ViaCordis

ViaCordis - who we are

2010-10-06T12:07:00.000-07:00

Started in the greater Los Angeles area, our goal is to serve as the hands and feet of Jesus to the community around us. We currently have associated churches in Vancouver, Canada and in Germany, and are supporting work in Madagascar.

Although we are no longer keeping this blog updated, you can still access our archives for some stories from our earlier development.

If you’d like to contact ViaCordis, drop us a line at viacordis.la@gmail.com. We know there are others with similar visions all over the US and beyond and we welcome the chance to dialogue with you and learn from one another.

If you’d like to read some blogs on missional churches:

Hug a tree… in Madagascar

2010-05-06T13:52:00.000-07:00

Between Jan 1 and May 1, 2010 our church, the size of a modest living room, gave money that will result in 80,600 trees being planted in Madagascar.

The tree-planting project, aimed at stopping the deforestation that is devastating the economy and environment of Madagascar, is run through www.edenprojects.org. Their mission statement? “Eden Reforestation Projects recreates healthy forest systems that restore hope, alleviate suffering, empower people, and build local economies in impoverished communities.” At ViaCordis, we are supporting them through our missions giving.

Our operating budget, made possible in part by our low overhead (no building, no paid staff), is set as follows:
• 60% global missions
• 20% local missions
• 10% admin / reserve
• 10% leadership development

That means we’re giving away 80% of our offerings. Of that 80% we’re focusing our attention on creation care, medical care, evangelism, and church planting. One of the missionaries we are supporting is even headed to Madagascar, where our trees are. How’s that for holistic ministry?

coming alongside to promote growth

2010-04-29T10:22:00.000-07:00

Via Cordis members facilitated Anger Management classes from January-April 2010 in an Adult Rehabilitation Center. These comments reflect the growth that several people experienced.

"This class gave more one-on-one, individualized attention than others I've taken. It was thought provoking. Thank you for showing me that managing anger works."

"I learned how to stay positive and think before I speak. I don't get as mad about the things I did in the past."

"If I were doing this class over, I would ask my husband to join me. I'm better at recognizing anger in others and I know to take it seriously."

"I never felt that I had a problem with anger, but this class helped me focus on lots of things that I face on a daily basis. It had a real personal touch. I felt comfortable to open up and share my feelings."

Letters from prison

2010-04-20T11:56:00.000-07:00

One of our ViaCordis members is currently serving a 6-month prison sentence. He was recently moved to a new prison. He writes to the church every week, and we write to him, telling him about the service and other personal stories. The letter below is from another one of our members after she heard this man's most recent letter read aloud to the church:

"I am so thankful for your words of encouragement each week. Glad to hear that you are liking the new place. I have experienced God so much this week by seeing how this church loves, serves, protects and prays for one another. You have not seemed far or even absent during these months. Thank you for your testimony."

Light in dark places

2010-03-25T12:40:00.000-07:00

One of our members is back in prison until June for a parole violation. He seeks to be the hands and feet of Jesus there. One way he does this is by forming a church group there using the same principles we use in our house church. Here is how he describes what he does:

"I just finished with our little Church group of two. I get together every night with a friend, a young man of 20, and we read one chapter out of the Bible. We discuss what we read, what Jesus is saying to us, how we can apply it to our lives, and what stands out to us most and why. The time that he and I spend together is a real blessing to me. And to see his spirit grow as he follows Christ—man, it’s something to be amazed by."

Unashamed

2010-03-10T08:15:00.000-08:00

From one of the LTGs this week: A woman who has been coming to church and LTG for about 5 months said that she knows, for the first time, that she has been born again. She was reading 1 John and when she came to chapter 2:28-29 she cried with joy because she no longer feels ashamed in her relationship with Jesus. She knows for sure that she is a child of God. Each one sitting around that dining room table shared her joy.

1 John 2:28-29: “And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming. If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him."

An update from our sister ViaCordis church in Germany

2010-02-09T12:21:00.000-08:00

As we've been praying for ministry opportunities to serve as the hands and feet of Jesus, we’re encouraged by how the Lord has been opening doors. Ines, a former nurse who is part of our VC group, she has taken on a part-time job at the local hospital where she does night watch for patients in the ICU. Usually all she has to do is sit and observe the patients. She uses those times to pray for them and their families. When they are awake and can talk, she encourages them and shares Jesus' love with them.

