one coin - two sides

thetribe embarked on lesson one last night.
we had EIGHT men.
we broke down the first side of the coin. it is GRACE.
we explored grace in the story between esau and jacob (gen 33:10)
we defined it as "Favorable attitude"



we acknowledge fully that God's grace is a "gift" (Eph 2:8), and that it cannot be earned. But we also note that there is one proviso: the gift of God is "through faith", so you have to give something in return: you have to give your faith.




Grace can be defined as "a favorable attitude" shown by a superior to an inferior. This is the primary meaning of grace in the bible, both in the old and the new testaments.

QUIZ: How many times did Jesus use the word Grace and how many times did Paul?
Answer: paul 97 - Jesus 0 (thats right, zero)
now Jesus did use the greek CHARIS in luke 6:32, but it is not translated GRACE.

we also went around the room in discussion :Primarily asking how each man wants to be approached if he DECIDES TO DROP OFF THE RADAR.
this is very helpful, especially since this allows to best get him back in thetribe.

a CHALLENGE
went out to give a FAVORABLE ATTITUDE to one who did not deserve it. preferrably one who is our enemy or at least one who we do NOT get along with.

SHOW ME YOUR FEET and I'LL SHOW YOU YOUR FAITH

If we're gonna move towards GOD.
we must be clean of heart.
we must be clean in our thoughts.
we must be vulnerable and available for others to INSPECT our motives.

If we're gonna claim we are following JESUS, well then our feet should
be pointed in THE SAME DIRECTION.

in fact, if we're gonna claim to WALK WITH JESUS, well then friend,

YOU'D BETTER BUMP INTO SATAN.

Dunamis is within us.

This past monday we met.
we had a new visitor.
we had our regulars. in fact we had 15 men.
this is a new tribal high!!!
praise THEONE.

We spoke about timothy and paul's relationship.
timothy came from some heavy hitters ... his grandma and momma built into him.
then paul came along side and helped developed young timothy.
THATS WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO IN theSHACK.

We read from 2 timothy 1:5-7

focusing on the concept that we weren't given a spirit of fear, but of POWER.
THE WORD POWER comes from the GREEK, DUNAMIS = from which we get the word DYNA
hence DYNAMITE.

men , we have been given DYNAMITE type POWER. the HOLY SPIRIT dwells within us. HE is the POWER.
its time, way past time, it is time our families XPERIENCED this POWER in our homes.
men, we need to UNLEASH the Power.

BEARTRAPS and GARDENS

galatians 6:1 says

Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted.

Samwise proposed being caught in a sin is much like being trapped in a BEAR TRAP.

YA KNOW, STUCK, HURT, BLEEDING, BROKEN, and unable to get away ... without help.

what are you gonna do when you don't have someone to help you???

We went around the room answering the question: ARE YOU A GOOD COMMUNICATOR?

frodo said, "huh?"

placido said," let me call my wife..."

the consensus was NO. The point here is if we are going to relate , then we need to be able to both listen and then to relay what GOD has called us to do and say.

The idea of the bear trap is based on the fact that so many men find themselves broken and trapped. the last thing they need is someone to point a FINGER. the following verses in galatians 6 tell us to RESTORE him gently. the NCV says GENTLY AND HUMBLY.

The Meaning behind the word, GENTLY, is much like a DOCTOR SETTING A BROKEN BONE or REPAIRING A DISLOCATED LIMB. If we are gonna help men, who are overtaken by sin, if we are gonna help them STOP, RECOVER, and finally REPENT, then We need to do it in such a way that accomplishes these three.

Its NOT enough to reaffirm their sin. It does little good to tell them how to GET OUT OF THE BEAR TRAP, if we don't help them. WE MUST BE AGENTS OF PEACE.

We discussed how the church, overall as an institution, HAS FAILED TO DO THIS. in short, its up to us, to be spiritual FIRST, and rescue agents SECOND. lets be the ones to help our bruthers who are CAUGHT IN THE BEARTRAP.

we DON'T COME OUT OF THE BEAR TRAP THE SAME WAY WE WENT IN.

