Once you’ve taken a look, talk back. I would love to hear from you about what you think. Our family is heading to the UK in August.
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Elegantly simple ways to be missional in your neighborhood. As we’ve just moved into a new home for the coming year, and as we look forward to the UK, we’ve placed these 25 ideas on our refrigerator. Maybe you could too!
Reposted from the vergenetwork.org:
I have found that it is often helpful to have practical ideas to start engaging the people around me. Most of the things on this list are normal, everyday things that many people are already doing. The hope is that we would do these things with Gospel intentionality. This means we do them:
- In the normal rhythms of life pursuing to meet and engage new people
- Prayerfully watching and listening to the Holy Spirit to discern where God is working.
- Looking to boldly, humbly, and contextually proclaim the Gospel in word and deed.
Below is a list of my top 25. The full list of 100 is available to download here. Not all of these are for everyone, but hopefully there will be several ideas on the list that God uses to help you engage your neighbors. Would love to hear stories of how you have lived some of these out or other ways you have engaged your neighbors.
1. Stay outside in the front yard longer while watering the yard
2. Walk your dog regularly around the same time in your neighborhood
3. Sit on the front porch and letting kids play in the front yard
4. Pass out baked goods (fresh bread, cookies, brownies, etc.)
5. Invite neighbors over for dinner
6. Attend and participate in HOA functions
7. Attend the parties invited to by neighbors
8. Do a food drive or coat drive in winter and get neighbors involved
9. Have a game night (yard games outside, or board games inside)
10. Art swap night – bring out what you’re tired of and trade with neighbors
11. Grow a garden and give out extra produce to neighbors
12. Have an Easter egg hunt on your block and invite neighbors use their front yards
13. Start a weekly open meal night in your home
14. Do a summer BBQ every Friday night and invite others to contribute
15. Create a block/ street email and phone contact list for safety
16. Host a sports game watching party
17. Host a coffee and dessert night
18. Organize and host a ladies artistic creation night
19. Organize a tasting tour on your street (everyone sets up food and table on front porch)\
20. Host a movie night and discussion afterwards
21. Start a walking/running group in the neighborhood
22. Start hosting a play date weekly for other stay at home parents
23. Organize a carpool for your neighborhood to help save gas
24. Volunteer to coach a local little league sports team
25. Have a front yard ice cream party in the summer
Do you have some other ideas or ways that you or your Missional Community have engaged your neighborhood? Let us know below in the Comments section!
Missional Tip: Pick one of these ideas and act on it this week. Let us know in the Comments Section how it went!
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Josh Reeves is the Lead Planting Pastor with Redeemer Church in Round Rock, Texas. One way you can thank Josh for his helpful articles is to support Redeemer by going here.
Follow Josh on Twitter: @joshreeves
**Project44 is a missional church planting network and is on Twitter: @Proj44
Posted in missional, Simple Church
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Posted in Uncategorized
Project44 will be in Phoenix, Arizona the week of October 3, 2011. Stay tuned for more information coming soon about Launch Party: PHOENIX! For more information on being a part of this fun event, email chris@proj44.com or call 859-904-9335.
Project44 is a support organization dedicated to missional living in the United Kingdom. Our work is to contextualize the gospel and ultimately establish a network of missional churches. For more information on Project44 visit www.proj44.com.
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I spent the better part of yesterday taking care of my sick thirteen-year old daughter. She’s feeling better today, but I must admit, I was so thankful to have been able to enjoy time with her, even though she felt bad yesterday. The more I spend time with her as she matures, the more I am dazzled by her humor, beauty and grace as a young lady. She simply wants time and attention from her Mom and Dad, and for that I am grateful.
I’ve followed Dennis Rainey’s writings for years, and this one was simply too good not to share. Dad’s, if you have even toddler daughters, you need to read every word of this article. She will soon be thirteen, and you will be glad you did. – cs
Guarding Our Daughters’ Sexual Purity by Dennis Rainey
I was seated at my desk, barely able to concentrate. I shifted papers, opened drawers, glanced out the window. Shifted papers, opened drawers, glanced out the window. Shifted papers … I felt like I was expecting an important phone call and was just trying to do something, anything, productive while waiting. But it wasn’t working.
Neither was I.
Finally, my executive assistant informed me that the young man I’d been expecting was waiting for me in the lobby.
Deep breath, Dennis. You’re the adult here. You can do this. I was about to interview the first of many young men who wanted a date with one of my daughters.
I stood to my feet and walked across the room, still amazed at how nervous I was as I stepped into the lobby to meet Kevin—the only person in the building more anxious and ill at ease than I.
“Afternoon, Kevin, glad you could make it.”
“Hello, Mr. Rainey.”
“How about we get something from the Coke machine. I hear you’re a Dr. Pepper man.”
“Yes, sir.”
Riding a very thin wave of forced, uncomfortable chitchat, I deposited enough quarters to dislodge a cold can for him and a Diet Coke for me. Then, not wanting to be the Ultimate Intimidator, I suggested we go outside and chat in the parking lot. That’s where he showed me his motorcycle—which wasn’t exactly how I wanted Ashley to go out on her first date!
