With evangelism on all our minds now I want to open this blog up like a forum. Not only do I want post my thoughts but I want to hear yours also. Limber up your fingers, and start your typing engines! (You can leave your comments at the bottom of this blog.)
I’ll keep this shorter than normal but I would like to say something.
In general, I like Rob Bell. Rob Bell was the man talking in the video this Sunday. He was the opposite to “bullhorn guy”. However, as I was watching it I couldn’t help but wonder, would we feel differently about bullhorn guy if he was portrayed differently?
In the video bullhorn guy was portrayed as kind of stuffy, would we have felt differently if bullhorn guy was a younger, hipster, trendy cool looking guy? I don’t know.
Anyway we’ve been talking about evangelism now for two weeks. What are everyone’s thoughts?
Do you think that bullhorn guy is getting it wrong? Do you think there is a place for bull horn guy with regards to evangelism? And if you disagree with the way bullhorn guy goes about things, what do you believe are better ways to approach evangelism?
In general, what are your thoughts?
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Monday, June 15, 2009
You Are Not Alone
I have a lot of thoughts about last nights message at the Thread but rather than focus on them I wanted to say this because I think it needs to be said and it needs to be said often.
You are not alone.
I know that seems like an odd way to start but really, you are NOT alone.
I want to say this because I wonder how many people feel completely and utterly alone in their faith. I wonder how many people feel that they can’t be part of a church because their brand of faith is a little different, they worship a little differently, they think differently, they connect the dots differently, they have doubts that overwhelm them, and questions that they can not answer.
I wonder how many people, in churches today feel like they’ve been backed into a corner where they feel like they’re being told “If you’re not for us, you’re against us.” I wonder how many people have thought and are thinking “well, if that’s the case, then I guess I don’t belong… I guess I’m alone.”
I can not tell you how much I hurt for people in those situations and how much I feel for them because I was one of them and on certain days, I am still one of them.
Often throughout my life I have felt like there are normal Christians here on the planet Earth, who all worship the same and their faiths look the same… and then there is me, way out by myself on Pluto, which isn’t even a planet and I have a third eye and green skin! It’s not that my faith is way off base but rather it’s like a maze. We’ll both get to the same end but we’ll take different ways to get there. We’ll connect the dots differently.
And I want to say, that’s good! We’re not meant to think the same! We’re supposed to be different! But even as I say that I know it won’t fully lessen the burden someone carries when they think they are the only one, when they feel the wrenching pain of loneliness.
So I think about my own life and how it is that I have such a deep seeded loneliness in me. Where did this come from, and how can I dig out of it?
I certainly don’t want to appear to be bashing the church or it’s inhabitants but I feel that a lot of the time when something is meaningful to one person, they assume that it should be meaningful to all people. Understand I am not talking about biblical principles which should be meaningful to all. I am talking about the person who God convicted to stop drinking soda, who then took it as a mandate that everyone should stop drinking soda, who then proceeds to tell everyone that if they want to please God they should also stop drinking soda. (Obviously, I made this example up. You can replace “drinking soda” with anything… who God convicted to stop listening to a certain band, or who God convicted to give money to a certain charity… take your pick.) Just because something is meaningful to one person doesn’t mean it will be as meaningful to someone else. We need to remember that people are different. If it so happens that it’s not as meaningful to them then we should stop trying to force it on them.
When we force our purposes onto people and make it seem like unless they get meaning out of it also they are not as “righteous” as us, we are burying the seeds of loneliness deeper in them.
When we refuse to listen to someone to the end of their conclusion, we are burying the seeds of loneliness deeper in them.
When we don’t even attempt to understand someone’s way of doing it, we are burying the seeds of loneliness deeper in them.
When we constantly try to get people to think the same way as us, and agree with us and our conclusions with no regard to how they feel, we are burying the seeds of loneliness deeper and deeper.
Let me tell you what loneliness will do to a person, the deep seeded loneliness I’m speaking of.
