Crowded Loneliness

According to RandyFrazee, the average American family manages 35 separate relationships on a day-to-day basis—children, extended family, neighbors, government, school, friends, work, Starbucks employees, landlords, telemarketers, etc. And this is before that family gets invited to church, which usually adds another 6 connections—at least.

As a result, Americans are knee-deep in the unprecedented phenomenon of grouped isolation—what Frazee refers to as "crowded loneliness." We are in desperate need of meaningful relationships, yet too busy and too pulled to maintain them.

Even worse, our attempts to relieve our sense of isolation often contribute to our fragmentation. We might join a small group, for example. We'll get in contact with 3 to 11 other dedicated Christians and commit to meet and study the Bible every week.

But what happens? Those 3 to 11 people become another chunk of relationships that we have to manage—relationships that require phone calls, polite questions on Sunday morning, and Christmas gifts. That weekly Bible study devolves into thirty minutes of preparation, thirty minutes in the car driving to and from the appointed house, thirty minutes of genial conversation, thirty minutes of discussion, thirty minutes of prayer, and thirty dollars to pay the babysitter. In other words, our attempts to forge meaningful relationships often add up being "just another thing to do." HT Out of Ur

I've often wondered about that very thing. In trying to create community among our fellow Christians, how many times do we end up degrading the other relationships they have? I see people here with their kids involved in band, football, Sylvan, and who knows what else. These frequently are the same ones that wind up falling away from the Body.

But how do you fix it?

More later.

What's the Big Idea

"What was church about today?"

My friend Arnold Hendrix and I have had this conversation a number of times. How many messages can we throw at people and expect to "stick" in their hearts and minds? The article lays that question out there in a compelling fashion.

I've looked seriously at ideas such as what Randy Frazee was doing in Texas (before he went to Willow). The idea he was working involved setting out the core principles that needed to be taught each person and each year. That broke down for me because of repetition and the need to essentially go topical in the presentation of those concepts.

We've tried using the Lifeway Sunday School as a guide to tie the morning's lesson and the preaching together. The idea behind that was to take what was presented in class and expand and apply it. It worked fairly well in a limited way, since not everyone here uses the same quarterlies. (Baptist word alert!)

If we are seeking transformation though doesn't the idea of delivering a cogent, targeted, biblical concept each week that isn't diluted by minutia make sense? Here's the meat of the article:

Well, let’s review a typical experience at church. Is it too little or maybe too much? The average churchgoer is overloaded every week with scores of competing little ideas during just one trip to church.

Let’s try to keep track.

1. Little idea from the clever message on the church sign as you pull into the church parking lot
2. Little idea from all the announcements in the church bulletin you are handed at the door
3. Little idea from the prelude music that is playing in the back¬ground as you take your seat
4. Little idea from the welcome by the worship leader
5. Little idea from the opening prayer
6. Little idea from song 1 in the worship service
7. Little idea from the Scripture reading by the worship leader
8. Little idea from song 2 in the worship service
9. Little idea from the special music
10. Little idea from the offering meditation
11. Little idea from the announcements
12. Little idea from the first point of the sermon
13. Little idea from the second point of the sermon
14. Little idea from the third point of the sermon
15. Little idea from song 3 in the worship service
16. Little idea from the closing prayer
17. Little idea from the Sunday school lesson
18. Little idea from (at least one) tangent off of the Sunday school lesson
19. Little idea from the prayer requests taken during Sunday school
20. Little idea from the newsletter handed out during Sunday school

Twenty and counting. Twenty different competing little ideas in just one trip to church. Easily! If a family has a couple of children in junior church and everyone attends his or her own Sunday school class, we could quadruple the number of little ideas. So this one family could leave with more than eighty competing little ideas from one morning at church! And if we begin to add in youth group, small group, and a midweek service, the number easily doubles again. If family members read the Bible and have quiet times with any regularity, it might double yet again. And if they listen to Christian radio in the car or watch Christian television at home, the number might double once more. It’s possible that this one family is bombarded with more than one thousand little ideas every week explaining what it means to be a Christian. No wonder when the parents ask their kids, “So what did you learn?” the answer goes something like this: (Silence.) “Ummm. . .” (More silence.) “Ummm ... “

We have to do better. I'm going to do better. Anyone who reads this and who is doing better, zip me an email. Let's partner to be more effective for Christ.

