I Hate Change?

I have finally joined the 21st century. For a week now I've been the owner of an iPhone. I find it amazing what all it will do. With the right apps an iPhone can eliminate the need for a personal computer, a land-line phone, a camera, a video cam, a calendar, a television, a home security system, and someone to love you. (Okay, so I'm totally kidding about that last one...I think...) Change. Wow. Less than a decade ago I was just happy to have a laptop, along with every other high-tech wannabee in an airport terminal.

Change comes at us fast and furious, with no mercy. And we seem to be in an era of accelerated change. Some are enthralled with change, and some hate it with a passion. For example, "change" was a buzzword for the Barack Obama presidential campaign. In opposition, I've seen signs around that say, "You can keep the CHANGE!" Changing times have had an impact in my world - the world of Jesus-followers and churches. With rapid changes all around, some want God and the church to be the one place that never changes. Others believe that God is demanding changes in churches so that we may better fulfill our mission of growing new followers of Jesus.

I'm a runner, running 4-6 miles every other day. I run on roadways and sidewalks. I love to go out and follow a different route every day. However, for the last seven years my running has created a repeated injury in my groin area. A doctor told me the only way to keep running and to heal it is to start running on high school tracks or treadmills. The constant pounding on concrete and uneven hard surfaces will keep me injured. I hate the thought of that. Giving up running on the open road sounds like giving up running itself. Why would I want to run around and around a high school track and see the same scenery over and over? And running on a treadmill?!?...I might as well be a gerbil or a hamster! So, if my goal is to keep running the way I've always run and to not change, then I'll probably stay injured and frustrated. However, if the original goal of running was to stay healthy and keep my heart strong, then, to reach that goal, I'll need to change.

I guess it depends on the goal. What do you think? I'll see you around the next bend in the river.

We See What We Want to See

I am a part of an organization that hands out printed material to hundreds of people every weekend. These hand-outs say a great deal about what our congregation of people believes and promotes. So, we take great care to put out the very best product we can. Last weekend we did our usual procedure for proof-reading the brochure. I gave a rough copy to someone in our office. The office person finalized the copy and sent it back to me. I did final tweaking and sent i back to the office. The office brought in another pair of eyes to look it over before final print. Everything was done according the procedure.

Only on Sunday did someone note that the cover of the hand-out had the title for the weekend before, not for last weekend. All of us who looked at the document with critical eyes ended up seeing what we assumed was there and what we wanted to be there, not in fact what was there!

To a large extent we see what we want to see. If we assume that human beings are basically self-centered, bad creatures, that's what we will tend to see in people. If we assume that people, faults and all, are creatures worthy of value, respect, and love, then that's what our sight will note. Some people of faith say we no longer live in a age of miracles, and that God just isn't active in the same way God was active once before. Yet there are other cultures on the face of the earth, even high-tech cultures, in which reports of the miraculous are almost commonplace, and people of faith contend that God is very deeply involved and active.

Could that be a matter of what we choose to see? What do you think? I'll see you around the next bend in the river. I see a great run through the rapids ahead!

The Burden Is Not on the Newcomer

Not long ago I attended a fundraising event for a very worthy cause. I went at the invitation of some friends. The event took place in a town with which I was not familiar. The only publicity for the event said that it would take place in a public building in the community. No address was given, it was merely said to be at the "XYZ Building." Now, in this particular town, I have no doubt that 95% of the people interesting in attending this particular show knew where the "XYZ Building" was located. However, if anyone new to the community wanted to participate, nothing in printed or on-air community would have guided them to it. In my own case, without a GPS and the help of some locals, I would have driven all that way for nothing.

This is too often the case for the best of causes and organizations. We assume that, if someone wants to join us and participate, the burden is on them to locate us and get involved. Maybe that worked once in American culture overall. In any case, it doesn't work now. We live in a consumer culture. If people can't find something easily and get to it without trouble, they'll just invest themselves somewhere else. I think of my own world - that of organized churches. Many, many churches want new people to come to them, but they leave it to those same prospective folks to find out times, directions, and locations on their own. On the other hand, a few congregations assume the burden is on them to make it easy on the individuals who are most unfamiliar with them. They get out to invite people face-to-face, to pick them up and bring them as guests, to stay with the newcomers and explain to them the nuances of their congregation, and to do a debrief on how the experience was for them. Those churches who do not assume the burden is on the newcomer tend to be the ones that are growing, are changing lives, and are impacting their communities.

