Search

Follow me on ResearchGate

Follow me on ResearchGate

Pages
Social networking

Entries by Dr Dion Forster (1887)

Monday
Oct182010

98% of people are not equipped for 95% of their lives

Attending an amazing session on ministry in the world of work at the Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization. Please see http://www.capetown2010.com or search for #lcwework on http://www.twitter.com/search

Why is it that we will pray for our members who go on a mission trip to some far off place, but we do not add the same fervent prayer for the mission they engage in when they go to work or school on Monday?

Sunday
Oct172010

The official press release for the Third Lausanne Congress in Cape Town

Here is the official press release for the Third Lausanne Congress in World Evangelization that began this evening.

THE THIRD LAUSANNE CONGRESS OPENS

The Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization opens in Cape Town this weekend, Sunday 17 October 2010. It draws together 4,000 invited participants from 197 nations, and extends through GlobaLink sites to 90 countries. The Congress theme is 'God in Christ, reconciling the world to himself' (2 Corinthians 5:19) and how to bear witness to Jesus Christ and all his teaching in every region of the world and every sphere of society.

The Lausanne Movement, founded by Billy Graham, is uniquely placed to gather evangelicals for a common purpose. The Congress will reaffirm the primary truths of biblical Christianity, and engage with critical issues set to face the Church over the next decade. These issues have been identified through consultations around the world. Doug Birdsall, Chairman of The Lausanne Movement, said: ‘We have worked to engage evangelical leaders on all continents. This is the first Congress of its kind in the digital age, and we’re praying it will herald a new moment for the Church.’

In this information age, traffic on the eight-language Congress website is expected to be high, and radio networks will relay programmes across Africa and Latin America, on the themes of the Congress.

The 1974 Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization produced The Lausanne Covenant, widely regarded as one of the most significant documents in recent church history. Reflecting on this, Archbishop Henry Orombi, Chair of the Africa Host Committee, declared: ‘Under God, the legacy of The Third Congress is up to us!’ The Cape Town Commitment: a statement of belief and a call to action, will be published out of the Congress. Dr Chris Wright, Director of Langham Partnership International, is the chief architect of the new statement, working in partnership with senior theologians from all continents.

Each of the six days of the Congress will begin with a study in Ephesians, led by pastor-theologians from around the world. ‘We will be studying Ephesians as a global community,’ said Blair Carson, Congress Director. ‘We want it to be a grounding for a whole new movement of communicating the gospel of Jesus Christ.’

John Stott and Billy Graham have sent personal greetings, assuring the Congress of their daily prayer. Both are now becoming frailer, but have lost none of their passion for Christ and his gospel. Billy Graham, reflecting on the huge scale of changes in the world, wrote from his home in North Carolina,   ‘One of your tasks during Cape Town 2010 will be to analyze those changes, and to assess their impact on the mission to which God has called us in this generation.’

John Stott expressed his particular pleasure that the Congress is being hosted in Africa: ‘I pray that you will be able to share richly in the blessing God has poured out on the Church in that continent, as well as sharing in the pain and suffering of his people there.’

Participants in the Congress truly stand on the shoulders of giants.

END

Sunday
Oct172010

The Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization starts in Cape Town

I have just taken up my seat in the main hall of the Cape Town International Convention Centre - what a glorious moment! There are more than 5700 persons at this Congress, 4500 of them are participants from over 200 cow tries. The remainder are volunteers and there is a small contingent of staff. The major of the participants are from the majority world!

It is going to be an awesome time together! Please follow the congress on our Twitter feed at http://www.twitter.com/capetown2010

I'll also be posting updates here as often as I can find the time!

Please also interact with other persons from across the world at http://www.lausanne.org/conversation

We are called to share the Gospel with all!

Friday
Oct152010

Expectations for the Third Lausanne Congress in Cape Town 2010

Well, today the registrations started picking up a great deal as friends from all over the world joined us in Cape Town.  The Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization has drawn together a wide range of cultures, ages and theological perspectives.  Here are a few short videos from new friends, and some I have known for a while.

