The Journey The Mindsets Published July 27, 2010 Be sure to read my other Journey articles.

. 1| 2| 3| 4 In my first post about my journey about walking in the supernatural, I talked a little about the mindsets that I held, but I dont think I did a sufficient job. So here I go: Mindset #1: Ignorance What I believed: Up until my first encounter with the supernatural power of God, it didnt even cross my mind that people could be healed of sickness or delivered from demons. That kind of stuff only happened in foreign countries like Africa. What it looked like: I was a Sunday Christian. I knew I wanted more of God, but I didnt know what looked like. If someone mentioned something about the supernatural, I probably would have said, Sure, if God wills it. The fruit: Didnt help anybody with this mindset. I had wise words, but no power. (1 Cor 2:4) How it changed: I saw people get healed at a Jesus Culture conference. I heard people testify that they felt their cancer sores dissolving; it was too undeniable. Mindset #2: Mental Understanding of His word What I believed: I finally had a biblical understanding that healing existed and that it was for today. I would defend that belief to my death, but I couldnt prove it in experience. I knew God had the ability to heal people, but I didnt really believe that God could use me. I had the mental understanding of what the Word said, but I still had more faith in the physical situation than the ability that God put in me to change it (dominion, authority).

When I would pray for people, I believed that if I said the right magic words and if there was some kind of perfect cosmic alignment, the power of God would be finally released. What it looked like: I wished with every fiber of my being that I could get people healed. I often failed to even approach people. Whenever I prayed for people for healing during this time, I was always thinking in my mind, I hope this works, I hope this works, God you better show up, God you better show up, please be healed. My prayers would sound something like God please come and heal, I know you can do it. I spent more time persuading and reminding myself that God had power and trying to convince God that I had faith in His word more than I did speaking to the problem (Mark 11:23).

Whenever someone didnt get healed, I had to wrestle through it before I prayed for the next person because Id be thinking, Well, they didnt get healed last time, so Im not sure theyre going to get healed this time. I often let thoughts like that seep into my thinking and it would hinder me from stepping out to talk to people. In other words, I created a theology based out of my experience. I allowed my past experience to influence my future. There was a lot of begging and a lot of works. Revival prayer meetings were often about God, give us an open heaven, or Let your glory fall so that we could see miracles without actually expressing faith through works (James 2:22). We often prayed for more boldness, had a lot of great ideas for bringing revival, but there was very little action-producing faith. The fruit: Still many wise words, very little power. When I started listening to Bethels podcasts, I had even more wise words, but still little power.

Although I prayed for and saw 2-3 people healed of pains during this time, I never expected them to happen and most of all, I was surprised to find out that they were healed. How it changed: While I was at Bethel, I began to realize that it wasnt a matter of words, but rather faith in God. It isnt enough just to say that I have faith in God. The proof of whether you believe or not is whether it produces action or not. Although Bethels Healing Room training did not help me have faith in what God already gave me and Who was IN me, the training helped me realize that I had a faithful Father. Mindset #3: Faith in God What I believed: God is good. All the time and Hes also in a good mood. I had full assurance that God would come if I asked. It was no longer about a perfect cosmic alignment, its more about Gods abundance goodness and that He is good-er than we can imagine. He is more willing to the sick than I am because Hes more compassionate than I am. Bethel is very big on asking God to come. The premise of Bethels healing rooms ministry is about God coming, and having fun and seeing God do amazing things when He comes. Again, like I wrote in the previous post, their core value was, When we pray, God comes, and we He comes, does good things because Hes a good God and Hes in a good mood. This core value instilled in me a confidence that if I ask God to come, He will undoubtedly come. All I had to do (to heal the sick), was to ask God to come and He would do His stuff. What my life looked like: I saw more people get healed with this mindset (granted, I was only in this mindset for a few months) I had the confidence to say God will heal you right now, because I had complete faith that God would come and do His stuff. At this point I no longer felt a need to pray and fast or cry out to God for an open heaven, because I knew I already had one.

