Sacred Decisions??

Last week in the office, we listened to a podcast titled “Leading in uncertain times” by Andy Stanley. The whole idea was centered around clarity & flexibility.

There are so many times where I can easily fall into the trap of making plans and wanting to die on the hill of those plans, mostly because it was my idea or my plans and I held so tightly to those plans that when an outside variable changed, I was left in a position where second-best was the norm. The principle is that no decision is ever sacred. It’s vital that as leaders, we hold decision loosly.

We must always hold tightly our vision. No matter where we go or what we do, the overall mission/call/vision on our lives must be the driving force behind everything we do. The plans will need to change on how the mission is carried out, but the mission will remain the same. In battle, soldiers have a battle plan, yet the “Commander’s Intent” is always listed because even in the battlefield, variables change and soldiers must react differently. However, in order to know how to react properly, they must know the commander’s intent.

What is the overall mission they set out to do? To know how to react in our churches, we must know the vision/mission. The plans may change because of new information, but the mission for us to carry out will always remain the same. The mission of the church is the same mission Christ himself gave us, but the plans as to how that is carried out have changed over time. When we don’t understand this and die on the hill of plans, we begin to be ineffective in our mission.

Ministry Partners

We’re looking for prayer & support as Abby and I continue this journey of being part of the Elevate Church staff. We’ve sent some support letters out to friends and family and are now trusting God to take us through as we work for the vision of Elevate Church and mission of God.

In addition to the other things I’m a part of at Elevate, I’m also on the teaching team with Lead Pastor Adam. To listen to a recent talk I preached at Elevate church, click here.

Below, is the initial support letter we’ve send out.

Throughout the last year, God has been working in amazing ways in our family, which has led us in a new direction. A little over a year ago, God began to lead us toward planting a church in city of Monroe. As we walked that process out, we met up with another church planter with a similar focus and vision.

At first, Abby and I were happy to learn from another planter, but over time we felt God moving us to be part of what God was already beginning to do in Monroe. Throughout the last six years of working full time as a teacher, my desire was to give more of myself to church and community. During this process, I have decided to join up with launching Elevate Church in Monroe, Michigan.

As we’ve settled in at Elevate, we’ve been able to take on a more active role in ministry and as hard work as it is, we absolutely love it and are more fulfilled than ever. I have already begun work along with the rest of the leadership team to help serve the overall vision of Elevate and to spiritually care for those that are part of the church. My wife, Abby has also emerged as a vital part of Elevate. She has put her giving spirit to work in our set up and first impressions teams.

We have prayed much and sought counsel in the past several weeks and months and feel God is taking us into ministry full time as part of the staff of Elevate Church. As missionaries to Monroe, we are doing everything we can to take Elevate Church to the next level and show the love of Christ through our relationships with others.

Elevate Church is only four months old and is still very early in the process. There is much work to do but a limited budget and we need people to help support us financially as missionaries to our own country, right here in Monroe, Michigan. Included is a short letter from our lead pastor, Adam Davis. You can also find more information about Elevate Church on the web at www.elevate-church.com.

We are looking for a group of people to support us monthly now through the end of 2010. We know this requires sacrifice on our behalf as well as yours, but we are ready to do the labor and make the sacrifices necessary to make this work, but we need your help. If you would be interested in supporting us monthly or with a one time gift, I would love to give you more information about how you can help and be a part of what is going on here in Monroe. Please contact me by e-mail at rthroop@elevate-church.com phone at (734) 652-0165 or at the following office address: 21 Washington Street; Monroe, MI 48161.

In Christ,

Ryan & Abby Throop

Loaded Down?

I came across this car on my way to the office recently. At first it made me laugh because it’s completely ridiculous. I wondered if the vacuum can’t be put in until the driver is in place.

As I thought about it more though, sometimes this is what our life can look like. The baggage we carry with us from past hurts, anger, frustration, dissapointments can stuff us full of junk.

The amazing thing is that it’s outside of God’s plan for us to be weighed down by our baggage. Check out the hope he gives us in the book of Jeremiah:

Jeremiah 30:17a (NLT) “’I will give you back your health and heal your wounds,’ says the Lord.”

My 2 Fish

Like many, I grew up hearing about the story where Jesus feeds 5,000 men with 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish. As many times as I’ve read this story over and over, it didn’t take on such a profound meaning until recently. I’ve been thinking a lot lately of my situation and how the disciples must have thought that night.

Here there are thousands of hungry people and the disciples feel the burden to feed them, yet the task alone seems so overwhelming! It’s almost laughable that all they can find are 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish to feed at least 10,000 people. Some would probably say it’s laughable to give up a stable teaching salary to be in full-time ministry. Yet, check out what Jesus did with those 5 loaves and 2 fish. I’m certainly not putting myself on a pedestal by any means; in fact, I’m more preaching to myself about the promise of doing what God is calling us to do.

Sometimes I feel like I only have 5 loaves and 2 fish, but imagine what God can do with that when I yield it all over to him. That is what I want to motivate and drive me and my every decision… as difficult as that is sometimes.

Fresh Expression of the Ancient Faith

“People are not tired of the gospel, but tired of old presentations of it.”

