The Ragamuffin Blog

Church Planting::Count the Cost

My dad gave this to me a very long time ago. I must admit that for a long time, I really didn't like it. I couldn't appreciate it's drab, almost cynical outlook on the task of church planting. It rubbed my vision and my idealism the wrong way. For my dad, however, I could tell it had become over the years a deep source of solace for him during difficult times; something he returned to regularly, perhaps to remind himself that he wasn't the only one to think and feel many of these things; assuring him perhaps that he wasn't crazy. There were others who had walked a similar road and along the way, had thought and felt many of the same things he had...and amidst it all, stayed faithful, pressing onward.

I couldn't fully appreciate all that this article had to say then. And I'm not sure I can fully appreciate it now, but I am getting there. Church planting is tough. Being the lead guy is tough. Pastoring is tough. Uncertainty is tough. Having a vision so big it terrifies you and no earthly idea how to see it come to fruition is tough. It is a tough road. So future church planters, take the words below seriously. He's not blowing smoke. Church planting is tough, so you'd better know that you know that you know that you're called. Past and current church planters, know that you are not alone and you are not crazy (well, okay, maybe a little bit:).    

"Attn: Future Church Planters -- Count the Cost," by Joe Boyd:

Our First Baptism Service

A couple days ago we had the great opportunity of having our first ever baptism service at Mosaic! On Sunday morning, seven men and women stepped up to publicly proclaim their faith in Jesus Christ. It was awesome. Nevermind that one of our amps caught on fire last week, or that we inadvertantly flooded the back of the Bourbon Theater on Friday when we broke a water pipe retrieving Rivertree's baptismal from the rafters. (Ah, the joys of church planting.)

On Sunday, none of that mattered. Having the opportunity to baptize each person and then to hear our community cheer wildly as they emerged from the water a new creation in Christ, was one of the neatest things I have ever had the privilege of being a part of.

And when the baptisms were over and we entered into a time of worship together, the community of Mosaic worshiped like I have never seen or heard them worship before. Eyes closed, hands in the air, voices shouting praises to God, it...was...incredible. It impressed upon me once more the unequaled power of story. There is perhaps no greater testimony of God's presence and power and grace than a life changed by the gospel. In the end, what else can do we do but praise God?

Above, Erik and I hug after he comes up out of the water. You can hear his story below.

Don't Give Away Leadership Too Early

Photo RT: http://www.behance.net/gallery/Illustration-Mix/1355399

One of the best pieces of advice I ever received was, “Don’t give away leadership too early.” Now I have to admit this was initially a hard truth for me to accept. I mean, shouldn't we strive to see the best in people? Isn't unleashing the potential of others a central part of leading? 

We've Launched!

It’s official, Mosaic has launched! Sunday marked the long awaited launch of Mosaic with our first weekly worship gathering. We knew that people were excited about what God was preparing to do in and through this new community, but we were unprepared for the 250+ people who would join us on Sunday! It was an incredible morning in which many months of prayer and preparation all came together.

The best part of the morning wasn’t number of people there, or the fact that people were so excited to be there that we could hardly get them to sit down, or that people were still hanging out over an hour after the worship gathering was over, or how incredible the Mosaic launch team was all morning, or even the beautiful sound of a new church worshiping Jesus together for the first time. Personally, the best part for me (Aaron) was all of stories we heard of God moving in the lives of people.

Sunday morning we saw several people commit their lives to Christ for the first time! We are so excited to see these people impacted for eternity and to see them begin to step into what God has for them! We saw several others recommit their lives to Christ, marking what we pray will be the beginning of a season of renewed passion and purpose in their journey with Christ. We also saw a number of people who have never been connected to a church before tell us they have accepted the invitation to join a conversation about what it means to follow Christ and who now consider Mosaic their new home. That is what it is all about!

Thank you to those who were a part of the big day and to those who have been praying for us and this new work. Sunday marked the start of something beautiful in the city of Lincoln!

(Originally posted at http://www.mosaiclincoln.org/weve-launched/)

On the Precipice

In 2005 the course of my life was changed forever.

It was in the fall of that year in the course of a conversation with a close friend that I voiced for the very first time that I sensed God might be leading us to plant a church. These were words were astonishing even for me to hear spoken aloud after spending much of my life avoiding organized religion and it's proponents. Even after committing my life to Christ at the age of sixteen, I had continued to avoid "church people" at all costs. 

But our conversation that day had been sparked by a defining moment in my life that had taken place earlier that year. On a fateful winter night in Minneapolis, Christ met me on the balcony of an old Presbyterian church and He said something that I will never forget. In a time of worship and prayer, Jesus essentially said, "Aaron, you have been seeking to love me while hating on my bride, and I am not done with her yet." 

New Mosaic Website!

Today we launched the Mosaic Lincoln website! This may sound funny to say, but as a pastor, it is really easy for me to get website envy. You know what I'm talking about? I see websites like that of Mars Hill Church in Seattle or Elevation in Charlotte and I have repeatedly tell myself, "Thou shall not covet," "Thou shall not covet," "Thou shall not covet..."   

However, part of the beauty of church planting is that it forces you to discern between what is necessary and what is not right from the get-go. Without a super sized budget to get all of the things I might otherwise be tempted to spend money on, we are forced instead to get creative. And let me tell you, it is amazing what is possible when a group of people get prayerfully creative! 