The only way we can be SPIRITUAL is because we have the HOLY SPIRIT. we are NOT better than the one trapped in sin, but we are not in that sin, and we, ourselves , are not stuck in the same bear trap. it is inconcievable that we could help another bruther if we are dealing with our own TRAP.

If we aren't careful, we too will fall into temptation.

Galatians 6: 7-9 , what we plant is what we will GROW. Our garden will look like WHATEVER we put in it. Time, oh boy, this will determine the appearance of the GARDEN.

the type of things we PLANT, will always show up in its due season.

Samwise mentioned that we need to PUT JESUS IN, SO THAT WE GET JESUS OUT.

very similar to the concept of GARBAGE IN, GARBAGE OUT.

The GARDEN is where WE develop SPIRITUAL FRUIT or where we grow SPIRITUAL DEFEAT.

Immoral Woman & the Path

Proverbs chapter 2

verses 14-22 paint a vivid image of how easily we can lose our way.

Boromir, with his father, richard in the group, opened up a dialogue. He shared that we ARE supposed to be on the path, but more importantly, WE MUST STAY ON THE PATH.

so often we lose focus, we look away, or we find ourselves entertaining the immoral woman who only wants to DESTROY us.

the scripture says join good company on the path and we will find our way to life.

however, if we CHOOSE to listen to the flattery of the immoral woman, OR any voice besides JESUS, then we will LOSE OUR LIVES FOR GOOD.

Samwise asked the question to the other 10 men in theSHACK, he asked if they knew GOD'S VOICE.

simple question, however, less than half indicated that they knew HIS voice.

this led to more discussion centering on the scripture in JOHN chapter 10, where JESUS said HIS sheep knew HIS voice.

So how does discipleship fit into the whole path idea.

well i'm glad you asked ...

First, a disciple is one who has learned what the discipler knows. He has collected and retained the raw data. In most schools, the process stops here. Students are tested for what they remember. Regurgitating facts and figures may be all it takes to secure a good grade.

But for our purposes, the process is incomplete. Information is not enough; Men, performance is essential. Discipleship is not simply a matter of how much you know. It is vitally CONNECTED with how much you can do.

And if the mechanism of discipleship does not move us from information to execution, the process has failed.

Consider the surgeon. He spends years in school learning about all the parts of the body and how they work. He learns what to cut, when to cut it, and how to put it back together after cutting it. But if a medical student proposes to perform surgery on you or a loved one, some further discussion is definitely in order, RIGHT?

Regardless of his grades, he's not ready to be turned loose on LIVING people who want to stay that way. He needs hands- on, supervised training. That's the purpose for a lengthy internship.

It's the seasoning that turns raw information into professional expertise. For thetribe's purposes, discipleship is a spiritual internship.

Specifically defined, it is the process of spiritual development which occurs within an environment of loving accountability, whereby the believer progressively moves from spiritual infancy to spiritual maturity, ultimately repeating the process with others. It doesn't end with one passing it on to one more guy. We must multiply.

I hope the above paragraphs help explain why discipleship is more than a path, but rather a way of living. Why our core purpose is to DISCIPLE.

by the way,

We had two new visitors!!!

So friend, let me ask ya, do you even know what the path is all about?

ANGER (period)

A N G E R bites, right? Kinda feels like someone is holding you down, and no matter what you do, YOU CAN'T GET UP.

We have all been HIJACKED by this enemy of relationships.

We have all lost it at least once. for some of us, we lose it once a day.

Galatians 5: 9-26

we went up and down these passages last night.

we find that paul warned us not to use our FREEDOM as an EXCUSE to INDULGE in the sinful nature.

Man, do you find you do this ... still? Do you go thru the yo-yo cycle of SIN-FEEL BAD-ASK GOD TO FORGIVE-REPENT-

SIN again-FEEL SOMEWHAT BAD-REPENT somewhat-

SIN more and more-FEEL nothing-forget TO REPENT ...

ever been here, Bruther?

