Church Planting or Jesus Planting or both or neither?

A good question came through on Twitter that I thought would be worth noodling on: "How do we inspire, encourage, get traction on a 1-on-1 discipleship movement inside the "organization" of the local church?" (Thanks Brett Crimmel)

That's a really good question. You see when we start a church we are thinking about the usual church things that we're accustomed to:

worship--check
small groups--check
missions--check
children's ministry--check
youth ministry--check
greeters--check
community building--check
outreach--check
other stuff--check

And so we do that and we work it and we are praying and hoping for the best and then we evaluate and we look around and we see what we've accomplished and some of it is AWESOME! Some of it we can really be proud of. The crowd may be really, really good! But when we ask about transformation, the results aren't always what we were hoping for.

It seems like the things of church don't make for radical transformation.

But what about the things of Jesus?

1 guy (Jesus) took on 12 guys (knucklehead disciples) and said, "follow me." And then he did life with them...investing his whole life in them.

Now our capacity may not be 12 people, but how about 1? That wouldn't be so hard, would it? What if we took on 1 person for 1 year and taught them everything we know about following Jesus (that is IF you're actually following Jesus--because if you're NOT then this is NOT going to work--you may teach them a lot of information, but if you're not living it, it will not translate into transformation.)

So...back to the question...HOW do we do that?
1. Look around your church and see who is actually following Jesus. The number might be small but don't worry...just get started with what you've got.

2. (If you are a pastor) Take those people on for 1 year (I use the 1 year time frame loosely--could be more, could be less, could be way more)

3. Ask them to take on 1 person for 1 year.

4. Be prepared for it to go slow.

5. Within that year, the other person must be investing in 1 person for 1 year.

6. Let the reproduction take its course and and then momentum won't be an issue.

We are just embarking on this journey and it's tough to do.
--People don't have the margin and will have to make adjustments.
--We may have to release people from 'church work' to give them the freedom to invest in another person.
--People aren't rested enough to give back to people. Sabbath is a lost discipline.
--People don't like being challenged (Confession: I don't like it either)
--And I'm sure we could come up with other barriers
But I'm confident that the results will be worth it.

So we can keep rockin' with all our church stuff, but if real discipleship and transformation is what we're after, then we might want to check out the Jesus model.

Want to read even more about this from a guy that's way further down the road than us on this? Check out Aaron Snow's blog HERE.


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Follow WithoutWax.tv in India

One Life Can Make a Difference (From WithoutWax.tv)

We flew into Kolkata, India this morning and after settling in went on a little tour to get familiar with the region. One of the stops was the home/mission of Mother Teresa. I grew up Baptist, so to be honest, we didn’t hear a whole lot about Mother Teresa. However, I’ve always been oddly drawn to her work. While I’ve quoted her and used her example in countless message illustrations I’m not sure I ever really understood the huge heart behind this tiny woman until today.

I stood outside of her little humble room and couldn’t help but be reminded that God can use anyone, anywhere, for anything. This was the same room where she wrote so many of the words that have inspired millions. The same little room where she heard from God time and time again and followed Him no matter what the cost. This was the same room where she went to be with the Lord on September 5th, 1997.

And although she’s passed from this earth her ministry continues. Today, I looked in the eyes of hundreds of orphans who are getting love, food, and Jesus because of the sacrifices this woman made. I could never put into words how absolutely heartbreaking it was to look at these precious children. With a lump in my throat, doing everything I could to hold back the tears, I walked by crib after crib after crib of sick orphaned children.

In one crib there was the most beautiful 3 or 4 week old infant several of us just couldn’t get enough of. Angie asked the nurse her name and the nurse replied, “Oh she has no name. These babies will not live long enough to give them a name.”

I don’t think any of us knew how to respond to such overwhelming despair.

How could one woman work in those conditions and experience the weight of that grief for decades as Mother Teresa did? Now I understand exactly what she meant when she said, “I have come to love the darkness.”

One of my favorite Mother Teresa quotes is “I am a little pencil in the hand of a writing God who is sending a love letter to the world. ”

My prayer for this trip is very similar. God you are the author. As pain filled and tragic as things are in India it’s still your story and I want to find out how I fit into it. God allow me to be your instrument. Allow me to be your bright hope in the midst of darkness. Allow my eyes and the eyes of everyone following this trip to be awakened to your call to action.

