Missio Dei Suburbia

Scott Thomas on Replanting

Christ Community Church is a replant - an organic description of a process that mechanically can feel like taking a machine apart piece-by-piece, discarding the parts that are unsalvageable (and no, I'm not talking about people), cleaning up what can be repaired and building out a church that gets the job done.

I spoke on replanting at an Acts 29 boot camp in Dallas last year - and almost ten months later, I get calls about replanting every week. Some men intentionally walk into a church knowing it needs this kind of work; more often it's not until someone has been part of a particular church and its particular culture and processes that they discover a church that needs to die and experience ecclesiastical resurrection.

Scott Thomas is the director of Acts 29. He also has experience in replanting churches - and he's writing a five-part series on replanting that's well worth your time. The truth is, we need patient, compassionate, courageous, persistent men who will love dying churches well enough to help them die well and experience new life.

Replanting Churches

Is your church ready to live by dying?

More here.

Scott Thomas on Parenting

Scott Thomas is the Director of A29 - a guy I enjoy being around and have much respect for. Yesterday, he blogged about his son turning twenty and gave some really helpful advice for raising kids that love Jesus and are on mission:

1. Depend on the grace of God, the Spirit of God and the wisdom of God for guidance and provision every day.
2. Love them sacrificially with your time. Dads should also be "present" for every aspect of their child's life. Your kids only have one Daddy.
3. Enjoy the ride. Don't stress over the house or their messy clothes. Laugh often; hug more.
4. As a couple, set clear boundaries and discipline consistently. The goal of discipline is to teach that God has standards of obedience and that He is the One who has absolute authority in our lives. Teach the gospel clearly in your discipline: a) Identity as a child belonging to a family, b) sin separates, c) sin has consequences, d) confession, e) repentance, f) reconciliation. Share this story of the Redeemer every time you exercise discipline.
5. Make your home a place of grace where it is safe to make mistakes, be yourself, have fun, try out new dance moves and bring friend's over. Practice being a gospel community as a family. Practice confrontation, forgiveness and reconciliation.

You can read the rest here.