NewLife Community Church

Customer Service?!

This will start out as a customer service rant, but I promise I'll end up somewhere in the vicinity of spiritual depth & personal application. Just don't stop reading before you get to the end, OK?
 
As most of you know, my family & I have spend the last couple of weeks in Texas, visiting family & friends. (While we managed to see all of the immediate family, we missed a lot of friends who we would have enjoyed seeing but couldn't shoehorn into 15 days.) We flew "there & back again" (props to J.R.R. Tolkien for that nifty turn of phrase) to Houston, TX, where we also rented a car for about half of our stay.
 
In the process, we met a number of customer service people who need lessons in, well, customer service:

• the ticket agent in Fresno who was irritated at a number of us less-than-first-class passengers who got in the wrong line - because they weren't labeled. (Better yet, there weren't any first class passengers, just us "coach" folks who had to move our luggage & snake under the snappy line belts that Collin likes to play with...)
• the security guard at the airport rental car facility in Houston, who would not crack a smile or even acknowledge my "Have a good day."
• the ticket agent at Houston who was crabby that the self check computer system gave us boarding passes without checking in our bags... because it was designed that way.
• the gate agent at DFW who looked like he was trying out for a position at Disneyland's Haunted Mansion, only without the sense of humor.

All of those personal interactions lasted less than 4-5 minutes - in the case of the cadaverous gate agent, 15 seconds! - but the impression they left has hung with me for days. Their bad attitude continues to leave a bad aftertaste on our travel.
 
On the other hand, we had some really great interactions with customer service folks:

• The flight attendants who encouraged the boys to lean into the cockpit and say "hello" to the pilots.
• The gentleman who upgraded my rental car because he didn't have any compact class cars... and did so with a smile and a joke. I'd have happily hung out with him and talked some more college football.
• The clerks at the Willis, TX Kroger, who were uniformly pleasant and helpful in making sure we saved a few cents on our purchases. (They were taken aback that we don't have Kroger grocery stores in California.)
• Their pleasant attitude was a delight - and in each case brightened my day.

So, now the spiritual application: In just a few minutes (sometimes moments), we have the opportunity to welcome people to NewLife and leave a lasting impression on them. If we're sour, possessive ("that's MY seat"), dismissive ("surprised to see YOU here") or apathetic, we'll give them one more excuse to not take a chance on hearing the incredible message of Christ's gracious gift.
 
On the other hand, if we are welcoming, kind, helpful & friendly, we make it easier for them to put aside the preconceptions and see what this "Jesus stuff" is all about.
 
Look, I'm not talking about putting on some "plastic Jesus" smiley face and shaking hands & kissing babies like you're running for public office. I'm simply encouraging all of us (including me!) to be aware that we are the convenience store clerks rather than the customers. The store (the church) is convenient for those who need to know Jesus... and we are here to serve.
 
Quote of the Week
 
Love, in the Christian sense, does not mean an emotion. It is a state not of the feelings but of the will; that state of the will which we have naturally about ourselves, and must learn to have about other people.
   C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

Green Beans & Humiliation

I first heard Chap Clark use the following illustration in the Next Time I Fall In Love curriculum for youth. (Yes, you can tell how dated a church curriculum piece is when you realize that the Amy Grant/Peter Cetera song it was named for was released 23 years ago.) In the process of trying to help kids figure out what love really means, Chap suggested that we use that one word in a lot of different ways. For example:

• I love green beans.
• I love my mom.
• I love my girlfriend.

Same word, three very different meanings.

As I've been reading & studying this week, I've had the same kind of weird experience with pride. I can say that:

• I'm proud of my sons. (Which, by the way, I am - I've got great kids.)
• I take pride in my work.
• Pride goes before a fall.

In one sense, pride is a good thing... it's the warm feeling you have when you enjoy the success of other people. Or, possibly, it's the satisfaction of knowing you've worked hard & done a job well.

In another sense, it's a completely out-of-whack view of your own importance. This kind of "proud" slides easily from a healthy self-worth (remembering that Genesis 1:27 tells us that we were created by God) into an arrogant disdain for anyone but yourself (Proverbs 16:18).