One woman followed God’s call and simply loved. Maybe you will too.

If your interested in sponsoring a child in India who desperately needs your love and support CLICK HERE. We CAN make a difference!

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Blessed!

I got to spend today with my mom, grandma and sister (and her family). All of my life they have blessed me and I feel blessed to have them in my life today!

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Heading to BG

I'm heading to Bowling Green, Kentucky today home of my alma mater Western Kentucky University (pics below). I'll be teaching a Serendipity small groups conference for the KY Baptist Convention at Living Hope Baptist Church. Should be a lot of fun!

I'll also make a quick trip through Louisville, KY to see my mom, grandmother and sister who live there. That should be a blast! And delicious! You know that already if you've ever eaten my mom's food.

There are so many experiences and memories and friends from the years I spent in KY. I wish I had a lot more time to hang out there for a while, but this will be a quick in and out trip.

Pray for a safe trip. Pray for my family while I'm away. And pray for the conference...that it will help people live out the Kingdom of God in a bigger and more vibrant way.

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What if Jesus scored touchdowns?

I usually end my days looking at the scores from the day. I see who won, who lost. I look for my teams. I check out my friends teams.

And my reaction is always the same.

If my team wins I'm all excited.
If my team beats a friends team I'm jumping up and down and doing a dance.
If my team loses I'm bummed.
If my team loses to a friend's team I'm awaiting the dreaded gloating email.

And then all of the sudden...whack! It him me.

What if Jesus scored touchdowns or made three pointers or scored goals and he was like a dynasty type guy that was kicking eveyrone's butt all the time and each night I got to check on the scores and it would be like Jesus-1040488, Opponent-0.

Is that why sometimes I get more excited about my football team than I do Jesus?
Is that why I get more excited about pulling off a worship gathering than Jesus himself?
Is that why we get pumped over closing a business deal more than over Jesus?
Is that why our worship sags at church but is vibrant when we're watching out team on TV?

Have I been so duped by the winning mentality that unless I have solid, day in and day out, visible wins from Jesus then I'm just not that excited...or worse-- I'm groveling, head down, waiting for my friend who's not on the Jesus team to send me the email that his team won again and Jesus didn't show up.

I'm so there some days.

It's so hard to wrap my mind around an already won game in a world that doesn't know it and keeps gloating about their 'victories' that I know don't amount to anything at the end of this world, but sure make my eyes light up now.

It's hard to keep moving and playing hard each day when there are so many seeming defeats on our hands and I want so badly for Jesus to step into the game and throw a pass into the end zone and just win it the darn thing.

But in the most bizarre of ways I'm reminded of the already recorded last play. I'm reminded that there is still time on the clock. I'm reminded that I have the All-Pro of All-pros on the field with me right here and right now--He's chosen to get dirty with me. I'm reminded of the already accumulated victories all around me and in history past. I'm reminded of the personal victories Jesus has won in my life.

And then I start cheering inside. I start hoping again. I start getting excited about what is to come. And I get a little grin that crosses my face. The kind of grin you see every once in a while from a player that is in the zone and just knows he can't be stopped. I get that grin because I know how this will end. I know who is going to win. And the day to day hits are nothing compared to the game-winning play that's coming.

Touchdown Jesus!


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Dog, Cat or Mountain Goat?

We watched Marley & Me a couple of nights ago. I thought it was going to be a nice, fun movie with a little romance and a little fun puppy dog but if you've watched it you know it wasn't that. About halfway through the movie the crying began and it didn't stop until two hours after the movie was over. It didn't help that we went through the same thing with our Golden Retriever, Maverick a couple of years ago.

It wasn't all bad, though. I think it actually helped me love our little dog ECO a little more than I had before. I don't know if he is a dog, a cat or a mountain goat the way he acts but he's definitely growing on me.


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Soft Hearts Change the World

This world has a way of hardening our hearts and making them calloused to the hurt and pain and injustice around us. I see it all around me and I see it in myself.

I can be so selfish. I can be so stubborn. I can care so little.

But it can be different!

