Wednesday, November 6, 2013

New Book Available: "His People on Mission"

I am pleased to announce the publication of His People on Mission: Mobilizing Churches for Cross-Cultural Outreach. The product of my D.Min dissertation, this project was adapted for use in local churches. The contents include:

        * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
1 - Introduction:  Why this study?

Part One:  Biblical Foundations for Cross-Cultural      Missions

2 - His People on Mission in the Old Testament
       a) centrifugal missions
       b) centripetal missions 

3 - His People on Mission in the New Testament

      a) example and teachings of Jesus
      b) example of the early church

4 - Theological Implications for the Local Church

Discussion Questions

Part Two:  Becoming a Missions-Active Church

5 - Common Characteristics of Missions-Active Churches
      a)  the pastoral staff
      b)  missions leadership team
      c)  missions education
      d)  missionary care
      e)  prayer
      f)  mobilizing workers
     g)  missions funding
     h)  local ethnic outreach
      i)  summary

6 - Case Studies of CGGC Missions-Active Churches
     a)  Greenvillage Church of God
     b)  Indian Head Church of God
     c)  Duncannon Church of God
     d)  Casey White Oak Church of God
     e)  Mt. Pleasant Church of God
     f)   Hanover First Church of God
     g)  High View Church of God
     h)  Olive Branch Church of God
     i)   Germantown Church of God 
     j)   Swatara Church of God
     k)  New Providence Church of God
     l)   Shippensburg First Church of God
    m)  Central Manor Church of God    

Discussion Questions

Part Three:  Common Factors and Recommendations

7 - Research Findings
    a) the role of the missions leadership team
    b) the place of missions policy
    c) the influence of person(s) or event(s)
    d) the communication of missions
    e) the role of the pastoral staff
    f) denominational loyalty and engagement
    g) the factor of church size

8 - Conclusions
    a) Recommendations for CGGC churches
   b) Recommendations for future consideration

Discussion Questions

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Copies of the book may be purchased now from CGGC Publications by calling 419-424-1961 or by emailing publications@cggc.org

The cost is $10.95 per book plus shipping. 

SPECIAL:  Order 3 or more copies by March 1, 2014 and pay only $10 per book plus shipping


Friday, October 4, 2013

Two Interns Approved for 2014



Last month, the CGGC Cross-Cultural Ministries Commission approved the appointment of two new missionary internships for 2014.


 Isaac Acosta has been approved for a summer 2014 internship at Gamerco Church of God (NM). His primary focus will be reaching out to Spanish-speaking children and youth in the neighborhood and assist in developing a Latino ministry. Pastor John Thumma will serve as Isaac’s supervisor at Gamerco.
            Isaac is a member of Sanidad Divina Church in Columbia, PA where he serves as their youth leader. A freshman at Lancaster Bible University, Isaac has ministered in Venezuela and was on the 2013 Kenya Acts Team. His parents are Pastors Caleb & Christina Acosta. Funding for Isaac should be designated for CC 2809.008.
   
Caroline Tatum plans to join the Project Help staff in Haiti for five months as a tutor to the three Snyder children. Miranda, Ariel, and Zack are enrolled in an online course of instruction through their school back home in central PA. Caroline will work alongside the students to guide them in their learning experiences.
            Caroline attends Chambersburg First Church of God (ERC). She recently completed training with Global Expeditions  and has several short-term cross-cultural experiences, including a summer ministry in South Africa. Caroline is the daughter of Pastor Paul & Debbie Tatum. Funding for Caroline should be designated for CC 2809.009. Since she begins her internship in January, funding is urgent!
             
The CGGC missionary internship program is a way to (1) help persons discern God’s will for future missionary service; (2) provide short-term leadership to a mission church or field with a particular ministry need; and (3) motivate the person to have a lifelong missions vision.

Support for these interns should be sent to CGGC, Box 926, Findlay, OH 45839. Be sure to use the specific designated code. 100% of your gift will go to their support account.

Thursday, September 26, 2013

We Need You!



(this article will appear in the upcoming October-November issue of The Church Advocate)

Every church which ever existed began as a church plant. For this reason alone, I grow weary when tensions surface between established churches and church planting advocates. Label me naïve, but it is unnecessary and avoidable. Just as the human race is motivated to reproduce, so the church is designed to have children (e.g. to give birth to other churches). Can we agree on this? --we need new church plants.



Churches have a natural life cycle. They were born and, unless they are continually renewed, they will die. Even Rick Warren said, “No local church, including Saddleback, is meant to last forever” (Christianity Today, April 2013, p.36). That is painful but the reality. Hundreds of CGGC churches have died through the years. Some died in infancy without ever reaching their full potential. Others lived a long life, blessed succeeding generations, even sent pastors and missionaries into ministry, and then succumbed to old age; why they died is the subject of another article. Some congregations today are barely surviving—the sounds of death rattles can be heard even as the seriousness of the affliction is ignored. Because churches have a life-cycle, we need new church plants to replace those that do not survive.



Should established churches be ignored for the sake of church planting? Absolutely not! Some churches can be renewed—must be renewed. Churches which struggle to survive need intervention…if it is not too late. My years of ministry experience have taught me that declining or stalled churches only experience renewal if they are desperate enough to change, which may mean a willingness to sacrifice some sacred cows and follow visionary leadership. However, it is easier to give birth than to raise the dead! Having said all this, my plea to church planters is…we need you!



