Discipleship « Element Church Insider

Re-Post: Discipleship is NOT Dependency

26 12 2011

Through January 1st of 2012 I’d like to “Re:Post” one blog a day from each month of 2011. Maybe it’s a highly viewed blog, a favorite of mine or one that impacted me the most. Enjoy this one from May:

At least not in the way I’m gonna describe it. One of my frustrations in the church is labels and definitions. You can read my thoughts on how “I hate labels” HERE. We use words in the church that EVERYONE has a different opinion ON and definition OF. Words like: Contemporary, traditional, modern, missional, attractional, and the list goes on. Discipleship is another one of those words that causes INTENSE frustration with me sometimes.

“What do you guys do for discipleship?” is a question oft asked in the church. I think sometimes what people mean when they ask that is, “What program do you do for discipleship?” Now, I’m all for programs if they work. I’m all for curriculum if it’s good. I’m all for classes if they’re done right. But sometimes I want to ask back, “What did Jesus do for discipleship? Did he have a ‘program’? A ‘class’? A ‘curriculum’?” I’m getting off track from where I intended to go so let’s get back.

Are we supposed to do discipleship? ABSOLUTELY! Are we supposed to “make” disciples? YOU BET! In fact, we are COMMANDED to: Matthew 28:19 says Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.

Here is one of my frustrations with discipleship though, and I’m frustrated because I don’t think it’s what Jesus intended. Many times in church we find people who are “good” at discipleship so we set them up to lead a small group or class, AND WE SHOULD! But I’m afraid that in our quest to be ABOUT discipleship, we might be creating a BUNCH of dependents. People that are dependent upon these “good” disciplers. We end up putting all the “good” disciplers over all our small groups and then perpetually meet in our group.

By the way, if we keep doing that, don’t we just have a bunch of small groups and not really discipleship? The goal of discipleship is not to have a bunch of groups, with people dependent upon a “good” discipler. The goal of discipleship is to teach, train and equip “disciples” to go out and make MORE “disciples”. Is it not? In fact, if our church is NOT making disciples who make MORE disciples, our church is NOT about discipleship.

If these “good” disciplers aren’t sending people OUT of their group to also be “good” disciplers they aren’t really good “disciplers”. They’re just creating a bunch of people to be dependent upon THEM, and I don’t think that’s what Jesus ever intended. Imagine the apostles NOT teaching, training and releasing people they were discipling, to make more disciples. We’d have a pretty small church today. Eleven small groups to be exact. Twelve if you count the addition of Matthias who was added AFTER the Great Commandment was given.

Discipleship is NOT about getting people into a huddle but never into the game. Discipleship is about unleashing a holy army into a battle for HIS name! I hope we don’t create a bunch of dependents, I hope we create a TON of disciples!

Till the end,

Jeff

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Categories : Community, Discipleship, Element Church, Leadership

Re-Post: Do Angels Go Camping?

25 12 2011

I’ve made it a habit to pray for my kids each day before they leave for school, or before I leave for the office, whichever comes first. I started doing that a few years ago and see it as a VITAL role of me as a parent…to pray over my children. I want them to KNOW that I pray for them, and for them to HEAR me pray over them. I LOVE the fact that it has become such an important part of our morning that I don’t even ask if I can pray for them anymore. They find me before they take off across the street to school and say “Dad, will you pray for me before I go to school?” I LOVE that!

Well, a few weeks ago I gathered all three of the oldest kids in the kitchen to pray for them before they left. I typically pray the same prayer every day, and did that day as well: “Lord, I pray you would ENCAMP your angels around Jonah, Mariah and Makalah. I pray you would protect their hearts, souls, minds and bodies. Help them to be leaders for you! I pray they would have an awesome day and to do their best. In Jesus name, Amen.”

