I got this email today from a friend, Michael Simpson who has been a missionary in Russia for the last season of his life. But now they are back in the States as God has taken their life a bit of a different direction. I love this, what they have learned and how God has asked them to live. What I really appreciate is how much more effective they are in God’s purpose outside the “job” of a ministry:

God has led us in some very interesting directions. By June, I will change my status and leave my salaried position. I’ve recently been working as an executive coach simply helping people with their goals, character, relationships and balance in life seems to always lead to meaningful spiritual conversations, and deep spiritual change for those that have that desire. It’s interesting, and frankly a little sad, how that was always my greatest passion as a business executive, but I thought I had to become a missionary to do it full time.

After six years in Russia, what I’ve realized is that I didn’t need an organization, a particular structure, or a particular “calling” to a group of people or geography to live my life in that amazingly fulfilling and purposeful way. God had already given me everything I needed with His Spirit to guide me into the conversations and relationships that he willed. What I did in Russia as a missionary was exactly what I did in America as an executive, but dragging around all the baggage that a salaried missions worker carries. It’s just MUCH more difficult to get over the trust barriers when you are being paid to talk to someone about God.
 
My wife and I will continue to visit Russia, but as business people, not missionaries. We are now setting up a business there, as an extension of our U.S. coaching business. This group of life and business coaches I work with want to help believers in very corrupt societies, like Russia, become coaches to help develop the character and even spiritual lives of business people there, but doing it through legitimate businesses, not fronts for ministry. After all, isn’t life ministry?

I have begun to abhor the false delineation the church has put on ministry vs. life. I have seen first-hand the negative effects on young believers who think they can’t serve God without being “IN” ministry, instead of simply being IN relationship and following Father’s whispers to wherever he leads. As an example, one of the greatest impacts to the people we’ve been helping in Russia for so many years is telling them the stories of changed lives and great spiritual conversations with the people we do business with, live near, and bump into at the grocery store. Our little seasonal chocolate business has created so many relationships and friendships and the most Spirit-guided conversations I could ever hope for.
 
The result has been that the Russians we know have realized that we were in Russia helping them grow in their relationship with Father because of our relationship with Father – not because of our job and organization. It has clearly inspired them to live similarly. Sadly, as a missionary, I could never have gotten that message across so credibly as when I was living it as a “normal” person filled with the Spirit of God, working out life and relationships just like them. Ironically, us being with them less has influenced them more. I’ve found they didn’t need ME as much as they needed my example.
 
Thanks again for slinging freedom (and) letting us know that it is okay to go with what we really sense in our spirit, has created great freedom to live as listeners who do not ignore what they hear. It certainly is never boring living that way, and there are WAY less politics to deal with. 

I know this makes people nervous who are or who want to be in “full time ministry”, but what this unmasks is the myth that you’ll be more effective there, or that we all who follow Jesus aren’t at his disposal every moment of every day touching people he gives us. How he resources our lives is not the issue. It’s living as an expression of Jesus however he invites us to do that and however he chooses to provide for our lives and families. As one who has been free in this season to live with a full-time availability to Jesus, I’m not threatened by letters like this; I’m deeply blessed. When ministry was “job” for me, rather than the result of a fullness in my own life, I was far less helpful to others.

“I’ve found they didn’t need ME as much as they needed my example.” Those words just leap off the page. I love that line, that insight and that freedom!

I leave tomorrow for a weekend trip up to Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. It should be a lot of fun hanging out with some people I’ve yet to meet who are on this journey of living loved. There’s always an anticipation in my heart about where our conversations might lead and what God might show us.

On my recent trip to Austin, this is how one of those who came to our Friday night meeting summed up what God did in him:

I just wanted to thank you for your time and insights that you shared with us in Austin. I really appreciated how you facilitated the conversation (without) telling us what we should/should not do and not trying to be the answer man. Much of what you shared really helped me to hear from Father in fresh ways. To be honest I came into the weekend without any real expectations, which is something very different for me. I am thankful to Father for giving me an openness that I have not exhibited in the past when I was too busy trying to control the outcomes. What I found interesting was that even though I had pretty much heard much of what you shared through your books, teachings or podcasts, I HEARD them in a different way. It was just like some things clicked in place for me that God has been leading me towards for awhile. I just could not have articulated it.

