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The Newsletter of the Praxis Center for Church Development |
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Greetings, We're back in your inbox again this month with more news of the revolution! Don't miss this month's articles and our new book.  Tom Johnston & Mike Perkinson
by Tom Johnston When the Emperor Constantine won the Battle of the Milvian Bridge in 312 A.D. the emerging Christian Church in the Western world entered into a new central role in society and culture. While preparing for the battle, Constantine, who was not a follower of Christ, had a vision from the Christian God in which he saw the Cross - with the words written over it - in hoc signo vinces - "In this sign you will conquer." This was a pivotal point for the Western Church.
by Mike Chong Perkinson "God chooses agents who will make it evident that the power which brings the 'dead' to 'life' is not theirs but His. The minister is like an 'earthen pot': cheap, fragile, expendable, unrepairable." - Jerome Murphy- O'Connor Strained relationships and disappointments are not only a part of the life of the church in the 21st century it was clearly evident in the life of the early church. After a careful reading of the letters to the church in Corinth, one discovers that the Spirit-people at Corinth were not at all impressed with the apostle Paul. They wanted a leader with more charisma and in whose power and presence they could take pride. He, however, exhibited none of the qualities they desired. In addition to his unimpressive personality and mediocre preaching, his life was characterized by setbacks and failures and suffering. A resume that one would not want for a life of Spirit-empowered person, at least that was what Corinth thought. How could such a weak and fragile person be God's agent in the salvation of humanity?
New book from the Praxis guys - Now Available! Called The Kingdom Quest: Preparing to Church Plant in the Post-Christian West, this book is all about preparing to plant a church, focusing on both the personal preparation of the planter and Jesus' principles for starting a new church. Now Available from our publisher!
A one-day orientation to The Pilgrimage, a simple discipleship process / resource tool based on Jesus' model of ministry. The Pilgrimage is something anyone can do and teach others to do. Use with individuals or implement church-wide as a discipleship track. For pastors and church leaders.
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