Experiences In Church Transformation

Proper Perspective

I recently had a discussion with a good friend that caused me to pause and think about how Christians should respond to the events of the world.  He indicated to me that he had been listening the previous day to some individuals on talk radio.  They indicated that if our attempts of establishing peace in Iraq were unsuccessful our world would be forever unsafe.  As we discussed this concept, I raised a couple of points to him. 

The first point was purely historical, I challenged him to look over the history of the last couple of centuries.  If you do that, you can see that there always seems to be a challenge to the safety of people in the world, the challenge just changes faces.  I recall when I was growing up there always seemed to be great fear about planes being hi-jacked.  I remember news story after news story of a plane being hi-jacked.  Today, that threat seems to have been greatly reduced.  You hardly hear of a hi-jacking any more.

The second point that I made is more from a Christian understanding.  As a Christian, I have the joy of the knowledge that God is in charge!  I have read the book and I know how the story ends ---  GOD WINS!!!  While it may be true that my existence on earth may be brought to an end by human action, the true end of the story is that I am victorious in Jesus Christ!  Now I am not advocating that we go about life in a reckless manner, nor am I arguing  that we do not strive for justice and peace in our world, I do not believe that those who would cause harm can ever be declared to true victors.  The battle of the greatest significance has already been won and those who believe in Jesus Christ are already declared the victors.

It is very easy when we look at all the strife within our world to succumb to the "Chicken Littles".  But if we truly take heart in the Gospel, we quickly realize that there is no other victory than the one achieved in Jesus.  This leads to a life not lived in fear but with wisdom and great joy in the knowledge of the true WINNER.  So I encourage all believers to continue to share a message of assurance and to help others find peace in the reality of the victory won.

K.I.S.S.

When I was a recent college graduate, I had someone tell me that the most important thing to remember was K.I.S.S.  Of course, I tended to jump in my mind to something having to do with a romantic interlude.  Apparently that showed on my face because the person went on to explain that what was being shared was an acronym for Keep It Simple Stupid.  I have often thought of that acronym in the various situations and sometimes I am even smart enough to follow it.

In the church, I believe that we sometimes struggle to share information, and more importantly the Gospel, in anything less than a very complexed way.  Then we often wonder why our message seems to fall dead on people's ears.  We get so caught up in using theological terms or lofty words that we forget our main purpose of communicating information so that it can be a transforming benefit for people. 

This past Sunday I received a lesson in the K.I.S.S. principle once again.  The youth were in charge of our worship service and did an excellent job of leading worship.  One of seniors was given the task of sharing the message.  He shared very appropriate Scripture passages and then spoke for about 3 minutes on the reality of all of us worshiping the same Lord and how we should not get hung up on the exact manner of worship.  His message was clear, concise, and simple.  I believe he probably touched a great many hearts that day.

So the next time that you are preparing to communicate something, remember the K.I.S.S. acronym!!!!

Playing Games

When it comes to interpersonal relationships, it seems that humans can sometimes be the best "game players".  It is a skill that we seem to learn at a fairly young age.  Younger siblings quickly identify the best way to get an older sibling into trouble so that they may relish in watching.  Or what about the ways that we learn to play one parent against another.

Once this skill has taken root, we find it continues through many adult relationships.  We learn to manipulate circumstances and individuals to benefit our perspective.  We learn to spin the story to benefit our own point of view or goals. 

Scripture has many examples of this game playing.  Not only do humans do it within their relationships with each other but we even have the audacity to do it in our relationship with the Lord.

What does any of this have to do with church transformation?  Well, the reality is that this is one of the pitfalls that can easily side track our work.  We can get so involved dealing with the various games that are being played that we have no energy left to do the transformative work we have been called to do.  Be careful and be wise.  Realize when you have been pulled into a game and try to get out of the game as quickly as possible.  Strive to minimize the negative effects of the game playing and identify ways to take the positives out of the situation.

Taking the Journey

We are at that time of year that a lot of individuals are taking new steps in their lives --- graduation, confirmation, shifting from spring to summer activities.  One of the themes that I have been working with our confirmation/commissioning seekers with this year is to look at their faith as a journey.  A journey that begins with our first encounter with the Lord and continues until the day we stand before the Lord and hear, "Well done, good and faithful servant."  For me this is an important theme for all Christians to remember.  Yet I wonder how many times we forget it.

When individuals take important steps in their faith lives - baptism, confirmation/commissioning, becoming an elder, etc. - sometimes they look at it as leaping over a hurdle or putting closer to that "task".  Instead, I believe that we should look at those steps as nothing more than that, a step on our journey of faith.  It does not mean that we are at the finishing line.  It does not mean that we have achieved all that we need to achieve as Christians.  It simply means that we have continued on our journey.  Each step is important to ensure that we do not become stagnant in our faith, but it does not mean that we can stop once a step is taken.

The other exciting thing about understanding our faith as a journey is that no two journeys are identical.  One individual's journey has its own unique characteristics just as the individual themselves have their own unique characteristics.  Sometimes our journey path crosses with other individuals path and that creates exciting encounters.  Other times, our path runs parallel with another person's and that provides fellowship and encouragement.  There are still other times that we cause curves in our paths and/or take steps back along the way.  No one, definitive path is required to be followed by ALL Christians but instead there are many different paths for our journeys.  The only thing that is clearly defined is the ultimate destination.

So I encourage you to enjoy this journey of faith.  All the path, be sure to encourage others to explore their own unique journeys also.  And remember --- the journey and steps do not come to an end until you greet the Lord face to face.

A Sign of Life

Well, I think it is finally here ---- Spring.  In fact, we have actually been having a touch of summer already with highs in the upper 80's.  One of the things that I truly love about spring is the touches of green that begin to appear.  Those little touches that remind me that there is life.

This has caused me to think about what occurs when we are working hard with congregations.  Many times we can feel that it is a labor intensive activity without any sign of life.  We strive to assist changes in people and the congregation as a whole but it seems rather barren.  It is during those times that we need to look for even the smallest signs of life.  Much like spring, we can find little patches of green in our lawns, or the tulips sprout up, or buds on the trees.  That's what we have to look for in the congregations in which we are working.

So next time that you are feeling that you are working in a land of dry bones, take time to find the little things that are spring to life.