For My Father: God is Pleased

For My Father

Deuteronomy 1:29-31
Then I said to you, “Do not be terrified; do not be afraid of them. The LORD your God, who is going before you, will fight for you, as he did for you in Egypt, before your very eyes, and in the desert. There you saw how the LORD your God carried you, as a father carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place.”

This verse affirms the view I have of my father and the position he has occupied in my life. It is one of exhortation, comfort, hope and a future.

God is speaking to the fears of the Israelites as they were conflicted with the haunting memories of the plagues and their experience in the exodus from Egypt. This was not the first (or last) time that they murmured or complained during the 40-year wilderness wandering. God is framing their the emotions, not in the context of their past, but in light of their future. He was affirming that their struggles, hurts, anxieties and restless feelings were legitimate, but He was redirecting their cries to Him and not their countryman. His provision was always present and stable, their reaction to their circumstance was not. It was weak, frail, broken and helpless on its own. I am an Israelite. I see it in my frailty of spirit… daily.

“The Lord your God carried you, as a father carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place…”

Why did God choose this analogy? Could He not have just said, “He carried you as He has always done and will always do”? Wouldn’t that have sufficed based on their experience in His faithful deeds? No, the language and analogy used was meant to draw on a specific memory and to extract a specific emotion. God’s love was incarnated to the Israelites through the selfless act and love of a father. This image is tender, loving and repudiating the false claim found in verse 27. Their minds were taken back to scenes of literal fathers carrying the limp bodies of their children during the exodus. It must have been a striking image, but it most certainly centered the stumbling Israelite.

This is the image I have of my own father. My mind is obviously taken back to memories of being half-asleep and feeling my dad lift me off of a chair or couch and carry me to my bed, securing me for the a night’s rest. Also, I am taken to more symbolic imagery where I recall times of failure. Times of letdown where my father decided to opt out of the “teach you a lesson” mode and defaulted to a “love you through this” mindset. This is where the true manifestation of Christ’s love was unfolded to me. Through the love of a father, my father.

People often argue that I exaggerate the feelings I have about my father. When someone whom I have recently met or become acquainted with asks me to tell them about my family, I light-up because I know that I am about to have the opportunity to introduce them to one of the most incredible, Christ-filled people on earth… my dad. My feelings are real. They’re true. They have been validated over 31 years and will for decades to come as I recall them to my son and to his. I am blessed…

Our God is pleased in this man, because he finds his all in His God. 1 Chronicles 29:17 says, “I know, my God, that you test the heart and are pleased with integrity.”

Activate: The Small Group “Elephant in the Room”

I’m picking up writing about Activate: An Entirely New Approach to Small Groups. My first entry had to do with Nelson and Kerrick’s encouragement to rethink how we see small group ministry. Basically, they challenged the reader to think from the outside in, not the inside out when planning your small group ministry. In this section we’ll move ahead to their Big Idea #3, which is Think Friends… Not Intimacy.

This concept is where the title of the book truly takes life. It is, as they put it, “the pink elephant in the room of small groups planning.” They definitely deliver on this promise. The contention in this section is that “small groups are not the best place for intimate relationships to form.” That’s a bombshell in the small group world and goes against the grain of what we tell our church bodies. We often make the empty promise that attenders will find real, meaningful, intimate relationships IN small groups. This is not the reality, unfortunately. The truth is that small groups are a catalyst to forming these types of relationships, but not the vehicle.

The authors write, “promises of close friendship at the outset lead to less spiritual growth, more frustration and fewer people signing up for your church’s small groups.” In a sense, people can feel manipulated and lied to if you do not deliver on your promise. If church leaders are not careful in their presentation, they can come off like a dishonest used car salesman. However, the approach that should be made is that if your attenders join a group they will have the opportunity to form new, basic friendships. What happens after that is really up to the individual. The world is skeptical of the church and when we make over-generalized statements and promises we’re setting ourselves up to fail. People appreciate honesty and your message should honor that when promoting joining a group or any church activity. Honesty is the best policy…

The chapter then moves into the discussion of The Four Spaces of Spiritual Growth. These four principles were developed by Joseph Myers in his book The Search to Belong. At their core, these ideas support the belief that “we have been trying to force a level of familiarity in an environment that’s not conducive to it.” The church must constantly wrestle with this dilemma; over-promising and under-delivering. “We have undersold the importance of basic friendships… and oversold the importance of personal and intimate relationships and have tried to force our small-group members into such relationships, even though our small groups have always been fundamentally structured to accommodate social, not personal or intimate, connections.”

