Blog - Page 141 of 318 - John H Armstrong

Standing on Five Legs: The Power of the Starfish in Mission

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:21-05:00September 17th, 2010|Categories: Books, Leadership, Missional Church, Personal, The Christian Minister/Ministry, The Church|

Yesterday I wrote about a book that I highly recommend all leaders buy and read: The Starfish and the Spider (Penguin: New York, 2006). It is simple and can be read in a few hours. Please read it even if you are not inclined to read business and leadership books. It is worth your time. I assure you that you'll not be bored. You are likely to understand how vision really works in a decentralized context.

Brafman and Beckstrom relate the story of how slavery was abolished in Great Britain. Many of you know the story of William Wilberforce (especially because of one of my favorite movies: Amazing Grace) but do you know the role played by Granville Sharp and the slave Jonathan Strong, whom Sharp came to know personally? And what about the contribution of Thomas Clarkson? Sharp was the visionary but Clarkson became the implementer. Together their role was a powerful force in abolition’s success. Simply put the real story is […]

The Starfish and the Spider

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:21-05:00September 16th, 2010|Categories: Books, Leadership, Missional Church, The Christian Minister/Ministry, The Church|

I do not read every trendy leadership and business book that gets recommended. I simply don’t have time, much less real interest in a great deal of this type of literature. I am aware of the most-talked about titles but read only a select number.

Recently, over a lunch with ministry leader Bob Shank in California, I was encouraged to read The Starfish and the Spider: The Unstoppable Power of Leaderless Organizations (Penguin: New York, 2006). This book, co-authored by Ori Brafman and Rod A. Beckstrom, is the work of two Silicon Valley guys who are entrepreneurs and business consultants. Their writing style is breezy, fun and provides story-telling at its best. Rarely have I read a book that was so enjoyable even (maybe especially) when I did not entirely agree with the point the authors made. But the big point made here, namely that decentralized, leaderless organizations are the future, is one that I do agree with very deeply.

This book is about […]

Taking a Step Backwards

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:21-05:00September 15th, 2010|Categories: America and Americanism, Current Affairs, Immigration, Politics|

The debate about Arizona’s law on immigration continues as the decision heads toward a federal appeals ruling in November. I keep looking for balanced and compassionate ways to address this problem that so clearly divides Christians and the nation. (One poll says the majority of Americans favor the Arizona law!) With this in mind I recently read the opinion piece of syndicated writer Ruben Navarrette, a Mexican-American immigrant. Navarrette offers, I believe, a more hopeful perspective in his San Diego Union-Tribune column about Arizona’s changing situation.

Navarrette spoke of taking a trip to Arizona (in August) and how he needed to make sure that he took his passport. For those who have not followed this case closely the state of Arizona is presently appealing U. S. District Judge Susan Bolton’s decision against it’s controversial law on checking people for their proof of citizenship if they are stopped by the police for any reason. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is not scheduled to […]

“Get Low” A Film Truly Worth Seeing

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:21-05:00September 14th, 2010|Categories: Film|

The sheer subtlety of the film “Get Low” caught me by complete surprise. The film’s opening scene begins with a country house engulfed in flames. The point is fairly obvious. But from the second-floor window a body falls out of a window in flames and falls from the roof to the ground. This mysterious burning person runs into the woods and the viewer is left wondering, “What does this scene really mean?” Well, it means everything as you will discover by the end of this remarkable film

One critic refers to “Get Low” as a “quirky but tender [film] . . . a wonderfully constructed and beautifully acted fable that serves as a reminder of how much of a treasure Robert Duvall is, and how much Bill Murray–an excellent script-picker if ever there was one–is taken for granted.” Add to these two award-winning actors the person of Sissy Spacek and you have a great threesome even without some of the wonderful additional actors […]

The Problem of “The True Church”

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:21-05:00September 13th, 2010|Categories: ACT 3, Missional Church, Missional-Ecumenism, The Church, Unity of the Church|

Time and time again I hear Christians say, “My church is the true church, your church is not!” This claim is often made by conservative Catholics and some conservative Protestants. The word true is in quotations marks in my title today because this is the problematic idea here. If we hold to true, in distinction from false or everything else not true, then we are in fact very close to sectarianism, if we are not already embracing the bitter fruit of this error.