Some months ago, Ines came in contact with one of her neighbors in Burglengenfeld where she lives, a lady in her 30s who is confined to a wheel chair. The neighbor's difficult circumstances have made her very cynical. None of the social workers sent to assist her (within the German system) were able to gain her confidence, and she sent them away, refusing help. For some reason, however, Ines was able to connect and gain her trust and slowly build a relationship.

Ines visits her disabled neighbor regularly, spending time with her, mostly listening. Recently, the neighbor was offered some time for therapy at a state-run medical health spa. The government pays her way and also pays for another person to accompany her for several days. Again, the neighbor lady refused the social workers and, instead, insisted that Ines go along! Ines has experienced Christ's healing herself as Christians ministered to her during a very difficult phase of her life. Now she is anxious-and well prepared-to share the transforming power of Christ with her neighbor as they work through her difficult issues, this time with a Christian perspective.

Another woman, Ute, has been praying for an opportunity to share God's love in a practical way with someone in need. As she was praying for guidance, she noticed a report in the local news paper about a program for assisting families in need (mainly recent immigrants). She applied to volunteer - and was accepted last week. She will now receive training for the job. After screening and training (which will take several weeks, as Germans are very thorough!) Ute will be assigned a family to work with.

We have prayed, and God has been faithfully opening doors for us to serve. We're excited about the prospects he is bringing our way.

2010-01-19T10:04:00.001-08:00

ministry to parolees

2010-01-19T08:11:00.000-08:00

The leader of the church ministering to parolees reports the usual share of life's ups and downs. One parolee who attends the church lapsed back into drugs. One of the other members decided to help restore him by praying with him daily and managing his money for him. He has joined a "Celebrate Recovery" group at a local church.

Another parolee who has been estranged from his wife is focusing on rebuilding trust between them. He invited his wife to our Christmas dinner and has been meeting with his grown children to try to restore his relationship with them. His communication with his wife has since increased dramatically and has centered around their common relationship to Christ.

One of the greatest needs of parolees is transportation. If they have a car or truck their opportunities for work open up tremendously. Please pray for wisdom on how to help these brothers gain reliable transportation.

One of the leaders was recently incarcerated for a parole violation. Apparently there is a rule against parolees doing charity work without permission. As part of outreach to the homeless, this leader has been involved in charity work, distributing backpacks and food, but was doing so without obtaining clearance from his parole officer. Now he is in prison, although at this point the church is not aware that he has been charged with anything. Please pray for protection for this brother, that God would free him to minister in any circumstance, and that He would be released soon.

Second Anniversary!

2010-01-15T08:03:00.001-08:00

ViaCordis celebrates its 2nd anniversary this month. At the first gathering, two women and two men met at a house in Pasadena, CA to share life, study the Bible, pray for others and discuss ways to love the communities in which they live. Before the first service they were cautioned by more experienced house church members to keep looking outward beyond themselves. They heeded this advice. Almost all who attend ViaCordis make community service a priority. Tonight eight will gather for Facilitator Orientation so that they can offer practical support to those wishing to improve life skills including parenting and anger management.

Advent, week 4

2009-12-18T08:42:00.000-08:00

Here's Fourth Sunday of Advent

FOURTH SUNDAY OF ADVENT – MAGI

3 PURPLE AND ONE PINK CANDLE

Scripture: Mt 2:1-12

1After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem 2and asked, "Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him."

3When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. 4When he had called together all the people's chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Christ was to be born. 5"In Bethlehem in Judea," they replied, "for this is what the prophet has written:
6" 'But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for out of you will come a ruler
who will be the shepherd of my people Israel.'"

7Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8He sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and make a careful search for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him."

9After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. 11On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh. 12And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.

LIGHT 3 PURPLE CANDLES AND ONE PINK

The wise men had been seeking the One born King of the Jews. No one knows from what country they came or what studies led them to leave home seeking. It is clear that God wanted them to find the Baby because He put signs in the heavens and in ancient prophecies that lead them, enabling them to find. God’s Word tells us to seek Him with all our heart, soul, mind and strength. We are to seek God in the morning, and continually. He calls us to seek His face while humbly turning from our wicked ways. If we seek God and His Kingdom above all else, the promise is repeated often: God will be found and He will hear, heal and provide. Christmas is God’s answer to the longing and searching of every man, woman and child.