The Bible uses the word "pride" in the same wide variety of ways:

• I have great confidence in you; I take great pride in you. I am greatly encouraged; in all our troubles my joy knows no bounds. (2 Corinthians 7:4, NIV)
• Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else... (Galatians 6:4, NIV)
• When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom. (Proverbs 11:2, NIV)

The cure for pride is humility. Note: I didn't say "the cure for pride is humiliation" (though that will do a number on your inflated self-worth... trust me, I speak from experience.)

And all of you, serve each other in humility, for

“God opposes the proud

but favors the humble.”

So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. (1 Peter 5:5-6, NIV)

Humility says, loud & clear, that other people are valuable, both to me & to God. It says that my worth comes not from my race or religion or bank account or employment status but from the fact that the God of the Universe both created me & gave Himself for me on the cross.

I'm going to be writing more about this... I'd appreciate your prayers. I'd also love if you wanted to contribute some to the discussion - email me at fluffdaddy@gmail.com or pop me a message on Facebook. Next time around, I'll be discussing the subtle but deadly game of "at least I'm better off than he is."

Extra Credit Quote:

A proud man is always looking down on things and people; and, of course, as long as you are looking down, you cannot see something that is above you.(C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity)

Fred, Lionel & Erwin: The "Royal Wedding" Syndrome

I want to add a warning to the beginning of this post... more than usual for me, this is a William Faulkneresque stream of consciousness kind of mash-up. You may not catch all the references (that's OK) but try and follow the thread of my idea(s). If you can't, it's not your fault but mine.

First, you need to watch this video.

The Secret of the Ceiling Dance by bluebird1111

For those of you who are children of the 80's - no, Lionel Ritchie was not the first performer to be "Dancin' on the Ceiling."

No offense to Mr. "Running With the Night" (a good Lionel song, btw, as opposed to the utter inanity of "Say You, Say Me"), but Fred's a lot more graceful than you are.

This amazing effect was accomplished by building a set inside a huge wheel - then gluing or nailing down every piece of furniture & decoration on the set so that it wouldn't move when it was rotated. Pretty impressive stuff, eh?!

Second, you need to read this definition from The Very Best of British:

Momentarily - As you come into land at an American airport and the announcement says that you will be landing momentarily, look around to see if anyone is sniggering. That will be the Brits! I never did figure out why they say this. Momentarily to us means that something will only happen for an instant - a very short space of time. So if the plane lands momentarily will there be enough time for anyone to get off? Weird!

In a similar vein, I once told Collin (my 4 year old son) that I needed to break him of a bad habit that he had. Tears welled up in his eyes as he said, "Dad, don't break me." Now you're properly prepared for the rest of this post.

I was studying & reading yesterday for my message/talk/sermon (pick your favorite - "long-winded diatribe" is NOT one of the choices) and began searching for an Erwin McManus quote. Thanks to the joys of Googling, I not only managed to uncover some great quotes, I also found a group of individuals who are very angry with Erwin and have spend an amazing amount of time writing about it.

Now, I'm a part of the online community of boardgame players/collectors, so I've seen obsessive behavior before - the "Eurosnoot vs Ameritrash" argument (don't ask - it's just as stupid as it sounds) chewed up great swaths of bandwidth & emotional energy while generating more heat than light. The Erwin haters, my friends, are some pretty obsessed folks... they'd fit nicely into a discussion of whether Go or Chess is the "deeper" game.

I'm not going to get into a detailed analysis of their problems with Erwin (a pastor & writer who I admire deeply) - that's not really the point today. I will suggest, however, that there are two possible syndromes that explain this behavior:

1. The "Royal Wedding" Syndrome - lots of folks want their Christianity and/or religion tied up in neat little packages with no rough edges and no sense of mystery. They want everything nailed or glued down so that no matter what happens, they know the rules. These are the folks who deeply love conferences with printed notebooks filled with outlines & sermons with subjects like "7 Easy Steps to a Great Marriage." These same people are flustered (and maybe even a bit angry) at God for not specifically speaking to every potential hot button issue in Scriptures... and since He didn't, they'll do it for Him and pull out proof texts to bolster their point. Erwin, with his artist/philosopher background, is never going to speak their language.
2. The "British English/American English" Syndrome - speaking of language, the fact that Erwin & the folks at his church (Mosaic) are willing to use terminology not often heard in church to describe Biblical truths is like waving a red cape in front of a bull. Erwin says: "The greatest enemy to the movement of Jesus Christ is Christianity." What I hear is "Christianity as a religious institution has stifled & attempted to channel the power of Jesus Christ in order to reach worldly objectives. Erwin wants to send people back to power & grace & love of Jesus Christ." What they hear is "Erwin wants people to not be Christians but 'spiritual people' who believe anything & everything."

