Stories from the Revolution: Recent Episodes
John White
Catalyzing a Joy-Fueled Revolution of Jesus. Providing community and training to the 65 million who are Done with church but not done with God.
Sarah is a Listed LK10 Facilitator and is in training to become a LK10 Trainer. She is also the small groups overseer in her local church where she teaches the LK10 rhythms of attention.
Sarah found LK10 in 2020. She says that she discovered our book, Joy Fueled, on our website and read it in three days. Then, she read it to her husband. That was the beginning. In this episode, you will hear the rest of her story... how she was impacted by Church 101, Leader Team and Facilitator training.
John and his wife, Sungshim, are marriage and family therapists. In addition, they also lead Practice and Presence, a ministry that helps people learn Immanuel Journaling.
John and Sungshim, along with Jim Wilder and Anna Kang, wrote Joyful Journey: Listening to Immanuel.. This is one of the books that LK10 recommends for learning how to have a two way conversational relationship with Jesus.
In this episode, John shares how his life and ministry have benefitted from LK10 training.
Loppnow Relationship Center [Therapy, Coaching + Training] https://www.loppnowrelationshipcenter.com/training
Presence + Practice Ministry spreading IJ and Podcast https://www.presenceandpractice.com/
Podcast https://presence.buzzsprout.com/share
Just got this great report from Carolyn Hyde about a Church 101 group in Israel and wanted to pass it on to you in this short episode. Shared with permission.
To learn more about Carolyn and Richard go to episode #96.
My friend, Ryan, is retired military. (West Point, Green Beret). He and his wife, Leah and three kids live in Alaska.
Ryan and Leah found LK10 about 10 years ago when their marriage was at a low point. The training they received in relational brain skills has produced great fruit in their marriage and family. Today, Ryan is a LK10 Listed Facilitator and Trainer.
In this wonderful story, Ryan shares what he has learned through Church 101, Communities of Practice and Listed Facilitator Training.
Andre was an early pioneer in the house church movement in South Africa. Recently, he discovered LK10 and Church 101. In this conversation, he shares what he is experiencing and learning as he is going through the course.
As you will hear on this episode, he has wonderful insights about our relationship with Jesus and about how community develops. To read more of what he has written go here...
http://www.andrebaard.com/
http://www.sentinels360.com/
I am delighted to introduce to you another of our LK10 Listed Facilitators. Victoria Twombly and her husband, Jason, are friends of mine and both are great group facilitators.
In this episode, Victoria shares how she (reluctantly!) joined a Church 101 group three years ago. And, now she loves facilitates Church 101 groups as well as a LK10 Leader Team.
You will love Victoria's spontaneous joy and enthusiasm.
Toni Daniels tells the remarkable story of five couples in Spain who have recently gone through Church 101 and formed a Community of Practice. Their vision is to see this multiply in Spain and are taking the initiative to translate Church 101 and Relational Revolution into Spanish. This is what Roland Allen would call "The Spontaneous Expansion of the Church". Jesus is truly doing "the heavy lifting"!
What if a traditional church wanted to become a training center like Paul had in Ephesus at the school of Tyrannus (Acts 19). How could that be done? This is the second episode where I add more recommendations for any church leader attempting this.
Remember our rally cry... Every home a church. Every building a training center.
What if a traditional church wanted to become a training center like Paul had in Ephesus at the school of Tyrannus (Acts 19). How could that be done? In this episode, I share my first six recommendations for that transition.
Remember our rally cry... Every home a church. Every building a training center.
In this delightful interview with Hala, you'll hear how LK10 has impacted her marriage with Jack, her business as a life coach and even the tennis players on the college team that Jack coaches.
For more about Hala's life coaching business go here.
It's my joy to introduce to you my remarkable friend, Bethany Boring. In my interview with her, Bethany tells how LK10 training has transformed her life. From Church 101 to Leader Team and then Facilitator Training. What she has learned and experienced has shaped her relationship with Jesus, her role as single parent to three boys and her work as a Life Style Coach and public speaker.
Her coaching business is called "Step Out and Thrive". She specializes "Helping Christian counselors connect deeper, building personal community so that you can thrive!" In this video interview, Bethany will explain how LK10 has shaped her work with counselors and therapists.
Make sure you check out her website where, in "Meet Bethany", she explains what it has been like to have been born with severe hearing loss.
My reflections on what God has done in 2023 in the LK10 Community. And, what we are sensing for 2024.
Richard and Carolyn went through Church 101 about seven or eight years ago. Their response was "this is a perfect fit for our ministry in Israel". Since then, they have completed Listed Facilitator Training and have led 10 Church 101 groups in Israel.
To learn more about their ministry in Israel go here.
