thrive community

So many Christ followers are looking for a spiritual family to help them. There is a desperate need for spiritually mature men and women to mentor young Christians, helping them to clarify what really matters in life.

I am amazed at how many new Christians don’t have anyone to turn to for encouragement, support, counsel and teaching. God intended for his people to be like a family. It’s very clear from Scripture that family relationships are the primary catalyst to life learning and transformation (Deut. 6:4-8)(Eph. 6:4). But instead of helping new believers become rooted and established in healthy relationships, most churches place the major emphasis on programs, attending services, Bible studies, church events, or other ministries.

Don’t get me wrong. These environments are necessary and important for Christ followers to receive needed Biblical education and be exposed to the many essential concepts concerning their faith in Jesus, but God’s primary “delivery system” for life transformation and discipleship is best initiated and sustained through personal relationships. Nothing can take the place and fill the void that every human being has for authentic relationships. We assume they will happen naturally, but they don’t.

Read the rest of this entry »

We’ve all been here before. It’s that moment when we realize there’s more to life than just getting by. If you’ve never been here before, then you probably have no ambition of ever becoming a constructive human being or accomplishing anything significant in your life like a lazy 30 year-old dude, still living at home with his parents, doesn’t have a job, is a predictable mooch and lives from one excuse to another, justifying his pathetic existence of blogging militantly from his bunk-bed in between playing World of Warcraft with his virtual 15 year-old friend, Hans in Denmark on X-Box Live.

If this describes you, then you are officially a loser and I offer you this counsel: Shut down your computer right now, apologize to your parents for being a loser, take a shower, put on something besides your pajama’s and crocs and go get a job. At this point, in the ‘loser continuum,’ any job will do! (Can you tell I’ve had to give this counsel before?)

For the rest of us, we are probably at a different kind of crossroad. I would guess that most people are looking beyond the path of least resistance to the road of greatest influence. That’s where I am, too.

Read the rest of this entry »

I’m excited to present our very first podcast here at thrivecommunity.net with Barry Odom, Lead Pastor of Mosaic Seattle. Though we are still “tweaking” the recording process, the conversation topics still come through loud and clear. Barry and I will be discussing the influence of community on our lives and how following Jesus doesn’t end once a person has crossed the line of faith.

You can find out more about Barry and Mosaic Seattle at www.whatismosaic.com.