As soon as I said Amen, Mariah looked at me and said “Angels go camping?” At first I wasn’t sure what she said, so I was like, “Huh?” Mariah asked again “Do angels go camping?” I replied “Why would you ask that?” “Dad, you prayed for angels to be camping around us.” I about lost it! In the middle of my laughing I explained to Mariah that I didn’t pray for angels to be camping, but that God would ENCAMP them around her. “What does ENCAMP mean?” I then explained that it means we’re asking God to put angels ALL AROUND us to protect us throughout the day. Like kids often do she said “OH” and bounded off to the playground at school.

I didn’t think anything of it until last week at family devotions. We had finished reading the Bible and everyone had shared their prayer requests they would be praying for. We went around the table praying and came to Mariah. I don’t even remember who or what she was praying for, but she prayed one of the most mature prayers I’ve ever heard her speak. And in the middle of her prayer, in the proper use, she prayed “And God, I pray you would encamp your angels around them to protect them.” WHAT? Did she just pray that? ABSOLUTELY she did. Wanna know why? Because she heard her DAD pray it!

Hearing her pray that prayer only FURTHERED my firm belief in what Donna Reed said during our panel discussion on Sunday: “Much more is CAUGHT from us to our kids, than it is TAUGHT!”

Parents? What are your kids catching from you? Are they hearing your prayers? Seeing you read your Bible? With you when you serve? Do you let them put the tithe check in the offering and then have the JOY of explaining to them why you give that much money to God? Don’t be fooled. Your kids are watching, listening AND learning from what you do!

Do angels go camping? Not that I know of? But with that one question, my daughter learned a VALUABLE lesson in prayer and spiritual warfare.

Hoping they catch it,

Jeff

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Tags: Cheyenne, Cheyenne Churches, Cheyenne Wyoming, Church, Churches in Cheyenne, Element, Element Church, Element Church Cheyenne, Jeff Maness, Pastor Jeff Maness, Prayer, The Element, The Element Church, The Element Church Cheyenne, The Element Church Cheyenne Wyoming, Worship
Categories : Discipleship, Element Church, Family, Personal, Prayer

Re-Post: Why Do You Praise Him?

24 12 2011

Maybe a better question is “Why do I praise Him?” I was having my quiet time with God the other day, read one verse, and stopped for several minutes in contemplation. God spoke to me…no…He CHALLENGED me in those moments on my own motivations for praise.

I was reading in Isaiah, came to chapter 25, and I read this in Isaiah 25:1 Lord, I will honor and praise Your name, FOR you are my God. You do such wonderful things! You planned them long ago, and now you have accomplished them. (emphasis added)

Now don’t get me wrong, but isn’t this verse in the wrong order? “What?”, you ask. “Are you saying God made a mistake in Scripture?” ABSOLUTELY NOT! I’m just saying that, if an American Christian like me were “writing” this, we wouldn’t put it in that order.

Here is how I would have written it, and then how God challenged me in it: Lord, I will praise you for you do such wonderful things. And SINCE you do such wonderful things I will honor and praise Your name.

OUCH huh? So often, MY praise is determined by HIS action. IF He comes through for me. IF He provides this for me. IF He does what I want. IF He answers that prayer. IF He does wonderful things…THEN I will praise Him.

Isaiah here says “NO! I don’t praise you for what you DO, I praise you for WHO YOU ARE! I praise you for YOU ARE MY GOD!” What an AMAZING truth in that one verse. That’s good enough isn’t it? It should be. God DESERVES our praise BECAUSE He is God, NOT because He does wonderful things. Does He do wonderful things? YES! Does He deserve my praise regardless? ABSOLUTELY.

So, why do you praise Him?

Praising Him,

Jeff

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Categories : Discipleship, Element Church, Personal, Worship

Re:Post — Care Bear Hugs

22 12 2011

I came home from work the other day and Makalah (our 6 year old) said “I haven’t given you a Care Bear hug yet today. Can I give you one?” (Care Bear is my nickname for Makalah) And immediately the Holy Spirit spoke to me and got me thinking on a spiritual issue.

