Oikos is the Greek word for household. It is the fundamental unit of society involving families, friends, neighbors, and associates. The New Testament describes churches meeting in the oikos, and it teaches that believers belong to the “household” of God. The spread...
As Christians, we often see so many lost people around us that we don’t know where to start. Even though many seeds are planted, they don’t all produce a crop. Some seeds are taken up by the birds, some have no root and some are crushed by thorns. Where are the most...
Neil Cole has a new book out and I just finished reading it. I’ve already highlighted two books (one by Alan Hirsch and one by JR Woodward) on this blog that address the APEST model of leadership– apostle, prophet, evangelist, shepherd, teacher– and now...
An old proverb says, “The hunter who chases two rabbits catches neither.” This is the old problem we continue to face. When we are trying to do too many things, we become distracted and don’t accomplish any of them well. Find out what is important and focus on that...
Recently Neil Cole reminded me of an important principle of mine: the danger of writing beyond your experience. I believe we should only write about something after it’s been proven in more than one context. It’s easy to get ahead of ourselves when we have a great...
Don Stewart, executive pastor of Hope Chapel in Hermosa Beach, California, coined the term “pastor factory” to describe a model of ministry that rapidly trained proven lay leaders. These leaders became founding pastors and lifelong learners through intense mentoring...
A former California lifeguard, Neil Cole, tells this story. For several years I worked as a lifeguard on the beaches of Southern California. Lifeguards have one prime directive: to save lives. They also have many other tasks to do on the side and they are paid to do...
Luke 10:2b: “Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” Excerpt from Neil Cole’s excellent book Organic Leadership: As I mentioned in Organic Church, I have actually set my mobile phone alarm to go off at 10:02 every morning...
Jesus said to make disciples—that’s a command for all believers. Therefore, whatever we do to make disciples needs to be doable by everyone. Let’s not make it complicated. Keep it simple and reproducible so that everyone can do it and everyone can teach others to do...