What are you expecting from this congress?  Make your voice heard on the many topics under consideration!  Simply sign up at http://www.lausanne.org/conversation

Here's Jason Mandryk from Canada (Jason is the author of the great Operation World book - a wonderful mission resource).

Next we have Daryl from the Philippines.

I just love this 'energetic' video from Anja (pronounced Ansa) from Madagascar / France.

Here's an encouraging video from Mike from the USA.

Friday
Oct152010

How to follow the Third Lausanne Congress in Cape Town

It is now just 2 days until we kick off with the Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC)!  We have been working on this congress since early in 2007, and the pace has picked up considerably among our working teams here in South Africa, and elsewhere in the world, over the last few months.

I've been here at the CTICC for the last few days undergoing some orientation and training with hundreds of volunteers, stewards and staff.

I have the great privelage of attending Lausanne as one of the 50 invited participants from South Africa (as a theologian in part, since I serve on the Lausanne Theology working group, but also as a ministry practitioner and new media / social media strategist). 

However, I am also on the Lausanne staff as the Social Networking Manager within the digital communications office.  I'll also be speaking on Friday and participating in two of the 'streams' (the Marketplace / World of Work group and the Resource Mobilization Working Group).

What makes this Congress different from the previous two is that we now have the technology to allow much broader direct participation from all over the globe!  First a one or two points that have stood out for me; among the 4500 participants more than 25% are from Africa.  In fact the majority of participants are from the 'two-thirds' world with a strong emphasis upon younger leaders (headed by Grace Sampson from Nigeria / South Africa), and the input of women.

This is truly the most theologically diverse group of persons I have ever had the chance to gather with.  Among the participants are notable 'conservative' Christians such as Jon Piper, and at the other end of the spectrum on of the best known names in the Emerging Church movement, 'Andrew Jones' (better known as tallskinnykiwi).

So, there is a wide range of culture, a good mix of age and gender, and a great deal of theological diversity.

Back to participation:  I'm not sure if you realise this, but this is the first time in history that we are able to truly contextualise the inputs, discussions and outcomes of a gathering such as this?  No matter who you are, or where you are in the world, your voice can be heard!  You can have a direct input into the plenary, multiplex and discussion sessions through the Global Conversation site.

Moreover, when the Congress is done the conversation is NOT OVER!  In fact, that's when we can truly shape the strategy and theology of the Lausanne movement through our participation.

So, how do you get involved?

1.  Follow the Lausanne Congress on twitter @CapeTown2010 and Facebook.

2.  Join in on the Global Conversation (all of the video, audio and reports will be posted here and you can comment, discuss and engage with millions across the world on the issues and the presentations).

3. Go to a Global Link site (if there is one in your area).

4.  Encourage others to blog, tweet, and post their ideas and feedback on their own sites and feeds.  We would ask you please to consider using the hash tags #LCWE and #CapeTown2010 in your posts so that my team can track what you're saying and highlight it to the rest of the world!

Below is an encouragement from Andrew Jones (tallskinnykiwi):

The global mission event of the century is only a week away! Its the Third Lausanne World Congress on World Evangelization also known as Lausanne 3.

Its HUGE!. We're talking 5000 invited delegates from all over the world.

Its bigger than Lausanne 1 and even bigger than Lausanne 2.

Its bigger than Edinburgh 1910 and 2010

Its the most wired, webbed, blogged, twittered, streamed missions event EVER!

Its also more SOUTHERLY than any missions conference you have ever followed. It happens in Cape Town, South Africa and it starts next week. Like Oct 16 - 25th

Its time to point your computer towards Cape Town for a MEGA MISSION RUSH that's going to:

TURN your tiny view of the global church upside down!
SMASH your small ambitions into pathetic, wriggling inadequacies!
REAWAKEN your inner William Carey into the 21st Century!
REPOSITION your priorities into the groove of what God is doing NOW in the world that He loves!

