Convergence

Hey Guys,

You often hear me refer to Acts 1/Acts 2. That is shorthand for an important principle God taught me recently. Briefly, it represents two approaches to doing church (and to life). One starts with Acts 2—that is, implementing certain practices that are characteristic of biblically functioning churches. Things like evangelism, community, giving, serving, worship, and growth. My/our approach for years was to focus on finding the best, most efficient methods for realizing these practices. We traveled around the country, read the books, etc., to get the details of how other churches were doing evangelism, small groups, serving—and then tried to implement them at BRCC. Our assumption was that if we could cause these results (recorded in Acts 2), then the Spirit would move and the church would be more effective.

Then, as I read Acts, I realized that the reverse was true. Jesus clearly said in Acts 1, don’t even try to do these things until the Spirit comes. Then the results in Acts 2 will flow out of the presence and activity of the Spirit.

This changed everything in the way we do church. Rather than starting with strategies and plans, we started with the Holy Spirit and prayer. We waited for God to reveal His plan through His people as we recognized (together) His initiatives. It was no longer a vision we had, to be sold to the rest of the church, but one we watched appear and take on life. We labeled this “convergence.”

For example, this is the approach we’re using to determine God’s next step for expansion at BRCC—additional services, move some things off line, expand the building, move to multi-site, or ________? We’re continuing to do what we know to do, all the while looking for where He might be bringing “convergence.” We’re after His idea—not ours.

It has brought such freedom. We are no longer the “originators” of what God wants us to do, but simply the “recognizers.” It frees us up to be fully what we really are anyway—servants, worshipers, responders. It frees us up from being God. That’s a job (being God) we’re not equipped for but regularly take on, in church as well as in our individual lives. God is just better at running things than we are.

Well, all of that was intended to be background for what I started out to say. I guess I’ll just wait until the next blog to try to unpack another of the buzzwords like “convergence” that expresses how we’re following God.

Woody