I no longer had to beg God because my perspective of Him changed. He was no longer a corrupt father, trying withhold blessing from his children, but a loving, faithful Father who sent his Son while we were still sinners. I knew theologically that God is good but like most other churched people, that was just a vain repetition. I didnt act like I really believed that He was good. The God is good, all the time phrase came to life again. Hes better than you think. How it changed: I started to listening to Curry Blakes stuff and began to realize that God gave us responsibility. God is good, but He is so good that He empowered us to represent Him. I began to realize the finished work of the cross and what it paid for and how to live as a new creation in the New Covenant. I no longer had to ask God to come, because He set up residence in me when I became a believer. The Holy Spirit abides, and doesnt leave You dont tell someone whos next to you to come. Its like paging a doctor whos in the room. I realized asking God to come and heal was like a U.S. soldier calling the Commander-in-Chief (Obama), and asking him to come and shoot the enemy (complete nonsense). I knew that God, by Himself, had the ability to heal, but He would much rather do it with me. Mindset #4: Authority - Faith of God What I believed: I have all authority in Christ. The devil has none. The law of authority is this: The one who is under authority must submit to the one who has authority. Period. The one under authority is the kingdom of darkness. The ones who have ALL authority are those in the Kingdom of Light. (Matt 10:1, Luke 9:1, Luke 10:19, Matt 28:18, Eph 1:21-23, Col 2:15) We have absolute dominion as light in a world of darkness. (1 John 4:4, 1 John 5:4) I win. I finally realized that I had power and authority to crush every work of darkness wherever I went. Healing the sick was not a matter of asking God, but a matter of speaking to a mountain (Mark 11:23) and having believed that what I say will come to pass (2 Cor 4:13). What my life looked like:

I had this mindset when I first started in Bethels healing rooms. I saw most of the people I prayed for get healed. Sometime it was instant, sometimes it took 30 minutes. I saw a few people get out of the walker/wheelchair, deafness healed, hundreds of legs grow out, and every kind of pain go. How it changed: There was a point where healing the sick became a routine. I would go heal someone because I knew that I had authority to do it, and I knew that the devil would have to listen to me. It was a mixture of catching myself in this mindset, and going to the JGLM LifeTeam Conference in Colorado with Curry Blake/Joe Funaro. Mindset #5: Ministering Life, walking in Compassion Beyond the authority aspect, I realized that I was also ministering Divine life (1 John 5:12). Beyond realizing that I had all authority, I realized that the motivation must be about having compassion on people (Matt 9:36). You can heal the sick without having compassion on the person. If you do it enough, you will realize that youre missing something. It is easy to get caught up in the fact that God is working with you to do the impossible, and its good to have fun and enjoy it. But the emphasis shouldnt be on what happened, but who it happened to. That is why the best testimonies arent ones like, We saw someones leg grow out, but the ones like, A ladys leg grew out and she was healed of 30 years of constant back pain, and she could pick up her daughter for the first time without any pain. Hopefully this helps! The Journey; Up to This Point Published June 9, 2010 Be sure to read my other Journey articles. 1 |2| 3| 4 I want to start with this: All this about healing the sick and casting out demons, they have NOTHING to do with gifts of healing or any other gift of the Spirit. It is solely operating out of the authority through the name of Jesus.

If this was truly gifts of healing then it would make sense for there to be a gift of casting out demons, and there isnt.