Here are the links you need:

Official Lausanne Cape Town 2010 website and blog

Tall Skinny Kiwi blog right here for happenings, thoughts, images, trivia, whats for lunch, the coolest haircuts and the dorkiest ties and worthy blog moments in general. I arrive in Cape Town on Oct 14th and leave Oct 26th and I will deliver the congress to you in blog sized bites.

Notes on Lausanne - Outreach Magazine's dedicated blog page for Cape Town featuring ME and my more profound thoughts and responses to the presentations, speakers, events and takeaways for you and your church.

Follow CapeTown2010 on Twitter. Add the column to your Tweetdeck.

Watch these Twitter hashtags: #CapeTown2010 #LCWE #CapeTownIdeas #CapeTownQuotes

Join Lausanne on Facebook

Stay tuned and I will keep you streamed with all the right stuff.

UPDATE: Thanks Jon Hirst for these others links:
GlobaLink locations:

Online Participation:
RSS of CT2010 news (includes Lausanne blog)
Video Podcast which is also on iTunes and an
Audio podcast which you can also get straight from iTunes,
All congress video and an email newsletter (for daily news summaries/highlights):

And here is another one from another one of our Lausanne Blogger Network team, Stephen Murray:

In just over four days time the most significant evangelical congress to ever take place on South African shores will kick into action. Over 5000 participants, volunteers and staff from all over the world will converge on the Cape Town International Convention Center to participate in hearing and adding their many voices to some of the most pressing issues in world evangelism today.

You can follow the events as they unfold through the following links:

Cape Town 2010 official website

Cape Town 2010 blog

The Global Conversation

Alongside this you can follow @capetown2010 on Twitter or join the official Facebook page.

I, along with some colleagues will be onsite observing and microblogging the event live through the official twitter feed and on the Facebook page. The aim of the congress is to truly allow for global participation through technology and various forms of media. So we really want to encourage you to follow the congress and interact with the content through the various platforms.

Finaly!  If you are a member of the Lausanne Blogger Network, a participant or a volunteer at Cape Town 2010, then please make contact with me!  We are planning a tweet-up during the congress!  It'll be great to connect with everyone who's been tweeting and posting about Lausanne.  Please DM me @digitaldion or give me a text message or call on +27834564855.

Wednesday
Oct132010

A map of the world IN Africa - the real size of Africa

Boing boing posted this wonderful visual representation of the true size of Africa in relation to other geographical regions on earth. It is fascinating to see how North America compares to West Africa, or how England relates to Madagascar.

Once again this confirms that our perceptions of the size of countries is so often shaped by social, cultural and historical bias, rather than by geographic land mass!


I previously posted about this in a post entitled "What the world really looks like".

Bias can be a powerful thing! Also see my post on bias and ethics which shows why it is easier to steal time or pencils from your employer than money.

The following quote rings true for me:

@DanDeWitt: Those who refuse to acknowledge their bias are destined to be blinded by it.

How can we counteract our own biases on reality? Is it necessary to do so?

You can read the original boing boing article here.

Tuesday
Oct122010

Welcoming address to the Lausanne Congress Leadership 11 October 2010

Yesterday morning (11 October 2010) the Churches of Cape Town welcomed the leadership of the Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization to the City.

The Rev Peter Langerman, who is the chairmain of the Consultation of Christian Churches in Cape Town - an eccumenical body of Christian Churches for the City - welcomed Doug Birdsall, Blair Carlson, and Jomo Mchunu at the gaterhing which was held in Brackenfell, Cape Town.

Rev Langerman's superb welcoming address (see below) set the scene for the Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization that is set to start on Sunday the 17th of October 2010 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre.  Rev Doug Birdsall responded to the welcome by sharing his excitement for the Congress and telling the story of how the Third Lausanne Congress came to be held in Cape Town.

