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Last night was special.
What would cause three grown men
- to spend a year-and-a-half of their lives writing and rewriting books, complete with the deadlines and late nights and early mornings spent glaring at a computer?
- to leave their wives, kids, and friends for a month-and-a-half while traveling to 32 cities crammed in an RV that has a tendency to run out of gas and tear itself apart?
- to grow an obscene amount of facial hair and then shape it into Mutton-Chops?
- to write a, all-be-it catchy, song and then sing it accompanied by a wash board and a trombone played by a non-trombone player?
- to basically make, as Tony put it, arses out of themselves in front of complete strangers?
- to place olive oil in little containers, falsely advertise it as the Balm of Gilead, and sell it for up to $50 (there is a point to it all and you’ll just have to go to find out)?
What would cause them to do such things? One might think, on the surface, to sell books. One would be wrong. After just six shows Mark, Doug and Tony were exhausted. They missed their families. They were thousands of miles from home (except Mark who lives in CA). Those of us who served alongside of them in making the Roadshow happen could see these things, which were clearly evident. But that wasn’t the only thing that was evident. In fact, truth be told, these “things” only made their true motive all the more evident.
See, the Roadshow has the guise of a book tour. But don’t let that fool you. It is only a cover. The true essence of it is three guys who are deeply passionate about Jesus. Who will stop at nothing to proclaim his message of hope and restoration. Who love hanging out with other people who are seeking to follow the person and way of Jesus. Whose hearts beat with an inner God-cadence and have reconciled their fear at the feet of God, saying, “We’ll speak what we hear, regardless.” It was laughter and silence and joy and profoundness and embarrassment and gut-level sharing and music (kinda) and wisdom and friendship all rolled up into two memorable hours.
For me, the whole night (we began at 3:00pm and rolled out at 11:00pm) will be a memory that I’ll recall in my spirit for many years to come. But the things that stand out will be Doug’s recalling of when he first fell in love with Jesus in that theater-turned-church and how it has taken him many years to wind his way through the “tracts” he was given and back to the essence of Jesus, whom he found that night. It will be Tony recalling his journey from systematic theology in seminary to the simplicity of Jesus of Nazareth in the South Dakota Plains with the Lakota tribe. It will be Mark speaking in the raspy voice of the “Emperor” as he recalled moments of love-lived-out in an abandoned bus in the streets of San Francisco, only to be topped by his very passionate monologue about the Kingdom of God is at hand and right here.
In addition to the memories of what took place during the “show”, there are those quieter memories of seeing old friends. Meeting new friends from as far as Tracy. Seeing the joy on people’s faces. Lifting tables and chairs, setting up lights and sound equipment, hanging banners and laying out books, labeling olive oil containers with deceptive spiritual labeling, sharing laughter and a meal with people I love dearly, some of whom I am just beginning to get to know. I am longing for the days that we have ahead of us and am excited—filled with hope—about what Jesus is doing and how he is calling us to participate.
Please hear me. If these guys are coming to a city anywhere near you, GO!! You will be blessed. I promise.
I know what you might be saying, “But it is too far away for me to go.” Ok, listen. They have driven across the entire continental United States in an RV filled with tired, stinky men to come to you, the least you can do is drive to the nearest city to go to them!!
If you can’t make it, I understand. But I am not sure God will and you’ll have to answer to God come judgment day. And without the Balm of Gilead, I’m afraid there will be no hope for your soul (at least that is what they told me in private)…
[Update] In addition to regular comments, if you’ve attended a Roadshow I invite you to comment your own reflections below. Here is Jonathan Brink’s review. John Ohara’s Review.
Alchemy, in part, entails physical experiments involving destroying the subject, extracting its essence and re-forging it as something stronger, more whole.
What would postmodern church-alchemists look like? Church structural experimenters who break down the institutional church, extracting its essence and re-forging it for our time as something stronger, purer, more whole.
Hmmm. Looks like I just self-inherited another label.
Any other Church-Alchemists out there?
I am often asked, by other Christians, “What church do you go to?” or “Where do you go to church?” This is, with regularity, followed by them saying, “Oh, I go to such-and-such church.” Another common question I get asked usually refers to the quality of the church I just went to, “How was church today?” which often is asking about the preaching, music, etc. Though these are well meaning questions, I think they point a bigger issue that plagues us today.
The bigger issue is one of “mistaken identity”. We see the church as a place we go versus a people who live in the way of Jesus. It is so prevalent that even people who do not go to church know “church” as a place, rather than a people who follow Jesus. But Paul knew better.Paul’s addresses many of his letters (Corinthians, Thessalonians, Ephesians, Revelation) to “the church in…” and names a city or providence. It is to a singular church, not plural churches (though there were many separate gatherings), that he writes to. Imagine Paul writing one letter to the all the various, individual churches in Sacramento and beginning his letter, “To the church in Sacramento”, and you get the picture. Paul used this language because he viewed God’s church as—not a place or a building—a people.
Now, I know we all agree to this in theory or theology, but seldom do we acknowledge it in our Sunday-to-Sunday language or practice. I cannot tell you the number of times that it has been insinuated or I have been directly told that “so-and-so church is better than so-and-so church”, or that “our church is in competition with so-and-so church”, or, “did you hear what happened to so-and-so church?” In Paul’s eyes, the church was in an interdependent relationship with one another as a people of God who followed and claimed the radical name of Jesus. Today, we independently operate separate church buildings and congregations, seldom uniting with or caring what happens to each other. In fact, sometimes we secretly (or not so secretly) applaud the sufferings, losses and mistakes of other congregations. This is because we really do not see them as “the church”––as brothers and sisters, as equals–– but as the other church, as the competition, or even as enemies if their beliefs differ from ours (those Baptists, Charismatics, Catholics).