PRAYER: Jesus, like the wise men we come seeking You, sometimes from far places. You are behind us, before us, underneath us, above us and in us. In You we live and move and have our fullest being. Thank you for your perfect plan which reveals Your love more and more as we search for You. Amen.

Our Advent Wreath

2009-12-14T08:13:00.000-08:00

Advent, week 3

2009-12-08T11:57:00.000-08:00

THIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT – SHEPHERDS

ONE PINK CANDLE AND TWO PURPLE CANDLES

Scripture: Luke 2:8-12

8And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ[a] the Lord. 12This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."

LIGHT THE PINK CANDLE AND TWO PURPLE CANDLES

These shepherds were doing what they always did, watched sheep. Through the days lambs were led to the best pasture. This day the shepherds were given the night watch with the sheep. They lived with the sheep. God stepped into the shepherds’ daily routine and turned their world upside down. While going about their ordinary tasks an angel startled these humble people with the best news in the world: The Messiah is born! As if the heavens could no longer contain their excitement over this amazing news, thousands of angels broke through the skies with a joyful song. After going to see for themselves, the shepherds returned to their work but with what a difference! Now their hearts were alive with the miracle of what they had seen and heard. Praise filled them.

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, help us to remember that with you there are no ordinary days. Each day that we live in your grace is a day that is beyond the ordinary. We feel the joy of this. Joy yesterday, that you came into our world and forever changed it. Joy tomorrow, that you will come again and usher in the fullness of the kingdom. And joy today, that you give us opportunities to be Your hands and feet, so that our lives share the message of Christmas during this Advent season. Amen.

Advent, week 2

2009-12-08T11:56:00.000-08:00

ViaCordis has some begun some Christmas traditions that you're welcome to borrow and use in your own churches. We pray that they will bless you as they are blessing us.

We use an Advent Wreath to draw attention to the coming of the Messiah. This is the reading we will hear on Dec 6, the second Sunday of Advent.

SECOND SUNDAY OF ADVENT--BETHLEHEM
SECOND PURPLE CANDLE

Scripture: Luke 2:1-5
1In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2(This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3And everyone went to his own town to register.
4So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child.

LIGHT TWO PURPLE CANDLES.

It was a crowded city that night, Bethlehem, the city of David. People from all over had returned to the city of their fathers. Here they would register and a census would be taken. Joseph and Mary looked for a place to stay. An inn. A room somewhere, anywhere. A safe place from the chilly night air. But there was no place. At the city’s edge was a stable. There, in a stable, Mary and Joseph found warmth and protection. They would stay here until a new day brought light.

Why God chose to send his son into our world as a baby of humble birth, born in common surroundings, we do not know. What we do know is that God reached out to all people including the poor and wealthy, the simple and the wise, the powerless and the powerful. It is possible to know God because He came to us, at our level.

PRAYER: O Lord! God of the little and of the large, your love is as universal as all creation, and yet as individual as my small heart. Here at Christmas, you embrace the nations. I open the doors of my heart wide to all You have planned for me. Thank you for your humility and love which made room for me. Amen.

The Altar

2009-11-17T12:32:00.000-08:00

We continue to grow at ViaCordis as God works among us. Our international ties are growing, with one couple visiting their native Hong Kong for the first time in seven years, and another person is in Mexico producing a Christmas album. This week Bob leaves for Japan. Our life transformation groups (LTGs) are continuing to grow as well. Janet and Sylvia just started a new group in El Sereno last week and the group in Rancho Cucumongo continues to grow and multiply.

Yet we also maintain a ritual that centers us in worship as we meet in our house churches. Each month a member is responsible for designing an altar to set up in the living room where we meet for worship. Right now the altar at one of the house gatherings consists of an open Bible on a cloth square with a light shining down on it. The Bible is laid open to Psalm 67 and the light serves as a reminder that God blesses us so we can bless others. The head phones signify and ongoing dialogue with God that involves both listening and talking. And the candle symbolizes Jesus as our one constant.