The first space of spiritual growth is known as the Public Space. This space is defined “as a group of 20 or more people.” Within this space one would find little or no personal interaction and it is a place where a person can remain anonymous. Examples of this space would be a church, mall, concert, etc.

The Social Space is the second area discussed and is a “gathering of anywhere from 5 to 20 people.” Within this space everyone will know your name, but not much beyond that. Personal information is generally off-limits and not discussed. Unlike the public space, you will not find a lecturer or teacher here, but you will need “a leader or facilitator” to guide discussion and set the direction of the space. “The social space is the most conducive environment for getting to know new people.” An example of a social space would be a “fun” church event, a break room at the office, or time spent with friends in a public setting.

Third on the list is the area known as Personal Space. This space usually consists of 2-5 people. In this space everyone will “know more than just your name; they will know details about your life.” The personal space is an area filled with close friends and family This is a private space and is not open to outsiders. We typically can be very protective of this area in our lives and guard it with great passion.

The fourth space is the Intimate Space. In the intimate space there is only one other person present besides yourself and they know very personal details of your life, including closely guarded secrets. There will be very few people who you will share the intimate space with in your life. People in this space will generally be considered “family.”

Building off of these four spaces, Nelson and Kerrick write the “five truths about the four spaces.” These are observations made in their time of ministry and interaction with other church leaders.

1. We Grow Spiritually and Connect with Others in All Four Spaces

Even in the least intimate environment (the public space) we still see spiritual growth and connectedness take place. This can be seen weekly through community worship at your church. Individuals have the ability to connect with a larger group in an event such as this. Therefore, these larger groups have spiritual value, just as the smaller venues in your life.

2. We Need Relationships in All Four Spaces

“The goal is not to have balance in all four spaces but to have harmony between the spaces.” There is a key point and observation that we all must make. Too often we look for balance and do not see the need for synergy. All must not be equal, but all must work in unison to develop the other. “We are not healthy relationally if we are lacking connections in one or more of the spaces.”

3. No One Space is More Important than the Other

This point simply builds off of the previous one. God developed us to “need various kinds of relationships to survive and grow.” So, an individual who operates only in the intimate space is just as unhealthy as one who lives solely in the public space.

4. The Spaces are Interrelated and Connected Together

This point centers around the idea of identification. We use the various spaces to identify those who we will move into the next space. In a public space, for instance, we might identify someone who we will “invite” to move into our social space and potentially on to our personal space. It’s all about movement and relationships.

5. We Have a Deficit of Social Space

In this truth we find the heart of the chapter and the key issue facing small group ministry. In America, we have a social space deficit. As we age and move out of our educational institutions, we struggle to find a secure and safe social space. “Increasingly, Americans value privacy, safety and convenience and stay locked behind many layers of security in their homes, impenetrable to neighbors or passerby.”

There are “devastating” consequences, on a relational level, according to Nelson and Kerrick in this disfunction. This goes against the American tradition and is a breakdown, socially, in our nation. I often hear stories from my parents of what it was like growing up in the 50’s and 60’s. People knew their neighbors, spent time in their front (not back, hidden behind a fence) yard. You knew those who lived around you and generally invited them into your social space. This truth is no longer reality. We hide behind closed doors and screen our social interactions like an unfamiliar number on our caller ID. This is not healthy and will greatly effect future generations. Texting, email, IM, etc. only further complicate this issue.

Therefore, a principle rises out of this problem: Allow casual friendships to develop without feeling a need to force intimacy. Most people will come to a church with the need to connect with another in a social setting. They are looking for a casual environment where they can meet a potential friend. So, when building a small group ministry we should develop an environment where they can “identify those they want to get personal with and invite into their inner circle.” Looking at it from this perspective proves that it is not as much of a problem as it is an opportunity.

More to come…

Your Ministry “Security Blanket”

I am (somewhat) proud to admit that as a kid I never had a security blanket. No “wubby” or “blankie” for me! It is definitely an interesting thing to watch a mother or father try to take that blanket from an attached child. To say that it’s a battle would be quite the understatement. To be honest, it’s almost comical. We all watched countless hours of Peanuts specials on TV and looked on as Linus trudged around with his blanket in tow. I wonder why Charles Schulz never made a special about the emotional trauma that a 25 year old Linus suffered when the blue blanket was finally worn down to its last fiber? That would be a show I would watch!

