American (church) Idols of the 21st Century

I have been re-reading my copy of "An Introduction to Christianity" by Alister E. McGrath, which I picked up many years ago.  It is a wonderful, basic, introduction to how we got here in the first place!  Every couple of years or so, I go back and read it again, as a refresher, because it is just that good!

I just finished the section on The Early Church, to c. 700, and in this section, Mr. McGrath, discusses the evolution of the Celtic church and how very different it was from the Roman-British church that existed at that time.   In reading this section, I was struck by the similar parallel that I see happening today in Methodism.  Let me quote directly from the book, to help you better understand what I’m talking about:

“It is no exaggeration to say that the Irish church was monastic, with the Abbot rather than the Bishop being seen as pre-eminent…The Irish monastic model came to be seen as a threat to the Roman model of the episcopate, in which the government of the church resided firmly in the hands of the Bishops.  None of the Abbots of Iona ever allowed Bishops to ordain formally then, rejecting the need for any such ‘official’ recognition…Abbeys were responsible for the pastoral care of the churches which grew up in their vicinity.  The Roman Episcopal system was thus marginalized.  The Celtic church leaders were openly critical of worldly wealth and status…”

What result did we Methodists clearly see coming out of General Conference?  A lack of trust in our Bishops due to the obsession with numbers and money (metrics).  It is my opinion that the statement  that came out from the New England Conference delegates is a reflection of that reality.  It doesn’t mean that I agree fully with their statement, but it does mean that I can better understand where they are coming from!  We have a group of churches who sincerely believe that they should be able to minister as they see fit, without being impeded by the hierarchy of the church.  But they also expect to receive the support and resources that come from being in a connectional system.

I agree that our system is too top heavy.  I think our Bishops would agree with that as well.  I acknowledge the fact that there are distinct differences between conferences.  But I also believe that there should be an expectation of common beliefs of theology between each conference and each church.  Call it Methodist Ethos, call it common theology, call it whatever you want, but I believe that the message should be consistent.  Just as there are practices in the Catholic church that make it distinctly Catholic, there are also practices in the Methodist church that make it distinctly Methodist.  Being part of this connectional system does not give us the liberty to pick and choose, but that is what some would like to do.  And I think the driving reasons behind this, are because of a lack of trust and an underlying belief that “picking and choosing” will “fix the problems” that we have heard about for so long!

For more years than I care to think about, we have heard nothing but the bemoaning of our denominational decline.  And plan after plan has been put forward to “reverse the trend” of our impending “death tsunami”.  On one end, we have metrics, and vital congregations and elimination of guaranteed appointment.  On the other end, we have the call to allow individual churches to minister as they see fit.  Proponents of the various positions are equally sincere, they truly believe that they have a plan that will work!  They truly believe that this will fix the problem.  But the vast majority of these plans end up being “sound and fury signifying nothing”.  Why?

If I had to put a finger on it, I would have to say that what we are looking at the wrong things.  We have created our own 21st century idols, hoping that they are the answers to all our problems.  Believe me, I am fully aware that this will not be a particularly popular message for people to hear.  I also know that some of you probably think I’ve gone off my rocker-how could I possibly make a leap to that sort of opinion?!  Hear me out, please.  In modern society we tend to think of Idols, as little carved figures made of wood or gold or precious stones, that people bowed down to, and how utterly foolish ancient people were to think that they held power!  But as Wesley pointed out in one of his sermons, sin can be far more subtle.  Idols can be things that we least suspect.  (See John Meunier's post "Giving the Devil His Due)

I was reading in Ezekiel and I saw some things, some idolatry, that the Lord pointed out to the Prophet and I was amazed at how similar they are to things that we do today.   Let’s take a quick tour and hopefully, you will see what I am talking about.  All scripture quotes come from the Wesley Study Bible (NRSV).

Ezekiel 7:19:

“…Their silver and gold cannot save them on the day of the wrath of the Lord…”

Our current thinking is money will save the church.  Or, money will save us from disaster.  Money involves numbers.  Money is neither good nor bad, it is our attitude towards money that turns it into an idol.  How do we use it?  Is it our top priority?  Or is it a tool that we use for good?  There is no doubt that we have to be better stewards of money, but our focus on money (and the related bean counting that goes along with it) has become an idol.  Like it or not, it is a stumbling block and this is something that Wesley warned about strongly in his sermons.

Ezekiel 7:24

“…I will put an end to the arrogance of the strong…”

I am right, and you are wrong.  It’s my way or the highway.  How often have we heard this type of position?  This is not Holy Conferencing, this is posturing for position.  If I say it loudly enough and often enough I may very well wear you down!  As someone watching from the sidelines, let me put it to you this way-you are screaming so loudly that I can’t hear you!  And quite frankly, if you keep screaming at me, I’m going to tune you out completely.  Enough is enough!  It is time to talk with each other rather than at it other.  Arrogance is an idol.  

Ezekiel 8:5

“…in the entrance, was this image of jealousy…”

There’s a doozey!  “The churches overseas are growing, yet we put in all the money.”  “The (insert name here) Jurisdiction has far too much influence.”  “The current church doctrine keeps too many people away and keeps us from effective ministry.”  “Those mega churches are being favored  over all the rest of the other churches in the denomination.”  “Too many churches have become nothing more than Country Clubs concerned with their own well being and that’s why we are not growing.”  Remember these little tidbits of quotations, anyone?  Oh why can’t I do my job and why are we not growing, we say.  It’s because of “those other folks!”  It’s not pretty, and it’s not something we like to admit to, but let’s face it, there is strife and envy in our ranks and jealousy is her name.

Ezekiel 8:12

“…Mortal, have you seen what the elders of the house of Israel are doing in the dark, each in his room of images?”

Ezekiel 8:16

“….between the porch and the altar, were about twenty-five men, with their back to the temple of the Lord, and their faces toward the east, prostrating themselves to the sun toward the east.”

