I was introduced to Purpose Driven Church, Rick Warren, and church planting about ten years ago while on a mission trip in Brazil. I spent a summer working with some different missionaries in Rid de Janeiro doing whatever was needed. One of the guys I worked with was in charge of the Purpose Driven Church planting movement in Brazil. During that summer, God planted in my heart a love for church planting and making the gospel accessible to those that don’t know Jesus.
I’ve always thought that Rick Warren has been misunderstood and misinterpreted. It is awesome seeing two men that have had an influence in my life together in the same room. It’s awesome seeing Rick Warren’s heart and deep doctrinal basis for what he does. I would highly recommend carving out 98 minutes and see watch two men who love Jesus and have been used greatly by Jesus.
Of all the ways that Paul presents Jesus’ atonement, he devotes most of his attention to Jesus being presented as the Colossians reconciliation. Colossians 1:19-22 states:
For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.
And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him….
Grudem defines reconciliation as “the removal of enmity and the restoration of fellowship between two parties.”[1] It is through Christ that the relationship that God once had with humanity in the Garden of Eden is restored.
Paul tells the Colossians that they were alienated. MacArthur explains that “Apallotrioo (alienated) means ‘estranged,’ ‘cut off,’ or ‘separated.’ Before their reconciliation, the Colossians were completely estranged from God.”[2] There was no relationship between them and God. As we’ve already seen, this wasn’t an estrangement in which God was simply ignoring them though. Instead, they were cut off from God and under His wrath.
This estrangement went two ways though. Paul continues to write that the Colossians were “hostile in mind” (Col 1:21). Stott says, “True, we were ‘God’s enemies,’ hostile to him in our hearts. But the ‘enmity’ was on both sides. The wall or barrier between God and us was constituted by our rebellion against him and by his wrath upon us on account of our rebellion.”[3] The Colossians’ estrangement from God was their choice as they were hostile towards God and chose to do “evil deeds” (Col. 1:21). God in his righteousness could not be in their presence because of their sin and had to separate himself from them.
Paul shows the Colossians are no longer estranged from God though. The relationship has been restored, and it is Jesus who reconciles them by “making peace by the blood of his cross” (Col. 1:20). Jesus “has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death” (Col. 1:21). Reconciliation happens by the blood of Jesus on the cross. Hendriksen explains what this reconciliation means:
Through the blood of the Son of God’s love peace had been made. He, meaning this Son of God’s love, in his body of flesh (that was the sphere of the reconciliation), and through his death (that was the instrument) had brought about a return to the proper relation between the Colossians and their God. A return, not as if there had been a time, many, many years ago, when these Colossians had been Christians, but rather in this sense, that the establishment of peace between the Father-heart of God and the soul of the sinner is for the latter a going back to the state of rectitude in which God originally created man.[4]
Jesus pays the penalty for their sin and cleanses them from it, allowing the Colossians to have the close, intimate relationship that man once had with God.
In this passage, Paul also speaks of Jesus’ reconciliation of all of creation. This isn’t reconciliation in the same sense that is spoken of for the Colossians. Paul isn’t presenting a doctrine of universalism. Instead, Paul is referencing back to the preeminence of Christ in creation that is stated in verse 16 as Paul says, “For byhim all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.” MacArthur clarifies that “there is a sense in which even fallen angels and unredeemed men will be reconciled to God for judgment – but only in the sense of submitting to Him for final sentencing. Their relationship to Him will change from that of enemies to that of the judged.”[5] Paul is speaking of a reconciliation that brings all things under the rule of Jesus Christ.
While Jesus is fully God, he lives in relationship with God the Father and God the Holy Spirit as a member of the Trinitarian Godhead. Paul consistently presents Jesus as fully God, but he also presents Jesus as the Son of God. This doesn’t make Jesus any less of God, because Paul clearly articulates Jesus’ deity. But Paul distinguishes Jesus’ role and relationship within the Trinitarian Godhead. According to Bruce Ware,
The Son, then, is fully God. He is not one-third God, but fully God. Yet, it is not the Son alone who is fully God, but he eternally exists along with the Father and the Spirit, each of whom also possesses fully the identically same divine nature. Because of this, what distinguishes the Son from the Father and the Spirit is not the divine nature of the Son. This–the one and undivided divine nature–is also possessed equally and fully by the Father and the Spirit. Therefore, what distinguishes the Son is his particular role as Son in relation to the Father and to the Spirit and the relationships that he has with each of them.[1]
Throughout the epistle to the Colossians, Paul shows the relationship between Jesus and God the Father. Paul’s first reference between Jesus and God the Father is in Col. 1:3 when Paul gives thanks to “God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Paul establishes that there is God the Father and God the Son. Continuing in Colossians, God the Father delivers “us to the kingdom of his beloved Son” (Col. 1:13). Paul declares that it is “the Father’s good pleasure for all the fulness to dwell in [Jesus]” (Col. 1:19, NASB).
