A Glorious Mess By Shauna Bowman

A Glorious Mess—that is my description for my house church experience. The amazing intensity of real community coupled with the reality of being in such close emotional and spiritual proximity to fa ...

Excuse Me While I Single-Handedly Neutralize Al-Qaeda by Brant Hansen

Excuse Me While I Single-Handedly Neutralize Al-Qaeda by Brant Hansen   Alan Hirsch, in his book, The Forgotten Ways points out that Al-Qaeda is almost impossible to stop. This is, in large part, ...

Personal Intimacy with Jesus by Rich & Kimberly Hagler

Dear Friends: One of the means the Father has used to transform our lives more into the image of His Son has been a number of great books on the topic of "Personal Intimacy with Jesus." As with any ...

Postmodern Opportunities by Neil Cole

Postmodern Opportunities by Neil Cole Postmodernism is like a bar of soap in dirty bath water, as soon as you think you have a good grasp it slips out of your hand and is lost in the murky water l ...

1/21: Sister Centuries by Neil Cole

1/21: Sister Centuries by Neil Cole   The 21st century is quickly becoming the sister century to the 1st century. There are remarkable similarities between the first and twenty-first centuries. ...

Why They Start Churches by Bob Roberts

WHY THEY START CHURCHES OVERSEAS: WHAT WE MUST LEARN I just returned from Vietnam with the government where the church is exploding. What I have seen there on this trip and in the past is a church ...

Embracing the Death of the Church by Neil Cole

Embracing the Death of the Church by Neil Cole   n every town of America there is at least one church with a building worth hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of dollars. This church meets e ...

Why Less is More by Neil Cole

Why Less is More: Advantages of Simple Churches By Neil Cole In our quest to be part of a powerful move of God’s kingdom, we often are tempted to think the solution will come from a complex com ...

The Networking of Groups by Neil Cole

The Networking of Groups by Neil Cole The created world has natural boundaries held in place by gravity. The oceans are held in place by the shores. The atmosphere is contained by the weight of earth ...

The DNA of Christ by Neil Cole

The DNA of Christ by Neil Cole   In the organic world, whether crickets or churches, DNA is the internal code that maintains the integrity of each multiplied cell. In every organism, DNA is what ...

THE GOSPEL: FOR HERE OR TO GO? (Part 1 of 6) - By Keith Giles

THE GOSPEL: FOR HERE OR TO GO? (Part 1 of 6) By Keith Giles *NOTE: This six part series was developed out of my recent workshop for Soul Survivor's MOMENTUM 06. The articles will also appear in s ...

THE GOSPEL: FOR HERE OR TO GO? (Part 2 of 6) - By Keith Giles

THE GOSPEL: FOR HERE OR TO GO? (Part 2 of 6) - By Keith Giles   In the closing words of the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus leaves us with what has become known as “The Great Commission”. In it, J ...

THE GOSPEL FOR HERE OR TO GO? (Part 3 of 6) - By Keith Giles

THE GOSPEL FOR HERE OR TO GO? (Part 3 of 6) By Keith Giles   BELIEVE, BELONG, BECOME Someone once told me that every single human being has a desire to believe something, to become something ...

THE GOSPEL: FOR HERE OR TO GO (Part 4 of 6) - By Keith Giles

THE GOSPEL: FOR HERE OR TO GO (Part 4 of 6) By Keith Giles   SOCIAL LEPROSY In the book of John, Jesus prays for those who would follow his teachings after he ascended into heaven. What I find f ...

THE GOSPEL: FOR HERE OR TO GO? (Part 5 of 6) - By Keith Giles

THE GOSPEL: FOR HERE OR TO GO? (Part 5 of 6) By Keith Giles   PATTERNS OF EVANGELISM One thing that’s also helpful to me is to realize that, contrary to popular opinion, there is not a formul ...

THE GOSPEL: FOR HERE OR TO GO? (Part 6 of 6) - By Keith Giles

THE GOSPEL: FOR HERE OR TO GO? (Part 6 of 6) By Keith Giles RELIGION OF COMPASSION? One of the most disheartening things, when you listen to non-believers talk about why they are not followers o ...

The Day of Small Beginnings - By Mike Jentes

The Day of Small Beginnings By Mike Jentes thequest Columbus, Ohio August 2006   Earlier this year I heard a message by a Grace Brethren pastor entitled Not by Might, Nor by Power from Zechari ...

Why Organic Church has an Edge on Outreach - By Neil Cole

Why Organic Church has an Edge on Outreach By Neil Cole   I was recently asked by a Christian Magazine why Organic Church has an advantage to more conventional church expressions in reaching los ...