These two scriptures, in my mind, go together.  Instead of following the ordinances that God commanded, they instead started following the ordinances of the nations around them.  Or, in other words, they started catering to the world in their worship.  As Christians, we are called to be peculiar-different and distinct, just as Israel was in their day.  We are called to worship the Creator, not the created.  We are expected to be different.  Yet, we tend to try to do the opposite.  Instead of being different, we try to be just like them.  Why would someone come to our church if we look just like the rest of the world?  Where is our good news message?  Sin is real, so is hope.  Hope, faith and love-do we offer that to the world at large?  Or do we offer much of what can be found in the world because we are busy trying to be like the rest of the world?

It breaks my heart because I honestly feel that we are no different than Israel at the time of their judgment.  Not only do we distrust each other, we distrust the message that we are commanded to share.  We distrust God and his spirit to guide us and see us through.  From top to bottom we are acting no differently then they did.  We can see the sad results of that level of distrust when the Lord said to Ezekiel in chapter 7, verse 27:
“According to their way I will deal with them; according to their own judgments I will judge them.”

If that was the end of the story, it would be a sad story, indeed!  But there is hope!  Why were the Prophets sent by God?  As an act of mercy, to give people the chance to repent.  That opportunity is still available to us today, if we will choose to accept it.  Will we repent of our idols of numbers and money, of arrogance and jealousy and trying to be like the world?  Will we repent together, as one body, top to bottom, recognizing that we all played a part in arriving at this point?  Will we work together as one body with many parts or will we choose to go our separate ways?  Time will tell.  But understand, whatever choice we make, we will be judged accordingly.    Lord, have mercy!  Forgive us our corporate and individual sins and show us your way!  Help us to let go of, and move beyond, our 21st century idols.  This I sincerely pray.  Amen.

Showing some "Good Sense"

Some thoughts from Paul in Second Corinthians chapter 10 verses 12-13, 15, 18 (Wesley Study Bible NRSV):

“We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some of those who commend themselves.  But when they measure themselves by one another, and compare themselves with one another, they do not show good sense.  We, however, will not boast beyond limits, but will keep with the field that God has assigned to us, to reach out even as far as you…our hope is that, as your faith increases, our sphere of action among you may be greatly enlarged,…For it is not those who commend themselves that are approved, but those whom the Lord commends.”

Now maybe, these words really struck me because I had just finished reading about John the Baptist, in the beginning of Luke, and it was very clear that his calling was to be the one who prepared the way, even though there were others who wondered.  Maybe it’s because of all of the buzz that has gone on since General Conference.  Either way, this became a real “ah-ha” moment for me this morning!  Classifying and comparing with those who hold themselves up as the standard.  Measuring and comparing ourselves with one another.  These things were going on, even in Paul’s time, and his conclusion on the matter was “they do not show good sense.”

Isn’t that what we just attempted to legislate at General Conference?  Oops!  Yet, God in his goodness, managed to work through mere imperfect mortals and stop it dead in its tracks!  Thank you Lord for saying NO!

So where do we go from here?  Paul actually gives us a blueprint for how to proceed.  He gives us the proper perspective on how to look at things.  Do not “boast beyond limits.”  “Keep with the field that God has assigned to each of us.”  The outcome being “as a (congregation’s) faith increases, (the) sphere of action…may be greatly enlarged.”  Ta da!  Simple, concise, straight forward.  Ya gotta love Paul, for stating the obvious plainly enough, that even today, people can grasp what he was trying to say!  Bottom line, it’s not going to work unless it is what “the Lord commends”, not what we choose to commend!

Where is your  field-your “sphere of action”?  Your local community.  Your friends, your family, your co-workers, your neighbors.  Is it urban, suburban or rural?  Although there are similarities, each one is unique and different.  Different stresses, different focus, different interactions.  What might work in a city is not necessarily going to work in the country and vice versa.  That’s reality.  What works in one community may not work over in the next town.  My field may not look exactly the same as your field.  So, for me to tell you to do things exactly the same way that I did would be crazy!  There are  differences or “limits” and we should respect that!  I do not know your community the same way you do.   I know my community and I need to do what is best for it, instead of worrying about what someone else is doing.    

That doesn’t mean that we do not share ideas, thoughts and suggestions.  Try the things that seem reasonable and leave the rest!  It doesn’t mean that we do not strive for some consistency on our message or worship.  There are certain things that make us Methodist and we need to be crystal clear on those particular points.  But the actual job of ministry in our community- the way that we grow the faith of  those around us,  must be unique and appropriate for our community!  One size can not and should not be expected to fit all!

God has assigned each of us a field.  We are not meant to make them all look exactly the same.  We are meant to know the field, put in what is best and nurture it so it will grow.  Anyone who has ever attempted to garden understands the wisdom in this approach.

Let each of us commit to adapting an approach that actually shows good sense!

Sometimes It's What You Need Not What You Want

Here’s an interesting couple of verses from Isaiah which I think warrant a closer look.  The Prophet says this in chapter 56, verses 6-7 (NRSV-Wesley Study Bible):

“And the foreigners who join themselves to the Lord, to minister to him, to love the name of the Lord, and to be his servants, all who keep the Sabbath and do not profane it, and hold fast my covenant-these I will bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer; their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.”

First, anyone can join themselves to the Lord.  But there are conditions-ministry, service, Sabbath rest and holding fast to the covenant.  These are the individuals who will be brought to the holy mountain.  They will be joyful in the house of prayer.  Their offerings and sacrifices will be accepted on the altar.

In light of these verses, think about the ministry that Jesus did before he was crucified on the cross.  Did he minister?  Did he serve others?  Did he make time to rest?  Did he hold fast to the covenant promise? Yes.  What was the last thing that he did in Matthew?  He told the Disciples to “go and make disciples of all nations.”  Which they did, which is why you and I share in the Christian faith some 2000 years later.

