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In Review: A Colorado House Church Worship Nite & Teaching Sessions

artman81 — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 02:25:21 +0000

Didn’t get to make it to our last Colorado House Church Worship Nite & Teaching sessions event? Well listen in as we look back at a truly edifying and encouraging day. We arrived at the community center in Globeville on an overcast Saturday afternoon...

It was a tall, aged brick church building in the middle of a fairly low-income neighborhood just southwest of I-70 and Washington street. A crew from Ancient Paths house church network (who hosted the event) had been there since 10am cleaning and setting up the downstairs area for the teaching sessions and the upstairs area for the worship nite.

A group of 60 or 70 excited adults (plus children) had gathered there for the split teaching sessions. The entire group joined together in prayer there in the wide basement of the old building to kick off the afternoon. The children went into the side nursery area for childcare at this point. Then Michael McGrath, holding a lantern and dressed like a crazy man from a centuries=old Europe, performed a five minute skit from Nietzsche’s “Parable of the Madman”. His voice echoed among those gathered there as he passionately acted out his opening scene. Everyone applauded and was grateful for Michael’s passionate opening skit.

From there we separated into three circles of chairs in different corners of the room for the first round of split teaching sessions. The first three were “Effective Parenting”, “Listening to Jesus”, and “Experiencing the Felt Presence of God”, each led by volunteer teachers from house churches all around the Denver area. The sessions went very smoothly and were each well-attended. Then we took a 5-minute break and started the second round of sessions. These were “Teaching the Hebrew Way”, “Church As A Family”, and a special session for the children. Again, the sessions went smoothly, and the children had a blast during their time together with Brittani who volunteered to teach and work with them. At the end of the second round of sessions (which went long because the teaching and discussions were so lively), the group came back together and a couple of announcements were made – one regarding “School on the Way” and the upcoming college-level class offerings from Jan & Tina Cowles, and another regarding the October experiment with “Churches of Two” from John White. We again prayed together and gave thanks to God for the wonderful afternoon, and then dismissed for dinner break. Even during break, folks were hanging out and enjoying one another – some with food from home, others with fast food takeout.

At seven, we met upstairs for the worship nite. The crowd had changed – some from the afternoon sessions had left for the day, and others who hadn’t come for the afternoon arrived for the evening. The intimate sanctuary of the old church had been decorated with Ceiling hangings, candles, and even a small makeshift cross from one of our artists at the front. Acoustic guitar in hand, Shannon Rants led the evening worship time. She was accompanied by other volunteers playing an electric guitar, electric bass, drums, an African Djimbe (bongo), keyboard, and even an electric violin. Songs were sung and the evening of singing, worship and sharing began. The music soared and people clapped hands, lifted hands, swayed, prayed, cried, danced, and the like. The Holy Spirit definitely was moving in our midst.

Halfway through the time of singing, Shannon opened the floor to anyone to share with the whole body of worshippers what they were hearing from the Lord. Slowly but surely a number of different folks present took their turn at sharing what they were feeling and hearing from Him. What a wonderful time of edification and worship! God spoke to us in beautiful ways before the night was done.

Throughout the event, we had a donations box set out to help pitch in on the costs of the venue, the childcare, and the materials and supplies that went into it. 175$ was donated, and was just enough to cover everything! Thanks to everyone who gave for the cause – this was another confirmation that the Lord was with us, and provided perfectly for the needs of this important event.

Throughout the day, a handful of individuals mentioned that they so enjoyed the two parts of the event that they asked when we were going to do it again! What a joy to see such a successful gathering of organic church families at such a crucial time in how God is moving along the front range. All glory to Him for his grace and peace that He continually pours out upon us and our efforts as we seek to follow Him in every great and every small thing.

It is important to note that this event was not initiated, planned and run by one individual or church group – but by a growing network of leaders and church families from many different backgrounds who have been connecting together on a monthly basis all around the city. A handful of different individuals from different church families felt the Lord’s direction on this, and together worked hard to follow that leading and make this event happen. What a joy to be a part of a body made up of such a diverse group of believers, all supporting one another in the different purposes and focuses that the Father Has called each of us to.

