To read the magazine on line just click the image above, download a copy of the pdf file from our resource files or go to Scribd.

The Starfish Files?
Starfish line the shores of the world’s beaches. Chop off an arm, and a new one grows to take its place. Tear a starfish in half, and you’ll soon have two starfish on your hands. A torn-off limb can even become a brand new starfish. And what’s more, they populate by releasing hundreds of thousands, and sometimes millions, of eggs in just a few hours. Just like the house church movement through the ages. An estimated 300,000 new house churches have started between 1998 and 2006. And this doesn’t include what’s happening in China, which has about 80 to 100 million believers involved, or Latin America, which had about 1 million Basic Christian Communities in 2007. It’s also taking root in Canada. Enter The Starfish Files. The magazine’s goal is to inspire, inform, and interconnect the house church networks across Canada and beyond.

House2House: H2H is a website designed to help any within the simple/organic church world in a variety of ways (downloads, blogs, discussion boards, articles, books & DVD as well as a regular ezine).

Church Multiplication Associates: CMA & CMAResources exist to support and encourage church multiplication movements by developing new resources focused on reproducing disciples, leaders, churches and movements from the place where you’re planted and finishing at the ends of the earth.

New Testament Restoration Foundation: NTRF desire is to provide resources and training in how the early church met together in community. They seek to aid others in recapturing the intimacy, simplicity, accountability and dynamic of first century church life.

House2Harvest Network: H2H Network exists to come along side of simple and house church networks so that they can effectively – mobilize towards completing the Great Commission, deploy their resources and servants to the nations and engage by making disciples of the unreached, the poor and marginalized both in other regions of the world as well as in their own neighborhoods and cities.

LK10.com: LK10 is a community of practice for church planters. It is a grass-roots, voluntary forum that is by and for simple church practioners with a specific, laser-beam focus on seven practices of church planters.

House Church Central: HCC is dedicated to the growing house church movement and endeavors to provide house churches with a channel for the interchange of ideas, a source for solid, Christian theology and a catalog of resources for the house church.

House Church Resource: HCR web site is a service to the explosive house church/organic church movement throughout the world providing links, articles and other resources.

Organic Church Resource: OCR goal is to assist in any way they can those who are interested in pursuing organic church life. They think of organic church life as seeking to acknowledge the centrality and supremecy of Jesus Christ, thus allowing him to function in our midst as God has intended.

Gottalife Online Community: Gottalife purpose is to build a platform where eagles can learn how to fly in the heights of his presence whilst making a difference in the world. Equipping, Training and Releasing those desiring to serve the Lord in there daily lives.

The Parousia Network Cyber Cafe: Parousia Network is an on-Line Community of House Churches, Simple Churches & Assorted Sojourners

This is part of a continuing series on simple, organic, house church resources. If you have any comments, suggestions or links to add please let me know.

Rob Ross is a coordinator for Oikos Ministries (a network of organic churches). He is a disciple of Jesus (Making Disciples) who lives in Calgary, AB with his family. Connect with Rob on Facebook or Twitter.

Taking the time to do a spiritual check up helps me to refocus and keep on track. These are some of the questions I ask myself.

Character Check

• What one area outside of ministry is God asking me to grow?
• Is my public and private life consistent?
• Are there areas of personal purity that I have begun to let slide?
• What would my spouse or other family members say about my state of mind, spirit and energy level?
• Am I living my life in such a way that my family and friends are drawn to Christ?

Attitude Check

• Do I have a selfish or selfless attitude?
• Do I have a thankful or ungrateful attitude?
• Would those I work with say I am a positive or negative person?
• Am I able to keep a Christ-like attitude when things are difficult?
• What specific attitude will I work on this week?

Scripture Check

• Am I spending time in God’s Word every day?
• Am I obeying one truth that Christ has spoken to me through His Word?
• Do I meditate on God’s truth that I read?
• Have I shared Christ’s truth with someone this past week?
• When is the last time I committed a passage of Scripture to memory?

Relationship Check

• Would my wife say she feels loved or lonely?
• Am I spending enough quality time with my children?
• Are there unresolved conflicts with family members, friends or work associates?
• What does God want me to do to make them right?
• What one practical thing will I do this week to honour my family?
• Do I have some healthy friendships outside of ministry?

What additonal questions would be worth asking as part of a spirtitual check up?

I reflected on an answer for quite some time. I thought about the stories I have read of how God is moving in other parts of the world. I thought about how I have not seen this happening here in North America. So, I asked myself a question. What makes North America different from other parts of the world?

I pondered this question while watching a few of our family’s favourite television shows. We often enjoy watching the Home Improvement Channel. Through the years I have been able to glean a number of good ideas from watching Disaster Do-It-Yourself or Holmes on Homes. One basic principle that has been restated many times in these shows is the need to know the difference between a load bearing wall and non-load bearing wall. The load bearing walls are the ones that keep the house from falling down. The non-load bearing walls are dividers that keep us from seeing what is on the other side.

I believe North America is different from other parts of the world because we like our space. In order to have this space we put up a whole lot of walls. However, for those of us who want to see and be involved in what God is doing some of these walls need to come down.