Everyone is welcome to participate in God‘s plan, but there are conditions.  This is the reminder that I would like to put forth, especially in light of what happened at General Conference this year.  Many view GC as an epic fail.  There’s a lot of wailing and gnashing of teeth going on, particularly in blog world!  Granted, I wasn’t there, I had to watch from the sidelines at home so I wasn’t caught up in the frenzy.  Still, I don’t see this as a fail.  I see this as a reminder that we are all human, we make mistakes and sometimes we lose our way.  God still works in the world today and the result of GC is that God intervened and kept the United Methodist Church from making a huge blunder in its ministry to the world! God has a plan and this was not it!  Plain and simple.

Plan UMC was ruled unconstitutional by the Judicial Council.  I have a feeling that Call to Action and Plan B would have met the same fate.  Guaranteed appointments were eliminated, but my understanding is that it is still up in the air, waiting for a ruling from the Judicial Council this fall.  It may also be ruled unconstitutional when it is all said and done.

My point about all of this?  We were barking up the wrong tree.  We focused on systems and procedures and numbers.  We focused on inclusion without condition.  We focused on our plan, our wants.  We wanted change for the wrong reasons.  We wanted change that would make us feel better and feel like we were in control and the reality is, the Holy Spirit is not going to be bridled by what we want!  We acted more like the folks at the tower of Babel, then we did like the believers present at Pentecost.  Some will find that disheartening, but I look at GC as a reminder that we desperately needed.  The Holy Spirit is alive and well in the world today and God’s plan will not be swayed!

Look at what God promised the exiles in Babylon in Jeremiah 29:11-14

“For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.  Then when you call upon me and come and pray to me, I will hear you.  When you search for me, you will find me; if you seek me with all your heart, I will let you find me, says the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all nations and all the places where I have driven you, says the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.”

God has a plan and it wasn‘t “our plan.”  So where do we go from here?  How do we get beyond feeling like we are in exile or wandering in the wilderness?  We pray, we search, we get back to the basic covenant.  We minister to others, we serve others, we make disciples who can go out in to the world and do the same exact thing.  Jesus summed up the basic covenant “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength and love your neighbor as yourself.”   That’s our job, that is the basic plan.  It hasn’t changed in 2000 some odd years, regardless of what we may think!

Nothing has changed for a reason, because the things that we were looking to change, are not the things that need changing (at least they were not the number one priority).  Our hearts need to change.  That is an inward journey that can not be legislated!    The other changes will come, if they are necessary.  I believe they will become obvious once we find ourselves in line with God’s plan but we‘re not there yet!   This is not the end of the world, or the end of the church.  There is still work to be done, there is still a mission ahead of us.  Instead of lamenting the outcome, let’s focus instead on re-aligning our priorities with God’s priorities.  Since God knows His plan, let’s trust in the Lord and learn how to follow his path instead!   The reminder may have been painful, but I believe the reminder is just exactly what we needed!

 
 

The More Things Change

For those of you who long for the “good-ole-days” allow me to share a little dose of reality with you.  Awhile back, I went to the library and borrowed a copy of E.B. White’s collection of essays called One Man’s Meat.  For those of you who are saying to yourself “the name sounds familiar,” E.B. White is best known as the author of Charlotte’s Web.  He also wrote for the New Yorker magazine for many years.  The essays were written just prior to the start of World War II and they were published in book form in 1942.  Mr. White chronicles the journey of his move to a farmstead in Maine and what life was like, with some observations about the world at large, thrown in for good measure.  Reading through the book, I am reminded, once again, of the old saying “the more things change, the more they stay the same.”

In an essay titled “Sabbath Morn,” written in February, 1939, Mr. White made the following observations:

“In this house we cling to a few relics of religious observance, but there is no heart in it.  If we possess faith (and I guess we do) it is of a secret and unconsecrated sort ill at ease in church….The church sometimes seems painfully unimaginative in its attempt to perpetuate a faith which has been gutted by so many fires.  Whether or not people are essentially less religious than they used to be, I don’t know, but it is obvious that something has happened….I go to church once in a while and sing the hymns very loud; it clears the blood, and I love the gush of holiness when the old bone-shaking anthems ripple up and down my spine and crackle in my larynx.  But for the most part, religion is tucked away in a bottom drawer among things we love but never use.  In two generations there has been a great falling off.  When I was a child, I could feel heaven slipping…By the standards of a hundred years ago, my family to-day is a group of misguided agnostics, seeking after an illusive beauty and fumbling for grace…”

What a familiar tale, I think to myself!  How similar and relevant are Mr. White’s words today?!  The great angst that we possess as the United Methodist Church over decline in attendance is the same thing that was going on back in “the good old days” that we fondly talk about.  The rosy days of “back yonder” were not quite as rosy as we would like to believe.  The reality, the truth of the matter is this-we struggle with the same issues that previous generations struggled with.  That doesn’t mean that we choose to just accept this as a fact of life, we can choose to try to change the outcome.  But if we intend to change, we had better make sure that we have thought things through carefully.  “Change for change sake” is not true change at all.  Learning from the past, taking off the rose colored glasses and seeing things as they really were, rather than how we imagine-that is the lens that we need to use when we decide what to change and how we go about changing things!  Until we can do that, until we can accept the fact that there is nothing new under the sun, all of our best laid plans will be nothing more than just another plan.

Let’s be honest with ourselves and recognize the fact that the more things change-the more they stay the same, if we choose to ignore the truth of the past.  We will not change the course if we do not learn the lessons of yesterday.  In my humble opinion, this is indeed a valuable and timely lesson in light of General Conference.  A voice from the past holds an important reminder, to us all, for today!

Food for Thought: A Private House of Prayer

For those of you who read this blog regularly, you know that prayer is one area where I feel I could be doing so much better!  In my on-going quest, I literally stumbled across this little gem the other day.  I thought you might enjoy reading it as well.  It is an excerpt for a classic book by Leslie D. Weatherhead called "A Private House of Prayer."  I had never heard of Leslie Weatherhead before but Rev. Jeff knew the name because of another book that he had written called "The Will of God."  From what I could glean, Leslie Weatherhead was a Methodist minister in England and wrote quite a few books over the years!  The excerpt is very short but I found it to be informative!  I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did!  Without further ado, here is the link:
A Private House of Prayer

Notes from Around the Blog World

It's snowing here in Missouri!  Not a lot of snow and it is not a steady snow but there was just enough to slick up the roads and cause lots of accidents this morning!

