Full Transcript for Be A Kingdom Connector with Craig Trierweiler | Ep 6

met them myself with you and th it they're incredible. So five years ago, New Year's Eve, yeah, you walked up in front of me and you said, God says I was supposed to know you and I gave you a hug and we entered got got connected. My question is if you knew what you knew now, maybe you wouldn't have listened to God to turn around. speaker-1: No, absolutely. It was it was such a divine I I tell people all the time, pay attention to divine appointments. And and when I reflect upon that meeting there down in the Destin, Florida Rosemary Beach area on one A or whatever it's called, 30 A, maybe. I just think, man, that was y it's Steve, think about that. Five seconds in either direction, we would have we would have missed each other. but there you were, you had a hat on, big life. It was one of our mission partners. And I mean Who wears a big life hat? It was it was a providential moment. And you know, God had a bigger plan, didn't he? I mean, there was, I mean, little did I know, you didn't know me, I didn't know you. it turns out that we run in the same circles and we certainly know the same people. More importantly, we share the same heartbeat for generosity and for missions and global advancement. And since then, man, it's like we've been to Dubai together, we've been to Montana together, we've been to Oklahoma City together with David Green. just the the the number of connections that both you and I share, but all of it, I believe, providentially orchestrated for some reason on that day. So only God knows. The question, Steve, is would you do it all over again? speaker-0: well, I didn't pause. I would say absolutely here. You know, Craig, there's something that's really unique and special. you had me up to the church and we met some some of the leaders, and certainly what a blessing to also be a part of the men's group when I was there. But there's something that's really unique and special that is a part of the culture of New Hope. Kind of describe the heart of your mission and what you're desiring to accomplish, both from a a local Michigan. focus outreach. And then there's a global which we'll get to in a minute. But share a little bit of the pulse in your heart as you've been you you've had quite a journey at that church too. Now you're the lead pastor and people look to to you. But give us a sense of the the pulse in the culture and why the church is so outward focused. speaker-1: Yeah, that's good, man. Well, I tell you, I do I do believe that generosity is something that you learn. you can learn it. and and really we stand on the shoulders of great men that have preceded us. So I I praise God for incredible men who had a heartbeat for generosity that really I came into into the flow of. I was just a young twenty something year old kid. And you know, th this church had such a heartbeat for generosity for local global missions. that we've just had the privilege to build upon now in the last 27 years. But I would just say that the heartbeat of

it really was gleaned and learned from those who have gone before us. So really learning that posture of of of generous giving and the ability to deploy resources for the kingdom locally and globally. So so you know I've I've you know the privilege to have a principal stewardship in that now but really watching, observing, learning, doing it. And then being stretched and challenged over the years, both personally and then and then collectively. so it it's one thing to steward those resources as a on the family level. And then it it's a whole nother matter to have the privilege to steward those resources on a church wide level, much greater resources for the kingdom. speaker-0: Craig, here we are in November. It's Thanksgiving. We all reflect what we're thankful for, grateful for for certainly friends, family, our marriages, kids. grandchild, I've got one and my daughter is expecting in April. So we're in the grandparent club. So there's a lot of things to be thankful and grateful for, or ultimately, God's grace, his mercy, and his unconditional love for us. How do you reflect? and communicate with your congregation on that the the sense of gratitude and what we have to be thankful for. because this is a such an important time to just reflect on what we are thankful and grateful for so then we can be responsive to opportunities. speaker-1: Absolutely. Yeah. gratitude, the the art of gratitude is so beautiful, especially in a in a culture like ours, of course, the timing that we're filming this right now, in in reflection upon a culture that is very very ungrateful, very divisive in nature. and there's a lot of cantankerous folks out there and and grim outlooks for the future. But we as a church, you think about this, the the mission that we have, you know, that our that our future is certain still. Our hope is unshaken. and when you think about the unshakable hope that we have, the scripture says in Hebrews that we have received an unshakable kingdom. Well, that's something hugely to be thankful for and to have an immense amount of gratitude. That no matter what's happening politically, culturally, whatever, we have an unshakable kingdom. So I love to remind our people listen, Christ is Lord, Christ is risen, and Christ is making all things new. Think about that from a biblical paradigm. Those three things remain unshaken in our storyline. No matter who's in charge, remember who's in power. The one in power is our Lord Jesus Christ. He's risen. He is Lord. He's making all things new. So for me, Steve, that's what I'm most grateful for is that we are ambassadors of that message. And so we communicate joy and hope to the congregation and really to the world that we have an unshakable kingdom. speaker-0: Craig, thank you for that. Let I'm gonna take a step back. tell us a little bit about your marriage. How did you meet your wife? Tell us a little bit about your journey together. speaker-1: Well, that was another providential moment, but it was week