Did Paul have a training center? Where was it? What kind of training did he do there? What impact did it have? Why should a traditional church today consider becoming a training center?
Tony went through Church 101 six years ago and has never been the same. Currently, he has facilitated at least 15 Church 101 Groups and trained more than 100 people from all over the world. Here's his story.
Did you know that 70% of pastors report continually battling depression? What if that's the result of traditional churches trying to be something they were never meant to be?
This is episode is a first! In addition to my regular postings, I'm excited to begin to interview people who are living out the Relational Revolution. In this first interview, Jason Twombly tells his story.
How do you know if a church gathering meets Paul's standard of success? (Hint: it's not great worship or a great sermon.)
Thankful that Christ has provided specialized trainers to equip every church member to "build the house" (oikodomeo)
In 1 Cor 14:26, Paul tells us the purpose of a church meeting and something of how that is to happen. Most traditional churches have departed from this NT pattern.
For training, go to LK10.com
In this episode, I'll begin to explain why a gathering with only one person contributing (as in preaching) doesn't qualify as NT church.
If Marvin Wilson (Our Father Abraham) was right that in Jewish teaching "the home is more important than the synagogue", what is the role of the synagogue? And, what does that tell us about the role of the traditional church today?
Jesus was Jewish. The disciples were all Jewish. The early church was Jewish (at least until around 70 AD).
These facts are obvious but often overlooked when considering the practice of church. ("Scripture is our authoritative guide for faith and practice.")
God is now in the process of rectifying this.
Our Father Abraham: Jewish Roots of the Christian Faith by Marvin Wilson
Want training in how to grow as a spiritual mother/father? Sign up for Church 101 to train with us.
The idea for house church didn't start with Jesus and the early church. It goes back to at least 586 BC. And, the main spiritual gathering in Jewish homes happened at the dinner table around a meal. Not in a special building where coffee wasn't allowed. John Piper is wrong about more than coffee.
BTW... I think there is a place for larger gatherings as training centers. Let's just don't call them "church". I'll unpack this idea in future episodes.
Don't forget to leave a comment or question. And, share this episode if it was helpful for you.
Reference: Our Father Abraham: Jewish Roots of the Christian Faith by Marvin Wilson.
When I first began to learn about house church, I was frustrated because there was so little direction in the Bible about what a house church was and how it was done. Then, I found the answer and it made total sense.
Hundreds of new people are now coming to LK10 for training and community. For their benefit, this is the beginning of a series where I unpack what exactly the LK10 Community is. What is our Vision? What is our Mission? Are we more of a starfish or a spider type organization?
Kent and John unpack the idea that the five shifts that we talk about in our book are all expressions of God's love. His love is the unifying factor.
The five shifts for ReDiscovering Church as a heart to heart connection: 1. Joy Fueled. 2. Jesus Led. 3. Communities of Practice. 4. Spiritual Mothers and Fathers. 5. Ecosystems of Grace.
In this episode, Kent Smith and I discuss nine aspects of Discipleship Movements. Similarities and differences between LK10 and organizations like DMM and T4T.
Dr. Kent Smith and John White continue their conversation about Discipleship Movements. In particular, they talk about a very different approach that LK10 has to making disciples.
The "He Gets Us" Campaigned has paid 20 million dollars for two commercials during the Super Bowl. Why this man made marketing program is a hugely inferior substitute for God's very own two stage marketing program.
Dr. Kent Smith and John White dialogue about Discipleship Movements. In particular, they talk about a very different approach that LK10 has to making disciples.
I celebrated my 75th birthday in September (2022) and I took four month off from this podcast. I stepped back and reflected on where I am in life and what the Lord has for me in this next season. With this episode, I'm back with this podcast and more excited than ever about sharing more stories and insights about the Relational Revolution that is under way.
In previous episodes, I've explained why I think this $100 million dollar Campaign will, sadly, fail. No doubt, it is well intentioned but my contention is that it is fatally flawed. In this episode, I shift gears and begin to share about an approach that really would work because it's worked before. And, it's based on Jesus' strategy for reaching the lost.
This is episode four in a series where we explain why we believe the “He Gets Us” Campaign will fail. More than simply a critique of this particular campaign, these episodes explore fundamental flaws in how contemporary Christian culture approaches evangelism.
Why the “He Gets Us” Campaign will fail (3). This is the third episode where we are explaining why we think the $100 million dollar campaign will fail. Take a listen to see why Toni believes that the people behind this Campaign, although certainly well intentioned, have misdiagnosed the problem.
The $100 million dollar "He Gets Us" Campaign recorded 565,000 social media engagements in just 10 weeks. But, how will they go from engagements to what Jesus said was the goal - disciples? If they are relying on existing churches to make disciples, the outlook is grim. People are leaving churches in record numbers. Isn't it time we paid attention?
