The Urban Halo - Book Review

The Urban Halo caught me off-guard. I expected to read about a guy who moved into a slum and opened an orphanage. Instead, Urban Halo was a decidedly different read. The message, research, and testimony of Craig Greenfield is delivered in the context of a novel-type autobiography.


Inspiration is unavoidable as one turns the pages. Craig and Nay move to the slums of Cambodia and make a difference. God uses these born-again Christians to reach lost people and impact the lives of over a thousand orphans. You will be pleasantly surprised by how much Craig and Nay accomplish - I'll not ruin the surprise by giving away the exciting stories.


Urban Halo's message is a plea for the church to build relationships in poor communities and to begin to think of orphan care in terms of community-based solutions.


There are several challenging aspects of this book which include a direct assault on traditional orphan-care. Craig has a thumb-nail sketch of research that he did and presents it as evidence that orphan-care should be community-based. He presents the dangers of traditional orphan-care, which include a disconnection from community and extended family ties, the loss of inheritance and properties, emotional deficits (RAD, etc.) from the absence of a caring mother-figure, and possible abuse. Another challenging aspect of Urban Halo is that missionary ministry is best done in a missional style. Finally, Urban Halo leaves the reader wanting more details about the day-to-day events, especially how Project Halo was accomplished.


Similar to other missional-type books, Urban Halo is a mixture of ideology, how-to, and personal narrative. Unlike some books I've read, Urban Halo does not cast a judgemental glare at the reader. Rather, facts, research, and experiential anecdotes are presented in a positive manner. This book really is a must-read for anyone interested in orphan-care or missional living.

"Spending time with our neighbors and making ourselves vulnerable to experience some of the same hardships, we effectively 'walked a mile in their shoes.' This allowed us to gain a sense of credibility with our neighbors and they were much more receptive to our ideas..."

Creation DVDs: Start the Gospel Conversation

As with any resource, each DVD is appropriate for a slightly different audience. As you think about the people in your life who you are building relationships with, you probably are building categories of background knowledge about each person. Some people actively reject God, while others passively reject Him. Some are open to dialogue and the gospel, while others need to start with God as creator. You may wait two years to give one co-worker a DVD about God as creator. And, you may only know another person a few minutes before speaking to him/her about the atonement of Jesus. Use wisdom and prayer as you evaluate the people God has put in your life. What are their backgrounds and predispositions? Where do you need to start with each person. One size does not fit all in evangelism.

Here is an article that I put together a few years ago outlining some of my favorite creation DVDS: http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/2007/07/17/video-vangelism

Click through to see my TOP PICKS for DVD evangelism:
http://bfspastors.blogspot.com/2007/06/tims-top-dvd-picks-for-evangelism.html

Do a "Gospel in Three Minutes" Workshop

On Demolishing Strongholds from Answers In Genesis, Bill Jack demonstrates how to present the gospel in about two minutes. This is a good activity to teach your congregation. Building a fluency in explaining the good news is good preparation for when it is go-time!

1. Facilitate a discussion on what the gospel is. What pieces of information must be present for it to the Biblical good news?
2. Model or demonstrate a quick presentation of the gospel.
3. Have groups or individuals write scripts for themselves and the practice.
4. Get a camcorder and do some taping.
5. Have fun watching the presentations together.

Here's an example that I did a few weeks ago.

Being Missional Means Stepping into the Danger Zone: You will be Hurt

When you become missional, you will find yourself in many relationships where you are used and rejected. Sin and selfishness dominate social interactions when you integrate and build relationships with the lost. You will be used. You will be hurt. You will be rejected.

How do you continue to travel light? Where do you check your baggage? Is there a baggage claim for bitterness? Do you have any tips for me on how to process through the negative interactions?

Do You Hear The Need?

Watch this video and ask yourself, "Am I and my church doing anything significant to satiate the starving?" I just saw an interesting comment on youtube regarding this video: "Sometimes it's a matter of survival. Starve to death or die of a sickness that you don't even know if you are exposed to. "

Watch this video and then take a minute to reflect on how you may be able to become involved in the lives of poor in your community or in 3rd world communities. Be encouraged by this video to redeem the time and do great works in God's name and for His sake.

Gao Zhisheng: Tortured for Christ... Missing for 100 days

God will avenge his chosen people, who cry out to him day and night. (Luke 18:7) Cry out today and tonight to God that He will avenge the torture of this saint: Gao Zhisheng. Pray for God to avenge this saint through mercy or through justice - God's call on which one.

Equip Your Youngsters: Teach Creation Evangelism

Many of the Christian kids who I've gotten to know have had little cohesive knowledge of their Bible, nor have they known how to share the gospel. My prediction for most of them is that Biblical truth will become perceived as a childish notion or as a powerless tradition by the time high school is over. We are losing the battle against Satan because we keep sending our lambs out to get their faith slaughtered.

Have the kids watch the Demolishing Strongholds DVD series, which will build a basic awareness of apologetics and sharing the gospel. Then, as a response, put the kids in groups and have them a script for a 3 minute creation video. Bust out the camcorder and shoot some creation evangelism videos.

My Definition of "Creation Evangelism": Within the context of presuppositional apologetics, utilize the creation as a springboard to share the gospel.

Here is an example of something I shot recently.