Mark Moore's Blog

Total Church Conference

I'll have much more to say about this later, but in the meantime I wanted to get the information out.

The Total Church North America Conference 2008

Be the Church
Total church is a way of thinking about church and mission in the 21st century which sees the local Christian community as integral to Christian living and Christian mission. The Christian life is 'total church' - our identity is communal.

Why Attend?
Create a community centered on the gospel, equipped to do the work of the ministry.
Make your community a community of church planters.
See what it means to be the church on mission through ordinary life with gospel intentionality.
Dialog with missional church leaders from across the world.
Learn from seasoned practitioners how to form missional communities and transition traditional churches toward mission.

Dates: August 12-14, 2008

Location: San Diego

The first Total Church was held in Sheffield, UK, in 2007 at the end of October, hosted by the Crowded House. The conference is named for the book, Total Church -A Radical Reshaping Around Gospel and Community which will be released in the Fall in the US.

For more information and to register, please visit www.churchbootcamp.com.

Technorati Tags: church planting, missional church, Total Church Conference

The Crowded House Values

In my last post, I mentioned that our church is now part of a formal partnership with The Crowded House. The Crowded House is a group of church planting networks with a commitment to missional communities and household church. This partnership is defined by our shared values. These values are a statement of what makes us distinct as a network, but are not intended to be a judgment on those with a gospel commitment who do things differently.

1. The priority of the gospel
 ('community in mission')

We are committed to taking the gospel both to our neighbors and to the ends of the earth. We will challenge one another to be sacrificial, risk-taking and flexible because the gospel has priority over our comfort, security and traditions. We want to have a global gospel vision and to this end be generous with our resources. We will not let Christian activity be just one part of our lives.

2. Mission through community

We are committed to communicating the gospel message in the context of a gospel community. We want people to experience church as a network of relationships rather than a meeting you attend or a place you enter. We will not put on evangelistic missions outside the context of a Christian community.

3. Home as the location and ethos of church

We are committed to homes as a context for all or most of church life. We want home to define the ethos of church and believe it facilitates effective evangelism, especially among the unchurched. When congregations use other buildings, those buildings will not be viewed as sacred or the main focus of mission.

4. Living as an extended family

We are committed to caring for one another, discipling one another, investing in relationships and resolving conflict. We will expect one another to make decisions with regard to the implications for the church and to make significant decisions in consultation with the church. We will not view church as a meeting you attend. We will not let conflict continue unresolved.

5. Being an inclusive community

We are committed to making church accessible to unbelievers and welcoming to the socially marginalized. We want all who come to have a sense of belonging. We will not let our welcome be dependent on adherence to any cultural norms when these are not demanded by the gospel. We will not do that which might make unbelievers feel left out.

6. Growing churches by planting churches

We are committed to starting new congregations - both in areas where no church exists and through subdividing growing congregations. We will not develop into a single, large congregation.

7. Church without the trappings

We are committed to freedom and simplicity in church life. We are committed to Bible teaching; loving community; the breaking of bread and prayer (Acts 2:42). Apart from these things we want to be flexible and relevant for the sake of the gospel. We will not regard as necessary for church life such things as accomplished music, constitutions, monologues, officers or anything that might hinder the core activities of the church and its mission.

8. Everyone exercising gospel ministry

We are committed to everyone in the church exercising gospel ministry. For some this will be expressed in their employment. We believe leadership is important and see leaders as facilitators of gospel ministry rather than those who exercise control. We will not make distinctions between fulltime and non-fulltime ministers.

9. Shaping our activities around people

We want the activities of a church to reflect its context. We will shape activities around the opportunities we have with unbelievers, and the gifts and passions of church members. We expect one another to see ourselves as servants of Jesus even when that means operating outside our comfort zones. We will not give people roles simply to maintain programs.

10. Good Bible teaching and learning

We want to shape our lives and our life together in obedience to the Bible, which we believe to be the reliable, authoritative and sufficient word of God. To this end we are committed to good Bible teaching and learning. We will not act on the basis of tradition, habit or pragmatism without reflection on the Bible. We will not see Bible teaching as an end in itself, but as that which must shape our thinking and action.

Technorati Tags: church planting, the crowded house

Missional Church Planting in Your Eighties!

