A lot of people get that God is leading us into a new chapter in ministry. But so many ask - "Why Africa?"

1 want to spend my final chapter of ministry being used by God in the way that has the maximum impact for his kingdom. It seems to me that in the coming century, Africa will be the continent that under God's mighty hand will take the message of Jesus to the whole world. So if I can sow into the emerging leadership in Africa, that will have a world-wide effect for years after I am gone and forgotten.

The 55 nations of Africa already have a significant impact on the world:

• Africa currently has a population of 1.1 billion, and will increase to at least 2.4 billion by 2050.
• In 1950, Africa accounted for only 9 per cent of the world’s population, but by the end of this century about 40 per cent of all humans (and nearly half of all children) will be African.
• In 1900, there were only nine million Christians in Africa, but by the year 2000, Africa had an estimated 380 million Christians. And still growing strongly!
• Africa's population is the youngest among all the continents; 50% of Africans are 19 years old or younger. (Average age in Australia is 38).
• In the top 20 countries in the world where the Christian faith is growing the fastest, 19 of those countries are in Asia and Africa.
  

Our reason for going to Africa is that we get to raise and develop the next generation of Christian leadership and disciple-makers, so that all the world may come to know about Jesus.

This is a big job. Please pray for us.

When I knew my 60th birthday was coming up, it dawned on me that Karen and I were about to enter our final chapter of ministry. My overwhelming passion was: "How do we minister in this final chapter with MAXIMUM impact for the kingdom?

A friend of mine showed my Psalm 92:

Ps 92:12-13 "The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon; planted in the house of the LORD, they will flourish in the courts of our God.".

So far ... so good ...

Here's the crunch line:

Ps 92:14-15 "They will still bear fruit in old age, they will stay fresh and green, proclaiming, “The LORD is upright; he is my Rock ..."

THAT'S what I want to do. I want to "still bear fruit in my old age, staying fresh and green ..."

Karen and I searched out what might be the most strategic way to do that. I love being at St Paul's Castle Hill; I love being at Crossfire Youth; I love ministering God's word in many and varied ways. I know that my ministry at St. Paul's is HELPFUL, but I tried to word out whether it was the most STRATEGIC.

Through much prayer, searching, consulting, and the advice of some trusted Christian friends and mentors. it seems that the MOST STRATEGIC way to spend this last chapter of ministry in a way that has MAXIMUM IMPACT is to help develop the next level of emerging leadership in Africa.

So ... what will we really being doing in Africa? 

Stay tuned ...

It's official. Karen and I will be leaving Australia to go and minister in Africa.

Turning 60 was key for both of us. We realised that we were entering our final chapter of ministry. Our key question was: how can we have maximum impact for God's kingdom in this last stage of our ministry?

As Karen and I pray about this, the answer that we keep getting is this: God is leading us to sow into the emerging generation of Christian leadership in Africa.

I believe that Africans will be the main group of people who will reach out across this world with the message of Jesus throughout this century. The Christian church is growing rapidly across Africa, and if we can help raise the next generation of discipleship-making leaders, then this will have an impact across the world.

So in March 2015, Karen and I will be concluding our 27 years of ministry at St. Paul's Castle Hill. In July 2015 we will move to South Africa where we will be hosted by Phil and Lucinda Dooley at Hillsong Cape Town. Not only will we be ministering at Hillsong's 5 campuses, but Cape Town will be our base to reach out to other African churches across the continent.

This is probably the scariest thing that we have ever done. But we are convinced this is a right move. We genuinely want to be used by God for his glory. Please pray for us.

In response to many requests, here are all five commitments in summary form.

When my wife and I visited four Disney Parks a year ago, it struck me how much the church could learn from the Disney Corporation. Here are five commitments of the Disney Corporation that could change the way we do things forever:

1.     Embrace your guests:
        Every staff member knows their real job

If you’ve every encountered a Disney staff member, every single one is an expert on everything in the park. You can approach a cleaner, a restroom attendant, a waitress, a security guard - and a number of things become evident:

• They have a comprehensive knowledge of everything in the park
• They own the whole vision
• They never say “I’m sorry - that’s not my department”
• Their sole focus in to enhance the experience of the guest

Read more ...


2.     Embrace excellence

There are four Disney theme parks in Orlando. My wife and I needed to travel between two of them. Disney runs an all-day shuttle service between its four properties. Shuttle buses are hardly Disney's core business. Their core business is the theme parks. The shuttle buses are merely a logistical necessity.

