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Individualism

Article by Andrew Strom

INDIVIDUALISM – ENEMY of THE CHURCH

We live in an utterly individualistic and “self”-oriented age today. I’m sure few would disagree. Every advertisement appeals to ‘self’ in some way. We are taught from childhood to be completely self-contained, reliant on no-one, living in our own little bubble where we decide exactly what will take place. We are often frightened to commit to any particular group or cause, any particular leadership. The modern man is an “individualist” to the core. “Don’t ask me to join or commit! And don’t tell me how to live my life!”

But all of this, of course, is the exact opposite of “Body”. It is the exact opposite of ‘Community’. And thus the exact opposite of the true Church. And yet millions upon millions of Christians today (especially in the West) are just as “individualistic” as the next man. Sometimes even more so.

As noted previously, the very first sentence used to describe the early church says: “And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.” (Acts 2:42).

That is the very picture of a BODY – not a pile of “individualists”. They have GIVEN themselves to a group and a cause – a group with real LEADERS who are anointed preachers from God. But it is almost anathema for a modern person to give themselves to any group in such a way. We are far too suspicious and individualistic and untrusting to ever do such a thing. And thus the question must be asked: Is it even possible to have true “BODY” in our day? Is “CHURCH” (in the true sense) even a concept that we can understand? Or have the media and our entire culture so “individualized” us that true ‘Body’ is no longer possible?

You know, Christianity is not designed to be lived out by a pack of “individualists”. And half-committed “building-attenders” on Sunday mornings are not it either. Christianity is designed to be lived out CORPORATELY – the “Body of Christ” – an entity that can be seen and observed by people – full of the glory of Jesus. A Body that corporately carries all the words and power and love and miracles of the King.

So how on earth can such a “gathering” take place? How can the scattered remnant of today come together to form such a Body? Well, it all starts with the anointed “word”. You notice in the above verse that these people gathered around a very specific thing – “The apostles’ doctrine and fellowship”. It is an anointed apostolic “word” being preached that is a crucial element in all this. From such a ‘word’ everything else follows and comes into alignment.

But the big question is- Could today’s “individualistic” types bring themselves to form a real ‘Body’ – even if such a word was being preached? Or is individualism so ingrained that even ‘apostolic’ preaching might not bring this about? Individualistic types want to tear down the local body, not build.

These are questions that every one of us should be asking ourselves if we ever hope to be part of a true movement of God in these Last Days.

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Perspective

Aligning Purpose

Image from Achieve Centre for Leadership

I was living in New Jersey when 9/11 happened. Like the majority of people, I remember exactly where I was and what I was doing that day. I lived across the Hudson River and in the weeks and months afterward I can recall seeing the makeshift memorials, the smoke, full churches, overly polite people and American flags everywhere.

181,510 Americans enlisted into active-duty service during the year after 9/11. The military hasn’t seen numbers like that since then.

I assume if you ask people why they join the military the number one reason would be to Serve Our Country. There are however other reasons. I found an on-line a list of 25 reasons for joining the military:

Serve Our Country, To Learn New Skills or a Trade, To Find Purpose, To Travel, To Get Physically Fit, To Pay for College, To Save Money, To Have Adventure, To Enjoy Job Stability, To Retire Early, To Gain Experience, To Continue Family Tradition, To Find An Alternate to College, To Earn Respect, To Form Friendships, To Receive Housing Stipend or Loan, To Learn Discipline, To Gain Perspective, To Meet Challenges, To Earn Military Perks, To Get Paid Vacation Days, To Get Help Starting A Business, To Find A Positive Environment, To Showcase Leadership Abilities.

As I am writing this, Russia and Ukraine have been at war for 70 days. Most people thought the war would be over in a week or two. The people of the Ukraine are bravely defending their land as Russian forces invade. You don’t have to convince Ukraianian people to fight, they have purpose.

I remember reading an article stating that Russian military youth were told to get on a plane not knowing where they were going. Imagine finding out you are invading your neighbor, a peaceful country, and then being asked to risk your life for this ignoble cause. Captured Russian soldiers say the same thing…

“They tricked us, they duped us, I think 90% of us would agree to go home”.

The majority of the Russian army would go home if they could.

In our house church we have been discussing what it means to be a Christian and what it means to be obedient. For me, aligning purpose is important in considering both these questions. Tony Hsieh writes in his book Delivering Happiness which focuses on employee/organizational relations.