However, what I find even more interesting is the four or five year old who still has their “blankie,” but now, it’s only a small remnant of what it used to be. Over five years or so these children have worn down their once full-sized blanket to a small fragment, maybe only a 6” corner piece. But, they’re still not willing to let it go. The thought of what might happen, the discomfort that they’ll face without it, is too much for them to bear.

It is understandable, though, for a child to be attached to an object such as this:

“In human childhood development, the term transitional object is normally used. It is something, usually a physical object, which takes the place of the mother-child bond. When the young child begins to separate the ‘me’ from the ‘not-me’ and evolves from complete dependence to a stage of relative independence, it uses transitional objects. An infant sees himself and the mother as a whole. In this phase the mother ‘brings the world’ to the infant without delay which gives him a ‘moment of illusion’, a belief that his own wish creates the object of his desire which brings with it a sense of satisfaction.” ~ Wikipedia

Children cannot rationally, or independently, come to the conclusion that they are using their blanket as a substitute for their mother. It is the role of the parent to help transition their child, in a healthy manner, into a stage of independence. The longer this goes on, however, the more difficult it may become for the child to “let go” of the attachment. Child psychologists also argue that the longer a child holds on to a transitional object like this, the more it may complicate other areas of development, such as social interactions and may be a catalyst for anxiety disorders.

The unfortunate issue is that security blankets exist in the lives of adults. We subconsciously create them to bring control and comfort in our life. It’s a kind of “plug-and-play” mechanism that we use to ease stress or discomfort. We create systems that protect us from having to make difficult decisions or spend time in a timely process. I see it in ministry and the life of the church at a disturbing level.

I watch countless pastors and church leaders who float from church to church, in a Linus-esque way, and plug in their “system.” However, this system is nothing more than a security blanket. They preach the same sermon series they gave two years prior at their previous church. They implement the same purpose, vision or mission statements from one church to the next. However, after a few years their toolbox is empty. They’ve used up all of their “sugar stick” sermons and the insecurity begins to creep in. Usually, this is the time when they jump ship and head off to a new church, only to do the same thing.

I know I struggle with this as well. As a ministry leader it is very easy to do what you know has worked in another church. It is quite simple to pull out a Word doc and delete the name of your old ministry and insert the name of your new one and hit the “print” button. That’s easy, but not always right. Evaluating the culture of your church and community is a difficult task. It takes time, effort and a dedication that may delay the process of implementation by a few months. The question is one of value. Do you value the people you lead enough to step back and spend this time?

Lance Witt correctly said, “Ultimately, ministry is not about projects or activities, it is about people. This seems painfully obvious, and yet we consistently lose perspective.” Our perspective of culture is gained only through interaction with the people of that culture. I find it interesting and convicting that missionaries and mission organizations spend countless hours, weeks and even years researching cultures and people before determining the next step of action. They do not simply determine that they’re going to plant a church in Uganda and then send the first Bible-carrying seminarian over to get it up and running. They research, plan, research, interview, research, pray, research… etc.

Why are we so afraid to do the same? Why have we created “security blankets” in ministry? The answer: Because it’s the easy way out.

After the book The Purpose Driven Church was released, it was interesting to look around the country and see how many churches adopted the same purpose statement as Saddleback Church and implemented the same programs in their church, becoming only a clone of the “mothership.” Pastors were downloading Rick Warren’s sermons and preaching them verbatim in their church. But, they weren’t growing and seeing God work as he did in Southern California. What is interesting is that Rick Warren warns against this practice in the opening chapter, but most skimmed right over that section. He writes about riding the waves in your culture that God has created, not man. Too often we try to create our own waves and then cannot understand why we feel more like we’re crashing against the rocks of culture, than surfing smoothly to shore. He writes, “We’ve never tried to build a wave. That’s God business. But we have tried to recognize the waves God was sending our way, and we’ve learned to catch them.” He then caps this idea by saying, “Vision is the ability to see the opportunities within your current circumstances.” Those who lack vision use security blankets to mask their shortcomings.