It seems silly to imagine this self-destructive thinking in Paul’s day considering that the churches met in homes. The church, or the people of Jesus, met in small home gatherings located all through out the Roman Empire (though in Jerusalem they also went to the temple). Though separate, they viewed themselves as and acted like they were one body. I find great encouragement when large, diverse groups of Christians gather by the thousands in large auditoriums to worship and learn together. To me, it is a small slice of heaven. We all agree and act like we are ONE when we gather in such settings. But then something happens that saddens me. We get back to our “Churches” and resume business as usual: independent churches who could care less about each other—especially if the other church belongs to a different denomination. Jesus said that a house that is divided against itself cannot stand. Perhaps this is, in part, what we are seeing today: a divided house that is falling down.
May we reclaim our identity as THE CHURCH. May we stop nodding knowingly about this fact and start behaving how we claim to believe. May we not see ourselves as people who go to a church, but as a people who are the Church of Jesus wherever we go and whatever we do. May we be the church whether we meet in a multimillion-dollar building, or an ancient cathedral, or a living room, or a bar, or a coffee shop, or a park. May we stop competing against, abusing, slandering and destroying the other parts of Jesus’ body just because they are different then we are and because they believe differently then we do. May Jesus be our common head and may we stand in unity.
You have been telling people that this is the Eleventh Hour.
Now you must go back and tell the people that this is the Hour.
And there are things that need to be considered:
Where are you living?
What are you doing?
What are your relationships?
Are you in right relation?
Where is your water?
Know your garden.
It is time to speak your truth.
Create your community.
Be good to each other.
And do not look outside yourself for the leader.
This could be a good time!
There is a river flowing now very fast.
It is so great and swift that there are those who will be afraid.
They will try to hold on to the shore.
They will feel they are being torn apart, and they will suffer greatly.
Know the river has a destination.
The elders say we must let go of the shore, push off into the middle of the river, keep our eyes open, and our heads above the water.
See who is in there with you and celebrate!
At this time is history, we are to take nothing personally, least of all ourselves.
For the moment that we do, our spiritual health and journey comes to a halt.
The time of the lone wolf is over. Gather yourselves!
Banish the word struggle from your attitude and vocabulary.
All that we do now must be done in a sacred manner and in celebration!
[Source: Elders of the Hopi Nation]
The imagery from this poem really spoke to me, as well as its questions. The similarity in what these Native American Elders were saying and what is emerging in our culture and church was striking. There are some that are leaving the dangers of clinging to the shore for the dangers of riding the river. Those who have let go of the shore indeed are finding others who are faith-traveling the river with them—they are not alone.
The two phrases (it was hard to choose, there were so many) that jumped off the page for me were these:
“All that we do now must be done in a sacred manner and in celebration!”
” See who is in there with you and celebrate!”
The line I personally struggled with was this one:
“At this time is history, we are to take nothing personally, least of all ourselves.
What from the poem resonated with you? What did you struggle with or made you uncomfortable reading?
From Glenn Hager: Some of you know that I am trying to shape a ministry that would come along side these pioneers and revolutionaries and help them through the transition. This desire has grown out of my own experience of being a pastor for over twenty years, struggling find my place, and eventually, losing confidence in the church system that I used to love, but not in Christ or his mission. My questions for you are: [the one I chose to answer] What do they/you need?
In a nutshell, I think the biggest thing people who are being led to re-form and re-dream the church is a safe place to do just that. It will be messy, unpredictable, and often times unconventional, but we need heart-supporters that will give us the space to play with living out faith in the pluralistic, global and postmodern context we find ourselves in. We need elders who, though they are not feeling led to personally re-tool ministry for the droves of people who are not connecting with the modern U.S. church, see the need and who are willing to protect and support the lives and efforts of those who are being called to lead such a change.
Too often the story gets repeated of a church who wants to re-dream a ministry for—as they call them—”those postmoderners”. They hire an emerging leader and initially give them a long leash to experiment. But as the months progress, the leash gets shorter and the collar gets tighter, especially as unconventional methods are being experimented with and more people begin connecting with these “new” ways and less with the “old” ways. Rumors begin to float, meetings take place, hurtful words are thrown (by both), egos get bruised, and the emerging leader usually is forced to self-resign due to the tumultuous environment or they are just out-right asked to leave the church.
It is my judgment that most of the emerging leaders would prefer to work alongside and with existing churches; that their desire really isn’t to break-away from their forefathers of the faith. I really sense that they long for the support, freedom, protection, love, friendship, companionship, and wisdom of those who are leading existing ministries and churches. But for most—not all—emerging leaders, they are slowly (and sometimes quickly) squeezed out of their community of faith, and so they reluctantly go it alone with a few friends to follow where God is leading their heart and passion.
And sometimes you hear of denominations and established churches taking a Kingdom-risk. They see the tide of change, and though they are scared to death at times, they support, embrace, love, partner, and get messy with what God might do through someone very different from themselves. They take bullets. They bite their tongue. They watch backs. They witness mistakes. They glory in success (though not often how they might define it). And together, they set out on God’s mission into a dying world needing God’s love and the message of his undying grace.
So if you were to ask me, What is it that emerging-missional (or whatever you call us) leaders need? Here is my answer. We need a safe place to experiment new paths of mission and theology; and friends who—though they might not “get it” or understand—can support us, protect us, trust us, and ultimately trust God as he leads us.
But safe place and friendship or not, we feel that God’s movement is going to happen—regardless. We’d just like it to happen with all of us unified together in relationship and trust, instead of in banishment and fear.
We are, after all, serving and trusting the same living God. In this, we should stand—together, not apart.
________________________________________________________________
Links to all of the participants:
Alan Knox: A Revolutionary? Who? Me?
Erin Word: Are We There Yet, Papa Smurf?