You see, several months ago I asked Makalah for a hug, and she proceeded to give me the biggest, warmest hug she could muster. I LOVED it. All I did was comment on it one time. I said “Kalah, you give the BEST Care Bear hugs ever! I love them.” And from that ONE comment, it became her goal to offer me Care Bear hugs as much as possible. She began offering them more often. Then she began to offer them daily. As her dad, through one comment, one commendation, one word of encouragement, I gave her the DESIRE to do something for me and EMPOWERED her to do it again. Now I don’t have to ask for a hug, she OFFERS one ’cause I told her how much it pleased me and how good she was at it.

I wonder if our response to our Heavenly Father should be the same? Philippians 2:12-13 says “Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. For God is working in you, giving you the DESIRE and the POWER to do what pleases Him.”

I think so often we tend to view our relationship to God as trying to avoid the things He doesn’t want us to do, when in actuality He’s trying to REINFORCE the things He DOES want us to do. We’d be more comfortable if that verse said “Giving us the desire and the power to avoid what displeases Him”. But that’s not how God works. As a child of God, He is working IN me, GIVING me the desire AND the power to do what pleases Him. “Jeff, I LOVE it when you do that.” “Jeff, it PLEASES me when you pursue that.” “Jeff, I DELIGHT in you when you say that.” God is more into the business of giving us desires and empowering us to do them, than He is condemning our mistakes and holding us over them.

I wonder how much effort I waste trying to avoid MY list of the things I’m NOT supposed to do, instead of focusing my efforts on the things I know HE wants me to do? Things that PLEASE the Father. Which by the way, if we’d focus SOLELY on the things that PLEASE the Father, we’d naturally avoid the things that don’t! We just need to LISTEN to what the Father is saying.

Makalah started focusing on that thing that pleased me, and she was empowered to do it again and again. Maybe I should do the same. Where has God spoken into your life saying “I LOVE it when you do that!”? Then DO it! What is your “Care Bear hug”?

Hugging my Father,

Jeff

Where Do You Put Your Hope?

21 12 2011

Our HOPE cannot be found in HAPPINESS or HEALTH but in HIS name alone!

I LOVE what Matthew 12:21 says about Jesus. It was actually the theme verse for the Christmas series we did last year called “Hope”. Matthew 12:21 is a quote from the prophet Isaiah about the Messiah and it says “And His NAME will be the hope of all the world.”

I think this is fitting, not only in our Christmas season, but also in this series we are in now called “I Am”. It’s SO easy for us to put our hope in circumstances. “Well, if THAT would just happen. If THIS would just take place. If I could JUST get that.” We’re sick and our hope is in healing. We’re in need and our hope is in provision. We’re lonely and our hope is in companionship. We’re sad and our hope is for happiness. You name it, we so easily put our hope in things that CANNOT supply.

Isaiah said about Jesus, “His NAME will be the hope of all the world.” That just in the NAME of Jesus there is hope. Why? Because He’s everything there is you need and everything you need HE IS! When we’re sick we don’t need healing we need JESUS. When we’re in need, we don’t need provision we need JESUS. When we’re lonely, we don’t need companionship we need JESUS. When we’re sad, we don’t need happiness we need JESUS!

JESUS is the great physician, the great provider, the friend that sticks closer than a brother and He is JOY! What more do you need but Jesus? Our HOPE cannot be found in HAPPINESS or HEALTH but in HIS name alone!

Hoping in HIM,

Jeff

The Calm Before The Awe

23 11 2011

Awe does NOT create commitment…commitment produces AWE! I think sometimes in the church, we want the AWE without committing to the AWEmaker. (Yes, I know it’s not a real word)

Acts 2:43 says ⁴³ A deep sense of awe came over them all, and the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders.

It sure seems like too often in the church we are praying for that AWE to fall on our people, and for God to perform SIGNS and WONDERS among us. I’m all for signs and wonders and all for people having a sense of AWE when it comes to God. But I think we can mistakenly seek the EFFECTS of God at the expense of actually SEEKING GOD. I don’t want signs and wonders without God. I don’t want awe without God. I WANT GOD.

