This Is What It's About
The following from Phil over at Signposts: I like it a lot!
I have had this quote by Keith Rayner in my Palm organiser for some time. I can't remember where I read it but it sure is good.
"I envisage a church in which everything will be tested by the principle: does it advance the cause of the kingdom of God? That is the only justification for a parish, hospital chaplaincy, industrial mission, a church welfare agency, a national church. Is the gospel being proclaimed? Is the faith of the people being deepened? Are lives being nourished and transformed? Are the downcast finding hope? Are human dignity and justice being furthered? Is God being glorified? These are the criteria by which we must restructure the church."
The image of much contemporary christianity could be summarized as holy people coming regularly to a holy place on a holy day at a holy hour to participate in a holy ritual led by a holy man dressed in holy clothes for a holy fee. Since this regular performance-oriented enterprise called 'worship service' requires a lot of organizational talent and administrative bureaucracy, formalized and institutionalized patterns developed quickly into rigid traditions. Statistically, a traditional one or two hour 'worship service' is very resource hungry but produces very little fruit in terms of discipling people, i.e. in changing their lives. Economically, it is a 'high input, low output' structure. Traditionally, the desire to worship 'in the right way' has led to much deominationalism, confessionalism and nominalism. This not only ignores the fact that Christians are called to worship 'in spirit and in truth', rather than in cathedrals holding songbooks. It also ignores the fact that most of life is informal, and so too is Christianity as 'the Way of Life'. Do we need to change from being powerful actors and start acting powerfully? (Wolfgang Simson, Houses that Change the World) [Linked from The Living Room.]
[And then again:]
I love this quote by "liquidthinking" in Making Sense of the Church about churches that embody the Gospel:
The gospel turns lives upside down. People quit their jobs in business and volunteer with homeless people. A church where the gospel is known is quirky, unpredictable, uncontrollable, uncool, seemingly unstable, and in every way alive. People are loved and the kingdom is built.
[And then his own thoughts:]
If the church stops putting all its energy into the big gatherings that feature the pastor as the main event, what good is a pastor?
I think this is a great question. The dominant story for me this past year has been the one in which Jesus told a couple of brothers, fishermen, to follow him. They dropped their nets (their livelihood) and followed him. Jesus did the same with a tax collector, who no doubt was making pretty good money. What if Jesus turned to a pastor like me and said, "Leave the paycheck and the church and follow me"? Would I? I hope that question answers itself.
How much better off would we be if every pastor got off the professional track and stopped worrying about the paycheck.
More Eagle Sightings
Standing this morning at the local Super Target ringing the bell for the Salvation Army, I looked up and there to the south was a Bald Eagle gliding and soaring. That's two sightings this week since I saw one over the Minnesota River on Wednesday. I managed to get a picture of that one which I will be posting as soon as I get it downloaded from the camera. Yes, we are soaring on wings like eagles. I believe God speaks to us in ways that are not hard to understand. As I have said, Eagles are, for me, a symbol of the ways the Spirit lets us take flight, an affirmation that we are doing what God wants us to do. (My interpretation of Isaiah 40.) Hence, when I see an Eagle I am reminded of that, and can find new or renewed directions. Serving others, whether through a free Thanksgiving meal or ringing the Salvation Army bell on a cold Friday morning, will allow us to soar in the wind (Heb. ruach; Gk. pneuma; Eng. wind or spirit) of God.
What are We Praying For?
In Marc van der Woude's weekly Joel-News-International Newsletter (Subscribe directly by sending
an empty e-mail to: subscribe-joel-news-international@xc.org, he reported this:
Many Christians pray selfish, trivial and even manipulative prayers. According to research the top three prayer subjects are meals, personal and family safety, and personal blessings. But there is a more fulfilling and God-honouring kind of prayer: pivotal praying, which means we learn to pray at higher levels. Both the intimacy we share with God and the subject matter of our prayers deepen. Our prayers become more progressive, rather than merely accomplishing damage control. Our prayer becomes mission driven, not maintenance driven.
He then links to a resource on Pivotal Prayer from the National Pastors' Prayer Network. That is how we learn to soar with wings like Eagles!
