Missional Map-Making: Skills for Leading in Times of Transition

227 Pages·2010·3.652 MB·English

by  Alan Roxburgh

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Praise for Missional Map-Making
O
X
“Roxburgh continues to move the missional conversation forward! His Missional Map-
B
Making creatively builds on his previous publications by off ering critical perspective U MISSIONAL MAP-MAKING
on how to navigate the overwhelming complexity of today’s world. This important R M
Issional
book provides insightful historical perspective toward clarifying the contours of our G When church leaders decide to make the fun-
H
present landscape, while also being deeply instructive for helping refl ective and damental missional shift from focusing on the
courageous Christians develop skills for creating new maps toward participating more church itself to asking what God is up to in
faithfully in God’s mission.” the neighborhood where their people live, it
M A P
CRAIG VAN GELDER, Ph.D., professor of congregational mission, - M A K I N G can be challenging for both leaders and con-
Luther Seminary gregants. In this important book, missional
M SKILLS FOR LEADING IN TIMES OF TRANSITION leadership expert Alan Roxburgh includes the
information and tools leaders need to develop
“What if a leader, contra modern expectations, is not to provide dependable predic-
their own maps and chart new paths toward
tions, vision, answers, strategic plans, and operational control? Roxburgh claims these
I stronger, more vibrant, and more missional
modern ways, based on outdated maps, blind us to reality, stifl e churches, and result
s congregations. Using the engaging metaphor
in misplaced eff orts, deepening disappointment, and fatigue. Instead, leaders are to
of map-making, Missional Map-Making explains
be cartographers in a new terrain, shaping churches in which map-makers multiply as
s the perspective and skills needed to lead con-
God is encountered in biblical texts and local contexts. Roxburgh challenges us with
gregations and denominations over the often
cultural studies and theology so that we gain needed capacities for shaping generative i
unfamiliar terrain of becoming missional.
environments in which the Gospel’s truth and power forms a people in and for God’s
o
mission. Pastors, judicatory leaders, and students need to engage this book.”
Building on the work in the groundbreaking
M
REV. MARK LAU BRANSON, Ed.D., Homer Goddard Associate Professor of
book The Missional Leader and on his exten-
n
ALAN J. ROXBURGH, president of Roxburgh Ministry of the Laity, Fuller Theological Seminary A sive consulting practice, Alan Roxburgh shows
Missional Network, is a pastor, teacher, writer, step by step how to implement the strategic
P
“The issue of leadership is critical in a time of rapid cultural change. Alan Roxburgh
and consultant with more than thirty years’ a missional church model. This proven model
-
helps us with a vital image in the critical quest to recast a leadership approach for our
experience in church leadership, consulting, M also defi nes the characteristics that describe
times. The skill of map-making rather than just reading the maps we have goes to the
and seminary education. He also works with the A l an eff ective missional leader and shows how
heart of the matter. This is a hugely creative and needed book to help us remake the
Allelon Missional Leadership Network in the for- K pastors and other clergy can develop the skills
mation of leaders for the missional church. He New Christian West.” I they need to best lead their congregation and
writes a weekly online newsletter (roxburghmis MARTIN ROBINSON, national director, Together in Mission, and author, N reach out to the larger community.
sionalnet.com) as well as directing an interna- Faith of the Unbeliever and Invading Secular Space G
tional research project, the Mission in Western Missional Map-Making gives leaders the help
Culture Project. He the coauthor of The Missional ALAN J. ROXBURGH they need to nurture their church environments
Leader from Jossey-Bass CHURCH MINISTRY & LEADERSHIP to become truly God centered so that his spirit
$24.95 U.S. | $29.95 Canada will guide the mission and the work of their
congregations.
Visit the Leadership Network Website, www. JACKET DESIGN BY JEFF PUDA www.josseybass.com
COVER PHOTO BY LAURENCE MOUTON,
leadnet.org, for more innovative resources and PHOTOALTO/PHOTOLIBRARY
COVER PHOTO © CORBIS/PHOTOLIBRARY
information.
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M
issional
MAP-
MAKING
SKILLS FOR LEADING IN TIMES
OF TRANSITION
Alan J. Roxburgh
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Copyright © 2010 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Published by Jossey-Bass
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Roxburgh, Alan J.
Missional map-making : skills for leading in times of transition / Alan J. Roxburgh.—1st ed.
p. cm. — (Leadership network)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-470-48672-6 (cloth)
1. Change—Religious aspects—Christianity. 2. Mission of the church. I. Title.
BV4509.5.R69 2010
253—dc22
2009041094
Printed in the United States of America
first edition
HB Printing 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
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LEADERSHIP NETWORK TITLES
The Blogging Church: Sharing the Story of Your Church Through Blogs,
Brian Bailey and Terry Storch
Church Turned Inside Out: A Guide for Designers, Refi ners, and Re-
Aligners, Linda Bergquist and Allan Karr
Leading from the Second Chair: Serving Your Church, Fulfilling
Your Role, and Realizing Your Dreams, Mike Bonem and Roger
Patterson
The Way of Jesus: A Journey of Freedom for Pilgrims and Wanderers,
Jonathan S. Campbell with Jennifer Campbell
Leading the Team-Based Church: How Pastors and Church Staffs Can
Grow Together into a Powerful Fellowship of Leaders, George Cladis
Organic Church: Growing Faith Where Life Happens, Neil Cole
Church 3.0: Upgrades for the Future of the Church, Neil Cole