We must constantly push ourselves to be uncomfortable. In times of discomfort we are challenged to change and grow. We must step back and truly seek God’s direction in our life and ministry. This is not easy, but it’s biblical. Take a moment and look at the life of Paul. He constantly brought a new message depending on his audience. His message to the church in Corinth was not the same as the one in Rome. He did not think, “It worked in Thessalonica, so it will work in Galatia.” No, Paul prayed and sought after God and was given a unique message for each context. We must be challenged by his example and do the same.

 

Activate: Rethinking the Small Group Approach

I just picked up a copy of Activate: An Entirely New Approach to Small Groups by Nelson Searcy and Kerrick Thomas. Nelson and Kerrick are pastors at The Journey Church NYC. It’s an incredible community with multi-sites around the NYC metro area. I first heard of Journey about 4 years ago and have been following what God’s doing there since that time. I resonate with their mission because it is Christ-centered, but derives its pulse from the idea of community and culture. They see the mission of Christ incarnated in community: community worship, small groups and authentic relationships.

We have been rethinking how small groups will “run” in the future of our ministry at Austin Ridge. Changes must be made and I am so glad to have found this book. I’m only a few chapters in, but it has already caused a paradigm shift in my vision of small group ministry.

In the opening chapter they discuss author Thomas Kuhn and his book, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. This work first introduced the phrase “paradigm shift.” They write, “Kuhn proved that practically every worthwhile discovery or breakthrough is the result of a release from a tradition or an old way of thinking.” This may be most true in church life. Tradition and the “way-things-were” mindset is not only speed bump for most churches, but more than likely a brick wall that impedes progress. I’ve seen it. Lived it. Bought the t-shirt. Etc. Kuhn said, “Paradigm shifts move us from one way of seeing the world to another. And those shifts can create powerful change. Our paradigms, whether correct or incorrect, are the sources of our attitudes and behaviors.” That is the key! It is IN those shifts that “powerful change” takes place. Not before. Not after. But IN.

I know that in my life I have grown the most during the process, not in the aftermath or reflection period. I understand that I could be completely unique in that, but it is my truth. We more than likely fight like mad to get out of difficult times. Naturally, we want the pain to end as quickly as possible. However, we overlook the fact that we are experiencing tremendous, character-changing growth during this time. It is not until we look back and reflect that we come to understand that truth. Think back to a tough time in life. Recall the emotions you had. You were in survival mode, fighting to free yourself from the situation you found yourself in. You were learning to adapt, analyze, plan, change… grow. Transformation happens in the shift. When life is easy we tend to be stagnant. When trials come our way we can quickly move from stagnant to active.

Just as is true in the life of the individual, the church grows the most during the shift. Change is incredibly difficult for an institution, especially one with strong tradition and people with great tenure and investment. But, when vision is clearly cast, hearts are united and real life-change can take place. During this time of the shift, it’s time to activate change. Strike while the iron’s hot, as they say.

The first idea that Nelson and Kerrick challenge the reader with is to Think from the outside in, not from the inside out. They state, “Human nature and decades of church tradition have taught us that small study gatherings, whether they are actual small groups or some variant of Sunday School… are focused directly on the people who are most involved in your church, right? Those are your people… this kind of mindset signals what we call ‘inward’ thinking.” When a church or organization adopts this “inward mindset” behavior, “Their overall growth, both numerical and spiritual, stagnates or declines.”

You cannot grow with sameness. I was just having a conversation with someone about this idea today, in fact. We were discussing a person who has lived their entire 25+ years in the same small town. In their “bubble” with no desire to ever leave. It’s safe, cozy, comfortable… easy. But, I began to share that I think it really limits their growth potential. Fear is a huge inhibitor to growth. Change of culture, context and community can activate incredible growth in a person’s life and also in the life of a church. The stagnancy that Nelson and Kerrick write about comes due to a lack of change, or sameness. Reaching out to those who are not yours will help to spark the growth that they speak of.

“The paradox is this: If you focus on getting new people to sign up for a group, you will get both new sign-ups and re-sign-ups. If you focus only on re-sign-ups, you only get re-sign-ups.” Again, this point only further drives home their prior assertion that the focus must be moved from an inward approach to an outward appeal. The question of “What are the needs of those not in groups?” must be asked in order to activate small group growth and expand your boundary of influence.

