Staff Retreat. Woodforest

Session 1: 1:00 - 2:30 pm

Get to know you

Favorite Bible passage

Share my story:

It probably does not surprise any of you for what I am about to say. The Church has little agreement of what it means to make disciples of Jesus.

Marks of discipleship in my first church:

giving

prayer

scripture

active in the community

Service

Problem is, there were people that could check these boxes and yet their life was not indicative of the signs of the new birth, to use very Wesleyan terms.

Making disciples of Jesus Christ.

What does it mean to make disciples?

Return to Form

Scripture….

Ephesians 4:1–16 NIV

As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. This is why it says: “When he ascended on high, he took many captives and gave gifts to his people.” (What does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions? He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.) So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

Talk about Scripture slide:

Show Picture: Presence of God —> Gifts of God —> Form of God

Living in the unity of God…in the presence of God.

Leads to the spiritual empowering or the gifts of God (people).

I might disagree from the legendary Alan Hirsch on this…but I am not sure that Ephesians 4 is prescriptive for the necessary offices of the church. This is not an exhaustive list. It is more about the people of God that are given to the church.

Activity: Notecards… Write everyone’s name on it. Write a sentence about their giftings.

Living the truth

Which leads to a from that is coherent and pointed to one end. That is holiness in our tradition.

“Speaking the truth to one another in love” is a verse we love. Especially, when we feel like we want to say something critical of that person that is driving us crazy.

....just go speak truth in love.

Nope, the greek is more rigidly “truth with one another.”

example?

Paul is telling Ephesians to live truth with one another.

If we will live gospel truth with and next to one another then we will become Christ like.

4 year old and 2 year old (and one on the way, Lord help us). The way my kids learn is spending time with us living truth of life with them. Now the hard part is determining what truth we are living in front of them (is it scarcity, fear, selfishness, etc…we live out truth in front of those around us). But as we live out truth in front of them, as they go to school and learn about things, as they interact with littles and older kids their age, they are being shaped and formed. As they are formed they are not as susceptible to everything around them.

When it comes to things of the faith, Paul infers here that we are infants being tossed back and forth by the waves. And I wonder if it is because we spend very little time in community that lives out the Truth.

Closing:

I have been reading a lot of the late great Eugene Peterson. He is a pastor to pastors, but you may know him as the author of the Message translation. As he was starting the church he would serve for 30 years he realized there is an American stereotype of the church that needs to be broken. And I am paraphrasing mostly here....

He said that the story of the Church is largely what we are doing for Jesus, in the name of Jesus…we are in charge, we have his commands and we take the responsibility now.

Making his point more clearly, he says

“the American Stereotype is this: Salvation is God’s business, it is what he does and then he turns it over to us. Church is our business, it is what we do. God haven given himself to us in Jesus, now retires to the sideline and we take over. Occasionally we call a time out to consult with God. But basically we are the action.”

No. The community of apprentices are those that are wrapped up into the unity of God. They are the ones that receive gifts from Jesus the head of the body, the victor, who currently rules and reigns, and is bringing us to himself. The community is the one who in living the truth of our identity and purpose together, we become like him. He is building his Church, we are stories that are invited into that.

When we think we are the action and relegate God to the sideline, I think we are actually putting ourselves on the sideline.

Discuss:

What resonates?

Consider this:

How is Woodforest helping people to experience the presence of God?

Transformational Question: How are you truthing this week at home? With your staff? As a leader in the community?

Session 2: Living in a Difficult World (4-5:30)

I was visiting a great saint of our church this week, Rev. Dr. Wally Shook. He is in the hospital with a bad cold. And a cold at the age of 98 is tough, but he is doing alright. While I was there I got to visit with his daughter and his neighbors were there. They were pleasant. Lovely people that look after Wally and are really servants. 30 years they lived there. And for 30 years Wally has been sharing the gospel with them. Which God bless him. The wife joked that “he preaches to me all the time but we have an understanding. I have just already tried all that stuff. I am a heathen and he loves me. I want to enjoy life and live in peace, and smoke my cigarettes.”

I joked that Jesus wouldnt take her cigarettes away on day 1.

I don’t want to disparage them because they really are a gift to God and disparaging people isnt great, haha.

But this is indicative of the secularist progressive narrative we are living in.

Defining Secularism

I will be drawing on the work of Australian pastor and writer, Mark Sayers. If you are interested in exploring some of these ideas, I recommend his book; Reappearing Church.

Sayers admits “The average Westener processes religion through a crude, street-level model of secularism that is assumed but rarely analyzed.”

Let me just ask the room, what is secularism?

The secular myth that many of us believe is that religion was likely at its heights very long ago in the world and since then it has simply shrunk. Faith once was the center of all things, and if you were into history, you might think the middle ages like 1400s and since then, with exceptions, society progresses and religion is less important.

In a purely progressive secularism that is combative with religion: the belief is that as we progress in time, we will also advance scientifically, technologically, politically, and morally… and religion is not needed.

“This model presumes that with the right conditions and influences, humans are perfectible and that a kind of human utopia is possible.” Mark Sayers, p. 21

Show image 1 (Secular narrative)

The left and right are guilty of this:

Left: they are aligned with this pursuit of human utopia, peace, justice, and human perfectibility. Progressives believe that more government intervention will improve our society.

Right: want to pump the brakes and conserve fruits of western culture, free economy, less government intervention

They both believe specific policies can lead us to a free, fair, and prosperous future.

They may argue over what utopia will look like but they are both encapsulated by the secular narrative.