Recently, the "Biggest Jesus Campaign Ever" was launched. Titled "He Gets Us", this carefully crafted marketing campaign is designed to "reintroduce Jesus to those who desperately need him". The campaign is backed by $100 million dollars—donated by a small group of wealthy anonymous families. Sounds like a good thing, doesn't it?
Actually, I'm not so sure. This kind of thing has been tried before (in 1976). If the goal was disciples, we know that it didn't work then and I'm skeptical that it will work now. In this episode, I'll share what I think are the two "fatal flaws" to this huge undertaking. See what you think.
What's the world best question? I'll share it with you in this episode.
More from Andy Bounds here.
In the spiritual Revolution that is underway, fierce conversations are critical. In this episode, I explain that "fierce" doesn't mean angry. But, what does it mean? Why are fierce conversations so important? Are fierce conversations biblical? And, how can we be both gently curious (episode #66) and fierce?
I'm drawing especially on Susan Scott's excellent book, Fierce Conversations: Achieving Success at Work and in Life One Conversation at a Time
In this episode, I also reference a news article about Celebration Church, one of the biggest churches in Jacksonville, FL. It's an example of a church where I'm pretty sure fierce conversations were not part of the church culture.
Lots of adults are actually stuck in the child stage of development. Even some church leaders and pastors. That is, they have never learned to be both-centered (vs. self-centered). As a result, they almost always default to talking vs asking questions that matter. They don't know how to be gently curious. In this episode, we'll explore this simple but important relational brain skill. What is gentle curiosity and how is it developed?
At the end of Feb (2022), I had the opportunity to do a Zoom call with five legacy (traditional) church pastors who have transitioned to house churches. The first half of that call became episode #64 which I posted last week. In that episode, I was teaching about why the LK10 Community came into being about 15 years ago. The big idea = the skills needed for "big" church do not translate to house church. A house church is not just a smaller version of "big" church. It's a "whole different animal". LK10 trains leaders with this new skill set.
As those legacy pastors have started house churches, they are now discovering exactly that. There are lots of questions that they don't have answers for. You get to listen in on our conversation in this episode (#65).
In this episode, I have the privilege of sharing with a group of legacy pastors. Here's the "big idea"...What we've learned over the last 25 years is that the skill set necessary to lead a traditional or legacy church does not translate well into the house church setting. The need for new skills is exactly why LK10 came into being.
In 2009, 48% of Americans reported that they attended church weekly.
In 2020, only 29% of Americans reported that they attended church weekly. And, that was before Covid!
People are leaving traditional church in droves.
No wonder traditional church leaders are often discouraged and disoriented!
However, there is hope! A growing number of those leaders are coming to LK10 for training. Stephen Johnson is one of those leaders. In this episode (part two of my interview with Stephen) you will hear more of how that training is transforming his church in powerful ways.
When we started LK10 in 2008, we thought we were to focus exclusively on house churches. Little by little, we saw that the Lord had a larger vision. Increasingly, LK10 Values and Practices are being implemented in traditional churches. Here's one of those stories.
Shockingly, it's now clear that the very structure of traditional church is a serious obstacle to making friends.
How do we know?
As Michael Frost writes, multitudes of people are walking away from church. He says "churches are dying due to friendlessness". The Lonely Crowd: Churches Dying Due to Friendlessness
The LK10 Community has answers to this serious problem. One of the answers is learning to ask questions that matter.
That Sunday morning in 1998 was one of the worst days of my life. I felt deeply betrayed by brothers that I had helped. And, I carried resentment about that in my heart for 20 years. This is the story of how Jesus reframed that event.
Key topic for LK10 Leader Teams for the month of Jan. 2022.
The number of gifted mega church leaders who have fallen into sin is shocking. Try Googling that sometime - there are dozens! My contention is that these leaders (almost all are men) have painful events and/or relationships, abuse in one form or another, in their past that have never been healed. Never been reframed by Jesus. As a result, the abused becomes the abusers. This same process of reframing is critical for all of us in order to become healthy spiritual mothers and fathers in the Revolution that is underway.
This topic is the LK10 Leader Team Lesson for Jan. 2022. What do we do with difficult emotions? Going to Immanuel for Him to reframe those emotions is a key to becoming a spiritual grown up. In this episode, I explain how this works and give examples from Scripture.
This is the first in a series of episodes on "learning to ask questions that matter". In this episode, I explain why this skill is an important part of the new paradigm of church life. And, I share the insight that I learned as a teenager that got me started on this journey and that changed my life.
Because God has taught us how to make church simple and easy, I can now plant a new church in 30 minutes. (In my previous life as a traditional church pastor, it took 18 months.)
In this podcast, I explain how.