If you are a house church leader along the front range, and would like to connect with other leaders in the area, or if you or your church family would like to help with organizing or volunteering for corporate events like this in the future, take a moment to shoot us an email at info@coloradohousechurch.com.

In His name and for His glory!

Below are some thumbnail photos from the event – for larger pics, click HERE for the full slideshow on facebook.

CHC Worship Nite & Teaching Sessions (Sept.)

artman81 — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 15:51:59 +0000

*Click here For Full Version! – and to read about the need for donations for Nepalese refugees***

There is a group of about 40 Nepalese individuals and families who have recently come to Denver from Nepal, and are in need of winter clothing. Coats, hats, gloves, even boots, male & female, all sizes and ages (especially for thinner & shorter individuals). A neighboring church family in Centennial has been ministering to them and has asked for help with this need. If you, your church family or network can pitch in, please bring your donations Sunday!

To dress up or not to dress up? That is the question…

artman81 — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 20:48:59 +0000

Dressing up for church has been a western tradition in the church for decades. It is interesting to note that the average believer has no idea that it wasn’t always this way. In fact, this tradition is a fairly recent development in Christian history. Not until the mid-1800′s did people start dressing up for church. That’s right – for the first 1800 years of church history worshippers wore street clothes to church. “Dressing up for church became a popular practice in the first half of the nineteenth century, first in England, then northern Europe and America, as a consequence of the industrial revolution and the emergence of the middle class. While care was historically given to cleanliness and solemnity on Sabbath days, dressing up for worship resulted, not from a theological teaching, but from the influence of Victorian culture on worshiping communities.” (1) If there is any simple step a church can make today to please our Lord more and to be in a better position to reach sinners, it is to do away with this man-made tradition of dressing up for church. This practice hinders us from reaching the modern culture we live in, promotes a compartmentalized view of spirituality, and alienates the poorer folks in our culture whom we are especially called to reach.

On an average Sunday, in an average church service in America, the truly committed come dressed up to the hilt. Yet has anyone taken the time to look outside lately? People don’t dress up anymore. Only the business-class dress up in our culture today, and even then they still dress casually when doing anything other than business. The lower and middle classes simply don’t dress up. They used to, decades ago, but not anymore. Just imagine going to your church next Sunday morning dressed in jeans and a t-shirt – would you feel out of place? If you would, then that should be a sign to you that there is a serious problem. Why? Because that is exactly how any “normal” person who walks into the doors of our church feels. The post-modern culture we are among today is extremely casual - imagine how they feel walking into the doors of a church in their normal attire: a t-shirt and shorts... Although it is the least of the reasons I present for condemning this tradition, unless we are willing to move with the culture on this issue, we will fail in reaching the majority of sinners in our modern culture.

The second and even more important reason for ending the “dressing up” tradition is that it helps build a false idea in the minds of many that “God can only move when I am dressed up”, which naturally translates into “God can only move when I’m at church”. These false perceptions of the moving of God’s Spirit and of the house of God (which is actually you and me, not any building) are incredibly dangerous to the functioning of the body of Christ. We have, without realizing it, created a compartmental mindset in the church. This mindset says that church is where I am spiritual, and everywhere else is where I go about my normal life. This is so far from the thought and practice of the early church, it is frightening — and it hinders many saints from acting out their gifts and callings outside the doors of their buildings. The fact is, wearing a suit and tie or a dress doesn’t make you more spiritual, it only makes you feel more spiritual, and thus tends to create a false sense of spirituality. The thing is, God doesn’t care whether we are dressed up or dressed down, as long as we are modest. And trust me on this – Jesus can move just as mightily whether you are in a black suit or in a pair of faded blue jeans, and He fills seekers with the Holy Spirit just as easily when they (and those who are praying with them) are in casual-wear.