Telling the Story

"Do you think the way to tell the story of the Christian journey is to describe its trials and tribulations?

It is not.

It is to describe God who preserves, accompanies and rules us.

All the water in all the oceans cannot sink a ship unless it gets inside. Nor can all the trouble in the world harm us unless it gets within us.

'God guards you from every evil.'... None of the things that happen to you, none of the trouble you encounter, have any power to get between you and God, dilute His grace in you, divert His will from you."

-Eugene Peterson, A Long Obedience In the Same Direction

Religion vs the Gospel

• The Bible has nothing kind to say about religion. Religion doesn't understand the Gospel.
• Religion says, "If you obey, God will love you." The Gospel says, "Because God loves you, you can obey."
• Religion is about what I do. The Gospel is about what Jesus has done. "It is finished."
• Religion is about what we get from God. The Gospel is about getting God.
• Religion sees hardship has punishment. The Gospel recognizes there can be good fruit out of hardship and suffering. It's called sanctification. "Jesus was made perfect through his suffering."
• Religion is about me. The Gospel is about Jesus.
• - Mark Driscoll
  

Preaching

'The one passionate desire of my heart has been to lead my hearers to Christ. I have never entered a pulpit without feeling that, if only people could catch a vision of the Saviour, they would have no alternative but to lay their devotion at his feet. My soul has caught fire when ever I have exalted the cross.'

F. W. Boreham

Amen.

We're Better Together

I've been blessed and I've been cursed.

Both of those occurred with my Toshiba laptop. :)

Life with my newer laptop began last week with high hopes for more speed and greater reliability. My old IBM, while still functional, was exhibiting its age (8 years) and so I began the search for its replacement. Checking the local Craig's-list, I saw one that looked like a bargain, so I snapped it up, and sold my old one with its accessories, almost covering the newer one's price. Great!

But as soon as the old one left for its new owner, this one began acting up. It would freeze, throw a blue screen of death at me, and generally make it a challenge to get what you needed to do done before it did it again. So I began searching the Internet and beginning my education on Toshiba laptops.

What I discovered is that this model has problems with its video drivers.

Uh, duh.

I could have solved my problem right then, by tossing the laptop to the curb. But its a useful tool, and we don't have money to throw away. So I'm engaged with a community of fellow Toshiba owners who share my blessing and know my curse. Some of them even work for Toshiba. There is hope.

I was thinking earlier about church. Yea, big shock - pastor thinking about church. But I love it. I love the people in it. I love the reason it exists - to welcome other people and introduce them to God. I love the One it exists to glorify. I've been immersed in the church culture off and on (early, mostly off - lately, mostly on) since I was a boy.

So when I read the Bible, I read it like I'm part of the family. Since I trust my Father (God), I know that what I read there might not make a whole lot of sense to me at the moment, but it does to Him. And since I sometimes need help understanding what a passage means, I turn to the family for that help.

Some of the stuff in the Old Testament can hit you like Microsoft's "blue screen of death". You can lose your work that way on a computer, but you can lose something more important - your walk with Jesus - when that happens with the Bible.

If I had to depend on myself alone, I'd be woefully short of what I need to make it all clear. I don't have all the answers, and I don't pretend I do. So I turn to my family for help.

But you know, like a lot of people in churches, I forget sometimes that not everyone grew up in the family, and not everyone is in the family now.

When the Bible was written, it came through quite a few men's hands. It was collected first into Torah scrolls, then New Testament parchments. For thousands of years before the Torah came to be written, it was shared orally, which meant people had to come together to hear the Words of God.

Then in the early Christian church, the gospels of the disciples (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John), and the letters of others (Paul, Peter, James, etc.) were carried from church to church and read aloud. Even until the early 18th century, most people didn't have a Bible of their own.

When they learned, they learned together. Questions were asked. Questions were answered. Some other questions had to wait on God's Holy Spirit to make the answer known. But all this was done in community. With people who knew God, and people who wanted to know God, coming together in love.

I guess what I'm saying today is this - we need each other. To understand God's Word. To live our lives according to the challenging example of Jesus. We need each other to make our way with Him.

Think about it - This laptop has achieved almost three hours now of uninterrupted use, thanks to Thor from Sweden and Boris from LA. I'll never be a Toshiba engineer, and if I was to give up on the laptop just because of what I don't know, what a shame it would be. There are people out there who know what I need to know, and want to help.

