SS: That sounds like what the church has been
saying for years. How is this different?
LM: There are really two things to consider – theology and what I call ‘the practicalities’, or the ‘walking
out what we believe’. Theologically, few argue with
the concept of grace, but in the practicalities is where
it gets messy. We always say it like this: religion says,
“First you have to behave, then you have to believe,
and we’ll think about letting you belong.” But that’s
upside down. The gospel message is different. It says,
“First you belong because you are a child of God, we
hope you come to believe because it will change your
life, and we’ll worry about you behaving later because
we trust the grace of God to teach you.”
SS: You’re against ‘religion’, then, but not in a rebellious way. Can you clarify?
LM: There’s a difference between a rebel and a revolutionary. Rebels are known for what they’re against.
Revolutionaries are known for what they’re for. There
are some out there touting an anti-establishment
form of grace – but that’s not us. I love the church,
organization, structure… these are all tools for effectively sharing the message and methods through
which we can meaningfully partner with one another.
SS: So, then, what does partnership look like for
you?
LM: The short answer? Get to know each other,
build a level of trust, and see if you have the same
hearts. Organizationally, there are dozens of ways
to connect with the Oasis Network, but if we are
talking church planters or pastors, then we send them
through an assessment process, a battery of diagnostics and tests; we see what their ministry experience
is, what they’re preparedness is for church planting
in general, and we get their personality profiles. Then
after all of that – we hang out – do life together.
SS: The hope is that it’s a good fit, but it probably
isn’t, always?
LM: It depends upon what people are looking for.
Of course, there are plenty of inquiries that don’t
materialize into a new church, but if people are really
looking for real relationship – the majority of time,
these people are a fit.
SS: How do people usually find you – find the
Oasis Network?
LM: Typically when people come to us – when they
find the Oasis Network – almost every single person
starts describing where they’re at and what they’re
doing. Nine times out of ten it’s the ‘prophet in a cave’
story. They are isolated, all alone, and there’s no one
else teaching the message anywhere near them. Most
people’s fear is that they are the only one left. That’s
the beauty of what happens when people find our network. It’s exciting to know that there are a lot of other
people out there like you. You’re not alone! There’s an
association of people ready to embrace, support, and
walk with you. We know we can do this better together than we ever could on our own.
SS: That level of trust is a pretty big deal, and it’s
not easy for everyone…am I right?
LM: That’s true. People are often in fear of banding
together, unfortunately. They’ve been hurt too many
times in the past. As people come to the message of
Grace, one of the obstacles is what we have dubbed,
‘Post-Traumatic Church Disorder’. They’ve been
burnt out or beat up by the church, so anytime relationship or connectivity is presented to them, their
fear is that, ‘I’m just going to get hurt again’. The fact
is, they probably will because people are people. But,
within that is love. There’s always a risk with love and
trust, but real relationship is about pushing through.
What you have at the end isn’t conflict-free, but a
level of synergy that you know even difficult conflict
can’t separate. We’re headed in the same direction
regardless of the ups and downs we experience along
the way. As I mentioned before, the call or message
we’re trying to send out is that we are so much better
off together than by ourselves, and what you’re doing
on a local level can be enhanced by linking arms with
people around you to take it all the way to a global
platform. It’s refreshing for us to hear that there is a
‘we’ in a much greater sense. Not just one person, not
just a church, but an entire network.
It’s refreshing for us to hear that
there is a ‘we’ in a much greater
sense. Not just one person, not just a
church, but an entire network.
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