Doing Church Differently

(I haven't blogged in a long while. It's not that I haven't had anything to say, it's just that I've had difficulty blogging about what has been on my mind. If I could attach something to my brain that would write down the conversations and thoughts that go on up there, it would make things so much easier. I have preached some of my  best sermons in my head or car and I have had amazing conversations with myself over very important issues, and have good arguments as well. You would be impressed. I often am, and I'm not easily impressed! Anyway...)

I have been doing a great deal of thinking about the local church of late. In fact, this thinking process has been going on to one degree or another since I re-entered the ministry in 2004. I'll spare you all the details that led to that re-entry except to say that all that came before had a great impact on changing how I approached ministry and what I believed that ministry, and the church, could and should be. I still have a long way to go!

Over the last couple of years, that thinking process has included another direction. I' been pondering the current state of the local church and the people that are not being attracted to it. These people, encompassing mostly young adults but also a growing middle adult population (I believe) are referred to as the "Nones" because they have no church connection. They no longer attend, either because they've become turned off from the politics of church (small and capital "P"), the hypocrisy of those in  the church, they have been hurt/betrayed/abused by the church in some way, or they simply were not raised in  the church. Recent statistics put these "Nones" at 1 out of 7 adults and 1 out 3 young adults.

Even though the "Nones" have dropped out of or never have gone to church, many of these people, nonetheless, have a spirituality in their lives, believe in God on some level, and have a desire to understand and grow in these areas. They are searching but not by means of the church. Therefore, I believe, the way we do church, and the usual "church" ways we use to reach out to others to get them into church, will not necessarily appeal to them. 

I am no expert, I am simply writing about what I think, and what I have come to think is based on conversations, lots of reading, conversations (I know, I already said that but it's important), my experience, and observations. (See some resources list below.)

The "Nones" (and those who haven't so much left the church but who simply occasional attenders ) not only have a spiritual interest but also desire developing a better handle on "handling" life (don't we all?). They don't want to be preached at (what the church tends to do from the pulpit), they don't want to be lectured (what the church tends to do from the pulpit and in its teaching), and they don't want to be told what they need to do (what the church tends to do from the...you know). They lean more toward self-discovery yet they also want flexible guidance, non-condemning accountability, and conversations that involve the sharing of life stories, experiences, ideas, and acceptance (I call this process "Holy Conversation" - may not be an original idea of mine but it fits). 

I hate to say it but such environments don't typically exist in current church structures. They should but they are usually rare or limited. We can discuss why such environments don't exist at a later time. That should be an interesting  conversation!

It's my growing belief that we need to add a new approach to church planting, not instead of how we church planting now but in addition to how we've been doing it (though I do wonder if we don't need to do some adjusting to how we've been doing it because, honestly, we are now in the 21st century and we aren't getting the "Nones). The problem with this different approach is that it really doesn't fit the typical model that most denominations follow in planting churches, as one looking from the outside in at a distance, so I could be wrong in that evaluation.

Here's my view of it (I can tell you're just giddy with excitement!): 

The "Nones" aren't interested in church membership. They want to belong but not necessarily to a religious organization that seems to emphasize numbers and money, let alone to most major "membership" organizations. They want to be part of a group (typically a small one) where "everybody knows my name," as the song goes. They want to sit around over coffee (tea, soft drink, water, even a beer or a meal) and converse (from which we get "conversation") about life, faith, experiences, hopes and dreams. They want to be challenged to grow but not dismissed or criticized if they hold a differing view or belief with the one(s) who they are conversing with. And even though they believe that truth is relative (what is right for you may not be so for me), they nonetheless are looking for an absolute Truth that isn't changing or fluid. They want to understand this spiritual void that they feel but aren't able to connect with or necessarily explain...their spirit/God's Spirit. And they are struggling to make sense of their life, careers, relationships, family, emotions, etc.; to piece these together and find their purpose. All these come into play on one level or another in the "conversations" they have with friends and acquaintances (walk by a bar or a nightclub or some other hangout and listen to what they are saying to each other, even to complete strangers).