What came through to me was community/relationships are not a meeting. I think that I have always had that backwards. I can now see how even as I made the transition from traditional church to a house church and then to a group with infrequent meetings, I had still been carrying around the idea that community happens at a specified meeting. I know God has been leading me out of the mindset for a long time, but particularly over the past year and a half as we have found ourselves meeting less and less. This has been a difficult change for me and I have felt at times lonely, frustrated, angry and abandoned. But thankfully He has always provided grace for me and helped me to resist seeking after something else just to fill that void.

As I look back I know I have missed many opportunities to forge relationships, encourage others and love them because I was too worried about what I was not getting. Father has brought to mind several times over the last few weeks the Message’s translation of Matthew 7:12, “Here is a simple, rule-of-thumb guide for behavior: Ask yourself what you want people to do for you, then grab the initiative and do it for them.” I think if I had focused more on giving rather than getting, I would not have been so wrapped up in seeking “community” because I would have been helping to forge it with others. Despite my failures, He has been so loving and kind to bring about many wonderful relationships with people. You encouraged me and helped me see more clearly the road He has already been leading us down.

I love the insights that surfaced in his heart beyond anything we talked about specifically. If that’s the kind of work God does in people when I’m hanging out with them, that makes all the travel worthwhile. Learning to live in him is the real joy for all of us.

I found out an interview I did with a new-found friend at the Dallas House Church Conference Last April has just been posted on line. Dave Bilbrough is a troubadour for the Jesus from the UK with a guitar and a passion to help people connect with God. He did an iPhone interview with me after the conference that he just posted on his blog. It’s about truly living loved and breaking free of the performance mentality that makes us think we have to earn that love. I enjoyed this brother’s heart, his journey, and his gift of music.

I just discovered that someone in Mexico is translating some of our articles into Spanish. Unfortunately I can read any of it to know what’s all there, but if you know people who want to read these articles in Spanish, please check it out. We have also posted the PDFs of those articles on our International Page. There you will also find a complete listing of International translations of my books and articles.

I just saw this quote in someone’s email today. Love it! It shows how bright some of those “older saints” were.

“No one heals himself by wounding another.” Ambrose of Milan

Every thing we do in this world has the potential to do immeasurable damage to people or bring immeasurable healing to them. The most dangerous among us are those who think they have to hurt others to get what they think makes them whole. The problem is the act of wounding may do even more damage to the one doing the wounding than it does to the one wounded! You don’t find healing by tearing down others, you just find more pain.

The world generates enough damage of its own with out those of us who are seeking to follow Christ adding to it. Live loved and love others the same way he loves you.

BodyLife has now become “Living Loved.” It’s still the same newsletter but with a more accurate title to go with the content. We will still deal with church issues and concerns from time to time, but the newsletter has always been about so much more.

The title of this issue is, The Church Jesus is Building, and it examines the question, “What will the church look like in ten years?” And while it may not be the answer you’d want to hear, it will help you sort out how to follow Jesus these days in the search for real community, rather than being seduced by those who want to create movements or new systems in their hope of recovering New Testament community. The body of Christ is certainly a time of transition and it will be fascinating to see how Jesus continues to build his church. You’ll also find letters that will encourage fellow-travel

You’ll also find letters that will encourage fellow-travelers, announcements from Lifestream Ministries, including new a new book we have coming out as well as two other recommendations.
Read It Online | Download Printable PDF

I just received this email from our brothers and sisters in Kenya:

We are sending appreciations for you and for the brothers and sisters over there whom God Has touched to stand for this large project. We are praying for you, the ministry of Lifestream, and the brothers and sisters who have stood along side your ministry as well as those who are supporting this orphanage centre. We shall be praying for provision as well as the workers who will be working here for them to be faithful and so that they may know that they are doing this for the sake of God’s work. We also need prayers for transformation for our learning to depend on God, loving Him more, walking in His presence and entering in His rest.