Paul also makes known that the Son’s role is in submission to the Father’s authority. Jesus was used by the Father “to reconcile to himself all things” (Col. 1:20, ESV). “God [the Father] made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses” (Col. 2:13). Jesus’ role as the Son is to be used as the Father’s agent of salvation. Jesus is the Father’s agent of creation as “all things were created through him” (Col. 1:16). The Father also “disarmed the rulers and authoritiesand put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in [Jesus]” (Col. 2:15). Lastly, Jesus is our mediator to the Father. Paul says that the Colossians are to give “thanks to God the Father through [Jesus]” (Col. 3:17). Through Jesus, the Colossians had a relationship with the Father.
While Paul makes several references to God the Father, there is only one reference to the Holy Spirit in the epistle to the Colossians. In Col. 1:7, Paul speaks about Epaphras being a “faithful minister of Christ” to the Colossians. In the same sentence, Paul says that Epaphras has “made known to us your love in the Spirit” (Col. 1:8). While this doesn’t give us much of an understanding of the role and relationship between Jesus and the Holy Spirit, it does let us know that the Colossians would have known there is a third person of the Godhead. The Colossians would have to rely on other epistles from Paul that would eventually circulate to them, the gospels, and the teachings of Epaphras to get a better understanding of the rich interaction between Jesus and the Holy Spirit.
[SIDE NOTE: To have a better understanding of the Trinity, go buy Bruce Ware's book "Father, Son, and Holy Spirit: Relationships, Roles, and Relevance" right now and read it immediately. It is the best book I've read on the Trinity to date (not like I've read a lot...but it's really good). Don't wait...go do it.]
We live in a world where those with the most authority do the least amount of work. Those with the power don’t serve others. They are the ones that are served. It is the American dream to gain enough power and wealth that you never have to work again.
Jesus showed us that in the kingdom of heaven it is quite the opposite. The all-powerful God became a human being and served us by dying on the cross. Jesus is the perfect example of leading by example. He constantly served those around himself. While his disciples were arguing about who is the greatest, Jesus healed countless people, fed thousands, and humbly washed the dirty feet of those that were fighting for ranking in the kingdom of heaven.
A true Christian isn’t noted by their pious self-righteousness but by their humble servanthood. It is through service that we walk in the same steps that Jesus did when he was here on earth. Through a kinetic learning experience of serving, we grow in our understanding of God’s heart for the lost and hurting people of this world. Here are some simple tips and steps for developing a discipline of service.
Tip #1: Aggressively look for places to serve. For those of you raised with a strong work ethic engrained in your brains, this won’t be much of an issue. The rest of us need to constantly seek places to serve. This is both in the church and out of the church. Seek ways to serve fellow Christians, but also seek to serve those in your community and at work. If you ever catch yourself saying, “I wish someone would…” You need to take it upon yourself to be that someone.
Tip #2: Seek a change of heart. 1 Corinthians 13 says that if we do anything without love, it is pointless. If you have a heart that is begrudging towards service, seek God to change your heart. Jesus wasn’t reluctant in his service. It was his joy to serve. Seek God to give you a heart that takes deep joy in serving those around you.
Tip #3: Use your stuff to serve others. Everything that we have in our lives is a gift from God. Therefore we should see our stuff as a gift from God not just for us but also for those around us. Serve those around you by sharing your stuff with them. Open your house to share meals with friends and family and host events. Use the yard tools you have to care for and maintain more than just your yard. Give people rides in your car. If you have two of something, give one away. Develop yourself to see the stuff you have as being used more than just for you but for those around you.