Combine those two impulses with Erwin's love of confounding expectations with his speaking/teaching & you've got the recipe for obsessive website building & the same lovely behavior that Stephen faced in Acts 7:57-58 (NLT):

Then they put their hands over their ears and began shouting. They rushed at him and dragged him out of the city and began to stone him.

I'm not suggesting that anyone is headed to Erwin's house for a drive-by stoning... just that the same kind of "stick my fingers in my ears & attack" tendency seems to be present here.

Now, I'm not finished yet. It's one thing when folks have "Royal Wedding" Syndrome over an author. It's another thing when they do it with their lives.

I'm convinced that many of us (and I include myself here) want for everything in our lives to be nailed down solid... so that when life sends us spinning, we can dance on the ceiling without a care. Nothing will be broken, nothing will change... and when our life rights itself, when it returns to "normal", everything will be exactly where we put it.

But an unexpected death or being laid off or your daughter getting pregnant or the onset of depression or a hundred other things quickly end that illusion. When the room of your life begins to turn, nothing stays still. Things crash to the floor and you're reduced to hanging on for dear life. No magical dancing through a wonderland secured by roofing nails & wood glue for you.

As I've been mulling this over, I realized that I'm trusting the adhesives & the hardware to hold my life together - my plans, my nest egg, my house, my possessions, my job - rather than trusting Jesus with all of that stuff... and with me. I want those things to get locked in place because I think that I can hold onto them when trouble starts.

I'm not suggesting that you live in your car or pull a St. Francis & strip yourself naked. I am suggesting that trusting in any of this stuff is foolish - because it doesn't have the strength to support you when life gets rough.

The challenge is (to quote the Southern-fried rock band, 38 Special) to "hold on loosely." And we can do that because Jesus promises to "hold on tightly" to us.

Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you."

Take a look at that passage (Hebrews 13:5-6) in the Amplified Version... talk about making the point clear!

He [God] Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. [I will] not, [I will] not, [I will] not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let [you] down (relax My hold on you)! [Assuredly not!] So we take comfort and are encouraged and confidently and boldly say, The Lord is my Helper; I will not be seized with alarm [I will not fear or dread or be terrified].

One last question for thought: what if the stuff in our lives getting moved around and/or broken is a good thing? Ask Dave Zener about getting fired 55+ years ago... or offer to buy me a milkshake and hear the story of how closing the church I planted started the deepest spiritual growth in my life. Ah, but those are stories for another time...

Camping, Velcro & Tea

Making A God-Sized Dent: Getting Ready
 
As I'm writing this, Shari & the boys & I are getting ready to go camping. (We have not, however, turned over some kind of proverbial new leaf & begun packing for NewLife's Family Camp - we're actually going with some other homeschoolers this weekend & family camp next weekend.)
 
It's not a one hour job, either. Shari & the boys went to the grocery store yesterday for provisions; today, they'll pack clothes & organize all the stuff while I make sure the camp boxes have the correct supplies in them. Tomorrow morning, I'll be in charge of the life size game of Tetris that is getting all the camping equipment into the minivan. Shari will be using "the list" (thoughtfully provided by Nancy Marthedal) of essential camping stuff to make sure we don't miss anything.
 
And preparation doesn't stop once we've reached the campsite... then we have to unload, prep the place where the tent is going (no lumpy rocks or branches, put up the tent & camp kitchen, inflate the air mattresses... yadda, yadda, yadda. Only then can we take it easy and relax.
 