I popped the tab on my soft drink and looked squarely into the same eyes that enjoyed looking at my 16-year-old daughter. We began with the basics. I asked him about school, his mom and dad and family, interests—just a general get-to-know-you type of conversation.
“God made men and women different”
“Kevin,” I said, hoping I’d also remember the rest of the words I wanted to say, “God did a wonderful thing when he made women.”
The color fell from his face. This was going to be worse than he had thought. I wondered if at any moment he might hop on that motorcycle and bolt!
I continued. “And, Kevin, God made men and women different. You’ve probably noticed some of those differences.”
Kevin was getting paler by the minute, but he had the presence of mind to nod.
“Actually, God made us different so that men and women would be attracted to one another. Now, Kevin,” I paused for dramatic effect, “you have probably noticed that God made Ashley quite attractive. She’s a really cute girl. In fact, you’ve probably noticed that she has a cute figure.”
This was less of a statement and more of a question. If Kevin said no, he and I would both know he was lying. If he said yes, however, he was admitting to the obvious: that he had the audacity to notice my daughter’s figure!
After a brief pause, I spared him the agony and continued.
“I mean, you’re a young man and Ashley is a young lady, and God made men and women to be attracted to one another. It’s good.” Kevin seemed to be relieved at my pronouncement. I went on.
“And, Kevin, I just want you to know that I am a man and I understand this attraction. I was once a teenage boy, and I know what teenage boys think about. I’ve even read some research on this, and the studies show that teenage boys think about sex every seven seconds.”
At this point Kevin’s eyes darted, wondering where I was going next.
“And, Kevin, you and I both know those teenage boys were lying about the other six seconds.”
At this point Kevin’s eyes began to dilate! There was no dodging this one. “Yes, sir,” he said, with a nervous little laugh.
“Are we communicating?”
“Kevin, I don’t know how to put this any plainer: I want you to keep your lips and hands off my daughter. And I’m going to help you with that. Because whether I see you at the door after your first date with Ashley—or after your fiftieth date—you can expect me to ask you, ‘Kevin, are you dealing uprightly with my daughter?’ And I want you to know what I mean when I ask you that question. Are we communicating, Kevin?”
“Yes, sir.” His eyes were fully dilated at this point.
I continued. “Kevin, more than likely Ashley is going to be somebody’s wife someday. And I don’t want you touching her body. Would you want someone touching your wife’s body?”
“No, sir.”
“That’s what I thought. So you and I, we know what we’re talking about when I ask you to be accountable for protecting the emotional and moral purity of my daughter, right?”
He nodded enough to let me know my vocabulary was in his dictionary.
“And, Kevin, I want you also to take this challenge: If God ever gives you the privilege of being a husband and a dad, especially if He gives you girls, I want you to take your role so seriously with them that you’ll talk to your daughters’ dates the way I’ve talked with you today. Will you promise me that?”
“Yes, sir.”
At that point both Kevin and I were relieved that the conversation was over. I grinned and patted him on the back. I told him I was proud of him for coming to talk to me and allowing me to interact with him around such important issues.
As he was putting his helmet on, he answered one last question by assuring me he’d take Ashley out in a car!
Young men need to be challenged
That was it. Took maybe 20 minutes.
And over the years, I did a version of this same thing dozens of times as I interviewed young men who wanted to date my four daughters.
I’ve learned a lot as I’ve gone through this. I’ve learned that there are some very specific things I need to know about each young man, and I try to tailor each of these little talks to the particular situation and the young man I’m dealing with.
In the process, I’ve met some fine maturing men and seen some interesting things happen along the way. In one case, another dad came with his son to sit in on the interview, to observe and be trained. I’ve also had younger brothers sit in (probably just to see their big brother squirm).
I even had one young man come to me and say, “Mr. Rainey, I’m not interested in asking any of your daughters out on a date, but I was wondering, would you be willing to take me through the interview?” I did. He wanted to go through it so he would know what I said. It reminded me that young men today yearn for older men to enter their worlds, talk straight with them about how to treat a young lady, and call them to a high standard.
Guys, I can’t tell you how strongly I feel about this. The statistics don’t lie. Despite more than a decade of “Just Say No” and countless sermons on “Love, Sex, and Dating,” the sexual conduct of Christian youth growing up in Christian youth groups, worshiping to Christian music, and sitting in Christian Bible studies, is virtually no different than the sexual conduct of any other teenager.
These young men who like what they see in our daughters enough to want to spend time alone with them need us to hold them accountable and call them to restrain their sexual passions. They need older men, dads, to challenge them to protect our daughters and do what it takes to guard their moral purity.
Let’s do it.
Adapted from Interviewing Your Daughter’s Date by Dennis Rainey. Copyright (c) 2007 Dennis Rainey. Used with permission. All rights reserved.
You can hear more from Dennis Rainey about how to interview your daughter’s date on a recent FamilyLife Todayinterview.
Posted in Family, Fatherhood
After months of prep, planning and to-do alarms hitting my phone, our Launch Party for Project44 is history. I guess it’s been on my mind for so long, I can’t believe it’s over.