Tip #4: Serve first and ask questions later. Just like generosity, our tendency is to ask the question “Why?” Why should I serve those around me? How is this going to develop my relationship with Jesus? The reality of it is that these questions can’t truly be answered on paper. You can read countless Bible verses. You could hear stories from people’s lives. You could hear hundreds of hours of sermons about Jesus humbling himself as a servant. But you won’t get it. You won’t get it until you mow your elderly neighbor’s yard without them asking or paying you. You won’t get it until you pick up trash in your neighborhood without anybody asking you. You won’t get it until you serve in your church’s nursery. If you decide that you aren’t going to serve until you fully understand why, you’ll never serve. The reality is you need to serve first and then ask questions, because by serving you’ll find the answers.
Jesus was sent on mission into our world. God the Father sent Jesus into this world to “seek and save the lost.”[i] As we are made into the image of Christ we are sent too. From the beginning, Jesus’ desire wasn’t for us to receive his gift of salvation and then be whisked off to heaven. Jesus’ prayer for us as his disciples was clear and simple.
I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth.[ii]
As Christ followers, we have been blessed with a great gift. Jesus has trusted us to share his good news with those around us. This is a beautiful and simple task, but it isn’t easy. Just as the world was against Jesus, it will be against us. Jesus didn’t send us into the world alone though.
When Jesus told his disciple to love one another in John 13:34-35, he wasn’t telling them to live in loving community for the benefit of each other (although there are benefits to living in loving community). It was for the benefit of those around them. “By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”[iii] We are called to share the good news of Jesus through the instrument of community.
There are two areas that can hurt our mission to image Jesus to the world that are found in Jesus’ prayer in John 17:14-18. The first is if we are part of the world. Jesus was not of this world. He lived differently than everyone around him. He handled money differently. He handled relationships differently. He handled work differently. He handled family differently. He handled love differently. Jesus lived a life different from the world around him. We are called to do the same thing. By living differently than the world around us, we bring the focus to Jesus who is the instrument of salvation.
The second area that can hinder our mission is if we separate ourselves from the world. Jesus was different as he was in the world. He didn’t escape the dirt and evil of this world, but instead dived deep into it to shine His light into the darkness. He ate and drank with alcoholics, corrupt city officials, prostitutes, self-righteous religious leaders, disease- infested street dwellers, and blue-collar workers. Who cares if we have the hope of Jesus if it doesn’t make a difference in the world around us? Like Jesus, we are sent into the world and share that hope. We glorify Jesus when we are in the world but not of the world. Spend this week focusing on how you are sent to be a light in this dark and dying world.
Martin Luther began his 95 Theses with the primary thought of, “the whole life of believers should be repentance.”[i] Repentance of our sins doesn’t end when we become a Christian. It continues until we are received into heaven.
Unfortunately most Christians slowly begin to forget that it is Jesus’ righteousness that puts us in relationship with God. Over time they begin to trust in their own righteousness. This leads to either despair or pride, neither of which Jesus wanted for his disciples.
Therefore, it is a necessity to continuously seek God to expose our sins to us through the power of the Holy Spirit, repent of those sins, and confess them to loving brothers and sisters in Christ. Through repentance and confession we are able to experience true community and love. We are able to see each other as we truly are and love each other despite our sins because of the blood of Jesus. Here are some simple tips and steps for developing a habit of repentance and confession.
Tip #1 – Keep a short list of sins. One of the worst things you can do is to hide your sin. Sin holds you captive and steals the joy that is yours in Christ. It separates you from those around you. Don’t build up a list of sins before you confess and repent. The instant that God reveals a sin in your life to you, immediately confess and repent of your sin.
Tip #2 – Find a righteous person. When James says that “the prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working,”[ii] he isn’t saying that there are people who are actually righteous on their own merit. He is talking about those who trust in the righteousness of Jesus. This is the type of person that you need to find to confess your sins to. You need to find a person that will help you see your sin in light of Jesus. Many times when ours sins are made real to us, we tend to focus on ourselves. A righteous person helps you see that there is forgiveness found in Jesus.
Tip #3 – Keep a journal. As Jesus reveals the sins in your life to you, keep track of them in your journal. Make note of your sin, how it made you feel, the consequences of it, and the work of Jesus in your life to remove it. Later you can look back on your journal to see how God has been working in your life.