At this particular gathering I was one of the representative leaders of the Churches of Cape Town.  Although I serve on the volunteer staff of the Lausanne Movement and will also be one of the 50 South African participants at next week's Congress.  It is set to be an incredible time of interaction, strategy, theological discourse and most importantly worship and prayer as just over 5000 persons from more than 200 countries across the globe gather in Cape Town.

If you would like to follow the events of the Congress we shall have a team of 'social networking' volunteers who will post updates on the @CapeTown2010 twitter feed and the Lausanne Momement Facebook page.  I would encourage you to join the Global Conversation to make your voice heard!  You don't need to be in attendance at the congress to have an input into the discussions!  This photograph shows some of my social networking team (Stephen Murray in green and Aaron Marshall with the white T-Shirt... If you look REALY carefully you'll see me behind the camera ;-), meeting with the head of Digital Communications (Naomi Frizzel) and her team (Andrew Brumme and Casey Newmeyer).

Here is Peter's wonderful address - it scetches a wonderful picture of the relationship between South Africa (Africa), the City of Cape Town and the misisons movement.

Lausanne Church Leaders' Lunch - Monday 11th October 2010

Doug, Blair, Jomo, Cape Town Church Leaders, Friends

On the 14th February 2007, the Consultation of Christian Churches, on behalf of the broader Christian community in Cape Town, extended a formal invitation to Blair and the International Lausanne Committee for the 3rd Lausanne Congress to be hosted in Cape Town. This 3rd Congress follows the 1st held in Lausanne in 1974 and the 2nd held in Manila in 1989. Fortunately, history records that the invitation was accepted and now we stand just days away from the official opening of that Congress.

By hosting the Congress in South Africa in 2010, we will be righting wrongs, correcting errors, and redressing injustices that occurred 100 years ago.

In 1910, there was a very famous and significant mission's conference in Edinburgh, Scotland. The organisers of that conference understood the need to hear other voices and they understood that the locus of Christian activity was not confined to the Continental USA or Europe. Consequently, the organisers invited participants from other parts of the world, significantly, Asia and South America to take part. But, they didn't invite a single African. This is the first injustice that shall be addressed as in 2010 Africa will welcome the world.

The year 1910 was also a significant year in that the four semi-autonomous South African republics formed the Union of South Africa, a further step in the disenfranchisement and subjugation of people of colour in South Africa. This was yet another step towards the marginalisation of the majority of South Africa's people which culminated in the scourge of Apartheid and the suffering of millions of people. This is the second injustice that shall be addressed by our hosting of the Congress in the Western Cape in 2010 on behalf of all the peoples of South Africa.

The formation of the Union of South Africa entrenched the seclusion of South Africa from the rest of the African continent that lead to a sense of arrogance and superiority that marked our relationship with our brothers and sisters from other African nations. This is the third injustice that shall be addressed by hosting the Conference in South Africa in 2010 as we will have an opportunity to serve our sisters and brothers from Africa.

Yet, not only will we be privileged to serve our African family. We are conscious that for many years Africa was the recipient of missionaries from many different countries and we can testify that the gospel has borne fruit in this continent. African Christianity is vibrant and strong today partly because of the obedience and sacrifice of missionaries over many years from many different nations. Africa is now in the process of becoming a missionary-sending continent, eager for the opportunity to minister to the nations of the world. This Congress, and the partnerships that will flow from it, are our opportunity to respond by taking the good news of the gospel to many nations, including the nations who served us in the past by bringing the gospel to our shores.

The introduction to the Lausanne Covenant says, "We ... praise God for his great salvation and rejoice in the fellowship he has given us with himself and with each other. We are deeply stirred by what God is doing in our day, moved to penitence by our failures and challenged by the unfinished task of evangelization. We believe the Gospel is God's good news for the whole world, and we are determined by his grace to obey Christ's commission to proclaim it to all mankind and to make disciples of every nation." 

The same document, talking about the role of the church says, "... World evangelization requires the whole Church to take the whole gospel to the whole world. The Church is at the very centre of God's cosmic purpose and is his appointed means of spreading the gospel. ... [The church] becomes a stumbling block to evangelism when it betrays the gospel or lacks a living faith in God, a genuine love for people, or scrupulous honesty in all things ..."