My favorite portion of the opening chapter is about the Big Number vs. Little Number. The Little Number is “the average number of people attending on a Sunday.” This is what is commonly referred to in church growth lingo as the “congregation.” They ask the reader to measure this based on your three-month average attendance, but challenge them to understand that this “is not the number to work with when you start planning your small groups.”

Instead, a church must focus on the Big Number, which is “the number of individual people who have attended your church over that same three-month period.” This is called your “crowd.” As a church leader you understand that over that three-month period people come and go and do not attend with regularity. So, the average number, or congregation, is not an accurate indicator of those who your church could be reaching on a consistent basis. So, in order to reach the most people, target the Big Number. The Big Number is not easily determined and can be “affected by things such as the age of the church, its influence in the community, and whether there have been any moral failures or issues that have caused division.” An educated guess (supported by data) is the best method.

So, that wraps their first “Big Idea” from the opening chapter. As I continue to read I’ll blog more about what I’m learning. It’s definitely encouraging me to look at this concept on a micro level within my ministry.

 

 

 

Laying Down Your Identity: Gal 3:28

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female… 

We’ve all most likely read through this verse or had it preached to us countless times. I’ve generally heard it explained in the same manner throughout my 31 years of churchgoing, but I have recently been challenged, not necessarily to change my interpretation of the verse, but to come to grips with its true meaning… the marrow of its message.

It is simple to read a verse, even in context, like this and feel encouraged and secure. It sends a message of unity while addressing the reality of diversity within the body. The american church is not honest when dealing with the struggle of diversity. I believe that we truly “want” it, but it’s not happening. Most churches are made up of people that look, act and believe the same as 90% of the attenders. That’s just the reality in which we live. It is true (to an extent) that what we have been generally taught on this passage is what was meant in its writing, I believe. However, Pete Rollins has confronted me with a more tangible (and almost physical) approach to this verse. In this interview (click here), he discusses his “faith community” called IKON in Northern Ireland. They are most definitely a postmodern ministry and ascend to reach a disenchanted segment of the “spiritual” population within their cultural context. One of the issues that Pete addresses is this idea of “suspended space” that is practiced within their collective. “Suspended space” is where this verse is lived out during a monthly gathering. The idea is that the congregants, for only an hour, lay down their identities and approach each other in discussion, prayer and sharing in a 100% open grace-based manner.

Pete says that Christ’s incarnation was the physical manifestation of this concept. He asserts that when Jesus came to earth and took on the form of man he was laying down his identity to encounter us on “our level.” Pete quotes Emmanuel Levinas when he says, “If you see the color of somebody’s eyes, you are not relating to them.” What he means by that is if, when speaking with someone, you see their eye and hair color you are treating them as an object, not focusing on their message. Rollins believes (and states) that our theological/ethical/moral positions are extremely important to who we are and the manner in which we conduct our lives. However, his collective gathers by setting aside those positions for one hour to truly encounter another at a deeper level. He tells his “church” that by participating in this activity they are being used as an instrument of another’s “further conversion.” Basically, he’s stating that God can use us in new and unique ways to encourage each other in the sanctification process through the laying down of our identities/beliefs/dogmas/etc.

It will definitely make you uncomfortable… but, it will make you think! Identifying with Christ is key. Accessing Galatians 3:28 from this vantage point could be transformational for the individual and the church universal. We might just be standing in the sight of Christ by living this out in our own lives.

Postmodern Children’s Ministry

As a staff we are reading through Ivy Beckwith’s Postmodern Children’s Ministry. I first read this book about 3 years ago (mentioned it on this blog as well) and was deeply moved by Ivy’s insight into the culture in which we minister, but also the hearts that we are attempting to reach. I say “hearts” because we often see children as a number or warm body, but Ivy moves the reader to see each child as a created-in-God’s-image individual.

Today we covered chapter three, which is my favorite chapter in the book. This chapter deals with “bringing faith to life” and dives into the topic of discipling elementary and preteens with a specific end in mind. Ivy discusses Erikson’s stages of development and states that children between the ages of 6 and 12 are going through the crisis or stage of Industry vs Inferiority. I like to refer to the inferiority stage as the great “reality check.” It is at this point where a child is capable of stepping back and seeing, for the first time, that they may not be the center of universe. It is also a time of intense self-realization when they also come to grips with the fact that they are not the best at all of their endeavors. There is always going to be someone bigger, faster, stronger, smarter… and this is a difficult revelation.