Tip #4 – Don’t get discouraged. You might think that as you grow as a Christian, you will begin to feel like less of a sinner. The reality is quite the opposite. When you look at the writings of Paul the Apostle, you see a progression in his understanding of his sinfulness. Early in his writings, Paul simply called himself a sinner. Then he called himself a chief sinner. Towards the end of his life here on earth, he called himself the greatest of all sinners. This isn’t because he began to sin more. Instead, it is because as you walk with Jesus, your understanding of the glory of Jesus deepens. As your understanding of his glory deepens, your understanding of your sinfulness grows in light of his glory.
The beauty is that you are a work in progress. The Holy Spirit is continuously working on conforming you into the image of Jesus. This is a project that won’t finish in your lifetime. Therefore, trust in Jesus and his work in your life.
Tip #5 – Focus on Jesus. The ultimate purpose of repentance and confession isn’t to focus on your sin but to focus on Jesus. True repentance and confession turns you back to finding your identity in Jesus. It’s only when we find our identity in Jesus that we have truly repented of our sins. Anything less is simply pointing out your flaws with no ultimate power to have change in your life.
[i] Martin Luther, Martin Luther’s 95 Theses, 2008, http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/274.
Jesus lived in community. He grew up in a large family. He spent his entire ministry with 12 close-knit friends. He had larger groups of people who followed him during his ministry. He constantly ate meals with people. He healed people. He prayed for people. He preached to multitudes. His life was marked with constant and continuous community. Everything he did was within the context of community.
Jesus’ lifestyle of continuous community didn’t start with his ministry here on earth but was just an extension of his eternal relationship with the Father and Holy Spirit. We are called to live in community because God lives in community with Himself.
God’s tri-Personal reality is intrinsic to his existence as the one God who alone is God. He is a socially related being within himself. In this tri-Personal relationship the three Persons love one another, support one another, assist one another, team with one another, honor one another, communicate with one another, and in everything respect and enjoy one another. They are in need of nothing but each other throughout all eternity. Such is the richness and the fullness and the completion of the social relationship that exists in the Trinity. [i]
In John 13:34-35, Jesus tells us the way that we image him to those around us is by living in loving community. He puts it this way: “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”[ii] When Jesus says we will have love for one another, he isn’t talking about the typical-everyday-pithy love that we come across. He is talking about a deep, never ending, never failing, all-encompassing kind of love. It is the same kind of love that he showed his disciples by loving them at their best and at their worst. It is the love Jesus is talking about when he said; “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.”[iii]
Because of this love, it is in community that we help each other grow. It is in community that we pray for one another. It is in community that we repent. It is in community that we care for one another. It is in community that we spread the gospel (more on this next week). It is in community that we bear the image of God and ultimately bring glory to Jesus and find deep joy in our lives. Spend this week focusing on how you are called to live in loving community with brothers and sisters in Christ.
[i] Bruce A. Ware, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit: Relationships, Roles, and Relevance (Crossway Books, 2005), 25.
As it’s already been stated, Bible reading and prayer are the two most basic spiritual disciplines of Christian faith. Prayer in the simplest way is talking to God. It is sharing with your loving Father your heart, thoughts, emotions, requests, needs, cares, anxieties, worries, praises, thanksgivings, hopes, and desires. The list could go on for days. God speaks to you through His Word and you speak to Him through prayer. Here are some simple tips and steps for developing a discipline of prayer.
Tip #1: Set up “triggers” in your life. We talked about triggers last week. Take things that you do everyday and make them triggers for you to pray. Here are some ideas to help you get started: taking a shower, using the bathroom, getting in your car, making coffee, getting in bed, getting ready to read your Bible, finishing reading your Bible, driving to work, driving home, finishing lunch, eating eggs, sailing on a boat, scratching your nose, and buying a tambourine. You get the idea. Take things that you do everyday and use them as a trigger to pray.
Tip #2: Have a plan. If you don’t have a plan, you can easily become a random prayer. Whatever comes to your head at the time is what you will pray for. You will constantly be praying for the same things over and over. This isn’t necessarily bad, but there are a lot more things/people in your life that could be praying for. So have a standard place where you keep track of all the things that you want to pray about. Then review this list at least once a day. This way nothing gets left behind.
