Unbelievable

This is just incredible. Is it for real? Thanks to Randy for the link.

So That's Why We Do That!

Thanks to Fred Peatross for a list of things that we need to know where they came from. Things like a pulpit...

More Thoughts on Tithing

Len at NextReformation adds his thoughts to Pen's that I posted here on Thursday:

Now wait just a minute. Could it be that the Lord is trying to tell us something here? Could it be that people are "voting with their feet" that the church is becoming irrelevant. Could it be that money spent on buildings would better go to the poor and to help single moms?

Could it be that those who have tithed for years but never given of their hearts are finally getting the two together?

Is it time to quit hiring people to do the work we all should be doing? It is time to let this whole ungodly modern system die?

Maybe it's time to send people home. "Run your own church.. I'll be your consultant and cheerleader. Then you'll find out what ministry is really all about."

Amen! I have the hunch that all this really hit home after 9/11. As I said in an earlier post, people came to church looking for hope and direction and community and they found the church wanting. They discovered that the church has become more about buildings and control than it is about being disciples. We weren't addressing their issues, we were talking about ours and ignoring the serious implications of 9/11 for the people and the world. The world shifted that day in many ways, and we tried to find politics or platitudes or someone to blams. (typical overstatement, but not by much! Yes, they are voting with their feet. The modern system of giving a tithe out of "duty" instead of out of faith is based on culture and the modern world's interest in material things. People are saying 'no' to that and probably, hopefully, giving their tithes elsewhere.

Love Poems From God

I have been so taken by a book of spiritual poetry: Love Poems from God: Twelve Sacred Voices from the East and West translated by Daniel Ladinsky, that I am going to try to make a habit of putting one up here each weekend, hopefully by Friday evening or Saturday. Here is this week’s:

The Christ’s Breath
I am
a hole in a flute
that the Christ’s breath moves through,
listen to this
music.
-- Hafiz (1320-1389)

How Much God Wants Me To Listen

I realized this evening that God wants me to pay as close attention to Him when He talks as I want my daughter to pay attention to me with my deep and incredible insights. Probably more, since I know that I can be wrong.

So why don’t I take the time to listen more?

Baptism or Crocodile Feeding
Knowing the Culture

In the magnificent novel by Barbara Kingsolver, The Poisonwood Bible Nathan Price is a missionary in the Congo in 1960. He’s on fire to win souls for Christ. He’s burning with passion and his own prejudices of his day. Actually, more like a wildfire than a refining fire. Caution-- some plot items to be disclosed.

He’s on fire to get the people, especially children, to accept Jesus and be baptized. His own children remain un-baptized waiting for that glorious day when the people of the community would flock to the river. Just like in the Great Commission.

The river alongside the village offers an incredible opportunity. He preaches with passion about it. He gives the invitation over and over.

Then one Sunday, after a particularly fire-filled sermon, the woman acting as his servant/maid/housekeeper takes him aside and lays into him- then quits and walks away. One of his daughters joins him in his dying, sun-sweltered garden.

“Why didn't they tell me?” he asks. “Why did they wait so long to tell me that a young boy had been dragged by crocodiles into the river and killed? Why didn’t they let me know that no mother allows their children anywhere near the water?”

Several days later he is brought to the village chief who challenges him with the evil ways of the church. “You even want to feed our children to the crocodiles.”

Sadly, Nathan Price ends up getting more belligerent. He is sorry that he has given up his "Christian" ways to the heathen ways of Africa whether it be planting his garden in unheard of mounds to not preaching baptism. He just doesn't get it!!

Do we? How do we keep the unchanging and unchangeable foundations of the Gospel while making sure we are being culturally sensitive? What is “cultural” about what we preach, and what is “Gospel?” How can we keep the essentials and remain sensitive to the needs and concerns of the people?

These have always been difficult questions. They are more so in times of great cultural transition or when going across cultures. Today, going across cultures may be no more distant than down the street to a different generational family. May God give us wisdom to hear His word and the ability to share it in sensitive and loving ways.

Weekly (or so) Quiz Result

The Friday Five made me think too much. So I went and took the Matrix Character quiz for the fun of it.


You are Morpheus.

You aren't the highest power in the world of
humans, but the leadership is there. You have
faith in your beliefs & trust your life with
those close to you. However, you can be
stubborn & hard to consult with once a decision
has been made.


The Ultimate Matrix Character Quiz.
brought to you by Quizilla

Now I really do have to get to see the movie.

Doing the Christian-thing, sort of

Lee Anne Millenger is right. Go and Read this post from Real Live Preacher. Now. Don't miss it. My response to Preacher - Been there. Done that, too. With the hope that there is a tiny crack into which the seed can fall and germinate and grow. It's more common than any of us care to admit.

And now, more from PETA

Thanks to Joshua Claybourn who early this morning found the latest from PETA. They never fail to come up with a new angle. Remind me not to mistreat any fiberglass animals. And then go to this one that Joshua also found. I am amazed that they think this way.

Tithing

And Pen, over at Gutless Pacifist has a good post on tithing. What sparked it was that George Barna reported this past week, "The proportion of households that tithe their income to their church – that is, give at least ten percent of their income to that ministry – has dropped by 62% in the past year, from 8% in 2001 to just 3% of adults during 2002."

Pen ends with:: Gee -- and we wonder why God does not bless the American church with more -- when we can't even obey basic calls to faithfullness.

I couldn't have said it better!

Ascension Day

Today's NT Daily Text

" Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same wayas you have watched Him go into heaven. " --Acts 1:11

I have always loved that comment to the Disciples on the Mt. of Olives: ~~Why do you stand looking into the sky?~~ Isn't that what too many of us do in our Christian walk? We look into heaven, longingly perhaps, hoping and waiting for the promise of what will happen when we die. We forget that being a Christian is for this life and the next. It has to be a both/and. Jesus said to the disciples that eternal life is knowing God and His only Son. That is now! The sad thing is that if we spend our lives looking heavenward we will bump into a lot of things that we think are distractions instead of opportunities to BE Christ followers.

Outreach in a PM Culture

Over at Ginkworld.net they have a section of responses to 7 questions they ask. Found this answer from Karen Ward:

3) how do you see outreach being best accomplished in a postmodern culture?

the best "method" i can think of for doing outreach in a postmodern culture, is basically, the "jesus method." not necessarily in a "wwjd" way, but in a way which realizes that in our postmodern and post-chrisitan culture, it may not always be clear to us what jesus would do in every particular situation, but because god has gifted us with the holy spirit, we have the capacity to discern what it is we are to do, in harmony with the great and two-fold commandment that christ has given us, "to love god, and serve neighbor," as therein is all the law and the prophets.

outreach in the postmodern context needs to be relational, incarnational, honest and just. it involves: sharing (without arrogance or proof texting) the story of what god has done and is doing in the world through jesus christ. embodying that story in how you live your life before god. accompanying others as they enter the story and journey to faith and discipleship, teaching new believers to observe the things, which the lord has commanded (rather than marketing the faith or trying to meet superficial "needs" ).

the heart of outreach in the postmodern context is embodying the faith, as st. francis said, "preach the gospel at all times, and if necessary, use words." how you treat others… how tread upon the earth…how your conduct life… all speak volumes. the reason the message of the early church was heard is because they practiced what they preached. they cared for orphans, widows and all in need, and had love for one another that was obvious to the world.

outreach in the postmodern context will also mean hanging up the "bait and switch" and trying to lure people into becoming "members." loving those who come to us with god's own heart, means putting out to pasture our "head-counting" agendas. it will mean creating free and open space within our communities where the spirit can blow where it wills and where seekers can have the time and breathing room they need to explore the faith, try on the christian way of life, count the cost of discipleship, and discern for themselves if the way of christ will become their own way (or not).

out-reaching churches in the postmodern era will be confident, loving and brave enough to provide for the exit as well as the entrance of seekers. real doors are thresholds. a door with a way in, but with no way out, is not really a door, but a trap. the church is not in the business of trapping, but of flowing with the spirit as it moves in peoples' lives. this kind of honest, relational, agenda-free and process oriented outreach is nothing new, as it was practiced by the early church.

for more grist read robert webber's book "journey to jesus- the worship, evangelism, and future mission of the church

Since I am working on a "study" at church for the summer on evangelism, I found this particularly attractive. The old methods of evangelism are not the methods for today. Perhaps we need to look back at the First Century Church for some methods of evangelism that worked in a time and culture not all that different from our own.

