Four Relational Spaces To Change Your World

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Sociologists tell us that human beings connect in four different sizes of gatherings: a) public space, b) social space, c) personal space and d) intimate space. The New Testament church, it seems, also gathered according to these social dynamics.

In this podcast, Alex Absalom argues that the Western church is struggling to function as a healthy community, in part, because of the way in which we meet. He argues that public space (i.e. congregational gatherings) function differently than social space (i.e. extended family on a mission), from personal space (discipleship groups), from intimate space (married couples)… and we would do well to pay attention to all four!

Spotting The Wolves

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We often think of Jesus as the kind and gentle shepherd, cuddling and patting His sheep as in a petting zoo. In reality, this was not the main role of a shepherd — they existed to protect sheep from predators! This involved carrying weapons and knowing how to use them.

As leaders, it is important that we also know how to protect our flock — how to spot wolves, how to discern evil from good, and how to act when we do.

“Keep watch over yourselves and the entire flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which He purchased with His own blood. I know that after my departure, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them.” Acts 20:28-30.

 

 

The T4T Story

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Ying Kai is the founder of T4T (Training for Trainers), which is one of the most dynamic Church Planting Movements in the world today. In 1999, Ying Kai (a Taiwan Chinese missionary) left Hong Kong for mainland China, with a vision to train reproducible disciple-makers (which he calls ‘trainers’). In less than a decade, T4T had multiplied a small band of disciples into a movement of more than 80,000 new churches, with more than 2 million baptisms.

Let’s listen and learn from missionary stories coming out of Asia, Africa and the Middle East. God is on the move! The T4T story may challenge you. It may also inspire you into passionate prayer, radical obedience and reproducible disciple-making!

The Starfish Manifesto (Part 1)

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NOTE: This podcast is to be discussed in July 2016.

Wolfgang Simson is a speaker from Germany who teaches on the worldwide house church movement. He speaks with wisdom, humour, conviction… and also a fabulous accent!

Warning: his teachings can seem radical for mainstream Christians — even heretical at times. Yet as challenging as he is, Wolfgang is a prophetic voice worth listening to as we seek to hear and obey God in the everyday.

This podcast is ‘the best of’ a series of talks titled The Starfish Manifesto. This MP3 combines his first 2 teachings: a) The New Reformation and b) The Gospel of the Kingdom.

(Next month, we’ll listen to Wolfgang’s next few teachings, covering: c) Kingdom Economics and d) Mission Possible.

Bivocational (BiVo) Ministry

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Very few are talking about it yet, but thousands of pastors are opting for a bi-vocational (BiVo) lifestyle. Like the 16th century Trappists discovered, our prayer and our labor go hand in hand in God’s economy. Everything is sacred, even our secular work.

In this seminal talk, Hugh Halter tells the story of Adullum, birthed through a network of bi-vocational saints. He casts a broader vision for ‘cheap church’ and challenges us to equip disciple makers by leveraging all of life into one calling.

This podcast has significant things to say about TPC and the model through which we fund ministry… well worth the effort!

I Am God’s Money Manager

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Jesus talked much about money. Sixteen of the thirty-eight parables were concerned with how to handle money and possessions. In the Gospels, an amazing one out of ten verses (288 in all) deal directly with the subject of money.

As disciples who are seeking to look and act like Jesus, it seems right that we also talk about money… how it captures us and how it shapes our spirituality.

This is a good introductory talk on the topic of money, by charismatic speaker, Simon Holley.

Why The Missional Movement Will Fail

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In this recorded webinar, Mike and Sally share a bunch of stories from two of their church missions — one in Brixton (inner-city London) in the late 1980’s and then one in Sheffield (in mid-1990’s).

Both were successful, yet only one survived and created lasting transformation. Why?
Hint: it’s about making disciple-making disciples!

Barriers To Supernatural Living

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“We don’t need more of God’s Spirit to live supernatural lives. We simply need to let God unblock the barriers that stop the flow.”

In this talk, Simon Holley tackles the inward dimension of discipleship and supernatural living. He calls us to identify and repent from common strongholds of the mind (such as fear, pride and judgement) and to walk in true freedom.