This week a young woman shared her story with our community. She told us of how she grew up in rural Vietnam, how she later moved to the big city of Hanoi and how she met good people that introduced her to outrageous Love--the kind of love that cares, the kind of love that helps, the kind of love that leaves selfishness behind and looks ahead to give itself away.

She saw this Love inside of some people that came through the shop she worked at in the streets of Hanoi. That Love has led her to work for an organization called Glocal Ventures that helps the neediest people in Vietnam. She helps to provide clean water and food and clothes and supplies and education to people that can't get it for themselves. It is good work! It is courageous work!

As I listened to her story today and saw first hand Love living inside of her I couldn't help but see how Love can transform a heart and make it different than what this world tries to make it.

So I said to her, "You have such a big heart." And she replied, "Oh no, my heart cannot get any bigger....my heart is only soft now." I just nodded my head...knowing exactly what she meant. And as I asked the next question in the interview I found myself hoping and praying that my heart would be soft like hers.

And then I looked out to the people looking up at us and I asked for the same thing for them. My heart longs for hundreds and thousands of soft hearts ready to put selfishness aside and live for the things that really matter.

Thanks Huong! You're an inspiration to all of us! And thanks Glocal Ventures for all the good work you do in Vietnam! We're so proud to be a partner in your efforts.


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The "P" word

The word "prospect" is clearly defined in the dictionary:

pros⋅pect n.  [pros-pekt]

1. an apparent probability of advancement, success, profit, etc./ˈprɒspɛkt/

2. the outlook for the future; good business prospects.

3. something in view as a source of profit.

4. a potential or likely customer, client, etc

5. An apparent indication of ore or native metal

Those definitions are clear enough, right? The word is used for business and mining. So why in the world would we use the word "prospect" to describe people whom the church is trying to reach with the love of Christ?

Now....I grew up calling people "prospects." It's what the church called them, it's what the pastors called them, it's what seminary taught me to call them. I'm as guilty as the next guy. We didn't know any better. That's just what we were taught. And when we said 'prospect' we meant well, too.

But here's what I'm thinking: We were taught wrong, we are wrong and we should STOP using that word in that way.

The people we are trying to reach with the love of Christ are not prospects or projects or puppies. They are PEOPLE! PEOPLE! PEOPLE!

The moment they become anything other than that we have lost God's perspective for them. We have failed to see them as God sees them. They've become a means to OUR ends....not a precious, loved, child of God, full of potential to enter into and participate in the Kingdom of God.

God, forgive us of all the ways we have demean the people you love.

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Fun in the Mountains (click on pics to enlarge)

From time to time we are able to get away and concentrate on our immediate family...just the five of us. I love those times of undivided attention.

Here are a few pics from the last few days at the YMCA of the Rockies Estes Park Center. We had a great time. Gary Van Horn (director) and the staff took incredible care of us! A BIG 'thank you' them!

YMCA

HIKING

HORSES

SNUGGLER'S COVE

PUT-PUT

ARTS & CRAFTS

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Cool River Easter Recap

Well they say that Easter is kinda like the Super Bowl for church. And they're right. It's a huge day in the life of the church.

I've always tried to fight against the "special Sunday" mentality but you know...it's real. More people come to church on Easter than any other Sunday. It's a big deal.

It is no doubt a special day and I get hyped up and emotional about it from a personal standpoint. But from a church standpoint I always find myself wishing everyone would want to party like it's Easter every Sunday of the year. You know what I'm sayin'?

Either way, though, I believe with all my heart that we should definitely be ready to take full advantage of the opportunity that we are given by God on this special day.

OK...so with all that off my chest....let me just say that Easter at Cool River was AWESOME.

• Worship was inspiring and the team was ON! There was a lot of energy and passion!
  

• Communion (Lord's Supper) was extremely meaningful. It was awesome to see the people participate. I was an emotional wreck through this for myself and the church. I couldn't hold back the tears.
  

• I felt free and alive during my message. I talked about the factors that led me to surrender my life and follow Jesus as my King. (The message should be up here in a day or two.)
  

• The auditorium was packed. It's always fun to keep setting out more and more chairs. (I admit it. I liked it! Probably too much.)
  

It was a really great day with a bunch of really great people and I feel blessed to have been a part of it.

My prayers:

• That Jesus was honored by our worship.