You see, the early church wasn’t seeking signs and wonders. They weren’t seeking a sense of Awe. They were seeking GOD and the result was a deep sense of awe and a movement of signs and wonders. Acts 2:42 is the key to Acts 2:43.

Acts 2:42 says All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper), and to prayer. THEN a deep sense of awe came over them and God broke out in signs and wonders. A deep sense of awe came over ALL the believers AFTER they devoted themselves to God’s Word, to fellowship and to prayer. Not AWE came over them SO they did these things. They did these things SO they had awe.

MAN have we got it backwards. We need to stop seeking the GIFTS of God. Stop seeking the EFFECTS of God. Stop seeking the RESULTS of God and START SEEKING GOD! It’s like the calm before the awe. If we’d just SEEK God, we’d GET the gifts, GET the effects and GET results HE wants us to have…and it may not be the same as Acts chapter 2. It may be even GREATER!!

Seeking,

Jeff

It Only Takes One

15 11 2011

ONE act of indiscretion. ONE word spoken without thinking it through. ONE turning of the eye to sin. ONE covering up immorality. ONE selfish act. ONE! EVERY good thing you’ve EVER done no longer matters, when that ONE TIME brings upon you a disaster.

I’ve delayed on purpose blogging about this, and this blog is NOT a declaration of my opinion on Jerry Sandusky, Joe Paterno, or the apparent HORRIFIC activity that was done in the Penn State athletic department. It’s been one week now since the tragic news broke of the accusations against the aforementioned men (and others). The accusations alone are disgusting, horrifying, heart breaking and infuriating. It sure seems like, in the court of public opinion, they have already been arrested, tried AND convicted. Yet we all understand, the proper process still needs to take place where a judicial court will decide some of their fate. But like I said, this blog is NOT about their guilt or innocence, their purity or impurity.

This entire situation has CLEARLY and BOLDLY reminded me of the unbelievable weight that ONE decision can make in my life and ministry. And I’m speaking specifically to pastors and Christian leaders. The GRAVITY of responsibility that EVERY decision we make carries, should NEVER leave our hearts or minds. As leaders in GOD’S church! As pastors to HIS sheep! As the caretakers, if you will, of the BRIDE OF CHRIST…may this serve as a reminder to us, just how SERIOUSLY our lives can affect God’s ministry.

Joe Paterno, JoPa as many a sports fan like me have affectionately referred to him as, potentially, will FOREVER be remembered for this ONE ACT of turning a blind eye for a friend! (I say potentially for the sake of letting the due process take place)

Most wins EVER in college football. Most bowl appearances AND bowl victories. Forty Six years as a head coach of the Nittany Lions. National Champions. Big Ten titles. All Americans. Future NFL Hall of Famers. For many people, you think of college football, and JoPa would be on the tip of your tongue in that conversation. Yet now, a legacy that took a LIFETIME to fulfill, is crumbling around him in ONE moment!

I’m reminded of this as a Christian man and a Christian leader: Titus 2:7 And you yourself must be an example to them by doing good works of every kind. Let EVERYTHING you do reflect the INTEGRITY and SERIOUSNESS of your teaching.

EVERYTHING! Pastors, may we carry the name of JESUS with integrity, not just in our pulpits, but in our personal lives. I’m so challenged by this! It’s why we have a very HIGH accountability standard we hold our staff too. This is NOT a stinkin’ game! ETERNITY hangs in the balance. The reputation, NOT of our church, but of our GOD is of utmost priority in EVERYTHING we do. No matter how many people attend our church. No matter how many campuses we ever launch. No matter how many “accomplishments” we EVER have in ministry… may THIS serve as a reminder…to ALL of us, it only takes ONE, and it all comes crumbling down!

Heavy hearted,

Jeff

The Declaration

9 11 2011

THIS is our declaration!! To conclude our sermon series called “The Man Series” this past Sunday at Element Church, we wrote out what we called “The Declaration”, that we challenged all men to RISE UP and commit to in Jesus! The potential for God to do something significant in our community with the men who are ALREADY in our churches is UNLIMITED with Jesus! I FIRMLY believe that! I believe the next major move of God is already in the hearts of men, we just need to LEAD COURAGEOUSLY in Jesus!