Simple Spirituality

An email from the organization Off the Map mentioned something called Simple Spirituality Groups. So I followed the link and found a possible resource for those 12-step like groups that I have mentioned before.

Barb Henderson calls it A guide to help you maintain your personal peace and lovingly serve others . She then says:

My Story - After asking people “what do they know for sure about God” or “what do they use in their everyday life”, I developed materials for a support group for people who are trying to make sense out of God and life. I call this – Simple Spirituality. This approach is designed to help Christians become more real in their spirituality while also providing a safe place for non-Christians to discuss their spiritual experiences.

Simple Spirituality is an attempt to help people get God out of their heads and into their lives. It is built on the 7 Practices. These 7 Practices flow out of basic fundamental beliefs about God. The practices are important to practice even before the beliefs are acknowledged. Doing so can trigger surprises, unexpected coincidences and God anonymously showing up. Simple Spirituality has been growing in me over a number of years. There have been several influences.
...
I watched my mother-in-law’s spiritual transformation through AA.
...
I asked myself, after years of sermons and lots of Bible, “What do I really use?
...
I wondered, “What’s really portable?” In other words, “What can go with me in my heart,
wherever I go? Could my beliefs sustain me under any circumstance?”
...
If I had to explain what I use and what spiritually sustains me on a daily basis, how would I articulate it?
This is how Simple Spirituality was born. This is how the Practices came to be.
They sustain me.

There is a .pdf document for the practices and group guide. Looks interesting.

Off-The-Map

Off-the-Map is an excellent resource for ideas and directions in leadership and mission. One particularly good section is the Idealab Library. They have interviews and articles on The Missional Movement, Belonging and Believing, and lots more.

Passion for the Lost

On a subscription group I’m part of at Easum, Bandy and Associates, we have been learning and experiencing journaling this week. Today’s journaling on Romans 9 really hit me hard! So here it is in the format of the journal we are working with:

Scripture- Romans 9- The first chapter of Paul’s three chapter struggle over the ongoing place of the Jewish people, his people, in the plan of God’s salvation. There are really more questions than answers here, although in Paul’s struggling he uses many proof texts. The two most powerful passages in the chapter for me this morning are vss. 2-3 as Paul anguishes over his people and says -- I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, those of my own race, the people of Israel. Then in vss. 19-23 he talks about someone being condemned so that someone else might find God’s grace.

Observations- Such power, such struggle in these words. Paul is in the midst of a time of great transition. The one's who have been God’s people are not flocking to the new understanding of faith called Christianity. They are seeing new people, outsiders, people who are different, becoming part of God’s people. The cries of “But we’ve always been here. We have always been God’s people” ring out over the religious landscape of the First Century. “Who let them in?” cries from one side. From the other: “We’re the insiders now, they are no longer God’s people.” Such seductive power can get in the way. The seduction: “We were here first” –vs- “We’re doing it the new and right way.” Paul has such an anguish, however. Not over that but over the fact that so many are still on the outside. “I would cut myself off from Christ for the sake of my people.” WOW! Would I be willing to do that? Would I be willing to look beyond “ME” to the bigger picture, the greater glory of God? If Paul can wish this, how much more might God? It is all up to God’s mercy, not ours. Thank God.

Applications- Do I have Paul’s passion for “the lost?” Or do I stand defiant want “my way” or “no way”. Am I willing to be cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers and sisters who do not yet know Him? What a humbling question which is at the heart of being a Jesus Disciple! Am I willing, also, to let them in when they arrive, these lost and lonely, who will only mess up “my way” of doing “church”?

Prayer- I am humbled, Lord. I am disciplined – and hopefully on the road to being discipled. Hold me, open me up. In Jesus Name. Amen.

Note: As I said a few weeks ago, I am looking at setting up a second blog of a scripture reflection journal using this basic style. I should be ready with that in a couple of weeks.

Thoughts on Sex and Marriage

Thanks to Len over at NextReformation for links to two really interesting - and very challenging - articles.

There's No Such Thing as Pre-Marital Sex

Toward a New Theology of Marriage

They really make us think and bring a lot of questions. I can just hear the criticisms, but both are well thought through. I don't know where I stand at this point, but they are really good starting points for discussion ... and prayer. [Disclosure: By the way, as a pastor I have never told people they had to separate before I did the wedding.]

Go to the People

From Signposts through John Campea

Around 300BC the Chinese philosopher Lao Tsu wrote:

Go to the people,
Live with them.
Learn from them.
Love them.
Start with what they know.
Build with what they have.
But with the best leaders,
when the work is done,
The task is accomplished.
The people will say,
"We have done it ourselves."

Post-Christendom

While over at Signposts I also found a couple of posts about the cultural shift from Christendom to post-Christendom. One looks at leadership:

CHRISTENDOM: A hierarchical system in which authority flows from the top down.

POST-CHRISTENDOM: A system where leadership and direction are shared by those set apart, trained and commissioned, and by those of every rank and status.

Charles Bayer argues that the Christendom Church was dominated by hierarchy where the post-Christendom church is one that rejects domination by anyone. The laity (I don't like that word!) are no longer 'on the bottom of the totem pole. They are the Church even when no priest is present'.

These are from a book by Charles Bayer- A Resurrected Church - Christianity After the Death of Christendom. Phil says he's going to be posting a different image description from the book over the next week or so. I'm looking forward to it.

Evolving

According to the Blogosphere Ecosystem this Wandering pmPilgrim has evolved into a slimy mollusk with 9 links. Next stage- flippery fish.

from the Internet Monk

Thanks to Thinklings for this quote from Michael Spencer, The Internet Monk.

I'm weary of people saying God speaks directly to them about mundane matters of reasonable human choice, so that their choices of toothpaste and wallpaper are actually God's choices, and therefore I need to just shut up and keep all my opinions to myself until I can appreciate spiritual things. I'm tired of people acting as if the normal Christian life is hearing a voice in your head telling you things other people can't possible know, thus allowing you a decided advantage.
----------
I'm burned out on Christians telling me about the next big thing God is going to do, as if they really know. I'm tired of Christians predicting the future and being consistently, continually wrong, but acting like they weren't wrong. If you said that on New Year's Eve the east coast was going to fall into the ocean because of divine judgment and it didn't happen, you were wrong. Really, badly, embarrassingly wrong. So why can't you act like you are wrong? Why am I so sure you will have more absurd predictions next Sunday?

Read the whole article. I am glad to know that there is someone else who has some of the same problems as I do. What I have a hard time figuring out, though, is how to talk about what we sense is God's leading without getting into what Michael is talking about. One way, of course, is always to make sure you have what we are now calling "accountability" groups. To have mentors, spiritual guides, brothers and sisters who are willing to listen, be honest, call us up short when needed and always pray with us can help keep us from becoming the sickly sweet Christian that seems to know everything that God wants down to to the tye of clothes they are supposed to wear. Which leads me to...

One of My Personal Rants

I call them 'Parking Meter Prayers.' I came up with that name from the unfortunately too common practice I would hear people talking about. You know how it goes:

.:. I was driving around downtown the other day. I was in a real hurry and all the parking meters in front of the store were taken. So, I asked God to give me a parking spot... and you know what. There was one right there.:.

Baloney. Such lack of humility and such incredible self-centeredness. To think that the Creator of the Universe is going to give me a parking space when I ask for it just like that [with a snap of the fingers]. There are children dying of AIDS in Africa. There are children starving on the Reservation. There is ethnic cleansing. There is sin and fear in the world and I think God is going to pick up a car and move it out of the way so I can park within running-in distance from the front of the store. Where have we gotten this crazy, it's all about me kind of faith? Why have we perpetuated it? Why do we allow people to get away with it as we smile sweetly back at their sickly sweet smile?

OK, a confession. I do parking meter prayers from time to time. I usually preface them with, 'God, this is going to be a parking meter prayer....' I laugh at myself and then go ahead and be selfish and self-centered. Is that OK for me. Of course..... NOT! But I am kept humbled by it. I am reminded that I still have so far to go in my spiritual life. I do believe that Jesus promise that God will give His People all they ask for in prayer. But in the context of that prayer, I am not sure it meant - or means- every selfish little thing we ask for. In context, Jesus is speaking of the things that make for the growth of the spiritual life. He is telling us to be able to trust Our God who won't ignore us any more than a human father would in love. He will give us what we need. Which is not very often as much as we think we want.

So ends the rant. The small print....By the way, a rant is usually a disguised form of a confession. Sadly for me, it is often so disguised I miss the confession part.