Just like there are here at New Hope and in other churches. We want to help you know God and understand His Word.

Friends, don't give up on God, just because you don't yet understand His Word. You have questions - we all do. But when we come together with our questions, with our doubts, even with our fears - Jesus will meet us at the very point of our need. You want an example? Here it is.

24 But Thomas, sometimes called the Twin, one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. 25 The other disciples told him, "We saw the Master."
But he said, "Unless I see the nail holes in his hands, put my finger in the nail holes, and stick my hand in his side, I won't believe it."
26 Eight days later, his disciples were again in the room. This time Thomas was with them. Jesus came through the locked doors, stood among them, and said, "Peace to you."
27 Then he focused his attention on Thomas. "Take your finger and examine my hands. Take your hand and stick it in my side. Don't be unbelieving. Believe."
28 Thomas said, "My Master! My God!"
29 Jesus said, "So, you believe because you've seen with your own eyes. Even better blessings are in store for those who believe without seeing." John 20:24-29 (MSG)

Jesus met Thomas and answered every doubt. He could have appeared to Thomas when that disciple was alone, but Jesus chose to come when they were together. It's still the way He works most often, and the reason we gather as a church - to meet with Jesus.

We're better, when we're together with God.

Grace!

David Wilson

Lead Pastor - New Hope!
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God - Still Amazing

It was the end of the day. I was wrapping things up and preparing to head down to the post office, to mail something I had sold on ebay the Friday before. That's another way of saying that I knew I was late and should have done it the day before. Maybe even two days before.

Ever have that happen to you?

What's your attitude like in those cases?

Are you at your best?

Uh huh..

So two men come walking toward my office. Right away I think, "I'm going to be late". Then, "I'll bet they want something". Then as I saw the second man more clearly, "hope I'm not going to get mugged."

Paul and Robert entered my office as a study in contrasts. Paul was short, dressed like a contractor, and Asian. He was polite, even formal as he began the conversation. Robert on the other hand was about 6'5", muscular, with his hair in a do-rag, tattoos covering his arms, and dressed in a holy tank top, grimy shorts, and work boots. His language was southern and colorful.

Paul introduced me to Robert, "our new brother in Christ." He explained that they had met at a fast food restaurant, and he had been privileged to lead Robert to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. Paul's language was old school. He said things like "trusting in God's righteousness and not in anything Robert had done", "Christ's death provided the substitutionary atonement for Robert's sins" - it was like listening to an old tape from Lifeway. But it was real.

He had come by to have Robert testify to what God had done in his life, to see if we had any new Christian materials, and to see if we knew anyone heading to Gainesville, FL, or could help Robert get there.

I backed up and got Robert to tell me about himself, how he had come to today's decision, and where he thought it would lead him. He was open, honest, and refreshingly raw. So we rejoiced together, and then we tried to work on the Gainesville deal. I was able to supply the new Christian material, and got some food for Robert to carry on his journey. But I was at a loss on what to do next. Paul asked if he could use our phone.

He called his home (an hour west of us) and told his son to tell his mother that he'd be home late, he had to take his new brother, Robert home to Gainesville (5 hours east). he hung up and we walked toward the car. All the while Paul was explaining to Robert that this is how the Body of Christ works - one part can supply this need, and another takes care of others. They thanked me profusely, (all the while I'm thinking, what did I do?) and they left. Wouldn't accept my offer to fill the tank up - said the church could use it more.

I kept thinking about this Scripture:

Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you'll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.

Paul's incredible generosity, and his explanation to Robert, a new believer - basically said, "this is the way it's supposed to be - you have a need, and God has people supplied with what you need to take care of it."

And tomorrow I get to preach about how Paul found everything He needed in Jesus.

19 And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus. Phil 4:19 (NLT)

Coincidence?

Don't make me laugh.

What an amazing God!

David

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Winners and Losers This Week

It's been a full week.

We've seen everything from a marriage ripped apart to a bachelor party and shower for two 80+ year old saints. We've seen real glimmers of hope in some of the people who aren't there yet, and a real cooling of the God-relationship with others.

