The Transformational Church
All Consuming Fire has been developed in the context of the local church: in classroom settings of women, men and women, small groups, and one-to-one soul care relationships. We are hearing stories of change, of the impact of the Holy Spirit on willing hearts, of steady transformation.
As the church, desiring transformation, we have several challenges:
- How do we help people know and experience the Triune God, moving their knowledge of Him to life-changing relationships with Him?
How do we help people who are on the wide road of comfortable Christianity (which is knowledge-based without significant life change) to understand that the narrow road of uncomfortable realities of suffering, sin, brokenness, and repentance lead to real life transformation?- How do we personally enter the life of ministry knowing that relationships can be messy, unpredictable, and discouraging, yet at the same time, grand, glorious, and full of the sweet aroma of Christ?
- How do we give pleasure and glory to the Father in the relationships He has given us to enjoy and in the ministries He has entrusted to us?
- How do we know if our efforts are true Spiritual Formation as evidenced by life transformation?
All Consuming Fire provides a context in which spiritual concepts are brought to light, and discussed within safe communities. It has been specifically designed to ask the tough questions, to surface the inner motives of the heart, and to challenge the superficial attitudes that all of us encounter. It is intended to encourage your church to experience significant life change, one person at a time, by engaging life–with-life for the purpose of transformation.
How will we know we are a transformational community?
- We will hear stories of brokenness over sin. We will see people repent and walk away from or destroy their idols, confront their fears, and jump off of the precipice of control into the safe arms of an uncontrollable God!
- We will watch people, who were spiritually dead, gain new life in Christ, and those, who were complacent or numb in their relationship with God, come alive!
- We will watch broken marriages healed, and interpersonal relationships restored.
- We will see people investing in the lives of others at great personal sacrifice, motivated by selfless love. We will experience the movement of the Holy Spirit; we will see transformation take place, and we will fall on our knees and worship!