Closer to home, I have had a fun filled and exciting time breaking the ice off of the top of the water troughs for the animals.  So, rather than attempt to write a quick blog post that I am not going to do justice to, I'm just going to link you to some good blogs worth reading!

Allan R. Bevere had two really good blog posts in the last couple of days:
90% of Americans Believe in God, Gallup is unimpressed
Jesus is Not Paula Deen

My friend Craig Adams posted some information on Good ole St. Nick!
Old St. Nick

And a good reminder from Dan Dick!
Occupy Christmas

My children are anxiously watching out the window hoping for some more snow!  Me, I just want to wrap my hands around a warm mug of hot chocolate!  It would be nice to regain some feeling in my fingers!  They're just a tad stiff from breaking up that ice! 

Enjoy!

The Revelation Churches Suffering from Identity Crisis

You could probably make the case that five out of the seven churches mentioned in Revelation suffered from an identity crisis.  Ephesus, Sardis and Laodicea had forgotten their source and they had lost their spark.  Pergamum and Thyatira had an even bigger problem-they were not really sure what they believed in!  Because of that they had a pretty open "anything goes" policy and it was robbing them of their vitality.  Pergamum's problem was laid out in Revelation 2:14-15 (NRSV)

"...you have some there who hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the people of Israel, so that they would eat food sacrificed to idols and practice fornication.  So you also have some who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans."

Thyatira had a very similar issue, we are told about in Revelation 2:20 (NRSV)

"...you tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophet and is teaching and beguiling my servants to practice fornication and to eat food sacrificed to idols." 

These two churches were still doing work and trying to act faithfully, but they both had a teaching issue.  They believed, but it was unclear exactly what they believed.  They were guilty of trying to "add to the word" something that was not meant to be a part of the message in the first place.  In verse 16, Pergamum is told to repent.  And verse 21 says that Jezebel was given time to repent, but she refuses.  Egads!  Their "value added" message is about to become a big problem if they don't address the issue!  These two churches illustrate WHY it is so important to make sure that those who are teaching in church, are properly teaching.  It also illustrates why it is so important to be very clear about what the church believes and why.  It is important to have a plan!

If you ask someone in the Catholic faith what the church believes, they can tell you.  Even a "nominal" Catholic can articulate church belief!  They may not agree with it, but they can clearly tell what the church's position is on a particular practice or belief.  As for United Methodists, for many years, it really depended on the particular church that you attended.  In recent history, this has been a bit of a problem that went unrecognized.  I think there was a bit of belief that people would eventually pick it up, through osmosis.  Assuming that someone will understand and naturally "get it" on their own is just a bad idea and fortunately, leaders in the church recognize that this is an issue and are becoming more intentional about teaching.

There have been individuals over the years who started the ball rolling, but I have to say that I think Bishop Schnase (who happens to be my Bishop) picked up the momentum when he published his book "Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations".  One of his chapters focuses on Intentional Faith Development and he provides examples of what that might look like.  Reverend Bob Farr (who also happens to be a leader in the Missouri Conference) touched on this topic in his book "Renovate or Die" in his chapter called "Disciple with Clear Steps".  But I have to say, where I really made the connection and saw this fleshed out in a very practical, workable way was at Church of the Resurrection's Leadership Institute.   Adam Hamilton and his staff took the time to explain their process of Discipleship-in detail!

Teaching individuals about the Bible, about what the church believes and why we believe it truly matters!  The goal is to make Disciples.  The reality is, not everyone is at the same place at the same time.  There is a learning curve and it is important to plan a process to teach members and bring them deeper in to the process of Discipleship.  I'll use myself as an example.  Where I am now in my faith walk, is not the same as where I was five years ago, or ten years ago, or twenty years ago.  Things that might have thrown me for a loop twenty years ago will not have the same effect on me now.  It didn't happen overnight!  It was a process of asking questions, getting answers, reading, praying and going through some challenges over the years.  I was blessed to have some wonderful teachers and mentors through the years but had I not had that support system, I'm not sure where I would be today!

Adam Hamilton used a "Discipleship Pyramid" to explain the process of Intentional Faith Development.  At the base of the Pyramid are the 40% who say "of course I'm a Christian".  Further up the Pyramid are the 30% who say "I have a ways to go".  Above that comes the 20% who are deeply devoted  and then, the final step on the Discipleship path, the 10% who are deeply committed Disciples.  The top two groups have become capable of "feeding themselves" and the top 10% are consistently capable of living out the 3 H's (head, heart, hands).  For those of you unfamiliar with the 3-H concept let me quote COR's definition of deeply committed Christians and their definition of what Discipleship is:

"Deeply committed Christians are: followers of Christ who are theologically informed (head); spiritually transformed (heart); and living out their faith in the world (hands).  Discipleship is: the lifelong process of personal inward transformation in the context of Christian community that finds its best expression in the world serving others and sharing Christ."

Schnase says in "Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations" (pg. 62):

"Churches that practice Intentional Faith Development offer high quality learning experiences that help people understand Scripture, faith and life in the supportive nurture of caring relationships."

Rev. Farr in his book "Renovate or Die" drives home the point as to why it is important to plan a path.  In chapter 8 he says:

"During my time in ministry, most congregations have gone from allowing new members (who come up after the last hymn or who send over their transfer letters from another church) to join to making folks attend membership classes of some sort before they can join.  The reason for this thinking is that it will stop the new membership dropout syndrome, only to have us later discover that well over half of the people who attended the membership classes drop out after six months anyway....We hesitate in the United Methodist Church to set up paths and steps because we want to let everyone be individuals...But no path and no direction means we will achieve nothing and go nowhere." 

He goes on further in the chapter and offers this sage piece of advice:

"Decide what the end picture needs to look like and build a step process backward to the beginning." 