I see a new kind of church emerging, not one that meets in a large building on Sundays but one that meets one day during the week, in the morning before work or over lunch/dinner; or in the evening at a coffee shop or resturant or a home or...anywhere that offers a space. The groups are made up of ten to thirty people (reach thirty and you form a new group). The pastor serves more as a facilitator-consultant-coach than a preacher. The people gather, the pastor sets up the discussion (teaching? - maybe there is a topic), and then asks questions to generate discussion. As this holy conversation moves along, the pastor weaves the Gospel into the sharing of the peoples life stories being shared (isn't the Gospel the greatest of all stories?). People share opinions and ideas and experiences, and in the process, the group learns from each other. The role of the pastor is to help make connections among the group, connect ideas, ask questions that help people discover answers within the discussions and the life stories shared, and from the sharing of the Gospel. 

Of course, the hope and goal is to start several of these groups, develop additional leaders who then help lead other groups. Mission projects can be taken on and shared, supported, and worked by all the groups together. And, in time, a special gathering of all the groups can be implemented on a quarterly or monthly basis, coming together to worship and the sharing of gifts and talents in various ways utilizing the arts (music, dance, art, drama, etc.). And from these groups, as members express interest in going deeper in the conversation, connecting with more spiritual issues, and building on scripture through study, prayer, and deeper accountability, subgroups are formed. (Very much a Wesleyan approach.)

Ok, I've probably rambled on way too long, and I wonder if this makes any sense to anyone besides me. As I said, things are always clearer "in" my head. So, let me go back and re-read this, make any changes, clarifications, or corrections, in hopes that it will be clearer. Feel free during this pause to go to the bathroom, get a drink, or check your emails and texts...

Well, seems like I'm just shy of this being a dissertation! Sorry. The good news? I'm about to wrap this baby up.

I know that there are still a number of questions that need to be answered. How does one go about forming such groups? What about children? How would such a approach be financially supported? How many groups can one pastor oversee? Are these groups autonomous or will they have some connection with each other? What about worship and the sacraments? No membership emphasis? These are but a few, and I'm sure that you may have several of your own. Maybe I can address some of these in another blog, if the interest and response is there.

All this is still a work in process but it has been rolling around my head, and in my heart, for several years. So I decided to try to articulate it so that I can work on refining it. Thanks for reading, and I would love to hear from you, your thoughts, insights, ideas, and questions.

Resources - just a few:

Losing Our Religion: the Growth of the Nones 
- Heidi Glenn, NPR

Don't Call Us the Nones: In Praise of Religious Independence 
- Christian Piatt, Washington Post

The Rise of the Nones: Some Reflections on the Pew Forum Data 
- Ed Stetzer, Blog

Christianity Isn't Dying, Cultural Christianity Is: 

    Talking About the Future of Christianity in the USA Today 
- Ed Stetzer, Blog

The Secular Boom
- James Emery White

Thirteen Issues for Churches in 2013 part 1 
- Thom Rainer, Blog (be sure to read part 2)

Lost and Found: The Younger Unchurched and the Churches that Reach Them 
- Ed Stetzer, book

Surprising Insights from the Unchurched and Proven Ways to Reach Them 
- Thom Rainer, book

Simple Church: Returning to God's Process for Making Disciples 
- Thom Rainer, book

Recapturing the Wesleys' Vision 
- Paul Wesley Chilcote, book

Reaching People Under 40 While Keeping People Over 60: Being Church for All Generations 
- Edward Hammett, book

Storyline: Finding Your Subplot in God's Story 
- Donald Miller, book

Deep & Wide: Creating Churches Unchurched People Love to Attend 
- Andy Stanley, book

Walking in Another Person's Flip Flops

OK, I'll be the first to admit that doing a blog post that consists of quotes from a book (again) is probably the lazy persons way of doing things, and there might be some small truth to this, but it really is more than that. As I mentioned in my last post, I've been reading John Fischer's book, "12 Steps for the Recovering Pharisee" and it has some really good things to say about us people who claim Christ as our Lord and Savior but have a way of falling way short of being the kind of witness that truly attracts others to Christ. So, as I read through the chapters, I'll be sharing some quotes from each chapter/step of recovery. If you don't get the book for yourself, hopefully some of the quotes I post will at least get you thinking.