The goal is worth the hassle... being out in the beauty of God's creation with my family & friends is a delight. Sitting by the fire reading a book, hiking along a bubbling creek, watching my boys explore & become men of courage and adventure, enjoying camp food (esp. S'mores!) - all of these things are solid justifications for all the blood, sweat, toil & tears it takes to make them happen.
 
The same thing is true for us as a church as we prepare to create an ongoing small groups system that involves upwards of 100 people. It's going to take planning, prayer, dedication, diligence, humor & hard work... but it's going to be worth it.
 
Part of that preparation is education, so over the next few weeks I'm going to write about the basic principles that are guiding our next steps as a church. You are welcome (heck, encouraged!) to ask questions & make comments
 
Small Groups: Big Idea #1
 
Think from the outside in, not from the inside out.
 
The purpose of small groups is not to make people already inside the church feel all warm & yummy about being on the inside... it's to involve as many people as possible in communities of faith where the Bible is studied & practically applied to life and people pray together. If that's true (which, as you've probably guessed, I think it is), then we need to structure our system to make it as easy as possible for new folks to join in.
 
Small community groups are the Velcro that helps people "stick" to NewLife... IF we design them to work that way. It's very easy for a family to visit & then disappear if they haven't made a meaningful connection.
 
Quote of the Week
 
If I were to sit down for tea with Jesus, I would not feel comfortable saying, "Hey, Lord, listen, this whole 'love one another' thing isn't working for me."
 
"You mean my new commandment?" Jesus smiled.
 
"Yeah, dude. That one is super hard. Besides, there were already the 10 Commandments; did we really need a new one? I'd protest.
 
"I was thinking this one wrapped them all together," the Savior would reply between sips of tea.
 
"Yeah, I don't know, with the ten I can sort of pick & choose & feel pretty good that I obeyed like, seven or eight, which out of ten is pretty good." I wasn't going down easy.
 
"I am afraid you may be missing the point." He reached across the table & put a gentle hand on my shoulder. "The ten are for you, gifts to remove the burden from your journey; the new commandment is the journey;. So, if you want to show Me you love Me and you love your heavenly Father, show me by loving my people."
     Dan Merchant, Lord, Save Us From Your Followers

Making A God-Sized Dent: Recap

First, I want to say a huge "thank you" for all of you who helped make this last weekend the special experience for the folks here at NewLife... you led worship, cooked food, took care of kids, made sure the room was ready & put together supplies. Even when I'm the "up-front" guy most people see, great things like this don't happen unless lots of other people give generously of their time & talent. Your work is greatly appreciated.
 
Second, I want to take a minute to give you some bite-sized nuggets from the weekend...
 
Breaking the Barrier

• When you look at the numbers, NewLife has been head-butting a classic growth barrier (125 in attendance) for a long time... with a couple of exceptions, in fact, it's been the story of the last 20 years here.
• Since we believe that God wants our church to grow (that's the "normal" pattern of the New Testament church in Acts 2 & 4), the question is NOT "how do we get our church to grow?" but "what is keeping our church from growing?"
• We talked about a lot of different reasons for that: the need for more folks to work with children, the lack of good signage (which makes new visitors comfortable), and the need for small groups/Sunday School to help people have places to connect (more about that later.)
• But the most telling observation of the morning was literally the first thing I wrote down on the giant sticky notes we were using: "waiting for someone else to..." (I didn't say it, btw; I just wrote it down.)
• Over & over throughout the day, we kept coming back to this - how often do we wait for somebody else to step up & deal with problems and/or opportunities? And when we do that (or, better said, when we DON'T do something), what kind of effect does it have on NewLife and Christ's call to make a God-sized dent in this community?

Rethinking Small Groups

• I'll be writing a lot more about this over the next few months... but the "above the fold" headline on this one is that we'll be starting 5+ small groups in February 2010 that will run 8-12 weeks... which is just the first step in moving to a semester-based system for small groups. (Like I said, I'll be giving you more details in the weeks to come.)
• Here's the starting point: our weekend service opens the front door & lets people into NewLife... but our small groups ministry closes the back door & gives people the chance to connect to NewLife in a meaningful, life-changing way.
• Please start praying right now for how this kind of small group ministry is going to change our church - making it easier for more folks to be involved & for more people to become fully developed followers of Jesus Christ.