The children need to be in the center quick as possible since the starvation which is taking place in Kenya it has affected over than 9,000,000, people as you may read in news papers in Kenya. Some people are dying in the country. This has become a great terrible situation especially to the children we support in other 18 orphanages. Every day we get a report about the bad condition of the children.

We are praying and believing as God provides from now to start the work so that we may accomplish this work quick as possible before rainy season. The builder engineer said if we can have all materials it can just take a month to be completed. So we have prepared the builders and workers to start immediately after we may get the funds. It is our prayers after completion of the center we are ready to take the children quick as possible.

May the Lord Bless you,

Michael Wafula

If you would like to be part of this to support these brothers and sisters and see the Gospel grow in this part of Africa, please see our Sharing With the World page at Lifestream. You can either donate with a credit card there, or you can mail a check to Lifestream Ministries • 1560-1 Newbury Rd #313 • Newbury Park, CA 91320. Or if you prefer, we can take your donation over the phone at (805) 498-7774.

I just received word that Logos in Hong Kong has just released Authentic Relationships: Discovering the Lost Art of One-Anothering in Chinese traditional script.

It blesses me how God continues to put these resources in the hands of other cultures. Moving our church experience from being a passive audience in a pew, to real Jesus-centered friendships is critical to the church recovering her life and vitality in this age. And it is critical that we recognize that those relationships can only grow in a real environment where people can engage each other and cannot be managed programs we create. For those in Brazil this book will also be released in Portuguese this May.

For those who want a copy of this book in Chinese, you can check Logos’ website here.

Brothers working on the foundation for the new building.

We just received a check for $7,000 to help with the orphanage construction and with matching gift we are now about $30,000 from our goal, which means we only need an additional $15,000. At a recent prayer gathering in Kenya, the people there gave 36,000 Kenyan schillings in an offering to help as well. These are people who have very little and pressing needs all around them, so this is a significant gift. I am so grateful that they are taking ownership of this process and looking for ways to keep it funded beyond the initial purchase, renovation, and building phase. They continue to express immense gratitude for all those who are helping and providing a detailed accounting of where the funds are going. We also have others nearby who can verify the use of these funds. For more information on our project here, you can read this earlier blog.

If you would like to be part of this to support these brothers and sisters and see the Gospel grow in this part of Africa, please see our Sharing With the World page at Lifestream. You can either donate with a credit card there, or you can mail a check to Lifestream Ministries • 1560-1 Newbury Rd #313 • Newbury Park, CA 91320. Or if you prefer, we can take your donation over the phone at (805) 498-7774.

I am personally grateful to God and overwhelmed at the generosity this project has triggered. Thank you so much.

I’ve known Stan Firth for a number of years now, as Father has allowed us to fellowship together a few times. I enjoy this elder brother in the faith, the price he’s paid to follow his conscience and the simple passion, hope, and joy he brings to those who cross his path. Formerly a Baptist pastor in Scotland he now resides south of London, living outside the box of organized religion. Many of you might know him from a podcast he did with Brad and I a few years ago.

He has just released a new book called The Remarkable Replacement Army, that I think many of you will enjoy. Following up on his earlier book Custom and Command that posed the question of whether our participation in our current Sunday morning institutions is a command of Jesus we are to follow, or is it just a custom that has grown up over 2,000 years of Christian history, his newest book is a protracted metaphor presented as a prophecy of the church in our time and for the future.

I love much of the content of this book and recommend it to everyone whose contemplating the nature of the church today, especially those who no longer feel connected to a traditional congregation. In it, Stan describes a time of transition between the traditional congregation as we’ve known it and a more relational networking of passionate believers that he says will define church life in this century. It will challenge many of you. It will encourage others of you. And it will help many of you who think how you can live more effectively beyond the traditional congregation.