(Show image 2 with religion decline)

Religion in many ways is seen as a superstition or an enemy to progress. Even within the church as we see the deterioration of anything offensive in the gospel to make it more palatable to the general world. Let me press even harder… how many of us would rather live quiet unassuming Christian lives so as to not create any tension in the world. In many ways we have been convinced that our own faith is kind of problematic.

Here is what is fascinating:

“What marks the Western secularist-progressive myth is a religious-like belief that human perfectibility and social progression will continue until we reach utopia.” Sayers, p. 22

“The world is getting more religious and less religious at the same time.”

And the narratives are very similar when you think about it. Explain the Christian narrative:

Show image 3 (Christian narrative)

Fall and then a messy rescue plan where God is seeking to restore the world to an end where God’s presence is the all in all.

Now look at them together, do you see the similarities?

Show image 4 (the two together)

What do you see? What is similar and what is different?

Sayers thesis and I think it is very prophetic:

The world wants the kingdom without the king.

and it’s failing. None of it is true. We are more educated, technology is more than it ever has been.

Secularism is Failing

I have shared anecdotally before about the two hardest stretches of ministry (and really they were on top of each other)

It is failing…

What are some examples?

At a macro level:

some might argue that we have truly progressed towards the end of human perfectibility, but it is hard to imagine, right?

brokenness and corruption in Hollywood

financial sector

Silicon Valley

Militaries

big business

politics

sports

Tribalism

Socio-economic disparity

racial unrest

presidential cycle last time yall…

COVID revealed so much

and yes the church

Micro level:

everyone is anxious

mental unhealth is a norm in young generations

falling IQ levels

epidemic lonliness

addictions

More human slaves today than when it was legal, so addiction and greed

Technology

gaming

sex

obesity

Life expectancy is dropping in the west for consecutive years

Ok, by now your depressed.

But go back to these pictures..

What is the answer? The presence of God.

Discussion/Consider this

Consider this:

What are some specific challenges that you see within your congregation right now?

Transformational Question: How are you living in the presence of God this week? How are you helping others to?

The Presence of God

What if the big bad wolf is not so scary? What if in it’s failure there is opportunity for the church?

“The secularist life script is dependent on crucial political, economic, and social factors being in place, elements that are becoming fragile, opening up a new potential for renewal and revival in the West.” Sayers, 32

Before we talk about renewal and revival, we must define these terms. Again Sayers is helpful here if we want to explore his model for renewal:

Renewal:

A) The refreshment, release, and advancement that individuals, groups, churches, and cultures experience when they are realigned with God’s presence.

B) The resumption of our God-given purpose to partner with God fully, participating in His plan to flood the world with his presence.

Revival:

When renewal occurs on a large scale. Revival is renewal gone viral.

Renewal Process

Show image

Holy Discontent: Deep dissatisfaction with the low state of faith, the church, and culture. Deep dissatisfaction with personal experience and pursuits. Discontent with the state of the world.

Story of neighbors and divorce

Preparation: The deep work of preparation that God undertakes in the hearts of those He wishes to fill with His presence. Holy discontent is too powerful to do nothing.

I have witnessed this in people on individual levels all throughout my ministry.

Contending: The act of moving from a life posture of consumption and passivity to one of contending for God’s presence to come with power.

Holy Patterns: Reorienting our life around patterns that enable us to live and operate in God’s presence. Patterns of formation begin to take shape.

Class meetings and bands

The Remnant: A group of individuals being renewed by God come together to contend for God to move powerfully

Renewal: New life flows into the person or people of God. New vitality breaks out. His presence comes with power. Ministry is empowered and different.

Revival: Renewal going viral.

Questions so far?

Slide: Circles

Church Objectives for Pursuing Renewal:

Cultivate a Posture of Surrender: Sayers emphasizes that renewal starts with personal and collective surrender to God. Churches must foster deep repentance and reliance on the Holy Spirit, moving away from a self-sufficient mindset to one of dependency on God’s power.

Sarah

Prioritize Prayer and Fasting: Renewal cannot happen without seeking God's presence through committed prayer and fasting. Churches should cultivate spaces where prayer is central, encouraging congregations to intercede for spiritual breakthrough and revival.

Disciple in a Countercultural Manner: The church must resist the cultural drift toward secularism and instead form disciples who live distinct, holy lives. This means emphasizing practices like scripture reading, confession, and Sabbath-keeping, which anchor believers in the truth of the gospel.

Church politics

Foster Kingdom Imagination: Renewal requires churches to see beyond present challenges and envision a future aligned with God’s kingdom. This involves creating environments that inspire hope and faith, where believers are encouraged to dream and act boldly in their communities for Christ.

Do something interesting

Embrace the Power of the Remnant: Sayers highlights that renewal often begins with a faithful remnant, a small group committed to pursuing God's mission. Churches should not be discouraged by numbers but instead focus on raising up a core group of committed followers who will catalyze broader change.

Engage in Spirit-Empowered Mission: True renewal leads to outward-focused mission. Churches must go beyond maintaining programs and seek to engage the world around them with the gospel in fresh, Spirit-led ways. This includes addressing social needs, sharing the gospel, and being a light in the midst of cultural chaos.

Develop Resilient Leadership: Leaders must model a deep dependence on God and resilience in the face of opposition. Churches should invest in training leaders who are spiritually mature, adaptable, and capable of guiding the church through the uncertain cultural landscape.

Consider this:

What is the most important part of Woodforest when you look at this list?

Transformational Question: This week how have you modeled one of these items and when have you fallen short of it?