I really laid it all out there Wednesday night to help the people understand just why Jesus and the Pharisees sparred so often. I went from Genesis to Revelation to show how the religious Jew had turned God's intent on its head, turning the effects of being Holy into the cause of holiness. After explaining that stressing the practices of faith without having a heart of faith led to elitism, ceremonial worship, and legalism, I made the point that we Baptists were not immune from such foolishness. Many times we try say that a person's not doing certain things makes them holy, when as Vance Havner said, "no, it just makes them tired."

So after I had built a case for grace, a new member came up to me after and said jokingly, "I'm so glad you did that pastor. Hey, some of us are going out drinking and dancing Friday night - want to come?" I had a Fred Sanford moment - "It's the big one!" until I saw his grin. And of course now I'm haunted by that remark.

Then there was the morning when four of us went to talk with a young woman we love who fell back into drug use after being clean for months. Her kids are our kids. We're family. And we have nothing but God to rely on in our desperate desire to see her make it through.

The real work this week has been in prayer. For the young man and woman headed for divorce and for their families. For the two older folks as they step out in faith. For the Spirit to fan into flame the sparks of faith we saw in some people, and to reignite it in the others. For the young mother struggling with addiction and for her family.

After being here almost 8 years, these aren't "Those people". They are "my people". And I want them all to make it to the finish line in faith. So pray with me for those I've mentioned. And pray for Bunny and me, as we try to follow Jesus among the rest of the broken people.

Saturday Night Special

One of the inside jokes among people who preach is calling another's sermon a "Saturday Night Special." The idea is that you goofed off all week and then put something together at the last minute. I'm sure it happens, but not nearly as much as people pretend.

More often than not, I've walked around with the book of the Bible I'm preaching out of for weeks, having reacquainted myself with it. I've been through the Scriptures many times now in the 33 years I have been a follower of Jesus. That doesn't mean though, that the Scriptures are through with me.

When I'm going over what I hope to say the next morning, it sometimes finds me on the wrong end of the message. The power of the Scriptures cannot be directed, only unleashed. And if he's honest, many preachers find that the real "Saturday Night Special" takes place within their hearts as they realize again the awesome task of working for God in preaching His Word.

Annie Dillard writes, "Does anyone have the foggiest idea of what sort of power we so blithely invoke? Or, as I suspect, does no one believe a word of it? The churches are children playing on the floor with their chemistry sets, mixing up a batch of TNT to kill a Sunday morning. It is madness to wear ladies' straw hats and velvet hats to church; we should all be wearing crash helmets. Ushers should issue life preservers and signal flares; they should lash us to our pews."

BOOM! It could happen tomorrow! Revival could occur, the church could rise up and live out its calling. The gospel is dangerous!

And do we who pastor God's people realize what we are called to be? Here's what stopped me cold tonight.

Keep putting into practice all you learned from me and heard from me and saw me doing, and the God of peace will be with you. Phil 4:9 (NLT)

Not just with words, but with our very lives, we are to preach the good news of Jesus.

Lord have mercy. May you be glorified as your servants give all they have for you tomorrow, and may they never cease to cling to You. For Your power is made perfect in weakness.

Amen and amen.

Have you ever tried to change a habit?

It's so hard.

Last night Bunny and I hosted a small group focusing on communication in marriage. One of the things that I came to realize as I worked through the material was the need to make some changes in the way I communicate - not just with Bunny, but with others. I'm not sure when it started - maybe I have always done this - but while talking to a person I would look down, up, or just away for seconds at a time and then refocus on the person I was talking to.

Yeah, pretty annoying I suspect.

Here you are, having a conversation with someone, and as they reply to a comment, it seems that they have found something more interesting to look at. I'm amazed that someone over the years hasn't stopped me and said "what's so interesting?" To all you kind people, I can only express my thanks.

Once I discovered I was doing this, I put all my energies toward correcting the action. I m-a-d-e m-y-s-e-l-f look the person in the eye as I was speaking to them. And I did it! For a while. What I found out was that I had to stay focused on what I was doing and why. I had to remember to do that every single time.

Pray for me.