American Memorial Day Thoughts

Clergy are by nature people of peace. I am the son of a WW II veteran who served in the 10th Armored Division at the Battle of the Bulge. I personally am not a man of war. I never served in the military. I pray and work for peace.

But I have learned much from men and women who have had to face the call to fight in war. I have always been an avid reader and fan of war movies. I have watched and learned much.

The second greatest lesson I have learned, I believe, is the same one that St. Paul learned before he wrote the passage from Ephesians 6: 10-18 about the armor of God.

10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

That is to always be ready for battle. Go in prepared. Do the hard work necessary for whatever may happen while praying it will never be needed.

Stephen Ambrose in the book that inspired the TV series, Band of Brothers chronicles the story of Easy Company, 506th regiment of the 101st Airborne from D-Day to the end of WW II. It was the preparation, the intense discipline that got them through in such incredible examples of bravery and strength.

But that leads to the greatest lesson, embodied in the title of the book- the Band of Brothers. They knew how to work together. No army of one can long survive. The greatest lesson of the greatest generation, now being learned again by a new generation. That is summarized in the closing paragraph of the book. Former Sgt. Mike Ranney wrote:

In thinking back over the days of Easy Company, I’m treasuring my remarks to a grandson who asked, ‘Grandpa, were you a hero in the war?’
‘No,’ I answered, ‘but I served in a company of heroes.’ Band of Brothers by Stephen E. Ambrose

I am thankful for those many different 'companies of heroes.' I may be a pacifist. I may be a peacefull person. I may pray and work for peace at every turn of the road. But I know sadly that the natural human failings cannot help but lead to wars and someone must fight them. So today, I paused and honored them all.

Times of Transition

Today has been one of those transition days.

Our only child graduated from college.

I have several insights from the activities of the day, but they will wait for another time. This is a time, if you will indulge me, of a little personal reflection.

There is a real bittersweet quality to it, of course. The deep pride my wife and I have for her. The hard work she has done to graduate from a good school with honors. The wonderful person she has always been and the wonderful person she continues to become.

But, in two months I will be 55. She is 22. After the ceremony and dinner, we left her at her new apartment where in a few days she will start her first truly full-time job. (And it is only for the summer at the moment. A Father's Panic!)

We waved, she waved, we drove away, she went in the apartment. Another part of the journey of growing up is over. Hers and ours.

Four years ago, when she graduated from High School we expected her to be away from us at school. As it turned out, we received- and accepted- a call to a church within an hour's drive of her school. We took her to her freshman year, cried for miles, then went home, packed and moved.

At the end of August, 2001, she left for Spain, by herself, to meet up with some other student group over there. We cried again. Two weeks later was 9/11. We were separated, but we knew she would be home.

In January, 2002, she was on a Jan-term trip in Cuba, got sick and spent two weeks in a Havana Hospital. We cried and then gladly paid a huge phone bill. She came home and recuperated, then went back to Spain where we visited her in April.

Now, she is on her own. Whatever that means. I am sad and I am happy; I am proud and I am terrified. Life is change. I am getting older- so is she. I can only vaguely remember 33 years ago. It was the middle of the Vietnam War, and I, as a Conscientious Objector was about to start my alternative service. I knew what I was going to be doing for two years. Or I thought I did. I ended up starting Seminary at the end of that time and getting married.

Times change. The only constant is change.

Tonight I want to cling on to the present. Not the past. That is gone. I don't want today to end. I just want it always to be like it is. For I do not want to get older. I don't want her to leave. I don't want to face the uncertainties and fears of what is ahead for any of us.

But I have no choice.

I can only begin to imagine, tonight, what God must have felt like as he watched Jesus leave the earthly carpenter shop. As Jesus went public, out on his own, only God knew what was happening and where it would lead. And He let it happen.

I am glad I am not God.

I am glad I am who I am- today- my daughter's Dad. Thank you, God, for the wonders and joys and life I have been blessed to be a part of. Thank you, God, for being with me- and with all I love- when we are simply being human and too short sighted to see that You are with us in all things. I know it is a cliche, Lord, but I may not know what the future holds, but I do know who holds the future.
Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.

On the Mysteriousness of God

I have just discovered Fred Peatross and his Future Margins website. He has a wonderful parable posted that is mind-altering. Before you go there, think about how you would explain the color green to a blind person. It is no wonder we have a zillion different denominations just in Christianity alone. Go to the parable...

Survival Through Community

In the most recent issue of Christianity Today magazine is an interview with Charles Colson. One question and answer jumped out at me:

You say that the most profound picture of the church being the body is not in a successful megachurch, but in a gathering of society's losers, namely prisoners. Why is a group of believers behind bars closer to God's vision for Christ's body than a suburban megachurch is?

Because they concentrate on what life is all about. They are asking the fundamental questions. They cannot be taken in by the trivial and the banal, because they have to fight for their faith. It is a matter of life and death inside the prisons, where rape is an ever-present threat and where Christians are often abused and discriminated against. So they recognize that they can't survive individually. They can only survive as a community.

We haven't figured that out in the church on the outside. I love to be in prisons, because there isn't a person there who is not hungering for truth. There is not a person there who doesn't recognize that the Christian church is the community against which the gates of hell can't prevail. And the people in prison are up against the gates of hell. - Christianity Today

Again, back to my ongoing 12-step comparisons.. the recovering person knows that it is a matter of life or death and that there is a daily need to fight for their sobriety. That’s why they keep going back to meetings. When Christians realize that it is a matter of life or death, they build the community.

Jesus is First

Steve over at New Kind of Christian sorted his quotes file and posted this one...

Our Christian experience must agree with the Bible. We will be taught by the Bible and fed by the Bible. But we do not believe in Christ because He is in the Bible: we believe in the Bible because Christ is in us. -- Claxton Monro

In the Common Language... of Australia

Over at Martin Roth Christian Commentary, he has a quote from a new Bible...

Strewth
The Aussie Bible is due out soon (no links available). Here’s part of the story of the Good Samaritan, now retitled The Good Bloke:
A bunch of bushrangers attacked him, stole his dough, and left him as good as dead. A big wig from the Temple happened to pass by, took one look at the bloke, crossed the road and hurried off. Another official who was on the road that day did the same.

Then a really ordinary bloke (a grubby old street sweeper you wouldn’t look twice at) passed by and felt really sorry for him. So he used his first-aid kit to patch him up, and then put him on his old nag, took him to the nearest pub and took care of him.

Now THAT is making the language indigenous. Reminds me of the God is For Real, Man series from the '60s which were paraphrased by street youth from New York State.

God is For Real, Man

So, in light of the earlier post on indigenous language paraphrases, I went surfing for what I could find on the book- without looking on my office bookshelf.

Carl Burke, the author/editor, was a chaplain in a juvenile institution. He subtitled the book: Kids from city streets reveal startling insights into Bible passages… as they translate them into their own language for Carl F. Burke.

Here are two of the excerpts I found…

The Lord is like my Probation Officer,
He will help me,
He tries to help me make it every day.
He makes me play it cool
And feel good inside me. Yes, that is the 23rd Psalm

5. Honor your father and your mother.
It means no calling your father a wino or your mother the old lady, even if they are.
It means to love your mother, even if she hollers at you, and try to understand she is tired from working all day. It means to try to love your father, even if you don't know him or where he is.
Maybe the others are OK, but this one is a real gasser -- honor my father and mother -- to hell with that, man!
–God is for Real, Man, by Carl F. Burke, Chaplain of Erie County Jail, Buffalo, New York; Association Press, New York; ©1966 by National Board of Young Men's Christian Association.

Friday Five

OK, I join the Friday Five - the blogosphere's fastest growing event... or whatever.

1. What brand of toothpaste do you use?
Crest.

2. What brand of toilet paper do you prefer?
Soft. Sorry, my wife does the shopping.

3. What brand(s) of shoes do you wear?
Skechers for shoes; Birkenstocks for sandals. (Does that make me a postmodern hippie- or does that require Doc Martens?)

4. What brand of soda do you drink?
Pepsi.

5. What brand of gum do you chew?
Sorry, can't walk and chew gum at the same time.

The First Church of the Mallard

How did I miss this one on Jordon Cooper's blog. Some more Tony Campolo from Let Me Tell You a Story...