Jane: Onward Christian Soldier
Jeff Greathouse: So, You Want To Change
Jeff McQuilken: The Great Shift–and My Unwitting Part In It
Jeromy Johnson: A Safe Place To Experiment
Jonathan Brink: Re-Emerging Church
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More From Glenn Hager: My personal journey, reading, blogging, and conversations with friends have led me to uncover the fringes of a huge group of people who operate under the radar of much of the world. They represent over 20 million people in the U.S. (This is the number of people who are already expressing their Christian faith in ways other than through a conventional church, according to the Barna organization.) who have lost (or, are losing) their faith in the institutional church system, yet have a deep love for Christ, his community and his mission. Many of you are a part of that number which includes those…
- Who have been wounded through serving and separating from “church as they have known it.”
- Who are feeling alone, wondering if there is something wrong with their theology, if they suffer from some personality disorder, or if they are doomed to isolation.
- Who are former church leaders or staff members trying to find a new sense of direction.
- Who eventually want to return to community and fellowship, but not get mired down in the system they left behind.
- Who long for a faith community that is vibrant, accepting, and real, that joins in God’s kingdom in practical ways where they live and beyond.
Some of you know that I am trying to shape a ministry that would come along side these pioneers and revolutionaries and help them through the transition. This desire has grown out of my own experience of being a pastor for over twenty years, struggling find my place, and eventually, losing confidence in the church system that I used to love, but not in Christ or his mission. My questions for you are:
- What do they/you need?
- What did/do you need as you as went/are going through this transitional phase?
- How can a ministry or service help them/you?
. . . as I do, then read my friend Jonathan who put words to how I feel about the church. I could not have said it better. Thanks brother!
Tony Jones’ first book signing took place at his local Barnes & Noble.
Unfortunately, due to the cold winter, slow book sales and only two people showing up (his wife and Doug), Tony was forced to take desperate measures to provide for his family (notice his hand in his pocket and the “indiscreet” pocket-bulge in the above photo?). After holding-up B&N for a mere $6.32, Tony was arrested immediately after leaving the store at 2:17 a.m.
After an intense 6-hour interrogation the charges for armed robbery were dropped. However, after reviewing his new book, The New Christians, Tony is now facing new charges for heresy. Fortunately, he was released on bail for $425,000 (thanks Doug!). His court hearing is set for March 20, 2008 where he will face a possible triple-life sentence.
If you’re reading this Tony, you’re in our prayers!
NOTE: None of these events (except the book signing) actually happened….I think. 
On of the things I appreciate about Emergent is their openness to honestly engage those who disagree with them—even offering an open critic-invitation for dinner in their homes. One of their values is to never turn down an invitation from their critics for honest dialog. This value has landed them on many a radio show to be openly criticized and “thrown to the lions”. Here is a very recent video where Tony Jones extended an invitation to one of his/Emergent’s critics (Rev. John Chisham, pastor of River of Life Alliance Church in Marshall, Minnesota [and also outspoken critic of Tony and Emergent]) to sit down and talk…
UPDATE from Emergent Village: Tony had not given his permission for this video to be posted, so it now has been taken down.
Just an FYI….If you are into the emerging church, trying to gauge what is happening in the postmodern church, or just plain curious, here is a link where you can print and read chapter one of Tony Jones’ book, The New Christians: Dispatches from the Emergent Frontier.
Scott Mcknight said regarding the book, “from now on, all conversation about Emergent begins right here.”
Also, you can hear Tony briefly explain the 10 dispatches via podcast. Here it is online at: http://www.whitworth.edu/podcast/index.aspx (It is the 11/9/2007 podcast. To download it, right click on the “Listen” link and select “Save Target As…”).
So I Googled “emergent heresy” and all I can say is this: Not much has changed in the past 1700 years.
If church-incited murder (a.k.a. burning at the stake) was legal in America, I am sure a number of people would be ashes by now…heck, would anyone be left for that matter? The Baptists would burn the Presbyterians, the Hard-core Calvinists would be burned by the Armenians, Emergents would be burned by Biblicists, and down the spectrum-divide I could go. The Amish might be the only sole survivors of the turn-of-the-century heretic war. Perhaps this is why the law-of-the-land has the wisdom not to let religious people play with matches while those they do not agree with are around…
However, I did find one playful post at Tall Skinny Kiwi.
OK, so here is my vent. I fully realize that it is in our human nature to label and define and fragment just about everything into tidy boxes so we can then pass judgment, create an “in” and an “out”, an us and them. But just because I get it does not mean I like it. In fact, I even hate it when I see it surfacing in me. The fruit of such efforts usually creates a polarizing and dis-unifying “we’re good, you’re evil” mentality and “false” reality. It allows us to sit smugly back in our thrones casting everyone else into the shadows of our light. It REALLY makes me sick—and when I see it in myself, I feel sicker.
As one who appreciates and participates in the emerging dialogue and friendship, I often get labeled and boxed into a certain corner based on the label given me. As an example, there are a couple diagrams created by Michael Patton, which represent his certain opinion, floating around and generating quite a bit of buzz. Michael also posted 20 signs (and I get his humor, but behind it is a stab of denouncement) that you are moving from emerging to Emergent:
Top Twenty Signs you are moving from emerging to Emergent!
20. You only curse around fundamentalists.
19. You leave your church because the sermon was not obscure enough.
18. You refer to your local assembly as “church,” “synagogue,” or “mosque” depending on who you are talking to.
17. Your blog is a rant about how everyone else rants too much.
16. You brag that you have never been pinned down theologically on any issue.
15. The only thing you are sure of is that others cannot be sure of anything.
14. You bring your own wine to communion.
13. You are offended when someone says they are going to “Preach the Gospel” or “Teach the truth” believing they should just “Tell a story.”