The combination of physical synchrony with other humans and being part of something bigger than oneself (and thus losing momentarily a sense of self) leads to a greater sense of happiness.

He suggests new hires should understand and agree with the purpose of the organization before they commit to working there. I believe it is true in the church setting also.

Like joining the military or being hired on by a company, we can list multiple reasons why we say yes to Christ. Why did you say yes to Christ? Did you understand the purpose and hardships of following Christ before you said yes?

When struggle and persecution come, will you feel you’ve been duped into becoming a Christian and want to return to the comforts of home? Suffering is coming. If you watch the news you know persecution for Christians in North America has started…are you ready? We need to be sober and ask ourselves what is our purpose for following Christ, what is the purpose of the group we are a part of and what does following Christ really mean.

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Biblical Church

The First Supper

I still remember what my Calculus teacher told me. He said that it was highly unlikely that I would be solving mathematical equations later in life. Learning Calculus was useful because it would train my mind on how to solve problems. He was correct on both accounts. Problem solving and critical thinking are important in life.

The picture above is a digitally altered version of The Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci. My friend re-posted this on Facebook with quotes from all the disciples about why they couldn’t attend. The last paragraph of the post said, “Following Jesus was never meant to be a solo experience. Pull up a seat at the table. It is a level table and there is room for all of us.” The post encouraged people to attend church.

I added a comment. “Here’s an interesting question. So you attend a church for many years. You go faithfully, give money, get involved, even go to Bible study on Wednesday night. The question…how many times has the senior pastor invited you over to his/her house for a meal? For most people the answer is never! Anyone find that strange?

Look at the picture, Jesus was sharing the Passover meal with His friends. I’m sure He also ate daily with His friends…this is Jesus! If you’ve never shared a meal with your senior pastor maybe you should ask why.”

Jesus set an example for us. It’s not only The Last Supper that matters, it is also The First Supper and all The In-Between Suppers. We never question the fact that there is not “a level table” at a conventional church, not when it comes to senior leadership.

I find it important to think and discuss such matters. It has been my experience, however, that most church leaders don’t see critical thinking and/or problem solving as spiritual gifts. Questioning things in church will usually get you labeled as insubordinate. It is not a sin to think about and question what goes on in a church. It is not a sin to feel that there is something amiss.

I would attest that there is a better way, the road may be more uncomfortable, but stopping and having supper with your friends and Jesus makes it all worth the effort!

Categories
Biblical Church

God in a Salad pt.2

Yes it’s delicious! Every week, no matter what the main course is, Derek makes his salad. You can really tell that Derek delights in making his salad and delights in the reaction he gets from his guests. I imagine him in the kitchen preparing the ingredients and thinking about adding something special, all with a huge smile on his face. This is his gift to the group and we all look forward to receiving it.

I do wonder however, what would happen if Derek missed a week. Perhaps I, or someone else from the group, would try to make Derek’s salad. We would do our best to copy it, but the group would just be reminded how much they miss the real thing.

There’s no reason to try and copy someone’s gift, there’s no joy in that. God is incredibly diverse and the gifts He gives His children are wonderfully diverse. In a small group setting, if you are paying attention, it will become apparent that everyone has gifts that are unique. However, most people don’t feel what they have is anything special. Many have been conditioned to think gifting is ‘preaching’ and ‘teaching’ and they know that they will never be able to orate like a Senior Pastor, Teacher or Evangelist.

Last week someone had a song on their heart, they sang it to the group, no music, no instruments, it was beautiful. Others have had drawings, poems, words of encouragement, dreams, visions, prophetic words, inspiring thoughts. Jesus was, and is, in all of it!

Most of us will never be a Billy Graham. True joy and peace come when we realize who we are, and that what we possess is something special. Trying to fit into someone else’s mold will frustrate us, lead us to believe we ‘just don’t have it’ and eventually convince us that we have little to offer.

I pray each of us will discover our ‘special salad’ and take great joy in preparing it and serving it to others. When we do, our ‘ministry’ becomes effortless, we bless those around us and find our faith renewed.