Finally, and most importantly in my opinion, this tradition alienates the most important crowd we are on this earth to serve - the poor and the homeless. ”When asked why they don’t go to church, poor people list clothes as the number one reason.”(2) How much more out of place does a homeless or poor person feel in our midst who simply don’t have any dress clothes? The sad irony is, these are the ones that Jesus told us to go and find and bring into his kingdom - the poor, crippled, and homeless, the blind (Lk 14). These are the ones the church is especially called to, and yet these are the very ones whom the church is alienating by their tradition! I can’t tell you how many times a homeless individual walked into the doors of our building of the church I grew up in and sat in the back row trying to be as inconspicuous as possible, as they felt like a sore thumb amidst the formally dressed worshippers. They were stared at, whispered about, given a hollow handshake, and rarely got the help they came for. Yet it is especially for these poor and hurting souls that the heart of our master breaks.

Did you know that over 2 million men, women and children in the U.S. alone sleep on the street, under bridges, in shelters, or on a friend’s couch? 30% of homeless are children. Contrary to popular opinion, only 5% of homeless in the U.S. are really “lazy and shiftless”. One-third of all homeless are mentally ill, and 40% are alcoholics. All this, not to mention the much greater number of poor and “lower class” families in this country (who have a place to call their own) who simply struggle to keep the lights or heat turned on, shoes on their kids’ feet, and jobs that pay more than minimum wage. Poverty is a huge problem around the globe (aren’t we called to “all nations”?) and from what I have witnessed, many churches are ambivolent to the situation. How do we expect someone whose basic needs aren’t being met to accept the good news of Jesus Christ’s love from a people who have way more than enough to go around and yet are not willing to share? (Statistics from (3), below)

One of Jesus most striking parables is recorded in Matthew 25, and is a vision of the judgment, where the King seperates the sheep from the goats. Jesus plainly gives the criteria by which the masses were judged: “I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.” Notice that the He doesnt seperate the sheep from the goats based on how well we taught them our theology, or even how well we preached to them - only on how well we fed and clothed them. Obviously I am not against these things – they are vital – but the simple fact is, according to this passage, it is not the theology or the soteriology of the saints that counted in the end. Many churches are in for a rude awakening on judgment day. In fact, from the law of Moses, to the prophetic utterances throughout Israel’s history, to the teachings and parables of Jesus and the epistles, this seperation of social classes is thoroughly condemned (please take a moment to see “Social Justice in scripture” below) (4). Dressing appropriately for the sake of the poor is only the first step we ought be taking to live out the gospel to the poor, of course.

Now, don’t go and start dressing down as a church in effort to be “cool” in the culture, and don’t start dressing down as a church in effort to keep attendance high, as these are selfish and prideful motives – rather start dressing down in church gatherings out of love — love for the poor and homeless, love for sinners, love for the everyday person who comes through those doors desperately seeking truth and rest and peace for their souls. They need to be among a people with whom they feel safe and accepted — and above all, deeply and truly loved (Without love, even helping the poor is meaningless - 1 Cor 13).

It is the enemy who seeks to alienate, not the spirit of our meek and humble saviour — who by the way, was himself a homeless man, as were his disciples who chose to “leave all” and follow him. I guarantee you Jesus didn’t smell as good as the religious crowd in his culture, nor did he look as nice. It was the way He spoke, the humility in which He operated, and His magnificent touch that drew the hungry to him, not His appearance. Would the lowly Jesus feel welcome in your church? {}

By Sean Hyatt - sean_hyatt@msn.com

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Sources:

1. Carter, Neil, 2002. http://www.christinyall.com/studies/dressing.html

2. Dorrell, Jimmy. Trolls and Truth, 2006. New Hope Publishers

3. Dorrell, Jimmy. Understanding the Homeless, 2002 http://churchunderthebridge.org/articles/homeless.html

4 . Social Justice in Scripture, http://mission.squarespace.com/social-justice-in-scripture/