The obvious reason is that we need you and your people to replenish those who are no longer with us. Your churches replenish those which have closed, and new disciples fill the ranks of those who have passed on to glory. But we don’t want to just hold our own. We know that if we are only keeping pace with attrition, we are losing ground. The population is growing. Society is more unchurched. We relish the enthusiasm and need the life which new church plants bring to the body.



We need you for the way you infuse a denomination with vitality. Tim Keller emphasizes how “…planting a lot of new churches is one of the best ways to renew existing churches” (p. 360, Center Church, 2012). How does that work? The growth of church plants often force plateaued and declining churches to evaluate their identity and vision—and then make radical adjustments in the face of reality. That outcome is preferred over criticism of new churches! You can help us. Church plants serve as the Research & Development department in attempting new ministry approaches which established churches otherwise are often too reluctant to adopt. Motivate us; show us how to do better.



We need you to partner with nearby existing churches to teach concepts and principles which can enliven those churches. That would go a long way to demonstrate that you are about the kingdom. You have something to teach established churches about children’s ministry, small groups, relevant worship, and ministry focus. Yes, your ideas may scare existing churches, but if you offer help, they can’t say you didn’t care or didn’t offer assistance. As a result, you may discover that established churches offer a few resources which could bless your church plant in return.



We need you because new churches reach people established churches usually don’t and can’t reach. The disciples you produce were not being reached before you came into existence. All of us applaud you for that! In many cities and even small communities, there are not enough churches in existence if everyone decided to attend worship on any given Sunday. And we need different kinds of churches:  varied styles of worship, churches focused on ethnic identities and international churches, churches which worship on Saturday as well as Sunday, and churches which don’t have a “church building” at all. We need new church plants like this…and many more models that we have not yet even imagined. It will take all kinds of churches to reach all kinds of people.



We need you to contribute to the denomination’s united expression of domestic and international mission. I know you have connections and interests in ways and places that the CGGC is not involved. I get that—but don’t turn your back on the mother who gave you birth. Attending denominational events to learn more about the DNA of who we are and how we function goes a long way towards gaining acceptance…and a voice for greater change in the denomination. Contributing generously to cooperative and designated ministries helps to convince “legacy” churches that you are really committed to our family.



Speaking of terminology, we need you to communicate in ways that existing churches understand. I am familiar with “insider” missiology language which seems foreign to the average Christian. Church planters have similar insider vocabulary which often includes acronyms or initials which carry meaning for planters but make no sense to those who are not involved in planting. You may be students of culture and experts in contextualizing the gospel to unchurched people, but when it comes to selling your message to existing churches (i.e., convincing them to support church planting), you create barriers by communicating in ways that make others feel belittled or (worse) insulted. We all care deeply about the church. Maybe it’s not always just the fault of established churches that they don’t get it! We need you to make it plain.



“Us vs. them” attitudes should not exist in the church. They are the product of fear. Since “perfect love drives out fear” (1 John 4:18), it seems only natural (but is really supernatural) that both new church plants and established churches can benefit from a close relationship. Remember…we’re in this together. We need each other!

Thursday, August 15, 2013

UnveilinGLORY Seminar Updated



The UnveilinGLORY seminar has been revised. The content has been updated and reduced to four sessions. Here's a summary:


Cat & Dog Theology – (Session #1)

Using “Cat & Dog Theology,” participants learn how the glory of God has been lost, ignored, and hidden among the peoples of the human race. “paradigm shift” is needed from a man-centered theology back to God-centered thinking, from “ME-ow-logy” to “THEOlogy”, from believing “God exists for me” to “I exist for God," ultimately for His pleasure, His purposes, His glory.  



The Story of the Bible – (Session #2)

Jesus did not initiate the idea of the Great Commission!  With that startling announcement, this Bible workshop begins in Genesis and finds that the Old Testament has always decreed God’s desire to reach people from every tongue, every tribe and every nation.  We’ll see that while the message of the Bible has always been two-fold, much of the modern gospel is limited to only one message.  You’ll begin to see the Bible, not as 66 books – but as one book, with one introduction, one story and one conclusion.  The Bible will be understood as many stories that tell one story, His-Story.  You’ll know what that story is, and how all of history has pointed us toward that one dramatic conclusion.



The Missing Half of Your Bible – (Session #3)

If the gospel has always consisted of 2 messages (Top-Line and Bottom-Line) and we’ve only been hearing half the story, how do we find the missing half of our Bible?  Where and what is the missing message in the stories of Daniel and the lion’s den, David fighting Goliath, Solomon and his wisdom?  You’ll leave this session with a new appreciation for missions in the major stories of the Bible… and a new motivation to seek them out every time you open your Bible!



The State of the Gospel – (Session #4)

In view of our new understanding of God’s glory, our purpose in life, God’s purpose in history and our view of the main message of the Bible, how should we live and what should we do?  In this dramatic conclusion, you’ll discover what God’s doing to make Himself famous and what He asks of the Church.  You’ll also be pointed to practical things you and your church can do now to fulfill God’s greatest desire and design.  If you are excited about giving God his greatest glory… at the end of this presentation you’ll know what to do!


Sessions 1, 2, & 4 are “stand-alone” sessions and can be presented anytime. The seminar is usually held on Saturdays (for area churches to attend) or on Sundays (to maximize teaching with one congregation). My desire is best serve your church or ministry!

There are limited dates available for this fall, but I'm also scheduling for spring dates. For more information on availability in a local church, district or region, contact Don Dennison at 419-424-1961 or missions@cggc.org.