The altar changes living room or family room into a sacred space for the church gathering, then it gets packed up during the week. For the host, it provides a good visual reminder of sacred space and creates a boundary between your home and your church.

First Fruits

2009-11-09T12:02:00.000-08:00

A German brother in Christ recently baptized his "first fruit" in the cold waters of a nearby stream. The person baptized - whom we'll call Peter- is a nationally known singer in Germany and is popular among fans of typical German folk music. Peter committed his life to Christ, confessed his sins and desired baptism - immediately! Please pray for Peter and his family as they seek to follow Christ in discipleship.

The God who heals

2009-10-26T12:12:00.000-07:00

We have two hospitalized children we are praying for and visiting. Both have serious medical issues; one is a newborn and the other is the son of one of our regular attenders, who has pneumonia. As a church we regularly pray for healing and we have seen God answer in dramatic ways that have caused more than one doctor to pause and say things like, "Hmmm, that's highly unusual!" These are the two people for whom we are currently interceding.

God is faithful

2009-10-21T14:04:00.000-07:00

Remember how our Rancho Cucamonga church passed out backpacks to a community of homeless people? One of the recipients came to a BBQ hosted by the church and talked at length about his spiritual journey. Two weeks later he died. We thank God for His faithfulness to reach out to this man right until the very end of his life.

Backpacks of love

2009-09-23T10:12:00.000-07:00

*Note: This is a report from our church in Rancho Cucamonga, not the Pasadena location.

One couple in ViaCordis, Keith and Hope, are part of the Rancho Cucamonga gathering. A few weeks ago on a Sunday afternoon they distributed backbacks to homeless people in their area. They had been collecting items to put in the backpacks, but then had the idea to take this ministry one big step further. They decided to ask their neighbors for contributions for the bags as well. Many neighbors were very excited to help.

Here are some of the stories from Keith of the homeless people that God put in his path:

Wayne (aka Leprechaun) is trying to get back to Texas where he believes he can get work as a truck driver. We found him under some trees next to the freeway. He needs a $198 Greyhound bus ticket and is collecting bottles and cans to recycle to earn money. He really appreciated the back pack!

We found Doug wandering through a truck stop. He lost his job, then his apartment. After we gave him his backpack, he led us to two other homeless men, Peter and Paul. Peter was kicked out of his father’s house. We didn’t ask why. He immediately opened his backpack and began eating the food inside. Paul told us he is on the street because of alcohol. Both were overjoyed at receiving backpacks. Just outside a Jack in the Box, Scott, Doug, Peter, Paul, and I held hands in a circle of prayer to ask God to meet their needs and keep them safe.

Then Doug led us to another homeless man, Ky. Ky was sleeping on cardboard boxes near a fence. His greatest treasure in the backpack? The socks! Doug, Scott and I prayed with Ky and then Ky told us where we might find “Ma,” a homeless lady. We looked, but didn’t find her. We will continue looking for “Ma” and other homeless people to give away more backpacks soon. We just received two more back packs already packed—by one of our neighbors! What a great place to be a part of.

ViaCordis in Mandarin

2009-09-14T08:08:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, we had people from three countries visiting ViaCordis. God is putting flesh to our vision of an international, multicultural movement. We had a first-time visitor from Honduras who lives in Hollywood now. We had a woman from Indonesia who also lives nearby now. And we also had a new Chinese-American couple with us, who brought along her mother who was visiting from China.

As we were sharing insights from scripture, the church service was quietly being translated into Mandarin. Then Bob asked the woman from China, "What did you see in this passage?" She responded with her thoughts through a translator. This woman is not yet a follower of Jesus, but she expressed after the service that she would like to know more and would like to have a Bible. Since then, she received a Bible in her own language and returns to China in November, but we hope to see our new visitors from Honduras and Indonesia again soon.

Anger Management

2009-09-04T11:23:00.000-07:00

Community service for two ViaCordis participants involves teaching Anger Management at a women's recovery house. Here's what some said after the completion of a recent class.

-"I've been able to better pinpoint what is a major trigger for me, where my anger stems. I am not isolating as much anymore."

-"I can express anger without physical contact."

- "It has helped me understand others' anger and through that I understand myself more. The changes I've seen for myself are patience and understanding."