• That communion brought genuine reflection to hearts and helped people truly remember the sacrifice that was made for them

• That my story resonated with many and that every single person took their next step in their Journey with Jesus.

• That every person in that room yesterday will be moved to party like it's Easter and follow Jesus as their King every Sunday they gather in worship, every day they live and every breath they take.

How was Easter Sunday for you? Let's keep celebrating!


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You are going to church tomorrow, aren't you?

Easter Bunny Rap

When Bunnies Attack!

Easter Video Blog

The story of Jesus is pretty phenomenal.

I hope that you find a church near you this Sunday to hear the whole thing!

Twitter Rewards--WOW!

Who says it doesn't pay to Twitter?

Last night a bunch of us got together to watch the big game at the Tap Room of the Omni Hotel in Broomfield.

I thought I'd also invite some folks through Twitter....which I did....easy as pie, right?!

Later that day, I received a reply from @omnihotels saying, "Enjoy the Tap Room at the Omni Interlocken! We'll look for you there!"

I didn't think anything of it besides, "Cool...they found my tweet!"

When I arrived, one of the Omni staff asked if I was Kevin Colon and I said, "yes" and he said, "right this way Mr. Colon. You are our VIP guest tonight. We have a table reserved for you and the first round of drinks are on the house for you and your friends."

When we got to the table, this was on the table top place-marker:

Huge Lesson of the Day: If you don't Twitter....you better start!

Huge Lesson of the Day #2: Next time I invite you to a party, you better come...cause you might just get something FREE!

Thanks Omni Interlocken & The Tap Room

Sincerely,
@colonkevin on Twitter

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Take Jesus out of the story

The Story of God in Four Acts:

Creation--God created everything and everyone.

Fall--The first people decided to go their own way and fractured their relationship with God

Redemption--Jesus (God with skin on) enters the scene, lives a sinless lie, gives himself up to be executed as a payment for all our sins, and rises from death three days later to prove his power over sin and death.

Restoration--From the time we believe in Jesus the restoration process begins and one day Jesus will come back and usher his a new Heaven and a new earth and everything will be restored to its original beauty and perfection.

But what if Jesus was missing from that story? Is it a big deal? If he's just a good moral teacher, we're still good, right?

Not really.

Without Jesus:

• There would be no real example as to how we are to be like God.

• There would be no church community that embodies the selfless, loving and sacrificial life of Jesus.

• There would be no mission.

• There would be no redemption. We'd still be sacrificing, observing the law, and waiting for Messiah.

• There would be no tangible hope for restoration.
  

Jesus is the hinging point. Without him the story is not complete.

In Matthew 16, Jesus asks, "Who do you say that I am?"
Doesn't Jesus' life and claims and impact on the world demand that we would all answer that question seriously?

Today I'm praying for all of my friends...people of faith and people without faith...followers of Jesus, God-fearers and followers of other gods. I pray that you would let Jesus' question ring in your ears and hang in your hearts today and this week and for as long as it takes. And I pray that you will find an honest answer. You owe it to yourself to know your answer and have some substance to back it up.

Much Love and Peace to you all.


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The "Church Next" (PT.4)

So the "church-next" is sacrificial, incarnational, and missional. I'm sure we could probably add to those...but those are three biggies that at least will set some foundation for other stuff.

Now, if you were to give yourself a grade on those, what would it be?

I'll go first. Let's see....at our church and I think we are a giving church but maybe not a sacrificial church, yet. We are incarnational in a lot of ways, but I wouldn't say it's our normal pattern of life. And if you came and spent some time shadowing us, "missional" may not be the word you would use to describe us. So I would give our church a B, C, and a D-.

Isn't that great?! Nope, not really. It actually kinda sucks!

And what sucks most of all is that most of the problem is because I used a lot of religious tactics to accomplish the 'church-next' rather than to employ the biblical ideas behind making disciples that Jesus and the disicples modeled for us.

• I thought I could accomplish it (the church-next) through preaching. If I said it loud enough and with enough passion...everyone would get it and start living it. Nope!
• I thought I could make is happen through small groups. If we got everyone reading the scriptures and engaging in honest conversation then we'd be reproducting missional disciples like rabbits. No, again.
• I thought I could hand-pick a few people and challenge them to do it. You know, choose a few Christians, give them the rah-rah speech and set them loose. But that hasn't worked either.
  

