Organic Church: Growing Faith Where Life Happens

It is not easy to write a paper on a book that you have not finished formulating your opinion on. Neil Cole has painted a picture of church that is in stark contrast to the kind of churches I got saved in, grew up in, got trained in, and served in. There is much in the book that I agree with but most of what I think of as the best parts have nothing to do with the organic churches being so small and reproducible but rather points that would apply to any kind of church.


I think he does a good job of clearly showing some of the biggest failings in the institutional church. He says things like “In many of the churches in the West, ministry is done for Jesus, but not by Jesus…” or “Unfortunately, in most churches in the Western world the presence of the pastor is more noticeable than the presence of Jesus.” He mentions that in a lot of churches when the people know the pastor will be out the attendance drops. Another quote I like is: “our current systems are perfectly designed to produce the results we are now seeing.” He has a lot to say throughout the book noting the areas where the Western church is not right and I think he has great insight into many of those things.


I like his definition of the church. Neil quickly sets out to define church as such: The presence of Jesus among His people called out as a spiritual family to pursue His mission on this planet. This is simple and yet, incomplete but if you assume the rest of the Biblical requirements, I like it. He also talks about the DNA of the church and the three things all churches must have. DNA is Divine truth, Nurturing relationships, and Apostolic mission.


My favorite part was about the different kinds of soil in the parable where Jesus tells about the sower. In this section he makes many good points about ministry. He talks about the mistake we have made in accommodating bad soil in our churches and how it leads to an audience of consumers shopping for the best “services” which requires them to make little or no effort. Too often attendance equals good standing in our churches… even people who are totally uncommitted to the Kingdom that are distracted by the deceitfulness of riches and the desire for other things can still be a member of our church. He encourages us instead of investing in bad soil to invest everything into the few that will bear fruit. “Life is too short….to babysit fruitless people.” One of my favorite lines in the book is when he says that "bad people (drug addicts, prostitutes, ect.) make good soil because there is a lot of fertilizer in their lives." He goes on to say that good soil can be found in bad people (sinners), poor people, young people, seekers, uneducated and powerless people. I agree with this statement and want to make my life about ministering to these kinds of people.


I love the emphasis on evangelism, community, confession, and reading large amounts of scripture and I hope to have these elements in any church that I plant. But In his model of the organic church I was left wondering about elders and authority, tithing, laying on of hands too hastily in new converts. This book is full of good one liners and views on ministry and church planting…but the best materiel does not seem exclusive to home churches…and I think that was supposed to be the point.

Here is a song from Mat Kearney with a great message...

"Girl America"

My girl America is just a youth in this world
Her smile is more precious than the sparkle of pearls
And though her age reads she's just a young girl
The age behind her eyes show the pain that she's swirled
Through the hand that's been dealt though it's quiet as kept
The weight that she felt last night when she slept
And as she crept into the dreams of the things of her past
Seems to have grown so fast, way beyond her own class
Though they're right there with her, her brothers and her sisters
A natural born leader even when her peers dis her
My girl, she's at a crossroads, people praying for her
Some are preying on her magazine ads, sex, drama
Smoking marijuana, longer for a father to call her, 'daughter'
She's part of a generation longing for reconciliation
And this future that they're facing and this poison that they're tasting
My girl, I know this love you're chasing

[chorus]
My girl America's crying when she's lying on her bed at night
I can see that she's screaming when she's dreaming for her freedom
My girl America's dying while she's trying just to stop this fight
Don't stop believing, my girl America

Boys with hungry eyes have been beating her door
Telling her that's what she's for, trying to rob at her core
Then leave calling her a whore, but still she knows there's more
I know she knows there's more because there is a voice she can't ignore
'Cause it was founded in the foundations, from the day of her creation
In God we trust engraved on the treasures of her nation
And the void that the boys can't fill
With the tipping of the bottle or the popping of the pill
But still most of her friends don't care as they glare
Ready to drown down the funnel as they frown down the tunnel
They stumble and they tumble breaking down into rubble
My girl America, stop can't you see
It's not the circumstances that determine who you're gonna be
But how you deal with these problems and pains that come your way
It's for you that I pray with hope for a brighter day
And so I say, your deliverance is coming

[chorus]

Faith like a child from your first birth
You left it in the dirt on your worst hurt
And I see each tear and every scar
The hands that have held you where you are
And I can see we've strayed so far
A king born under that morning star
As a crown of thorns was placed to earase
Each tear that's touched your face
And his palms and sides were pierced with spears
He hung in love just to draw you near
My girl, out of this whole world
Can't you see this is where we started?

While you were sleeping. (a letter to the church)

Dear Church,

While we were busy making Christianity into a religious country club, fighting with ourselves and making people feel judged...the world changed.

Our lack of a stong response to the evolution question, our lack of love for each other and the rest of the world, and our lack of living what we say we believe has lead to an overwhelming rise in atheism.

The number of people who believe religion and especially Christianity is utterly stupid is and has been growing. And it is our fault. It is time to wake up and smell the hatred. The world views our belief in a "Creator God" as ridiculous as an adult believing in Santa Clause.

My wife and I saw the movie "The invention of lying" it was really funny...at first. Then the movie took a quick and calculated turn. The moral of the movie...God is a lie people made up to make each other feel better. Ricky Gervais (very very funny) wrote and stared in the film. He is a serious atheist who does a good job of making Theism look foolish. He seems to hold the view that evolution is a proven fact and that after you die there is nothingness. That may be depressing but because he is convinced of evolution he is convinced this must be true.

Evolution is not going away. It is time for the church to really address it. Get informed and get the debate going. This country is changing fast and we are too selfish and ignorant to do anything about it. It is time to change!It is time to get involved!

Hoping we are not too late,

your brother

I am not racist!!

Former President Jimmy Carter said in an interview with NBC that "an overwhelming portion" of those who demonstrate against Obama are doing so because the president is a black man.

What!?! "An overwhelming portion."

Unfortunately the race card has been played throughout the Heatlhcare debate and I find it really frustrating.

I tend to think that the "overwhelming majority of people", have a problem with universal healthcare for the same reasons I do.

1. It would be bad for our country! With our debt so high and our economy so low we can not afford it.
2. We are not a socialist country. Capitalism is not evil.(Micheal Moore stop being a hypocrite, give your millions of dollars to the poor and go live in China!)Government run anything does not work well. (Medicaid, Social Security, ect.)
3. The quality of care would plummet. Just look at any country with universal healthcare.
4. It would mean more taxation
5. It is really a disguise for the liberal left to redistribute wealth.

These are quick reasons why it is such a bad idea! The opposition is not racially motivated but patriotically motivated. Some people love this country and understand what it is that has made this country great.

One online definition of racist is this:

The belief that race accounts for differences in human character or ability and that a particular race is superior to others.

I am offended that the liberal news media would suggest that anyone who disagrees with policies and agendas that will "fundamentally change this country" (for the worse) is motivated by racist feelings.

The ideas and goals put forth by President Obama are wrong! They are simply terrible for our country! That is a fact! How dare people try and make it about race. I think that is a slap in the face to all people in our country who have had real encounters of racism.

I believe that America has yet to rid itself of all the evils of racism and is something that should be taken very seriously. So when people make things about race that are not about race...I find it really disturbing.