Author: Jonathan Dodson

Training a Missional Core Team

Posted on August 21, 2009

Here are the Stages of Growth we followed as a Missional Core Team (see separate document Stages of Organic Growth for further explanation)

  1. Meals & Mission: time spent cultivating community over shared meals, missional conversation, and being on mission together socially and evangelistically.
  2. Vision & Mission: time spent in community discussions around vision and values, while continuing to practice mission.
  3. Commitment Night: an evening in which I gave a charge, we prayed for our city, had first communion over a meal, and celebrated God’s work in our Core Team.
  4. Bible Study & Mission: spent time teaching through Luke-Acts, identifying the themes and challenges of gospel, community, mission.
  5. Strategy & Missional Community: time spent in more strategic conversation and planning to be a church in the city and for the city through what came to be called City Groups (aka Missional Communities).
  6. Low Profile Public Gatherings: our first public gatherings which included preaching and primarily built up the existing Core Team
  7. High Profile Public Gatherings: our first attractional, public gatherings in a city centre location
  8. City Groups Multiply: existing City Groups multiply through mission and leadership development

Total Church Resources

Posted on August 21, 2009

If you haven’t read Total Church, buy it today. If you’d like some more resources on Total Church, check out the following:

My Series of Posts on Total Church. – excerpts and reflections on the book from when we were in Core Team stage. Also check out Three-Strand Evangelism

Total Church study guide. – This is a good tool to use when Building Missional Core Teams for church planting, and for helping re-orient existing churches around the gospel, community, and mission.

Resurgence Resources – includes helpful teaching videos by Steve Timmis and other blog posts.

Prayer is like Sex with God

Posted on August 21, 2009

I came across an interesting post that compares prayer to having sex with God.

But in order to have sex, you have to get naked, wrinkles and cellulite and all. In fact, in all honestly, prayer is like sex with God with the lights on. So often we are afraid to let God truly “see us” because He might think we are ugly, and leave without even so much as having a cigarette. Even Adam and Eve feared being naked before God.

What do you think?

Bat Fest!

Posted on August 21, 2009

Don’t miss the 5th Annual BAT FEST that starts tomorrow! Get your City Group together for this family friendly day of great bands, flying bats, good food, and fun. Bands include:

Bob Schnieder

Alpha Rev

The Wailers