Rooted in the Compassion of Christ

(Excerpt taken from Introduction. Will be sent separately with other front matter.) This book was born out of a passion for God's perfect plan that His church be the change agent of Christ in each generation. . . . The JOHN1512 ministry model began with a handful of people who identified a need and prayed together around a table in the church basement, bringing mustard seeds of faith and ultimately watching God answer and grow this gift into a strong, nurturing tree that made a difference in our corner of the world. Built on scripture, Christ's own words in John 15, a pattern emerged for involving members in the exciting experience of discovering simple ways to live loved – growing in our identity as "First Commandments" keepers and loving people to Jesus through compassion in action. Along the way, we heard from other churches searching as well for a practical compassion ministry design to help members thrive as they grabbed hold of the desire to love God and love others. And who wants to reinvent the wheel if they don't have to? For those who may be searching for such a tool, we have been praying for you with great anticipation. This book is for Christ followers who long to re-energize or build or belong to thriving churches, families of God who nurture one another with the love of Christ and then transfer this love to their neighbors, responding to the call of His heart in John 15:12 and relying on His strength and guidance. We recognize that endless ideas vie for your attention, and yes, this is one more. But if you're looking for a fresh blueprint for involving your members with eyes fixed on Jesus and hands extended to love like His, I hope you'll keep reading. JOHN1512 is a compassion ministry model for churches, adaptable and useful for churches of all sizes and demographics. Our dual purpose is to nurture, disciple, and connect members within the church family and to serve the surrounding community by glorifying Jesus as we share the love we have received from Him. In our generation, straightforward, purposeful ministry tools are crucial for energizing or reenergizing churches who want to be known as people who actively follow the compassionate Christ and who love collectively and practically, as demonstrated by Jesus himself, so that a visible impact is seen and experienced. The JOHN1512 model is one approach to meeting this need. In our western culture, where there are signs that the church is losing ground, we who recognize the value of God’s long view and Christ's plan for His disciples must fight to see His church flourish in the here and now. This involves not only membership gains and global outreach but an increased passion and commitment among current members. Jesus' rallying cry was "Follow me" as keepers of the first commandments, which He came to model among us. Love the Father with all that you are. Love each other as you do yourselves. Make a difference right where you live and then throughout His world. Though there are surely many answers to such a "reflourishing," we have seen that developing a systematic church culture of compassion results in transformative relationships with the Lover of our souls and the desire and intentionality to give that love away!