2005AM LC 2C

Calling God’s People Together…To Love Our Communities to Christ.: 

Calling God’s People Together… To Love Our Communities to Christ. The Mission America Coalition Contending together for the heart and soul of America

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Perspective: 'Lift up your eyes and see…' God is at work. In most of the world: amazing church growth. In the western world: decline, both church and culture. Something’s wrong. What is God saying? A Simple strategy: Listen for God’s voice, and follow Him. God has been at work in America. M.A. Coalition—many listening posts, one message: cities. Varied approaches, a few common themes, one 'framework.' Loving our Communities to Christ: The Genesis

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Common themes - Bedrock transformational principles: Cities are transformed when people are transformed. There is no shortcut. People are transformed when God transforms them. It is the Spirit that gives life, the flesh profits nothing. God transforms people when His Church prays, cares, and shares. Simple, transferable, biblical principles. Loving our Communities to Christ: The 'Principles'

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The Premise: The local church is the only hope of the world. It is God’s chosen vehicle for evangelism. When church is being church, there is no more powerful force on the planet. Not a new thing – an old thing. The Prescription: For Church to be Church—its culture must change. Repentance, revival, renewal Not a program or campaign: authentic change that is transformational, permanent, and self-replicating – The DNA 'one thing is needed…' Loving our Communities to Christ: The 'framework'

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It takes the The Whole Church: God’s power is released in unity, and diluted by division. Clergy and laity, inter-denominational, church and ministries. It takes a city-wide church to win a city-wide war. Church unity can happen in a city; Church unity can happen around evangelism. It takes the The Whole Gospel: God’s love expressed in word and deed. Prayer, Care, and Share—sequential, layered, integrated—incarnated Irreducible minimum: simple, focused, foundational biblical principles. Pastors, Individuals, Churches, Community—saturation. Loving our Communities to Christ: The 'framework'

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Loving Our Communities to Christ A Call to Action A Call to Unity Begins with: 'A broken and contrite heart' Psalm 51:10-17 'Calling God’s People Together...to Love Our Communities to Christ' 'Broken' A Christ-like brokenness for the lost: 'When He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion.' 'Jesus looked at the city and wept over it.' 'Contrite' Repentant for the state of church evangelism in America: 'The harvest is truly plentiful…' 'But the laborers are few.'

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What drives us to our knees? How does God’s light shine through us? 'How shall they hear?' (Romans 10:14) 'You are the light of the world' (Matthew 5:14) 'Three essential Building Blocks of evangelism and cultural change.'

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Care Share Prayer Share Care Prayer 1 1 1 9 3 3 3 1+1=3 1+1=3 1+1=3 1+1+1=9 Exponential Increase 1+1+1=3 Doing each separately Doing two or more together Prayer, Care, and Share Together Multiplies Kingdom Impact Exponentially

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Prayer Care Share Begin Prayer Phase Begin Care Phase Begin Share Phase Individual Church Teaching about prayer Individual Church teaching about Care Individual Church teaching about Share Community Prayer Event Community Care Event Community Share Event Loving Our Communities Framework 'Building a foundation of Prayer, a lifestyle of Care, and a willingness to Share.'

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Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Loving Our Communities Framework A three year commitment to people, church, and city transformation People Transformed Churches Transformed Communities Transformed Prayer Care Share Three Year Cultural Change: Transformational Permanent Self-replicating

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Can You Imagine…

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Having such a love for one another, and such a common identity and singleness of purpose, that 'all will know…and the world may believe' that we are disciples of Christ, and messengers of His love to a troubled world? Who are all 'ambassadors for Christ,' pursuing an authentic, biblical lifestyle; and whose testimony for Christ is therefore so distinctive that they 'shine as lights in the world' with a gospel message that can clearly be 'known and read of all men?' Who do not simply isolate themselves and rail against the culture, but rather have their hearts broken for it, and as a result find new ways every day to 'love their neighbors as themselves?' Can you imagine a community of people…

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That serves together as one church—prayerfully united together in the power of the Holy Spirit, and reflecting together the glory of Christ as the 'Light of the world?' Where 'the word of God is living and powerful;' and where Christ is so incarnated in the lives of its people that, like all living organisms, it grows and reproduces naturally? That is 'not conformed to this world' but rather 'transformed;' so that its people collectively serve as living proof of a loving God to a watching world? Can you imagine a community of churches…

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That sees in its Christian community a gospel message incarnated so completely that it is 'astonished,' and feels literally compelled to give glory to the God they can see working through us? Where every person is being prayed for by a friend, and that is literally saturated with the gospel message—presented not only in the sanctuaries, but also in the lives of believers who are loving their communities to Christ? That can see in individual Christians such a practically attractive, spiritually compelling, proof-positive lifestyle, that their claims and pronouncements about a life-changing God finally ring true? Can you imagine a city…

LC2C Steering Committee: 

LC2C Steering Committee Alan Andrews President U.S. Navigators   Paul Cedar Chairman Mission America Coalition   Lloyd Copenbarger Founder, Senior Partner Copenbarger and Copenbarger   John Dawson President Youth With a Mission   Danny de Leon Founder, President Hispanic Association of Bilingual/Bicultural Ministries   Steve Douglass President Campus Crusade for Christ   Ted Haggard President National Assoc of Evangelicals   Bill Hamel President Evangelical Free Church   Jack Hayford President Intl. Church of the Foursquare Gospel   James Leggett General Superintendent Intl. Pentecostal Holiness Church Tom Nees Director of USA/Canada Missions/Evangelism Dept. Intl. Church of the Nazarene Jim Overholt Executive Director Mission America Coalition   Luis Palau President Luis Palau Evangelistic Assoc.   John Perkins Founder, Chairman Christian Community Devel. Assoc   Mary Lance Sisk Chair National Lighthouse Council   Thomas Trask General Superintendent Assemblies of God