What does "Go Jesus" mean?

I don't remember exactly how it started.  Well, I suppose I do.  It started with God, who is rich in mercy, who made me alive, together with Jesus! (Eph 2:6)

While I don't remember the first time this phrase made it's way into our group's vocabulary, I do remember what I was thinking when it happened.  I was thinking that I didn't want anyone who was observing me or our group to be confused about who we were talking about.  Our God became flesh, you see, and He made His presence visible among us (John 1:14).

His name is Jesus!

I heard Heather Mercer speaking about her experience, being kidnapped by the Taliban shortly before 911.  She and a friend were there serving the poorest of the poor, and sharing Jesus with people along the way, as they were welcomed to do so by those they were serving.  She spoke the name of Jesus throughout her testimony, and spoke about how His name changed things while she was serving the suffering in Afghanistan.

Jesus.  She kept using His name.  Yes! was the cry in my soul: Jesus!

Such was born "Go Jesus!"

So, what does that mean?

Names have meaning, of course, and Jesus' name encapsulates all the power, revelation, love, justice, mercy, duty, belonging, life, identification, suffering, empowerment and exclusivity of the Gospel.  The resurrection of the Dead - that's in His name, for He rose, and those who have trusted in Him are risen as well!  "Because I live, you also will live." (John 14:19)  When I say, "Go Jesus", it's an admonition to pursue all of life, including the thing we just talked about, whatever it was, because you are alive in Jesus!  Or, it's an encouragement, a faith-speaking word, that we will go and be and do whatever the issue of the moment that we are dealing with is, because of Jesus and in His name!

Go Jesus is sort of a lifestyle of all-in discipleship.  All-in passion to pursue God in all of life, when it's easy and when it's tough.  When I feel like it and when I don't.  And it's a rallying cry when we have experienced Him and want to share a praise to God!  It's belonging to Jesus out of an truth-telling that we are His, because of a blood-stained cross, where my sins were paid for, and an empty tomb, where death was done away with because Jesus is Alive!

Today, I desire to Go Jesus!

Love, paul

What does changing impressions look like?

This was a great week. It had some difficulty, to be sure. I celebrated two birthdays (and the people who love me made them both soooooo special)! And we keep learning new things.

And we watched some leadership in action. Pattie had the idea of doing a Free Car Wash, because, no one does that.

So, yesterday, at the Tobacco Plus (Ryan & Sale, the KMart parking lot) we held up big, cool signs telling people "Free Car Wash."

Oh, and even better, everyone was wearing my birthday present...t-shirts with "theCityShouldBeDifferent" on the front, and ".Com" on the back, huge letters. Yes!

We didn't know how it would go down, of course. There's risk anytime you lead or innovate. (Some Embarrassment and failure are the inevitable price of leading.)

Really, we're standing on Ryan St., shamelessly smiling, joyfully talking to each other, and holding up colorful signs sharing our Free Car Wash invitation. (We learned, if you hold the sign over your head, the drivers can see our shirts, and wonder, "what is 'theCityShouldBeDifferent' "? Yeah!) And at first, no one pulled in. We had a couple of short conversations through car windows. Waiting. Say a prayer. Put a band-aid on Emily's foot. (Go to Walgreen's first and get first aid supplies, lol.) Wait.

It could be a flop. We could have wasted this time and energy.

A car pulls in. Another. Then none. I get called over from the street to the cars to talk to someone. Then more cars. More conversations. Some are really needing to feel God's wind at their back.  The question is asked a few times, "Why are you guys doing this?" Our response, "We'll, we're a church group, and because we've experienced God's love, we want to give it away."

No Strings, No Catch...Just Love.

People wanted to make donations. We weren't accepting donations. Those who absolutely insisted on giving, we gave the money to the next car. One very cool guy stayed and helped us wash cars for two hours! I can't wait to get to know him better. He brought back his brother and sister-in-law (Happy Anniversary!).

We prayed with several people, calling out to God for their needs. I was so pleased to meet a couple of people who were looking, it seemed, for something of God that day, and this simple act of service spoke to them. I'm looking forward to seeing "B" at Group @ the Park soon (we have Community Group @ 8 pm on Wednesday nights @ Prien Lake Park, under the open pavilion near Prien Lake Road, weather permitting). Oh, and I'm so praying now for our new hairdresser friend to let me know how she was impacted by the Indescribable DVD we gave her.  And my new wed morning padna (not sure how you spell that) as he drove to Baton Rouge with Louie Giglio's "Two Words that changed EVERYTHING" in his cd player.  

How is theCityGoingToBeDifferent?

Part of it is changing some people's impressions about church and church-people. Giving God's love away because Jesus is Alive!

Half My Life...

