filled out applications, met with managers, and the usual stuff, for several weeks. All for nothing.
Mike’s frustration was my own. We kept praying. We had them over for lunch after church. We watched movies together. We befriended them.
Soon I began to realize that this was really the whole point of this Compassion Ministry. It was not about the program, or the activity, or the resources we could offer these families as much as it was about really allowing their lives to intertwine with our own lives.
As this began to occur, I realized that it was I who was being changed, healed, and blessed.
That’s the paradox of this ministry. No matter how much food we give away, no matter how much resource or blessing we give, I always walk away feeling guilty. I used to wonder about that. I used to think it was because we didn’t do enough. Even though I knew in my mind that this wasn’t true, that we had actually brought a significant material blessing, something still felt “unequal” in the transaction for me.
That’s when I figured out that it was because we were taking away a blessing that was always greater, in the Spirit, than anything we could ever hope to provide out of our own material resources.
We’re the ones who got blessed.
And that’s why I think God said that “..the poor you will always have with you”, because He knew that we needed them. We have so much we can learn from them, and there’s so much we can’t ever get about the Kingdom without interaction with the poor.
So far, what I’ve learned is the true meaning of courage, of sharing, and of love.
Want to know what courage is? It’s a man who suffers the indignity of raising a family in a one-room motel, full of prostitutes, drug dealers and the mentally ill, and who stands by his wife and children with his head held high.
Want to know what sharing is? It’s a seventy year old woman with an infection in her leg who can’t afford to buy groceries, or insurance, who gives away the food you just gave her to a total stranger who is walking by and asks for help.
Want to know what love is? It’s a family living in a motel room that they can barely afford who allows a friend to sleep on their bed, rent free, while they sleep on the floor, knowing full well that if the manager discovered this guest they’d all be thrown out on the street.
Love is a when a couple who once lived on the streets gets their own apartment after years of struggle, who brings in total strangers off the streets to sleep on their couch, so that they can help them get jobs, get their State ID Card, get into Job Corps, and get off the streets.
Before this, I didn’t really know the fullness of the meaning of these words, and I could never have discovered this in a text book, or in an article like this one. It’s the sort of thing you only really learn as you live it out firsthand.
This is why I’m so eager to share this with others. There’s a whole world of things that God wants to show us and teach us, if we’ll just obey Him in this one thing; to love and care for the poor around us.
The Holy Spirit is always trying to get us into relationship, because it’s in relationship with others that He can move and teach and transform us into the image of Jesus.
Kg
One thing I’ve had to learn about working with the poor is that it’s not about “fixing them”, instead, it’s more about the relationship.
When I first began working in the motel over in Santa Ana, my vision was grand. We were going to start regular Bible Studies, share meals, worship together and see powerful conversions, healings, deliverance and eventually convert the entire motel into a satellite service of our own Church.
God had other plans.
Instead, as we began to host monthly carnivals for the children of the motel, God started high-lighting one particular family to me. We were involved with serving several families at this motel, but one in particular stood out in our hearts and minds, as if God had put a spotlight on them for us and said, “Love these above all”.
So, we started to intentionally befriend his family. I took time to drive Mike all around Orange County so he could find an apartment through the Section 8 program for those who need housing assistance. We prayed together, searched the internet together, drove all over the county, looked at apartments together, filled out applications, met with managers, and the usual stuff, for several weeks. All for nothing.
Mike’s frustration was my own. We kept praying. We had them over for lunch after church. We watched movies together. We befriended them.
Soon I began to realize that this was really the whole point of this Compassion Ministry. It was not about the program, or the activity, or the resources we could offer these families as much as it was about really allowing their lives to intertwine with our own lives.
As this began to occur, I realized that it was I who was being changed, healed, and blessed.
That’s the paradox of this ministry. No matter how much food we give away, no matter how much resource or blessing we give, I always walk away feeling guilty. I used to wonder about that. I used to think it was because we didn’t do enough. Even though I knew in my mind that this wasn’t true, that we had actually brought a significant material blessing, something still felt “unequal” in the transaction for me.
That’s when I figured out that it was because we were taking away a blessing that was always greater, in the Spirit, than anything we could ever hope to provide out of our own material resources.
We’re the ones who got blessed.
And that’s why I think God said that “..the poor you will always have with you”, because He knew that we needed them. We have so much we can learn from them, and there’s so much we can’t ever get about the Kingdom without interaction with the poor.
So far, what I’ve learned is the true meaning of courage, of sharing, and of love.
Want to know what courage is? It’s a man who suffers the indignity of raising a family in a one-room motel, full of prostitutes, drug dealers and the mentally ill, and who stands by his wife and children with his head held high.
Want to know what sharing is? It’s a seventy year old woman with an infection in her leg who can’t afford to buy groceries, or insurance, who gives away the food you just gave her to a total stranger who is walking by and asks for help.
Want to know what love is? It’s a family living in a motel room that they can barely afford who allows a friend to sleep on their bed, rent free, while they sleep on the floor, knowing full well that if the manager discovered this guest they’d all be thrown out on the street.
Love is a when a couple who once lived on the streets gets their own apartment after years of struggle, who brings in total strangers off the streets to sleep on their couch, so that they can help them get jobs, get their State ID Card, get into Job Corps, and get off the streets.
Before this, I didn’t really know the fullness of the meaning of these words, and I could never have discovered this in a text book, or in an article like this one. It’s the sort of thing you only really learn as you live it out firsthand.
