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JOEL-NEWS-INTERNATIONAL-438 * 14 APRIL 2003 * WWW.JOELNEWS.ORG

IN THIS EDITION:

JN438-1. TYPICALLY GOD: What is actually not a church?
JN438-2. PRAYER FOCUS: 50 days of prayer for Berlin
JN438-3. KINGDOM DEVELOPMENT: Partnership and transition of leadership
JN438-4. RESOURCE: City Restoration
JN438-5. RESOURCE: Reinventing church
JN438-6. RESOURCE: Open Doors statement on the Chinese Church

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QUOTE: "The continued growth of underground Christian churches in China has something to do with three convictions widespread among Chinese Christians. The Chinese love the progression 'good, better, best', so the three mottos are 'It is good for a Christian to lead someone to Christ. It is better to plant a church. It is best to plant a church-planting movement.' Indian Christians have three similar convictions: 'Every Christian can plant a church. Every house can become a church. Every church can become a Bible school.'" (Steve Steele, Dawn Ministries)
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JN438-1. TYPICALLY GOD: What is actually not a church?

"A true transformation is taking place in Cali, starting with the church itself!" reports Berna Salcedo, a member of the Dawn Ministries staff in Colombia. "Christians in the city are spreading explosively by leaving their walls behind them. Statistics show that some 60% of the city's 2 million inhabitants live in poverty. Necessity is the mother of invention, particularly in difficult times, and Christian churches are springing up in all sorts of places and in all kinds of forms."

"In Cali, people no longer ask 'what is a church?', but 'what is actually not a church?'. That overcomes the greatest obstacle to church planting in South America, that a church is equated with a church building. We tell them 'the church is the people', so a church can be anywhere where people are. It is astonishing to see the potential released once people realise this. Today, Cali is at the forefront of planting socially relevant churches," says Salcedo.

"Targeted studies brought more and more of the city's pastors to the conclusion that traditional models of church don't really work in difficult social settings. Christians recognising their social context means that a growing number of churches are planted where the people really are. The trend is clearly in the direction of house churches, cell churches and so-called 'marketplace' churches. In poor neighbourhoods social and communal facilities are becoming Christian churches."

"Ironically, the threat from the guerillas is a significant factor encouraging this change," he says. "Cali lies at the foot of the mountains in which the guerillas hide out. In the past, the guerillas have kidnapped entire churches, so it is no longer advisable or practical to erect church buildings - the people simply do not come. This also emphasises the relevance of house churches: the well-off inhabitants of prosperous neighbourhoods need little convincing to meet as a church in their houses in discreet and safe places. The poor are attracted to house churches and fellowships in social centres, where their practical needs are taken care of."

Source: Dawn Ministries

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JN438-2. PRAYER FOCUS: 50 days of prayer for Berlin

From Easter to Pentecost the Berlin city network 'Together for Berlin' is calling the church to prayer for their city. A booklet has been produced in German and English to provide specific prayer information. Let's pray that the '50 days' will fan the spirit of prayer in Berlin and elsewhere, that people will be ignited with new love for their city, and that churches of all sorts would be motivated to join in.

Coordinator Kerstin Hack writes: "In German there is a saying 'Not allowing anybody to steal the butter from your slice of bread' - meaning 'Not allowing anybody to take from you what is rightfully yours'. More and more Christians in Berlin are fed up with the enemy having stolen so much 'butter' right from under our eyes and we are more and more motivated to start a godly revolution against this. We are grateful for all the support we get in this endeavour from other cities and places. Thanks for joining hands with us!"

LINK: http://www.gebet-fuer-berlin.de/english.html

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JN438-3. KINGDOM DEVELOPMENT: Partnership and transition of leadership

Unity and partnership are essential in the Kingdom of God. But at the same time we may not be called to partner with every Christian, church leader or ministry that comes our way. In this article Wolfgang Simson offers three guidelines for the kind of heart-level partnership God seems to be establishing these days:

1. Look for people who have not bowed their knee to Baal.
2. Look for people who covenant with Gods purposes, with each other, and with the land God gave them.
3. Do not trust anyone that does not limp.

Simson also addresses the issue of transitioning leadership God's way. There are three big mistakes to avoid:

1. "Our way or no way". Don't strangle the next generation with tradition.
2. "Someone like me - only a bit younger". Face it: you did have your chance to change the world; why bind a younger hand to a plough that did not deliver the goods?
3. "Let the committee decide". This, by default, puts maintenance over vision and is a sure road to mediocrity, a compromise that will please everyone. This may be a fine strategy for a bank or business, but not for a church.

The full article can be retrieved by sending an e-mail to lyris@xc.org with only this command in the body of your mail:

get joel-news-international simson-transitioning-leadership

Source: Joel News

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JN438-4. RESOURCE: City Restoration

City Restoration Ministries' vision is to facilitate bringing the whole gospel message to the whole city using the whole church. The ministry offers a number of good resources for city reaching. One of these is 'developing a vision, mission statement and common strategy on a city level'.

LINK: http://www.cityrestoration.org

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JN438-5. RESOURCE: Reinventing church

Young pastors explore new forms of worship in search of an authentic Christian experience that young post-modern adults can relate to.

LINK: http://www.csmonitor.com/2002/1031/p14s01-lire.html

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JN438-6. RESOURCE: Open Doors statement on the Chinese Church

China is a land full of paradoxes that appear very baffling to the outsider. While some Chinese Christian leaders languish in jail, others travel the world talking of religious freedom. Some smuggle the Bible, yet the Bible is also legally printed and sold. Great acrimony surrounds the questions of how many Christians actually exist in China and how Christian organizations should assist the Chinese church.

Open Doors International issued a position statement on the church in China which will be helpful in shaping your understanding of what God is doing in this great country.

LINK: http://www.gospelcom.net/od/content/truth_china.html

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COLOPHON

Joel News International is a leading special interest bulletin on prayer, church growth and revival. We offer a keen selection of the most encouraging news reports, the most challenging developments and the best resources from over 100 reliable sources in six continents. Joel News International is a great help and time-saver for thousands of Christian leaders and intercessors in over 120 nations.

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