Step 2: We have come to believe that our means of obtaining greatness is to everyone lower than ourselves in our mind.

"We need to learn to see ourselves through other people's eyes to see ourselves as we really are."

"It's virtually impossible to get another view of yourself by yourself. Just like we need at least two mirrors to see the angles most other people see of us, we need other people to tell us who we really are."

"Recovering Pharisees need to have people around them to tell them the truth - to hold up the mirrors."

"It would be wise to look at the groups we travel in and see how honest they really are. Do we have our own prejudices and secrets? Ate we honest with one another, or do we protect one another's weaknesses and sins? Do our groups foster an accurate portrayal of ourselves as we really are, or do they bolster a kind of corporate lie or propaganda?"

"We need friends who tell us the truth - other shoes in which we can stand."

"Standing in someone else's shoes changes our view of ourselves, but it also drastically changes our view of others when we see their situation from their point of view. If we truly see from someone else's perspective, we might at least be able to understand why they do what they do instead of issuing a knee-jerk judgment of what we do not understand."

"Empathy is a marvelous antidote for the tendency to judge others, and personal pain is the pathway to empathy. It's worth the pain to become more human - to identify with people - to join the human race." 

"To empathize with someone you don't even like is a sign that you have accepted and faced your own problems and therefore can understand how other people can be trapped by their own difficulties in life, even if they are difficulties outside your experience." 

"As a Pharisee, there is no doubt that the need to judge other people is at the level of an addiction. It is intimately tied to our sense of identity and is the means by which we feel good about ourselves. We judge without thinking, and it's a habit we can't get along without."

How well do we do when it comes to putting ourselves into another person's shoes? How quick are we to write somebody off or to pass judgment without giving any consideration to what their circumstances might be, how they might interpret a situation different than our interpretation, or how they might have misunderstood our intentions/words/attitudes? How open are we to the possibility that our situation or our interpretation or our intentions, words, or attitudes could be, if not wrong, certainly impact our perspective and opinion?

May God give us the sensitivity, the caution, the compassion, and his grace, to place ourselves in the flip flops of the person we are judging, and give them the benefit of the doubt.

Me, a Pharisee?

Many, many years ago, back in the early 80's, during the first stage of my life as a minister, I did a sermon series entitled, "Me, a Pharisee?" It was a rather pointed message, more pointed that it should have been, at times, and made a few folks upset with me. It wasn't that I wasn't preaching the truth, I was, but you can sometimes preach the truth/Gospel in a way that cracks open peoples heads instead of challenging and healing peoples hearts.

I pray that I'm much different now in how I preach the Gospel and God's Word in my third stage of my life as a minister.

Somewhere around 2001 I was going through a clearance book bin at a Christian book store and came across a book by John Fischer, "12 Steps for the Recovering Pharisee (Like Me): Finding Grace to Live Unmasked." Well, it reminded me of that sermon series from way back when so I bought the book. Besides, it was on clearance and you should never pass up a bargain on a book. It ended up on a shelf, quickly forgotten. As they say, "out of sight, out of mind."

Then last week or so I was working on a sermon and went to the bookshelf to get another book for an illustration I had remembered but accidently pulled off this John Fischer book, which I had forgotten about. I felt compelled to start reading the book. You know what? This is an interesting book and well worth reading. And very uncomfortable and convicting. Now I know why it remained on the shelf!

I would like to share with you some quotes from the first chapter of the book. Read them carefully, thoughtfully, prayerfully, asking God to speak to you about you. 

Step 1 - We admit that our single most unmitigated pleasure is to judge other people.

"Few activities in life rival the thrill of passing judgment on another human being."

"Our eyes look out, they do not look in, and if they are looking for what is wrong, they will always find much upon which to focus.."

"I think to myself, rationalize by myself, decide for myself. I am the author and finisher of my own perspective."

"So long as we remain our own authority, we do not have to be challenged. We can carry on with our own conclusions about ourselves and others, even if they contradict reality, because we are in charge of all the conclusions, and we can bolster our story however we want."