Today, i will have been a Jesus-Follower for Half of my life. A guy befriended me in this psychology class at McNeese. He spent a couple months getting to know me and letting me get to know him.

Then he invited me to this multi-church thing at the Civic Center. He called it a Revival. I asked, what's a revival? "Oh, you'll meet some of my friends from church, we'll sing some songs from church, and this dude will talk out of the Bible," he answered.

My response: "Why the hell not."

So that night I heard the Gospel of Jesus for I think the first time. I'd been to a church as a kid, but don't remember hearing that I needed a savior. That night, I was in college, running my life, feeling the emptiness in me and trying to mask it. I was unaware of the love of a God who reached out to me from the incomparable riches of His mercy, so that I could be rescued.

Half.

What a wild ride so far. It's gonna be rockin to see what God has in store next!

I can fell Him moving...theCityShouldBeDifferent!

Gather and Send

One of the rhythms of theCityChurch is to Gather and Send.

It's not complicated, and I'm thinking Jesus did this as well. He gathered with his crew, did life, and trained them. He hung with his three closest friends, Peter, James and John. He did life with the 12 disciples. Sometimes is was a larger group who were following Him (a crowd). And sometimes it was an enormous gathering (5,000 men plus their families). Jesus gathered people together and did life with them, training them along the way. He was super relational, because He loved people.

Then, Jesus sent out His followers on mission. For example, in Luke 8, He sent out the 12 disciples with some specific instructions. Then, in Luke 9, He sends out 72 with instructions on the mission for that day. And when Jesus was leaving the Earth, He left instructions for the disciples and for those who come in their wake (that's you and me), sending out His church to make disciples and teach them to obey Jesus' commands (Matthew 28:19-20).

Gather and Send.

At theCityChurch, we gather together and pursue authentic community. That takes time and God's Grace. And the results, loving one another and God using community in His name to grow us and give us strength, support and courage, are so worth it! We'll mess up and miss the mark along the way, no doubt. But God's Radical Grace is our operating power and we believe it's sufficient to grow us from wherever we are to be more like Jesus! Our church gathers together. One new expression of this happened this past week as we moved our Sunday Morning Worship Gathering to the Clubhouse @ Village Green Apartments. (We outgrew my living room, which we were meeting in, yeah!) It was really cool, and I'm looking forward to worshiping there in this season. You can come and Gather with us! Find out more here.

I really dig Gathering!

And we send. Send each other out, having met with God and experienced His Grace through Jesus, we send each other out as Relational Missionaries to love and serve, without strings attached, with the awesome news that God's love and restoration is available to all. Last night we did some Sending, "After Midnight" style, hanging out and giving away water and burgers in a place where people who aren't your typical church-goers would be after midnight on a Friday night.

I really dig Sending!

I'm so proud of theCityChurch for your courage and willingness to embrace Jesus in this life.

Pre-Launch

It's been a little over a month since announcement day, when we shared publicly the conception of theCityChurch.us.

Our life since then, it's been...Well, it's been Awesome and Terrifying.

Awesome because I've come to grips, more than ever, that God is the One whom I totally depend on. Terrifying because I have come to grips, more than ever, that God is the One whom I totally depend on.

Planting a church is a spiritual endeavor, a process where we walk in God's power to see His Kingdom move forward in our city. We take steps of faith, guided with His light which illuminates the path a step or so at a time.

I thought about the pre-launch process for the Space Shuttle. I really like the series of pictures on this blog, www.nyike.com/rarely-seen-shuttle-pre-flight-activities. The whole space flight thing is incredibly exciting, reminding me of boyhood times dreaming of rocketing into space.

As we can see in the series of pictures, to put that Orbiter into space, there are a lot of steps along the way, all done under a master plan, with various people with different roles and skills preparing the shuttle in different ways.

In planting a church, there are different roles and lots of steps along the way.

For theCityChurch.us, we are in the pre-launch phase, gathering a Launch Team (if you are reading this, YOU can be a part of the Launch Team! I'm serious); building relationships with people, including those who aren't vitally connected to a church; serving people without strings attached; reaching out the Gospel in God's love. All of this making theCity ready for this endeavor.

I'm not sure which of these shuttle pictures of it's pre-launch phase that makes us. But I do know this, you won't be confused when you see the Space Shuttle launch...it's awe inspiring. And I've only seen one launch from 60 miles away.

When God's love and power show up in someone's life, it changes everything and is unmistakable. Just like the shuttle launch.

We want to see that happen more and more in our city.

The City Should Be Different.

Courage (comes from God)

Walking with God. Sometimes is takes courage.

We've been Reading Crazy Love, by Francis Chan, as we finished up our couples Community Group this week. If you haven't read it, DO IT NOW! God's love is so crazy! And our response back should be in kind, the sort of love that changes a woman, changes a city.

