October, 2012 | Release the A.P.E.

“Yes, You Did Laugh.”

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October 4, 2012

“Yes you did laugh.”

Sarah, in Genesis 18, laughed when she overheard the Lord tell Abraham that she would give him a son in the next year.

When the Lord asked why she had laughed, the scriptures tell us that she lied because she was scared and said, “I did not laugh.”

But Lord, said, “Yes you did laugh.”

I have been journeying through Abraham’s story and meditating on him as I have moved to LA and this new land. It has been a rich time for me.

In light of the recent breakthroughs in our funding and just reflecting on all that God has done in our life and ministry the last month, I sense God calling me out today.

“Yes you did laugh, Beau.”

You see, God has given me some incredible breakthroughs the last few weeks, but just before that I was living in some great anxiety.

Two of these breakthroughs not mentioned yet is that God has started a Greek InterVarsity in the Asian Greek Council at USC (pic below) and also provided me leaders on the Panhellenic and NPHC (Historically Black Sororities) Council. We could potentially have Greek InterVarsity in every council at USC by winter and that would be unprecedented in our movement. I am praying and believing for this move of God!

The first Greek InterVarsity on the Asian Greek Council at USC. 8 members showed up to dream about a space for God in these fraternities and sororities!

I am taking some time this week to reflect on these breakthroughs and ask God what he wants to teach me about trusting him when I can’t see the outcome.

One of the questions that I am reflecting on this week is

“How does God want to shape me more like Abraham?”

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Owning the Whole Field

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October 3, 2012

View IVCF Central Region Scouting 2012 in a full screen map

What if Jesus had given a different “great commission”?

Imagine the scene. The eleven disciples are likely still reeling from the dizzying effects of the last few weeks: betrayal, murder, failure, suicide, disillusionment, doubt, and now appearances of hope. Perhaps because they have no where else to turn, they find their way to “Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go”, and there he is. They see him and do all they know how to do–they worship and doubt.

Unwilling to let them merely look on him from a distance, Jesus “came to them” and issues perhaps the most compelling command in history– “Go and make disciples of all nations…”– and though impossible to believe at the time, their actions set in motion a movement that will one day fulfill that command.

But what if Jesus had followed conventional wisdom and given a different command?

Consider what Jesus could have said. Instead of “go and make disciples of every nation”, could he not have said, “Go back to the 120 disciples in Jerusalem and focus on them…”

If I’m honest, that’s likely what I would have said–focusing attention on what was already and attempting to build on that.

But Jesus was (and is) an apostolic genius, and here we see that brilliance on full display. Rather than focusing his disciples on what was (the 120 disciples in Jerusalem), he unswervingly commands them make disciples of all nations, and in a moment reframes our starting place for apostolic mission–not what is, but what isn’t yet. Fundamentally, it’s a question of “what are we responsible for?”, and Jesus’ answer is a resounding “all of it!”

The Call to Fundraise…joys, challenges & more

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October 2, 2012

Rome - mosaic - miracle fishing from New Testament in basilica of st. Peters

Jesus talking with Peter about the great catch

Raising support is a huge part of any missionary, pastor, or A.P.E. leaders life. I would venture to say that especially for apostolic leaders that are either going to oversee the mission of an organization or leave and go start new things, support raising and trusting God for provision will be a huge part of their life and calling.

I would also say that apostolic leaders in the marketplace, many who are entrepreneurs, are going to have to raise capital and trust God for financing in many projects.

Apostolic leaders risk big by God’s leading and many times those risks are financial.

I hope this story below really encourages you to stay the course and follow God into your calling no matter the financial ramifications or amount of trust you have to exercise.

Challenges in Fundraising

In a previous post about God calling us onward, I explained the joys and challenges of leaving your life behind in one city to go to another. I laid before you the difficulty of moving to Los Angeles and losing $25,000 of support in our transition.

As I shared with people the vision, some moved on because they felt called to other things. That is totally understandable and expected.

One person who stopped supporting our mission asked me,

“when do you get too old for this?”

Ouch.

After a number of people leaving our team, and not having any new people say yes to funding our mission to LA Greeks, it was hard many days to keep the faith and believe in our calling. As strong as you want to be and no matter how much you know you are called and heard from God, this kind of repsponse can be discouraging.

On my worst days I needed people to remind me of my call and not to give up as I dreamt about other jobs.

On my best days, I was full of faith, reminding my self that I do not live by sight but by faith and that God would provide what we need. Just hang in there and keep doing what you are doing. Be faithful in the little things every day.

However, the reality at the end of every day the last three months was this:

We were in LA now: a more expensive city, a bigger ministry, and more money to raise.

Because I took a director position I wasn’t just responsible to oversee my own support, but the other staff in the ministry and all the operating costs as well.

Breakthrough in Funding

Well just last Friday I got a game changing call!

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Raising Up Prophets…CCDA Conference

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October 1, 2012

If you want to find a gathering of prophets within the North American church today, look no farther than the Christian Community Development Association. Founded by John Perkins and others. You can read more about their vision here.

I attended the national CCDA conference this past week in Minneapolis, and it was a rich time of theology, inspiration, and rubbing shoulders with everyday believers that are radically living out the gospel of reconciliation and justice.

There were some fantastic plenary speakers, and one talk in particular given by Chris Rice and Emmanuel Katongole offered some profound insight that applies to the “Releasing the A.P.E.” context as much as it does to the work of reconciliation, which was the theme of the CCDA conference this year.

Here are their three essentials, taken directly from their talk. Most of the content is theirs, and I have interpreted it within an A.P.E. lens.