-"This class pointed out areas and issues I never knew were anger-based. It was spiritually directed through Scripture."

-"It helped me step back and take a moment to get my thoughts together so I can react properly. I've calmly addressed my issues when necessary. It helped a lot knowing God gave us anger as a defense mechanism - it's all in how we express it appropriately."

-"The instructor really got involved with each of us individually and as a group. We not only did the book work but also used everyday situations as examples and talked about how we walked through each situation, i.e. what we could have done differently."

Praise God for the work of his Spirit in softening hearts and opening minds to a better way to live.

The future is bright

2009-08-17T16:48:00.000-07:00

A couple of months ago, we began seeing children coming to our gatherings on a more regular basis. One 5^th grade girl had some paper and colored pencils with her and she was drawing as we were discussing John 15 and talking about fruitfulness. Someone mentioned that people can count the number of seeds inside one apple, but that only God knows the number of apples inside one seed. The little girl looked up from her drawing and asked, “Could you say that again please?” The man repeated his observation, and the girl got engaged in drawing a new picture. At end of gathering I asked if she’d share what she’d been working on. She pulled out her picture and explained the frames: a seed being planted, the sun is shining and the sprout coming up, then storms that are hard but bring needed water, then a final slide of the mature tree bearing fruit with apples falling to the ground so they can bear more trees. The girl had taken that spiritual concept and had spent the rest of the time fleshing out in her mind what that looked like. Although it may have looked like she wasn’t paying attention, she was engaged in the process of setting aside time for God.

Simplicity

2009-04-28T16:38:00.000-07:00

I continue to be excited about the simplicity of serving, getting together, praying, and asking “Who else?” It’s simple but profound. It’s about spending time and discerning what people God wants us to invest in. They may not even be the people we like. That’s a sign of the kingdom. This party is for everybody. It’s not our party-- it’s the kingdom party. It’s not for a bunch of like-minded friends who enjoy each other’s company. It’s for whoever listens and responds to the invitation.

Another surprise from God

2009-04-03T13:17:00.000-07:00

Well, ViaCordis has gone international. We’re now in Germany. A pastor in Germany had started a large church there, but then felt the call to something smaller and more multiplying. He connected with Bob to process the idea, and instead of trying to reinvent the wheel, he decided to associate with ViaCordis. We’re still trying to figure out structurally what that could look like, but it’s exciting. We’ve always had the vision of ViaCordis spreading beyond the borders of the U.S. but we had no idea what that would look like or what form it would take. God is constantly surprising us.

One observation I’ve made over the last few weeks is that this disciple-making movement isn’t locked in by anything other than where we go. ViaCordis goes wherever its people go. It doesn’t take a building, it doesn’t take a campus. It doesn’t take a big budget. It just takes people. Most movements of the kingdom are like that—they just keep spreading like a wildfire without regard to boundaries and structures.

Becoming Bridges

2009-03-17T11:32:00.000-07:00

Bob recently reconnected with Randy, a man who was once a teenager in a church Bob was working in. Randy had felt a pull towards church planting since those teen years and is now an adult living out that calling. He had lived in the Inland Empire (part of the greater Los Angeles area) and had built connections with people there. Without even meaning to, he had run across several people who were spiritually hungry for a relationship with Jesus, yet wanted something different than traditional church.

This would seem to be a church planter’s dream—except that Randy felt called to plant a church in Modesto, a community well north of the Inland Empire. Randy felt the tension of his dilemma. How could he follow what God wanted him to do while leaving behind spiritually hungry people?

When he and Bob reconnected recently, they hit upon a solution. He would become a bridge person, introducing these people he’d built relationships with to Bob. Bob and another member of ViaCordis who lives nearby would facilitate house church gatherings for a while as the group figures out what this could look like.

Please pray for this new house church starting up. Pray for the people hungry for following Jesus, and pray that we would find and raise up the leaders among them. Our desire is to develop these people into all God wants them to be, to resource them and get them started on the right track. This is what we’re all about at ViaCordis—raising people up from the harvest as we develop them into leaders who can continue reaching the harvest.