- Wayne Cordeiro, pastor of New Hope Church

The message of Christ isn’t what needs to be fixed. In fact, we know that the message laid out throughout the Bible is perfect! The message has the power to make an eternal impact. How we communicate that message however, determines the effectiveness of the message of Christ on the hearers.

At Elevate Church, church plant in Monroe, MI, we seek to give a fresh expression to the ancient Christian faith. When I look at the life of Jesus, he embraced the Hebrew tradition while utilizing the practices and media of an ever-changing culture. In the Big picture God’s timetable, we are in a continual process of expressing the ancient Christian tradition, that has been going on for over 2,000 years and will continue for who knows how long.

I don’t see Jesus, his disciples, nor the early church hanging on to the traditions of the past, but rather I see them moving forward in making an eternal impact on their world, within the cultural context of the first century.

I’d love to hear your thoughts.

What is Your “Calling”?

The New Testament refers to our calling in two distinct ways. First, it is used in conjunction with our salvation when we are called to a relationship with God (Big-“C” Calling). Secondly, it refers to God’s individual plan for our lives (little-“c” calling) In all reality, when we isolate these two callings, it can lead to a dangerous form of dualism; there’s no biblical evidence for a Big-C calling without the little-c calling.

“For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” (Eph 2:10, NLT)

The amazing thing is that God has a unique plan for each one of us. Because we’re all uniquely created and our “little-c” calling is specific to how God has designed us, there is no one else in the world that can fulfill God’s calling for us. So, what passions & desires has God given you as part of his unique calling in your life?

Reflections on Jesus’ Leadership

Throughout the Gospels, Jesus lived leadership. There’s much to be learned from his style of leadership. Here are a few of my initial observations on how Jesus led:

1. Jesus spent a lot of time with a few rather than a little time with a lot. To make a true impact and influence on another person, it takes time, energy, and effort. Jesus certainly understood that in order to “reproduce” himself, he had to pour his life into a small group of others that would then take continue the mission of building the church. He modeled leadership for his 12 disciples, equipped them for ministry, and even choose his inner circle of three.

2. Jesus had a clear mission. His mission was, as he put it, “to do the will of his Father.” This was the driving force behind everything he did. He had a clear focus on his overall mission and allowed that to define everything he did. Leadership is all about moving people onto God’s agenda.

3. Jesus understood how to follow. Before going to the cross, he asked if it was possible, that “this cup would pass.” He knew what was in store for him in the immediate future, and asked his Father if there was any other way. Ultimately, Jesus came under the will of God. In many other situations, Jesus tells us that his will is to “do the will of the Father.” You can’t be an effective leader unless you learn how to become an effective follower.

4. Jesus had confidence. It wasn’t an arrogance, but rather a confidence in who he was and his relationship before God. He knew what his calling was and his mission. He understood himself and didn’t waver from who he was called to be.

This isn’t an exhaustive list, but just a few observations from the Gospels. As you read through the Gospels, what are some leadership principles that stand out to you?

The Power of Failure

In the words of Adam Davis, lead pastor at Elevate Church…

“Sometimes your plans have to fail in order for God’s plans to succeed.”

Our human tendency is to view failure as a bad thing. This idea is crazy considering we have the cross at the center of our faith. Christ’s mission was to take up the cross. He lived and died for that mission. God has a supernatural mission for each and every one of us. While that may mean that our plans fail, but if Christ is made more famous as a result… now that’s true success!

This is for Real

At some point yesterday, I think it finally hit me… we’re planting a church. Maybe I’m just a little slow on the realization (it’s like the person that laughs at a joke after the conversation has already moved on), but I think it became so real for me yesterday. Here’s a rundown of yesterday’s highlights:

1. Eleven32 Groups:We had many people sign up for our small groups at Elevate. Many are realizing the importance of community in the journey of following Christ and genuinely desire authentic relationships with others.

2. Connection Event: We had 50 people stay for the Connection Event at McGeady’s Resteraunt where they were able to meet with us and discuss the vision of Elevate Church and begin to think about their next step of involvement.

3. New Community: CedarCreek Church in Toledo invited us down for their New Community Celebration Sunday evening to recognize us as part of their celebration and celebrate our launch. What a high-energy, amazing time of praising God for over an hour.

This has been a crazy-awesome weekend and I’m looking forward to hearing some great things that God’s up to this week with the launch of our eleven32 small groups throughout this week.

The End of Christian America

Newsweek came out with an article this week titled “The End of Christian America” Within the article, it quotes a study that showed Americans who claim no religious affiliation rose from 8% in 1990, to 15% in 2009. The full article can be seen here.
Many prophetic Church leaders have been predicting the death of Christendom in Western culture for some time. We are currently in the middle of a major paradigm shift that won’t be fully identified until years after this turning point.
During the rule of Constantine beginning in 313 AD, Christianity was embraced by culture and government. Later, Charlemagne embraced Christianity. Ultimately, this led to the birth of Christendom in Europe and led to a watered down Christianity. During the “dark ages” of Christianity in Europe, the church flourished.
Does the same fate hold true for America today? Could we be on the brink of a spiritual “dark age?” Is that necessarily a bad thing?