There are a lot of things I appreciate about the apostle Paul. His openness, transparency, and humility are just a part of that appreciation. He writes from his heart when he says:

12 I'm not saying that I have this all together, that I have it made. But I am well on my way, reaching out for Christ, who has so wondrously reached out for me. 13 Friends, don't get me wrong: By no means do I count myself an expert in all of this, but I've got my eye on the goal, 14 where God is beckoning us onward— to Jesus. I'm off and running, and I'm not turning back.
15 So let's keep focused on that goal, those of us who want everything God has for us. If any of you have something else in mind, something less than total commitment, God will clear your blurred vision— you'll see it yet! 16 Now that we're on the right track, let's stay on it. Phil 3:12-16 (MSG)

Maybe you started this year off with a steely determination that you were going to make some changes. But as the weeks have rolled by, your focus and determination to accomplish what you set out to do have faded. Well friends, the only way you can fail is by ceasing to try to change.

If you've set a goal and God is glorified in it, then keep going - don't look back.

or up... or at the floor..

Focus on Jesus.

Grace!

David Wilson
Lead Pastor
New Hope!
.
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Feeding Time

One of the great tools the internet has brought to us is the RSS Feeder. With this tool, you can set up lists of blogs you'd like to read and then just go to the feeder each day and quickly skim through the list of posts - choosing to read the ones of benefit, and passing up the rest. Years ago (and they may still have it) Leadership Magazine had a publication that did this with print articles. It cost real money. RSS feeds are free.

Personally, I prefer Google Reader for my RSS reader, but there are others that will do the trick.

Now, what to read, what to read. Well, in my context, I'm looking for information about ways to improve my church, and ways to help me grow personally as a pastor and as a follower of Jesus.

Tomorrow I'll share some of my favorites.

I hear voices...

1 Children, do what your parents tell you. This is only right. 2 "Honor your father and mother" is the first commandment that has a promise attached to it, namely, 3 "so you will live well and have a long life."
4 Fathers, don't exasperate your children by coming down hard on them. Take them by the hand and lead them in the way of the Master.

Eph 6:1-4 (MSG)

While I was searching in a closet at our home the other day, I came across several cassette tapes. One was of the Bethesda Baptist Church choir's Easter presentation of many years ago. My mother (who passed away 15 years ago) sang a solo in that musical. Another tape was of a sermon preached by Brother James Herndon, long-time pastor at Bethesda. He passed away before my mother. The final tape was of my oldest son Adam's 2nd Christmas.

I brought that tape to church to see whether you could still hear it. Surprisingly, the sound quality was okay. On that Christmas morning, apparently the whole family was at our house. So you hear my Mother and Father (who passed away last September), my aunt Louise and Uncle William (many years gone), my brother, and Bunny and me enjoying seeing Adam at 16 months of age, experience his first real Christmas.

Listening intently, I could hear Adam tell Bunny he wanted to go see "granmurner" (He got better at it). And I heard my Mother's voice for the first time in 15 years.

Sigh...

My father's voice was strong and clear - not like the man I talked to in August - so frail.

You know, I'm so glad I decided to record it all that morning, but in some ways their voices won't ever cease. I was drilled on being a certain kind of person. "We don't do that." "Son, when you go to work - work." "Remember, there but by the grace of God, go you."

What they said then affected my doing. I obeyed my parent's will.

But what that did was affect my being.

I am their son.

And I hear their voices.

I know that it's hard for some to follow God's commandment to honor father and mother, because they didn't treat you well. Some people have gone through horrible times in this life, and for you I pray. But consider this - the voice you are to listen to and obey isn't your mother or father who did wrong.

It's your God, Who gave His own Son to make you right.

Can you hear the voices?

28 "Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life.

Matt 11:28 (MSG)

By obeying - in the doing, you'll find you are being changed. And those old hurts will be submerged beneath God's mercy and grace.

Grace!

David Wilson
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Outrageous!

It was a great morning at New Hope last Sunday. We had a great time of worship and praise, experienced God working through His Word, and saw Him at work when Emma came forward to tell everybody what Jesus had done in her life. It was glorious! Then we went over to the fellowship hall and celebrated the baptism of four children as they followed in obedience of Jesus.

We're an informal church, and never more so than when we baptize.

The kids wore their T-shirts and swim suits, and I wore a New Hope Sweatshirt and waders. We had a minute before to talk and pray and I tried to help them understand that there would be a lot of other times to decide to follow Jesus' example. I asked them what that meant to them and they told me : "Like being nice." "Or helping." "And not telling lies."