After going to Jesus Culture with Todd Bentley (2007), I struggled for 3 years trying to figure out how to walk this healing thing out. Immediately after the conference, the lens I saw life through were completely changed. Whenever I saw someone on a crutch, or a cast, or overhearing someone say they were in pain, I could not help but think, they could be healed! The biggest struggle during that time was what if they dont get healed? Pretty much every single time I encountered a need for physical healing, I would let that question get the best of me. I knew Gods willingness to heal; I found it logically absurd that God wouldnt want someone well. Heck, he created our natural bodies to heal, why wouldnt He want to speed it up? Some of the other reasons as to why I never really stepped out was because of fear of man (people are going to think Im weird, and if they dont get healed, Im going to look like an idiot) and the fact that I had no idea how to approach people who needed healing. Every now and then I would hear a testimony from a friend about someone getting healed in a store, or some other random place, and it would make me jealous (in a good way). I desperately wanted to know HOW they did it. HOW did they pray? About a year into this journey, I started listening to some messages by Jaeson Ma. He had testimonies of awesome healings in the middle of UCLA campus and various other encounters hes had with the demonic/deliverance. From what I remember, he never really taught how exactly to do it it wasnt very practical so I found it difficult to follow in his footsteps. Jaeson spoke at my youth groups Winter retreat that year (2007), and he ended up doing some deliverance on my friend Tim. Long story short, I got to know Tim very well, and during that summer, we woke up early in the morning (5-6am) and prayed/worshiped at a park by his house for hours every week.

It was around that time we started reading about Smith Wigglesworth, John G. Lake, Aimee Semple Mcpherson, Kathryn Kuhlman, other Gods Generals and also listening to Bethel Churchs podcast. Often, Bill Johnson and Kris Vallotton would precede the message with awesome testimonies from the past week, and it would always provoke us to pursue what Jesus died for. Unfortunately, they never taught [practically] on healing the sick, though they had many testimonies of people getting healed. For the next two years, it was even more ingrained in me to heal the sick, I knew it was THE key for the revival that everyone was talking about. I still didnt feel equipped to actual step out and do it, so I remained stagnant, waiting for something to dramatically shift. It wasnt until September 2009 that I went to Simpson University in Redding to attend school. The school campus was less than 2 miles away from Bethel Church, so I ended up spending more time there than I did going to class. Within the first few months, I was able to attend the FireStarters class with Kevin Dedmon (and his team) and Bethels Healing Room training with Joaquin Evans and Chris Gore. It was very helpful and there were a few core values that I took from them: 1.) Its impossible for you to pray and nothing happen 2.) When I pray, God comes; and when God comes, He does good things, because Hes a good God and Hes in a good mood. Those core values help me solidify my faith in His word and His faithfulness (though I dont really agree 100% with those statements where I am now). It was after this point I could say with confidence that God will heal you right now, because I knew that God would show up if I prayed. Around this time, I was finally able to minister to a woman over skype whose left eardrum wasnt functioning. After praying about 10 minutes, her hearing was 50% restored, and after 50 minutes, her hearing was completely restored with the exception of a faint ringing in the ear. That was THE first time I knew, was confident, and expected a miracle to happen, and it did. The first time you witness the power of God you lose the right to question His willingness, His ability, and His ability to use you.

Soon after this, I started listening to Curry Blakes DHT series, and read a copy of the DHT manual. Those 2 materials were what helped me the most in terms of understanding authority and the dominion that has been given to man. A few other things that Curry did was smash bad theology, gave me a renewed zeal to get into the word, and made everything A LOT simpler. This will shoot some bad theology and set you free: Every Saturday for 3 months, starting in January, I became a part of Bethels Healing room team alongside Ryan (and sometimes his wife). Bethels healing room is comprised of 2 separate rooms. The actual healing room is where the prayer team of 30-70 people minister to the sick. The first room where people enter, called the Encounter room, provides a place for people who need healing to pray/worship/soak while a worship team plays worship songs. People are then called in by groups (A, B, C, D, E) that are given to them on a form they fill out earlier before they come in (basic contact information). This was the room Ryan/Laura and I would typically stay in. Every Saturday from 9am 1pm, there would be anywhere between 150-500 people that would show up to receive healing depending on the week (more people during conferences), and we would see 2050 people healed , and grow out almost everybodys legs every week. We ministered to all kinds of people with all kinds of sickness in the span of 3 months. Some of you may think that I had it great (in terms of training) but I am here to tell you that MOST of the things I learned while ministering to people in the healing rooms, I had to ditchwhen I came home to San Jose and started doing ministry on the streets. (I expressed some of my frustration on an older post) During most of this past April and May, I have learned the most (concerning setting people free) from Todd White/Dan Mohler and reading the Elijah Challenge Manual. Since then, healing has been a normal part of the day. We do it anywhere, everywhere, at the grocery store, at the bank, at the gas station This is meant to be a lifestyle, not in the confines of a building or event. Up to this point, we have seen ~90% of the people weve ministered to, healed