We are continuing to ask the Coach what He wants us to know about Tim Ferriss's question: "What would this look like if it were easy?" In this episode, He's directing me to begin to talk about what church would look like if it were easy. In my experience as a pastor, church was complex and difficult. But, is that consistent with the NT practice of church?
In this episode, I explain what we mean when we say that we, in the LK10 Community, have a radical commitment to Jesus' theology of the Holy Spirit. And, why this is "the key to easy".
As I was reading Tim Ferriss' book, the Coach stopped me at this question..."What would this look like if it were easy?" In this episode, I'll tell you what the Coach told me next.
What if life were meant to be much easier than we have imagined?
Isn't that what Jesus was saying at the end of Mat. 11? "Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”
What if it's the Enemy who wants to convince us that everything is hard?
How do we live life the way Jesus described? And, what does this have to do with the spiritual Revolution we have been talking about?
That's what I'll be exploring in this series of podcasts.
In this episode, I continue explaining the Revolutionary concept of Spontaneous Evangelism. And, then, my friends, Carolyn and Richard Hyde in Israel, tell us a real life story of what this looks like. Jesus told Carolyn, "Just walk." You won't believe what happened next in Jerusalem!
In this episode, I explain the Revolutionary concept of Spontaneous Evangelism. And, then, my friend, Kent Larson, shares an amazing story of a house church in Southern California that heard the Lord tell them to make a sign that said, "We pray for Afghans". Then, the Lord directed them to take the sign to Baby Beach. That's what they did. And, what happened next was nothing short of amazing." Take a listen.
There is one thing about the Revolution God is initiating in our day that is absolutely unique. We today have a resource that has never before in church history been available to Christians. I am speaking about the fact that now we have key insights from brain science that inform how healthy communities and sustainable transformation can occur. But, are these insights consistent with Scripture?
Ed Khouri in his book, Becoming a Face of Grace: Navigating Lasting Relationship with God and Others, answers that question. In this podcast, you will get a taste of some of the key Biblical concepts. This is a key book for the LK10 Community. I highly recommend it!
Getting a picture of how transformational revival actually is by looking at the Welsh Revival.From 1903 to 1905, at least 87,548 people converted to Christianity, or roughly 6% of the population over the age of 11. That’s the awakening part. That’s not counting the number of Christians who were re-vived.
Imagine if that kind of spiritual awakening took place in the US today. There are roughly 290 people over the age of 11. 6% would mean more than 17 million adults converting to Christianity in a two year period. Not because of some program but because the Father was drawing them. John 6:44. “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them."
Wouldn't you love to see something like that today in your country?
I believe that ordinary, everyday Christians will play the central role in the revival that is currently beginning. Not great speakers. Not megachurch pastors. No superstars. This time, everyone gets to play! No spectators. The priesthood of ALL believers.
The LK10 Learning Pathway will be (is already!) central in preparing for the revival. It is designed for ordinary everyday Christians. It’s not a three year, left brain seminary education. Rather, it’s practical, hands on, experiential, skill based training. It trains in the skills of highly effective spiritual leaders. And, it's for everyone.
The first of five observations about the LK10 Learning Pathway.
1. The Learning Pathway is extraordinarily effective at equipping ordinary Christians to make disciples.
Past revivals have often been led by extraordinary Christians. George Whitfield in the 1700s was said to have spoken to as many as 30,000 people without amplification. Ben Franklin. People followed him from town to town just to listen to him. In our day, Billy Graham spoke to millions of people in stadiums all over the world. Senior Pastors of megachurches who through their personal charisma and speaking gifts are able to attract thousands of people. Extraordinary people. Huge crowds.
By contrast, the revival that is underway in our day will, I believe, be led by ordinary Christians. Men and women who love Jesus but don’t have the capacity to gather great crowds. How will this happen? In a word - simple but spiritually powerful tools.
Taking a look at the Welsh Revival, which broke out in 1904, helps us visualize what we are asking God to do in our day.
“The most exciting time in the history of the Church since Pentecost, when nations were most astonished and hell was most frightened was during the years 1902-1912. This revival impacted every nation on earth." Relfe, Cure of All Ills, p. 64.
What's the difference between a revival and an awakening? What's the relationship between revival and whole brain disciple making? Why is the LK10 Learning Pathway a whole new way to make disciples? (Actually, it's a very old way!)
The LK10 Vision is for the viral multiplication of Vibrant Families of Jesus around the world. The way we do that (ie, the LK10 Mission) is to train facilitators. But, what do we mean by a facilitator? And, how do we train them in LK10? Toni Daniels answers these questions and more.
The Mission Statement of LK10: We connect and equip spiritual mothers and fathers. Sometimes we call these people "facilitators". In this episode, I explain what that word means and why we use it. I also show how this leads to growing healthy small groups and house churches that reproduce spontaneously.
