If you have some time, I’d appreciate your feedback on our new website. We are still adding content and working out some things, but we need to know if it is navigable, engaging, informative, clear, etc. We are working on getting the podcast page to be more simple. Let me know what you think and how we can improve!
Author: Jonathan Dodson
Community and Identity in Cities
This guy has a fascinating post on the cultural, political, theological and philosophical reasons we flock to and flounder in cities, especially to megapolises. He poses questions like: Why do we enjoy living in cities? Where do we get our sense of identity in the city? An excerpt:
Do we create only an illusion of community for ourselves by patronizing our favorite businesses? The human spirit seeks to cope and make the best out of a bad situation. Those who can’t will probably leave or seek alternate, less wholesome remedies. And yet, is this not a community more of our mind and choosing? And, hence, not a real community? (Similarly, how easy is it for us to acquire new friends and abandon old ones as we switch jobs, dwellings, or our boyfriend or girlfriend?)
New Issue of Salvo
The new issue of Salvo magazine, Shattered Minds, explores the American academic scene with articles by Greg Koukl, Barbara Nicolosi, and Hugh Ross.
Citywide Assessment
Some Austin evangelical leaders are moving toward developing a Citywide Church Planters Assessment that is cross-denominational and city renewing. Stew summarizes our recent meeting very well. He lists several reasons this is a good movement:
- It smells like the Kingdom: anytime gospel-centered churches pursue a vision to work together to plant churches Jesus seems to show up.
- It’s a good start: many of the folks at that table are very experienced in successful church planting. This isn’t their first rodeo, so they know what works and what doesn’t
- It’s raises the right kinds of questions: soon after the meeting began it became evident that assessment was only going to be one slice of the church planting pie, although that is what brought us together – the opportunity for a city-wide church planter assessment. It became clear that there would need to be other “engines” and facets of church planting we would need to work together on, including coaching, supervision, funding, research, and training.