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Finally it is out in German: The Shaping of Things to Come, German title "Die Zukunft gestalten". One of the most important groundbreaking books about the church of the 21st century, now available to German thinkers, theologians and pastors. Have a look at it, read it and give one away.
I got myself an Iphone in the US (plus two more to sell, shh, don`t tell:-). I am amazed at the Wow effect - these Apple people make you wonder "why has no one ever done it that way before?". Great gadget, and settin up the German version and activating went smoothly and perfectly at one click in 5 minutes - thanks ZiPhone. I will test both the Iphone and PocketPC platforms parallel for some time.
I am sitting in the comfortable Delta lounge in Atlanta airport with my colleague David Toth, flying back from a team meeting in Colorado Springs. Great thing: I could stay a week with my friends, Gordon and Cherise Selley, one more time - and we enjoyed each other like always. And I enjoyed driving around in Colorado Springs - see the Pikes Peak here.
We spent 2 days with the leadership of OC - that is the ministry where DAWN grew out of. Good folks, some great missiologists there. Then 2 days as a team - trying to figure out in what way the DAWN vision will continue to exist in the future. Result: open for any structure, although still hoping to raise funds to continue some kind of US-based organization.
I am glad to be able to work part-time for my living and do the DAWN work besides that. Feel very much at peace right now - dont try to influence too much, let the Lord do his work.
I bought a couple of Iphones - good deal now with the Dollar lower than the Swiss Frank (first time in history!!). One of them I will use for myself - first time I gave in to s new gadget for years :-)
gotta fly out now.
Today, in our monthly House Church celebration, we had Roger and Ursula Langel from the YWAM base in Einigen with us. They told us about the celtic way they are living as a community in this wonderful place up there. They practice many of the qualities of the Kingdom that so many folks are looking for: a holistic communal life with men, women, animals, and nature, as well as a lifestyle under a healthy rhythm of prayer, with a great hospitality. Our House church appreciated very much to get to know them, and we will surely hold one of our next celebrations up there.
This was a very satisfying week. Besides much reading, I met several people, listened and talked - very rewarding times. I am reading "A heart to listen" - talking how important listening really is. So many people do not know the experience of someone really listening to them. We have one mouth and two ears.
Its 5.30, its getting dark outside. I am sitting in our almost dark living room with a glass of wine and listen to Johnny Cash's last record "America V". What a beauty. (For you Germans, here is the link that pointed me to this CD). What an authentic testimony.
The week is coming to an end. I feel enriched by talking and meeting several great and interesting folks. In my new job, God seems to open one new door after the other.
One of the interesting friends is Oli - take a minute to get to his blog (in German, again).
We cannot determine how old we get but how we get old. I started a 20% job at a large health hotel-clinic, organizing seminars in the health/fitness/tourism branch. Suddenly I find myself working with highly intelligent young business professionals - a challenge for my mature brain that has shrunk by x % since I was 20. I love it. I am amazed how visionary people are for temporary goals - and how efficient they work, compared to many Christian meetings and conferences I have attended.
Besides that, I still lead the European DAWN team, work on my doctoral thesis on Missional Church and lead a new Swiss team that works towards a Church Research Institute Switzerland.
Finished reading "Church after Christianity" by Stuart Murray today. Again a fascinating lecture. I appreciate Stuart`s intelligence, hidden "British" radicality and practicability every time. His main thesis: The post-Christian shift goes even deeper than the postmodern one - after all, we had "only" 3-5 centuries of modernity, but 1700 years of Christendom.
Interestingly, Stuart organized types of church the same way I did it in a recent article: Up (worship oriented), in (community /fellowship oriented) and out (mission/society oriented) churches. I think this is helpful, although all churches have elements of all three, but in different priorities.
What I have also felt for some time and understood better through Stuart's book: Church cannot only exist in "going out". There is a tendency to radically cut down worship and fellowship in order to get Christians out into society in many writings today. Stuart rightly states that missional orientation does not call for an abolishment, but of a re-grouping of worship and fellowship in church. There cannot only be an "out there", there must also be an "in here". Murray writes: "The biblical story involves a distinctive community within creation (Israel among the nations; churches scattered throughout the world), modelling an alternative vision any living by different values. If members of this community are to remain distinctive in an alien environment, they need to be gathered as well as dispersed. Community-building practices and processes are essential." And, even more clearly:
"Without a community, that (however imperfectly) models counter-cultural values and alternative practices, social reformers lack integrity. Without a healthy community to which people can belong before believing, evangelists lack credibility. Without an attractive community that recruits, nurtures and envisions people, community activists lack volunteers. Without a worshipping community that sustains faith and hope, many people will lose heart" (p. 225)
Now this is the first time that I seriously consider denying my computer denomination-of-22-years and to move into the other camp, see http://www.apple.com/de/macbookair/guidedtour/ 
Sir Winston Ch. was right after all. Trying to do cross-country skiing today, I fell nastily, crossing a hill, and those ski took my legs where I never thought they could go. Badly sprained my right leg and that big muscle - finito sports for the rest of the week. Can hardly walk - so back to non-threatening, non-physical activities like writing blogs, reading books and working down that long list of e-mails.
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