However, this is a critical and necessary revelation in the development of a child. I see far too many “helicopter parents” in ministry. These parents are the ones who have a fear and insecurity of ever letting their child fail. Failure is a part of life and it is also a part of the maturing process. It builds motivation and provides a sense of reality. Children who grow up in an environment where their parents act as “bumpers” to protect them from the bumps in the road of life never fully engage reality until it is often too late. Ivy writes, “To successfully navigate the elementary years the child must discover what she can do well and develop some basic competency in those necessary skills she cannot do well.” Children must develop the ability to cope and compensate for their shortcomings, while utilizing their giftings.

Ivy moves on later in the chapter to discuss the developmental process of an elementary aged child in more detail. She states, “children at this age (6-12) have moved away from the self-centered mentality of preschoolers… the elementary child is learning to negotiate social situations… This budding sense that the world consists of different people with different abilities and desires gives him a strong belief in a God with human characteristics.” That is a very powerful statement when deconstructed. For a child, if their sense of God is attached to their sense of the world and their environment then there is a heavy burden on the family and church. We must constantly be asking the question “What view of God and His character are we promoting?” A child will connect an understanding of God and the way He operates to those in authority and influence in their life.

During these years children develop a concrete understanding of right and wrong. Ivy argues that this is what makes children exceptionally open to the faith modeling of the adults in their lives. Children become active in the decision making process and have the ability to now weigh the pros and cons of their actions. Parents, mentors and other influences in the child’s life should proceed with this understanding when modeling right behaviors to their child. Our goal in Christian parenting is not an action-oriented faith, but a faith guided by a heart change. However, this heart change can take longer to produce in children than adults.

When the discussion moves to ministry to preteens, Ivy addresses the idea that this is a time of faith crisis. Doubt about God, religion, church, hope, family, etc begins to creep in to the corners of their mind for the first time. This can be terrifying for parents. However, Ivy says it should be viewed as an opportunity. She says, “Parents and caregivers should not be afraid of this faith crisis; it is a natural part of human development and can ultimately result in the child having a stronger, more active, more fulfilling faith in God.” I believe that doubt is a necessary peg in the ladder of faith. All will wrestle with it at some point and wouldn’t it be best if handled under the care of a loving and Christ-centered parent? Ivy suggests that when walking a child through a faith crisis we need to have the “no question is off limits” mentality. Open and honest discussion is a must. She wraps this idea up by stating, “During the preteen years, children will decide if they are going to buy into the faith of their family and community or if they will instead forge a new path for themselves. The modeling they see in us will play an enormous part in their decision.”

Take a look at what Peter Rollins says about doubt:

Currently Reading

Here are three books that I’m currently reading. I’m on a big Peter Rollins kick right now. The Fidelity of Betrayal may be one of the best and most challenging books I’ve read in years.

Thoughts on Repainting Faith/Belief

About five years ago I picked up Rob Bell’s “Velvet Elvis” amidst the hype from my friends as we sat in our mid-twenties and were pushing out on our faith and belief systems. Those “systems” were the church, more specifically the churches that we attended and were leaders in. At this point in our lives most of us had not broken free from the church of our childhood and youth. I do not necessarily mean the actual church (i.e. building, physical address), although this was true for me, but we had not explored faith beyond what we experienced in our upbringing. I look back at this as a turning point in my life.

The book was not the catalyst, but it seems that I began to wrestle with my ecclesiology in a manner in which I never had before. There were definite mile-markers that I can look back on and clearly identify in my personal faith journey, but I never really struggled with my beliefs about the church. I was comfortable. Content. Complacent. All things church related never truly concerned me until this point. I think it was sparked by some obvious unhealthy situations brewing in my local church. I saw that we just might be promoting some destructive behaviors in the lives of our families. We were an over-scheduled, over-programmed, over-staffed organism. We kept adding more, when we needed to be taking away. But, that’s not really my point…

These “issues” made me think and evaluate in a way that was completely foreign, but incredibly intriguing. So, “Velvet Elvis” was a critical piece to this ecclesiological puzzle. Rob is a great communicator and writer. If you have not seen his DVD, “Everything is Spiritual,” do yourself a favor and get a copy… or borrow mine. Sure, his most recent book has definitely generated a lot of controversy, but, “Velvet Elvis” hits on all cylinders in my opinion. It’s challenging, engaging, humorous and poignant. Rob’s writings seem to have a rhythm to them that you can almost feel when reading. That’s what struck a chord with me.

