helpful conversations

Well, I've just begun the "field work" portion of my research project, and this is the part -- while a little more difficult -- that really gets me excited. It's the part that I believe we have the most to learn from. Last year, I put together a literature review paper that worked through some of the major themes involved in organic church planting in North America, and at this stage I'm conducting interviews with actual organic church planters. First, I'll survey (via phone) leaders of church networks in Chicago, Toronto, L.A., and San Francisco, and then I'll spend even more significant time digging deeper into the dynamics that impact ministries in NYC through extensive interviewing and participant observation. I consider this more than an acadmic project, but rather a ministry that can provide insight for any number of missionary-leaders in global cities across this continent. And if nothing else, it should really help to improve our thought processes here in our city.

I've only conducted a handful of interviews so far (so there is nothing quite so scientific coming from this e-mail), but I have already been enriched from the conversations that have taken place. Even in the few interviews conducted so far, there are commonalities. More than one have mentioned that challenge of the messiness of doing ministry this way, and more than one has mentioned (and this is truly sad) that having a church background in America can be a barrier for effective involvement in this kind of missional-organic community. Most have emphasized the "low cost" or "low overhead" since it is all about people without structures demanding expensive programs, professionals (though missionary leaders are often involved to some degree) or buildings.

One statement has really resonated with me through the week. One Latino leader in L.A. expressed that it is sometimes hard not having something big or programatic to point to as OUR success but then said, "When I step back and look at the big picture, it is amazing. We are in so many cracks & crevices of our community. We are in so many lives, and it is amazing because we are such a small group of people." It really hit (and affirmed) me. Our leadership base is even smaller than theirs, and we too are in so many lives and pouring the Gospel into so many "cracks & crevices" of the Bronx. It highlights one of the strengths of this approach in conjunction with the Lord's faithfulness. Comparable to a liquid, the Gospel is able to flow into lives through other lives because it is not limited to the imposition of a rigid structure. This is what many for years have called "incarnational" -- that is, fleshing out the Gospel.

Pray for us as we seek to "incarnate" the Gospel and see it flow into as many "cracks & crevices" as possible. Pray that we will have great boldness. Pray that the Lord will raise up workers (of many different giftings) from the harvest. Pray that my current research will open up new windows of insight for urban missionaries in North America. And may the Gospel be found pouring into the 'cracks & crevices' of your community.