My response was, "Absolutely, all of those things and a lot more. Most of those people out there today won't see them, but being baptized like Jesus told us to - well this is in front of everybody. Everyone will know we want to follow Him."

So we headed into the round baptistry and got to work. The congregation applauded each and every one. I just grinned. There's something about being able to look them in the eyes and tell them that "I baptize you my brother (sister)..." You know that this may be a child that has more impact one day on the kingdom of God than you will ever hope to have.

God can use children to teach us about following Him.

15 When the religious leaders saw the outrageous things he was doing, and heard all the children running and shouting through the Temple, "Hosanna to David's Son!" they were up in arms and took him to task. 16 "Do you hear what these children are saying?"
Jesus said, "Yes, I hear them. And haven't you read in God's Word, 'From the mouths of children and babies I'll furnish a place of praise'?"

Matt 21:15-16 (MSG)

Which do you think upset them more? Jesus' "outrageous things" or the kids running and shouting in the Temple?

Listen closely, please.

Dead churches don't have problems with noise, or children running.

And they don't often get to see Jesus do outrageous things.

So come and see what God will do next!

Grace!

David Wilson
Lead Pastor
New Hope!

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Ouch!

R :: Quote Library :: jordoncooper.com

Take Christians. I am surrounded by Christians. They are generally speaking a pleasant and agreeable lot, not noticeably different from other people -- even though they, the Christians of the South, the USA, the Western world have killed off more people than all other people put together. Yet I cannot be sure they don’t have the truth. But if they have the truth, why is it the case that they are repellent precisely to the degree that they embrace and advertise the truth? One might even become a Christian if there were few if any Christians around. Have you ever lived in the midst of fifteen million Southern Baptists?... A mystery: If the good news is true, why is not one pleased to hear it? -- Walker Percy, The Second Coming

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Do We Ask Too Much, Or Too Little?

Sunday was an awesome celebration of seeing 4 children baptized and another come forward to profess faith in Christ. We know that these little ones cannot be expected to grasp the complete theology an adult should know, but "Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so" certainly should be within their grasp.



Every time we baptize children, I make a point of calling the church into a covenant along with their parents to bring the kids up to learn, grow, and know more of Jesus and His love.



Well today I'm rummaging around preparing for my small group discussion on Leviticus 19 tomorrow night, and I run across this in the Mishnah.

At five years old [one is fit] for the Scripture, at ten years
the Mishnah (oral Torah, interpretations) at thirteen for the fulfilling of the
commandments, at fifteen the Talmud (making Rabbinic interpretations), at
eighteen the bride-chamber, at twenty pursuing a vocation, at thirty for
authority (able to teach others)

I cannot help but feel, based on my experience within the churches I've been a part of over the years as a parent and as a pastor, that we aren't expecting enough. Granted, the person who fulfills all of this would be a rabbi. But the first three parts everyone should go through. Do our methods and our tools get us to this standard?



Now back to Leviticus...

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Can I Swim When It's Over?

"Can I Swim When It's Over?" was what one of the boys to be baptized today asked me right before we got in. "Ask your mother," was my reply. For the record, the answer was no.

That might have been the only down moment today. We debuted "How Can I Keep From Singing" by Chris Tomlin as a prelude to corporate worship. What an awesome song! Then we had a great time together in singing praises to our God.

When the time for the message rolled around, I couldn't wait. We had plenty of visitors with us and my goal was to bring the message from the text and see the Holy Spirit apply it to their lives. What a great text it was. Philippians 2:5-11

We had a young girl publicly profess her faith in Jesus during the invitation time, we welcomed that great gift, then I scooted over to change for the baptism. And yes, I got wet. I always do.

I really didn't want to get out of the water either.

Hmmm

You don't drown by falling in the water; you drown by staying there.

It's one of those quotes that makes you stop and read it again. Obvious. Simple. But chillingly true.

I've had the "benefit" of seeing that happen to a church. My home church, Bethesda Baptist, in Macon Georgia, no longer exists. My wife and her family were there from the beginning. I was on the cradle roll but went away for a few years. We were married there. At that time there were hundreds of people involved in a vibrant and growing church. I was ordained there in 1991. We loved those people - for a long time we were those people.

But it is gone, the victim of people paralyzed in the water. They knew that the culture was changing. They knew that the demographics around them were changing. And they did nothing. When they finally did roll over out of their sleep and realize they probably should do something, they bungled that too.