Revolutionary Students of Peace - by Jim Montgomery

Revolutionary Students of Peace by Jim Montgomery Multiplying churches on campus It might be a stretch to refer to fraternities, sororities, student clubs, and a host of other interest and affini ...

Churches and the IRS by Mike Jentes

Compiled June 2006 "Churches" Defined The term church is found, but not specifically defined, in the Internal Revenue Code. With the exception of the special rules for church audits, the use o ...

Important IRS Publications for Churches by Mike Jentes

Compiled June 2006 Internal Revenue Service >> United States Department of the Treasury - The IRS www.irs.gov   Tax Guide for Churches and Religious Organizations: Benefits and Resp ...

The Effect of Rabbit Trails by Ed Waken

Just about everything in life has a pattern or sequence to it. People are conceived, grow in their mother's womb, are born, learn to crawl, then walk, then run and before you know it, they are indepe ...

"Beyond Church Planting" Review by J.D. Payne

Review of Robert E. Logan and Neil Cole, Beyond Church Planting (St. Charles, IL: Church Smart Resources, 2005), 184 pgs. U.S. $95.00. As one who trains church planters, I have been looking for a ...

The Legacy of Roland Allen: Part One-His Life by J.D. Payne

One of the most controversial, yet most influential missionary thinkers in Church history, was Roland Allen. An examination of his missionary experience reveals nothing too impressive from a humanisti ...

The Legacy of Roland Allen: Part Two-His Philosophy of Missions by J.D. Payne

One of the most controversial, yet most influential missionary thinkers in Church history, was Roland Allen. An examination of his missionary experience reveals nothing too impressive from a humanisti ...

Kingdom Mentality by Joe Boyd & Dr. Paul Kaak

God is moving. As He always has. Today He is moving in some new "old" ways. Across America, pastors are leaving the posts, but they aren't resigning from ministry. They are reassigning themselves to t ...

Conversatio Morem by Keith Giles

As I've been reading on the early church, I've come across a great saying used by the church fathers and I'd like to make it my own. The phrase, "Conversatio Morem" can be translated two different wa ...

Pass the Ammunition:an open letter to the soldiers on the field by Neil Cole

Pass the Ammunition: an open letter to the soldiers on the fieldBy Neil ColeFriday, March 04, 2005Long Beach, CA "For our battle is not against flesh and blood." Having walked with the Lord for ...

Crucified Giving Changes the World by Wolfgang Simson

Crucified Giving Changes the WorldBy Wolfgang Simson translated by Steve BuftonFrom the Friday Fax (12/23/05) Two main themes are currently determining the future of Christianity: firstly, the redisc ...

Hollywood Transformation by Richard Rossi

HOLLYWOOD TRANSFORMATION - GOD'S LIGHT REACHES THE STARSBy Richard Rossi My wife and I moved to Hollywood to be closer to my work as an actor-director, and knowing how Tinsel town affects the world. ...

Pandemics and Viral Mission by Paul Kaak

George Bush has seen a lot of American death during his presidency. On and off our shores, many Americans have died as victims and they have died in battle. And, it looks like there may be more loss o ...

Growing God's Kingdom from the Harvest an interview with Neil Cole by Next Wave

Next-Wave: So what is the Organic Church? NC: Some people call it simple church, with the planting of the seed of the Kingdom in soil where there is lost-ness, allowing transformed lives to be the ...

The Urgency of the Harvest by Mindi Jentes

Begging... my kids seem to have the corner on the market in this category. I am reminded of the many times that I go to the grocery store with just one of my kids (because taking all four of them is s ...

The 4/11 Team by Neil Cole & Paul Kaak

The 4-1-1 on the 4/11 Team: Leadership Roles for Church Multiplication MovementsThese are the notes that are part of the powerpoint presentation that is involved in some of our Organic Church Planting ...

Factors in Revival Movements by Paul Pierson

Here is a list of factors observed in revival and renewal movements throughout history, complied by Dr. Paul Pierson. -The list is flexible and some of these can be combined-but it is good food for t ...

How Does Jesus Become Enough? by Bob Roberts

If Jesus is enough, what does it mean to know Him intimately and live for Him even when things are difficult? How is your relationship with God going? Are you able to say with a sincere heart that Jes ...

When Will Jesus Be Enough? by Bob Roberts

One Monday morning a year into our church's tumultuous move into the renovated shopping center, I got up early to pray in the pasture behind my house (not too unusual in Texas). I was depressed about ...