12. Instead of a tract, you carry a can of Play-doh in you back pocket.
11. Your website links to Green Peace and the Democratic National Convention just because conservatives are against it.
10. You start a Christian blog, but leave it blank, fearing that you might offend someone.
9. You are not any good at art, yet you continue to present the Gospel by painting stick figures on recycled paper.
8. When you present the Gospel, Heaven is renamed The Matrix and you call Christ Neo.
7. Your church caters from Whole Foods.
6. Every sermon illustration begins with “The other night I was drinking a beer and . . .”
5. You have yet to read the book of Romans believing Paul was too modern in his thinking.
4. Your car has a bumper sticker that reads “I think my boss is a Jewish carpenter but I can’t know for certain.”
3. You don’t worship on Sundays because everyone else does.
2. You evaluate truth by asking how many people hold to it. If it is too popular, then it is wrong.
1. When someone calls out your name you get angry saying, “Don’t label me.”
I really do not see either the list or the diagrams as being helpful at all—quite the opposite. I have been reading through a book called Dialogue (by William Isaacs) and some of what he says really resonates with me about this whole inherent human need to label. What happens is we label something—give it a distinction, an image—and then we come to believe that these divisions are real, rather than simply our man-made boxings.
Isaacs notes that when a Syrian astronaut saw the earth from space the first time he said, ‘”From space I saw Earth—indescribably beautiful—with the scars of national boundaries gone.” The dividing lines disappear when you get enough perspective. The lines were made in the minds of human beings, in many cases drawn in the boardrooms of Europe and applied to places like Africa and South Asia. Yet now these lines have significant reality to them: Institutions have formed around them, identities are invested in them. The fragmentation on earth remains pervasive. [...] we make divisions like these all the time and then forget that WE have done so. [...] As a result, our social fabric is deeply fragmented. This fragmentation pervades the way human beings talk and think, in families, between friends, in business, in communities [politics, religion...]. It is a reflection of the divisive forces that we have inherited and usually take for granted [...] and so produces relationships based in the fiction of isolation. [...] Whatever image (or label) our minds make up is NOT the thing imagined. It is always both more and less.”
What Isaacs suggests next floored me with its complex-simplicity and possible beauty: That we might “practice the art of looking at something without needing to have a name in our heads for what we are looking at.” Imagine that? When we see something, or someone, or some movement, or—whatever—we resist the need to name it or label it. When we see a pregnant teenager with tatoos wearing all black we don’t label her, instead, we go deeper. We simply look at her and when a label comes to mind, we shuck it and keep looking until we see HER—as she really is—not a label. This enables us to view her and ourselves as participants of each other, instead of judges and labelers of each other. Empathy begins to surface. Then, perhaps, we might be at the place to begin a dialogue and friendship where we can really try to see them as God sees them, to love them as God loves them. We begin to see ourselves as participants with everything and everyone (with all of creation), acknowledging that we are really no different then the thing we are tempted to label.
So instead of asking and feeling the need to determine, “Where does this belong?” may we slow down and practice the art of looking at something without feeling the need to name it…whatever “it” is. Perhaps, like me, the labeling-alternative is making you sick. To that I suggest that perhaps from God’s perspective (which is more than enough) our labels and lines and fragmentations and names and boxes really don’t exist and they are simply images that we have created and worshiped…
Citrus C Monster. Sometimes, there is nothing a body needs more, especially when recovering. At least that is how my body felt today after chugging 15.2 OZ of this elixir-of-life.
I’ve noticed that my body does a pretty good job of telling me what it is needing, and not needing, at any given time. Still recovering from my brutal fever battle, I tried one sip of coffee—My body cringed. Then someone brought in some chocolate-chip cookies and I tried one—Ugh…not today. Then I fed it the C Monster and it went down like butter on a bald monkey’s head. 1000% of my body’s vitamin C requirement was well welcomed and my body let me know. It does that—very softly and quietly, at a gut level. And it does me good to pay attention (though seldom I do, just ask my wife).
My spirit is the same.
A lot of things, at the gut level, my spirit resisted—at times cringing—about the modern church expression and I couldn’t always tell why. Something at a core level rejected what was being ingested. But my conversations around what is emerging in the church today, at least for me, have been like Odwalla: a deep sense of refreshment, nourishment, and healing that my spirit has been craving for a long time.
And much like butter and a monkey, it has been well welcomed…[wait, that made no sense…??...oh well]
The emerging dialogue that is taking place across the globe is beginning to be heard by more and more people. Some embrace it, some resist it, others could care less. Regardless, its growing voice is getting harder and harder to ignore and sweep under the rug as a “fad”. Because of this, and my friendship with Emergent (one of the U.S. expressions of the conversation), I sometimes get asked what are some things they believe and stand for. I usually point to the broadness and diversity of the conversation and how this makes it really hard to “nail” down with one set of beliefs or practices; which is true. However, from time to time, something comes along that helps. A Generous Orthodoxy, by Brian McClaren was one of those.
Another one was a talk/message/lecture and open questions/answer session given in November 2007 by Tony Jones (national coordinator of Emergent) during the Emergent Mainline Dialogue at Whitworth College. The first hour, he gives an overview of 10 Emergent Dispatches (what he feels “emergents” value and believe). During the second hour, he and Doug Pagitt field some really insightful questions. Near the middle, there is a 5-10 minute period of silence (which you can FF through) as the audience views a video.
It is a REALLY good listen. I normally do not post 2 hours worth of material (you’re all busy) but it is worth it (at least I thought so), especially if your looking more into things Emergent. So download it onto your iPod, go to your quiet place (mine is in my car to-and-from work or a coffee shop), and settle in.
Here it is, online at: http://www.whitworth.edu/podcast/index.aspx (It is the 11/9/2007 podcast. To download it, right click on the “Listen” link and select “Save Target As…”).