As representatives of the church in Cape Town we must confess that these words continue to challenge us. We are deeply stirred by God's work in these days as we see living evidence of God's kingdom extended to the ends of the earth in the Lausanne Congress participants who will arrive in a few short days in or city from every nation on the earth. We are moved to confess our sins in the light of our failures and inaction, especially in our inward-looking, maintenance-driven focus that characterises much of modern church life. We are challenged by the task that lies ahead for us, even in our own country where there are many thousands who have yet to hear the good news of the gospel. We want to be part of the whole church taking the whole gospel to the whole earth. Hosting the Congress is a reminder and a challenge to us. A reminder of the part we are called to play in Godís cosmic purpose and a challenge to our structures and that sometimes become stumbling blocks to evangelism. We trust that we will not forget our responsibility, that we will rise to the challenge. History will judge whether we have been successful or not.

As a token of our appreciation, we would like to present you, Doug, with a small gift and a letter signed by all those who have shared in this event today. This Congress marks another step in a process that began on a mountaintop in Galilee when the resurrected Christ gave his disciples a commission and will be completed when the glorified and ascended Christ returns to stand on the Mount of Olives. This Congress will hopefully stand out as a landmark between those two epochal moments.

Rev Peter Langerman (Chairman of the CCC).

There is great excitement in the air!

Sunday
Oct102010

Christian leadership - An interview with Kate Turkington on Radio 702 / Cape Talk Radio

Yesterday I was phoned by the producer of Kate Turkington's radio program on Radio 702 / Cape Talk Radio to ask if I would be willing to do an interview on her show on some of the characters and characteristics of Christian Leadership.  You may stumble upon this page today, or in the months that follow.  Please feel free to add your own thoughts, insights and convictions in the comments below! I'd love to hear from you!

What is certain is that there are a wealth of resources on what it means to be a Christian and a Leader.  I have chosen a few points that are important to me - some of them were written up in my most recent book 'Transform your work life:  Turn your ordinary day into an extraordinary calling' (with particular reference to one of the great Christian leaders in contemporary South Africa, Graham Power of the Power Group, Global Day of Prayer and Unashamedly Ethical).

So, here are a few pointers:

An unwavering commitment to the person of Jesus and the ways of Jesus.

If one declares one's self to be a Christian in leadership he or she should naturally display a clear devotion to the person of Jesus Christ, and the ways of Jesus. I would suggest that a Christian leader should bear some resemblance to the character of Jesus (Phil 2:1-5 and Gal 5.21-23).  Moreover, a Christian leader should seek to devote his or her life to doing the kinds of things that Jesus came to do (to establish God's Kingdom of justice, mercy, grace, equality, provision and wholeness - c.f. Lk 4:33 and Lk 4:19ff).

A Christian leader should display integrity and courage.

All of the great leaders of the Bible (among whom I would count Jesus, David, Joseph, Moses and a host of others such as Esther) displayed great integrity and courage.

Let's talk about courage first - it was Christ's courage that cost his life.  It was Moses' courage that highlighted one of the central themes of the Bible (God's emphasis upon social justice), he set a nation free and courageously led them through very trying conditions in the desert.  David faced Goliath and many other enemies in his lifetime.  Esther won over a foreign King and saved her people.

Integrity is another hallmark of a great Christian leader.  The Bible is clear that we should not say 'yes, yes' with one breath and 'no, no' with the next (Matt 5.37 and 2 Cor 1.17).  Jospeh showed incredible integrity in not giving in to the seduction of Potiphar's wife. He was not swayed by the might of the King, and eventually he went on to save many nations - even his own brothers who had sold him into slavery. Of course David made a number of indiscretions in his life and faced grave consequences for that!

A Christian leader should seek to be a servant of God's will and the needs of the people.