But everything about the shuttle bus exuded excellence. The driver welcomed us warmly. The bus was in great shape. As we pulled out from the kerb, a commentary came on the PA. "You are riding the Disney Transportation System. Our buses are maintained to the highest possible standard ..."  And so it went. Yes - they gave us the information we needed, but everything about that bus ride made us believe that for those people involved in this 'ancillary' service, that bus ride was the most important part of our day. And they were going to do whatever it took to make it work for us.

Read more ...

3.     Embrace the unexpected

What do you do when things go wrong in your ministry at your church?  Does it disappoint you and derail your programme? Or have you prepared for it? More importantly - when the unexpected happens - will you embrace it?

Read more ...

4.     Embrace the future

"We look forward to the future."
"We love the way things are always different."
"We're changing everything to suit the new generation."
"If we're going to attract younger people, we need to do it differently."
"We've got ideas that will revolutionise the way we do things."

Who is more likely to say these words? An executive at Disney, or the pastor at your local church?

Read more ...

5.     Embrace possibility thinking

"All things are possible”.  Who believes this more? A Disney executive? Or a church leader? 

Read more ...

"All things are possible”.  Who believes this more? A Disney executive? Or a church leader? 

From the beginning, the Disney team have been innovators. They dreamt of things that simply look impossible. They cast their minds into the future and designed concepts that had never been imagined before. If you look at their breakthrough use of animation; their futuristic transport services; their audio-animatronics wizardry; the dreams that they turned into reality - they were never tied down by the negativity of their surroundings. They were driven by a passion which made them believe that with enough perseverance; with enough imagination; with enough creative thinking - they could achieve things that had never been achieved before.

In the christian church we have all the resources of God at our disposal. We have a Master who makes the impossible possible. We worship the Lord who created the universe and who sustains every living being. We serve a mighty God who harnessed every power in the universe to raise his son Jesus from the dead. We live in anticipation of a glorious future where Jesus will return as Lord of the Cosmos and gather his people to live with him in paradise forever.

But is there any chance that there are churches that do not believe in achieving the impossible? Do we have congregations who simply keep doing things the same way - because that’s the way it’s always been done? Are we limiting our ideas to the tried and true formulas of the past? Do we demand that the emerging generation simply join in with the way we do things?

I sometimes wonder if we have erected a wall around the breakthrough power of impossibility. I suspect that in our keenness to protect the boundaries of a phrase like “all things are possible” - that we’ve created this huge asterisk that says: “conditions apply”? I wonder, in our enthusiasm to appear sensible, sober and realistic - have made the asterisk larger than the miracle?

We worship a God who has already achieved the impossible. We pray with a certain hope of experiencing the impossible. We believe in the future which is only possible through the majestic power of our great and glorious God.

As Christians, we give assent to the thought that “all things are possible”. But what would it look like if we really lived this way?

”All things are possible”. 

Who has a greater commitment to this vision? A Disney executive? Or you?

"We look forward to the future."
"We love the way things are always different."
"We're changing everything to suit the new generation."
"If we're going to attract younger people, we need to do it differently."
"We've got ideas that will revolutionise the way we do things."

Who is more likely to say these words? An executive at Disney, or the pastor at your local church?

Yes - there are some churches - some pastors - some christian movements - who are absolutely embracing the future. And there's no surprise that those are the churches that are really growing! But for many of us in Churchworld, the future is often seen as the enemy!

"Sunday School isn't nearly as big as it was back in my day."
"Young people need to understand that this is way we do church around here."
"I remember the good old days when everybody used to come to church."
"It will never be like that again, will it?"

We are the church who worship a God who controls the future. We believe in a God who is God of the future. We follow a long-standing biblical tradition where God has consistently led his people into the bigger and better future that he has planned for them. And yet, for so many of us, the glory days of Churchworld belong in the past.

One of my favourite Disney attractions is the "Carousel of Progress" - to be found in The Magic Kingdom in Orlando. It was originally built for the 1964 World's Fair - and is still running today.  It features four scenes from American family life from the beginning of the 20th century through to the end - and even into the 21st century. At each point in history, the family looks at the inventions of their day which have made family life easier, and exclaim something like: "This is as good as it gets".  It's funny to look back and see how much things have progressed since those olden days!

Follow Up.  Ministries stand or fall on this issue. People's futures stand or fall on whether we get this right. You can attract a crowd to your event ... you can call them to Christ .. but if what happens next is not done well ... they will wither on the vine and the church will never grow.

Indeed 'Follow Up' might not be the best name.  It makes it sound like an afterthought.  You know ... you go to the doctor for a life-saving operation - and then you are scheduled for a 'follow-up visit'.  It's a minor event - just to make sure that everything is going okay. 