Categories
Thoughts from Others

There Are Days

From a friend of Francis Kong

Elijah hiding in his cave


-There are days when we feel like Paul
we just want to write letters & strengthen our brothers.
-There are days when we feel like Peter
we just want to deny everything & everyone.
-There are days when we feel like Job
we just want to die and end the pain & suffering.
-There are days when we feel like Solomon
we want godly advice to make good decisions.
-There are days when we feel like Jonah
we just want to escape our responsibilities.
-There are days when we feel like Moses
afraid of not being able to speak.
-There are days when we feel like the Good Samaritan
we want to do good no matter what.
-There are days when we feel strong like Joshua and Caleb
ready for war.
-There are days when we feel like Jeremiah,
the anguish of our heart is too great.
-There are days when we feel like Daniel;
our strength is in prayer & no one can stop us.
-There are days when we feel like Elijah;
we prefer to hide in the cave.
-There are days when like David & Miriam;
we feel like singing & dancing.
-There are days when we feel like Hannah
we don’t really want to eat, we just want to cry.
-There are days when we have faith like Abraham,
to win it all, jump over walls & overcome armies.
-There are days when we look at the hills & wonder,
“Where will my help come from? “


It does not mean that we are strong or weak. It means that we are just human and have limits and therefore we need God’s power to accomplish our daily purpose on earth.


I don’t know what your day is like today.  But remember “Whatever your day is like, our loving Heavenly Father is with you today, tomorrow & forever.”


“My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9a)

Categories
Biblical Church

God in a Salad pt.1

My friend Derek makes the best salad I’ve ever had. What puts it over the top is his home-made salad dressing. Forget about asking Derek for his dressing recipe…he refuses all inquiries.

At our last house church meeting one of the guests said how good the blueberries tasted in the salad. She could tell that the blueberries were organic. Derek responded that all the ingredients were organic, yet another reason why everything tasted so delicious.

Livesstrong.com has an online article listing the 10 worst non-organic fruits and writes this about the blueberry.

Blueberries are an additional berry type that contain a high level of pesticides. The thin skin allows the chemicals to enter the fruit’s flesh. Buying blueberries organic is the safest option. Conventional blueberries contain 52 pesticide chemicals.

Wow, I didn’t even think there were 52 different types of pesticides! The use of pesticides changes the taste and might have negative health impacts down the road.

It’s interesting that house church is also know as organic church, reflecting a kind of pesticide free influence on the crop. When we gather together for house church we try to model a purity reflected in the Book of Acts. I understand how and why the church model evolved and am passionate to help de-evolve the church back to its original model. Check out my Resources page for some great books on the subject.

It is inevitable that some people will attend a house church and still attend a conventional church. People enjoy the fellowship found at the house church meetings, the ability to share and the freedom to express life experiences without judgement from others. Those same people also enjoy the conventional church with full band worship, a dynamic speaker, kid’s church, youth groups and coffee and donuts in the lobby.

Honestly, it does bother me sometimes when people don’t exhibit the same passion I have about house church. I hear them referring to our group as a Bible study or a fellowship group, not really understanding the nature of what house church is intended to be. My frustration is relieved however, when God speaks to me through a blueberry in a salad. I am praying that people will eventually taste and feel the difference. When they do, I will gladly share why!

Categories
Thoughts from Others

Free the Finances

I have pulled out some quotes from a great blog entitled How Churches Really Spend Their Money, the intersection between faith and finance by Dan Foster.

The average U.S. church spends the largest portion of its finances on personnel. Wages accounted for around 49% of the collective U.S. church’s spending in 2018. The second greatest expense was building and maintaining buildings — 23% of the budget.

With around three quarters of the church’s finances dedicated to wages and buildings, the remaining funds are distributed between missions (spreading the message of the church), programs (doing the work of ministry) and dues with 11%, 10% and 6% respectively.

As interesting as the raw data is, I can’t resist making some personal comments about the picture that the data paints. Author James W. Frick once said, “Don’t tell me where your priorities are. Show me where you spend your money and I’ll tell you what your priorities are.”

If you asked the church what it’s primary interests are, you might expect them to say things like spreading the Gospel, developing mature followers of Christ, helping the poor and needy, maybe even fighting against injustice. If this were actually true, you would expect church’s spending actually reflect these priorities. So, do they? The answer must be a resounding, “No!”

Churches spend much more money acquiring real estate and developing property than they do on helping the poor and needy. For every dollar spent doing the actual work of helping the poor and needy, the church spends at least five dollars paying wages to its pastors and leaders. This represents a profound cognitive dissonance between the church’s stated values and its actual values. It all reeks of a system that is determined to preserve itself at all costs. The very idea must make Jesus turn over in his grave — if he were still in it.