From my perspective, as someone charged with helping people live out Jesus' call on them and on the church they make up, what happened there was a succession of failures in leadership. First, in the church members who chose the pastors. But ultimately, those pastors failed to lead.

When you are approaching a point that a decision has to be made, you may be the only one that knows it. God shows you that a turn is in order before He does anyone else. That could be because you need to know, or it could be that you are so deep into the vision that your perch is a bit higher up and you can see farther.

But you know it's coming.

It is.

So climb out of the water.

Working It Out

Here at New Hope, I have the corner office with the big picture window every corporate "suit" dreams of. In front of me I can see a corner of the school playground across the street. That lets me watch kids playing on a daily basis. Behind me sits our sanctuary. Bunny teaches piano in the afternoons here, so you could say I also get to hear kids playing.

There's a big difference though, in the groups of kids playing.

Those on the playground are free (within the constraints of the laws of physics, their imagination, and the teacher's watchful gaze) to play any way they want. If they want to run in circles until the get dizzy, they can. If they much prefer tag, then game's on. The object is simply to have fun.

The kids taking piano on the other hand, though they may have fun doing it (and Bunny works very hard to see that they do) aren't free to play anything they choose. The music before them makes that decision, and the teacher decides what music is there. Bunny's been doing this for over a year now. I've listened to just about every way "Three Blind Mice" and the other songs can be played. I've heard flub after flub, as notes were skipped, missed, or struck in error.

Through it all, the music never changed. The notes sat in the staffs, and the time signature remained the same.

Yet by working through the process of practice and repetition, the kids have amazed me lately with just how good they are getting. Looking back, it is hard for me to believe they could have come so far, based on what I've heard here.

But what I've heard is only a fraction of the time those students that have really progressed have put into their pursuit. They've devoted hours to practice at home, when they could have been doing something else, because they wanted to improve, to change, to get better at the art.

Like we should be doing as Christ-followers.

What I'm getting at, friends, is that you should simply keep on doing what you've done from the beginning.
When I was living among you, you lived in responsive obedience.
Now that I'm separated from you, keep it up.
Better yet, redouble your efforts.
Be energetic in your life of salvation, reverent and sensitive before God.
Paul's Letter to His Friends at Philippi 2:12

Dallas Willard, author of many books on growing closer to God puts it this way.

"Grace doesn't preclude effort."

How much effort are you putting into your walk with Jesus?

Practice won't make perfect, but it'll make you more like the One who is.

Grace!

David
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Visit with me at my blogs:
http://davethepastor.livejournal.com/
http://davethepastor.vox.com/
Or visit New Hope!
http://www.newhopevalp.org/

Simple Church?

When I sit back and look at the overall purpose of the church (that "make disciples, teaching them to obey... concept) and then walk through the processes and events during a week that gives the purpose life, I sometimes wonder if we try to do too much.

Here at New Hope, for adults we have Sunday morning Bible Study, then a sermon, then that evening another sermon. We then come back in small groups during their season, and on Wednesday night.

Practically, that means that some weeks the adult disciple would receive 5 different teachings on typically 5 different texts or topics. On the surface, that seems a bit much. In college, I took a full load every term of 4 and sometimes 5 courses, with far more challenging work accompanying those than is asked of the learner at church. So it can be done.

But this isn't just learning we are after, is it?

We are after life transformation.

So what if everything we did each week was related to a text or a theme/topic? Would that help further our goal? I've been researching that off and on for years. Some churches that have implemented a thematic discipleship program report great gains in their people's ability to learn and apply the concepts and really precepts they are taught.

It would mean organizing around the book of the Bible you were going through, or around the topic. Practically it would mean a lot of pre-work to gather the materials and to train the teachers prior to each block of time.

But I think it would be worth it.

If I were planting a church today, this is the way I would go.

dandelion

dandelion
Originally uploaded by puddnheadwilson.

Work with me here for a moment.

The picture shows a dandelion. Yes, it's a weed. But it is a weed designed by the Creator God in such a way that it is able to spread itself and replicate by allowing the wind to carry it away.

Why is the church different?

We were also designed by the Creator God to spread the good news of Jesus through the way we live our lives.

Could it be that unlike the dandelion seed, we refuse to let the wind of the Spirit carry us where He wills?