Off-Road Disciplines: Spiritual Adventures of Missional Leaders, Earl
Creps
Reverse Mentoring: How Young Leaders Can Transform the Church and
Why We Should Let Them, Earl Creps
Building a Healthy Multi-Ethnic Church: Mandate, Commitments, and
Practices of a Diverse Congregation, Mark DeYmaz
Leading Congregational Change Workbook, James H. Furr, Mike
Bonem, and Jim Herrington
The Tangible Kingdom: Creating Incarnational Community, Hugh
Halter and Matt Smay
Leading Congregational Change: A Practical Guide for the
Transformational Journey, Jim Herrington, Mike Bonem, and
James H. Furr
iii
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iv LEADERSHIP NETWORK TITLES
The Leader’s Journey: Accepting the Call to Personal and Congregational
Transformation, Jim Herrington, Robert Creech, and Trisha
Taylor
Whole Church: Leading from Fragmentation to Engagement, Mel
Lawrenz
Culture Shift: Transforming Your Church from the Inside Out, Robert
Lewis and Wayne Cordeiro, with Warren Bird
Church Unique: How Missional Leaders Cast Vision, Capture Culture,
and Create Movement, Will Mancini
A New Kind of Christian: A Tale of Two Friends on a Spiritual Journey,
Brian D. McLaren
The Story We Find Ourselves In: Further Adventures of a New Kind of
Christian, Brian D. McLaren
Missional Renaissance: Changing the Scorecard for the Church, Reggie
McNeal
Practicing Greatness: 7 Disciplines of Extraordinary Spiritual Leaders,
Reggie McNeal
The Present Future: Six Tough Questions for the Church, Reggie
McNeal
A Work of Heart: Understanding How God Shapes Spiritual Leaders,
Reggie McNeal
The Millennium Matrix: Reclaiming the Past, Reframing the Future of
the Church, M. Rex Miller
Shaped by God’s Heart: The Passion and Practices of Missional
Churches, Milfred Minatrea
The Missional Leader: Equipping Your Church to Reach a Changing
World, Alan J. Roxburgh and Fred Romanuk
Missional Map-Making: Skills for Leading in Times of Transition, Alan
J. Roxburgh
Relational Intelligence: How Leaders Can Expand Their Influence
Through a New Way of Being Smart, Steve Saccone
Viral Churches: Helping Church Planters Become Movement Makers,
Ed Stetzer and Warren Bird
Becoming an Externally Focused Church: Growing into the Best Church
for the Community, Eric Swanson and Rick Rusaw
The Ascent of a Leader: How Ordinary Relationships Develop
Extraordinary Character and Infl uence, Bill Thrall, Bruce McNicol,
and Ken McElrath
Beyond Megachurch Myths: What We Can Learn from America’s Largest
Churches, Scott Thumma and Dave Travis
The Elephant in the Boardroom: Speaking the Unspoken About Pastoral
Transitions, Carolyn Weese and J. Russell Crabtree
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CONTENTS
About Leadership Network vii
Introduction: An Uncertain Journey ix
PART ONE When Maps No Longer Work 1
CHAPTER ONE Maps Shaping Our Imaginations in Modernity 3
CHAPTER TWO Leading in an In-Between Time 19
CHAPTER THREE When Common Sense Is No Longer
Common 41
CHAPTER FOUR From Playing Pool to Herding Cats 59
CHAPTER FIVE Why Strategic Planning Doesn’t Work in This New
Space and Doesn’t Fit God’s Purposes 73
CHAPTER SIX Eight Currents of Change and the Challenge of
Making New Maps 87
CHAPTER SEVEN Lessons from the Formation of the Internet for
Leading in This New Space 111
PART TWO The Map-Making Process 125
CHAPTER EIGHT Cultivating a Core Identity in a Changed
Environment 127
CHAPTER NINE Cultivating Parallel Cultures of the Kingdom 143
CHAPTER TEN Map-Making Partnerships Between a Local Church
and Neighborhoods and Communities 163
Notes 189
The Author 196
Index 197
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To my parents Alex Roxburgh (1911–1994) and
Jessie (Crosby) Roxburgh (1912–2000).
I stand on your shoulders and all those from whom
you came—you shaped my life like Blake’s fi nely
woven fabric of joy and woe. The demons were real
but so was the courage, risk, and crazy humor. I am
thankful!
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ABOUT LEADERSHIP NETWORK
S
ince 1984, Leadership Network has fostered church
innovation and growth by diligently pursuing its far - reaching mis-
sion statement: to identify, connect, and help high- c apacity Christian
leaders multiply their impact.
Although Leadership Network ’ s techniques adapt and change as
the church faces new opportunities and challenges, the organization’ s
work follows a consistent and proven pattern: Leadership Network
brings together entrepreneurial leaders who are focused on similar
ministry initiatives. The ensuing collaboration— o ften across denom-
inational lines — creates a strong base from which individual leaders
can better analyze and refi ne their own strategies. Peer- t o- p eer inter-
action, dialogue, and sharing inevitably accelerate participants’ inno-
vation and ideas. Leadership Network further enhances this process
through developing and distributing highly targeted ministry tools
and resources, including audio and video programs, special reports,
e - publications, and online downloads.
W ith Leadership Network’ s assistance, today’ s Christian leaders are
energized, equipped, inspired, and better able to multiply their own
dynamic Kingdom - building initiatives.
L aunched in 1996 in conjunction with Jossey- B ass (a Wiley imprint),
Leadership Network Publications present thoroughly researched
and innovative concepts from leading thinkers, practitioners, and
pioneering churches. The series collectively draws from a range of
vii
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viii ABOUT LEADERSHIP NETWORK
disciplines, with individual titles offering perspective on one or more
of fi ve p rimary areas:
1 . E nabling effective leadership
2. Encouraging life - changing service
3 . B uilding authentic community
4 . C reating Kingdom- c entered impact
5. Engaging cultural and demographic realities
F or additional information on the mission or activities of
Leadership Network, please contact:
Leadership Network
(800) 765 - 5323
[email protected]
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