I am proud of our new website! Not just because I think it is sharp, clean and immersed with helpful and engaging media, but because it was built almost entirely with free, online tools that are available to anyone, anywhere! Rather than dropping a lot of money on a website, we were forced to get creative. And thanks largely in part to the hard work and creativity of our Associate Pastor, Kevin, the result was a great website that hardly cost us anything out of pocket! I wonder what else would be possible if we resisted the urge to spend and instead, opted to get prayerfully creative in our lives and ministries!

Help Us Plant a Church in 10 Minutes

If you have been following this blog for any length of time, you know that for most of this last year we and a wonderful team of people have been in the process of planting a new church in Lincoln, NE called Mosaic Lincoln. Mosaic is a community committed to live by faith, be known by love, and be a voice of hope in our city. (You can learn more about it here.)

It has been a beautiful journey so far, and the best is yet to come as we excitedly prepare to launch publicly in several short weeks! As we prepare to take this great leap of faith, we need your help! 

Kingdom-Mindedness, or Lack Thereof

I have been told that every great story involves great conflict. Ask any church planter and they will tell you that church planting involves its fair share of conflict. The conflict comes in many forms: discouragement, exhaustion, criticism (sadly, often from other Christians and even pastors who are threatened by what you are doing), missed opportunities, failed plans, unforeseen obstacles, wayward team members, and the one you can almost always count on: financial strain. 

The greatest conflict that I am finding myself having to deal with, however, is the hesitancy (or downright unwillingness) of local churches to step up and get involved in church planting, or at least not in a way that costs them anything significant. A word of blessing? Sure. A one time gift? Perhaps. Championing or adopting a new plant as your own in a way that may cost them people and ongoing support? Err, we'll pray about it. (Which, in case you didn't know, is Christianese for "Not on your life!!") 

Church Planter: The Man, the Message, the Mission

Right now I am reading the book "Church Planter: The Man, the Message, the Mission" by Darrin Patrick, pastor of The Journey in St. Louis. The book is excellent and I can't recommend it highly enough to every man who desires to step up and become a leader in his family and church, and particularly to anyone considering church planting in the future. For more, check out the video below.

 

Remembering 30 Days

In ancient times, altars were often constructed by God's people to commemorate what God had done during a particular time. It served as a reminder of who God was and what He had done. It was meant to prompt remembrance and worship. You could say that this blog post is an altar of sorts.

Just over a month ago, twenty or so people sat in a basement in Lincoln, NE. In their hands sat a single piece of paper presenting a radical idea: videos, vision, stories and a website all culminating in $30,000 in 30 days. One could say it was a rather ambitious undertaking for our small, developing community. And you could feel the tension in the room.

Some openly wondered, What if we don't make it? What if the videos don't connect? What if no one visits the website? What if no one cares? What if people don't give? Are you sure this is such a good idea? What would the consequences be of failing so publicly so early in the game? How discouraging would that be to our team? Could we recover the momentum we would inevitably lose? Besides, is it even okay to pray like that? Can we ask God for something so specific? What if He says 'No'? WHAT IF...?! 

Looking back, it was a defining moment for our little band of revolutionaries. We had talked a lot about mission and risk. Now it was time to put our money where our mouth was. We knew we couldn't make this happen. We couldn't make people pay attention or care or give, we could only be faithful with what God had given us. Despite feelings of fear, uncertainty, reservation and doubt, we chose to move forward in faith anyway. We committed to fast together, to band together in prayer for our city and our church, and to invite others to help us do what we believe God has called us to do. 

Just over a month later, here is what we have seen happen:

• The 30in30 website has had over 12,000 hits from all over the world
• We have had 3 churches (two of them local) partner with us financially - a huge kingdom win!
• Our launch team has more than doubled in size (and with some incredible, quality people!)
• A number of people who are connected to our community who do not know Christ as their personal Lord and Savior are being shaken up and moved by the gospel
• Buzz about Mosaic Lincoln has spread throughout our city
• Our associate pastor, Kevin, and his family moved to Lincoln from Pennsylvania with several thousand dollars of support from their church (not included in the thirty day total) to help them relocate and to free them to invest in our city and church
• We received a gorgeous, $2100 guitar in the mail a few days ago from another ARC couple currently planting a church in MT who told us that God wouldn't let them alone about it and that they wanted to sow into us
• And, praise God, we had over $30,000 donated in just 30 days! 

During all of this, our only expenses were $50 spent on a Wordpress template for the website and $52 on a kite that wouldn't fly! Not too bad for a group of thirty five people meeting in a basement.

My point is certainly not to toot our own horn as if we deserve credit for this. Quite the opposite. My point is to turn your attention to Jesus Christ, the author and perfecter of our faith, and his exceeding goodness and faithfulness to provide for our needs and answer our prayers when we ask Him to help us do what He has called us to do. We do not deserve any of this. And in looking at the list above, I hope you will join me in acknowledging that there is no way our little tribe could have pulled this off on our own.

God is good. Christ promised to build His church, and he is doing just that. Here. Now. In our midst. And we are honored, humbled, and deeply grateful to be able to play a small part in it.