Loneliness causes people to not want to open up. It makes them highly insecure because when you look around you think “Gosh, I’m the only one who thinks like this. I must be wrong! I just won’t say anything…. I’ll just keep my mouth shut and I’ll just keep smiling.” And the more you stay quiet, the less you say, makes that third eye you think you have stick out even more, and it makes you think your skin turned a shade greener.
When loneliness keeps you from speaking there is no such thing as community or fellowship to you. You feel alone everywhere. In the middle of a crowded Sunday morning service you feel alone. In a bible study, you feel alone. Loneliness causes people to turn their back not only on the church but also on God because unfortunately many think that they go hand in hand and if they don’t fit in the church, they don’t fit with God either.
Let me just say that I have been there, and sometimes I am still there. I still wrestle with the idea of what a “good” Christian is suppose to look like. I still struggle daily with telling people what I’m really thinking, what I’m really feeling, and about the doubts that sometimes overwhelm me and I still struggle with this because I have been hurt in the past and I can not feel that pain again. I struggle with being able to trust people with who I really am because I can not feel the pain of isolation from the church again.
I don’t have some magical formula for not feeling loneliness (although I wish I did.) All I can say is pray that God will direct you to others that you can be open and vulnerable with, who will not only value your opinions and treat them with respect but who will also love and care for you, the real you, the three eyed, green skin you.
So I’ll end with this that
You are not alone.
You are not alone.
You are not alone.
These four words are balm for the lonely heart and when you see that it is true, these words will heal and bring peace, comfort, community, and trust.
At least, they have for me.
You are not alone.
I know that seems like an odd way to start but really, you are NOT alone.
I want to say this because I wonder how many people feel completely and utterly alone in their faith. I wonder how many people feel that they can’t be part of a church because their brand of faith is a little different, they worship a little differently, they think differently, they connect the dots differently, they have doubts that overwhelm them, and questions that they can not answer.
I wonder how many people, in churches today feel like they’ve been backed into a corner where they feel like they’re being told “If you’re not for us, you’re against us.” I wonder how many people have thought and are thinking “well, if that’s the case, then I guess I don’t belong… I guess I’m alone.”
I can not tell you how much I hurt for people in those situations and how much I feel for them because I was one of them and on certain days, I am still one of them.
Often throughout my life I have felt like there are normal Christians here on the planet Earth, who all worship the same and their faiths look the same… and then there is me, way out by myself on Pluto, which isn’t even a planet and I have a third eye and green skin! It’s not that my faith is way off base but rather it’s like a maze. We’ll both get to the same end but we’ll take different ways to get there. We’ll connect the dots differently.
And I want to say, that’s good! We’re not meant to think the same! We’re supposed to be different! But even as I say that I know it won’t fully lessen the burden someone carries when they think they are the only one, when they feel the wrenching pain of loneliness.
So I think about my own life and how it is that I have such a deep seeded loneliness in me. Where did this come from, and how can I dig out of it?
I certainly don’t want to appear to be bashing the church or it’s inhabitants but I feel that a lot of the time when something is meaningful to one person, they assume that it should be meaningful to all people. Understand I am not talking about biblical principles which should be meaningful to all. I am talking about the person who God convicted to stop drinking soda, who then took it as a mandate that everyone should stop drinking soda, who then proceeds to tell everyone that if they want to please God they should also stop drinking soda. (Obviously, I made this example up. You can replace “drinking soda” with anything… who God convicted to stop listening to a certain band, or who God convicted to give money to a certain charity… take your pick.) Just because something is meaningful to one person doesn’t mean it will be as meaningful to someone else. We need to remember that people are different. If it so happens that it’s not as meaningful to them then we should stop trying to force it on them.
When we force our purposes onto people and make it seem like unless they get meaning out of it also they are not as “righteous” as us, we are burying the seeds of loneliness deeper in them.
When we refuse to listen to someone to the end of their conclusion, we are burying the seeds of loneliness deeper in them.
When we don’t even attempt to understand someone’s way of doing it, we are burying the seeds of loneliness deeper in them.
When we constantly try to get people to think the same way as us, and agree with us and our conclusions with no regard to how they feel, we are burying the seeds of loneliness deeper and deeper.
Let me tell you what loneliness will do to a person, the deep seeded loneliness I’m speaking of.
