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Equipper Blog

June 29, 2010 by design343

What Do You REALLY Want?

An interesting thing happened to me on the way to church planting.

I got offered a 70k a year job out of the blue.

Before we felt drawn (or pushed… pushed probably fits better!) to plant a new community here in Portland, I had been sending out a lot of resumes. I knew it was time to get out of the media job I had been doing and back into pastoral ministry, and to that end I was putting out the feelers far and wide. But… I kept being number 2. It came down time and again to me and someone else, and yet in the end- always someone else.

At about that time, God really grabbed my attention. I was told my media job would be ending, and I’d have 3 months to figure out what came next. We had just bought a house, gotten pregnant… mild panic began to set in.

I woke up one morning, and was laying in bed, resolving to redouble my efforts at resume-sending, when my beautiful wife opened her eyes and the first words out of her mouth were, “Well, we could sell the car, sell the house…”

“Don’t worry,” I said, “I don’t think it will get that bad. I’m sure we’ll find something.”

“No,” she said, “I mean, so we can plant a church! It’s what you’ve always said you wanted to do.”

Always said, and never really had the nerve to do.

Until that day. That was the first of many conversations that day which God used to move me from “I need to send resumes out” to “We need to plant a church.” October 27th, 2003. It was a big day.

About a week later, I got a call, though. It was someone offering me a job. No thanks, I told him. We’re going to plant a church. 70k? Uh… no, no… we’re going to plant a church. Over the next couple of weeks I kept getting the same call, from the same guy. It was as though my resolve to plant just triggered something in him- “That’s EXACTLY the kind of person we want for this position!” he told me repeatedly.

I’ll confess- there were a few moments where I looked at my pregnant wife and thought- really? Wouldn’t the wise thing be to take this job?

As I prayed it through, I felt God pretty clearly putting the question to me: Do you really want to plant a church? All this stuff you have been saying about the people who are missing from the standard evangelical churches in Portland, all this about My kingdom, about presenting the Good News of Jesus in ways that people who aren’t part of the church world can grab ahold of… Did you mean it? Because here’s a simple way out if you didn’t.”

I meant it. We turned down the offer, stepped out and planted a church community. But I’ve since seen that scenario played out time and again with new church planters. It seems to be something of a motif in the way God often (not always, but often) works.

And I saw it again today in a very similar question I heard. This morning, to be exact.

We’re now in year 7 of our community, the year I’ve been told marks something of a speed bump for church planters/new communities. The year it gets hard. The year you either endure or fold.

For us, it looks like a general season of churn, hard conversations, an uphill battle to flag some lagging enthusiasm, a need to refocus on mission… And lots of fun conversations about finances.

Oh yes.

We’ve never missed a paycheck in 7 years or been unable to pay another of our pastors. We all either do work on the side or raise support, so none of us look to the community for 100% of our income, and yet- it’s still the majority and very much needed. Last month, when we saw the trend we realized- we may not be able to make payroll. Further, our treasurer, the only one with a real detailed view into who gives (someone’s gotta do those tax statements!) let us know- so far this year, only 56% of Evergreeners had given anything at all. The conversation that came out of us letting the community know both of those facts was hard, but very good. In the end, people stepped up and we were actually OVER what we ask for from the community for the first time this year.

All good? Not exactly- Maybe everyone just moved their giving from this month back a couple weeks and gave early? In any case, we’re severely under budget again. And worse, it seems only about 15% of our community pitched in financially this month.

That number is disheartening on a number of levels. Besides the fact that I needed to let my wife know we may not get a full paycheck this month (our other staff will- I’ll make sure of that), it’s discouraging enough to make someone legitimately ask “Are we really all in this together? Do we care? Or are we just playing church?”

I woke up this morning with a heavy heart, thinking about all of this- wondering what the answers to those questions were. As I lay there, I started praying “God, please… I want this thing we started to continue, to live on…”

And that’s when I heard the familiar Voice: “Really? Why?”

God was asking me- is this about building a church? An institution? Or is it about something, or Someone, else? All this stuff you have been saying about the people who are missing from the standard evangelical churches in Portland, all this about My kingdom, about presenting the Good News of Jesus in ways that people who aren’t part of the church world can grab ahold of… Do you mean it?

And that’s when I realized God had brought me full circle.

Here in year seven, I feel God pretty clearly asking me- What do you want? What’s it about for you?

I believe in church- but church isn’t an end to itself. I want a paycheck this month, but I’m not going to start looking at the pastor porn of Ministry Job Boards and dreaming about other places where things might be more predictable. For me, Evergreen is a means to an end, and the end is Jesus.

Here’s what I really want: I want Jesus. I know church comes with Him (it is His body and bride after all), but first and foremost, I want Jesus. I want Evergreen to go on, not for my sake, but for His– and for the sake of those He is loving into the kingdom through our community. And that means I never get to pastor the fully committed, already mature and stable community that, in my weaker moments I daydream about. I’ll always, to one extent or another, be dealing with questions like this, because I’ll always be working to move hearts and minds (including my own) from places of immaturity towards growth and greater depth of commitment to Jesus and one another.

So I’ll ride this one out however long this “speedbump” time lasts. Where else would I go? What else would I do? For as long as God allows me, I’m on this ride, helping to lead this community, pointing our church towards loving each other, loving the city of Portland and loving Jesus… because it’s the best way I know, given my gifts and callings, and until I hear otherwise, to serve Him.