To maintain the traditional model of church, where people turn up each Sunday, sit in a pew and hear a sermon from a paid ‘expert,’ is an expensive exercise with — one could argue — limited benefits in terms of real transformation and growth in an individual. In fact, according to Francis Chan, in his book, Letters to the Church, it costs a church $1000 — $3000 per year for each person who attends a church in the traditional model. Let me explain. If you divide a church’s annual budget (say $100,000) by the number of members (say 100), it comes to $1000 per person. Depending on location, the number can be much higher (up to $3000).

What would it look like if Churches did away with their two greatest expenses — paid clergy and buildings? What would it look like if they redirected this money toward the actual work of the Christian faith?

The church that I attend meets in the humble home of one of our members. We gather each week around their table and share a simple meal together where we intentionally remember Jesus. We catch up. We share our joys and struggles. We encourage each other and keep each other accountable. We pray and give. We do all of this without paying a person to lead it. When our church takes up offerings, 100% of the money it given back to bless and help needy and hurting people.

This model of church is reproducible, relocatable, virtually free to run and, to be honest, much more enjoyable and life-giving than anything I’ve ever experienced in the institutionalized church. We all feel like we are growing as people — emotionally, relationally and spiritually.

Critics of this model — usually those who stand to lose the most from it — argue that such a model would proliferate false teaching and heresy because there may not be anyone in the room with the theological training to correct all the misguided others. Ironically though, small group meetings in individual homes was the traditional model of the early church in the Book of Acts and, so far as I know, none of Christ’s apostles had any kind of theological training. notwithstanding the fact that they knew Jesus personally. That wouldn’t be possible now though, would it? The sad reality is, the institutionalized church is just as capable of producing its own kind of false teaching and heresy, with the added possibility of thrusting it onto a much bigger crowd.

In 2017 U.S. churches received $124.52 billion in donations and spent around $90 billion of it paying staff wages, buying more land and building more buildings. But, what could the church achieve with that $90 billion if it were suddenly freed up? Well, it turns out, the global impact would be massive.

Consider this. According to an article in Relevant Magazine:

  • $25 billion could relieve global hunger, starvation and deaths from preventable diseases within five years.
  • $12 billion could eliminate illiteracy globally within five years.
  • $15 billion could solve the world’s water and sanitation issues, specifically at places in the world where 1 billion people live on less than $1 per day.
  • $1 billion could fully fund all overseas mission work

That would only leave the church a paltry $37 billion dollars for additional ministry expansion at a local level. How ever would the church cope on such small change?

It’s time for the church to put its money where its mouth is — literally. The Church talks so much about changing the world, and transforming peoples’ lives. Well, it turns out, it has the financial means to actually carry out this mission. However, it’s not going to happen until the institutionalized church surrenders its desire to build its own kingdom at the expense of God’s Kingdom. As for me, you can bet your bottom dollar that I am not going to be part of maintaining the status quo.

Categories
Biblical Church

Lonely Weed

My back wall is lined with six Bougainvillea plants. I think the previous owners planted them for privacy. The plants grow fast and shed their red petals…regular cleanup and maintenance is a must.

Once venturing out to do some trimming, I saw a weed had popped up. Single skinny stalk about three feet high with the most beautiful flowers. Instinctively I pulled it out but immediately regretted uprooting it. Why did I just kill something so beautiful?

The Lantana Camara is officially considered a weed. A weed is defined as a wild plant growing where it is not wanted and in competition with cultivated plants. It was different, it didn’t fit and it had to go, no matter how special or beautiful it was.

How does our religious mindset define what is beautiful and what is not? In what context do we define ideas of church, pastors and prophets? What do we do with people who may be beautiful but don’t fit in? Have you ever felt that you didn’t fit in organized church? Unfortunately, like the Lantera Camara, if you don’t conform in a corporate church there is little chance of thriving.

I think of the Old Testament prophets, John the Baptist and Jesus. Organized religion didn’t recognize their beauty and so they did as I did, plucked them out.

As a house church facilitator, I am amazed at how unique, wonderful, beautiful and yes wild people can be. Most Christ followers have never been given a chance to express themselves in a spiritual setting. We rely on pastors, teachers and small group leaders to feed us, which then sets a pattern of how things are done and defines what is normal.

You can now purchase Lantana Camara, plant them and admire your ‘weed’ garden. My prayer is for more weed gardens to pop up and thrive, creating a new definition of what is a Biblical Church. Don’t give up if you have been hurt by religion…you just need to find a place where you can thrive.