Perhaps my favorite Kierkegaardian story is his parable of the ducks. He describes a town where only ducks live. Every Sunday the ducks waddle out of their houses and waddle down Main Street to their church. They waddle into the sanctuary and squat in their proper pews. The duck choir waddles in and takes it place, then the duck minister comes forward and opens the duck Bible (Ducks, like all other creatures on earth, seem to have their own special version of the Scriptures.) He reads to them: "Ducks! God has given you wings! With wings you can fly! With wings you can mount up and soar like eagles. No walls can confine you! No fences can hold you! You have wings. God has given you wings and you can fly like birds!"
All the ducks shouted "Amen!" And they all waddled home.
How descriptive that story is of many church people. They hear of their potential in Christ. They agree with the declarations about the new life that can be theirs through a faith commitment. But in the end, they do not act upon what they have heard. They do not make the commitment. They simply say, "Amen!" and continue on in life as they always have.

Servant Evangelism Experience

I spent three hours standing by the Porta-Potties yesterday in the park. It was another of my efforts at Servant Evangelism.

Actually, it was my first real experience with this kind of Servant Evangelism. We’ve handed out candy bars and stuff like that in the past. But this was the first real “service” project.

I was giving out wet-wipes to people as they left the porta-potty. Free.

It was a community-wide event in the park right across from our church. I like to think of these as happening in our front yard so why wouldn’t we be there to serve.

It was a little difficult at first. I was self-conscious of the weirdness of a guy standing by the potties with a thing of wet wipes. I would reach out with the container and people would give me the strangest look. Some would try to avert their gaze. So, I started asking if they would like a wet-wipe. More began to take them. Some still looked at me strange. I began to relax and pray. Silently, of course, in that “pray at all times” kind of inward prayer that I have learned how to do. I became aware of praying for the presence of God to be over the park as the people walked around.

As lines began to form people actually began to notice me and talk to me. “Gee, that’s a neat idea.” “That’s a service that’s really needed.” “You got the good job.” (With a smiling irony in their voice, of course.) “Nice gig.”

Very few asked why I was doing this and I told them only if they asked outright. This is about serving. It is not about “proselytizing.” Or offending.

But just by being there it was bound to happen. One of the few people who did ask why I was there didn’t like my answer.

“No way! God doesn’t have anything to do with this. Don’t try to push your sh*t on me. God doesn’t care about sanitation. You trying to show how much better you are than the rest of us? Nobody is anyone else’s servant.”

Probably should have capitalized that considering how they were yelling. There was obviously a reaction. I remained calm and restated the simple fact that God wants His people to be there to help and serve others and this was a simple action of that. It didn’t appease the person. They kept commenting as they waited in line, pacing from one side of the area to the other.

It was a humbling and educational moment. We in the church aren’t used to reactions from people. Most of the time they ignore us. We’re not in their life, they aren’t in ours. Like this person, there are lots of different reactions to God and to us as His people. That was an education in patience and calm. And, like Jesus says to the church at Laodicea, I would rather you be anything but lukewarm. This person was passionate!

The humbling part was simply to do this simple action. Yes, I was out of my comfort zone, but I began to enjoy the opportunity just to interact with people. It was not earth-shattering, culture-changing, or even particularly religious. It may even seem trivial and silly and an attempt at “showing off.” But it was real. I need to do some more sorting out of the feelings and reactions. But it was quite a start.

And I have prayed a lot about that one person. Hoping that a small seed was planted. Not so much about God, but about being able to be there for someone else. I know that’s about God. Which is why I was there in the first place.

Lessons for Church Planting

Found these in a wonderful new book by Steve Sjogren of Cincy Vineyard and most famous for his Servant Evangelism program. The book is called:
Community of Kindness by Steve Sjogren and Rob Lewin (Regal, 2003)

In it they have 106 vital lessons in church planting. Here are some of them and some of the great comments that go with them:

Be a "go and do good" church as opposed to a "come and see" church.

A Classic mistake: Sheep puke if they eat too much. Don't give the whole counsel of God in one message.

Servant Evangelism is all about activating people into ministry. There are no observers.

A person who has the makeup to plant a church…
:. has passion to see others experience the love of God
:. can't find a place of ministry elsewhere
:. Has counted the cost by talking with someone who has successfully planted a church
:. Is capable of living on less that they've earned

Who isn't molded to plant a church? Someone…
:. who doesn't want to work hard
:. who doesn't expect to be emotionally and spiritually torn up by God
:. who wants to reproduce religious environments (we don't need any more of those)
:. who wants a desk job
:. who wants to live at a slow pace.

Hear your assignment from God:
:. Many churches have a call but they never discover it. Some discover it but never use it. Your call will fit the people but it will go beyond where you presently are- it will challenge you to grow to a new level It will always be, at least in part, about people who aren't yet in your church.

Don't spend your time being frustrated. Don't dwell on what's not right with the church.
:. Pray- really hard. Don't pray-whine but pray, truly pray.
:. Gather continually, habitually, every day
:. Pray some more
:. Have coffee, build new friendships, build new networks
:. Clarify your vision
:. Have hobbies

Work in a non-church environment until the church reaches 200 in weekend attendance. Why? It makes a number of statements:
:. You are not trying to avoid working in the marketplace
:. You destroy the sacred-secular conflict. It is NOT more valued by God to be working in the church
:. You send the message that you aren't trying to love off of other people.
:. It requires you to NOT be available and allows for your congregation to work out their issues on their own on occasion.
:. It gives the message that you are not there as their free therapist and the really emotionally sick people won't have you to lean on
:. It causes you to interact with people in the marketplace

Get in the habit of church reproduction early, or you probably never will.

Realize how experiential people are becoming

Your ongoing means of communication will be email.

Great Stuff.

Clergy Clowns

Thanks to Jordon Cooper for getting this Tony Campolo story on his blog. (So, how, then, do we clergy get heard? Perhaps in a future blog. I'm out for the night)

Kiekegaard tells a story that raises questions about the effectiveness of the clergy in declaring the gospel. In it, he points out that because the clergy are who they are, they cannot be taken seriously.

As Kierkegaard tells it, there was once a circus, and one day there was a fire in the main tent. The fire spread to wheat fields nearby and then began to burn toward the village in the valley below. The ringmaster yelled, "Someone must tell the people about the fire! Someone must tell the people to run for their lives! Someone must go into the village and let them know that the fire is coming towards them and that the town will burn unless they do something to stop it!"

The clown, still in full costume, decided to heed the call. He jumped on a bicycle and rode into town sounding the warning. He pedaled up and down the streets yelling at people, "Do something! Run for your lives! Stop the fire! There's a fire coming this way! Your town is going to be burned to the ground unless you do something right away!"

Unfortunately, the people just stood along the sidewalks and applauded the clown. The more he screamed, the more they applauded. The more he yelled his warnings, the more they cheered him. The didn't take him seriously. "But after all", says Kiekegaard, "he was a clown!"
from Let Me Tell You a Story.

When Jesus Says the Wrong Thing

David Mills at Touchstone comments on and takes issue with the bishop of Oxford who “thinks that the Eucharistic language of eating the Lord’s Body and drinking his Blood so put off the modern man that Christians should stop using it.”

He points out--

This is a useful warning. Christians often do not realize how they sound to others, in part because they speak of such things mostly to other Christians. They know the words so well that they do not see that the Christian vocabulary is a genuinely strange one to increasing numbers of their neighbors and that words that to them mean comfort and solace offend and frighten those who take them at face value.

They are sometimes like the traveler who speaks to the natives in English and never notices their uncomprehending stares, and sometimes like the traveler who notices the natives’ stares and speaks to them in English but very slowly and loudly. They act as if the natives are at fault for knowing their own language rather than English.

The Eucharistic language is, as Bishop Harries notes, especially upsetting today.

He describes a real problem we must try to solve. Heads nod in agreement.

But then, instead of suggesting ways the Christian language might be effectively presented to the secular modern man so that it does not lose its meaning in translation, he suggests changing the language to make the secular modern man happy. If this man does not like what Christians say, Christians must say something else.

Mills ends the piece with the following paragraph:

So much for Jesus’ words. They were as offensive to the people of his time as they are (assuming Bishop Harries is right) to the secular man of today. They horrified the Jews and drove away even some of his own followers, but he said them anyway. But then Jesus was not as sensitive to contemporary needs as the bishop of Oxford.

A very good summary and response. It is an excellent example of the fine line we may sometimes walk in order to be understood. It is within culture that we have to find ways to speak to the people who are not Christian. We do not know how silly we sound, or how offensive we can be. But we cannot at the same time give up on what is essential. The struggle we face is how do we speak the ancient, mystical and powerful words in a new generation?

