Beachhead
“Jesus came to bring a revolution. And that revolution is a revolution of the human heart. And He didn't come to establish churches or companies or ministries. He came to establish beachheads of His person. From the inside out. Human hearts transformed, living immersed in the reality of the Kingdom of God, with a few invading every aspect of human life. Invading companies and cultures and churches and cities and families. It is an invasion and it will not stop until it is on earth as it is in heaven.”
- Morgan Snyder
A friend of mine was having a disagreement with a ministry leader. This leader insisted that there were “Christian companies” and my friend posited that inanimate objects could not be “Christians”. Institutions (families, companies, or organizations) can be inhabited by Christians, but that doesn’t make the institution a believer by the definition of the word. I don’t think either mind was changed.
My friend, and the quote above from Morgan Snyder, are making a powerful distinction. Like Normandy, we are intended to be part of an invasion. Like the pill boxes occupied by the Germans that our troops encountered on that D-Day invasion on June 6, 1944, our enemy is bunkered into positions in our families, our companies, and even our ministries. We are to live immersed in the reality of the Kingdom of God…wherever we are.
The image above, from the photographer Robert F. Sargent, was powerfully recreated in Steven Spielberg’s “Saving Private Ryan”.
Do you remember the visceral experience of that opening scene?
The futility? So many trying to make it to the shore to establish a beachhead through the bullets raining on them. So few actually surviving the journey.
Have you ever found yourself in the position of trying to establish a beachhead in enemy territory? With a much less transformed heart, I made several forays into the broader culture of my family system.
The bullets are still flying.
I like to take ownership of my responsibility and I believe some of their reaction was due to my clumsy manner and immature heart, but part of it is also the fact that people don’t like invasions of what is established. Even if what is established is unhealthy and the invasion is by truth, light, and love.
And while I feel the need to excuse all the military imagery here, I think it is far more indicative of the times we live in than we have been led to believe. It feels like we are at “war” in almost any arena I can imagine.
When you look at our government, many churches, and maybe even your family of origin, it is easy to lose heart. I have spent a lot more time discouraged than invigorated for the heart. But there is a sense of urgency rising in me.
I have grown a little, I am very clear on my unique identity, and I am flanked by other awakened leaders increasing my resolve…those choosing the culture of the Kingdom. I want to play the part I was intended for and awaken as many hearts as possible to the necessary invasion of “companies and cultures and churches and cities and families.”
You up for it?
We should talk.
Do you feel like you are a beachhead in a foreign and hostile territory? In your company, family, or community?
Has the culture around you discouraged you to the point of not believing change is possible?
Where are you being stirred to establish a beachhead?
What is the right next step in that direction?