I worry that this same thinking can translate into our disciple-making. That is, the “follow-up” ministry is just a tacked-on extra. Just to make sure that it’s still going okay, and that nothing’s gone wrong.

Nothing could be further from the truth! As important as the initial evangelism is, the ministry that we have after that (the “follow-up ministry”) is absolutely crucial to producing lasting disciples. Indeed, I believe that the missing ingredient in producing world-changing disciples is an under-valuing of this crucial follow-up ministry. 

So - in the first 7 days - here are 7 steps to make your follow up more effective:

1.         Make the follow up phone call immediately

• Always make contact within 48 hours
• Check how they're going. Assure them of your support. Pray with them
• Plan the first personal contact. Don’t finish your phone conversation until you have locked in a date that week for the two of you to catch up face-to-face.

2.         Have your first face-to-face contact within the first week

• Follow-up everything you said in your phone call.
  
• Read the bible with the new believer.
• Make sure you pray with them. 
• Be ready for lots of questions.
• Plan the first christian event that this new believer will attend. 
  

3.         Take another believer along with you

• St your first face-to-face meeting, have someone else there who can learn what you are doing.
• This is a crucial discipleship lesson for the “other Christian” that you have taken along with you. This is where they will learn how to follow-up a new believer. And how will they learn that? By watching you! 
• Ideally, who should this “other Christian” be?  Someone whom you are already discipling! Someone who was in the place of the new believer just a short time ago.

4.         Help the new believer with good resources

• Don't overwhelm them with too much!  But here's what you could start with ...
• A bible with a personal bible-reading plan. (or, for a younger person, just a gospel)
  
• A short pamphlet which outlines the step they took in saying “yes” to Jesus.
  
• A pamphlet or booklet which outlines the basic steps of Christian growth.
  
• A good Christian book to read
  

5.         Bring the new believer to a christian event

• Notice the emphasis on bring. 
• Don’t just invite them and hope they’ll make it. Go out of your way, pick them up from their house, have a cuppa with them first, do whatever it takes so they don’t have to arrive at your Christian event all alone.

6.         Get the new believer started in ministry

• When do you get a new believer started in ministry?  The moment they come to Jesus! Being a disciple means being a disciple-maker. The two are synonymous!  You can’t have one without the other!
  
• And I don't mean "Get them on the morning tea roster". I mean - help them to share their faith with someone else and continue and accelerate the whole disciple-making process
• New Christians are absolutely the best at bringing new people along to things.  New people bring new people. Get them started right away.

7.         Plan your regular follow-up

• The key ministry that you really want to start is this: that you will plug the new believer into their strategic ongoing follow-up ministry. This follow-up group might be the regular small bible study group or home fellowship that you attend; or it might be a special group for new believers.
• Whatever it is, it is crucial that within the first week you plan this ongoing meeting. Your new believer needs to understand that they need to be coached about how to live as a disciple.  They need to know there is a whole new life to learn about. They need to know that we’re going to walk with them every step of the way. They need to know that they are on a journey to become a world-changing disciple.
  

For more info:
Check out Chapters 9-13 of 'Disciples Who Will Last'

What do you do when things go wrong in your ministry at your church?  Does it disappoint you and derail your programme? Or have you prepared for it? More importantly - when the unexpected happens - will you embrace it?

My family were visiting a Disney park and there was a major live show that we wanted to attend. For some reason the show was delayed and the arena couldn't be opened. There were hundreds of people queueing up to get into this attraction. And every moment that we had to wait a little longer, the restlessness in the crowd kept growing.

As the seething hordes started to rise up in mild discontent, there were two young female Disney staff members standing there try to stop around 500 people from simply pushing forward and forcing their way into the arena. What they did just then was magic. It showed that when the unexpected occurred … they were ready. They had prepared for this moment. They even embraced the moment.

One staff member stood up on a chair and called out into the hand-help megaphone: “Ladies and Gentlemen; just before you enter the arena you need to take the Disney oath. Everybody please raise your right hand and repeat after me …”

We all somewhat reluctantly raised our right hands. She called out again: “Repeat after me …"

“I  … (state your name) …” With a bit of encouragement - the whole crowd called out: “I … state your name …”   She continued: "I solemnly declare that I will be a great Disney guest today.”  She paused while everyone repeated it.  Then she continued: “I declare that I am looking forward to this great attraction.”  (The crowd repeated each sentence). “This will be the highlight of my day” (pause and repeat). “I vow to tell my children and my grandchildren about this extraordinary event” (pause and repeat).  "And when the gates open, I solemnly declare” … “that I will walk and I will not run” …  "because the show is not going anywhere” … “and the show will be still there when I enter”.