I actually have a hunch that the younger generations may be able to tell us what it means. Or better yet, that we shouldn’t worry about the intellectual meaning of these things but rather begin to look at the inner meaning. What does it mean to say that we take the Body and Blood in the Eucharist? Whether we see it as a memorial, or the real Body and Blood, it is the language of the heart that we need to find.

A Prayer

There are very few people
who realize what God would make of them
if they abandoned themselves into his hands,
and let themselves be formed by his grace. (St Ignatius) (from Sacred Space website)

A Truism

From a friend today:

We are always having spiritual experiences. Sometimes we are awake enough or aware enough to notice.

Some Blog Wanderings

Things NOT to be seen

Mark Riddle has a superb rant about Christian bookstores. Too much to repeat here. But here are a few:

Here are some Biblical scenes you will never see on a Precious Moments figurine.
1. John the Baptist being beheaded.
5. Sodom and Gomorrah
6. Elisha calling 2 grizzly's out of the woods to maul 42 adolescents.

The world does not need Thomas Kincaid art.
The world does not need Christian Computing Magazine
The world needs Jesus. Be creative in reaching people, not making money off Jesus.

With thanks to Tall Skinny Kiwi for the link.

Stencil Art

Thanks to Jonny Baker (It's Friday May 16- permalinks are bloggered) for the interesting idea of stencil art and Stencil Revolution.

The Good News Should Be

Darren Friesen found an article over at re:generation by Dieter Zander titled I Was Abducted by an Alien Gospel.

Shortly after we moved to San Francisco, a neighbor asked me to explain what it means to be a Christian. Raised in a Jewish family, he had never talked with a Christian about the essence of Christianity. I rolled out my old presentation: God loves us, but we've all sinned. God sent Jesus to pay for our sins, and if we trust in Jesus' payment, God will forgive our sins and give us eternal life. I've practiced this stuff: my words were clear, my illustrations were clever. But all the while, I found myself thinking, "This doesn't sound like good news. Why must I convince my neighbor that he's bad before the good news will sound good? Really good news ought to sound good even to people who don't feel bad."

Postmodern Preaching

Len at NextReformation has posted Dave Teague's article on Postmodern Preaching.

In the postmodern era, many of us are now saying that the greatest argument for the truth of Christianity will be the Christian community. The greatest defense of the faith will be in our changed lives. The best apologetic preaching will not depend on lofty arguments to win people over, but it will instead build a community where it makes sense to believe in God. Christianity can only be explained by living it out.

In your Christian community, lacking in power and ever more facing hostility, go and preach edgy sermons. Say things like they really are. Sprinkle people with God's salt. We know that discipleship now comes with a price. So preach like it does. You are no longer a mere provider of religious goods and services. You're in the business of creating a people for God.

The Wonderful Value of Blogs

Bene Diction has said some wonderful things about the world of the god blogs. As he says, the blog conversation started by Rachel at Cre8d with her interviews of the church "leavers" is a truly amazing converation. It shows the true possibilities of developing and broadening thinking and community in this 21st Century world. It is also well summed up in the post from TheHeresy.

As for me and my blog, we will follow the Lord. What a wonderful way to go. I have been made more open again to the needs of the many "leavers", some of whom may still be officially "in" the church but in name only. Some may sit in the pews hoping and praying that one of these days something will change. Some may continue to come for that periodic moment when the Spirit falls on us, even for a brief second. Perhaps that is also one of the real problems in the structured church-- there are those who want to leave, or to make a difference, but keep hanging on. Can we empower them to seek more deeply and pray more intensely for the work of God to be open to them- and us?

So, may the Lord bless us and keep us faithful as we all, leavers and stayers alike, seek to become more fully the People of the Living God. Amen.

Serious Trouble for the Church

It seems that everywhere we are hearing the same thing that has been talked around the Christian/Emerging Church blogosphere. Here are some quotes from Tim Clinton, the President of the American Association of Christian Counselors (of which I am a member):

Today’s church is in serious trouble…. I am suggesting that the 21st Century Church looks little like- and has far less power than- the church as it formed in Jerusalem in the Book of Acts.

[Some] might say that the church is on the verge of some radical transformation. And so it must be if the church is to ever regain its power, its edge, its robust health, its life-changing and world-changing mission. Christian Counseling Connection, 2003, Issue 1

He then goes on to talk about the ‘seven modern deadlies’ that have crippled the church in America. (Developed from from the research of George Barna and George Gallup)
These are that we have:
:. professionalized the church- The professional clergy – vs – the ministry of all
:. domesticated the church- Civil religion and cultural idolatry
:. privatized the church- It is a matter of private devotion and little accountability
:. materialized the church- Become a religious business with so much focus on wealth, buildings, etc.
:. formulized the church- Coming up with formulas for successful spiritual life
:. emasculated the church- Forsaking the radical call for a ‘nice religion’ that doesn’t offend
:. Laodicized the church- Turned it into tepid and lukewarm.

Coming from one who is in the Christian counseling field, he goes on to talk about the emotional immaturity that can affect these deadlies and which are, in my opinion, then helping strengthen the deadlies. These deadlies only tighten the grip of the “chaplaincy” model of ministry that has the professional clergy exist for the care and feeding of the sheep inside the church. Or it is the country club. Or it is keeping everyone happy. Or… well, you get the picture.

It is scary in the church today. Not because I believe The Church is going to disappear from the face of the earth. No. God has great things in store for His Son’s Body. But I am afraid that many of us in the mainline or even “contemporary” churches will find ourselves on the outside looking in. The church will NOT continue as it is. If we do nothing it will not just look the way it does today in another 25 years.

As I see it the most important things we can do:
:: be in prayer-for insight and wisdom
:: be in community- with brothers and sisters in accountable ways
:: be in worship and study- together to be rooted in His Word alive
:: be looking outward- into the world around us- the mission field- where I have a hunch Jesus has already gone.
:: be servants- of each other and the world just as Jesus was.

Tim Clinton ends with the following:

It’s no secret that people are hungry for spirituality. The future depends largely on what the church will do with the opportunity that the culture is giving her. A new generation- a new breed of holy warriors- wholly dedicated to the church’s mission- must step up.

Amen!

A Quote from A. W. Tozer

I want deliberately to encourage this mighty longing after God. The lack of it has brought us to our present low estate. The stiff and wooden quality about our religious lives is a result of our lack of holy desire. Complacency is a deadly foe of all spiritual growth. Acute desire must be present or there will be no manifestation of Christ to His people. He waits to be wanted. Too bad that with many of us He waits so long, so very long, in vain.

More on the Institutional Church issues

Some quotes, these from Mute Troubador

If non-Christians see Christianity as a trivial pursuit, it's because Christians pursue Christianity trivially.

Biblically, the church is not an institution, not an organization, let alone a corporation or some kind of business venture. It is Christ's visible Body in the world. Which is to say, it is his redemptive presence the world.

What's the purpose of the church? To be Christ's followers. That's it; nothing else. As it turns out, the church is those who follow Christ.

There is still that 2.1% of the institutionalized church that I haven't written off. It's found in the scriptures, the sacraments, the true presence of Christ and the Holy Spirit in and among the saints gathered and the saints dispersed. Therein lies the church's redemption as Christ's Body. Therein lies its identity. The question is, will the church -- more accurately, will congregations and their denominational affiliations -- be recalled to this, or will they continue to cling to things which have nothing to do with the Kingdom of God?

Then Lee Ann Millinger at such small hands has this quote:

I would not be able to maintain a consistent Christian walk if it were not for my church. But the small group I attend and sometimes lead has become a huge part of how I am ministered to personally and how I am able to minister to others. Can Christians do that outside a church setting? Sure. But I would think such a situation would be rare and difficult to find. For me, to seek out the kind of fellowship, teaching and ministry opportunities I need to keep my walk with God fresh and sharp, would be almost impossible.

Which takes me back to the 12-Step discussion. I know that the alcoholic/addict needs the 12-step group to keep their walk with sobriety- and their Higher Power- fresh and sharp. While many have tried and once in a while some may succeed, such a walk is generally impossible without the support, fellowship and ministry opportunities of their "home groups." The same is true for the church as a source of support, fellowship, and ministry opportunities.

I would probably have a larger percentage of the church as important. Maybe 20%. But so often the institutional church gets so caught up in a "country club" attitude or "mine" or the need to maintain the building and instititional structures. That's when we begin to deal with the trivial. That is when we get away from the Biblical Church- the living, breathing Body of Jesus. That is when we get away from our primary purpose and lose sight of the fact that in order to be successful and faithful, we must keep the main thing the main thing. For me the main thing has to be that the church is a place where we make discples who make disciples who make disciples. In the midst of all that we will provide the fellowship, the support, the teaching, and the ministry opportunities.

