Melvin Lehman's guest appearances

Melvin Lehman

Bethel Mennonite Church - Gladys VA

podcast – The Dock for Learning

Ben Miller

John Waldron

Nathan Good

Josh Good

Leon Yoder

Gabriel Yoder

Jeff Yoder

Delvin Yoder

Ricky Bowman

Galen Yoder

Freeman Miller

Milo Zehr

Steve Yoder

Eric Oberholzer

Duane Nisly

OwlTail

We’re talking about creating culture, not reacting to it. Continuing on from where we stopped in session 3. Values lead to …Passion. Passionate people are the people with impact. Passionate salesmen sell things. You cannot manufacture passion. It must come from core values. First, we must be saved. Then we are to build on that with personal sanctification “Unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ”. This is the goal… discipleship. It is on this basis that we create Christian culture THROUGH the Church community. The Kingdom of God— Jesus reigns… This can’t happen backwards. Not that culture cannot be a help and witness to the unsaved, but it must begin with an experience of salvation. CROSSING THE BRIDGE: After the idealism is over, you can almost always get people to agree with the ideals. On one side of the bridge are ideals (which are typically not the problem); On the other side of the bridge are habits of life. I have never heard someone say “I’m praying too much”… I’ve heard often, “my prayer life is falling to pieces”. How do I get across the bridge to where my ideals are made into habits of life? Repentance! Obedience… or alignment. What are our habits? Social media/technology… the truth of the matter is that we are almost losing it. Often it is replacing our devotional life. “Put first things first” — Covey Our ideals have to translate into habits or else you lose them. Fathers need to put first things first to create a Christian culture in the home. Diversity… We need Identity and Belonging. To get here we need to submit to one another. Some specific things we’ve done seeking to build a Kingdom culture: (Culture: an array/mosaic of love-values)  Song- the ARTS; A very powerful creator of culture. Story- our HEROES; Worship- acts of corporate unity Education- defining the CURRICULUM Aesthetics- our definitions of BEAUTY Stewardship- our use of RESOURCES Tradition- our LITURGIES Boundaries- life DEFINITIONS Love and Belonging- for everybody  The post Build Culture – Some Specifics appeared first on Bethel Mennonite Church - Gladys VA.

We’re talking about creating culture, not reacting to it. Continuing on from where we stopped in session 3. Values lead to …Passion. Passionate people are the people with impact. Passionate salesmen sell things. You cannot manufacture passion. It must come from core values. First, we must be saved. Then we are to build on that with personal sanctification “Unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ”. This is the goal… discipleship. It is on this basis that we create Christian culture THROUGH the Church community. The Kingdom of God— Jesus reigns… This can’t happen backwards. Not that culture cannot be a help and witness to the unsaved, but it must begin with an experience of salvation. CROSSING THE BRIDGE: After the idealism is over, you can almost always get people to agree with the ideals. On one side of the bridge are ideals (which are typically not the problem); On the other side of the bridge are habits of life. I have never heard someone say “I’m praying too much”… I’ve heard often, “my prayer life is falling to pieces”. How do I get across the bridge to where my ideals are made into habits of life? Repentance! Obedience… or alignment. What are our habits? Social media/technology… the truth of the matter is that we are almost losing it. Often it is replacing our devotional life. “Put first things first” — Covey Our ideals have to translate into habits or else you lose them. Fathers need to put first things first to create a Christian culture in the home. Diversity… We need Identity and Belonging. To get here we need to submit to one another. Some specific things we’ve done seeking to build a Kingdom culture: (Culture: an array/mosaic of love-values) <ol> <li>Song- the ARTS; A very powerful creator of culture.</li> <li>Story- our HEROES;</li> <li>Worship- acts of corporate unity</li> <li>Education- defining the CURRICULUM</li> <li>Aesthetics- our definitions of BEAUTY</li> <li>Stewardship- our use of RESOURCES</li> <li>Tradition- our LITURGIES</li> <li>Boundaries- life DEFINITIONS</li> <li>Love and Belonging- for everybody</li> </ol> The post <a href="https://bmcgladys.com/build-culture-some-specifics/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Build Culture – Some Specifics</a> appeared first on <a href="https://bmcgladys.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Bethel Mennonite Church - Gladys VA</a>.