Evangelists, for the Church or the Lost? by Ed Waken

"And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists and some as pastors and teachers..." Ephesians 4:11 At the mention of the word, Evangelist, our minds immediately pictur ...

Catch the Ten2b Virus by Mike Jentes

  "Jesus told them, "The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field." Luke 10:2 NIV Many times I have read thi ...

Freedom in Christ by Rich Hagler

In the second film of The Lord of the Rings trilogy-The Two Towers-there is a king who is reluctant to go to war. Theoden is fearful and timid. But an army is marching through his lands, an army bred ...

Cruel And Unusual Punishment by Neil Cole

A CRUEL AND UNUSUAL PUNISHMENT: A FICTIONAL ACCOUNT BASED ON A TRUE STORYBy Neil Cole I always thought of myself as being brave, but when I heard the footsteps of the guard coming toward my cell, fea ...

The Spontaneous Expansion of the Kingdom of God by Neil Cole

In the early nineties, my family lived in a community where there was a lot of new building going on. In the mornings I used to take my daughter to preschool. On the way there we passed some people ...

Osama and Me are Close by Neil Cole

Early in my attempts to develop leaders for church planting, I designed a ministry called The Pastor's Factory. Obviously this was before I started to see church from an organic point of view. At the ...

Multiplying on the Micro Level by Neil Cole

Multiplying on the Micro level: We Each Began as a Zygote by Neil Cole "When the solution is simple, God is answering."? Albert Einstein   American Christianity is dying. Our future is in serious ...

Conversations Not Conversions by Ed Waken

Available as PDF file to download HERE Conversations Not Conversions by Ed Waken My doorbell rang. As I rose from my home office to answer it, I wondered to myself, "Who is bothering me?" It was Ree ...

A Bride Revived by Neil Cole

A Bride Revived: Debunking 6 Common Myths about Church by Neil Cole, June 2004 In 1991 I had a vision. I was trained by a group of churches that didn't seem to believe that miraculous revelations c ...

Between a Rock & a Hard Place- Sample Chapter from Search & Rescue by Neil Cole

It was another warm, sunny weekend with large crowds at Venice Beach. Venice is world renowned for drawing large crowds of crazy people. This day was no exception. The surf was big and the crowds bi ...

It's Not Good for Man to Be Alone by Mike Jentes

I was reading a missionary update from our friends in Paris--Rob and Nichole P__ --and it said that of all the people who live in Paris, 50% live alone. I was astounded by that. I was chatting about ...

My House and Hospitality by Mike Jentes

"You guys are so busy!" they say as they stand in our dining room when the doorbell rings again. When people make that comment, I have often replied, "Yes, we have people in our home everyday-peop ...

Leadership That Lasts: Journeys to Significance by Neil Cole

Leadership That Lasts: Journeys to Significance: An Examination of Paul's Improving Missionary Advancement by Neil Cole Leadership is influence. Not all leaders are good ones. There are some leader ...

A Fresh Perspective of Paul's Missionary Strategies by Neil Cole

A Fresh Perspective of Paul's Missionary Strategies: The Mentoring for Multiplication Model by Neil Cole 1998 Jesus identified what is missing to see a great harvest of souls. He said, "The harvest i ...

Simple Structures for a Decentralized Movement by Neil Cole

Out-of-control Order: Simple Structures for a Decentralized Multiplication Movement by Neil Cole   Is structure a bad word in organic church? Can systems be organic or are they only institutiona ...

The Threat of Heresy in the Organic Church by Neil Cole

A Critical Issue Article: The Threat of Heresy in the Organic Church MovementBy Neil Cole When teaching about the organic church, a question I am asked more than any other is how we handle the thr ...

Pastors and Plumbers by Neil Cole

Having just bought my first home, pipes have taken a more significant place in my life. A broken pipe is bad news. It has occurred to me, however, that the reason pipes are so important to me is t ...

The Unbeatable Foe by Neil Cole

ANTS!!! It seems that no matter what I do they become more. They are in the kitchen, the bathroom, the dining room, the living room, outside, inside, upstairs, downstairs...they're omnipresent! The ...

2003 Update on our CMA Movement by Neil Cole

CMA Update on our Movement August 2003 Neil Cole The ice is melting, the birds are singing again and Aslan is on the move.One of the hardest things I have to do is count churches and people in our m ...

Who should be paid to serve in the church? by Neil Cole

  I was asked to write an answer to this question because of some thoughts I've developed over the years but have never written down. Quite frankly, I am hesitant to write them down now. I am conf ...

Kids and the Organic Church by Neil Cole

A friend of mine recounts the story of his son coming home from Sunday School. He asked the boy the most common questions asked at 12:15 every Sunday: “So how was your class? What did you learn? ...