My Quiz Result of the Week

As a famous feline...

You're Tigger. Playful and fun-loving, you enjoy
hanging out with friends even though you don't
always have to be the center of attention.
You're never pessimistic or sluggish. Your
enthusiasm is at once endearing and over-the-
top. You're the quintessential extrovert.


Which famous feline are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

What a better feline could I be than from good old Pooh Corners.

An Ongoing Discussion

Rachel started the current round with a series on Listening to a non-church-goer.

Then comes this article on Why I Don't Go to Church Anymore. Here's two paragraphs:

But most of the people I meet and talk with are not outside the system because they have lost their passion for Jesus or his people, but only because the traditional congregations near them couldn't satisfy their hunger for relationship. They are seeking authentic expressions of body life and pay an incredible cost to seek it out. Believe me, we would all find it easier just to go with the flow, but once you've tasted of living fellowship between passionate believers, it is impossible to settle for anything less.
:.:.:.:.:.
I can tell you absolutely that my worst days outside organized religion are still better than my best days inside it. To me the difference is like listening to someone talk about golf or actually taking a set of clubs out to a course and playing golf. Being his church is like that. In our day we don't need more talk about the church, but people who are simply ready to live in its reality.

Those really are difficult words to hear. The past few years have been bad years for those who want to see the organized church thrive. Many people are saying these kind of things, including many of us in the organized church. I have gotten in hot water with some for my seeming negativity about the organized church. It's almost as if people are saying if we don't know it's happening, then it won't, so don't tell us.

Yet much is happening in and around the organized church. The problem is that the stories of the emerging church, even within the organized church, are still relatively on the edges- or way out on the edges. This challenging article quoted above is outside the establishment, which is exactly where the establishment needs to look for the future. When the Reformation (the earlier one) was starting in places like England or Prague, people like Wycliffe and Hus were the ones who nobody wanted to hear. They were ahead of their time telling the rest of the world what was coming. That is the emerging church today.

It is the difficulty of living in times that are a-changing faster than Dylan even imagined 40 years ago. It is the time of transition when nothing settles out long enough to see a direction. What we are called to do is be faithful to our calling and vision. The ones that have staying power will become the new establishment. We will see where God is leading us in all of this. Until then- pray, laugh, cry, love, preach, witness, serve-- be the church, organized or not. And let God do the rest.

This Is What Can Happen If We Listen/Challenge

This is a remarkable account of how the above can play out in real life. Thanks to Len for the challenging and hopeful post! The Angel and the Bomb

Also over at NextReformation, Len has posted an article on 15 Theses for a New Reformation. Another excellent read!

I Can't Believe It

No, I still haven't seen The Matrix Reloaded. Maybe this weekend.

Prayer and evangelism are inseparable.

The following is a page from the 24-7 Prayer Site

.: The Moravian 100 year prayer meeting, tucked away in a remote village in Germany, sent out 3000 missionaries to the ends of the earth! :.
.: When the Holy Spirit fell at Pentecost, it was upon a prayer meeting. :.
.: Writing about the Hebridean Awakening, Arthur Wallis observed: "Let it be burned upon our hearts by the Spirit of God, that this mighty movement that turned the world upside down was not only born out of prayer, but that it brought forth prayer and was maintained by prayer." :.

For this reason, it is a good idea:

… to focus your season of prayer on outreach such as a forthcoming Alpha course or a university mission.
… to make sure that the room's design is outward looking with maps, photographs of church members overseas, newspaper clippings, friendship networks etc.
… to encourage people to ask their non-Christian friends for prayer requests. Many of those who are closed to the gospel are open toward and appreciative for the offer of prayer. It only takes one miracle...!

"The evangelisation of the world depends first upon a revival of prayer. Deeper than the need for workers; deeper, far, than the need for money; deep down at the bottom of our spiritual lives, is the need for the forgotten secret of prevailing, worldwide prayer." (Robert Speer)

A Wonderful Quote

Found this one on the Re:Source website- a coalition of church planting groups and training in the UK.

‘We need to stop starting with the church. Rather, we should plant the seed of the gospel in all sorts of new and emerging cultures and contexts – and make disciples of what sprouts. The fruit will be all sorts of new expressions of authentic church - that is, Jesus communities of disciple-making disciples.’ - Bob Hopkins, Anglican Church Planting Initiative

A Prayer for Owen Meany

I can’t believe it has taken me this long to have read A Prayer for Owen Meany. It is one of the most remarkable books I have read in ages. The up and down, in and out, roller coaster emotions were incredible and often took me by surprise. Irving’s ability to describe people, situations, and events took me into Owen Meany’s world and kept me there. Sometimes I wanted to slap Owen up the side of the head and tell him to stop being such a fool. Other times I wanted to cheer him and hold him high. I wanted John Wheelwright to get a life and stop whining and living in the past and then I cheered his heroic cowardice. Not many authors can get you that involved.

The reflection on faith and worship and God and prayer are worth the read. I need to go back and pull out some of the amazing quotes.

Perhaps I wasn’t ready to read Own Meany until now. I wasn’t ready to relive, from that perspective, the Vietnam Era and all that it involved. But now, in the wake of Gulf War II, some of the political reflections are also quite powerful.

So, Blogging is Truly Important

Thanks to Bene for the info and link to Donald Luskin who has given six thinks that are right about blogging.

It ends like this:

So if you're a blogger, or even if you just get some of your news and opinions from blogs -- take a moment to be proud of what you are part of. It really is a force for good. It really is revolutionary. And it really is just beginning.

Just to (dis)prove the above

I took another one of those tests- about what kind of music I am....


You're nothing, really. But you're nice.


What type of music are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

You would soon have a liturgy…

Talking to a friend the other night, I was explaining the kind of small group/house church idea that I have briefly mentioned in earlier blogs. I said it would be really neat to just get together with a group of like-minded brothers and sisters to sing, pray, read scripture, support each other.

^^ But within a couple years you would have a liturgy and bulletin. ^^

I wanted to argue:

^^ No way^^

But I knew in a certain way that he was probably right- if not in the details, at least in the ideas. A certain pattern would set in (liturgy) following a basic outline (bulletin) and probably singing the same music (Book of Worship). I can’t argue because I have seen it in action.

When I was a teenager right when I became a Christian, I attended a “non-liturgical” church. They were really proud of that fact. They would make sure that everyone knew they were “non-liturgical.” Yet every week the worship order was the same with a responsive reading and prayer time. We always sang the Doxology after the offering and the pastor’s prayer always said the same things. If that isn’t “liturgical” or at least “structured” I don’t know what is.

Needless to say, as one of those Sixties Rebels, I caught that and pointed it out.

A few years later I was working as a DJ on a local radio station- the morning wake-up shift. (Yes, this old night person as a morning DJ!) Anyway, one day a friend of mine who listened to the station every morning on his way to work commented:

^^ Do you know that you play the same songs between 7:15 and 7:45 every morning? Aren’t there any other songs you want to hear? ^^

Oops. I guess that’s liturgy, too.

We do look for comforting patterns. We do look to make order out of chaos. In fact, even chaos, science tells us, has order. So, my friend is probably right (as usual) but liturgical order and structure doesn’t have to be stifling. It can – and should – give us the reassurance within which we are able to risk, share, and support each other. That may be more to the point of what is missing in worship and the life of the church.

Today’s Watchword

May the Lord our God ...incline our hearts to Himself, to walk in all His ways ... 1 Kings 8:57a, 58b

Which is really the purpose of order, liturgy, structure in worship. It is within order in the midst of chaos or noise or turmoil that we can best feel the leading of God. But we cannot do it by ourselves. That is one of those ancient truths. It has been called “original sin” or perhaps “First Step powerlessness”. It is the same. We are unable to follow His paths by ourselves. That is why we need each other through whom God speaks. That is why we need worship and small groups. That is why God, Himself, tugs at our hearts, ever pulling us closer to Himself. Thanks be to God.

Spring Pictures

The wonders of creation in a lilac bush...

Think about today's New Testament text from the Moravian Daily Texts along with this:

Jesus says:"So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own ..."
Matthew 6:34 (NASB-u)

Paradoxical or Oxymoron?

The small and seemingly perpetual motion bird that feeds outside our window is affectionately known as a “hummer”. By coincidence or whatever, the oversized SUV that makes city streets look like the road to Baghdad is also affectionately known as a “hummer”. [inspired by the first hummingbird of the season at the feeder this morning.]