Steve McAlpine is a friend of mine who has a blog called Mission in Action. Steve is from Perth, Australia and has been spending a year living in Sheffield working in The Crowded House. Steve and I have become friends this year and I look forward to continuing our relationship when Steve and his family head back to Australia in November to plant a church. I enjoy Steve's friendship and his blog, but this week he posted something that I think is my favorite blog post ever...on any blog. The reason I say that is because this post encourages my faith in the power of the gospel to use people for his missional purposes.

Enjoy...

Meet Dorothy - The Crowded House’s latest missionary. Dorothy is in her eighties and in my humble opinion is a legend. She’s not about to let what she’s always done stand in the way of what she thinks God is calling her to do now. After 57 years, that’s right 57, at the Sharrowvale church, she’s decided to go out and be part of the latest church plant we’re sending. It was great on Sunday to see her standing up the front with the rest of the team who are being planted. I decided to ask her why she was doing it.

“I’ve been praying about it for a while and I felt that God was saying it was the right thing,” she said. (read more)

Technorati Tags: church planting, steve timmis, the crowded house

What do our buildings witness to?

I've recently been reading a book that was originally published in 1975 under the title The Problem of Wineskins, written by Howard A. Snyder. The book was rereleased in 1996, revised and updated, under the title "Radical Renewal: The Problem of Wineskins Today" (Howard A. Snyder). The book challenges current church structures in light of the gospel and today's culture. I found it very fascinating, insightful, and pointed.

One chapter, entitled 'Are Church Buildings Superfluous?', listed five things that our church buildings witness to. I thought it would be helpful if I listed these five things and then allowed you to either think through them on your own or go buy a copy of the book so that you can read what he says about each of these five things. In doing so, let me include a quote that will help set the context.

Christians did not begin to build church buildings until about 200 A.D. This fact suggests, whatever else church buildings are good for, they are not essential either for numerical growth or spiritual depth. The early church possessed both these qualities, and the church's greatest period of vitality and growth until recent times was during the first two centuries A.D. In other words, the church grew fastest when it did not have the help--or hinderance-- of church buildings.

But if it is true that church buildings are not essential either for growth or vitality, why are church today so indebted (literally and figuratively) to them? Does the church really suffer an "edifice complex"?

Church buildings are a kind of witness. They tell five things about the church today.

So, here they are. I hope they cause you to think a bit and maybe some of you will be intrigued enough to buy the book and read it.

1. Church buildings are a witness to our immobility.

2. Church buildings are a witness to our inflexibility.

3. Church buildings are a witness to our lack of fellowship.

4. Church buildings are a witness to our pride.

5. Church buildings are a witness to our divisions of class.

In summary, "Our church buildings, then, witness to the immobility, inflexibility, lack of fellowship, pride and class divisions in today's church."

Technorati Tags: church, missional church, howard a. snyder

Total Church

I want to tell you about my favorite new book. Let me begin by confessing my bias. I personally know and love the men who wrote this book. Steve Timmis has become a very good friend of mine who I speak with on a daily basis. He is someone that I have the deepest admiration and respect for. Tim Chester I do not know as well, but still had the privilege of spending a week with him in Sheffield and my heart warmed to him very quickly. I enjoyed hours of great conversation with Tim and find him to be one of the most intelligent and humble men that I have met. It is a joy and privilege for me to partner with them in ministry and life. What follows is my attempt to convince you to buy and distribute many copies of this book.

Total Church is one of those books that you hold in your hand and think two things after you've read it. First, Wow! This book says it all. Second, Wow! This book says it all. The first "wow" is the one you say while cheering and applauding that someone has said things that you have desperately wanted to hear. Each page drips with gospel understanding and real life love for the church. The second "wow" is the one you say while realizing that you pretty much have nothing new to offer the world at this point other than a copy of this book. The things you had been thinking about that seemed so "radical" and "refreshing" are now nothing more than restatement of what's been said.

The back of the book reads:

How does your church measure up?

Total Church pleads for two key principles for church and mission. First, the gospel as content: being word-centred (for the gospel is truth) and being mission-centred (for the gospel is truth to be proclaimed). Secondly, the community as context: sharing our lives as Christians and offering a place of belonging to unbelievers.

The authors apply these principles to church planting, evangelism, apologetics, social involvement, leadership, discipleship, pastoral care, world mission, and notions of success. They critique current trends within the church: emerging church movements are strong on community but weak on truth, while conservative evangelicalism is strong on truth but weak on community. Their call is for the best of both.

