Breaking the rules

Breaking the rules — not the moral or the civil laws of the land — but the rules that dictate the way we do things. The box where we are all in. Craig Groeschel, in his book “It”, page 98,99, says:

Most of the greatest spiritual innovators throughout history were people who broke the rules… When you try something new in ministry most people will tell you that your idea will never work… Innovation by definition will not be accepted at first. It takes repeat attempts, endless demonstrations, monotonous rehearsals before innovation can be accepted and internalized by an organization. This requires courageous patience. If you have a God idea, you must be brave enough to go with it. Break some rules.

This Sunday marks the start of “breaking rules” for LifeChurch Makati. We’re going to break some rules in doing church here in the Philippines. If you’re interested to know what it is, check us out on our first preview service at Glorieta 4, Cinema 4 this Sunday, February 21. You’re invited to observe and experience.

The story behind Grace Place and LifeChurch Makati

For those who know me, you know that I’ve long been involved with a church called Grace Place. It’s been a great 3 years. God has been leading us all throughout, teaching us what to do and what not to do. Sometimes, we’re hard headed. But when we follow His leading and focus on what matters most, great results happen.

So, we’ve been making noise about a new church called LifeChurch Makati in Facebook and people were asking, “There’s no more Grace Place?”

The quick answer is, “Yes. There’s no more Grace Place.”

The longer and more accurate answer is to explain that technically, the people behind Grace Place are the same people that will launch LifeChurch Makati. Only, LifeChurch Makati has:

• a different approach in doing church
• a different Sunday experience
• a different location
• a different partner

LifeChurch Makati is powered by LifeChurch.tv, an innovative church in the US lead by Craig Groeschel. We’re going to have a preview service on February 21, 2010 at the new location in Glorietta 4, Cinema 4. It’s a different Sunday experience, I promise. You’ve got to see it to believe.

And if you’re a follower of Christ and wants to serve, you’re welcome to be part of the launch team. Here are the details.

The Powerful Pacman

I’m not going to make a sports analysis of the up coming Manny Pacquiao mega fight this Sunday morning (Saturday night Las Vegas). There’s plenty around the blogsphere. What I’m planning to do, though, is to show us what is already obvious — that Manny Pacquiao’s power and influences goes beyond the ring.

- Over the weekend, a battalion of lawmakers will migrate to the US to catch the Pacman. That means, there will be no quorum to vote for bills and the impeachment complaint against the ombudsman.

- Everything will stand still Sunday morning.

- Even criminals on the streets will take a break.

- Restaurants, cinemas and even hotels will be packed not by customers who want to eat or watch a movie, but by people who want to catch the Packman live via satellite feed. They are willing to pay P500 to P800 for this experience.

- Speaking of hotels, we’re even displaced from Tiara Oriental Hotel where regular services of Grace Place take place every Sunday. All function rooms will be occupied for the show of the day. We have no choice but to move the services to 2 pm to give way to the Pacman.

- And, yes, speaking of church services, as Steve Murell often says, churches will be full packed in the afternoon services. Why? Do the math, dudes.

The Pacman’s power will be felt all over the country this weekend. Let’s just all enjoy the moments, then slip back to exactly where we are at right after. I’m not sure if that’s good or bad, in any case, that’s exactly what it is anyway.

Good luck, Manny.

Friday Night Experience: “The Vow”

Grace Place (Metro Manila), in partnership with LifeChurch.tv, present:

“Theology for Dummies”

Grace Place goes topical in our grace groups (small group weekly meetings). The topic I’m leading with my group is about “grace”.  The way it was promoted during our Celebration Sunday yesterday was odd –  “Learn ‘theology’ without the confusion“.

After the service, one of my enrollees approached me, and with the short discussion with her, I gathered 2 things that most people think when they hear the word “theology”:

1. It’s boring — “Kuya, sigurado kang exciting to ha. Baka naman magsisi ako?”, and

2. It’s hard to understand – “Isinasama ko nga si ___ (friend’s name) kaso di pa raw sya ready sa hard stuff”.

I can’t blame her for thinking that way. In fact, it’s pretty normal to think that way about theology. Now a days, when people talk about theology, they actually  mean “I want to confuse you”. Seriously, theology has become so confusing that it becomes boring for most people.

Theology simply means a study about God. Anything about God — his character, his love, his holiness. In my case, I want to discuss about His grace. I tried to explain that the reality is, everything that we talk about in church has an underlying theological concept. This Sunday, our lead pastor talked about the importance of having a loving and caring small community. The theological concept behind that is “Fellowship”. He didn’t mention that term, but who cares as long as the concept is presented and understood well! Last year, one of the most interesting and much appreciated message series was “TXT”. It talks about the Bible. The attenders learned and understood it’s concepts — little that they know that Kuya Prudy is talking about the theological concept called “Sola Scriptura”.

So, theology can be understood and can even be fun!

“Ah, parang Theology for Dummies?”, she commented.

Great term! I like that. :D

I was able to read one of those “For Dummies” books and I was really amazed on how the author explained a complex topic in such a way that it become simple and interesting. He uses simple terms, graphics, even comedy in presenting the hard facts. The book didn’t water down the obviously hard-topic-to-explain. It simply explained it in such a way that it could be understood.

Theology needs not be confusing. It can be understood. It can be exciting. I guess it all depends on how it is be presented. And, yes, understanding God’s grace can be  challenging than the usual “inspirational topics”, but sure it can penetrate the heart, it’s life changing. And even Johann, my 4 year old kid, can understand it. It’s just a matter of presenting it in an exciting, non-boring, and understandable way.

So, Tuesdays 7:30 at Kopiroti, The Columns will rock! Believe me. :D