Welcome to another Thursday UNFILTERED blog post, the only blog that doesn’t like animal crackers, because animal crackers make people think that all animals taste the same.
I’m genuinely grateful to every one of you who picked up my new book on unlocking the New Testament. People keep writing to tell me it’s completely transformed how they read the Bible. Which is exactly what I was going for. When the “Christ is All” and “The Insurgence Podcast” fire back up in early September, you’ll be getting fresh interviews and new conference messages that ADD to what’s in the book. No fluff, no repetition. Stay alert for it. Also, some of you asked questions about the book which now appear on the Q & A section of the book landing page HERE. It includes how to get bulk copies at a discount with all the interviews we’ve dropped so far on the subject.
Sadly, the world often blazes past the Christian community, leaving it to cough up dust.
Eventually, the Christian community plays catch up.
It’s been this way with creativity. With music. With movies. And with other forms of art.
But the big dinosaur in the room right now is the economy.
“Well Frank, it’s about time you shared your opinion about our President’s plan to fix the US economy.”
Hold your fire: I don’t mean the financial economy. I mean the connection economy.
The connection economy is an arena where the church — the body of Christ — should be leading. But it’s not. The world has blown past it.
In the connection economy, building connections with like-minded people is valued higher than acquiring “stuff.”
For instance, suppose I handed you $1,000 to spend on whatever you wanted.
Your mind may default to a new refrigerator. Or that 4K TV you’ve been eyeing at Best Buy. Or a new set of golf clubs. Or those rare coins for your coin collection.
Or perhaps you’ve been hypnotized by William Devane and you’re going to invest in gold. Or maybe you’re thinking about purchasing [fill in the blank].
By contrast, many non-Christians would rather spend that $1,000 on an event specifically designed to build high-quality connections with people who are like-minded. Why?
Because they value building new relationships more than buying “stuff.”
I’m depressed to say that I find this priority of “connection over stuff” more common in non-Christians than I do in God’s people.
Very few Christians breathe this rarefied air.
Including spiritual leaders.
Sure, they may talk about it being a priority. But when it comes down to the two most important indicators of the human heart — your checkbook and your calendar (that being interpreted means, your money and your time) — it quickly drops to the bottom of the list.
The body of Christ should be leading in this arena for three reasons:
* The New Testament puts a far higher premium on relationships, fellowship, and connection with other believers than it does “stuff.” (Materialism is alive and well in the West today.)
* Serious Jesus-followers, more than any other people group, crave connection with other Jesus-followers.
* Christians are the loneliest people in the world. This is especially true for those in ministry. Like entrepreneurs, those who serve the Lord fight loneliness on a regular basis.
This brings me to the subject at hand.
Mastermind Groups – What Are They?
Based on the conversations I’ve had with many Christians, a large segment of the believing community has no idea what a mastermind group is.
People debate who invented the first mastermind group. Ben Franklin had one; C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien also had their own version of one.
But as far as I’m concerned, the New Testament gives us the essential ingredients for a mastermind group.
A mastermind group is simply a meeting of highly-motivated individuals who share a common goal and are looking to encourage, sharpen, challenge, strengthen, and help each other improve in business, life, ministry, spirituality, or some other shared interest.
Since 2015, I’ve created mastermind groups for those who are engaged in ministry. That would be pastors, teachers, missionaries, church planters, seminary professors, chaplains, Bible college teachers, etc.
Those masterminds included women, men, and people of all races.
A mastermind is not a cohort. It’s less time-consuming, less expensive, and far more spiritually robust.
It’s not a conference, seminar, retreat, “master class” (or class). It’s neither a “cohort” or even a “pastors network meeting” or “pastoral fraternal.”
I say this because most Christian leaders don’t have a clue as to what a mastermind is, so they have to filter it through something they’re already familiar with. Like a cohort. (Clears throat.)
At the top of each new year, I’ll be hosting a new Insurgence Experience (IXP) mastermind. It’s tailor made for those who preach and/or teach regularly. But we open registration in August and September.
Consequently, if you are in ministry, you can check it out and APPLY HERE. (It takes two whole minutes. Don’t wait lest you forget it. If you’re NOT in ministry, pass the page on to someone who is, like a pastor or Bible teacher. But don’t forward this email. It will get you unsubscribed.)
Invitations to register with all the details are only sent to those who apply.
Even if you’re not a preacher, teacher, or pastor, you at least now know what a mastermind is … and that puts you ahead of everyone who thinks it’s what supervillains call their evil plans.
Until next Thursday.
Your brother,
fv
It Was for the Angels