"If I judge even one person, I announce that judgment is the basis upon which I want everyone evaluated - myself included (Matthew 7:1). This is the law of impartiality. You want to judge? Fine, get ready to face the Judge.

"In the same way, if I want mercy for me, then I have to allow it for everyone else, even those who, in my estimation, are 'worse' sinners than I. This is the big picture that we all need to see: Justice for all; condemnation for all. A cross and an empty tomb for all; mercy for all." 

"When God calls for perfection, it is assumed that I cannot perform it. It's the demand for perfection that keeps me relying on God's mercy and grace. But the call to faithfulness is a call I can answer. Faithful to follow, faithful to confess, faithful to obey, faithful to repent, faithful to believe, faithful to pray and seek God - all these are the requirements of faithfulness. All of them are doable and are, in fact, my responsibility and my joy, having been the unexpected recipient of so great a mercy."

"Remember the words of Jesus: Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. for with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. (Lk. 6:36-38)"

"What an incredible proposition. Want love? Give love. Want mercy? Give mercy. Want acceptance? Give acceptance. Want to judge? Get ready to be judged. Want to escape judgment? Don't judge at all. Don't do it. Get with those who want to get over this problem and remind each other of God's grace."

Might a recommend you get this book and read it for 2012. Get some of your Christian friends together, or your Sunday school class, and read and discuss this book together. I think it is time that we remove the mantle of living and behaving like a Pharisee and start truly living and acting like a follower of Christ. We've done enough damage to our witness as Christians and his Church. We need to remove the masks that keep us hidden, that make us critical and judgmental, and instead have our words and lives be a true reflection of Christ's light and glory. 

 

 

 

 

God's Holy Hand Grenade

 Click here to read Joshua 6

We are in a battle. It is around us, it concerns us, it involves us, and it impacts us. The Church is in the midst of that battle and every follower of Christ is being attacked on a daily basis. Our souls are the prize being fought for. It is an external battle but it is an internal one, and eternal one, as well. Some days we serve on one side and other days we may find ourselves serving on the other. We can, at times, be our own worst enemy!

Sounds a tad confusing, I admit; a little disturbing, for sure; and very frustrating, without a doubt.

You know what I mean, don't you, this battle that is going on and that involves you and me? It's the one where you feel pulled in directions that you know you should not go. It's over your thoughts and desires and attitudes and possessions. It includes your family, your friends, your job, even your church - most definitely your church. The world is both the battle ground and part of the army that is against us. Certainly it is a physical battle but it is also political, social, emotional, and psychological; and you can probably add a few more "...al's" into the mix. But above all, this warfare is against enemies in the spiritual realm (Ephesians 6:10-18). The weapons we use need to be, first and foremost, spiritual in nature (also see 2 Corinthians 10:3-6). And as Paul alludes to in both these passages, we need to be aware of and unitize these weapons in the battles we face in our lives. If we do not, we lose the battle.

But here is an important truth to keep in mind: even though we have these weapons at our disposal, and we are to equip ourselves and use these spiritual weapons, we also have need to have the confidence (trust/faith) that, because we are in Christ, we fight a battle that  has already been won! Christ has already been victorious, and he fights along with us in the battles we face. We are never alone!

I was reminded of this fact as I read Joshua 6. The process involved for victory by Israel was a convoluted one, bizarre by military standards. No leader of an army would go about preparing and approaching battle in this way! Which just goes to show, again, that God's ways are not our ways, and that we need to trust God in the battles and situations in our lives. We prepare ourselves, as the Israelites did, by listening to God's "word" and commands, and through obedience to God. Any other way brings failure, even if we make it through our "battle" on our own, because we have been disobedient, have been selfish, have placed ourselves in the role of God, and that, in a nutshell, is sin.  

Another thing that strikes me in this story that I need to remember is that, just as victory comes through the Lord, all glory must also go to the Lord. It's easy to take credit for something that I had little to do with, even though I may think that I gave a whole lot of effort in the task. When I start thinking, "I got through this," or "I pulled this thing off," then I have lost focus on the Author and Perfector of my faith and have placed myself above my Lord and Savior. Once I start doing that, my fall can be pretty hard! Truth is, I've fallen hard too many times because I kept looking at the wrong thing, myself.