Categories
Biblical Church

Stones and Bricks

So a fork lift drops a skid of bricks in front of you and then a skid of natural stones.  You’re asked to build a wall.  Which would you pick? 

Hmmm, well I guess if you were considering how long it would take or how easy it would be, you would pick the bricks.  You would start with the first row, add the mortar, stagger them and add another row and another and in no time you would have a wall.  Natural stones are in all shapes and sizes.  You would most likely lay them all out on the ground, consider each one and then come up with a plan.  Maybe the larger more uniform stones would be placed at the base and then the others would have to be fitted, determined by your hand and skill.  This would take much longer and would be much more of a challenge.

We find bricks in the Bible at the story of the Tower of Babel. 

They settled there and said to each other, ‘Let’s form bricks and bake them.  Let’s build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the sky.  Let’s make a name for ourselves, for otherwise we’ll be scattered across the face of the earth.

Genesis 11:2-4

Bricks are also a key element with the children of Israel in Egypt.  Both seem associated with the key phrase in Genesis 11 – Let’s make a name for ourselves, let’s build something that will be a monument to our greatness. Bricks are also associated with slavery.

God seems to love stones, natural and beautiful.  In fact if you read in Exodus 20:25 or Deuteronomy 27:4-6 when God says “build me an altar” He not only wants natural stones, He gives instructions not to hew them or use iron tools on them.  They are perfect the way they are! Maybe you’re perfect the way you are?

If you’re like me, you’ve found yourself in many brick and mortar churches throughout your lifetime.  The leadership wants to build high and fast. It seems no matter how much the Pastor and the leadership try to hew you and cut you up, you just can’t fit into their wall. It becomes painful to become a brick in a wall that is elevating one person.  After a while you get frustrated, maybe leave church all together, thinking there is something wrong with you.  If you’ve ever struggled with this, let me assure you, you’re a stone.  Each of us is created differently, we’re all different sizes and shapes, different colors and textures.  It’s God’s plan to take each of us and examine us and fit us into his Holy Temple based on the Chief Cornerstone, Jesus Christ. 

It’s so freeing to be part of a group of believers that is not determined to build something that is a monument to someone’s greatness.  We are aware that each one is beautiful and different and we are allowing Christ to gently fit us together. 

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Categories
Biblical Church

Walking in Circles

My wife and I are taking a little vacation in a couple of weeks. Our ideas of vacation are very different. She will plan out our itinerary every day, making sure we have a fun-packed time. She is awesome and I do end up enjoying myself. However if it was up to me I would just hang out and rest, sit by the beach, wander through the mountains, take lots of naps. I like resting.

The word rest is in the Bible over 500 times but I can’t remember hearing one sermon on this topic…hmm.   I  finished reading Hebrews 3 and 4 which talks about rest and verse 4:9 says, “There remains therefore a rest for the people of God.”  However this promise is conditional and in earlier verses it says that not everyone will enter.  The illustration is given of the Hebrews walking in circles for 40 years before entering the Promised Land.  We all know that even God rested on the 7th day; so maybe it is something we need to understand and appreciate.

There is something wrong with the current, familiar church structure. Take a look at some of these statistics I found on soulshepherding.org. A quick web search will give you even more grim statistics concerning Pastors.

75% of pastors report being “extremely stressed” or “highly stressed”
90% work between 55 to 75 hours per week
70% of pastors say they have a lower self-esteem now than when they entered ministry
70% constantly fight depression
50% feel so discouraged that they would leave their ministry if they could, but can’t find another job
80% believe their pastoral ministry has negatively affected their families and 33% said it was an outright hazard 
80% of ministry spouses feel left out and unappreciated in their church
77% feel they do not have a good marriage
41% display anger problems in marriage (reported by the spouse)
38% are divorced or divorcing
50% admit to using pornography and 37% report inappropriate sexual behavior with someone in the church
65% feel their family is living in a glass house

It is no wonder we don’t hear sermons on rest…the system is designed to overwork and burn out pastors.

As a facilitator of a house church the biggest struggle is to get people to participate. The conventional church conditions people to rely on the pastor for everything. Just come to church and get fed. I refuse to fall into that trap.

I found that over time people do understand and begin to participate, and when they do, it is such a joy to witness. When everyone shares we begin to see God from different perspectives and we understand Him in different ways. We all have valuable input even children and youth. It’s a shame that in a conventional setting youth and children are sent away.

There is wisdom in how God instructed us to gather and participate revealed in the Book of Acts. It really works and it is worth the effort to get there.