Feel free to comment on the content if you’d like…
Last night a group of people met as an Emergent cohort here in Sacramento and had a fantastic time..or so I heard. Here is what happened…
Jonathan Brink and I decided to carpool together from Folsom to the Cohort. So we meet at Wendy’s, grab a bite, then head into the car. I am thinking he has the map, he is thinking I have the map…by the time we figure out that neither of us have the map, we are already at Sunrise Blvd, in the rain, too late to turn back. So we pull off onto 19th street and found Peet’s Coffee with plenty of time to spare. We gather up some tables and chairs, order our coffee and sit down––smiling at every person who walks in, but nobody joins us. 6:30 turns into 7:00, 7:00 turns into 8:00, 8:00 turns into “We’re closing now…”. Still no one. “Oh well, guess it’s was just us tonight…cool.”
As we drive home Jonathan’s phone rings and It’s John Smulo. After each of us asking where the other was tonight, we realized we (Jonathan and I) were at the wrong Peet’s (turns out there are like 7 of them downtown) and that a group of people met at the correct Peet’s and had a phenomenal time enjoying friendship and great conversation. We were dying with laughter…I am sure God was too.
Needless to say, we missed being with them last night. We feel terribly sheepish. But get this. While they were all enjoying each others company, Jonathan and I had an equally phenomenal dream-conversation about starting a missional-discipleship-emerging-church. So we’ll chalk it up either as divine intervention or just human error. Either way, God was glorified and we were all blessed. We were glad to hear they forged through the rain to meet and were blessed by their conversation together. Hopefully next month, Jonathan and I will be able to join them. After all, we are two of the three coordinators. LOL…
I have had a few people ask me what A Mending Shift means and its origins. Good question……
To shift simply means to move, to change. Sometimes, a shifting takes place for its own end; in other words, to change simply for change’s sake. Other times, a shifting takes place for another end; to change for a reason or a purpose outside of itself. The first makes the statement: We are changing. The second asks the question: Why are we changing?
Let me use my Jeep as an example. My Jeep has a five-speed manual transmission. I manually have to shift from one gear to another. If I were to drive down the freeway and indiscriminately start changing gears, say from 5th to 2nd to 3rd to 1st then back to 5th, the results would be reckless and potentially damaging. This is an example of changing just to change. When the officer asks why you changed from 5th to 1st going 65 MPH, the answer would be, “I don’t know. I just wanted to shift.”
Now, on the other hand, if I were driving down the freeway at 65 75 MPH (let’s be realistic) and came to the base of a mountain with a steep grade, a shift would be required. Why? If I tried to scale it in 5th gear, I’d drop to about 10 MPH and my engine would sputter and eventually stall. There I’d be on the side of the road with no cell phone coverage waiving for help. Now in the valley, when I was just cruisin’, I could stay in 5th gear. But now this new mountain has rudely entered into my path, and in order to get up the mountain so I can get to my destination (my goal and purpose), I need to shift. Not to just any gear, but the gear that the mountain demands. Is it 1st?…Sometimes. 2nd?…Perhaps. 3rd?…Occasionally. Even back to 5th?…depends on the mountain. But isn’t this relative shifting? Absolutely. My gear choice is relative to my environment, based on my goal.
So in our current postmodern context, or environment, what needs to shift? Our thinking and practice. When Christianity was cruising in Christendom (Constantine era to 50-100 years ago), 5th gear worked fine. In fact, it was ideal. When Christianity was in the Modern era (1500-1950 [some suggest]) 4th gear worked; a more principle oriented and scientific approach to scripture and faith worked. In fact, it was ideal. But now that we find ourselves climbing the grade of Postmodernism and Post-Christendom, a shift in our thinking and practice is required. 4th and 5th gears are no longer appropriate to our context. A shift is required.
But why, why do we need to shift? What is the goal or the purpose of the shift here? To mend. To heal. To restore. To put it in more direct words: to mend what is damaged or forgotten. To mend means to heal, to restore something to a satisfactory condition, to remove damage, to improve something. Notice how the word “perfect” is no where to be found. Perfection is not the goal. Mending is. And I apply it to two areas.
The first is towards us; Christians, the church, those who associate with the name of Jesus. It is the removing the plank from our eye so we can see clearly the speck in the others’. There is stuff in us that is damaged, hurt, broken, not satisfactory and needs improvement. As we climb this mountain, we need to look into the mirror, watch our gauges, listen to our engine, and do some deep thinking about our environment and the way of Jesus. How do we follow him today? What questions need to be asked? What junk are we lugging around in the trunk that we need to toss? What’s broken and we need to fix? How do we love, truly love, our neighbor?…
The second is towards the other; to seek their healing and restoration. To help communicate the healing that came through Jesus. To let them know that God loves them and is not mad. To communicate that they do not need to feel the alienation as runaways, but that they are God’s kids whom he died to love…come home! To heal injustice. To fight for the least. To love for love’s sake. To not require them to come to us for healing but to pack up our tents and go to them. To take seriously our and their crap…and to take seriously God’s expansive love and grace. To let go of our need for control and trust God as we get busy in joining his Kingdom coming to earth as it is in heaven. To make it about them…not us. To apologize for the pain we have caused. To humbly serve them with no expectations. To see them as people and not conversions. To radically live out Jesus everyday in a world that has pushed us into the margins.
And all of this is for his love and his kingdom and his glory, which in turn is all about him mending the damaged and having his kids stop running, believe they are forgiven, and come home so they can help him mend the damaged.
A Mending Shift: A shift in thinking and practice in order to mend what is damaged or forgotten. A restoring change. A healing alteration.
So there you have it…the purpose of this site. I invite you to: Enjoy. Think. Comment. Shift. Mend.
The hospital Chief of Staff’s voice could be heard clearly over the intercom. His question to his staff, interns, and orderlies was shockingly simple. “He called us together to ask us this? Our time is precious and we have work to do…is he mad?” Despite their disputes, his question still lingered in the air of silence, begging for an answer. The tension of the silent room halted momentarily by a cough but returned as quickly as it left. No one responded to his question; as simple as it was, no one responded.
Days, it felt, passed before an answer came. Then one after another they chimed in and the discussion began…
“Well, I would have to say, because of the retirement package. I have researched many hospitals, and this one takes care of their employees after the dreaded day-of-retirement the best. I am set and my future is secure.”
