Session 4: Leading in New Cultural Realities- John Burke

Session 4a: Leading in New Cultural Realities- John Burke from Gateway Community Church Book: No Perfect People Allowed

He's from Austin, TX... thus the cowboy hat.

• Making and maintaining good soil is everything in planting... what is healthy, rich soil for people? I Cor 3: 6-9 God causes the growth... we're responsible for the soil/environment...
• Church can be messy...how many sexually active, drunk Athiests are going to your church?
• Do we allow for question and struggle in our church, relationships, and conversations?
• What do we need to be doing to help our leaders engage with messy people? (Some of us are pretty messy as well)
• Messy leadership: Helping and leading messy, broken people...
• Are we leading people to first see others through the eyes of grace and acceptance?
• Too many times the Church makes it difficult for the emerging cultures to experience Grace? What barriers do we need to remove?
• "I just couldn't go to a church that hated a group of people (homosexuals)"- Emerging Seeker
• "What do you think about Muhammed?"- Cultural barrier to Grace for a Muslim
• Our job is not to fix, grow, or change people- only to work on the soil/environments we create...

Thoughts:

• Creative methodology in church can be part of the good soil needed for people to experience growth in Christ...
• We need to know our faith to be able to answer the "Barriers to Grace" that many people in our emerging culture are asking...
• I have a few friends that are struggling with faith, grew up in the faith... good soil... it makes we wonder what causes this? Do some people need to experience bad soil to appreciate good soil?