Build Culture - Some Specifics - Melvin Lehman

You cannot preach vision into people. There must be something behind it. Even if vision is present, to actually move it to reality does require some parts and bits and pieces. Behind VISION is VALUES. Culture-driven values Principle-driven values Hero-driven values (“You want to change the values of people? Change their heroes.”) Visions of the Church: Foreign Missions Education Children’s Ministry Publishing Prison Ministry Kingdom Business (Expect a plethora of visions in a congregation… that’s healthy. Be careful not to fight each other- none of us can do everything. Think about the values of your young people.) Before Vision is… Story; and… Observed Culture. Our stories shape the heroes in our minds. “Create culture, build a hero; Create a hero, build a culture.” Vision: I. Organization II. Management III.Interpersonal The post How to Build Culture appeared first on Bethel Mennonite Church - Gladys VA.

You cannot preach vision into people. There must be something behind it. Even if vision is present, to actually move it to reality does require some parts and bits and pieces. Behind VISION is VALUES. Culture-driven values Principle-driven values Hero-driven values (“You want to change the values of people? Change their heroes.”) Visions of the Church: Foreign Missions Education Children’s Ministry Publishing Prison Ministry Kingdom Business (Expect a plethora of visions in a congregation… that’s healthy. Be careful not to fight each other- none of us can do everything. Think about the values of your young people.) Before Vision is… Story; and… Observed Culture. Our stories shape the heroes in our minds. “Create culture, build a hero; Create a hero, build a culture.” Vision: I. Organization II. Management III.Interpersonal The post <a href="https://bmcgladys.com/how-to-build-culture/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">How to Build Culture</a> appeared first on <a href="https://bmcgladys.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Bethel Mennonite Church - Gladys VA</a>.

How to Build Culture - Melvin Lehman

21st century Christianity became so focused on personal salvation that the details of Christian culture was neglected. Billy Graham understood this himself and tried to emphasize the importance of discipleship. The story of Penicillin… Four words: Pathogen: A real problem… Sterilize or Inoculate (Matthew 13:1-9) What part of this story do we have the most control of? The soil! This is what I’m calling culture. These are the things we can work with. Cultural changes are slow. We often give up because it takes time and effort. Culture Layers:  General culture Popular Christian Culture My Local Church culture  How porous should the boundaries of these be? Often the outer line turns out to be “Who am I?” And, “Who are we?”… questions of identity. If there are no boundaries there is no culture. If you have no boundaries you don’t know who you are. NOTES ON CULTURE:  Identify core virtues/values of culture Danger… Blindness tends to occur if we don’t know what category we are in  Integration mode: Adapting to mainstream cultural practice Defensive mode: Idealizing local culture and ignoring faults and even fatal flaws Reactive mode: When I’m reacting to specifics ignoring strengths of core values Failure to recognize the roots/Relationships between specifics and core values Living Out Core Values: I Cor. 6:12/I Cor. 10:23  IS IT EXPEDIENT? DOES IT EDIFY? WILL IT ENSLAVE?  The post The Importance of Culture appeared first on Bethel Mennonite Church - Gladys VA.