“I don’t agree. I went to years of schooling for this and even after all that, I still am not quite sure I know the Medical Journals and Books as well as I should. There is a whole lot more I need to study and put to memory. I don’t want to be seen fumbling over the book. I mean, what if someone asked me a question I did not know the answer too?”
“Those staff picnics…that’s my answer. Gathering our families together every weekend to hang out, eat, and talk about last weekend’s picnic; what we liked, didn’t like, what WE would do differently if we planned it, though I would never raise my hand for that job. My kids love the jump houses and my wife loves the chance to sit and catch up on all the hospital’s latest news. I would not be here if it were not for those weekend picnics.”
“I, being one of the ambulance drivers, would have to disagree with all of you. Man, when you throw those lights on and the sirens blare, what a rush. All the noise I create. Not to mention the commotion I cause on the streets. Everybody else has to pull over and stop as I wiz by. I even get to go through red lights without stopping. The best part is that everybody knows I am a hospital employee because of my bright uniform and all the writing on the outside of the ambulance. If fact, I try to add more patches to my shirt and stickers to the bumpers every chance I get. Oh, and did I mention I have a bull-horn?”
“Nope, wrong answer. When I feel down, there is nothing like the free ‘pick-me-up’ samples I get from the medicine closet. My role as the pharmacist has its perks, you know.”
“Being the caring person that I am, I must say it is to help heal people…well, certain people. I usually ask a number of clarifying questions before offering assistance. Questions such as, ‘What hospital are you a member of?’ ‘Do you believe in Aleve, Advil, or Tylenol?’ ‘What country are you from?’ If they get any of my questions wrong (by wrong I mean if they do not agree with my answers to my questions), then I do not treat them. Come to think of it, why do we let them in here in the first place?”
“I kind of agree with you…but I don’t waste my time with questions. I only care for and help those who are fellow employees. I love you guys!”
As the responses came, the intercom remained silent until the Chief of Staff interrupted the heated discussion his simple question raised. “Maybe you didn’t hear my question correctly…I asked, ‘Why do we work at the hospital?’ Let me rephrase it this way, “Why did I hire you to work at my hospital?”
The room was silent once more……………….“Um, yea, we heard you correctly,” they all responded and the heated debate resumed.
The Chief of Staff shook his head is disbelief. “No wonder there are so many people outside and in the waiting rooms and on the operation tables and in their homes and work places and schools sick and dying; my staff all have forgotten why they are here.”
– One wonders what our Chief of Staff would say to his church.
…If you haven’t read this yet, it’s worth the read: http://www.brianmclaren.net/archives/news/reflections-on-2007.html
Thank you Jonathan for forwarding this blog to me. His writing style is light and refreshing, and he has some pretty good things to say to boot.
Check it out: Letters From Kamp Krusty
There is a great bakery down the street from our house called “The Great Harvest Bread Company”. We frequently go there for their free samples and their homemade sandwiches. A few month ago, I met Len, a good friend of mine, there for lunch. It was a beautiful day so we decided to sit outside. As our lunch arrived, a man, who was clearly homeless, approached our table on his bike and asked us directions to either Reno or San Diego. Now we were just outside Sacramento and he was on a bicycle…so though we thought his question was odd, we tried to help him with directions. All the while I was deeply aware that he was looking for more than, “How do I get to San Diego from here on my bike?” The sandwich and chips sitting in front of me was making me feel very uncomfortable… as was the cash in my wallet. The thought of buying him a sandwich and asking him to join us for lunch and conversation kept bobbing to the surface, but I froze. I knew the good I should do and didn’t do it. We simply appeased his strange request for directions to San Diego by bike.Looking back, I can’t help but wonder if he was too ashamed to ask directly for food and so asked a safer question where he didn’t really need the answer; but inside, he was starving for what he really needed. After a few minutes, he turned and left––He left no better because he met us; God’s Spirit in us made no mark. I feel shame as I look back at this incident, yet deep inside I feel as if it has changed me. I would like to believe that if I find myself in a similar encounter, I would have the courage to do good…but I don’t know.
It is hard, at times terrifying, for me to truly befriend, love, and serve people, especially those not following Jesus and who don’t like the church. What if they ask a question I don’t have the answer too? What if they pose a problem too big for me to help with? What if I disappoint them? On and on my internal struggle goes of why I don’t give my time, talents, resources and money to those outside the church and in the community who really need it. And slowly, I miss the point.
Perhaps I am not the only one. Maybe as you look back over our life you have memories of not doing good to those outside the church. Perhaps your mind asks: What will they think? What if they laugh? What of they reject me? What if my family or I get hurt? What if…what if…what if? And like me, your fear paralyzes you and we do nothing. Our walk with Jesus slowly degrades to simply going to church, Bible studies, and serving those who come to church. And we slowly begin to miss the point, that God blessed us to be a blessing! That God did not bless us so we would simply enjoy our position of blessing, but that we would be a blessing to others.
You see, God made this idea of “Blessed to be a Blessing” known from the beginning with Abraham. Gen. 12:2-3 says, “I will bless you…and you will be a blessing…and all the peoples on earth will be blessed by you.” This is not just a promise that Jesus will be the ultimate blessing through the line of Abraham, but also speaks of an actual community of people who fully realize God’s blessing on them and are a blessing to those in and around them. Throughout the OT we see sprinkles of this happening, but let’s jump ahead to when Jesus entered the Jewish religious scene.