Jumping in with both feet

2008-12-15T13:40:00.000-08:00

Recently Bob and a team member were going to take a look at a particular neighborhood and spend some time in prayer. They were considering a possible church planting project where God might be ready to do something. Bob asked this team member about his level of commitment to church planting. The man was initially taken aback by the question. Bob said, “The level of commitment is important. You have to be absolutely, totally convinced that God has called you to do this, because there will be times you will be discouraged and knocked down. At those times, it’s only being absolutely convinced that God has called you that will allow you to get back up.”

That turned out to be a prophetic word, as this team member met a challenge shortly after that conversation, and that challenge ultimately helped him consider and then strengthen his resolve and commitment to church planting. A timely reminder that if we’re involved in this kind of kingdom work, we will face opposition. Therefore, we need to reflect on God’s call and clarify our commitment.

Letting God be God

2008-12-01T11:07:00.000-08:00

A woman in ViaCordis recently brought a concern to her coach (everyone in ViaCordis has a coach). She has been developing friendships with several of her neighbors in her apartment building. She has been engaging them in conversation in the hallways, inviting them in for coffee, has been present in their lives and allowed them to be present in hers. People have been surprised: no one in our building invites us in for coffee! She senses a loneliness and isolation, and this is her way of being a redemptive presence in the lives of those around her.

Yet this woman shared with her coach, “I feel like there needs to be more. This isn’t concrete enough. I’m not making disciples. I’m just showing kindness and hospitality.” She has shared the gospel in bits and pieces, but that has not been met with much receptivity. One woman in her building is a Muslim, and the woman from ViaCordis went over to her place when she accidentally locked herself out of the apartment. The Muslim woman invited her in, served coffee, and said, “You know what, I trust you more than I trust my own people.” This is a woman who wants nothing to do with Christianity, yet the sincerity with which a Christian has approached her has meant a lot.

Her coach said, “You don’t need to be doing anything more concrete other than being there and continuing to be in relationship with her and others. You sticking with her will speak more loudly into her life than anything you could share theologically. You’re being obedient, you’re listening to God, God is opening doors. Just continue to give and see where that leads you. Other people’s receptivity is not up to you. What’s up to you is how you love and serve others.”

Too often in western Christianity, we often devise our own systems of righteousness. We feel the need to intentionally invite someone to a Bible study when they’ve expressed no interest. Or we feel the need to press for spiritual conversation where there is no openness. When we meet the requirements of our own system, we feel good about ourselves, and climb our own ladders. Yet it doesn’t further the kingdom, and often sets it back. We don’t need to go down that road of setting up our own system of righteousness. We just need to be faithful, look for naturally-occurring opportunities to share Jesus, and let God be God.

Jesus and Crepes

2008-11-07T10:21:00.000-08:00

We’re excited about two of our members’ work at the Salvation Army. They’ve been leading an anger management class at a women’s group home. They’ve recently been wondering about how they can help those women who are mothers with school supplies throughout the year and kids’ clothes for winter. ViaCordis is looking into gift certificates for the moms so they can take their kids shopping or buy items for them.

But even though the ViaCordis members haven’t shared those ideas with the women yet, they’ve been leading the anger management training as volunteers. Last week they brought crepes as a snack. The women were stunned. One of them said, “I can’t believe you’re doing this and are Christians.” The ViaCordis members responded in surprise: “How else would we be Christians? This is our understanding of what Jesus would do.” Truly, ministry is not a program. It’s just about being present in the world in ways that Jesus would.

Look again

2008-10-20T11:29:00.001-07:00

We are again reminded that we must keep the vision in front of people. At ViaCordis, we’ve agreed in the past that our gatherings will consist of four parts: connection, worship, edification, and sending. Yet we find edification—teaching and engaging with scripture—dominating our time. We value edification, but our vision for ViaCordis requires that it not be at the expense of connection, worship, and sending. We wonder if this imbalance is part of the DNA we unintentionally bring with us from the traditional sermon-centric church. We need to remind ourselves constantly of the vision to be on the lookout for unintentional messages we may be carrying with us. Then we need to be intentional about changing those messages.

One practice we engaged in a couple of weeks ago was having the facilitator go around to each person and ask, “How are you doing? How have you sensed God this week? What do you sense him calling you to do? How can we pray for you?” Each person received a time of individual focus, and it was one of the more empowering times we’ve had together. Sometimes an exercise like this will take most of the gathering time, but we feel that as long as we balance the four elements we want to incorporate over the course of a month, we will be honoring our values. Our vision affects how we gather. We need to practice the way of community we want to pass on: not discounting any one of these four elements, but seeking to rebalance them as we follow the leading of the Spirit.

