Where Rivers Flow

By Andrew Scarborough

The year was 2012. I was 25 and depressed.

To most of the world, I was immensely successful in what I was doing in life. I was (and still am) a pastor. At that time, I was pastoring at the largest church in our denomination, and one of the largest in Australia. The ministry I was leading was growing exponentially. I was an international speaker, and to many I was viewed as “a big deal” and part of the cream of the next generation leadership crop.

Yet I found myself frustrated and depressed.

Why? Because I’d grown so good and so busy at playing church that I felt I’d stopped truly being the church.

I was busy attending church, counting the numbers of those at church, and promoting church, but I was struggling to simply be the church, especially to those that so desperately needed what I as the church can and should offer, an authentic invitation to a relationship with Christ.

Two years later and I find myself living in America faced with a similar challenge. How can I be the church, not just simply attend one or work for one?

However, this time I come to this conundrum with greater clarity and more tools in my belt than ever before. I’m learning so much about being the church, and I praise God for these learnings.

This book is a snapshot of the journey my wife and I have been on in learning how to be the church.

My desire through this book is simple and twofold.

Firstly, to help wake you up to the reality of who you are once again; if you are a Christian, you are the church.

Secondly, to begin to equip you to be the church.

I truly believe this book could change your world and the worlds of those around you. The contents within it have certainly changed mine.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Andrew Scarborough
• Release date: Aug 22, 2016
• ISBN: 9781536502756

Book preview

Where Rivers Flow

A Guide to Capturing the Heart of God and Sharing it with those Across the Road and Across the Globe

Table of Contents

Title Page

Where Rivers Flow

Why Where River’s Flow?

Introduction

1. WE have a Problem

2. What if Christ defined Church?

3. We have a Solution: JESUS

4. You Can Step Into the River

5. Reach

6. Disciple.

7. Send

Final Words: The Father’s Heart

by

Andrew Scarborough

Copyright © 2016 by Andrew P. Scarborough

All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof

may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever

without the express written permission of the publisher

except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (MSG); Scripture taken from The Message. Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The NIV and New International Version are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™

For more information go to thescarboroughs.com

Final edit by Chrissy Remsberg

Cover by Christine D’Souza

To my wife.

Wiser than I, yet somehow I often get the credit.

This time, the credit goes to you.

You are a gift from God indeed.

Contents

––––––––

Why Where Rivers Flow?

Introduction

A Note to the Reader

1. WE have a problem

2. What if Christ Defined Church?

3. We have a solution: JESUS

4. You Can Step Into the River

5. Reach

6. Disciple

7. Send

Final Words: The Father’s Heart

Prologue: A Note to Pastors and Church Leaders

About the Author

Why Where River’s Flow?

––––––––

The year was 2012. I was 25 and depressed.

––––––––

To most of the world, I was immensely successful in what I was doing in life. I was (and still am) a pastor. At that time, I was pastoring at the largest church in our denomination, and one of the largest in Australia. The ministry I was leading was growing exponentially. I was an international speaker, and to many I was viewed as a big deal and part of the cream of the next generation leadership crop.

––––––––

Yet I found myself frustrated and depressed.

––––––––

Why? Because I’d grown so good and so busy at playing church that I felt I’d stopped truly being the church.

––––––––

I was busy attending church, counting the numbers of those at church, and promoting church, but I was struggling to simply be the church, especially to those that so desperately needed what I as the church can and should offer, an authentic invitation to a relationship with Christ.

––––––––

Two years later and I find myself living in America faced with a similar challenge. How can I be the church, not just simply attend one or work for one?

––––––––

However, this time I come to this conundrum with greater clarity and more tools in my belt than ever before. I’m learning so much about being the church, and I praise God for these learnings.

––––––––

This book is a snapshot of the journey my wife and I have been on in learning how to be the church.

––––––––

My desire through this book is simple and twofold.

––––––––

Firstly, to help wake you up to the reality of who you are once again; if you are a Christian, you are the church.

––––––––

Secondly, to begin to equip you to be the church.

––––––––

I truly believe this book could change your world and the worlds of those around you. The contents within it have certainly changed mine.

Introduction

––––––––

I love the church

––––––––

Despite the church’s flaws, despite its controversies, I believe in it and I love it.

––––––––

When natural disasters strike, the church often rushes to assist.

––––––––

When children need homes and widows need provisions, it’s often the church that is there to help.

––––––––

When the world is going crazy, often, the church is still a place of solitude and refuge.

––––––––

I love the church.

––––––––

Yet, I am aware of its flaws, and despite its many strengths, there are aspects of the church that deeply trouble me. Two that stand out to me today.

––––––––

The first is the segregation I see in the church. I see segregation by class, race, denomination, and age. One day, I plan to write a book on this, but not yet...

––––––––

Today I write on another thing that disturbs me.

––––––––

The second thing that disturbs me about the church, is it’s often ineffectiveness to think outside of its own box and reach its immediate neighbors (I told you we do a lot of disaster relief etc. and we do... it’s the daily reaching out to our immediate neighbors that we struggle with). We are good at going across the globe, but we often struggle to go across the road.

––––––––

It is this dilemma which is the subject of this book. I write to help Christians be Christians in their neighborhoods, workplaces, schools and families. I write because I’ve had enough of Christians feeling that the only person qualified to spread the gospel is their pastor.

––––––––

I’m sick of it

––––––––

I’ve had enough of it. I’m sick of it. And I want it to stop.

––––––––

...and I think you just might want it to stop too.

––––––––

So what is it? Let me first show you what it looks like, and then define it for you.

––––––––

As a pastor, I’ve experienced it many times.

––––––––

It goes like this:

––––––––

CHURCH MEMBER (usually extremely proud of themselves for inviting a friend to church, just as their pastor had instructed them to...): Pastor Andrew, this is my friend Bob (or Sue, or Bill, or Phil, etc.). Bob isn’t a Christian yet...

ME: Well, it’s so nice to meet you Bob.

CHURCH MEMBER: (With puppy dog eyes looking up at me). So like I said, they haven’t made a decision to follow Jesus yet.

ME: "Well okay... (thinking- ‘this is awkward!’) have YOU shared your faith with them yet?"

CHURCH MEMBER: "No, of course not! That’s why I invited them to