Of the ~10% of people who dont get healed, or see very little progress with, about 90% of them are bigger stuff like amputees, cerebral palsy, MS, lupus, paraplegics (I dont know why, but I dont like it, and its not o-k)

I no longer struggle with what if they dont get healed, because thats not what the Word says. I dont have time, nor do I have a need to entertain thoughts that dont line up with the Word

Even though not everyone has been healed, I dont allow the past to dictate my future. But I allow it to push me further to set more people free.

I no longer have an issue with fear of man (in this context) because I dont expect people to not get healed

Even if people dont get healed it doesnt matter, because usually theyre not expecting much anyway; many are just expecting a sympathetic token prayer.

I dont struggle as much with approaching people

Todd White and Dan Mohler helped the most with that. It all really just comes down to being yourself, be genuine, operate out of compassion, and YOU HAVE NOTHING TO LOSE. Some other times, Ive been at a complete loss for words and have no idea how to approach someone. Thankfully, I have people around me that are sometimes crazier than me. In my opinion, getting to advanced levels of setting people free is really being a master of the basics. Understand your authority, do unto others (Matthew 7:12), and be moved by compassion (agape love in action). Some extra pointers:

Healing the sick/casting out demons is NOT about what you say, it is about who says it There are no magic words, it is about understanding who you are and understanding the nature of authority Keep things simple, how did Jesus do it? Learn the art of MEDITATING. The only biblical way to renew your mind is through the Word, so just try to spend 5-10 minutes FILLING your mind with the Word. Try Matthew 10:1,Luke 9:1, Luke 10:19. I really really really really really really mean this one.

Hope this helps again, let me know if you have questions, or if you want me to add something, Im here to help you out. The Journey The Motive Behind it All

Published October 18, 2010 Be sure to read my other Journey articles. 1| 2| 3| 4 Here are some of the motives people have when doing signs and wonders (obviously not comprehensive).

because they want to get over their own fears because they want to see what theyre capable of because they want to see the miraculous because they want to be seen by others because they want attention because they want money because they want to build up a ministry/name/reputation because they want to prove someone else (or group) wrong because they want to validate/prove their own beliefs because they want to prove their identity because they want approval from God because they hate the devil because they want to do what Jesus said because they want to steward what they have been given because they want to provoke others to good works because they have compassion for the lost and broken

Reading through this list, I am sure you can pick out the good and bad motives. But the point I want to make is that there is a good, better, and best. There is only one motive that Jesus repeatedly mentioned and demonstrated in the gospels, and that is, compassion. He did do what His Father said, He did have a hate for the work of the devil, He did provoke others to good works, but the only one he preached was compassion.

Every one of those motives that I listed, Ive done at one point (good and bad), but I have since found that compassion must be the first and foremost motive while I am demonstrating this gospel. About 8 months ago when I was first starting up, there was a point where I got bored even in the midst of seeing many, many miracles. Everything somehow started to become routine and the luster of seeing the impossible happen began to wear out. I started from pure excitement to see what else I could do with resurrection power (Rom 8:11), to feeling completely satisfied because it felt like I was on top of the world, to feeling bored because I wasnt seeing the bigger breakthroughs. I was pondering this to myself when Holy Spirit matter-of-factly said, Youre not walking in compassion, youre not serving, youre being selfish. This has been all about you you you. Ouch. I thought for a few minutes and realized what I had done. I was healing the sick for my own satisfaction rather than having compassion for people and serving them. Healing the sick had become about me, rather than the person in front of me. Which miracle I can see today? rather than How can I serve my brothers and sisters? I can show you a miracle rather than I want you to experience the freedom that Christ has paid for. Why is this relevant? Jesus placed a very high value on motive. 1.) Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven. (Matthew 6:1) Jesus never said charitable deeds were bad, but if youre doing it with the wrong motive, you have no reward from your Father in heaven. 2.) Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me. (Matthew 4:1-11) Jesus never denied his ability to do any of those things. The issue was not about the task, but whose voice He was listening to. 3.) And though I have [the gift of] prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And though I