The story you are about to hear came from one of my Leader Teams. Ben, an Aussie living in Thailand, helped his 9 year old daughter with what we call heavy emotions. She was scared and not excited about going back to school. Ben learned how to respond to situations like this in his LK10 training. Take a listen. This is a story from the revolution.
Kent Smith's response to Robby Butler's question about 4x4 Discipleship Movements...
This episode addresses questions like...
- What is LK10's unique approach to making disciples?
- What does this tell us about the spiritual Revolution we are part of?
- What do we mean by "whole brain discipleship"?
For John's notes on our original response to Robby, go here
There are a number of disciple making programs available these days. What's different about LK10 Training?
The old paradigm of church and ministry focused primarily on mentoring. That is, seeking transformation through imparting information. We now know that this approach (primarily left brain) is only minimally effective in character development. In LK10, we want to help you also develop the skill of coaching. That is, seeking transformation through asking questions that matter and listening deeply (primarily right brain). This helps people discern where God is working preveniently (ie, God is initiating change) in their lives.
This is a key part of the new paradigm of church. It's a key part of the Revolution that is underway.
In the Revolution that we have been talking about, one of the key ideas is "every home a church". But, what does this look like? In this interview, Toni Daniels talks about her new book "4 Keys to Parent Fearlessly: Staying Joy Fueled and Jesus Led even when you can't control outcomes."
I recommend it!
To get your free copy, go here.
John
A major scheme of the Enemy to keep us from being "Jesus Led" is functional deism. In order to defeat this, we need to be able to spot it and diagnose it. Here are three examples that will help.
The Enemy has a brilliant strategy, an insidious "virus" that keeps us from experiencing Immanuel - God with us. I'm suggesting that this "virus" is pandemic in the Christian world. Perhaps you have been "infected"? In this episode, I'll tell you what that "virus" is called and why it is so effective.
In this interview, Colleen describes the paradigm shift (revolution) that she has experienced over the last year and a half. She explains how it has affected her relationship with Jesus, her marriage with Greg and her ministry with the IV Staff and athletes she works with.
Has functional deism invaded your world? Is it preventing you and those around you from being, in practice, "Jesus Led"?
Here's what Fuller Seminary professor, Dr. Charles Kraft wrote...
“Though we Evangelicals would contend that deism embodies an unacceptable, even heretical understanding of God’s relation to the universe, I’m afraid we may have been infected. I have found altogether too much similarity between my own basic assumptions and those of deists.”
Christianity with Power: Your Worldview and Your Experience of the Supernatural.
The second of our Five Core Values in the LK10 Community is that we are seeking, both as individuals and as communities, to be "Jesus Led". However, there is a hidden obstacle, a strategy of the Evil One, that has prevent us from fully embracing this way of living. It's vital that we understand this obstacle which is called "functional deism".
Jesus, the first Revolutionary, provided relational connection and practical equipping for a small group of 12 men - revolutionaries in training. In the LK10 Community, we do much the same. People who have completed Church 101 and who find that they resonate with our values and practices are invited to consider joining Leader 101 (ie, Leader Teams). Currently, we have more than 40 Leader Teams with men and women from around the world. Each group has 4-7 people who meet every other week for a 90 minute Zoom call. As we practice the rhythms of connection, remarkable community has developed in each group.
As part of Stories from the Revolution, I'm going to post, from time to time, interviews with these Leader Teams. These are real life stories that paint the picture of how the Revolution is spreading. This is not just theory. This is really happening! This podcast is the fourth of those interviews.
In this episode, I unpack a prayer that God Himself commanded to be prayed. And, it has been prayed probably millions of times. In it, we see how much God desires that we would be filled with His joy. And, we learn a surprising insight about exactly how He will increase our Joy.
What is the LK10 culture and why is it so important?
What does it mean that "culture eats strategy for breakfast?"
Why do we "beat the drum gently but relentlessly for our culture"?
This is the first of several shorter episodes where I unpack the FIve Core Values (ie, our culture) of the LK10 Community.
In this episode, I'm addressing three questions.
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How do you know what to say when sharing a blessing? Where do the words come from? What makes a blessing powerful?
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Why is it so important to model this for your children and others? What would it be like to grow up in a home where this being modeled by parents on a regular basis?
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Where and how does teaching take place in the house church? Why is it better to focus on learning than on teaching? What do we mean by "hidden theology"?
In this episode, my 97 year old mother tells about a dramatic encounter with Jesus in 1954 when she was 32 years old. Her story illustrates important truths about the nature of the blessing and about whole brain transformation.