Do something welcoming for someone tomorrow. I'll see you around the next bend in the river.

Keep the Fight In You

Have you ever just felt like the joy in life has been wrung out of you, like someone squeezing the water out of a sponge? You vaguely remember having enthusiasm and drive about something, but that seems like a long time ago. Maybe you've come to a point where you just sort of plod through the days in hopes that something will spark a fire in your guts again sometime. It's like the fight has been beaten out of you.

For whatever reasons, I see a lot of people everywhere I go who look like they are at or near that point. I'm something of a naive optimist, so I don't think very many people are on an active campaign to pummel the passionate commitment out of other people. Life is complicated, demands are many, and our energy can be drained in more ways than we imagine. (In my particular belief system we also accept that a negative power beyond the limits of our three-dimensional experience attacks us as well)

Without being able to identify a particular cause, my spirits seemed to be dragging early this week. The particular cause that drives me is Jesus' desire to reach and transform the lives of all people, and Jesus' command that we who are Jesus-followers join with him in this mission. When I get in these little valleys I let myself wonder if the focus and effort I'm putting into this is worth it. We had a number of pretty Spring days in our area, so I decided to ride by bike to a noon meeting. As I rode, put in my ear phones and turned on my MP3 player. It came to some live songs done by one of my favorite groups - Sonic Flood. (They're a heavy metal group that shares my particular cause, mentioned above.) I'm an aging rocker, so screaming guitar and blaring amps get my blood going anyway. Plus the driving, passionate, no-apology message of their songs reminded me of the worthiness of our cause. By the time I arrived at the meeting location, the fight in me had been restored.

Stay close to the passion that has been placed in your heart. When you feel distant from it - go back to whatever would rekindle the flame...a song, a place, a person, a book, an activity, whatever. Keep the fight in you. It's worth it. I'll see you around the next bend in the river. Paddle hard.

Is God Falling Down on the Job? - Part 2

(Yeah, I know - it's not Sunday...)

In the last post I talked about Arnold Prater, a dynamic leader in our denominational tradition a half century ago. Pastor Prater and his wife went through the horrible experience of being robbed in their home once. At gunpoint they were forced to lie face down on the floor of their house while thieves ransacked their home. Never had they felt more vulnerable or fearful. Everything precious to them - memories, a future with children and grandchildren, continued ministry, their lives together - could be snuffed out in an instant. If God's job is to keep faithful people safe and protected, God was certainly falling down on the job.

However, Mr. and Mrs. Prater did not believe God's job is to keep from tough circumstances in life. God's job (and God's passionate pleasure) is to offer love, presence, and power even in the midst of tough circumstances. Even with the cold steel of a gun at his neck, Arnold felt God say to him, "You're mine. You belong to me, no matter what. I gave you my son (Jesus) to seal that deal. Nothing can take you away from me, not even death itself. This that's happening now? The worst they can do is kill you! And even then, you'll still be mine." And at the lowest moment of their lives, Arnold Prater and his wife experienced peace, assurance, joy, and even power.

That, I believe, is God doing God's job. What do you think? I'll see you around the next bend in the river.

God Falling Down on the Job?

What would you say God's job description is? Think less of the answer you think you ought to give and pay more attention to what you really believe. If there is a God, what is God supposed to be doing? Lots of people would say that God's job is to make our lives safe, happy, and prosperous. If that's the case, God's falling down on the job a lot, with a lot of people and in a lot of places. So does God just do God's job with those he favors?

I remember a man who deserved blessing from God if anyone did. He was something of a hero among United Methodist pastors in the western portion of our state a half a century ago. His name was Arnold Prater. Where most United Methodist preachers are assigned to a particular church, Arnold's job was to be something called a "Conference Evangelist." He travelled to different churches and communities, leading a week long series of evening gatherings called a "revival." Arnold Prater did this really well. He was a passionate, motivating speaker. He was also a prolific writer. Arnold authored many books, including a book that helped me during a rough time in my life, entitled How to be Happy in an Unhappy World. If anyone deserved a happy, safe, and prosperous life it was Arnold Prater. Surely he would gain God's favor and God would do God's job well for him.