Our Competition

• The church's competition is NOT the church down the street - in fact, here in Easton, they are some of our best allies!
• Our competition is whatever else is competing for the time & attention of people in this community: sports, going out to eat, TV, earning money, etc.

Blue Sky Time

• The Disney Imagineers have as part of their brainstorming process a time for "blue sky" dreaming - in other words, the sky's the limit. You can come up with anything & no one will knock it down. (BTW, that's why the "Blue Sky Cellar" at California Adventure is where they show the preview models, videos & drawings of rides they're working on.)
• During our "Blue Sky" time, we came up with a lot of different ideas, dreams & questions. Again, I'll be sharing more about those in the weeks to come, but I want to focus on the five we picked out for immediate (or near-immediate) action.

The Big Five (the next right steps for NewLife)

1. pray for & prepare for small group launch in February... including polling the church about what to call small groups (the poll will happen in September)
2. create, purchase & install church signage (names on buildings, room signs, directional maps) - deadline for this is September 13th
3. pray for & seek out leadership for our 18-25 year old group... we have a number of young adults who need a place to connect & grow
4. pray for & seek out folks with administrative talents & gifts to help with organizing outreach, children's ministry & small groups
5. pray for & seek out more volunteers to work with nursery, Sunday School for kids & children's church... over the next 6 weeks, Church Council will be discussing moving to a semester based volunteer system to ease the burden on our volunteers

That's just skimming the surface of the weekend... we laughed, we prayed, we worshipped, we ate, we dreamed. Most of all, we sensed God at work in our midst... He has big plans for NewLife.
 
And regardless of whether you were able to attend or not, He has big plans for you. You are not here @ NewLife by accident!
 
Quote of the Week
 
That day about three thousand took him at his word, were baptized and were signed up. They committed themselves to the teaching of the apostles, the life together, the common meal, and the prayers.
Everyone around was in awe—all those wonders and signs done through the apostles! And all the believers lived in a wonderful harmony, holding everything in common. They sold whatever they owned and pooled their resources so that each person's need was met.

They followed a daily discipline of worship in the Temple followed by meals at home, every meal a celebration, exuberant and joyful, as they praised God. People in general liked what they saw. Every day their number grew as God added those who were saved.
     Acts 2:42-47 (MSG)

News of the Weird
 
This post was originally written in October of '99... I've done some editing & revision to it.

A pack of rats broke into a vat of moonshine in the storage area of a police station in New Dehli, India in March. They gulped down prodigious amounts of the liquid and then went on a drunken rampage. (Authorities could tell the rats were drunk because they were attacking cats.)
from "News of the Weird"

This is a true story.

I laughed OUT LOUD when I read this the first time... the picture of tipsy rats ganging up on felines while singing drunken sailor songs popped into my head.

Then another picture appeared... I mean, I'm a pastor. It's hard for me NOT to get allegorical.
Isn't the church a little like those rats? Yet, instead of being drunk on high octane 'shine, we are filled with the Spirit. (Ephesians 5:18) And we have some BIG cats to gang up on... a world that's grown cold to the power and love and grace of Jesus Christ.

Alcohol used to be called "Dutch courage"... a way to falsely build up your will in order to do something difficult. The Spirit of God is "real courage"... trusting in Someone bigger than you to tackle every thing in our lives: addictions, marriages, dreams, hopes, nightmares, debts, emptiness, direction... whatever!

That's what the church is all about... not only being a safe place for non-believers and believers to explore the dangerous truth of God, but a HEALING place where they can experience God invading in their lives and making them into what they were always intended to be - His children. And that's worth getting fired up about.

Marshall is Coming To NewLife

We voted unanimously on Sunday evening to call Marshall Pulliam as our part-time worship pastor for the next year. He's finishing up obligations at New Covenant & will be with us starting September 7th (and maybe one Sunday before that.)

Marshall & I got to talking Monday night - and didn't stop for almost two hours. He's a great guy who is a deep Biblical thinker & a lover of MMA (Mixed Martial Arts)... in other words, he's not your typical worship pastor. For a church that is full of "not normal" people (including the senior pastor!), that's a wonderful thing!