The book divides nicely into two parts. First, gospel and community in principle. This part does a nice job of explaining both the nature of the gospel and the nature of community. The second part, gospel and community in practice, explores the way such principles play out in a local church setting. In my opinion, this is where the book separates itself from other books in its category. We live in a time in which the academy and the church seem far apart from one another. Those who appear to understand the principles of gospel and community often have nothing more than a band of seminary students following closely behind saying "amen" to their every word. Having never seen the principles in practice, the students spend the rest of their lives, like their professors, talking about the principles and yet never practicing them. On the other hand, the other extreme is often the case. Many churches operate purely out of pragmatism without ever thinking through the theological basis (if there is one) for what they are doing. The result is often program driven churches that have practices handed down from one practitioner to another via conferences or "how to" manuals. The results of these two camps--theoreticians and practitioners--are easy to spot. One boasts in depth (quality) while the other in width (quantity).

Rarely does one find a book written by men who not only understand the principles and explain the practices, but also have a church that reflects the book. This book is created in the image of The Crowded House. Throughout its pages are stories of real life people who have been affected by the principles of this book and are therefore living the practices of this book. I have had the privilege of spending time in The Crowded House and seeing the work that gives testimony to the convictions of this book. The principles and practices of gospel community are something that you find in every aspect of The Crowded House and spending any amount of time with the Tim and Steve explain why. These principles and practices define these men and what is contained on the pages of this book is merely overflow of their lives.

That said, this book promises to cause you to think. The authors argue that Christian practice must be 1) gospel-centered in the sense of being word-centered; 2) gospel-centered in the sense of being mission-centered; and 3) community-centered. As they unpack this, most will find themselves agreeing with much of what they are saying. The gospel-centrality of these men is extremely refreshing. For some, their ecclesiology may be a bit radical and sit uncomfortably. There are moments that will rattle you--especially if you are a pastor. For example:

"I am pastored by my congregation. My struggles are often out in the open for everyone to see. I can be honest about my failures...The real tragedy of leadership-as-performance is that it devalues the work of Christ. Our identity is not rooted in grace, but in the success of our ministry." These are not things that sit well with the typical pastor who is enamored by his position. Another quote from the book reads, "It is important that leaders see themselves and are seen by others as part of the church. Professionalism is always the enemy of authentic gospel leadership...It is both reassuring and challenging to discover that the shepherds of God's flock are first and foremost sheep!"

Not only is the identity of pastors looked at with scrutiny, but so is the role of formal theological training.

"We are not against theological colleges, but we need a big switch of focus from the isolation of residential theological colleges to apprenticeships in the context of ministry....In residential colleges the academy sets the agenda. With on-the-job training, ministry and mission set the agenda. Colleges also suit a certain type of person and this then shapes a view of what it means to be a church leader. Most church leaders today are middle-class graduates who were trained in a college whose qualification for ministry is a degree...One of the reasons that we have middle-class churches that are failing to reach working-class people is that we have middle-class leaders...And we have middle-class leaders because our expectations of what constitutes leadership and our training methods are middle-class."

It is statements like these that I assume will cause indigestion to some readers. However, this is the reason that I recommend not reading this book in the same fashion that you eat a Big Mac. This is a meal that is meant to be chewed slowly. It is not hard to read, it actually reads pretty fast, but it is not meant to be read in that fashion. It is meant to cause you to evaluate your life, your ministry, and your church. I personally believe that this is a book that bridges the gap between the conservative view of the gospel and the emerging view of community in a way that I have not yet seen. Imagine a church that really understood the gospel and really understood community--it would be a Total Church.

As a side note, the book is published in the UK by IVP and is therefore not currently available in the US until later this year when it is published on this side of the Atlantic. However, I just happened to have acquired a large quantity that I am happy to make available to those who are interested. If you would like to purchase a copy, don't hesitate to contact me.

Technorati Tags: missional church, steve timmis, the crowded house, tim chester

Cinderella With Amnesia

I've been reading a very stimulating book that was printed in 1975 and sadly is out of print today. The name of the book is Cinderella With Amnesia: A Practical Discussion of the Relevance of the Church by Michael Griffiths. The back of the book reads:

The bride of Christ today seems like a Cinderella in the ashes, forgotten by the world and oblivious of her glorious destiny. Why is she failing to be what she is--the dynamic, beautiful, caring community for which the present generation is seeing.