However, in the aforementioned book, Arnold didn't talk about a shower of blessings from God - good health, ministry success, a safe and happy life. His primary vehicle for the book was an account of the very worst, most devastating moment of his existence. He and his wife were robbed at gunpoint in their own home. They were forced to lay face down on the floor, under threat of death, while thieves ransacked their home. They were never more vulnerable. Arnold and his wife were on the brink of losing everything they cherished: precious memorabilia, a future with children and grandchildren, and even their very lives. For as good and faithful a couple as they were, how was this a safe and happy life. How was this hellish moment anything close to enjoying God's protection and blessing? Why wasn't God doing God's job?!?

What do you think? More thoughts on this on Sunday. I'll see you around the next bend in the river.

The Main Thing or the Gimmicks?

I remember when major league baseball had a players strike a couple of decades ago. Baseball was in dire straights. Fan turned against both players and team owners. Some say that had Mark McGwire of the St. Louis Cardinals not closed in on and surpassed Roger Maris' single season home run record the nation would not have returned its interest to the supposed national pastime.

I think that was when owners and stadiums started to ramp up the entertainment value of what can be a slow sport. Jumbotrons became standard equipment in stadiums. Various contests and mini-shows filled the time between innings. At the stadium where I follow my favorite team, you can text messages that will show up for all the fans and God to see all around the infield. League officials assumed that if the entertaining add-ons were attractive enough, people would show up to games. That was the desired goal - get as many people as possible through the gates.

Now, closing out the first decade of a new millennium, the same rule has proven true that has governed baseball forever. People will follow a team that consistently wins. The goal is to win baseball games, playoffs, and World Series pennants. I am a fan of the St. Louis Cardinals. Across the state the Royals baseball club calls the Kansas City area home. Both teams do the same cheesy stuff between innings to entertain the fans - hot dog shoots, kiss-cams, guess the attendance, etc. One team packs their stadium on a regular basis. The other struggles to keep their stadium even half full. What's the difference? One team gets into the playoffs consistently and has ten World Series pennants in the outfield. That team doesn't depend on the attractive bait of entertainment draws. It depends on the main goal of baseball - winning games. Once that's in place, people will come.

It isn't much different in my world - the world of churches. Many, many churches and church leaders sweat and strain over the right combination of advertising, slick programming, entertainment value, and whatever will get people in the buildings. Not that there's anything wrong with this, but sometimes it can take the place of the main goal; connecting with the real Presence of a living, dynamic, life-transforming God. United Methodist pastor, author, and teacher Terry Teykl says, "While other churches are seeking more people, the Presence based church is seeking more of God." Such churches focus on the latter as the main thing, and, as a result, don't have to worry about the former.

I'll see you around the next bend in the river.

In Defense of Shy People

In my childhood years, back in the Jurassic era, shyness was regarded as some kind of a character flaw or at least a social hurdle to be leaped. Role models, heroes, leaders, and popular people were obvious extroverts. We presumed that life was easier for them. For the rest of us, we would have the added challenge of overcoming our natural inclination to not assert ourselves. For example, I attended a very large high school where a person could become relatively unknown easily. As a conscious choice I went to a small college where I would have better mathematics odds to become more socially involved and to be a campus leader.

I have no doubt that for some people shyness is some kind of interpersonal pathology. For most introverts, however, who and what they are is not some dysfunctional characteristic that needs correcting. It is, in fact, a personality type. Personality types are neither innately good or innately bad; they just are. (See instruments such as the Myers-Briggs assessment, the DISC, etc.) Some of us are designed to draw energy in life from within rather than outside of us. It doesn't mean we don't like people, nor does it mean that we should not push ourselves outside of our comfort zone from time to time in order to be more gregarious. However, nor does it mean that something is wrong with us when we are quiet for an extended time or perfectly content with our own company. There are advantages and challenges to every personality type. Introverted people have the disadvantage of not having the natural comfort in groups of people which is the blessing of extroverted people. Yet introverted people tend to not be a approval-needy as some extroverts can be, and a few deeper relationships comes more naturally to them than they do to extroverts.