Increasing the Workforce for a Greater Harvest by Neil Cole

"The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Therefore, beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest fields." Jesus tells us the key to seeing many people saved throug ...

Sharing the Truth in a Postmodern Context by Neil Cole

Sharing the Truth in a Postmodern Context Neil Cole In college, I had an old crotchety professor named Dr. Shanks who often liked to sermonize on the evils of Christianity and absolute truth. Whenev ...

When Did Bedtime Become a Good Thing? by Neil Cole

When did bed time become a good thing? What ever happened to all those millions of excuses we used to offer for just five more minutes before we'd surrender to the sheets? When did a stick become ju ...

Jesus and The Kids by Jason Evans

Jesus and the Kids by Jason Evans We’ve tossed out several Bible story books in our home. In a Western world painted with pictures of Middle Eastern “terrorists” the last thing we want ...

What Is a Real Hero in God's Kingdom?- Sample Chapter from Search & Rescue by Neil Cole

On the morning of January 2, 2007, Wesley Autrey did not wake up thinking of himself as a hero. He doesn't wear spandex under his clothes and have a red S on his chest. The people he spoke to that m ...

Wise as serpents, Harmless as Doves by Eman Abrea

Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves. I started to pray Luke 10:2 everyday since June last year. My desire is to st ...

Leadership in Organic Chuch Multiplication Movements- April 2005 CMA Gathering

  Leadership In Organic Church Multiplication Movements-- Notes from the Gathering hosted by the Los Altos Grace Brethren Church www.lagbc.org April 25-27, 2005 A gathering of Church Multiplic ...

Simple Church Interviews Video

This is the Special Feature from the new "When You Come Together" DVD from Karis Publishing & House2House. Posted on You Tube by permission. Simple Church Interviews including Neil Cole, ...

Is this Really Happening? A report on CMA for 2006-2007 by Neil Cole

Is This Really Happening? A Report on CMA for 2006-2007 by Neil Cole "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that e ...

Journeys of Paul by Neil Cole Video

  The "Journeys of Paul" video presentation by Neil Cole at Blossom 2007 also called Leadership That Lasts: Journeys to Significance: An Examination of Paul's Improving Missionary Advancement. ...

The Father's Role by Traver Dougherty

The Father's Role by Traver Dougherty I'm not entirely sure what's happened to my body in the past few years (no emails explaining the obvious, please), but I don't move like I used to. My two ...

Broken, But Not Done by Jeff Rhodes

Broken, But Not Done by Jeff Rhodes I wrote a poem that reflects my personal journey into organic church life that I thought I would share. If it can be used to encourage anyone please share i ...

Lonely Innovators by Dr. Jerry Porter

Lonely Innovators by Dr. Jerry Porter Let me share an important concept that I learned as a young missionary. I wrote an article for the Spanish Herald of Holiness with the title, "Inovadore ...

Top 20 Formational Books

Here are the 20 books that shaped us the most by contributing to our thinking in new ways. I have them in the order of release (as best I can remember) and categorized... Foundational Works: 1. M ...

To Network or Not To Network? by Traver Dougherty

To Network or Not To Network? by Traver Dougherty When our little clan first set out to start "organic" churches we did so with a "network" of churches in mind. In an effort to maintain the net ...

I'm a Hero?!?! by Traver Dougherty

I'm a Hero?!?! by Traver Dougherty Every Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday my alarm sounds around 5am. Oh, how I loathe that alarm sometimes! Yet, year after year, I get up because I'm, says Nei ...

From Seating Capacity to Sending Capacity by Neil Cole

From Seating Capacity to Sending Capacity: Why an Incarnational Kingdom on Mission is Very Attractiveby Neil ColeAn article written for the upcoming Leadership Journal on being missional--Winter 200 ...

"Heaven, we have a problem" - Sample Chapter from Organic Church by Neil Cole

"Houston, we have a problem." This historic understatement was uttered on April 14, 1970, by Cdr. James A. Lovell while floating aimlessly in a small metal capsule hundreds of miles from ea ...

A Dangerous Question and Organic Church by Neil Cole

A Dangerous Question and Organic Church by Neil Cole Download/Print the PDF HERE Think about what questions you've been asked about your church. Questions come up like "What church do you go to? How ...

What does a "mature" disciple of Jesus look like? by Traver Dougherty

What does a "mature" disciple of Jesus look like? by Traver Dougherty Around 2000 I became a little frustrated with the lack of literature on discipleship. No, it wasn't that the bible wasn't ...