This is why I’m so eager to share this with others. There’s a whole world of things that God wants to show us and teach us, if we’ll just obey Him in this one thing; to love and care for the poor around us.
The Holy Spirit is always trying to get us into relationship, because it’s in relationship with others that He can move and teach and transform us into the image of Jesus.
Kg
Wednesday, February 01, 2006
GRACE VS WORKS by Keith Giles
GRACE VS WORKS by Keith Giles
I'm fascinated with how the proliferation of the "Easy Grace" version of the Gospel has corrupted our understanding of actually "Following Jesus".
If we're all saved anyway, why fast? Why die to ourselves? Why suffer here in this life? If you do those things and I don't, but we both still go to heaven, why bother?
The warped idea that because we're saved by Grace we therefore shouldn't actually follow Jesus is absurd...and directly in opposition to the words of our Lord Himself.
"If anyone would come after me let him take up his cross daily and follow me"-Jesus
"Not everyone who says to me 'Lord, Lord' will enter the Kingdom of Heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father in Heaven." - Jesus
Want a shock? Read Ephesians 2:8-10. This is where Paul unloads the idea that we're saved by Grace "...and not of ourselves lest any man should boast", however, if you read the very next verse he says, "...saved by Grace TO DO GOOD WORKS.."
How about that? The ideas of Grace and Works really do go hand in hand!
Again, we are totally saved by Grace, no question about it. But as Dallas Willard says, "Grace is not opposed to effort".
The area where we've gotten so confused is in understanding that, just because works won't save us, that doesn't mean that works are bad. It just means we need to have a correct understanding of the idea of service.
Jesus says in Matthew 4 "..Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only."
Service and worship are linked together. Worship is more than singing songs and crying and jumping up and down to declare with your lips that God is good. It's also, Biblically, about surrendering your whole life to God (Romans 12), and about caring for the poor (Amos 5, Isaiah 58, James 2:14, 1 John 3:17-18, etc.), and about obedience to God and to Jesus' words (John 14:15; Matthew 7:24, etc.).
Works are what actual saved people do gladly. See Matthew 25 for a great proof text.
Here's my analogy: "If you swim all day, you will not become a fish. But if you are a fish, you will swim."
Translation: "If you're actually transformed into a new creature (by Grace), then you will do what a transformed creature does (Obey the Lord you love and serve Him)".
Jesus didn't submit himself to become a baby in the hay, endure the hardships of life, suffer under the Romans, endure whipping, beating, torture and mocking, even death on a cross just so you and I could sit on the couch and watch "American Idol".
He saved us to allow us to be living testimonies of His Grace, not idle recepticles of this amazing love for a private collection.
God help me to live this out!
Wendy and I are called to be missional in our community, and to the world around us, but we both realize it doesn't come natural to us. We're totally throwing ourselves on His mercy, on His Grace, to somehow live in this "Jesus kind of way".
God opposes the proud, but He gives Grace to the humble.
Praise His Holy Name for that.
I'm fascinated with how the proliferation of the "Easy Grace" version of the Gospel has corrupted our understanding of actually "Following Jesus".
If we're all saved anyway, why fast? Why die to ourselves? Why suffer here in this life? If you do those things and I don't, but we both still go to heaven, why bother?
The warped idea that because we're saved by Grace we therefore shouldn't actually follow Jesus is absurd...and directly in opposition to the words of our Lord Himself.
"If anyone would come after me let him take up his cross daily and follow me"-Jesus
"Not everyone who says to me 'Lord, Lord' will enter the Kingdom of Heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father in Heaven." - Jesus
Want a shock? Read Ephesians 2:8-10. This is where Paul unloads the idea that we're saved by Grace "...and not of ourselves lest any man should boast", however, if you read the very next verse he says, "...saved by Grace TO DO GOOD WORKS.."
How about that? The ideas of Grace and Works really do go hand in hand!
Again, we are totally saved by Grace, no question about it. But as Dallas Willard says, "Grace is not opposed to effort".
The area where we've gotten so confused is in understanding that, just because works won't save us, that doesn't mean that works are bad. It just means we need to have a correct understanding of the idea of service.
Jesus says in Matthew 4 "..Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only."
Service and worship are linked together. Worship is more than singing songs and crying and jumping up and down to declare with your lips that God is good. It's also, Biblically, about surrendering your whole life to God (Romans 12), and about caring for the poor (Amos 5, Isaiah 58, James 2:14, 1 John 3:17-18, etc.), and about obedience to God and to Jesus' words (John 14:15; Matthew 7:24, etc.).
Works are what actual saved people do gladly. See Matthew 25 for a great proof text.
Here's my analogy: "If you swim all day, you will not become a fish. But if you are a fish, you will swim."
Translation: "If you're actually transformed into a new creature (by Grace), then you will do what a transformed creature does (Obey the Lord you love and serve Him)".
Jesus didn't submit himself to become a baby in the hay, endure the hardships of life, suffer under the Romans, endure whipping, beating, torture and mocking, even death on a cross just so you and I could sit on the couch and watch "American Idol".
He saved us to allow us to be living testimonies of His Grace, not idle recepticles of this amazing love for a private collection.
God help me to live this out!
Wendy and I are called to be missional in our community, and to the world around us, but we both realize it doesn't come natural to us. We're totally throwing ourselves on His mercy, on His Grace, to somehow live in this "Jesus kind of way".
God opposes the proud, but He gives Grace to the humble.
Praise His Holy Name for that.
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