bestow all my goods to feed [the poor], and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing. (1 Cor 13:2-3) You can read someones mail, you can have the greatest revelation, you can have mountain-moving faith, you can feed the poor, you can die a martyrs death, but if it isnt because of the outworking of love, youve missed it. Let me explain 1.) If you are healing the sick for the purpose of getting a name or reputation, or building a ministry (to be seen by other people), youve missed it. 2.) If you are healing the sick for the purpose of proving your identity, or to prove someone else wrong, or prove your theology right, youve missed it. If someone challenges you by saying If you are who you say you are, prove it or If you can really do what you say you can do, prove it you are being tempted on the level that Jesus was tempted. My friend Cornel said this recently: The greatest temptation is not porn, alcohol, drugs, success or wealth. The greatest temptation you will face is when you are asked to prove your identity by supernatural manifestations. The devil tempted Jesus in the wilderness, and the Pharisees tempted him twice (Matt 12:38,Matt 16:1). Both times, Jesus passed the test and didnt comply to their request. 3.) It is possible to do signs/wonders even other things we have been commanded to do without love and compassion. Many will say to Me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name? And then I will declare to them, I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness! Matthew 7:22-23 You can do everything Jesus did, but not actually know Him. You can mimic His acts, but still miss His ways. You can have all the supernatural signs and wonders, but not have supernatural Love. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another. John 13:35 Again, to reiterate, not every single motive is bad. Healing the sick because you hate the devil and his work or because Jesus said to do it are both good motives. But let it first and foremost be because you have compassion for people. And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love. 1 Cor 13:13

If youre walking in resurrection power, it is very easy to go back to your church to prove that healing is for today. It is easy to confront powerless preaching by demonstrating power. It is easy to do miracles just because its exciting, but if compassion is not your first motive,people can tell when you are treating them like projects rather than a person. It is easy to see miracles everyday, but its just as easy to get to a point where you do it mechanically, Ok, be healed. Awesome. Jesus loves you. Bye rather than flowing in compassion and actually caring about the person. If youre just starting out, its very easy to get caught up with seeing more miracles. Thats not bad in itself, but dont stay there, learn to walk in compassion for people. If youre around old friends or skeptics and you want to show them real power, its tempting to get caught up in trying to prove that what you have is real, rather than walking in compassion. If youre praying for someone that seemingly isnt getting better, its easy to get angry at the devil and have that become the driving force instead of having compassion. If you didnt think outreach wasnt good/successful solely because you didnt see anyone get healed, something is off. If you feel like you cant minister to a person just because that person doesnt have a sickness or ailment, then youve missed the point. The point is to demonstrate Jesus and have compassion for the person you are in front of. If the only reason why youre doing the Great Commission is because Jesus told us to do it, rather than it being an overflow of the Greatest Commandment, youve missed it. The point is NOT to build a healing ministry, the point is to have a life that looks like Jesus; to walk as he walked (1 John 2:3-6) and re-present Him (1 John 4:17). In the context of the whole book of 1 John, it is overwhelmingly clear that love is the command.

Love is not contained in healing the sick, but healing the sick is an act of love. If you feel like you cant minister to someone if they dont have a sickness, you have not learned to love [fully]. Some people just need a glimmer of hope (Proverbs 13:12), some people need