Tip #3: Talk to God. This might sound dumb to some, but for others this will be an epiphany. I don’t know if you noticed this or not, but some people like to use what could be called “prayer talk.” This is where a person suddenly embodies the spirit of a TV evangelist and sees how many times they can say the words God, Father God, Lord, or Jesus (whichever is the persons favorite) in a prayer. It comes as a surprise to most that you can actually just talk to God. You don’t have to use His name as the punctuation to every sentence. You don’t have to speak in old English. You can just talk to Him. Just like you talk to your friends about your troubles and your successes, you can talk to Him. You can tell Him your struggles and failures. You can tell Him jokes. You can even be angry and cry out to Him (read a few Psalms and you’ll get the idea). Prayer is you simply talking to God. No flair. No technicalities. No special formulas. Just talking.
Tip #4: Write it down. When you develop a habit of constantly praying, it becomes easy to forget what you’ve prayed about. Therefore, you can lose track of whether or not God has answered your prayers. This is so you can look back and see how God has answered your prayers over time. Keep it simple though. Don’t set a limit. That means no minimum or maximum. It puts an unnecessary burden on you. Some days you will write pages worth of prayer to God. Other days it will be the simple phrase, “God help me.” The idea is to simply write it out.
Tip #5: Keep it simple. During the time of Jesus, Jews would have standard prayers for everything that they would do. You would have a standard prayer for plowing a field, eating a meal, drinking wine…even going to the bathroom.[i] The key was that most of these prayers were only a sentence long. The reality is that our prayers don’t have to be five minutes long for God to hear us. Sometimes the simplest prayers are the best prayers. If you can only think of a few things to say to God, then say them. God isn’t keeping a tally of how much you pray. He just wants to hear from you.
Tip #6: Keep it sweet. Remember whom you are talking to. While God is the King of the Universe, He is also the Lover of your soul. One of the reasons that David was a man after God’s own heart was because he was passionate and honest with God. He was open and honest as you can only be with a closest friend. The worst prayer isn’t a long prayer or a prayer said in Old English but a prayer that has no heart. If you aren’t praying out of a love for God, then are you really praying? The reality is that this is the core of all prayer…to seek the face of God….to seek after His heart. Prayer is one of the most intimate times we have with God. Treat it that way.
Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. – Ephesians 5:1-2
In the beginning, God created us in His image. Like a mirror, we were created to reflect God’s glory to the world around us. Unfortunately, sin entered the world and our reflection became distorted. Our mirrors became bent and broken.
The story doesn’t stop there though. Jesus entered our world and imaged the Father perfectly. He reflected God’s glory to the world perfectly. Everything he did showed us a perfect image of who the Father is. Jesus said, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.”[i] Jesus imaged the Father.
We are called to image Jesus in the same way that Jesus imaged God the Father. As disciples we are being conformed into the image of Jesus.[ii] Bruce Ware describes our imaging this way:
Created and finite representations (images of God) of God’s own nature, that in relationship with Him and each other, they might be His representatives (imaging God) in carrying out responsibilities He was given to them. In this sense, we are images of God in order to image God and His purposes in the ordering of our lives and carrying out of our God-given responsibilities.[iii]
In the next three weeks we will focus on three distinct areas in our lives in which we are called to image God. We are called to worship Jesus with all of our lives, live in gospel-centered community, and be on mission in the world around us. For now we will simply focus on the thought of imaging God.
Now that our identity is in Jesus, our lives are called to be a reflection of Jesus. Our mirrors are being repaired so we can image Jesus in everything we do, think, feel, and say. This is only possible because of the relationship that we now have with Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit as we are continually purified into the image of Jesus.
As a disciple of Jesus, it is our goal that every aspect of our life would reflect God’s glory. Our families should reflect God’s glory. Our finances should reflect God’s glory. Our relationships should reflect God’s glory. Our jobs should reflect God’s glory. Spend this week focusing on how you are called to be an image-bearer of God.
I’m going to come out and say this…I have a man crush on Moses. Of all the men in the Bible, I have always found myself drawn to Moses. I truly think this is a God thing. Because of all the men in the Bible, I relate to Moses the most.