Still, in many groups, processes, and organizations, we tend to presume an extrovert's world. Take my world, for example - the world of weekly worship in a church. If, for whatever reason, a person chooses to attend a worship service for the very first time, he or she is likely to enter a world that seems, on the surface, to be an extroversion extravaganza. (It isn't, really; but it will seem that way to someone who is new.) People are greeting one another like they've known each other all their lives. Familiar faces beam at the sight of familiar faces. Conversations seem to be continuations of familiar topics, as people clump together in their regular, weekly, interpersonal groups. In contrast to this, in many churches, the "guest" gets a smile, a bulletin or handout, a "thank you for coming; here's your seat" and that's it. An extrovert might get past all this, and push her or his way into the life of the congregation. For an introvert, you might as well put Mt. Everest in front of him/her and say, "Climb it alone. Good luck."

Just something about which to think. I'll see you around the next bend in the river. Or I might just paddle for while by myself. Don't take it personally, extroverts.

Saturday

Followers of Jesus call the week before Easter Sunday "Holy Week." Depending on what tradition a person follows, every day of this week can have some meaning attached to it. Thursday commemorates Jesus' last meal before his execution, far as we know. Friday acknowledges the execution itself. Sunday is the day that Jesus-followers make the ridiculous, subversive claim that Jesus overpowered all earthly powers and his own death.

So, today is Saturday. What do we do with Saturday?!?

It's kind of a nothing day. Jesus death has happened and nothing that hints at his rising has taken place. What was that first Saturday like?

In some ways, Saturday is kind of a decision day. Most people in Jerusalem just went back to life as they knew it, after the brief fuss over Jesus' trial, punishment, and death ended. Even those who heard Jesus predict all that had happened pretty much gave up. And when the rumor went around that Jesus wasn't in his temporary burial place, only a few bought the unlikely story. Each Saturday before Easter is a decision day. I can decide to just go on with life as is. Even if I end up in a worship service tomorrow morning (out of guilt, duty, or the desire to see what everyone else is wearing for Spring), I'll just put in my time. "Jesus is risen...yeah, yeah - whatever." And I'll go home and have a nice dinner and maybe mow the lawn. Or, I can decide that if Jesus really pulled off the completely unexpected, then Jesus might just pull of the completely unexpected in me and in all the world. And, if the latter is what I decide, then nothing will be the same from this Easter on.

I wonder what I'll do? The Saturday before Easter...maybe a decision day. I'll see you around the next bend in the river...I guess.

Last Meal

By tradition in some areas, imprisoned persons on death row receive a last meal of their request prior to their executions. What would you chose for a meal, if it was your last one? I guess I pick one with red meat and lots of fried stuff. I'm at the age where I have to watch my cholesterol level constantly, and I don't imagine that would matter, with only hours to live anyway. Who would you want to be present with you at your last meal? If you could pick a special occasion for your last meal, what would it be? Christmas? Thanksgiving? Superbowl Sunday?

This particular day (the Thursday before Easter Sunday) is a day when some Jesus-followers remember what was Jesus' last meal, as far as we know. Supposedly Jesus knew it was his last meal. Having already eaten a formal meal, Jesus chose broken up bread and a little wine for his last meal. He gathered an interesting crowd to share the meal with him; among them a revolutionary terrorist, several unemployed commercial fishermen, an unpopular tax man, and someone who swore allegiance to Jesus, but who would deny ever having met him within hours. In addition Jesus invited the man who would set up Jesus' arrest, and Jesus knew it was already a done deal. Jesus shared his last meal with the man who would set the stage for Jesus' execution. Jesus chose a holiday meal setting for his last dinner. This particular meal celebrated a liberation of Jesus' ethnic group centuries before. It was a liberation that would come at great cost. Jesus was hours away from paying a great price himself.

The peculiar thing about Jesus' last meal is that it's not done yet. People keep gathering for it, and they've done it continually for twenty centuries. Some have the meal every day, some have it once a week, some once a month, and some a couple of times a year - but they all keep having it. Some use wine and little wafers, the consistency of cake ice cream cones. Some us grape juice and bread. Imprisoned people have been known to use colored water and cracker crumbs. But they still continue this meal. Some believe the day will come when the meal finally comes to a culmination. On that day, all who have had the humility, the audacity, the insanity, the courage, or whatever to stake their existence on Jesus will finish the meal at a great victory banquet. Jesus himself will be the host.

That's what they say, anyway. Interesting concept for a last meal. I'll see you around the next bend in the river.