I was honored to write the foreword for Dan White Jr.’s book, Subterranean: Why the Future of the Church Is Rootedness, so I can tell you that this is an important read. It is important because Dan writes from his lived experience. I will share some slices from the foreword in hopes that you will pick up the book and read it yourself. …
Dan White Jr. is Movement Developer and Coach for The V3 Movement. His new book, Subterranean: Why the Future of the Church is Rootedness is now available. The following excerpt is part of a free chapter you can download here. God had been taking a jackhammer ever so gently to the foundation of my ecclesiology, which was rattling the bones of my …
The landscape of Christian spirituality in the West is no longer lush with green grass and wild flowers blooming. Instead, across the country we find dry terrain where churches no longer can expect interested seekers–yet most of our solutions for addressing this predicament link to anxiety around our performance and personality. Dan White Jr., V3’s Movement Developer and Coach, addresses …
I think a lot about the importance of living well in every tense—specifically, past, present, future, and present-future tenses. Here, I would like to think out loud, applying this concept to the practice of evangelism, one of the critical skills of well-qualified church planters. Past Tense Before I became a follower of Jesus, I was quite a rebellious iconoclast. It …
We continue where we left off in my last post discussing Jeremiah 29, focusing particularly on God’s call to faithful presence in the places He sends us. It’s striking and, indeed, disturbing to realize that exile was God’s doing. Some would say God was punishing the Israelites for their lack of faith and obedience, that He was addressing their rebellion and …
Lately, I have been learning a lot about what it means for a community to be a healthy or “abundant” and the importance of community for personal and communal well-being (for this education I am indebted to John McKnight and Peter Block, namely their book The Abundant Community: Awakening the Power of Families and Neighborhoods). How do you imagine an abundant, …
Recently, J.R. Woodward posted a wonderful article on this website responding to the recent news about the frantic culture that drives Amazon.com and unsettling us with the reminder that our churches often are no less frantic. J.R. makes the case for a different, more relaxed church culture, drawing upon three of my favorite books: Slow Church (full disclosure: a book …
My friend has Lyme disease. He suffers from flu-like symptoms and chronic fatigue most days. It has cost him his job, his livelihood, and, on the darkest of days, his dignity. As a friend who can only observe and listen, it’s the stuff that makes you cry. To make matters worse, most of his family suffers from it, too, while …
History was made this past week. According to the New York Times, the recent exposé on what it means to be an Amazonian (someone who works at Amazon) became “the most commented-on story at The New York Times.” Why Has a Story about Amazon Culture Generated So Much Reaction? So why has this story drawn so much attention and so many …
A couple of weeks ago I collected some rocks from the French drain in front of our property. I intentionally placed my stones where I would notice them throughout the day and week, recognizing that they provide a focus for my prayers and signify my receptivity to the voice of God. In gathering these stones, I invited God to speak …