If we do not put some thought into planning out a faith journey path we could, as a church, end up like the first three churches that lost their spark or, we could end up like the two churches, who allowed teaching that did not line up with church belief.   This is an identity crisis that can be avoided with a little thoughtful planning and it can save a congregation from a lot of headache further down the road!  We have a belief system and we have an identity.  Feel free to preach it and teach it!  You'll be glad you did!  And your members will thank you as well!

And you thought Revelation was just a book of prophetic visions without a practical application for today!  Surprise!

Resurrection vs. Regeneration

Once again, I have run across something that made me go hmm...and it actually clarifies something I have struggled with for a while.  Current "churchese" talk circles have said that the United Methodist Church needs a resurrection to happen.  I understand the point they are trying to make, but the term has bothered me.  So I looked up the definition in my Webster's dictionary and here's what it said:

"the act of rising again, after death"

So, are we saying the church is dead?  I don't buy that!  If you look at what Wesley wrote in the sermon that I posted yesterday, he said that there was a remnant or "seed" that remained, and it sprouts and it grows and it matures.

This morning I was reading in Wesley's Christian Library a piece from John Arndt's True Christianity.  He talks about following the pattern of Christ and he uses the term "regeneration".  Regeneration-it is a very interesting term!  Here's the definition:

"to give new life or vigor to-a spiritual rebirth" 

This is a term I can relate to-it makes sense!  It also illustrates exactly what I was seeing in the Book of Acts (which I posted about last Thursday).  The Spirit is not dead!  The church by extension is not dead because a remnant or "seed" remains!  Let's apply it to the model that I noticed in Acts.

The Apostles were the first "spiritual generation".  They planted seeds in the Disciples (the second spiritual generation) and they followed the pattern of Christ-they grew, they matured, they became leaders.  Stephen and Phillip and Barnabas became "seed planters" and Christianity spread.  They did their apprenticeship at the feet of the Apostles, then they were sent out as leaders to continue the process.  Regeneration was built in to the system right from the start!

Here's the modern day lesson for the church.  Discipleship done well has regeneration already built in to the system!  Our members need to spend time at the feet of good leaders, listening, learning and seeing how things are done BEFORE you put them in to leadership roles.  They need time to mature.   But once they reach that level of maturity, they can then become leaders themselves and they can plant the seeds and lead others through the same process.  The individuals that they Disciple can then become leaders as well, once they reach that level of spiritual maturity.  And the process continues.  Active regeneration.

Regeneration does not start from a dead place.  It starts from a living place.  The Holy Spirit is alive and well! It does not need to be resurrected.  The only thing that needs work happens to be "us".  We need to embrace regeneration in ourselves.  Then we can start the process of regeneration in our churches.

I'm liking this idea of regeneration!  :-)

Disciple and then Delegate

In chapter 6 of the Book of Acts we are introduced to a problem that arose in the early days of the church.  A conflict arose about food distribution between the Hebrews and the Hellenists.  It seems the Hellenists felt that their widows were being neglected and not getting as much as the Hebrew widows.  So the Apostles called the entire community together for a meeting to settle the issue.  In verses 2-4 (NRSV translation), the Apostles say this:

"...It is not right that we should neglect the word of God in order to wait on tables.  Therefore friends, select from among yourselves seven men of good standing, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint to this task, while we, for our part, will devote ourselves to prayer and to serving the word."  

Now a modern reader might read this and think "what, they were too good to do this?"  Somehow they thought they were above needing to do this task?  Not so fast!  I think if the Apostles thought that there was no one well qualified to handle the task they would have taken it on.  But, the community was growing-the Apostles had trained people within the community who could take on this leadership role.  They were fully confident that they could safely delegate this task.  The Apostles had discipled their followers so they could then start delegating so they could continue to disciple others.  That's how you grow-you teach and train others how to lead, so they can take over and then you move on and teach and train others how to do the exact same thing!

And Luke is kind enough to introduce us to two of the seven chosen-Stephen and Phillip.  We are able to learn about their separate ministries.  Stephen's ministry went beyond just feeding to performing "signs and wonders" and also speaking in the synagogue of the Freedmen.  He is so powerful in his speech that individuals set out to discredit him and he is brought before the council, where he delivers a message.  It was a message that they did not like, so they stoned him. Phillip, meanwhile, goes to Samaria and "proclaimed the Messiah to them."  He also performed signs and wonders.  He was so successful that the Apostles on hearing that Samaria had accepted the word of God, sent Peter and John to pray for them.

If these examples don't make a strong case for the importance of good discipleship in the church today, then I don't know what does?!  Not only did the Apostles teach and preach, they also trained their followers, leading by example.  And when they felt that certain followers were ready, they gave them a chance to lead by delegating tasks to them.  By doing this, it freed them up to help others work through the same process in order to get to the point where they could lead as well.

This makes a lot of sense.  Our members are "out in the trenches" working and dealing with people who might never darken the doorstep of a church, but are receptive to talking with and listening to someone "just like them."  Discipleship really is an apprenticeship because not only should it give "book knowledge" but it should also provide practical knowledge.  An apprentice needs to learn first by listening and watching and then you let them do the work.  You have them try their hand at something small so they can become comfortable doing the work and then they move on to more difficult tasks.  When a leader can delegate with confidence, then they can continue to do the work of leading and training others.  When the "trainee" can become a "trainer" then suddenly you can train even more people which means more work can get done.  It also frees a leader up to focus more on vision and leading because others have been trained to teach.

I can only speak from my personal experience in the UMC but I have a feeling that what I am about to say plagues a lot of denominations out there.  We assume too much and we tend to skip the discipleship step.  Not every church does this, and I don't think that it is done consciously, but the undercurrent is there.  We assume when someone walks through the door that they know how to pray.  We assume that they are reading their Bible and that they know how to read their Bible.  We assume that they are ready to do mission and evangelism work right from the get-go.  We assume that they understand what it means to be a Methodist and what comes with that territory.    We assume that they know how to practically apply Bible teaching in their daily lives.  So rather than taking some time to teach and train we put them in to some sort of ministry and they burn out and leave through the side door.  We scratch our collective heads and wonder what happened? We asked them to do something that they were not ready or prepared to do.  We skipped a step.