One of the most shameful characteristics of contemporary leadership is that it is selfish and self fulfilling.  It is all about the leader.  However, the real reason for leadership is to serve a greater cause.  Christian leaders are called to live like Jesus did, as servant leaders (see Luke 9.46-50; 22.24-30; Mark 9.33-37; 10.35-45; Matt. 20.20-28).  Of course Jesus himself was a leader who recognized that his life should be lived for others - he served the will of his Father first and foremost, and sought to uplift others and bring out the very best in them (John 13.1-7).

In our time I have seen a few people like this.  Bishop Desmond Tutu was willing to sacrifice himself for what he believed God wanted for the nation of South Africa.  He would place himself in difficult situations, facing powerful groups and people, and even placing himself between waring groups, for the sake of peace and transformation.  His servanthood and sincere love for others won them over, changed first their hearts and then their minds, and later won the day!  

Nelson Mandela is another man who has done this in our nation. After all that he had been through in his lifetime he would have been justified (socially) if he was filled with revenge.  Yet, he held the needs of the nation as higher than his own.  He exemplified forgiveness and reconciliation and inspired others to do the same.

A Christian leader should be skillful, self controlled and humble.

The leaders of the Bible were all equipped for the tasks they were to take up.  Some received divine empowerment, others were trained in courts or under Godly mentors.  Some had previous life's experience that they could apply to their new tasks.

A person who is skilled and secure in what they are to do will have a powerful personal life.  They will be resolute and secure, not pandering to the needs of others, or selfish ambition and vein conceit (Phil 2:5).  I'm afraid that there are many leaders who have dismal private lives, and it shows clearly in their public life!

A Christian leader should do all that she or he can to lead first within their home, displaying the deepest and most sincere character traits in those relationships, and then from that strong base to lead in the broader community.

Some of the greatest weaknesses that we see in leaders who make mistakes in the Bible (David, Saul, Judas) etc., are mistakes that result from a lack of self-control, a lack of humility, and personal ambition and desire.  Christian leaders should have the needs of the people and the will of God as their primary motivation.

Finally, on my list, I believe Christian leaders should live by faith.

It takes faith to achieve great things for God and God's people!  A Christian leader will require faith in God's ability and God's sovereign Power and Will.  Many leaders in the Bible (Joseph and Moses, even Paul) had to rely on God to do things that seemed impossible!  Their faith in God, which arises out a deeply intimate relationship with God in Christ, gave them both courage and sustanance for the journey of leadership.

Well, that's my list for now!  I hope to be able to record the show this evening and put a copy up here after the fact.

Please fee free to add your thoughts, ideas and insights in the comments below!  I'd love to hear from you.

Sunday
Oct102010

One week to go until the start of the Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization!

In one week from today (Sunday the 17th of October 2010) the Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization will kick off at the Cape Town International Convention Centre in Cape Town!  To view a short video (or read about) the history of the Lausanne movement please follow this link.  And, for a post that has information about all the sources where you can get information about talks, videos, publications and intereactions around Lausanne please visit this link.

This congress is the culmination of years of physical labour (preparing the venues, booking flights, securing VISA's, getting hotels sorted out planning programs, inviting participants etc.) and prayer and theological work! I've had the privelage of serving in various capacities on the Lausanne team (heading up Social Networking, serving on the Theology working group, the 'World of Work' / Marketplace group and also on the Resource Mobilization working group.  Together with that I am part of the arrangements team that has planned and executed the practical arrangements for the congress (the CTICC, volunteers (which my wonder wife Megan has managed), transport etc.).

This is going to be a truly significant meeting of leaders from all over the world coming together to do theology and develop strategy for the establishment of God's good news, God's gracious Kingdon, all across the earth!

If you're interested in my previous posts about Lausanne please visit this link.  Here's a general link of Lausanne related posts that I've made since I joined the team early in 2008.

Steve Hayes, one of the most respected bloggers in South Africa, wrote a great article on one of his blogs asking why there is not more 'buzz' and interest around Lausanne in South Africa.  It got me thinking!  Here's my response to Steve.

