North Fresno Church Blog

Welcome to NFC's blog

Our goal with this blog is to provide resources on the missional church, interact with congregants, invite comments, answer questions, etc. Please join in the conversation with the church staff and leaders by leaving comments or questions. We hope this blog will be an open forum for discussion, not just a one-way dissemination of information.

What lies below are what we consider the most essential resources for our journey as a congregation, a kind of Missional Church 101. Read posts, scan articles and selected chapters, and watch videos. All of these are outstanding resources for entering the conversation.

If you want more information about what is specifically happening at NFC, you can dig deeper by clicking on any one of the categories up there on the right. We'll keep adding content as we journey further down our road together.

NFC is a church of brothers and sisters desperate to hear the voice of God through listening to each other. This is just one church's journey. We invite you to travel with us....

Philip would like your input...

On Sunday, November 11, Philip (AKA Loren's twin brother) made a guest appearance for the sermon time. He traveled all the way from first century Palestine to be with us! Philip told us of his "chance" meeting with the Ethiopian eunuch. He related how the Spirit had led him into a very natural conversation with this important Ethiopian official. He didn't use tracts or normal evangelistic strategies, and he didn't even invite the Ethiopian to church. Instead, he asked a simple question, "Do you understand...?"

Philip showed us that asking questions and then genuinely listening for answers might be the most effective witnessing tool ever (and the simplest!). He challenged us to think of ways that we could simply and naturally enter into ordinary conversations with people around us.

How have you been led by the Spirit to people you work with, study with or play with? Has God used a conversation (or an occasion to listen) to help someone understand who he is? What are the everyday situations that God is challenging you to share his love in and through?

Leave a comment and share your success and frustrations with the rest of the family at NFC.

Who might be "overlooked" at NFC?

On Sunday morning, October 28, we focused on Acts 6:1-7 as part of our journey through Acts. In this passage, some widows were being overlooked and the community drew attention to it and addressed the issue. The result was increased effectiveness in ministry.

In Sunday's worship services, we started conversation on who might be "overlooked" in our context. Some ideas were to start a women's recovery group (we have a men's group already meeting); network people's needs with skills of individuals in the church - perhaps on the web?; making meals or visiting those in need during surgery or older individuals who can't attend church because they are confined to their home. There were other ideas too.

Thinking specifically of NFC and/or the areas God might be calling us to serve, who might be "overlooked" in our midst and what can we do about it? Please leave your thoughts and comments....

From Pastor James: the Newbigin Gauntlet

"The Newbigin Gauntlet: Developing a Domestic Missiology for North America" by George Hunsberger, (from The Church Between Gospel and Culture, Eerdmans, 1996) was a primary source for our conversation this past Sunday, September 30. The whole chapter is a worthwhile read. If you are specifically looking for message outline answers to "Telling the Gospel" and "Paying Attention" you can jump to the excerpt of the chapter below (pages 22-25).

I was going to weave in some other thoughts, but did not have the time. The article contains some primary material that I had intended to reflect on. I really like the image or model of the 'docent' (see p. 23). Docents are volunteers at museums and zoos that are trained to mix among the crowds and be available to explain the various animal behaviors and habitats, providing interpretations of the worlds represented in the exhibits. I think we as the church are called to do the same by being available to provide an interpretation of the worlds in which we find ourselves.

Chapter excerpt, pages 22-25

Full Chapter (4 mb)

From Pastor James: the gospel and culture

On Sunday, September 30, our conversation continued in Acts. In the sermon we considered our context and what it is like to "preach" or be a witness of the gospel in our culture. I mentioned the story of Lesslie Newbigin; you can read more about him here and here. We also discussed his diagram, the "Newbigin Gauntlet", with this relationship of gospel, church, and culture.

I am interested in your response to the diagram and this whole notion of church interacting with gospel and culture. The diagram is pictured below. What does it or would it look like for us to be faithful to the gospel? And what does it or should it look like for us to be contextual to our culture here in Fresno, CA, USA? How do we balance the tension between these two? I invite your responses and conversation on this. I am interested in listening to what you have to say.