The use of New Media has created new possibilities as well as new challenges for Christians.

It takes great spiritual discernment to understand how digital communications relates to the mission of the Church.

Whenever I think of how churches and individual Christians should respond to the digital revolution, I’m reminded of the men of Issachar.

“The men of Issachar, understood the times and knew what Israel should do.” I Chronicles 12:32

The men of Issachar were an amazing and valuable group of 200 leaders that played a crucial role in making David king over all Israel.

Their wisdom stands the test of time.

They understood the times. They were men of great skill, able to accurately perceive the issues and provide an insightful analysis.

Leaders are needed today to give careful attention to understanding new media and social networks. They will, as the Spirit helps, discern the place for technology in fulfilling the mission of the Church.

They knew what Israel should do. They were forward thinkers, able to establish a clear vision, and transform it into a coherent strategy.

Leaders are needed today to make creative use of the new technologies, to employ their full potential, and to develop practical policies and workable outreach endeavors.

They knew how to lead. They were passionate and totally committed to their mission, “fully determined to make David king.” (v. 38) They were a team, as “day after day men came to help.” (v. 22) They were unified, as “all Israel came together.” (11:1)

Leaders are needed today who will undertake new media ventures; experiment with new technologies; and establish cooperative communication efforts across cultural, denominational and geographical lines.

Generation at a crossroad

We must pray for discernment asking God, who sees and knows all things, to give us His wisdom and clarity.

The men of Issachar didn’t sit on the sidelines as the world changed around them. They knew what was at stake. A great nation’s future hung in the balance. They prepared for battle.

The men of Issachar were mighty soldiers and warriors. They didn’t have to change their God-shaped identity and calling to align their thinking and strategy with the times. They took command of the situation and carried out God’s purposes.

Men of Issachar are needed for the 21st century. Men (and women) who understand the Digital Age. Leaders who perceive that if the Church doesn’t saturate the online world for the cause of Christ, enemies of the gospel will dominate the space for their causes.

We just completed the second track of Auxano’s Vision co::Lab at Gateway Community Church in Houston. This is a portion of my notes from the day long session. I wrote previously about the Lab and reasons why I’m attending here.

One of the greatest benefits to being in this learning community is the opportunity to make new friends. Church leaders participating include Wendell Hutchins, Church of Champions; Jim Martin, The River UMC; Steven Barr, LifeWorship Ministries; Matt Neely, The Watershed Church; and Andy Sytsma, New Life Church. Our lead navigator is Will Mancini, Auxano founder and visionary captain.

The primary objective for this session was to learn how to identify and develop The Kingdom Concept. The one thing your church does better than 10,000 others.

Focusing on mission is important to my current thinking and activity regarding media and technology in the church. So I leaned in close to listen.

Finding the sweet spot

Up front, we were told that getting to a single unifying purpose for any individual or organization would be hard work. Mancini said this was because Church leaders had not been trained to think that way. In the past, traditional church models influenced leaders toward the idea of doing a number of things well.

Mancini referred to the hugely successful book, The Purpose Driven Church, where Rick Warren identified five purposes of the church: worship, discipleship, fellowship, mission and ministry. Building vision and mission around those five aspects of ministry enabled churches to generally stay on course.

In today’s challenging climate of declining and plateaued churches, however, Mancini believes greater focus and clarity of purpose are needed. His main point was that God has a unique plan for every church. You just have to be willing to slow down long enough to discover it, he stressed.

Think of it, Mancini told us, as finding your organizational sweet spot; the place where your church’s unique experiences flow as a body of Christ. What your church can do better than any other church.

This thinking may sound familiar. Mancini paid homage to the book Good to Great, where Jm Collins called the idea of doing one thing better than anyone else in the world, ‘The Hedgehog Concept.’  Mancini has creatively reinterpreted the concept for a local church context.

We weren’t left hanging with theory. Mancini took us through the practical process of getting to The Kingdom Concept. We learned that it begins by considering three sets of questions, represented by three concentric circles, stacked pyramid style. Each circle, a different theme of exploration, was designed to help unpack the various expressions of your church’s uniqueness.

The following is a small sample of his questions.

Your Kingdom Concept

Circle One: Local Predicament – Answers the question, “What are the unique needs and opportunities where God has placed you?” What burning issues are alive in the public’s eye and brought to attention by the media? How would you describe the ‘atmosphere of lostness’ in your community? Does the history of your community bring to light any spiritual strongholds?

Circle Two: Collective Potential – Answers the question, “What are the unique resources and capabilities that God brings together in your church?” If a guest visited your church several times and answered the question, ‘What did you like best about that church?’ what would they say?  If your church was immediately uprooted from the community, what would people in the community feel is missing? What spiritual gifts seem to be more prominent in your church?

Circle Three: Apostolic Esprit – Answers the question, “What particular focus most energizes and animates your leadership?” What one thing bothers you most about the world? What do you tend to pray for the most? If you knew you couldn’t fail, what one thing would you pursue for God?

Getting through the entire list of questions will often take a period of weeks or months. The Kingdom Concept is found where the three circles overlap. The ‘sweet spot.’  The final expression comes, he said, when you can fill in the blank below with a clear and concise phrase…

Our church glorifies God and makes disciples by:

________________________________________________________________

We were cautioned about keeping some things out of The Kingdom Concept:

1.  Church growth projections, capital campaigns and building plans

2.  Flashy mission language or the mission language of another church

3.  Random thinking about future possibilities

Mancini likes to quote his mentor, Professor Howard Hendricks, Dallas Theological Seminary. With reference to point #3, he recalled Hendricks saying, “Can dos make it hard to know what one must do for God.”

Chapelwood United Methodist Church, under the leadership of Senior Pastor Jim Jackson, identified their ‘must do’ like this: To Embody God’s Grace As We Receive It To Those Who Need It

Mancini recounted a remarkable event to illustrate how Chapelwood knows its  people are living out their unique mission mandate.

“A number of years ago, on a Sunday, I came to Chapelwood to steal a car. A parking attendant saw me. Instead of calling the police, he invited me into the service. What I found that day was something that I couldn’t steal. I found God’s grace.” (Chapelwood Ministry Leader)

Mancini said Chapelwood’s expression of its Kingdom Concept, had the ‘OOZE Factor.’  O-rginal O-rganic Zeroed-in E-xtravagant…and S-weet.

Question: What does your church do better than 10,000 others?