Loneliness causes people to not want to open up. It makes them highly insecure because when you look around you think “Gosh, I’m the only one who thinks like this. I must be wrong! I just won’t say anything…. I’ll just keep my mouth shut and I’ll just keep smiling.” And the more you stay quiet, the less you say, makes that third eye you think you have stick out even more, and it makes you think your skin turned a shade greener.
When loneliness keeps you from speaking there is no such thing as community or fellowship to you. You feel alone everywhere. In the middle of a crowded Sunday morning service you feel alone. In a bible study, you feel alone. Loneliness causes people to turn their back not only on the church but also on God because unfortunately many think that they go hand in hand and if they don’t fit in the church, they don’t fit with God either.
Let me just say that I have been there, and sometimes I am still there. I still wrestle with the idea of what a “good” Christian is suppose to look like. I still struggle daily with telling people what I’m really thinking, what I’m really feeling, and about the doubts that sometimes overwhelm me and I still struggle with this because I have been hurt in the past and I can not feel that pain again. I struggle with being able to trust people with who I really am because I can not feel the pain of isolation from the church again.
I don’t have some magical formula for not feeling loneliness (although I wish I did.) All I can say is pray that God will direct you to others that you can be open and vulnerable with, who will not only value your opinions and treat them with respect but who will also love and care for you, the real you, the three eyed, green skin you.
So I’ll end with this that
You are not alone.
You are not alone.
You are not alone.
These four words are balm for the lonely heart and when you see that it is true, these words will heal and bring peace, comfort, community, and trust.
At least, they have for me.
Monday, June 8, 2009
What can you do today?
Well I’ll be honest yesterday’s sermon at the Thread certainly gave me a lot to think about.
It struck me last night that with the Holy Spirit’s backing on just our everyday lives mighty things can be accomplished. On the opposite side of the coin a ministry without the holy spirit’s backing could very well reach no one. I don’t know about anyone else but this struck me as kind of odd to think that maybe my everyday life could possibly reach more people than my being in full-time ministry.
The question I walked away with last night was one David bought up, “What have we been called to do now?” Now as in where we are right now, sitting at the computer on June 8th, 2009. If we focus too much on the impact we’re going to make years from now we miss out on the impact that we could be having today! It is all well and good to plan for the future and I encourage people to do it within reason, but there is a here and now and we should be focusing on it.
If a church has small numbers they shouldn’t be thinking “Well, in a year from now, when we have more members we’ll be able to make a bigger impact.” Wouldn’t it be wiser as a community to be asking/saying “Well we have these people now, how can we make an impact now?” The needs that people have today are probably going to be very different than the needs they have a year from now and if we aren’t meeting their present needs wouldn’t that somewhat alter their future needs?
Last night I also was struck by this idea of suffering for the gospel. Often times in my own life I find myself thinking that I’d be so much more willing to suffer for the gospel if I was doing something really cool like being a missionary in Africa, or really being a missionary anywhere but in America. When I think of “suffering” for the gospel I think of people like William Tyndale who was strangled and burned at the stake for translating the bible into modern English (circa 1530.)
I think of Pastors in China who are regularly imprisoned and beat within an inch of their life for preaching the gospel.
I would like to think that I would be willing to endure that pain and suffering for the gospel but that’s only because it’s distinguishable and venerable. But what if my suffering for the gospel is no more than just doing the monotonous things that need to be done that I‘d rather not do? What if my suffering for the gospel means that I live in a place that I would rather leave? What if my suffering for the gospel means that I give up the big dreams I have for my life and live the smaller life that God would want for me?
Then what?
Are we as willing to suffer for the gospel when it means that our dreams are made smaller? Are we as willing to suffer for the gospel if it means that our suffering isn’t physical but rather emotional?
I’m not looking for glory by any means but it should be noted that we view people like William Tyndale and Pastors in China with high regard. Let’s face it, there are not a lot of books being written about the ministries of people who arrive on time to work, who push paper in a cubical, who through their work ethic and love minister to their co-workers and bosses but this type of ministry is just as needed and just a meaningful and distinguishable as any other.