Every Friday night, in a Jewish household, the Shabbat meal was celebrated. In this episode, I'll explore what this has to do with us today, why it is an important practice in the Revolution we are talking about and how it creates a natural and powerful part of making disciples.
The early Christian house churches began in Jewish households probably in the weekly Shabbat meal. A central element of those meals was "the blessing" where each individual learned about their unique identity and destiny. In this episode, I'll explain why this practice, which is part of the new paradigm of church (ie, the Revolution), has such power to transform the lives of both children and adults.
God often uses unexpected people and circumstances to launch new churches. Here's a fresh story from Denver, Colorado about how God used Mayor Michael Hancock and the Covid virus to start six new churches.
In Jewish culture, the home, not the synagogue, was the center of spiritual life. Turns out that this was a brilliant strategy that is being restored today in the spiritual Revolution that is under way. In this episode, we'll look at two reasons this is vitally important for us today.
Growing up, I had always heard that the church started at Pentecost. Now, certainly, the outpouring of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost described in Acts 2 was a landmark event. But, was it the day church began? If the church didn't start then, when did it start? And what difference does that make to us today?
My sophomore year of college, I flunked out. I wasn't goofing off. I was trying hard. But, I still flunked out. My conclusion was that I must be really stupid. But, maybe there was another explanation.
In the movie, Stand and Deliver, Jaime Escalante educed things from students at Garfield High that they never knew they had. It changed their lives forever.
This same skill of educing is foundational to the new paradigm of the Revolution where everyone gets to contribute when the church gathers. (1 Cor. 14:26). The rally cry is "Everyone gets to play!"
God has given a unique expression of His grace (gifts) to each one of us (Eph. 4:7). But, how do I know what those unique gifts are in my life? An important part of the answer is found in the word "educing". And, this is foundational to the new paradigm of the Revolution where everyone gets to contribute when the church gathers. (1 Cor. 14:26). The rally cry is "Everyone gets to play!"
We now know why our disciple making programs have produced such minimal fruit. (65 million Americans have voted with their feet and have left the church!).
The reason? Our programs have been mostly oriented to the left brain. But, it's the right brain that shapes our character. Whole brain disciple making will be a central element of the new paradigm of church! We unpack some of what that looks like in this episode.
Zach LaValley was a successful youth pastor and worship pastor... until everything in the church fell apart. That's what God used to "compel" Zach to leave the old paradigm of church. ("Compel to leave" is the translation of the Greek word exballo. This word is used in the prayer that Jesus instructed his disciples in Luke 10:2. "Beseech the Lord of the harvest to thrust out (exballo - compel to leave) workers into the harvest field." In this episode, Zach describes the challenging and exciting journey that he and his wife and children have been on.
In the spiritual Revolution that is underway, we see that the Lord of the harvest is "compelling" multitudes of people around the world to leave the old paradigm of church. For more on what constitutes the "old paradigm", listen to episode #2.
You are in for a real treat in this episode! It’s a conversation between two of our LK10 Leaders in Australia - Ben Hamilton and Dan Swan. It’s conversations like this that help us see that the Revolution isn’t just theory. The paradigm shifting values and practices that I’m talking about in the episodes up to now are being worked out in real life.
One of the really remarkable parts of this story comes about halfway through the conversation. There, Ben describes eight generations of disciples that make disciples that make disciples and so on. I encourage you to listen carefully for the reasons that this was able to happen.
Our five week Church 101 Course is a simple tool that makes it easy for generational multiplication to occur. Want to sign up? You can do it here.
When Kenny and I had breakfast that morning in October 2002, we had no idea what God was setting in motion. We made a commitment to pray the prayer that Jesus had instructed in Luke 10:2b every day for a week. Soon, we realized we had no idea how to pray that prayer so we added a second prayer. "Holy Spirit, teach us how to pray this 10:2b prayer." For the next year, the Spirit taught us principle after principle about that half verse. Amazing! And, in the end, Kenny and I ended up praying that prayer every day for six years. It was thrilling as we found the Lord of the harvest sending us leader after leader.
In this episode, I explain the vital principle the Coach taught us from the story of the Widow Lady in Luke 18. That story is introduced this way ...“Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show that they should always pray and not give up."
REPOST: Presence & Practice a Podcast by John Loppnow, "Joy Fueled Catalyzing A Revolution of joyful Communities [LK10] with Toni Daniels"
John Loppnow interviews Toni Daniels about the LK10 Community and our book, Joy Fueled: Catalyzing a Revolution of Joyful Communities. If you've been listening to my podcasts here in Stories from the Revolution it's important for you to hear Toni's voice also. Toni is our LK10 Training Champion and has developed one of the best training pathways I've ever seen. (If you are interested, email me and ask about Listed Facilitator Training.). You will find that Toni and I say similar things but it's so valuable to hear them from a different perspective. Toni has a lot to say about The Revolution!