Spring Work Days Sabbath

Spent most of Saturday and then again this evening outside working in the yard. Not a particularly theological exercise. Not something that will change the world. But it does have the power to change me. It has something to do with what the Bible calls Sabbath.

Sabbath is time away. It is time to reflect and refresh. God knew that people needed that when he set up the work-six/rest-one paradigm. We have now tended to mess it up. Over the years we first set up rules about what was work and what wasn’t. Then we told people how not to have fun on that day of rest. We Christians moved the Sabbath and made it the Lord’s Day and added more obligations. All of a sudden there was no true Sabbath of rest and reflection. All of a sudden we had a day of holy obligations- which sure sounds a lot like work to me.

So when I took the time to plant flowers, ride the mower (and pray while doing it), clean the garage- it was a Sabbath rest. I feel renewed. I have made my little corner of the world a little more beautiful. And I spent time away. Resting and refreshing. What a great gift from the Creator.

A Proverb

Quoted on the first page of the Variety section of today's Minneapolis Star-Tribune:

When a sparrow sips in the river, the water doesn't recede. Giving charity does not deplete wealth.
-- Punjabi proverb

Will have to remember that the next time we have to do a stewardship sermon. Which, as Bill Easum has said, in essence, It's never truly about the money. It is always something far more important and related to trust and faithfulness and control.

A Quote

You have picked up the wrong life in the cloakroom of existence. -- Samad to Archie in White Teeth on Masterpiece Theater

By the way, this is a truly wonderful two-part series on PBS. The clash of religion and culture. The issues of religion. The wonderful acting are all worth the time. Just be warned, it is TV-MA.

How to Tell If You're Righteous

We continued the sermon series on being a Perfectly Imperfect Church this morning. My wife used the Matthew 25 scripture passage. You know the one. It's where Jesus says to the righteous ones at the Last Judgement:
..: Come on in and take the place I got ready for you. When I was hungry you gave me food; when I was thirsty you gave me something to drink; when I was naked you gave me clothes; when I was sick or in prison you came to visit me :..

It struck me that this isn't the normal answer to the question- How do we know if someone is righteous? or Describe what a righteous person looks like. Most of the time we would describe that with things like

>> praying regularly and intensely with a really special relationship with God; which I am incabable of doing.
>> closing their eyes and raising their hands during those wonderful moments in worship when they are moved deeply; which I do all the time.
>> Reading through the Bible over and over in one year.

You know- those are the righteous.

Well, don't ask Jesus that question. You can know your name is written in the Book of Eternal Life if you feed, clothe, give drink, or visit the least and lost and lonely. Which, in the past 50 years or so, is the one thing that has probably assured most clergy that they are in the Book of Eternal Life. They are, after all, the official, professional, feeders, prayers, visitors and ministers for the church.

Jesus sure has this way of messing with us and trying to change our perceptions.

Of course, I don't think he is saying that works get you into heaven. That isn't what this passage is all about. It is about how do we know if someone is righteous. Steve Sjogren, of Servant Evangelism fame from Cincy Vineyard, says that these are anointed actions. They show that the disciple is real. Disciples do these things because they are disciples, not to become disciples.

I would say there are several things about this that strike me:
~1~ They didn't know who they were serving. They did it because it needed to be done.
~2~ They did it automatically; serving was second nature which is why they couldn't name a time they had done it.
~3~ They didn't expect any reward or recognition for what they had done. They were as surprised as the non-righteous at the situation.

If discipleship is following Jesus and Jesus' way, then this makes sense. If discipleship is about getting into heaven, this rings like works righteousness and earning your way into heaven. My hunch is that it is more about the righteous have "gotten it" about Jesus way and are simply doing what Jesus would have done. Automatically. Second Nature. No reward or pats-on-the-back expected.

In fact, if one is following Jesus' way that is what would be expected. So if we want to truly be Jesus' disciples, just do what he did. Learn from the Master. Not about theology, but about true righteousness. Which can be found in serving.

Institution -vs- The Spiritual

Re-reading Bill Easum's Leadership on the Other Side came across some interesting quotes that fit with what I have talked about a number of times here.

Institutions construct buildings; organisms develop relationships. The chasm between a spiritual church and an institutional club is deep and wide:
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Too many church members act as if their church buildings are their kin-dom and their mission in life is taking care of their facilities.
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People speak about the "sanctuary" as if it were holy, and children are told they should not run in "God's house.
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Instead of building churches or worrying about members and budgets, leaders on the OtherSide focus on a much larger picture. They don't want to just make a difference; they want to be all that God created them to be and in the process change the culture in which they live. Leadership on the Other Side, p. 113-115

Sometimes even those of us who like to think we think differently, fall into the same old, same olds.

A few months ago I was visiting in one of our church plants. They are currently renting from another church and meeting on Saturday evenings. As I walked into the church service what I kept scanning, looking at, and thinking about was what the building looked like. Every time I went to talk to a member of the church I found myself ready to comment on the "nice building" or the "roomy lobby." I had to pull up short every time and NOT talk about the building. I actually had to think about asking personal questions. I had to have "real" conversations with people I didn't know. I had to think about worship and not what the building looked like. It was, to say the least, a humbling experience. Every time I think I've moved into the new world, I come up against my old, ingrained patterns.

Perhaps that's part of why we have such a hard time moving as churches into the emerging church that Jordon Cooper reminded us of on May 7. We have so many old patterns to overcome. Of course, we can't do that overcoming ourselves. So, I repeat

:: God, help me be one who will move into the emerging church, overcoming myself, and letting you lead. ::

Wow!

Until two weeks ago, I knew next to nothing about hockey.

I still don't know a great deal...

But the Wild just won!

Wow!

Sell-Out? Cop-Out? Or…?

Jordon Cooper is really rattling the cage. The first quote below is from the first post. The other two are from his response to emails he received….

... they had been given raises by their churches. All of a sudden courage has been replaced by caution and the desire to be creative has been replaced with the desire to maintain the status quo…
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The more one has to lose, the harder it is to challenge what gives that to him or her…
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Biggest worldview shift since the enlightenment and many church leaders only want to be a part of it if it doesn't carry a cost. After a while I wonder if this is the rule and not the exception.

It is the nightmare of so many of us. To give in. To cop-out. Perhaps, to not care.

Yes, there are reasons to worry about making sure the next pay check is there… things like food for the family, college for the kids. But it also shows a certain lack of trust in God.

Yes, I am guilty of it. Sometimes I excuse myself by saying I’m only choosing which fights to fight. Then I end up in conflicts over things that are completely irrelevant and have nothing to do with anything of eternal importance. (You know, things like worship wars over music styles.)

Yet, now as I approach the double-nickel, I wonder if I have done all I can – or am called to do – to make a difference in moving the church into the 21st Century. I have had a good ministry for nearly 30 years. I have seen people touched and grow in their faith. I have rattled cages, afflicting the comfortable. I have also held hands and comforted the afflicted. I have had a normal modern ministry. How can I move into making it a post-modern ministry? Or better yet, what will a post-modern ministry look like? How will it be different?

:: And why, O God, does the church not want it? ::

Jordon- thanks for the challenge. Yes, it is the biggest worldview shift since the enlightenment- or even the Reformation. Perhaps it is the continuation of the Reformation after a 500 year hiatus. There is a cost. It is the curse of living in interesting times. It is also the time of choice that we all must make. Not everyone can make that choice or can afford the cost – physical, emotional, spiritual, financial. But it will happen. There will be enough who can.

:: And God, help me be one who will. ::

Why They Aren't IN the Church

Thanks to Marc van der Woude, found an interesting commentary about Pim Fortuyn from Jeff Fountain of YWAM Europe. Fortuyn was the candidate for Dutch premier who was killed a year ago. Jeff's remembrance of Fortuyn concerns a conference he spoke at along with others who are not part of the church. It raises many issues that are just as true, but perhaps not as obvious over on this side of the Ocean.

Let me tell you one thing first. War sucks big time-- Salam Pax

It looks like Salam Pax has returned. Thanks to Matthew Yglesias who posted the info. It is quite revealing to hear his story and read the posts.

What? No Church Buildings?

Up much too late surfing the blogosphere and came across one from John Campea from May 2. (The permalink doesn't seem to be working.)