Be praying for him as he moves into this new role & the responsibilities that go with it.

Quote of the Week

More than anything, people want the reality of the discussion at hand. If what is going on in that building is the real thing, if the transforming love and power of Jesus Christ is being experienced, you can sit on a metal folding chair or in a plush theater seat. 
     Bill Hybels

A Little Bit About Marshall Pulliam

We're going to be voting Sunday night @ Cool Summer Nights on Marshall coming as our part-time worship pastor... so here's some bullet points about him!

• Age: 26
• How long have you been a follower of Christ? 9 years
• How long have you been a worship leader? 6-7 years
• Are you married? not yet
• What instruments do you play? guitar & drums
• What artists (Christian & secular) have influenced you the most? Shane and Shane, Chris Tomlin, Passion, Vineyard worship, Caedmon's Call, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Third Eye Blind, Gavin DeGraw, Sam Cook, Jackie Wilson

Marshall graduated from Central High in 2000. He played in a Christian rock band called Absent Stone, releasing a CD & touring from 2001-2003. He graduated from the Police Academy in 2004 and served as a Reserve Police Office from 2004-2008. He was also a volunteer intern at New Covenant Church from 2002-2004, then as a paid intern from 2006-2008.

Marshall is involved in Mixed Martial Arts. He was fighting up until this year, when he decided to become a personal trainer and teach MMA. He also helped open a non-profit MMA school as a ministry at New Covenant.

Currently, he works as a personal trainer teaching MMA, as well as leading worship for the main service at New Covenant twice a month, and every Thursday for the college/young adults group.

Marshall believes God is calling him to be involved in a church plant in Utah that will be starting in the fall of 2010. Therefore, we will voting on calling/hiring him for one year as our part-time worship pastor.

Personal Testimony

I've been following the Lord faithfully for about 8 years now. I had a rough childhood, in which I moved around a lot, and had a lot of anger issues and problems in school. By high school, sports kept me in line, although I was still into the sex, drugs, and rock n roll thing. My senior year I slowly started waking up to the fact that God wanted more from this life for me than temporal happiness. After the drunk driving death of 2 friends, and the imprisonment of another, I accepted an invitation to church. God spoke to me and I accepted His gift of grace and eternal life, and abandoned the life I knew.

What's Your Name Again?

 This post was originally written in January 2000 - I've substantially revised it before posting it here.

 May of 1983... outside my dorm (Penland Hall) on the last day of my freshman year at Baylor University. I'm trying to burn off the end of a roll of film before I hop a shuttle bus to D/FW airport and my plane home for the summer. I happen on a guy from 2nd floor who's loading his car... and, for some bizarre reason, ask to take his picture.

Tim (the aforementioned guy) tells me now that he wondered what kind of idiot would take a picture of someone he hardly knew. I just kept thinking that I could get the roll developed quicker if I used up the film.

So, I've got this odd picture of a guy standing against his Berlinetta in a parking lot with a very quizzical look on face... as if to say, "Hurry up and take your stupid picture... I want to start driving home."

Fast forward to June of 1990... on the platform of Shady Oaks Baptist Church where I'm waiting in my tux for Shari to appear. Standing next to me is that same guy - Tim Formby, my best man.

Fast forward again to October of 1996... in a hotel room in Forrest City, Arkansas. After a night of boardgaming, Tim and I stay up late discussing the ideas & dreams that will become the church @ hickory hollow.

And I've still got that crazy picture of him... and it reminds me that none of us know what role people will end up playing in our lives. We don't have a clue. (And that ought to cause us to think twice about how live out what we believe in front of 'strangers'... hmmm.)

Of course, I've got to belabor my point for just a moment... every person you meet is an "eternal being" (in other words, they will live forever, either with God or without Him). Simply put: you have never met an "average" person... each one of us matters to God. It's about time we started living like it... waiters, checkers, the guy in the next cubicle, friends, the girl who drives like a maniac... all of them... an eternal being. Wow. (Credits to C.S. Lewis for putting this idea in my head.)

I think that's true of churches, too. Chances are pretty good you didn't know what to expect when you walked in the doors of the church you attend - or, in my case, pastor. Oh, sure, you can read the website & look at the promotional materials, but that isn't the same as being smack dab in the middle of the experience.