Having faith in the victory that Christ has secured, being obedient to God's Word and Christ's commands, being equipped for "battle" with the weapons God has provided us, keeping our focus on God, and giving God the glory, are all key to experiencing the victory in our lives that God has made available to us through Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit (see Ephesians 1:17-23)

On a side note, and a slightly skewed one at that, as I read the instructions given to Joshua in this passage, who, in turn reiterated those instructions to the army and the people, I couldn't help but be reminded of a scene in the movie "Monty Python and the Holy Grail." Read through those instructions again, then, for your viewing pleasure, give this a watch.

The Colors of Fall

I love the season of Autumn. I also love the season of Spring. I like Summer, but it gets so hot down here in the mid-south and I tend to stay in doors more than being out, though there is nothing like slipping into a pool or a stream or a lake on a hot summer day. Winter is OK but it's pretty grey in the south and usually white way too long in the north. So, I'm much more connected with Spring and Autumn. I think it's the colors. I love the explosion of flowers in Spring and the trees in Fall.

There is a distinct difference between the northeast region of our country and the southern part of our country when it comes to fall colors. To me (and I stress that this is my opinion), fal colors are brighter and more distinct in the northeast than here in the south, where they tend to be a little more muted. Fall peak hits the north in September whereas it hits here in the south in the middle and latter part of October. 

But here is what I have found, for me, in regards to fall colors in the south: I look for and appreciate the vibrant colors more here in South and North Carolina than I remember doing when I lived in New York and Vermont. I still loved looking and still had moments in the north when I'd go, "Wow!", when pulling around a mountain into a valley and I'd see a quilt of colors, but every valley and every mountain and every street corner tended to consist of deep reds and bright yellows and vibrant oranges.

I just spent two days in the mountains in upper SC and lower NC - part of the Smokie Mountains. The peak season had already passed but there were still a lot of leaves on the trees, at least in the South Carolina part of the mountains. The colors were more brown because of being past peak but it was still pretty (mountains in general impress me, even without leaves). While we hiked the 10 miles on the first day in the middle of Panthertown Forest (?) in Sapphire, NC (Toxaway Lake), most of the trees had already lost their leaves. We crossed over several lovely waterfalls, looked out across some impressive vistas, but generally saw very little in color.

Well, that would be incorrect. I don't know what shifted for me but I did begin to notice patches of trees, or individual trees, that still had some leaves and some of those trees were radiant with color. And if the trees were bare or "dull" in color, I would notice a cluster of weeds with flowers of blue or white or yellow. Or I would come across a stream with leaves of yellow or red floating by, as if they were in a race toward the finish line. It struck me that, if I had continued to look for the grand color scheme of quilted color, I would have missed the little nuances of color and beauty that was, in fact, all around me.

I am like that with God's grace, more often than I realize. I tend to look for the vibrancy of God's blessings in my life, and if I don't see it I wonder why he isn't working or what might be wrong with me that is preventing God from working. But the fact is, God is always working, sometimes vibrantly, but most often in more of a muted way. I don't usually see it because I tend to be focused on the vibrant. I want the spectacular.

One day some religious leaders came to Jesus and asked him, “Teacher, we want you to show us a miraculous sign to prove your authority” (Matthew 12:38). Jesus, in essence, says, "Here I am! And what I'm going to do will be greater than any vibrant color I could conjure up for you at the moment, and you're going to miss it because you're focused on what you consider vibrant, not what God considers vibrant."

God's grace and blessing pours out around us, and on us, in so many ways but we miss so much because we're looking at the wrong things - what we consider vibrant - instead of looking to God, listening to God, being still before God. He will surprise us in so many ways, if we learn that even in the muted tones he is there, working. But every once in a while, when we turn the corner in some area of our life, we may see an amazing splash of colors. I think that's God's way of reminding us that, "yes, I, your Creator, am working in ways that you don't always see nor understand. You are my painting, my poem, my workmanship, and I am at work in and around you."

May God open our eyes to see glimpses of his grace, open our ears to hear his whispers, open our hearts to receive his love.