Videos

John’s topic this month falls under the category of “planned redundancy.” During the early months of his presidency (he was elected five years ago this month), consensus was reached about the unique Alliance expression—a Christ-centered, Acts 1:8 family. John has heard a drift in that phrase, so reminds us that The Alliance isn’t just about mission but is a Jesus-centered denomination: “Focused on Jesus, empowered by the Holy Spirit, sent to every segment of human society, and doing it together.”

“God is perfect. I am a sinner. How could He ever accept me now that I was so filthy and unlovable?” says a noodle shop owner in Thailand.

This month, John addresses eight of the most common leadership mistakes made in meetings. He offers a challenge to take seriously the key moments meetings offer to shape the culture of our teams, which often reflect the leaders they’re under. We have a model in Jesus, whose message and method—the content and tone—came from the Father (see John 12:49). “May all we do move us forward together with greater effectiveness and unity,” John concludes, “because we’re truly moving forward under the direction of our Lord.”

This month, John is joined by Tim Crouch, vice president for Alliance International Ministries (IM), and Mike Sohm, president of CAMA Services. The three discuss what God is doing to shape Alliance missions for the future, including organizational restructuring to more effectively lead, manage, and communicate our multi-specialization missions work. One of the first steps is the integration of CAMA with IM to create a more holistic missions ministry, which will also increase opportunities for more people in our churches with varied gifts and callings to serve in Alliance missions.

Here is a short historical timeline to bring more clarity to this discussion.

John addresses the word “complexity” this month, specific to the increasing complexities of life and ministry that are converging upon the church and its leaders. He notes how Jesus entered a complex political environment, well aware of the complexities of spiritual warfare, and was able to avoid wrong conversations. To provide perspective on how to live in our complex world, John unpacks Matthew 10, where Jesus says, “. . . be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.”

This month, John is speaking from a Caribbean island where he has joined the 23rd anniversary celebration of the C&MA national network of churches there. He likens the U.S. Alliance relationship with this Body to that of “grandparents,” as there has been no U.S. C&MA presence in the country but where The Alliance is beginning to arise. He also unpacks a five-point agreement of how the U.S. Alliance can best serve the thriving 75 congregations in this island nation that have 90 church plants and a vision to plant 30 more by 2020.