one of our, freshman year. met her. Actually, we took a collective date out. We had a whole bunch of us, probably 20 some of us together, guys and girls. And I slid into a booth next to my friend. She slid into the booth across from me, struck up a conversation over shakes and malts at a local diner in Chicago, and here we are now thirty years later. so it's it's very providential. She had a heartbeat for ministry. God had called me to ministry. and we got married in May of nineteen ninety-seven. And so we celebrate thirty years next year. so since then God has blessed us with four children and three grandchildren with one on the way. very, very thankful for the heartbeat of my wife. speaker-0: great, thank you. we were we met with this big life hat and we certainly know and love John Herman, Gibson. Those guys are amazing. In fact you said, hey, do you just wear the hat or you actually know those guys? Yeah. speaker-1: That's right. speaker-0: And then today we're going to be on a flight together with some other business guys to Cuba with with John Raggenfeld with Juan with Multiplication Network, who we both know and and and love. And you know, the the reason I think of Juan is because we were gonna be together today in on mission in the field with multiplication network in Cuba. But it's the the soccer field analogy. And Juan, as we know, loves soccer, but it's really the missions field. And Craig, you've you've kind of come up with a metrics of some points with regard to the missions Phil. And I'd love for you to to share it 'cause I think there's some great insight to to these four points. one is just the investment in Indigenous leaders. Give us a sense of from your perspective as well as the congregation, what does that look like? speaker-1: Yeah, it's a that's great. Steve, we we have such a passion for missions around here. And by missions, we're talking about we we would we like to say it like this now. We are on mission for the Great Commission until the day of completion. And that idea, and of course I think that's where you and I have that resonating heartbeat. And again, running in those same circles with friends like Multiplication Network or Big Life or other folks who are carrying that that baton for the Great Commission. And we do believe that the that we are working towards the day of completion because Jesus said that this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed in the whole world and then the end will come, just like your friend Doug Cobb wrote a book about sprint to the finish. Such a great book and such a great man. so when I think about the soccer field, I I developed at least our heartbeat for missions here, and and I do believe it resonates with many. the same thing as you know, John Addink, your friend, and others who also have share this heartbeat for global advancement. So I'd just say first of all, it's the priority of indigenous leaders. secondly the priority of gospel advancement. Third is the kingdom connector. And then fourth is generous givers. And just briefly on each of those, would it be okay if I just share a briefly? Yeah. speaker-0: Going going back to the indigenous leaders, certainly on the global side, but then there's also the investment in the missions field being America too, and your church and the intentionality to making sure that we're empowering equipping leaders locally as well. But but describe, what does what does it look like to empower an Indigenous leader? Because, the three lanes of the Great Commission, the one we're in right now, which is about a healthy body of believers and a healthy church everywhere. It's speaker-1: You got it. Yeah. speaker-0: gotta start with good leaders. speaker-1: It does. Yeah. So with Indigenous leaders, we just place such a high priority on on equipping and funding the Great Commission effort through Indigenous partners of ours. So we do believe it's just, look at it as a simple ROI rate of rate of interest or return on investment, maybe. just that that that idea of equipping people who know the language, they know the culture, they know the people, they know the customs. And of course, when you look at it from the size of investment, you can fund Indigenous leaders on a far less level financially and get far greater return on that investment. So, really, since our founding as a church, we have placed such a high priority on raising up Indigenous leaders. And so, Steve, so 90% of our missions resources goes globally to Indigenous partners. 10% will stay local here in America to equip and empower local leaders to reach our communities. But ninety percent goes globally, and that's very intentional to indigenous partners of ours who are on the field. speaker-0: And then certainly the gospel being front and center. It's all Christ focused. speaker-1: Yeah. speaker-0: As as I've shared often, whether I'm facilitating a group, I've shared in this conversation on a podcast that God didn't desire for us to just be friendly Christians. He desired for us to be in relationship with Him and He desired us to pursue to be in relationship with others. But it's through the gospel that we're connected relationally. what you know, front and center is the gospel. God's word. tell us a little bit about how the church's involvement speaker-1: That. Yeah, thank you. The we we term it gospel advancement, but what I what I like to tell people is that we are we are not just about human betterment, we are about gospel advancement. And there's a lot of people that are doing some some good work in in terms of just entrepreneurial or you know, that they're they're you know, they're digging wells or they're feeding bellies. And again, that's great. but at the at the core of our investment, if we are feeding bellies or if we are digging wells, we want to make sure that our partners do have a gospel component where at the very source of it they are communicating that Christ is the source of living water or he is the bread of