If we want to grow and share the gospel then we have got to get serious about discipleship.  It doesn't happen overnight.  It is not a "silver bullet", it is a process that takes time.  Are we willing to take the time to do some serious training?  That my darling readers is a question well worth asking and answering.  Our response will dictate our outcome.  And outcome is the new buzz word in the "measuring metrics" world.  If we get this right, then the numbers game will become a thing of the past!  That is what makes the question worth asking!  The day we declare "numbers no more" will be the day that I declare Hallelujah AMEN!

Distinctly Methodist?

Methodist minister and blogger, Jeremy Smith, posted in a round about way on a topic near and dear to my heart!  Here's a link to the post Methodist Kudzu so you can read it for yourself.  He was quite specific, I am going to reflect a little more broadly on this topic.  My biggest pet peeve with the United Methodist Church is that it does not clearly stand for, or reflect, the stated beliefs of the United Methodist Church.  When the average member can not tell you what the UMC believes or why we believe this, then you have a problem!

In The Message paraphrase, Proverbs 24 has this little gem:

"It takes wisdom to build a house, and understanding to set it on a firm foundation..."

My dad was a carpenter.  I'm no expert but I absorbed enough wisdom from him over the years to understand some things about buildings.  First, the foundation has to be solid.  It can't wiggle or wobble, it needs to be firm.  Second, the frame needs to be solidly connected to the foundation-the building needs to be unified.  There is a right way to build and there is a wrong way to build.  Some flaws are cosmetic and just need to be covered.  Other flaws though, negatively impact the integrity of the structure and you have to tear them out and fix the problem.  Build correctly and your building will stand firm.  Build it wrong and your building can (and at some point will) collapse.

Here's my point.  We have an amazing foundation thanks to John Wesley and the early founders of United Methodism.  In my opinion, hands down, bar none, we have something worth sharing!  But as a denomination today, we are all over the place in what we teach and how we teach it!  We have lost the unity of the message and our messages are no longer connected to the foundation!  Not only is the average member puzzled by what we believe, it seems some of our ministers have the same problem!  (Yup, here I go stepping on toes again).  Some call this an "identity crisis".  I think it goes deeper than that, we have a unity crisis.  When you stray from your roots or your foundation, then you are no longer connected, and that, my darling friends, is a problem!

Jeremy has pointed to something very specific-we are allowing Bible Studies to be taught in our churches that do not line up with core Methodist beliefs.  I think the problem is even bigger-we do not teach core Methodist beliefs in the first place.  What makes us distinctly Methodist?  What do we believe?  Why do we believe this?  Why do we do things one way instead of another way?  Seriously, why are we not preaching this from the pulpit or teaching it in Sunday School class?  Because we are no longer anchored to the spiritual foundation that is the UMC.  Because our leaders do not feel a necessity to be anchored to our distinctly Methodist foundation.  We have preached "anything goes" for so long that we have become a detriment to our own denomination.  And as members, we stood by and didn't say a word!  Gee, I couldn't possibly imagine why we have a problem!

Not that this is new.  Even Wesley preached on this topic!  Go read sermon 61 They Mystery of Iniquity and you'll see what I mean.  That's why teaching (and preaching) the core beliefs is critical to regaining our unity and connection with our foundation.  That is why the early societies were so "methodical".  They understood how easy it is to get distracted and off course.  It's human nature to follow the shiny bobble!  It's hip, it's cool, it's popular, yeah let's go with the flow!  Going with the flow has never been a "mark" of Methodism.  Methodists are expected to hold to a higher standard.

The solution to this is not an easy fix.  We, as members, can demand a higher standard, but then we become the "problem child" churches in the Methodist hierarchy.  Or, as an individual, you can do what I've done, which is read and study my bible, read and study Wesley's sermons and notes, and read and study about the history of the United Methodist church.  Educate yourself and then share what you have learned with others.  It's an eye opener!  But I can tell you from personal experience, it's well worth the effort!  And pray.  Pray, pray, pray because we have so much to offer, if we would just go back to our solid foundation!  I have faith that we can and will reclaim our heritage, but I understand that I may have to wait...

Social Principles and Theology?

John Meunier's blog post yesterday hit on a topic that has bothered me for a long time!  To give you a little background in a nutshell, the United Methodist Church governing structure is based on the Book of Discipline which was originally laid out by John Wesley as a framework for the original Methodist Societies.  It's actually more complicated than that, but I'm trying to be brief and give you a general overview.  Contained within the Book of Discipline are the "Social Principles" of the United Methodist church.  They are non-binding, but essentially they are supposed to be the "prophetic voice" of the UMC.  According to the UMC website, the first social principle appeared in 1908.  Methodist History 101 in a nutshell.

Here's the thing.  To me, they read more like a political platform than a well thought out position.  There's a lot of  "we support this" and "we oppose that".  I'm not the only one that has noticed this as I discovered after reading Allan R. Bevere's blog yesterday afternoon.  The question is not so much the statement, but rather, where is the biblical justification to back up the statement?  Or, to put it another way, where is the theology behind the social principles?

So to try and find an answer to this question, I did a search which brought me to the UMC General Board of Church and Society.  I looked at the Social Principles and I looked at both of the PDF files that give the "Biblical Foundation" for our Social Principles and the "Kings Actions Condemned by the Prophets".  If you would like to look at them, go here.

Now granted, I need to dig a little more deeply than just a quick run through on the scriptures (which is what I did this morning...I looked every single one up), but I have to tell you that my initial impression was...well, let's just say I was underwhelmed.  Wow, UMC leadership, if this is the best ya got, Lord help us all!

And as far as quoting Wesley, no doubt that he was a serious advocate for social justice and reform.  The difference is, he didn't just talk a good talk, he walked a good walk!  And I don't think he ever got arrested for protesting for social reform.  The reform he advocated was active.  He didn't just say "we need prison reform" he actually went into the prisons to minister to people both spiritually and physically.  He didn't just say "we need to teach our children to read".  He created Sunday School so children had the chance to not only hear the Word of God, but to also learn how to read it as well!