By this stage the crowd was joining in enthusiastically. Everyone was laughing - and when the gates opened we all walked forward dutifully and took our seats. 

The Disney team were prepared for the unexpected. They had taken the time to be trained for this moment. The unexpected did not catch them unaware. They embraced the unexpected. In one sense, the unexpected actually enhanced the experience of guests that day.

So - check the programmes and activities at your church. What happens when: it rains unexpectedly … or way too many (or too few) people show up … or there is an audio/visual hiccup …  or the speaker hasn’t arrived … or … Does this unexpected hiccup catch you out.? Or have you anticipated it? Have you prepared for it?

When something goes wrong, does it derail your programme, or are you ready to embrace the unexpected?

Who am I?

That is the question that bugs the whole of humanity.

“Who am I really?”
“Tell me what my purpose is!”
“I want to get in touch with the real me!”
“When we think of the entire cosmos, where do I fit in?”

The bible asks that question – and the bible answers that question.

Have you ever noticed that when you read the bible, you find that one part of the bible explains another part of the bible? We’re going to check out Psalm 8. The writer of this psalm has obviously been reading Genesis 1, and it leads him to ask an obvious question:

“When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?”
Psalm 8: 3-4

When you look at the whole universe – and you see how big it is, how spectacular it is, how powerful, how complex, how enormous … Who are we? What is it about us that would cause God to care for us?

Now – what answer are you expecting? If you didn’t know what line came next in Psalm 8, what would be the normal answer to this question?

“Compared to the whole universe – I’m nothing.”
“An insignificant speck!”
“There’s God – then there’s the angels and the heavenly beings – then there’s the galaxies, and the solar systems, and the whole of life as we know it - then there’s me.”
“Insignificant.”
“Compared to the whole of the cosmos – I’m nothing.”

Do you ever feel like that? That compared with the wonders of creation – compared with the annals of cosmic history – compared with the accomplishments of myriads of civilisations – that basically – I don’t stack up too well?

If we read on in Psalm 8, God gives an amazing answer as to where you fit into to the whole of his cosmos.

1.         God crowns me with honour

“When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?”
Psalm 8: 3-4

Here’s the answer in the next verse!

“You made them a little lower than the angels and crowned them with glory and honour.”
Psalm 8:5

Have you got it? In the scope of the entire cosmos …

First there’s God …
Then there are the angels …
Then there’s YOU …
And then there’s everything else.

God has made you just a little lower than the angels, and has crowned you with glory and honour!  We often talk about how important it is that we give glory and honour to God. And yes – that is important.  But this verse is talking about how God gives glory and honour to you. When God designed you, he created you to be a person who is worthy of great glory and great honour.

One more time … just so you get it straight …

First there’s God …
Then there are the angels …
Then there’s YOU …
And then there’s everything else.

Just let that soak in for a moment.  Rather than putting you near the bottom of his food chain, God has given you one of the highest places in his universe. Just below the angels.

Is that how you think of yourself?  Is that the standard you have set for yourself? Is that the way you live? As a person whom God has given one of the highest places to – and a person whom he has crowned with glory and honour?

But wait – there’s more …  Check out the very next verses …

2.         God puts me in charge

“You made them rulers over the works of your hands; you put everything under their feet; all flocks and herds, and the animals of the wild, the birds in the sky, and the fish in the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas.”
Psalm 8:6-8

“God has put everything under your feet”.  Can you grab what that means?

Have you ever seen a wrestling match? One that is almost a fight to the finish? A match that keeps going until one contestant is pinned helpless on the ground?  How does the victor show that they has won? How do they demonstrate that they are superior?

They stand tall over their fallen competitor and place one of their own feet on top of them. It’s a moment of victory. It’s a moment of declaring who is in charge.  That’s what it means to place something under your feet.

So – what has God placed under your feet?  Look back at verse 6:

“You made them rulers over the works of your hands; you put everything under their feet.”
Psalm 8:6

God has placed everything else in all creation under your feet. You are in charge of everything else God has created.

Who – me?
Yes, you!

Has God really placed everything under my feet?  Read on …

Did you know that when God designed you – he planned for you to be free?  Did you know that when God created you, he formed you to perfection with an inbuilt freedom?

Let’s look in the bible to see the magnificent person that God has designed you to be.


1.         God made me in his image

“Then God said, ‘Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness’ …
So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.”
Genesis 1: 26-27

Did you get what God is saying about you? You have been hand-crafted by a master designer – you are created in God’s image. Sounds good. But what does it mean to be an image of something?