Before you dive into it - please can I encourage you to pray for the 4500 people from over 170 nations across the earth who are traveling to Cape Town for the congress?  Please pray for the proceedigns, and PLEASE make your voice heard!  Even if you're not in Cape Town please join our Twitter feed and stay up to date with what is happening and share your comments, ideas and feedback!  Our twitter feed is @CapeTown2010 and you can join our facbook page here.

Hi Steve,

Thanks for the post! I am continually grateful for the exposure that you give to Lausanne on your blogs.  Thank you.

The idea that Lausanne is not gaining much attention or favour among South African Christians is valid to a point.

I've thought about the reasons for this often.  In part it is because we can only have 50 'chosen' participants - that is a tiny representation per nation who are at the congress!  You may find that everywhere (except America) has a similar problem with getting ordinary Christians excited about something that is not easy to participate in.

Second, I have thought that we in South Africa do not have a traditionally large 'evangelical' Christian community.  Rather, we have main line conservative and liberal Christians, a growing number of pentecostal and charismatic groupings, and of course a massive African Initiated Christian grouping.

I'm sure that there are many other reasons as well.

However, let me add to this that South Africa has more active participants in the official blogger network than any other country (except America).  Among the official Lausanne Blogger Network participants from South Africa are many of the top 20 Christian (Religion) bloggers.  They include:

Stephen Murray, Mark Penrith, Peter Houston, John van de Laar, and my blogYou (and here) have also done a sterling job to promote and highlight many of the issues of Lausanne directly and indirectly.

I have asked Stephen Murray to come to Lausanne as a 'social networking' and 'blogger' champion.  We shall also have Andrew Jones (tallskinnykiwi) and Aaron Marshall (techsmo and churchsmo) on site.

It is my hope that we shall generate a great deal of content and participation during the congress, and continue the interest once the congress is done!

The simplest way to stay up to date is to either follow Lausanne on twitter @CapeTown2010 or join our Lausanne facbook page.

Finally, because each country was only able to have 50 delegates present we have set up 'global link' sites across the world.  These sites are open for anyone to attend and the proceedings, presentations and discussions of the Cape Town congress will be beamed out via satellite.

Thanks for posting your thoughts and for the opportunity to post this response.  I'll add it to my blog as well.

Rich blessing,

Dion

Please check in on my blog for more as we share from the congress itself.

God bless,

Dion

Friday
Oct082010

What does the Gospel 'feel' like?

In our little book 'Transform your work life' (written by Graham Power and myself) I wrote:

God longs for Christians to get practical and creative about making the ‘good news’ real for the people... We should not be asking ‘what does the good news sound like?’, rather we should ask ‘what does the good news feel like, and what does good news look like?’

What does the Gospel feel like!?  That is quite a challenging question!  It has lingered in my mind for some years now as I have tried to bring an experience of the 'good news' of God's Kingdom to the people that I live with, work with and encounter in my life's journey.

Worship on Sunday is critical - as John van de Laar rightly points out it is the orientation that should shape the rest of our week.  The exact quote from his great new book 'The Hour that changes Everything' is this: "How you worship defines how you live"

The question for this post is, however, what kind of worship does God require for the other 166 hours of the week?

Here's an excerpt from chapter 3 of 'Transform your work life' -

Did you know that Jesus had a ‘mission statement’ for his ministry on earth? You can read it in Luke 4:16–21. It is interesting to see that all the things that Jesus came to do were practical, tangible expressions of God’s love for the world. I have heard so many sermons on this passage that I sometimes forget just how practical Jesus intended his ministry to be. When Jesus said He had come to bring ‘good news to the poor’ (Luke 4:18) what do you think He meant? Let us approach it from a slightly different perspective: what is good news for a poor person? I have been in need a few times in my life, and I can tell you when you are poor good news is not a sermon! It is good news when you have food and money to pay your bills, it is great news when you get a job that pays you a salary with which you can support your family and yourself.

