"For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake ... 'Speak, Lord, Your servant is listening' ... " + 2 Corinthians 4:5, 1 Samuel 3:10
At the beginning of February 2020, I had the joy of spending some time with some Underground people and participating in their Underground^Open: A Call to Create conference. You can read more about this artistic weekend with the Underground here:
+ Underground^Open 2020 | An Invitation into the Creation, Innovation, & Improvisation in the Big, Beautiful Artistic Mystery that Jesus Shares with Us
The Underground Network has 15 sister movements in different cities and countries. Each is unique, and each leader throughout has a unique story and a unique skill set, which leads to each missional expression having its own uniqueness because of the curiosity, context, and collaboration. I continue to pray and hope for what God might stir underground in Wormtown, and I continue to learn from the servant leaders of The Underground in different states and countries.
Below are a few tips from an iceberg of wisdom I gained when I was with some of the Underground leaders in Tampa a couple weeks ago.
| 1 | Being a Servant Leader
Gravitas is when your soul is bigger than your outward appearance before others.
Persona is when your outward appearance before others masks and shrinks your soul. It can become a conscious use of a mask to fool the public for personal gain.
Don't let your public persona become greater than your inner person. If/when this happens, it's up to you to pull away from public ministry to restore your identity in Christ. Striving forward on your own will kill you. Being hidden with Christ in God will save you (Colossians 3:3; Mark 8:35).
Ask yourself, "Would I do this with God if He's asking me even if nobody joins me?" Remember, the prophets in the ancient days were always "too soon" and no one thought they were cool in the moment.
| 2 | Benefitting More Servant Leaders
Being a servant means being willing to serve: We like being servant leaders until we're treated like servants.
Walk by faith, not by sight: If you're not fanning into flame things that make you uncomfortable, there's a good chance you're doing it wrong. Tension helps fuel transformation.
Provide space for questions, collaborate to make answers better: "Is what I said what you need? ... Help me make my answer better."
Much of mission is location: Be where people are. Listen, love, pray, and share (ex. McDonald's).
Gravitas is when your soul is bigger than your outward appearance before others.
Persona is when your outward appearance before others masks and shrinks your soul. It can become a conscious use of a mask to fool the public for personal gain.
Don't let your public persona become greater than your inner person. If/when this happens, it's up to you to pull away from public ministry to restore your identity in Christ. Striving forward on your own will kill you. Being hidden with Christ in God will save you (Colossians 3:3; Mark 8:35).
Ask yourself, "Would I do this with God if He's asking me even if nobody joins me?" Remember, the prophets in the ancient days were always "too soon" and no one thought they were cool in the moment.
1) Always look for the Kairos moment (the "eternal right now") and don't get stuck in Chronos.
2) Always wear a name tag and be with, never above, anyone (never consider yourself so recognized you don't need to). Always be with your people.
3) Always be in a Micro City Group (i.e. missional community, house church, etc.) on mission within a small community.
4) Always be (awkwardly?) sharing the Good News (i.e. Gospel) of Jesus with others even when you're bad at it.
5) Always be practicing hospitality.
6) Always have a stretching relationship with people who are poor, have less than you, live differently than you, see the world in fresher, livelier ways than you, etc.
7) Always nurture relationship with people outside of the U.S. who stretch you towards equity, justice, God's power made perfect in weakness, global community, evangelism in dangerous places, etc.
8) Always love Scripture. Breathe it, sing it, read it, memorize it, pray it, live it. Biblical illiteracy makes it hard to know God. Scripture is His language to us.
9) Always talk about Jesus as if He's a friend who is present and active in your life right now, and listen for what sounds like His voice in, with, and coming from other people.
10) Always wait, hope, take your time, and enjoy now with Jesus and others.
| 2 | Benefitting More Servant Leaders
Being a servant means being willing to serve: We like being servant leaders until we're treated like servants.
Walk by faith, not by sight: If you're not fanning into flame things that make you uncomfortable, there's a good chance you're doing it wrong. Tension helps fuel transformation.
Provide space for questions, collaborate to make answers better: "Is what I said what you need? ... Help me make my answer better."
Much of mission is location: Be where people are. Listen, love, pray, and share (ex. McDonald's).
1) Activate Potential Servant Leaders: Disciple through asking good questions (not so much giving instructions). Run to Jesus. Recognize and normalize need and brokenness along the way. Join and rejoin what God is doing. If someone is intrigued, call them into God's missional story.
2) Give Permission to Go, Try, Fail, and Go Again: Always be a learner with learners. Say, "Yes," often and ask, "How can I help you with what you think God is inviting you to join Him in doing?" Be willing to walk with new servant leaders for a bit and coach new start ups. Ask, "What opportunities do you see?" and "What barriers do you see?"
3) Develop Services Designed for Diversity of People: Inspire each other to surrender to Jesus. Empower others to do what Jesus says. Continue to ask, "What are you learning?" and "What do you think God is teaching you?" Normalize failure and learn from disappointments and detours regularly. Remember, Jesus was questioned, betrayed, abandoned, and crucified ... and His mission was not a failure. Communicate to people's hearts. Where they groan is where they understand and need Good News.
4) Encourage the Opportunity to Persevere and Release Again: Normalize wanting to quit when it's hard. Brene Brown did research on people in the military who are on mission for decades and what she found is that loneliness manifests as exhaustion. Connect people to peers who understand. Look to the Scriptures about suffering with God and lift up perseverance as a Christ-like virtue that is beautifully mined from the darkest of circumstances. Also, diversity and complexity breeds mistrust naturally. So continue to train how to appreciate others, embody interdependence with God and His people across generations, cultures, and ethnicities, and practice sharing leadership.
Go with Jesus with others. Take a risk. Say "Yes and ... " instead of "But wait ... " and see what He invites you to create together.
"If you don't feel butterflies or nausea before you go about doing something for Jesus, you're most likely doing it wrong. Creativity brings surprise. And creativity that leads us to see a glimpse of the Creator unveils a wholly holy beauty. Be an artist who shows a more beautiful way. Do something so compelling it turns faces away from the mundaneness of selfishness and evil we too often settle for." + Brian Sanders, executive director of The Underground Network, author of Different, Underground Church (hear more from Brian about his work with others in Ireland on their podcast Mission Disco)
Christ is all,
Rev. Mike “Sully” Sullivan
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