Chances are also pretty good that your impression of your church has changed... some for the worse, some for the better. For Shari & I, the moment that NewLife Community Church went from being a job I loved to place where we belonged was when Braeden was in Valley Children's being treated for Kawasaki syndrome.
Here's what I'd love for you to do... take a minute & think about this statement: you've never been in an "average" church.

Really. Think about it! If none of us are average people - if we're each special, created with purpose & destiny, then the churches we are a part of are stuffed full of non-average people. And they're filled to the brim with purpose & destiny!

Now, your church may not feel like that this weekend. That doesn't mean it's not true - it just means it could be buried under a load of other junk: useless traditions, outdated methods, cultural imperatives that mask the truth of the Gospel. So it's time for you to start a revolution - to value each person in each pew (or chair or whatever) as people created by God who have the potential to change not only your life but the lives of people around the world.

Quote of the Week

It's a well known fact that young adults tend to mimic the behavior patterns of their parents once they start to have their own families. It's amazing to see how much like their parents most kids in my youth group eventually became. Once they hit adulthood, our influence waned and their parents' influence held sway. They parented like they were parented, did marriage like their parents, and even did adult Christianity like it was modeled by most of the adults around them.
     Larry Osborne, Sticky Church

Making A God-Sized Dent

Dented car
Originally uploaded by net_efekt

We're just a few weeks away from one of the most important weekends in the life of our church... and, yes, I realize that's a pretty bold statement.

Here's the deal: we desire to be a place that helps people not only become followers of Christ but also grows people up into fully developed followers of Christ. We long for a spiritual community that cares for each other & the people who live and work around us.

So, how do we set NewLife Community Church up in order to do those things... to fulfill the Great Commission & the Great Commandment?

That's what Making A God-Sized Dent is all about.

Friday night, August 14th: 7 pm - 9 pm
Come & Go Worship/Prayer

Saturday day, August 15th: 8 am - 4:30 pm
A Day of Learning, Dreaming & Planning

Childcare will be provided... as will a continental breakfast & lunch on Saturday. We'll need you to RSVP for Saturday.

Keep watching & listening for more information!

Parables & Rear Ends

When A Parable Bites Me In The Rear End
 
I like parables... I'd much rather learn something as a story than as an outline. (This may go a long way to explaining why I was an English major at Baylor and had real difficulty with my systematic theology class in seminary.)

So it's no real surprise to anyone that I've been teaching & preaching the parables of Jesus for a long time. I have fond memories of doing dramatic pieces (don't call them "skits", btw - ask me to explain this pet peeve some other time) in college based on parables - the stories lend themselves to theatrical interpretation.

It's also like a man going off on an extended trip. He called his servants together and delegated responsibilities. To one he gave five thousand dollars, to another two thousand, to a third one thousand, depending on their abilities. Then he left. Right off, the first servant went to work and doubled his master's investment. The second did the same. But the man with the single thousand dug a hole and carefully buried his master's money.

After a long absence, the master of those three servants came back and settled up with them. The one given five thousand dollars showed him how he had doubled his investment. His master commended him: 'Good work! You did your job well. From now on be my partner.'

The servant with the two thousand showed how he also had doubled his master's investment. His master commended him: 'Good work! You did your job well. From now on be my partner.'

The servant given one thousand said, 'Master, I know you have high standards and hate careless ways, that you demand the best and make no allowances for error. I was afraid I might disappoint you, so I found a good hiding place and secured your money. Here it is, safe and sound down to the last cent.'

The master was furious. 'That's a terrible way to live! It's criminal to live cautiously like that! If you knew I was after the best, why did you do less than the least? The least you could have done would have been to invest the sum with the bankers, where at least I would have gotten a little interest.

'Take the thousand and give it to the one who risked the most. And get rid of this "play-it-safe" who won't go out on a limb. Throw him out into utter darkness.' (Matthew 25:14-30, The Message)

I've taught this parable who knows how many times. (Well, God does - the whole "hairs on my head are numbered" thing - though based on my growing forehead & the general thinning going on up top, He doesn't have as many to track as He used to.) I've used it to illustrate how we should give generously in financial ways. I've explained that the "talents" in "The Parable of the Talents" aren't the things that get you on American Idol, but still proceeded to make the point that our skills/talents/spiritual gifts can either be used or buried.