In the opening of “Velvet Elvis” he writes:

For thousands of years followers of Jesus, like artists, have understood that we have to keep going, exploring what it means to live in harmony with God and each other… Jesus took part in this process by calling people to rethink faith and the Bible and hope and love and everything else, and by inviting them into the endless process of working out how to live as God created us to live. 

Bell cites Martin Luther as someone who rethought faith and hope. He said:

Luther was taking his place in a long line of people who never stopped rethinking and repainting the faith. Shredding unnecessary layers and at the same time rediscovering essentials that had been lost… Because of this movement, the churches he was speaking against went through their own process of rethinking and repainting, making significant changes as a result.

This idea of “repainting” hit a nerve in recent weeks. I probably had not thought about it in years, but as I’ve wrestled with some personal issues (small faith crises) it fluttered back into my mind like a forgotten memory that was sparked by a smell or sound. It was very vivid and stirred emotions that changed rapidly over the coming days. I’ll explain…

A friend of mine tagged me as a reformergent. I both love and hate this title. For those who know me well they know how passionate I am about reformed doctrine. I’m a TULIP-loving, Piperite whose wedding ring is an exact copy of Martin Luther’s. So, yeah… I love the doctrines of grace. But, at the same time, I completely sympathize and agree with a lot of what the emerging church movement is about. These, to most, would seem impossible to reconcile. This is the movement that Rob Bell is most aligned and familiar with. For anyone to claim to know what the emergent church is or does, does not. They are varied and no two look alike, or rarely even similar. Most are not even churches, but gatherings of people interested in a conversation about faith and belief. They are constantly questioning, doubting and rethinking how church should/could be done. There are a lot of doctrinal concerns that I have with this movement, but I love their passion for truth, hope and joy and their desire for a fresh expressions of faith.

With that in mind, I began to think about this word repainting. Its meaning has changed for me since the first time I read Bell’s work. We lived in Michigan for almost two years and bought an older house. We were inspired by HGTV and thought remodeling a 30+ year old home would be easy and we would “flip this house” and make a fortune one day. To say that we were wrong would be an understatement. It was a nightmare.

Hundreds of hours were spent scraping wallpaper, patching drywall (because people in Michigan think texture on walls is evil), priming, painting, repainting, et al…. I am still recovering almost a year removed. The final task we undertook was painting the exterior. The inside of the home honestly turned out better than we could have ever imagined. It was horrific at times, but we were more than pleased. Luckily, for me, I needed to have the outside of the home stained. We had cedar shake siding/planks and I didn’t have the skill (aka “desire”) to do it myself. So, we hired it out. A few days later and it was like we had a new house. I remember standing in our street in mid-June and thinking back to the snowy December night that we moved in and thought, “This isn’t the same house.” The old stain had faded and looked dreadful. It was an eye-sore for sure. To me and my neighbors.

I imagined what it would have been like for someone who had not seen our house for 20 years to drive by after we moved in. Their thoughts would have most likely gone to, “Wow, look how run down that house looks” or “Remember what it used to look like? This neighborhood has really gone downhill.” Although we were surrounded by beautiful homes, the condition of ours was enough to bring down the perception of theirs as well. The benefit of the remodel was definitely for us in the end, both emotionally and financially, but it was also for our neighbors. Through our work their property value went up. Our street simply felt different when driving through.

The emergent movement is often tagged with the misnomer that they feel like the church is irrelevant or past its prime. Theologians, pastors and conservative scholars scoff at them for this and claim, in some cases, that they’re “heretical.” The opposite is true, in fact. They value the God-ordained church and their work is to see it expressed in ways that connect with our culture while not watering down its message and creating followers who are devoted to a belief and not a building. Like our Michigan house, we knew it was not past its prime. We knew that hidden underneath that disgusting 70’s wallpaper was a blank piece of drywall waiting for our expression of style and color. The stain on the exterior needed a new coat to bring it back to life. It’s simple in retrospect, but it was honestly a painful process.