life. We don't just want to feed a belly and not minister to a dying soul. So that's where we couple those things. We're always looking as we vet our mission partners, where is the gospel component? Because we don't just want human betterment, we want gospel advancement so that Christ is glorified. Well speaker-0: Course, wherever there's a healthy body of believers, then the desire is outreach to at-risk kids. there's a pro-life opportunity or, food, humanitarian relief. Whenever there's a body of believers that gather, that's going to become the outcome. So focus on the healthy body of believers and the gospel first. You know, we we see you know, there's the church planning and empowering equipping leaders to plant churches. And then there's, I think that this next one, Kingdom Connectors, might even be in the DM discipleship making movement, the DMM movements where where it's strategically organic. The strategy is we want the gospel to be everywhere. The organic is connectors connect and there's no rhyme or reason to where those relationships play out. Give us a sense of this kingdom connector desire. speaker-1: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And again, whether it's a DMM disciple making movement or a church planning movement, CPM, w on either side of it, we love this idea of our role as being kingdom connectors. And I gotta tell you, Steve, that that probably one of the one of the most joyful things that I get to do is being a kingdom connector to missions around the world. I have a lot of other duties. I preach, I teach, I disciple, I coach, I I oversee. But I'm telling you, the thing that probably brings me the greatest joy is being a kingdom connector. So what we mean by that is simply this is that imagine three concentric circles. you know, on the mission field, we have what we call, you know, kingdom workers. I mean, those are the indigenous partners. They're laboring in the field. They oftentimes have a lack of resources, but they're high on passion and they really want to reach their people for Jesus. But what they need is resources. On the American side or or maybe North American side, we have people in our congregations who are well resourced, but they're never going to go to the mission field. They own businesses, they run companies, they have resources. God has equipped them to make money. That's what they do. They make money, right? So here is my my role that that that role in the middle that is connecting kingdom workers to kingdom resources. And so the privilege that I have, like you, is to go on the field, whether it be with Big Life or Multiplication Network or another agency that we have to see the need on the field, bring back the report of what God is doing, and then funnel those resources right to the needs. So that's one of the great things that we get to do here at our church is be that kingdom connector role, connecting resources to the needs on the field. speaker-0: Craig, when you made that comment about business guys, I remember

being on stage with somebody actually at at a a sprint to the finish event with Doug Cobb and and some a business leader in Southern California and I were in front of a group, a couple hundred folks that were there, and I asked the question about being in meetings with ministry leaders. And ministry leaders always tell somebody that's generous, thank you so much for your prayers and your support. And I re I I so love this response that he made, which was, no, thank you. He said, I'm a business guy. I know how to make money. Thank you for being out on the field doing what you're called to do. and that and that's really the collaboration. It takes all the parts of the body to succeed, to advance the gospel and the Great Commission, whether it be locally or globally, it takes all parts. generous givers. when we think about that, you mentioned John Addict. John is a great guy. He has a perspective of you know, funding missions. And there is a value to missions, certainly. but it's about funding the indigenous leader and the generosity from America, going overseas to strategic places. Tell us a little bit about how one, how you communicate generosity in the church, in your community. speaker-1: Yeah. we we live and breathe generosity up here. I I'm convinced that people will give when they when when their hearts are moved by story. Yeah. And so part of our role as Kingdom Connectors is to bring back story to communicate it. And of course, what we try to do is we try to give people just present opportunities to invest in what God is doing around the world, never under compulsion. Of course, we believe what the scripture teaches, God loves a cheerful giver. that each one should give as he's decided in his art, not reluctantly or under compulsion. So we we model that, we teach that, we coach that, we tell stories regularly, almost every Sunday of the year, almost every Sunday. We will celebrate where God's resources are going. We will thank the congregation for their generosity. we'll update