Sprouting

2008-08-26T13:37:00.000-07:00

Recently a new "sprout" of the Church began to emerge in one of our homes. Some co-workers of my wife started gathering with us after work to share life together over a meal and to interact with the Scriptures. A few know who Jesus is, others don't, so during our time together we seek to understand and follow the Jesus revealed to us in the Scriptures (particularly the Gospels), which is captivating to us all. Our conversations are rich and the questions raised are deeply profound. The presence of God is almost tangible when we gather.

The reason we consider our gathering a sprout is because the body of Christ has not yet fully emerged. Could it become a gathering of the Church? Absolutely, and that is our desire. But we're not there yet.

What we hope will emerge out of this gathering is a community of disciples that regularly gathers together for at least four purposes: to celebrate God and his activity (including sacraments), to encourage one another (prayer), to grow in our knowledge of and obedience to Jesus (interaction with Scripture), and to pursue lives of service while proclaiming the gospel in both word and deed.

This way of being the Church may seem too simple, but perhaps that's because the standard way of doing church has become far too complicated by things that really don't matter all that much in God's Kingdom. Call our approach simple or organic or missional, or whatever. We're simply trying to follow Jesus as best we know how and we're discovering that his way of life is the best way to live.

Roots

2008-08-13T10:47:00.000-07:00

We have been reminded recently in our gathering times that we need to continually cast vision for what we are about as a church. Because networks of missional house churches are so new--new as in "so old it's new"--very few of us have a clear idea of what they might look like.

Sometimes images can be helpful. The image shown here is of an aspen grove. The grove is actually the world’s largest organism as the entire grove shares one root system beneath the surface. Above the earth’s surface, the trees each appear separate, yet each tree contains the exact same DNA as the tree next to it, all because they share the same roots.

So what is the root system of missional churches? In the case of ViaCordis, the root system is made up of coaching relationships and monthly leadership community gatherings. That’s where the leaders grow and are challenged and nurtured. The root system is what keeps us connected. From there, we sprout above the ground in ways that each look a bit different, spreading out as sent people. Some may start small house church gatherings that engage in transformational initiatives (personal and community), others may begin by serving together in areas of need in hopes of seeing another "tree" (i.e. community of disciples) emerge in the grove. Each tree looks different—and separate—above the surface. But underneath they’re all connected and nourished by the same roots.

The nutrients that flow through the roots--those elements that we rely upon for our community life--are simply the commands and commission Jesus gave us: love God, love others, and make disciples as you go. Again, the expression of these elements in each tree will look different depending on the context, but the elements are the same.

Our goal has never been a large Sunday morning gathering. It’s never been a Sunday morning gathering at all. We deeply desire to serve as the hands and feet of Jesus throughout the week, at the odd times of day and night when we can best serve those in the world around us. As we serve and express the elements Jesus gave us, others will begin to know Jesus as well and new communities will form.

Right now there’s only one tree in the grove. But the roots are spreading and new sprouts are beginning to break through the top of the soil. A new grove is in the making.

Ripples

2008-07-30T09:16:00.000-07:00

God has been stirring in the hearts of our leaders the desire to connect with people within their spheres of influence. We’ve begun to pray and explore possibilities for gathering with people inside their networks. Many in our networks are not yet followers of Jesus and we feel it’s important to meet them in the shared, familiar places that we regularly encounter one another rather than invite them to a meeting in an unfamiliar setting. Our inherited, default mode of church is that we invite not-yet followers of Jesus to join us at a gathering—they come to us, to our place of comfort. Instead, we need to go to them as what Paul calls "ambassadors of Christ" and connect with people within their spheres of influence, in the places they most comfortably live their lives. Jesus is not pulling us out of the world; rather, he is inviting us into it.

One leader of the ViaCordis team has accepted Jesus' invitation by gathering students at the college where he teaches for spiritual conversation. We anticipate much transformation to occur as a result of those conversations. Perhaps the Church will emerge right there on campus!

