Tag Archives: Transformation

IGWET Statement of Faith

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  1. Praise
    Romans 8:28 And we know that God works all things together for the good of those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose. 29 For those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers.
  2. Word
    2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for instruction, for conviction, for correction, and for training in righteousness,
  3. Spirit
    John 14:26 But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have told you.
  4. Body
    Romans 12:5 so in Christ we who are many are one body, and each member belongs to one another.
  5. Blood
    1 John 1:7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.
  6. Mission
    Matthew 28:18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me.
    19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,
    20 and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
  7. Reflection
    Philippians 3:13 Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead,
    14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize of God’s heavenly calling in Christ Jesus.
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TGR-S6E2: Loving the World as Jesus Does

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This week on The Great Reset, our Producer Ted Hahs shares his passion for loving the world (and each other) the way Jesus does.

How will we fertilize the potatoes necessary to nourish the Body of Christ to do His work in the world?

Q. How can we better recognize the awesomeness of the many people attempting great things for God?

P: Providing a platform for them to share their story and vision in order to garner support.

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TGR-S3E5: Practicing Relational Unity

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We pivot our discussion of the Biastes Co-Discipleship Network, for the 1pm PST Tuesday, Aug 4, 2020 episode of The Great Reset, to take on the challenge of creating relational unity.

Could a platform for deliberate relational practice actually unify the Body of Christ?

Two Questions

  1. What about the Body of Christ most breaks the heart of God?
  2. What is the impossible thing that, if we were able to do it, would change everything?

Perspective

May they all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us, so that the world may believe you sent me.

John 17:21
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Christianity Beyond, Draft 1

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Bringing Heaven to Earth. One Cross at a Time.

[Update: see my background thinking in Draft 2]

Christianity Beyond is a movement of ordinary people who are learning how to make the same kind of extraordinary impact as the Jesus they love.  We honor all the ways people have sought to follow Jesus in the past and present, but dare to go beyond that in order to demonstrate to a watching world just how good and worthy Jesus is.

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RohAnjali Fall 2016 Prayer

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Dear God,

Teach us how to leave each other the way you love us.

Make us more like Jesus as we let go of what we want.

Help us hear your voice and obey you

so we can enjoy your abundant life.

We ask this in Jesus name.

Amen.

 

Redemption: A Vision in Many Pieces

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Redemption

A Vision in Many Pieces

Ernest Prabhakar

June 8th, 2001

“God, its too big for me to carry!”

“I know, my son.”

We sat at the bottom of my heart, facing the dark, concrete-like slab which was my need for love, my desire for human intimacy to the fill the void in my life and give me meaning. We had been doing some Spring Cleaning of my soul. It had been a while since I’d talked with God, and when I finally got around to it again I was surprised to discover lots of worries and fears weighing me down. The stuff on top was relatively easy – I handed over issues at work, my marriage, relations with family. But then we got down to things which had been undisturbed for years, maybe decades, and I realized I couldn’t move these myself.

“Will you carry it out?”

“Of course, but I will not do it alone. You must be a part of the process. It is yours, after all”



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LEAD! Syllabus for “Theological Foundations”

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[NOTE: the official syllabus is now on the “Lead” page; this post is obsolete, but kept for the sake of historical continuity].

[Yes, I should probably have written this before the first lesson, but better late than never…]

In thinking about it, I ought to take my Curriculum one step further, and actually identify the passages and key learnings for each lesson. Not only will this help ensure I’m on the same page as my pastor, but it would enable others to write some of the lessons (since class starts on September 4th!).

I’ve also cross-referenced these lessons against two common systematic theology books:

In addition to providing a sort index to the topics covered, this allows students and teachers to use those as supplementary textbooks.

  • Draft 1 – Sunday, 24th August
  • Draft 2 – Tuesday, 26th August: Added “Doctrine” “Essentials” chapters for each lesson
  • Draft 3 – Friday, 29th August: Added “Doctrines” chapters for each lesson

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LEAD! Curriculum Reset for “Theological Foundations”

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So, the good news is that our church is gearing up to start LEAD! on September 4th, and already taking applications! That’s also the bad news, since I’ve only finished three classes. 😦

Still, it only takes me about four hours per class, which is two late night waiting-to-feed-Rohan sessions (assuming he behaves), so I should be able to keep up.

The real problem is that my lesson topics have gone in a completely different direction that originally envisioned. More, my pastor has a slightly different vision for how things should fit together. Given the time timeframes, it is essential we get on the same page (and stick to it, if possible).

Here’s my current vision for what is now being called “Theological Foundations”. Hopefully my pastor and I can converge on this syllabus soon (once he’s no longer busy with his new grandson 🙂

[Updated and ratified 8/19 with John Isaacs]

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LEAD! A Transformational Small Group Bible Study

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The format I’m proposing for LEAD! is what I’m calling a “Transformational Small Group Bible Study”. This builds on my many years in InterVarsity Small Groups during eleven years of college, as well as numerous “home groups” in churches since then. The key aspects are:

• Bible Study

History and philosophy have their place, but for sheer impact nothing beats digging directly into the Word of God. The primary method of teaching is working inductively through a specific passage of Scripture, with additional resources acting as supplements. In addition to implicitly teaching good study skills, this also opens the door for the Holy Spirit to provide insights beyond the wisdom of the original author (i.e., me :-).

• Small Group

The best way to learn is in a small, focused team of 6-8 people (or, more broadly, 3-12). This provides both a sounding board for digesting information as well as accountability and encouragement for living it out.
• Transformational

The ultimate goal of the group is not so much to acquire information, but to be personally and corporately transformed — by and while transforming the world around us.
Below is a suggested format for achieving that…
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