Here we see a community who had, for the most part, forgotten the point. They knew their scriptures in-and-out, they knew about the Messiah, how he was going to appear, what he’d be and do, they knew the law and the rules, they knew who was “in” (those who were circumcised and followed the rules) and who was out (those sinners)…they had following God down to a science, or so they thought.Then Jesus comes along to remind them of the point of why they were chosen and blessed: to be a blessing to those around them. He did this through teaching, correcting, and rebuking them, but mainly he did it by living out and modeling the mission of being a blessing. He blessed, healed, ate and drank with, touched, fed, restored, forgave, received anointing from, embraced, talked too, called to be followers, washed the feet of and shared communion with those sinners who were literally being cursed by the religious leaders. Jesus was blessing and accepting those that they were cursing and rejecting. Now I really do not think Jewish leaders were bad people…they just forgot the point. They got too comfortable simply enjoying their position of blessing and forgot why they existed as God’s people…to be a blessing to all people, to all nations. Jesus was trying desperately to remind them but they didn’t like the reminder…they liked life in the saltshaker.
You see, Jesus, in a brief parable in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew, likened his people to salt and said if the salt looses it saltiness it is no longer good. I always get hung up with how could salt loose its saltiness, but I think his point was this: if salt doesn’t accomplish its purpose, it is useless and might as well be thrown away. What purpose? For the sake of time and staying on the theme of blessing, let’s focus on the purpose of salt adding flavor and life to food that is bland and “dead”.
In our day, when does salt not accomplish its purpose of blessing food? When it stays in the saltshaker. See, as long as salt remains in the shaker, it is useless…it does nothing. But life in the saltshaker is nice. There’s a lot of salt and all the salt looks the same. It’s safe. There’s no worlds’ being turned upside down. None of the salt falls out or gets eaten. Life is good in the saltshaker. But salt’s life is pointless if it remains in the saltshaker.The salt, or people of God, in Jesus’ day liked life in their saltshakers. Somewhere along the line they forgot that they existed to bless those outside of themselves and thought they existed to remain in, improve and preserve life in the saltshaker. They decorated their saltshakers. They improved them. They cleansed them of anything not salt. They even took it a step further. While in the saltshaker, they condemned, rejected and made fun of all the bland food on the outside. They rejoiced that they were salt and not pepper or some other “unclean” food, like that slab of meat on the counter.
Then along comes Jesus. He tells them they are missing the point of why they are salt. He grabs their saltshaker, turns it upside-down and shakes it wildly over the bland, unclean food all around them–but they refuse to leave the shaker. He then says it is they, the useless salt, not the others, the bland, unclean food, that will be thrown into the garbage and taken to be burned in the trash heap. All the bland food needs is a little salt, not judgment. He said in essence, “If you refuse to be faithful to your God-given purpose of being a blessing to others, then I will dump you out of the saltshaker and pour people who will bless others into it.” And he turned to those all around him and said he is looking for salt who will be willing to “die”, to be poured out and consumed, so that they and others might live life abundantly––with great flavor and blessing. He didn’t care if they were Jew or Gentile, male or female, slave or free, black or white…he wanted to shake them wildly so that everyone, everywhere, would be blessed through them. Then he taught and showed them how to live such a life. He said in John 13:34-35, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” And in Acts 20:35, Paul quotes Jesus when he said, “In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” Then the Apostle John said these strong words in 1 John 3:10, “This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother.” (You might ask, who is my brother? They did too and Jesus told them the Parable of the Good Samaritan…they didn’t like his answer).
And what of the salt who enjoyed life in the saltshakers? …They killed him–it’s no wonder.
So here we find ourselves 2000 years after Jesus confronted life in the saltshaker. It breaks my heart, and I would venture God’s, to see groups of God’s people who have also forgotten the point.
• People who feel the point is to cleanse, protect and preserve life, as they know it, in the saltshaker.
• Churches who have forgotten why God has chosen to bless and forgive them…so that they can be a blessing to those who are on the outside, as it were, of the saltshaker.
• Individuals who have forgotten what life is like outside the Christian-Sub-Culture-Bubble we have created.
• People who know and sing all about God and the Bible but have missed the point of living as a blessing.
Based on our track record, I often tremble at the thought of what Jesus’ words and actions might be towards us today. And as soon as I say that, I tremble at what his words and actions towards me might be. Maybe, in part, this is what the phrase, “the fear of the Lord”, is hinting at.
BUT, when we feel that the consequences of life in the church-saltshaker become greater then the risks of being poured out for the sake of those outside it; that is when we begin to get the point.It excites me when we, as God’s people, get it.
• When we see that God has blessed us so that we can be a God-blessing to others.
• When people see us and say, “They may not be perfect, but, oh, how they love.”
• When we will be known as Jesus’ disciples not because of the tenure of our church membership, or which church we belong to, or how often we attend, or our bumper stickers, or music, or t-shirts, or doctrine…but they will know we follow Jesus and his way because of our love; because wherever we go, we leave a trail of blessing behind us.
• When broken lives are restored.
• When a widow’s home is fixed and lawn mowed.
• When a single mom and her family is adopted and cared for by the church.
• When alcoholics, and drug addicts, and prostitutes, and homosexuals, and thieves, and murders, and adulterers, and all others we label the “worst of sinners”––are not judged––but are befriended, welcomed as they are into our lives and fellowship so that they may be healed and restored.
• When people come to see and taste that God and his church is good; surrender their broken life to his healing and leadership so that they can link arms with Him and others who are all about blessing people with the blessing they have received.
• When God’s Kingdom comes to earth as it is in heaven though our partnership with God’s work of deliverance, healing, and restoration in the lives of others this is what should get us excited.
This is what the living the way of Jesus is all about. This is, and was, the point from the very beginning: That God would bless a people who would be a blessing to all people and all nations.
Can we imagine us being such a people? Do we long to be such a fellowship? Can we imagine the flavor and goodness we could bring to our community and world? I can…can you? I hope so.
In the spirit of spurring one another on toward love and good deeds, can I ask you to share a blessing to those reading this blog? I invite you to share your stories of how God is using you, the church you fellowship with, or others you have witnessed being a blessing to those around them…….