The interviewer, John Loppnow, also has a lot to say about The Revolution. John is a member of a LK10 Leader Team but he and his wife, Sungshim, also lead their own ministry called Presence and Practice: Changing the World one relationship at a time.
Some excellent resources that John and Sungshim offer...
- Joyful Journey: Listening to Immanuel. Coauthored with Jim Wilder, we recommend this small book to everyone in LK10. One of the best resources for learning to listen to God.
- Practice and Presence. Blog and podcast.
- Loppnow Relationship Center. Both John and Sungshim are licensed therapists and life coaches. Specializing in... couples therapy, trauma therapy, Korean speaking therapy.
Sunday morning (8:30 am EDT) Team. See episodes #10 and #12 for the story of other Leader Teams
Jesus, the first Revolutionary, provided relational connection and practical equipping for a small group of 12 men - revolutionaries in training. In the LK10 Community, we do much the same. People who have completed Church 101 and who find that they resonate with our values and practices are invited to consider joining Leader 101 (ie, Leader Teams). Currently, we have more than 40 Leader Teams with men and women from around the world. Each group has 4-7 people who meet every other week for a 90 minute Zoom call. As we practice the rhythms of connection, remarkable community has developed in each group.
As part of Stories from the Revolution, I'm going to post, from time to time, interviews with these Leader Teams. These are real life stories that paint the picture of how the Revolution is spreading. This is not just theory. This is really happening! This podcast is the third of those interviews.
A Revolution implies a major paradigm shift. The current paradigm for finances is that it is the professional clergy who are paid. What are called the "lay people", the average person in the pew, shouldn't expect to be paid for any ministry they help lead. (This paradigm is so prevalent that these "lay people" often feel very uncomfortable with the very idea of receiving payment for any ministry they lead.
The only problem with this old paradigm is that it isn't the way Jesus funded the Revolution that He launched. In this podcast, I'm taking a close look at Paul's instructions about who should be paid and why. (See Episode #11 for what Jesus taught.) This is vitally important if our goal is to see millions of small Kingdom communities multiplying around the world. The effective trainers/facilitators need to be freed up, some part time, some full time, to do this valid work in the spiritual harvest. In LK10, this applies to people facilitating Church 101 groups and Leader Teams.
This podcast explains Paul's commentary (in 1 Cor. 9) on Jesus' truly revolutionary approach to how the movement is funded!
John's Monday, 3 pm EST Leader Team
Jesus, the first Revolutionary, provided relational connection and practical equipping for a small group of 12 men - revolutionaries in training. In the LK10 Community, we do much the same. People who have completed Church 101 and who find that they resonate with our values and practices are invited to consider joining Leader 101 (ie, Leader Teams). Currently, we have more than 40 Leader Teams with men and women from around the world. Each group has 4-7 people who meet every other week for a 90 minute Zoom call. As we practice the rhythms of connection, remarkable community has developed in each group.
As part of Stories from the Revolution, I'm going to post, from time to time, interviews with these Leader Teams. These are real life stories that paint the picture of how the Revolution is spreading. This is not just theory. This is really happening! This podcast is the second of those interviews.
A Revolution implies a major paradigm shift. The current paradigm for finances is that it is the professional clergy who are paid. What are called the "lay people", the average person in the pew shouldn't expect to be paid for any ministry they help lead. (This paradigm is so prevalent that these "lay people" often feel very uncomfortable with the very idea of receiving payment for any ministry they lead.
The only problem with this old paradigm is that it isn't the way Jesus funded the Revolution that He launched. In this podcast, I'm taking a new look at Jesus instructions about who should be paid and why. This is vitally important if our goal is to see millions of small Kingdom communities multiplying around the world. The effective trainers/facilitators need to be freed up, some part time, some full time, to do this valid work in the spiritual harvest. In LK10, this applies to people facilitating Church 101 groups and Leader Teams.
This podcast explains Jesus' truly revolutionary approach to how the movement is funded!
Jesus, the first Revolutionary, provided relational connection and practical equipping for a small group of 12 men - revolutionaries in training. In the LK10 Community, we do much the same. People who have completed Church 101 and who find that they resonate with our values and practices are invited to consider joining Leader 101 (ie, Leader Teams). Currently, we have more than 40 Leader Teams with men and women from around the world. Each group has 4-7 people who meet every other week for a 90 minute Zoom call. As we practice the rhythms of connection, remarkable community has developed in each group.
As part of Stories from the Revolution, I'm going to post, from time to time, interviews with these Leader Teams. These are real life stories that paint the picture of how the Revolution is spreading. This is not just theory. This is really happening! This podcast is the first of those interviews.