One of the big failings of the contemporary church, and that means you and me, is that we do not always bless the people around us in tangible and visible ways. When someone is ill we say things like, ‘I’ll pray for you’ – while this is an expression of care, I can assure you that the person would feel so special and loved if you took them a meal! I know that God longs for Christians to get practical and creative about making the ‘good news’ real for the people around them. We should not be asking ‘what does the good news sound like?’ Rather, we should ask ‘what does the good news feel like, and what does good news look like?’ This is Jesus’ way!

As you think about the people among whom you work, what would be truly good news for them? Is there a single mother who is battling to make ends meet? Perhaps you have a co-worker who is struggling to cope with his workload, or maybe someone whose child is ill – what could you do to make the ‘good news’ visible and tangible for these people?

Sometimes it is the simplest things, like a phone call, or a visit, that make people feel loved and cared for. At other times you will need to be a little more creative and sacrificial in what you do.

So, here's my question - what does the Gospel 'feel like' in your context?  What can you do to help the people you love and meet experience the Gospel before you speak to them about it?

Thursday
Oct072010

Someone's been trying to hack into my website...

I watch the statistics for my website (mainly using the great little squarespace app for the iPhone).  

I normally get between a few hundred and a thousand hits to my site per day.

However, earlier this week I noticed a spike of traffic to my site - almost 6000 hits to my side on one day, and over a thousand on another day...

This evening when I went to check my logs I discovered that the page that was being 'viewed' was my login page!  In fact I have had 6200 visits to that page this week!  That can only mean one thing - someone has been trying to hack into this blog.

Why?!

So, if you're trying to hack my site, drop me a line, tell me what you want to post.

You may be surprised to find that I'm quite a friendly guy!

God bless,

Dion

Thursday
Oct072010

Is God a heretic?

In Mark 2.13-17 to we read one of the many accounts in the Gospels where Jesus was judged by the Pharisees for fraternizing with sinners.

There is little doubt that the religious establishment of his day thought that Jesus was a heretic!

I was reminded of this today as I was speaking to a friend about one of my little books 'Christ at the centre - discovering the cosmic Christ in the spirituality of Bede Griffiths'.  We were remarking how different Fr Bede's Christology was from that of his friend CS Lewis.  In fact, Fr Bede's theology developed in a very different way to CS Lewis' - I think that it may be because each of the men honoured the context in which they served Christ.  Lewis formed his faith in the University City of Oxford, while Griffiths formed his faith as a missionary monk in Southern India.  Both were committed to Jesus, yet that commitment found expression in quite different ways.

I was milling over our conversation as I was driving to a meeting at the University of Stellenbosch (where I was to give input into a new Master's degree for ministry practitioners).  My thoughts turned to two rather strange questions:

1)  I wonder how the contemporary Church would 'judge' God's radically gracious theology?

2) Would we, like the pharisees of Jesus' time, consider God to be heretic?

Here's a video I recorded while driving.

In the December 2008 volume of the Journal STUDIA HISTORIAE ECCLESIASTICAE I did a review on Richard Burridge's wonderful book 'Imitating Jesus: An inclusive approach to New Testament ethics' - Burridge makes an interesting point in his book, one that I tend to agree with.  He notes that if we read the words of Jesus (his teaching) we will see that he had a rather stringent ethic, a high set of moral standards.  Yet if we observe the actions of Jesus we will find that he acts far more graciously.  It is not a matter of incongruence, or cognitive dissonance, rather it is that the teaching of 'the law' finds it's fullest expression in a life of loving grace.

Perhaps the contemporary Church, and many Christians, have become too caught up in the stringency of 'the law' and have not held on to a lifestyle of loving grace.

Perhaps we would consider God to be unorthodox, maybe even a heretic? What do you think?

As for me, I am trying to be a little more like Jesus every day! I want His love for this world to run through my speech, my thoughts and my actions.  Some may find the company that I keep difficult to bear, the may even call me unorthodox, perhaps even a heretic!