Faith and belief should never be easy. Martin Luther’s life, once he posted his 95 theses, was not one of luxury. It was a life of exile, fear, fighting, etc. We should constantly be struggling with belief. Not struggling with belief in who Christ was, but wrestling with how we live it out and express it. Faith is personal, but its expression must be seen in tangible ways. How we love. How we serve. How we lead. How we give.

Rob sums up the opening chapter of “Velvet Elvis” by saying:

By this I do not mean cosmetic, superficial changes like better lights and music, sharper graphics, and new methods with easy-to-follow steps. I mean theology; the beliefs about God, Jesus, the Bible, salvation, the future. We must keep reforming the way the Christian faith is defined, lived, and explained.

What gets lost is the truth that whoever painted that version was just like us, searching for God and experiencing God and trying to get a handle on what the Christian faith looks like… The tradition then is painting, not making copies of the same painting over and over. The challenge of the art is to take what was great about the previous paintings and incorporate that into new paintings.

And in the process, make something beautiful -  for today.

Some people are content in being stagnant. Change, for these people, is not a part of life. I am not. I cannot stand “sameness.” Change is good, healthy, life-giving. To think back to my life five years ago when I first read “Velvet Elvis” makes me laugh. Life’s biggest struggles and concerns seem petty and insignificant now. Rediscovering Bell now, in light of my new situation and struggles, sheds an entirely new light on his insight.

We must constantly reevaluate our situation.

Our faith situation.

Our belief situation

Our ecclesiological situation…

in light of the “weathering” that has taken place in our life. Weathering and life situation does not change our core doctrines, but it does change our perspective. Giving perspective to life situations is what Christ did. The lens through which we gain his perspective is found in the narrative of his life, deeds and sacrifice.

By repainting our faith in fresh ways, we add value to our beliefs that will impact the perception of those around us. Just as the work on our home added value to those around us, the same is true in our lives. We must repaint our faith as much for us as for others. Now and in generations to come.

Time to Catch-Up!

I’ve been away for quite some time. Life has been a bit hectic and I’ve neglected writing here.

I started my new classes two weeks ago. This is my last semester and I’m definitely ready to be done! I am taking 18 hours this fall and will graduate in December. I know it’s crazy to take that many classes and also serve in a full-time ministry, but I just have to finish. I cannot put it off any longer. I’ll be done with my degree on December 12!

I’m a little frustrated with my degree plan. I’m getting an MRE (Masters of Religious Education) and it requires 60 hours. However, when I graduate I’ll have 74 hours. Liberty Seminary requires that you complete 30 hours of the degree with them. So, I transferred in 44 hours and will have taken 30 with them when I graduate, putting me at 74. It’s frustrating, but it’s the rules.

This semester I’m taking an apologetics class, a discipleship ministry course, and four christian leadership classes. So far it’s not too bad. I just have to stay focused and not procrastinate like I have for my entire life.

Valerie and I went to the first UT football game this past weekend. It was a blast even though the opponent (Florida Atlantic University) wasn’t all that much of a challenge. It should be a good season of football. Also, we took our nephews, Wyatt and Seth, to see the Pflugerville versus Leander game on Friday. I’m pretty sure it was their first game, because at the end of the 3rd quarter Wyatt told us that the game was, as he put it, “a big waste of my time.”

The fall schedule at church has kicked-in to high gear. We have been absolutely blown-away with the number of kids that have been coming on Sundays. All summer long we’ve had between 160-175 elementary aged kids on Sundays, but since promotion we’ve had 226, 254, and 238 (Labor Day). We’re way understaffed and are recruiting volunteers like crazy!

Busy Week!

Well, I can safely estimate that this has been one of the busiest weeks of my life in ministry. We are kicking-off our new Children’s Ministry format this Sunday and we’ve been working non-stop! I’ve been getting home late every night and just crashing.

To make matters worse, I’m sick. I mowed the yard on Monday and I think all the dust triggered my allergies. I woke up on Tuesday with a “tickle” in my throat and knew exactly what I was in for. It’s been pretty bad, but I’ll survive.

Today is also the last day of classes for this term. I have two papers due (one on The Logos and one on Church Discipline) and a final exam. I’m ready for this semester to be done, but I’m starting the fall term in two weeks.

We got an awesome new iMac for our children’s worship room. It is sweet! Using a program called ProPresenter, we can now run everything from the iMac and not have to use a DVD player or CD player. It’s probably the most important software I’ve ever used in ministry.