Have a look at this photo.  Do you know who that is? That is my wife, Karen. Clear enough?

Technically, of course, what you see in front of you is not my wife, Karen.  My wife Karen is here with me in our house in Sydney Australia. What you looking at on the screen is not actually my wife – it is an image of my wife.  My wife is much larger and way more lifelike than what is on your computer. She is three dimensional – and made out of real flesh and blood. She is a genuine human being. What you are looking at is a collection of pixels. Little blips on a computer screen. What you see before you is not my wife.  It is an image of my wife.

It looks exactly like my wife. It reflects fairly accurately what she is like. But it is not my wife.  It is an image or a reflection of my wife. So, what does it mean that you are made in God’s image? Does it mean that you look exactly the same as God? That somehow God looks just like you?

No!

Being in God’s image doesn’t mean that God has made you to look like he does. But it means God has made you to be like he is! You’re meant to have the same sort of characteristics that God has.

If God is loving, you are designed to be loving.
If God is forgiving, you are designed to be forgiving.
If God hates sin – you are designed to hate sin.
If God is generous, you are designed to be generous.

It’s almost as if God said: “I am going to make some creatures who will be able to show everyone what I am like. When people look at these human beings, they’ll get a picture of the sort of God that I am.”

That’s who you are. You were created in God’s image. That means when people see you – they get an idea of what God is like. Can I just say that again so that it sinks in?  Why did God create you? So that when people see you, they get an idea of what God is really like.

Wow! You get to show other people the wonders of our magnificent God! Let me now show you one of the main ways that God says you are just like him.

2.         God made me to rule his world.

“Then God said, ‘Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.’”
Genesis 1:26

If God says that the reason he made you was so that you would be able to show the world what he is like … then the main way you are to show what God is like is that he has designed you to rule over all the rest the world. God wants you to help run his world the same way that he would run it.

God has given you the freedom to be a world ruler but only because of who he made you to be. He has made you to be in his image. You have the freedom to run this world – while you do it the way God does. You are free to be the person that God has designed you to be - provided that you stay dependent on him. Your freedom to be truly you is absolutely tied up with you remaining reliant on God. If you throw away being dependent on him – you throw away your freedom.

It’s like walking in front of the mirror. What you see in the mirror is an image of yourself. If you throw away the mirror, the image is no longer there.

In the same way, you are made in the image of God. You reflect what God is like. But if you say: “I don’t want to do things God’s way” - “I don’t want God in the picture”- then if you move your mirror away from God, his image can no longer be seen in you. You are only free to be the person that God has designed when you keep reflecting his image by being totally dependent on him.

You might be wanting to say to me: “What do you mean? To be free I have to depend on God? I thought the whole idea of being free was that I didn’t have to depend on anyone?”

Let’s just backtrack for a minute.  Perhaps you misunderstand what freedom really is. You have been created with an inbuilt dependency on God. If you stop depending on him – you lose your freedom.

How can this be?

It’s like a train – a locomotive engine. When you design a train – it has an inbuilt dependency on the rails. That’s the way it’s designed! While the train stays dependent on the rails, it is free to be a train.

Let’s imagine that the train has been around for a few years. It's sort of going through puberty, and it’s getting sick of being told what to do, and it just wants to do its own thing.

“Why do I have to go where those stupid rails tell me to go?”
“I wanna go where I wanna go!”
“I wanna be free!”

So the train decides to do its own thing. It goes off the rails. It wants to go and look through the shopping mall. It wants to go through the McDonald’s drive-thru. It wants to go and play on the beach.

Just imagine for a moment that a train could do that.  If a train could go off the rails – and just meander wherever it felt like, what do you think would happen to that train? It’s going to grind to a halt quick smart! It’s going to smash into things. It’s going to get bogged down. If that train goes off the rails and does its own thing, it’s going nowhere.

As soon as it goes off the rails – it grinds to a halt.
As soon as it goes off the rails – it loses its freedom to be a train.
Because it was designed with an inbuilt dependency on those rails.

In the same way, you have been designed with an inbuilt dependency on God. Sometimes you can think that being free is going off the rails with God and just doing whatever you feel like. But as soon as you give up depending on God for your every breath … as soon as you give up depending on God for your every step …

You lose your freedom to be truly human.
You get bogged down in your own sin.
You smash into relationships and destroy them.
You have been designed with an inbuilt dependency on God.
When you give up depending on him – you lose your freedom.

God gave you that freedom. He has made you as a world ruler. And he makes everything in the world for you to enjoy. Not only has God designed you to be free. He has also designed you to be the best!