Not only did we give each man present a copy of this declaration in printed form, we also made this video to unveil The Declaration at the end of the sermon. It was a POWERFUL time of commitment as hundreds of men signed an artwork piece of the declaration signifying their commitment to God and His calling! Thanks to all who committed to this declaration and to those who put the hard work on this video!

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Categories : Discipleship, Element Church, Updates, Video

Baptisms @ Element Church

2 11 2011

Not much is more exciting to me than seeing someone go PUBLIC with their faith through Baptism. Baptism is literally THE NEXT STEP for someone who has received Jesus as their Savior. Jesus commands us to baptize believers. In fact, it is part of the Great Commission He gave us, to “Go and make disciples of all the nations, BAPTIZING them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit”. Jesus modeled for us to be baptized when HE was baptized by John the Baptist. We also see the example of this in the early church when Peter tells people, in the first recorded sermon OF the early church, to “repent and be baptized”. The Bible then records that 3,000 people believed IN Jesus and took their next step FOR Jesus and were baptized. SO, now is YOUR chance to take YOUR next step.

If you are new to the faith, have recently accepted Christ as your Savior OR have never been baptized as a believer, YOU NEED TO TAKE THIS NEXT STEP. Baptism does NOT save us, but rather, it is a SYMBOL of our salvation. We are publicly declaring, I have died to myself IN Christ (dunked), my spirit has been raised to new life WITH Christ (come up from the water) and my sins have been WASHED AWAY! So if you’d like to be baptized, stop by the Baptism booth in The Well (hospitatlity area) at Element Church on Sunday mornings, OR you can contact the church office HERE for more information.

On Sunday, December 4th we will be celebrating baptism in all four of our services. The whole day, worship, and message will be themed around people declaring their faith in Jesus. If that’s you, we’d LOVE to be a part of your NEXT STEP!

Guaranteed Praise

26 10 2011

If you want to predictably PRAISE God you need to purposefully PURSUE Him!

Did you know you can actually GUARANTEE a life of praise to God? Wouldn’t you like to know that your praise could be predictable? That regardless of your situations, Regardless of your surroundings, Regardless of your stumblings - you WOULD praise God? Well, for lack of a better word, the “formula” for just that kind of predictable praise is found in Scripture, and it’s not as difficult as you might think.

Psalm 22:26b says All who SEEK the Lord WILL PRAISE Him. Their hearts will rejoice with everlasting joy.

It doesn’t say “all who GOD seeks will praise Him.” If that were the case, there’d be a whole lot more praising going on than there is. But we sometimes think that way. “Well, if God would SHOW UP. If He would COME THROUGH. If He would PURSUE ME…THEN I would praise Him.”

It doesn’t say “all who PRAISE Him will SEEK Him” either. Although we also often think that too. “If I just sing harder…raise my hands higher…say the right words…and get emotional…my PRAISE will cause me to SEEK.” Not so!

The “formula” is right there. All who SEEK the Lord WILL praise Him. It’s telling us, you CANNOT pursue God WITHOUT praising Him.

If you want to predictably PRAISE God you need to purposefully PURSUE Him! The reason is, the closer you get to God…the more you know of God…the more you see God…the more you will PRAISE Him because you can’t help but “rejoice with everlasting joy.”

So what do you say? Ready to try? Will you seek Him? If you do, you can’t help but PRAISE Him ’cause you get closer to Him.

Seeking,

Jeff

Element Church Insider

Re-Post: Discipleship is NOT Dependency

Re-Post: Do Angels Go Camping?

Re-Post: Why Do You Praise Him?

Re:Post — Care Bear Hugs

Where Do You Put Your Hope?

The Calm Before The Awe

It Only Takes One

The Declaration

Baptisms @ Element Church

Guaranteed Praise

Twitter Updates

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