We’re both miracle babies (my mom wasn’t suppose to physically be able to have children). We’re both overly ambitious (although I haven’t killed anybody…yet). We’re not the “bestest” of speakers. God has used trials, tribulations, and time to prepare us for our callings. Most importantly, I feel like God has given me the same clarification on my calling that He gave Moses.
In Exodus 3, God tells Moses that He is going to use him to deliver His people out of Egypt. Moses’ response is the same as any person who has a great calling put before them, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” Moses is scared, perplexed, shaken and lacking confidence. How could a screwed up man like him complete such a large task after he had failed so many years before? He has been hiding in the desert for 40 years, and he is looking to God for a sign to give him confidence in his calling.
God’s response is classic. He doesn’t give him some pep talk about how awesome Moses is and how God has been preparing him 40 years for this very moment. Instead God tells him, “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”
This one verse has been the summation of my entire calling. October 27 of this last year marked the 10 year anniversary of God calling me to vocational ministry. I have known since then that God is calling me to serve Him as my full-time job. And as I have sought Him for clarification of the years, His sign has always been the same. It’s not a pillar of smoke or fire, or a damp towel on my front porch, or a star in the east. Instead God has quietly told me He will be with me, and I’ll know I’ve fulfilled my calling when I look back and see that I’ve fulfilled my calling.
For this reason, I have never really looked forward to try and figure out what God wants me to do. Instead I’ve looked backwards to see what Jesus has done in my life to determine where He wants me to go next.
By looking at the last 10 years of my life, I can see that Jesus has been moving me towards pinnacle moment in my life. In college, I went on a mission trip to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil for two-and-a-half months. My main point of contact there was the head of the Purpose Driven Church Planting movement in Rio. Him and others spoke into my life saying they saw in me great potential to plant churches in my future. I filed the information deep in the recesses of my brain and went on with my life.
I came back to Eastern New Mexico University, started a interdenominational Bible study with my best friend, married the most beautiful woman in the world, graduated, and got a job as a youth minister in a small town in the panhandle of Texas. It was during my time as a youth minister that God stirred the memories of Brazil in my head and moved in my heart.
I don’t remember the day or the time, but I remember the intense emotions and distinct clarity. I knew that God wanted me to plant a church. So I did what any young ambitious newly married kid does only a year-and-a-half out of college, I turned in my two week notice and made plans to move to Portland, OR (motivated by the book Blue Like Jazz).
When reality snapped to, we figured out that we had no jobs, no place to live, and no friends in Portland. Therefore we did what every young ambitious church planter does, we packed up all our stuff and temporarily moved into my mother-in-law’s house in Albuquerque, NM. It was going to be our half-way point on the way to Portland
We tried our best to find a way to get to Portland, but God kept shutting the doors. And the longer that we stayed in Albuquerque, the more Jesus opened my eyes to the beauty of this city and broke my heart with the sin of its people. In the quiet of our hearts, God showed us that He had other men for Portland, but He wanted us to stay here in Albuquerque.
As Shannon and I began to settle into Albuquerque, getting jobs and a home of our own, we started looking for a church that we call home while we prepared to plant. We scoured hundreds of church websites and visited numerous in person. We began to get so discouraged by what we found. And as time went on, we began to see why God wanted us to plant a church in Albuquerque.
But like a diamond in the rough, we came across a small church that was meeting in a run down theater on Central Ave, City on a Hill (now Mars Hill Church Albuquerque). The church was a place of love, grace, and mercy as you would see the rich rub elbows with homeless and the messed up mingle with the self-righteous. The pastor, Dave Bruskas, had planted the church only a few years earlier and had a heart to help young men plant churches in Albuquerque. He had a deep love for the city and an even deeper love for Jesus. His passion was infectious (and still is to this day).
It was during this time that a few things happened. First, I felt like God told me to wait. I had some growing up to do, and like the disciples, I needed to go up to my room and wait for the Holy Spirit to come. Second, I learned about Acts 29, Mars Hill, and Mark Driscoll. Through them I learned what it means to be a church planter and more importantly a husband and father. Third, I got a job with UPS doing sales. By working for UPS, I have traveled all over Albuquerque (and half the state of NM). I have seen the good, the bad, and the ugly of this city.
