by George Barna
 On
their journey across America's churches, Matt Casper saw it all: light
shows, fog machines, worship bands, extended offerings, traditions observed.
At one point, his incredulity broke through, as he asked, "Is this what
Jesus told you guys to do?"
If you can handle such blunt challenges, you will find this book a fast,
fun, and fulfilling read. Read
more...
Read
chapter one
|
by Helen
Mildenhall
Scot
McKnight was one of the speakers at Off The Map’s Inside
the Missional Matrix conference a week ago. I asked Scot and his
wife Kris a few questions about their experience at the conference.
Scot blogged about the conference here,
here, and here.
Helen: Scot, why did you accept the
invitation to speak at Inside the Missional Matrix? Kris, what interested
you about coming?
Scot: I was invited; I knew Rose from the blog and
her missional work in Seattle. So, when they tied the event to Todd
Hunter and an emerging event, I was excited to be invited.
Kris: I didn’t really know much about Off the
Map, but I did keep up with Rose Swetman in her interactions with Mark
Driscoll. So, I was eager to meet Rose. We had been to Seattle before,
so we were happy to return. Read
More... 
|
Introducing April Terry
by Helen Mildenhall
Since it's April this seems like the perfect month to introduce April
Terry to you. We’re pleased to have April writing for our Ordinary
Attempts blog once a week.
I asked April why she was drawn to our OA blog:
"I have been OAing for a long time without having a name for it,
and I think there is a kindness in an OA that speaks to me. An OA doesn't
have preconceived notions or labels about people. It doesn't depend
on whether or not it likes you. It listens, loves, and inspires. The
OA blog encourages us to step forward without fear and connect with
people. That's a virtue that I would like to see spread everywhere."
April and some of her friends have
a ministry to convalescent homes. April told me "We do
toe-tapping, fun Southern Gospel music and many of the old standards
and we intentionally greet each senior before and after the service
in order to allow for time to pray with them and for their specific
needs."
April has written about her convalescent home ministry experiences
in Hope
Beyond Circumstances, Read
the Book or Enjoy the Cover, Acting
on Faith and Please,
Come Back. You can read more about April on the about
page of the OA blog. Here's an experience April had which caused
her to reflect on the OA opportunities we miss when we are too wrapped
up in ourselves:
I ran into a pastor once at traffic school. I remember he had this stunned
look on his face when I asked him where I knew him from. He went on
to reluctantly admit that it was from a church just down the street.
I had attended it once, but had not returned to it. He looked stunned
as if he had been "caught" in the act of something.
He really shouldn't have been embarrassed because I would more likely
have been impressed with the idea of a speeding preacher and besides,
I was there for the exact same reason. I always felt like he missed
an opportunity there, though. Read
more...
|