In Luke 10:2b, Jesus instructed his disciples on a key way they were to participate in the spiritual revolution He was initiating. He told them to...
"Beseech the Lord of the harvest to thrust out (exballo) workers into the harvest."
No doubt the early church was faithful to pray this prayer. However, some of the answers must have been shocking to those early followers of Jesus.
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Who would have imagined Saul, the dreaded persecutor of the church in Acts 9? When the Lord told Ananias to visit Saul/Paul and give him a message, Ananias responded, "You can't be serious!" (The Message)
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Who would have imagined Cornelius, a despised gentile and Roman soldier in Acts 10? When the Lord was preparing Peter to visit Cornelius, His response was "Surely not!"
What if God is once again answering the 10:2b prayer in a way that is unexpected and shocking to most Christians? What if the Lord of the harvest is actually compelling Christians to leave their church buildings? Why would He do such a thing?
Tune in to this episode to find out.
Jim Mellon, Kent Smith and myself are the Oversight Team for the LK10 Community. We have been meeting for years on a Zoom call every Thursday morning to share our lives and listen to Jesus about our Community.
This week, Jim shared an amazing story about how his house church is meeting on a Zoom call on Sundays. People are flocking to be a part. People from Killeen, TX, Detroit, Seattle and Afghanistan. It's great church where everyone "get to play" just like Paul described in 1 Cor. 14:26. As Jim was sharing, I spontaneously felt led to record his story and share it as one of the episodes in Stories from the Revolution. Very grateful for my "revolutionary" friends Jim and Kent!
To learn the simple "rhythms of attention" that Jim is using with his church, go to our website (LK10.com) and sign up for Church 101. Also, send this episode on to your friends who might be interested in this story about "great church in the day of social distancing".
In this episode, Toni Daniels (LK10 Training Champion) interviews Marty Uhler (Communitas International, Catalyst for Emotional Resiliency and Relational Health). Three insights into the Spiritual Revolution (paradigm shift) that God is creating...
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LK10 has pioneered online Zoom calls that facilitate heart-to-heart relationships with each other and with Jesus. This is a vital resource for any follower of Jesus during the coronavirus crisis. Want to find out more? Go to LK10.com. Revolutionary!
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LK10 partners with other organizations (Communitas International, in this case) and churches. No more silo ministries. We are glad to give away what God has given us. Revolutionary!
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LK10 is multiplying in Latin America. This is growth that is not stragized or structured. Rather, it is spontaneous and organic. Revolutionary!
The spiritual Revolution (paradigm shift) is not taking place just in the US. In this episode, you will hear the stories of Neil in the UK and Alex in Italy. One aspect of the new paradigm is truly intimate friendships as a result of learning how to communicate on a heart level (we call this "Checking in with SASHET". SASHET is a way to remember six primary emotions: Sad, Angry, Scared, Happy, Excited, Tender). This results in a way of doing both evangelism and disciple making that is natural and organic. You will enjoy these "stories from the revolution"!
When Kenny and I had breakfast that morning in October 2002, we had no idea what God was setting in motion. We made a commitment to pray the prayer that Jesus had instructed in Luke 10:2b every day for a week. Soon, we realized we had no idea how to pray that prayer so we added a second prayer. "Holy Spirit, teach us how to pray this 10:2b prayer." For the next year, the Spirit taught us principle after principle about that half verse. Amazing! And, in the end, Kenny and I ended up praying that prayer every day for six years. It was thrilling as we found the Lord of the harvest sending us leader after leader.
In this episode, I unpack the Greek word "exballo" which is translated "thrust out". As in "Beseech the Lord of the harvest to thrust out workers." This totally changed our paradigm of leadership and became "The Leadership Solution".
In addition to explaining the spiritual Revolution (paradigm shift) that is underway, I also will be interviewing people whose lives are being deeply impacted. Colleen will be the first of many. This is one of the "Stories from the Revolution".
I grew up in one way of doing/being church. It was so "normal" that I never questioned it. It never occurred to me that the picture of "church" that existed in the minds of people in the New Testament (people like Jesus, Peter, Paul, etc.) was significantly different from what was in my mind. So, the paradigm shift from that old model for me wasn't easy and took some time. But, I'm now so excited to share what we are learning about the new paradigm! What church probably looked/felt like if we had gone (for instance) to the church that met at Priscilla and Aquila's home. (Rom. 16:4).
In this episode, I unpack three elements of the old paradigm/model of church.
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Building based
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Program centric
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Pastor led
The astounding fact is that even church leaders are seeing that this model is unsustainable. They see the need for a major paradigm shift (ie, spiritual revolution).
Two things in this episode. First, a 30,000 foot look at the spiritual Revolution underway in the US and around the world. Second, what you can expect in future episodes. This is an exciting and amazing day that we live in!