» 2007 » August

I’ve reflected recently about God’s activity in shaping a leader through the painful experience of being unravelled: the Wall. It’s a recurring pattern in the lives of leaders who finish well.

The same pattern is clearly discerned in the birth and rebirth of Christian movements. God unmakes his people in order to reshape them.

The church in [...]

Google the topic “Church Planting Movements” (CPMs) and the name David Garrison dominates the results. For good reason.

You can now visit iTunes and search for David Garrison or Church planting movements and you can subscribe to his podcast.

Topics include:
Why CPMs are ImportantTen Universal Elements in a CPMHow to kill a CPMDiscipleship in CPMs10 CPM CommandmentsMuslim [...]

According to one report the largest expulsion of foreign Christian missionaries since 1954 has been taking place in the lead up to the Bejing Olympics.

Up to 100 foreign Christian workers and missionaries were expelled since February.

Nobody knows exactly how many Christians there are in China — 50 million? 100 million? Bob Fu of the China [...]

I was in Tasmania last week. Spent some time with the good people at New Directions.

We debriefed their Natural Church Development profile. Celebrations all around. New Directions is one of the healthiest churches in Australia, and it shows.

I sat in their cafe and watched local high school students pass through on the way to mentoring [...]

Every preference of a small good to a great, or a partial good to a total good, involves the loss for the small or partial good for which the sacrifice was made. Apparently the world is made that way. If Esau really got the pottage in return for his birthright, then Esau was [...]

Here’s a lesson in US church history from Tim Keller from his article on Why Plant Churches?

In 1820, there was one Christian church for every 875 US residents. But from 1860-1906, Protestant churches planted one new church for increase of 350 in the population, bringing the ratio by the start of WWI to just 1 [...]

I’ve been out and about around Oz lately building support for next1000 initiative with church planting leaders.

Plenty of coffee and lunches with leaders of flagship churches, denominations and movements and some crazies on the fringe.

Somehow we get around to talking about how they’re doing. I’ve been amazed at how many key leaders around the nation [...]

Patrick has been serving in Asia among Muslims for more than twenty years, first as a missionary and later as a tentmaker. He has established two churches and several profitable businesses and currently oversees teams in nine countries.

Patrick spent six years surveying, interviewing and compiling data from 450 workers from many organizations and denominations serving [...]

What is God up to when the wheels fall off the wagon of your life and ministry? You find yourself asking these questions:

Will I ever do ministry again?
Will I ever make a significant contribution to the Kingdom of God?
Will I always be alone and filled with this much pain?
Will I ever be in a job [...]

I’ve only just got to see Amazing Grace on a flight back from New Zealand. For some reason the film has only just been released in Australia.

The experience inspired me to pick up John Pollock’s biography of Wilberforce. Pollock tells the story of Wilberforce’s “Dark Night of the Soul” recorded in a small red leather [...]