21st century Christianity became so focused on personal salvation that the details of Christian culture was neglected. Billy Graham understood this himself and tried to emphasize the importance of discipleship. The story of Penicillin… Four words: Pathogen: A real problem… Sterilize or Inoculate (Matthew 13:1-9) What part of this story do we have the most control of? The soil! This is what I’m calling culture. These are the things we can work with. Cultural changes are slow. We often give up because it takes time and effort. Culture Layers: <ol> <li>General culture</li> <li>Popular Christian Culture</li> <li>My Local Church culture</li> </ol> How porous should the boundaries of these be? Often the outer line turns out to be “Who am I?” And, “Who are we?”… questions of identity. If there are no boundaries there is no culture. If you have no boundaries you don’t know who you are. NOTES ON CULTURE: <ol> <li>Identify core virtues/values of culture</li> <li>Danger… Blindness tends to occur if we don’t know what category we are in</li> </ol> Integration mode: Adapting to mainstream cultural practice Defensive mode: Idealizing local culture and ignoring faults and even fatal flaws Reactive mode: When I’m reacting to specifics ignoring strengths of core values Failure to recognize the roots/Relationships between specifics and core values Living Out Core Values: I Cor. 6:12/I Cor. 10:23 <ul> <li>IS IT EXPEDIENT?</li> <li>DOES IT EDIFY?</li> <li>WILL IT ENSLAVE?</li> </ul> The post <a href="https://bmcgladys.com/the-importance-of-culture/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Importance of Culture</a> appeared first on <a href="https://bmcgladys.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Bethel Mennonite Church - Gladys VA</a>.

The Importance of Culture - Melvin Lehman

The Kingdom of God and Creating a Culture We need to stop reacting to culture, and start creating one. We come to an understanding of truth in the brotherhood and community. We need to put issues out and address them. Doctrine and Practice Hebrews 5:11-6, I Corinthians 3:9 It matters a great deal how we build our Christian culture. How are we building on the foundation of Christ? The culture wars of the twentieth century are over. Christianity has lost… Mainstream Christians have lost their distinctiveness from pagan culture. The pagans have won… at least for now. How did this happen? Two contributing issues: Soteriology: what must we do to be saved? Ecclesiology: what is the church? Who is Jesus? What is the Church? Who belongs to it? Who says so? All this keys into the question of building a culture. How questions are answered form a culture. If we learn to ask questions and not answer them that creates a culture as well. Matthew 16:13-25 The key confession of all Christians must be this, that Jesus Christ is Lord of all and it must be publicly proclaimed. Can we make that confession when it counts? Jesus is Lord, and it does matter HOW we live. The only earthly organization that will transcend time and eternity is the Church. If we believe that then why should we be afraid to give anything for the Kingdom of God? Why shouldn’t we be excited about the Church? Jesus did confer authority on the Church. How this works is not so clear, but it is undeniable from Scripture. Never judge where your at as a person or group by a single event. How do they stack up? Are we learning from our mistakes? If the person knows you love them they can deal with you making mistakes. Building on the gospel foundation… be sure we are building on Christ. How are we building? The post Create a Culture appeared first on Bethel Mennonite Church - Gladys VA.

The Kingdom of God and Creating a Culture We need to stop reacting to culture, and start creating one. We come to an understanding of truth in the brotherhood and community. We need to put issues out and address them. <h2>Doctrine and Practice</h2> Hebrews 5:11-6, I Corinthians 3:9 It matters a great deal how we build our Christian culture. How are we building on the foundation of Christ? The culture wars of the twentieth century are over. Christianity has lost… Mainstream Christians have lost their distinctiveness from pagan culture. The pagans have won… at least for now. How did this happen? Two contributing issues: Soteriology: what must we do to be saved? Ecclesiology: what is the church? Who is Jesus? What is the Church? Who belongs to it? Who says so? All this keys into the question of building a culture. How questions are answered form a culture. If we learn to ask questions and not answer them that creates a culture as well. Matthew 16:13-25 The key confession of all Christians must be this, that Jesus Christ is Lord of all and it must be publicly proclaimed. Can we make that confession when it counts? Jesus is Lord, and it does matter HOW we live. The only earthly organization that will transcend time and eternity is the Church. If we believe that then why should we be afraid to give anything for the Kingdom of God? Why shouldn’t we be excited about the Church? Jesus did confer authority on the Church. How this works is not so clear, but it is undeniable from Scripture. Never judge where your at as a person or group by a single event. How do they stack up? Are we learning from our mistakes? If the person knows you love them they can deal with you making mistakes. Building on the gospel foundation… be sure we are building on Christ. How are we building? The post <a href="https://bmcgladys.com/create-a-culture/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Create a Culture</a> appeared first on <a href="https://bmcgladys.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Bethel Mennonite Church - Gladys VA</a>.