Bob Hyatt is the lead pastor of the evergreen community, a church community in Portland, OR. More importantly he is the husband of Amy and the father of Jack, Jane and Josie.

Filed Under: Equipper Blog, Leadership

June 18, 2010 by design343

Leading Missionary Engagement in Context

A talk by Bob and Mary Hopkins at our 2010 Annual Gathering.

Filed Under: Church & Culutre, Ecclesia Events Podcast, Media, National Gathering 2010

June 18, 2010 by design343

Imperfect Community

In a recent blog post called “The Pleasure of an Imperfect Community” Bob Hyatt hit on something very simple, yet something very important about this thing we call “church.” He writes,

“Yeah- we’re going to annoy the crap out of each other. You are going to hear some bad sermons. Someone will say something stupid on the City or even to your face. People will forget your birthday and occasionally not show up when you need them. It’s how community works because it’s how life works. But what’s present in community that is so often missing from life is… Grace. The very thing that seems to flower and bloom not in our successes but in our failures.”

In Eugene Peterson’s newest book, Practicing Resurrection, he hits on some of these similar themes. It is well worth the read and so is Bob’s blog. Check out the rest of Bob’s blog post here.

Filed Under: Equipper Blog, Leadership

March 1, 2010 by design343

Blogger Reviews of the 2010 National Gathering

A number of those who participated in the Ecclesia National Gathering have blogged about the event since it ended:

  • Reflections on the Ecclesia National Gathering — Ben Sternke
  • Ecclesia Network National Gathering — Bob Hyatt
  • Dallas Willard on Missional Evangelism – Willard at Ecclesia Network National Gathering — David Fitch
  • Preaching for the Missional Church: One More Tidbit from Dallas Willard at the Ecclesia Network National Gathering — David Fitch
  • Ecclesia National Gathering, Part 1 — Doug Paul
  • Ecclesia National Gathering, Part 2 — Doug Paul
  • Ecclesia National Gathering 2010: Missional & White — Drew Hart
  • The Non-Cynical Conference — Geoff Holsclaw
  • Impressions of Ecclesia — Jason Salamun (just added!)
  • reflections from the 2010 ecclesia national gathering — John Chandler
  • Ecclesia National Gathering Thoughts — JR Briggs
  • Affirmed in My Craziness — JR Briggs
  • 2010 Ecclesia National Gatherings — JR Rozko
  • Knowing Christ Today: Notes from Talk by Dallas Willard, Part 1 — JR Woodward
  • Ecclesia National Gathering & Diversity & Dallas Willard — Todd Hiestand

(Clearly, many of us aren’t very creative in the Blog Titling department…) If you are aware of others that we have missed, please leave a comment on this post and we’ll add them to the list.

Filed Under: Equipper Blog

November 5, 2009 by design343

Why Are You Part of Ecclesia?

This is a question you may be asking yourself. This may be a question your congregation is asking you. This also maybe a question you are asking to all the churches that are in the network.

JR Briggs, a pastor at the Renew Community in Lansdale, PA, just published a great blog post beginning to address this question here.

Filed Under: Equipper Blog

July 3, 2009 by design343

Reflections on the Ecclesia Bootcamp

By Bob Hyatt

This was the second time I’ve participated in a Church Planters Boot Camp and the first time I got to present at one. 

And in comparing my two experiences, I think I can say, like all things Ecclesia-related, this one was just “better.” 

Part of the value of Ecclesia is that when they say “relational network”, they actually mean it. Those involved in the network agree to be in relationship with each other, not just in some vague metaphorical sense, but with actual phone calls, conversations, and time spent with each other. 

This seems to all begin at the boot camp, with meals together, late night talks, long walks on the beach (ok… I made that last one up, but still.)

From the moment I arrived, I began to realize – this is a room of like-minded individuals intent on seeing the Gospel spread and healthy, missionally-minded communities planted. And in the lonely world of church planting, I can think of few things more valuable than having a handful of friends like that.

The boot camp itself was a great mix of the theoretical and the practical, the motivational and the devotional. Times of prayer, times of discussion, lots of learning and lots of dreaming. Plenty of room for divergent models- no, not everyone here is going to plant the same kind of church- but a common heart because of a common focus on the person of Jesus.

If you ever take part in one of these bootcamps, and you should, just don’t expect to be wowed by experts who started their church and a year later had 1,000 people showing up. This wasn’t like that… and since your church planting experience probably won’t be either, that’s a good thing. 

This was a really healthy mix of seasoned practitioners and newer church planters all sharing what they’ve learned along the way. And everyone was invited and even expected to do the same. This boot camp quickly became a community of learners and teachers as everyone contributed.

The setting of the Richmond Hill community was wonderful with its rhythms of daily prayer and contemplative atmosphere. Hard to imagine a better setting for listening to God and seeing what it is He might be birthing in you as regards church planting. 

This boot camp is an annual event so there will be another one in 2010. If you are interested in learning more about Ecclesia and the boot camp, you are invited to e-mail Christ Backert by using our the contact form on our website.

You can listen to the audio from the 2009 boot camp here

Filed Under: Equipper Blog Tagged With: Aggelos, Bob Hyatt, Boot Camp, Church Planting

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