I was talking to someone at the party Saturday, trying to explain my thinking about where we’re at mentally and emotionally. I told him it was as if we were drawing a line in the sand. While we as a family and a few very close friends have talked about, prayed over, dreamed up, planned for all things Project44; the fact is, we hadn’t yet pulled back the veil to everyone. Last May, I blogged about our big move but didn’t broadcast a ton of details (probably because there weren’t that many yet!) In addition, many of you already follow us on Twitter (@proj44), so perhaps you know a bit of what’s up with our family. However, now that we’ve held our first big event, we feel very much as if we’ve now jumped over said line in the sand. And it feels pretty great.
For the benefit of our friends and family who weren’t able to make it Saturday, I thought I might journal for you the deets from the event, so here we go…
First and foremost, our friends, Chuck and Allison Sobieck, rolled out the red carpet for us at their beautiful bed and breakfast, The Doolin House Inn. They prepared several dishes, inspired by British pub foods, such as: fish and chips, Scotch eggs, bangers and mash and steamed pudding. Everything was perfectly prepared, as evidenced by some very empty serving platters at the end of the night.
Chris Mullins and Deborah Payne filled the room with some amazing old English country dance music, as well as some Irish and American pieces. I think everyone was amazed by the mood they successfully created while everyone ate and mingled. I cannot recommend Chris and Deborah enough to anyone looking for live musicians for their event! Hit me up if you’d like their contact information. I blogged their bio last week: take a look.
My great friend and fellow Project44 board member, Jeff Burdette, took a few minutes to speak to the 50-or so who attended the party. Jeff, Vice-Chief Regional Circuit Judge for our neck of the woods, is a fantastic communicator. He conveyed our heart and vision for missional ministry in the United Kingdom. I cannot adequately express how much I value his leadership, vision and friendship.
Our pastor, French Harmon from First Baptist Church Somerset, led in prayer for our family as we move forward into this exciting phase of our life. I want to thank him for his partnership and involvement in our ministry.
Lastly, as I looked around the room, I saw people from so many parts of our life. Inasmuch as I have personally wished for several years to relocate to a large city, I am about ready to repent of that wish. (I’ll just need to get away to the city for sushi often.) I have the most unbelievable set of local friends. One thing I’ve learned these past three years or so is that it is NOT so much where you live that determines quality of life. Quality of life is ALL about the people with whom you do life! The fact is, I am doing life with people whom God has hand-picked for me. Do you feel the same way about your friends? My wife and I were surrounded by more than fifty beautiful friends, without whom we honestly would not be who we are today. I am grateful, humbled and count each one of them as forever-friends.
This is just the beginning of this part of our journey, and I am blown away.
Soli Deo Gloria.
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My family and I are very excited to host a launch party for our ministry to the United Kingdom, Project44. The venue, the food and the company will be in a word – incredible! One late development to the evening is LIVE MUSIC! Here’s a quick bio on the entertainment for the evening:
Chris Mullins worked as hired as the resident musician at the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame and Museum in his home town of Renfro Valley before moving to Wellington, New Zealand in 2007. In 2009 he graduated with a Bachelor of Music in Composition from the New Zealand School of Music.
Mullins has also studied recording and music production. He is currently a faculty member at The Kentucky School of Bluegrass and Traditional music; where he teaches guitar, bass, mandolin, and banjo.
Deborah Payne is a Berea native and has been playing the fiddle from an early age. Her work with the Berea College Bluegrass Ensemble included a national tour and tours of Japan. She has also worked with other bluegrass bands, including Canebreak and Narrow Road. Recently, Deborah worked for 2 years in Uganada with the Peace Corps.
Deborah and Chris will be playing a selection of old English country dance music, as well as some Irish and American pieces.
We hope you will join us! There will be plenty of food and space for you to help us celebrate the launch of Project44. If you would like to join us, click here.
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Posted in United Kingdom
Where will you be on 2/26?? At the Project44 Launch Party, of course! RSVP @ http://twtup.com/Proj44LP #Proj44
Help the St. John’s launch Project44 – their UK church planting ministry! Cost is $25 per person for this fun, fundraising dinner. The Sobieck’s of the Doolin House will be creating some incredible British small plate dishes for this special occasion. Please RSVP and send a check to: Project44, 2345 Slate Branch Rd., Somerset, KY 42503. We hope you will plan to attend. You can pay via PayPal at the bottom of the page at www.proj44.com. Hope to see you there!!
Posted in Project44
Here’s a quick reading list of the books I referenced at The Source, during my talk called, “Insert Jesus {Here}.” They’re all awesome books, and as such, are required reading. 
Missional Church: A Vision for the Sending of the Church in North America, ed. by Darrell Guder
The Forgotten Ways: Reactivating the Missional Church, Alan Hirsch
They Like Jesus But Not the Church, Dan Kimball
Organic Church, Neil Cole
Planting Missional Churches, Ed Stetzer
If you need to borrow a copy, you might be able to talk me into it. Maybe…
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