But it wasn't until a month or so ago that I re-read the story as part of my time with God and felt like I'd been hit upside the head with a two by four. This time around, I thought about the parable in a relational context - that we can bury ourselves, our hearts so deep in order to keep them safe that we never manage to invest ourselves in the lives of others.

Hence, the title of this post... because in a relational context, I'm the third servant. I'm the guy with dirt on his hands and nervous flop sweat on his brow because I've spent far too much time perfecting ways to look like I'm close to people while maintaining a safe emotional distance.

I don't know how this is going to get fixed... but I know I don't want to make another trip around the sun and find myself in the same place next year. And if it's going to change, I'm going to have to risk friendship. Jesus, help me dig up my life & invest it for You.
 
When A Parable Bites Me In The Rear End: Reactions
 
I posted the article to my blog last Monday... and I received some interesting responses that I want to share - maybe they can help you figure out how to apply this to your life.
 
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Thanks for this. It opened my eyes too. I also am guilty of this behavior. I, too, hope and pray that I can change and begin engaging people for Jesus more.(tomg)
 
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You've posed a challenging interpretation with this twist, Mark. It's hitting home for me right now a little bit as well. I'm finishing up with 8 students right now and one of the issues they're struggling with is that whole emotional investment vs. emotional distance in creating an appropriate professional relationship with clients. It's an incredibly difficult thing to teach, much less practice.
 
I think I have a pretty good handle on this with my clients, and then today I went ahead and crossed one of my own lines and when I got home I'm kicking myself for doing so... until I read what you wrote and wonder if you haven't thrown a monkey wrench into how I teach the termination phase of a therapeutic relationship. And whether I didn't do such a bad thing after all.
 
Vague response, yes, and I won't get more detailed. Thanks for giving me the benefit of your two by four to the head. Hopefully I can figure out how to apply this both in my professional practice and personal life.(Dave Vander Ark)
 
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And then a Jewish friend of mine & began a conversation based on this... here's an excerpt:
 
ANYE: Although I don't have a problem with the message, I think the parable is missing a key data point. One of the servants should have invested the money but had it lose half its value - I would like to see what the master's response to that would be. It is very easy to reward risk that is in itself a reward, but not as easy to reward a risk that didn't play out as desired.
 
MARK: Anye - part of the joy of parables is that they are almost always missing what we think are key points. For example, what does the older brother end up doing in "The Prodigal Son"? (And the answer is not "providing ample wiggle room for preachers for nigh on 2000 years...") :-)
 
Too often, we treat these stories as allegory rather than as illustration. The idea, according to C.H. Dodd, is that a parable should leave "the mind in sufficient doubt about its precise application to tease it into active thought."
 
ANYE: Interesting premise. I never thought of the prodigal son as ambiguous but I could very well be forgetting some details. Risk is an interesting one, since there are situations where it makes sense to take risks and others where it doesn't. If the master's children were relying on the money to feed them, then wouldn't it become a little less morally desirable to risk gambling it away than it would be if this were say the fund he was going to use to buy some new furniture?
 
MARK: Again, I think you're asking the parable to be taken more literally than Jesus intended. You're looking for details & interpretation that the story doesn't supply.
 
And the ambiguous part of the Prodigal Son story is the fate of the older brother - does he agree with his father & join the celebration for the return of the lost son? Does he continue in his anger & bitterness?
 
Here's what I think: leaving the story unfinished forced Jesus' first-century 99% Jewish audience to exam their own reactions to the story. It does the same 2000 years later for those of us who are heavily "churched."
 
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Please keep praying for me as I have opportunities to share the truth of Christ through social networking sites like Facebook & email groups. 
 
Quote of the Week
 
Never cease loving a person, and never give up hope for him, for even the prodigal son who had fallen most low, could still be saved; the bitterest enemy and also he who was your friend could again be your friend; love that has grown cold can kindle.
     Soren Kierkegaard