I'm guessing that since this book is now out of print, unheard of by most, and the actual material of the book not reflective of the current church scene, that the church didn't pay much attention to what Griffiths said. This is a shame! In many ways this accounts for why the church is still viewed as a Cinderella in the ashes, forgotten by the world and oblivious of her glorious destiny. Not so much that Griffiths' book is out of print, but more so that we are infatuated with tricked up versions of church that promise us growth beyond measure. We buy and read books that address church purely on pragmatic terms without giving much thought or consideration to the theological foundations upon which our pragmatism is built. Most pastors and church planters are not thinking about church theologically, but rather pragmatically, and therefore it is far fetched to believe that church members are giving much consideration to the theological basis for their church's programs, much less its existence.

The good news is that there are those who are trying. There are those who are swimming upstream, asking tough questions, and not simply settling for what works. There is also a body of good work from those who swam before us. Sadly their work is often hard to find or out of print, but often times is very cheap to buy (I paid $1 for Griffiths' book and ordered it from the UK since there were no available copies in the US).

My prayer for my church is: Let's be those people. Let's ask tough questions. Let's have no sacred cows. Let's realize that when our forms don't reflect a biblical theology of church it means that we are in error, even if it is working. Let's be comfortable with being uncomfortable. Let's let the gospel shape us as a community so that we can in turn shape the community.

Here's to Cinderella. May she regain her memory and rise from the ashes to embrace her Bridegroom.

Technorati Tags: church, church planting, missional church

Home Again

Woke up at 5am. Stood on the platform at the train station at 6am. 6:11am train was cancelled. 6:20am train was cancelled. Made a mad dash to a car. Sat in traffic. Made it to the airport in time to check in for my flight, grab a muffin, and hop aboard. The flight home was incredible as we flew far north over Greenland on a perfectly clear day. For about an hour it was like watching the Discovery Channel outside of the window. Made it into Dallas by 5:30pm and was happy to be home. My time with The Crowded House was encouraging, convicting, challenging, refreshing, on and on and on.

I want to thank Steve and Janet Timmis for all of their hospitality while I stayed with them. They are wonderful people with a wonderful family and I am thankful that God caused us to cross paths at this point in my life. I love them both very much.

Technorati Tags: steve timmis, the crowded house

The Crowded House-Day Six

Today was our last day in Sheffield before heading home early tomorrow. Most of the day was spent on a long walk. I have enjoyed the walking here tremendously. Dallas is all steel and concrete and the only walking that is done is the walk to the car. This morning Ken, Steve, Tim, and I set out on about a six mile walk through Sherwood Forest (yes, the one where Robin Hood chased the Sherif of Nottingham). We talked for hours on the way up to an inn at the top of a mountain (alright, a hill) where we had a great lunch and then continued further on our walk. The evening ended with leaders of all The Crowed House congregations coming together for a meeting in which we ate a great meal together (they eat a lot of meals together here).

Technorati Tags: church planting, steve timmis, the crowded house, tim chester

The Crowded House-Day Five

Today was a great day in The Crowded House as they sent out another 15-20 people to plant a new household congregation. The photo above is of the group that is heading out to plant the new church. It was a great day in which we took part in worship with two different churches in TCH. In the afternoon, the whole Timmis family came over (all four kids, two grandchildren, and grandpa) and we ate together. The evening was capped off with cigars by the chiminea and a great theological conversation.

Technorati Tags: church planting, steve timmis, the crowded house

The Crowded House-Day Four

This morning I went on a long walk with Ken and Tim Chester. We walked through a forest for a couple of hours and climbed rocks and jumped over creeks while talking about politics, global warming, American theology, revivalism, and history. It was a great time. On the way home in the car, Tim switched on the radio to get an update on a cricket match. He then spent the next 30 minutes trying to explain cricket to me while I sat there confused and thanked God for the simplicity of baseball. After lunch at the Chester's, we went back to the Timmis' house for one of the biggest days of the year in the UK--the FA Cup. For my American readers, the FA Cup is like the Super Bowl of English football (soccer). The Timmis' house feels the same way about Manchester United as I do the Dallas Cowboys. Manchester United lost to Chelsea 1-0 in the last two minutes of overtime. Ironically, I made a major prediction in the first minute of the game that no one paid any attention to. My prediction was that Drogba would score the first goal. He did, it was the only goal, it was the winning goal, and I felt no longer welcomed in the Timmis' house.

Fortunately, we left and went out for some of the best curry I've ever had. We then came back to the house and hung out by the chiminea and talked for a couple of hours. Another great day in Sheffield.

Technorati Tags: church planting, steve timmis, the crowded house, tim chester