them on on how many re how much resources have been deployed. out of because of God's generosity through the people of the church out outward to missions sakes. And you know our church you know in the last several years has deployed approximately 33% of our annual budget has gone to missions. and that's a pretty staggering number. it we don't just rejoice in the number of dollars, we certainly rejoice in the number of salvations, converts, baptisms, prayer groups, churches that are being planted. but but we we try to live and breed generosity. just as last Sunday I told the story of what's happening in Thailand on one street in one city with one mission partner, reaching one homeless couple with the gospel, and what transpired after that. So we try to bring the whole missions movement down to individual stories to share the heartbeat of what God's doing around the world. And when people hear about that, they're like, I want to be part. speaker-0: Yeah, that's amazing. Greg, let's bring this just to a more personal. this is Greg Kingdom and and what we're doing on behalf of advancing the gospel and great ministry work. Just the leadership question. You know, whether you're in business or ministry or leading a church like you are, it's still leadership. How do you put yourself around you know, other men that can one hold you accountable, good sounding boards, praying with? tell us a little bit about you as a leader and how you've surrounded yourself with some other good men, and how you and your wife have surrounded yourselves with some other couples. speaker-1: Yeah, the you know, we just finished last year a series in Second Corinthians and I and I called that series your pastor's heart for you. And Steve, I gotta tell you that you know, God I I do believe he used that book to bless our people, but I think more so he used that book to bless me personally. I I think that as a leader, you know, especially in the church world, you know, we we don't just we're not just charged with a responsibility to do the work. We're recharged with a responsibility To love the people. And as a leader, especially in the local church, we are representatives of Jesus Christ in the midst of our community. And so in that sense, people view us as in in a lowercase mediator. That they view us as a as a shepherd, lowercase S. Of course, we're pointing the attention to the great shepherd. So, what I've really loved to answer your question, I've I've loved the fact of just loving the people, getting to know them, surrounding myself with incredible men of God. Hearing their stories. truly investing in them, not based on what they give, not based on what they do, but truly just loving the people. as a simple measuring stick of that, Steve, one of the things that we've guarded ourselves from, for instance, we have no idea as pastors here. We have no idea what people give, how much they give, if they give. We just don't know. We have a whole finance team that deals with that separately. so when I sit down with a man. in my office or I'm hearing their story. They could be a businessman, they could be retired, whatever the case may be. I have no idea what they give socioeconomically to the church or to the mission, but it's investing in them as a person, loving them. And then it guards us against favoritism as well. So I don't know if I answered your question on that, but it's but but it truly is leaning into stories, surrounding ourselves with good godly men and as their pastor and shepherd, loving them for who they are. Not for what they do or for what they give. speaker-0: it feels like it was yesterday, but it was probably close to 20 years ago. I was going through something and I needed to really process making some decisions on behalf of my family and our what you have some just some big decisions. And so Shannon, my wife, came to me with a a cup of tea and she said, Hey, let's talk this through. And then at the end of that

conversation, Craig, and I'd love to let you respond to this type of a statement, which is Steve, I'd like you just to one be in God's word and prayer about where this journey is. One, keep me commun communicate with me along the way. Share with me where you're at. And then the challenge was finding three men that have nothing to gain or lose is they help process the decision that you're going to make on behalf of our family. And for me, I thought of three men immediately. Do you feel like, Craig, that you've got some men in your life that just want the best for you, that just want the best for you as a leader? And then how do you communicate? th those three came to me immediately. And then in that process I gave each of them their phone number so they could call each other to make sure that I wasn't saying one thing to the other. speaker-1: Yeah, exactly. Yeah, absolutely. We in fact we have relationship with three other couples. so yeah, I in fact these three guys I call them my shadrach, meeshach, and abednego. these these are three men. they are roughly my age or younger. one is a biblical counselor, one is an insurance agent, and one is in the oil and gas industry. these three men that I have, my Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, they are with me in the fire. they are for me, not against me. actually I've I've asked all of them if God should take me home before he takes you home. I said I want you all three if you're willing to speak at my funeral. So they're all prepared to do my eulogy. these three men, we just got together with them actually a couple days ago. And I just have to, share that it's such a sweet spirit. you know, when we're with them, not only do us three guys get along with