steve

big summer

I just realised I haven't blogged for a while and it's been an amazing tine since I last posted. Had a great time a Greenbelt with loads of friends new and old to meet - I do love that festival .

Had some news that has kinda changed nearly everything - both me and Exeter Network Church have decided that my role with them wasn't working so I'm finishing next week - wow !! I was really trying to be super-man and initiating so many new things - nightchurch , ENC and my businessgenerous - which basically still wants to change the world.

So I'm free now to pursue this passion of a movement of businesses/entrepreneurs committed to the exponential distribution of ecoproducts and services with a whole load of personal / leadership and business development resources thrown in !! I'm really excited by the whole thing and am looking for partners etc... contact me if you fancy a new challenge and share this passion.

I am sad that me and ENC didn't work and hope to remain part of ENC for the near future as we see what NIGHTCHURCH will evolve into.. I love the guys and gals at ENC .

Had a great summer hols with kids and it's been packed with stuff ..

• 2 weeks on beach in cornwall
• camping under stars on dartmoor
• trout fishing - Natty caught 4 , rest of us zero
• dartmouth regatta and red arrows
• some real memories for the kids
• greenbelt and wedding in manchester of my cousin

Prayer

Been reading "red moon rising" after seeing one last night - a book about non-stop prayerand 24-7prayer movement. Feeling drawn towards a season / lifetime of prayer/fasting

Red Moon Rising

What a super sunday!

Very occasionally I have a day that is so full of God guiding my board on the surf, today was such a day.

Chatting randomly to one lady on a muddy walk about a great secular local charity I was meeting this week, "Oh," she said,"that's the one I'm the treasurer of" .!!! For you sceptics, the basic probability of that happening are maybe a few 100,000 to 1 - taking into account of local population.

I was then talking to another random friend about a prayer room started in Reading, "Oh," she said, "that would be the one I helped to start!" For you sceptics, the basic probability of that happening are again maybe a few 100,000 to 1.

Plus stories of creative miracles where, in Jesus name, bones grew instantly, stories told by trustworthy people who were there. For you sceptics, the basic probability of that happening are ..... not. What a great day. I'm shattered though. G'night.

Leadership: from mischa (aged 10) no help from me

1.A leader should never be bossy.The whole team should make decisions while the leader will mabye make suggestgions to improve on the ideas.This leads us onto the second piece of advice .

2. Professional leaders make the team feel safe and confident.Try to explain about your profession to your group to let them acknowledge your ability -they should soon feel confident about who and what they are working with.

3.If you are working with a company/business then ,it would be best to give your team time off.And if there is any big events then slowly prepare them ,mabye by doing a couple of small services/about us programs!

4.Be the glue.Once you have chosen to be the leader

526K WAV audio 1388K WAV audio

The best (free) stuff on movements » Steve Addison’s blog » World Changers

Link: The best (free) stuff on movements » Steve Addison’s blog » World Changers.

some great free books here for world changer type people

today

Got a staff meeting with ENC then some MORE sorting, how cool is that? Then tonight got my 4mation group which is 4 guys getting together and sharpening each other, setting goals for spiritual formation and other areas of our lives, then praying for each other. It's a very powerful process.

testting a new blog writer called ecto

testing a new blog writer called ecto using flikr and techorati.

Had a great evening with a guy called Daryl Fulls, he came and ranted to ENC Leadership about leadership, loving the whole church. Some great stuff, he chairs SWYM too, a great youth work initiative here in SW England.

St Marys Day 2 Refresh

Session 1

Had  a great morning so far, been listening to Debbie from Trent Vineyard. She was so great about God's power and how we need it, she wasn't triumphalistic like some ( all the good stories but not bad stuff ) she shared about some great miraculous stuff but also things that didn't work. I find that so refreshing.

A real encouragement to "do the stuff" - to keep praying for folks, to listen to the Spirit, to pray for healing, to ask God for supernatural knowledge about people, to see people freed from stuff that holds them back. What a great calling, to do all that stuff. There is nothing better to spend my life doing. I'm so sorry when I'm happy with a powerless Christianity.

Had a great chat with Liz, part of enc leadership, she has just finished a PhD in postmodern related type stuff.   

Session2

David Parker, I love this really relaxed, chilled out californian/SW England charismatic spirituality. 

the sun has set on my old role

Here is a photo of my new desk complete with ancient/future candle/laptop thing - it's great and I'm loving it, although it's not actually hanging off the wall at such an obtuse angle. New things all start up tomorrow !!!!

starting a cool role with Exeter Network Church planting "Kingdom things" and expressions of church among young families.

starting coaching, training, speaking and lecturing business focused around leadership development especially.

Working for Diocese 2 days a week until Christmas advising on Youth Work.

It really is something I've been dreaming about for ages and now the challenge of dream into reality, not an easy task for this old dreamer but important for me to make that transition, spouting stuff on the web and through lectures/training sessions is one thing, developing a vibrant church is another, asking people to pay me to do the things I enjoy most (training/coaching) is another too. I'll be blogging a lot more in the future, this blog will provide a necessary outlet I feel - "confessions of a church planting addict" - I can see the book now!

Preach Over

Great beer with Jon Soper of Exeter Network Church, we talked about everything including a fusion of emerging church concepts with the best of the charismatic/evangelical scene. That really turned me on because so often as one movement is coming out of another it "over-reacts " to it's mother. It was like that when I left home at 18, big time reaction and it wasn't until I hit 25 -30 that the relationship with my parents hit an equilibrium - a wise place. Church, please learn this lesson of over-reaction and polarisation and hit the equilibrium much, much earlier.

Preach over

simple church live

the web site for expressions of simple organic church in the UK is now live, visit at www.simplechurch.co.uk .

church planting dreams

Several people have asked me recently what has happened to my church planting dreams, I've gone a bit quiet apparently.  For nearly 14 years now I have seen my life as one big church planting trip, I've led one church planting initiative and been involved in planting two other congregations as well as various advisory roles to other church planters. Underneath I've burned  and wanted to step out and initiate something fresh, to lead a church plant. But so much of my thinking around the questions... what is church, what is family, what is evangelism and mission, what is spiritual formation, what is community, what is learning, what is worship, ultimately what is church planting... just little questions really... no seriously I have struggled in sweat, tears and sleepless nights.