That said, there are also things in this book that give me pause. Portraying it as a prophecy is problematic for me and unfortunately may discourage some from mining the incredible content here. I’m convinced Stan believes that it is, and I respect him for saying so. At the same time I’m not sure I agree with the value of getting people to see this transition in prophetic terms, knowing it can appeal to a fleshy desire to be in a significant movement. Certainly, the institutional patterns of the past are losing their grip on people and God is inviting many people outside those conventions to discover more relational ways of living and walking alongside other believers and touching the world. That’s a reality. but it may not be a shift in God’s priorities or methodologies so much as it is that our religious systems have grown so complicated and manipulative that they have choked out the life of the Spirit in many places and people have gone looking elsewhere for Truth and life.

God’s Remarkable Replacement Army uses an extended metaphor about a “replacement army” in Norway during World War II to resist the Nazi occupation and preserve the wishes of their king while he was in England helping to overthrow the German invaders. Stan has gleaned much insight from that period of history and uses it to share some of his observations about people who no longer fit into the religious systems they once did. As with all metaphors it can be pushed too far and draw people to the wrong conclusions. And, in this day of religious conflict around the world, I grow increasingly uncomfortable with military language to describe God’s church in the world. The title immediately was off-putting to me, but as you read the book you’ll understand why he chose it. I appreciate that he wasn’t calling believers to arms, but inviting them to live in service to their King.

Finally the former school teacher can’t resist telling us how to read his book and it does bog down at times when he lectures us about what we should read, when we should read it, and how it should be read. Get past those bits. They may seem a bit tedious, but theirs veins of gold running through this little book that will encourage and enlighten you. I don’t write these things to discourage you from reading the book, but to warn you not to take the exit ramps from his incredible content and miss the greater truths that Stan shares from his life.

This is an older brother sharing his most profound convictions. Many of you will know well what he means when he writes:

Up until about fifteen yeas ago, my wife and I were staunch church-members, always fully involved in the activities of a local fellowship, wherever we happened to be living. We had even spent nearly two decades in “full time service”, when I was a “pastor” (or “minister”). Slowly but surely, however, we had come to this conclusion about church life, which I have been describing—this conviction that the existing church system was no longer the way forward for our discipleship. It become clear to us that, in spite of the past, we could not continue to be “church goers”. We knew that our action would cause raised eyebrows—to say the least—among our relatives and close friends. Because of our previous extremely-church-oriented lifestyle, the fact that we had stopped “going to church” would seem , to those who knew us, very odd indeed—if not downright heretical!”

In the third section of the book, Stan gives some practical guidelines for thriving in the King’s purpose outside of those congregational structures. There’s really genius here if you don’t take this as a how-to book of methods to implement in your life. Stan warns us against doing so. But many of you will appreciate, as I did, his ideas on “cross-my-path-care”, intentionally socializing with others, and how the Scriptures and the Spirit work hand in hand to show us the Father’s purpose. I’ve used some of these things in numerous conversations already to help people see that living relationally is not less intentional, if anything it is more so or you may find yourself feeling empty and isolated, when you don’t need to.

Here is an excerpt:

I prophesy that the exiting regiments of the Army of the King of Kings (the various denominations) and “streams’ which currently make up the Church are going to disintegrate, sooner or later, during the 21st Century. Already I see many signs of that. Furthermore although there are individual churches and groups of churches, which at this moment are, to all intents and purposes, “fighting well”, I suggest that even they, in the long run, will all but disappear from the scene. I prophesy that the days of the Institutional Church are drawing to a close. I do not believe, however, that the King of Kings is discouraged—even though the army of Christians view the deteriorating situation with dismay. …There is no way that he will leave himself without a body of “soldier of Christ” to further his cause on Earth. My prediction is that, as the 21st Century unfolds, the King of Kings will come to be represented by an Army of a radically different style from the army that has previously represented him. I prophesy that he will replace his formal army (his formal church) with an informal network of dedicated believers—a veritable “resistance movement” of committed Christians.

Problems aside, this book is one that people thinking outside the religious box need to read. It comes from the depth of a man’s heart and wisdom that has lived these realities for years and you won’t want to miss the powerful insights that fill this book.

You can order the book from Lulu.com. Paperback, 320 pages. Or you can download a free PDF version here.