Wisdom from God (Eph 3:10), some people need some cash to buy food, and some people just need a listening ear. Let me reiterate, most of these motives I have listed are not bad (or evil), and I have done them myself at one point, Im just saying there is one motive that we are told to operate in. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another. John 13:35 My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth. 1 John 3:18 On a different point, we, at the house, have decided to take an indefinite amount of time off from the internet to answer some questions that we have. We understand that many people have been impacted by what we are doing, but we have failed when we have created a following that looks to us rather than the Teacher Himself. Self-educate. Take responsibility for the world around you. Get answers for yourself. If you have something to say, say it. It is not pride to shout something you know is true and/or if you know that it will set people free. When Paul said, Imitate me, for I imitate Christ, I think he was saying, Do what I am doing, I am following Jesus; you should follow Jesus. He was NOT saying, Copy me, because I copied Jesus. He was saying, Copy me, in the sense that all I am doing is learning to be like Jesus. If you make a copy of a copy of a copy, eventually you will look quite different than the Master. In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of Gods glory and the exact representation of his being. Hebrews 1:1-3 Jesus is perfect theology Anything you think you know about about God, that you cant find in the person of Jesus, you have reason to question. Bill Johnson If you guys really need to connect with us, email will work. So until next time, peace to you, grace to you. -brandon. The Journey In One Year

Published March 28, 2011 Be sure to read my other Journey articles. 1| 2| 3| 4 In the Beginning (Jan March 2010) There were just 3. I had moved in with Ryan/Laura in their apartment in Redding for 2 months. We listened to the DHT and realized how much bad theology we had. With our newly-realized authority, we learned how easy it was to walk in boldness, we learned how to talk and act likesons, we learned the reality of persecution, we learned how to respond to pharisees, we realized that 9 out of 10 people had 1 leg shorter than the other and we started to do iteverywhere, we learned the utmost importance of sowing good seeds because plants will reproduce after its own kind

Every week at Bethels Healing rooms we saw hundreds healed, and we realized how how important it was to actually train people to walk and stay in freedominstead of creating a supernatural drive-through with temporary satisfaction. We saw hundreds healed, and we watched people without their own momentum swing back and forth with symptoms of sickness. We learned the importance of teaching people how to fight in addition to fighting for them. We learned how to dismantle all kinds ofbad tradition, we learned how to persevere to see the results we were looking for, and we learned to place a value on results rather than nitpicking on particular methods. A New City, A New Vision (March 2010) When we rebooted in San Jose, the team grew to 7-8. Among us, some had given up jobs, education, and some even moved away from home to kindle what we started. At that time, we were all about bringing the power. Power is the missing link Power is what will bring the revival everyone is longing for!!! we thought. Were gonna take over the whole city! Within the first few weeks, we realized how sheltered we had been. We realized how much christianese we spoke, we realized we really had no idea how to relate to the outside world. We learned how to actually be relatable to people we were ministering to, how to talk about the Kingdom without any over-spiritualized terms.

We learned how to be more diligent in follow-up. We learned how to live and give generously, we learned how to live out of our spirit instead of feelings and emotions. Our influence grew as we started to minister at events, outreaches, teaching people how to bring freedom and the Kingdom as a lifestyle rather than an event. We were downtown at the clubs friday nights, we regularly visited Walmart, local malls, Santa Rosa, and we got to go toRhode Island and Denver. Growth of Influence (April Sept 2010) During the first 4-5 months, we tried to incorporate ourselves into several local churches, but most of them werent doing anything close to what we had in mind. Most of them were concerned with their own congregation, church growth, and rarely did we encounter a church that was actively ministering to the lost and one that valued results over our qualifications/training/methods. Meanwhile, our group had grown, so we didnt know anything else but to start a house church. I use quotes because its such a loose definition. So for 3-4 months, we had a weekly house church meeting that we also streamed online. We eventually created the same church structure that we were trying to get away from. We created the same pastor, man of God, sermon-based structure as in most Sunday morning churches. Change of Direction (Sept Dec 2010)

So after doing house church, we restrategized and started having church at a local mall. We realized we werent actually making significant impact on the city our lights were covered by our house as we were fellowshipping together so we wanted to have our gathering in the midst of peoplewho actually needed hope. It was at about this time we realized how ineffective street evangelism was (in the context of discipleship). We had done street outreach stuff for the previous 7-8 months and we had yet to see even 1 person get discipled as a direct result of street outreach. When we realized this, we had to reassess the effectiveness of what we were doing. Its the definition of insanity to expect different results if youre doing the same thing right? So we did the mall church for about 3 months. We were hoping to establish a reputation among the regulars at the mall by meeting up three times a week at the foodcourt of the mall. We led families to salvation, ministered healing and hope to anyone nearby, we gained a reputation among the janitor ladies for prayer and healing, and even gained favor among the security team which allowed us to promote what we were doing to all the businesses in the mall but we didnt see any lasting fruit.