the three, us four, right? Four or four. but also the ladies have forged that relationship so closely with each other. And so there's such an intimacy and a bond of fellowship. We're able to share some some pretty deep and weighty stuff, very vulnerable in nature. But at the end of the day, these are men that are for me, not against me. they they are I think of the the story in the old testament of Jonathan's armor bearer. folks who have read the Bible will know that story. Jonathan's armor bearer as they're climbing up this cliff together. I love it. The armor bearer. We don't even know his name. That's why we call him the armor bearer, right? But but he says to Jonathan, I am with you, heart and soul. it's like his one line in scripture. I am with you, heart and soul. And that's you know, I I think if any guy in life has has just one of those armor bearers he's blessed, I happen to have three of them. and I do believe that they are with me heart and soul. It makes me a better man because I know that they love me, they're for me, and they also know that they can challenge me when necessary. speaker-0: Craig, that's amazing. Thank you. That's great wisdom that hopefully those that are listening will will gleam. as we're wrapping up here, how do you celebrate Thanksgiving as a family? and what are some of the things that you're most grateful for? speaker-1: Well, we get to go to Florida again, get out of the rainy, misty, somewhat snowy cold up here in northern Michigan. but in terms of proximity, that's where we go. We're also know, on the heels of having lost our first parents. so my mother in law passed away. She went to be with Jesus. but I tell you this about her. She grew up my mother in law, she grew up in a very abusive home, alcoholic family. her dad was one of the meanest men that you could ever imagine. had a lot of failings. and she she grew up in California and it was a it was a neighbor named Mona. Mona invited my mother-in-law, who was a teenager, to go to church. And so Mona would pick up my mother in law every Sunday. She would take her to church. and it was one day in the car that Mona explained the gospel to my mother in law. She received Jesus as Lord, it transformed her life. Jesus transformed her life. she felt called to go to Bible college in Missouri. That's where she met my father-in-law. And that led to 40 years of ministry together. And they had four daughters, all of them transformed. their four daughters, out of the four, three of them marry pastors, of whom I'm one. and so how do we celebrate Thanksgiving this year? Well, in the in the midst of death, in the midst of sorrow, in the midst of loss, we are very thankful that God has used Mona to transform my mother-in-law, which has then transformed a generation. and we are so grateful that that's what Jesus does. He enters in, he moves and transforms messes to miracles, and we are part of that living testimony. So go be a Mona. speaker-0: Craig, thank you so much for joining this conversation today. You've been such a dear friend. I love journeying with you and the experiences we've had. For every doing good better shout-out that I've made over the last couple of years, as well as my podcast, you're literally the first person that responds back and says, Man, that was amazing. Now that you're on with me, I get to be the first to you to say, Greg, that was amazing. speaker-1: Well, you're doing a good job, man. I love I love your friends. I love your stories, the mission partners. I'm always encouraged, man. Every single one that you've done, I'll pull up either on a podcast or I'll watch it. And and it has it has blessed my heart to see what God is doing around the world in various capacities as we steward everything for the glory of the king. speaker-0: just last night, my wife and I were at a a a a dinner gathering, Jeffersonian style conversations, one guest speaker, but the table discussion was on, you know, how we using the stewardship that God's given us. And I have been reminded the last couple of years by a c a couple of guys in particular that are a little bit older than me in a season that relationships are stewardship. And I'm often blown away that how I get to run with and be friends with some amazing people. Guys that are listening, hopefully, this podcast, Craig, guys like you, others that have been on as well. I'm blessed. and I consider that a tremendous stewardship. So thank you so much. Thank you. Craig, have a great day. Thanks so much. Wow. speaker-1: God boss it. speaker-0: Well, that was an amazing conversation today with with with Craig. Boy, we could have gone for another couple of hours. But we hope, I hope that you enjoyed this conversation. some incredible insights to the Great Commission. Craig as a leader, how he's inspiring his congregation. And hopefully the conversation, without a doubt, was inspiring to you to be thinking about how we can play a strategic role in whatever it is that we feel called to do. As many of you have heard me say, this epiphany that I had a dozen years ago, which was, I I thought before that, when God was either telling me to do something or touching my heart that it was look at my calendar, look at my checkbook, or is it whatever it is I meant? I think Greg and the congregation, they really take the approach with discernment of God, you're telling us to do something, you're touching our heart to do something, whatever it is I'm in, with a clear game plan and a strategy intentionality. So, thank you so much for joining this conversation. wish you all again a incredible Thanksgiving and continue blessings. Thanks so much for being a part of this journey into doing good better.