The Orthodox Church has a lovely phrase that both Catholics and Protestants could learn from here. They say, “We know where the church is but this does not mean that we always know where it is not.” I think that embraces much more of the mystery than standard polemics often allows for in our consideration of the nature and importance of the church.

For evangelicals there is an even greater problem here. For many modern evangelicals the church is a contingency, something that comes about as a consequence of personal faith in Jesus as one’s Savior. The church, in this view, […]

My Letter to the North American Church

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:21-05:00September 12th, 2010|Categories: America and Americanism, American Evangelicalism, The Church, The Future, Unity of the Church|

My friend Rachel Evans, author of the wonderful memoir Monkey Town, asked me to participate in a synchroblog project this week, September 12-18. The project is called Eighth Letter. I decided to post my letter to the North American Church on my blog and then link to the responses of a number of other Christian writers who are doing the same. I look forward to listening to many voices responding to this opportunity.

Dear Church of God,

You undoubtedly realize that you’ve enjoyed hundreds of years of material and spiritual blessing. Yes, you’ve made mistakes but a significant number of you have truly loved Jesus and his church. You are to be commended for your sacrifice, your commitment to religious liberty, your love for mission programs, your investment in thoughtful Christian education and your innumerable charitable foundations and causes. You are also to be commended for building impressive institutions for the spread of the gospel around the globe, including hundreds of denominations and […]

Why Alabama is a Beast in College Football

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:21-05:00September 11th, 2010|Categories: College Football|

Those who follow the sport know that running back Mark Ingram, the reigning Heisman Trophy winner, is hurt and will not play tonight against Penn State. But Trent Richardson is playing. If you watch this incredible video you will see why Bama is still a true college football "beast" for good reason. Those who are good, and commit to getting better, generally do improve.

India and the Problem of Honor Killings

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:22-05:00September 11th, 2010|Categories: Feminism & Women|

I made several mission trips to India in the decade of the 1980s. It has always amazed me that so many people in the West do not recognize that the world’s largest democracy is India. Great progress has been made in both human rights and economic development in India, especially over the last two decades. I thank God for this progress. The church in India continues to grow in many states while it struggles under persecution in other states. Christians should pray for their brothers and sisters in India. We should also pray for the nation as it deals with many injustices that trouble ordinary people with life and death consequences.

One of India’s most troubling problems is the way women are still treated. This seems particularly odd given the fact that India has had strong women become political leaders. But the fact remains that in much of India women are second-class people. One evidence of this is the practice of “honor killings.” An honor killing […]

A Christian Wonders About the House Church

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:22-05:00September 10th, 2010|Categories: American Evangelicalism, Missional Church, The Church|

After my recent posts on “home church” I got a number of personal responses, both here on the site and through private emails. One daily reader forwarded me the email of a relative (who was sent the post by this reader). I asked permission to slightly edit this reflection and publish it as a follow-up to my earlier mini-series. I personally find this sister’s struggle very common, especially in the evangelical Christian community. Here is her edited letter to my daily reader:

Because I may be moving sooner or later I was telling a mutual friend that it would be disheartening to look for a church because I don’t want to do “church” anymore. We are involved in a church where we live because we are settled and established here. I love my pastor, the music and the people. I honestly don’t hate “church” but I yearn for something different and don’t know what it is. We continue to go on Sunday because it […]

Apologetics and Debate

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:18:22-05:00September 9th, 2010|Categories: American Evangelicalism, Apologetics|

I love apologetics. In fact, I have taught a graduate course titled: “Apologetics for Postmodern Evangelism.” Christian apologetics is a pretty interesting discipline if you are a person of the mind who is called to explain and defend the faith well. But for all of my love for apologetics I do not love a lot of what is called apologetics by a growing number of evangelicals. Even more puzzling to me is the growth of a similar type of apologetics among some conservative Catholics. Let me explain.

From the earliest days of the church Christian apologetics has been an important part of the study of theology. It is a branch of thought that aims to present a reasoned defense for Christian faith. It does this by increasing both the knowledge of the faith and the knowledge of how the Christian faith can answer the basic questions critics use against it.

One could well say that interest in apologetics began with the Apostles Peter and Paul. Clearly, it was […]