We must walk in the SPIRIT, how can i break this down, let's see ... how about this, we need to walk on a path that is narrow, has specific boundaries, and is in step where JESUS walks.

in short, to walk in the SPIRIT, is to be controlled by the SPIRIT, verses 19-21 clearly lay out how we used to live, how we used to PRACTICE LIVING. now we must , as verse 25 says, WE MUST KEEP IN STEP WITH THE SPIRIT.

bruthers, we can't let ANGER have it's place in our mind, in our hearts, or on our tongue. we must DEAL PROPERLY with the hurt that so often causes our ANGER. tonight, we listened to how each guy had his goal or dream hijacked by ANGER. It was humbling and very SAD. the cycle must stop.

please post your comments.

HOW IS GOD USING YOU?

Steve, aka gandalf the grey, led tonight's Xperience.

he spoke about how a little leaven can JACK up the whole THING. He introduced an incredible question, " what church belief have you encountered that doesn't LINE UP with what JESUS taught?"

As we went around the circle, men listed several examples:

from you can't have tattoos, you can't use tobacco, you have to close your eyes when you pray, you have to dress up to go to church, you have to speak in tongues in order to prove that you are saved. we also heard there is a belief that if you are NOT affiliated with a certain church, well then you are NOT going to heaven.

funny how easily we can grow up with the above beliefs and not even bother to ask, DID JESUS REALLY TEACH THIS, OR DOES THE BIBLE SUPPORT THE ABOVE?

Where is God using you?

samwise spoke up for paul, since paul exercised his right to say nothing. btw, our guests have the freedom to come Xperience and say nada. anyhow, paul was praised for his integrity when it comes to doing his job. Paul may not say much, but his quite way of doing his job, speaks loud and clear.

Others spoke up about how God , the GREAT GOD is moving them to step up for the kingdom.

Do you like who you are?

the question was asked... yet each man was told not to answer out loud. but to rather go home and dwell on the answer. then to determine what they would do about it, IF they didn't like who they are.

STUCK IN A RUT???

The Dip: A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit (and When to Stick)

by Seth Godin.

The DIP concept has been taught by several churches.

Frodo heard this via podcasts.

He had the men open up to JEREMIAH 29:11 - from here the men began

to unpack and unfold how they have fallen in the DIP.

The takehome was this --each man needs to examine where he's at and make the adjustments necessary to get to where GOD wants him to be.

The problem with most of us, is we're not QUITE SURE we know where GOD WANTS US.

THIS was frodo's third consecutive night to lead thetribe in theSHACK. (just in case you are not familiar with thetribe or even theSHACK- allow me to put some skin on this...

thetribe - defined as - the name we ordinary bunch of guys call ourselves

theSHACK - defined as - the name for the room we meet in on mondays at 7pm.

the Dip is the point where just as we were on track to the place that GOD wanted us to be, we lost sight of GOD and His promise. Now we find we're stuck in a rut, with no sight of GOD. we face our own crisis of belief. we wonder if GOD is still there.

It's Not always ENOUGH to be just broken

Ya know that old saying, you sound like a broken record, right?

The bottom line is when we repeat the same lyrics over and over, we don't get to hear the rest of the song.

in livinglifetogether, we too experience such frustrations. those closest in our small civilizations(the family unit) ,

TIRE of hearing i'll CHANGE, i PROMISE, or a combo, i PROMISE i'll CHANGE. They really want to know if there is a different verse, a different stanza in our song.

men, we must either break the record and play a new song altogether, or we must remove the debris on the record LP that is actually causing it to skip.

tonight a couple of men, opened up deep, painful wounds. each shared their real need of dependance on CHRIST. now, its up to each man, to remove the debris in their life, so that the LIFESONG, Jesus placed in their heart may play, and thier small civilizations can reunite in harmony.

as a tribe, we layed hands on one bruther. keep prayin men, for we are sworn to each other's journey.

Compromise & Circumcision

Frodo led tonights discussion as well as teaching from ...

c'mon, ya know, GALATIANS chapter 5, verses 2-7.

We had 11 men and 12 in tribalkids.

So often I CrossOutMyPROMISE. I tend to change up

the promise i just made. I rewrite my vows or just fudge on the details.

We can't fix what's broken with CHRIST. Nor can we allow the HOLY SPIRIT to do HIS reconstruction if we don't acknowledge that we crossed over to THE WRONG SIDE of Obedience.