We saw the same miracles, lots of encounters, but no one stuck around to get involved. Even the families that enthusiastically expressed they would come every week, never showed up. On the bright side, we ended up creating a culture where people would actually got to know each other. Because we were in a mall setting, we had removed the sermon/worship part of our meetings, so everyone had an opportunity to invest in one another, care about, serve, and bear one anothers burdens. Lessons Learned (Dec 2010 March 2011) From there, we decided to combine our previous attempts in establishing a community. We liked the fellowship that resulted from the mall church, and we liked the home environment. So, we started our house meetings again but made the central focus about loving one another by serving each other. Turns out, the Kingdom is really about helping people get healthy in their relationship with God and their relationships with people (hey, sounds like the great commandment). Its developing relationships with each other, loving one another by actually caring about each other. Turns out, you really only influence people when you demonstrate that you care about them instead of having an agenda to change them. Turns out, taking over the city really starts with you loving your neighbor as yourself not in words, but in action (1 John 3:18), and then teaching them to do the same to those around them (Matt 28:20). Relationship is the foundation of discipleship and this is precisely the reason why most churches dont create many disciples. They have relegated discipleship into a program instead of a relationship, their systems arent conducive to relationships, they are primarily channels of information-exchange rather than relationship-exchange. Coincidentally, the more relationships that happen, the more people are trained to actually love each other, or rather trained to express love to each other. Love cannot be expressed outside the context of relationship. State of the Ministry (Now TBD)

So as of now, this is how we do church. Sunday mornings and Tuesday evenings, we meet because we are interested and care about each other, not because theres going to be good worship or a good sermon or because we have a good pastor. Worship is good because it has become a lifestyle, not because weve gathered to sing songs. The sermon is good because its been tailored personally as we speak with one another and help each

other with what were struggling with or growing in. There is no more solitary good pastor because weve all learned to be pastored, and now pastor one another. With these core values in place, we have created an environment for everyone to grow as leaders, for everyone to grow in relationship, and for everyone to provoke one another to good works. I think weve discovered what being knit together can look like (Col 2). Outreach is more of a lifestyle rather than an event. Relationship has taken priority over short-lived influence. Longevity over the wow factor. We have by no means figured everything out, but we have learned a lot through trial and error. There are a few more tweaks we are looking to make in the future, being able to reassess and change directions has been one of the most vital factors in our growth. Heres a bonus on discipleship: So if you would like to get discipled via skype/phone with Ryan, you can send him an email at revivalorriots@gmail.com. I will be making myself available to do this as well after I return from Africa. Dennis, Sue, a few others and I will be in South Africa for 6 weeks (April 5th May 19th). You can read more about the trip here. Heres an extra bonus on discipleship: In John 9, Jesus heals a man who was blind from birth. The pharisees were mad and questioned this man and his parents about who healed him and how he did it:
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He answered and said, Whether He is a sinner or not I do not know. One thing I know: that though I was blind, now I see. 26 Then they said to him again, What did He do to you? How did He open your eyes? 27 He answered them, I told you already, and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become His disciples? John 9:25-27 A disciple is not synonymous to a believer. It is absolutely free to become a believer, but it will cost everything to be a disciple. The implication of a disciple is that they want to learn. When someone inquires, How did you heal me? How did you know that? How do you know these things? Where did you learn how to do that? Why are you doing this for free?, it means that they want to learn, and that is an open invitation for you to disciple that person. One of the reasons why we are seeing lots of success in discipleship is because we are givingpractical answers to peoples problems. We are giving hope to the hopeless, and that is why people want to learn. People want answers, so they come. When you have answers to the worlds problems, the world will come knocking on your door.