The reality is that there is a war going on, all around. A battle for eternity. It's spiritual, and it's results are in the physical. They decay and desperation in the city is a sign of this war's seriousness.

To engage in the battle will take several things, including Courage. If the city is going to be different, we will need to grasp fully the Hope that is in Jesus, and walk forward. Walk Courageously.

Francis asked a couple questions in Ch. 10. "Most of us use 'I'm waiting for God to reveal His calling on my life' as a means of avoiding action. Did you hear God calling you to sit in front of the television yesterday? Or to go on your last vacation? Or exercise this morning? Probably not, but you still did it. The point isn't that vacations or exercise are wrong, but that we are quick to rationalize our entertainment and priorities yet slow to commit to serving God." (page 169)

That led me to Hebrews 13:1-7 this morning.

"¹Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. ²Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. ³Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart."

Jesus. He's the One we must fix our eyes on if the city is going to be different. He is the Hope we must cling to!

Maybe you need to courageously walk with Jesus, to love radically, to serve and see the Gospel brought to new heights and new souls? Put your faith to work, and see God show up and blow you away! It's the stuff that makes a city different.

Jesus.

We're praying for you. As I type this, I'm praying for you. Ask God the hard questions, and ask yourself. We're ready to partner with some of you on this mission to make the city different, because of Jesus.

Announcing theCityChurch

Today, April and I announce to our home church of Trinity that we believe God is leading us to plant a new church in Lake Charles, theCityChurch.us. We love you, Trinity, and so appreciate our experience with you! We rejoice in the Grace of God you are extending to us, sending us out at Missionaries in our city to reach new people in new ways. Thank you, Trinity, for sending us out with such blessing, us and whoever God sends with us from those who we've shared life or ministry with.

We believe that theCityShouldBeDifferent, because of Jesus. He is leading us to plant theCityChurch.us with this heartbeat: To be totally intentional about reaching people far from God, far from a churched background, and to make disciples. To be a people longing to look like Jesus.

If you want to know more about theCityChurch.us, I would love to visit with you and share our vision. Leave a comment below, email me, paul@thecitychurch.us, or call/text me at 794-9891.

Jesus' mission to make disciples is incredible. He provides the power, as we obey and walk in faith. Jesus said in Matthew 9:38, "So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask Him to send more workers into His fields."

We say Go Jesus to that.

theCityshouldbedifferent

(Video available at YouTube also)

Change

“In order to reach the people no one else is reaching we must be willing to do the things that no one else is doing.” Craig Groeschel

Change.

Change is hard. It's hard for me, and I'm a radical. But it is necessary. God is drawing people to look like Jesus. And that transformation requires a ton of change.

This week has been scary for me. It is the birthing time for a huge change in my life - the culmination of a year-long, really a multi-year long process of growing, being stretched and learning again the totality of the Gospel.

Craig Groeschel, who I quoted earlier, is right on. For new things to happen, new people to hear God's unbelievable rescue plan through Jesus, we have to keep being changed into Jesus' image.

Jesus endured painful adaptation to bring the rescue. We will have to adapt as well.

This week unveils a new chapter in our lives, April and I. It's scary to step away from the comfortable and familiar. But the Mission of Jesus is so compelling. I'm filled with this awesome mix of ultimate confidence and some sudden terror at the enormity of the mission. Then I remember...Jesus. He's the one IN ME providing the power as we work.

One point earlier this week, I was feeling scared, and I looked up and this verse was before me:

"Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know." Jeremiah 33:3

When God compels us to do things we've never done before, He will show us things, stuff of God and His Power and Grace, that we've never seen before!

I am a missionary to my city.

theCityshouldbedifferent

Radical Grace

It's been all over me, all week, the thought that Radical Grace is the distinctive of God in Jesus.

Radical Grace.

I'm reading Romans with the college peeps. It's a hard read. I'm not jewish, and don't have the objections that 1st Century Jew's did when the awesome news about Jesus made its way to their ears. But I have plenty of my own self-centered ideas.

I'm through Ch. 4, and Paul keeps circling back that it's not by works but by Radical Grace that God justifies the wicked (Romans 4:5).

We are agents of God to make men right with God. It will be done by Radical Grace, the kind of crazy love that compelled God to condemn His innocent, pure, Holy, glorious Son, Jesus, to be crushed to death to pay for my sin and yours.

That's Radical Grace.

We need to be this flavor so the people in our city can see Jesus here. When they see Him in us, they have a chance to be made alive. It's the kind of stuff that makes a city different.

theCityShouldBeDifferent.com 1

When God whispers, power emerges from Him! Can you hear His whisper? I think a lot of people are hearing it, right here where we live.

TheCityShouldBeDifferent

Video also on YouTube