I was thinking today about something. Do you know that in all the New Testament, money was never used to build church buildings or fund various programs?
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I was talking to a leader from a denomination that has a backwards approach to supporting their churches. You see, if a church in their denomination wants to build a new building, then they have money to give them to do it! However, if a church wants to be more responsible and faithful with it's limited money and RENT facilities so it has more money free to do ministry, then the denomination WON'T help them out with that. Shouldn't it be the other way around?
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You should probably just ignore this post. I'm probably just missing something. I'm quite stupid you know

No, John, I don't think you're missing much of anything.

Church Needs to Rethink Everything.

Leighton Tebay at TheHeresy has the review today of a conference he attended. Here are some quotes:

~~ I start with the base assumption that the church has failed miserably in the modern world and moderate change isn't going to be enough to help the church bear fruit in the postmodern world. The problems in church go deeper than modernity in to more timeless things like selfish ambition, insincerity, dishonesty and conceit. I see two major problems.

~~ Modern evangelistic methods developed in the last 200 years have skewed our gospel message in such a way that people become Christians without actually developing an intimate life changing relationship with Christ. The result of which is millions of people who are convinced that they following God when in reality they are just following principles extracted from the bible through the lens of human interpretation.

~~ The leadership of the church has been constantly compromised by the desire for religious success whether it be personal, corporate or denominational. The rewards of church leadership like money, prestige, rank and status are a carrot that effectively co-opt the values of our leaders. People act in the best interests of their career or their institution rather than the best interests of the kingdom.
Read all of Leighton's thoughts on this one.

As one who has been in that leadership and who also agrees with what Leighton has to say, I have to add that it is a difficult position to be in. No one is quite sure what to do with someone in the "establishment" who keeps saying that the "establishment" has to dismantle in order to be the servants of the 21st Century. In order to allow the "emerging" church to truly emerge, the establishment has to open the doors and see that there are more ways to live and worship and act as Christians than we would care to admit. We have to humble ourselves before the Lord and move with His leading into the culture admitting that we don't have the only way to do church.

Of course it has always been this way. Just a quick look at the Book of Acts and the conflict between Paul with his emerging Gentiles and the powers that be in Jerusalem will tell us that we humans will remain human in spite of our best prayers. So even the emerging church will face the issues in a generation or so when the next emerging generation comes along.

What is most important is to be open to the Spirit as we all move into new situations and cultures and times unlike any we have ever experienced. But the Spirit always goes ahead of us.

Andrew Careaga talked about this yesterday as Evolution as Tradition- the continuity of change. It adds some new ideas that are worth the read. Thanks, Andrew.

We Need a New Slogan

Here's one from the April, 2003 edition of Business 2.0. They were listing their 101 Dumbest Moments in Business. Needless to say this one caught my attention:

In an attempt to boost its profile, the Protestant Church in Germany hires ad agency Melle Pufe to come up with a slogan to attract new parishoners. After nearly $1.5 million in billings and head-scratching of biblical proportions- during which the firms creative director calls Protestantism "a problematic brand" because it lacks a central figure, such as a pope- the new slogan is announced: "Protestants ask questions."

Maybe we need to consider the tradition of the 12-step groups: Attraction rather than promotion. Now if we could only find a central figure... you know, a savior-type. You know... someone like, say, Jesus?

Hi, I'm a Pharisee

Thanks to Len at NextReformation for a link to John Fischer’s 12 Steps for Recovering Pharisees.

We do all fall into being Pharisees. We forget that the ones Jesus said the least kind things about were those we would call the religious people. The ones in church every week- like me- and getting paid for being there.

Of course there is the old line from a book Profession: Minister which was big (and perhaps wrong?) when I was in seminary in another century. The author (from Lancaster Seminary) was sure God called into ministry those who wouldn’t pray, read the Bible or go to church if they weren’t called.

Well, at least two out of three ain’t bad as I look at it today.

The Spirituality of Toilets

And over at Soul Gardeners is a truly creative set of metaphors on the Spirituality of Toilets. (It is the May 1, 2003 post. The links didn't look like they were working.)

Can't help but doing some reflecting, especially in light of the Pharisee half of this post. I thought of the Auto-Flush toilets that are now becoming more prevelant. All you have to do is sit there as long as you need to, then, when you're finished and get up... voila... it flushes for you. Now, I just realized that we could look at this as what Jesus does. All we do is give our sins to him and he flushes them. But there is also the negative way as well. Too often we expect the paid professionals or the advanced amateur spiritual persons to do the work for us. We just sit around and watch and they do the real stuff.

I think that's as far as I really want to go with this metaphor. But next time, as Soul Gardner reminds us, take a spiritual inventory of how your life is going with God.

Run Over by the Living God

Jeremy Olson has a wonderful piece today on what he (and many) are looking for in the church. Some quotes:

What am I looking for? I want to see the institutional churches over run by the Living God.
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I was at a seeker-sensitive-style worship service today. What could possibly be wrong with something that brought so much good?
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The medium is the message, that's what I've learned. What having a huge building and big programs/structures tells other people (especially pomo's) is that our heart is in the perishable things of the temporal world.
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So what can we do in our reconstruction of "church" to implement ideas that do not become oppressive to the Body of Christ? I believe that it is impossible, on earth anyway, to have structure without it oppressing someone.
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The moment that structure impedes the heart of Jesus, it must be discontinued!
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Go read it all.

When Mountains Fall

CBS News reports that The Old Man of the Mountain has fallen. Yes, someday, even mountains will crumble. Is nothing permanent anymore?

Rose Bush... or Thorn Bush

Sitting in church this morning as Acts 4 was being read, I realized again that in the New Testament numbers DO count. Several times in Acts they tell us how many people are being brought into this new community. It is always in large, awesome numbers. I know that we can use our Biblical Criticism skills to discount that, if we want to. After all, as we so often say in the church, :: It's quality, not quantity, that God is interested in. ::

I realized, again, that this is probably a cop-out for most of us- a way out of doing evangelism. If it isn't numbers, why are they so important in Acts? Just to be a symbol? I don't think so. Numbers indicate that something is happening that is powerful enough to attract people.

My mind then thought about rose bushes. Or are they thorn bushes? We used to have some of those hybrid roses in our yard. But the graft or hybrid or whatever it was died and they went wild. Which meant no flowers. Just green leaves and lots of thorns. They weren't producing what we wanted them to produce. They're gone- history- mulch. They were no longer able to do their job, fulfill their calling. They were simply thorn bushes- and pretty ugly ones at that.

Which is why I think numbers are used in Acts to show that something is happening. It is the principle of attraction. If you aren't attracting anyone, if you aren't getting numbers, then you aren't doing what God calls you to do. You can't make disciples if you don't have the raw ingredients needed to make disciples- new Christians, the de-churched, the never-churched, the churched but not-yet-discipled. If all we are is a nice group that meets on Sunday and feels good but no one is coming to see us or being attracted to us, perhaps we are of as much use as a thorn bush.

Anyway, that's where my thoughts went today. If you have quality, you will get quanitity in some way or another.

Razzle Dazzle and Religion

It was only an hour after posting the earlier two on Chicago and Religion and Spirituality that I realized that they were probably connected. The unconscious at work?

I realized that a great deal of what we do in ::religion:: is variations on ::razzle dazzle:: if ::razzle dazzle:: is meant in one way or another to put on a good show that gives one an experience of the holy. Actually that is what we have done in worship. Before you get too angry at me and call me a heretic, which I may be, let me explain….

The Good of Razzle Dazzle is that when we do worship well, it is an experience of the presence of God. Razzle dazzle means that it doesn’t have to be boring, dull, out of context. It means that people have put thought into developing the worship experience with an eye to feeling and responding to the presence of God.

The Bad of Razzle Dazzle is that it can feel – and be – fake. It can become the end all and be all of spirituality. It becomes a “high” that we seek to recreate. It is a “peak experience” that becomes the goal instead of the outward expression of our love for God.

Spirituality is not about ::razzle dazzle:: because it is what motivates us in healthy and positive ways. Spirituality, when it underlies worship and religion, can and will keep the ::razzle dazzle:: from becoming the whole show. The problem many churches have had with developing small groups, house groups, or anything that doesn’t have to do with worship is that the spirituality has been replaced and forgotten by religion. The dogma and rules become the whole thing.

I believe that the two have to be able to go together. They need each other. Religion without spirituality can be dictatorial and human-centric. Spirituality without religion can be anarchy and other-worldly. Yes, that is over simplified, but it is a place to begin to think about the relationship between the two… and I’m fading after the travel and all. More to add to the discussion about 12-step movements and church movements. Later.