I guess that's my big bug-a-boo with the Social Principles.  I think, to really have teeth you need to back it up with a strong biblical foundation and you need to be able to act upon that principle.  Otherwise, as Shakespeare said it's all "sound and fury, signifying nothing."

I'll go even one step further.  I'm not fully convinced that the Social Principles should be a part of the Book of Discipline.  They are, in the history of the UMC, a very late addition.  From my view in the pew, they have been more divisive than constructive or instructive.  I'm sure there are many that would disagree.  Either way, I think that as a church, we need a lot more discussion on this topic.

When Alan Met Irene

When Tropical Storm Irene roared through Waterbury on Sunday night everyone knew that the Village was going to get flooded.  The question was how badly?  No one would know for sure until the sun came up on Monday morning.  It was, from all accounts, a very long night!

My friend, Alan Dunster, was out early taking some pictures and seeing what things looked like.  Alan and his wife, Taunya, are members at Wesley United Methodist, which sits right smack dab in the middle of Main Street where it has stood for many many years!  The old brick building has withstood the 1927 flood, the hurricane of 38 and over the years it has hosted many a chicken pie supper and various community groups in need of a space to meet.  It has seen its share of weddings and baptisms and funerals.  It has been a touch point and a gathering place within the community for a long time and it is an anchor and a beacon within the town!  It is a lovely, grand, old church!

I have spent time at that beautiful church over the years for Vacation Bible School, Christmas parties and various other events.  Even though I grew up at Waterbury Center Community church, Wesley has a special place in my heart because, for as long as I can remember, the two churches were virtually joined at the hip.  One might have been in the Center and one in the Village but we shared much together in true Methodist tradition.  Alan grew up at Wesley and his wife, Taunya, comes from a long line of Methodists.  Taunya's grandfather was a Methodist Preacher and her mother sang some of the most beautiful solos at the Center church when I was growing up!  Wesley has a special place in our hearts, and what Alan found when he finally was able to make it down to the church was heartbreaking!

According to Taunya, the first thing that Alan did was call his father to bring the generator and the pumps.  The basement at Wesley was flooded and it was flooded badly!  The piano that Alan and Taunya's daughter loved so much had floated out to the back entry way.  The kitchen was underwater, the dining area had chairs and tables floating all over the place.  It was a disaster!  Alan worked, and kept working, until Taunya finally talked him into coming home to get some rest.  But the next day, he was back there again, bright and early, working to help clean up a church that his family loved!


Other volunteers did show up eventually, but Alan was one of the first, and he wouldn't quit!  Without Alan, and a small handful of volunteers who got in there quickly, things could have been much worse!  Maybe it was Alan's Marine training that allowed him to react quickly, or maybe it's those good family roots planted over the years, either way, he managed to get past the shock and act quickly.

I like this verse from Proverbs 20 in The Message paraphrase:

"Knowing what is right is like deep water in the heart: a wise person draws from the well within."

The river rose but Alan drew from deeper waters!  And his story is like so many other stories that I have heard coming out of Vermont.  One individual at at time, choosing to do the right thing, especially in a time of crisis.  Yes, one person can make a difference!  I can't forget to mention Taunya either because she has been assembling care packages to give out to those in need!  If you have ever wondered what faith in action looks like, you don't have to look far!  I can't show you a clearer example of it than Alan and Taunya!  They get it, they understand and both acted upon that understanding!

As to the church, there were some things that couldn't be saved, like the piano.  The good news is, the church does have flood insurance.  The good folks at Wesley will stand strong and rebuild and be just as vital a part of the community as they always have been!  And I know that Alan and Taunya will be right there, doing what they can to keep that Wesley tradition alive and vibrant!

Thank you Alan and Taunya, for all that you have done and all that you continue to do!  My love and prayers and heart are with you!  I am so very proud of both of you!  Thank you for letting me share your story and your pictures!  Semper Fi my darling friends, Semper Fi!

Sometimes You Gotta Fix the Foundation

When we got to Vermont last Monday our first stop was mom and dad's house.  My brother, Randy (my son's namesake) was already there and had already started working on the old Blacksmith shop in the back yard.  We all knew back in November when dad got sick that the building needed some work to stabilize the structure.  The back wall was sinking and it needed to be jacked up and repaired.  Now you might say, "why bother, why not just tear it down?"  The building is part of the local history of the town, and it has stood for a long long time.  It has a story to tell about where we came from and how we got to the here and now.  So, in our minds, there was never a question about fixing it, simply put, it needed to be done!

On closer inspection, Randy discovered something that we were not expecting.  The front wall was actually in far worse shape then the back wall.  The bottom base boards were supporting nothing at all!  The wood was literally crumbling into sawdust!  The only thing holding the building up was the center support beam that dad had installed years ago.  That's why it had shifted, that's why the back wall was sinking.  So the jacks came out and the front wall weight was placed on them and then the cutting began to remove the dry rotted wood.  New lumber was cut up and new support beams were placed under the wall to give it a stable foundation.  The back wall foundation will be replaced later on once the building settles on to it's new foundation on the front wall.  It's a process that will take some time but in the end, the building will be just as sturdy as it used to be!

Here comes the parallel to life, my little "ah ha" moment!  Sometimes the foundation which was sound in the first place, ends up crushing under the weight of the building put upon it and there comes a point when you have to rebuild in order to stabilize the entire building. 

Dad had told us, we had full warning.  I was reminded of this when I was reading about Jonah this morning.  Now Jonah is an interesting story.  He was, to put it mildly, a reluctant prophet.  Being asked to go to pagan Nineveh to warn them of their impending doom was not high on his priority list!  Let em burn!  Let em fall!  What's the harm?  So he took a boat heading in the opposite direction and well, you know the story, storm comes up, sailors have to throw him overboard in order to save their ship, he's swallowed by a whale and then a few days later he is spit up on the shore just outside of Nineveh!  It's not optional, he's going to deliver the message! 