Other leaders are cultivating relationships within their spheres of influence out of obedience to Jesus' commandment to make disciples of him as we go. The image we associate with this movement is of a drop of rain that falls into a still pond and sends ripples out from where it lands. While we gather together as followers of Jesus on Sunday mornings to encourage one another in our discipleship of Jesus, we also send one another into the world to make disciples in the places we work, play, and naturally live our lives. In this way, we become ripples of Jesus' way of life.

Beware of the Trap

2008-07-11T08:39:00.000-07:00

We’ve been going through the beatitudes and sharing some rich discussions. And yet we’ve been sensing that something is missing regarding missional engagement with our community. It’s not for lack of effort—we’ve contacted the Salvation Army weekly trying to pursue that opportunity, but we’ve had several setbacks there. We’re now asking what I see as some very important questions: Do we keep pursing that possibility with the Salvation Army or do we look elsewhere? Or, do we even create our own opportunities for service within our neighborhoods?

That last question brings up all kinds of “what ifs.” What if my wife and I were to pass out invitations to our neighbors to come by for root beer floats in the front yard one evening? We’ve been having a heat wave. Would people come? If they did come, then what?

What we’re running into right now has been the ruin of many well-intentioned house churches: the holy huddle. It’s one of the biggest traps we could run into. What if we still have no new disciples participating in our community six months from now? We’ve never wanted to be all about us. We’ve wanted to be a church that raises leaders from the harvest for the harvest. So pray with us over these questions: God, how then do you want us to serve? Where can we serve? Who? In what capacity? We need to be taken beyond ourselves. And we need God’s leading to know where the next step lies.

As we move forward, we want to do so with wisdom and sensitivity. Many people are coming in with hurts and we desire to be a healing community as well as a missional community. We believe God can make us both.

Being Home

2008-06-23T07:41:00.000-07:00

A whole lot has been going on at ViaCordis this week. Here are two of the things God's been up to:

Bob was talking to one of our intercessors about a prayer letter we had sent out on our values. She noted that one value that seemed to be missing, yet permeated everything we do, was hospitality. In making that observation, she was pointing out the obvious, yet we needed it pointed out. Hospitality was an assumed value, but unstated. We hadn't put words to it. We move toward inviting: inviting people into our homes, into our lives, into relationship with Jesus. Thanks to this intercessor for pointing that out to us! We love our intercessors!

One leader's home is becoming a popular hangout for high school students. More and more of them are congregating in her home as they sense it is a safe place to be real with one another. Someone observed, "Maybe we could have a kids' church meeting in your house. Your daughter could be the leader." Now I'm not sure this leader has ever seen herself as a host, but she has always served as an incarnational missionary—opening her home so people can experience the presence of God there. We don't know where the network of relationships will go—nothing formal has been established—but we're excited about the possibilities.

While hospitality has emerged as one of our values, we understand that many do not have houses to which we can retreat for comfort and security. Rather than viewing hospitality as something that can only be done in a physical house, we desire to create a sense of hospitality in all of our regular gathering spaces (wine bars, basketball courts, classrooms, workspaces, etc.). And more than that, we want to become hospitable people--people who are approachable, trustworthy, and with whom others can be authentic. In this way, no matter where we gather with people, we will always be home.

Asking Good Questions

2008-03-03T16:51:00.000-08:00

In an article titled, "A New Imagination for the Church" Dave Dunbar of Biblical Seminary introduces 3 sets of questions to help guide a church toward a missional engagement with their community:

What means or activities in the history of our church have proven most effective in introducing non-Christians to the gospel? (This is not the same question as what activities have been most effective in adding members/attendees to the congregation.) What can we learn from this that might guide our present efforts?
Jesus taught us to pray “your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as in heaven.” If the kingdom were to come today, what things would be different in our neighborhood? How might the answers to this question guide the participation of our church in the mission of God?
The Abrahamic covenant promises that Abraham’s descendants will be blessed in order that they may be a blessing (Gen. 12:2-3). How is our church a blessing to our community? How would our neighbors answer this question?

I think these questions are a good starting point for any church, new or old, who wants to be an agent of change in the next twenty years. I imagine our church will wrestle through these questions rather soon, and I encourage you and your church community to begin asking (and answering) these questions as well.

Peace!