I am not meaning to say that there isn’t a place for people to go into full-time ministry because obviously there is I’m just saying that I believe for most people, the ministry we’ve been called into is the ministry of living the lives God gave us. No matter if that means writing a best selling book, working at a coffee shop, climbing the corporate ladder, being a good student, serving as a worship leader, pushing paper, volunteering at a homeless shelter, or helping with a children’s ministry part time. If God has called you to do it then it better get done.
Just like if God calls you to go to China and preach, then do it.
Just like if God calls you to stay at your present job and love the people there, then do it.
I have to imagine that if God calls someone to do something then there must be a need for it and we would be doing a grave disservice to God if we tried to live above our calling or tried to make our calling something else.
So… I guess what I want to end with a few questions:
Where are you at today? What’s your job? What do you believe is your calling?
Ultimately-
What has God called you to do today?
It struck me last night that with the Holy Spirit’s backing on just our everyday lives mighty things can be accomplished. On the opposite side of the coin a ministry without the holy spirit’s backing could very well reach no one. I don’t know about anyone else but this struck me as kind of odd to think that maybe my everyday life could possibly reach more people than my being in full-time ministry.
The question I walked away with last night was one David bought up, “What have we been called to do now?” Now as in where we are right now, sitting at the computer on June 8th, 2009. If we focus too much on the impact we’re going to make years from now we miss out on the impact that we could be having today! It is all well and good to plan for the future and I encourage people to do it within reason, but there is a here and now and we should be focusing on it.
If a church has small numbers they shouldn’t be thinking “Well, in a year from now, when we have more members we’ll be able to make a bigger impact.” Wouldn’t it be wiser as a community to be asking/saying “Well we have these people now, how can we make an impact now?” The needs that people have today are probably going to be very different than the needs they have a year from now and if we aren’t meeting their present needs wouldn’t that somewhat alter their future needs?
Last night I also was struck by this idea of suffering for the gospel. Often times in my own life I find myself thinking that I’d be so much more willing to suffer for the gospel if I was doing something really cool like being a missionary in Africa, or really being a missionary anywhere but in America. When I think of “suffering” for the gospel I think of people like William Tyndale who was strangled and burned at the stake for translating the bible into modern English (circa 1530.)
I think of Pastors in China who are regularly imprisoned and beat within an inch of their life for preaching the gospel.
I would like to think that I would be willing to endure that pain and suffering for the gospel but that’s only because it’s distinguishable and venerable. But what if my suffering for the gospel is no more than just doing the monotonous things that need to be done that I‘d rather not do? What if my suffering for the gospel means that I live in a place that I would rather leave? What if my suffering for the gospel means that I give up the big dreams I have for my life and live the smaller life that God would want for me?
Then what?
Are we as willing to suffer for the gospel when it means that our dreams are made smaller? Are we as willing to suffer for the gospel if it means that our suffering isn’t physical but rather emotional?
I’m not looking for glory by any means but it should be noted that we view people like William Tyndale and Pastors in China with high regard. Let’s face it, there are not a lot of books being written about the ministries of people who arrive on time to work, who push paper in a cubical, who through their work ethic and love minister to their co-workers and bosses but this type of ministry is just as needed and just a meaningful and distinguishable as any other.
I am not meaning to say that there isn’t a place for people to go into full-time ministry because obviously there is I’m just saying that I believe for most people, the ministry we’ve been called into is the ministry of living the lives God gave us. No matter if that means writing a best selling book, working at a coffee shop, climbing the corporate ladder, being a good student, serving as a worship leader, pushing paper, volunteering at a homeless shelter, or helping with a children’s ministry part time. If God has called you to do it then it better get done.
Just like if God calls you to go to China and preach, then do it.
Just like if God calls you to stay at your present job and love the people there, then do it.
I have to imagine that if God calls someone to do something then there must be a need for it and we would be doing a grave disservice to God if we tried to live above our calling or tried to make our calling something else.
So… I guess what I want to end with a few questions:
Where are you at today? What’s your job? What do you believe is your calling?
Ultimately-
What has God called you to do today?
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