Now, we do have some disciples (the kind that make other disciples) but it has been more luck than intentionality. It has been more God gifting them to us than it was from a purposefully lived life of disciples investing in people that became disciples that did it all over again.

So, truly, this is the next big challenge we are tackling as a church and it won't be easy. And for this "let's make it happen now" guy...it won't come fast enough. But I'm so excited about what can happen.

The alternative, of course, is worse than the sweat and tears and time ahead. If we don't do the hard work of what it means to be the 'church-next' we're doomed to becoming a religious club with intermittent impact....which might be OK for some...but it wasn't what Jesus was after. It's not OK for Him. (which means it cannot possibly be OK for us!)

So how do we do that?
The only course of action (and a big duh!) is to go back to Jesus' model: Call a few people to follow, invest your life into them, ask them for action and obedience, live with them in such a way that you can teach them as you go, send them out to do the same for a few others, stick with them through the journey.

It takes time. It takes purpose. It takes intentionality. It's going to kick our butt as leaders. But it's worth the cost. What we get on the other end will make us (and Jesus) very happy. We'll finally feel like we're accomplishing the mission.

I know I'm praying for this to happen in our church. We are an awesome church (and if you're a part of Cool River you know that) ....but we could be so much more. God wants us to be so much more!

I'm looking for some folks to start a revolution. Anyone want in?!


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The "Church Next" (PT.3)

The Church-Next is Sacrificial.
The Church-Next is Incarnational.
The Church-Next is Missional.

Missional is a word that is definitely getting tossed out a lot these days and for the most part it is misunderstood.

Some think missional is about house church.
Some think missional is about emerging church.
Some think missional is about anti-numerical growth.
Some think missional is about sending people to Uganda.
Some think missional is about the new way to say you're anti-status-quo.

But missional simply means 'sent'....that's it.
The mega church can do it.
The house church can do it.
The small church can do it.
The traditional church can do it.
The contemporary church can do it.
And if the church is going to reclaim the mission of God for what it was intended to be-- making disciples--we should ALL do it.

Really, think about it. How are we doing at making disciples that make disciples?

The church must make a shift toward giving equal emphasis and resources to scattering as we do gathering.

How?

PURPOSE AND INTENTIONALITY!

So far we've only taught people to be purposeful inside the church and in the context of church ministry (mission trips, outreach events, block-parties, church sponsored service opportunities) but we've done very little in helping people live purposefully for the mission of God outside the church. Think about it. What's the percentage of time, resources and energy we spend getting people to serve within/or alongside the church vs. time, resources and energy spent on helping them engage the outside...in their context...with their own unique skills, education and occupational giftedness?

And the issue isn't 'let's get them out more.' The fact is we are already scattered! We have jobs, we have neighborhoods, we have friends outside of church, we go golfing, we go to parties, our kids are involved in soccer and piano lessons, we belong to clubs and organizations. We are way, way scattered!

What the church needs to do is just help people understand how to be purposeful and intentional in those settings...to take advantage of the opportunities God has right in front of their faces.

Quetions:
Are you missional?
Is your church missional?
How are you making missional happen in your context?

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The "Church Next" (PT.2)

"Christianity started out in Palestine as a fellowship;
it moved to Greece and became a philosophy;
it moved to Italy and became an institution;
it moved to Europe and became a culture;
it came to America and became an enterprise."

So, then...what is the "church next"?

The next church has to be sacrificial. We talked about that last time. But on top of that, the next incarnation of the church needs to be....INCARNATIONAL.

The church must be actually present in the life of the community in which it exists,

We always say 'Jesus is God with skin on' but what does it mean for us? How do we make ourselves fully present in our communities?

Here are some thoughts:

• What if everyone at your church saw the street they live on as their ministry?
• What if every club in your community had someone from your church involved in it?
• What if every community committee had someone from your church serving there?
• What if the sports teams of your town had people from your church coaching, serving, volunteering?
• What if every time there was an event in your town the church was there serving and giving their time?
• What if every time there was a big celebration or dedication or special honor there was a representative from your church cheering on the efforts of your community?
• What if every tragedy or disaster, your church was the first to respond?

It doesn't take much to be there. All you have to do is BE THERE!

So how else can you 'be there'?