A number of the walls that I believe need to come down first include:

The Wall of Comfort

I would define comfort as a state of being in which we feel secure. It is a feeling that everything is okay at least where I live. If we become too comfortable we no longer sense the urgency. In scripture Jesus warned his disciples that the time was near. He took down their wall of comfort so they could see what was coming and helped them prepare. What questions should we be asking Jesus? How do we move outside our comfort zone? Matthew 24:32-35

The Wall of Distractions

North American society provides an abundance of distractions. Add to our busy lives the need to adapt to a rapidly changing world and we see our attention becoming extremely divided. We are inundated with many forms of entertainment. We have numerous opportunities to listen to the radio, watch television or surf the Internet. Technology continues to take ever larger amounts of our time. Beyond this we still need to earn a living, pay our bills, raise our families and keep our relationships healthy. In order to sort out all these distractions it becomes imperative to ask some more questions. What are my priorities? How do I redeem my time? Ephesians 5:15-17

The Wall of Individualism

When I refer to individualism I mean the pursuit of individual rather than common or collective interests. This seems to be a common theme in Western society. It appears we are losing sight of what it means to be community. Our focus is diverted by the idea of personal success rather than corporate well being. The wall of individualism blinds us from the needs of all God’s people and from fully accomplishing God’s purpose. I continually ask myself, “What was Jesus’ original purpose for His people?” How do we live as Jesus intended? Acts 2:42-47

The Wall of Disobedience

Disobedience is any choice that is contrary to what God has instructed. It is saying no to God. This is not as obvious as it might seem. I often find believers questioning the relevance of scripture for today’s world. There is a sense that it was meant for those who lived two thousand years ago but it isn’t relevant today. It seems they want to make God’s word fit into their lifestyle. They do not see this as disobedience. What does it take to obey God? Titus 3: 1-9

So, what next? Like any home improvement project it takes time, effort, tools, resources and a team of committed workers. In order for disciples to start taking down some of these walls more questions need to be asked. What are the load bearing walls in our lives? What are the non-load bearing walls in our lives? What changes do we need to make in our lives if we want to see a movement of God happen in this generation?

To read the magazine on line just click the image above or download a copy of the pdf file from our resource files.

The Starfish Files?
Starfish line the shores of the world’s beaches. Chop off an arm, and a new one grows to take its place. Tear a starfish in half, and you’ll soon have two starfish on your hands. A torn-off limb can even become a brand new starfish. And what’s more, they populate by releasing hundreds of thousands, and sometimes millions, of eggs in just a few hours. Just like the house church movement through the ages. An estimated 300,000 new house churches have started between 1998 and 2006. And this doesn’t include what’s happening in China, which has about 80 to 100 million believers involved, or Latin America, which had about 1 million Basic Christian Communities in 2007. It’s also taking root in Canada. Enter The Starfish Files. The magazine’s goal is to inspire, inform, and interconnect the house church networks across Canada and beyond.

The goal of this course is for participants to discover more fully God’s story and the nature of His church in a way that will lead to a more fruitful Jesus-lifestyle and a more organically-viral ministry.

Interactive: The course environment is fully collaborative so that most of the learning (expansion of our imagination and paradigms) takes place through the sharing and interaction of the participants.

This course is ideal for those who are planting simple/house churches, networks of simple/house churches, or for those who are training church planters. The focus is on stepping more fully into the principles that lead to the natural reproduction of disciples, churches, and leaders.

Part one of this course involves three lessons with two-weeks to complete each lesson (six weeks total). A lesson will include a GoToMeeting online presentation followed by additional assignments and several interactive processes. Every aspect of the course can fit into the participant’s schedule including the GoToMeeting presentation which will be recorded for those who cannot attend live. This course has been provided through the generosity of Roger Thoman and Appleseed Ministry.

As I am involved in this course many questions and possibilities are being put before me. I will post both the questions and present some of the opportunites that arise from my involvement in this dialogue.

Questions from Lesson one:

What is the deconstruction process we go through when we agree to follow Jesus on the path to organic discipleship?

Are our neighbourhood gatherings adding value to our communities?

How can I become a living, thriving, reproducing follower-of-Jesus?

What might this look like and what are the challenges?

more to follow . . .

… we speak, not as pleasing men, but God who examines our hearts. For we never came with flattering speech, as you know, nor with a pretext for greed — God is witness — nor did we seek glory from men, either from you or from others …

They cared for the believers as a Mother cares for her children. 1 Thessalonians 2:7-8

But we proved to be gentle among you, as a nursing MOTHER tenderly cares for her own children. Having so fond an affection for you, we were well-pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God but also our own lives, because you had become very dear to us.

They became “Role Models” to the new believers. 1 Thessalonians 2:9-10

you recall, brethren, our labor and hardship, how working night and day so as not to be a burden to any of you, we proclaimed to you the gospel of God. You are witnesses, and so is God, how devoutly and uprightly and blamelessly we behaved toward you believers;

They gave individual attention and instruction as a Father. 1 Thessalonians 2:11-12

just as you know how we were exhorting and encouraging and imploring EACH ONE of you as a FATHER would his own children, so that you would walk in a manner worthy of the God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory.

The Word of God was an essential component of Discipleship. 1 Thessalonians 2:13

For this reason we also constantly thank God that when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but for what it really is, the word of God, which also performs its work in you who believe.

Three areas of leadership development that spiritual parents help with:

1. character formation: integrity, faithfulness, obedience, love, etc.
2. ministerial formation: skills needed for ministry
3. strategic formation: shaping values & philosophies which under gird our perspective of life & ministry.