To Jonah's shock and dismay, people actually listen!  They repent!  God changes his mind and doesn't destroy them!  How is that fair???  They had it coming!  Seriously, God, seriously???  Jonah, the reluctant prophet was rather a sore winner.  God's vision and victory was far different from Jonah's victory and vision.  Nineveh was able to start rebuilding the foundation before it was too late!  God works in wonderful and mysterious ways!

I can relate to Jonah and his reluctance.  I was very hesitant about starting this blog because quite frankly I knew there were times when I would have to say something that wasn't going to be popular!  I was going to have to say things that were hard and uncomfortable but needed to be said whether I liked it or not!  I'm not a minister or a minister in training or someone in leadership, I'm just plain ole me!  But I knew that it was important for someone like me to not only sound a warning but to make sure that a message of hope was being conveyed.  My confirmation that I am doing what God asks of me is confirmed when I read other blog posts and news reports and see that they are hitting on the same topics that I am, unbeknownst to me!  I post my blog then I go and read other bloggers and I go "oh my gosh, they're talking about the same exact thing!"  God is trying to get a message out and he will use whomever and whatever means necessary to get the point across!  That is awesome!  For my part, it's a big responsibility to make sure I get it right!

So what is the point being made today?  Our country had a good foundation.  The United Methodist Church had a good foundation.  Sometimes though the weight of the system presses down so hard that the foundation starts to crumble.  The goodness still exists, we just have to stabilize and reclaim the soundness! It's time to start rebuilding the foundation.

In regards to our country, the foundation that needs to be rebuilt rests on jobs.  If people are working they can pay their bills.  Working people pay taxes.  Working people save money and invest.  Working people buy things.  The little legislation that is coming out of Washington is crushing the foundation.  Add to that the bickering and inertia and the weight just keeps getting heavier.  We need to be praying for our leaders, more so now than ever!  They are an important part of stabilizing the country's foundation!  Pray for your local community leaders as well because they are invested in your community just as much as you are!  They don't want to see it die off, they want to live in a community that thrives!  We need to pray that they have the wisdom to act in the best interests of everyone, the inspiration to help create new and exciting ideas and the perseverance to stick it out and see it through!  I truly believe that change will come from the bottom up and my darling friends it starts with you and me and a willingness to help and to hold our leaders accountable!

As to the United Methodist Church, there is a real need to get back to basics.  People come to church looking for grace, guidance, hope, inspiration-they have questions and they are looking for answers.  We need to encourage people to read their Bible and teach them how to read it and why it matters!  We need to teach them how it can apply to their everyday lives beyond Sunday morning service!  We need to pray for them and with them and we need to teach them how to pray on their own, no matter the circumstance.  We need to teach them how to listen for that still small voice-the Holy Spirit who will guide and support them no matter where they are, no matter what they are doing.  We need to teach them how to praise God and count their blessings and to be thankful for each day, hour, minute and second.  We need to teach them why being a part of a community of believers matters in their lives and how sharing the sacraments is more than going through the motions, it's a spiritual bond to God, their family, their church family and their community.  We need to pray for our Spiritual leaders as well to guide us and hold them accountable to preach the gospel and teach others in our church how to lead, not just follow.  From personal experience, I would say that the greatest leaders are the most willing servants.  They inspire others because their actions truly line up with their words!  We need more servant leaders!

It's not too late!  We've been given a warning.  The foundation can be fixed.  We just have to decide if we are willing to do the work to fix it!  I believe that many people are willing, they just need the encouragement to follow through!  My darling friends, let's get to work on fixing the foundation today!

In the Beginning (Where a Journey Always Starts)

Living in limbo is not exactly a strength of mine.  I tend to be a creature of habit.  I like to know where I'm going, how I'm going to get there and when I'm going to arrive.  Planning, precision and perseverance are the tools I prefer in getting through the daily routine.  I like feeling that all is right with my world!

Things started to change over a very short time.  Not unexpected changes-I knew they were coming eventually!  My daughter graduated high school and just a few short months later left the nest to start her career in the Navy.  In November my father was hospitalized after being diagnosed with cancer.  We spent Christmas in Vermont with my family-something dad wanted!  He died in February, at home, just the way he wanted to go.  In addition, I was in the process of transitioning out of my role as Praise Team Coordinator at church because I felt it was time to let someone else step up and take over the role.  Add to that the economic and social turmoil over the last year; it added up to a lot of things happening!  Big changes which started the process of asking a whole new set of questions.

The questions seemed to all come at once-who am I, really?  Where am I going?  What am I going to do next?  How am I going to get there?  Why would I want to do certain things or make certain choices?  Some might call this a mid life crisis but I think, for me at least, it's more about figuring out what's the next step.  Where do I "fit" in the grand scheme of things?  I thought if I could figure out the answer to that question then I would have a good starting point to figure out the rest of the list!

Fortunately, I found a place to start.  I love genealogy and history!  I can thank my aunt for that particular passion!  The day she opened up a box and pulled out some old family papers and explained just what I had in my hand, I was hooked!  So I knew that my family had been Methodist for many generations.  I knew that they had helped build the church in town.  What I didn't realize though until this past year is that they were Methodist before there was even a Methodist church-they were members of one of the original Methodist Societies in the area.  The significance of this point is that there were no ministers other than the occasional circuit rider coming through the area.  The groups were organized and led by lay leaders for the purpose of study, prayer and holding each other accountable to the beliefs and practices of the society.  No easy task and there were individuals who chose to leave or were dismissed.  As I did a little more digging the question I started to ask was why?  Why choose Methodism?  Quite truthfully, if I hadn't grown up Methodist I'm not sure I would have picked it on my own!  What was so compelling about the Methodist way that my ancestors not only made the choice to participate but also to help build a church?  

The depth of what I have found so far, not only surprised me but it has challenged me to share what I've learned and to show just how relevant it is for today!  History repeats itself in some very surprising ways and I have found it is worth paying attention!  The journey begins!