But one area has always stood out to me as I make my daily visits to customers. Uptown has to be one of the more unique areas of Albuquerque. If Nob Hill is the cultural hub of Albuquerque, I would say that Uptown is the socio-economic center. You have the wealthy and affluent who come to work in the high rises and play at Q Mall, but there are also the gang-bangers who come from the War Zone to roam the Coronado Mall. You won’t find another place in Albquerque where more diverse group of people live, work, and play. It has captured my heart (but more on this later).
The last thing that happened was I listened to a podcast that would change my thoughts on church planting for the rest of my life. Up until this point I had planned on flying solo. I was going to gather a small group of people and start our own church named after a weird latin term or vague Harry Potter incantation. But God had other plans. As I listened to Doug Swagerty from Harbor Church in San Diego talk about why and how they do multi-site churches, God made it clear to me that this was His plan for me.
The organization, efficiency, and team-work that went into planting a campus as opposed to a new church spoke to the core of who God made me as a person. It was then that I had determined that God didn’t want me to plant a church, but to plant another campus for City on a Hill in the Uptown area. He wanted me to carry the vision and mission to another part of our beautiful city.
This brings us to this moment in time. For the past three years, I feel like have been metaphorically sitting on the bench waiting for God to call me into the game. Like Moses wandered in the dessert shepherding sheep for 40 years, God has been having me wander in the dessert waiting for His timing. But as City on a Hill has made the transition to becoming Mars Hill Church Albuquerque, I feel like God has been calling my number. The Holy Spirit has began to move fresh my heart, and I hear God saying, “Qualls…get in the game.” I feel like God is calling me to be on mission with Jesus in Albuquerque as He reaches our city to impact a region to influence the world.
Working along side Dave Bruskas, we are looking to start a Mars Hill Church campus in the Albuquerque Uptown area. Through Mars Hill’s campus model we hope to reach hundreds of thousands of people through preaching the gospel, planting Acts 29 Churches, and hosting Resurgence and Acts 29 events.
In preparation for this, I will be going to Re:Train starting on August 16th of this year. Re:Train is a one year training center that trains “missional leaders to live for Jesus and lead their churches to effectively reach their cultures with the gospel by staying culturally accessible and biblically faithful.” I see God using this training as a final step to prepare me for the mission put before me.
Looking back on the past ten years of my life, I can see how Jesus has been leading to this moment. Each trial and tribulation has been there to bring me to this point in time. He has led me here, and now He is telling me once again, “I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.” I don’t know exactly what the next few years entail. But I know this, years from know there will be a Mars Hill Church in Uptown Albuquerque, and we will worship and serve our Lord Jesus on that mountain.
Here’s the deal though, I know I can’t do this alone. And I know that I’m not the only person that God has called to do this. I need all the help I can get. More importantly, I need your help. I completely believe in the sovereignty of God. So if you have gotten through the 1841 words of this post to this point, I believe that God has a part for you in this. I ultimately don’t know what that is for you (that’s between you and God), but I have a few suggestions.
1. Pray
I have seen God move in amazing ways through prayer. I know that God chooses to work through the prayers of His people. Therefore, I desperately ask for your prayers as I move forward with this endeavor. Pray for me as I go through Re:Train. Pray for God to bring laborers. Pray for my family. Pray for provision (finances, locations, volunteers, ect.). Pray for a pouring out of the Holy Spirit in Albuquerque.
2. Join
Join in on the mission in Albuquerque. As we get closer towards starting this, I will be getting out more information. For now this would simply mean joining the Mars Hill Church campus in Albuquerque. Join a community group and start serving. If you are interested in joining, email me, and we can start a conversation.
3. Give
Bread is made for laughter, and wine gladdens life, and money answers everything. – Ecclesiastes 10:19
Unfortunately, it is going to take money to do this. Fortunately, I know that God will provide. He will use His people (you) to provide for the tasks that are ahead. The biggest financial burden at the moment is Re:Train. I need to raise $2,000 in the next five weeks. This will pay for my first month of training, travel, lodging, and a basic laptop. Please pray if God would have you support this task financially. If you feel moved by God, you can use the ChipIn Widget below or email me and I will send you my mailing address.
I am excited to see what God is going to do in the next few years. I look forward to sharing with you what God is doing as we go through this journey together.
" right now and read it immediately. It is the best book I've read on the Trinity to date (not like I've read a lot...but it's really good). Don't wait...go do it.]
(Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1989).