I wanted to forward on this blog feed I received from Emergent Village:
In case you just haven’t been satisfied with Scot McKnight’s “Five Streams of the Emerging Church” or Mark Driscoll’s three streams, there’s a new taxonomy on the block, thanks to Darrin Patrick, pastor of The Journey church in St. Louis. Patrick shared his categories at the Fall 2007 Francis Schaeffer Lectures at Covenant Seminary (download MP3 here):
Emerging Conversational — They are mainly after theological revision for the church. These folks are really interested in trying to re-imagine theology in light of our postmodern situation. They often challenge traditional understandings of evangelical theology and cast doubt on many of the insights of the protestant reformers of the church. They tend to focus on the mission dei (mission of God) that takes place outside the local church.
Emerging Attractional — They are mainly after methodological revision in the church. These folks are really interested in trying to re-imagine methodology in light of our postmodern situation. They often challenge traditional understandings of evangelical church programming and tend to focus on reaching people in and through corporate worship experiences.
Emerging Incarnational — They are mainly after structural revision in the church. These folks are really interested in trying to re-imagine ecclesiology in light of our postmodern situation. They often challenge the complex structures of the evangelical church. They tend to focus on reaching people through relationships and simple church structures.
Patrick adds, “Let me be clear that these classifications are only so helpful. … These classifications are simply my attempt to help bring clarity for those who are peeking over the fence and trying to understand the emerging church. I know my categories are not perfect, but I hope they are helpful for those who are seeking to understand the emerging church.”
So, what do you think of these categories? What resonates with you? What doesn’t? Do any of them cause a sense of anxiety in you?
Confession time. My wife, Jennifer, and I watch the Biggest Loser.
There is something endearing and inspiring about this “reality” show. 18 people share a common obesity problem and the same goal––to loose weight, and lots of it. There is not one person who comes onto the show feeling good about themselves or the choices they have made. They admit they have failed to eat and exercise properly. They are sick and tired of living the way they have been living and are committed to change––together.
It is an intense period of their life where they leave their family, friends, jobs and community. Why? To focus on correcting a lifetime of bad habits and mistakes. This is their sole drive––for a time. Are there other things in their life that are important? Are there other areas that might need fixing? Isn’t there more to life than just loosing weight? Absolutely. But not right now. Now is the time to focus on what is terribly lacking. Now is the time to mend what is unhealthy and killing them. Now is the time to loose weight, get back into shape and begin living again. Now. Not tomorrow; not sometime; but now.
This analogy helps me understand why there seems to be, to some, an unhealthy focus in the emerging church right now on loving others, justice, serving, missional living, etc. Some of us are waking to the realization that we have been terribly unhealthy in the area of loving people; people who are different than us in every regard: race, religion, social class, doctrine. We have a sense of failure. As we begin to listen to those around us, we sense that it’s true…they have not been loved by the church.
And so some of us are saying we need to intensely focus on our love-obesity. We need to take a radical season as followers of Jesus to exercise our atrophied love-muscles. We need to do an obscene amount of hard work to break the habits and lifestyles that have led to our unhealthy condition. We need to intensely read the labels on the spiritual-food we have been given and are eating to see if it is feeding the problem. If so, we need to change what we are eating, regardless how long we have been eating it or who recommended it to us. Our goal for this season is to learn to love again; thus beginning a lifestyle of love. This needs to be our sole drive––for a time. Are there other things that are important? Are there other areas that need fixing? Isn’t there more to the Christian faith besides love? (Some would say no, but for the sake of argument) Absolutely. But not now. Now is the time to mend what is unhealthy and killing us, and others. Now is the time to learn how to love unconditionally––unconditionally––everyone who is our brother and different from us; to get back into shape and begin living, as Christ would have us live, again. Now. Tomorrow will be to late. Sometime may never come. Today is here and the world is waiting to see us loose the pounds and love again.
This is why some in the church are perceived of having an unhealthy fixation on loving others. They come together not feeling very good about themselves or the choices they have made. They admit they have failed to live and love others properly. They are sick and tired of living the way they have been living. Whatever the cost, they are committed to change––together.
May the church of Jesus Christ become, The Biggest Lover (sorry, couldn’t resist). Perhaps then, a watching world will begin to listen to us again about the love of Jesus.
This is a great quote from a chapter in the book, An Emergent Manifesto of Hope, written by Thomas Malcolm Olson.
“On the first day of class I draw a large triangle on the board…Along one side [of the triangle] I write, ‘You are ready to hear what you are ready to hear.’ Along the opposite side I write, ‘You are ready to talk about what you are ready to talk about.’ Along the bottom I write, ‘You are going to do what you want to do.’ I draw several more triangles, ranging from tiny dots to ones taking up the entire board. Then I ask them to look at the board and choose a triangle representing the amount of change they are willing to make. I remind them that long-term change (as opposed to a short-term fix) boils down to hearing things they haven’t been willing to hear before, talking about things they haven’t been willing to talk about before, and doing things they haven’t been willing to do before. It’s rare for inmates to choose the smallest triangle, which indicates they want to stay in their comfort zone, but when they do, I give them my standard reply: ‘See you in three to five years.’ Most opt for the big triangles. I want them to imagine how their life will look like when it’s fully connected to God and connected to others, but they are not able to see it yet. But I can. It’s the lens I look through when I teach them about recovery….”
What a telling description of where we find ourselves today as followers of Jesus in today’s postmodern world. We find ourselves hearing, talking about, and doing things we have never heard, talked about, or done before. (For me, it has taken great courage but has birthed much freedom and healing to allow God into the areas of my life and theology I have never really let him into––because of fear, I had always opted for the safe, smaller triangles). At this point, we cannot imagine what this emerging life, or church, will look like. We are not able to see it yet; which at times makes us, and others, nervous. But God, our abuse counselor, can. It is the lens he looks through when he teaches us about recovery. And so we listen, talk, and “do” by faith––believing in our Counselor.
What size triangle would you currently choose? Why?